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keysmashingfantasies · 1 year

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Hi! I absolutely love your fics and since AiB S2 had just ended, I was hoping you would take a Chishiya fic request. I'm a sucker for the enemies to lovers trope and was thinking it could be incorporated in the Jack of Hearts game (basically reader and Chishiya have no choice but to trust each other despite their differences). Amidst their tension, since they need to trust each other, both Chishiya and reader get to understand the other over time. Maybe a bit of angsty fluff?

Merry Christmas (if you celebrate) and Happy Holidays! I hope you get to enjoy this season of festivities!

hi! merry (belated) christmas and happy new year! i hope you got to enjoy the holidays too! here's your request! ❤️ feedback is always welcome and encouraged! i didn't do a explicit lovers situation, i left it open (bc lowkey im thinking of a pt 2) but i hope you can enjoy it nonetheless!

First, you were transported to that godforsaken world.

Then, you were made to play to get days to live.

And after that, you landed on a game of hearts where a rat tried to sell you out to save himself.

And a few days later, a bunch of zeppelins with face cards started to fly around and to avoid being shot until you turned to puree, you had to go on a game inside a prison complex to participate in yet another hearts game with the same rat that tried to use you to survive.

Just great.

You thought you'd just avoid him at first. He must be so used to fucking people over he doesn't even remember me, it's what you thought at first, but then his eyes met yours and they shone with amusement. He remembered you and didn't even look remotely embarrassed or guilty, in fact, he looked quite smug. It made your blood boil.

You decided to make your way over after you saw Chishiya leaning to murmur something in another player's ear. After sizing the boy in the overalls that looked absolutely terrified, you came to the conclusion that there was no better way to end Chishiya than to prevent him to be able to manipulate people.

You placed yourself on the other side of the boy, leaning on the wall opposite to Chishiya. "Hey", you spoke lowly. "Don't listen to him. He lies", you said. Chishiya raised his eyebrows, surprised. You remembered him after all.

"Huh?", the boy looked frantically back and forth as you and Chishiya as you stared each other down. You, boiling in fury and him smug as always.

"Ah, don't be too quick to take her word for it. It's your word against mine, after all. The game barely even started and here you are, already trying to get ahead. By what we know, you may be the Jack after all", he said, and the boy took an wobbly step to stand next to him.

"As if I'm the Jack. For all purposes, it could be you too. Aren't you used to leading people astray to their deaths?", you said, and Chishiya's face fell a bit, making you feel triumphant. He tried to sold you and accused you of being the Jack? The audacity.

He was about to open his mouth when another thing caught both of yours attention. A girl, dressed cutely, seemingly collecting players.

She came to your direction, standing in front of the three of you. "Do you want to play with us?", she said. Her fake smile grinded your gears even more, but you did your best to reciprocate. "But of course!"

"I'll play with you too", said Chishiya.

"Can't get rid of you, can I?", you grit out as you followed the group downstairs.

"We shall see", he said in a flat tone.

The game was nearing the end.

Your only ally, a woman in a red cardigan was led astray by the girl with the fake smile and cutesy dress, that in turn was betrayed by her own group. And now the group was getting smaller and smaller. There was Banda and a skittish boy with a fringe, and a couple. And you and Chishiya.

You eyed them all suspiciously. The game wasn't over, which meant the Jack was still among you. While you were looking around, trying to pretend you weren't straining your ears to listen to their conversation, Chishiya approached you.

"Do you know what they were doing before the game started?", he said, amused. You shook your head, not wanting to give him the time of day, but still listening with attention.

"Having sex. Inside one of the cells. He has full control over her", he said nonchalantly. "They'll do anything for each other. And the one right there, Banda. A serial killer, I saw on the news. Must've been a relief for him, being sent here...", he talked to you like someone talked about the weather, like you weren't in a death trap of a game.

"What do you want? For me to believe you? As if that's possible", you stood up, talking to him as quietly as possible. After all, it was best if the others thought you had an ally still. Even though you'd rather eat glass than to trust him with your life. "What? Want me to be like her?", you subtly nodded in the direction of the woman, that was absolutely entranced and attentive to everything the man was saying as if it was gospel. But it was probably a bunch of bullshit. "To follow you around until I'm useful to be bait?", earlier you were fuming but now you were just tired. Tired of dealing with all of this, and tired of seeing his face. Before, you wanted to beat him to a pulp for doing what he did. Now, you just wanted a peaceful and hidden place with food and maybe some rain for you to shower with.

"You're still mad at me for that?", he said. The game consisted of basically convincing people not to kill you. Since it was your first game and you got there desperate, and Chishiya was the first person you saw, you had delayed to him your entire story. That you worked with children, that you loved what you did. That you couldn't wait to see them again. And then he took it and used it as his own. If it was only between the two of you, you'd have died that day.

"Of course I am! I could've died", you said.

"And on any other game after that. It's not even about me anymore, is it?", he said as you stormed off to get water.

"It's not even about me anymore, is it?"

The fact was that no, it wasn't. He played by the rules, and did what he was supposed to do at a hearts game. And if what he was supposed to do was be a huge traitor, well, that's on the game masters' account as well.

You were there grabbing a bottle of water behind one of the shelves when Chishiya tried to approach the woman. She, of course, bewitched by her affair, didn't even respond. Chishiya was good at seeming calm, but you could see that if he was outwardly asking for help then he sure was desperate.

He was right. It wasn't about him at all.

You had to kill people too. Had to trick people too. And for what? You had no one but your students. Would you be able to look them in the eye knowing you killed innocent people to get back? Chishiya tricked the person you were before you got into the games. You for sure weren't that person anymore.

You made your way around the shelf to approach him, him turning around with a smile on his lips but you could see that his friendly facade faltered when he looked at you. He didn't expect anything from you and that strangely hurt. For a moment, as you and Chishiya contemplated each other, it was like looking at a mirror. Alone, untrustworthy. You took a deep breath.

"You were right, Chishiya", his eyebrows rose yet again. You remembered his name. "It wasn't about you", you slowly approached him.

"Turn around", you said, softly. For the first time since you were a desperate mess in a hearts game, you weren't glaring daggers at him. You seemed tired, and oddly at peace. He appreciated the change.

"Thinking about lying to me?", he said, feigning amusement.

"Thought", you corrected him. "But not anymore. Turn", you said again and he eyed you for a second before turning around in his heels. He could feel you stare at him, and he jumped slightly when he felt your fingers on the back of his neck, brushing his hair aside to look at his symbol.

"Diamonds", you breathed and he turned around.

You sat down on the table directly next to you, drinking your water.

"What, you don't want me to do it to you?", he said, plopping himself next to you.

"Are you thinking about lying to me?", you gave him a weak chuckle and he reciprocated with a small smile of his own.

"Thought. But not anymore. Turn", he said, the smile still there. You turned your torso away from him and he leaned over to look at it. You could feel his breathing on your neck and it gave you goosebumps.

"Hearts", he said. You laughed.

"I can't believe it", you said, looking at him. "Ironic, huh?", you raised your eyebrow. You felt contempt but that underlying bitterness showed through. Not at Chishiya anymore but at all of this, at yourself and he could definitely notice this shift.

"I work with children. I love what I do", he said after a beat of silence. You looked at him, perplexed. He really did all of this to toy with you? That's what you get for trying to help.

"You're an asshole", you say through clenched teeth, going to stand up when you felt his hand around your wrist. He wasn't squeezing you, you could shake him off by any means. But the overwhelming warmth of his palms and his gaze where all consuming, keeping you where you stood. He stood up, once again in front of you. "I'm not a teacher", he said.

You scoffed. "Of course you're not-", you started but he cut you off once more.

"I'm a pediatric heart surgeon. I was in the middle of my residency when I got here", he said. "What I said... Wasn't necessarily true. I don't love those kids like they're my own, because they're not. And I can wait to see them again. In fact, when I tell one to go home I hope I don't ever see them again. I hate dealing with people and the never ending questions and the sobbing parents. But it wasn't a lie either", he said.

"I... I didn't know...", you felt your face grow hot. He was a surgeon for kids. You never once wondered what he did before all this, but you assumed it was something shameful, since he decided to basically copy and paste your life story. You never once stopped to consider that maybe he did just have a similar life to you, after all. You felt sick all of a sudden.

"Don't apologize, there was no way of you knowing", he said. "I did what I did because you had something I didn't. You... Had that fire, that... Love. You wanted to see them again so bad. I didn't have that. I had to pretend", he said. He seemed... soft. Genuine. Your heart ached.

"I don't have that anymore", you said softly, avoiding his gaze. Chishiya felt needle pricks all over his body.

"I think you do", you looked up. "You wouldn't have come so far to give up", he said.

"I...", he started, but looked up at the sound of your voice.

"You...", you both talked at the same time. But that would have to wait because soon enough it was time to go inside the cells once more.

The game was over. While two of the remaining four tried to extract information from the Jack, you grabbed as much as you could carry and was making your way to the exit.

"What now?", you heard behind you.

"I don't know, Chishiya. What now?", you said.

"I'm looking for... my friends", you were surprised. He always struck you as a loner type. You did get him all wrong. "You could come. We can help each other leave this place", he said. "You're smart enough. A good player".

"Are you saying we're friends?", you asked, one eyebrow raised. Chishiya froze. He didn't think it'd escalate this quickly. Friends? You were similar. But he looked at you in a different way than he did other people. As his eyes darted around, you made your way towards him. "Something different?", you whispered like you were telling him a secret. You didn't want to say "more". Not yet, at least.

"Different, yes", he said, extremely relieved at your choice of words.

"One condition", you said and he nodded.

"You tell me about you. About your job. I'd love to visit when this all ends", he gave you a wobbly relieved smile.

"And you too. Tell me about your students", he said, walking alongside you as you exited the prison complex.

#alice in borderland fic #aib x reader #alice in borderland imagine #chishiya x reader #shuntaro chishiya x reader #alice in borderland x reader

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themirokai · 7 months

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It is with very mixed emotions that I present to you

Grave

The final story in the Matthew the Emotional Support Raven series.

Matthew visits his own grave and finds himself in need of some emotional support.

Thanks to @quillsorceress for giving this a read and @aquilathefighter and @kulapti for being my go-to bird experts and answering a totally necessary and vital question about raven anatomy.

Inspiration from this picture. If you follow me you've seen a bunch of @raven-photos 's raven photos under my corvid posting tag, but you should follow them too because they post tons of lovely stuff.

You can read the whole story below the cut or over on AO3. The AO3 version includes a mushy authors note about this being the end of the series, which I won't duplicate here, but I may put some additional thoughts in a reblog later.

~~~

Matthew felt the air pressure in the cemetery change. He hung his head with a sigh.

“Did you need something, Boss?”

“I need only to know that my Raven is well,” Lord Morpheus said from behind him.

“Yeah, you know me,” Matthew said. “Ball of corvid sunshine.”

“Matthew.”

“I haven’t even been gone that long,” Matthew groused.

No response to that. Matthew sighed again and looked around at the gray headstones and dewy grass, sparkling in the morning light.

“How did you find me? You’re not in my head.” He thought for a moment. “Lucienne ratted me out, didn’t she?”

“Lucienne informed me that you had asked for your book. She was concerned for your mental state.”

Matthew huffed. “Do dreams have ‘mental states’?”

“Yes,” Lord Morpheus said simply.

Matthew hung his head again and took a deep breath, then reflected that he wasn’t alive and probably didn’t need to breathe. Which was what had brought him to this cemetery in the first place. He gestured to the headstone in front of him with his wing. “Well, there it is. In all its glory. My grave.”

There was, in fact, no glory. It was a completely unremarkable gray headstone with a curved top. His name and the dates of his birth and death were carved on it, nothing else.

“Why have you come here, Matthew?” Lord Morpheus asked quietly.

“You don’t know? You can’t just read my mind?”

“Not while we are in the Waking.”

“Inconvenient,” Matthew muttered. He ground his beak. Matthew knew that none of this was the boss’s fault. He had made perfectly clear when Matthew first met him that he hadn’t been the one to turn Matthew into a Raven. Matthew shook his head. “I died a year ago.” He turned to face Lord Morpheus. The boss was standing ramrod straight, hands shoved into the pockets of a black pea coat.

“This is not the anniversary of your death, Matthew.”

Matthew flapped his wings. “I know that. I just… started thinking about it. And then I realized that for all the times I’ve come to the Waking, I never saw what my grave looked like.”

“Now you see it.”

“Yeah, and I’m dead in there!” He turned to stare at the ground in front of the headstone. “Like my body - my body that I had my whole life - is just down there. Dead and rotting.” He shivered. “It’s not like I ever took particularly good care of it, but it’s still weird! And that’s before you even get to the fact that I’m a fucking bird.”

“I thought you enjoyed being a Raven.”

“I do!” Matthew said quickly. “This isn’t about that. It’s just… look, one minute I’m an alive human and the next minute I’m a fucking bird and Lucienne is telling me to go follow you and then I’m trying to get you to not throw me out on my ear and then we’re dealing with Constantine and then we’re going to Hell and then you’re fighting the asshole who had your ruby and then I’m spying on Rose and then I’m running errands and delivering messages and meeting all sorts of weird people and- and beings and then…” Matthew breathed out in a rush. “I don’t know. I guess I never really stopped to think about the fact that I’m dead. Like really properly dead. With my body rotting in the ground.”

“Do you feel ‘really properly dead’?”

“No! I don’t feel properly anything! That’s the problem!”

Lord Morpheus kind of folded himself up so that he was sitting cross-legged on the ground, facing Matthew. “You were not expecting to die? When you were human.”

Matthew closed his eyes and shook his head. “I wasn’t that old. And I didn’t exactly have the greatest lifestyle… certainly not what would be considered ‘clean living’ by any stretch. I guess that’s why I had a heart attack… but no. I wasn’t sick or anything. I wasn’t expecting to die.”

Lord Morpheus nodded solemnly. “Most of my past Ravens had been ill or injured or old when they died. Their deaths were much less surprising than yours. And they joined me during… much less chaotic times, when I… shaped the process of them becoming dreams myself.”

Matthew snorted. “Yeah, I know. I’m the unwanted Raven. You don’t have to remind me.”

“You mistake me, Matthew.” Lord Morpheus frowned. “Deliberately, I think.”

“No, I just… you know what I mean.” Matthew looked away from him.

“As I stated,” Lord Morpheus said a bit huffily, “in the Waking I cannot see your thoughts.” They were both quiet for a moment before Lord Morpheus continued. “My intent in bringing up other Ravens was to comfort you with the notion that the… discomfort you are experiencing is understandable, since your transformation to Raven occurred under less than ideal circumstances.”

Matthew tipped his head to the side, looking up at him. “How did I become a Raven if you didn’t make me one?”

A tiny smile on Lord Morpheus’s lips. “Another indication of the frenetic pace of your first year is that we have never talked of this.” He shifted into what Matthew considered to be his ‘storyteller voice’. It was a little deeper, more hypnotic. “I confess that I do not know for sure, though I have my suspicions.”

Matthew would have liked to stay silent but felt an inexorable pressure to ask, “What suspicions?” Must have been the force of the narrative or something.

He was rewarded with another tiny smile.

“It is my suspicion that my sister, Death, selected you… for me.”

Matthew would have frowned if he had lips. “How were your other Ravens selected?”

“The souls of those who die in their sleep linger in the Dreaming until my sister collects them and passes them to whatever afterlife awaits them. When the time comes for me to select a new Raven, I select a soul that… feels right, and begin the transformation process.”

“What if the person doesn’t want to be a Raven?”

It was Lord Morpheus’s turn to frown. “Do you not wish to be a Raven, Matthew?”

Matthew clicked his tongue. “Now who’s mistaking who?”

Lord Morpheus inclined his head. “If the person does not wish to be a Raven, then it will not last. They will move on to whatever is next for them and I will select a new Raven.”

Matthew considered that, but quickly decided that he didn’t want to think too much about whatever was next. “So Death picked me.”

“Yes, I believe so. It is possible that once I had returned to the Dreaming it… automatically selected a random soul and performed the process without my guidance…”

Matthew knew there was more to that sentence. “But?”

Lord Morpheus looked at the headstone. “But. You are too well-chosen to have been a chance selection… and.”

“And?”

“Even if the pain of Jessamy’s murder had not convinced me that I did not want another Raven, I think it unlikely that I would have chosen you.”

Matthew glared at him. “I know that the next thing out of your mouth is going to make that a less shitty thing to hear.”

Lord Morpheus rolled his eyes. “You are well aware how this story ends, Matthew. I would not have chosen you but sometimes my sister knows me better than I know myself. She collected you when I was preoccupied with the Hecate and saw what I would not have seen: that you… were exactly who I needed as my Raven. And then I suspect that she gave the Dreaming a very strong suggestion to perform your transformation.”

Matthew had Death to thank for his current gig. Just add that to the pile of things he didn’t know how to feel about. But. There was the rest of what the boss had said.

Matthew dragged a talon through the grass. “So… you don’t wish you had a different Raven? Someone… I dunno. Dignified or clever or something.”

Lord Morpheus drew himself up and his eyes blackened from their normal Waking world blue to the night sky. “I am Dream of the Endless. I am older than this universe. I suspect I possess enough dignity for us both.”

Matthew was not entirely sure that age and dignity were that closely related but kept quiet as Lord Morpheus continued.

“As far as cleverness… you are perhaps not familiar with great works of poetry or philosophy, but I have never had a Raven who was more skilled at putting others at their ease, or soothing wounded feelings. Anything you lack in courtly manners is more than made up for in kindness and sincerity.” Lord Morpheus sighed and shook his head. “I would not have chosen you, Matthew, but I would have been a fool. You are exactly who I need as my Raven, especially after my imprisonment. My sister saw that, and I am immensely grateful to her.” He held out his hand. Matthew stepped on and was brought into his embrace. “I am sorry that your death was unexpected and jarring for you, Matthew. And I am sorry that the beginning of your tenure as my Raven has been so chaotic. But I cannot bring myself to be sorry that you died when you did, because that timing brought you to me.”

“Oh, Boss,” Matthew sighed.

“So yes, your human body is moldering in that grave. And yes, you are a ‘fucking bird’. But I very much hope that you will remain a ‘fucking bird’ for a very long time to come.”

Ravens, Matthew learned, were not capable of crying. He pressed his head against Lord Morpheus’s chest as Lord Morpheus began stroking his feathers. “Yeah. That sounds good.”

#We all understand that Dream is vastly overestimating his dignity right?#I have so many feelings about ending this series y'all #but it's time #and this is the right story to end on #I really really hope you like it #matthew the emotional support raven #the sandman #the sandman netflix #matthew the raven #dream of the endless #mirokai writes #miro does sandman

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anonauthorsworkshop · 9 months

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helloo, i stumbled upon ur mha x scp au and AHDSIHDSGISDGJ UR WRITING??? IS SO GOOD?? (also im new here hi, can i be 🎭 anon) more mha x scp au pls /nf tho

hii 🎭 anon :) i get a lot of requests for this au haha, sure!

previous part here

AU where MC is transported into the MHA universe with a SCP-summoning quirk. essentially a MHA and SCP crossover. you can read the rest of the parts under the tag #pp mha au

(note: i have never watched or read mha in my life and all of my knowledge is from fanfics and lazily googled questions! sorry in advance for any mischaracterizations or anything that just... doesn't make any sense? lol)

You lean forward, nearly falling off of your chair in the process. Squinting your eyes into narrow lines, you focus on one, crucial objective:

Trying to figure out what the hell is sitting right in front of you.

He looks like a cat, sort of. He reminds you of Josie, or, well, 529, with his feline-esque features and all.

Oh, you really should summon Josie here again sometime. It's been quite a while since you last have. That cat makes a good cuddle buddy. Even if she's missing the entire other half of her body.

You hum in thought, continuing to careen forward from your chair. No! This thing across from you is nothing like Josie. His ears look more like a bear, like 1048. Or could he be a dog? No, no... You've got it! He's definitely a rat!

Leaning back, you return to a proper sitting position and internally applaud yourself for finding the solution to your own ridiculous question. A rat, you think to yourself, face smug. Reminds me of a certain mask that drips black snot.

Wait a minute. The satisfied expression you adorn falters as you inspect the rat closer. What if it's not a rat, but a mouse?!

No, you're getting sidetracked! You take another bite of the banana you have graciously been given by your... captors? Do they count as captors if you willingly went with them?

The clearing of a throat. "Excuse me. If you could please answer the question..."

Oh, right. They're not really your 'captors,' just your interrogators, (that provide you with free food, might you add).

"What was the question again?" you ask, before not-so-elegantly stuffing the rest of the banana down your throat. You couldn't help but cave into your stomach's hunger; you haven't tasted this quality of fresh food in years! No more scavenging for meals or rummaging through garbage bins!

The man in uniform raises an inquiring eyebrow. You examine the badge attached to his right breast pocket: 'Detective Tsukauchi.'

He gestures to his side. "He asked you for your name."

Your eyes follow his hand's movements, and you find yourself gazing at the rat once more. "Oh, I wasn't paying attention." You admit shamelessly, grabbing another banana from the bowl placed before you. "I'm Y/N."

"Pleasure to meet you, Y/N." The rat smiles. You absentmindedly nod in response. "I'm Nezu, the principal of U.A. High. The man beside me is Detective Tsukauchi," you glance at the final stranger, "and this is Aizawa, a teacher at this school. He is also the one who found you. We would like to ask you some questions, as you are already aware."

"Sure," you comply, shoving another banana into your mouth. "I don't mind."

"How old are you?"

"Fifteen, I think."

"Who are your parents?"

You shrug, nonchalantly reaching for another banana. "Don't have any."

Nezu's grin widens slightly, and you watch him place a paw below his jaw. "Would you be comfortable telling us about what happened in that alley?"

Cocking your head to the side, you carefully peel off the banana's skin. "Which one?"

The detective speaks up. "The one you were found in."

Chewing another bite of your food, you tap a finger to your chin in thought. "Well, I was asleep until I heard a bunch of noise." Slowly, you turn to Nezu, replicating his ear-to-ear smile as you dramatically retell your experience.

"I looked up from my home, my beloved alleyway cardboard box, and saw two groups of people fighting. I decided to hide in my box until it was all over, but then one of them crashed into my home. They crumpled my box, and my hiding spot was revealed! The two groups started arguing about 'gang territory,' or whatever, and one of them decided to use me as a hostage and pointed a gun to my head."

You sink your teeth into your banana once more, oblivious to the horrified looks from every adult in the room.

"Oh, but it was fine," you casually continue, mouth half-full, "since, you know, I took care of it and all."

"When you say that you 'took care of it,'" the detective asks cautiously, "do you mean that you used your quirk?"

"My... quirk?" You scratch the back of your neck. "I guess it's my quirk? Don't know too much about 'quirks,' to be honest. I've never been to a doctor, or whatever specialist you go to for checking those out."

"Could you describe to us what it was that you exactly did?"

You gulp down the rest of your banana before replying. "You mean, in that alley? I summoned, or, like, conjured up one of those, uh." You pause, replacing 'SCPs' with another word to prevent further confusion. "Creatures? One of those creatures."

Tsukauchi looks you in the eye. "These creatures that you summon." You glance at the detective's hands, and you notice that they're trembling. "What do they do? What do they look like?"

"Usually I summon them to help and protect me." You explain with a shrug, "Oftentimes I encounter people who want to hurt me for some reason. There's a bunch of, er, 'creatures,' that I can summon, and they don't typically look like your perception of what's 'normal.'"

You continue, "There are endless possibilities, really. One looks like a teddy bear, just covered in human ears." Tsukauchi's eyes widen, as if his suspicions have been confirmed. "There's some that are long and bony. Some of them have these gigantic claws and razor-sharp mouths. Some of them are all gooey and acidic-"

"I believe that's enough." You turn to the side, taking a brief glimpse at Aizawa, who is standing beside you. Those were the only words he's spoken this entire time.

Turning back to the other two, you're about to grab another banana when you catch sight of the detective. You stare awkwardly, your hand paused mid-air. He seems to have completely spun on his heel to face away from you, hands clutching the wall as he gags and dry heaves. You scoot back in your chair uncomfortably.

"...And you do not have a home, correct?" Nezu stands up from his seat, approaching yours.

"Well, I did, but like I said, my cardboard box was destroyed because of those two rival gangs, or whoever they were."

"I see." He raises a paw so as to pet the top of your head. You clumsily bend down in your chair, allowing the two-foot-tall principal to reach your height. "We can arrange something for you. You may stay in a personal dorm here for free, if you would like." He smiles, "So long as you attend this school, the police force has also gladly agreed to erase your criminal record!"

You gawk at him. "C-criminal record?" Well, you guess you usually do end up leaving a mess of dead bodies behind, but it's always in self-defense!

"You should know it is illegal to use your quirk unlicensed and in public, Y/N."

Surveying the room, you dart your eyes from person to person. In the corner of the room, the detective, who is on the verge of vomiting up his insides. The man beside you, Aizawa, who refuses to look at you. The one standing in front of you, Nezu, who is blackmailing you, but is also offering you free shelter and free food...

You huff, grabbing Nezu's paw and shaking it wildly. "It's a deal, then."

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audioroleplayconfessions · 6 months

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https://www.tumblr.com/audioroleplayconfessions/733894052580327424/i-cant-get-into-other-audio-roleplays-because-the

Answering the questions!

Thank you Admin! ♪⁠ ⁠\⁠(⁠^⁠ω⁠^⁠\⁠ ⁠)

I like a heathly combination of fluff and plot though I don't mind either on their own. I prefer cinematic stories with more parts!

Slow burn is definitely a favorite of mine! I like all genres but I do have a preference for fantasy storylines.

I absolutely avoid the fan made y/n-esque audio rp with already existing characters i.e Midoriya, Todoroki, Bakugou, no hate to the ones who like or make those, props to the voice impressions. I find it amazing they could imitate the voices but they just aren't for me though. Original characters are much more my thing.

Otherwise I'm fine with regards to everything else!

So far I only like GBA, Redacted and Sundew. I prefer soft, gentle mid-ranged to deeper voices. I like deep voices but I don't think I'd like a voice as deep as the mariana trench lol. Higher pitched voices also aren't my thing and if it's too whispery then it won't do it for me as well.

I'm pretty picky ain't I? Apologies if this is inconvenient, I have no one to ask for recommendations and I'm particularly new to the community (⁠*⁠´⁠ω⁠｀⁠*⁠)

Warmest regards, much love, numerous thanks and salutations,

Oh, I have some recommendations for you! My opinions are a bit biased here (I have a very strong preference for plot-heavy audios over fluff) but it looks like a lot of my favorites suit your tastes. I dislike fanfiction stuff too, especially MHA stuff and I also prefer gentle voice ranges that aren't too high or too low.

I'll give you a few recommendations.

#1: Escaped Audios! He's the very best VA at making you feel like you are living in a movie. All of his stories are heartfelt and exciting, most have slow-burn romances. Most of his characters have a gentle, mid-range voice that isn't too high or too deep (though he as a couple deeper voiced characters). I like his style of acting because he sounds very sincere and "real" when he talks. My two favorite playlists from him are Matador Gothic (his dramatic vampire slayer adventure) and The New Jersey Rats (a mafia-themed Romantic comedy).

I've followed him since Matador Gothic came out a little over a year ago but he's only recently started to gain hype after being super under-rated for a long time. If you like GBA's style of story telling you'll probably like him too. The only downside you might experience is that his stories usually don't leave a lot of room for fluff, so there are no cuddle audios or sleep aids etc on his channel. That said he's my current favorite, is incredibly creative and original, and he's amazing at supercharging my brain with serotonin.

#2: Obsidian Lantern. He has some of the most immersive sound production of any VA I've ever seen. Some of his earlier stuff is a little weird and clumsy but once he catches his footing he's great. His voice is very gentle and comforting to me, and he'll even speak a little Spanish sometimes.

His Gator Boys series is great and actually ties in with the lore of a few other VA's universes! I also really like his Merfolk series. He also plays around with common tropes while putting his own unique spin on them and I really like that too. He also makes all of his own art, and he not only draws thumbnails but actually makes illustrations of the scenes in his audios which is super cool. Overall really great, I think you'd like him.

#3. ZSaku VA. His playlists start out a little slow but over time his style evolved to be more cinematic. I really like his Vampire series (the Xanthus playlist) and his two interconnected crime series (The Elias and Issac playlists). They're good from the outset and just get better. Lately he's been making higher-stakes stories with more collabs and I love that. He's also collabed with a bunch of the other people I mentioned, which I love to see.

He has a nice balance between fluff and story-telling, and lots of his plots/characters connect to one another. If you like Redacted Audio you'll probably like ZSaku. The only downside is that he takes a long time in between episodes of each series, and works on multiple series at the same time, so if you really get into one playlist you might end up feeling a bit impatient.

#4: YuuriVoice. He's got a rotating cast of characters and he's one of my long-time comfort channels. He has ongoing plots throughout all of his series, but his stuff is mostly character-based. It's worth listening to everything and getting attached to his characters, as their development gets better and more complex over time.

He can do a pretty broad range of voices too, and they all feel unique and fresh. He has done some MHA/fanfic type audios before in the past but over time he transitioned to focusing on his own original characters and I love all of them.

#5: Shining Armor ASMR. I like him more as a comfort/fun/fluff channel. A great channel for listening to little bite sized audios with fun character concepts and lower stakes. I also like his voice and his accent, and it's fun seeing him do different voices within his accent. Definitely more on the fluff side but I think you'd appreciate him!

That's about it! There are more channels I like but based on your tastes I think you would like those channels. Also, honorable mention to Desmond ASMR. I love him but he's been on hiatus for like a year now!

Feel free to leave your own recommendations/cosigns/etc in the comments and reblogs.

Love, Ringmaster.

#audio roleplay #boyfriend asmr #redacted audio #yuurivoice #desmond asmr #zsakuva #escaped audios #good boy audios #asmr roleplay #recommendations #Shining Armor ASMR #Obsidian Lantern #ZSaku VA

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scandinavianfairytale · 2 years

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Psycho

Pairing: Lloyd Hansen x Reader

Warnings: Both Lloyd and Reader are a bit psychotic in this so be warned, mentions of fighting, implied torture, murder, one description of injury (the rest is implied), mentions of blood, knives and guns, mentions of brief alcohol consumption and a bunch of threats.

"So, you're the female version of me?" Lloyd commented with a cock of his head as he observed you. You mimicked his posture and raised one of your perfectly plucked eyebrows.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Good fighter. Smart. Cunning. One of the best in your field. A little bit psychotic?"

"If that description fits you Lloyd then I'm nothing like you. I'm much better. More psychotic too." You smirked.

"What happened, sweetheart? Daddy didn't love you?" He mocked you.

"We can go with that." You pushed away from the wall and stalked towards him. "Or maybe I got my heart broken by my big bad ex-boyfriend." You faked a pout and walked around him.

"Or maybe I just like it when I make people hurt." You stopped in front of him with a smirk.

"I think I'll like working with you." Lloyd smiled, his perfect white teeth showing.

In the months that followed you and Lloyd worked on missions together and while he liked using guns and explosives, you preferred getting close and personal with your target. From hand to hand combat to knives to using ordinary objects for torture. Even Lloyd was surprised by your innovative ways of extracting information.

The latest target was a cocky businessman. He really pissed off your bosses by trading information for money, hiring the best of the best to protect him and his assets. Weeks of observation proved fruitful when Lloyd kicked in the giant entrance door of the appropriate giant house. The businessman ran from the storming duo and hid in his office. He was aware of the reputation Lloyd had and once he saw him at the door he was rightfully fearful for his life. Which is why he was surprised when the office doors opened and Lloyd went to the liquor trolley, pouring himself a drink and sitting down leisurely at the far end of the office.

"W-What's happening?" The man asked, his voice trembling.

"Don't mind me, David, I'm waiting for my associate to arrive. She was tempted by something in your kitchen." Lloyd replied, sipping on the expensive whiskey.

"Aren't you going to kill me?" The businessman gulped.

"I'm not sure what her plan is. Though I can certainly tell you that you're not going to enjoy it...whatever it is." Lloyd smirked.

"You're psychotic."

"Oh, I'm not the psycho today." Lloyd smirked, your heels echoed down the long hallway leading up to the office. "She is. I'm just here to watch." He pointed to the office door, where you just appeared, smiling sweetly at the two men.

"Did I miss anything?" You asked, your voice dripping in honey. While your appearance soothed David, his easiness quickly vanished when he saw the knife you were holding in one of your hand.

"Oh, don't mind this. I collect knives." You smiled at your target, putting the knife on the liquor trolley, walking to the desk and sitting in front of it. Crossing your legs, you motioned to the businessman to sit down. He cautiously sat down and observed you.

"Now, David, you know why we're here. We're not leaving without information and it's up to you how much you suffer while giving that information. So, I'm going to need you to tell me who exactly are the broker, the buyer and the rat."

"I can't tell you that. They're going to destroy me."

"And you think I'm here to drink tea with you?"

"I suppose not. But if I give you information, they're going to come here and kill me. Better you just get things over with and I don't have to be afraid for the rest of my waking days." David leaned towards you. "I'm sure whatever your gorgeous face has in stored for me pales in comparison to what the other would do." His hand slid across the table towards yours. He let out a shrill yell as the knife pierced his palm. Holding the handle and driving it further into the dense wood, you smirked.

"Believe me, everything they'd do to you pales in comparison to what I'm going to do to you." You whispered into his ear. Releasing the knife and standing up, you walked towards Lloyd and grabbed the offered glass of whiskey.

"What are you thinking, Pumpkin?" He asked as he lazily slid his hand over the small of your back. Tapping the glass, you racked your brain, thinking of what you wanted to try. Slapping Lloyd's hand away you turned around and smashed the glass box, where a signed baseball bat was displayed.

"No! You have no idea how much that's worth. Put it back down." David yelled from his position. He was trying hard not to move too much as his hand was still in searing pain.

"Really? Money is what you're still worried about? In this situation I'd be more worried about what a psycho would do to me with it." You mocked, tapping the bat in your other hand, walking toward him. Your heels clicked on the hardwood floor and David twitched with every step you took, brining you closer to him.

"The human body has 206 bones. I suggest you tell me what I want to know or you and I will start the countdown now."

The businessman laid crumpled on the floor, bruised, battered and bloodied. He was barely holding onto life, but he remained alive. You were wiping your hands and props as Lloyd observed your handiwork.

"You did a stellar job, Sunshine." He wrapped his hands around your shoulders, kissing your neck.

"We got what we came here from. You can put him out of his misery if you want to finish the job."

"Oh, come on, there's no fun in killing if I can't play with it first. You don't want to kill him?"

"I just cleaned that knife." You whined as you looked at the long blade.

"You can always shoot him." He whispered as he nuzzled into the crook of your neck.

"You know my stance on guns."

"Messy. Traceable. I know, I know." Lloyd rolled his eyes. You spun around, pushing him to the side and throwing your favourite knife at the businessman, ending his life as it lodged itself in his skull. Pulling Lloyd by his collar, you kissed him hard, before he lifted you up onto the small table and deepened the kiss.

Thank you for reading! 😊💙

The GIF doesn't belong to me - belongs to the amazing creator 🙏😊

I actually haven't written anything in over a month and have been active less...there's been a lot going on 😬 which is also the reason for a very not typical story 😅 I have written several drafts but only this one actually amounted to something 😑 but beggars can't be choosers or something 😑

I had to recheck what I do in the document after the story is over hence why I'm adding this part now 🙈

And of course I had to choose Lloyd, I can't imagine the sea of new stories that will come after the movie drops 🤭😁

#Chris Evans #lloyd hansen #lloyd hansen imagine #lloyd hansen x reader #the gray man #fanfic #short story #psycho

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myreia · 7 months

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WIP Whenever

Been ages since I've had writing to share, so I'm dumping a bunch at once! Tagging @thevikingwoman @roguelioness @allaganexarch @impossible-rat-babies @galadae @hylfystt @lilas @coldshrugs @bearlytolerant and anyone else who would like to. I'd love to see what you're working on! 💖 ~ 1000 words from an endless FFXIV Wolmeric fic I'm working on, specifically a re-working of the dinner date scene in Heavensward.

“Forgive me if this is strange to say,” Aymeric continues, reaching for the decanter and finishes filling his glass. “But I would rather you come as you are, not what you think you should be.”

She pauses. “What do you mean?”

“The dress you spoke of. Frankly, I do not care what you see fit to dress yourself in, nor how closely you choose to follow Ishgardian customs. It would make my heart heavy indeed to see you forgo the very essence of yourself and trade it for traditions that are not your own. I would not argue we besmirch custom and culture wholly and throw them to the wolves, but rather I do not believe their sanctity should go unquestioned. One must take part in tradition out of choice, not obligation. Traditions are precious and deserve to be celebrated, but to embrace them blindly does not equate respect in my eyes. There will always be those for whom tradition fails, and those who tradition forgot.”

He exhales a long breath and lays a hand on the table near his glass. “Perhaps you count yourself among them, more at home amongst the good people of the Brume then the lords and ladies of the High Houses. I can lay no blame at your feet for preferring the Forgotten Knight to the Pillars when some here see your very existence as an affront to the fantasy they deem a civilized society. Regardless, you have notoriety and grand stories of your accomplishments precede you. To some, you are as much a fixture of this era of restoration as the House of Lords and the House of Commons, or the efforts of the good overseers and caretakers of the Firmament. But as wont as the people are to place the Warrior of the Light upon a pedestal, so too are they to forget there is a very real woman at the heart of those tales. I shall not. You cannot be anything other than yourself, and I will not ask it of you.”

She raises her head and meets his eyes, her heart throbbing in her chest. Gods, why must he be like this? What has she done to deserve a friendship like his?

“Perhaps it is something we share, then,” she suggests, a quiet smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

He blinks, startled, and chortles to cover his surprise. “We do?” he asks.

“Aymeric, consider what you have accomplished. My hand may have brought an end to Nidhogg’s wrath, but it is you who had the conviction to pull Ishgard out of this war. Break down the walls this country encased itself in for centuries. Bring an end to the cycle—”

“It was not I who should be accredited with such deeds, but rather men and women far greater than myself. Lord Haurchefant and Estinien and Ysayle, to say nothing of yourself. I can still see you there on the Steps of Faith, striding fearlessly towards the wyrm. It is not a moment I will soon forget.”

“You place too much importance on it—”

“You think I say that as a commander commending his greatest general for feats in battle. It is not so rote as that. Ishgard held its breath that day and you—”

She exhales sharply. “Would you let me finish?”

He bows his head. “Of course,” he says, unable to hide his smile. “Consider me suitably chastised.”

Aureia pauses, twisting her hands together beneath the table. What can she say to get her point across? Whenever she pushes the importance of his political maneuvers, he seems keen on derailing the point to praise her actions in combat. Perhaps that is the soldier in him or the rhetoric of Halone, though in Ishgard, they are often one and the same. The fast and dazzling heroism of victory in battle will always trump the slow, tedious work of reform.

She turns her head, her gaze wandering the dining room as she gives herself time to think. Lights dance on the opposite wall, drawing her eye to the hearth and its crackling flames. A set of portraits hang above the mantlepiece, depicting a wise Elezen noble and his wife. Grey-haired, strong features, kind eyes… These must be his adoptive parents. The former viscount and viscountess. By all accounts they loved him dearly, placing no blame on him for his accident of birth.

He has spoken little of them. Considering her difficulties with her own family, she would never want to press the matter. But she can’t help to wonder how much of him came from them. He may have called Thordan Father in those final days, but his true father—the man who raised him—is remembered here, his memory hanging proudly upon the wall.

If there is anything she knows all too well, it is that family is a very different thing from blood.

“When the whole nation looks to you, what do they see?” Aureia says finally. “On one hand, the commander who did not come from noble stock. The bastard who stood in the face of bloody tradition and sought another path. The reckless fool who defies century of tradition. On the other, the viscount who has nothing but love for his country. A noble man and a man of righteous faith, for whom there is no sacrifice too great if it means bringing Ishgard to the dawn of a new day. Aymeric, you are as much an enigma to your nation as I am. If they forget the Warrior of Light is a living, breathing person with blood in her veins, then so it is true for the Lord Commander. You are an ideal to them, at once a traditionalist to be trusted and a maverick to be praised. A visionary.”

She takes a breath and forges ahead. “But the problem with ideals is that they are just that. Ideals. The work ahead of you will be longer and more grueling than fighting any dragon. My duty is done the moment my enemy is felled, but yours is just beginning. There will come a time when your people will see you not as the ideal they believe, but the man you are. And, in my experience, people do not like to see their fantasies broken.”

His gaze passes over her, blue eyes piercing and stern. For a moment, she wonders whether she has upset him, but then his expression breaks into a blinding smile. “Eloquently put,” he says, running a thumb across the stem of his glass. “Are you certain you are not fit for public speaking?”

She rolls her eyes. “Fuck, no.”

#did i proof this for spelling or continuity or lore before posting no #if there are mistakes it'll get fixed in the edit #it's pushing 10 chapters now #when did this happen 😂#ffxiv #ffxiv fic #ffxiv writing #writing tag #aureia malathar

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thesternest · 5 months

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tag meme: my top 9 characters

i was tagged by @regallibellbright so with no particular order lets get into it

I have decided to not put any characters of my own here because then this list would be filled with my characters and nothing else

also only one per series since i want this to be an overall representation of my favorite characters

1.Phosphophyllite/Phos (land of the lustrous)

Phos is by far one of my favorite characters due to how they change throughout the series

also watching them suffer is what got me my permanent angst craving

phos is one of those characters that unfortunately due to being by far the most popular character in the series the fandom tends to dislike every other character in the series (particularly in this case since a lot of the other characters have mistreated phos in some way) which i think is a disservice to those characters

but phos is still my favorite

2.Blake Thorburn (Pact: Devils and Details) (no art for him because im too lazy to ask for permission to put him here and i dont want to put a piece of art on my post without permission)

ill be honest it was hard to pick if Taylor or Blake were going to be put here, since i didnt want to put two wildbow protagonists here, and while Worm was much more enjoyable for me to read i think Pact was a much more memorable story for me,

Since like blake struggled through the horrors, i struggled against decaying attention span

In general i gravitate toward fantasy stories more than superhero stories

3. Eve and aoi (birdie wing golf girls story)

hey remember a second ago when i was debating over which wildbow protagonist to put here because i didnt want to put both

Yeah fuck that these two are a pair because i love them both and refuse to seperate them

These two are genuinely one of my favorite protagonist duo's ever

like they are so funny with their insane antics and golf

4. Yuki Takamiya (thirteen sentinels aegis rim)

this one proved to be really hard to decide between Yuki, Okino or 426 since they are all favorites

i decided that it was best to fit one of the protagonists into this since it would be hard to talk about the other two without spoiling anything and needing a ton of context

from the second Yuki showed up i knew she would likely be a favorite

what i didnt expect was for her to be arguably one of the smartest characters in the game

I would say out of the protagonists she is the second smartest with Gouto being the smartest

Like i did not expect her route to be a detective story

5. Power (chainsaw man)

first person on this list who isnt a protagonist, and i did consider putting Asa instead of her and while i am undoubtedly more invested in Asa im also much more entertained by power

also i need to put one character who isnt a main character here lest i be seen as a basic bitch

6. Sayeon Lee (hand jumper)

we only have one season of her but this girl is so mentally unwell its like catnip to me

im eagerly awaiting the start of season 2

also to my surprise me reccomending vibes this webtoon caused a bunch of wormblr people to read this too so when season 2 starts i could probably talk to those people about it

7.Daan/ the doctor (fear and hunger termina)

this was a tough descision between Daan and Marina because while i love them both equally Daan has the better narrative in my head with his doomed by the narrative swag

8.Iwha (hero killer

she's cool when she murders people

9. Kikuri Hiroi (bocchi the rock)

girl who is doomed by the narrative

but the narrative is a slice of life so overall its not that bad

@n0brainjustvibes@tranz-regent@worstgirl-online i nominate you to follow in my example and list characters

Also feel free to analyse me like a lab rat for these picks in the notes

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sleepy-grav3 · 9 months

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Bonding - Kikaku x Uramichi

A/N: Ok so... I love these 2 so much and there's... nothing on them... I can't find enough fanfics about this entire fandom. So I'm just gonna start writing random things to fill my empty heart ^v^.

Summary: Amon was stalking Uramichi, as usual when he ran out of show ideas. Thankfully, Kikaku was there to spot him and Uramichi, deciding to just drag the poor victim away and send a small warning to the script writer.

Tw: Swears, stalking, hopefully nothing else that I forgot about

There's not any actual romance, just a bunch of bonding because this specific idea got stuck in my head and just wouldn't correlate with actual romance... It does hint at one though.

“I swear I’ve been getting this feeling once a week now…”

Recently, Uramichi has been getting the sensation that he’s being watched. And he was. And by none other than Amon, the writer of the show he worked on. The writer had decided to gain as much inspiration from Uramichi as possible by stalking him until his idea became more popular than Uramichi’s nightmare friend, Kotori-san, the creepy bird drawing that no kid actually liked at first.

So now, Amon was following the adult into a cafe.

“Maybe a change of scenery will give me a change of pace. A cafe should do the trick.”

“Hello sir, a table for 1?”

“Uh, yes. Just one.”

“Just one, huh? This guy must be a single gym rat who lifelessly works out to fill a void in his heart.” The waitress thought, inwardly sighing at how sad she assumed the man’s life was.

Sadly… she was spot on.

“Right this way sir!”

He was guided to a round table that had 2 chairs despite the table space seeming to only fit 1 person’s plate. Uramichi’s thoughts drifted to that subject once he sat down and was given the menu.

“You know, having multiple of these tables is good for more customers… but the space on the table is something that tends to make people realize their boundaries more. The small table makes it that 2 people are too close together, so only one person could comfortably put their arms on it, but doing so would make them feel selfish or overbearing because they’re imposing on the potential space the other had available. And they can’t properly stretch their legs either or else that’ll lead to them awkwardly brushing against each other. This table… This table is only welcoming to lovers or those who don’t have any awareness of personal bubbles.”

All of these thoughts only drained him further, making him not realize that amon was sitting diagonally from him, staring without an ounce of shame.

“He doesn’t usually go to cafes… I think I could get something great from this!”

Ding Ding!

“Damn bastard, I told him to stop putting up the pre-order pages when they weren’t approved…” Kikaku grumbled with a wide-eyed death glare.

“It doesn’t look that bad this time th…ough…”

Kikaku paused for a moment.

“Table for one this time, sir?”

He didn’t bother to listen to the hostess, snapping his head to the left, seeing Amon spying on Uramichi with a camera on the table and a notepad in hand. The hostess obviously noticed. Due to him being a regular, she knew that Kikaku had known him well enough to put so much attention on him.

“Oh, is that your friend? You can sit with him if you’d like.”

“Yeah, sure.”

He didn’t bother to look back, walking on over with his usual closed-eyed smile.

“Uramichi, buddy!”

Uramichi flinched, turning his head stiffly with owlish eyes.

“K-Kikaku? I didn’t *ahem* expect to see you here..”

“Yeah! I felt like a good coffee. Once I saw my good friend sitting all alone at a table, I couldn’t help but come over.”

His eyes opened with a dark look that shot straight at Amon. The said writer jumped with a squeak while Uramichi tensed, thinking that he was the target of the glare.

“R-really?”

Kikaku’s expression went back to cheerful as he sat down.

“Yep!”

A door to Uramichi’s heart seemed to creak open slowly as Kikaku took out his phone to see the cafe’s menu from there, as nobody gave him the physical menu.

“Seeing him calm like this is oddly comforting. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten with someone one on one like this before… Nobody that didn’t give me stress immediately after they spoke that is… This is a nice change.”

“Is my face that disturbing to you or something?” Kikaku questioned as he put his phone aside.

Uramichi tensed.

“No, you look just perfectly fine- I just- um…”

“What the hell do I say to him?”

“I never saw you come by here. Change of pace”

“Uh, yeah. It might sound weird but… I’ve been getting this feeling that someone’s been watching me. It’s every week now. I think my usual routine has gotten to me so I decided to.. come here.. Sorry, you probably don’t really care about it.”

“Every week now, hmm? When does it start? Actually… do you get this feeling when you get home too?”

That last part was said a bit louder, making the writer who had picked up his camera set it back down immediately with a jolt. Meanwhile, Uramichi felt his heart speed up just a bit, looking down at the menu still in his hands with a flowery aura around him. The door to his heart creaked a bit more open.

“He believes me.”

“It starts right when I get out of work and tends to end only when I get to the building.”

“Really now? Huhh… Well! I bet you don’t want to think about it at the moment- So what are you thinking of getting?”

“Just a strawberry shortcake, you?”

“Black coffee with as much sugar as they can put without poisoning me. Seems like the big boss wants me to design shirts with.. What was the bird called again?”

“Kotori-san?”

“That.”

Uramichi pursed his lips, sweating a bit.

“I don’t know if he likes me or hates me.”

“Hello! Have you chosen what you want?”

“A strawberry shortcake please.”

“And for you, I’m assuming it’s the usual coffee?”

“Yeah, add a sunset lemonade for him too.”

“Huh?”

“Right away!”

And off she went, making Uramichi look over at Kikaku for answers when he froze up. Kikaku had an elbow on the table, leaning his cheek on his hand.

“The lemonade here is pretty good. Anybody who doesn’t like their lemonade doesn’t have any taste at all and should just die.”

“Y-you must come here often then…”

“Yep. I come straight here for coffee and come up with designs late at night since the boss like to give me work last minute-”

His phone then rang. He looked at the caller ID and instantly clenched his jaw.

“THIS IS THE 3RD TIME YOU’VE CALLED ME IN THE LAST DAMN HOUR! WHAT ON EARTH DO YOU WANT?!”

“Scary…”

“Sorry about that, one of my side-chicks is pretty clingy. No matter how much I tell her to leave me alone, she keeps bothering me. The complete opposite of you and yet you’re both upsetting.”

“Um, sorry?”

“You better be. Do you know how frustrating it is to get in contact with you without your number? I have to actually keep track of your work hours and finish stuff or even wait to start things until I can align it with your schedule.”

Uramichi could feel Kikaku’s temper rising once more.

“So sorry…”

“..”

“.....”

“.........”

“..............”

There was an awkward moment of silence until Kikaku took a deep breath to calm himself.

“He’s so damn dense.”

“Can I have your number now??”

“R-right!”

Uramichi scrambled to get his phone out, nearly dropping it before turning it on and pulling up his number before handing his phone over to Kikaku to not anger him further. Kikaku, satisfied with his achievement, entirely calmed down and added Uramichi into his contacts and vice-versa.

“There we go! Now I can contact you whenever I need to!”

Uramichi looked down at the contact name Kikaku saved himself as.

Kikaku🖤

“It was nice to-”

Kikaku put his arm over Uramichi’s shoulder.

“Leaving already? C’mon, I’ll walk you home. I insist.”

“S-sure..! Can you please uh.. let me go…...”

Kikaku didn’t let go, making him walk forward towards Uramichi’s apartment. He took a moment to look back though, sending another wide-eyed glare to Amon who also exited the cafe a second after they set off.

“AHHHHHHHHHHH! He’s going to kill me!!!”

Amon ran off afterwards.

“Goodnight, Kikaku. Thanks for walking me here. That feeling went away thanks to you. Guess I might’ve just felt lonely or something.”

Kikaku paused at the door for a moment before he let out an airy chuckle.

“Yeah. Let’s hang out more often. I’ll show you some new hobbies, seeing as you’re such a gym rat.”

“Uh, yeah sure. That would be great.”

“See ya then, Uramichi.”

“See ya, Kikaku.”

Uramichi walked into his apartment and closed the door behind him. But he only stood there, hearing Kikaku walk away.

“He wants to hang out with me more…”

A smile made its way onto his face at the thought. In fact, the smile kept popping up each time he thought of it until he fell asleep.

Kikaku felt a similar way, looking forward to their next hang out as he made his way to Amon's house. It was just a little visit...

“What. The. Hell. Is. THIS?!” Kikaku shouted, his entire body trembling from anger.

He was currently looking at a new shirt design that had a new character inputted into the show. Apparently, Kotori-san had a new bird friend… A creepy owl named Yuzu-san. He knew immediately what that was about.

“That bastard…”

But despite his anger, he actually kept 2 shirts and forcefully gave the rest to Uramichi once the product came out. He seemed a little less resistant this time to the product. They both did.

A/N: So uh, not that good but it's something? Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. I'll probably never get motivation to do anything like this again :)

#uramichi oniisan #Uramichi x Kikaku #hanbee kikaku #Fluff?

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fantastictrashpolice · 3 months

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hi. you never told me all of this!! and i honestly don't know what to say, because feeling like you exist, like you're valued as a person is one of the hardest things in the world. most people take others for granted which is shitty and horrible and undermining D: please know that i love all your interests and having more, or fluctuating between them is literally what makes you cooler! i would love to hear about anything you're obsessed with, and i would love to hear about your writing too!! what inspires you? tell me about your ocs! and what kind of music do you like? (ok i just skipped from subject to subject there, and did you know!there's a french phrase for that- "sauter du coq à l'âne", which literally translates to "to jump from rooster to donkey"! isn't that interesting?) which countries do you like? what's your dream aesthetic, or just. your dreams in general!! please don't put yourself down, i love your blog, your aesthetic, and you're amazing and beautiful. you ARE cool. i wouldn't be able to keep up with all your interests never in my life. also unrelated but being described as the "absolute chaotic academia masterpiece". but back to the subject. maybe you need to make a change in your life? i mean i think you're doing perfectly! maybe you need some different frens :3. idk. but please just know that i love it when you interact with my posts and i think you're really interesting and complex. and i want to get to know you <3333 anyway here's some tea ☕ and cookie 🍪 🍪 🍪

Thank you for such an amazing ask!!!!!

(I ferociously devour the cookies, then take a very long slow sip of the tea)

To answer your questions in order:

I'm inspired by music, fanfiction, and whatever random thing I can think of that would make a vaguely entertaining story.

Right now I've got one major OC and another OC in development. The finished OC is (currently) named Professor Eden, who's a burnt-out researcher who keeps rats in his apartment. The in-development OC is a rat who lives in Professor Eden's apartment and is probably the protagonist of the story. Oh, and there might be a rat god involved.

I like fan songs, punk, and songs from musicals. Plus a bunch of songs that fall into other categories like indie, pop, or... I'm not even really sure.

I don't really have a favorite country, but I've always thought the UK was cool! (...mostly because of Doctor Who.) ...I just realized you're French... You know what, forget I said the UK is cool- what I'm trying to say is that Doctor Who is cool.

My dream aesthetic is either goblincore or dark academia.

My biggest dream in general is to become a published author- or better yet, to become a published author with a devoted and respectful internet following :3

As you can see, you're in good company because I also tend to jump from rooster to donkey. Thank you for the kind words and excuse to rant!

#long post #writers of tumblr #writeblr #ocs #writing #wip-ratgod

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hyperfixated-homo · 4 months

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Now that we're entering into 2024, I'm asking some artists and writers that I follow:

1) What is the one piece you're most proud of from this past year?

2) What are some pieces that you would have liked more people to see? If you can include links, I'd love to go check them out!

3) What were your top three favorite pieces (art, comics, fics, etc) that someone else has made this past year?

(As always, no pressure to respond! Feel free to just ignore, or let me know if you'd rather I not send you these kinds of asks in the future.)

Hihi!! I have a ton of unanswered asks but i wanted to do this one because it's really lovely :) thank you

(answers under the cut)

This is such a hard question! This year was full of art that made me really happy. If i had to pick ONE I think it would be this

I made it in three hours flat in a vc with my friends and honestly I'm very proud of it!! It feels like a culmination of all the exploration and studying I've been doing the past year.

Here's the post :D

2. I've made so much stuff that I just. want everyone to see, always. So here are some highlights!

Leo doodle

Random sunset experiment

My dragon oc <3

Leo, screaming (tw for messed up faces, noose, blood, general disturbing imagery)

mmmmmm drez

OC witch art!!! I'm so proud of this actually but pretty much nobody saw it :(

THIS DRAWING I SPENT EIGHT HOURS OH MY GOD

Those are the main ones I think

3. uueuueueueuue there have been SO MANY GOOD ONES. AAA

I really don't know what to put so I'm going to say any artwork by @/sanfezu (their art style is just my favourite thing ever), all of the artwork by any of my mutuals, and specifically this artwork by SamDoesArts. I think it is very cool.

Fanfics are a bit easier. There are a whole bunch of fics that I find super interesting! With a small warning to read tags, the ones that I found myself coming back to over and over were:

The Lemonade Leak

tied together through thorns and ribbons

Sewer Rat Disposables

Times Five

moral of the story

The Blood In My Veins

Where In the World Is Neon Leon?

Creation, Haunted and Holy

Power Up

Minor Interference

The Analogous Hues series

...I know that's a bit more than three but in my defense. Listen. There's so much good stuff out there!! I love it all!!

Anyways, Thank you for the ask <3 I had a lot of fun looking back over the last year.

#if i read as many books as I did fanfics i think i would be set for life.#i would simply have so much knowledge you don't even understand #ty for the ask!#i seriously recommend checking out the fanfics I've listed here (if the tags don't bother you at all)#they made me Feel Things

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bentosandbox · 1 year

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Lin's module summary question mark

>finally module lore surely she will be less of an enigma (clueless)

Lin orders cart noodles, the owner (i'll just use he/him here so it's clearer when the owner is referring to a 'they/them' and not just himself lol) knows her and mentions multiple times how he's indebted to the rat king but her as well.

She asks if there's enough medicine to get by and yes, he wouldn't dare get sick because it'd cause her trouble, (because Lin says he should take care of himself for his own sake) that the rat king and her basically saved their life, and that Lin even visits their stall, just how highly does she keep him in regard?

Does this sound a little sus??? Because yes, when Lin mentions how her dad says that 'everyone should be able to live a proper life' he cuts her off with an 'accidental' chop on his board as he's cooking, and makes an excuse about how the new guy sucks at sharpening knives, unlike the previous 'chopper Liang' who was really good at it.

Lin asks where this 'old Liang' is; and he says Liang died five years ago, just because he was loyal and honest to a fault, he stubbornly made that one mistake... it was a very serious mistake, Lin reminds him.

He praises her dad's ability to see through people and asks for her guidance in the future too, and she's surprised they're still willing to listen to her, and he says its because she didn't ask how Liang died, so he's thankful for that. ?????? what (see below musings)

Lin says 'you still blame me.', which he denies because Lin and her dad saved their life after all, to which Lin does the classic '......'

But then the noodles are done so she eats them while the guy watches her closely the entire time, she leaves after she's done and they tell her to stay safe on the dangerous streets out there because they 'have' to follow her (how do i word this succinctly, like she's their leader so she can't just carelessly die on them but without like a job-level commitment if you get me lol) and asks one last question:

If she were in her own shoes 5 years ago, would she have done the same? And she replies she would because she doesn't want Lungmen to experience that again.

Okay so, thing five years ago = the chapter 6 slum purge... didn't that.... kind of not happen........ (beneath the surface), though I guess they didn't explicitly confirm that all the slum-dwellers were unharmed or something, because in Vernal Winds she runs into Taihe (The Forte Censor) and they very briefly reminiscence about that episode

Lin: Didn't expect (you) to remember me. The last time we met must have been five years back? Taihe: The circumstances of our meeting was truly unforgettable.. Lin: And not a pleasant one. Taihe: We were both just doing our jobs.

like sure Lin didn't ask how Liang died but uh hello!! i would like to!!! ask mister hypergrief to give us a clear answer on the slum purge statistics or something lmao...!! did Liang just refuse to evacuate and got whacked or crossed Lin somehow??????

the module name 七巧玲瓏 is uhhhhh a reference to a chapter in this i think (incidentally her S1 is the last 2 characters 玲珑) also what did they mean by the hourglass in the artwork wait fuck is it supposed to represent her DAD 😭

i didn't exactly scrutinise the text to make sure, but there's like a bunch of cantonese words in the dialogue that i feel like even hoshiguma's second module didn't feature but that's not the main point of this post but very nice nonetheless

#arknights #i should tag all these tl posts under something #bentotexto #yeah i will answer that ask soon i had to do this first to fully answer it LMAO

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oneshortdamnfuse · 7 months

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bro ive never heard a Ghost song in my life. got any recs for their heaviest-sounding songs. ive seen jokes that they aren't actually metal so thats why im asking for their heaviest songs lol or what someone would consider to be heavy for a Ghost song

The thing about Ghost is that their music doesn't neatly fit into one genre, and people probably wouldn't be saying they're not metal if this was 40+ years ago. They'd fit in with many 80s metal bands.

Their debut hit "Ritual" doesn't sound heavy at first, but thirty seconds into the song there's a heavy riff and then it goes back to a groovy tune and then another two minutes it's heavy again.

A lot of people jokingly refer to it as "Scooby Doo Rock" because it IS very campy and over the top. I think Square Hammer instantaneously hits you with that vibe, but it's a great song. Square Hammer is heavy, but it's also fun and upbeat.

Their songs often have a mix of heavy riffs and beautiful melodies, with inspiration clearly taken from 80s stadium metal and even 60s bubblegum pop. They're danceable. You can shake your ass to their songs and that's intentional.

It's also worth noting that the musicians supporting Ghost come from all different backgrounds. Their guitarist, Sodo, has been in heavy metal and death metal bands. However, Aurora, one of their female vocalists, is a pop singer.

I have a general favorite Ghost songs playlist here. Songs on there and the list below are marked with an asterisk*

I would say, though, some of their (subjectively) heavier songs are by album (early to new) are the following. I'd recommend working backwards from their new stuff to old if you're interested in listening to them because their sound is more polished now.

Opus Eponymous (2010)

Elizabeth

Con Clavi Con Dio*

Prime Mover

Genesis

Infestissumam (2013)

Infestissumam

Per Aspera Ad Inferi

Year Zero*

Depth of Satan's Eyes

Meliora (2016)

Spirit

From The Pinnacle To The Pit

Cirice*

Mummy Dust*

Absolution*

Square Hammer*

Prequelle

Rats*

Faith

See The Light*

Witch Image*

Impera

Call Me Little Sunshine*

Hunter's Moon*

Watcher in the Sky*

Twenties*

Respite Of The Spitalfields*

They have a bunch of ballads that I love as well including Darkness At The Heart of My Love.

And! I will always say Sodo didn't bleed all over his guitar while shredding for people to say they're not metal or metal enough. They're just not growling on stage and again, you can shake your ass to a lot of their music lol

#text post #the band ghost

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tonberry-yoda · 1 year

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Late Night Pizza Stop - Xigbar

notes - pov: you're tonberry and you have over 30 requests in your inbox, but in your soul you wanted to write for xigbar, so you did LMFAO. well, I know there aren't a ton of kh fans on here, but for my xigbar simps, this one is for you <3 I have been simping over this man, so please enjoy my mini fic <3

word count - 472

You woke up to the sound of you window opening. Of course.

You rubbed your eyes and checked the time. It was 2 in the morning. God, of course he thought it would be a good idea to crawl into your room like the little rat he is right when you were finally getting some good sleep.

"Xigbar," you said with an unamused expression, watching the tall, lanky man try to squeeze his way through the open window. "What the hell are you doing?"

He shot you a crooked smile before falling face first onto your floor with a muffled "ow."

You crossed your arms and Xigbar stood up slowly, trying to play him falling off as nothing leaning on your desk chair that he didn't realize had wheels until he was flat on his face again.

"Xigbar, you're a dumbass."

"You're a dumbass." He said, getting up and rubbing his downward nose that he could've swore was broken.

"Well I'm not the one crawling through people's window's while they're sleeping, am I?"

Xigbar just chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, I just found this really cool pizza shop in this world I was travelling to and I wanted to take you there."

You stared at Xigbar blankly. "So you're telling me.... you woke me up at two in the morning... for pizza?"

"Yes?"

You sighed, but couldn't help the smile that was creeping onto your lips. "Fine. Let me throw a jacket on and we can go get this dumb pizza."

"Look, if you don't wanna go, that's fine. I didn't mean to wake you, I thought you would be up." Xigbar followed you like a sad puppy.

"Look, Xig, pizza actually sounds godly and I honestly don't think I can go back to sleep." You pulled on your jacket and turned to Xigbar, who was pouting. "I'm fine," you giggled, pulling Xigbar into your arms. For being a whole bunch of nothing, he sure was warm. "Plus, I know you don't actually feel bad, Xig. You don't feel anything."

"Shut up." He said, pulling away from the hug and pressing a small kiss onto your lips. "You make me feel something."

"Ha, ha, very funny." You stepped into a pair of slippers and Xigbar opened a portal for the two of you to step through which ended you both up in front of the pizza shop. Even outside it smelled godly.

"I mean it, goober." He told you before pressing one more kiss onto your temple and leading you into the back of the pizza shop holding the small of your back.

To be honest, you were glad that Xigbar showed up. You couldn't sleep anyway. And he knew that too. For a guy who couldn't feel a thing, he sure knew how to make you smile.

~~~~~

kingdom hearts masterlist | pinned post

2023 @tonberry-yoda – do not repost or claim ANY of my work as your own! likes, reblogs, and comments are not only welcome, but appreciated

~~~~~

#god i love him #he's just a crusty rat and for that i love him even more #writing #fanfic #my writing #<3 #fanfiction #kingdom hearts #kh #kh x reader #kingdom hearts x reader #xigbar #xigbar x reader #luxu #luxu x reader #braig #braig x reader

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hextechmaturgy · 2 years

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my thoughts on pathologic classic

finally finished the game all the way through, so here are my (not at all concise) thoughts

beware of spoilers and A LOT OF TEXT

NOTE: I do know quite a bit about pathologic 2, but seeing as I haven't played that game yet, I'll try to keep my ideas here separate and only focus on what I got from playing the classic version

Bachelor:

By far my favorite character, and if you say I'm biased cause we have similar degrees, you are absolutely right, but that's not why I love him. I got into pathologic by watching all the video essays I think everyone else watches, so coming into it I had a very specific idea of what Daniil would be like - rude, condescending, heartless, "the prickly prick who will bury us all" - and while I can definitely see where some of those are coming from sort of, after 80+ hours of playing this goddamn game I can safely say: Daniil is a good person who does good things and the hate he gets is largely undeserved. I'm a Daniil Dankovsky TRUTHER.

He's kind! He's surprisingly good with kids; when he does snap at them and threaten to put them in timeout or to call their parents, it's usually because they're breaking his quarantine rules and that's a REALLY BAD IDEA (after 2020, I feel we can all relate to that frustration). In one instance, Capella asks him to look for a kid in an infected district and, upon finding him, Daniil tells him to run off and leave testing the disease to him, earning a shmowder from the kid but also getting the plague. This is a side quest, it's up to you to decide if getting infected is worth the shmowder or not, but the fact of the matter is, Daniil doesn't have to care about this kid, he doesn't have to do this quest, but (at least in my save) he does. Forgetting about the kids though, Daniil is just a genuinely helpful guy. He's a fucking lifesaver when you're playing as the Haruspex, he clears your name completely on day 1 when he really doesn't have to. The two go on to collaborate pretty much until the end. When Daniil's solution begins to diverge from Artemy's, he explains that no, killing the polyhedron won't help Artemy actually, it's the only way to ensure Aglaya is sacrificed, which is the only way Artemy will be accepted by the kin, which he knows is important to him, it's his inheritance! Time and time again, Daniil gives it his all to protect the people of the town. He talks Peter down from suicide, he can try to do the same with Rubin, he kills a bunch of men to protect Andrey, at some point he has a mission to reunite a daughter with her father and he only fails that mission because Artemy kills her (because you asked him for an infected heart and Artemy chose hers). His best efforts are constantly thwarted or misunderstood. I'm not saying he's a saint, he still has plenty of awful dialogue lines to choose from, but? MAN, I've been a health professional during a pandemic, I understand frustration, the pure fucking rage felt at the people who don't quarantine or believe vaccines will help, the hatred that rises in your gut when you watch as politicians take advantage of the situation. I was only a student back then! Imagine being 1 out of FOUR (4!!) people who can do something!

Daniil's condescension is another one of those things where... I see it, but I don't. Yes, his latin is tacky and he does have lines calling people dumb as shit compared to him, a genius mastermind, but one thing that we have to take into account is that Daniil is, by all accounts, a genius mastermind. The mysticism of the town goes completely over his head (it's SO fucking funny to me that Daniil has 0 knowledge that the Rat Prophet even exists), but this is because it's not something one can easily prove 1) it exists and 2) can be repeated and reproduced, both of which are VERY important in scientific experimentation. Meanwhile, in the Capital, Daniil is a famous scientist known for his experiments surrounding death; he's so good he's earned himself a following, and if the rumors on the street are to be believed, Daniil has even successfully brought someone back from the dead! I think he gets to flex his smarts, maybe. He doesn't need to be rude about it, sure, but it's not like the people would respect him if he didn't flex it. He's told from the start that he just doesn't get it, will never get it, "you're smart but you're not" type of conversation time and time again, since he's not attuned to ~miracles~ like some of the others are. Again, as an atheist myself, I can see why that would get frustrating. There is also an instance where Daniil "mansplains" antibodies to Artemy? Artemy, a fellow doctor sort of, can reply with something along the lines of "don't make fun of me" and Daniil's response is a genuine "i wasn't making fun of you, i was only explaining a concept". To the fellow mentally ill person reading this, ain't that the most relatable thing ever? Talking about something you're passionate about with a person that you like, wanting to make sure they understand the concept because you love it and understand it, but just coming off as obnoxious?

Daniil is GAY AS HELL. Those videos don't prepare you for how gay this man is. I started getting into the fandom telling myself "wow people ship these two huh, I can't imagine why" and then I played the fucking thing and you can't not ship them. It's not even subtext at this point, this is how Daniil introduces himself to Artemy:

He has two women thirsting over him (I don't know if Maria's feelings are genuine of if the Mistress magic within her just recognizes that he's her path to victory) and he barely reacts to them inviting him to their bed or saying "I love you" to his face. He can flirt back, but I feel like Daniil is just a charming guy as it is, he's from the Capital, he was friends with Andrey so you KNOW he did drugs in university and he has to know about the orgies already. He does care about Eva, but who wouldn't? In the runs you don't control him he often refers to her as "my Eva", but I always read it as platonic I'll be honest. Her death hits him hard, she's a sweetheart who only ever tried to help him, she housed him barely knowing who he was for fuck's sake, and Daniil's last conversation with her in the Cathedral shows he feels awful because he thinks she did it for him. I like to think that Daniil took a liking to Eva's kind and free spirit and often looked to her for comfort. Do I think he was in love with her? Absolutely not <3

Finally, let's talk about his ending, shall we? I feel like this is often used to demonstrate just how heartless Daniil is, and I will admit that, to me, his ending felt weirdly cruel and sudden while I was playing him. Hilariously, though, when I was playing as Artemy and spoke to Daniil about his solution, I thought Daniil had way better reasons to keep the polyhedron when I wasn't controlling him, and he explains his views better too. Daniil sees that the town is basically destroyed already, so many have died, so many more are infected and will soon die, they have a panacea but lack the materials with which to make enough to go around. The tower is aseptic, children have managed to live in it for the entirety of the plague without getting sick; it would be the perfect isolation ward for the survivors, a controlled space where they would be able to be vaccinated and monitored. Daniil does show frustration with the town, I think he even has some less than kind lines calling it backwards and doomed, but when his mind is clear and he's just talking about his plan, he says that he wouldn't mind saving the town, but he knows Block has to shoot something, and the polyhedron is worth preserving. I feel like his reasons are mostly empirical, a real science man's choice, but I'm also not one of those people who believes that Daniil represents hard, cold logic. The only reason he's searching for a way to defeat death is because he wants humans to die on their own terms, at peace. He follows facts but he interprets them with the mind of a bright eyed idealist. He writes the most dramatic letters in the world. He wears his heart of his sleeve! By the end of the game, he has seen evidence that the Kains are as magical as they claim to be. Maria's prophecies have come true, and he's literally spoken to the spirits of Nina and Simon. He sees the marvel of architecture that his twin friends managed to build, he admires it for what it is even without the mysticism on top, but then he actually learns that the mysticism is real, and he's naturally enthralled by it. Going into the polyhedron, hearing that music and seeing those lights, watching the kids play without a worry or care in the world. The future could be immortality and comfort, peace equal to that of a child who doesn't know pain, wouldn't that be wonderful? Adding to the mix the fact that he feels used by Aglaya (gonna be real here chief, either she played me super well or I was just not paying enough attention cause no matter which protagonist I was, I only ever loved Aglaya, this one is on him xoxo), while knowing she will die only if the town falls + knowing Artemy needs her dead or his prophecy won't be realized and his people won't accept him....... When talking to Clara about her ending, all she says is that she can't explain her miracle, a miracle requires faith, and yeah! If you were to meet God and he told you exactly how or why he stayed silent and hidden from you all your life, believing God exists and has power over the world would become fact, not a belief. There are too many "what ifs" in Clara's ending, at the cost of blood sacrifice one might add. Idk, I hate to see the town die and I do still think this ending is a bit cruel, but I get it. Daniil would think keeping the Polyhedron alive is the best choice, I can't fault him for it.

Side note, I would like to add that, although Daniil doesn't understand magic, as I've mentioned, he is the first person to defend it when he finds proof for it, and this doesn't just apply to the Kains. He admits he was wrong about the people and practices of the Steppe; they do work, he doesn't know how, but they are very much real and they do absolutely work, Artemy even gives him a panacea, a cure for the epidemic made from ancient, sacred blood. How can he go on claiming they're dumb superstitions? When you play as the Changeling, Daniil doesn't believe what he's heard about you at first, good or bad, but then he witness one of your miracles and from that point forth he's on your side. He defends her from Aglaya, once again rectifying the reputation of a perceived scoundrel simply because he can and he thinks they deserve it.

Haruspex:

This man makes me feral, I want to hug him so bad. His casual playfulness gets to me, the fact that his bound are children means that he often has to deal with them, and he really is good with them. A lot is said about his first mission being a testament to how hard the game and, indeed, his whole run is: one of your bound, a kid, asks you to kill another kid for betraying him or whatever. The reward is a shmowder, a cure to the plague, but you obviously lose reputation for going through with it. And see, if making this decision really was as crucial as some people make it out to be, I would get it, but it's really not. Letting the kid leave with his life means you don't get a shmowder, sure, but that doesn't matter cause you're playing the guy who invents the fucking cure. Notkin, the kid who "hired" you, thanks you for letting him live because he no longer felt so angry he wanted him dead once you left his hideout. TO ADD EVEN MORE REASONS TO WHY YOU SHOULD BE A DECENT HUMAN BEING, that kid you let escape comes back on day 9 and helps you get the Bachelor out of prison, no questions asked. Saving that kid and getting rep for it is so much more important than getting a single cure, especially because, if you're role-playing as Artemy in that moment, he probably doesn't even know what the shmowders do. Don't make your life harder. Play Artemy as the nice, moral man he is, protect the kid, protect all the children of the town, and you'll be rewarded with their friendship and all the things they can do for you. Murky alone provides the ingredients you need to make 2 fucking cures, and the price you pay for that is "go on a nice stroll through the steppe looking for her missing doll".

Related to my last point, Artemy will only really be hunted down by the masses for his crimes if he goes around town killing innocent people for no reason. You don't need to do that!!! If you must kill (and I do understand you kinda do in order to make your awesome potions), killing criminals at night raises reputation and, surprise bro, they also have organs: steal 'em, cook 'em, thrive. Artemy is portrayed as a brutish, scary man who will spill blood, and just like how it is with Daniil, this is all true in places. Despite what his model in 2 might suggest, I always envision him as a tall, large and imposing figure, the giant with the heart of gold archetype and all. People in the streets see that man, they hear about his crimes and his alleged crimes and they think the worst of him. I do believe part of the confusion also comes from the racist views of the people of the town, who go on and on about how freaky the worms and the brides are. Artemy's prophecy that he will spill blood is true for his ending, that's how he gains access to the ingredients he needs to make the cures, but it's also just a part of his occupation. Not to be a filthy solasmancer on main, but there's a character I really like in dragon age who says "the healer has the bloodiest hands" and to me that's Artemy in a nutshell. Daniil is more scientist than doctor imo, he deals with antigens and antibodies, proteins seen only through a microscope, a modern invention. He injects his solution with aseptic, hypodermic needles, and it seems to me that he mostly dealt with corpses in his previous job. Artemy's role in his society requires him to get his hands dirty to make sure that whoever is still living but hurting can recuperate and go on living. I think both positions are admirable and, to me, Artemy's is downright beautiful. As the devs have said, his story is about love!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HIS ENDING FUCKED ME UP, MAN. I really spent the entire game thinking I would go for his designated solution no matter what. Nothing else made sense to me, I was looking forward to seeing how Daniil would explain his side to convince Artemy into choosing ANYTHING over the town, his town. Then I found out about Oyun who told me about Aglaya, Daniil told me that, if Artemy destroyed the polyhedron, the ancient blood would indeed flow, but the kin would not allow him to use it because, by choosing to not take his sacrifice when he needed to, he would not be accepted by them. Aglaya x Artemy is the only romance with the protagonists that I'm willing to believe, besides Daniil x Artemy ofc. Aglaya is enamored by Artemy (or possibly manipulating him because) she sees how he lives his life independent of the Powers That Bed. So what if my decisions are preordained? They're helping the ones I love. She's hoping his independence will rub off on her, and indeed his ending is the only way she lives. If you care about Aglaya, which I certainly do, choosing an ending as Artemy is torture.

I wish Artemy had stronger ties to the town. His father is dead when the game starts and all of the kids he's put in charge of are strangers. He does have an old friend there, Rubin, but he mostly contacts him through letters telling him he's out to kill him, and if I'm remembering correctly, later they meet once so Rubin can apologize and then he never comes back? My memory is bad, but that feels right. Anyway, the kin do seem to remember him, they do certainly recognize his name if not, but they don't respect him until Artemy proves himself to them. I won't get into pathologic 2, I said I wouldn't, but I know this alienation was tweaked in that game and I'm glad for him. Having Grief and Lara as extra childhood friends only adds to Artemy's connection with the town and the people living in it. Wanting to keep his childhood friends safe, who are all bound to Clara, would give him even more reasons to agonize over his ending. Imagine if, after falling down Oyun's hole (oops!) and speaking to the Changeling, Artemy had to choose one of those three women to die knowing one of his oldest friends was among them! Delicious drama, I say.

Oh yeah, Artemy is also gay as shit. I'm sorry, but if a stranger from the big city came to me and asked me for a still beating infected heart which I might have to lose reputation to get, I would at least think to tell them "maybe" if not "go fuck yourself". I won't go into this ship again, but the way they're both always so willing to help each other, even though it would be easier not to.........

Changeling:

Getting into this game, I had quite a bit of information on Daniil and Artemy, but very little on Clara. I knew the basics: she's the plague, but she isn't! She has a twin but she doesn't! How is that possible? Fuck you! That being said, I was probably looking forward to her route the most because I felt like this was the character I had the most to learn about, and I was right. Clara deserves more love, her character is truly incredible. But.... where to start, oh my god................

Okay, so Clara is the personification of the plague, we learn this super early on; in the Haruspex route, she asks Artemy to talk to the Rat Prophet about who she is and what her purpose is. Artemy can be nice and tell her she's a holy healer who can only do good, or he can tell her the truth, which terrifies her. She is spit by the Earth (wakes up in a hole with no memories) and arrives in town on the day the plague starts. While Daniil and Artemy have to pay everyday for updated maps showing the different infected districts, Clara sees her "twin" in dreams who tells her where she'll go next, so she always just Knows where the plague's spreading. She has to convince her mirror self to leave an infected district to prevent it from staying infected until the end of the game. It's obvious that she holds power over the plague, the how is what gets most people. How can she both have and not have a twin? How is she a deadly disease but also a holy healer? The answer, in the end, is quite simple. Clara is the personification of the plague, but she is also a bright 13 year old girl with an imagination. In this world we're invited to play in, which is actually the invention of two very traumatized children and, beyond that, a group of indie game developers with a passion for what they do, having an avid imagination is what makes Clara unique, it's the source of all her magic and goodness, even if it cannot completely erase her wickedness. Clara believes she can heal people and find a solution that doesn't require Block to shoot anything, and in doing so, those options become real. When Clara said she had a twin sister, she spoke another Clara into being. It's truly fascinating and also tragic, I think, to tell the story of a young girl who believes she can cure all of Humanity's ailments, not realizing (or perhaps living in denial of the fact) she's the reason those ailments exist in the first place.

I'm gonna break the mold a bit and talk about her ending already, because I feel like it flows well coming from that last point. Clara's ending, the miracle that keeps both the polyhedron and the town, can only be achieved by keeping her bound alive and healthy until the end of the game, which is harder as Clara than it is as the other two. With Daniil and Artemy, if you manage your time correctly, you will keep all your bound healthy, but Clara's daily missions require her to meet her bound and learn how awful they are (well, some of them) and then she has to lie about their true nature to those who could punish them for it, just as Clara lies about herself. She detests trickery, but if we ourselves are to suffer deception, our hands are no longer tied. When you know the truth about something, you are compelled to form a just opinion on it, but if you are lied to or deceived in some way, any decision you make may yet be forgiven because you just didn't know all the facts. Clara lives in make believe land in the most figurative but also literal sense possible. The sins of her bound don't hit her as hard because they have been deceived into believing they're real people, so she's inclined to forgive them, especially cause she's certain they can still be useful to her. In many ways, Clara is lying to herself about her true nature so she can navigate the world without concerns. Lying to her dad about the "goodness" of her bound and taking the reputation loss because of it is kind of poetic; her dad made the wrong choice by believing her and not arresting those people, but he's been freed from his crimes by her lies. Later, when Clara turns to her bound and asks them to make the ultimate sacrifice to power the miracle, they go in peace. Most say they're glad they get to die like "a real human" with a blood like Simon's.

Clara's route is really fun, but later on it does get as repetitive as everyone says, you can tell she was rushed. The missions "find your sister and banish her" and "find the bachelor and the haruspex so they won't kill each other" do get annoying, especially because they don't even have different dialogue prompts and every time you get into one of those houses to talk to them you just get the shit beat out of you, or you get the plague. There's also like... NO mention of Eva's death in her route? She's alive in the Haruspex's so I though she would be too in the Changeling's or, if she did die, I thought there would be a really cool conversation between them, seeing as the Changeling sends Daniil a letter taunting him with Eva's suicide. But no, Eva just stops showing up at her house and that's it. Huge waste of potential there. I also don't get why some of her bound are those people? Anna Angel, Bad Grief and Aspity are the fucking most in this game, so those I get. Oyun is out to kill the Burakhs, so yeah I read him on the bad vibes scale too. Katerina is a failed Mistress who only ever gave me bad instructions, so I GUESS she counts, and Alexander is a cop so fuck him too. I could make a case for Rubin? Kind of? But for Lara and Yulia, I am truly out of ideas. Clara's bound is made up of all these complex liars and cheats, corrupt politicians and the like, and then there's the lady who's too nice to shoot even her father's murderer and the math lesbian who....????? I'm gonna be real here, I never know what the fuck Yulia is talking about, I could not tell you if I like her or not because I simply do not understand what her purpose is. She's a fatalist who believes in the predetermination of fate and, as far as I can tell, that's it. Cool look, though.

I love that she gets to meet the Powers That Be twice and that they're spooked she got to them earlier than the other two. I also like the detail that this whole Clara dichotomy exists because the kids can't decide between one another if she should save or kill everyone.

One thing I forgot to say in the section about her ending: I love the implication that her ending will only reach peak effectiveness if the healers learn to work together. Clara will transform the blood of those who volunteer to die "like Simon"; this blood is what will allow Artemy to make the cures to all of those who get infected; this blood is also what allowed Daniil and Rubin to make a vaccine that can prevent the disease from coming back for as long as they can. Note: Awesome world building detail, adding in that Simon's blood was old and that was why it could only be used to make vaccines, not panaceas. It makes me think about how older folk tend to hold wisdom of past generations that allow the younger ones to avoid unnecessary pain (Daniil is older than the other two healers, not by a lot but still....... curious). This suggest that, when catastrophe does hit, the younger folks can return the favor by protecting them to the best of their ability, and then, when the bad days pass, we can look to the children and recognize that the future we build afterwards is for them. Allowing humans to exist within a loving community is Clara's miracle. It's so fucking nice to be alive, you guys.

anyway play pathologic, it's not as hard as it seems, and if it is just cheat, i won't tell anyone

#pathologic #don't look at me i have many thoughts so i'm dumping them here #edit: I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT IN THE CHANGELING ROUTE IT'S IMPLIED THAT DANIIL AND ARTEMY FOUGHT EACH OTHER IN THE RING NEAR THE TERMITARY #clearly none of them won. how fucking funny is that #i'm having plague thoughts (BEWARE)

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