#trying new things is hard and scary and also SO cool and rewarding

[curiosity-killed]

@ your tags abt trying to get people into ballet and running.. i am very interested in getting into ballet and running but i don't know where to start! tbh i feel like i might be a bit old to start ballet (19), but running seems like something i could start at any age!

FRIEND I have NEVER dived so quickly out of a movie in order to reply to a message as I just leapt from that terrible shitty movie to answer this

this is going to sound cliche but you're literally NEVER too old to start either!!

also oh god i'm sorry this is. it's so long. mistakes have been made

ALSO QUICK DISCLAIMER I'M A STRANGER ON TUMBLR AND THIS DOES NOT CONSTITUTE MEDICAL ADVICE PLS AT LEAST CONSIDER TALKING TO YOUR DR BEFORE STARTING A NEW FITNESS ROUTINE

starting with ballet bc it sometimes has the biggest barriers to entry:

People start ballet young for a couple reasons (for one thing: children are easy to lure in with promises of pretty costumes and fun tricks and then they get suckered in too far before realizing that they're 25 years old and spend more on dance per month than groceries but ANYWAY) including the fact that it's generally easier to build your base understanding of technique and establish the particular musculoskeletal (& proprioceptive) capacities uniquely demanded by ballet.

That said, even professional dancers don't always start super young. Misty Copeland started ballet at 13; there are professional dancers who started in their 20s. And regardless of your aspirations within the field, ballet is so fun. For all the media out there saying ballet is brutal and cruel and competitive (and it can be), ballet is also making silly faces with your friends and laughing when you mess up and feeling a whole different knowledge of yourself bloom in movement and joyful struggle. I've continued ballet for 20 years not because I'm great at it (I'm a decidedly decent dancer and that's about it) but because I love it and the unique feelings it provides.

So if you're looking for ways to start, here are a couple tips:

First, look for dance schools near you. Depending on where you live and if it's rural or urban, you may not have a ton of options, but if you do, I would recommend looking for adult ballet classes. These tend to have a mix of levels (i.e., I regularly dance with Legit Professional Dancers and also people who are on their 5th ballet class ever in my weekly classes) which to me helps the environment feel more friendly and welcoming. They also will often have recommendations for what you need for class and where to get it locally (if you ever need more info on this, there are lots of lists online and I'm always happy to help out!). You may have to make an actual phone call if you live in a small enough town (or go through your mom's childhood bestie's mom's cousin. small town dance is a whole different post).

There are also a lot of free online ballet classes which are very cool but I'm hesitant to recommend those for starting out simply because a lot of ballet is not intuitive and you can injure yourself by doing it incorrectly. Being in a studio with a teacher helps not only provide you with useful feedback but also have someone looking out for you and reducing risk (like a spotter in lifting but they may also be an extravagant Argentinian woman who swoons while loudly asking, "May I TOUCH your gluteus??" which is honestly way better).

WAIT ALSO: if you're in uni (or there's a university/college near you), that has a dance program, many have youth or community schools (this is what my studio was when I was growing up!) which can be DOPE.

Two quick notes: every dance school has its own environment. Most are a mix of good and bad, and they can all be a little overwhelming at the start. I usually recommend giving it at least a couple classes as a try (if that is an option) before deciding some place is Bad, Actually.

Along with that, ballet is kind of a lot. It's a demanding athletic activity combined with artistic components plus all these French words (often mispronounced and used in weird ways. That being said, there are frequent chocolate and cheese metaphors for fondu so...that's a win??). It is both a-okay and also super normal to feel a little overwhelmed or lost. One way to help is to make sure you introduce yourself to the teacher either before or after class. This can be super simple: "Hi, I'm [name] and this is [my first time taking a dance class/my first class in a long time/etc]." This helps the teacher get to know you and provides an opportunity both to see if they feel the class is right for you and to ask for help on any steps that were particularly challenging or confusing that day.

okay I'm stopping there but seriously pls feel free to holler if you have questions or anything else comes to mind!! i am the Anti-Gatekeeper of Ballet i want everyone to try this shit (with the appropriate safeguarding beforehand so as to be better protected against the various in-field issues and uhhhh quirks of the art)

also here is an article with things to know before your first class! i confess i skimmed it but it seemed like a starting point?

ON TO RUNNING

this feels like a good time to admit that while I am very enthusiastic and very excited to help/provide info on these things, I've been doing both ballet and running since i was. a child. and so am not actually a great resource on starting out because my brain was basically wrinkle-free mush when i did but ANYWAY what we lack in knowledge we make up in being So Excited about getting to talk about this shit

The number one thing I would say about running is extremely counter to my entire existence but: don't jump in 100% of the way at the start. Going too hard too early is the number one way to get injuries (hi chronic tendinitis, my old friend).

The number two thing is please for the love of god get running shoes if you really want to get into running. They are expensive, but a) it is much more expensive to fuck up your feet/knees/hips/back from running in shoddy shoes and b) I am extremely skeptical about the quality of the average person's general shoes and even if you don't wind up doing tons of running, they'll save you pain if you wear them for like. walking. and shit. Also they come in fun colors so that's a win. Anyway, if you can, try to get to an actual running store and have them fit you properly for your first pair. As with most things, you can try to guesstimate based on suggestions/lists online but it's a large enough purchase and important enough for your health that I would recommend not doing that until you at least have a stronger sense of what you need/want in your shoes. A fitter goes a long way towards making sure you don't drop $100 on shoes that tear your feet apart. bc that's what pointe shoes are for not running shoes!

Aside from shoes* (and socks*), I think a lot of running gear is...pretty subjective? Like sure, having basic athletic clothes is a good place to start, but the specifics are really up to you. I still run in shit from middle school, other people I know run only in high tech fancy ass shit. you do you boo

*technically also subjective but we're not getting into that here

Once you are, presumably, dressed and shod, my other recommendation is: fartleks. Both because they're funny to say and also because they're a great and versatile training method. A fartlek is, essentially, a run where you switch up your speed periodically (I'm sure there's a more technical definition somewhere but like hello it's 1 AM and i have lost control of this response). For starting out, I'd recommend trying to do a 1:1 or 1:2 run:walk ratio. That can be running 1 minute and then walking 1-2, it can be running for 5 minutes and walking for five. No one is actually keeping time. The idea is basically to incrementally increase your amount running while providing your body with lower-impact walking breaks, which are still exercising your legs/core/etc. and lungs. As you continue to do these a couple times a week, you'll gradually build strength and endurance which will enable you to do longer/faster runs.

Like dance, and most things at the start especially, running can kind of suck. Don't get me wrong I love it and think it's great but it takes a while to build strength and endurance and get to just run as opposed to making yourself run. Getting through the slog stage is often easier if you associate it with something you like: for instance, go for a run at your favorite time of day (with considerations for safety), have a special playlist of fun songs just for running or a podcast you like for it, or run a route you really like (to a favorite park or along a fun sidewalk, etc).

I also recommend getting into the habit of telling someone when you're going on a run and where you're going/about how long you think it'll take. If you have a running buddy (highly recommend), this is less important but it's a good habit for safety. Whether it's rolling your ankle or getting lost and winding up in the middle of very featureless corn fields, you never know when you're going to want to have someone ready to come pick you up.

You can go into a whole rabbit hole on running form and the real nitty gritty but I'm definitely not qualified to speak on that and also wouldn't be much help from here. I will say that, in general, I've found that the more relaxed you can be while running, the better. Places that tend to hold tension include your hands (instead of holding them in fists, try to shake them out and envision a heavy grapefruit or pomegranate held loosely in your hands) and neck/shoulders (try to think of dropping your shoulders and letting them swing naturally from the socket).

Also if you have the option between running on soft surfaces (dirt, grass, etc.) as opposed to hard (concrete, sidewalks, etc.), soft surfaces reduce impact on your joints (but may also be uneven/etc., so be safe).

And now a Runner's World article

oh: if you feel a tightness in your chest while running, a feeling like you can't fully exhale/inhale, have wheezing/rasping breaths, and/or a dry cough after running. that is asthma. pls don't do a me and wait almost a decade to get that checked out

#i feel like all my advice is like THIS THING IS SO FUN. Get the Correct Equipment and also Be Gentle With Yourself #orz #but i am right about this #okay sorry this is SO long and also. incoherent #seriously always happy to chat and answer questions or anything!! #i've been dancing since i was 4 and running (competitively) since i was 11 and i. love them. so much. #long post #asked & answered #anonymice #AND GOOD LUCK!!! #whatever you choose to do with this monster #i hope you have a lot of fun!! #trying new things is hard and scary and also SO cool and rewarding #also as a medium-adult i have to say these are both helpful in getting to know people and making friends #....i feel like i'm forgetting something #but um. it's now 1:30 and i still have a tub of cold footbath water sitting by me so #it'll wait!

[solisaureus]

i just watched eppy 3 and i need to rewatch it before i have more coherent thoughts but here are my reactions

LOVED:

- how scary the oracle was?!?! like just thinking about going up there and seeing that….in the books i was like come on it doesn’t sound that scary. but now i get it

- percy cutting off chiron to pick annabeth for the quest and seeing how pleased she was and then the fucking look on her face when percy admitted he picked her bc he couldn’t imagine her as a friend (who might betray him) YOWZA

- i loved percy’s lil moment with grover when he tells him he picked him for the quest….the g-man….

- the BICKERING!!!! the dynamic between percy and annabeth is already so entertaining and good and i cannot WAIT to see their relationship develop

- THE CONSENSUS SONG DHDHFKGK AND WHEN PERCY BROUGHT IT BACK

- annabeth’s moment saying goodbye to thalia and percy saying “i guess she’s really gonna miss that tree” hdhdjfkg

- the new scene of alecto playing to annabeth’s pride to try and get her to hand over percy and her not doing it……..

- MEDUSA!!!!!!! I LOVED WHAT THEY DID WITH MEDUSA OMFGGGGG!!!!! first of all her costume and design went so hard and i love the more nuanced and sympathetic take on her…it was such a good way to introduce the gods’ wrath and their unfair judgment and how loyalty and worship isnt always rewarded. it’s nice to bring this up early as a foundation for luke’s motivations later

- just the establishment of annabeth’s goals and values at the beginning of her character arc. The reverence and respect she has for athena in contrast to percy’s bitter resentment of poseidon is so good

- the fucking. fire on the stairs of the garden emporium? wtf the entire set of this episode was so cool. the quaint welcoming homey house in contrast to the Fiery Cavern of Death

- percy and annabeth saying they killed the fury/medusa rather than give each other up……….ffuuuuuccckkkkk

- uncle ferdinand :(

- “I AM IMPERTINENT” !!!!! honest to god one of my favorite percy moments and i’m so glad it got included

complaints

- the oracle scene was really abrupt and i wish there was more explanation for what/who the oracle was. if i wasn’t already a fan of the series i would’ve been really confused. also the fact that she was in a rocking chair and not a tripod. also i don’t understand why the prophecy was given through the image of gabe?? it made that scene feel silly when it didn’t need to be silly

- I WANTED TO KNOW WHO ALL THE CAMPERS THAT CHIRON HAD GATHERED WERE!!! I WANT NAMES CHIRON!!!!!!

- they didn’t explode the bus :( and i only saw two furies

- annabeth didn’t explain the poseidon vs. athena feud and i wonder if that’s just not going to be a thing? not necessarily disappointed about that, just an observation

- the fight with medusa was really brief and abrupt and it felt like they built so much tension for an unsatisfying payoff. however annabeth using her invisibility cap was so smart of her and also smart of the producers to avoid showing gore and upsetting violence so as not to upset the younger audience and parents

#robin text #pjo tv spoilers #pjotv

[souled-out-2023]

Breakup: lean into hope

When I was in the early stages of my breakup, a lot of really intense feelings swallowed me up and made it hard to focus on everyday activities. It truly felt like those emotions weren’t ever going away, like I would be stuck forever in that mess of longing, guilt, sadness, anger, loneliness, et cetera. A great relief and an anchor for me was looking to the future, and having hope that things would turn out better over time. Hoping that all the things I had been missing and struggling with in the last year would run their course and bloom with new opportunities. 

Of course, this is easier said than done. It’s difficult to pull yourself out of that hole when it’s so much more natural to just dwell. Honestly, I even felt guilty sometimes for trying to just not think about the breakup. I tried to remind myself in the midst of all the grief, though, that I deserved happiness. I at least deserved some temporary peace from all the tears and reminiscing, and I found that temporary peace in working to the future. I sought out some self-help advice on the Internet and TikTok (one of my favorite creators is Shelby Sacco on Instagram and TikTok. She has a lot of great breakup and self-improvement advice). I wrote down my goals and affirmations, and journaled more often. I reached out to some old friends and tried to focus on the things coming up that I was excited for. I played intramurals with my friends, and tried to get more social, to meet new people and go to new places. The cool things, big or small, that I had lined up for the coming weeks gave me ways to look forward to waking up each day.

It’s difficult when your whole world is crashing down, to feel like everything is changing for the better. But chances are, it is. That clarity just takes time to find, and it comes bit by bit. It’s been about 5 months since my breakup, and almost 3 from cutting contact. Despite a lot of hard nights, a lot of difficult feelings that still come and go, I know I made the right decision. I don’t love how things ended, and I have plenty of regrets, but I still know I’m doing better now than I would have been if I stayed. It’s scary to make those changes, and hard to deal with all the leftover feelings that come from a hard breakup. However, it’s rewarding to feel your life changing for the better, moment by moment. I look at where my life is now, and see all the cool things I was able to do during my breakup despite all that pain. I also see the amazing things I have planned for the future, from my major, to events with my friends, to sports, to clubs, to summer activities, to next year in college.

Now, I’m not saying you should pressure yourself to be fine, to go out and accomplish every single thing on your bucket list. You’re going through a huge life change, so be kind to yourself. Rest, and make times to do things that help you relax, that let you slow down. Take your time healing; you’re no less valuable or important just because you were too upset to get to the gym today. I’ve done so, so much sitting around and crying to sad songs in the past few months, and I think that’s equally important. (More on that in another post.) I talk about the future not because you should be pressuring yourself into productivity, but because making plans and setting goals can be a source of inspiration and excitement. If you’re looking at the ways your life can change for the better, all the beautiful things you can do to grow into yourself without that person, the breakup can feel much more bearable. 

So, the point: Lean into hope for the future. Have faith that eventually, this pain and tumult will fade to leave you with fantastic results.

A

#relationship advice #breakup advice #breakup #life advice #healing

[explosionshark]

Do you have any advice for fanfic writers just starting out? I’d love to post something someday, I only started writing fanfic a couple months ago, and keep it all to myself. Some of y’all out there (read: you) are so good at this it’s terrifyingly intimidating. I’m not sure I’ll ever be that good and I’m not sure how to improve, nor how to know when something is worth posting at all. Somedays I wanna be a writer and share so bad, but other days I think “what’s the point?” if I’ll never be that good. It’s tempting just to throw everything I have in the garbage. Also, writing fanfic is a new concept to me and I also really struggle with telling whether what I’ve created is in character. Basically…I love your writing, and, help??

first off, thank you so much for the kind compliments! it's flattering that you like my work so much and that you came to me for advice on this. it's important to keep in mind that everyone's journey into writing is different, but since i've been in fandom over half my life now, i can offer you a little bit of what i've learned has worked for me over the years

i know it's tough not to do, but you should try not comparing your work (especially when you're just starting out!) to others. i know that's not easy - i still have a hard time with this sometimes! but it's rarely helpful. it's good (and even motivating!) to find aspirational work in your fandom of choice, but once you start using that work to undermine your own confidence instead of inspiring yourself, it stops being helpful. i don't want my work to make you feel like it's not worth trying! i want you to create and enjoy the process!

i answered an ask similar to this some time ago. linking it here for a more detailed answer but the bullet points:

read fic! read books! read articles! read!

REVIEW - specifically, leave the kinds of reviews you would like to get on your own work. be specific and detailed. this is nice for the writer, it's good for you because it helps you learn to identify what you like in stories, which means you'll have a better understanding of how to apply those concepts to your own work, and it makes you more active in the fandom! (also, pro tip: if you review frequently and well, those writers will be more likely to check your stuff out and offer feedback too)

piggybacking off that - engage with people's posts! make rec lists. make meta/HC posts. leave replies. send asks. put yourself out there. meeting people in the fandom and engaging in fandom activities will make you more motivated. reach out to the writers you like, leave those good reviews we were talking about (they'll remember you), and if you're feeling spicy offer to beta. i credit beta-ing for friends and people i admired for helping me develop a lot of skill and confidence. it's a great way to learn from other people

re: keeping things in character - this can be really intimidating! if you know people who are familiar with the source material, see if any of them would be down for reading and offering you feedback! if that's too scary or not an option, well - take some notes! what character traits do you want to keep in mind? quirks of speech? what type of physicality do the characters have? what motivates them and how transparent are they prepared to be about it? ask yourself stuff like this, the things you like in other work or find important to your story, and write it down! make your own reference list, until you feel confident enough. sometimes it's nice to have something concrete to refer to, when you're editing or stuck in a scene

don't give up!!!! if i had given up when i was feeling unskilled, inexperienced, and unconfident i would never have gotten to where i am now. keep in mind the work you're reading and enjoying from me is the product of like 16 years of doing the damn thing!

Writing fic can be a really fun and rewarding hobby. For me, it's also a great social activity, because I get to meet so many cool people (yes, this means you too!) through it. The worst thing you can do when you're starting out (or ever?) is need the work to be perfect. Remember - finished is better than perfect will ever be.

At the end of the day, everyone's here because we love the same stuff and we want to have fun. Fanwork is a thing we do FOR FREE for each other! It's a gift you're putting out there for everyone else like you. That's something worth at least trying out, right?

i promise all these anxieties you're having are extremely common (i share or have shared... basically all of them lmao) but it's not worth letting them hold you back from having a potentially really great experience with your fellow nerds. i believe in you! write that fic! post that fic! you can do it!

#replies #writing wank #GOOD LUCK ANON IM ROOTING 4 U #CANNOT WAIT TO READ YOUR POSTED FIC. drop me a link when it's out there #writing advice anon

[thumpersdae]

🧠 😅🤗

🧠: pick a character, and I'll tell you my favorite headcanon about them.

I'm not sure which character to pick, (choosing a jodie headcanon felt like a cop-out… no pun intended) so I lurked on your blog for a sec and found "Scary Marlowe was in your "posts alot about" section. so we're going with her. I think my biggest most, undebatable headcanon for Scarry is that I see her as a fat girl. I know that isn't super deep, or exciting but it's the most concrete hc I have about her.

To make up for that I will add that, at the end of s1 I tried to make playlists for the S1kids-S2parents. and ended up gravitating to poetry for Terry Jr's playlist. because of beth and because sometimes being a teen with a step-parent means listening to button poetry on youtube and feeling profound and forlorn.

So now I sorta have this HC that TJ had a big poetry phase at about Scary's age and he's just itching to share some of his favorite poems with her, but also he's aware that sharing outdated angsty poems with his teenage daughter would be quite possibly the most un-cool thing he could ever do. but he did once leave a poetry book out without telling her it was his. and Scarry has poured over that book several times 😅: what story or scene you've created that you're a smidge embarrassed exists?

ok… so, I really sort of don't feel embarrassed about any of my fics. I know each one of them was a thing I loved working on, and was proud to share. and even the things I was writing as a teen, when I was worse at writing, remind me how much I've worked on my writing skillzzz.

that being said,,,, in 2014, I wrote my second fan-fic ever. (against my better judgment) I will link it here. please be warned the word count makes it hard to load on some devices, and the payoff is not worth that frustration. 🤗: what advice would you give to new fanfic writers that are just getting started?

I genuinely would like to tell all new fan-fic writers "don't take yourself seriously" the culture around modern fan-fiction has made it so this creative writing is one of the few artistic outlets that cant be commercialized. and I fucking love that actually. I love having a thing I can pour my heart into that doesn't need to be sellable. it took me a while to realize this about myself and there was a time when I spent a lot of energy and angst trying to write for clout or influence. do not do this. I know it's cliche but please "write for yourself". write crack fics, and shitposts, and rare pairs, and the same "identifying marks" soulmate au 50 times. abandon things that aren't working anymore, stop writing altogether for months at a time. this hobby is work, just like any other time-consuming creative endeavor. it's volunteer work, with no monetary gain, but that doesn't make it rewardless. but tyeing those rewards to other people's reactions rather than your own enjoyment is a good way to have the joy sucked out of this hobby. yes, i love the comments and kudos and attention i get from sharing my work, and interactions like that have factored into me being motivated to write more. but one of my other driving forces for writing is just reading over my old work, and then wanting to pin down the endings.

#my writing #...sorta #asks #i sound really pretentious here actually so don't listen to me #idk man(gnc) im just a lil guy writing dumb shit why are you asking me 😭😭😭 #also the fact im giving advice after ive linked the worst fic ever: 'Orange' by me #also also Mutual (my beloved) i would die for you. thank you for sending in an ask. i got to feel really important for like a day. <3 #10 outa 10. good friend

[kudouusagi]

Animage June Utsumi Interview (Part 1)

You can become happy through skating!

—In our last interview, we talked about how you were living an active skate life, Director Utsumi.

Utsumi: Is that so? (lol)

—How has your skate life been after that?

Utsumi: Right now we're working on retakes of the series for the package version, so I'm looking forward to being able to lift the ban after that. Until then skating is banned (lol).

—Is that because it's dangerous since you could get hurt?

Utsumi: That's right. There was a time once before where I got injured and couldn't work on the storyboard for a whole week, and so now there is a ban on skating for all of the animator staff. So I just have to hold out a little longer.

—Are you planning to reward yourself for having finished your first TV series, like buying yourself a new board or something?

Utsumi: Ahh, I'd like to. I want a longboard like ADAM!

—A longboard, huh?

Utsumi: Depending on how you want to use them, the shape of the board and the wheels are different. For dancing skating you need a longboard. Doesn't ADAM's dancing interest you? (lol)

—Did it make you want to try dancing too?

Utsumi: It's not really from watching ADAM, though (lol). When I was searching for reference videos (to use for ADAM's skating), watching the men's dynamic dance steps made me feel like dancing skating was really cool. Also, the videos of the girls dancing were really cute. I want to try it too.

—Since you're in the middle of doing the retakes for the package version, do you feel like that's something you have the time to think about now that the broadcast is over?

Utsumi: That's right, it's all about how we feel about it.

—After the TV series ended, what sort of reaction did you have?

Utsumi: There were things that went well and things we struggled with. The former includes the beef scenes. The 3DCG backgrounds are part of that too, and it also includes when we had the animators dance, since it really moved me because the scenes we were able to make using those actions turned out better that I imagined. On the other hand, those skating scenes were a lot of work for the animators and so there were times where it was really tough. For me personally, I just drew the storyboard. I'm now reflecting on it...... thinking if there were ways I could have made it a little less intensive for them.

—How has the response to this series been? Have you gotten reactions from the fans?

Utsumi: Yes. Among the staff, we never thought we would get this type of reaction so it's been really encouraging. As we got closer to the final episode it got harder and harder for us, and by getting responses from everyone we knew we had to try our hardest for the people watching this and looking forward to it. The reason we had the strength to make it to the end was really because of everyone watching.

—Were there any reactions that made you really happy?

Utsumi: Episodes 4 and 5. When things are hard, it's like getting reactions from people purifies us...... (lol). There are a lot of times when there's a really difficult shot, but it passes by in only a few seconds. That can't be helped, so for me to be able to say "I'm happy" about how it turned out, that makes me really happy.

—As the series progressed, the amount of fanart on social media kept increasing, didn't it?

Utsumi: When it first started it didn't get talked about much, so I was worried that "no one will draw pictures for this, will they?" but then I got to see more and more pictures being drawn, and so I've never felt this happy while making anything before. I was trying to hold in my happiness every day (lol).

—On the other hand, were there any reactions that surprised you?

Utsumi: The reaction to ADAM. People thought he was scary in episode 4. But it seems like since then everyone has figured out ADAM's way of having fun (lol). But I am happy that everyone was able to feel the same fear that Reki felt through the screen.

—Combined with Koyasu (Takehito)'s acting, it felt like his weirdness kept escalating (lol).

Utsumi: After his first appearance we had to keep increasing it. We kept searching for different ways to do it. We'd say "Since we did that last time, we have to go even further next time." Including how he would show up. Episodes 3 and 4 were his first appearance, so it was grand like a king, in episode 5 he pulled out the red carpet. In episode 7 he dove out of a helicopter, in episode 8 he popped out of the stage...... we couldn't think of anything further after that (lol).

—You felt like you had to make his appearance scenes more powerful every time?

Utsumi: That's right, since he's the star of the "S" world (lol). As we made the screenplay, everyone searched their hardest to find better ways for him to make his appearance (lol).

—How was your first time working with BONES?

Utsumi: It was my first time working with the Bones producer, Suzuki (Mari)-san and she really loved this series and became really passionate about it with me which made me really happy. I think it was because she was able to speak to the staff with so much enthusiasm that we were able to gather so many amazing animators.

—Just looking at who was in the end credits I could feel the excellence.

Utsumi: It was all hands on deck for the final episode.....!

—Is there anyone else at Bones who really helped you out?

Utsumi: The 3D team at bones who created the amazing 3DCG backgrounds for the beefs. Since it was our first time working together, I was wondering what kind of 3D they would make, but they made such cool 3D scenes that it made me think "maybe we don't even need characters anymore!?" (lol). However, since the characters are 2D I was worried they wouldn't blend into the scene and look like they're floating. Since the characters being placed on the 3D background will always be flat in comparison. But the 3DCG supervisor, Andou (Yota)-san made adjustments so that even though they're flat, they don't look like they're floating and so that's how we ended up with the final product.

—That's reassuring.

Utsumi: Andou-san really helped us out. The place where they always skate, crazy rock, was always planned to be 3DCG but on top of that he did the cityscape in the op where Reki and Langa are skating, and he even made the new course in episode 12 so I'm so grateful to him.

—Is there anything you focused on when you thought about changing the last course for the last beef between ADAM and Langa?

Utsumi: Since ADAM's mood suddenly changes, I wanted the final stage to be worthy of the final episode. Since the base color of the course had been a warm, orange color up until then, and I wanted to show that it was completely changed we used cool, purple colors, but since ADAM and Langa's are both colored blue, we had to make sure they didn't blend into the background, so the color designer, Gatou (Yukari)-san fine tuned the colors.

—I think that dark atmosphere made the difficulty of the last battle stand out that much more.

Utsumi: In order for the atmosphere to match ADAM who was like a grim reaper, it was necessary.

—Actually, the love hug is amazing, but the full swing kiss is more like just a plain old attack (lol). Rather than a race it's more like a battle

Utsumi: Well I didn't want this series to just be about normal races...... (lol). I even told them to make it say "race battles" in the PV. Though, there is an actual skating move that the full swing kiss is based off of.

—There is!? Is it one where you get off the board, swing it around, and get right back on it?

Utsumi: That's right. That is a real skateboarding trick. That's why his movements before he turns around, when he kicks the board to flip it up, were based on real movements when we drew them, but then exaggerated them for anime. So when he gets off the board it's just like the actual trick. So it could be called "just plain violence" but...... (lol). The turn is just a little exaggerated (lol).

—There's so many tricks in skateboarding, isn't there?

Utsumi: skating is infinite ☆

—The music for the last beef, it was a special song for that scene too, wasn't it?

Utsumi: I requested theme songs to be written for the characters who have a lot of beef scenes, Reki, Langa, and ADAM, so they could be played during the beef scenes for them. It's just, while ADAM had a dedicated song for the beef scenes, I ordered one with lyrics just for when ADAM transforms in the last episode.

—How did you go about ordering it?

Utsumi: I had Takahashi (Ryo)-san, who was also in charge of ADAM's normal background music, make it. But when I first listened to the rough draft, I thought it was very pretty. I told him, "Please make it more broken and strange sounding" and so that's how the final song came to be. It doesn't have any of the entertainer feelings it had up until then, it's a song for a grim reaper, but it's sad and it's like it’s desperately crying out for something, that's how it represents ADAM at the end. I thought Takahashi-san wrote a really great song.

#Sk8 #sk8 the infinity #animage #utsumi hiroko

[apparentlyaswarmofbees]

hey friend!! so idk if you’ve ever heard of butterfly knives? bc i have a few and i’m very proud of my little children. lmao ✨anyway✨ so onto the request; what do you hc the brother’s reactions would be if mc knew some knife tricks? and mayb a little bit of them taking care of mc’s injuries — i almost cut my eye out while practicing cherrypickers and now i have a big cut of my cheek and my right knuckles are constantly beat to hell because i panic and let go of my knife LQJEJEB (my favorite knife is shiela. she’s chrome, has a solid four-inch blade, and has ✨fashionable✨ holes in her handles) have a good day lovely :))!!

Oh...

My...

GOD...

ANON THOSE KNIFES ARE SO DAMN COOL I WANT IT

Please don't let go of the knife unless it's part of the trick bb kskdjskwejsiahbejdia

And that knife of yours definetelly sounds fashionable~☆, I aprove~

.

The Brothers, MC and Knife Tricks

.

Warning: a bit of uncensored swearing

Note: I would name specific tricks I have seen while looking at a few videos but they're so many omg.

.

Lucifer

Believe me or not, he finds it cute.

Of course he was first a bit non supportive, afterall if you hurt yourself it could cause some annoying rumors about the exchange program and there would be quite a bit of work to do to make sure it didn't affect Diavolo's honor.

That was before he became a complete loser for you though.

It seems he barelly bats an eye when he sees you swinging and twirling and throwing that knife around for fun, but he is actually paying very close attention.

The moment you make a mistake a possibly hurt yourself he is right there besides you with a small scowl on his face, well, the usual scowl on his face.

He nags you the entire entire time but if you pay close attention his words are much more of an advice than scolding.

And when he picks your blade up he does the exact advanced trick you just failed to finish perfectly.

Believe me when I say you will want to wipe that teasing smirk off his face, you can decide how.

.

Mammon

Yes the first thought he had after thinking how cool you were was 'if I learn it too we could pull a street show and get some sweet grimm out of it'.

It's up to you if you went with his ideas or not, even Lucifer wouldn't mind it much seeing Mammon would actually be doing an honest job and making an honest effort. And he is a fast learner when money is on the line lol.

He will still complain from time to time though, but you better believe he will be having a lot of fun.

He would be feeling so cool!! So you probably thought he was cool too right??!

Baby boy definetelly stops whatever movement he is doing the moment you slip up and cut yourself accidentally, which can actually result in him getting hurt too but he doesn't care.

He is there by your side in less than half a second and helping you in whatever means possible.

Please pat him in the head for being a good boy and doing a good job.

.

Leviathan

Oh boy, if he ever found out about it before you two got close he would be so jealous, he would be fuming.

How can a human think they can have such a cool hobby? They have so much free time they go searching for dangerous things and it's so ridiculous! If only he had as much free time and self confidence!

After you guys get close you will definetelly catch him staring hard at you while you try some moves, too hard, is he even blinking-

Just invite him to learn some knife tricks already, this baby is basically drilling holes in your hands from all the sparkles coming from his eyes.

He is the type who will let out a small 'pfft' and maybe even snort if you make a mistake and instantly feel bad for it if you get hurt.

.

Satan

Mom™ here was actually one of the only ones who were a bit worried for you when he first saw you swinging that around.

Believe me when I say he tried to use such knowledge to charm you (he tried many times to charm us to our death at the start of the game and this was no exception lol)

It basically always slips his mind until he hears the squeaks and clicks of the handles as he walks past you.

Mom™ will be pretty exasperated if you cut or hurt yourself in any way because of it, like don't you know any safety procedures for this? Do all humans just decide wing it even when faced with dangerous situations?

He's very proud of you when you manage an advanced trick! May take the chance to use it as an excuse to hang out with you.

You should try convincing him to learn some tricks too, I feel it would actually work better to calm him down when he is mad, though having an angry Satan twirling and swinging a knife around while mubling curses to himself would be a pretty scary sight;

F for whoever finds him in such state-

.

Asmodeus

Count him both extremelly horrified and extremelly aroused.

I mean, those things hurt when they hit your kuckles! And if you're not carefull while spinning it the knife could hit them too!! And oh my lord if you miss the timing disaster is definetelly to come-

But sweet allabama you look so amazing doing those tricks.

It's like a constant battle for power, constantly scaping danger by a mere inch, and the movements are so hypnoizing!!

He has so many mixed feelings whenever you cut yourself while at it, because oh for all hells, you are so cool, but also your skin-

He will not by any means get close to that thing while you swing it around nor will he learn it, but you better bet he will be starry eyed the entire time he watches you.

It's definetelly sharing in Devilgram (or even in Deviltube).

.

Beelzebub

Concerned n.2

Not that he doesn't find it cool though, and as long as you are having fun then there's no problem right?

The moment he realizes it can actually hurt you he is a bit conflicted. Should he stop you??

In the end he actually started paying close attention and has researched about certain moves himself, so everytime you try something new, for some reason, Beel is always there giving you tips.

You think it means he can actually do some tricks himself but if you ever convince him to try he will stumble a bit with it.

This big baby studied and memorized movements just to help you be safer with that knife please give him a reward-

.

Belphegor

He doesn't hold much special feelings about you with your knife, but he finds it a bit of comfort at the noise of handles opening and closing, probably has fallen asleep with his eyes open once because he just couldn't stop watching.

It was probably a bit creepy to witness-

Another exasperated demon whenever you hurt yourself, but he is also another demon who will pick up your knife, do the exact movements you were struggling with smoothly and with so much ease it almost felt it was in slowmotion, then handle the knife back to you like "See? That's how you do it, now you try."

Contrary to Lucifer, he actually didn't mean any harm and was actually trying to help so be patient with him lol.

This little shit is way too talented for his own good I swear.

#uwu #i want a butterfly knife- #obey me #obey me! #obey me! shall we date? #obey me shall we date #obey me headcanons #obey me scenarios #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #do you think they have ruri-chan themed butterfly knives-

[osakaso5]

Haruka Isumi Twelve Hits! Rabbit TV Part 1: Twelve Hits!

Part 2 | Part 3 

Haruka Isumi: "RADIO STATION Twelve Hits"?

Torao Mido: Ah... Isn't that the radio show IDOLiSH7 was on last year?

Minami Natsume: TRIGGER and Re:vale also participated in it.

Toma Inumaru: That's right! And we're gonna be on Twelve Hits! this year!

Torao Mido: Hmm.

Toma Inumaru: Why dont you look more interested!?

Torao Mido: It's not like we haven't done a bunch of radio shows before, right? If anything, you're a little too excited.

Toma Inumaru: Hold on... This is Twelve Hits! we're talking about! The famous radio show practically everyone in Japan’s heard of!

Toma Inumaru: It's been on air ever since we were kids, so you've got to have listened to it at least once, right?

Haruka Isumi: Nope. I like RabbiTube better, anyway.

Torao Mido: Haha, you're such a modern kid. Not that I've listened to it, either.

Toma Inumaru: You've gotta be kidding me!

Minami Natsume: I've listened to it. It's a monthly broadcast that has a new host each time.

Minami Natsume: I even appeared in it once when I was still a child actor.

Toma Inumaru: Seriously, Mina..!? That's awesome..!

Toma Inumaru: I've sent a couple messages to it, but they never got read on air. ...So you've already been on it, huh..!

Minami Natsume: Oh dear. If you open your eyes so wide, they'll fall out.

Minami Natsume: Though I must say, I like being gazed at so intensely that it might result in your loss of sight.

Haruka Isumi: Eek... Don't say scary stuff like that..!

Torao Mido: I see. In other words, this radio show is amazing enough that some people would even sacrifice their precious eyes for it.

Toma Inumaru: ...Ahem. In any case, we've got a really cool job ahead of us!

Toma Inumaru: The shows from last year were a lot of fun, too!

Torao Mido: You listened to them?

Minami Natsume: So, you listened to them.

Haruka Isumi: You did?

Toma Inumaru: S-should I not have..? Why are you all looking at me like that!?

Torao Mido: No reason.

Haruka Isumi: No reason?

Minami Natsume: No reason in particular.

Toma Inumaru: You three always work together perfectly at times like these...

Minami Natsume: I was simply commending you for having a genuine interest in even the hosts   who weren't your friend, Nanase-san, without so much as gathering intel on them.

Torao Mido: Hmph. Nothing we could've done about that. Toma wants to be friends with those guys. Probably because he's not satisfied with us.

Haruka Isumi: Torao, stop sulking like a little kid. He's not gonna understand that you want him to pay more attention to you unless you tell him.

Torao Mido: I'm not sulking. I was just pointing out that he goes on and on about people other than us.

Toma Inumaru: ...I just thought it looked fun, the way they were giving each other requests for the show... I kinda wanted to try it, too...

Toma Inumaru: Listening to them made me think about how fun it'd be to do that with you guys!

Torao Mido: Oh..?

Haruka Isumi: Hmm..?

Minami Natsume: So, you want us to complete requests for you.

Toma Inumaru: That's right! Some of them could get pretty crazy and extreme, but it just seemed like something members of the same group do together!

Haruka Isumi: Yeah... I guess Tenn Kujo seemed pretty happy when he got a request from his little brother.

Toma Inumaru: Yep. So you did listen to it, after all!

Haruka Isumi: Huh? Ah..!

Haruka Isumi: N-no I didn't! I just happened to hear it from a car radio on my way somehwere.

Toma Inumaru: If you already know what the show's like, then that makes things easier! Apparently we'll also get requests from the listeners.

Toma Inumaru: Make sure to come up with good ones!

Minami Natsume: Very well. You'll answer anything, won't you?

Torao Mido: Feels nice to be on the asking end of a relationship for once.

Haruka Isumi: Let's rebel like we always do, even on radio! 

- - - -

Toma Inumaru: Alright, everyone's here. Time to start brainstorming requests for Haru!

Minami Natsume: Yes indeed. I've come up with a request that should fit Isumi-san quite well.

Torao Mido: That's one hell of a smile, Minami. Is your idea really that good?

Minami Natsume: I certainly think so.

Toma Inumaru: I dunno why, but your smile's giving me the heebie-jeebies... You sure it's something that can be broadcasted on radio..?

Minami Natsume: Yes, of course. I'm sure it'll liven up his variety segment nicely.

Haruka Isumi: Variety... Ugh...

Toma Inumaru: Haha, what's with the long face, Haru?

Torao Mido: I know what his problem is. He's clearly feeling lonely because we can't be on the show with him.

Torao Mido: I guess even you've got a cute side, Haruka.

Toma Inumaru: Seriously..!? I guess that makes sense... Haru might work hard as our center, but he's still only a high schooler...

Toma Inumaru: Sorry for not noticing..! Next time, just let us know. We're a team, so we've gotta help each other out!

Haruka Isumi: ...Huh!? I'm NOT feeling lonely! Stop being weird!

Minami Natsume: Is there another reason why you looked so depressed, then?

Haruka Isumi: ...Twelve Hits! is a variety talk show, right? I just don't know what I should talk about.

Minami Natsume: You don't?

Haruka Isumi: Yeah, Tenn Kujo called me the "honor student of variety shows" once, and I don't really get what that means yet.

Haruka Isumi: I guess TV and radio aren't the same thing, but still. I'm the  last member of ŹOOĻ to go, anyway.

Haruka Isumi: Since I'm doing this, I might as well do it right!

Toma Inumaru: Haru..! I didn't think you'd take this so seriously..!

Toma Inumaru: That's great!

Haruka Isumi: Hey..! Quit patting me on the head..!

Torao Mido: Don't think too hard on it. You're the host, so can't you just talk about whatever you like?

Minami Natsume: Agreed. The listeners will be there for you, Isumi-san.

Haruka Isumi: You think so..?

Toma Inumaru: That's right, Haru! Take it easy, pretend you're talking to your friends if you have to.

Toma Inumaru: Like Izumi and Yotsuba! Or... Uh, did you have any other friends, again?

Haruka Isumi: I-I've got plenty! Just the other day, I swapped RabbitChat IDs with a couple of my classmates!

Minami Natsume: Oh my, congratulations.

Haruka Isumi: ...It was mainly so we could stay in touch for our group project, though...

Toma Inumaru: ...Wait, we're getting off topic! Back to the requests!

Toma Inumaru: We can help Haru out, too. Help him practice for variety shows!

Torao Mido: Like how?

Toma Inumaru: Well...

Toma Inumaru: Ah! Ask him to do a little improv skit!

Haruka Isumi: That's too hard! I've never done comedy before!

Toma Inumaru: That's exactly why. Can't give you too low of a hurdle! Besides, a real man can overcome anything!

Minami Natsume: Or a real man can trip over the hurdle and never overcome  his failure, let alone anything else.

Torao Mido: Hmph, don't you worry, someone will pick you right back up. Toma, that is.

Haruka Isumi: If you guys are joking, it's not very funny...

Toma Inumaru: You're not chickening out, are you?

Haruka Isumi: N-no way! ...I could totally do improv!

Toma Inumaru: I believe in you, buddy! You'll get your prompt on the day of the show.

Torao Mido: Haha, you've got guts, kid. In that case, I'll give you a hosting related request, too.

Torao Mido: Why don't you do a bit of bold self-promotion for your audience, and try to pitch ŹOOĻ to them?

Haruka Isumi: What, like a sales pitch for some product..? I've seen those on TV at night...

Toma Inumaru: Yeah, like one of the infomercials for those really sharp knives that can even slice a pumpkin to ribbons!

Haruka Isumi: What!? Knives can do that!?

Toma Inumaru: Pineapples, too.

Haruka Isumi: Holy crap..!

Minami Natsume: Oh my. Perhaps your skit should be about TV shopping?

Torao Mido: ŹOOĻ is a product of sorts, too. And it'll be your job to sell us to the listeners, Haruka.

Torao Mido: Captivate your audience so well that no amount of money will be enough for them to get enough of us. Your words will decide our value.

Torao Mido: What do you think? It's a pretty good talk show excercise.

Haruka Isumi: It's a pain in the ass... All I'd need to do is play them one of our shows. Can I just sing or something?

Torao Mido: If that's what you'd rather practice, then sure, whatever.

Haruka Isumi: ...Fine. I'll try.

Torao Mido: Haha, you're actually being obedient for once.

Haruka Isumi: I'm plenty obedient. And I don't really wanna do it, but we agreed on the "no takebacks" rule, remember?

Haruka Isumi: Plus, I get that you guys are just trying to help me out...

Minami Natsume: Hee hee. In that case, I suppose my request will be something sweet, to reward you for being good.

Haruka Isumi: Sweet?

Minami Natsume: Think of it as the carrot to their stick.

Minami Natsume: You may make a request for the three of us. Us older members should do our duty and spoil you every now and then, especially seeing as how your birthday is coming up.

Haruka Isumi: Huh!? I get to ask you guys for something!? ...Like, anything!?

Minami Natsume: Yes, anything. After all, we have a young heir in our midst.

Torao Mido: Since when am I an heir? Oh, well.

Toma Inumaru: ...So Mina's request was perfectly normal and radio approriate. I dunno why I was so worried...

Minami Natsume: Hee hee. I said it would fit him nicely, did I not?

Haruka Isumi: ...Feels weird. I know the skit and stuff sounded hard, but even they'd be for my own self improvement...

Minami Natsume: I only felt like going easier on you today.

Torao Mido: You'd better be grateful.

Toma Inumaru: Come on, guys..! You could at least admit how much you care about Haru!

Haruka Isumi: Hmm? ...Ehehe!

Haruka Isumi: This feels kinda nice! But still, I can't let you go too easy on me.

Haruka Isumi: I'll shock you with how good my radio hosting will be! 

End of Part 1.

#idolish7 #haruka isumi #twelve hits! #translation #zool #rabbit tv

[meimae]

Language Learning Through Immersion: One Year Japanese Update

11/03/2021

I did it, you guys! I’ve successfully reached my very first year of Japanese language immersion! I honestly thought that I would have given up by now, but this really has been a fun and ultimately rewarding endeavor.

Studying the language has been at the back of my mind for years since elementary school, I just never really knew how to go about it before, and I always thought that I could learn it in a classroom setting someday. That someday for me was in two elective courses in university, and while those were fun as well, it did not give me the same gains that I have achieved in this past year.

It’s probably easier to quantify learning a language in a classroom setting, especially when going through a program to earn a language degree. Learning through immersion, however, I had to really consider what my goals should be on my own. Eventually, I stumbled upon an article saying that for an English speaker, Japanese was exceptionally difficult to learn and that at least 2,200 hours must be spent with the language to reach a certain level of proficiency. So I said to myself, “well okay internet, if you say so!”, and set that as my long term goal going forward.

Spoiler Alert: I did not hit that goal in my first year. I am not crazy and will never listen to Japanese in my sleep regardless of what Khatzumoto (the creator of All Japanese All the Time) says. 

I did, however, hit a total 1,226.65 active immersion hours in my first year, so I guess I’m still a bit nuts. That is 874.96 hours of active listening and 351.69 reading hours. I also did 270.59 hours of passive listening, also known as the time in the very beginning of my immersion where I was using Japanese subtitles (therefore not really concentrating on listening alone). That’s a cumulative 1,497.24 hours spent with Japanese. That’s more than halfway towards my goal! 

To further break that down for curious animanga fans out there, that’s 973 episodes from 109 anime, 765 episodes from 33 dramas, 7 movies, and 967 chapters from 107 volumes of manga (21 series). Here’s my anilist and mydramalist to see what I’ve read/watched.

During all this, I was also doing my daily Anki reps and now I have a 530 day SRS streak (includes the time prior starting immersion and only doing RTK and some vocabulary cards) and a total 8,857 sentence cards. I’ve been averaging 406 cards daily (because I’m trying to cure my leeches) and I spend about an hour per day doing reps and learning new cards. I don’t really track my time on Anki, but I do have a set timer that goes off after 1-1:30 hours.

What I haven’t touched upon at all is output. I have not gone out of my way to find a tutor or a language partner. There’s still plenty of input out there to immerse in before I even consider outputting.

Graphs, stats, and more thoughts:

Here's my current card count in my main deck (minus the cards in my new/learning queue and leeches I've been relearning which are in separate decks):

That one day in 2019 where I did not do my cards because I was seriously doubting whether I can actually stick with language learning this time around will forever haunt and inspire me to keep going everyday.

Workflow and Tips

You might be wondering, how do I have a lot of time? I started this whole endeavor in the middle of a pandemic, which eliminated the option of me going to a language school, and a slew of other things I were considering doing last year became impossible (and if anything, very scary to do in a pandemic). All I can say is that, things work out eventually if it is His will, and if I can learn a skill before everything properly settles back down again, then why not? 

I wake up at 5 in the morning everyday to either do my Anki reps or read until the time when I need to get up and I listen to compressed audio throughout the day. The biggest tip is to switch the time you spend watching/reading in your native language to your target language instead. Listen to a podcast during your commute, watch an episode during lunch break, read before going to bed, do your Anki reps in the bathroom if you have to. 

But, if you’re feeling burnt out, there is no reason for you to not take a break! I have been watching a lot of Among Us streams before bed, and I chat with my friends from time to time. Language learning is not a race.

More Stats

Here are a couple of grids of the kanji characters that I have encountered at least once in my immersion and how well I have answered them in my vocabulary/sentence cards.

It's interesting that after almost 9000 words, I have yet to encounter every single character from the Remembering the Kanji 1 (RTK 1) book by James Heisig, which teaches you the most common use characters that are part of the 常用漢字. Which brings me to the question, was writing down every single character being taught in RTK worth it every time it came up in my reviews for the first 3-ish months I was reviewing them? Maybe, maybe not. It certainly removed my anxiety whenever looking at blocks of text in Japanese, but the longer I think about it, the more I feel I should have switched to Recognition RTK earlier. Still, being able to write in proper stroke order is cool I guess, and it also helps me when looking things up in the dictionary.

Here’s the same grid but in JLPT order:

I clearly need to grind those N2 and N1 level cards! Speaking of which, I have apparently almost covered every single character that could possibly appear in the JLPT (except for the N1 which I have only covered half of) in just a year's time. If the JLPT word frequency lists I’m using are accurate, I have about 2,000 words more to go to to cover most vocabulary that could appear in the test. This makes the "10,000 sentences/words to fluency" argument a reasonable milestone to aim for for Japanese learners if said aim is only to pass the test. That said, 10,000 words is just that, a milestone. It's more akin to a comfortable level of comprehension, but not my own concept of fluency which is being able to read with ease, speak articulately, and write comfortably.

READING IMMERSION GRAPHS

My biggest motivation for tracking my stats is for the purpose of seeing whether my reading speed is improving over time. Reading speed is also easier to measure than listening comprehension which is kind of subjective, so I had a lot of fun making these. What I found is that for the first volume or chapter of whatever it is I’m reading, I always take the time to get used to the writing style of the author. My speed really improves whenever I keep reading the same topic over and over again. On the other hand and quite obviously, looking up many new words in a row and trying to parse sentences slows me down.

Manga: Reading Speed Progression per Volume

I clearly love ちはやふる and I am not ashamed to admit it.

I need to start reading longer manga. When I do, I’ll probably split this graph into less than and greater than 20 volumes. Imagine if I start reading something ridiculously long as 名探偵コナン or ワンピース, these graphs will start breaching the bounds of time and space.

Novels: Time Spent Reading per Chapter

#neverforget the time I read chapter six of Norwegian Wood for 9 hours when it took me less than half that time in English RIP. Also, my interest in Kitchen plummeted LOL. Still planning to finish it don’t worry. 

I also need to start branching away from manga and start reading more novels and light novels, too just so I can make more pretty graphs.

Visual Novels: Time Spent Reading and Daily Word Count

Also known as images that clearly show that I’ve already spent several days only reading the prologue of Island. I’m not sweating. 切那 needs to stop using words I don’t know in succession. More thoughts on this VN far into the future.

Thoughts on Immersion

I can’t really say anything else other that that it works for me, and needless to say if you’re considering this method, remember that the SRS is your friend but immersion should be your one true love.

Prior to all this, I couldn’t even read a sample paragraph from Genki without being confused to my very soul. Yes, I know, it’s embarrassing, but that’s the truth. I was way more scared of failing my Japanese classes than my actual thesis for my bachelors degree, I kid you not. I would quite literally spend all my free time in university trying to understand grammar, memorize vocabulary, and answer my workbook exercises with little to no success. 

I tried so hard to get all the grammar “formulas” into my head for 1.5 years and it only brought me more confusion. I’m never going back to traditional classroom study for language learning, but I will still refer to grammar books when I need to, and not because I feel like I need to answer 4783342 different workbook exercises like my life depended on it.

I still can’t believe it, but with immersion this statement is actually true to a point, don’t try shadowing anime/or calling your boss anime language slurs, use your common sense:

study anime to understand Japanese > study Japanese to understand anime 

Future Goals/Plans

2,200 immersion hours was my initial goal, but honestly I feel like that number could be much higher. There’s still a lot of stuff I don’t understand (news, politics, sciences, etc.), so I’ll make attempts to cover more of those things in my immersion. 

I’ll continue reading more, because that’s a natural SRS in itself. Try to read longer manga, more novels, visual novels, and light novels, and maybe news articles. 

I’ll try to mine as much “JLPT vocab” as I can before making any attempts at taking the JLPT. I noticed that a lot of the words I know don’t appear in the JLPT word lists as much, even though they appear a lot in media/daily conversation. 

Continue mining all words I don’t know because all words are useful anyway. There is no such thing as useless words. I never really understood mining only “interesting words” or words that “pop up” in your immersion. As I said in my previous blog post, 美人局 is an interesting word and I certainly caught it being said in my immersion, but in the three languages I know, I wouldn’t know when I would be able to use such a word, as compared to something like ジャガイモ which is a significantly less interesting word, but is certainly useful to know. 

_

I have managed to talk up a storm, but if you have any questions regarding my process or recommendations for new immersion material, please feel free to send an ask/reply to this post. I love hearing about other people’s language learning/immersion journeys. 

See you on my next post!

#language learning #japanese language #language acquisition #study blog #langblr #studyblr #graphs #language immersion #japanese #visual novels #manga #novels #anime #dramas #movies #youtube #podcasts

[coccinelle-et-chaton]

@miraculous-bullshit ask and you shall receive! :D (sorry I tagged you again!) Note: reposted to not clog poor @toujoursmiraculous post :D 

Interruptions 

based on this thread

For what it’s worth, it took a lot to upset Luka Couffaine. He prided himself in that. He was never one to make a big deal out of things, unless absolutely necessary. Mild inconveniences like being flipped off for accidentally bumping someone in the metro, someone cutting him in a waiting line, entitled moms berating him at his job, being made fun of, not getting his way with something; these were all easily brushed off.

It’s not that he didn’t care, he just knew there were bigger things to worry about than an asshole being an asshole. He lived in Paris, after all. A city that big was bound to be ridden with them.

However, he had learned something about himself recently: His weak spot was Marinette. His skin positively crawled whenever anyone tried to harm, belittle, mock, or otherwise wrong her. There was a second element to this pet peeve of his; he had also discovered that he hated when someone interrupted them. It wasn’t jealousy or anything. It was more the fact that Marinette being the sheer tornado of creative power that she was, was always up to something. Finding a way to squeeze himself into her schedule was already a feat in itself, so he prized every minute he got to spend with her.

Needless to say, this was the precise reason why Luka was so excited for the weekend. He and Marinette were going to spend the entire Saturday afternoon together and the first order of business was going to the park and get ice cream.

The first offense happened at the hands of someone he otherwise respected.

Marinette and Luka had set up a blanket on a spot under a big, hefty tree. The ice cream was already gone, and Luka was playing a few new songs for Marinette. He had, rather evidently, sat a bit closer to her in the hopes that she might lean against him. Which she did, inadvertently causing for Luka’s heart to skip a beat or two. Now that’s an irony, a musician missing a beat.

Sensing Marinette resting her head against his arm, Luka put down the guitar and tentatively shifted to try and bring Marinette into his arms.

Then it happened.

Out of nowhere, a blur of a person crashed down through the foliage of the tree, falling right in the middle of the pair, and effectively dissolving the calm of the moment.

“Meowch! Heh, sorry!”

“Chat Noir?” Marinette exclaimed, uncharacteristically annoyed as Luka and her crawled from the pile of cat on top of them.

Chat Noir scrambled to his feet and gave them a sheepish smile. “Apologies er, fellow Parisians! Got stuck in the tree for a second there, hah.”

As Marinette grumbled, Luka simply shrugged, smiled coolly at him, and joked, “It happens. Maybe next time we’ll call the fire department to get the cat unstuck?”

Chat Noir blushed with a bit of embarrassment, largely due to the fact that Marinette actually laughed at the joke. Luka had no way of knowing this, of course, but Chat Noir had caught glimpse of him and Marinette as he vaulted through the city and had decided it would be a good idea to spy on them by perching on the tree they sat under, which only added to his shame.

“Yeah. So uh, yep. Sorry!” he babbled again, before scurrying out of the picture.

The second offense was at the hands of Paris’ resident terrorist. And Chat Noir. Again.

After getting their ice cream, Luka and Marinette walked around the city a bit and ended up at the steps of the Trocadero, where as luck would have it, an Akuma appeared.

As Luka and Marinette scrambled to get to safety, Chat Noir cut in to push them out of the way from one of the Akuma’s attacks.

It did not escape Luka that Chat Noir scooped Marinette up and vaulted away with her. He was glad Chat Noir was fulfilling his duties and that Marinette was now at least out of harm’s way, but really, was it so hard to escort them to the nearest shop to take shelter as he had done with literally every other person at the site of the attack?

A couple of minutes after he had disappeared with Marinette in tow, he came back for him.

“Your turn,” Chat Noir said with a wink, and took Luka away to an indistinct street away from the Akuma.

Luka gave Chat Noir a perplexed look. “Where is Marinette?”

Chat Noir scratched the back of his head. “I– she must have already hidden away,” he offered lamely.

Feeling a bit irked and suspicious that Chat Noir might have a crush on Marinette, he said, “I’ll look for her, then. Thanks for keeping my date safe, Chat Noir.”

As he calculated, he saw the discomfort in Chat’s face. “Yeah, no problem at all!”

Additionally, Luka quickly discovered he was right about something else: Chat Noir had very likely put Marinette somewhere else. Not only was he not able to find her anywhere, but she was not even picking up her phone anymore.

Luka worried that something might have happened to her, his contempt for the catboy growing by the second.

“That… that… that furry!” He grumbled to himself as he tried to figure out a way to contact Marinette, hoping to the heavens that she was okay.

After the Akuma was neutralized, Marinette called him. Yes, she ended up several districts away and apologized profusely about something she had absolutely no control of which both endeared and saddened Luka.

He had noticed Marinette tended to blame herself when things didn’t work out around her, even when she had no way of controlling them.

“Hey, hey, no stress,” Luka said chuckling, as he interrupted Marinette’s mortified rambling. “We can meet back in the movie theater.”

He let a sigh of relief as he spotted Marinette waiting for him by the ticket booth. He ran to her and threw his arms around her without thought, only realizing what he did when Marinette hugged him back.

He blushed and hugged her tighter.

“I’m got hit by the Akuma after Chat Noir took me away,” Marinette explained. “Sorry.”

“It’s alright. I’m just happy you’re okay,” he said, finally pulling away and smiling at her. “So, which movie should we watch?”

Luka pointedly noticed the fact that Marinette suggested to watch a scary movie. The first time he had gone to the movies with her, Alya, Nino, and Juleka had tagged along and he remembered her adamantly informing everyone that she wouldn’t join if they picked anything scary.

He wondered why.

“Really? You sure?” Luka said.

“Yeah, you like scary movies, right?”

“Yeah, but you don’t,” Luka said. “I’m happy to watch anything you wanna watch.”

A light blush crept onto Marinette’s face again. “I wanna watch a scary movie.”

Luka tried not to entertain the thought that the reason why Marinette wanted to watch a scary movie with him was probably a plot with the end goal of having an excuse for them to hug throughout the movie. He didn’t want to get his expectations too high; he was already writing songs about her as it was.

As they took their seats, Marinette seemed to pick up where they left off at the park before Chat Noir interrupted them. She sat decidedly close to him–as close as one could to justify any casual brush of the hand as an accident— while Luka, in a sudden bout of confidence, put his arm around her.

He tensed up, waiting for Marinette’s reaction, and was pleasantly rewarded when she relaxed into his grasp and leaned her head against his chest.

“Oh, I just remembered,” she said, while waiting for the movie to start, “I have something for you.”

She reached into her purse and produced a small box.

Luka beamed at her as he picked the little gift from her palm. “You didn’t have to give me anything, Marinette.”

“I just wanted to do something nice for you,” she said, shrugging and giving him a warm smile.

He opened the box and found a guitar pick that Marinette had hand painted with little blue-and-black motifs. His heart swelled for her and found himself wishing he could kiss her.

“I love it,” he said, smiling from ear to ear. “Thank you.”

“I… I have something else for you,” she said, turning herself so that she was squarely facing him.

His pulse hitched up, realizing he wasn’t the only one wishing for a kiss, as Marinette trained her eyes on his.

He couldn’t look away. He felt as if a sort of magnet pulled him towards her, a sort of force that he was unable to escape from even if he wanted to.

A short gasp escaped him as the distance between them shrunk slowly, almost painfully. He was so close he could feel Marinette’s warmth on his skin. So, close their lips almost brushed. So close that–

“Hey guys!” an all-too-familiar voice chirpily greeted them from behind Luka, effectively and immediately interrupting them and causing Marinette to flail and throw the bucket of popcorn she had on her lap.

Luka sighed, this time at the end of his wits. Third interruption, of course it had to be at the hands of whom Luka considered to be the densest human alive. He turned around to find none other than Adrien Agreste, accompanied by Nino. Luka could do little to help himself from giving him the meanest look he could possibly conjure.

“Hey, Adrien. Nino,” he said, clenching his teeth. “What. A nice. Surprise.”

Adrien, oblivious as always, seemed not to grasp what had just transpired. Luckily, as Adrien went on about what a coincidence it was to end up in the same movie theater, at the same showing, and how cool it would be to watch it with them, it was apparent Nino knew better.

“Um, dude, actually, I think I’ll have to sit at the front this time if you don’t mind,” Nino said, interrupting Adrien’s question of whether they could sit with them. “Yeah, my glasses have been giving me trouble…”

Adrien could do little to hide his disappointment but in the end went with Nino. Luka, on the other hand, would have kept grumbling to himself even after they had left if it weren’t for Marinette’s quick kiss on his cheek, which interrupted his train of thought.

“Thanks for being so patient,” Marinette said.

Luka, unable to stay irritated so long as Marinette looked at him like that–with those bright blue eyes and cute little smile, chuckled. “It’s no problem.”

There would be other opportunities, he thought to himself as Marinette snuggled back next to him. For now, he was happy with just watching the movie and enjoy having Marinette in his arms. At one point he was even brave enough to peck her on the head, in one particular scene where Marinette hid her face against his chest with the excuse that she was too scared to watch.

Encouraged by the quick kiss, Marinette looked up to him and again, he found himself drawn to her lips. So, close he could brush his nose against her, so close he smelled her perfume. So close that–

“AN AKUMA!” someone screamed out in the movie theater hall, unchaining a mass hysteria that propelled the audience to rush to the exit.

“Of course,” he muttered under his breath as Marinette sprung up and he followed after her.

Dammit! What does a guy have to do to kiss his crush? Was moment with Marinette too much to ask?

Judging from the smug little smile Chat Noir couldn’t help but sport as he herded him and the rest of the civilians to safety, yes. Yes, it was. It took a lot to annoy Luka, but he now kept a list: Anyone wanting to hurt Marinette, being interrupted when he was with her, and the idea of cats in general. Especially black cats.

“I’m just saying, dude’s a bit weird,” Luka said, hanging out with Marinette and some of her friends a couple of days after Chat Noir’s repeated attempts at sabotaging his date, plus then some more. The story had been quite the laugh for everybody and the group now heatedly discussed whether they knew of other couples Chat Noir liked to sabotage, much to Marinette and Adrien’s mortification.

Adrien, Nino noticed, was quite uncomfortable with the topic. He squirmed in his seat and went to great lengths to not cross glances with Luka.

“Yo, you okay?” whispered Nino.

“Huh?”

“You seem a little… uncomfortable.”

“I’m fine!” Adrien hurried to assure him, but then resumed being consumed in his thoughts. Great. Marinette’s boyfriend now had it out for him for accidentally having interrupted them a time or two.

Okay, maybe it had been around ten times so far, but in his defense half of those were due to Akumas and the rest… Well, the rest were just... you know, “accidents.”

Nino did not comment so as to not add fuel to the fire, but he suspected that Adrien was not only lying, but had finally realized his feelings for Marinette. Nino chuckled to himself, feeling a little sorry for Adrien. Poor dude had the timing of drying cement.

--

ta-da!

I couldn’t include the part where LB kisses Luka because that sent me into outlining a multi-chapter angst fic and we are NOT doing that cause these babies deserve happiness :)) but alas, here you go

#miraculous ladybug #ml #ml fanfic #miraculous ladybug fanfic #marinette dupain cheng #luka couffaine #adrien agreste #chat noir #lukanette

[ga-yuu]

~Yoshitsune~Main Story Chapter 4~

Warning! This story has strong language and attempted rape.

Chapter 3

*

*

*

------Part 1------

Yoritomo: “Don’t forget I’m a man who killed his own brother.”

I was horrified, but at the same time, I felt like something connected in my head....

(Ah.....!)

-------FLASHBACK------

Yoshitsune: "But...contradictions are in all of us. I've only known one person who could cut it out and throw it away."

-----FLASHBACK ENDS-----

(Maybe he was....)

(Wasn't it Yoritomo-sama that Yoshitsune-sama was talking about....?)

Yoritomo: "Well...we're almost done, aren't we? I'll let you know about the job."

Yoshino: "Ah, yes...! Thank you."

I stopped thinking and bowed to Yoritomo-sama.

(At any rate, I think I've moved on a bit, right?)

This is how my new life started changing-----

Kagetoki: "Now, Yoshino. I want you to check and sort those scrolls like how I taught you yesterday."

Yoshino: "Got it!"

(Let's do our best to help today.)

Under Kagetoki-san's direction, who is mainly responsible for the internal affairs of the Shogunate...

For the last few days, I've been doing simple chores such as sorting out paperwork and recording meetings.

(I have to be careful not to make any mistakes, or I'll have to face the wrath of stoic Kagetoki-san!)

I nervously unrolled the scroll on my desk.

The scroll he had given was a record of the number of human resources and provisions needed for the battle against Yoshitsune-sama.

Yoshino: "We need so many rations...."

Kagetoki-san, who was sitting opposite me, reacted to the words I blurted out.

Kagetoki: "Because this war is bigger than ever. We need to scrounge from the ranks and make sure we have plenty."

(And yet, so much detail has been calculated....)

The scrolls also contain a detailed list of the number of soldiers for the supply convoy.

(I can't believe we need so many people just to carry the rations!)

Yoshino: "It's not easy to fight a war, is it?"

Kagetoki: "It's natural. It's not just about fighting. If we run out of food on the way, our men's lives will be in danger. We have to make sure we have the right people and the right routes to get the food to the people, and then we have to work out the tactics. But of course, we also need information about the enemy."

Yoshino: It's like the preparation stage has already started...."

Kagetoki: "Yes. We can't afford any delays or lapses in judgment."

(I see, one wrong move and many lives will be lost...)

Kagetoki-san's words always sound harsh, but when you hear him talk like this, you get a different impression.

(That's how deeply he thinks about the Shogunate, and that's why Kagetoki-san won't compromise.)

Kagetoki: "What's wrong? Why are you staring?"

Yoshino: "No, nothing...I'll call you when I'm done."

I quickly returned to my work.

About a moment later-----

Morinaga: "I see you're working hard, Yoshino."

Tamamo: "I've brought you a reward."

Yoshino: "Oh! Hi Morinaga-san, Tamamo."

(Did you guys come here to check on me...!)

Tamamo and Morinaga-san came to me with a small furoshiki in their hand.

Kagetoki-san kept his gaze fixed on the scroll and said a few words back to them.

Kagetoki: "No food and drinks are allowed in the library."

Tamamo: "Don't be so strict Kagetoki. Look, we went around Kamakura's best shops to buy these sweets."

Yoshino: "You went around Kamakura you buy this, Tamamo?"

Tamamo: "I went to my favorite sweet shops, so I thought I would share some with you."

Yoshino: "You already have favorites!?"

(Not even a week has passed since we arrived in Kamakura.)

Tamamo: "Because it is important to create the ground to live happily. Confectioners, restaurants, dressmakers... Oh, and I've recently made friends in the gambling house."

Yoshino: "Gambling house....?"

(Did you make too many connections this quickly!)

Kagetoki: "You're responsible for that, isn't it? Morinaga. Please refrain from taking questionable creatures to questionable places."

------Part 2------

Kagetoki: "Please refrain from taking questionable creatures to questionable places."

Tamamo: "How dare you call this beautiful nine-tail fox a questionable creature."

Next to the pouting Tamamo, Morinaga-san laughed happily.

Morinaga: "Tamamo is good at betting and it's also fun to hang around with him."

Tamamo: "Don't let his appearance fool you, Yoshino. Morinaga has a bad habit too."

(Morinaga-san loves gambling. That's surprising!)

Kagetoki: "What a troublesome duo."

In a matter-of-fact manner, Kagetoki-san removed the scroll from his desk.

Kagetoki: "I heard you brought sweets, take it out. Yoshino. Let's take a break."

(Hm? I thought you said food and drinks are not allowed in the library.)

Yoshino: "Do you like sweets?"

Tamamo: "It's the height of unexpectedness. I thought you had a spitfire personality."

Kagetoki: "It's not like I have a sweet tooth. Sweets help my brain to work better. It increases my work efficiency."

Yoshino: "That's your reasoning!?"

Kagetoki-san says that with a straight face.

(He's serious. It's so typical of Kagetoki-san...)

Kagetoki: "Let's not waste any more time."

(What's the...!)

He opened the furoshiki to reveal the lovely pile of camellia cakes.

Kagetoki-san piled them up on his plate without a care in the world.

Yoshino: "Isn't that too much?"

Kagetoki: "It's my normal intake."

(.....Then how much do you eat when you're starving?)

Kagetoki: "I stop my work for the moment, so could take in all the sugar at once."

Yoshino: "Errmm??"

Tamamo: "Please leave some for us too."

Tamamo complains as he takes his seat next to Morinaga-san.

Kagetoki: "You're an extravagant fox, aren't you. If you insist I'd be happy to share some of my starch syrup."

Tamamo: "...What am I going to do with your starch syrup?"

Tamamo's eyes narrowed in an unusually wary way.

Kagetoki: "The more you eat it, the more sugary it becomes. The flavors change and you'll never get bored of it."

Yoshino: "So extreme!"

Morinaga: "That's Kagetoki for you."

(Morinaga-san is so generous to put it in those words...)

Tamamo: "Kagetoki, don't you dare ruin my sweets with your starch syrup!"

Just as Tamamo takes out the contents of his furoshiki, we heard someone's footsteps.

Shigehira: "I was wondering why the library is so noisy. It was you guys."

(Shigehira-san!)

Tamamo: "Oh Shigehira. Did you follow the smell?"

Shieghira: "Of course not! I just came to return this book I borrowed..."

Shigehira-san who was holding a book in his hand looked at the desk and his eyes widened.

Shigehira: "...! Mountain of camellia cakes?"

(Nice reaction!)

Morinaga: "That's Kagetoki's plate."

Shigehira: "Yeah....to increase his work efficiency or something."

Kagetoki: "You came at the right time. I'll share some with you too."

Shigehira: "No, I have work, so-----"

Morinaga: "It's okay to take a small break. Come, sit here."

Shigehira: "Ah...!!"

Morinaga-san smiles and puts his hands on Shigehira-san's shoulders and forced him to sit down.

Tamamo: "We have enough sweets for you too."

Morinaga: "Eat as much as you like."

Shigehira: "Don't treat me like a child. Like I said, I only came here to return this book."

With two grown-ups on either side, Shigehira-san sighed as if he had given up.

Then, our eyes meet and he gives me a slightly pouting look.

Shigehira: "Just so you know, I didn't bring any sweets for you."

Yoshino: "No, no, no. I don't mind."

(But I'm happy that you still came....)

Tamamo: "Let's eat."

------Part 3-------

Tamamo: "Let's eat."

Yoshino: "Yes! Thank you for the food."

Tamamo neatly plated the sweets for everyone.

My eyes sparkled seeing the camellia cakes and puff pastry.

(Everything looks delicious!)

When I ate one of the camellia cakes, the gentle sweetness filled my mouth.

Yoshino: "It's really delicious!!"

Kagetoki: "I see. This is from the nearest sweet shop. You can get it from there if you like."

Yoshino: "It's cool how you can easily tell the shop's name just by eating them..."

(So sharp!)

While I was impressed, Tamamo presents me with another plate.

Tamamo: "Here Yoshino, try these too. Made with the finest ingredients, the baker said he had been making these for decades."

Yoshino: "Thanks!"

When I ate mochi-----

Yoshino: "This is so yummy!!!"

Tamamo: "Isn't it? His store makes the finest sweets."

Yoshino: "Hehe...You really love to eat, don't you?"

Tamamo: "Unlike humans, we demons don't need food for nutrition....I just eat for pleasure. The more delicious the food is, the more it will entertain my mouth. Let me take you there next time, Yoshino."

Yoshino: "Really? I'll be looking forward to it."

(I heard so many things about Kamakura and that there are many places to visit.)

Yoshino: "Also...I'm really amazed how you're already used to Kamakura, Tamamo."

Tamamo shook his head when I pouted in jealousy.

Tamamo: "But I heard you are getting along with the soldiers here."

Yoshino: "Eh? What...?"

Morinaga: "That's true. Lately, you have been treating the injured soldiers after their training."

(Of course, it's a part of my work.)

I was surprised and blinked my eyes.

Shigehira: "...I heard that there's usually a fight in the training hall over who gets the treatment first."

Yoshino: "Why is that?"

(I didn't know that at all...!)

Kagetoki: "Such a barren dispute."

Morinaga: "Maybe because it's always been groups of men there and we never had a girl come near the training hall before. Well...since they're so eager to get treated by you, they didn't even mind doing my extra training sessions."

Yoshino: "..Morinaga-san, your smile is a little scary."

(Morinaga-san's training is famous for being unforgiving...though he looks kind.)

Yoshino: "There's only so much I can do to help, and I'm not doing too much."

Tamamo: "But there's been an increase in orders for your medicines in the Imperial Palace, right?"

Yoshino: "That's right, but..."

Thankfully, as I worked in the Imperial Palace, I got to know more people and they started to call me when they needed medicine.

(I'm not going to have my own shop until after I've broken my contract with Tamamo, but...)

(I'm so happy to be able to work as a pharmacist in this way!)

Shigehira: "Also..."

Shigehira-san talks while eating his mochi. (I found a typo here, they wrote 重衡くん(Shigehira-kun) instead of 重衡さん(Shigehira-san) MC doesn't call him Shigehira-kun until much later in the chapters)

Shigehira: "I don't understand how can you overwork like crazy when you have to face an even bigger nightmare, the great war."

Yoshino: "Well, I...."

Shigehira: "I don't get you at all. You have a very nice pharmacist job for a living...then why do you offer yourself to help Kagetoki-san with his work."

Kagetoki: "Unfortunately, I have the tendency to use any resource useful for my work."

Morinaga smiled brightly at Kagetoki-san's remarks.

Morinaga: "Ohh? So you think Yoshino is useful?"

Kagetoki: "Of course."

(Ah....)

I blushed at the unexpected compliment.

(Especially when I first started working, I didn't know what I was doing and I caused a lot of trouble for Kagetoki-san...)

Kagetoki: "She didn't run away after knowing the terrors of war. She's got a lot of guts."

Shigehira and Tamamo: "..............."

Yoshino(blushing): "!!!"

Morinaga: "There are many vassals whose hearts are broken by Kagetoki's harshness."

Kagetoki: "If they're not good at anything, I don't find them worthful."

Tamamo: "Can't you be a bit more proper in your praise?"

Morinaga: "We hoped for the same thing. But it's too much for Kagetoki."

-------Part 4------

Morinaga: "We hoped for the same thing. But it's too much for Kagetoki."

(Yeah...I guess I'll consider it a bit of an acknowledgment.)

Yoshino: "Thank you very much, Kagetoki-san."

Kagetoki: "I don't need to be thanked. I'm going to keep on using you and you're going work hard for me."

Yoshino: "......I'll do my best, so please be gentle."

My heart was feeling warm when I returned the words.

(It would be nice to get to know the people of the Shogunate a little better in this way.)

Even if it's just helping out a little.

It was now beginning to dawn on me that all the samurai were going into battle with conviction.

Shigehira: *munch munch munch*

Tamamo: "Can I ask you something, Shigehira?"

Shigehira: "Hm?"

Tamamo: "You came here to check on Yoshino to make sure that she's not being bullied by Kagetoki, isn't it?"

Shigehira(blushing): "No...I.."

(Really?)

Shigehira: "Ahem, like I said earlier, I came here to return this book. Then, she just happened to be here."

Tamamo: "Really? But I noticed you searching for Yoshino a while ago."

(No way!?)

Shigehira: "You were watching me!?....No, I mean. It was all your imagination."

Morinaga: "Isn't our Shigehira so cute."

Shigehira: "Stop joking! I wasn't----mmf"

(Eeehhh....)

Shigehira-san tried to argue, but Morinaga-san shoved a camellia cake into his mouth.

Morinaga: "Now, be a good boy and eat these sweets."

Shigehira: *munch munch*

With his mouth full, Shigehira-san glanced at Morinaga-san with a pouting look.

Yoshino: "Shigehira-san, are you okay? Here, have some tea."

Shigehira: "...Mm, thanks. Just because you're kind, doesn't mean I approve of you."

Yoshino: "I understand. But...."

(If what Tamamo said was true, I want to thank him for caring about me.)

I turned to Shigehira-san and bowed in gratitude.

Yoshino: "Umm, I'm thankful that you care about me. I took the job at the Imperial Palace for myself, and I haven't achieved any good results yet...But, I'm glad that I've been able to get closer to you all through my work recently!"

Shigehira(blushing): "....Erm well.."

Yoshino: "I really am!"

I can clearly see that Shigehira-san is blushing till his ears were red.

Tamamo: "You're looking like you're having a good time."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1. I am (+4/+4)

2. Do you think so?

3. Not quite yet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yoshino: "I am."

(I think I'm starting to think a bit more clearly.)

(I wonder if...now I could give a different answer than before.)

(But......)

Ironically, it was my greatest enemy, Yoshitsune-sama, who gave me the opportunity to change.

(Next time when we meet on the battlefield, I must make up my mind properly before then.)

..........

And so few days goes by-----

Late afternoon, I was walking down the hallway, after finishing my work. Then I saw maids passing by.

Maid 1: "Are you going to the festival, tonight?"

Maid 2: "Of course! My boyfriend asked me out and I'm looking forward to it."

(Festival....Oh yeah! I forgot it was tonight.)

(Since I have nothing much to do, let's go and enjoy the festival.)

..................

(Wow...!!)

I was walking around the streets of Kamakura, listening to the festival music.

Lanterns hung from the eaves and the front of the stalls were crowded with people.

(It's just fun to simply walk around like this.)

(I first thought to bring someone with me....)

------Part 5------

(I first thought to bring someone with me....)

(But I made plans on the spot and others didn't have time...)

(They're all busy preparing for the upcoming war.)

As walked across the busy street, the smell of food from the stalls tickled my nose.

(It's still early in the evening, so I'll buy something. Let's see....)

Then I went to some food stalls and bought some dumplings.

(I'm a bit tired....)

I walked through the crowd and before I knew it, I ended at the back of a shrine.

(I didn't want to fall down and get injured in the big crowd.)

When I was trying to get back to the entrance-----

Wild Samurai 1: "Hey hey, what are you doing here alone?"

Wild samurai 2: "It's the festival night and you're all alone. How about we give you some company?"

(What? Who are these people...?)

Suddenly a rough voice called out to me from the darkness and I was surrounded by several men.

(I can see you guys have swords hanging of your waist....must be some wild samurai...)

Wild samurai 3: "We just arrived in Kamakura and we don't have anyone to play with."

(What should I do...)

Yoshino: "Sorry...But I'm here with someone."

I bowed my head lightly and tried to escape but....

Wild samurai 1: "Come on, there's nothing to be scared of, is there?"

Wild samurai 2: "We wanted to help you since we thought you were lost."

Yoshino: "No, thank you."

One of them roughly grabbed my hand and pulled me back.

Yoshino: "Let go!"

I tried to shake his hands off, but it didn't budge.

Wild samurai 2: "Worry not. We'll be gentle."

Yoshino: "NO! HELP! SOMEONE!!!"

Just when I was about to be dragged behind the bushes----

???: "You're very cruel for taking advantage of festivities to violently attack women."

A quiet voice echoed from somewhere.

(Eh....?)

Wild samurai 1: "Huh? Who the fuck are you?"

The very next moment, a figure jumps from the top of the tree.

???: "Look here."

Yoshino: "Ah----"

Someone pulled my arm and he punched one of the wild samurai right on the chest.

When I was confused and looked up-----

(Is that a fox mask...?)

The mysterious man wearing a fox mask distanced me from the wild samurai and stepped forward to protect me.

Wild samurai 1: "Who are you!?"

???: "You're not worthy of hearing my name."

Wild samurai 2: "Don't fuck with us! That woman is ours!"

Yoshino: "Be careful!"

All of them drew their swords and attacked the mysterious man.

(No....!!)

???: "I promised myself that I won't. But it can't be helped. Now die."

The mysterious man pulled out his own sword, which flashed-----

Wild samurai 1: "Gwaaa...."

Immediately several swords were blown off...

Yoshino: "Wow....."

(Oh!....I remember this ferociousness.)

(Not only that, his voice is so familiar.)

(No way! It can't be...but.)

The mysterious man stepped forward casually as the samurai were jerked back.

Wild samurai 2: "Tch, we'll leave you both for now!"

One of them, who seems to be the leader, raised his voice and the rest of them started following him.

After that, everything became so quiet and the mysterious man turned his back on me.

(No wait, don't go!)

Yoshino: "Umm....Yoshitsune-sama?"

???: "........"

When I called out the name of the mysterious man, he looked back and took off his mask----

Yoshitsune: "How did you find out?"

Chapter 5

#ikemen series #ikemen genjiden #ikemen genjiden yoshitsune #ikemen mc #otome #cybird #cybird ikemen #cybird otome #main story translations

[heraldofzaun]

what are your thoughts on viktor and being neurodivergent? though like, obligatory disclaimer that if riot ever did come out and say that "hey! viktor is canonically [something]" that would be catastrophic but i think it is a little bit of fun for consideration

Oh! Well I like to think he's autistic, which is partially because I am too. (Of course in canon it would be catastrophic because haha, oh man, look at how they've treated Blitzcrank's biographies ever since they gave him an updated one. There's some coding in there, alright, and I am... not a fan...)

I’ve posted a lot of long posts recently (this is no exception) and this is also on a kind of tricky subject, so I’m readmore’ing it.

So anyways, while I have to admit that some of the reason why (my) Viktor is autistic is because I am - I think that you can make a general semi-convincing argument. Or I'm so wrapped up in my own interpretations that I can, at the least. Anyways, from here on out when I say Viktor I mean my personal take. Your mileage may vary on applying this to other interpretations.

(Also, thoughts on new lore Jayce's being kind of coded to be like, a stereotypical autistic dude? (If you have any I mean.) I don't like that Riot is doing it, of course, but I've seen a few good rehabilitative takes on it in fandom. @hamartio's Jayce springs to mind, because their Jayce has been developed over the years and also written by someone who like. Cares. Anyways, I have my own personal Jayce ideas that rely on his old lore so he's not really an asshole there, at least in those regards, so I don't really have many thoughts on new Jayce. I think new Viktor is... pretty coded as well, but it’s also insanely stereotypical. The whole “always working, always wants certainty, gets into automation not because he (primarily) wants to help those injured by catastrophes in Zaun but because the catastrophes interrupt his work” thing makes me uncomfortable. Maybe I’ll write sometime on why the rewrite of his lore fails, in my opinion, to hit upon the same themes of his first - would that be of interest to folks? Anyways, this parenthetical is too long.)

I think that autistic Viktor is cool and makes sense, somewhat because of the fact that the ways he goes about solving his problems are, er, unorthodox. (Of course I am not saying that the GE is because he’s autistic, because that’s stupid. This is why I’m kind of squirrely about talking so openly about what I think Viktor’s got going on, and why I don’t really trust if a non-autistic person headcanons him as autistic. There’s a lot of room for that headcanon to just reinforce the “autistic people are supergeniuses with no emotions that work based off of Facts and Logic” trope, and I hate that.) Since a lot of autism is about feeling adrift from/at odds with neurotypical society, I think that Viktor’s general solutions and also his idealistic leanings in the face of everything Zaun is tracks for that. Roboticization makes sense as a way to stop suffering and death, because it’s more achievable than individual feats of immortality through magic or whatever. Viktor doesn’t really get why people would be so opposed to it - he’s made it clear that while he dislikes his own emotions and wants them gone, he doesn’t expect others to cast off theirs. (Maybe he expected that when he was in the thick of his emotional pain, mostly because he couldn’t imagine others choosing differently than he at the time, but not in the current day.)

Of course, externally, when the scary cyborg man who admits to cutting off his own limbs says “no, being a robot is cool, you can keep your emotions even”, any Zaunite (or any person) is going to interpret that as “he is definitely lying”. Viktor doesn’t quite make that leap. (I have thoughts on the whole Theory of Mind concept and I don’t mean to say that Viktor can’t empathize - he does, and does too much - with others, but I think that in this instance he just can’t quite understand sometimes why people don’t believe him.) He also doesn’t quite get why people would be so attached to the bodies that they’re currently in, especially if he can make a mechanical replica. Or why people might want to die and pass into non-existence after a life well lived. (To him, personally, there’s always more to do. Also he’s terrified of death but that’s another topic.)

I also think that Viktor’s empathy is of the hyper- rather than hypo- kind, partially because I feel like outside of self-advocacy groups the mere concept of autistic hyperempathy is seen as like... impossible? It’s also because he generally seems to be kind of an emotional guy in canon before Stanwick, what with the lore saying that “almost no trace of the original man remained” in reference to Viktor reemerging as someone without emotions. That, combined with the fact that he was described as having a “hope to better society” before everything went down, kind of makes me believe that he was a naive idealist type. (Again, not that autism makes you naive, but...) But yes, hyperempathy. Hence "no pain, no wars, no suffering, no death” being part of his ideology for the Glorious Evolution. He gets pretty ripped up about people being hurt, and it’s really only gotten worse over the years as he’s grasped the full scope of pain in the world.

Personally, I write pre-Stanwick-incident Viktor as someone who is still somewhat awkward with expressing emotion, but it’s not due to him not having them. It’s due to the fact that the ways in which he naturally expressed them and in which he interacted with the world were just... seen as odd/different/etc. (I don’t think Runeterra has an autism diagnosis or particularly excellent psychology, even in Piltover and Zaun, so he just gets the “you’re a weird dude” treatment for his entire life.) Stimming or smiling a certain way or talking a lot about his interests or, you know, the general autistic existence is weird to most people around him, as it unfortunately is in real life. So he’s more reserved until you actually know him, because he’s just masking all the time. (Fun fact about my Viktor: he’s pretty expressive under that actual mask of his. It helps to not have to micromanage expressions all the time when he isn’t experiencing a bout of flat affect due to [gestures vaguely at everything else going on with his mental state], although he sometimes feels poorly about not being able to manage himself. But that’s his issues, and I think it’s good for him to show emotion.)

Side note - Stanwick was able to do such a number on Viktor due to: a) Stanwick being very charismatic and manipulative, on top of being an actually smart man and scientist - he’s really a great example of a “good Zaunite”, in the sense of being good at being what the culture rewards, b) Viktor actively dealing with the death of his parents and Stanwick being an older adult who’d treated him kindly and had never seemed put-off by Viktor’s oddities, and c) Viktor not realizing that he’d get backstabbed, because yes he knows that that happens in academia but Stanwick’s nice. Whether or not the outcomes would have been the same if Viktor were more competent at being “a good Zaunite”... well, probably not. Viktor ended up where he did because of who he is.

(Secondary side note: Viktor has a very strong and very black-and-white sense of what’s right and wrong, as well as general black-and-white thinking. You can see how that would have... not helped in the situations he was put through.)

This is getting kind of rambling, but I guess the point of this is that Viktor’s wanting to remove his emotions may be cloaked in the language of them being “inefficient” or “unhelpful”, which would feed into autistic stereotypes, but it’s really more of a matter of them being too painful and raw for him to process. He feels too much and hurts too much, and no amount of positive emotions in the world will (in his mind) make up for the pain he’s felt and will feel. So it’s better to not feel anything at all, isn’t it? At least then you aren’t overwhelmed by it all.

Viktor just hasn’t fit in with Zaun for all his life, really. Not as an odd child who can tell you all about science-fiction and techmaturgy, not as an odd and reserved teenager/young adult, not as a bright young doctoral student still dealing with grief but trying to make the best of it, and... not as the Machine Herald. But now he’s given up on trying to fit in, for better or for worse.

(Other miscellaneous and less serious autistic thoughts on him: generally a pretty fixed diet, partially due to being autistic but also due to what’s easily available in Zaun + what agrees with his stomach. A fan of weight and pressure - I like to think that the reason his outfit is like that is that he finds it comforting, and also that he has a weighted blanket or two around. Special interests of general techmaturgy, robotics, and science-fiction. He can talk for hours about any of those, and has. Both his parents were mildly spectrum-y, his mother a little bit moreso, so they just kinda assumed that him being him was out-of-the-ordinary and a bit strange but not something “horribly wrong”. Oh! And his third arm, which is under a little less conscious control than the rest of him, still stims sometimes when he’s working or otherwise not paying attention to it.)

This was very long and jumped around a lot, because I find it hard to give a convincing paragraph-by-paragraph argument about exactly why I think that Viktor is autistic, or rather why I headcanon him as such. But hopefully it was interesting! I just have a lot of thoughts on him, as well as the general state of autistic-coded or perceived-as-autistic-by-individuals (both allistic and autistic) characters in media and so it’s very hard to do anything concise without branching out into discussing other topics.

#anonymous #headcanons | beneath the mask #//preemptive remark that these are my own thoughts on autism which are filtered through the lens of my life experiences #//as well as that of some aspects (emphasis on some) of academic research. baron-cohen can choke with his theories #//also i did not explain some terms here under the assumption that those reading would probably already know them. feel free to ask if not!

[bearseokie]

boyfriend! victon

[ gender-neutral! ] this was originally just a bf! subin headcanon, but i clearly cannot control myself.

victon m.list | navi. | nsfw bf! victon (M)

Seungwoo:

openly admitted his feelings for you in the hopes you would reply with the same emotions.

his gestures are always romantic, even if he means them to be casual (i.e kissing your knuckles, helping you out of a vehicle, pulling your chair out for you.)

sweeps you off your feet every chance he gets. figuratively and physically.

you can't be in a room that doesn't have flowers in them, he makes sure of that.

holds his hand up flat so you can press yours against it.

will walk in on you in the bathroom and laugh at your embarrassed reaction while he brushes his teeth.

gives you his clothes to wear almost every day, you barely wear anything from your own wardrobe.

back hugs you every chance he can.

gym dates where you sit off to the side and take pictures of him while he works out. he eventually gets bored of you watching him and asks to bench you instead of his weights, which ends up in you falling on top of him laughing. if you do work out with him, he spots you the entire time instead of doing his own workout.

drives with one hand on the wheel and the other on your thigh.

shakes you awake so you can watch the sunrise through the window together while you lay in each other’s arms.

sleeps on his stomach so you have to hold him instead of the other way around.

tosses you over his shoulder instead of picking you up like normal.

writes handwritten letters when you're apart.

running your fingers through his hair while his head lays on your chest.

when he sings in the shower, he sings at full volume. the steam will be seeping from under the door, and even if you’re dead asleep, he will belt out some high notes that wakes you up instantly with a smile on your face.

lets you sit on his lap all the time. even if he is in the middle of something, he will just slide his arms under yours and continue working with you in his hold.

loves to hold you up by your waist to kiss you like you’re in a dramatic romance movie.

messes with you a lot. loves to piss you off so he can pinch your cheeks and kiss you until you cool down.

the type of boyfriend that invites you to dinner, walks you home, and doesn't leave until the next morning if you catch the drift.

Seungsik:

he is terrible at opening up to people (he's said this himself), and it takes a long time for someone to get to know him.

and by a 'long time' he meant maybe two days after he met you because that title immediately flew out the window. eager to know everything about you, it was only fair that he talked about himself, too.

confessed to you by holding your hand awkwardly while standing behind you so you couldn't see how hard he was blushing

he knows what you're thinking without you even saying anything

does house chores for you regularly so you get time to relax.

"where did these flowers come from?" seungsik.

purposely waits for you to ask him to do something just so he can admit that he already did it. usually ends in you showering him with 'thank you' kisses.

knows your food orders by heart

short walks during light rains just so he has an excuse to cover you with his coat and run home with you.

the most caring person around you when you get sick, will nurse you back to health like his life depends on it.

brings you outside just so you can sit in the grass and blow on dandelions together.

“did you eat yet?” texts regularly

very handy when it comes to home projects. even if you don’t ask you to join him in fixing something, he’ll already be three steps ahead of you with it almost done by the time you get the first word out.

loves to run his hands through your hair.

candlelit dinners late at night while sharing each other’s passions and dreams.

matching phone lock screens where you’re his and he’s yours.

nose kisses.

matching plaid pants.

No matter how far from each other you’re standing, he always instinctively holds his hand out for you to take.

sleeps with your head on his chest so you can listen to his heartbeat.

Chan:

he fell madly in love with you instantly the second he saw you. he couldn’t look away. finally plucked up the courage to ask you out but got so nervous that you had to ask him instead.

can make you laugh with a single facial expression.

once tried to impress you by throwing his coat over a puddle so you could walk over it, it was a sewage drain and his coat was ruined.

leaves the house and returns with every snack imaginable for you to share. lots of lady and the tramp spaghetti moments but with ramen. flavored waters stored in your fridge like the world is ending. enough sweets to survive an apocalypse.

yanks you down the sidewalk to pet a dog.

every time you walk around the park, he asks for you to go down the double slide with him so you can hold hands.

takes up 80% of the bed when sleeping so you have to cling to him in order to not fall off the side.

long phone calls at the end of the day when you’re apart. he tells you everything that happened and doesn’t leave out a single detail.

rooftop dates where you can watch the sun go down while you hold hands and kiss.

he always has a story to tell you, no matter what time of day it is.

picnics.

you’ll never have to open another door for yourself again.

lets you sit behind him so you can hug his back while he holds on to your legs around his waist.

has a soft spot for your laugh. if you start laughing, he'll start laughing, and neither of you will have oxygen in your lungs for a while.

artistic dates where you try out new activities. acrylic pours, spray-painting, even drawing on each other. loves to make a mess of things so he gets to spend more time with you cleaning it up.

matching hoodies.

blaring music while dancing together around your living room.

kisses you like you’re the only two people on the planet.

takes you to a small diner for dinner and you both sit there and talk until the sun is rising.

gets lead on easily, so he trusts you with his life because he loves you.

Sejun:

obnoxious 'go to the store with me' dates where it's just the two of you rampaging around the aisles finding nothing in particular while coming up with more inside jokes than you can memorize.

begs you to watch scary movies with him just so you'll cling to him scared. he clings to you instead because he's terrified.

arcade dates.

loud screaming when he isn't expecting you.

you have a wall dedicated to doodles he’s drawn for you, even if they were torn from the corners of notebook paper. also leaves sticky note messages for you to find around your home.

the type of boyfriend to find an abandoned shopping cart and put you in it to go around town.

karaoke dates where he screams at the top of his lungs.

willingly falls off of furniture reaching you for you when he’s sleepy.

stormy nights are no longer scary because he’ll bring out the battery-powered lantern and some snacks. also helps you build a blanket fort.

piggy-back rides.

every time you turn around he's feeding you food or bringing you something to drink. if you tell him you haven't eaten all day, he'll carry you to the kitchen and spoon-feed you until you're full so he knows you're taken care of.

handmade couples’ bracelets himself.

pushes on 'pull' doors and pulls on 'push' doors, so you have to walk ahead of him or else you'll look goofy. don't even think about making him go between automatic doors, he'll somehow break the sensor.

hugging his neck and resting on his wide shoulders.

car playlists that you both yell at the top of your lungs when going somewhere.

falls asleep against you once a day.

study dates where he helps you go over things for school. turns your notes into games so you learn them easier. you get rewarded for correct answers with kisses.

holding hands while jumping into a pool together. loves to lay on floats with you on top of him until he decides to throw you off into the water. splashes you the second you get around him to begin a war that doesn’t end unless one of you calls a truce.

sleeps on his back with you curled up against him.

holds you by your hips all the time.

Hanse:

the 'he'll never show interest in me.' until one day, in the spur of the moment, he spills out everything. about how he has had a crush on you since you met, how fast his heart races when you look at him, all of the times he's wanted to tell you.

you have to kiss him just to shut him up. which sticks because he rambles to you A Lot and kisses are the only way to help him shut off his brain.

he secretly overthinks everything, but will never let it be known.

you're his notepad so he doesn't have to hold it all in, and he can't go a day without expressing how grateful he is to have you.

late nights laying in each other's arms just talking about life and the world and memories.

studio dates where you randomly show up at like 1 a.m. with coffee and sweets to keep him energized. sometimes he pretends like he’s not going to open the door for you unless you beg him with a pout.

loves to take selfies with you. takes pictures of you when you aren’t looking, and you can’t be angry because you do the same to him.

skin care nights where you just pamper one another.

loves back hugs. and front hugs. he hugs you constantly.

pda is huge with him. he doesn’t care who’s looking, if he wants to hold your hand or kiss you, he will.

tattoo dates where you get to hold his hand and watch him get new ink.

extravagant halloween costumes. like he goes ham on your matching costumes. both of you always win competitions for the best dressed.

mirror pics with you doing random stuff in the back because he gave you zero warning.

movie dates. he purposely puts his hand in the popcorn bowl at the same time you do just so he can make you blush.

loves to cook for you. you don’t even have to ask, he’ll just have a full plate of food waiting for you when you get in. yes, sometimes it’s take out he pretended to cook, but you still love him.

sharing/matching accessories. definitely a lover of couple rings, and you’ll have a few instead of just one pair. he loves variety.

loves to be the little spoon. loves to be called baby. loves praise. loves when you play with his hair. loves when you boop his nose. hanse is that soft baby boyfriend.

steals your clothes more than you steal his.

if you make him laugh hard enough, his cheeks will turn pink and he’ll get flustered and try to hide his face against you.

cool and intimidating to everyone, but your soft boyfriend the second you put his hand in yours.

Byungchan:

'we met on accident' is what he tells everyone, but he actually got on his knees and asked you out thinking you'd never give him the time of day if he didn't do something extravagant.

stares at you when you steal his sweatshirts wondering when he’ll get it back (he won’t).

if you sleep over at his place, just know you’re sleeping more with the layer of blankets and pillows he has on his bed than him. but he will kick them off into the floor when he wants to hold on to you.

you’re convinced he can spawn coffee when you ask for some because he always returns home with them minutes after he leaves.

ice cream dates! or any food specific dates.

tall bf that reaches for things on the top shelf for you.

during his rough days he will cuddle up to you on the couch without saying a word. gently placing his head on your shoulder as he sits beside you, lacing your fingers together. eventually opens up about what’s bothering him, but just wants to be near you at first.

puppy eyes that can convince you to do anything for him. if that's not enough, he'll just kiss you until you comply.

reads books to you when you can’t sleep.

forehead kisses.

adrenaline dates like skydiving, cliff jumping, anything that gives him an excuse to hold on to you while you scream his name.

over-sized coats that he pulls over your shoulders when you feel chilly.

rests his chin on your head all the time just because he can.

aesthetic photo-shoots in random places while you make each other laugh so hard that every photo comes out blurry.

lays on top of you while sleeping. quite literally squashes you. you’re basically his own, personal teddy bear.

the one you scream for when a bug is around. he’ll lift you up onto tall furniture while he picks it up and takes it outside.

high-pitched whiny voice when he’s frustrated so you know that something is bothering him every time. he’s convinced you’re psychic because he doesn’t know that his voice does that subconsciously.

late nights staying up to watch old sitcoms while his head lays in your lap.

stealing his beanies.

if you get into bed with him, you won’t be able to get out.

Subin:

'best friends to lovers' !!!

before he knew he was in love with you, he would just find ways to spend time with you. long nights studying together. sleepovers consisting of movies and video games. sharing food and drinks without thinking twice about it.

his usually soft and calm demeanor immediately went away the second he realized he had feelings for you.

his scent is your favorite thing in the world.

cuddles up against you while sleeping. like his face in your neck, cuddling.

intense eyes always watching you until you finally meet his gaze, then he softens up.

he cannot sleep unless you are beside him. even calling and talking doesn't help, he needs you next to him.

couch potatoes.

rarely goes out for dinner dates, prefers to just order in and stay in comfortable clothing. which also benefits his cuddle time afterward.

matching pajama sets with slippers

chases you trying to get a hug

he's very stubborn if you ask him to do something. you'll have to play the 'no, you.' game for a while before he huffs and gets up to do it.

sundays are cuddle in bed days, he insists.

very competitive towards you while playing video games, kisses you when you lose but won't even look at you when you win.

his soft, pouty lips.

never lets go of your hand. you could be in the middle of something important and he'll still lace his fingers with yours.

sliding his glasses off his face when he falls asleep with them on.

middle of the night wake-ups were he just wants to hold and kiss you while lightly rocking you in his arms until you fall back asleep.

making him his favorite treats when he’s been working a lot so he knows you’re proud of him.

if he starts kissing your neck, it’s game time.

#victon #victon headcanon #victon scenarios #victon imagines #seungsik #seungwoo #heochan #sejun #byungchan #subin #kang seungsik #han seungwoo #hanse #do hanse #im sejun #lim sejun #choi byungchan #jung subin #victon.headcanon

[chaerrie-on-top]

Bts As Your Older Brother (7/7)

bts as your older brother

JUNGKOOK:

- the fun brother - your partner in crime - he'd teach you to make fun of jimin's height and jin's age - the boys would love you lots tho, & even call you something cute like "little kookie" - every weekend he'd hangout with you and do whatever you wanted - he'd take you out around town, out to the movies, or would even just explore or play sports with you - would let you win during play fights - but would wreck you in mario kart - but when the other members tease him about it he'd deny it - "aw look at our jungkookie being a good brother!" - "me ?? nah, y/n's a loser. can't stand being around her for two seconds" *proceeds to punch jimin in retaliation* - but jin would walk into kooks room to tell him dinner is ready - and he'd fine you and jungkookie cuddled up on his bed fast asleep - jin would go all fond & decide not to wake you both up yet - would quietly leave the room - while still smiling over how much jungkook really loves you

TAEHYUNG:

- the unique brother - he'd introduce you to cool, new music he loves - and get you into art as well - he'd also be your really cool, fashionable brother - all your friends would have a huge crush on him - they also had a huge crush on the way he bought you nice clothes he knew you'd like - taehyung would really just shower you in gifts - wouldn't get mad if you fell asleep in his bed - would let you babysit yeontan - and take cute videos of you playing with him - would be protective over you & constantly make sure you're okay

JIMIN:

- the cute brother everyone wishes they had - wouldn't get mad if you stole his clothes - he'd sing to you if you were upset - would play games with you and let you win - very over protective - "is anyone being mean to you in school, y/n??" - 'no jimin. what would you do anyway?? you aren't that scary..." - "she has a point" - "shut up jungkook." - would brag to the members about your smallest accomplishments - he'd tease you a lot for copying everything he does - cries when he's on tour & misses you - "y/n i miss you. how's school? is mom okay? how are your grades?"

NAMJOON:

- the nerdy, but really cool brother - your friends would have a crush on his height & dimples - he'd teach you english - or if your school was teaching you english he'd help you do your homework - he'd literally help you with any type of homework; math, english, science, etc. - would encourage you to do good - "good luck on your test y/n! fighting!" - he'd also take you out for walks whenever he was home & not busy - give you his jacket if the temperature went down while you watched the sun set - he'd also listen to all your drama - and comfort you when you cry - but he'd always give you the best advice and be there to put you back together again - on the outside he's a cool rapper and leader of a famous boy group - but with you he's the dorkiest, wisest & best older brother you could ever ask for

HOSEOK:

- the loud, funny brother - would carry you around on his back no matter where you were - it would embarrass the other members so much - break out into dance together - even in public - "namjoon, hosoek & y/n are being embarrassing again." - would teach you dance routines - he'd drive you to school & embarrass you in the parking lot - "BYE Y/N! GOOD LUCK! STUDY HARD AND EAT WELL!" - 'hooobiiiiii stop you're embarrassing meeee' - would film you & jungkook doing the dumbest things - he could always laugh & be himself with you - "y/n come over to the dorms i'm booorreeddd."

YOONGI:

- the cool, "mysterious" brother - listen girlies, he'd probably scare every boy away from you - but he'd only want what's best for you - you & the rest of hyung line were literally the only people allowed into his studio - he'd yell at you for getting too close to breaking something - but then he'd let you sit at his chair & listen to some tracks he made - he'd even let you make a song with him & teach you everything he knows - yoongi would also hate when you cried - he wouldn't know what to do or say - & he just hated seeing you upset - "y/n stop crying. you're better than this." - might seem a bit cold, but he's really the goofiest, sweetest thing to you - takes care of you and gives you valuable advice - but will also call you an idiot and make fun of you - "if you want to do something then do it y/n. don't hesitate; life is too short."

SEOKJIN:

- the sweet, caring brother - he'd constantly check in on you - would help you study - he'd reward you with food if you studied or got good grades - this little cheeky thing would teach you all his dad jokes - the members would hate you for constantly telling jokes - you'd make fun of jin's windshield wiper laugh - but turns out your laugh is just as weird - like tae, all your friends would have a crush on him - they'd be jealous of how cute yet dorky and caring he was - he'd miss you a lot on tour - & would probably cry about it to jimin a lot - but when he was home he'd take you shopping - or for an adventure around the city - would keep you close & make sure you were safe - he'd be the type to scold you for not wearing a jacket outside - but give you his jacket if you got cold - he'd cook for you & ask you to try new recipes - "y/n, a little birdie told me you had a bad day, so i made you your favorite diiiisshhhh!"

#bts scenarios #bts imagines #bts fanfic #jungkook #bts bsm

[ichika27]

Mairimashita! Iruma-kun s2 ep18

Was gonna post this days ago but I decided to do twewy-related stuff first lol.

Anyways, lots of pictures below again. At least 20, I think. Talks of ships below as well.

The last time we saw them, Iruma had jumped in front of the beast preparing to shoot a blast of magic in front of Ronove. Everyone else is worried but don’t know what to do cause if they tried to help, they’d get blasted, too. It seems though that Iruma himself has a plan.

Iruma plans to use Ali-san’s ability to swallow the huge amount of magic to eat the blast of it the beast is going to release saying he thought it was possible since Ali-san is the Ring of Gluttony. Arikured is surprised by this and complains at first but agrees he could do such a thing but Iruma's strength will be needed to succeed.

Remember that spell Iruma learned before about changing the appearance of something? Iruma uses that magic spell to turn Ali-san into this... cat thing. Giant cat thing idk so it could swallow the magic. Ali-san swallows the entire beast and let it explode inside him. Once it was over, the sky clears up, too. The plan totally worked and Ali-san is full!

Does this mean Iruma could use the power that got eaten from the beasts?

Trouble is over and Iruma gets together with his friends again. His friends were all worried about him though and Kalego-sensei came up to tell him he'd been reckless again. Iruma says he hasn't forgotten about what Kalego-sensei had said before at the home visit and that he had now finally understood what sensei meant. He was so used to danger due to almost always being in one himself that he never realized how bad such situations were until everyone else he cared about got affected. He adds that he gave it everything he's got even though he wasn't sure he'd even win because he wants to protect everyone and holding onto that ideal is part of his "desire".

I’m happy this arc helped some of them grow and show the growth of those who already have. Pretty cool.

Random screenshot but I just wanna direct your attention to fluffy Kalego-sensei who is being adorable right now. I cannot take him seriously when he’s like this and even when he’s angry, this form makes it look adorable.

Back to the story.

While all the mess is happening on the surface, Kiriwo-senpai has finally been found by the Six Fingers who are there to help him escape under the orders of Baal. The other escaping inmates are also in the area but still behind bars and Kiriwo-senpai tells them that he never planned to help them escape alongside him and never said he'd do such thing in the first place.

I kinda feel bad for them but they are also bad people so, eh.

Upon donning the same coat the Six Fingers' wear, one of the prisoners had the realization that unlike all of them there who are merely "bad", Kiriwo is actually "evil".

One of the Six Fingers asked why they couldn't just let the prisoners escape, too as it'll help in causing chaos and Kiriwo-senpai answers that seeing the despair the prisoners are gonna be in when they realize they'd never be let out despite going this far will be fun to see. Plus, they're not strong enough and will be caught again anyways.

I missed seeing Kiriwo-senpai’s evil hairstyle. It’s been a while. I guess this answers the question I had back in season 1: Kiriwo-senpai chose to be evil. Sad but I should’ve seen it coming.

Back on the surface, a parade starts and on the float are the heroes who saved Walter Park. While Iruma is properly mentioned, the owner, Rossevelt also shows off his son (Ronove does call him Legend-daddy as in the English word lol). The owner thanks Iruma for saving the park and calls him a hero.

They look alike except for the mustache and hair length. Anime genetics never fail. Does Legend-daddy also sing his own bgm?

Unbeknownst to our heroes, Kiriwo-senpai is around the corner watching the parade. He's surprised to find out that not only was Iruma also at Walter Park at this time but Iruma is also the one to defeat the beast. Instead of being angry at another evil plan foiled, Kiriwo-senpai says that this must be destiny and was happy to see Iruma. He was gonna walk out into the crowd but snaps out of this happy state by a call from Baal.

Senpai really blurs the line between love and hate cause he acts similarly when it comes to Iruma. Congrats to the fans of this ship for getting this scene and also, I still don’t know the ship name for them. How do I tag this?

Back to the phone call, Baal isn't happy that the park still stands. Walter Park is created to vent out demons' evil cycle after all and he has no need for that in his goals as he prefers that the demons go way beyond the evil cycle and just become ultimately evil. Unfortunately for him, the authorities are coming and they can't really do much else so he tells Kiriwo-senpai and the rest to escape already.

After being told to escape, Kiriwo-senpai says that this isn’t the end and declares that he and Iruma will meet again as they are destined enemies.

I guess in Iruma’s harem, he’s the “enemies to lovers” love interest lol.

Iruma looks at the direction where Kiriwo-senpai was but of course, he doesn’t see anything and he’s none the wiser.

Opera gives Iruma back his backpack at the float. As Iruma looks inside for his stuff, he finds the note his grandfather gave him of things he must do on his trip with the final one on the list being "Have fun with everyone!". Iruma looks at his smiling friends and thinks that even though a lot of scary things happened today, he still did have fun with them. Aww so cute!

Iruma gets reunited with his worried grandpa who goes to the hotel to check on him. Iruma says he couldn't go home early as Ronove's dad let them stay at the hotel as thanks for saving the park. Ronove’s dad adds that they are also Sullivan's students so he's happy to give them such things. Iruma tells his grandpa that he's happy and okay and that the teachers and Opera protected them. Grandpa Sullivan decided that the three adults would be given the job of protecting Iruma from now on (and Kalego-sensei felt a chill down his spine elsewhere in the hotel lol).

These two adults are the same. They probably won’t stop talking about their kids if you’re around them. Reminds me of FMA’s Maes Hughes (thought still makes me sad).

While the teachers are discussing information about the attacks, Kalego-sensei goes to his room to find his team on the bed making fun of the stuff he said earlier much to his annoyance. The boys said wanted to stay in the teachers' room as it's better than the room they got but Kalego-sensei quickly kicks them out.

The girls also get rewards and are allowed to get any clothes they wanted which made them happy. Ronove’s dad is pretty generous, huh? Like, I know these guys deserve it for all their hard work but the guy looks so happy that he’d probably still be nice to them even without all the trouble happening.

They are all also given an all-you-can-eat buffet. Iruma eats a ton of food obviously. Clara is having fun at the chocolate fountain thing and Ronove is trying to make Agares eat. Those two got close, huh? lol I wonder if Ronove’s doing this to try and make Agares unattractive or something. It’ll be cool if they became friends though with their very contrasting personalities and all.

While everyone is having fun inside, Iruma leaves without anyone else realizing except for Ameri who decides to follow. They end up at the rooftop by themselves with Ameri trying to calm herself down as she's thinking of romantic stuff as it’s just the two of them. Iruma then reminds Ameri of the question she asked him before about his goal and tells her he finally found one: he wants have fun with everyone. He's willing to change in order to be able to protect that ideal of his. Ameri is happy to see Iruma has grown.

Ameri decided that she also wants to give it her all for her own desires and ambitions. She then tries to tell Iruma something but sadly she gets cockblocked by Clara and Azz both appearing. Ameri gives up for now and tells Iruma to just go with his friends.

Before leaving, Iruma asks Ameri a question - the same thing she was going to ask him earlier! He asks if they could hang out sometimes but just the two of them and she passes out from this lol.

Congratulations to Iruma x Ameri fans for getting a scene like this, too. I also don’t know the ship name for them. Anyways, why is it just the senpais getting a moment with Iruma? Ameri has been getting a lot of moments, too and it’s making me wonder if she’s endgame.

lol also, Ameri is worried about the other female rivals not realizing there’s another threat somewhere else.

While all that teen drama is happening, both Romiere's dad and Iruma's grandpa are being interviewed on tv. The two men then tell everyone how their kids and those kids' friends are the heroes of Walter Park. Since Iruma's name had been specifically mentioned (with everyone knowing the heroes are "Iruma and friends"), there ends up being reporters outside the hotel wanting to see Iruma the next day. Iruma, of course, doesn't like this popularity. With the thought that there may also be reporters waiting at his home, Clara offers to let Iruma stay at her house.

Oooh... will we finally get Iruma x Clara and Iruma x Azz moments as well? Hehehe

There's something new in the ED video by the way! This used to be for Kuromu but now it’s for these boys! Cute!

---

I’m guessing this is the end of this arc? I wonder what the last one will be since we only have like, what, 6 episodes more? What kind of arc will it be, I wonder cause this one had battles.

Okay, the end where the heroes are mentioned to be “Iruma and friends”, I’m happy and surprised that none of the others were bothered by this at all. No one complained about why Iruma is the only one specifically named. It didn’t cause a fight between the entire group unlike what would’ve happened if this was any other story. I get why Iruma got proper credit as he is the one to end the incident and saved everyone around from being fried but his friends did a lot of work, too and it’d have been better if they were all credited properly in the news. None of them were mad though and are happy that they won because they did their best.

Ronove calling his dad “Legend-daddy” will never not be cute and funny to me. His dad, despite being rich enough to own this entire park, isn’t an annoying, arrogant asshole and I like that. I’m happy that most characters in this show subvert my expectations and they make me like them more.

I’m sorry if I don’t tag ships in my mairuma posts but I don’t know any of the series’ ship names lol. Speaking of ships, as I mentioned before, Ameri’s been getting a lot of moments with Iruma or focus on her growing feelings for Iruma. Kiriwo-senpai only showed up a bit in this arc and got a bit for himself, too. Kuromu and Clara only had a bit when Iruma went evil cycle and I wonder if they’d get more, too. I personally ship him with Azz so I wish they’d gets some moments as well. Eiko gets hers mostly on the “Interval” segments.

So... is it possible to have a mairuma dating sim or not? Look at how many routes are available! XD

Anyways, focus next time is on Clara’s family probably with Iruma spending time there. I expect another Valac Family musical! XD

Thanks for reading!

#Mairimashita! Iruma-kun #welcome to demon school iruma-kun #sana_post

[justmenoworries]

Fate: The Winx Saga - How Not To Reboot A Beloved Franchise

Okay, I think I speak for everyone here when I say: We saw this coming.

We saw this coming as soon as that godawful trailer dropped on youtube. But because I hate myself and because I wanted to give this pile of shit a chance, I watched it.

All of it.

It sucked and I won’t do it again.

The End.

....

Nah, I’m kidding.

Here’s why Fate: The Winx Saga sucked ass.

(Spoilers under the cut! Pfft, like anyone cares.)

The Story:

I suppose now you’ll expect me to tell you that F:TWS was a generic, boring slog-fest.

That it offered the most clichéd take on a Chosen One-story since Eragon and that it’s half-assed attempts to be scary through bringing in a zombie apocalypse made it even more painfully obvious just how hard the story was trying to be edgy and ‘’’’’’mature’’’’’’’’.

And, yeah, that’s pretty much how it went.

...Oh, I’m sorry, did you expect something fresh and surprising?

So did I when I watched this garbage.

The title says Winx, but honestly the story is more about Bloom than anyone else. At least they were faithful to the source material in one aspect, am I right fellow Winx-fans?

I hope you like Alfea, because you won’t be spending time anywhere else! Gone are the dozen colorful, unique worlds with their own eco-systems and culture.

Now we have The Otherworld, which is just earth, but with magic.

Oh yeah, and remember how each magic and non-magic users had their own, specialized schools to got to?

Cloud Tower, Alfea, Red Fountain?

Yeah, that’s all Alfea now.

Remember how Winx Club juggled great, charismatic villains and everyday teenage-drama in a way that made both seem interesting and neither obnoxious?

Fate fails miserably at that.

The subplot about the zombies- Oh, sorry, The Burned Ones ™  slowly invading Alfea couldn’t be more dry and uninteresting if it tried. You have hints of political intrigue in the background with the Solarians scheming and taking over in the end, but trust me when I say: You won’t care.

And since the character are either miserable, unlikable or both, you also won’t care about the teenage drama.

Because it’s every single teenage drama plot-line you’ve already seen in edgy reboots like Riverdale, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, etc.

To add insult to injury, season 1 ends with the villains and antagonists taking over Alfea with Solaria’s help, as if anyone would be baited into a season 2 after you just dragged us through a worse version of The Walking Dead.

I would say this is what you watch to lull you to sleep, but all the incessant whining and belly-aching wouldn’t let you.

And because this is the ‘‘‘‘‘‘mature’‘‘‘‘‘ reboot, there will be no transformations and no bright colors. Just some nice effects for magic and that’s it.

Because, you know.

No one watched Winx Club for those, am I right? /s

And because in modern, edgy reboots women can never just be friends, the Winx Club start out hating each other, until suddenly they’re the best of friends in episode 4, Stella included.

Cool, huh?

The Characters:

I’ll get straight to the point: The main cast is horrible.

Not acting-wise, the actors are doing the best they can with the script, but the way they’re written...

God, the way they’re written.

For starters, Stella is a Karen now. In the very first episode she attempts to get Bloom killed, then runs away to cry into Sky’s shoulder rather than apologize.

Flora was replaced by a white character named Terra, who the writers probably thought would be received well solely because she’s awkward and makes a lot of Strawman-Feminist statements.

Techna got straight-up written out.

Musa was white-washed and is a Mind Fairy instead of a Music Fairy now, because her being the Fairy of Music wasn’t ‘‘‘‘mature’‘‘‘ enough for this reboot.

Bloom is a whiny, spoiled brat who is willing to endanger absolutely everyone around her to get what she wants. And in the end, the plot rewards her for it.

Aisha is the only Winx Club-member who remains likeable, but she’s firmly planted in the supporting character-role.

Most of the Specialists got written out too. No Timmy, no Helia, no Nabu, no Brandon.

Sky is still there, but he serves mainly as a boy toy for Stella and Bloom to fight over, because that needed to be a thing, I guess.

Riven was changed from Jerk with a Heart of Gold who learns to be better to just a one-note jerk who never changes and never learns. He’s also not with Musa in this story. Even though their romance was by far the most engaging one in the original series, aside from maybe Aisha and Nabu.

We get a new character named Dane, but he’s just there to be either a bully-victim or a side-character for others to take advantage of. Did I mention he’s the only black guy in the main cast? Yeah. There’s also this really asinine running gag that he might be gay, to tease a possible relationship with Riven, but nothing ever comes off it.

The teacher-characters are all pretty much the same: Duty-driven, want to protect the ones under their care, but end up alienating them by not being entirely honest with them because they think their students aren’t ready for The Truth, blah blah blah, moving on.

The villains don’t fare much better.

The Trix got fused into one single character named Beatrix (haha, get it?) and she’s just... The Worst. And not in a  good way. She’s obviously supposed to be the Charming Bad Girl-type but you’re more likely to laugh your ass off every time she opens her mouth than be intrigued. Whoever wrote her dialogue clearly has no idea how teenagers talk. She hooks up with Riven and Dane for no reason in particular and it’s heavily implied these three are going to be the new Trix. Which is...no. Just no.

The headmistress’ secretary gets killed off in the third episode and doesn’t do much in the first two, so I have nothing to say about him.

Rosalind is a worse, female Darth Sidious who is trying so hard to get Bloom to join the Dark Side and I guarantee you, you will not care. The story also tries to present her as something of a well-intentioned extremist, but forgets to actually let her have a point in her murders and genocides.

Hey, remember when Winx Club characters were different and unique?

The writers of this reboot clearly don’t.

The Aesthetic:

Hey kids!

You know what’s better than bright colors and nice, comforting palettes?

Slapping a dull grey filter on everything and calling it a day!

If I had to list all the reasons why Fate’s lack of style is so heartbreaking and disappointing, we’d be here all day.

So I’m just gonna show you a few screenshots from both the original series and the reboot and let that speak for itself.

The Original:

The Reboot:

Honestly, what do I even need to say?

The reboot sucked out everything that made Winx Club Winx Club and replaced it with “YA-novel palette #17247845453″.

Thanks, I hate it.

In Conclusion:

Fate: The Winx Saga could have been a new take on Winx Club’s story.

Maybe even introduced new concepts and characters tat could have been just as iconic as the original ones.

It chose to be every reboot ever instead, made everything grimdark and fundamentally misunderstood the meaning of “Gray Morality”.

Do yourself a favor and re-watch the original instead.

It’ll be a much better use of your time.

#fate the winx saga #review