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pokeexehasstoppedworking · 3 years

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Love Doesn’t Do Encores Ch6 The Entrance Ceremony

(Notw: I am aware that Piers also appears in Pokemon Masters EX and Pokemon Masters will be canon also to the story line but not until after the Sword and Shield story line.)

You perhaps should've seen it coming when Hop's excitement was reignited when he heard Leon left him a present and you gladly handed over one of the bags to which he opened up in a hurry but looked utterly confused at all the healers and camping food until you explained the reasons why Leon got them all for him. Which he understood with a nod. And after a moment more of resting you decided to walk back with him towards the road, but the two of you ran into another familiar face in the form of Gloria. Or more like she almost ran into the two of you as she ran into the train station as you got up from your seat. Your sobble still sore over how many times he already fell from your shoulder and so resorted to gripping your shoulder sleeve harder.

"Geez Glory!," Hop commented raising a brow, "What's gotten you in such a hurry? I thought that was my thing."

"Sorry," she apologized leaning over to look around you and Hop at the station, "Did Leon leave yet? You said somethin' about stopping him so we could say good bye."

He again sighed and slouched a big bag in his hands. "Yeah he's gone back to whatever he was doing. I suppose I can't catch a train after all." ...He gave a small smile though. "But I guess I can't complain! He's the Champion! So of course he's gotta be like SUPER busy! We'll come face to face again soon enough!"

Gloria smiled back and nodded in agreement. "YEAH! Besides, maybe we'll see him at the Opening Ceremony tomorrow!"

You nodded at them. Although you knew he wouldn't be there as in game if the current events kept up, but you didn't want to break their hearts or anything so soon.

"Are you two endorsed trainers?," a man's voice asked from behind the three of you turned around to the man in the small store like stand in the train station. His smile widened as he nodded to his side where a stack of books was settled. "Would any of you three be interested in joining in our charity dex events?"

"Charity dex?," you asked obviously confused.

And the man nodded again gesturing to the two different book stacks one smaller than the other. "Yes! For just five dollars you can purchase one of two dex books and enter the dex challenges to win a variety of prizes! All proceeds goes towards the power crisis fund raiser."

There was that mention again about the power crisis. You wondered how dire it was exactly. Gloria seemed to take interest in it though and walked right up to the stand staring at the books. "....What's exactly the challenges?"

"Well there's the Poke-Dex challenge and the Curry-Dex challenge?" He explained holding up one of the small books, it had a picture of a plate of some kind of food etched into it. "The challenge is too take a picture of every labeled curry, or pokemon, on the pages and when your albums are fully completed, you turn in into your local pokemon center to claim your prizes! And there's no time limit. It's all for charity and you get a neat scrap book out of it. We already sold a few to some people on their way on the train. Would you be interested in joining one of the dex challenges?"

"I dunno. Sounds like a scam to me, Glor," Hop commented glancing at the books. "I always thought photography was Victor's gig. And we're already got the gym challenges ahead of us tomorrow.......Glory?"

Dexes?? As in completing the entire pokemon dex for this game?? Was this how it was manifesting in this game? You guessed so. It WOULD be weird if Gloria just discovered her pokedex had a limit of numbers in order to 'complete' it like a game's challenge. but a curry dex?? You faintly remembered there being some kind of food challenge in game but you couldn't remember it too well.

"I can't believe you wasted twenty dollars on two scrape books and camera film." Hop gave a small frown at the rolls of film and books Gloria was carrying along with the bag of goodies provided by Leon from earlier. "You don't even have a polaroid camera for all of that."

"No, but Victor does! I'm sure he won't mind if I take his old one." She waved him off. "Besides! It'll be fun and easy! Just fill up a whole book with pictures of pokemon and curries! How hard can it be?"

Hop's face deadpanned. "That's not exactly what I meant."

The three of you had left the train station not longer after that and had taken a small detour to the grocery store you were previously in that morning so Gloria could buy herself a decent amount of film rolls. It was crazy how many rolls of film you could cheaply buy in this world for a mere ten dollars, although you were sure Hop disagreed. So you decided to change the subject by asking the two a question.

"So," they both turned to you, "We're leaving for the Entrance Ceremony tomorrow morning right?"

"YEP! Bright and early! The morning train leaves at seven thirty sharp and we have to get our Dynamax bands from Professor Magnolia tomorrow! So we're gonna have to get up real extra early if we don't want to miss it. These train conductors are always on time, whether it's a good or bad thing. But those bands will be worth it to be able to dynamax and complete our Badge Circles!"

"I see. ...What's a badge circle??" You don't remember hearing anything like that from the game even when you played it way back when. "I don't think I know how these gyms and badges work."

They both gave you a confused look and for a moment you thought you goofed up before luckily Gloria unknowingly saved face for you when a look of realization came over her. "OH RIGHT!! You're not from this region so you wouldn't possibly know how the gyms work!" You thanked whatever god was listening for this great save as Gloria happily explained. "You see there's ten gyms each with their own gym leader unique to their own type of pokemon, but in order to compete in the finals at the end of the year you only need eight badges to complete your Badge Circle. A Badge Circle is like a puzzle but instead of carboard puzzle pieces you use badges to make it, then you present it to the official board who helps host the Gym Challenge. They're also the ones who's going to be checking to make sure your endorsements are legit at the Entrance Ceremony," she explained as you listened. Never knew when this info might come in handy later. "That's where four of the gyms are optional. While usually they give you they're own unique piece for the Badge Circle..Both Rock Type and Ice Type Gyms offer the same shaped badge. So does the Fighting and Dark Type Gyms. So usually you'd pick either one of the two choices, grab it, and then move on. Lots of people don't see the point of battling both gyms for the same piece as it's not required." She smirked before pointing a confident hand forward. "BUT NOT ME!! What's the point of me joining the Gym Challenge if I don't at least try out every gym at least once! We have a full year until the finals anyhow! That should be plenty of time for me to get what I need!!......Plus...m-maybe because I'm also kinda hoping to get some pictures and a few autographs. It's not everyday you get to see such famous people. Hehe."

You rolled your eyes with a smile. Just like a teen meeting a famous person but Hop sighed again. "I just don't see why you're going through all of this trouble. Won't it make more sense to just focus on one thing?"

"Hop you need to broaden your horizons a bit! It's gonna be our first times away from home! It's not just about the Gym Challenge!" She smiled widely at him. "It's about seeing new things! Meeting new people! Getting to see all kinds of new pokemon! It's...." Her smile dropped for a bit as she looked down. "It's actually a bit scary.....but I guess that's what's also making it so exciting." She smiled again. "Plus I know you're also doing the challenge so it's not like I'll be going into it alone right? Ill have my best bud going through it with me!"

Hop stared at her for a moment before clearing his throat and nodded looking away. "Y-Yeah! You're right. "

"See? Told you! It'll be fun! And I'll have Y/n as a traveling buddy anyways! So it should be fine."

You nodded in agreement as the three of you continued to walk back towards their homes, and both children mentioning the new pokemon they had been able to catch while out on their little adventure today.

"So how many pokemon did you guys catch?," you asked curiously.

And Gloria proudly answered, "NINE! And Hop caught five!"

You did a double take at the two. "Wait. You guys caught fourteen pokemon between the two of you in the few hours I was gone!?"

"Yeah! Hop's really lucky! He's got a shiny butterfree!"

Hop gave a sheepish smile and in a similar fashion to Leon raised a hand to rub the back of his head. "Well I guess I was just lucky to catch it off guard enough to catch it in the farmer's meadows."

Oh yeah. Weren't shiny pokemon a pokemon born with a rare color variety compared to most of their other kind? Wow. Well it sounded like the two of them certainly had a fun time out and about. "Wow. It sure sounds like you guys had a fun time." The three of you were coming up to the roads that split into to directions to both of the children's homes.

Gloria nodded again. "Hey! Hop! Come over to my house so I can practice my camera."

"What?," Hop's brow rose again, "Don't you mean Victor's camera?"

"Same difference! If I take pictures of all the pokemon we caught then it'll be good practice and give me a head start on the challenge! Plus who else would have a picture of a shiny butterfree?"

He sighed. "I swear you can bounce forward on anything like a ball."

You chuckled as the three of you made it to Gloria's house. Finding her mother in the kitchen cooking food and the first thing you noticed was the delicious smell coming from the kitchen stove, whatever she was cooking smelt of spices and your stomach growled. She looked up for a moment and smiled at the three of you, asking what the bags were for once she noticed, so you explained to her what had happened with you and Leon that morning as the two kids went off towards the door outside. She chuckled when you explained how Leon got lost on his way to the train in the early morning and got lost to only somehow end up back in front of his own home. Calling him 'a sweet young man for helping the kids out like that' and asking how your day went. Overall it was pretty well and you soon found yourself sitting down at the kitchen table resting yourself from all the walking around town you did. It was still fairly early in the day being only twelve something in the afternoon- You jumped when your Sobble all of a sudden chirped curiously and half climbed onto the side of your head to look towards the opposite side of the house as a flash of light came from one of the windows from outside. A minute long pause. And then another went off. A total of fourteen flashes with about a minute pause between them and while you tried to wrangle your sobble from your face without hurting it and it was enough to catch Mrs. G's attention as she stared with a brow rose.

"Gloria, what are you kids doing? I hope you're not practicing electric type moves near the house" her mother demanded. "You already almost caught your bed on fire from teaching your scorbunny Ember inside!"

"It's fine Mum!," Gloria's voice came followed by her head appearing in said window and waved what could only be described as a polaroid camera. "We're taking picture of our pokemon! Can you believe that I already have fourteen pokemon for the dex challenge!"

Her mother gave her a confused look placing a hand on her hip, "Dex challenge? What are you talking about?" She asked just as her Munchlax came toddling him yawning with another green pokemon behind him. He must've smelt the food and woken up you figured.

However Gloria's eyes lit up with a gasp! "Make that soon to be sixteen! You caught a Budew!?"

"Oh?" She glanced at the pokemon at her feet glancing up at her. "Oh yes. It was one of the two that always hangs around the flower beds. I always thought they were rather helpful for planting so I thought-" She paused as Gloria was already gon-

BANG!!

Both of you and the three pokemon jumped and turned to Gloria in the door's entrance camera in hand and scorbunny at her heels as she grinned at the Pokemon at her mother's heels before lifting the camera at them. "SAY CHEESE!!"

"Gloria! What are you-" She was cut off by two flashes that blinded you for a moment and you reached your hand up to cover your face as a white coated your vision. "GLORIA!!"

"Whoops. Sorry Mum!"

"WHAT. ARE. YOU. DOING!?"

"Taking pictures of pokemon. Duh."

"I can SEE that! Or I would if you hadn't blind sided me.....Wait. Isn't that Victor's camera? What on earth were you doing playing with it!? You know that's not yours!"

You groaned and rubbed your eyes as they contined to talk. You trying to rub away the white dots that came with the flash as your sobble sat there. And you suddenly felt a small hand pawing at your face, as if your sobble was mimicking the movements you made at the attempt of clearing your vision. It was cute....But it would've cuter if you could see it.

"But Mom," Gloria pleaded, "It's for a good cause I promise. There's this Dex challenge and if you fill up the entire book with pictures when you can win something! Plus it's fun!"

"Well watch where you're pointing that thing! The last thing we need is you blinding someone."

"Yes, Mom." "Sorry Ms. G."

You finally opened your eyes still lightly rubbing them as you blinked and your vision was slightly blurry, but it quickly cleared revealing the two teens and their mother standing there as they looked at you. And Mrs. G held out a hand to you.

"Oh dear. Are you alright, Y/n?"

You nodded. "Yeah. I guess. It was just real bright for a moment." You paused as the camera was held out pointed at you by Gloria.

"Hey, Y/n. Can I take a picture of your sobble?"

A picture of your- "Oh. Yeah sure! Just lemme close my eyes for a minute." She nodded as she held the camera up to her face and you slammed your eyes shut as the words left her mouth.

"Hey Sobble!" The pokemon turned to her. "Say cheese!" Another flash of white lit up everywhere and your sobble chirped in surprise as his eyes went wide and it swayed as you reopened your eyes. Gloria smiled as the camera made a whirling noise and a moment later a perfect picture of you with your sobble staring towards the camera came out through a slot in the bottem as she grabbed it. Examining it with a smile. "Yep! That makes seventeen now!"

You gently took the sobble off your shoulder and into your arms as it swayed wide eyed, before shaking it's head and scowling towards the two teenagers, letting out a very loud squeak of annoyance at her before leaning back into your arms like a cat would still glaring at the two of them. You kinda felt bad so you ended up scratching it's back making it give a pleased sound and smile after a moment. What a cute newt thing!

"Hey Glory. Shouldn't we be dropping off some of your pokemon at the center for your rotomi boxes?," Hop asked

Gloria nodded before looking at him. "Hey. Doesn't your grandpa have a purrloin?"

"Yeah he sure does."

"Think he'll let me take a picture of it?"

"I don't see why not! C'mon!"

"Wait! What about lunch?!," Gloria's mother called after the two already running out the door. She stood there for a few moments, before sighing and shaking her head. "I swear! If those two were pokemon they'd be rapidashes for how fast they head off to things."

You chuckled at her. The rest of the day went by very quickly. You had ended up helping Mrs. G clean up after she had started cooking and she gave you some curry as a thanks. You never had this kind of dish before. It was some rice with some kind of red sauce with the same spice smell from earlier, but neither of you were complaining as you ate. It was actually pretty good. Nice to have a peaceful meal considering the past couple days with how chaotic they were. Although you did have to keep your sobble from trying to grab food from your plate and to appease it you fed it a few peices of pokemon food after Mrs. G offered. Gloria didn't return until later that evening where you assumed she had dropped off some of her pokemon with Hop. The camera secured around her neck by a strap and her hands was one of the journals you noticed she had purchased. So you asked about it and her face lit up and she showed the both of you the eighteen pictures she had taken. Some of them you had recognized. Gloria's scorbunny. You and your sobble. Mrs. G's two pokemon of course, and a couple of Hop's. Including a yamper like Sonia's. What you didn't recognize was a few new ones which she gladly told you the names of them. But the most surprising one was her phone but it looked as if it was posessed by a rotom. When asked Gloria explained that it was perfectly normal for someone to have a rotom phone with their very own rotom. She probably assumed you didn't have any of that back in 'Kanto'. Time flew by and other than Mrs. G scolding Gloria for snapping a picture of the curry she had saved her for dinner, it was pretty easy for you to follow your routine before once again falling asleep on the couch and dozing off for the night. Until the very next day of course. You were just laying there peacefully snoozing away peacefully until you felt a harsh shake on your shoulder and a light was shown on you. Of course you being asleep ignored it in favor of turning over on the couch and curling into the blanket even more. Again a harsher shake made you groan in protest at whoever was trying to kidnap you from slumberland.

"Y/N!!" A young girl's voice shouted fairly close and loud next to your ear. Startling you awake with a snort, sitting right up and blinking and rubbing your eyes at the harsh light that extended on you. "Time to wake up or we'll miss the train to Motostoke!"

"Uuuuuhhh," you groaned peeking your eyes open and blinking groggily up at the form of Gloria smiling at you. You yawned a bit. "Gloria? Wha-....*yaawwn* What time is it?"

"Six o four in the morning!," she stated happily before leaning back up and it took you a moment to figure out it was still dark in the early hours of the morning and the light was coming from the light bulb above you. "You need to hurry up and get ready before we're late! I still need to pick up my Dynamax band from the Professor too!"

"M' up," you mumbled reaching a hand out to slowly toss off the blanket from your form as Gloria backed away.

She turned as you both heard her mother's tired voice call to her, asking what was up. What you needed to wake you up was a nice hot shower so that's exactly what you did. Dragging yourself out of bed, you trudged into the bathroom and took a deserving hot shower, brushing your teeth, and opting to instead of the overalls lent to you by Mrs. G wore the black shirt with the Eevee print, slacks, and the non rubber shoes you also picked up. By the time you came out, with everything else in the gray plaid bulking back pack of yours, the smell of food was already in the air and it didn't take you too long to find out why when you look over and saw Gloria holding what could've only been described as a plain waffle in one hand obviously in the middle of eating it, and going through her big brown back pack with the other as her mother looked at her.

"Uh huh. And are you sure you got plenty of clothes?," Mrs. G asked raising a brow, "Extra pokeballs? Your region map? How about the revives Leon was nice enough to get you?"

"Yes Ma!," the teen mumbled half way through eating, "I already went through this last night!"

"Well it never hurts to double check! Especially since you can't lose that endorsement letter or else they won't let you register for the challenge at all," she looked up and noticed you before smiling, "Ah! Y/n! Good morning, Dear. I hope you slept well."

You nodded shifting the backpack over your shoulders, "Yeah thanks! ......Hey. Where's that sobble?" You rose a brow while looking on the floor. Strange the little guy wasn't around.

"He was hungry so I gave him some food to tide him over for you. And speaking of which you must be hungry. I'll get you some breakfast. You aren't starting off your trip on an empty stomach."

"But Mom! That's gonna take even longer! Hop's already waiting for me! We still need to grab the dynamax bands before we go and we'll miss the train if we wait-"

"How about you guys go get the..bands and I'll *yaaawwn* meet you at the train station?," you suggested. You weren't really in the mood for any arguing in the morning, and to be honest you were hungry and the idea of starting a long trip on an empty stomach just didn't appeal to you.

You were lightly surprised when Gloria agreed to it and after a few more moments of going through her pack, left with Hop you assumed, as her mother kindly handed you over some food. More waffles but you weren't complaining. Your sobble at some point noticed you were awake and soon enough you felt that familiar feeling of the little guy crawling up your clothes only to plop itself into your shoulders. It really liked being carried around didn't it? Your muddled mind didn't know when but sometime after you finished the pancakes you were out the door bag in your hands, one hand holding it and the other digging through it to make sure all the few belongings you did own for now were secured. Sure enough you found the non perishable food Leon had given you, the few clothes, and of course your Sobble's pokeball tucked somewhere in the bottom of it all. You decided to keep your sobble out for the time being as it seemed to enjoy being out. The early morning light was starting to peek through with the light pinks and yellows of the sunrise. Already as you made your way to the train station, you saw the farmers and their wooloos out in the fields. Early to bed early to rise you guessed. You saw no sign of the teens, guessed they were still getting the dynamax bands from the professor, even as you walked right into the train station. So you did the only thing your tired self could do. You once again plopped yourself into one of the seats tiredly and waited for the two to arrive. It couldn't have been that long(or maybe it was but you didn't notice) but you perked up at a familiar voice.

"So out with it, Glor! How many did you catch again?"

"I already told you eight! You saw me take pictures of them yesterday remember?"

"Oh right! Sorry that's just the sleep talkin'. " You turned to the door as the young voices got louder. "But look at how many you caught! You're well on your way to building a fine team! I caught myself a special one not to brag."

" I KNOOOWWW!! I'm so jealous you caught a shiny before me!" Gloria walked right into the train station with Hop right behind her.

He shrugged with a proud smile. "Well what can I say? I'll make a difficult rival."

"Where are we heading again?"

"The Gym Challenge will begin Motostoke and our train's waiting so let's go-" He paused finally looking away from her and seeing you sitting there. Upon catching his eye you smiled and waved mumbling something like 'Good Morning'. And he smiled. "Hey! Y/n you're here!" You stood up to meet them with a light yawn as they approuched. "I thought you'd be on the train already.''

You chose not to mention you haven't gotten any money to pay for the ticket entrance and waved. "Nah. I said I'd wait for you guys at the station and I wanted to keep my promise." Looking to Gloria you noticed something around her neck, so you pointed and asked. "Hey. Isn't that your brother's camera?"

"Hm?" She blinked and looked to the camera around her neck. "Oh yeah! I'm gonna need it if I'm gonna finish this Dex Challenge too!"

Hop groaned and rolled his eyes. "I still think it's a waste of time but I guess it's your choice." He jabbed a thumb to the awaiting train. "It's nearly seven thirty. We should probably get on before it takes off." He suggested and the two of you agreed. Walking towards the small gate-

"Not so fast you three!," an older but familiar lady's voice cut through the air and the three of you all turned around as a result.

Hop's golden eyes widened. "Wha-? What're you doing here, Mum?" He asked turning around just as the two mothers of the children walked right in. You were confused at first two, before seeing what they were holding in their hands and you immediately understood why they had followed you here.

"I knew this day was coming since the moment you chose Grookey as a partner, Darling," the older woman smiled fondly at him, a smile you remember your own mother used to have way back when. She held up the small rolled up thing in her hands. "You took off so fast you two didn't take any sleeping bags. Did you forget you probably won't be able to afford hotels most of the time or won't be able to sleep in one every night? You can't expect a free bed around every corner."

Both looked immediatey sheepish as Mrs. G spoke. "Professor Magnolia was kind enough call and let us know that you three would be setting out now." She held up a small looking back of her own. "So here. A little last gift to see you well set on your way. All the kit you'll need for camping! And the reason why you should always double check BEFORE you take off." Gloria made a face and looked away before her mother made her take the small kit, which consisted of a small compact tent you could carry over your shoulder and another sleeping bag, before crossing her arms with a frown. "Honestly! I swear you'd lose your head if it wasn't attached to your neck sometimes."

"HEY! I only forgot this one thing," she protested and her mother hummed.

" Ah yes. Like you forgot to tell me about how the two of you snuck off into the Slumbering Weild." In an instant she froze and you could've sworn a little color drained from Gloria's face in that moment. "And yes, I heard the news from young Leon. I'm glad someone bothered to tell me!" She sighed and her other hand was held out to you. "Here we are! A bit of pocket money for your journey. Buy yourself a little something at the pokemon center. Maybe some potions or something!"

You stopped and blinked at the small twenty bill in her hand before shaking your head. "Oh no! I couldn't possibly take your money! I-"

"Happened to save my child from a dumb idea. It's not much but something tells me you could use it anyways."

Well......It wouldn't hurt to have some money on you in case of emergencies even if it wasn't much. So you reluctantly took it from her. "I....Thank you."

She nodded to you before turning to Gloria and pointing a finger at her with a serious look. "Now. Remember that Scorbunny will battle to the very end for you so don't you go pushing the poor dear too hard! Come home to rest anytime that you need. After all east or west, home is best." She smiled. "No matter what happensout there, if you and your partner are together I know you'll be fine. Take my advice to heart Sweetie. As long as you have your pokemon at your side and the energy to carry onwards, you'll naturally find that you always have a smile on your face."

Gloria stood there for a moment before nodding to her mother and you blinked when she all of a sudden hugged the older woman, seemingly startling her too for a moment before she smiled and hugged the child back tightly like any mother would....Well except maybe yours. She was always seeming to be too busy working or making sure you worked hard to get good grades or worked hard enough to help out with the bills with your after school jobs. You didn't notice the frown come over your face as Hop mimicked his friend in giving his own mother a hug who like the other mother mirrored a smile and hugged back patting his head.

"Remember. No matter what happens out there, if you and your partner are together, I know you'll be fine."

Hop smiling pulled away and gave a big grin. "Thanks Mum! And just think of how lucky you are!" He raised a determined fist. "Mother to the first ever pair of Champion Brothers! Because I'm certain to be the Champion next! You'll see!"

She nodded in agreement but her face was amused. "Of course you will, Darling. Anyway, do have fun and take care of yourselves. And don't be too worried about not winning. You're welcome back home anytime."

Home huh- A loud train horn sounded off startling the five of you into turning to the train, then you happened to glance at the clock hanging upon the wall and noticed that it was seven twenty eight in the morning. Two minutes before seven thirty and the deadline for the train's departure. So you decided to point this out, having the two kids make a worried frown before taking a few steps back.

"We'll be off now!," Gloria explained lifting her hand a moment to give a quick good bye to the two mothers and turning to the train. "C'mon guys! We're off! Don't want to miss the train!"

You nodded in agreement tailing right after her with Hop behind you. "Wish us luck! Not that we'll need it!"

As the mothers waved good bye, the three of you went towards the gate and watched as Gloria slipped a single dollar into the slot of it. It made a ping noise and you guess it unlocked because the three of you easily slipped by and towards the train. The grey and yellow train's doors slid open with a whoosh sound as the three of you entered just as another horn sounded off startling your sobble a bit making it cling to your shoulder harder. Inside was who you assumed to be a train conductor who gestured for you all to exit through another door to the right which lead to the passenger cars and other people who happened to be on the train with you three. There was about fifthteen other people with you so the three of you had to go to one of the back seats. Yellow painted metal bars were everywhere along with Blue seats with a table between the two of them. Above each pair of seats was a small area to put luggage. You three sat down just as the train was starting off. Gloria breathing a sigh of relief from all the weight she was carrying. You assumed she was carrying more than you already along with the camping equipment she was given just a few moments ago. You ended up looking out the window and watching the station and small town of Postwick move away from your view and starting on your way. Beside you Gloria sighed and slumped into the soft cushioned seat.

"Man. We just left and I'm already feeling beat."

"Well look on the bright side," Hop suggested, "We're finally heading out on our journies! And Lee told me Motostoke is a good place as any to start off an adventure."

"Oh really? How come?," you asked curiously as he explained.

"Well besides the obvious Opening Ceremony going on there. Motostoke is surrounded by a giant piece of land called the Wild Area. It's a real sight! There's all sorts of wild Pokemon juat wondering about everywhere you look! Plus you can camp out, do a spot of fishing, and sight seeing! I don't think I could ever get tired of it!," he explained smiling widely, "But I don't think we'll be able to see it. The Entrance Ceremony's in the town not the wild. But on a lighter not! There's loads of brilliant trainers and all kinds of pokemon out there waiting for us! My excitement's running ahead of me faster than this train can go!"

"Yeah? Well it's too bad. Would've loved to take a couple more pictures." Gloria sighed leaning more against the wall of the train. " Im already starting to understand why Victor likes it so much. Like I wouldn't make it a living like he wants to but it's a nice hobby."

You nodded agreeing with her and extended your arm to allow your sobble to crawl along your arm and onto the table, watching as it curiously crawled up to the window and looked out at the world passing by. You all sat there for who knows how long chatting, the kids pulled out their phones and showed you a few pictures of what looked almost like a castle's high walls and beautiful scenery surrounding it. It was quite lovely. At one point someone said it would take at least a few hours to get to the town so all of you had plenty of time to relax but you couldn't help but let your mind wonder. What was happening back at your home? Was your mother worried about you suddenly going missing? What happened when she went to wake you up but found you completely gone? Did she call the police to file a missing person's report yet? Counting today it would've been five days that you had disappeared and that must've been worrying. And if this happened to just be a crazy dream you surely hoped you would wake up sometime soon. You were soon snapped out of any bad thoughts though. How? Simple the train suddenly slowed down out of no where it caught you off guard and you ended up hitting the table in front of you your poor Sobble chirping in shock as it was sent tumbling across said table and into Hop's extended arms as he thankfully caught the poor thing before it could splat onto the floor below. What the world was that!? Your head turned as Gloria nudged your side. you gave her a questioning look about to ask if she was alright but she pointed out the window and you looked. There was.....Nothing but nature?? Which wouldn't be strange since it was the out doors, and you WOULD have chalked it up to just being another stop on the way to Motostoke but then why did the train suddenly stop like that? Granted you never rode on a train before but you were pretty sure they weren't supposed to stop suddenly enough to ram yourself into a table. One of your hands rubbed your sore ribs where they had hit the table, surely leaving a bruise later but no real damaged luckily. So why had you all suddenly stopped in the middle of seemingly no where? Around you other people were also noticing, muttering to themselves, some getting up to peer out the windows or to take a couple steps up the alley way as to walk up to the engine car.

"Attention Passengers!," a man's voice blared from a loud speaker somewhere, "Due to some unfortunate events beyond our control we have decided to take a quick stop at Wild Station. We apologize for any inconvience and to please wait patiently while we fix the issue. We thank you for your cooperation."

"Wha- Wild Station? That's just outside the the town!," Hop exclaimed holding your sobble in one arm while staring at a map on his phone with the other. Confusion on his face. "Why didn't they just stop inside the city?"

"Let's find out!" Gathering her things into her arms Gloria was quick to jump past you.

"WHA- Hey wait!," you called out extending an arm out to her as she darted up the car past other people.

You stared after her for a few seconds before turning to Hop who shrugged and got up to after her which you followed obviously. The two of you hurried after her as Gloria trotted up to the exit and with a whoosh the doors opened with her stepping out and the two of you followed. On the other side was another train station. Only this one had slightly different colored brick walls and there was a whole bunch of leaves and twigs scattered about. Besides the three of you there was a couple looking over a map in one corner of the station looking confused and lost, a map just sitting in the waiting chairs, and someone who looked to be in some kind of uniformed green vest.

You gave a confused look around. "Where the heck are we?"

"Ill check!'' Before you could respond Hop had already turned to the man in the vest and asked, "Hey, Mr. Station Master!" The man hummed and turned to him. "Isnt this the Wild Area? What're we stopped here for?"

The man sighed crossing his arms. "Yes....This is the Wild Area Station makes no mistakes. I'm sorry to tell you that the train is halted due to a flock of wooloo."

"WHAT?!," both you and Gloria said at the same time.

A giant herd of wooloo!? Oh great! Now what were you all supposed to do?

Hop however wasn't the least bit concered. "What's there to be sorry about? This is brilliant!"

Gloria gave him a look that looked like he just did something crazy. "What is?"

He excitedly smiled widely at her. "This Wild Area is massive!" He explained the sobble in his arms giving a noise of annoyance at his sudden movements. "There are loads of pokemon to battle here! You don't get it do you, Glor? This is the best possible place to put together the greatest team!"

"I don't think we should be taking off, "Gloria pointed out and you nodded agreeing. "We have to get to the ENtrance Ceremony soon or else we'll be considered forfeiting our sponsorships entirely!"

"They take it that seriously?," you asked lightly surprised as she nodded.

"Something about a long time ago a lot of trainers tried to sneak their way into the challenge by claiming they were late to register or something like that. Since then the rules have been pretty strict. Which is why I want to register first and then come back here if I have a chance."

"When is the deadline?"

"Midnight. And as much as I'd love to explore around...Im kinda nervous about securing that spot."

You could totally agree with her on that point Buuut- You pointed behind you. "But the train's going to be backed up for a while by the looks of it. Maybe we can walk? How fair is this Motostoke?''

"Let's step out and see. The map said it shouldn't have been too far away I think."

That wasn't a bad idea and with no objections the three of you stepped out and what you saw made you pause. As soon as you stepped out you were hit with the strong rays of sunlight making you blink but once your (f/c) eyes managed to get a hold of themelves...Well....Breathtaking was a pretty good way to describe it. A giant meadow stretched as much as you could see with a giant lake, a few scattered trees, and A GIANT WALL! A giant wall was set up with a few bridge like structures to the right and you could see a few very tall buildings/structures ahead. You saw what you thought was oil rigs movie, a giant clock which reminded you of Big Ben back in your world, a few sky scrapers, and a few other things you were too far away to make out. Over all it was a very strange but pretty sight as the wind blew through the trees.

"Look at that!," Hop said in awe pointing at the buildings which must've been a decent half mile away. "That's Motostoke way off that way! And between here and there are countless new pokemon waiting to be met!"

Gloria hummed. ".......Well it would be cool to explore somewhere we won't get in trouble I guess."

"EXACTLY!!" He pointed towards the meadow. "Im itching to just see what's out there. It's not too far away and we can probably spare a couple hours. I mean we have until Midnight right? And we left pretty early in the morning."

She hummed again. "Well when you put it that way it does sound like fun!" A smile crossed her face again. "I can take a whole bunch of pictures for my scrapebook! And catch a few more pokemon of course."

You weren't sure that was a good idea- "Well well. You two running off again?"

The three of you turned- You blinked surprised. "Sonia?," you asked. True to your word the orangedhaired professor's assistant was walking right towards the three of you with a smile. "What are you doing here? I don't remember seeing you get on the train."

"Of course you didn't. I didn't enter the train through the station right side of the station," she smiled. "Besides. I figured it'd be an opportune time for me to travel for my research." Sonia gave a sigh and looked to the ground shaking her head. "My grab gave me a proper earful in her own way. 'Those two young trainers are setting out on a journey, but what are you doing with your life?' Her words not mine."

"Ouch Professor," you commented, "That sounds rough." You didn't mean to be so blunt but you kinda understood how she felt. Your mother had asked you similar things to that while simaltaniously pushing you to study more, go to college, and get a job-

Sonia waved you off. "Ah. Never mind that. Nothing to worry yourselves over. " Her eyes lowered back to the teens next to you. "Besides I've been more curious about that pokemon you two met in the forest. I'd been thinking I should look into it so the timing works out fine! If I discover something really huge then maybe even Gran'll admit I got some talent."

Pokemon- OH RIGHT!! You nearly forgot the legendary pokemon they saw in the fog. Although you were still unsure what it was exactly. A thought suddenly struck you. In the game Sonia would uncover some amazing things important to the plot of the game. If ONLY you could remember what it was!

"Yikes." Hop made a cringe face. "Being an adult got it's own challenges eh?"

You frowned and gave a chuckle and shake of your head which made him look at you. "Oh you have NO idea."

"I said you needn't worry about it," Sonia stated a little more firmly. "I'm glad to be on the road really! It's been ages. It'll be great fun to fish and camp and rough it outside again."

"Uh huh. Well you have fun with that! Meanwhile.." He turned with a smile. "I heard there's natural dynamaxing pokemon in the Wild Area! I'm off to go stick my head in as many of those red dens as I can find!"

"Not. So. FAST! Mr. Impatient!" He yelped when gloria grabbed him by the hoodie and with the same frown as her mother stared at him when she yanked him back. "We only got here and you want to run off again into the wild??"

"Oh c'mon Glory. I promise Ill meet you up back at the Entrance Ceremony."

The young girl hummed. ".....What time is it by the way?"

"Oh." You glanced to sonia as she rolled up her sleeve and glanced at her watch. "According to this it just turned Eleven thirty in the morning."

She hummed and slowly released her friend. "Fine. But let's agree to meet at the Entrance Ceremony at six or seven in the after noon. That should be enough time for the both of us to explore and get to the town before it gets dark." She gave a concerned frown. "I really don't want you hurt or lost."

Hop paused for a moment before looking away coughing his cheeks having a light pink hue. "Um....YEAH! I can totally do that!"

Her smile returned. "Then it's settled! Can't lose my rival before I even join the challenge."

"GREAT!!" He turned again. "I'm going to battle the snot out of a bunch of dynamax pokemon and fill in the tale of my legend!" And he ran off.

"DONT YOU DARE FORGET HOP!!," Gloria hollered after him.

Both you and Sonia shared a chuckle at their childish behavior before she looked at you. What cheek. Dynamax pokemon are really on another level you know." She glanced to Gloria. "You'd better dynamax your partner pokemon too if you want to take on opponents that strong." She directed Gloria to the wild. "He's right about red dens. You'll find spots here and there in the Wild Area that emit a red beam of light. If you think you're up to it, check it out. They're usually cave openings with dynamax pokemon inside. But PLEASE be careful. It can be dangerous at times. I wish Hop would've waited for me to warn him before he ran off like that."

Gloria nodded in understanding as you looked down to your sobble climbing up your leg. Hop must've put him down when you weren't looking. "I understand Sonia! You don't have to worry about me!"

Sonia nodded to the two of you. "So with that Ill leave you two off here. The Wild Area is waiting for you. This is the start of your real adventure. Take care now."

You watched as she turned to walk away and....you weren't sure what really compelled you to say it in that moment but you reached your arm out after her. "Ms. Sonia!" She stopped and turned to you with a hum. You paused uncertainly if you should say anything. Would it affect the progress of the game's route? "I just....wanted to let you know that....You really are a great scientist already. And you're going to find a lot of things."

She blinked at you in surprise for a moment not sure what to make of your words, but settled on a smile and nodded. "Thanks. Your kind words mean a lot but we'll have to see what I actually accomplish. I wish you the best sights and experiences of Galar a tourist like you can have!" Before she turned and walked her way towards you assumed Motostoke.

"Wow." You jumped and looked to Gloria who smiled. "That was really nice of you. Even if it was a little out of no where."

You shrugged. "I guess I know how she feels a little bit. Sometimes a few kind words is what someone needs."

"Lee always says something similar, but I think he calls it 'champion encouragment'." She suddenly snapped her head forward and pointed. "Well you heard Sonia! I want to try out my first dynamaxing battle before I take on any gyms! We got about seven to eight hours to get some battling and sight seeing in so I say we give this day all we got!"

-time skip five hours forward-

You lost track of how many times Gloria pulled you along this way and that....but it was an eventful few hours.

You lost count of how many pokemon Gloria tried to battle. Key word being 'tired'. The first pokemon she tried to battle was one you remembered. An Onix. A. GIANT. MASSIVE!! AND CRANKY!! ONIX!! Probably didn't help Gloria snapped a picture of it before trying to battle it. You had to literally grab her and drag her behind you as you ran. Terrified scorbunny at your heels as it charged towards the two of you. Not the greatest start to be honest. But it wasn't as worst as her first dynamax battle. She had found an opening in the cliffside of a cave with red aura around in, one of the dynamax dens and she ran into it without a second thought with you chasing after her. Inside the dark was lit up by a GIGANTIC DIGLETT with the red-black cloud hovering over it's dynamax form. You nearly fainted then and there but when the thing ROARED you felt like you were about to have a heart attack!!! Your sobble poor thing made a small squeal of fright before forcing itself into your backpack to hide immediately. Things just went downhill from there when in the middle of the battle Gloria decided to dynamax scorbunny and all of a sudden you both were having a very hard time standing up from the shaking ground and the debry the attacks caused to the point you literally yelled that you both had to leave then and there but she couldn't hear you past all the noise and therefore barked orders to her gigantic scorbunny from her holding onto the ground. With you clinging onto the cave's wall for dear life hoping it would be over soon. Thankfully it did. It was all a blur really. You vaugly remembered Gloria somehow capturing the diglett and returning scorbunny to it's rightful size. And you two carefully climbed around disheveled cave floor until managing to get out of the cave....where the both of you collasped onto the ground.

"HOW THE HECK CAN STADIUMS HANDLE THOSE THINGS!?,'' you yelled out dizzily into the soft grass. In the game you didn't have to worry about debry being flung at you or the ground giving away suddenly. BECAUSE IT WAS A GAME!! REAL LIFE POKEMON DYNAMAX BATTLES WERE NOTHING LIKE THE GAME!!

Gloria raised a weak hand. "T-They were made a long time ago with top professors, contractors, and researchers to build them strong enough even a dynamaxed monchomp with the strength of a thousand earthquakes couldn't shake it. Dunno how but man I'm glad they did."

You could 100% agree with that! It took a minute for the both of you to recover before the two of you got up, dusted yourselves off, and went off again. Gloria managed to resume battling and taking photos of a few pokemon. Although some of the pictures were so blurry from the pokemon moving they would be no use at all and she didn't catch a lot of the pokemon she tried to battle. But she did win a few and even had two other dynamax battles within the dens you guessed Hop didn't come across. Catching one of them but not the other as you struggled to not lose your lunch or have a heart attack both times. You were not a fan of wild dynamax battles after that. At one point you even came across what Gloria explained was a wild berry tree and demonstrated how to get the fruits off them by forcibly shaking it until a couple berries fell off it. They all had a somewhat bittertaste you didn't like when you tried them tho, but your sobble seemed to enjoy up as you handed them right over when they extended their....hands?? Paws??...towards it. You couldn't remember how much time had passed before the two of you finally had a chance to sit down under the shade of a tree and have a break. Gloria took the time to go through all the pictures she took, must've been about thirty, but only twenty one were salvagable. Curious you took a peak at the pictures she showed you. The pokemon she got pictures of were a onix(of course angering it-), roselia, vespiquen, nuzleaf, vulpix, snover, bunnelby, pidove, miccino, baltou, combee, tryogue, stuffel, diglett(how did she have time to get a picture of that dynamax thing?), metapod, diggersby, hoothoot, bounsweet, noibat, and a pancham. Not a lot but certainly a decent haul for her. It was you who eventually asked the question-

"Hey. What time is it?"

Gloria responded by quickly pulling out her phone and checking the time on it. And she blinked. "It's four twenty seven! It's already been about five and a half hours!"

"Wha-" You looked up to the sky. Didn't look like sunset yet, but it was definately about late after noon. You two hadn't even noticed the time fly by. "We've been out here nearly all day!"

With a hum gloria quickly scrambled to pick up her things. "I think we better head to Motostoke now. I don't really know how long it'll take to walk there and I did promise Hop we'd meet him there."

You nodded scooping the confused sobble into your arms. The walk there was pretty uneventful as you two walked what must've been half a mile, your eyes widening the closer you got, until you finally got there......AND. IT. WAS. NOTHING. LIKE IN GAME!! The entrance to Motostoke was all bricked with a mideival ages meets industrial period kind of look. All the buildings you could see were brick other than the familiar pink pokemon center and there was A LOT MORE people and buildings than in game you remember....makes sense you supposed. This was a real world and so of course there would be a lot more people and buildings. It was so crowded you were certain if Gloria wasn't walking beside you, you were sure you would've easily watched her. The first place you two stopped was the pokemon center where Gloria went inside to heal her pokemon from todays battle and put away any new ones she caught into those Rotomi box things. You were busy marveling at the busy streets and environment around you. You had never been in a city before let alone a town like this so it was quite a shock for you to see. This place even had GIANT WORKING GEARS BUILT INTO IT'S VERY WALLS!! It was like a real steampunk town. But once she came out she.....stopped and stared around her.

"So which way to the ceremony?," you asked her gazing at a few stores lined across the street.

She looked really unsure now fidgiting with the straps of her bag and looking around her. "U-Um...I don't know."

You snapped your head to her. "You don't what?!"

"Im sorry!" She apologized looking around. "I know it's here! I just.....don't know exactly where in town."

You wanted to facepalm but decided not too to avoid hurting her feelings and looked around as well as people and their pokemon passed you two. No signs of Hop or any indication of a ceremony anywhere in sight. No other trainers, no signs, certainly no ceremony!

Gloria suddenly held up her phone. "Maybe I should call him? He might already be there waiting for us-"

"HEY YOU TWO!!" A familiar voice called out and to both of your relief you turned and walking towards you with a shopping bag in one hand, yamper at her feet was your saving grace Sonia waving at you. "Over here!"

"SONIA!" Gloria smiled. "Boy are we glad to see you! We ran into a 'Leon situation' here."

That made her laughed. "Oh really? Real ace of you to make it through the Wild Area. And a Leon situation huh?"

Gloria nodded sighing. "We're kinda lost. Do you know where the ceremony is?"

"You're first time in a city and already lost? But Motostoke is big right?" Gloria nodded and Sonia smiled. "Not to worry. Sonia is here to show you around a bit."

"Thanks, Ms. Sonia." Gloria poltely smiled at the older woman. "Could you point out where we gotta go?"

Sonia hummed. "The Entrance ceremony huh? I get a bit worked up when I think how exciting and moving it was to actually stand on a stadium's pitch for the first time." Sonia smiled off thinking of an old memory most likely. She shook her head. "Anyways. Brilliant young trainer who braved the Wild Area! Do you remember what your goal in Motostoke is?"

"I'm here for the Gym Challenge!,"Gloria shouted determined smile on her face and Sonia nodded.

She nodded. "Yep! The Gym Challenge Opening Ceremony!" She pointed behind her at the busy street. You Guess since she once too here attending the Gym challenge with leon as kids she would know where it would be. "Use that lift over there to get to it K? OH! By the way the ceremony tomorrow is being held at the Motostoke Stadium ok?"

......You looked at Gloria. "There's a stadium here AND a second ceremony tomorrow??" Gloria shrugged at you.

"Well, laters!" She waved a hand at you two. "I'm going to swing by the shops while I'm here but don't forget to register at the Stadium,k?" Gloria nodded and Sonia went to tur- She stopped. "OH! I forgot. I got you a little something." Reaching into her coat pocket and fishing around, she pulled out what looked like at first glance some kind of training card before holding it out to Gloria who curiously accepted it...And her eyes WIDENED at it.

"NO!! WAY!!" She stared wide eyed between the card and Sonia. "Is this what I think it is!?"

She giggled. "Yep. I know Leon already sent myself and Hop a couple so I figured it would be the perfect start off to your own collection."

Gloria gave off a girly teen squeal and practically shoved it into your face making you blink. "OH MY MAGIKARP!! LOOK!! I GOT A LEAGUE CARD!!" You blinked and true to her word it was a card. And on it was a picture of Leon sitting down looking off somewhere. She smiled widely pulling it from your face. "Thanks so much So-...." She blinked. "Hey where'd she go?"

You shrugged. "I guess she left. Come on. We better get going."

She nodded ad the two of you made off for this lift at the end of the street. Along the way you guys passed a few stores. A flower shop, a cafe, a book store, a record shop, a barber shop, and another clothes shop. Once you two were at and on the lift....you became unsure again.

"Um. Now what?"

"I dunno..." Something caught her eye as she looked over and pointed. "hey what's that?"

"What's what?"

"This panel has a button." She pressed it.

"AH!!" You instantly fell to your bottom and Gloria grabbed onto the small pedestol as the lift suddenly lifted the two of you up and around, until it suddenly stopped again and you groaned. Pushing yourself up...and hearing a snicker. You shot a look to the teenager who was snickering behind her hand. "Nice to see you're still standing." You muttered pushing yourself up to your feet again and looking over, in front of the both of you was a giant building with glass doors, in front of the doors was two men in some kind of uniform and sunglasses like some bodyguard and some man with.....A Pokeball head?? Was waving to a few people passing by. A mascot maybe??.....You pointed at the building. "You think that's it or what?"

She went to answer but someone already beat here to it. "Gloria! Ms. Y/n!" Both of you looked over and Hop was making his way towards the two of you. "You made it too? "

You rubbed your aching back. "Yeah. Where are we?"

"Motostoke Stadium! This is where the Opening Ceremony will be held!" He exclaimed excitedly pointing to the large building behind him. "Everyone'll be watching the Opening Ceremony for the Gym Challenge! My mom, your mom, the whole world!! It's getting me a bit nervous really." He shook his head. "Naw. This isn't nerves. I'm only trembling because I'm so excited!"

"Well I say we go it and get registered before it gets too dark," Gloria suggested.

"You're right!" He turned back to the stadium still pointing. "Come on, Glory! It's time the world knows our names!"

As the three of you rolled up to the doors one of the two men standing in front of the door held one of their hands out in a clear stop motion in front of you trio.

"Can I see your sponsorship letters please?," He asked holding out his hand and Hop didn't hesitate to pull his out of his pocket and have the letter over to the man in the meantime Gloria had slung her backpack off her shoulders and went digging through it. You hoped she didn't forget it all the way back in Postwick. The security guard carefully examined the peice of paper in his hands. Running a hand across the red unbroken seal, holding it up to the light, and then taking a small device out of his pocket. A small green light came out and scanned it for a few seconds until there was a small ding from the machine and the man nodded before handing it back to him. "Head on inside and sign in Trainer. Next!" Saying a quick thanks Hop quickly snatched the letter back just as Gloria pulled out her own (thank goodness she still had it) and handed it to the man who repeated the same process from before before he too handed Gloria back hers and allowed her to go. But when you made a move to follow them he held another hand up. "Sorry, Ma'am. Only registered trainers, staff, and authorized personal are allowed inside. You'll have to wait out here. It's the rules."

You paused for a moment before looking at Gloria uncertain who smiled. "It's alright Y,n. Just wait for us out here ok? It shouldn't take too long. I mean we're just signing in!"

"Well...Alright if you say so." You gestured to a nearby bench. "I'll just wait for you two over there ok?"

They agreed and left you standing outside the stadium as they went inside. Not that you minded waiting of course. Your feet ached and your shoulders from carrying around your backpack all day, so plopping on the bench you gave your sore body a rest before slinging your pack off your shoulders. Your sobble had decided now would be a good time to fully crawl out of your pack from where its been hiding out this whole time and you let it climb on you when you placed your bag down with a sigh and leaned into the bench. FINALLY allowing yourself to rest for a while. You waited for a little while as people passed you, going up and down the lift and and streets as the body guards still stood there making sure no one entered without permission. A few teens Hop's age excited uncluding one boy with bright white fluffy hair and a long pink coat and you thought he looked rather grumpy. At one point you thought you heard a happy yell from somewhere but ignored it as it was probably a child playing somewhere. The sky slowly turning to a light pink as it got later in the day. Eventually the two did come back out but with what looked like white work out bands on their wrist that didn't have the dynamax bands on them. You waved at them as they walked right on over to you.....and with a second boy??

"Hey you two. Who do you got there?,' you asked gesturing to the boy on the other side of Gloria.

To which she smiled brightly and hugged him making you raise a brow. "Don't you recognize twins when you see them! IT'S VICTOR!!"

You stared at the young boy smiling at you. ........THIS WAS VICTOR!! The name of the male avator that you could pick in the game if you didn't chose Gloria to play instead. Looking at the young boy he still looked the same age as Gloria and Hop next to him even if he was a little taller than his twin. How did you not recognize it sooner? He had the same dark brown hair and light brown eyes as his sister and if they had the same haircut they would've looked the exact same (other than Victor's slightly taller hieght). He wore a grey beanie like hat, a red shirt with some logo on it, jeans, brown shoes, and carried what might as well been a giant suit case on his back. And a poloroid camera was slung in a similar fashion around his neck as he smiled at you. Gloria seemed very happy to see him as she excitedly gestured to him.

"Can you believe it!? After a whole year the mysterious photographer finally appeared after disappearing without a trace," she teased making her twin roll his eyes.

"It's nice to know you haven't changed. I wanted to surprise you after the text you sent me telling me Lee sponsored you but I didn't expect you to show up with more people." He turned back to you with a smile. "Greetings! You must be the new friend Gloria told me about. Thanks for saving her sorry butt from the Slumbering Weild. I always knew she'd get into trouble sooner or later without me."

"HEY!" A frown came over her face as she pouted. "I don't get into THAT much trouble! Besides I got here without a problem didn't I?"

He chose to ignore that and you took the chance to talk. "Nice to meet you too. Are you here for the Gym Challenge?"

He shrugged. "Yes and no. I'm here to take pictures of the events as they happen. It's been years since the last Gym Challenge and certainly going to be a long time until the next one after this year is over. But I'm not competing. Never had much interest in battles."

You could understand that. You never had much interest doing a couple things too.

"Y'know Lee had a sponsorship and starter pokemon all ready for you too." Gloria almost looked sad. ''You could've competed alongside us even if you didn't want to battle it would've been fun to have you around."

"Glory, then a Champion's sponsorship would've been wasted. It wouldn't be put to it's full potential. Although I am a bit upset I didn't have the chance to tell Leon myself, but I'm sure I'll be able to thank him later considering you'll be seeing more of me around here soon."

She gave her brother a confused look. "Whatcha mean?"

"I've decided to join Hop on this little adventure If he doesn't mind."

"Really!? That's awesome! Of course!" Hop was quick to agree with a friendly punch to Victor's shoulder. "Why wouldn't I want one of my greatest pals joining me while I write my legend? It'll be grand to have a traveling buddy of my own!"

"NO WAY!!" Gloria's large smile returned! "Oh this is great! We'll be able to see each other for a while more. I haven't been able to see you since you went on a journey last year so this is totally a win win for me in everyway!"

You nodded. "Oh. How'd the registry go?"

She waved a hand. "Oh y'know. We got our Challenger Bands we're apparently supposed to wear all the time so everyone knows we're a part of the registered trainers group. Our own League cards for the challenge. And we got to meet some of the rival trainers in there too! I liked the Sherry girl. She seemed really shy."

"I heard she was sponsored by the Gym Leader Milo but I can't be too sure," Victor replied before looking up at the sky. ".....But in any case I believe we should all head to Budew Drop Inn before the actual ceremony tomorrow." He turned to Gloria. "That way I can show you all the new pictures of pokemon I've gotten. You can use them for that dex challenge thing you told me about."

They turned and you nodded in agreement standing up and grabbing your bag, your sobble grabbing onto your bag as your hoisted it back over your shoulders and followed them guessing they must've known the way.

"By the way how many pictures of pokemon did you add to your collection?," Gloria asked glancing at her twin.

"Um." He made a thoughtful face. "Well let's see. Nessa's Aquarium has at least one of every water type pokemon...and with how many nature preserves I've stayed...and with the hundreds of tourists with different regions pokemon....and trading pictures with fellow photographers from different regions at the International Photographers Expo..........Six hundred thirty four different pokemon!"

There was silence for a moment.

"........WHAT?!"

The four of you made it down the street and over to the six story building that certainly looked like a fancy hotel. Along the way the children explained that the Chairman had not only endorsed as well but apparently paid the hotel in advance to allow all the trainers to stay the night before the actual ceremony took place the next day and the challengers were officially given the go ahead to start their journey. But a small surprise awaited the four of you yet in the hotel when you walked in and you looked around. There was a couple potted plants, two pairs of stairs leading up to another level with furniture, a sign in desk, and an elevator like a regular hotel but the thing your eyes were drawn to was the golden statue. It reminded you of those knights in ancient fairy tales. The golden man stood with his sword held up to the sky, a gleamering shield on his other arm in defense, and his face one of determination to not fail. Quite the craftsman ship. And standing right in front of it with a small yamper at her feet was-

"SONIA!" Gloria loudly greeted startling the poor lady and making her turn around.

Upon seeing who it was she sighed and smiled. "Oh it's just you guys. You gave me quite the jump scare there. But it looks like you both got yourselves registered." She nodded to the arm bands before her gaze drifted to Victor as she blinked. "....Oh. Hiya! I don't think we've met."

"This is my brother, Victor. He's gonna be with Hop for a while. But what are you doing here? I thought you were going out to study."

"Yeah." Hop chimed in. "What are you doing at our hotel?"

"Oh!" She shifted the many shopping bags in her arms. Guess she did go shopping while here after all. "I'm researching the mysterious pokemon that are said to be in the Slumbering Weild. I reckon if I look into some of Galar's lengends I might figure something out. Care to join me?" She gestured to the statue. "You're here already anyways."

"SURE! It'd be fun!" She turned to you."Hey. Y/n new to Galar. I don't think she even knows the legends."

"That's perfect then! While you're doing that, Im gonna go stand in that long like up there and secure a spot for us ok?"

"But I-" You raised a hand as theVictor turned and walked away leaving you with sonia and the other two...and you sighed. "I don't think I was that way when I was fourteen."

Sonia chuckled. "We were all like that at one point or another. But would you like to hear one of the legends? A newbie to Galar like you might enjoy some foriegn tales."

"I'd like to hear too!"

You stared at her for a moment before shrugging. "Why not? I was just cast out from the little tribe."

She chuckled even more before she turned towards the statue. "Alright then. I'm sure you've seen the statue then.''

"Yeah." You rose a brow looking back up to the handsome man's golden face. "Who is he anyways?"

"It's a statue of the hero who once saved the Galar Region. I can run through the legend right quite if you fancy?" You nodded and that was all she needed to continue. "Long ago a great black storm covered the Galar Region." She gazed back to the statue. "People called it 'The Darkest Day'. The land was assaulted by gigantic pokemon but they were defeated by a single young hero bearing a sword and shield. This statue here is meant to depict the young hero of that legend. We still don't understand what kind of sword and shield the hero actually had. And what this 'black storm' is supposed to be is just another mystery. Whatever it was, it blotted all the skies across Galar. I suppse that tracks with it being 'the Darkest Day' but still..."

Hop blinked blinking at the golden statue's face and scratching his head. "Huh...I suppose that hero must've been about as strong as Lee then. Looks like you're going to have your hands full with plenty research though, Sonia. Black storms and swords and shields and all..."

"You'll be alright Sonia!"

She chuckled. "Heh. Thanks. I'll muddle through somehow. Don't you worry." She shook her head. "But legends aside. You three are staying at the hotel tonight though, right? Shouldn't you check in?"

"Probably so. Victor's holding our place in line." With a smiled similar to Leon he smiled widely at her. "And we'll look out for you too, Sonia! If we hear anything about any hero or whatnot we'll tell you!" Gloria nodded with a hum.

Sonia bowed her head in thanks to the two. "Thanks so much. Even if you don't find anything the thought's appreciated." As the kids said good byes and walked around her to a stair case you paused as she lifted her head and gazed at you. "I hope you enjoyed my little tale."

You smiled and nodded. "Yes. It was really entertaining. Thanks for telling me."

She nodded. "And thanks for taggin' along with the kids this far. I know we're practically strangers but there's just....I don't know....really good aura about you." You chuckled. You? Really good aura? That certainly was a first. "I'm sure Lee appreciates it too. He's always so worried about Hop. He practically raised him after all-" All of a sudden it was like a switch flipped off in her mind and her happy smile went to a sudden shocked face. "Oh no. I didn't mean to mention that. Please forget I even said that."

Your brow rose confus- "Y/N! C'MON! We got our room key already!"

You looked up to Gloria's call before back to Sonia before waving good bye and leaving. Wondering what the heck that was all about. Oh well. You had bigger things to worry about- Like the the fact that the three kids had gotten into a fight with four punk rockers!! You had just walked up the stairs and instantly was face to face with the three teenagers up in the faces of four people who dressed in black and red from their face paint to their outfits shouting something about they're going to cheer someone on and no one could stop them. You couldn't tell between the seven people shouting at one another and the front desk clerk trying to calm them down. THANK GOODNESS FOR THE YOUNG GIRL WHO STOPPED IT ALL!! She walked up the stairs and stopped next to your shocked state. A look of shock coming over her own face for a moment before she sighed and that snapped you out of your trance long enough for you to look at her. She was a teenager same around the same age as the other children with black hair tied back in two ponytails by red ribbon, a pink dress, with a black leather jacket and boots.

"What are you lot doin' here?" She had asked in what sounded what a brittish accent but you were sure Britain wasn't a thing in this world. Instantly the fighting stopped from the punk rockers as the they looked to her shocked like a couple toddlers caught taking candy. One shouted what you assumed was her name. Marnie you thought? As they stuttered out excuses. "I know you all are terribly curious 'bout the other gym challengers, but you gotta show a bit of restraint." Well it was nice of her to settle them down before she apologized. "Sorry 'bout them. They're just a bunch of my fans. Call themselves Team Yell and follow me around. cheerin' for me. I think they've let it all go to their heads a bit.....Come on you lot. Back home with you now!" She sighed as they guiltily slunk away past you down the stairs. "They're just so caught up with wantin' to support me and all that they tend to get a bit shirty with other Gym Challengers. Sorry if they caused you any trouble."

With that she simply walked past the lot of you, got her room key, and just walked away like it never even happened. You were still in a bit of shock but shook it off in favor of getting to the room you'd be bunking in with Gloria and have a small break from today. The inner workings weren't too different from the hotels you've been to before and was more than eager to plop yourself down and have a rest. The rest of the afternoon was a blur. At one point all three kids were sitting around the bed helping sort through Victor's collection of photos and helping Gloria glue in quite a lot of them into that small book of theirs. Hop mentioned about calling room service and Gloria suggested the four of you order each a different curry to help her fill in a bit of her curry challenge book as well. Which you had no problem against. It was free room service and you were interested in trying some of this world's curry since it was supposed to be world famous as Sonia told you. You ended up randomly chosing Sweet Curry as someone phoned it to the front desk and waited for it too arrive. It was pretty good. But it wasn't too different from Mrs. G's curry you had tasted other than the sauce on the rice tasted a mildy hot enough to be sweet. Of course that didn't stop Gloria was taking your curry's picture along with Hop's that had a massive egg in what was call a bitter boiled egg curry, Gloria's was a dry smoked tail curry(you hoped that wasn't an actual tail, and you think Victor's was leek curry with some kind of veggies decorating the plate. You ended up letting your sobble finish what food was leftover after you ate and soon you two found yourselves bidding the two boys good night and went to finally rest for the night. After getting a quick shower you decided it was best to go to bed since the actual Ceremony was tomorrow. Gloria had gotten the bed and you borrowed the sleeping bag Mrs. G had given Gloria. As the darkness slowly consumed your vision as your eyelids drooped you vauguly regstered your sobble climbing on one of the shelves.

.........

CRASH!!

Both of you were startled away in the dark from a giant crash and a couple panicked chirps before you were tackled by an invisible spooked sobble burrowing under your arm as Gloria turned on the lamp to reveal the pokemon's mess.

"Y/n! Your sobble knocked over the shelf!"

"Uuuuuuhhhhh!!!"

#piers x reader #pokemon piers x reader #pokemon shield #pokemon sword #pokemon piers #reader x piers #pokemon swsh #pokemon sword and shield #Reader

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thebeltanequeen · 3 years

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The (Blurred? Nonexistent? Inconsequential?) Line Between Canon and Fanon: An Impromtu Essay by Me

I’m currently have an existential crisis. An absolute, balls to the walls, pull my hair out, stare at the walls wondering what the meaning of existence is, kind of existential crisis. Why, you may ask? Because the older I have gotten, the more Fanfiction I have read. That’s normal. Millions of other people read fanfic like me. Well, in the past few years, I have also realized that the more fanfiction I have read, the less shits I give about the actual canon of the media I love. I care less and less about what “actually” happened, and delve into fanon instead. It’s as if the two have SWITCHED ROLES in my brain. The canon is the lie, and the fanon is the truth. This used to not be the case though, so how did we get here? And why… why is this realization sending me into an absolute spiral of insanity? Why do I feel like I have been sucker punched in the jaw? Let me explain.

I’ve been reading and dabbling in writing my own fanfiction for over twelve years. It used to be an escape, a way to further delve into my latest obsessions and become consumed by them. I have this annoying habit of also picking ships that do NOT become endgame, so I’ve always sought out fanfiction as a balm for my shipper’s soul as well. I still read fanfiction as if my life depends on it… but now it’s at the expense of reading new books. Watching new media. When I do eventually dip my toes into a new fandom, I either reject it quickly or become consumed again and make a grab for fanfiction… but in the past few years, something in not only me, but in fandoms in general has shifted.

The difference between me now, and me back then is this… I used to uphold the canon as sacred. Untouchable. Set in stone. The only credible source for the media I consume. All of the fanfiction I read was just beautiful window dressing. A lovely past time to further increase my dopamine intake.

This is no longer the case.

Now, when I read and write fanfiction, it’s as if it is an act of protest. I am actively seeking to reform the narrative. It’s to “take back” the story, the characters, EVERYTHING, for myself. To make it anew. To make it perfect. I’m not alone either. I see you. I see all of you. Now more than ever, I see more and more of us doing this exact same thing.

THIS is why I am having an existential crisis. I have just realized that I will no longer be content with the canon. Ever. Even the canon of my favorite media. It’s not enough. It’s no longer enough. It won’t ever be enough again. Why? Because there will always be places where the canon is falliable. The authors of the canon, are falliable. As an author myself, this is at once an alarming yet powerful realization.

I went to college for creative writing. At the beginning of my academic career, I thought of fanfiction as a beautiful fairytale world. It was glorious, but it was other. Separate. Not as credible as canon. Had I read fanfiction better than the media it was based on before I entered college? Absolutely, but in my head it still didn’t matter because the canon was the word. The canon was the law. As a writer, I held the power of the author (and by extension the power of myself) as sacred. By the end of college, that began to change.

The more I was taught about writing, the more I came to realize that sometimes, authors are just straight up WRONG. Sometimes, there’s soooooo much potential… AND THEY JUST FUCK IT UP!!!!!!! The bones are incredible, but the canon is weak, the logic is lacking, the story makes no sense, the characters don’t reach their full potential and you know what? I’m tired. I’m tired of it. This is why fanon is canon’s salvation. Fanon makes canon look pathetic. But… if I accept the fanon as the reality, and make the canon the lie, does that still make it fanon? No. I don’t think it does. I think fanon has become something other. Something greater.

I have become disillusion by “published” or “credible” books. 95% of the novels I actually buy at the store today are garbage. Trash. Half written nonsense that only serves the purpose of paying people. I’m TIRED OF IT. I’ve become disillusioned by the “power” of the author. I have become disillusioned by canon. FUCK canon, quite frankly. Rip it apart. Dissect it. Take out it’s beating heart and transplant it into a new body. Give it the soul that the narrative was begging for. REVIVE IT. LET YOUR OWN IMAGINATION MAKE IT ANEW. Characters mean too much to people. Fiction means too much to people. Stories mean too much to people for anything less. Only then will you or I be satisfied.

Now, even an impromptu, unedited, gibberish essay is not complete without examples. I’ll start with one that you probably thought of while reading this. Game of Thrones. I think that two years ago, the ending of the most influential show of the entire decade, is where my subconscious began to shift in this direction. Now, I doubt my opionions about GoT are the same as yours, but you know what? It DOESN’T MATTER because FANON CAN FIX THE CANON. The stories that meant so much to millions can be fixed by accepting the fact that THE CANON ISN’T THE LAW! IT FUCKED UP!!!! CANON DOESN’T DESERVE TO SPEAK ANYMORE!!!! TAKE BACK THE STORY AND TRANSFORM IT INTO A VERSION TRULY WORTHY OF THE GLORIOUS BONES IT HAS!!!!!

We also can’t ignore the role that monetization plays in the media we consume. Why leave our fiction in the hands of just the big names? Why let money dictate what is real and not real? WHY SETTLE FOR MEDIOCRE STORYTELLING JUST BECAUSE IT WAS SOLD TO YOU AND THEREFORE IT’S “LEGIT CANON”??? FANFICTION IS FREE, AND THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PIECES OF WRITING I’VE EVER READ WERE WRITTEN BY FANFIC AUTHORS WHO DID IT FOR THE STORY. WHO DID IT FOR THE ART. WHO ACTUALLY DID IT JUSTICE. FUCK THE CONCEPT OF FANON AND CANON. THE STORY WE WANT IS ALL THAT MATTERS. GET MONEY OUT OF HERE.

Ahem. To avoid going on even more of a tangent, I’ll move on and give the example that triggered my existential crisis in the first place. Sailor Moon. To give some background, Sailor Moon is it for me. I have grown up with it. I’ve watched it my entire life. As a child, I ran around with my toy moon rod and desperately wanted to be Usagi. Ironically, I grew up to be quite a bit like her (but with Rei’s temper admittedly). It is my comfort show, my happiness. It makes me laugh, it makes me cry. I never tire of it. It makes my heart swell. I have never, nor will I ever, love any piece of media the way I love Sailor Moon. Flash forward to today, I watched Sailor Moon Eternal, the two new movie adaptations of the Dream arc in the manga (stick with me non-manga and anime lovers). I liked the films, but I was left with a deep, disatisfied yearning. I want back the feeling of complete bliss I experienced while watching the 90’s anime as a child. The problem with this? I’ll never get it back. I’ve just realized this. I’ll NEVER get it back. Why? Because it’s no longer the perfect version of Sailor Moon that it was to my young eyes. Crystal, while good, is also not the perfected version I seek in my adulthood, and Eternal has not scratched my insatiable itch. I am heartbroken because I’ve realized that Sailor Moon in its perfect form doesn’t exist anymore. If I held any canon sacred, it was this. But the story is flawed. The manga is flawed. The anime is flawed. It’s not infallible, as much as it truly, deeply hurts me to admit to the world and to myself. The only perfect version of Sailor Moon is the one in my heart. It’s the one I choose to piece together for myself with the building blocks that others who came before me have handed over.

Another, more recent example of falliable canon is The Grisha Verse. More specifically, the Shadow and Bone trilogy. I was brought in to the fandom by Ben Barnes’ depthless eyes and magnificent scruff. And you know what? I liked the story, but I stayed for Ben Barnes. I liked the Darkling so much that I bought the entire grisha verse books. It was a premature decision. I’ve only made it halfway through Storm and Seige, and you know what? I’m tired of the canon already. It’s not that great. The bones are there, but it could be SO. MUCH. MORE. I haven’t read the crow books yet, and by all accounts Leigh Bardugo has improved tremendously as a writer. Which incidentally proves my point. Authors are falliable. Ergo, the canon is falliable. I can’t help but think while I read these books, “Damn. I could write this better.” and you know what? I’ve read fanfics that HAVE written it better.

Am I saying this to trash Bardugo? Or even GRRM? (Yes I admit to trashing D&D but that’s beside the point ahem…). NO. I am NOT trashing the writers. I’M A WRITER. I GET IT. YOUR STORY IS YOUR BABY. I G E T I T . But I’ve realized, and what I think future authors will also have to realize, is that fiction doesn’t belong to anyone. As soon as it’s out the door, the fiction no longer belongs to the author. It belongs to us. The people. That’s what is beautiful about fanfiction. It’s not here for the money. It’s not here for the clout. It’s here for the fiction itself. Plain and simple. It belongs to no one and everyone.

In the past, I would have fought this. I would have wanted my work’s canon to be law. To be the word, the truth, the way etc. Now? I can’t be a hypocrite. I can’t be selfish. It isn’t about the author. It’s about the vision. It’s about the story, the narrative, the characters. It’s about art. And sometimes, the authors give birth to the idea (and they deserve credit for that without a doubt), but it’s also true that sometimes, someone else just writes it better. Someone else quite simply saw the vision, the story, the characters, more clearly than the author did. I make this vow now, as an author, to strive for the vision. If someone takes my vision and does it better than me, that only improves my perspective of my own story. It improves the world of fiction as a whole. It makes me better.

So, canon? Fuck the canon. Take back the story. Take back the characters. Take back the art. Fiction is ours. It belongs to us, and we can do with it what we please. Let’s strive for OUR OWN perfected version of the media we love. Canon doesn’t truly exist. The concept of Fanon doesn’t even exist anymore in the way we used to think of it. The author’s version of events is their own Fanon of the story. Canon is meaningless now. There is only the story that you accept in your own mind. There is only the story that I accept in my own mind, no matter how different it is from yours. There is only the art. There is only the limitless potential of countless people’s imaginations. Let’s continue to collaborate and celebrate beautiful stories together, in any conceivable way, over and over and over again, until the end of time.

Fin

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welllpthisishappening · 3 years

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Okay can we talk about ACOSF???? Bc on booktok all I’m seeing is so much negativity about how people don’t like feysand or don’t like nesta but?? I read this book, loved it, thought nesta grew SO much and we got to see feysand from a different POV which gave them depth! Plus a baby!!! I can talk about it forever

We can absolutely talk about ACOSF. I have thoughts, feelings, opinions and this is going to get long. And, uh, any of those super negative critiques:

Alright, alright, alright, so initial feelings? I enjoyed it a lot. Like, way more than I thought I would honestly because going in I was like eh, Nessian, but I loved Nesta’s character development and the flirt-to-roast ratio with her and Cassian and every single time Cassian called her Nes or God help me ARCHERON, my soul reached another plane of existence. Don’t even get me started on that one time she called him General. The noise I made was not audible to human ears.

That said, there were some parts that I was like: oh ok, that’s happening. So, because I cannot function without organization, let’s break down some of the major things that happened into a LIST WITH OPINIONS ATTACHED

Sexual Tension Fucking fuck, these two idiots. Pining after each other while both desperately wanting someone, anyone, to be like — please stay in bed and cuddle me all night?!?! Idiots. Both of them flush with power and the ability to make people legit terror before them and they’re so goddamn soft with each other. Which is kind of hysterical because they are also able to rip each other to shreds? Oh my God, some of those fight scenes, I just—my heart was in my throat. And I do not want to hear a single word of how CASSIAN IS MEAN TO NESTA? Were we reading the same book, internet? Bro is In Love. From the G E T.

Which leads us to—

S O L S T I C E God, rip my romantic-loving heart out of my body. Learning what was in the box from the solstice before made me screech and then the music. THE MUSIC. Can we talk about Cassian, feared general, dude who has canonically lost track of how many people he has killed, cornering an ENTIRE ORCHESTRA to recreate music for Nesta? I just—f u c k. It was a lot. A lot. And then we circle back around to how soft they were and there’ll never be another and I am going to have to pace around a bit. I loved it. I love them. I nearly screamed when it took Nesta a few more chapters to realize it was a mating bond, and then Cassian just bolted because he also couldn’t quite deal with it, and I am still not super sold on the mating bond, like, as a thing, but I kind of went into this book pretty certain this was going to happen, so...good. Also them arguing by the Sidra, oof.

There was a lot of sex in this book. I knew there was going to be a lot of sex in this book. I must have told my husband four different times, “God, there is a lot of sex in this book.” Some of it was good. Some of it was kind of cloying in its descriptions. I genuinely lol’ed at Nesta fantasizing about being straight up railed by both Cassian and Azriel. (Why was that in there? Still don’t really know, felt a lot like very obvious fan service, but it was also kind of hysterical.)

JEALOUSY DIDN’T MAKE ME WANT TO RIP MY EYES OUT I hate jealousy plots. HATE THEM. It’s one of my biggest pet peeves in relationship writing, but I was super into it here??? Cassian cutting in on the dance and TAKING DANCING LESSONS. It was good. I enjoyed it.

Nesta’s Power Yo. YO. This was really cool. She was terrifying and out of control, while also learning how to be in control and intimidating and I was like YES, GET IT. When Rhys flew into the House and Nesta was just wrapped in silver flames, that was super cool. Also Rhys being freaked out by her? Kind of bad ass, honestly. But. But! I wish it was explored even more. I wish we got to learn what she could really do and the extent to which she could do it, because I thought it was a fascinating possibility to parallel Nesta to Feyre and I don’t really think we got that. Like, Feyre Cursebreaker — with power given from all the High Lords, this bringer of new life and a fresh start for all the courts. Then her sister — with power stolen from the Cauldron itself and death at her fingertips. With all the comparisons of Feyre and Nesta, I really figured we’d be gunning towards that eventually ESPECIALLY with Feyre being pregnant, and the idea of life in that capacity. Also, what was the point of Lucien saying “Gods help you all” or whatever he said when he was watching Nesta train if...nothing ever really came from that? We’ll circle back around to that in a second, during what will be my ending-based soliloquy, but first let’s talk about—

Feyre Being Pregnant, Why That Kind of Felt Like Twilight and Why I Get Why Rhys Was Being an Idiot Listen, part of the reason I wanted to read this book was for what I assumed would be the Feysand crumbs we’d get. Most of me was convinced that this book would not take place in Velaris and I was mentally prepared for that. Color me pleasantly surprised when it wasn’t and we got an IC feast. But. But! Part two! I’ve mentioned how I’m never really here for...pregnancy being like this ultimate endgame, and I understand why Feysand wanted a kid and I get it, I do. Just the whole thing with she’s going to DIE felt very Bella Swan, was kind of dramatic in mela-sort of way and I TOTALLY GET WHY RHYS KEPT THE WINGS A SECRET. Was it idiotic? Yeah, of course. But I don’t think we talk about his trauma enough, really. Those fifty years under the Mountain are not just gong to disappear, and I cannot really blame him for totally losing his mind at even the idea of Feyre dying. This is not a dude who is trying to control Feyre. I’ve never felt that way about Rhys. At all. This is a dude who has already lost ALL of HIS control and is desperately trying to hang on. He’s already had his entire world shattered six ways to Sunday, this was obviously going to destroy him. Aside from, y’know, straight up killing him too. (That was dumb, guys.) And I think telling Feyre would have made it REAL for Rhys, which he obviously could not cope with. Was I surprised that Feyre’s pregnancy was such a big plot point in a book that was supposed to be super Nessian focused? Yeah, for sure. But also—I like established relationships and Feyre and Rhys could not stop making eyes at each other. Not totally here for the deadly pregnancy trope, not totally here for using family as a trauma recovery, but sort of understand it.

Training, Valkyries and Friendship Bracelets Like I said, I thought this book was gong to take place in the Illyrian camps way more than it did, but I L O V E D the training sessions. Adored Nesta, Emerie and Gwyn’s friendship and how often they teamed up to snark Cassian and Azriel. I was painfully here for all three of them together and the sleepover in the House warmed the cockles of my cold, dead heart. Especially when the bracelets proved so important during the Blood Rite. Which—let’s talk about the Blood Rite. Didn’t expect that!! Was pleasantly surprised by that!! Nesta drawing the literal line in the dirt made me fist pump the air. (And is another parallel to Feyre and her taking inspiration from old Fae legends, but that’s neither here nor there, whatever I’m not here to harp on missed opportunity.) I thought it was really important that all three of them got to showcase their own power too, and how they worked SO WELL together and I was just really glad that there was such focus on this sisterhood outside of literal sisterhood. I thought those relationships were so well done and it was just such a joy to read about their growth and strength and I loved them. Am I here for Gwyn and Azriel? Maybe. Possibly more here for Emerie and Mor? Maybe maybe.

The House I thought it was Amren, for a very long time. Like secretly helping Nesta still and I was really into that idea and really into Amren not being able to totally let Nesta go and I wasn’t really into Nesta bowing to Amren.

THE ENDING Oh my God, so much happened. So quickly. With some occasionally jarring scene cuts. The Blood Rite surprised me, but I was not surprised by Cassian getting ensnared by the crown. Fully expected something like that to happen, was still making ridiculous noises when he tried to turn the dagger on himself instead of killing Nesta. LOST MY MIND WHEN NESTA UNMADE THE QUEEN. I’m still sort of...confused about the Trove, though. I know there are a fair number of hanging plot threads that are gong to lead into other stories, but I just—I don’t know, when they were talking about the High King and everything I sort of thought they were leading towards Nessian being that. I know the whole IC was very into Rhys and thematically it made sense, but also let’s consider—I don’t want that? Rhys needs to get his shit in order and his own Court to calm the fuck down and again I think the potential for LORD OF THE BASTARDS and LADY DEATH to ascend to this position of power and lead the world into this new era was there and I just, I don’t know, I liked the idea of it. Particularly when so many people have referred to Nesta as a Queen. That whole thing in the prison happened, y’know? I’m not sure (read: I’m fairly positive) that won’t happen now, especially because Nesta gave up so much of her power to save Feyre. And I know that’s a TALKING POINT™ but also...I was pretty cool with that? Once it came out that Feyre was going to die, it made sense that Nesta would be the one to save her—to twist death again, and kind of seize control of it. Granted, I’m still a little confused by the Trove and what everyone’s going to do with all that power, but Nesta saving Feyre was this perfect sort of wrap up. For me, at least. I think they balance each other out in a lot of respects, and that was really the last step of Nesta’s growth. Also, uh, back on my Feysand ‘ish and Rhys screaming and crying and trying to get to Feyre? o o o f. Also, also, RHYS BOWING TO NESTA. I CANNOT TELL YOU THE LAST TIME I CRIED AT A BOOK, BUT I CRIED AT THIS BOOK. RHYS, BABY, I ADORE YOU.

Nesta Finding Herself I just really—liked it. I think sometimes in these sorts of stories we get people who are so focused on characters being “the bitch” and having an edge and we have a tendency to think that’s what makes them STRONG. Nah, that ain’t it, son. I don’t want to read about someone being a dick just for sake of being a dick. Nesta was NOT IN A GOOD PLACE. She was self-imploding and destroying herself and getting her POV made it blatantly clear that she thought she deserved that. That she truly believed she didn’t deserve anyone else. And as much as the romance was good and the friendships were fantastic, the key to this story was Nesta (as cheesy as it sounds) learning to love herself. To find worth in her own self. Reading about Nesta simply learning to want to live again, for no one except herself, was really, really good and I think, for the most part, well done. Which is why it makes sense that Nesta gives up some of her power. This isn’t about being A BAD BITCH, PATENT PENDING. This is about love, and joy and embracing your own faults. I get the disappointment over Nesta losing her power. I do. But I’m not sure she totally did? Maybe that’s too positive, or too naive, or something, but...whatever.

Other things that I really enjoyed, include but are not limited to: Cassian having allergies Nesta absolutely decimating Tamlin. And Tamlin’s just like...a lion all the time now, huh? And, uh, also is Tamlin Gwyn’s dad??? Like, is that a thing? Am I crazy? Nesta telling Elain to fuck off (Also, Elain—darling, I wish you got more character development. Elain is to SJM what Belle is to me in CS fic. Sometimes I think she just forgets about her.) Azriel calling out Cassian for getting BLOWN at the dining room table Azriel getting Nesta a Solstice gift and then THEY HUGGED Nesta wanting an over the top mating ceremony. Get it, girl. Feyre going full on Court of Nightmares in the Hewn City Nesta making it down the steps

Other things I thought we’d get more of and just...didn’t Whatever the fuck Lucien has been up to, and more on the continent with Vassa and Juran More stuff in Illyria Reaction to the trio in the Blood Rite Amren and Nesta reconciling. I know Nesta apologized, but Amren kind of got on my nerves. Nesta understandably criticizing the IC and their tendency to get a little sanctimonious. THREE SISTER PEAKS. THREE BAT BOYS. THREE VALKYRIE. WHAT IS IT SARAH? WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

#acosf #acosf spoilers #nessian #a court of silver flames #a court of silver flames spoilers #oh my god this is so long #i'm really not here for the negativity #so i will not engage with that #stealing-vengence #laura rambles #laura reads books

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krispydefendorpolice · 4 years

Text

Once Upon A Miraculous - Part 2

Ok before we even get into the story here’s yet another warning to think twice before you continue. Jason dies. He dies in a gruesome, traumatizing event and even though I think I went over it very lightly I still think it’s pretty fucking graphic. I’m the writer and I. Had. To. Fucking. Stop. And take a break before I could continue with the story.

Violence and the results it can have on the body ahead. Madness from the pit and angst from hurt feeling of being replaced ahead. For the last time. You’ve all been warned so read at your own risk.

I’m going to trust that you all know your headspace well enough and for those that choose to read anyways? Thank you for going on this journey with me. I hope the falls between here and the end are worth the river journey and the lake we reach at the end (yes those are f*ing metaphors. I’m feeling philosophical at the moment)

Previous Masterpost list

————————————

“It’s me Nettie. I’m alive”

****************************

Jason was 14 years old when he met the Batman. He came across an unwatched batmobile. The tires on it could be sold for more than the average car and he had the tools on him.

One last check and he got to work. He was already thinking about the things he could buy for himself and his street siblings that he forgot the number one rule. Always keep a lookout.

The Batman caught him red handed with three wheels off and the fourth half done. After being forced to return the wheels to the car Jason was taken to the underground batcave. He met Alfred and the unmasked Batman. Bruce “fucking billionaire” Wayne.

Less than a month later he’s living in the manor and has been “adopted”. He doesn’t trust it. Rich men don’t want son’s and there are too many kids with stories about the horrors that “nice family’s” hide behind closed doors. But he’s got a roof over his head and food in his stomach. If Wayne thinks that will be enough to buy him he’s going to find out how wrong he was.

Jason starts small at first. If he can just get the man angry enough to throw him out he won’t have to worry about being brought back. Setting all the alarms in the house and making them unfixable was a bit of a challenge. Seeing Bruce’s face when he changed the passwords was brilliant.

It continued that way for a few months until Bruce finally decided if Jason was gonna be a little shit he could learn to fight better instead. Jason decided that if he was going to learn to fight he would take over the abandoned Robin role too.

Dick was not happy. The first time Jason got to meet the man was after he was seen as Robin. He came to the manor and yelled at Bruce, saying he had no right to give his costume and name to someone else. Jason listened from the second story.

As angry as the two men got neither came to blows over it. Dick ended the fight by storming out and he put the older hero on radio silence for months after but neither had any injuries from their disagreement. If Jason had ever even looked at his old man funny as a kid he would have a black eye and welts on his back to show for it.

Maybe Bruce could be trusted after all?

****************************

At 15 years old Bruce is engaged to Selina Kyle. Their on again off again thing as hero and thief where they danced around each other had been driving Jason and Alfred batty. It was nice to see them actually settle into their thing as each challenged the other and kept them on their toes.

When Selina said she was going to be spending the summer with the daughter of an old schoolmate of hers Jason didn’t think much of it. He knew she had a legit degree she used to assess the potential spoils of her criminal activities.

He arrived at Wayne Enterprises a little early for their lunch meeting. Bruce had told him they’d meet in the lobby so after greeting the receptionists he looked for a place to sit. In one of the chairs facing the doors a small girl looked up at the windows before going back to her book and writing something. No she was probably drawing with long pencil strokes like that.

Curious he walked over to see if he could look at her drawing. He could see what looked like an image of the stained glass windows on the page but the lines through them gave it a softer, almost flowing shape. Which was weird cause glass wouldn’t follow those lines.

“What are you drawing?” He found himself asking her.

She jumped so he’d obviously surprised her. His thoughts were captured by her bright blue eyes. In the light coming from those stained glass windows she’d been admiring they almost seemed to glow.

She said she was designing a dress while she waited for her guardian and the fiancé to return. This must be Selina’s friends daughter.

Lunch was a fun affair where the girl shared she would be designing costumes for Jagged stone to wear during his concert tour this summer. She would stay with Selina in Gotham from Monday to Thursday while she designed and created clothes she would fly to whatever city Jagged was playing in from Thursday to Sunday to be on hand during the concerts for any costume repairs that would be needed.

Bruce volunteered Jason to show Marinette around the city since it wouldn’t be safe for her to be alone. Jason agrees because it’s summer break and he likes the Marinette he talked stained glass windows with and wonders what other beauty she will see in his dark city.

He is breathless by the beauty she sees all around her. The joy and happiness she shines as easily as she breathes. Everyone she meets becomes a new friend. Even the tamer of the Rogues and the Siren’s who meet her are enthralled by her smile and her charm.

Kissing her was a completely spontaneous action. He had thought about it for weeks by then but she had said there was a guy back home she sort of still had a crush on though she wasn’t happy with how they wanted to deal with the liar situation. So he was resigned to keeping his budding feelings to himself so that he could see her happy.

It had been the night of the last concert. Jagged had Marinette come on stage where he officially introduced her as his designer and the creator of all the tour costumes to the world. She had beamed with a smile so wide that when she threw herself into Jason’s arms after walking off stage he had just pulled back and placed a kiss on her lips.

He froze when he realized what he did. Marinette had stood on her tiptoe to start their second kiss.

For a week they were blissfully happy and free with their affection. Multiple paparazzi got pictures of them holding hands, kissing each other or just cuddling when they were waiting. Jasonette and the Sunshine of Gotham blew up on social media.

Saying goodbye to her was a really hard thing to do. So Jason went shopping for something he could give her to remember him by. They had decided they would try a long distance thing but he was afraid it wouldn’t be enough. If they did fall apart from distance he wanted something she could use to always fondly remember the summer fling they had.

It was perfect. He knew it might be impractical but he was convinced that it would be the perfect gift for her someday.

************************

They made it work. They had talked everyday and he spent every chance he could in France with her. He met her parents and they met Bruce as well. Marinette had her school situation resolved following her return.

He was proud of her for sticking up for herself when all her classmates seemed ready to abandon the liar just because Marinette had a connection they could use again. Nathaniel, Rose and Juleka were all artsy like Marinette and he could see how their creative energies inspired each other and themselves.

He was a week away from his departure to spend the summer in France with Marinette and her family when it happened. A false lead led to his capture by the Joker.

(Begin Angst)

The first break hurt but it was bearable. He had broken bones before. His bio dad had broken them frequently when he was still alive. The fifth hurt as bad. He also had a concussion and several burns at that time as well.

What felt like days, weeks, years... minutes?, passed in a haze as he jerked with every new hit. He was a mess from vomit, blood, piss and shit when his body couldn’t follow his commands any longer.

He held to the belief that Batman would come for him. That his father could still save him.

When the Joker left, Jason was lying on the concrete floor looking at the bomb countdown. He knew he had to get out of there, he pushed his battered body past the point he could feel pain and struggled to the door. He pulled on it but it wouldn’t open. The rattle of chains on the other side told him why.

He collapsed to the floor, tears streaming as he watched the numbers countdown.

10, 9, 8...

I’m sorry Alfred.

7, 6, 5,...

I’m sorry Bruce.

4, 3,...

I’m sorry Nettie.

2, 1,

I love...

(End Angst)

He was only 16. He would never see 17.

***************************

It was dark. It was small. It was hard to breathe. He was in some kind of box. He screamed and hit the walls around him trying to get out, trying to find some air.

It surprised him when cold pieces fell from above him. It had a new smell. He focused his determination on that spot. More of the new thing came down into his cage. He pushed it away from him and continued. There. Briefly a breath of clean, fresh air.

With new determination he pushed harder towards the life giving air. He was able to pull his head and shoulders out of the box. He rested for a moment swallowing greedy gulps of air into his starved lungs. When he was able to continue he pulled himself from the ground and looked around. As far as his eye could see were stones standing from the ground around him and beyond those trees and underbrush fading into shadows.

He picked a direction at random and began to walk.

It was familiar. Grab an item, run. The actions came without conscious memory. The streets were cold but he was big enough to scare off the worst of the predators. There were a few small people, kids, that came to him for protection from the bigger people. He did what he could but it never seemed to be enough he thought, as he stood over another small, broken body.

“I can give you a way to protect them.”

He looked up. She was beautiful but her eyes were cold. Empty and unfeeling. But she had promised to give him a way to protect the little ones. He was willing to try anything for that power.

What was his name? How old was he? He didn’t know.

****************************************

Jason.

He remembered his name as he lunged from the sickly green waters that Talia had led him to. He remembered Bruce, his father, but he didn’t save him from the Joker. He remembered the Jokers laughter ringing in his ears as he stood over another broken child on the streets. And the new shadow following the shape of the Batman when he was an amnesiac wandering the streets of Gotham.

He had been REPLACED!! He fumed. The anger and resentment over Bruces inability to save him, to avenge him and his replacing him as if Jason meant nothing, festered and boiled in his mind.

When he left the League of Shadows his only plan was to go back to Gotham and get revenge for his own death and to hurt his so called father as badly as he could. If Jason meant so little to him then he would show how little Bruce meant to him.

(Mild violence ahead)

Their first reunion was in a fight over drug dealers selling heroin to kids. Jason looked directly at the bat, pulled his gun and shot the dealers in the forehead.

(Violence over)

“These are my streets now. I won’t tolerate kids getting hurt on my watch.”

He disappeared before Batman could restrain him.

For weeks they danced around. Batman trying to catch him and Jason using every trick he learned from the Bat himself to avoid him.

Blood flowed freely from the wicked and the corrupt. He was a villain in his own right bringing judgement and execution down upon the criminals of Gotham.

Batman always appealed to the better side of him, to stop his madness. Didn’t he understand that part died? The child that trusted in heroes to protect the innocent died at the hands of a monster. A monster that his father couldn’t chase away.

The RedHood was risen from the pits and unleashed upon the evil of Gotham.

He was 18 years old.

******************************

Months of their back and forth dynamic between RedHood and Batman passed. The Batman couldn’t arrest the RedHood but the RedHood couldn’t stop tweaking his cape to get a reaction.

Didn’t he care? Wasn’t he going to stop him? He was doing everything wrong so why wouldn’t Bruce do the same for him that he did for all the other criminals in Gotham?

It was when Jason had the Joker at the business end of a gun that he got his answers.

“Don’t do it Hood,” Bruce pleaded. “It will change you beyond what you can come back from if you do.”

“I’ve already killed, B,” his words caught as he gasped, fighting back tears of rage. “My hands are dripping in blood.

He laughed madly then, “‘Yet who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?’ Who knew that bitch knew what she was talking about.”

“It’s the madness that’s done it Hood. You’ve barely held control before. But you’re fighting the killing urge and directing it to those that do deserve it.”

“And yes,” he interrupted before Jason could argue, “no one deserves it more than Joker for what he’s done to you. But if you do it then the madness will win. Please I can’t lose my son again,” he begged.

“WHY DOES THAT MATTER NOW?!” Jason screamed. “He killed me. I was dead in the ground and you let him walk. WHY COULDN’T YOU KILL HIM?! AM I THAT MEANINGLESS TO YOU!?!!”

“I COULDN’T!” Bruce yelled back. “If I killed him I wouldn’t be able to stop killing. It wouldn’t just be the Joker that died, it would be every criminal in Gotham who dared step out of line. I wanted to. I still want to. He took my son from me but I know that once I start I won’t be able to stop. I’m sorry that I’m so weak, but I couldn’t.”

The Batman, no Bruce Wayne, stood before him, head bowed in defeat as he admitted to his greatest shame.

Jason looked away before dropping the gun and walking away. He knew Bruce would take the Joker back to Arkham so he just needed to get away and think.

They worked to build their relationships anew. He couldn’t be the son Bruce remembered anymore, too much had changed, but he could be the son he was today. He could do what he could for the Replacement and make sure the kid didn’t get himself killed on the streets. The girl that joined them got the same measure of protection though she was better able to defend herself.

When he finally let go of thoughts of revenge he could think about a time when a stray spark of living Sunshine found its way to cold, grey Gotham. He finally looked up news of Marinette to see how she was doing. He broke down and cried when her wedding announcement to the son of a Parisian fashion house was the first thing to pop up.

Selina, Bruce and Alfred all encouraged him to take a trip to France anyways to get some closure, to say goodbye. But he refused, the smile in her eyes as she looked at her new husband in the picture convinced him that she was happy. And that was all he ever wanted for her, even if it couldn’t be him giving the her the world.

He was 19 years old when he made peace with his past.

****************************

He was 20 years old when news of the villain Hawkmoth and his defeat hit the international press. He was livid to realize that his beloved Nettie had been in so much danger just living in a city that should have been safe. That the Justice League had done nothing when the citizens pleaded for help.

It felt like the period after his revival in the pit as he stormed the halls of the WatchTower. His vision was in various shades of red and his thoughts just kept turning back to how Marinette might have been killed in one of the villain’s monster attacks. Hell, she probably did die once or twice only to be revived by the hero’s magic.

If he ever got to meet LadyBug he would shower her in appreciation for defending the city his Nettie lived in.

The door crashed and nearly fell off the hinges when he threw it open and stormed through into the Leagues council room.

“RedHood,” Batman said calmly as he stalked up to the table.

Slamming his hands down and leaning over the collected heroes he asked what he’d wanted to since the news broke.

“Who. Screwed. Up?”

“When footage of the attacks first reached the League, investigations were done. No lasting damage was left from the attacks so it was written off as a publicity stunt and subsequent messages were ignored,” Batman explained. “It was a phone operator that fielded these calls. They went based off the assessment done by the League and deleted them.”

“She could have died B. I was dead and couldn’t do anything but you should have been keeping an eye on her. You know what she means to me.”

Batman nodded, “I should have. The messages never reached me but I should have been keeping a watch on her regardless of that.”

“You’re going to make amends to those heroes for ignoring them,” Jason stated. “All of you are,” he added, including the other heroes in the room in his statement.

“Yes,” Batman agreed.

Jason jerked his head in a nod and left the room. Going back to the cave where he can do his own check and make sure Marinette was safe.

********************************

It wasn’t just the League that failed Marinette. Jason knew he was as much to blame. If he had gone to Paris? If he had seen her? If he had told her he was alive? Would she have suffered under Hawkmoth? If, if, if.

News of the divorce of up and coming fashion designer MDC and the son of the fashion mogul and former villain Adrian Agreste hit airwaves like lightning. In the beginning people claimed it was Marinette who left because of Hawkmoth’s identity. Adrian was fast to shut that down and own that he was the one to ask for the divorce for personal reasons. With what seemed to be an amicable break up the world turned its attention to the next sound bite.

He’d failed her again. Jason just sat by his empty grave as he cried when he learns about it. He argues with Alfred and Selina when they bring up him visiting Paris afterwards. This time Bruce supports his decision. He doesn’t approve and lets Jason know it, but he supports him.

Returning to the cave after patrol, Jason was the last to arrive. He didn’t know why everyone was gathered by the computer so he went to take a look. He didn’t hear what Alfred said as he walked over. Momentarily blinded by the helmet as he removed it, he froze when he finally saw what, no who, had his family’s attention.

She had grown since their first meeting, not in height but in maturity. She had traded the fun pigtails for an elegant braid, and jeans for a sundress obviously of her own design.

“Hi, Monsieur Alfred introduced the others but I haven’t gotten your name yet. I am Marinette Dupain-Cheng,” she introduces herself as if she were meeting a stranger for the first time.

It hurt his heart that she would do that with him, though he realizes why she did. She didn’t know. She couldn’t know that it was him under the mask.

The words wouldn’t come though when he tried to find them and tell her. He finally settled for showing her, hoping she would believe her eyes.

After she gasped in reaction to his reveal he thought maybe his approach was a bit boneheaded after all. Nothing to do but go forward from there though.

“It’s me Nettie. I’m alive.”

Marinette teared up but instead of breaking down and crying she ran to him and jumped into his arms. Burying her face in his neck she just murmured “You’re alive” over and over.

“Yeah,” he admitted. He held her as tightly as he dared. A little worried he might hurt her by accident.

When she pulled away he reluctantly let her go but it was worth it.

She gave him the biggest smile and he saw it again.

He was 21 years old and the sun was shining in cold, grey Gotham once more.

————————————

So I really got into the structure I used for the first chapter and exuded to use the same for this one. They end at different ages because Jason’s a few months older and this happened in that in between time (the real reason is sections were getting too busy so I add another year to his story. How do I rationalize it? Well birthdays are a thing so there you go).

I hope everyone enjoyed this wild ride. I do plan to do an epilogue chapter but that will have to wait until next weekend. Anyone have any ideas you can send it to me.

@pepelachanel @mellownieice @kris-pines04 @zebrabaker @two-faced-biatch @vixen-uchiha @mandy984 @shamefullove @mycupisbroken @dawnwave16 @abrx2002 @mochinek0 @tbehartoo @fertileleaf @thanks-captain-obvious @ravennightingaleandavatempus @hinata3487 @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry @hypnosharkrebeldreamer @zalladane @dast218 @miraculous786 @18-fandoms-unite-08 @moonlightstar64 @mooshoon @ladybug182 @iggy-of-fans @legendaryneckjudgestudent @megawhitleycalderonpaganus @finallyaniguana @tog84 @mystery-5-5 @evil-elf16

#jasonette #marinette x jason #violence and angst #extreme violence #torture aftermath #angst #madness #DLDR #dead dove don’t eat #I’ve warned you multiple times so don’t come at me #violence

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sexysilverstrider · 4 years

Note

I would love to see a you rank all the dating sim games you’ve played from best to worst!

hello hello! sorry for the late reply! i wanna reply this with a read more but i cant do it on mobile hhh BUT IM ON LAPTOP NOW HAHA lets do this :3c

take note that these are the otome games ive played so far. and when i say otome games, i meant actual dating sim games where the aim of the game is getting to your favourite characters good end in their route. so im excluding any non-main dating games like fire emblem and rune factory and the like. LETS BEGIN

FAFAR’S TOP 11 OTOME GAMES

TWILIGHT BLOOD

the only reason i downloaded this game was uhhh hot guys. the story was mediocre tbh. no voice acting. relies too much on sexy scenes with was fun at the first few chapters but then eh :// also if u wanna be a f2p it sucks coz they practically force u to pay to move on with the story and yeah....not worth it. 2/10

Love Story of Share House

made by HUNEX.CO, the games about mc moving to a share house with a bunch of hot dudes. The DreamTM. no voice acting but the characters are bearable. ive played the meganes route because thats who i am as a person and mr moustache man. latters route was okay. the story does have smutty elements so that surprised me tbh hahahha. its okay imo and u can be f2p to finish each route :) 4/10

My Horse Prince

can you BELIEVE this game got better ranks than the previous two??? its about mc wooing a horse. with a mans head. horses body. i cannot simplify this enough. the reason it beating the 2 games before is because it made me lose my shit SO MUCH i remembered tears coming out of my eyes coz this game is a fcking ride. mc has 1 braincell and its for the sexy horse man. f2p and im thankful for that. no voice acting and honestly im glad it doesnt. 5/10

Hatoful Boyfriend

a classic game. no voice acting. there ARE gijinkas and drama cds however outside of the main game. in the main game u get to date pigeons. actual pigeons. i believe this game was unironically enjoyable like 10-15 years ago. dont be fooled by the pigeons. some of their routes can be EMOTIONALLY NASTY. i cried at one of the pigeons. i lost sleep but its what i deserve. 5/10

Hakuoki

my first ever dating sim game!! hence the 3ds picture. full voice acting. it was p enjoyable and while i know the steam version covers most of what the 3ds lacks, i love playing the routes and this was the first game tht traumatized me at the sight of a bad end. sadly not a fan of the canon route despite me loving stoic emotionally guarded characters. i do enjoy the other routes and okita souji has my heart and soul i love and hate him. 6/10

Ephemeral

another game by HUNEX.CO. compared to the share house game, i ADORE this one. its surprisingly a sweet mobile otome game! f2p friendly! no voice acting, but they make it up with the story and characters. basically u got tsundere wolf. baby invisible man. yandere mummy. bastard but then gets soft to you vampire. guess who i love in the end. also sidenote the reason this gets higher ranks is the vampires routes alone (they have dating route AND lovers route all in one game) and also the invisible mans route broke me as a person. i hate it. so much. oh my god. 7/10

Amnesia

my second otomate/aksys game! when i found it its sold in google store i legit bought it and left my assignments to play flksdnfjdbf. full voice acting. VERY interesting stories. v intense stories too so its not fun playing at night lol sometimes. all the characters are loveable to each players ref. some of the routes do irk me which sucks coz i have to finish all in order to unlock the canon route. i DO love the canon character so its fine. this game is the game that introduced me to fear in a form of a toma. 8/10

Code: Realize

HONESTLY A GAME WHERE I LIKE ALL THE CHARACTERS LMAOOO!! all the routes are great and the full voice acting has me scream. a lot. also they have A LOT of post stories that are released internationally so it makes me love the characters (saint-germain) even more. i believe this is the game that actually made me love the yandere. so i gotta give kudos to that. the canon route is really lovable! the stories can be a mix of cute and angst so its a wild ride when i played it ;w;b 9/10

Ikemen Sengoku

honestly one of my fav and long-running mobile otome game!! the game is f2p but you need to be veeery patient to finish one route (in my case i sometimes am patient. other times im not). partially voiced. the best thing about this game is THERE IS A LOT OF CHOICES LMAOO n youre not obligated to do a route of a character youre not too keen. the characters are both lovable and stupid. the mc has 1 braincell and shes using it to helps these hot morons. sugitan is there. bfkdjbfdkj also the stories are smutty and its so goood i remembered screaming a lot. their stories range from funny to sad to angsty to romantic its a roller coaster ride. 9/10

Collar x Malice

i LOVE all the characters. i LOVE all the routes. i even love the villain of this series. which is why it gets number 2 in my book. the stories can get intense but when the cute romantic funny parts hit it hits you off guard and it just makes u laugh or scream or cry or all in 1. im a big kaji yuki fan so to finally get to play a game where kaji yukis character is in it just earns this game a top spot in my heart. a very special spot too considering his character is my fav character and route hehehhe! its sequel is coming out (n im getting it tmrrw eyy). love it so much! and the canon character is easily my 2nd fav character too! 10/10

Mystic Messenger

this game easily ruined my sleep schedule. at one point my body automatically woke up at 3 am at the single sound of a beep EVERY TIME. just to text some fictional characters. i even got out of class once to respond to jumins call. i hate this game. the games gameplay is so unique and fun and all the characters are very VERY lovable. i love all the characters and their routes. while the voice acting happens during certain cgs (full voice in all scenes in vs and saerans routes) it redeems itself with the amazing voice calls. i laughed A LOT whole playing this game. its absolutely amazing. did you know that i bawled in saerans route? bawled? as in cried in absolute anguish and sobbed nonstop? and stared at the blank screen????????? once in front of my own mother and again alone in the darkness of my own room? my heart was shattered in pieces and it literally felt as if the love of my life is gone for good. 11/10

#ask #anon #fafar yaps #ill add this here too for refs hehe #man i miss mystic messenger #ive deleted the app from my phone but i do keep track of the games update #i miss jumin...i miss saeran....#saerans route WRECKED me #jumins route just makes me feel giddy #but yeah other than mm the top 5 otome games are easily my fav n ill play again n again heheh

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santaclausdeadindian · 3 years

Text

Sorry for doing it this way, I think OP deleted their post or blocked me like a mature, balanced person would, so I have to tag you in

@mr-laugh

Oh boy, lot to unpack here.

So you didn’t even know there were that many subgenres of fantasy, one of the most popular classifications of fiction on the planet... And you think you know enough to tell ANYBODY what classic fantasy is?

And where exactly I attempted to do that, huh?

If you don’t even know the most common subgenres of this vast pool of fiction, why are you jumping into this discussion? You just admitted you don’t know anything!

There is no discussion, there is a stupid ass post. Don't flatter yourself, you don't know jack shit.

Me not knowing what exactly are the precize subgenres of a genre of literature, which, btw, are completely arbitrary and for your information, sword&magic is a legitimate category, has absolutely nothing to do with what that post you were so keen on agreeing with above. It was you who said pretty much any classic fantasy is like that: some poorly written, self-indulgent and borderline racist.

Did ya read the link, buddy? Howard talked about knowing what burning black man smelled like. He was quite approving of these things! And the books are pretty racist, it’s not hard to see, unless you ain’t looking.

Yes, I started reading and by the end of the first paragraph I was convinced he was ahorribly racist man. And? Still doesn't change the fact, that for my 12 year old self, there was nothing racist about it. I definetly wasn't looking for it, that much you got right. If I'd read it again, I'm sure I'd catch on to it now, that I know what kind of asshole he was. So the implied racism would be there. You got a point for that.

Rugged individualism? It always amuses me how that argument always pops out of the mouths of guys who are aping what they’ve heard their buddies say. If ten thousand mouths shout “rugged individualism”, how individualistic are they?

Then you should amuse yourself by looking up why this thing crops up as of late. It's coming from certain, supremely racist yet unaware of it publications that claim ridiculous shit like "rugged individualism" is a hallmark of white supremacy, among other, equally laughable things, like punctuality. It's a joke.

Again, I will give Howard to you, if someone that racist writes a black man saving the hero of the story, I bet there was something else still there to make it wrong.

Conan’s not some avatar of rugged individualism.

Uhm, yeah, he pretty much all that.

He’s as unreal and unrealistic as the dragons are,

It's called fantasy for a reason, buddy.

but more dangerous because White Men model their ideas of reality on Big Man Heroes like him;

Glad you are totally not racist, yo!!! It's such a relief that White Men are the only ones with this terrible behavior of looking up to larger than life, mythic superpeople and nobody else. Imagine what it would be like, if we would have some asshole from say, hindu indian literature massacering demons called Rakshassas, by the tens of thousands, or some bullshit japanese warlord would snatch out arrows from the air, or a chienese bodyguard would mow down hundreds of barbaric huns without dropping a sweat, or some middle eastern hero would fight literal gods and their magical beasts in some quest for eternal life.

it's a poison that weakens us, distracting us from actually trying to solve the world’s issues, or banding together to deal with shit.

This is what you just said. It's up to the white man, to get their shit together, be not racist and solve the world's problems, because those poor other people's just can't do it. If we would just not be oh, so racist, then China would surely stop with the genocides they are doing now, or blowing more than half the greenhouse emissions into the athmosphere, the muslims would stop throwing their gays from rooftops or ramming trucks into crowds and would just start treating women as equals, India's massive rape problem would be gone, subsaharan African would be magically bereft of the host of atrocities committed there on a daily, yeah, you sure have that nonracism down, buddy!

A rugged individualist would be smart enough to realize that even the most individualistic person needs others; no man’s an island, and a loner is easier to kill.

Individualism doesn't mean at all what you think it means, it's a cluster of widely differeing philosophies that puts the individual ahead of the group or state, it's ranging from anarchism to liberalism and is also has nothing to do with my point.

Central Europe? What, Germany? Because let me tell you, historically they are SUPER concerned about race!

Germany traditionally considered western european, central europe would be the people stuck between them and the russians, to put it very loosely. We are equally nonplussed by the self-flagellating white guilt complex and the woe me victim complex of the west. We did none of the shit those meanie white people did to the nonwhites and suffered everyting any poc ever did and then some. We don't give a shit about your color, we care about what culture you are from and if you respect our values.

I’m an American from a former Confederate state; trust me, race is everything. It always is.

No it really isn't. How old are you? Asking without condescension, genuinly curious, because if you are in your low twenties at most, it's understandable why you think like this.

See that hike? Do you know what happened at that time that made virtually all american media suddenly go all in with racism?

Occupy Wall Street, that's what. It's a brilliant way to sow victimhood and hate and desperation amongst the people who have one common enemy, the powers that be, the banking sector, the politicians, the megacorporations.

Can't really blame you if you are in your early 20's at most, you grew up with this bullshit hammered into you. If you are older, step out of your echochamber please!

If you actually believe, that mankind doesn't progress naturally towards a more accepting society purely on the merit of there being more good people than bad and sharing a similar living with all the hardships in life, seeing that our prejudices inherited by our parents are baseless, that's how we progress, not virtue signalling courses and regressive policies. I was raised as any other kid, I had a deep resentment towards the neighbouring nations, I said vile, racist shit against people who I actually share a lot of genes with, of which fact I was in deep denial about, and then as I gradually got exposed more and more actual people of these groups, I started to realize I was wrong and everybody should be judged by their individual merits. It works throughout the generations, my grandma was thought songs about Hitler and how all jews are evil in school, she legit thought all black people at least in Africa are cannibals and shit, my mother stillsays shit that would get her cancelled in the USA, and I will probably have a mixed race kid as we stand now.

This whole racism is an eternal problem is laughable and disingenuous and I am actually sorry for you that you feel like that.

Moving on. As for Dany, the “noble white girl sold to scary dark foreign man” is a very popular trope, especially in exploitation films, which Martin draws on much more heavily than most authors do.

No, he fucking doesn't. I already wrote a bunch of examples from the books you seeminly ignore willfully. First of all, she is sold to those olive skinned savages by a white man, who is a terrible, increadibly evil man. He want's to fuck the then 11-12 ish Dany so bad, she picks his slave most resembling her and rapes her repeatedly, "until the madness pass." He also maimes children and traines them as disposable slave spies by the hundreds. There is no boundaries colour here, GRRM prtrays all kinds of people as reprehensible, evil and disgusting. Just like you can find plenty of examples to the opposite.

What is he drawing from your exploitation movies exactly? He writes about the human anture, he writes about the human heart at war with itself, that's his central philosophy of writing.

ASOFAI is basically just a porn movie with complicated feudal politics obscuring it, which is probably why it worked so well as an HBO series (up until the last two seasons or so.)

There is no gratuitous sex scene in the books, the rapes are described as rapes, they are horrible, they are very shortly described and usually just alluded to.

The people commiting them are not put into generous lights and one of the single most harrowing stories hidden behind the grand happenings of the plot is a girl named Jeyne Poole, whose suffering although never shown, is very much pointed out, along with the hypocrisy of the people who only fight to try and save her, because they think her a different person.

Honestly, if you actually read the books and they came of to you as porn, you might want to do some soulsearching.Btw, the HBO series was a terrible adaptation, it immedietly started to go further and further from the books with every passing season and the showmakers made it very clear to everybody, that they didn't understand the very much pacifist and humanist themes of Martin. And neither did you.

We also get no indication Essos will eat it when Winter comes; hell, they seem to not know Winter exists, given the way people act, even though that is also unrealistic and weird. Essos was just super badly designed, and Dany is a terribly boring character.

to be continued

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naturaldisasterfanfiction · 4 years

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27.

I am so tired, like imagine having a midwife appointment at nine in the morning but all is well. Robyn is ready to give birth, but she doesn’t want to come at all “so I will book you in for a forty week visit, if she doesn’t arrive by then. She is ready but she herself is comfy in there. But if she is not causing you too much havoc or pain she will be fine for another three weeks and that is when we will plan on maybe inducing you. Try going for some walks, this could bring the baby to come and you can cause your waters to break if that is something you would like to aim for?” looking at Robyn, she wants this girl out “I do but I am scared, Gaby. I am scared to give birth, like I want a water birth but what if you don’t make it on time. With my luck something could go wrong” Robyn said, she has been saying this for a while now since she feels it coming closer “you just need listen to your body Robyn, your body will tell you what it needs. If it tells you that you need to push then you push. But don’t strain yourself too much it can cause tears, just move with your body. It will be more relaxing for you and the baby with a water birth. You will be in the privacy of your home, it can vary, you can just give birth quick, it can take long but you must enter the water when you are dilated enough that it’s coming. The first stage. This starts with the early, or latent, phase. At this point you’ll experience cramps, backache, and your waters might break, although this is more likely to happen just before you feel ready to push. You may also have an upset tummy, loose bowels. These are all signs that things are moving along, but you won’t be in active labour until your cervix is about 4cm dilated, and your contractions will be regular and strong. At this point, you go into the water. But Robyn you will know this, you will feel your body” Robyn looks so scared and so do I feel it.

“Chris, support her with a massage and distraction, distract her, be there for her. I can imagine you are good at that” I grinned nodding my head “eat very little and often during this time period also, the transitional stage of labour. This stage is described as the most painful part of labour, as your body is changing from the cervix opening to the body getting ready for the pushing stage. As a Mother Robyn, you will know. And I will come back to this because you will agree with me, you do not need to worry” holding Robyn’ hand “I am feeling everything you said right now?” Robyn said, Gaby smiled “I know, this is why I said it is close. I am here, and I won’t be long so don’t worry. You call I am here unless something happens then someone else will be here, just think of the joys of holding her when she is here. You have been through so much, this you will overcome” Robyn smiled a little “Rihanna is strong, Robyn is not. She is the scared woman in this body right now. But I can do this, nervous but everything you said I feel now” Robyn squeezed my hand “this makes me nervous too, I ain’t ever felt like this before. Shit, I am scared too. I know Robyn will be ok” she can do it; she just needs to believe in herself “I feel it’s close, imagine on Christmas day eating and then she comes, that will be dramatic. That is in a few days too” biting on my bottom lip staring at Robyn’ face, I am so damn lucky to have her.

Turning around to check on Zeus “aye, come in now” Zeus went for a long ass walk, he was loving it but I am tired now. He came inside the gate finally, closing it slowly. I actually love the peace around here, nobody harasses me. I see people but they don’t say anything, or they say hi, this is like some British movie, it’s legit and it’s weird. I go to the store too, amazing. They are more into my dog, I mean he is expensive as fuck “come on, inside now. It’s cold out here, big boy” pushing the door open, I miss the heat in California though. Freezing my balls off here, I barely seen the sun while here. Closing the door behind me, Monica and I swapped roles. She is sitting with Robyn while I took him for a walk but I am back now, I don’t want Robyn to be alone because I am scared something could happen “good boy” rubbing his head, placing his leash on the table in the hallway. Unzipping my coat, I can hear that Robyn is on some sort of meeting because there is a lot of people talking. Taking my coat off as I walked into the living room, she is in a meeting. Dennis must have set up the TV for her meeting because she can’t do anything like that. The meeting went quiet, I think they seen me come “how is London Chris!!” hearing Jen’ voice, oh she is in this “uh, it’s ok. Cold out here, what is this about?” am I supposed to be left out, walking around the couch “about the documentary that was meant to be a blog on my page, this is the team” letting out on oh, she didn’t even tell me but let me go “right” I guess I will just go.

This games room is amazing but it’s not amazing when you have nobody to fuck with and play with, like if Dennis wasn’t here I would be bored but he is busy and I am bored and not technically wanted in that meeting, even though I am in it, I can’t be there. It’s like I sold myself, I have no rights I guess. Tapping on the link Sinko sent me, what shit he sent me now and it loaded up Rihanna’ Instagram page and the post about the drake thing which I stayed away from, Robyn told me too. The fuck is he wanting me to look at, my phone started ringing. Answering Sinko’ call and putting him on speaker “what the fuck is that?” I asked him “you not seen what Drake put back? He just replied back now after all this time, it’s weird. Read it. But what the fuck is up in London?” sliding up to see this “London is dead, it’s good but dead. I am in jail bro” I laughed “I am joking but I don’t have much to do here” tapping on the comments “coming back to Cali after she is born? I am still shocked, you got Rihanna pregnant, untouchable and you just got it” seeing this Drake comment “this nigga put, I am sorry I didn’t mean to hurt you, I was upset. I love you; Chris was in attendance on that day” frowning at that “what do I got to do it with it, fuck that!” I spat, he is trying to cause shit, this was posted weeks ago, why now “I was thinking the same, I am sure you walked out” typing out the comment ‘Say that to my face, you wouldn’t dare. Don’t come in her comments saying my name when I came there to lay a verse. I was the one that told Rihanna about that song, it was me. Speak on me again we going to have problems, you always dodged the fade from me. I ain’t going to back and forth on this shit I will come to Canada for you’ pressing send “check that, but yeah. London is good, I don’t know anyone so it’s bittersweet” clearing my throat “yeah but you coming back right? I mean London is boring Chris. The boys are here” Sinko said “staying here, this is me now” the line went quiet “are you crazy? You will be even more lonely; you can’t just jump like that. Your life is here” Sinko doesn’t know I am married so that is different now.

The room is so quiet, maybe I should put the TV on. Actually let me call Mijo, see what he is up too. He can help me through this because I am upset with Robyn, I feel like she is, I don’t know maybe pushing me to the side like I don’t know “Britain deported you yet?” I snorted laughing “not yet my nigga, soon though. They gonna hate me soon. The white folk here is so weird, like they are all happy and they don’t say anything to you, they are happy” shaking my head “they could kill you in your sleep, watch out for that. But how are you? Youe accent ain’t changed yet” I miss Mijo actually, I miss Cali a lot now “not yet, I am scared that my daughter going to have that Harry Potter accent, weird shit” Mijo chuckled “you got one American, German and British. Mr worldwide” Mijo got me screaming laughing here “you funny, you really are. I am getting around but like I wish Robyn just would go to America, but it is what it is. How is my nephew and niece?” I think they should be at school, it’s early there “good, they all are saying oh my god uncle Chris is with Rihanna. We love it, I am like your uncle is crazy. I am happy for you anyways” I sighed out “I need to ask you something, like I just come home and Robyn is having a meeting without me, like she is there just speaking to Amazon about a documentary I will be on. I just feel like I sold myself to her, now she just leaving me out, you know. I am sat here alone, I don’t have anyone” I hope Mijo can help me “ah shit, Christopher. Every man sells themselves when they get married, you got to get ready for that” Mijo laughed down the phone “but what you need to do is speak to her, I can’t give you answers like that. Tell her you felt left out, you want to be more involved, she is your wife Chris. I am always here for you and I am telling you to go and speak to her, don’t feel like that. Don’t feel alone because you ain’t, you got a family” nodding my head “what is more lonely, a room full of niggas with hoes and drugs at your crib or your wife doing something without you but knowing you can fix this together? You good over there” Mijo is right.

Mijo stayed on the phone with me, he knows me, and I appreciate him “so Robyn bringing out a whole thing, are we seeing Robyn giving birth too!?” he half shouted “nobody seeing that but I am not sure yet. But I will let you know” looking at my phone seeing Drake commented back to me, he wants me to come there and knock his ass out “Drake commented back to my post” tapping on the comment to open it “why you beefing with that pussy? You won Chris, stop” squinting my eyes at the comment “you know where I live breezy, feel free” I read out, he is testing me and I swear I will but I won’t “leave it” Mijo said but I commented back ‘Sorry I got a pregnant other half with me right now, she needs me here’ pressing send “he is being sly Mijo, he honestly making out I am not the dad. He keeps on commenting to Robyn; he wants her to comment. Disrespectful as fuck, I hate being good!” I shouted; I am irritated “relax Chris, just relax yeah. Think of the future, you have a wife now, the love of your life so do not fuck that up. Just calm down” I really will fucking knock his ass out, I want too so badly too “talk to Robyn ok, tell her it upset you. That you wanted to be involved” I am angry at Drake just being around.

I thought I would do what Mijo told me to do and talk to Robyn, I have been in the games room for like three hours now, it’s been ages and nobody has come to see me at all, like nobody cares which is sad anyways “Chris! What the hell, I have been looking for you? I mean not far but where did you go” Robyn grabbed my arms “I was looking all over; we are going to have a little photoshoot here. Don’t I look good? Also I saw that you were commenting on my post, what did I say about that? We not doing that shit” nodding my head, she looks well “I love it, the dress” Robyn is on to something else now “can I speak to you? Like quickly, please?” Robyn nodded her head “of course, also wear the pink polo top” Robyn held my hand as she led me away “did I do something wrong?” she let my hand go as she went into the second living room, closing the door behind me “I commented because it’s fuck Drake, I don’t care. Fuck him, he is getting on my nerves on purpose Robyn, it’s wrong. But like I feel left out, like I come in and you doing shit without me, and then I just left. Like I want to be wanted in this. You have taken the lead in this, but I want some say in it. I should talk to you about my feelings and I am, I am not happy Robyn. It’s actually upset me that I walked in and saw you was doing that; I am in this too. I am in your bubble. I have nobody here, so I look to you for company, I look to you when I need to do something, I look to you when I am lonely. I just felt upset about it, and I hid alone in the games room, then I realised I hated it because it’s quiet” if this goes to shit, I will blame Mijo “it was never that Chris, I am happy you came to me and I understand. I know that this is new to you, these people you feel are my people, but they aren’t bad to you. I am so proud of how you have taken this Chris; I am but I didn’t mean it wrong. Jen called me and said we need to go on the conference now, this is all so last minute. You went out but I would have you with me, oh no. Please don’t think that, I said to you I wouldn’t do that. Yes I am always making plans and doing something, that is for us. You’re my backbone just like I am yours and I know you look to me for things, and I said to Dennis how much I appreciate he has been helping you around this place when I can’t. You will get used to it here, I know there is a lot of silence right now but this home will get busy” I feel less upset, I did think she did it on purpose “I feel alone, you know. But then I don’t have anyone in Cali either, so where do I belong? Like what is the point in even including my last name, it means shit. I don’t have family and yours carries I should change mine” putting my head down “I am going to put the polo on” I felt Robyn’ hand brush my arm but I was already leaving the room, I am sad, very sad about things.

#Chrianna #Chrianna FF #Chrianna Fanfiction #Fanfic #Fanfiction

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bunny-lou · 4 years

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Hello!! It's Alex (from @codv), Carlos has been in a writing rut for a couple weeks and I wanted to help him, but I haven't got any ideas of how to help and I was wondering if you had anymore puppy!Carlos headcanons? Thank you in advance if you do!!!!! Much love, @codv

First and foremost, @codv, I am the actual worst because I never left a comment on Every Dog Has Its Day and expressed my love. I completely forgot and I am so sorry. I hope these head canons make up for it and I plan on writing a long, well thought out and loving comment after my finals this week.

Here’s the first set of puppy!Carlos headcanons, and the second set, and a short ask.

- So in And They Call It Puppy Love, Carlos has a flea collar, but surely flea collars aren’t easy to come by on the Isle? Maybe Cruella made her own, using chemicals she doesn’t understand, which have left chemical burns on Carlos throat.

- OR, Cruella sought out those on the Isle who were lucky enough to find flea collars in the trash and she wanted one, so she sold Carlos to whoever had a collar. She allowed them to abuse him, physical or sexual or making him work like a slave, for a week in order to get the collar

- OR, any mixture of those two! Even if it is a legit flea collar that Cruella got her hands on, they’re not meant to be worn by human skin. Maybe they have left little chemical scars on Carlos’ throat, so he likes wearing his collar because it hides his scars?

- It’s canon that Carlos can speak dog, according to the Wicked World shorts, but I think that’s a little too much. Maybe he’s able to communicate with dogs by picking up on their emotions and scents?

- likes to hoard all his favorite gadgets. It’s not toys, but it’s technology and math books and calculators and science magazines

- whenever Jay or Mal or Evie are upset, Carlos brings them one of his favorite things in hopes of cheering them up, like how dogs will bring their toys to humans

- Carlos is still a genius with math and science, but when he’s working too hard, he chews on his pencils until they splinter and break. Evie finds that letting him chew gum while working helps

- really likes Dizzy because she’s also small and excitable and is basically a puppy too???

- very casually sniffs new people. He doesn’t make a big deal about it or get to close, but Carlos definitely takes in new scents before deciding if he likes someone or not

- we saw in chapter 2 that Carlos didn’t like Evie’s new perfume, so she has to take him with her whenever she wants to get something like that, or change her body wash, and Carlos has to smell them and approve of her new scent before she buys it

- Carlos asks Mal to try spells on him to take away the puppy in him, but she doesn’t want to because she loves Carlos and wants him to love himself. Carlos knows he inconveniences them all a lot and he wants to be better for them, plus, he was never meant to be like this, it’s Cruella’s fault, he was meant to be fully human

- Mal agrees to help him with some of the bigger things - like how noises hurt his ears, only the things that are bad for him - and Evie helps by making potions so certain smells don’t make him nauseous anymore

- this could lead to a reunion with Cruella, because Mal and Evie have to fully know what she did to Carlos as a baby

- maybe Mal ends up ‘curing’ him completely, or maybe she only takes away the bad things, or maybe she doesn’t change him at all. But whatever is done, Mal and Jay and Evie reassure Carlos that they love him with or without dog tendencies, and they support what he wants

#carlos de vil #jaylos #marlos #carvie #rotten four #core four #codv #asks #puppy Carlos de vil #head canons #jay descendants #jay son of jafar #mal descendants #mal daughter of maleficent #evie descendants #evie daughter of the evil queen

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blindrapture · 4 years

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I probably find this way cooler than it really is, but look, James Joyce doodled Leopold Bloom at some point!!! He wrote next to it in the original Greek, "Tell me, Muse, of that manyminded man, who wandered far and wide."

I’ll also take this time to share some stuff about Bloom. For purposes of relative convenience: The “present day” in Ulysses is June 16/17, 1904.

General Bloom Information: - His father was Rudolf Virag, Jewish, from Szombathely, Hungary. Virag had spent the 1850s/60s migrating westward and finally settled in Dublin shortly before his son’s birth. Leopold’s earliest memory of his father is of hearing the story of this migration, following the path on a map. Vienna, Budapest, Milan, Florence, London, Dublin. give or take. (Rudolf’s father was Lipoti Virag-- Leopold’s namesake.) - His mother was Ellen Higgins, Irish Protestant, daughter of another Hungarian Jew by the name of Julius Karoly who migrated to Dublin and married Irish-- Fanny Hegarty was the name of Leopold’s maternal grandmother. they took on the name Higgins in lieu of the more foreign-sounding Karoly, and speaking of... - Shortly after Rudolf Virag married Ellen, he changed his name to Rudolph Bloom. “Virag” means “flower,” that’s where the name came from. He also converted to Protestantism, though there’s some heavy implications that the Society for Converting Jews had coerced him with food. And it’s around this point that his son was born.

Leopold’s Life: - Full name Leopold Paula Bloom. Born in Clanbrassil Street, Portobello, Dublin, in 1866. - Leopold attended the Erasmus Smith High School until he was 16, where he got an interest in the sciences and developed his distaste with the Protestant Church (who funded the high school). He also dressed as a woman for a school play, and that may have sparked a long-standing deep affinity in him wherein he imagines what it’s like to be a woman, in contentment. - He spent some years working for the family business as a commercial traveller, walking about with orderbook. I couldn’t tell you specifically what it is they sold, though I feel like that information is in the book somewhere. At some point, the family also had some sort of significant ownership of a hotel. - Mother Ellen died of illness in 1886, and father Rudolph poisoned himself out of heartbreak a week later in the hotel, leaving a letter for his just-barely-adult son. - Leopold met Spanish-Irish singer Marion “Molly” Tweedy at... a place and time I honestly can’t tell you right this minute (but is probably in the book somewhere). At the time, Molly was big on the poetry of Lord Byron, and she thought Leopold bore a striking resemblance to the poet. He tried writing a poem for her, it was really silly and not very good. But they remained in each other’s social circles, Leopold charmed the hell out of her, they fell in love and got married in 1888. - Their first child, daughter Millicent (”Milly”), was born in 1889. On June 16, 1904, she is fifteen years old and away at Mullingar to study and work in the photography business. - Their second child, son Rudolph (”Rudy”), was born in December 1893, and died eleven days later in January 1894. Leopold and Molly ceased having sexual intercourse after this, indicative of a powerful grief which, by the “present day,” has lasted ten and a half years. - With Molly, Leopold has lived in a few spots across Dublin. During 1893-94, they stayed in the City Arms Hotel, as it was nearby to the cattlemarket, where Leopold worked for a Mr. Joseph Cuffe as a clerk (until he was fired because he kept giving opinions on civic development, whereupon he sent Molly to go and try and seduce him to get the job back. that did not work). The cattlemarket job comes up a lot in Bloom’s thoughts. It had a slaughterhouse on-site, which he detested. - At.. some point (???) after this, the family moved into the middle-class neighbourhood of Eccles Street, into house number 7. It is there that they remain by the “present day.” - Bloom has a library of something like 23 books at home (none of which I, Jordan, have read). They range from travelogues (In the Track of the Sun: Readings from the Diary of a Globe Trotter) to history books (History of the Russo-Turkish War) to practical (Thom’s Dublin Post Office Directory, 1886) to trite (Physical Strength and How to Obtain It) and scientific (A Handbook of Astronomy). - His wife, on the other hand, reads steamy sexy romance stories and pulp fiction, which Bloom frequently picks up for her on the cheap. With titles like Ruby: the Pride of the Ring, Fair Tyrants, and The Sweets of Sin, Molly flips through these within a couple days and judges them based on whether or not there’s any smut in it. The Sweets of Sin, in particular, is one name to keep track of if you decide to read Ulysses. - But most of Leopold’s critical reading comes with the newspaper-- he has an eye for advertisements and Opinions about how good or bad different ads are (Potted meat? Advertised just above the list of deaths? How tasteless!). By the time of the “present,” he’s got a job working for the Freeman’s Journal and National Press as an ad canvasser, so he needs to work with clients in representing their businesses with good ad design. - The household is economically secure for its time. Bloom has enough in savings. (This one is meant to be figured out by the reader, but uh, price inflation and changing of currencies and living standards has fogged it a bit.) - In the “present day,” Bloom is 39 years old, and five foot nine, and of slightly above-average physical build (even if he doesn’t think it).

I’ve been contemplating what else, exactly, to include here ever since I started making this post. There’s really many entries I could make. But I think a lot of them fall closer to legit Themes which the book deals with, and I think I’ll leave this post general. There are details about Leopold, after all, which are better off uncovered by the reader more gradually, allowed to evolve in a contrapuntal puzzling tension, allowed to be Figured Out. The Plots and Subplots, you could say.

But Bloom. Bloom endures. He is a character I cannot forget. Not everything about him is given to us; his life story is “spotty” in parts if you try to put it all down in black-and-white, but what is there is given with such precision and integrated with such... structure that I do think is comparable with ancient epic poetry.

..and, hey, if you do read Ulysses and don’t want to have to rely on my own spotty commentary, this website can help you with context.

#ulysses #maybe next time i'll make a post about the various characters who come from joyce's dubliners book #not only is ulysses technically a sequel to portrait of the artist as a young man #but it's deeply connected with every joyce book!#joyce's books were all in the same canon!#which sounds a bit silly because they were *meant* to be like real life and all #but no they're still fundamentally fictional. the seams are still there. there's still a man behind the curtain.#and that man behind the curtain still went and tied all his books together. went and wove a tapestry of canon.#that's all for now. i'm gonna pass out.

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kaycmoney · 4 years

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33 Legit Online Jobs That Pay $50,000+ From Home

Working remotely doesn’t have to mean taking a pay cut. There are more legit online jobs than ever. All it takes is being aware of the possibilities.

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Pros: You’ll typically work with clients on a retainer basis, allowing you to earn a steady base of income.

Cons: Will need basic training to earn your first client.

At the top of most business owners’ list of “Least Favorite Work Activities” is bookkeeping. Of course, it’s a critical task for ensuring that a business runs smoothly and survives into the future.

If you’re someone who loves to work with numbers, you can earn very good money in the field. There are also a lot of opportunities to charge higher hourly wages the more you specialize.

And, just like proofreading, bookkeeping doesn’t require a certification.

#3. Start A Blog And Become An Influencer

Quick summary: Create a website that provides valuable information about a topic you care about.

Average pay: $0 to $10k+ per month.

Pros: High income potential.

Cons: Even experienced bloggers take nearly a year to earn a full-time living.

I started my first blog in 2009 and sold it two years later.

I launched this blog in August of 2016. Just over a year later, it was generating enough revenue that I felt comfortable leaving a job I’d held for over 10 years.

The great thing about a blog is that you’re building a sellable asset. A quality website sells for around 30X its monthly revenue. Therefore, if you’re able to make $1,333 per month, you have a $40,000 asset.

As for how to make money blogging, there are a number of ways.

These include:

Advertising — earn money by placing ads on your website.

Affiliate marketing — make money promoting other businesses.

Products and services — sell your own products and services to others.

Sponsored content — you can get paid for partnering with brands

One big upside to blogging is that it can be a great source of passive income. On the other hand, one downside is that it can take time to get up and running. As such, if you need money today, you might want to consider a different online job instead.

#4. Online Tutoring

Quick summary: Tutor students worldwide in English or other subjects.

Average pay: $18 per hour.

Pros: The ability to start earning in as little as a few weeks.

Cons: Limited upside.

One high-growth business industry right now is online education. And one of the fastest-growing niches within online education is online tutoring jobs.

There are now multiple websites that connect you with students all over the world who are looking to be tutored in a range of subjects.

When we ranked the best online tutoring sites, one of the top options was Education First.

EF is a U.S.-based company that pays as much as $20 per hour to start and offers cash bonuses for reaching certain teaching milestones.

Here are just a few of the benefits of working for EF:

The lesson plans and course materials are provided.

You can start teaching classes as quickly as two weeks after applying.

You can work when you want, where you want, with no need to worry about marketing your services.

No teaching experience is required, as EF considers your entire professional background and resume.

Apply with Education First.

VIPKid is another great online tutoring opportunity, although they get a lot more applications. As such, it’s better suited for those with more teaching experience.

You’ll need a bachelor’s degree to work for either company, but it doesn’t have to be in education and you don’t need an active teaching certification.

Apply with VIPKid.

Best Legit Part-Time Online Jobs (With No Fees Or Startup Costs)

What makes a great part-time online job?

Flexibility, fulfilling work, and the chance to earn as much by working part-time as others do from working full-time.

Here are the top part-time online jobs that meet these criteria.

#5. Social Media Marketing

Quick summary: Handle all social media tasks for small business owners.

Average pay: $20 to $100+ per hour.

Pros: Most social media clients are on a retainer basis.

Cons: Limited upside unless you’re willing to learn paid advertising, which can take time.

Many business owners don’t have the time to make consistent updates to their social media platforms, or to respond promptly to customer requests made via social media.

That’s why so many businesses today are looking to hire social media managers. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an 8% job growth rate is expected for social media marketing managers through 2028.

As long as you have the ability to post, curate and manage content on social media channels, you can start taking on clients today.

But the big money is in learning how to effectively deploy paid advertising, such as Facebook ads. Businesses need new customer leads, and you can earn premium wages if you know how to use things like micro-targeting to deliver ads to just the right audience.

This can be a great opportunity for college students, because the amount of time you need to spend on a project each week can be quite small (especially if you utilize automation), and the required schedule tends to be extremely flexible.

#6. Virtual Assistant

Quick summary: Work as a remote executive assistant doing a range of tasks.

Average pay: $18 to $35 per hour, according to Upwork.

Pros: The more efficient you become, the more clients you can add (and the more money you can make).

Cons: Most employers will want you to work certain hours of the day.

For years, most people thought of virtual assistants as low-paid overseas workers that could be trusted to handle basic administrative tasks.

But now the trend isn’t to hire a VA for $5 an hour. It’s to find the highest-quality VA possible. Someone who will really add value to your business.

And because of that, people are willing to pay significantly higher wages to the right person with the right skills and work experience.

So instead of just doing boring, repetitive tasks, you’ll be working for a successful business owner as a remote executive assistant.

Common tasks carried out by VAs include:

Answering email

Booking travel

Managing social media

Scheduling appointments

And more, depending on the field

Some VAs take on multiple clients, allowing them to earn over six figures a year from home. This means it can be one of the most lucrative remote jobs you’ll come across.

#7. Freelance Writing

Quick summary: Online writing jobs include things like drafting blog posts, articles, advertisements and more for clients.

Average pay: $15 to $40 per hour for beginners.

Pros: It’s a field that’s exploding in demand due to the growth of online publishing.

Cons: Standing out when you don’t have a lot of experience is difficult.

Freelance writing is one of the more lucrative side hustles I’ve tried. I started small, but in a year I was earning over $100 an hour.

Thanks to the growth of content marketing, it’s also a skill that’s more in-demand than ever.

#8. Photography

Quick summary: Supply stock photos that will be purchased and used by businesses.

Average pay: 20 to 50 cents per image sold.

Pros: A fun, fulfilling hobby that can double as a business.

Cons: Will take time to build up your inventory of photos available for sale.

One of the fasting-growing online markets is stock photography.

Businesses need quality stock photos for their websites, client presentations and more. If you love being behind a camera — even the one on your smartphone — you can get paid for uploading quality photos to stock photo sites.

You’ll earn anywhere between 20 and 50 cents per image sold. So, the goal is to have dozens of photos for sale, each generating daily commissions. This makes selling stock photography a great source of passive income, because you can get paid over and over again for work you only did once.

#9. Search Engine Optimization

Quick summary: Help small business owners get found online.

Average pay: $25 to $40 per hour for beginners.

Pros: Quality SEO specialists are in high demand.

Cons: Proving your value comes down to showing proof that past projects have worked — which makes it hard for beginners to land a job.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of helping businesses get found online — primarily on Google.

In fact, a recent study by Microsoft listed SEO as the most important hard skill for marketers to learn going forward in 2020.

In my experience, having managed local SEO campaigns in the past, there’s a lot of low-hanging fruit. That means you can drive a lot of revenue to a business just by implementing a basic set of SEO “best practices.” Therefore, you can charge a high hourly or project rate, knowing you’ll deliver results.

The best way to learn SEO is with hands-on experience. Personally, I learned SEO by starting a blog and seeing what worked and what didn’t.

With real proof of results on my resume, I was then able to obtain clients and earn a high rate for my work.

#10. Scoping

Quick summary: Edit transcripts for court reporters.

Average pay: $20 to $30 per hour.

Pros: Very flexible hours, as often you’ll be working off recordings.

Cons: Contracts can come and go based on your client’s hours.

Scoping is a little-known work-from-home job that’s been around for 30+ years.

A court reporter’s job is transcribing what’s said in the courtroom into written form, using a special system of shorthand so that they can keep up with the fast-moving proceedings. Court reporters then hire scopists to edit their transcripts.

Court reporters make money per page, not per hour. That’s why outsourcing the editing allows them to increase their earning potential.

Similar to proofreading and bookkeeping, no certification is required, there are very minimal start-up costs, and the earning potential is high.

#11. Graphic Design

Quick summary: Design engaging graphics.

Average pay: $25 to $40 per hour for beginners.

Pros: Pick your own clients and work in niches that interest you.

Cons: Will be a lot of project-based work, which can vary your income.

For the artists out there, graphic design is a great way to monetize your hobby. The web is becoming more and more visual — especially as mobile devices become the primary method of browsing.

The highest-paid graphic designers combine multiple skills into their designs. Knowledge in branding, sales and direct response marketing allows many graphic designers to charge over $100 per hour.

#12. Video Editing

Quick summary: Create engaging videos for social media, YouTube and websites.

Average pay: $25 to $35 per hour for beginners.

Pros: Growing in demand as the popularity of YouTube, Instagram and other video platforms increases.

Cons: Video editing requires a lot of focus, so it’s important you have the work environment and discipline to log longer hours.

Another online trend that’s picking up more steam year-by-year is video editing. Video editors with prior experience are in high demand today, with the potential to earn over $50 per hour the more you specialize.

#13. Marketing Automation Specialist

Quick summary: Design and implement automated digital marketing systems.

Average pay: $40+ per hour for beginners.

Pros: High income potential, with the ability to scale into an agency.

Cons: The best in the field have a range of skills, from copywriting to understanding the technical aspects of a particular software. These skills tend to have a longer learning curve.

I’m in a mastermind group that’s been meeting since 2009. We all do some type of marketing work as independent contractors for a range of businesses. We’ve each had our ups and downs. Yet, as I write this, things are going well for everyone.

Connecting the dots, we realized that once we committed to specializing in a growing digital marketing platform, we had to actually start turning clients away.

One of the fastest-growing segments is marketing automation, on platforms such as Ontraport and HubSpot. These platforms are experiencing explosive growth, and more are emerging all the time. Some other examples are Aweber, Convert Kit and MailChimp.

Taking a certification course to become a specialist can often land you in the $60 to $100 per hour range fast.

#14. Medical Transcriptionist

Quick summary: Edit medical transcriptions for local healthcare providers.

Average pay: Transcription jobs typically pay $10 to $25 per hour.

Pros: Steady source of income.

Cons: High startup costs to earn a credential.

There are dozens of data entry jobs online. Sites like Clickworker and Amazon’s Mechanical Turk provide typists with a lot of work opportunities, but they’re often micro jobs — quick tasks that pay almost nothing.

In order to make over $50,000 per year with data entry jobs, you’ll need to specialize. And beyond scoping, one of the best ways to specialize in data entry is by focusing on medical transcription.

The first thing to know about medical transcription is that it requires a certification, which you can get through a company like CareerStep. CareerStep offers a range of certifications in multiple work-at-home opportunities within the medical field.

With their medical transcription certification, which is approved by the Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity, you’ll prepare yourself to land an online job as a transcriptionist in an industry that’s hungry for qualified talent. CareerStep courses are not cheap (they start at $2,999), but they do offer both payment plans and discounts for military spouses.

If you’re not looking for a career and just want to make some extra income, there are a number of websites where you can get started with transcription jobs on a more casual basis.

The most popular sites are:

Rev — make 36 to 65 cents per minute of audio transcribed.

Go Transcript — earn up to 60 cents per minute of audio transcribed.

Scribie — pay starts at $5 to $25 per hour of audio transcribed.

DionData Solutions – hires only U.S.-based workers.

One thing worth noting about medical transcriptionists is that they’re seldom out of work for long, as more and more healthcare companies are looking to outsource tasks to keep overhead costs as low as possible.

#15. Voiceover Artist

Quick summary: Provide vocal recordings to be used in audiobooks, videos, films and more.

Average pay: $20 pay per hour.

Pros: Flexibility and freedom to work your own schedule.

Cons: As most work is contract-based, your income can vary drastically from month-to-month.

Voice acting is the art of reading a script and using your voice to bring that script to life. Quality voice actors are in especially high demand in the marketing field, as video marketing has exploded in popularity in recent years.

A good site to get started on is Upwork. There, you can gain experience working as a voiceover artist (and ideally find your niche).

#16. Technical Writing

Quick summary: Synthesize complex, high-level information for a specific audience to understand.

Average pay: $20 per hour for beginners.

Pros: One of the higher-paying freelance writing niches.

Cons: The work isn’t very creative compared to most traditional writing jobs.

For those who like to dive deep into learning new things — and aren’t afraid of tackling super-complicated topics — technical writing can be a great way to generate extra income.

As a technical writer, you’ll be responsible for writing user guides and other documentation.

Aside from being interesting work for those who love to research, it’s also widely recognized as one of the best-paying writing jobs available. Furthermore, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects growth at 8% per year through 2028.

#17. Customer Service Representative

Quick summary: Provide service to a businesses’ existing customers.

Average pay: $12 to $25 per hour.

Pros: Opportunities with Fortune 500 companies, which may provide benefits such as health insurance, 401(k), and paid time off.

Cons: You may have to work irregular hours (especially when just starting out).

Most customer service jobs will not pay you $50,000. In fact, according to Payscale, the average hourly wage for work-at-home customer service jobs is $13.92.

However, if you’re smart about where to look and the skillsets to master, there is a path to becoming a high-earner in the field.

For starters, because there’s a large supply of customer service jobs, I’d avoid looking for jobs under the name “Customer Service Representative.” Research by TheJobNetwork showed that terms like “Customer Experience Associate,” “Customer Engagement Representative,” and “Customer Service Advisor” actually paid $18 or more per hour — well more than your average customer service job.

Two fields with a lot of overlap (and higher pay than customer service) are “Account Management” and “Customer Success Manager.” In these fields, you’ll be doing a lot of customer service work but other skills — such as cross-selling and retention — are required. As such, if you’re looking to become a high earner long-term, finding an entry-level position in account management or customer success might be your best bet.

Online Jobs That Pay Well For Entrepreneurs

The goal of a freelancer is to get good clients, do great work, and increase their value over time.

The goal of an entrepreneur is to build a repeatable system that provides value with or without the owner.

As an entrepreneur, you’re no longer working on projects for a set rate (or by the hour). Instead, your income correlates with the amount of value you can provide.

There are no limits to what you can and can’t do. But to narrow down your choices and help you figure out where to start, here are 10 ideas.

#18. Authority Sites

Quick summary: Build an informational website that helps people make purchasing decisions.

Pros: While working to build your authority site, you’ll learn very valuable, in-demand skills that can be transferred to your existing career.

Cons: Similar to a blog, it often takes a year or more to see a significant source of income.

A popular, highly-profitable and low-cost online business idea is building authority sites.

Authority sites are content-driven websites on a specific topic. They most often exist to help people like you and me make purchasing decisions.

Authority sites are a lot like blogs. Actually, if you were to build an authority site, a lot of the work is the same. The big difference is that blogs are more personal in nature. With a blog, you’re looking to build long-term relationships with visitors. Authority sites are much more transactional.

To best understand the idea, think back to the last time you searched for a review of a product. When you visited a website that had the review, that was likely an authority site.

As an example, I’m in the market for a sauna. So, I’ve visited different authority sites in the sauna niche, reading buyer guides and reviews.

The most popular way authority sites make money is through affiliate partnerships. With our sauna example, if I were to buy a sauna recommended by a particular site, that site would earn a commission.

And therein lies one of the big benefits to an authority site: since the owner doesn’t need to be present to make money, and they often drive traffic through passive sources like Google, such sites can be a source of passive income.

#19. Dropshipping

Quick summary: Sell items via a website and have them shipped directly from the manufacturer or wholesaler to the customer.

Pros: Can test the business model with very little money.

Cons: The dropshipping field is loaded with spammy marketing, so stick with learning the ropes from reputable sites like Shopify.

Shopify has created hundreds of opportunities for online entrepreneurs. Why? They made the process of selling online easy. From products and digital downloads to consulting services, over 1 million people use Shopify to run an online store.

One of the most common ways people get started is through dropshipping. The benefit of starting a dropshipping store is that orders are sent right to the customer. That means the store owners (like yourself) don’t have to hold inventory or deal with shipping.

And since you only need to order a product after a customer has bought it from your store, it’s a very low-cost business to start.

#20. Retail Arbitrage

Quick summary: Buy low and sell high.

Pros: A way for hobbyist and collectors to use their knowledge of a particular niche to make money.

Cons: Takes time and skill to find the best deals.

Do you love going to flea markets and garage sales, and browsing thrift stores? If so, you can make money online by flipping items for profit.

Think of this online business idea as buying an asset and selling it for a higher price. Your inventory can be anything you find at a garage sale or on a clearance rack.

The goal — and the key to making retail arbitrage work — is having an information advantage. This means understanding the market for what you’re buying better than the person who is selling that item.

Remember, the concept of arbitrage is based on the principle that a particular good has a higher price in one place than it does in another. That might mean it sells for more in California than it does in New York. But it might also mean that it sells for more online than it does in a brick-and-mortar store.

Winning at arbitrage means knowing how to figure out which items to buy and which ones to walk away from.

#21. E-Commerce Store And/Or Amazon FBA

Quick summary: Create your own online store or use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) to sell physical products online.

Pros: Very high potential in a fast-growing field.

Cons: Higher startup costs. Money often has to be reinvested in the business.

Amazon FBA is a business idea that’s getting a lot of attention lately.

The idea is to buy products directly from a manufacturer or wholesaler, then sell them online via Amazon. The most popular option is to use Amazon FBA, which handles all the warehousing and shipping (the “fulfillment”) for you. In fact, you can even have the manufacturer or distributor ship the products directly to Amazon, so that you never have to physically touch the items.

But you don’t have to limit your selling to Amazon. You can also use FBA to ship products you sell on eBay or your own website. It’s much easier than packing and shipping everything yourself, and the shipping rates Amazon charges you are much lower than you’d pay to UPS or FedEx.

#22. Etsy Store Owner

Quick summary: Create and sell homemade crafts and digital products on the world’s largest creative marketplace.

Pros: You’re taking advantage of a fast-growing platform.

Cons: As Etsy has grown it’s become more competitive, with large companies creating stores on the marketplace.

When it comes to legit work-from-home jobs for moms, Etsy is near the top of the list.

Think of Etsy like eBay for creative people, as some of the most popular products on the platform include arts, crafts and jewelry.

You can either do Etsy as a business (there are many full-time sellers) or use it as a way to make extra money in your spare time.

#23. Create A Course

Quick summary: Create an online education course.

Pros: Can test demand for ideas fast by utilizing online teaching websites.

Cons: The below sites, which have an audience looking for courses, often take a large cut of your profits. The best long-term business model is building your own audience, but that can take time.

If you have expertise others may find valuable, you can create a course online and sell it. This used to be very hard, as you had to build your audience from scratch.

But two websites, Udemy and Skillshare, now provide access to an audience of people who are eager to learn about almost everything under the sun.

There are all types of courses available, so it’s a great way to create a legit online job of your own.

#24. Home Health Agency

Quick summary: Manage a local team of home healthcare providers.

Pros: Demographic trends, specifically the aging of the baby boom generation, have increased demand.

Cons: High startup costs, including licensure.

A major trend in our economy is the need for qualified home healthcare. The aging population of the United States, as well as seniors’ increasing desire for care inside their home, is driving this trend.

A big benefactor of this trend has been local home health agencies.

A home healthcare agency provides qualified care to local residents. As employees are working at client’s houses, an office isn’t required.

This is by no means an easy business to start. To begin, you’ll need certain licenses and certifications. These vary by state, as well as by the type of care you offer.

Non-medical care agencies have the lowest startup costs and barriers to entry. This type of agency provides day-to-day living help, such as meal-prep and housekeeping. In contrast, medical care agencies work with Medicare/Medicaid and have more complex responsibilities.

#25. Virtual Recruiter

Quick summary: Find talented employees for businesses.

Pros: High income potential for those with large existing networks.

Cons: If working for yourself, income can vary widely as you’re only paid when someone lands a job.

If you love to network, this is a great low-cost business to start. What you’re doing here is finding talent for employers. Payouts can be quite large, as some placement firms charge upwards of 25% (or more) of the employee’s annual salary.

#26. Insurance Agent

Quick summary: Sell property, casualty or life insurance from a home office.

Pros: Some insurance income is recurring, making for a quality source of passive income.

Cons: Competitive field, often competing with companies with billion-dollar ad budgets.

Having been in this field myself for over 10 years, I’ve seen a lot of growth from individuals starting their own insurance agencies from home. Startup costs are low, the hours are flexible, and the commissions can be quite high.

If I were to start an insurance agency from home, I’d focus on selling small business insurance. The premiums tend to be higher than those of auto and home policies, and there’s much less competition.

#27. Travel Agent

Quick summary: Book and coordinate travel for individuals or businesses.

Pros: Fulfilling way to earn more for those who love to travel.

Cons: Income can vary, as travel tends to spike at certain times of year.

Believe it or not, travel agents are still in demand. It just depends on finding the right niche. This is an especially good business for you if you have personal or professional travel experience, because you can provide your clients with insights they can’t get from a website.

Legit Online Jobs: Growing Industries Hiring Online

Below are examples of legit online job opportunities in specific industries that are increasingly moving towards remote workers. Here you’ll find jobs available for both entry-level workers and for those with experience (both in the U.S. and Canada).

#28. Healthcare

Popular online healthcare jobs include billing, coding, the handling of insurance claims and general customer service work.

#29. Sales And Business Development

Sales is one of the most in-demand and legitimate work-at-home jobs. If you produce results, you can get paid big money. Just about every industry needs quality salespeople.

#30. Accounting And Finance

A field open to both entry-level and experienced professionals, common roles in accounting and finance include bookkeeping, managing payables and receivables, collections and analysis.

#31. Communications

Work with PR and marketing departments to deliver communications within and to prospects and customers of a company.

#32. Insurance

The insurance field is one of the largest sectors of the economy, employing over 2.66 million people in the United States. Entry-level jobs include call center roles, customer service reps, sales, and communications.

#33. Legal

There’s a wide range of jobs in the legal field. Opportunities for entry-level workers include administrative assistant and records assistant positions.

Online Job FAQ

How much do online work from home jobs pay per year?

When you work from home, you’ll usually (but not always) be classified as an independent contractor. That means you’re working on a per-hour or per-project basis, rather than for a set annual salary. As a result, your annual earnings can vary widely based on a number of factors. If you’re organized, motivated and efficient, you can often earn more money for the same amount of work as compared to a more traditional environment. But on the flip side, if you’re someone who finds it difficult to stay focused and has a tendency to coast through the day, you might end up making significantly less. That’s because as a freelancer or contractor, you’re only getting paid for the work you actually do. Being at home can be distracting, and it’s easy to end up with only four billable hours after an eight-hour workday. Your take-home pay will also depend on the types of contracts you’re able to win. You’ll make a lot more money as a paid social media manager than you will by doing online data entry jobs.

Where should I look for online jobs?

If you’re trying to get hired for a full-time position at a company, start your job search at FlexJobs — a great job board for finding remote work. As mentioned above, FlexJobs screens each listing before making it available to applicants. That’s a good thing, because the company’s research has shown that there are 53 scam job listings for every legit online job! Beyond FlexJobs, Indeed is another job board that’s worth checking out, as it has the most powerful search engine among job listing websites. If you’re looking for independent contractor or freelance work, sites like Upwork and Fiverr feature a bevy of legitimate online jobs.

How do I avoid work at home scams?

There are many scams when it comes to the advertising of work at home opportunities. That’s why, before applying for any job, you should research the company on Glassdoor, a site that allows former employees to leave reviews of the employer. You’ll find details such as average pay, growth opportunities, benefits, and more. A good rule of thumb is that if the company you’re looking to work for isn’t on Glassdoor, it’s not worth applying. If you’re searching for independent contractor jobs on Fiverr or Upwork, make sure to view the company profile before applying. On Upwork, you can even see how much the company has spent on freelancers, where it’s located, the average hourly rate they pay, and reviews from previous freelancers.

What are the qualifications to get an online work-from-home job?

As with any job, the necessary qualifications depend on the type of work you’re seeking. In general, if you need a certification to do the work in person, you’ll also need one to do it online. However, some jobs — such as freelancing writing and editing jobs — can be easier to get online if you have limited work experience. For example, while few newspapers will hire a journalist who has zero training, it’s fairly easy to gain a foothold as a content writer for a blog or website.

Legit Online Jobs With No Upfront Investment

The internet has made it much easier to make money from home. While many people are just looking for opportunities to make a few bucks here and there by taking online surveys or maximizing their cash-back shopping, you can also find legitimate work that pays just as much as — and often more than — offline options.

Whether your goal is to work full-time, part-time or run your own business, there’s no shortage of work-at-home jobs.

So get started today. Take at least one action: sign up for a free resource, update your resume, or even send that resume in. There’s a good chance you’ll be earning money online faster than you think.

Good luck!

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1 note · View note

kendrixtermina · 5 years

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You seem like pretty knowable about Edelgard lore and motivation, so I've been meaning to ask. What exactly was the catalyst that made Edelgard hate the Church of Seiros so much? I know they've done a ton of shitty stuff in general, but what made Edelgard dislike them personally? I looked on the wiki and it either wasn't on there yet or I just didn't understand it. (I want to be able to eventually explain it to my sister who so far thinks Edelgard is evil, she hasn't finished the AM route yet).

IDK if this is something one can be “knowledgeable” about I just played the same game everyone else did, I’m no authority I just like analyzing fictional works for fun.

And whoever added that recent lengthy edit to the wiki article… let’s just say their opinions are discernible. But they might say the same about me.

Good vs Sympathetic

First there are some interesting premises hidden in this question - why would a personal motivation be more convincing that a net negative impact on the world at large? It’s the latter a much better reason?

Like there’s a big difference between saying “they had legit reasons for their feelings/actions” (you could say this even about rhea) and saying that someone’s a force for good. Being understandable and consistent isn’t goodness; IT’s just good writing, and “they can’t help it, of course they acted like this, look at what happened to them” is more an argument for someone being sympathetic/understandable than good. Murder or manslaughter? How much can we blame them for their bad deeds.

You might have very good personal reasons to hate someone or something, and pursuing that hate at the expense of others could still be a very selfish thing. There are your feelings, and then there’s how you act on them. There are many ways to act on the same feeling.

Conversely, it is possible to be repulsed by evil or mismanagement just because of its own wrongness/stupidity. If you read about how some evil deed happened to total strangers in a foreign country, you would still be angry and you might even vote, sign petitions or attent protests so it doesn’t keep happening.

If the Church of Seiros is doing objectively bad stuff, is that not enough to oppose it? Not only does Seiros/Rhea rule everything from the shadows, she’s accountable to no one, and she’s doing a bad job at it. TWSITD are her enemies too but they’re running rampant under her nose and in the recent past, deposed the Emperor and assasinated the king of faerghus to install their own agents.

Rhea may not have intended to let xenophobia, inequality, corruption, obsession with crests and instability to fester but that’s still what happened - and people can’t file complaints because she’s ruling in secret and anyone who complaints in branded a heretic. Almost everyone in the cast has been affected by those issues - the “peace” at the start of the story is illusory. Also, this whole shadow war between Seiros and Agartha is being carried out on the backs of the ordinary people who have no say in anything. At least if you know who the king/lord is you know who to rebel against if there’s no bread.

It’s no good. And as the heir to the largest territory, Edelgard is one of the few people who have a chance to stop it. It’s not easy for her either, given that the empire is thoroughly infiltrated by TWSID agents who would never have let her butt touch the throne if she didn’t play ball, or at least not without a bloody fight that might well end with the empire in splinter factions, aafter all, her father had already been reduced to a puppet ruler (see what happens to Dimitri when he returns to faerghus - Arundel is said to mantain his own personal army)

And since it was one of her ancestors who sold out Fodlan to seiros for power, she might feel that it’s her responsibility to put it right.

The real power isn’t with the people or even the nobles and the rulers of the three factions - it’s with Rhea and TWSITD. They keep burning up people without end for their own causes that have nothing to do with the people themselves, they both see humans as “beasts”… Shouldn’t that be stopped?

To stop evil is a much better motivation than petty personal grudges.

Edelgard’s thinking

The first thing to understand with Edelgard is that she’s a big picture thinker through and through. For better or for worse she looks at and decides everything based on how it will look in a history book a few centuries down the line. (For prime examples of evidence look at the Dorothea support or some of her lines after fighting Dimitri)

This isn’t to say that she doesn’t have bias or personal influences like everyone else, but she values and strives for objectivity. That means questioning herself alot (something you wouldn’t see that much on routes other than her own as she keeps the tough leader face on in public), it means putting what yields the best results over what she wants or likes, and it means looking at the greater whole.

She doesn’t just want to get revenge on the specific people who wronged her; She wants to ensue that it never happens to anyone else. She wants to undo the whole situation that allowed for it to happen - even if that means postponing her own revenge and working with those she hates the most. This is very much her putting efficiency and the end result above her own feelings.

It may well have been Thales and his henchmen who cut her open, but they couldn’t have done it without the cooperation of the corrupt imperial nobles. (likewise, they worked with xenophobic kingdom nobles who didn’t like Dimitri’s dad making peace with the foreigners to orchestrate the Duscur nonsense)

Why were they in power? How were they convinced to allow for such a thing and give Thales the ressources he wanted/needed? Because of the social system that Seiros set up so that crests are equated with power.

There will always be assholes and evil people, but how much damage they cause depends on wether the system they operate in lets them get away with it.

Also, even when you look just at TWSITD’s involvement, Edelgard’s siblings were butchered to make her a mighty tool for the shadow conflict. Just as Rhea in turn did her own experiments to revive sothis and “regain all that she lost”

So even on the most direct level, what happened was a result of the shadow conflict.

And it is instrumental to keep in mind that Edelgard wants to remove both shadow factions.

Her beef’s strictly with them - she knew that the Kingdom and Alliance would probably fight her if she went against the church and was fully prepared to pay that price, but that’s a side effect of going where the enemy is - she handed out letters and pamphlets informing ppl of the church’s evils and asking them to choose sides.

TWSITD have fearsome power and have infiltrated the empire, but they’re few. The Church got its claws in most local governments. Why not throw the power of the former at the latter, to take down the stronger enemy, and then take out the Agarthans when your power’s consolidated? It’s a decision not about whom to fight, but about whom to fight first.

Also because of her big-picture thinking she looks at the absolute numbers. In her own words, she’s going for the path of least casualties.

PPl tend to judge harm caused by action stronger than harm caused by inaction but actually the harm is the same. Acting to remove the two shadow factions will have a cost (the war) but not acting also has a cost - that the dysfuction goes on and on forever.

She doesn’t particularly want power if it were up to her she’d have chosen a normal ordinary life and she says so on many occasions. But she can stop it, stop the endless sacrifice and dysfunction, so she can’t just let it continue and do nothing.

Of course with that sorta logic you always have to consider how each action impacts the end result so you don’t destroy all you want to protect because you tell yourself that it will pay off later, after all ‘the many’ are just an abstraction for a lot of individuals. But Edelgard’s not really losing sight of that, she keeps looking to minimize the casualties where she can, she offers people a chance to surrender, you get some lecture questions where she’s genuinely considering what do with rhea if she DOES surrender.

It’s worth noting that on her route, the war ends the quickest and only the Kingdom lands get significantly wrecked (and the Kingdom always gets wrecked even if it gets rebuild afterwards, it was already in a lot of chaos before the war even started). You have to fight the peeps you don’t recruit but that’s no different in the other routes. Claude manages to seize control of the Church without going through the knights so he manages to pull off an at least equivalent end result (both shadow factions removed, society permanently changed) while offing fewer of the named characters, and lets not fail to give him credit for that, but he might not have, if Edelgard hadn’t conveniently removed Rhea and just generally blazed a convenient trail for him to, in his own words, “finish the job for her”. Taking in the church with Rhea still in place didn’t work out too well for poor Dimitri, I seem to recall that she used the poor man as a meatshield and set his capital on fire - which is why Claude wisely didn’t touch that hot potato in any route where he doesn’t have Byleth as a bargaining chip.

Of course that said, going too hard on the comparison would seem to miss the point. While Claude’s and Edelgard’s routes are about their respective grand visions for the future and their badassery as great inspiring leaders, the Church and Kingdom routes are more about people coming together to weather difficult circumstances. Dimitri isn’t really cut out to be a good ruler; but the beauty of his story is how he eventually does his best to become one anyways through the aid of his loyal friends. It’s an underdog story.

If your sister prefers that sort of story (or just Dimitri himself, as a more emotional, relatable type of hero and a well-crafted, compelling and memorable character) that’s just her personal taste/ good right.

Edelgard’s personal biases

She surely has a bit of “broken pedestal syndrome” going on, the very human tendency to absolutely reject things you once idealized once they’re proven to be flawed, to assume that if you were lied to often enough, then everything must be a lie… she sure reads what she learns of Seiros’ past actions in a bad light and assumed that Seteth & the others are guiltier/ more complicit than they actually are.

The problem with Rhea is that she’s selfish, not that she’s a dragon. But if she were the only example you know for what a dragon is like? You might not be too fond of dragons. It’s not like she protests if Byleth spares Flayn and Seteth.

She doesn’t really know Rhea’s motivation so she has to judge her by her actions and the results of those, and her actions, for all that they come from fear and loneliness, are indistinguishable from power lust by the time that Rhea’s subjugated 30 generations of humans for something their remote ancestors did 1000 years ago. Would she ever have let them go?

So it doesn’t matter that she only got the partial story on the relics, it’s not the relics she took issue with, but the current state of the world. also Rhea is the one who erased the true records. So the 10 elites totally had it comming, fine - but Rhea’s the one who disseminated the myth that they were heroes in the first place.

Claude only gets the truth by squeezing it out of Rhea and even then only at the very end, ppl who say that Edelgard “acted on false information” act like Claude just stumbled across the truth with minimal effort. That’s actually more unfair to Claude than to Edelgard if you ask me.... he’s a man who has gathering info as his top priority 24/7

Edelgard’s certainly more steeped in the perspective of her home country where the church is awarded significance and if it turns out to not be good then it’s utterly vile. Claude has the sort of more detached perspective that he has because he happened to come from another country. Edelgard’s aiming for detachment but that’s only possible to a certain extent when something ruined the lives of nearly everyone you know

At the same time whatever her personal sentiments may be (and im not gonna deny that she does hate the Seiros religion), as far as her actions and decisions go, the engage conversation she has when you have her fight Rhea at the battle:

Rhea:

No matter your reasons, I cannot permit you to go on living any longer!

Edelgard:

The feeling is mutual. I must put a stop to your reign of tyranny!

Rhea:

You must know what a fool you are. The greatest of sins is to make an enemy of the goddess herself!

Edelgard:

I have only made an enemy of the church, not of the faith.

She says in several supports that she personally considers relying on the goddess to be an overly dependent attitude that doesn’t do people good, but that’s just her opinion, she’s not stopping anyone from praying in the privacy of their homes cause thats none of her business and she’s not a tyrant (see what happens if you recruit Marianne or Mercedes, her support with Manuela or the Marianne/Ferdinand support on the CF route, which reveals that he’s actually a believer.)

She just wants the Church, and Rhea specifically, out of politics… exactly what we have in any modern-day country that isn’t Saudi Arabia or the Vatican.

Megalomania seems the most likely or politically expedient thing to claim but in the end her beef’s not with Rhea’s reasons but the results of her actions which is stagnation, mismanagement and repression.

Your Actual Question/ Personal Reasons and Catalysts

Honestly? If we’re talking on a strictly emotional/personal level? (As much as that’s an incomplete picture with such a reason-driven character)

She probably bawled for the goddess to save her and her family down in the dungeons, again and again, and no one answered.

She spent much of her early life just being dragged around, first being kidnapped by Arundel and held captive in the kingdom, then she was thrown in a filthy dungeon where she endured relentless pain and could do nothing but watch as her siblings died one by one.

She was utterly helpless, a passive plaything of destiny - and then she decided she was done being passive and letting the universe kick her around. She was going to be proactive and do all she could to be in control of her own fate.

See also the inspiring speeches that she gives to Petra and Lysithea at various points - “Don’t surrender yourself to your fate!”

Blind reliance on the faith, to her, represents that very surrender, so she rejects it.

This fear and rejection of being helpless and having zero control is also one of the reasons why she consistently chooses death on her own terms over life on someone elses’.

That would still not be a valid justification if she wanted to, like, stop everyone from praying, but that’s not what she’s doing.

#fire emblem: three houses #fire emblem three houses #edelgard von hresvelg

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