#wish I could share more of his backstory but perhaps someday

[versadies]

Hey hey!! I've been following you for a while now and I love your work sm aaa

Saw the event, I love soulmate au's 😩‼ as a gemini, may I request a gemini prompt + kaeya? Up to you who the enemy is, I trust you ^ ^

-🦚 @pavo-ocell-me

someday, one day (hc scenario)

penpal: omg hi !! im glad u love my work, i hope this is to ur liking 🙌

prompt: gemini the twins, enemy-lover soulmate au

pairing/s: kaeya x gn!reader

sypnosis: when you thought he was your enemy but is actually your lover.

includes: spoilers on diluc and kaeya's backstory, spoilers on genshin's official webtoon, violence, physical pain, burns, arguing, enthusiastic!diluc (pls take note that its canon that he USED to be like all the other pyro characters b4 his father's death.),

when you first met diluc, it felt like he was your knight in shining armor.

the first time you two met was when you accidentally fell down from your balcony after leaning too much on the railing and diluc managed to catch you bridal-style whilst he was on patrol around the city as a knight.

it truly was romantic– and a near-death experience for you.

so when you found out that his name is imprinted on your wrist, you felt ecstatic, and so did he.

since then, you two were known as the youngest soulmates who had found each other in mondstadt, people admiring your relationship with envy and happiness.

of course, you and diluc were a happy couple. although you would be lying if you said diluc is overall your type, you managed to find yourself falling in love with the man.

when crepus, diluc's father, found out about diluc's once-in-a-lifetime moment, he simply laughs and pats you and his son by your backs with a proud smile.

"by the time my son turns 18, we better make arrangements of your wedding! it's a ragnvindr tradition, after all." he comments eagerly. you honestly weren't sure if the man was joking or not.

it didn't take long before you meet his dear brother, kaeya.

when you find out his brother's name is the same as the one that's imprinted on your other wrist, being surprised is far from your reaction.

"don't worry about it, y/n." diluc reassures you one night as the two of you stroll around the city together. "i'll make sure nothing will go wrong between you and my brother. besides, you always have me, right?"

if diluc hadn't tried what he said, perhaps things would've gone differently than now.

in fear of being enemies with your future brother-in-law, you decided to avoid kaeya like a plague, giving the young man apologetic looks whenever you walk away from his presence.

as much as you're avoiding the man, you couldn't imagine hating on kaeya. every night, you always think of what can make kaeya your enemy. what is there to hate him? he's funny, chivalrous, everything that screams your type of men.

wait.. type?

your heart drops from the moment you started thinking romantic things about diluc's brother, looking behind you to see your soulmate sleeping soundly with a frown plastered on your face.

is diluc really your lover?

doubts started to cross your mind. what if diluc isn't your soulmate? what is there to prove that kaeya is your enemy? are you just overthinking things?

"i can't think about this." you murmured to yourself, pulling up your comforter before laying back down on your bed and try to fall asleep.

"i have a wedding to worry about next year."

just as you said, you did try not to think about the possibilities you have with the two brothers, distracting yourself with tasks and dates with your lover, who's quite oblivious to your problems going on inside your head.

unnoticed by you, you weren't the only one who has been burdened with your thoughts.

by the time diluc's birthday has arrived, the two of you started to get excited from your future wedding, excited to finally marry each other after years of spending your adolescence together.

you didn't expect an inconvenience during diluc and crepus's trip.

you didn't expect crepus trying to save diluc from a monster using something that no one but snezhnaya has ever heard of.

you didn't expect crepus asking diluc to put him out of his misery.

you didn't expect diluc to come strolling back to your shared home with blood stained in his clothing at a late hour.

you never, ever, expected your lover to fight his own brother when he took a visit.

and you did not expect your lover to plan on leaving you and everyone.

"what do you mean you're... you're leaving?" you ask in disbelief, staring at diluc as though he has two heads. "can't i go with you–?"

"no, this journey will be too dangerous for you–"

"this applies to you as well! you're not an immortal or some god–"

"i can do this on my own, y/n." he says with his eyes narrowed. you couldn't help but scoff in disbelief. this isn't the diluc you know and loved.

"but diluc.. isn't this too much? your father... i know crepus's death is too much but, why can't you stay?" you whispered, cupping his cheeks. "what about our wedding? the life you and i planned after your bi–"

"my father died and you're seriously thinking about our wedding?!" diluc forces your hands away from his face, glaring at you. "why can't you understand that i'm trying to find out the truth on this delusion–"

"i do understand!" you yelled out. "i do understand that you want to do this for him but what about monstadt? the knights? what about your brother–"

"HE'S NOT MY BROTHER!" he yelled, lashing out at you as you screamed in surprise when you saw fire in front of you, immediately covering your face with your arms out of reflex.

you didn't notice how your lover's eyes widens on what he did,

you couldn't notice him, not when you're too focused on the huge burns on your arms.

"oh my god..." diluc murmurs, slowly taking a few steps back as he takes a look of what he did, ignoring the sudden presence of adelaide and elzer, who both gasped from the scene.

your eyes starts to water from the intense pain, trying not to cry out and scream your heart out in fear of making your lover feel regret. you could honestly care less on what diluc is doing, all you could think about was the intense burns from your arms.

suddenly, the door was slammed open by kaeya– who was wet from the rain outside.

"what the hell did you do to them?!" kaeya exclaims, running towards you with a shocked look on his face. "i'll take you to the cathedral alright? the sisters will heal you." he whispers, wiping off the tears from your face as he wraps his arm around your shoulder and takes you towards the doors.

before diluc could let out a word from his mouth, kaeya gives him a glare.

"you may hate me for what happened," kaeya says.

"but for celestia's sake, don't ever come to them or call them your lover ever again."

that was the last time you saw diluc.

you eventually find out from the chattering nuns that the man had already left monstadt with no news of when he'll return, causing everyone to pity you and for diluc about what happened.

you were thankful that no one except the nuns found out about the incident of your arms.

throughout your stay in the cathedral, you usually find kaeya beside you, keeping an eye on you with a concerned look on his face. you honestly couldn't imagine what would've happened if the man didn't storm inside dawn winery. would diluc actually try to help you later on and leave? would you have suffered more with your injuries as he stands by watching you in disbelief?

whatever outcome you could think of, your heart ached from them all.

would diluc stayed had he been the one who tries to take care of your injuries?

either way, you knew the man is no longer the one you fell in love with from those years ago.

as years grew by, so did your friendship with kaeya.

although it was awkward from the start, you eventually warmed up to the man who you thought is your enemy, feeling more comfortable with him than before.

the two of you started having careers by then, with you having a successful career whilst kaeya becomes the calvary captain of the knights of favonius.

although the two of you are busy, you agreed to always meet each other at night in angel's share, where you drink the night away and talk about anything that comes out of your minds.

there wasn't a day when you thought about diluc.

thankfully, your burns weren't too severe and is slowly fading away throughout the years. but that doesn't mean the memories you had from it disappeared as well.

ever since that dreadful night, you started having nightmares about the incident, always finding yourself sitting up from your bed with a scared look on your face.

you wished you didn't want to see diluc this way, but you honestly couldn't bare to face him if he ever comes back to the city.

you don't see him as a lover or a friend. all he is to you at this very moment is your nightmare.

your nightmares simply washes away when kaeya comes up in your mind.

whenever you think about your so-called destined enemy, you felt comforted and safe. it was understandable really! you were touched by how he took care of you regardless of you being his "enemy".

however... now that you could think about it, the calvary captain has a lot more common with you than diluc himself. the fact that his brother made you laugh a lot and supported you in many ways made you started thinking that maybe diluc really isn't your destined lover.

your heart skips a beat from the thought of kaeya being your true lover, the smile you wore never fading away.

perhaps when you're finally starting to move on from the relationship you had with diluc, maybe... just maybe, kaeya could be the one you've been hoping for.

you started to sleep more peacefully, excited for the future that awaits.

somewhere in the calvary captain's home, the man is dreaming and hoping of you too.

#ik diluc doesnt have enemy-villainy energy but he's only your destined enemy because of how you don't like him as both friend and lover #anyways hope you enjoyed this! #diluc x reader angst #diluc x reader #genshin x reader #diluc ragnvindr x reader #diluc x y/n #diluc x you #diluc headcanons #diluc scenarios #kaeya x reader angst #genshin kaeya #kaeya x reader #kaeya x you #kaeya x y/n #kaeya #kaeya fluff #kaeya imagines #kaeya alberich #kaeya alberich x reader #kaeya alberich x you #kaeya headcanons #kaeya alberich x y/n #kaeya scenarios #diluc imagines #kaeya hcs #genshin hcs #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact #genshin impact au

[sailtoafarawayland]

How We Got Here (Entwined Series)

Summary: Killian wakes and his mind can't help but wander to the warmth of the man pressed against his back, and just how they got there – his life so different than he ever imagined it would be, even after he fell madly in love with the blonde goddess who held a knife to his throat and abandoned him at the top of a beanstalk, but sometimes the paths that are least expected are the ones with the greatest rewards.  

Series Information: A series of connected one-shots following the polyamorous relationship of Emma, Killian, and Hook. Each piece can be read standalone and is non-linear, but together will reveal some backstory and how these three came to be. Tags/warnings that are specific to each piece will be posted at their heading, but it is safe to assume all of them will contain some version of M/F/M and M/M (unless otherwise noted in the tags). If this is not your thing, carry on. If you would like to be removed from my tag list, please let me know. Keep in mind, I maintain one list for all of my work.

Rated: Explicit

Relationships/Alternate Tags: M/M, Killian/Hook, Emma/Killian/Hook (background mention only), Anal Sex, Gay Sex, 

Many thanks to @hollyethecurious for the lovely cover art!

AO3 - FF

How We Got Here

It was one of those rare nights, Killian's body drifting into wakefulness though the sun was still far from rising, his mind refusing to be lulled back to sleep by the gentle patter of rain against the windowpanes. He'd kicked the sheets from himself at some point, a cord of them twisted around his waist, leaving his chest and legs chilled by the night air. Emma had volunteered to cover the night shift for Will that evening, her place in the bed an empty stretch of white lit by the moon shimmering through the sheer curtains.

Killian had fallen asleep wrapped in his other partner and woke just the same, Hook's hips still tucked firmly against him beneath the sheets, his rough stubble pressed against his back that was warmed by his lover's content, even breaths, scarred wrist resting lightly against his stomach. Though the night was still young and the rain dancing on the roof far above them should have been enough to let him drift off once more, Killian found his mind was too awake to allow for it.

He'd always been contemplative, brooding even, as caught in his own thoughts as a fish in a net, and in the quiet darkness of their bed, Hook's warmth seeping into him, his found himself picking and turning memories over that he hadn't examined in a long while.

There was a time when he couldn't have imagined being in the situation he'd just woken to, stretched comfortably in a bed that was his own, in a home that was his, and with another man pressed against his back – but not just any man, and perhaps that was the piece that allowed it to all make sense, that made everything fit perfectly between the three of them.

He and Emma had been happy together when it was just the two of them – a whole, as he'd thought – and no ordinary third would have fit into what was already complete, but Hook was no ordinary man. He was another version of himself, slightly older – and as he insisted on arguing, far wiser – a man of shared experiences and pain, of shared beauty and shared love with both of them.

They had been whole together, just he and Emma, but with Hook, they were something more, something washed in so much love that what they were had grown and changed, finding new corners of themselves to share and welcome him into. 

At first, for Killian at least, it had been a maelstrom of curiosity and unexpected attraction – he was, after all, devilishly handsome no matter the version, and the addition of some gray streaks and fine lines had only enhanced that appeal...and he would have had to be a blind man not to see the connection forming between his other self and Emma. He'd recognized it as the same bond that he and Emma themselves had nurtured and grown over shared adventures and vulnerabilities. At first he'd feared it, back when he and Hook had first met in this very room. Hook hadn't known what the Seer's words would portend, just who his happy ending would be, but Killian had understood immediately – it would always be Emma.

Though their knowledge of the various realms was still tenuous at best, they all believed that there was no version of Emma left in the Wish Realm, that whatever facsimile she'd replaced at the bidding of the Evil Queen's wish had been destroyed, and then once she'd left...once she'd returned to him, that was it. Honestly, the rules of how that entire realm worked were a mystery, but without being able to explain why, Killian knew that if Hook were to find his happy ending anywhere, it would be here – he'd known it in his very soul, and it had terrified him.

As they welcomed him into their home and aided him in his quest to find a way to reunite with his daughter, it became clear there was something undeniable between his wife and this older version of himself, and though at first it had pained him, he couldn't look at his twin, lonely and broken and desperate for help, and not truly want the same happiness for him that he'd found with Emma – that sense of completion and understanding that came with True Love, the feeling of home. How could he have fought against that, especially knowing that it may very well be the thing that would unburden Hook of his curse and make saving his daughter possible once more?

But then everything had changed – the attraction between them that had at first been focused around Emma, on her pleasure and needs, it had grown to encompass things Killian had never thought would be possible. A late evening spent conversing over glasses of rum, sharing their past experiences and how they'd differed – the varying nuances of the history they shared – but no matter the small details, the larger tragedies had all been markedly exact. At least they were until their paths had diverged and Hook had traveled to Gothel's tower – until he'd been tricked into intimacies and conceiving a child. And then – when he'd loved and cared for the child her entire life – he'd suffered having her taken away by the very witch who'd birthed and abandoned her all those years ago.

Killian couldn't imagine the pain, being forced from your child when all you desperately wanted was to hold them and keep them safe from the world. He'd always wondered if perhaps he and Emma – now he and Hook and Emma – might someday have a child of their own, and to dream of being given that happiness only to have it ripped away...it was a tragedy he couldn't bear having to live through, and the fact that Hook had, that he was still fighting to fix it...

Killian wouldn't take the chance that his reluctance would prevent Hook from finding his happy ending and daughter once more, so instead of fearing what he felt changing between the three of them, he embraced it, looking for all the things to love in the other man that Emma saw in him each day, the things he saw in her. Not surprisingly, considering there was true love involved, becoming three instead of two had only made their love reach its roots deeper, strengthening all of them.

Behind him Hook stirred, perhaps sensing his lover was awake in his arms, murmuring small, half-asleep noises as he pressed a kiss to Killian's shoulder, his wrist rubbing circles against the hard planes of his stomach. Killian felt a familiar surge of warmth in his chest at the gentleness, Hook's arm stretching beneath his neck before pulling him more securely into his chest, his lips whispering across his back once more and stirring a far different warmth somewhere else.

“What are you doing awake?” Hook rumbled behind him, his leg edging forward to push between Killian's, his words broken by the soft caress of his lips.

“I couldn't sleep,” Killian sighed, his teeth catching his lip as Hook's stubble rubbed deliciously across the skin he was taunting with the hot wetness of his mouth – a mouth Killian was very desperately imagining elsewhere.

“Missing Emma?”

“I do always miss our Swan when she's not here, but actually, I was thinking of you,” he teased, his voice still rough with disuse as he pushed his own hips more tightly against Hook's, smirking as he felt his twin's cock start to harden against him, his grip tightening as he awoke more fully.

“Were you indeed?” Hook crooned, his teeth catching around Killian's shoulder as he thrust gently against his firm backside, his cock sliding against the fullness of his cheek.

“Aye, is that too much for an old pirate to believe?”

“Not this old pirate,” Hook quipped, smiling as Killian rolled in his grasp, his legs slipping free, one coming to rest contentedly over his own as their eyes met, lashes heavy with sleep and pupils leaving only a sliver of blue to be seen in the dark room. “And just what were you thinking about?”

“How we got here,” Killian nearly whispered, winding his fingers through Hook's ruffled hair, his streaks of silver bright in the moonlight. He tilted his lover's head back, exposing the sharp ridge of his stubbled jaw as he leaned forward, his mouth trailing heat along the line of his neck and tasting the warm sheen of sleep still lingering on his skin.

A low rumble caught in Hook's throat at Killian's ministrations, and he tugged him more firmly to his body, the press of skin against skin chasing away the fog of sleep as his mind turned to more pleasurable activities – like how sinful that tongue would feel sliding across something other than his neck. Killian's nails dug sharply into his hip and he suddenly rutted his hips forward, their cocks brushing together, and Hook knew his lover was of the same mind.

He wasted no time in rolling on top of his younger self, enjoying the way his thighs settled heavily on either side of Killian as he took control, his stunted wrist pressing his hand into the bed as his fingers echoed the command on his other side. His tongue swept over his lips as he studied the unbridled longing in the face of the man below him – a face that was so much more than a  reflection of his own, it's lines and nuances speaking to everything that ran below the surface.

“I like to think it was fate,” Hook smirked, dipping low to taste his twin's lips, the movement between them becoming more desperate as their tongues swept together, stroking and pulling, breaths gasped and sharp. Tearing himself away, Hook slanted his body and pressed his member roughly against Killian's, rocking back and forth and groaning as he felt his lover's teeth hook into his shoulder, the pain softened by the breathless moans surrounding it.

“I like to think it was my...fuck...devilishly good looks,” Killian moaned, twisting and pulling himself free of Hook's knees in an attempt to gain a better hold of his lover, his legs wrapping around the other man as he thrust upward, his head digging into the bed as he sought firmer pressure between their bodies.

Hook chuckled against his neck before working his way down Killian's chest, ignoring the growl of dissatisfaction from his lover as the warm press of his body moved away from his throbbing cock, leaving cold air between them.

“So desperate,” he teased, his teeth grazing over a nipple before continuing down, his tongue sweeping along the hard, flexing planes of his stomach, following the trail of black hair that would lead him toward his treasure. “Is this what you were really thinking about?”

“Just bloody get on with it,” Killian growled, knotting his fingers into Hook's tousled hair and pushing him roughly against his cock, hissing as warm lips and scratchy stubble dragged along his length, moving lower until the heat of his breath was ghosting against his balls, his fingers wrapping perfectly around his thick shaft.

“As I said before...” Hook murmured, tonguing one of the soft orbs in front of him before sucking it into his mouth, heavy and full, laving it with his tongue before letting it pop free “...desperate.”

“Jones,” Killian choked out, his grip on his lover's hair tightening as he angled his face back toward him, “if you don't get on with it, mate, I might just take what I need...”

“You forget who you're talking to – ” and suddenly Hook's palm was like a vice around his length, his breath hot against the taut skin of his bollocks as he slid his grasp higher, rolling over the swollen head of Killian's member and pulling a broken groan from his lips. “ – so if you want my mouth wrapped around this beautiful cock of yours, then I'll need to hear you beg for it.”

The sharp sting of Hook's teeth dragging against his tender skin, his tongue immediately soothing the ache, quelled the last of Killian's reticence and he let out a soft moan, thrusting up into the strong hand holding him.

“Bloody hell, Jones, please...just...”

“Just what?” Hook crooned, another slow roll of his hand drawing more noises from his lover. Killian's knees were splayed around him as he hovered over the dark tip of his cock, his mouth only a breath away from where his pirate needed him the most.

“Just take me,” Killian hissed, a note of desperation in the words that were fumbled, half supplication and half command, from his lips. “Take me in that mouth of yours, love – I need you...need to feel you around me...in me...all of it...”

Hook dove forward with a pleased rumble in the back of his throat, his hair falling in a sway of black and silver – brushing against Killian's stomach as he wrapped his lips around him and welcomed him into his warmth, his lover's hips rising to meet him, his tongue laving around the hot, throbbing flesh, tracing each vein and ridge that he'd lavished with attention so many times before. He loved the way he tasted, the way he filled his mouth so completely, slipping against the back of his throat and pulsing against his tongue. He loved the way Killian's fingers wound in his hair, pulling him closer and dragging him away, hissed words of approval caressing his ears as he moved with the soft rocking of his lover's hips. His hand pressed wantonly along the firm line of Killian's hip, reveling in the way his skin stretched taut over both muscle and bone, swelled over the thick expanse of his powerful thighs, black hair dusting his lover's body and tickling his palm.

“Gods, I love you,” Killian groaned, “come here.”

Hook relinquished his lover's hardness at his urging, clambering back up his chest and seizing his lips once more, their lower bodies pressing together and rutting shamelessly as they sought that perfect friction between them, Killian's mouth nearly bruising in his desire to taste every inch of himself on Hook.

“I want to feel you inside of me, pirate,” Killian breathed, running his foot along the back of Hook's leg and thrusting. “I want you so deep inside of me that I don't remember what it's like to have ever felt anything else. How's that for begging, Jones?”

“Bloody fucking hell, Killian,” Hook rasped, fumbling toward the nightstand and tearing open the drawer, nearly dropping the bottle of lube in his haste to return to their activities.

Killian's hand was wrapped around his own cock, jerking it slowly to the side as Hook shuffled back between his splayed legs and pressed open mouthed kisses to wherever he could reach, his blunted wrist urging his legs higher. Goosebumps erupted along his stomach as Hook drizzled a generous stream of lube against his ass, pumping more into his palm and smoothing it over his own cock.

“Are you ready, love?”

“Aye,” Killian groaned, stroking his shaft more quickly as he watched Hook take himself in hand, lowering his body so he could pressed the glistening tip of his cock against Killian's tight entrance, the both of them letting out a sharp breath at the sensation.

“You're so tight like this,” Hook hissed, pushing forward slowly, Killian's legs rising to ease the soft burn of his cockhead spreading his tight ring of muscle, then dropping to rest on his twin's backside as he slipped through and delved further in, his shaft slowly filling him in the most delicious way.

“Didn't want to wait,” Killian huffed against his neck, “just needed...needed this.”

“Aye, love,” Hook breathed, holding back the indulgent chuckle he could feel tickling his throat – normally when they made love, they both preferred slightly more preparation, the foreplay half the fun, but then there were those times where desire and something far deeper nipped at the both of them, leaving them impatient to be joined. “So you'll finally admit that I was right then, that you woke desperate to feel this thick cock inside of you?”

“You're insufferable,” Killian sighed, his mock irritation changing to a low whimper at the delicate thrusts Hook was making to prove his point. He carded his fingers through his lover's hair, admiring the way his fringe draped silver and black across his face,  the lines around his eyes ones of laughter. “Just fuck me already.”

Hook smirked, knowing he'd won, and began to move, his shallow thrusts becoming something deeper as he kept a close on his lover's face for any signs it was too much too soon, but their moment of banter had been enough to relax him, and he slipped further into his body easily, Killian's brow furrowed in silent pleasure as he concentrated on the sensation. A panting breath left Hook's lips as he settled fully within his lover, losing himself for a moment in how tightly Killian was surrounding him, how perfect and right it felt to be connected to him in this way, ripples of pleasure shared between them with each small movement he made.

“Jones,” Killian pleaded, trying to roll his hips and digging his heels into Hook, his face flushed pink and mouth fallen open as he clenched himself purposefully around the impressive length filling him. “Move, please...”

Needing no further urging, Hook drew himself back, Killian's body grasping and pulling pleasantly along his skin as he retreated, his movements shadowed by the soft moans falling from his lover's mouth as he rocked over him. Pleasure surged through his gut as he thrust back in, his balls slapping heavily against Killian's firm backside.

“Gods, you're so...bloody perfect,” Hook hissed, pleasure burning along every inch of his skin as he set a decadent pace, pulling himself farther out as Killian began to relax around him, the head of his cock rolling over his prostate before delving back in to fill the deepest parts of him. A sharp cry flew from Killian's mouth as he changed his angle, hitting that spot that was unlike any other more intensely, and Hook's arm slanted quickly over his twin's mouth, silencing him. “Not that I don't like the enthusiasm, mate, but you'll have the children bursting in thinking the town's been set upon by some new villain.”

Killian's teeth bit none to gently at Hook's skin, his eyes narrowing as he mumbled something about knocking around the muscular forearm still pressed firmly against him. Hook's pace slowed as he dragged his length achingly from his partner, flexing his shaft so the tip of his cock bobbed against the edge of Killian's tight entrance, making his eyes roll closed, a soft hum falling from him on a sigh.

“Can you be quieter?” Hook smirked, flexing once more as Killian nodded against the bed sheets, his hips pushing to meet him. “That's a good boy...”

Killian let out a heavy breath as Hook pulled his arm away and plunged himself back into the heat he'd been missing, their bodies falling into a familiar rhythm as his legs dragged over Hook's skin.

“Don't stop,” Killian gasped, his hand fisted in the sheets as he arched his back in time with his lover's thrusts, his cock bouncing between them, swollen and dripping cum along his stomach as his muscles flexed with each movement.

With a growl Hook lurched forward, his wrist and hand pushing at the back of Killian's knees and forcing them upward, the angle opening his twin and letting his girth slide more quickly into his depths. His pace quickened, he was nearly pulling the entirety of his cock free before slamming back in, his twin's body rocking beneath him as their moans and grunts were lost amid the damp slap of their bodies meeting.

“I won't last much longer,” Hook moaned, feeling the tightness building behind his balls, the sparks of pleasure racing along his skin and bursting somewhere in his chest, “touch yourself for me, love...”

Killian yanked his hand from the sheets and wrapped it around his cock, knuckles white against his swollen, red shaft as he started moving, his hand slipping along skin already slick from the cum flowing easily from his body, Hook's constant stimulation of his prostate ensuring he was already at the edge. He rolled his palm over the head and shuddered, Hook's thrusts faltering as his release drew near.

“Bloody hell,” Killian hissed, his grip tightening as he worked his shaft with short, rough strokes, “I can feel you...so close...gods...”

A low broken moan poured from Hook as he thrust deeply a few more times, his cock swelling and pulsing within Killian's tight channel as he buried himself deeper, his pelvis digging into his lover as he pumped his release into his hot depths, his eyes never leaving Killian's as he writhed against him, his fist flying desperately over his own member before it finally erupted, ropes of cum shooting across his stomach and the bed, painting his chest with arousal as he panted and heaved on the mattress.

The quiet of the rainy night was undisturbed save for the harsh rhythm of their breaths as they came down together, Killian's legs slumping back to the mattress as Hook softened and slid from his body, the evidence of his release slowly following. Pressing a kiss to Killian's sated smile, he slipped from the bed and padded into the bathroom, letting the water run for a minute before returning with a warm cloth and carefully cleaning his lover, Killian jerking at the new sensation against his skin that was still sensitive from their activities.

“Come back to bed, Jones,” he grumbled, listening to the water run once more in the bathroom, the noise of it splattering in the sink as Hook washed his face suddenly quite loud in the otherwise silent night. “You'll be the one to wake Alice and Henry this time.”

“Unlikely,” Hook chuckled as he turned the tap and crawled back into bed. “The faucet on a rainy evening is far less alarming than screams.”

“I wasn't bloody screaming,” Killian growled, nosing the smirk on the other man's lips before pressing his own smile in its place, tugging him in close for a slow, relaxed kiss that faded into soft caresses as they found a comfortable position that avoided most of the spots on the bed where their sweat had dampened the sheets – and if that happened to be on Emma's side, well, she'd hardly find out until the morning.

Hook watched as Killian settled back into sleep on the pillow beside him, his eyes heavy and features relaxed in a way that only deep slumber could bring. He let his thumb brush along the edge of Killian's, both of their hands devoid of the heavy rings they normally favored during the day, but graced with the same identical silver wedding band.

There was a time that he too had wondered just how he'd gotten to this place – his happy ending – but when his gaze fell back on the man sleeping beside him, and he thought of the woman who'd be returning home to them shortly, it was no mystery at all.  

END

Tagging:  @justanother-unluckysoul @kmomof4​ @the-darkdragonfly​ @teamhook​ @zaharadessert​ @xarandomdreamx @jrob64 @wefoundloveunderthelight @tiganasummertree @pirateprincessofpizza @lfh1226-linda @alexa-fangirl-forever @alifeofdreams @superchocovian @donteattheappleshook @hollyethecurious @caught-in-the-filter @snowbellewells @itsfabianadocarmo @stahlop​

#Captain Swan #CS fic #cs fanfic #entwined #sailtoafarawayland #Killian and hook #m/m #wish hook

[pestopascal]

sorry if it's not too mcuh to ask but are you able to share the endings? ive seen a lot of mixed reviews in regards to them and player choices and i wanted to hear your opinion

uhhh pfft okay spoilers below... but there are like “five″ endings, each with variations and reflections on choices that you go through

devil ending (arasaka)

so assuming you have done nothing game wise (no side missions, no friendships), this is the most basic ending you will get besides one other. this has several differences based on whether you saved takemura or not (yes, you can save him in search and destroy, and he doesn’t like an outcome of this ending if you save him. quite frankly, it’s hilarious).

this ending basically ends the arasaka story of the game, which was the heist section, as well as takemura’s general story direction. you realise along the way that yorinobu wasn’t just the antagonist but an antihero in hating his father’s stance on separating the rich and poor further, as well as attaining immortality via the relic. he wanted to give it to everyone. saburo had uploaded his soul to mikoshi (think along the lines of the stacks in altered carbon), knowing that yorinobu was going to make an attempt. turns out hanako knew all this. there is more backstory with hanako’s connection to alt explained. saburo’s relic is installed in yorinobu’s body.

- variation 1: goro died, hellman takes you to the facility

after the choice, hellman will be the one to escort v to arasaka, having survived conveniently. after some other missions involve a hostile takeover of arasaka, hanako fulfills her promise of removing johnny, but in the process v’s mind is practically destroyed beyond saving. there is a sequence of testing, with the scientists and lots of psychological implications. hellman will arrive to give the choice of whether to upload v’s mind to mikoshi in an attempt to save them in some years time (because, as it turns out, there are stipulations in that cloning is not near the level of science it needs to be, saburo and yorinobu obviously had close enough genetic material it made transfer easier. also johnny’s relic has apparently ‘changed’ v’s dna enough (which is questioned and evaded). that and it is arasaka. they could just be lying, and v knows this). so v can sign a contract to be uploaded to mikoshi, or can return to earth with 6 months to potentially live, although is speculated to have less time than that.

the credits roll with dialogue from those you may have befriended in some capacity discussing either the fact you have signed on to arasaka, or you have disappeared/returned to earth. hanako offers v a job if they had chosen to return to earth to die. your love interest makes reference to not having heard from you/wishes to see you soon.

- variation 2: goro survives, also escorts v to arasaka

takemura fills the roll of hellman, and ultimately proves that he is arasaka until the day he dies, even after the apparent ‘wavering’ dialogue. he didn’t make it this far in life without being able to lie the way he does. he’s a lot more gentle in the approach compared to hellman in asking v to return to mikoshi, there is some reminiscing dialogue, and also promises of visiting in the future if they manage to find v a body.

the biggest difference is should v choose to return to earth, takemura tells v to rot in hell for refusing arasaka’s help.

the sun (rogue)

this ending relies on side missions being completed for rogue (NOT just a good relationship with johnny, that is another ending as well that will be mentioned after). blistering love is the last one for rogue.

what happens is that you give johnny and rogue their last attempt at the assault on arasaka tower. johnny will be in control for the duration of this mission. rogue dies during the assault when adam smasher arrives. at mikoshi, johnny is the point of view character for the decision on who remains in v’s body. alt recognises that the relic has altered v’s body too much for v to remain there, but johnny would survive without problem.

- variation 1: v remains in control

johnny assimilates with alt in cyberspace and v returns to the world as a living legend. your love interest can potentially appear in the suite, but they recognise that v has become incredibly distant as a person (implied only a few months to live, that only they know of), and is taking on one last gig like no other. the love interest may potentially break up with v. ends with v eventually going to attack the crystal palace (casino in space).

- variation 2: johnny remains in control

vastly different, and i recommend playing this ending out at least once. johnny appears some time after the events of arasaka leaving the city, with collecting belongings and also going to visit the columbarium and deposit the bullet in v’s grave. it also gives a lot of insight into other memorials to characters you may have met in other side missions, there is jackie’s, rogue’s (per this ending), etc. johnny leaves night city.

- VARIATION 3: TECHNICALLY THE SECRET ENDING and in some cases considered ending 5

DIFFERENT in that it has a set of requirements that include maintaining a relationship with johnny ABOVE 70% (which can happen in the missions for him). need to wait and not decide on an ending for johnny to personally suggest this, so that no one else will die for them. it goes the same route as the rogue/johnny ending but instead v/johnny assault arasaka tower themselves. this is the HARDEST mission in the game, there is NO save option, you have to complete it in one go. if you die it is treated as an ending, and the end credits will even reference this with other characters talking about this. should you make it through, it plays out similarly following on from the other variations, save for the fact rogue will actually be alive, and the afterlife sequence will reflect her survival.

the star (aldecaldos)

should you befriend panam, including completing all of her lines (queen of the highway being the last), there is the offer to join them. it follows a very similar path in terms of attacking arasaka tower per rogue/johnny, but with the aldecaldos, and saul dies when adam smasher appears for the fight. this is one of the endings where you can choose who stays in v’s body however, but played from v’s point of view.

- variation 1: v remains in control

again, similarly follows the sun route, however v will wake up later with the aldecaldos en route to tucson. judy if romanced will join v, panam will obviously have a continuing romance, but river stays behind due to his family commitments with promises of maybe someday if they return, and kerry i believe at this stage, doesn’t want to give up night city just yet, but again similarly to river, promises.. it ends on a more hopeful note.

- variation 2: johnny remains in control

plays out like the sun ending.

path of least resistance (suicide)

easily the most heartbreaking. depending on how you may have played v, it is the one time they feel the most in control. johnny and v have an incredibly emotional discussion about death and life and rebirth. the credits will roll, and any relationships you have established will have a spoken part. i sobbed during the credits. it is.. yeah. well.

my opinion

the endings are confronting, or hopeful, depending on what is chosen. siding with arasaka goes against your better instincts, especially as a corporat. even after believing that perhaps takemura has changed, v realises that to his heart, that man will never leave. becoming a living legend just like jackie wanted leaves v feeling quite empty, as they have made it to the heights and there’s nothing for them. the aldecaldos are viewed as the best simply because there is that hope that in arizona, someone might be able to help, but potentially at the cost of your own relationship. and then... after seeing how much v has been punched down... the last ending just truly hurts. both in terms of characters understanding and being so angry at themselves and at v. i personally don’t know what specific ending i would choose for my v as i’m still working it out, but they all do punch in some way i personally think, especially if you have... actually played the story, and it does like tie off specific ends here and there. also like... finding out what happens to the peralezes and other people you might’ve met... yeah. i recommend playing through all of them + variations at least once (granted.. if you are comfortable with it. the arasaka ending is very invasive and well, the suicide ending can be incredibly uncomfortable).

#replies #cyberpunk 2077 #cyberpunk 2077 spoilers #suicide mention tw #Anonymous

[caddy-whump-us]

I feel like the things I’m writing lately for the vampires aren’t so much whump as they are angst or just “scenes from a captivity.” So if you’re still reading this stuff, I hope you enjoy it. I’ll get back to Etienne in a bit; it’s Nikolai time right now. And I’ll get back to some more “classic” whump soon.

This piece also involves a character named Cyprian who I think was mentioned before? All the backstory you need should be here anyway. He’ll be showing up a bit more hereafter.

I also highly recommend this playlist for some mood music.

---

“Glad as I was to hear from you, do you truly believe you can mend the rift between you?”

“I was hoping you could tell me.”

They were sitting before the fire again. They were always sitting before the fire, with the night pressing in like black walls. But this time there was a stranger with them.

His Lord sat on the couch to one side of the fire, and Nikolai sat on the little velvet stool beside him. Across from them, though, was the stranger--to Nikolai, at least. Adrastos seemed to know him all too well as they spoke across the elaborate, twisting patterns of the carpet between them. 

White faces, such white faces, like moving marble statues when they spoke, one to the other. But this stranger, their guest, seemed, although they both had the same smooth, grave-marble faces, younger in some way. The way he lounged on the couch, the tilt of his head. 

But his Lord was just as nonchalant; the comfort of a lord in his own home, of course. Nikolai was beginning to fidget: twisting the ends of the ribbon around his neck, pulling at his jacket draped over his shoulders, worrying at his fingers. 

Nikolai watched them from under his brows. All of this sitting before the fire was for show, pantomimes and shadow-plays of life as it had once been and could never be again for these two monsters. Yes, pretend to be cold and weary after riding out to this house and come warm yourself by the fire. It was a play for the two of them only, a game. After all, Nikolai and the postulants all knew them for what they were. Perhaps this was their only entertainment left.

Adrastos reached out and began to stroke Nikolai’s hair.

“After everything you’ve done, Cyprian?”

Cyprian shrugged, his eyes closed, white palms turned up in the dark. His hair was auburn, dark in the shadow but copper bright in the light of the fire, in loose waves that fell across his forehead. 

“Or is this because you know Viktor will have to choose an heir someday?” Less question than statement. “Perhaps Ruslan told you--”

“About the new boy he’s caught? No. But I heard tell of it.”

“Cyprian, please.”

Cyprian rolled his eyes. “Black swan,” he said, then went on, “I’m quite comfortable as I am. I don’t know that I’d need an inheritance.”

“You’re living a bit like Ruslan these days.”

“I enjoy it, the squalor down in the shadow of the university.”

Nikolai’s eyes flicked up to Cyprian’s face and he found Cyprian looking back at him, eye to eye. Cyprian shifted in his seat, rested his chin on his hand. 

“I only ever met Ruslan perhaps twice, you know.” 

“Viktor tolerates him but there’s no love lost between them.”

“They’re too different. And your master needed you to bridge between them.”

“Is that why you wrote to me, then?” Adrastos said, leaning forward across the span between them.

Cyprian matched him. “I’ll have a lineage of my own someday.”

“After what you did?” Adrastos hissed.

But Cyprian went on: “As will his new” a pause “black swan. What is a disagreement between us now could become true factions within a few years. Think of that.”

Adrastos sat back, considering. “You could as easily be killed. Kill the serpent in the egg, as they say. After all, you know what you’ve done, as do I, as does he.”

Cyprian looked disinterested and was looking sidelong at the fire.

“In fact,” Adrastos went on, “some scrap of what you have done has made its way back to him.”

Cyprian still looked towards the fire. Nikolai tried to see the color of his eyes in the firelight, with no success. 

“So. It’s not inheritance, it’s not envy, it’s not guilt, it’s purely to prevent this speculative ‘war’ between the lineages. You’re a fool if you believe that could happen.”

“I am already outnumbered, that is true.”

“You’re only half a fool, then.” And Adrastos leaned forward again, his fingers steepled before his mouth. “So why are you here?”

Cyprian was still turned aside. He closed his eyes. “Because I need him. And I need you to help me back to him.”

Adrastos scoffed. And Cyprian turned on him, blazing. 

“I do! You know the things I’ve already done. I’ve crossed paths with--” and he paused and closed his eyes.

Adrastos gave a low, slow sound of understanding. “Is that it? You’ve found the first of your impossible creatures, your own black swan.”

Cyprian dropped his forehead to his hand. “How do I resist it? Or how do I accept it? I don’t know what to do.”

“And you mean to go to him to ask.”

“He is still my maker even if I refuse to call him my master. He knows me.”

“Indeed so.”

“I understand the break between us. I promise you I do. But I need help to cross it. He needn’t speak to me again after this, so long as he answers me. If I write to him I’m sure he’ll burn my letters before reading them. I would have gone to Ruslan, but I know how things stand between them. And so--”

“So you wrote to me. I can’t say I’m flattered that I’m your last recourse, but here we stand.”

Cyprian was looking up at Adrastos and his eyes were wide and pained. “Will you help me?”

Adrastos sat quietly a moment, looking into the darkness beyond. Nikolai found himself twisting his fingers again and willed himself to stop. This unexpected meeting had pushed back his first dose of the day (call it that) and he was beginning to want for it. 

“I think,” Adrastos said, “I can do something for you. But more than half of it will still lie with Viktor. I can intercede, but only so far.”

“Any help would be welcome. I don’t expect forgiveness or for him to welcome me back with open arms. I only need his help. And I can promise him that he won’t hear of me again if that’s what he wishes.”

Adrastos set his hands gently atop Nikolai’s to still them. Nikolai looked up towards him, then down and aside, ashamed. But he could feel that strange fever beginning to come over him. His eyes were hot. The skin of his back was tight and itching. 

“Then I will write to him on your behalf. You’ll be in my debt, you know.”

“I do know, but I think perhaps it is worth it.”

Adrastos laughed, softly, and drew the jacket off Nikolai’s shoulders. “Now, come: we’ll pledge our cooperation.” He set his hands on Nikolai’s shoulders, “This is my black swan.”

Nikolai fixed Cyprian with his dark eyes.

“And his name?” Cyprian asked.

“Nikolai,” Adrastos answered, rising and going to the writing desk set against the wall beside the fireplace. He opened a drawer there and Nikolai breathed a sigh, almost a sob, of relief. He knew what was kept in that drawer. He opened his eyes again to find Cyprian staring at him and he ducked his head, all humility.

But still, he watched his Lord come back to the couch with the wooden box, the bottle, and the delicate knife; he kept his eyes most on the box and the bottle. 

“This is, perhaps, a bit taboo? A bit questionable? But you must experience it for yourself.” He spun a spindle-footed table from around the arm of the couch to stand on the rug among them all. “Consider this quite a demonstration of trust. But we’re pledging our good faith, aren’t we?”

Now Adrastos was laying out his tools: the syringe, the needle, the cord (a cord this time?), the harsh liquor to clean the implements, the knife, the bandages for after. Nikolai was trembling slightly. 

“Have you ever drunk from one who was drunk, Cyprian?”

Cyprian looked at him quizzically. “I have.”

“Then you know that sensation.” He had opened the grappa and let the stinging smell fill up the space around them. “In my life before,” Adrastos said, “I was at times fond of the spirit of the poppy. As content as I am now--” Cyprian interrupted with a scoff, but Adrastos went on “--I do miss those dreams sometimes. And knowing what we know about drinking from a drunk…” he trailed off.

Cyprian’s eyes narrowed. “It seems dirty, somehow.”

Adrastos held up the syringe and fitted the needle to it and began to clean it, gently, with the grappa. “Perhaps it does.” He drew up a full syringe of the grappa then shot it into the fire where it flared blue for a moment, then died. “But you must try it.”

Cyprian was quiet, but he looked from Nikolai to Adrastos and back again. 

With everything laid out to his liking, Adrastos slipped Nikolai’s jacket from his shoulders and helped him up onto the couch. Nikolai pulled off his leather slippers and set them neatly beside the clawed foot of the couch. Adrastos surrendered his place to Nikolai and Nikolai lay back, looking up into the ceiling, chewing at his lips in anticipation? Frustration? 

Adrastos crouched on the floor beside him, and smoothed Nikolai’s hair back from his forehead.

“I’ve been increasing his doses for several days now,” Adrastos said, not looking away from Nikolai’s face, “in anticipation of your visit.”

“Whatever for?”

“So he can endure the dose I will give him tonight, which he will share with us.” He began rolling up Nikolai’s sleeve. 

Nikolai breathed deeply once, and closed his eyes. The tightness had gone from his forehead and around his eyes. Already he seemed close to sleep.

Adrastos took up the cord and wrapped it around Nikolai’s bare arm. That blessed numbness and thickness spreading down his arm from the pinch of the cord--Nikolai licked his lips. 

With the needle in hand, Adrastos drew up the dose of morphine from the bottle, pressed a few drops back into the bottle and let a few more drops slip down the needle as he held it upright, examining it. He turned back to Nikolai and smiled.

“I could hold a drop of laudanum on the tip of a pin and I think he’d crawl across stones and glass to lick it off.” He smiled. “Or let me prick him with it.”

Now Adrastos had Nikolai’s hand in his. Now the chill of glass and metal against Nikolai’s skin. Now the pinch and sting of the needle. And now the hot rush of blood back into his fingertips as Adrastos untied the cord around his arm. 

“Come,” Adrastos said, “Sit here beside him.”

Soft shuffling in the dim firelight and Cyprian came to sit at Nikolai’s feet. 

“Just a moment more,” Adrastos said and, as he did, Nikolai’s eyes drifted open, rolled back to show the whites, and fell closed again. And in that moment he fell limp, boneless as a ragdoll, or as the old adage went, like a puppet with its string cut. His breathing was slow and deep and, to Cyprian, it seemed that he was almost smiling, as one would smile in a sweet dream.

Adrastos was leaning over him, smoothing his hair and his forehead. “You’ll be a wretch after our guest leaves, won’t you?” he whispered into Nikolai’s ear. “No, you can’t stay so blissful forever.” He kissed off the bead of blood from the needlemark and then he reached for the silver knife.

Adrastos took up Nikolai’s hand. “I won’t sully him with scars,” he said to Cyprian as he unfolded Nikolai’s fingers, a white flower blooming in the dark. “You needn’t worry: he’ll feel nothing.” Drawn so close as they were now, Adrastos whispered velvet in the dark to Cyprian.

With the silver knife, he cut small nicks and cuts into Nikolai’s fingers; the blood trickled down to pool in his palm. Adrastos cut him again low on the palm (the Mount of Venus and the Mount of the Moon, that was what a fortune-teller had said once when there was a traveling carnival passing through the town out beyond his house and Jonathan’s house and the forest and the fields and they had bears and wolves but maybe those were only dogs and a girl who would balance on the hand of the strongman and…) 

Adrastos held Nikolai’s hand like a cup, letting the trickles of blood gather there, then offered Nikolai’s cupped hand to Cyprian. “Try him,” he said.

Cyprian paused a moment, holding Nikolai’s hand, then sipped at the collected blood once, twice, enough to finish it. Salt, sweetness and copper. And heat. And something bitter, but that was his own mind: there seemed to be nothing he could do that was not a sin in someone’s eyes. He sat back again, leaning against the couch, licking the last tastes of sharp metal from his mouth.

Adrastos looked at him and smiled, then set to freshening the cuts on Nikolai’s hand, to start the flow of blood again. He waited, letting the blood collect in the cup of Nikolai’s hand, and watched Cyprian.

Cyprian had been sitting, waiting, with one arm on his crooked knee and his back straight against the seat of the couch when, suddenly, his posture slackened. His mouth dropped open. He leaned forward at first, then laid his head against the seat of the couch. His leg slid out before him, another puppet with cut strings. He raised his eyebrows in surprise and blinked slowly.

“How quickly the thirst can be slaked,” Adrastos said, watching him. 

He brought Nikolai’s hand up to his mouth but stopped short and, instead, toasted to Nikolai with Nikolai’s own hand and own blood, then drank up the collected blood.

He laid back against the couch as well, but with his shoulder pressed against it so he could go on stroking Nikolai’s hair a while, so he could go on lapping up the last droplets from Nikolai’s fingers. But he succumbed as well, and nearly as fast, with his head leaning on the couch.

Perhaps this oblivion was the nearest to death he would come until some madness took him and he killed himself out of boredom or frustration or because he had become some gaunt monster cursed with a nigh-endless life and buried in darkness as if buried alive--for so he was buried alive in a sense. Any number had taken their own lives, if the consciousness he endured could be called life, ending some of the great lineages, destroying their masters in the course of it, causing some great cascade of despair among some houses. 

But he had this sweet bliss now, for now, like wandering through an endless house of dark rooms, unhurried, unafraid, only passing from room to room, unaware that they were rooms, only moving without knowing he moved, gliding, existing without existing, persisting…

---

Some time later, Nikolai awoke, vaguely sick, his body still like wet sand and wet velvet. The two vampires were still unconscious, one at his head and one at his feet. And, yes, he did consider that he might kill them both in that moment. Or, if not kill them, make clear his rage, perhaps, though he felt only cold inside, with no heated rage. How long had it been since he had felt it? But still he could take the knife they had used on him and he could use it on them, make them bleed as they had made him bleed.

He was reaching out for the knife where it lay near Adrastos’ hand when he saw the dried tracks of blood in his fingerprints and in the lines of his palm. He held his hand in front of his face, considering it: he had not been bandaged. 

He looked to Adrastos, who had always been so careful to bandage the tiny cuts he made when he was finished, even when he took from Nikolai after a large dose like tonight. But the bandages were still in the box and the box was on the table and the table was perhaps a mile, perhaps two miles (or so it felt) from where he lay. He did reach out for it, but fell far short. 

He sighed and then wrapped his hand in the hem of his shirt in case any of the wounds opened again, and turned to lie with his face towards the back of the couch. Soon enough he would feel the fever of wanting again, his head would ache, he would shake, he would sweat and feel sick to his stomach. And whether that was better or worse than the leaden feeling now--he looked over his shoulder at the two vampires, still asleep if they did sleep, and envied them. He was past that bliss now, left in a useless stupor, and with only the fever to come.

He pinched his eyes shut to stop from crying and willed himself to sleep just a bit more, just a bit more.

#whump #vampires #Nikolai #adrastos #cyprian #Drugging #caution: drug use #Blood #captivity #dehumanization

[kiki-wiccan]

Kasumi, trying not to be overwhelmed  with the mountain of questions coming at him, sat up straight in his seat and cleared his throat.  “Firstly... Yes, I can fly. I can take you flying sometime,” he said, glancing in Stan’s direction, “with Mr. Stanislav’s permission.”  He smiled at his new friend’s excitement.        “I did get to observe the human world a little bit over the years, but I never spent time here, so I didn’t exactly get to watch the changes happen. It’s kinda like I just disappeared for 150 years, and came back to find everything different.”   Kasumi looked slightly downcast at the fact; he hadn’t exactly wanted to be away for so long, but the events of his past made it too difficult for him to return sooner.     “Oh, and about God... He’s actually just the head angel. Humans seem to have based their religions around us eons ago, but we’re really not all that special. Yes, we help out humans and we have a lot of cool powers, but... we’re just normal beings, like humans are humans and vampires are vampires. Well.. except humans can’t get turned into angels. That’s a myth. I don’t really like telling that one... some humans get upset.” The angel scratched his head, trying to remember the rest of the questions.  “Heaven is nice. No, it’s not made of clouds... humans I met a long time ago asked my that. Seriously, where does such an idea come from? Clouds are made of water, you fall right through...” he gave out an exasperated sigh.  “It’s more like... a .... floating city? In another dimension that only angels can get to? all the connecting portals are within the clouds--” Kasumi stopped to gasp. “So that’s where the idea must come from!”     “It’s a really pretty place though. No light pollution, the sky is right there, I think it’s amazing.”  Kasumi smile at the memory of his homeland.  “I have wings. I have a halo too, but the halo is kinda.. embarrassing.  The wings I hide away because they get in the way a lot. Like, sitting like this would be suuuper uncomfortable if I had my wings out.  But it also kinda feels weird when people touch my back where my wings normally are. I don’t like it. And then there’s that problem of finding human clothing... it’s a whole mess. So I keep them hidden.” Kasumi shrugged. The last question made Kasumi a little sad. “Demons exist, yes. Some are born, but some are... created.”  The creation of demons-- fallen angels, so they are also called-- made him upset.  “My brother... ah, I’d rather not talk about it actually.” Kasumi sighed and forced a smile, looking up at Kiki again.  “Any other questions?”

Feeling Kiki squeeze his hand even more, Stanislav focused on driving; though that wasn’t to say he didn’t listen to the current discussion. He attuned to both Kiki’s excitement and barrage of questions; finding her natural curiosity appealing to him as well.

            I know how hard it must have been to be a supernatural back when they were hated and hunted.

     Those words stuck out like a sore thumb to Stanislav, though he wasn’t in the mood to reflect on the centuries of persecution faced by not only vampires like himself, but other supernaturals as well. It reminded him of his less-than favourable period of life, and he knew that even though he cherished the wiccan at his side, she would never truly understand the threat of Hunters like the vampire king did--that wasn’t to say she didn’t have her fair share of problems, however.

           Nonetheless, he appreciated the two passengers for filling the silence of the car. He found Kiki’s questioning to be helpful, in that he absorbed every ounce of information that left Kasumi’s mouth. Of heaven, of demons, of angel-kind, beginning to understand the angel’s mannerisms and backstory. It helped the vampire ease his suspicions, though he couldn’t fully bring himself to trust Kasumi just yet. However, their interactions alone cleared up of any reason to feel threatened--for now. Who’s to say that Kasumi would forever remain naive to the ways of the world? What would become of him if he were to delve into the politics of Tabula Rasa?

 

           As they continued to drive, occasionally Stanislav would exchange momentary glances in the rear-view mirror, as if taking the time to analyze Kasumi’s movements.

           Once they’d reached a local Domino’s, per Kiki’s request, Stanislav saw to it that they parked. Perhaps they could dine in, it would get both Kiki and Kasumi out of the apartment and provide a means for the angel to become accustomed to the world as it was.

            He looked to the angel and wiccan respectively, raising a brow. “Apologies for interrupting, but we’ve arrived.”

“Permission from Stan?” She raised a brow looking amused as she glanced at her vampire, why would she need his permission to fly? “As lovely as Mr Stanislav is, I make my own decisions...unless I’m too drunk to think....then I let him make the decisions” she listened intently as her questions were answered one by one. “Oh wow okay...so god is an angel well humans definitely got that wrong....and a city in the sky sounds beautiful! Oh I’d love to draw what I think it would look like. So if only angels are allowed in heaven then what happens to the humans who die?” She had always been curious if souls stay in earth or go to a heaven, hell, or spirit dimension. She also knew Garridan would likely like knowing the answer as well, seeing how both of them took interest in the deceased. “I’m sure your wings look and feel amazing! I wish I had wings I’d want black or purple wings....maybe white” oh if only humans were able to grow wings. “I really hope I also get to meet a demon someday! They say you can use summoning spells and all that junk to see them but, I’d rather meet one by coincidence kinda like how I met you.” She perks up as she hears they have arrived. “Oh yay! It’s been forever since I went to dominos! I used to go all the time with my friends back in highschool. Pizza is a very popular human food.” She got out of the car and stretched before walking with the two boys inside. “I think we should get a cheese pizza since it’s your first time trying it!”

#kikiwiccan #trc:kiki #trch:stan #trch:kasumi #pizzatime

[littlemisssquiggles]

Oscar loses control of his hidden powers because of Ironwood testing on him or something. Oscar ends up just like Agatha from Paranorman? Agatha was mistreated because of her powers and ended up being very vengeful , so imagine Oscar being pushed to the edge and just,, snapping. Ruby has to talk Oscar down from this state. idk im not good at writing but i do think it would be an interesting idea

Ironically enough anon-chan,I’ve pondered a similar concept once upon a time. Considering that Oscar’svoice actor: Aaron Dismuke was formerly the voice of Alphonse Elric from theoriginal Fullmetal Alchemist (before Brotherhood) one thing I’ve been curiousabout is whether or not the CRWBYWriters might introduce elements of Oscar’s story inspired by FullmetalAlchemist.

One idea I’ve talked aboutbefore is one where Oscargoes on a journey inside of his mind in an effort to find Ozpin and bring himback. However upon discovering Oz, Oscar is saddenedto see that the old soul has no desire to leave his isolation from the team. InsteadOz forces Oscar out of his own mind. My rationale for the possibility of amoment like this is for the obvious homage to the moment in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood where Ed finds Alphonse’s human body--- hair long fromyears without grooming and skeletally thin from lack of nutrients - sittingalive before the second Gate.

However before Ed couldmove further and make a run for his brother, he is restrained and dragged backto his own gate by shadowy black hands. In that moment, Ed begs Al to returnwith him, however the soulless body only responds that he cannot leave withanyone who isn’t his own soul. This later prompts Ed to make a firm vow that hewill return someday to retrieve Al.

This was a moment I was hoping to seemimicked in RWBY for Oscar and Ozpin’s relationship, especially now that Oz haslocked himself deep within Oscar’s mind. I was hoping for a Journey to Oz subplot for Oscar’s story where he enters a deep sleep, divinginto his own mind on a quest to find the reluctant Oz.

It is on this journey where the audiencegets a visual insight into Oscar’s mind; accompanying the young farm boy as herelives not just the memories of the remaining Wizard’s lifetimes who weren’tpresent in Jinn’s recollection of Ozma’s story (such as the Hermit, the King ofVale and Professor Ozpin) but also Oscar’s memories too.

If not the other Wizards then I would at least likefor a Journey of Oz subplot to reveal more about Oscar---such as his past with hisunknown family (like his aunt from V4). My concept for this Pinehead headcanon of mine was that Oscar is forced to relive his pastthrough his own repressed memories in order to reunite with Ozpin again. Sofans get to learn more about who Oscar was growing up through the cherished memoirsdocumented in his mind.

I like the idea of Oscar actually attempting twice to get Ozpinto return. The first time he relives most of hismemories from birth to present day, inclusive of two memoriy that reveals twoevents unseen from the audience--- the moment that finally convinced Oscar toleave home back in V4 and happened to him after he suddenly went missing in V6.

Back during V6, there was theorycirculating around the Pinehead community that premised Oscar making a desperate attempt to reconnectwith Ozpin after running away from the Cotta-Arc residence. I actually think this is a pretty neat idea. It would be cool ifOscar tried to get in touch with Oz for some kind of consolation and guidancefollowing his fallout with Jaune.

Of course he’s met with silence; to which Oscareventually gives up and decides to find his own way of dealing with the issueon his own. I like the idea of Oscar trying to reconnect with Oz during hismissing development back in V6 and this actually being what prompted Oz to comeback in a way.

Like perhaps Oz had locked himself pretty far inside Oscar’s mindat first. But upon realizing that Oscar was trying to reach him after goingthrough his own heartache with the team, this is what kind of makes him stepoutside. He of course doesn’t communicate with Oscar or make his presence knownto him. But it’s enough to make Oz concerned for Oscar. 

So he basically comesslightly out of isolation but stays close enough so that he ensure that Oscaris okay, in a way. I’d like to think that even in wallowing in his own anguishand self-resentment, Oz still can’t shake that side of him that’s paternal and nurturing in nature---having lived lives as both a parent andmentor---both caretakers of young minds.

I’d like to think that Oscar’s missingdevelopment from V6 sparked Oz to step outside of his solitude for the firsttime since he locked himself away. Again, he remains isolated enough that Oscarcan’t detect that he’s there but still close enough that he can keep a watchfuleye on Oscar. Y’know just in case the boy might need him while simultaneouslythinking he might be better off without him. Like it’s almost like a reflex ina way with Oz behaving like an emotionally exhausted parent who wants nothingmore than to be alone yet they still can’t help but instinctively stay closeenough to protect their kin if needed; if that makes sense.

Anyways, returning to my headcanon,Oscar finds Ozpin in this memory however when Oscar pleads for Oz to come backwith him, Oz refuses. He even forces Oscar out of his own mind, but not beforeOscar makes a solemn promise to bring Oz back.

Despite a saddened Oz stubbornly tellingOscar that he won’t return and there’s nothing he could do or say to change theold soul’s mind, Oscar, determinedly tells him that he will bring him back nomatter what it takes. This is the kind of moment I wanted to see done for theBoy with Two Souls as a nice call back to Fullmetal Alchemist.

The second time Oscar goes in search ofOzpin, he is surprise to uncover that Oz had returned to his tower ofisolation---making things more difficult for Oscar by hiding himself deeperinside Oscar’s mind in a place where Oz believed Oscar would never dare comelook for him.

Not because the journey would be toughbut because it would be too painful for the young boy. One of my long-standingtheories for Oscar’s backstory is thathe suffered a very traumatic event which resulted in the loss of a close familymember who Oscar loved dearly---possiblyhis mother or father or perhaps both parents. I’m still clinging to the idea that Oscarwas originally raised by a single parent prior to living with his aunt with hisdear ole dad now being my number one choice.

Rather than dealing with the heartache and grief thatcame with losing a close loved one and the life he had previously, Oscar suppressed both the memory and his true feelingsdeep inside his mind

, refusing to face it. In asimilar fashion to Ozpin, Oscar supressed the truth and pain that came with hisown past. I like the idea of the two sharing in the loss of loved ones; blamingthemselves for their untimely deaths and feeling as if they had both failed anddisappointed them in some way. 

I like this idea just as much as I like the ideaof Oz making himself at home behind this particular memory of Oscar’s. It’s theone he related to the most with him. Not to mention that it’s the one he knewOscar wouldn’t dare enter past cause he knew, ever since the two first bonded,just how much the young boy did not wish to face this pain.

But unfortunately forOscar, this was where he needed to go to find Oz and unbeknownst to Ozpin, hehad completely underestimated Oscar’s resolve to bring him home.

So pretty much the thought is that Oscar must face his most painful repressed memoryin order to find Oz. Just as how our heroes forced Oz toface the truth of his past---in a way, Oscar has to do the same. Face a memoryand truth to his past that he forced himself to lock away since he didn’t wantto face it.

But Oscar goes through with it anyways for Oz. Andfrom going through this ordeal, not only is Oscar able to finally find closurewith the forgotten misgivings and feeling of anguish, grief and guilt from hispast mistake, but it also helps him to better understand Oz leading to the twosouls finds acceptance with one another for the first time since they werepaired. That was my idea for Oscar and Ozpin subplot. Will we actually get thatfor V7? Probably not.

But regardless, I am curious to see howthe Writers resolve the tension between Oscar and Ozpin. I’m not sure if theCRWBY Writers plan on having Oscar andOz merge for V7 or if their intent is to drag this outfor several more seasons.

I mean, I actually believe narratively that V7 would be the perfect chance to have the two souls mergewith Oscar accepting Ozpin as a part of him.

Since V5, it has been foreshadowed that Oscar isn’tthe one to change with the Merge. It’s Ozpin. Ozpin is destined to become a part ofOscar. As a matter of fact, my belief is what will visually happen during theMerge is that Ozpin---the current version of Ozma’s soul---will ultimatelycease to look like his former self and instead, Ozpinwill change to look like Oscar.

After that, he will become a part of Oscar with him inheriting all of hismemories and at long last, Oscar will be whole. The two souls will become onemind. And that one mind will be oneperson and his name will be OscarPine.

That’s pretty much my idea with that.I’m starting to wonder if Oscar’s story for V7 would involve him and Oz withthe Merge at all. I mean, I’d like for Oz to still be around in the story longenough for him to reconcile things with everyone else. 

However at the same timeI don’t want things to return to what it was like before with Ozpin constantlyeclipsing Oscar’s screen time and development. If these two are meant to mergeand be one person, do it already so Oscar can be one complete character who canthen begin the next chapter of his character development as Ozpin’s successorin Ozma’s Cycle.

Because as much as I like Ozpin as a character, Ihonestly feel like his presence has been a hindrance to Oscar’s progress than acomplement and that’s mostly due in part to how poorly the CRWBY Writers havehandled these two together. 

Rather than striking a perfectbalance between both souls, their individual stories and theirshared storyline together, it feels as if Oz had been riding coattail with theWriters often using Oscar’s face to push his development while Oscar’s owngrowth gets subdued and ignored most of the time. 

It’s part of the reason whyI’m in denial of the Writers’ promise for Oscar development for V7 given histreatment in V5 and V6, especially after Oz was taken out of the story.

But anyways, enough about that. That’snot really what I’m supposed to be answering anyway. Going back to what I wassaying before about the CRWBY drawing inspiration from Fullmetal Alchemist, Ihave another idea Pineheadheadcanon I pondered about before which sort ofties into your idea about Oscarsnapping from his mistreatment by Ironwood.

Here me out with this one. For the Fullmetal Alchemist fans in the FNDM, do you rememberthe Mannequin Soldiers or the ‘ImmortalLegion’ from Brotherhood?

The ImmortalLegion were an army of mannequins that onceinjected with liquid Philosopher’s Stone, will attack without fear of death orharm. And to add another layer of tragedy to these beasts, they wereadditionally fuelled by victimizedsouls.

You can kind of guess where I’m goingwith this, right? We know the series had mentioned that Atlas has been conductingexperiments in order to learn about aura scientifically. If this is somethingthat Atlas does then what’s stopping someone from abusing this type oftechnology and research?

As far as we know, Penny Polendina was the first artificial lifeformto produce an aura so one can easily deduce that Pennywas a by-product of those same aura experiments. The only successful one, that is. So, that being said, I repeat the question again. What’sstopping someone corrupted from using this same research to build themselves anarmy of artificial beings powered by aura?

Why am Ibringing this up, you might ask? Wellin the V7 trailer, Ironwood mentioned something about ‘needinga new approach to stopping Salem’. We alsoknow that Penny was originally the first of her kind created to protecthumanity as she told Ruby back during the events of V2 if I’m rememberingcorrectly.

I’d also like to believe that followingwhat occurred during the Vytal Festival, Ironwood probably discontinued hisresearch on aura after what happened to Penny, his first and only successfultest subject from the experiment. 

My hunch is that Penny was a robotic replicacreated from one soul---the harnessed soul of Professor Polendina’s deceaseddaughter. I’d like to think that Dr. Polendina once had a young daughter whowas terminally ill and one her death bed as a result of incurable disease.

My theory is that Penny was born as ameans for Dr. Polendina trying to salvage and preserve what was left of hislittle girl. Penny, by my theories, was possibly Dr. P’s daughter’s secondchance at life for it was her aura that brought this lifeless robotic puppet tolife (I’d also like to think that the Relic of Creation also had a hand in thisas well).  

My hunch is that after successfullyreviving Dr. P’s daughter in the form of Penny, the doctor probably wished todiscontinue his research on aura but it was actually Ironwood who insisted onhaving Penny train to become a huntress for the military. Given how protectivePenny described her father to be, it wouldn’t surprise me if that was the case.

While Ironwood probably wished to expand theexperiment, Dr. P simply wanted his daughter back. A daughter he was forced tosee die twice.

I’d like to think that after whathappened to Penny, out of respect for Dr. P and his loss, the scientist madeIronwood promise that he would never resume his experiments. At least, not withPenelope’s soul. My theory is that, although Penny’s robotic body gotdestroyed, her aura---her soul was still salvaged.

It makes me curious if for V7 we’ll be seeing what anaura looks like when harnessed. Like picture Penny’s soul being kept in somekind of containment jar. Like Dr. P holds Penny’s soul in some kind of jar ashis way of still holding onto his daughter’s life. He doesn’t want or trust Ironwood and his military to use Penny like they did ever again, but at the same time he’snot quite ready to let her go yet. As a grieving father, Dr. P is still dealingwith accepting that Penny is gone and may never come back. And I’d like tothink that this can tie into Ruby’s reservations over Penny’s death andPyrhha’s.

Not sure if the CRWBY Writers are going to have Penny rebuilt and return for V7and the Atlas Arc. But regardless, I think it would be interesting to see Ruby,as the closest thing to Penny’s best friend in the series, deal with her ownmisgivings over losing Penny by bonding with her father. It may even lend to her further development as a Silver Eyed Warrior. But who knows, y’know?

Keeping all that in mind here, what if…Ironwood,in his desperation and paranoia, gets the brilliant idea to use the researchgathered from the creation of Penny to create a full-fledge army of advancedrobotic soldiers who, similar to Penny, possess the abilityto produce an aura.

Since Salem is an immortal, the notionwould be to create an army that matches her invulnerability. By creating anarmy powered by aura, Ironwood would be able to command his own army ofsoldiers who can’t die in combat. Because they are machines, they can easily berepaired in the face of damage and since these soldiers will be powered byaura, even if the soldier’s mechanical body is destroyed, the aura used to fuelit will remain in tact and could potentially be salvaged and implanted intoanother body for reuse. That’s the idea. Ironwood even goes as part as to this hypotheticalarm of his as the, quote unquote, ‘ImmortalLegion’.

Again, see where I’m going with this,folks? I like the idea of Ironwood making the decision to resume development onAtlas Aura Experimentation as his solution to ultimately figuring out a way tostop Salem. In another version of this headcanon, I painted the impression ofIronwood believing Oscar’s soul to holding the key to stopping Salem once andfor all and was willing to subject the young boy to painful experiments inorder to prove it, even if said experiments could potentially kill Oscar.

In this alternative to that sametheory, I’m going to paint another picture. Imagineif…Oscar is Ironwood’s golden ticket toachieving his Immortal Legion. While Penny provided James with the buildingblocks to construct his army from, at the end of day Penny was only one soulcapable of powering only one robotic body.

I’d like to believe that one limit to auraexperimentation is that while the soul can be harnessed and placed into anotherbody, replicating it is impossible even by scientific means. Even if Ironwooddesired to forge an entire army from Penny Polendina’s single soul, he wouldn’thave been able to achieve this goal for two reasons. One because Dr. P wouldn’thave consented to him using his daughter’s soul in such a manner and secondly,it’s impossible for one’s aura to be surplused as a power supply since auracan’t be copied and no single soul is powerful enough to achieve such a feat. …Orso…Ironwood believed.

My theory is that in the event of Ironwooddesiring to manufacture an army of immortal robotic soldiers powered by aura,it would be Oscar’s soul he uses to fuel his Immortal Legion. Let’s not forgetthat Oscar may be his own person but he isn’t just one soul either. He is aculmination of his own soul and the souls of all the past Wizards that camebefore him in Ozma’s cycle. Technically by my understanding, Oscar is aura gold mine---the perfect source to fuel Ironwood’s Immortal Legion as hewill come to soon see.

So by my headcanons, Ironwood basically tricks Oscar into becomingsome kind of battery for his army designed to combat Salem. Oscar is kidnapped and forced into undergoing a painfulexperiment that practically rips his soul apart and used it to power awaken anarmy of robotic soldiers powered by Oscar’s soul but all programmed to obeyIronwood.And one of Ironwood’s first orders of business is to use his Legion toattack the JNR_QRWMBY when they become a threat to his schemes. Our heroesstage a full on assault against Ironwood and his military in the hopes rescuingthe captured Oscar. However what the huntsmen discover waiting for them is fardeadly than what they imagined.

The Legion prove themselves to be anexceptionally resilient and formidable foe. Since Atlas is known for its mightand technological advancement, I like the idea of Ironwood creating his Legionto be self-repairing. Like imagine something along the lines of the Legionbeing made from nearly indestructible metal combined with some form ofnanotechnology that results in the machine being able to instantly repair anydamage to its body on the spot in real time as its taking damage.

So even if an opponent aims for the machine’s limbs,the technology infused in its body enables it to easily regenerate and repairparts on the fly as quick as it takes damage. Like something straight out ofclassic Terminator.

Another justification as to why theLegion prove difficult for our heroes to fight is the idea of RWBY and JNRbeing very reluctant to attack the army since, at the core, the Legion is Oscar.

Since the Legion are powered by Oscar’saura, this makes them connected to him in some shape or form so essentially anymajor harm dealt to the robotic army could potentially cause a chain reactionthat can mortally harm Oscar and none of the heroes were willing to take thatrisk.

So our heroes have no choice but todisarm the machines without destroying them. Fighting their way as a means ofsurviving long enough for, let’s say someone smart like Dr. P to figure out away to dispel the entire army and free Oscar.

At some point during the rescue mission, everyone getssplit up somehow. Let’ssay Ruby, by some means, winds up on her own separated fromthe others while huffing it, trying to outrun a pack of Legion hot on her tail.To add another coat of inspiration from Fullmetal Alchemist, y’know the part ofthe story with Nina, that’s pretty much a meme right now? Y’know how Nina wasturned into a talking chimera by her father and the way in which Ed and Alfigured this out was when the Chimera Nina spoke to Ed and called him ‘Big Brother Edward’.

Well…picturethis. Ironwood manages to corner Ruby on abridge suspended over a deep canyon. On one side stood Ironwood leading a packof Legion and on the other side a dead end. Not even Ruby’s semblance would bestrong enough to save her since she was too exhausted from fending off theother Legion in her wake.

Ironwood then orders the Legionaccompanying him to kill Ruby. At first Ruby does well enough against theoncoming Legion by managing to dodge their attacks by knocking them off thebridge. However Ruby on her own is no match for both the Legion and Ironwoodwho immediately blindsides her.

With only one Legion remaining, let’s say…Ironwood orders it to killRuby for her insubordination (because atthis point he’s gone off the deep end). However instead of obeying his commandlike before, the lone Legion prepares its weapon to fire at Ruby only tosuddenly freeze.

It’s mechanical red eye starts to shifterratically; flashing between red and a familiar shade of green; as if therobotic beast was warring with itself.

Ironwood screams his orders to killRuby again at the machine and for a second time, his demands are ignored. 

Then ina static robotic voice, the Legion speaks. It says “…Ru…Ru…by…”

Even though it’s clearly a machine imitating a humanvoice, the manner in which it says it immediately lets Ruby know that it’sOscar in there---Oscar’s soul speaking to her through the machine. I mean itwouldn’t be the first time we’ve heard Aaron Dismuke voice a human voice comingfrom an artificial body, now would it?

Anyways the deviant Legion---that Ishall hereby dub Oscar-Bot---speaks again. 

He says “…Ru…by.Must…not…hurt…Ru…by…” Oscar-bot then looks directly at Ironwood and says “…You…will…NOT…useme…for THIS!”

So basically, Oscar-bot ends upprotecting Ruby from Ironwood. Like after it hesitates to kill her, an infuriatedIronwood forces Oscar-bot out of the way by putting a bullet in the machine’shead. Ruby screams Oscar’s name as the lifeless machine falls to the floor.Ruby cries over this while Ironwood sort of mocks her for it. As Ironwoodprepares to give Ruby her own shot of death, something incredibly unexpectedhappens.

Despite being shot, the Oscar Bot comesback online. The Oscar Bot then tries to stop Ironwood from harming Ruby.Y’know how in Terminator, we have that badass moment where Sarah Conner puts severalshots in the evil Terminator. Well picture something like that where Ironwooddares to harm Ruby but Oscar Bot is determined to protect her.

Ironwood naturally busts a couple ofcaps in Oscar-bot but no matter how many times he shoots at the robot, it justkeeps coming. I like the satire in a moment like this since Ironwood equippedhis Immortal Legion with all the tools to combat Salem and keep coming back asmuch as she could. And now his own creation turns on him and it’s theenhancement that he built into them that’s keeping him from destroying it,basically.

Ironwood eventually shoots at Oscar-bot until he runsout of bullets. By this time, Oscar-bot is already in front of him, toweringover the General. Ruby watches on in amazement as Ironwood tries to fight therelentless Oscar-bot, throwing punches and kicks at him. But the machinedoesn’t go down. The stubbornsoul fuelling its body wouldn’t let up as he was determinedto prevent Ironwood from harming his beloved red rose.

Eventually Ruby uses the distractionprovided by Oscar-bot to assist him. Let’s say, while Ironwood is about to pummel Oscar-bot when Ruby grabs herweapon and fires a shot that…I dunno…blasts Ironwood’s robot hand clean off itshinge. As Ironwood turns to glare at a cheeky Ruby, smirking as she lowersCrescent Rose, Oscar-bot suddenly strong arms Ironwood, suspending him off theground.

Now picture an unintentionally comical moment where Oscar-bot takes Ironwoodand literally tosses him off the bridge. Ironwood survives, of course, masterfullygrabbing onto a ledge with his human arm. However up on the bridge, this providesa chance for Ruby and Oscar-bot to have a small bonding moment. Oscar-botkneels before Ruby while she in turn slowly touches its face, sort of caressingits metallic cheek.

You know how in the Lost Fable,Jinn described Salem as being able to immediately recognize Ozma’s soul, even when in the body of another, based on their unbridledlove and devotion to one another? 

 “…Call itmagic or call it something stronger, but in that moment, the two knew exactlywho it was that stood before them…”

I think it would be touchinglysweet for the RosegardeningRosebuds to have this similar parallel to Fairytale in which Rubyis able to automatically recognize Oscar’s soul even when inside another body that isn’t his own. Not even science can mask the true strength of an unbreakable bond,especially when the love shared between is powerful enough to transcend it.

So in the event that Ironwood does infact use Oscar’s soul to power an army of aura-infused machines, I’d like tobelieve that regardless, the growing connection Oscar shares with Ruby as partof their close friendship (and potential romance) will be what thwarts thisscheme. Ironwood would underestimate the bond these two smaller, more honestsouls share because when it comes to Ruby Rose, Oscar can’t be tamed. Orsomething like that.

I also really like the idea of Ruby notneeding Oscar-bot to confirm that he is Oscar. She already knew since shealready sensed that it’s him in there powering the machine. As the machinerests its head against her chest, Ruby gently whispers Oscar’s name, promptingit to look up for the two to lock eyes.

And in the same robotic voice frombefore, Oscar-bot replies, “…Ru…by.Ruby. Ru…by…protect Os…car. Oscar protect Ruby. Safe.”

Ruby then smiles through tears ofrelief as she hugs Oscar-bot. 

My RosegardeningPinehead headcanon is that Oscar will admit to Ruby thatpart of the reason he enjoys her company is becauseshe makes him feel safe. I also like the additional detail of Rubyreminding Oscar a lot of the beloved relative he was very close to in his past. Before, this person was the one person in the world capable ofmaking Oscar feel most at ease since he trusted them the most. He also lovedthem more than anything in the world.

Oscar strikes me as the type where love and trust go hand in hand for him. I’d like to think Oscar isn’t the type totrust very easily but when he does, it paves the yellow brick road to straightinto his heart that leads the way to him learning to accept and love youunconditionally.

I also like to believe that Oscar isthe type where if you manage to successfully earn his trust and tame his heart, the adoration and devotion that comes with it is unyielding andeternal. Not to mention surprisingly playful and affectionate cause I’d like tothink Oscar becomes more relaxed, easy-going and open once you’ve fully gainedhis trust. Like this side of him is not for everyone. It’s only reserved forthe people he loves the most since he trusts them the most.  

And this is how I believe Oscar will soon come to seeRuby. She is more than just his friend. She will be his closest confidant. Theone he trusts more than anyone else and the only one able to calm him down.Make him feel secure and at peace. The one he loves. That’s my hunch.

I know you talked about this going badand Oscar snapping anon-chan. Does this headcanon kind of feed into that? I mean it kind ofdoes in a way---yes, no, kind of. At least, it could potentially lead into away where Oscar snaps on everyone through my Ironwood’s Immortal Legionconcept. It can also go a different route where Oscar doesn’t really snap butinside shows more strength and morality as a human being.

I’d love to go more into that further.However…I think I’m going to end things here and reserve that for its ownPinehead headcanon post. This response is already too long so I’ll reserve it’scontinuation for a new theory post since I really like this Oscar-bot and Immortal Legion idea going on here. 

In the meantime, I hope I at leastanswered you as always anon-chan. To you and anyone who read through all of this, please let meknow what you guys think of the ideas I shared here. You folks always pick mybrain for my thoughts so I wouldn’t mind hearing your thoughts on my thoughts.So let me know, cool?

~LittleMissSquiggles(2019)

#squiggles answers: rwby #oscar pine #ruby rose #general ironwood #ruby and oscar #rwby rosegarden #rwby theories #rwby volume 7 theories #rwby volume 7 #pinehead headcanons #squiggles pinehead headcanons #Anon-ninja #squiggles answers

[kyokkou]

𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐧 | part one. late yayoi period [300 BC - 250 AD] to early kofun period [250 - 538]

                    ❝I was treated as a demon child                     I received more punishment                     Than I deserved❞

          PERHAPS HIS NEW FRIEND DID LOOK A BIT STRANGE; red eyes were certainly more than just uncommon, and even more peculiar were the strange streaks of crimson on pale skin. Regardless of the strange appearance of this person, in his heart of hearts, he simply could not mistreat someone who had shown him nothing but kindness from the first encounter. In passing through a remote village so late, it was to be expected that no one would be opening their doors to a strange traveler-- especially not one so small. Next time, he would have to plan a little better. Hikaru didn't really know, at least not so precisely, where he was headed; to the coast, perhaps. This land was his, and he belonged to the land. A nation personification. Somewhat of a supernatural being himself, he wondered if he could find others like him, be they "lesser" provinces or cities, or even neighbors. That was why he embarked on this trip in the first place, deciding to head north now that the spring was setting in and the humidity of summer was not far behind.           HOWEVER, HIS AMBITION TO PRESS ON even as the sun was setting left him without a place to stay, and he found himself in the company of someone who, in spite of looking very much like a simple human being (no different than himself, but older) was claiming to be some sort of cursed being. In the same breath, they also offered him half of their food, and to stay the night in a run-down little hut on the edge of town, just off the path. It wasn't much, but this late? Anything would do better than to sleep under a tree, at the mercy of anyone passing by.

          AS THE TWO OF THEM SPLIT A MEAL of rice and sliced vegetables, there was little conversation. Hikaru thought it might be a bit rude to just ask why in the world someone so generous was shunned from town, forced to live on the outskirts and forage for food. The vegetables they shared were obviously discarded for their appearance; a few looked almost to be rotting, but it was easily solved by slicing off the part that had begun to deteriorate. And yet, in having so little, and without having asked, this stranger immediately offered to share it. Insisted, even; Hikaru felt that "no" was probably not an option, and he wasn't very firm about these sorts of things, anyway.           ❝IT SEEMS TO ME that something is weighing heavily on your mind. Perhaps the food is not to your liking? I must apologize.❞           ❝NOT AT ALL-- it's quite good. What is on my mind is, I think, very personal and even a bit rude to ask...❞ Hikaru trailed off, unsure of how to continue without sounding insensitive. He wouldn't be waiting long for the rest, though it was akin to having the thought simply ripped from his head.           ❝A COMPLETE STRANGER, am I correct? I have had much worse treatment in my time here, nothing you ask me could possibly upset me. There is nothing but good intentions in you, at least for the most part. Whatever is malicious in you is buried so deep that it has little hope of seeing the light of day anytime soon.❞           ❝HOW CAN YOU TELL, if you do not mind my asking?❞ Hikaru inquired in a voice as gentle as the slight upturn of his lips. In all of his life thus far, he had not done a single thing that could be considered malicious; even in hunting and fishing for food as he’d been taught over the time spent wandering, he was merciful before being grateful for the bounty that the creature he killed would provide him.           ❝I AM AFRAID I CANNOT; I can only ask you to trust that I am telling you the truth. As for me, the only thing I have desired in this dreadful existence is to feel the warmth of kindness from another person. You have given me that one wish tonight, and for that, I will be grateful until the day I can ascend from this plane of existence. Someday, I will repay you the favor.❞                                                ✺► PART TWO COMING SOON!

[ This is going to follow the origin of why Hikaru and Kiku ended up physically separated; it draws inspiration from the story in Six Trillion Years and an Overnight Story as well as some Japanese folklore, such as the 鶴の恩返し (Tsuru no Ongaeshi) folktale. I won’t spoil any more about this since I have more parts to write, but I thought it would be important to point out where the ideas come from since you all know my position on giving credit where it is due. If you know how the lyrics to the song go, this has a different ending, and I think it’s a bit different than the way the folktale goes as well. I’ll be at your mercy as to whether that’s true! 笑 I hope anyone reading enjoys this; as nation personifications are already outside of the rules of realism, I wanted to bring in a bit of folklore to their backstory. I haven’t yet seen this done with nation personifications yet, but I doubt I’m the first. ]

#✺ 「僕と僕は共犯者さ 偽物と踊れ踊れ。」 || past memories;

[myxcenterxstage]

Meta: Priscilla's Motivation in Survival Mode ... and a whole lotta analysis

Author’s Note: This meta is primarily focused on v: Sail On, but can also reflect her character motivation in other verses.

TLDR; just jump to part 3 for the survival mode motivation stuff. But parts 1 & 2 help it make more impactful sense.

Part 1: A Character Analysis Pre-Franklin Expedition

So, let’s first take a quick look at Priscilla’s “Prologue” - her life growing up under the guardianship of her Uncle Charles Kimbleton.

Priscilla’s personality is slightly different in her verse v: Sail On. SLIGHTLY. She’s still her kind, buoyant and quirky self, but she’s also a lot more badass. She’s not afraid to get her hands dirty and isn’t interested in her debutante ceremony or who she’s going to marry. Nope. In this verse, Priscilla’s free-spirited “Wild Child” side is more prominent with her insatiable sense of wanderlust, wanting nothing more than to indulge her obsession with exploring the world as her Uncle Charles’ second-in-command and record their discoveries as a Natural Historian.

She imagines herself as the heroine of her own story she’s going to write about someday, or at least tag along for a grand adventure with like-minded people until she can accomplish that.

Besides v: Sail On being a great high seas & survival story, I like to think it has an underlying coming of age aspect where Priscilla comes into her own, because, granted, she’s a mess of contradictions.  

She’s afraid of commitment and marriage… but she’s a hopeless romantic.

She’s a bit of a rebel to Victorian stereotypes… but she’s so self-conscience of what others perceive of her even if she claims she doesn’t care.

She’s independent… but is so vulnerable and impressionable and wants to be rescued by a hero that’ll sweep her off her feet.

She knows who she is and what she wants… but keeps seeking validation from others.

She’s insightful and a delight to be around and sometimes wiser beyond her years… but is emotionally immature and has a track record of recklessly foolish & impulsive decisions.

She has the courage to stand up to always do the right thing… but when she’s faced with a challenge she runs away from it.

Do you see where I’m getting at?

(I guess you could leave it as she’s a complex character… or I’m still trying to fully grasp her personality as an OC. I’d love some feedback on these ‘contradictions’!)

Part 2: The Aftermath of Uncle Charles’ Disappearance

So, Uncle Charles. He doesn’t physically appear in this verse per se, but boy does he remain an indirect main character.

No matter where in the world they were, Uncle Charles was Priscilla’s ‘home’. He was her bodyguard, her mentor, her storyteller, her shoulder to cry on, and most importantly her conscience to curb her foolishness as she was still growing up. The Kimbleton family isn’t exactly small, but Charles was by far the most genuine. Charles wasn’t just an uncle - he loved and cherished Pris as though she was his own daughter. (Since Charles was a widower who never remarried, I think that’s why Priscilla maybe even learned to cope with grief in this verse surprisingly well all thanks to him too.)

Uncle Charles was certainly one of the biggest influences in Priscilla’s life, and who encouraged her curiosity and scientific obsessions contrary to other relatives who wanted to repress it in favor of her becoming the stereotypical Victorian house-wife.

Unfortunately, Charles was also someone she lost at all too dependable a time. And it was probably a bigger catastrophe than whatever happened to her parents that brought her into Charles’ custody to begin with. Everything that represented her sense of security was ripped away from her, and she was left with a void she didn’t know how to fill.

Even at the urging of her other relatives, she refused to host - or attend - the funeral held in honor of Charles years after his disappearance. Maybe, just maybe, he would come back. Maybe, even against all odds.

But she didn’t know. What was closure? A part of her didn’t even want to believe he was gone.

And now without him, she became an open target of vulnerability.

This also begins a new, very prominent flaw in Priscilla’s character: her strong sense of denial and running away from her problems given the quickest opportunity. Left to her own devices Priscilla tries to hold on to every good thing her Uncle raised her with, all while struggling to cope with loss and fend off her inevitable foolishness.

{{ Insert Backstory & Priscilla’s Scandal Here }}

Part 3: Franklin Expedition Disaster & Survival ::  From glory... to desperation… to reality.

Okay NOW. Finally to the part we’ve all been waiting for!! THIS is what I had the Eureka for earlier that started this whole meta to begin with!!

So, fast forward to Priscilla running away from scandal and boarding the HMS Terror. She feels she struck gold by being able to follow her dream and her “running away from home” paid off. Fast forward again from the new friendships Priscilla makes and secret crushes and buds of platonic cuteness and everything happy in Baffin Bay etc.

Fast forward again to Priscilla hearing Sir John’s announcement about them sailing straight into the ice pack since they’re so ‘close’. Fast forward again through Priscilla’s impression of Sir John unraveling once they’re stuck in the ice.

At that moment, nothing was more terrifying than the great unknown to Priscilla. She had no place to run.

Parts of her personality she didn’t know existed came out after the ships were stuck in that ice:

Bitterness. Anxiousness. Volatility. Fragility. Restlessness. Fear.

Beneath her thin veneer of mandatory bravery and blind desire to wish things could turn for the better was a mess of emotions she was so desperately trying to suppress. Almost overnight she picked up random nervous habits. Outbursts of skittish laughter, speaking her mind out of place, trivial chatter, zoning out. Sporadic enough to not be of concern, but noticeable to those who knew her well. And all the while she had this gnawing sense of jitteriness to always do something amidst constantly feeling so helpless.

As the tragedy continues, she grows quieter - her radiance dimmer. Her optimism that was fueled by denial slowly comes crashing down into the reality of the frightening dark caverns of her own mind. Writhing in bitterness over Sir John’s hubris that sentenced them all to death, she had begun to realize that she too perhaps had made an impulsively reckless mistake to volunteer herself to begin with.

And once the Tuunbaq attacks begun, she quickly realized they had no place to hide either.

So there was only one option left: she had to fight to survive.

And this, my friends, is when the lioness was awoken. While her struggle between the solace of denial (which still fueled her optimism outside of a genuinely happy moment) was ever-present, and her blind wishful thinking might have helped her to not cripple under from the stress… when backed against the wall of brutal truth she was beginning to realize she had no choice but to unavoidably reckon with herself, which was long overdue. Admit their predicament for what it was, admit her decisions and behavior as a runaway was foolish, admit her feelings of lostness in a cruel world, and admit even though she was not strong enough to face London’s gossip of her she never should have acted so rashly with herself in retaliation. (Let alone other things she may or may not have done on the voyage... to be determined)

But at least in this dead end, she wasn’t doomed to navigating it alone.

After losing her only family, she had gained a new one on this expedition. 129 new family members to be exact, regardless of how well or little she knew them. No matter how many lives she grieved each passing week, she wouldn’t have wanted to trade anything to not know those she especially held dear. And collectively they all shared one supportive notion in common: They needed to survive.

And then, after a burdensome night when she had hit an emotional breaking point and poor medicinal side effects induced a fevered outbreak where she was delusionally mistaking Captain Crozier for her Uncle Charles… the following sober morning she came to an unexpected realization.

Call it the beginnings of madness from the lead poisoning, or her desperation to hold on to whatever threads of hope she possibly could, but a new question of ‘what if?’ became her new obsession:

What if Uncle Charles was in fact still alive? Just like them?

Somewhere, someplace - it felt almost tangibly real to her. The years of disappearing from the face of the earth and civilization - and yet still not dead.

Thus, her own independent motivation to survive against all odds in these Arctic conditions emerged. It fueled the promise she made to her new friends that they’d press on. Ignited the motivation lent her by others. She found a new purpose: not for only herself in the end, but for those who mattered to her. 

And if Charles had the strength to survive wherever he was all this time - then she would do the same. And maybe, just maybe if in these years her Uncle returned home - just like Priscilla knew they could eventually, someday - she would want nothing more than to live so she could run into his loving arms once again.

Come what may, she would march on. She wanted to live. To survive. To love. And most of all, she wanted to make sure her new family would too.

#meta #v: sail on #HCs #Y E S #F I N A L L Y #the terror au

[moczothe1st]

Let’s Play Fire Emblem IV: Genealogy of the Holy War, Part 11: A Little Pegassistance

Part 10

Welcome back to Fire Emblem IV: Genealogy of the Holy War.  The only game that is also a secret government idiot-detector; unfortunately it can only detect the idiots in its own script.  

When we left our heroes, they had officially been declared murderous traitors by a pair of men who look like, respectively, a blood-crazed Viking and a parody of a Nazi colonel, thus proving that people in Jugdral genetically have no ability to judge character by sight. Fortunately, Lewyn’s mom, the Queen of Silesse, offered us sanctuary in her own country, and we escaped. Let’s see how that goes!

Sigurd is now a traitor in the eyes of his beloved Grannvale. In desperation, his army flees to find refuge in the northern kingdom of Silesse.

Silesse was founded by the Wind Crusader, Ced. It lies under the watchful guard of valiant pegasus knights and wind mages, and for over a century since its foundation has maintained itself as a neutral nation and resisted all invaders. However, since the death of its king several years ago, the royal family has been plagued with strife over its inheritance and shades of war creep over the peaceful land.   

(You may have heard of him.)

and has confined himself to Zaxon Castle in protest.

has set to work raising an army for himself as Thove Castle. Out of disgust at his uncles, Prince Lewyn left Silesse to travel the world years ago.  

(“Rather than killing them both, which he could have done with his eyes closed.”)

Is there no end to the dukes’ avarice? Their lust for power will condemn Silesse, a beautiful and majestic land, to the searing ravages of a brutal war.

(Sigurd! She’s a queen, even if her sprite is just a recolor of that lady who gave Lex his Brave Axe. It’s ‘your majesty’.)

Rahna: I know Sailane is perhaps too small to house all of you adequately, and I’m sorry. But please, bear with me a while longer. I’m doing all I can to hasten your liberty. I’ve sent letter after letter to Belhalla to advocate for your innocence. As of yet, however, I’ve still heard nothing at all from King Azmur.

Sigurd: This… this has to be Reptor’s doing! First he betrays my father, and now he’s stopping your emissaries! He must be!

(Sigurd Logic Moments: 2! He’s growing!)

Rahna: Calm yourself, Lord Sigurd. I know well the pain you’re feeling, but you cannot let your grudges rule you. Your anger will not save your father. Hatred will only destroy you from within. I swear to you, we can and will find a way to set this right, but you must be patient.

Sigurd: You’re right… I’m sorry, your highness. I really appreciate all you’ve done for me.

Rahna: It’s alright, Lord Sigurd. Oh, before I forget… there actually has been some good news from Grannvale of late.

Sigurd: Good news, you say?

Rahna: A previously unknown daughter of Prince Kurth has been discovered. All of Grannvale is rejoicing at the news.

Sigurd: What?! Is that even possible?

(… Well you see, Sigurd, when a prince loves another man’s wife very much, he puts his royal sword into her Loptyrian cloak, and…)

Rahna: It took King Azmur only a glance to recognize her true heritage. She bears the Brand of Naga, the proof of a true heir to House Belhalla. There is no doubt, she is Kurth’s child.

Sigurd: I see… thank goodness. At the very least, this means the royal lineage won’t go extinct.

(“And if I had been paying even the slightest attention to the backstory, I’d know that’s my wife!”)

Rahna: That’s not all. The princess and Duke Arvis are in a relationship. King Azmur has given his blessing, and a magnificent wedding will soon be held.

(EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW-)

Sigurd: Arvis? Really?

Rahna: All who’ve seen the happy couple eagerly attest that this beautiful princess and Duke Arvis are perfectly matched. To say nothing of how happy the couple is said to be! Young love is wonderful, isn’t it?

(EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW-)

Rahna: … Oh, Lord Sigurd, I’m so sorry. I forgot. Your wife is still-

Sigurd: Deirdre… my wife’s still gone, yes… it’s been over a year since she vanished. She’s missed an entire year of watching Seliph grow up.

Rahna: I’m so sorry, Lord Sigurd, but be of good cheer. I know you’ll reunite someday.  

Sigurd: You’re right. I feel it, too. I can’t give in to sorrow yet. I can’t give up on finding her.

Rahna: Ah, of course. I’ll be with you in a moment. Lord Sigurd, one last thing… beware Duke Maios of Thove. I regret to say my brother-in-law has long hungered to claim Sailane for himself. It’s only a matter of time until he goes so far as attacking you. I wish I could provide you with reinforcements, but…

Sigurd: I know. The capital is under the very same threat from Duke Daccar of Zaxon. You cannot afford to weaken your own guard.  Daccar would pounce upon you given even a hint of weakness. Don’t worry, Your Highness. There’s nothing the Thove army can throw at us that we can’t handle.

Rahna: Ah, of course. I should be more confident in such veteran heroes as yourselves. … Oh! I’ve been talking for so long, I lost track of the time. Take care, Lord Sigurd.

Sigurd: You, too, Your Highness. Thank you.

Lewyn: You just chatted for hours and hours with Sigurd, yet you can’t even acknowledge your own son?

Rahna: My son? The one who abandoned me two years ago, going gods know where? How do I talk to someone who’s clearly not here?

Lewyn: Heh… so this is how it’s going to be. You’re still made at me, then?

Rahna: Of course I am!  Do you have any idea how hard it was without you, and how worried I’ve been after you? That my own son could be so cold-hearted… I thought I knew you better than this.

Lewyn: Look, I know you’re upset, but I had my reasons for all this.

(“They were bad, but I had them.”)

Lewyn: But come now, I’m home safely! Surely that counts for something and you can forgive me? I swear I’ll make up for it and be the very picture of a good son. Hew, how about I give you a shoulder massage to start.

Rahna: Oh! What nerve, treating me as if I’m an old crone! Look, Lewyn, there are more pressing matters we need to discuss, and soon. Come to Silesse as soon as possible. Do not forget! Do I make myself clear?

Lewyn: … Sigh. I thought she’d never stop.

Mahnya: Indeed, she hasn’t been anything as lively as this since before you left.

Lewyn: Thanks, Mahnya. Knowing you’re at her side is a big relief. Look after her, okay?

Mahnya: Yes, sir! Rest assured, I will protect the queen with my life, on my honor as the captain of the Silessian Pegasus knights.

Lewyn: Thanks… oh, and one more thing. Are you gonna leave Erin here with Sigurd?

Mahnya: Oh. Eavesdropping, were you Erin?

Erin: You were about to tell him too much, so…

Mahnya: Ah. My apologies, Erin. There are things he shouldn’t know just yet, of course… Erin, I’ll be leaving with Queen Rahna and returning to Silesse Castle shortly.

(JUST SHUT UP AND GO)

Mahnya: You’ll stay here and keep an eye on Prince Lewyn. Best of luck.

Erin: Thank you, Mahnya.  

(… What?!  No! Don’t leave!)

Quan: Rest assured, we’ll be back, leading the full military might of Leonster to your aid. May that day come soon, my friend.

(I don’t need them! Finn is about to promote and you’re a godlike shatterer of men! Forget the army and just stay! AT LEAST LEAVE THE SPEAR!)

Ethlyn: I’m going with Quan, Sigurd. Don’t worry, though. We’ll be back before you know it! Take care of yourself.  

(… eh, don’t feel the need to rush.)

Finn: By your leave, sir, I’ll be departing with my lord. Thank you for all you’ve done for us. Don’t give up, sir. I know the charges against you will be cleared and your good name restored. I know you can do this.

(*sob*)

Sigurd: Thank you. You’ve got quite the journey back to Leonster ahead of you. I wish I could do more to help you on your way. May your journey be a safe one!

And there goes two units I will sorely miss for this map.  Also Ethlyn.

You know, this world would be a lot safer if people stopped decorating their castles in red.

Maios: Very well, relay my orders to Cuvuli: Move in on Sailane! Dithorba, I trust your pegasus corps are already briefed on their mission?

Dithorba: Yes, sir. Our task is clear. My squadron is to raid the enemy from above, disrupting their tactics.

Maois: Good. Now get to work! Grannvale will owe us a handsome reward for bringing them the heads of their infamous traitors!

And here we go.  First and foremost, of course:

Mmmmmmm. Normally I would say Aideen is not  combat unit material regardless of promotion, but her levels this run have been so great she actually is. Her magic in particular is so bonkers she’ll be nuking fools with the most basic of tomes now that she can fight; I have her buy a thunder tome from the armory and prep her for the arena. (Oh, and Alec is joining Noish on the sidelines. He’s not very good, and experience is best shared among the increasingly awesome super killers I’ve assembled.)

Sigurd: 7 wins, gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +2 Speed

Arden: 4 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +1 Defense

Lex: 6 wins, Gained three levels: +2HP, +1 Skill, +3 Strength

Azel: 7 wins, gained three levels: +3 HP, +3 Magic,

Aideen: 5 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Skill, +1 Speed, +1 Magic, +2 Luck, +1 Defense

Midir: 2 wins, a new low. No levels.

Holyn: 7 wins, Gained two levels, +2HP, +2 Skill, +2 Strength, +1 Magic

Ayra: 7 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +1 Luck, +2 Defense

Jamke: 7 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +2 Defense

Dew: 7 wins, Gained five levels, +3 HP, +3 Skill, +1 Strength, +1 Magic, +3 Luck, +2 Defense

Lewyn: 7 wins, gained three levels: +3 HP, +3 Skill, +2 Magic, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Lachesis: 7 wins, Gained six levels: +3  HP, +3  Skill, +4 Strength, +2 Speed, +4 Luck, +1 Defense

Beowulf: 2 wins, what did you do, eat some of Midir’s loser pills? Gained no levels.

Erin: 7 wins, gained five levels: +4 HP, + 1 Skill, +1 Strength, +3 Speed, +2 Magic, +1 Luck, +1 Defense, +1 Resistance

Bridget: 7 wins, gained three levels: +2 HP, +1 Magic, +3 Luck, +1 Defense, +1 Resistance

Taillte: 7 wins, Gained three levels: +1 HP, +2 Skill, +1 Speed, +1 Magic, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Claude: 1 win. He is no Aideen, to be blunt.

Wait, you say. Seven wins… for DEW?! Well, see, in among those arena wins, we also had much better stuff:

BEHOLD MY PEERLESS ARMY!  

Oh, man, I’ve been watching them all languish in the teens waiting for this; the Paragon Band switched hands several times, and I do not regret any of them, even though they were stupidly pricey. Because our team’s overall power has just skyrocketed. Dew and Lachesis in particular just jumped from liabilities to ridiculous frontline killers.  In addition to their giant physical stat jumps, both gained Pursuit as an ability, and Lachesis got a horse (!) and the ability to use any non-legendary weapon (!!!!!).  

But… Midir. Uncool there, man. You need a jump.  Where could we get something like that…?

Aideen: Of course. I bought it for you, after all! Silesse’s pegasus knights are a formidable foe. With a bow of this caliber in hand, I know you’ll be better prepared to fight them.

Midir: Milady… I still can’t believe this isn’t a dream! I can’t believe we’re actually married…. I’ve dreamed of this for so long.

Aideen: I’ve long dreamt of the same myself. I had wanted to act upon it for so many years, but I couldn’t, even at my loneliest… But… I think by now you can just call me Aideen. I’ll always look out for you, Midir. I’ll always pray for your safety.

Sweeeeeet. As I’m sure you can work out, this is something you’ll only get if Aideen and Midir are married; though to avoid you being totally screwed, if she married Jamke he gets the Brave Bow instead. I prefer Midir just because he needs the bow way more, frankly. Jamke’s Killer Bow is just as good and his stats are better than Midir’s by a solid margin anyway.  

Trivia, if she marries Azel, then she’s the one who gets a present, a unique staff of some sort that I don’t recall off the top of my head. But they in general aren’t a great pairing otherwise.

So here’s the map. It looks wide open but it really isn’t; the whole southern half is totally closed off to us until we deal with Maios and Thove Castle to the far northeast.  The current enemy force consists of a huge squad of wind mages moving toward our castle, a bunch of bandits moving toward all the villages because fuck you, and Dithorba’s pegasus knight unit who will start moving on the first enemy phase.  

Not much to be done at first because nothing is near us; I just have everyone move out as far as possible; our first priority is to get to the villages before they burn.

Cuvuli: Move in! Teach the traitorous scum the terror of a wind mage’s wrath!

Okay, first of all bro, you’re literally committing treason, so maybe stop judging us.  Second, wind mages are actually pretty wrathful, but they can’t actually reach us, so what follows is a scene of them all moving one space into the forest. Wrathfully. Afterwards, off to south, Duke Evilton Sr. has some fun.

Daccar: Heh heh… why, this little drama is finally getting interesting. Wouldn’t you say, Pamela?

Pamela: Indeed, sir. However, as I recall we didn’t account for Sigurd’s fugitives being here. Their strength poses a real risk to the plan. If Maios at least succeeds in weakening them, perhaps Silese’s fall will still go smoothly?

Daccar: Even if he fails, I still have my private deal with Grannvale in my favor.  Their Lord Andre should arrive shortly with a battalion of reinforcements.  

(Eep. And on an even worse note, Andre was mentioned last chapter; he’s Aideen and Bridget’s brother. If he’s working with Reptor and Langbalt…what happened to their father? We haven’t heard anything about him, but he was a friend of Prince Kurth just like Sigurd’s dad. He can’t be in a safe place right now…)  

Daccar: Hehehe… my victory is certain, Pamela! I’ll be sitting on the Silessian throne by the end of the week.

Pamela: Without a doubt, sir!

Oh goodie, so Grannvale’s coming up here too.  We can assume the deal is something like, “We make you king and you’re basically our governor in the region”, which you’d think an ambitious fuck like Daccar wouldn’t be down for, but maybe he really just wants a crown.  Once again, our turn is just moving; the enemy should reach us next turn.

Unless they don’t move. Lazy bums. Well, we’re close enough to clear the first village.

Mmmmmmmmmm she’s such a badass all of a sudden. Nothing much else to do, though, so end turn…

Would you guys pick it up?!

Sigh. Well, on our turn, we’re close enough to take shots at them.  Let’s rock this shit and try to clear out as many mages as we can before the pegasi get here.

Not bad! They’re generally pretty troublesome folks; wind magic is light and accurate, so the mages are usually pretty tricky to get rid of.  But we’re making solid progress and nobody is in a position to get hit too hard. End turn!

*wince* Well, we took some hits, but mostly only to Erin, who can thankfully handle magic damage well. That jerk putting Azel to sleep is the real annoyance.  Only Claude can fix him, so now I have to get him up there. Claude cannot fight to save his dumb life, so the first thing to get done here is to clear out the area. Kids?

Once again, not bad! I really love how Dew is able to fight an enemy and kill it in a single turn, like how real units do. And even better (I legit forgot this) Restore is a distance staff, so Claude doesn’t have to get too close after all.  I then have Sylvia dance him, and he hits the army with the Fortify staff to pop us all back up to full.

Yes, he did gain two levels in a row there. Fortify is a Hell of a staff. Now then, some cleanup. Let’s see if we can remove Cuvuli and his leadership stars from the equation.  

Nobody tell him that he’s only the first miniboss of the chapter and fighting him isn’t very far at all.

And there he goes! No more leadership stars and especially no more Sleep staff. I end the turn by smacking a few more of his pals.

Sigurd, you really need more strength. Even with your ring that gives you more strength. Well, only four mages left and we can start moving east at top speed. End turn!

…. Okay, three mages left. Not sure what that one guy who went after Bridget was thinking, but hey. Time to purge the last ones and move ourselves into the edge of the range of the pegasus squad as they just barely start to reach us from the east.  

And yes, Taillte did go twice in there. Sylvia is running with the team because I actually want her to get married now. Claude gets himself a wife! And speaking of Claude…

Claude: I did return to Grannvale and attempted to relate the truth to His Majesty. But Reptor interfered before we could meet, and now I too am branded a traitor to the motherland.

Sigurd: Ugh. I’ve had enough of just sitting here and letting Reptor have his sorry way! I swear, I’ve half a mind to storm straight into Grannvale and end this once and for all!

Claude: No. You know better than to rely on brute force or to risk the common folk’s safety. For now, Lord Sigurd, we must endure.

Sigurd: But, Father Claude…

Claude: Make no mistake. I feel your pain, too, too but this crisis’s end now lies in fate’s hands. There is nothing any of us can do to save ourselves anymore.

… … … … Holy shit, Claude. Fatalist, much? I end my turn, fully aware of the crushing hand of oblivion slowly grinding me down.

Only Jamke gets attacked, and only one enemy hits him.  But who cares? We’re all doomed and only fate and random chance can save us. *sigh* I… guess I should fight back, even though it’s pointless.

Sigh, there were a lot of misses there. It’s because of how there’s no point in fighting your destiny, I guess. Fate determined we should lose.

End turn. If it even matters.

One of the Four Great Heavenly Princess Falcon Queens of Silesse hits Midir, and does about six damage while leaving herself totally exposed.  So, uh…

Thus passes Dithorba, I suppose.  Don’t worry, she’ll have plenty of company soon.

And that’s the Pegasus unit broken. Time to move east, and fast; some of these villages are starting to get dangerously low.  While the turn prepares to end, however, something new to show off…

Some happy couples have formed!  Beowulf and Lachesis was pretty much set in stone, but I honestly wasn’t sure how Ayra would end up; either Jamke or Lex was the endgame, but I legit wasn’t certain which would end up coming on top. She spends more time with Jamke since neither has a horse, but Lex gave her that Brave Sword and got a boost from that.  In the end, Jamke wins out, which works just fine for me. Hail Verdane!

Anyhow, now that we’ve broken Maios’s opening lineup, the defenders become our next issue. The castle has three lines of defense; two small ones made up of a mage commander and two mooks, and a major squad around the castle of three more mages and seven armor units.  Pretty basic stuff, barring the fact that all the mages are using Wind magic and so they’re far more annoying than what we’re used to. Particularly this one:

Blizzard is the wind-magic siege tome, and it will be very annoying as we proceed. He’s hidden among the second small line with no indication he might be there, which, you know; always remember to look at your enemies, kids.  Time to start our charge! First, Lachesis clears a village.

It’s so delightful that she can just do that now. I can’t express it.    No other combat happens, sadly, because Silesse is full of goddamn forests and progress is very slow.  Remember back in Verdane, when the map was full of forests and everything was slow? It was annoying then, and making it snow hasn’t changed that. These villages will not be giving us much money.

Though thankfully when we actually reach them, it’s pretty easy to clear ‘em. And we are finally able to reach the attack range of the enemy defense line, so on their next turn they should be taking a shot at us. It won’t end well for them. End turn!

I warned ‘em. Now let’s rock this shit.  

Awesome! Now it’s time to get Erin and Azel to the final village, and we have four turns to do it. I think we got this. Unless something goes terribly wrong, of course.

Maios: Without this key, there’s no way they’ll ever get over here. Heh heh… I almost wish I could see the looks on their faces!

Nope, that actually isn’t a problem, we can lower that bridge again, and even if we couldn’t, we do have a pegasus now. Still, I mean, A for Effort. If some earlier bosses had tried that, we’d have lost back in frickin’ Jungby.

Also, Blizzard Dude takes a shot at Erin, but she’s a dodge champ and it doesn’t connect.  

… Azel, less so. I didn’t realize there were more than one Blizzard Dude. See what I said about checking your enemies? I need to follow my own advice. Aideen patches him up and levels.

God her magic stat is so huge. What even is happening.

Erin hits the final village, but isn’t able to clear it…

She’s gotten a bit strength-screwed this run, I’m afraid. Still, I think we got this. The only way that village could fall totally is if she and Azel both somehow miss twice next turn.

… Unless we die from being Blizzarded, jeez. All three hit, and not one had an even 40% to do it. Just one of those little reminders FE doesn’t actually like you. Luckily, Lachesis still has a healing staff on top of her other amazingness, and she steps up to heal her hubby. He takes advantage of this to run up and clear the village, letting the rest of the army move on toward the Blizzard Jerks.

… You know, this is really weird. The speed and skill are normal for a pegasus knight, but she somehow managed to trade the normal ‘high offense’ for a fairly solid defense growth you usually don’t see in her class. She can actually take hits better than she can give them at this point. It’s weird and I’m not sure I like it, but it’s interesting to see.  

Anywho, with the Blizzard Dudes burned down, let’s take some time to clear villages before we open up the path ahead.

Info Kiosk: If it’s still drawn and you don’t have the key, you’re not getting across. Mind you, if you have a thief’s sticky fingers at your service, that might not be a problem…

GEE I’M SURE THAT WON’T BE IMPORTANT.

Info Master: Divine heirs can wield even the most advanced weapons with ease, and’ll have an easier time growin’ stronger. ‘Course, it’s not every day you meet someone blessed with that sorta blood.

…………………….. That… really should have been shared in the first chapter, honestly. I mean, I already knew it, but…

Actually Innocent: If you don’t mind, perhaps you could do a little dance for us? It’s been so long since we’ve had time for respite or fun…

Sylvia: Yup, not a problem! If you think it’ll cheer everyone up a bit, then I’m gonna dance my feet off! … Okay! Heeeeeeeeere we go!

Sylvia: Whew… well, how ‘bout that? Everyone feelin’ a little better?

Not Even a Creep: Oh! What fantastic dancin’! I dunno how, but now I feel like I’m ready to give life my all! I can’t thank you enough, miss.  Here, perhaps this magic sword’ll help ya out. It oughta do a fine job of keeping ya safe.

Sylvia gets the Shield Sword, which grants +7 defense to anyone holding it and which, nothing personal honey, she absolutely will not be getting to keep. It’s going to someone who fights.

As you might have guessed, this scene only pops up if Sylvia visits this one specific village, which doesn’t look any different from any of the others. It’s not even like, ‘the closest to the castle’ or something. It’s second closest to the castle. Totally arbitrary 

No, the game doesn’t give you any hint to this.

Hahahaha.

Now, as the game hinted at earlier, Dew can lower the bridge by going to the space where it was lowered before. However, I don’t want to do that yet; this is a chance to kill off some of the enemy while leaving them unable to swarm us. I have Taillte and Midir move into the range of the enemy who have distance weapons, and get Lachesis and Aideen ready to heal them. End turn.

… It’s only as  I do this that I realize his Brave Bow means he’ll be killing most of what he fights. So, uh… hopefully he dodges a lot!

Score. Midir, you can stick around.

… Taillte, Midir just rocked this, do not screw it up for me.

… Taillte, you just got a great level, do not die and ruin this for me.

Yessssssssssssssssss. Okay, now we can lower the bridge.

We’re still not friends, you little shit. And with the way clear, we can, as the kids say, slaughter our foes.

Score. All that remains is three armor units and the boss himself, and none of them can reach anyone who they could reasonably kill in a single turn.

… Wait, why did they go for Midir at range…?

Okay, better. I mean, it’s not that I want to lose, but I feel bad if they don’t at least try. Now, let’s kill them all!

And here we go!  The enemy army for Thove Castle is broken, so nothing left to be done but kill Maios himself. He’s a baron, because of fucking course he is, and he’s packing the A-rank wind tome Tornado.  Get used to this sort of thing from here on; 99% of enemy bosses are going to be barons with great weapons that will ruin your day. Lewyn’s other douchey uncle is going to be one too.  Fortunately, we have him super, super outnumbered.

Once again, bro, insulting us by calling us traitors loses some impact when you’re in the middle of treason.

On the other hand, Midir basically bounces off him.  This is going to be a giant pain in the…

….. Never mind, forgot she had this.

Okay, battle’s over. What follows is mostly people whiffing at him for three turns, but there is one good moment…

Well. He almost succeeded in family victory.

There we go. Not much left to do but clear out a few villages and start moving people South to the big giant half of the map we conspicuously can’t enter.

Info Master: House Velthomer wields the power of fire, as bestowed by the fire goddess Vala. And House Freege wields thunder, as bestowed by the thunder god Tordo.

… Neat? Yeah, other than the sword, they’re all like this, generally giving game backstory you probably already worked out because it’s blatantly obvious. It’s like someone screwed up and put these villages in here when they should have been in the prologue.

A few empty turns of moving later, we have two fronts; one protecting Thove, and one getting ready to hit Silesse to the south.  Don’t worry if you don’t think to do this; the game gives you plenty of time to run back to either or both if needed. That set up, let’s take Thove!

(God, nobody likes their nobles in this world.)

Info Master; The entire population of Thove is rejoicing at his downfall!

Sigurd: Hm? Are you sure? I mean, I just conquered you. Am I not the enemy here?

(Does this count as a Sigurd Logic Moment?)

Info Master: Lord Maios was nothing but a tyrant. All he ever did was bleed us dry.  You fight in the name of Queen Rahna, and there isn’t a Silessian alive who doesn’t bear the utmost adoration for our queen.

(“I mean, besides her two brothers-in-law and their revolutionary armies.”)

Sigurd: Is that so? Thank you. Anyway, in the interim I think I’ll leave governing Thove to you, sir. Once the crisis has settled, the queen will arrange a proper successor. Until then, I’m sure you’ll be a just governor to help heal Thove’s wounds.

Info Master: Very well. Please, Lord Sigurd, do all you can to protect the queen. She is a treasure to us, and a beacon of peace and kindness.

Sigurd: Rest assured, my good man. So long as  I live, I will let no harm come to Queen Rahna. You have my word.

And with a zap of Aideen’s Warp staff, Sigurd heads off to join the southern front and Thove is ours. Let’s call it a fair end for the week, and cut off things here.  Next week: Everything goes to Hell!

#Let's play fire emblem IV #let's play fire emblem #let's play #Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War #fire emblem 4 #lp #My writing

[empathicmisanthrope-blog]

Working a new original character

This character is my oc for a selection roleplay I’m doing on a different website. (quizup) A selection is basically the bachelor except with royalty and possible death. n Asteria a 18 c 3 o . . . p Baffin

She is mostly based on these ideas:

two poems I wrote about falling stars and silently suffering (it was about a marker)

Asteria: the Greek titan of falling stars and night oracles

a wish I have to be quieter

a quote from the little women show “I may not be good at talking about it, but I’ll be sure to listen.”

what I’ve got:

“of words and of stars”

::name::

αऽteгία ￫goddess of night oracles and falling stars ￫a girl with no words in her head

cгαոe ￫long legged, long necked bird ￫a nickname for a tall person ￫a family with more silence then there are stars in the sky

αऽհ ￫everything asteria wants to be ￫everything she’s not

::age::

18 years ￫just barely ￫december 17th

::social::

3 ￫the studious ￫the dreamers ￫the planners ￫and me

::residence::

baffin ￫land of snow and mountains ￫frozen paradise

36 Orion Dr ￫4 rooms ￫3 doors ￫one girl

::appearance:: ￫tall and skinny ￫dark haired and pale skinned ￫moonlight eyes

::personality:: ￫someday, someday, someday ￫quietly confident ￫listen like day, talk like night

::likes:: ￫early morning star gazing ￫a cup of tea growing cold as the sun rises ￫awestruck silence ￫a small book of poems ￫dancing

::dislikes:: ￫public speaking ￫large crowds ￫long times with her mom

::the winter stars::

orion ￫asteria was born under the stars on the side of the road ￫her father delivered her, while her mother counted off the stars ￫her first breath is ice, her screams are the loudest she’d ever be

persius ￫toddlers don’t do much, asteria is no exception ￫she doesn’t talk, her mother worries ￫she gets very attached to her father’s wrist watch

taurus ￫her first word is “tick” ￫her second word is “tock ￫she is 4 years old, and suddenly fluent ￫her first teachers have trouble communicating with her

canis major ￫the school district encourages special needs classes ￫so asteria homeschools ￫”she was too smart for them anyways” ￫she moves at jumbled rates, her language underdeveloped

cetus ￫her mother leaves the blinds open ￫she sleeps besides the stars ￫her next birthday she gets a poetry book, the poetry is her mirror

eridanus ￫she isn’t deaf, nor is she hard of hearing ￫she’s memorized her poems, and can say them by rote ￫her mother signs her up for speech therapy

geminus ￫her father finds her sobbing ￫in comforting her he learns just how fluid his daughter is ￫she’s more than capable of talking ￫until anyone else comes in

::the summer stars::

hercules ￫father and daughter start going to work together ￫his students adore her, and she talks ￫she shows him her book of poems ￫and he loves her all the more for it ￫like father like daughter, right?

cygnus ￫she’s the youngest there, in her creative writing class ￫her vocabulary grows, or maybe it appears ￫she doesn’t talk to her mother

lyra ￫with editing and pruning she binds her book ￫and sends it to publishers ￫and she waits ￫and waits ￫and waits

ursa major ￫she’s 17 when the book is published ￫under the name “fall”| ￫her first poem ￫she doesn’t share her name

ursa minor ￫with royalties and her fathers help she moves ￫to a home with no shutters ￫and she is happy, with her stars and her books, and her parents ￫until she isn’t

cassiopeia ￫the letter of the selection arrives to her kitchen ￫three days late ￫and she fills it out as “ash” ￫the shield ￫the one who was big ￫big enough to dream ￫it never makes it to the selection office

cepheus ￫the selected is entered by her father ￫after he saw ash’s form ￫when her name was drawn ￫the falling star soul made a wish ￫”let me grow ￫let me get big ￫big enough to dream”

::the north star::

￫a nighttime oracle ￫a constant in a world of change ￫a girl who’s words won't leave her again

Again, I’m wanting a reason for her to want to stay, and I’m hoping to give her more of a personality than just quite, smart, and shy. On the subject of staying I’m going to work up the hierarchy again.

So again, she is well cared for at home, so she would not be coming for physiological needs or safety needs.

In the backstory I wrote for her having friendly acquaintances, but she felt isolated. I also included the line “The letter arrives to her kitchen three days late,” which suggests either a really terrible mail man, her not leaving her home often enough to have gotten it the day it arrived, or her not expecting anything in the mail so she doesn’t check. It kind of feels like she is unsure how to talk to people, so belonging needs could fit.

However, she doesn’t seem to have self-esteem needs at all. She’s quiet, and isolated, but doesn’t feel unsure of herself.

I think I’m going to go with belonging needs, and say she’s not happy with it yet, so she’s going to maybe try and find friends. She also hopes to outgrow her lack of goals, so maybe one of her goals while she’s there could be finding something to dedicate her time to. Perhaps a cause or something.

I think that’s a combination of belonging needs and cognitive needs, which suits the idea of this character really well.

so she’s come for friends and the chance to love someone, and for the chance to find goals. 

[geekade]

Turn It Up: New Music Releases for September 2017

Um, excuse me, but where did summer go? Where is this (albeit gorgeous) colder weather coming from? A sure sign it’s fall: new music is abound, as everyone gets those fall releases in. I could venture to guess it’s because Grammy nominations are coming (the most wonderful time of the year, in my opinion), or maybe to promote for some great Christmas presents. Maybe it’s because we’re all heading back inside on these colder-to-come days and will be streaming so much more. Whatever the reason – I’m not complaining. You guys know me by now – there can never be enough music. Let’s check out who’s serving up new albums this month.

Thomas Rhett – Life Changes

Release date: 9/8 I remember being so confused when Sam Hunt said he was only going to do singles, not full-length albums anymore. This, coming from a country artist (in a genre where consumers are still buying physical product – despite the three concerts I went to this summer where there were no CDs for sale…), was surprising. I had hopes that this wasn’t going to start a trend, considering what a top guy Sam is in the industry.

Thankfully, Thomas Rhett has calmed my fears. As one of probably the biggest names in country music today with, easily, one of the most hectic schedules and lives (congrats on the new baby!), he still made a full-length album for our enjoyment. He could have rode on “Craving You” (featuring my girl-crush, Maren Morris) for a little longer, then hopped onto another song. Instead, we’ve gotten a taste of the new songs through steady unofficial single releases via Spotify, and are amped up for the whole thing to drop.

Thomas is “new country” – borderline Bro, incorporates a little rap, but generally is there for the good, sweet backroad times that we honestly look for in this genre. “Unforgettable” (the official second single) is closer to pop, but there’s no denying that little country bump in the backing. I still don’t understand why so many people mention Coldplay these days in their lyrics, but whatever. I want a campfire stat for this one.

The other songs? Well, “Sixteen” will have you all kinds of nostalgic and wishful at once (who knew Thomas was old enough to have this kind of nostalgia, by the way?). We get a surprising love song in the one called “Grave” to melt a bit, and you have to believe that between an adoption and new baby, that one’s for his wife (think the “Die A Happy Man” feels all over again). “Life Changes” is personal and sums up that smile this man carries around.

Oh, and he duets with his poppa, Rhett Akins. Yeah, this is going to be a good ol’ boys record and I can’t wait to hear it from start to finish.

Other 9/8 releases:

Jack Johnson – All The Light Above It Too

Tori Almos – Native Invaders

Ringo Starr – Give More Love

Release date: 9/15

Don’t worry – the backstory I’m about to share with y’all isn’t meant to make you feel bad. I promise I can look back on these memories with some kind of wistful smile.

My mom was the Beatles fan. I mean, I assumed they were the end-all-be-all of music until I discovered Hanson when I was 8 (literally – I assumed every song was written by them, and performed by either them, Frank Sinatra, Elvis, or Celine Dion). We had every album (except the elusive Fan Club Christmas one… someday). We listed to Anthology until even I knew every word and the tapes about wore out.

Ringo was my favorite. Even from an early age, I had to go against the norm and love the drummer (I believe that’s what led me to an odd attraction to good arms, but that’s another article for another time). I also thought he looked to be having the most fun, and the Ringo-written tracks obviously appealed to my only-child colorful imagination. Plus, the man later showed an affinity for Country Music – clearly, the best Beatle.

So when I was… gosh, 10 or so, and the Internet was at my fingertips and we found out he would be touring through Atlantic City with the All Starr Band, it was a no-brainer. We were there. And we were there every other year, when he’d tour again, for 10+ years. I got older and appreciated all of the other songs so much more, and my mom was…. Well, she was 16 again during each show. This made for a weird argument about who he was singing about during “You’re Sixteen” that makes me giggle a little to this day.

I haven’t seen Ringo live since I lost my mother over two years ago (despite his shows in Brooklyn and birthday celebrations in Central Park), but regardless, seeing him continue to release music surrounding all I’ve ever hoped for through music – Peace and Love – never fails to make me smile. If you’re reading this to get an idea of the sounds to come – know that it’s gentle, wonderful, and every bit as Beatles-esque as you could ever want from this living legend (plus the many, many living legends that accompany him on it – seriously, Google it – I’ll give you one name… Paul).

It took me a year to listen to Beatles music again, and even hearing this new music is tough, but worth it. Thank you – both Mom and Ringo – for this musical gift.

Other 9/15 releases:

Foo Fighters – Concrete & Gold

Wyclef Jean – Carnival III: The Rise And Fall Of A Refugee

The Killers – Wonderful Wonderful

Release date: 9/22

The Killers have always mildly fascinated me for some reason, and this fifth album just keeps that interest going. Maybe it’s Brandon Boyd’s drive to make so many projects work and the fact that, in a unique way, he does it. I mean, have you ever heard someone say they don’t like The Killers?

“The Man” takes things to a disco area that takes some time to appreciate – in that, you remember it’s not disco, just the sound of this band bringing those elements into our odd-ball new millennium culture. And on further investigation, perhaps the Kool & The Gang sample in the song may have something to do with it. I dare you not to literally strut down the street to this one.

We mellow out on that sound with “Run For Cover” (which is not really more mellow, but I feel justified by the Bob Marley sample that’s included). It’s quick paced, but more rock based, and there seems to be a general toss-up out there on which of the first two singles were better. This one’s my pick, but I never was a fan of the 70’s sound.

By the way, Ryan Tedder helped produce some of this album. My concept of Indie Pop has completely been shattered, and that’s 100% okay.

The title track is the latest song we’ve gotten to sample, and to be honest the thing that’s starting to interest me most about this album is how all the songs will fit together. These three don’t tie out aside from Boyd’s familiar voice and vocal effects on it. “Wonderful Wonderful” is set to be the opening track, and it does seem to march in and create the same anticipation as I’m starting to have for this late-September release.      

Other 9/22 releases:

Circa Survive – The Amulet

Haley Reinhart – What’s That Sound?

Miley Cyrus – Younger Now

Release date: 9/29

I know, I’m as surprised as y’all probably are that I’m choosing this one to write about, especially with Demi dropping an album on the same day (which, um, timing is weird). But Miley has been intriguing me lately. Obviously, girl lost her dang mind for a few years there, at least by “normal” standards. She did things that were in no way socially acceptable, but definitely owned it.

There’s something about her attitude in recent months though, that seems to show a maturity. Granted, I’m basing this entirely on her music, since I really haven’t kept up with the latest gossip. “Malibu” just has such a, well, nice sound to it. It’s relaxing but there’s something really honest in there about life, so I have to believe Miley is coming around to making adult decisions and, maybe more importantly, realizations.

“Inspired” wasn’t an official single, but it is available to stream in promotion of the new album. It’s sweet and light, and I’ll go ahead and say this – I feel Tennessee in here (there are even moments that you can tell her Godmother, Dolly Parton, really did play a huge role in this girl’s life). Her voice is even slightly crisper (her laziness in enunciation is one of my few vocal complaints about Miley), and the title and feel just all fit together.

The second single is the title track, “Younger Now,” and I guess of the three this is the closest to her persona over the past few years. Even in saying that, the opening line plays: feels like I just woke up, and I have to believe this is Miley finding her way back all while looking ahead. Did anyone expect her to go legitimately deep on us? Did you expect to care this much and want this album in its entirety? Me either. But I do.

Other 9/29 releases:

Demi Lovato – Tell Me You Love Me

Echosmith – Inside A Dream

#Music #articles