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crimeronan · 2 years

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the fondest specific compliment i’ve gotten on my toh fic is that everyone swears in a way that’s very true to character. where it feels like they Definitely talk like this offscreen, like it flows naturally & isn’t jarring despite the G-rated source material

this delights me because i have spent SO MUCH time thinking about the owl house cast and how different people swear. limiting this post to POVs i’ve written but here’s a few headcanons

luz: almost never swears. if she does she’s either doing it for Maximum Emphasis or because it’s very funny in a very specific situation with very specific peers (hunter & willow. she can’t swear in front of amity or gus bc she feels like she’s tarnishing her Innocent Image). even when luz CAN say “fuck” in T-rated properties, she does in fact default to “jeez” and “crikey” and “wow” and “EAUGHHH NO OH NO EUGH NO” at all times. some people swear in their other main language around english speakers but luz is not one of these people. generally in situations where most reasonable individuals would yell “HEY ASSHOLE” or “DUDE??? WHAT THE FUCK????”...... she simply throws things and/or starts biting. That’s My Daughter

hunter: swears more than luz but still not Super Often. most common go-tos are ‘shit’ as a panicked exclamation & ‘bullshit’ as an unimpressed observation. he knows more curse words than anyone else in the show including eda because of How The Coven Scouts Are. several of the curse words are wholly made-up epithets shared by approximately ten trauma-bonded weirdo soldiers. that said, he.... legitimately does not know which muttered oaths are just weird idioms versus Actual Swears bc he’s never Needed to know. (formal speak with belos automatically removes all of these informal interjections in the first place, and no one else is gonna question how The Golden Guard talks, so.... no reason to learn.) if anyone tries to explain these nuances to him later in life he will get into an autistic shouting match about how that’s SO STUPID and UNNECESSARY and MAKES NO SENSE you DUMBSHIT MOTHERF-

eda: tries hard to tone down her language around The Chillens but swears... sssSSSO MUCH. sailor tongue ahoy the woman was raised by wolves (ie: her mom who even in her old age will still shout “YEAH RUN YOU PUNK-ASS BITCH” at randos on the street). eda says “fuck” aloud an average of once or twice in any given fic chapter but should say it more. if i ever write her alone with raine it will become 200 times per chapter because with raine she casually flips back to her high school self and all her creative teen lingos. yknow, back before she learned to be all Mature and Professional. a class act. as she rifles through heaps of garbage and develops hives at any sign of emotional intimacy

darius: theoretically swears a lot and has nothing AGAINST a very verbose “motherfucker son of a bitch dick-for-brains are you fucking SHITTING me you INCOMPETENT-” however he USUALLY uses boiling isles swears. not because he’s being censored by the writers but because a muttered “mother of titans i’m begging you to come down and cast these fucking imbeciles into the boiling sea before i lose my fuckdamned SHI-” is just. Yeah. That’s Him. darius is the guy who WOULD be saying ‘jesus h christ’ and ‘christ on a stick shift’ and ‘mother mary of god PLEASE either end this meeting early or STRIKE ME DEAD BEFORE MASS’ except. yknow, he’s got other religious figures to invoke. sidenote he’s been dying to shout “KIIIIISS MYYYY ASSSSSS” at 98% of his coworkers for 30 straight years. to the point that he sometimes dreams about it

bonus

camila: swears exclusively in french (a language in which she is not fluent) bc she doesnt want luz picking up bad language. she learned these expressions from an old friend from montreal which means that luz now has a weirdly broad knowledge of extremely rude quebecois slang without knowing any specific definitions. she just knows that these are words you recite to french-canadians if you want to start a bar fight.

#toh #luz noceda #hunter toh #darius deamonne #eda clawthorne #camila noceda #the camila one is just lifted from my childhood. idr the swears now tho its been too long since i saw my dad [pensive]#spent an unbelievably long time editing this shitpost for maximum lolz. please appreciate it

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moongothic · 7 months

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Yeah hello hi I've been falling deep into the Crocodad Rabbithole and my brain is being consumed by small crocodile-shaped worms

So I've done what any reasonable person would do, I went back to rewatch some scenes from Alabasta and Marinford to psychoanalyze Crocodile and try to figure out what the fuck his deal is because genuinely the more I think about it the more questions I have and the more I want answers. And because I'm deranged I need to write all my thoughts down into an incoherent essay and release it into the world

So please, come along with me while and let's be Extremely Normal About Sir Crocodile Together and speculate about his ~Secret Past~

Quick note, my quickest access to some of these episodes is either through unsubbed episodes (not bothering with getting screenshots since there's no subs, also my Japanese is plenty good enough to not need it here) or through Ancient, Questionable Fansubs so don't get too hung up on the phrasing in the subbed screenshots- like they're not entirely inaccurate but y'know

The reason I want to do this is just that... Like I've been a fan of OP since 2008, when I was in middle school. I don't think I ever really tried to think deeper about this series in general at that time, because I was a kid. For a long time to me Crocodile had just been Some Greedy Asshole who tried to take over a country to obtain a tool of mass destruction and IDK destroy the world? Just a very classic Bad Guy McVillianMan, because I had not bothered to think about his character and question anything before.

But now I have brainworms due to the Crocodad Theory, and this is fucking One Piece, you never fucking know how deep a rabbithole can go with this bloody series. So let's go, let's try to figure out what the fuck is Crocodile's deal, because I need to get these brainworms out of my fucking system

I just want to start with this one quick throw-away line because it's kind of a sidenote. Also like. This is such a funny fucking thing for Crocodile to say if he is Luffy's dad. Like.

That's so fucking funny if he's Luffy's dad holy shit

But what really gets me here is that like... Like while I'm like 70% sure Crocodile is trans, there's still a part of me that's like "there's no fucking way Crocodad is real". Let alone, this be some kind of a hint Oda planted to suggest that this early on. Like it sounds absurd. And yet at this point in One Piece, Oda had already started planning out and laying out the groundwork for so many lore and plot-relevant concepts, ranging from shit like everything about Robin, the Poneglyphs, the Ancient Weapons etc. He had already started the "Prince Sanji ARG" (aka dropping the tiniest fucking hints to Sanji's Hidden Backstory that people were able to pick up on and make accurate predictions with about Sanji's backstory). There's fucking Laboon, and about a bajillion other things. And possibly most importantly, by this point Oda had already revealed both Luffy's father and grandfather to the readers, not to mention he even introduced Ace and vaguely hinted at Sabo! It's not like Oda had everything perfectly planned out from the very begining, that is objectively not the case at all. But it also literally would not be unlike Oda to drop hints to a character's backstory like this. He has been doing that for years, and had already started by the time we met Crocodile. Like it feels insane and yet it's perfectly plausible. And if he had Luffy's dad, grandfather and two siblings planned out in his head already at this point, it should not be that much of a stretch to believe that Oda knows and no doubt has known for the past two decades who Luffy's mom is (regardless of if that's Crocodile or not)

All this to say. Crocodile's comment about what Cobra said to Vivi when they reunited is a funny, sarcastic comment. But it would take a whole new meaning if Crocodad was real. Because it really would be perfectly normal if he did/had wondered what he would say to his long lost child if they were ever reunited. And really that just makes his roast turn sad.

Anyways

In Alabasta, we do get a very clear image that Crocodile does not like the World Government, not just because he's a Big Meanie Pirate who wants to conquer the world, but because he does seem to look down on how the Marines + World Government do their "justice" (which, y'know, knowing what we know now about the Government. Fair. That's entirely fair.)

He also dislikes Vivi's "idealism" of wanting to save everyone without bloodshed or anyone losing their lives (especially for her sake)

We learn that he is a broken man with broken dreams. Also he seems to be aware where he (supposedy) belongs in the Grand Line's power hierarchy, as in, he needs Pluton because he knows he's not strong enough in combat that he could take down anyone, let alone the World Government by himself (though he would still make a beeline for Whitebeard's head the second he saw him at Marinford, which, y'know, bold move)

And of course, we learn in Impel Down that Crocodile and Iva-chan have some beef. We can not say for 100% sure what that beef is (like the theory he's trans is very obvious and plausible, but until Oda spills the beans we won't know for a fact what the beef is), but we know that they knew each other. And if Crocodile knew Iva-chan, a high-ranking founding member of the Revolutionary Army, then it is genuinely plausible that Crocodile could also have known Dragon and/or been a member of the Revolutionary Army as well.

Since overthrowing the World Nobles and the Government are the Revolutionary Army's goal, the fact that they're trying to obtain weapons and people for their cause etc, Crocodile's view of the Government and his "Operation Utopia" does kind of align with the Revolutionary Army's

But we did also learn from Iva that "Crocoboy" isn't quite trustworthy. Needless to say, even if Croc used to be a part of the Army, he most certainly left YEARS ago, and clearly not on good terms.

Also, an interesting note, is that at Marineford when Luffy and co finally arrive at the battlefield (episode 466, 17:25 minutes in), when Garp spots the group, he makes a specific comment about Crocodile being there together with the revolutionaries and the prison escapees, believing they can't all be here to fight for the same cause. Which is an interesting thing for him to point out specifically. Like Jinbei was another powerful person who entered that battlefield at the same time, and while Jinbei did clarify to Sengoku that he's quitting being a Shichibukai and was there to save Ace, it's still maybe a little odd Garp didn't think it was worth mentioning that Jinbei had also "allied" with the prison escapees and the revolutionaries to enter the battlefield. Like it was Crocodile only whom he thought needed to be pointed out. I don't think Garp's comment adds at all to Crocodad because it would frankly make little to no sense (like we're all assuming Crocodile didn't know Dragon's lastname, which is why he never realized Luffy was his son (despite knowing Luffy's lastname), but if Crocodile knew Garp was Dragon's father then surely he'd realize Dragon's lastname would be Monkey, right), but it could maybe add to the idea that Crocodile might've been a part of the Revolutionary Army in the past, as Garp could be aware of something like that, thus he'd be puzzled by Crocodile's presencee. Point is, it's an interesting comment, make of it what you will

EDIT 2: Ended up going back to reread parts of Marineford and turns out ^that^ was an anime-only addition from Toei. Like Garp does make a comment about how these people probs aren't at the battlefield for the same reasons but did not specifically point out Crocodile or anything. So. I wasted enough time adding these paragraphs to the post, I ain't deleting 'em. But y'know.

EDIT: Minor addition, because I just remembered how Crocodile really went like out of his way to taunt Vivi about how she "can't stop the rebellion" and save her people. Which, y'know, is a perfectly normal Villian Thing To Do. But we know Crocodile does not think fondly of the World Nobles just like he dislikes the Government. Even if Cobra was a "good monarch" who genuinely cared for his people, he was still a king, and the Nefertari family and the Kingdom of Alabasta were a part of the World Government. The thing Crocodile specifically wanted to destroy. And this is just another one of those "surely that wasn't somekinda foreshadowing" but god fucking dammit what if Crocodile telling a(n unknowing) representative of the World Government that she can't stop "the rebellion", or the revolution if I may, (regardless of if he's allied with them or not) was actually meant to be like foreshadowing. Oda I swear to fucking god---

Anyway, so, Crocodile might've been a part of the Revolutionary Army at one point (the army was formed after the Ohara Incident 22 years ago, and for Crocodad Theorizing, Luffy was born 19 years ago), but if he did he must have left on bad terms for unknown reasons, and we can tell that although his goals in general could vaguely match that of the Revolutionaries, his methods most certainly don't.

Whether or not his methods and his worldview tie to his leaving the Army is unknown. Because we don't really know when and how his worldview was formed.

Like did Crocodile leave the Army because he became a cynical asshole who was willing to make any kind of sacrifice for his goals (thus he no longer fit in with the rest of the Revolutionary Army), realized he was far too weak to ever become Pirate King and thus decided to go looking for Pluton? Or did Crocodile suggest to the Army they should try to obtain an Ancient Weapon to keep casulties to a minimum (still in line with the Army), only ending up getting kicked out (big weapon bad), and soon realizing he had no chance at making a change in the world without "cracking a few eggs"?

Like it doesn't nececarily make a massive difference,, since the end result is still the same, but it does kind of affect the context and how one might view him, right

Of course, there's then the Forbidden Third Option, that Crocodile left due to

Gender issues (internalized shame of being trans and not having it in him to stay around people who had known him)

Postpartum depression

Dragon just divorced Crocodile either due to being straight (in a sad, accepting way) or due to being simply unaccepting and frankly homophobic, regardless, Crocodile leaves with a broken heart

Something else and/or a combo of the above, really, we could speculate endlessly here about what could've happened

(Though I will say that Crocodile's '"trust issues"' and how he views people as disposable could like. I dunno. Be explained if he had gone through some heartbreak and was left permanently unable to open up to people, let alone trust anyone)

I dunno, there's a lot of options, a lot of things to considder.

But there is one more thing that I do want to note on as it could potentially debunk the Crocodad Theory entirely.

It's that Iva-chan didn't know Dragon had a son.

(Episode 441, 9:50 minutes) By which I mean, Iva-chan wasn't shocked to find out Luffy was Dragon's son, rather, they were shocked there was a son to begin with. (To the point they thought Ace was also Dragon's son until Luffy cleared it up for them later) While it's not a massive leap to believe that Crocodile and Dragon knew each other (since Crocodile knew Iva-chan), nor is it a massive leap to believe that Iva-chan transed Crocodile's gender after having Luffy... It does become a bit of a leap to believe Iva-chan didn't know about Dragon having a child with Crocodile before giving Croc the Magic HRT. Like if they had a relationship that resulted in a baby and a divorce, how did Iva not know about any of it, especially when it's more than likely that Iva could not have transitioned Crocodile until after the baby was born (let's not think about how Iva-chan's powers would work on a pregnant person too much)

We do also get this flashback (in episode 441, immidiately after Luffy reveals his dad's identity to Iva) where Iva-chan questions Dragon about how he always stares out towards East Blue when the wind blows, wondering if Dragon has family out there whom he's thinking about (Dragon refusing to comment on it). This does very much confirm that regardless of who Dragon had Luffy with, Iva has no fucking clue who, where and how any of that happened. And althought I personally feel like Iva not knowing would debunk Crocodad, if Crocodile still somehow was Luffy's dad, Iva-chan would canonically not know about it. If Iva didn't know Dragon had a relationship that resulted in a baby, then regardless of if Iva even knew Crocodile got pregnant once, they would not be able to connect those dots.

Now let's be clear, there's many potential scenarios where Crocodad could still be real, scenarios that could explain why and how Iva-chan didn't know about Luffy nor about Dragon and Crocodile having a relationship*. Like it would not be difficult at all to come up with an explanation for it. But in my mind, I feel like the more you have to figure out and explain how the theory could still be plausible, the less plausible it actually feels. Like the more I need to go out of my way to explain it, the more forced it seems.

*(For example, maybe the two kept their relationship a secret, and when Crocodile got pregnant he """left on a mission""" that happened to take like 4-10 months, during the time realizing he was trans. Once the baby had arrived he returned the baby to Dragon in secret for him to deal with, got a divorce for one reason or another*, and sought out Iva-chan to start a new life, Iva thus never found out about anything, just knew that Crocodile left one day after coming out. Like that's one plausible scenario.)

*Hey remember the potential Forbidden Reasons to why Crocodile might've left the Army? What if it was Dragon's and/or Crocodile's idea? Remember how when Jinbei is trying to escape Marinford with the unconcious Luffy, Crocodile tells Jinbei to do better job at "protecting those he wants to protect", a line that felt really sudden and odd coming from Crocodile of all people? What if the two knew their child would be in grave danger if he was ever raised within the army (absolutely not a place for a baby)? What if they knew their baby would become a target for the World Government to hunt, much like Roger's lost child was, if the Government found out Dragon had a baby? What if they wanted to make sure nothing bad ever happened to their baby and were willing to do anything to protect the baby? Even if it meant they'd never see their child grow up? Even if it meant hiding your child from your best friend, pretending to have a horrible fallout with them and transing your gender because Oda doesn't know what gender dysphoria is? Just so nobody would ever find out you had a child?

Mind you. I do not want anybody to think this is an actual argument for Crocodad. Like I could write a dozen different fanfics about how Crocodile could be Luffy's other dad, and they would all be just as much pure speculation with nothing to support them as the above suggestions. It is an example of what could have happened, and a deeply interesting thought, but it is just a theory at best.

In the end, it doesn't really matter though, because until the day Oda reveals Luffy's mom and/or Crocodile's backstory to us, we will truly never know for sure What The Fuck Crocodile's Deal Is

And I'll be just stuck with these brainworms, making myself sad by thinking about sad scenarios where Crocodad could be real, because truly, if it's canon, ain't no way it won't be sad

EDIT 3: Originally I thought it'd be good enough if I just rewatched some parts here and there, but in the end I just fucking absolutely caved the fuck in and went and reread The Good Parts of Marineford. Mainly because I knew I was forgetting things and Toei adding/changing things can affect a character reading. Also it was just going to be easier to go through the manga and literally just all of Crocodile's scenes into an image folder for easier browsing, mainly because there's so much shit that happens between those scattered scenes it can be hard to like focus on one thing (especially if you're trying to specifically FIND those scattered scenes and appearances)

So yeah. Coming back a few days later to add shit to this god forsaken post. I need help

Actually changed my mind and made a separate post to continue this nonsense, enjoy

#Moon posting #One Piece #Sir Crocodile #I am being so very normal about Crocodile #So SO very normal #I'm sorry this is so fucking incoherent I just can not form a coherent thought about this for the life of me #Also sorry I had to use random OP reaction pics. This was a long ass post and I desperately needed to break up the text walls somehow #For the record while I doubt Crocodad is real I am 100000% emotionally invested in it and WANT it to be real #I'm just not convinced Oda can write a trans character this fucking nuanced #And I think I'd prefer Crocodad not being real over Crocodad being real but Stupid and/or Transphobic #Which fucking sucks because genuinely. Crocodad easily has the potential to be the one of the most tragic backstories in the series #But I don't trust Oda. And that's why I'm so doubtful above all else #Anyway yeah Crocodile has made me completely deranged someone please help #My brain needs to be vacuumed or something to get rid of the worms #OP Meta

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kingedmundsroyalmurder · 10 months

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The blue castle, chapter 7

I don't know if this was LMM's intention, but my first thought about Valancy's rosebush was, "are we sure this really is a rosebush?" The metaphor of the rosebush that never blooms because it's stifled from overly solicitous unhelpful care is definitely an apt one, but so is the metaphor of the bush that everyone thinks is a rosebush but actually is not. Of course it's never going to bloom -- it's actually an entirely different plant. Which is equally fitting for Valancy, whom everyone tries so hard to mold into what they want but who can't ever achieve that because she's not that person. She's not her cousin Olive, and no amount of scolding and pointed comments and overly solicitous pieces of advice are going to turn her into what the Stirlings want her to be. And poor Valancy doesn't know any other way than to get mad at the supposed rosebush for not being what everyone says it is.

Sidenote observation: the past chapter of Valancy's trauma causing her to interpret everything everyone does and says around her as a direct negative comment almost made me start asking questions like, 'Are her relatives trying to be awful, or is she seeing every interaction as negative and directed at her even if that wasn't the intention?' And then her mother helpfully came onto the page to make it clear that, no, she, at least, is every bit as awful as Valancy's internal narrative portrays her to be. Thank you Mrs. Stirling for removing the ambiguity! Also thank you Mrs. Stirling for throwing an immediate temper tantrum about the rosebush and shutting up for the rest of the chapter.

Cousin Stickles, meanwhile, is giving me extremely strong Mary Musgrove from Persuasion vibes. She doesn't seem deliberately awful, a la Mrs. Stirling, but rather fully convinced of her own place as protagonist of the world. It's obliviousness more than malice -- of course her problems are the most important and of course her advice is the best, because that's how things are to her. Why would anyone see things differently when it's so self evidently true? The distinction doesn't help poor Valancy, of course, except to make it easier for the people around her to guilt trip her into doing what they want by being able to say, "Well don't be ungrateful, they're only trying to help!"

Dr. Trent continues to be the best supporting character. Not only did he not forget Valancy, he took the time to write to her personally from Montreal. Good man, good doctor, no wonder her family hates him.

And the plot kicks in. Poor Valancy. "Valancy Stirling, who had never lived, was about to die." I'm glad that the knowledge gives her the courage to assert herself, but what brutal news. (And how long has she been having symptoms that no one acknowledged or did anything about? How long has she had shortness of breath or been cold all the time or run out of energy quickly and how long has her family blamed her for these supposed weaknesses of character instead of asking if there something wrong? Valancy Stirling, living the invisible illness life.)

#blue castle book club #Blue castle chapter 7

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queen-scribbles · 2 years

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Who are your 3 least favorite Swtor companions and why?

heh heh hoo boy. Details behind a cut so people don't have to read me venting about potential faves in a couple cases, but tl;dr is Kaliyo, Skadge, both of whom I strongly dislike, and either Vik or Lana(not nearly as strong).

1.Absolute hands down least favorite is Kaliyo. I legit hate her. She's self-centered, vindictive, and thinks it's funny to ruin people's lives. I literally won't even talk to her any more when I play Agents. She spends the ENTIRE GAME with a little yellow triangle over her head bc I refuse to engage. I did her convos/quest with Jaaide, my first Agent, up til the Anspi'shel thing, then stopped when she wanted to sell Anspi'shel to a life of slavery or worse bc it'd be funny revenge for some not-nearly-deserving of That "transgression". Jaaide wanted to punch her in the face and never spoke another word to her the game didn't make me. I watched her romance on youtube and it did her no favors. AND THEN we get to her presence in KotFE. Making all of Zakuul suffer bc of what their leadership did? Outright terrorism? I wouldn't recruit her ever if you didn't have to. The way I always do ch 12/13 is telling Jorgan to destroy the GEMINI signal and then telling Kaliyo to stay put. Which she ignores, and gets Havoc killed. And then refuses to accept responsibility for it. ("If they're so good, why are they dead?" Hmm, maybe bc you were throwing thermal detonators in an enclosed space????? THAT MIGHT'VE DONE IT) She usually dies there, unless I'm trying to keep the toon 100% light side, and there's a few that got through there before I figured out how you get the option. *Sidenote: makes me love Jorgan even more that he disapproves if you kill her. He can't stand her, is currently furious at her bc she got his team killed, and he still thinks executing her is Too Far for punishment. Honestly, if there was a Jail option like you get for Saresh in KotET, I'd do that instead of killing her. But I'm not letting a vengeful, psychotic anarchist who knows the location of my secret base just LEAVE, and I can't let what she just did go unpunished, so death it is.

2. Skadge is... Skadge. The threatening to shoot you and steal your ship if you don't agree to let him come along? Yeah, all my Hunters were ready to shoot him and dump him in the lava for that alone. BUT I will talk to him for the xp, so he's slightly less hated than Kaliyo. Still kill him in Rusk's alliance alert though /cough

3. Okay so this is a sharp drop off from the other ones. Kaliyo and Skadge I actively dislike/hate, this one is much more.... barely wavering to the negative side of neutral. Vik annoys me and I wish we could have Fuse if he was alive instead. He's selfish, and way too willing to throw away other peoples' lives for his personal gain.

Lana I don't hate, or feel strongly about at all, it's just... between her Developers' Baby plot armor so she doesn't die(like Koth, Theron, and Senya can) or lose anyone important from her life(like Theron can *glares at WFI and JUS*) and her "Whatever you think is Best" attitude, I'm not crazy about her. I don't like Yes Man companions in general(why I like Carver better than Bethany in DA2), so anytime we get someone who's just blindly supportive of the player character they rub me the wrong way. It's more a problem I have with the archetype than her specifically. (Not to mention the numerous things she's a hypocrite about) I don't mind her as a character or roll my eyes and groan when I have to talk with her, and I'm even running her romance on a couple toons(it's AMAZING with a smuggler). She's just not my favorite.

#kaliyo critical #lana critical #just barely but i wanna spare people who love her ;)#the really ironic thing about me hating kaliyo?#one of my favorite mass effect characters is jack #and they have some strong similarities #but jack grows and kaliyo doesn't :)))#i sat on this for two days debating whether on not to keep skadge on the list bc he's such a gimme #and i have enough without him #he's mostly still there to highlight how much i dislike kaliyo rip

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relative-dimension · 1 year

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“World’s End”

Season 2, episode 4 - 21st November 1964

[id: A Roboman walks into a river. The water is up to his waist. /end id]

I’m always amused by how none of the characters that they meet in this episode ever say the word “Dalek” until the cliffhanger, just to maintain the surprise of that final moment (that is, for watchers at the time who didn’t buy a DVD with a Dalek on the cover). The robomen do make a pretty good threat for the meantime, although I really wish more was done with them - the opening is chilling but never elaborated on really. Terry Nation always throws a lot of ideas at serials like this, but when it’s not divided up into clear sections like Marinus or The Chase, it becomes much more obvious which plot points are dropped without resolution when he loses interest in them.

Entertainment: 3/5, the buildup of the mystery is really good, although not much really happens.

Production: 4/5, the presentation of London having been completely broken by occupation is fantastic. Sidenote, I saw that they sell “it is forbidden to dump bodies in the river” t-shirts and I really want one but it might be the single most niche reference out of any of the bizarre t-shirts I have, which is honestly saying something.

Pacing: 3/5, as with many beginnings of longer serials, this one’s a bit slow, but that’s to be expected really.

Character Writing & Use: 2/5, look, I get that part of the point of this serial is Susan’s growing independence and Dr Who letting go of his desire to control her. I get that. But didn’t we do this already in The Sensorites? Obviously the idea didn’t get resolved to the level of this story, with Susan leaving at the end, and it makes sense as an angle with which to approach the first loss of a main cast member, but it also really gives me the sense that the characterisation of Susan and Dr Who has had to slide back significantly from how they’ve both grown over the last season to justify this plotline.

Depth: 3/5, the parallels with the Blitz are interesting but there’s more later

Not Ageing Horribly: 2/5, the “jolly good smacked bottom” has become a punchline in subsequent portrayals of Hartnell’s Dr Who for a reason. You could argue that in context it’s not as bad, you could argue that it’s meant as a joke in this episode as well, but honestly I still don’t like it.

Overall Score - 17/30

#doctor who #dw #dw review #first doctor #ian chesterton #barbara wright #susan foreman #daleks #16-20 #season 2 #companion exit

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sorryforbeingcrazy · 3 years

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Buffy and Spike deserved more...talking.

I´ve been marinating this in my brain for a couple of days, so here I go.

I really liked the relationship between Buffy and Spike. And I´m not only focusing on the “romance” part, but in general. I loved their transition from enemies to allies to....friends? I just enjoyed how when it came to serious threats, they always looked and relied on one another for help.

That´s why one of the things that disappointed me the most about the last season was the fact that they never really talked about how wrong they did to each other on season 6.

Season 6 is a very very dark season, for all of the characters: Willow´s addiction to magic and the effects it has on Tara, Xander´s fears that end up leaving Anya on the altar, Giles feeling that he is useless...But who really takes the trophy home in this one, is Buffy. I don´t even know how to start.

From the moment she is brought back to life, she suffers. We were expecting her comeback to be a happy moment, filled with tears of joy, laughter and hugs. Instead, she wakes up in her grave, has to dig herself out and then she walks around a Sunnydale on fire and full of demons. Can you imagine the shock? Only the crawling up from the grave should be enough to send someone to therapy for the rest of their lives. The mere thought of waking up in a coffin, six-feet undergroundnd makes me anxious...But let´s keep going.

She is back. She is traumatized and shocked beyond belief and at home with Dawn (after reliving everything that happened before she died). She is quiet, trying to process everything while Dawn is constantly talking to her about how things are and asking if she is ok. Her hands still wrecked from the diggin. And suddenly, she is face to face with Spike. (This is a sidenote related to the actors. I cannot give enough credit to James Marsters portrayal of Spike in general. But in this scene...man, 12/10, flawless). He looks at her in disbelief. And despite the fact that he was happier than ever that she was alive again, he does not try to touch her or approach her, and the moment he sees her hands he acknowledges what she has been through. So he just tell her that they are going to take care of her, and sends Dawn away to fetch stuff to clean her wounds. And they are alone in the living room. He does not overwhelm her with questions or hugs or anything. He just stares at her, giving her time to put her thoughts in order.

It may look like a trivial scene but I´m not kidding when I tell you that, for me, this is the most important scene of the whole season. And it is because it defines how the dynamic between Buffy and Spike, and Buffy and her friends is going to be.

When Spike is holding her wounded hands, letting her ask questions, just staring at each other, there´s silence. Peace. Calm. It´s the first moment since she is back that she is at ease. But the moment her friends burst through the door, is chaos. Noise, questions, worry, light, people...And this is why this scene is so important. During the rest of the season, the reason why Buffy goes away looking for Spike is because she wants that peace and quiet. She wants the calmness she gets around him, when she does not have to worry about being fine and happy in front of her friends. She can take her mask off when she is in front of Spike. That´s why she tells him that she was in a good place. That´s why he turns into her confident.

And for sometime, it works. Whenever she feels like she can´t take it anymore she goes to spend sometime with Spike. The problem is that her life gets harder and harder: financial problems, Giles leaves, Willow´s addiction, her relationship with Dawn. Her struggle becomes unbearable to the point were Spike is the only safe constant in her life. The only person she can rely on. And of course, mixing this with Spike´s feelings and their “tension”, their relationship turns physical. Very physical. And here is when Buffy starts using, quite wrongly, Spike.

The first time could be a slip, but not the rest. She may not have been aware at the beginning, but deep inside she knew what she was doing. She knew that Spike had strong feelings for her. She knew that he would never deny her and even if he did (that he actually does a couple of times) he wouldn´t last long. So she takes advantage of him and his feelings.

Someone, blind as a fucking bat, could say “Spike wasn´t minding it. He was enjoying the sex with Buffy. It´s what he wanted.” Fuck, no. He spents the whole season wanting to talk to her about their relationship. To discuss what is going on between them. If you are in it just for the sex, you don´t care to ask questions. You just don´t care. You just take what you came for and then you leave. The way Buffy does. And this bothers him. It bothers him that the moment they are finished she runs away. It hurts him. More than once he calls her out by the fact that whenever they are not “in bed”, she is constantly yelling at him and insulting him and his feelings, and yet, she always comes back to him.

Now, for those who think that Spike was fine with this I want you to imagine for a second, that you are in his shoes. As a human being, and not caring about genders. Imagine you loved someone, beyond reason (i´m not even going to throw in the fact that he saw her die even though i could). And because you care about this person, you spent time with them because they are in a bad place mentally. And that person enjoys your company. And starts spending more time with you. And one day, you kiss. Once. Twice. Then, you sleep together. Once. Twice. And god knows how many more times. You could think “If they like to spend time with me, tell me things they do not to their friends, kiss me and even sleep with me, they must feel something, right?” It´s a fair assumption. But instead, this person is constantly telling you how disgusted they feel with themselves for being with you physically, to the point were they keep what you have in absolute secret from their friends, and they run from you everytime you sleep together.

Fucking. Imagine.

Evil or not. Souless or not. That fucks you up my friends.

What leads us to the horrifying events of Seeing Red. You won´t see me coming any close to justify what Spike tries to do to Buffy. There´s no excuse in the world that clears you from that one. But I do see where it comes from. And it´s not just because Spike is evil. That´s a lame excuse of an argument. That scene, is the representation of Spike hitting rock bottom. He wants what he had with Buffy back. Even if it was only physical, it was at least something. And so, he is desperate...and well....we all know what happens. I swear to you, that scene creeped me out so fucking much.

That´s why it angers me how they did not approach these subjects on season 7. They both did terrible things to each other. They should have talked about it in depth. And even though I´m quite satisfied how they ended up acknowledging each other in ways any of the other characters do, I cannot hide my displeasure about that missing conversation. They needed more closure for what happened on season 6.

Good lord. This really turned out long.

Anyway, thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy summers #spike #spuffy #william the bloody #sarah michelle gellar #james marsters #btvs season 6 #btvs season 7 #my thoughts #sorry for the rant #i just had a lot to say #buffy x spike

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buffysummers · 3 years

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Oh, hello there, gentle viewers. Today, I’m finally going to discuss why the claim of “I only ship Spuffy in season seven” is, in fact, still not okay and deeply flawed.

Before I jump into this, I just want to preface this by saying that we should ALL be allowed to like what we like, EVEN if it’s garbage or toxic. We all have that One Ship™ or that One Character™ that we’d risk it all for, even if we know they’re evil/etc. There is NOTHING wrong with enjoying bleak, dark and disturbing fiction. Fiction is a great way to escape reality and explore the darker, grittier, more twisted aspects of life with no real consequences, because, you know, it isn’t real.

HOWEVER, a lot of people have a hard time drawing a line, especially when fiction often explores very real issues, such as abuse and rape. This brings me to the Buffy and Spike, “Spuffy,” problem and why we cannot just simply write off Spuffy as fiction because this dynamic explores very real issues that happen to people everyday, and when we see people excusing rape and abuse, that’s when the not-so-real fiction becomes a very real and serious issue. That’s when rape and abuse survivors start to feel uncomfortable or triggered. Or when people that (thankfully) haven’t experienced these terrible realities feel confused and also a bit appalled. Here’s a bit of juxtaposition to better elaborate on this point: a human being cannot be emotionally/romantically/etc involved with a 200+ vampire because vampires ARE NOT real. But a human being can definitely be abused and raped. That is not fantasy. It’s real life.

Ok, I’m almost about to dive in. But I also want to add that I am addressing this because I have received a lot of anons from Spuffies defending their ship and claiming that they don’t ship Buffy and Spike in season six (which is probably a lie since half of the Spuffy edit tag is gifs from season six lol) but only in season seven, where Spike “gets a soul” for Buffy. Since like 70% of the Buffy fandom is up Spike and Spuffy’s ass, I don’t really expect many people to read this. But I am just really tired and I need to get this out of my system. Plus, analyzing fiction is rewarding in so many ways.

Now I’m actually going to start, and there’s nowhere else to start but from the beginning, where Spike allegedly gets a soul for Buffy after he attempts to rape her, so that he “can be the kind of man who would never—” I use the word allegedly, because here’s some quotes from Spike right as he leaves town to “get his soul”:

It's the chip! Steel and wires and silicon. It won't let me be a monster. And I can't be a man. I'm nothing.

Get nice and comfy, Slayer. I'll be back. And when I do ... things are gonna change. [sidenote: this line and the previous line are a bit vague and open to interpretation, and COULD be referring to him getting a soul. But the manner in which the lines are delivered, with so much anger and loathing, do not indicate he is going to do something good, like say, getting your soul.]

DEMON: Something about a woman. The slayer. SPIKE: Thinks she's better than me. Ever since I got this bleeding chip in my head, things ain't been right. Everything's gone to hell.

Bitch is gonna see a change.

Got any more ruddy tests for me, you ponce? I'll take anything you can throw at me, if it'll get me what I need to take care of the Slayer. Give her what's coming to her. [sidenote: again, he says this angrily, and the script reflects this as well.]

So you'll give me what I want. Make me what I was. So Buffy can get what she deserves.

Ok, so the last line is, of course, pretty ambiguous. The writers even said that they intentionally tried to throw off the audience and make them BELIEVE that Spike was trying to get his chip removed. But they were a little too convincing, so the twist does not feel earned. It would be one thing if these lines were written and delivered in a different way. Maybe with conflict and regret. But he refers to her as a bitch multiple times, and says every line with malice. Now, say this were a courtroom and this were a murder trial. Intent matters, intent always matters. Intent often can make or break a case. The most logical way to read these lines is that Spike INTENDED to get his chip removed because the text best supports this conclusion, but the demon saw through him. So, even though the demon understood the internal conflict better than Spike clearly did, he did not go through those trials to get his soul. And that is why, to this day, fans of the show still don’t think he went to get his soul back for her.

For argument’s sake, maybe if he really DID intend to get his soul back, and we just completely sidestep all the references to his chip, he still isn’t getting his soul with good intentions (takes us back to: intent! matters!). Maybe he’s getting his soul “for her” but the way the scenes are written, with such malice and anger, coupled with the fact that Spike is STILL soulless and incapable of doing anything for purely selfless reasons, he is not getting his soul for romantic and valiant reasons.

The soul aspect is obviously very important because this is basically what causes Buffy to forgive Spike. When she first sees him in season seven, she is rightfully angry. She says things like: “Everything about you is wrong, Spike” and “You tried to rape me. I don’t have the words.” She can tell he is withholding information from her (especially because she found him crazy in the basement) and is skeptical about his intentions. But then he makes that speech to her in “Beneath You” which I’m quoting from the script:

SPIKE: Am I flesh? Am I flesh to you? Feed on flesh. My flesh. Nothing else. Not a spark. (nods) Oh, fine. Flesh then. Solid through. (starts unzipping his pants) Get it hard; service the girl.

BUFFY: This is all you get. I'm listening. Tell me what happened. SPIKE: I tried to find it, of course. BUFFY: Find what? SPIKE: The spark. The missing... the piece that fit. That would make me fit. Because you didn't want... (starts to cry) God, I can't... Not with you looking.

SPIKE: I dreamed of killing you. I think they were dreams. So weak. Did you make me weak, thinking of you, holding myself, and spilling useless buckets of salt over your... ending? Angel—he should've warned me. He makes a good show of forgetting, but it's here, in me, all the time. The spark. I wanted to give you what you deserve, and I got it. They put the spark in me and now all it does is burn.

BUFFY: You got your soul back. How? SPIKE: It's what you wanted, right? And—and now everybody's in here, talking. Everything I did...everyone I— and him... and it... the other, the thing beneath—beneath you. It's here too. Everybody. They all just tell me go... go... to hell. BUFFY: Why? Why would you do that— SPIKE: Buffy, shame on you. Why does a man do what he mustn't? For her. To be hers. To be the kind of man who would nev— to be a kind of man.

This is all very important because before Buffy found out that Spike got his soul back “for her,” she wanted nothing to do with him. In fact, only a few scenes earlier in the same episode, he makes a joke about the fact that it was their first contact since he tried to rape her.

So, while Spuffies like to prop up Spike getting his soul for Buffy as a very romantic and amazing gesture, there isn’t good evidence in the show to support that he was getting it back for her, and also, that it was used as a manipulation tactic. Now, suddenly, Buffy feels conflicted about holding Spike accountable for anything he did to her, and she feels pressured into forgiving him because he :/ got :/ his :/ SOUL :/ for her. And now he’s crazy in the basement!

Moving on from that. Now Spike has a soul and he got it for Buffy and Buffy knows that. Now the writers make Spike the victim of The First, which makes it much easier for the audience to sympathize with him, and thus forget that he literally tried to rape the show’s titular heroine. Spike is in danger, Spike doesn’t have free will, Spike is now important to Buffy’s mission because he clearly has been under the influence of The First, so therefore he is valuable to Buffy’s mission. So, now she must get close to Spike to learn more about the thing from beneath them that plans to devour them all. [for reference: 7.08]

This leads us to “Never Leave Me” where Spike victimizes himself, and shames Buffy. Here’s an exchange between Buffy and Spike:

BUFFY: How did you do it? How'd you get your soul back?

SPIKE: Saw a man about a girl. (sighs) I went to seek a legend out. Traveled to the other side of the world, made a deal with a demon.

BUFFY: Just like that?

SPIKE: No, not just like that. There was a price. There were trials, torture, pain and suffering... of sorts.

BUFFY: Of sorts?

SPIKE: Well, it's all relative, isn't it?

BUFFY: Meaning?

SPIKE: Meaning I have come to redefine the words pain and suffering since I fell in love with you.

BUFFY: (sighs) How can you say that?

SPIKE: Apparently, I just slaughtered half of Sunnydale, pet. I'm not really worried about being polite anymore.

BUFFY: (nods) So, that's what this is about. (stands, crosses arms) You feeling sorry for yourself, Spike?

SPIKE: I'm feeling honest with myself. You used me.

BUFFY: Yes.

SPIKE: You told me that, of course. I never understood it though. Not until now. You hated yourself, and you took it out on me.

I think Buffy puts it pretty nicely when she says, “You feeling sorry for yourself, Spike?” Because in this scene, he completely ignores the damage that he did to Buffy (which, YES, it’s in season six, but he is ENSOULED while doing this) and instead says that she used him. Which is kind of pointless to bring up because he also says “you told me that, of course” so therefore the only reason WHY he brings this up is to victimize himself and make her feel guilty about it. It’s important to note that Spike still has not apologized for trying to rape her, by the way.

So, this leads us to how Buffy’s character arc suffers so that the writers can instead evoke sympathy for Spike from the audience. Here are some totally, and extremely, out of character things Buffy does in season seven (and actually all of her OOC moments are because of Spike):

Buffy agrees to let Dawn stay with Spike in 6.20 immediately after he tried to rape her. This is the same Buffy that literally sacrificed her life to save Dawn, by the way. Dawn is the most important person in Buffy’s life. But yeah, she’d TOTALLY let Dawn stay with Spike so he could “protect” her. (yes, this is season six but it’s too important not to note, seeing as it’s her most OOC moment in the entire series).

Buffy doesn’t immediately dust Spike in 7.08 despite the fact that she just discovered that he’s being controlled by The First and slaughtered a dozen+ women. You can make the argument that she doesn’t dust him because he may have valuable intel, and that’s a pretty good argument. But still, it just doesn’t seem like something Buffy would do. (SIDENOTE: Just wanna add more to this point. She almost killed Anya three episodes prior because Anya slaughtered some frat guys. Anya even acknowledges and understands WHY Buffy has to kill her. Buffy later defends her choice and compares it to when she had to kill Angel, where she says verbatim, “I loved him more than I will ever love anything in this life.” You’re telling me that now she isn’t capable of killing Spike despite the fact that he’s been MURDERING girls for weeks? Yes, this is different from the situation with Anya because Spike didn’t have free will, but Buffy is often a little self-righteous, and innocent women being murdered doesn’t really seem like something she’d sweep under the rug, especially given how unstable Spike is. He is much more of a liability than an asset to her mission, at this point.)

In 7.09, Spike basically BEGS Buffy to kill him. He even asks her: have you ever really asked yourself why you can’t do it [kill him]? This frames him as the noble guy, the selfless hero, while she defends his actions and looks dumb while doing so. We’re SUPPOSED to be on Spike’s side in this scene because Buffy, despite having no real reason not to, refuses to kill him and ignores all the damage he’s done, the damage he readily admits to. He’s essentially admitting he’s done terrible things but not expecting any consequences because Buffy is being written, well, entirely out of character. She makes excuses for his actions. It’s like going to confession, you say what you’ve done, and suddenly you’re forgiven. Because, OF COURSE, Buffy would ignore the fact that he’s a liability to her, the girls, and her mission to save the world.

Buffy is more concerned about rescuing Spike from the cave in 7.11 rather than dusting the turok-han that is an immediate threat to her safety and literally the entire world, seeing as the turok-han is The First’s weapon and its mission is to destroy the Slayer line which destroys the balance between good and evil, which will then allow The First to overrun the earth.

Buffy lets Spike live in the house with all the potentials despite knowing that he has a trigger that can be activated at any time by The First. 7.12-7.17. But ESPECIALLY in 7.17 when she sees it activated in front of her very eyes and yet decides to unchain him. Giles tries to reason with Buffy that she is putting their entire cause at risk and all of their lives at risk as a result, but she simply doesn’t care. Buffy has never been stupid, but she looks pretty stupid here (hence, the OOC aspect), especially because she has no rebuttal to his argument. Dawn is also injured by Spike in this scene and instead of going upstairs with her, she stays with Spike.

Buffy says she will let Spike kill Wood because she has a mission to save the world. Now, I don’t have *as much* of an issue with this because I see Buffy’s point a little, seeing as the fate of the world is more important than vendettas and Spike, now free of his trigger, is a valuable asset to her army. But she would never just sit by and let an innocent human get murdered lol.

This leads me to the conclusion of: If you have to change almost everything about a character to make a ship make sense, it’s probably not a very good ship.

The writers also continue to isolate Buffy from the rest of the group. Enough where Buffy says in 7.19: “You sent away the one person [Spike] that’s been watching my back.” So, let’s unpack this. Here are the ways in which Spike has had Buffy’s back up until that point in the season:

He shows up last minute to help her save Cassie in 7.04

He goes on outings with her and the potentials while she trains them in 7.12

Here are some group efforts he made (meaning, he wasn’t the only one helping Buffy):

He helps get the love spell jacket with Xander in 7.06

He helps shut down the seal in 7.16 with Buffy, Wood and Andrew after the rest of the gang helped research.

A moment where Buffy could have really used his support:

In 7.15 when Buffy calls Chloe weak and everyone starts to gang up on her and call her out of line, he chooses to leave.

The Golden Rule, aka “show, don’t tell” is an important writing technique that we should all follow when writing literally anything. Here, season seven fails on this front, again. Just because Buffy SAYS Spike is the one person that’s had her back does not automatically make it ring true. In fact, there’s no evidence to support that claim by Buffy. [sidenote: he does have her back BIG time in 7.20, but again, that doesn’t undo the fact that when Buffy said that line, it literally wasn’t true at all. It just shows you how the writing isn’t there to support these claims. It’s all empty words used to manipulate the audience into thinking this relationship is more than it actually is.]

There’s more I could say, of course, but this is already so long. My main point is that the writers in season seven do not let Buffy heal, they do not let Buffy process her trauma whatsoever. Instead, they emotionally blackmail her via Spike getting a soul for her, victimize Spike, and have her make very dumb, irrational and OOC decisions to justify her feelings for him. Buffy is a very forgiving person, it’s true, but they do not let her acknowledge or address her trauma. So, seeing her coddle Spike just simply does not make sense, especially when season six is all we have to fallback on for their “relationship” which wasn’t, in fact, a relationship at all (Buffy even says to Spike in 7.20 that they were never close.) Honestly, you can’t really entirely separate season six and season seven Spuffy because their supposed connection, their history and her reluctance to kill him or let him go is entirely built on what happened between them prior to season seven.

The abuse in season seven is a lot more subtle, and it’s mostly verbal and emotional abuse, but it is STILL abuse. And it STILL shouldn’t be supported or romanticized. Like Spuffy all you want, but justifying this is just plain wrong and harmful for so many reasons. Just use your brain before you say something that could potentially trigger, offend or harm someone that has experienced this firsthand. Victim blaming is very real and happens everyday, and it happens to Buffy repeatedly throughout season seven.

#anti spuffy #anti spike #buffy thoughts #season seven #rape tw #abuse tw #btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #again this is long and this was more so for my benefit bc I have always wanted to analyze my issues with season seven #and basically the only issue i've ever had with season seven is spuffy #and the way buffy is characterized at times #all bc of him #the reason I care: buffy is my favorite show #I don't watch it BECAUSE of the relationships #If I did... well I would've quit after angel leaves #I watch it for buffy

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theconstantsidekick · 3 years

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Truth (4) | b.b

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Stark!Reader, Past Steve Rogers x Stark!Reader, OC x Stark!Reader (brief)

Genre: Fluff with a touch of angst.

Summary: Sam and Bucky call on the only Stark left in the Superhero business—codename Static—to help take down the Flag Smashers. Only problem is, she’s pretty damn reluctant.

(These scenes incorporate y/n into the pre-existing story as a character without making drastic changes to the plot or mythos. All the major plot points from the MCU remain in place with the addition of the reader as Static, who is not only a Stark but also enhanced. Whatever events from the canon aren't mentioned, take place without much change.)

Warnings: Swearing.

a/n: Aight, aight. Here’s the skinny; I function purely on attention and praise, so please leave a comment. I’m a narcissist; I make no apologies. I love reading your hot takes. Entertain me in exchange for all the entertainment I’m providing you. Also oh, the tag list is open.

sidenote: I've mentioned this before but, I wrote this with the reader being a POC in my mind, cause so am I. But I didn't want to impose that onto this story. So, while it's hinted, it isn't explicit in any way.

Truth (3) | Truth (5) | Series Masterlist

“Okay, so,” Sam begins, reading off of the manual in his hand, “There should be a three-sixteenths bolt that goes in the big gear.”

“Nope,” Bucky replies, completely ignoring his instruction and throwing the guide down on the table in front of them.

“You didn't even look,” Sam notes incredulously.

“I didn't have to,” Bucky answers, throwing his hands up cockily.

Sam resents the old man.

They’re at the dock, sitting with pieces of the water pump spread out in front of them. They’ve been at it since early in the morning and have gotten nowhere, but Sam doesn’t want to give up just yet. The boat is his childhood. He’s not ready yet.

“Uh-huh. No. No,” Sarah walks in from behind them, chastising the pair.

He turns to look up at her, and she fixes him with a pointed look of disapproval.

Bucky, though, apparently is incapable of listening to some damn instructions, “Hi, Sarah.” He waves at her with a flirty smile. Sam turns back to him, annoyed. He’s not sure what Bucky’s trying to achieve. The man is usually too busy making heart eyes at a completely different woman. And he knows his sister well enough to know she's noticed it too.

“I told you specifically that the water pump was not the problem, and yet, here you are,” Sarah rebukes him from behind him.

“Yep, Samuel,” Bucky chimes in.

Why are they friends, again?

“In our defense,” Sam tries while throwing his hand up in defense, “We were supposed to be done long before you woke up.”

She’s not buying anything he’s selling though. “I don't come up to the sky to tell you how to barrel roll, so don't come down here and mess around with things you don't understand,” she retorts.

And damn, that fucking hurt, “Wow. Wow.” He remarks in disbelief.

“Would you mind terribly if I took a look at it?” a voice comes from in front of Sam and all the heads turn to look at Y/n, who’s back into her shirt and trouser combo from yesterday. She’s standing there, with her hair messy, hands in her pocket and a charming smile aiming at Sarah.

What the hell is up with these two love sick fools flirting with his damn sister?? He thinks he preferred the awkward sexual tension between the two better, compared whatever this is.

“Have you ever worked on a boat before?” Sam asks.

Y/n looks at him dead in the eye, shrugging and says, “Nope!” She turns to Sarah and asks again, “You mind?”

Sarah sighs, her resolve breaking under Y/n’s magnetism. “Fine,” she acquiesces. “Knock yourself out.”

Y/n pulls out her hands from her pockets, and claps them together in excitement. “Awesome. Thanks! You won’t regret it.”

Sarah’s annoyance falls away and a smile pops up on her face. He gets it, Y/n’s enthusiasm is a rare sight these days but it’s just as damn infectious as ever.

“Alright, dumb and dumber. Let’s go,” she calls out as she makes her way into the boat.

“Hey! Who you callin’ dumb?” Sam asks, cause this is just plain disrespectful.

“Me, obviously,” Bucky says, following her without question, like he always does. “You’re dumber.”

“Watch it, tinman!” Sam shouts, his hands pointing at him.

Y/n chuckles at their interaction.

They all climb down into the cabin, where the engine sits.

“So?” Sam asks impatiently.

She pulls her hands out of the pockets, shaking them gently as she breathes in heavily while closing her eyes. She’s hyping herself up, Sam realizes. She exhales, opening her eyes and they begin flying all over the place. She’s assessing the situation like she assesses a battlefield. Sam can’t help as his lips curve up at the thought.

And all of a sudden, Y/n’s hands are on the engine, she’s pulling out wires, bolting nuts and moving things around that Sam didn’t even know existed. Her hands are flying everywhere and he’s having a hard time keeping up.

She looks back at Sam, reaching out and says, “Wrench.” When Sam hands it to her wordlessly, she takes his hand and makes him pull a cluster of wires apart.

“You said you’ve never done this before.” Sam’s confused. She’s moving around with confidence that doesn’t really match that statement.

“I haven't,” Y/n reiterates. “But I understand the basics of an engine. Tony taught me enough to lend him a hand. And I built my bike; this isn’t the same but it isn’t far off.”

“What do you mean you built—You built your bike?” Sam asks astounded, thinking back to one of the most beautiful motorcycles he's ever seen.

Y/n shrugs from where she’s leaning and playing with wires, like it's no big deal. Bucky chuckles from in front of them where he’s standing on the opposite side of the engine, while Sam tries to make his brain function again.

“Could you hold that up, sunshine?” Y/n asks, pointing at a heavy piece of metal Sam definitely doesn't know the name of.

“Sure thing, sweetheart,” Bucky replies, easily picking it up with one hand for Y/n to walk over and pulling more wires out and ripping them with her teeth.

Goddamn love sick idiots.

She ties the two naked wires together, and asks, “You know what you gonna do with it?” She’s standing opposite to him now, next to Bucky. “The shield I mean.” Before he can reply she adds, pointing in front of Sam, “Could you unscrew those bolts?”

Sam picks up a screwdriver from behind him and sets up on the task. “I’m thinking about it,” he answers her previous question.

Y/n hums in acknowledgement. She continues working. Without taking her eyes off of whatever she’s doing, she says, “Not that you asked for advice, but I wanna share some anyway. You mind?”

Sam snorts, “Nah. Advice away.”

“After what he went through, it makes sense for him to resent the shield as much as he does,” she says, referring to Isaiah. Sam had told Bucky and her about his conversation with him, after they had wrapped up dinner and were cleaning up. “I—I’ve been where he is. It wasn’t as bad for me, obviously. Peggy saved me before it could get to that. But I understand what it feels like to be abandoned by your country... left for dead,” she says, her voice thick with emotion.

Sam scolds himself.

With all the ease she carries herself around with, it becomes almost effortless to forget that she too has played the part of a guinea pig for a good chunk of her life. He can tell Bucky’s thinking the same damn thing as him because his face morphs, guilt evident.

“Y/n—” he begins but is promptly cut off.

She waves her hand at him, dismissing the entire thing as if it’s nothing. “Long time ago, I’m over it… mostly.” She moves behind Bucky walking over to the end of the room, tapping on his shoulder once, hinting that he can let go.

Bucky sets the piece down and moves back to lean on the wall behind him.

Y/n picks up some pliers and walks back, passing Bucky. “Not why I brought it up. I just meant, I get it.” She sighs exhaustedly. “People like Isaiah and I… we didn’t get to choose for ourselves. We were forced into deep dark pits and had to crawl our way out of there.” Sam steps back having finished his task. His eyes, however, remain fixed on her as she continues working. “It made us bitter,” she notes. “And we are so fucking bitter,” she finally looks up at him as she says it.

“I’d say you’re justified to feel that way,” Sam comments.

She nodded her head to the head in assent, “Not suggesting otherwise.” She motions him to hand over the screwdriver, and he obliges. “I’m saying, you’re not like that,” she states, leaning down to get a better look at whatever she’s doing. “Every time the world has beaten you down; you got mad at it just like us, yes. But then you got right back up and decided to fix it… And I don’t mean like Karli's trying to. You’ve tried to fix it with the least amount of violence possible. You’ve always opted for civilized conversation over mindless vengeance or blind fury.” She gets back up and looks at him head on, “That’s why Steve gave you the shield,” she says, her voice radiating pride.

Sam remembers meeting her the first time when she along with Steve came knocking on his window. She seemed constantly reluctant in her participation but followed through regardless. He remembers not completely understanding why she kept going on missions and taking on more responsibilities when she seemed like she’d rather be out of the whole Hero gig than ever have stepped into it. But he couldn’t help but admire her regardless. After the thing with Ultron happened, he thought he understood her a little better. He thought she was constantly trying to stay in control of her powers, afraid of blowing up. He supposes he wasn’t really wrong about that. But now he understands, more than anything else it was her trying to be better. Trying not to become what Madripoor and Hydra were intent on making her into, while simultaneously being afraid of becoming just that.

If you’d asked him a couple days ago he would’ve told you that they were good enough friends but right now he realizes they are more. He realizes she respects him. Not only that, there’s an admiration in her eyes that Sam had never been able to notice before.

Her words hit home for him. Little pieces begin to click in place because she is far from wrong. While Isaiah’s not wrong in feeling the way he does, it doesn't have to dictated how Sam feels. If Sam wants something to be done about the wrongs committed against Isaiah; he has to get up and do it himself. And that—that he’s always been fairly good at.

“Go check,” she says suddenly, breaking him out of his reverie.

“What?” Sam asks, completely lost at the drastic change of tone.

“Go check if it works,” she replies easily. When Sam remains confused, she adds, “Start the damn boat, Birdman!”

“Come on,” Bucky urges him, walking up the stairs to the cockpit. She does the same and Sam follows behind.

Looking over at Sam, Bucky nods over at the console, so he steps up and turns the keys. And the engine fucking purrs.

“Holy shit!” Sam exclaims. He can hear Bucky chuckle behind him. “Holy shit!” He turns and pulls Y/n into a tight big hug. She reciprocates immediately. He’s so fucking overjoyed with a considerable amount disbelief, he picks her off the ground, laughing.

At first she screams, laughing, and then, “Alright, alright. Calm down, Bossman,” she chides.

He does as instructed. “You're a goddamn miracle, you know that?” He plants a kiss on her cheek, holding her face.

She throws her head back in laughter. "I've been known to have my moments," she replies.

Bucky, however, doesn’t really appreciate the gesture. He can practically feel the other man boring holes into his back with his glare.

“You think you can look at the toaster—” Sam teases, but is promptly cut off by Y/n shoving him lightly, a smile gracing her face.

He can’t help but laugh.

They begin cleaning up as much of the boat as they can. Both Bucky and Y/n plan to set out in a couple hours, so they seem intent on helping him out as much as they can before their exit. Sam can’t really express how much that means to him. So he’ll do them one better, instead.

He walks into the cockpit where Y/n is fiddling around with the wires under the console, while looking far too intently out the window at a certain Super Soldier working on the deck.

“You like him,” he nudges her shoulder. She moves a bit, but her eyes stay fixed ahead and her hands continue working with the wires, as she leans back. He settles next to her, looking out the window as well.

He can see her smother a smile, intent on not letting herself break just yet. “Like who?” She plays dumb, just to egg him on.

“You know who,” Sam cajoles.

“Your sister?” She asks, turning to him, wiggles her eyebrows, “You bet I do!”

He feels like he’s dealing with children which is hilarious considering both of them are almost the same age Betty White.

“Hey!” Sam warns, wearing his best big brother voice, “Stop flirting with my sister, alright?” He sighs, “And here I thought Bucky’d be the one I’d have to keep an eye on.”

She laughs softly before turning back to look out the window (at Bucky) again.

“Come on,” he nudges her again, “You like him.”

“Who?”

“The old man over there.” He nods in Bucky’s direction.

“I’m literally a 100 fucking years old, Sam. Stop using that as an insult.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he concedes. “But you like him.”

“Who told you that?” He knows she’s being stubborn just to screw with him. He doesn’t mind. He grew up with Sarah; this is a goddamn cakewalk for him in comparison.

“Nobody had to tell me jack," he answers with certainty.

“Then how do you know?”

“Cause you keep looking at him like that?”

“Like what?” She asks while looking at Bucky.

“Like that.” Sam points at her eyes, “Like he’s all there is.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Birdman.” She finally breaks a bit, her lips curving up at the edges.

“I know exactly what I’m talking about. Cause that’s pretty damn similar to the way you used to look Steve.”

She clicks her tongue, “Tsk, tsk.” She looks back at him, eyebrow cocked, “That’s how you wanna play it? Bring my ex into this?” She nods over to Bucky, “Bring his best friend into this? Really? You’re a shit wingman, wingman.”

Yeah. That was a horrible idea, he realizes okay? But he’s not fucking wrong, is he?

Sam let out a small laugh and lifted his hands up in defense, “Okay, okay. That was a bad play, I’ll give you that. But doesn’t make it any less true.”

She takes a breath, “It was different with Steve—I wanted Steve. Him,” she pauses, looking over at Bucky who seems confused by the existence of the things in front of him as if they hold the secrets to the universe, “I just want him to be happy,” she finishes.

There is a silence that falls between them and neither of them seem to want to touch it.

But Sam has to. “Holy shit! You actually like the staring machine,” he exclaims in shock.

He knew she liked him. But he didn’t know she was falling for him head over feet.

“I thought you already knew that,” she replies, calmly.

“I thought you wanted him like, you know, like a—”

“—a rebound?”

Sam nods in response, afraid to offend. That is not his intention. She begins walking out of the cockpit onto the deck. Sam follows behind.

She just smiles back at him as they make it onto the dock, “You already met my rebound, Sam… Well one of them.”

Met him, he has. And look Sam can be honest and admit, with the beard and the accent; Brekker must have been a pretty dang good rebound.

Sam smiles too. “So you like like him.”

“Is this what sleepovers are supposed to be like? Cause I missed out on that part of growing up. Are we going to paint our nails next?” She teases him with a grin.

“Jokes on you, I’d rock the whole black nail paint look and you know it,” he counters with a smug smile.

They’re facing each other, with Bucky only a short distance away from them to his right.

“You could rock anything and everything. Not much I can argue with there, studmuffin,” She remarks as she begins to walk away, passing him by.

He can’t help but laugh because who the fuck still uses the word ‘studmuffin’? Oh yeah, 100 year old cranky ladies, like Y/n.

“Studmuffin, huh? Means I still got a shot?” He shouts out, loud enough for Bucky to hear. She knows exactly what he’s doing. Their eyes meet and there’s a silent agreement to play into it, “You know, over the competition?”

Alright, that wasn’t the most subtle thing ever but Bucky’s a grouchy old man who wouldn’t be able to read the damn sign without his glasses if it isn’t big and flashy enough.

Y/n chuckles as she climbs out of the boat, passing him. Turning around she says, “When have you ever backed out of a challenge, Wilson?”

He just winks in response. And both of them can see Bucky in their periphery, forgetting how to function as she walks away.

Read part 5 here. Find series masterlist here.

tag list: @thisisparadisemylove@justab-eautifulmess@intothesoul @buckyisperfect @aryksworld @ceo-of-daichi @ireadthensuetheauthors @fckdeusername @hotleaf-juice@itspetitfantomestuff @jn-wolf@freeflyingphoenix @jeremyrennerfanxxxx123 @geek-and-proud @bduchrnskei @love-imagineitall @ironmansuucks @ahahafudge @asimovethroughthisworld

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genshin-obsessed · 3 years

Text

The God Who Fell in Love | Venti x Reader

I uh I don’t exactly know what this is but I wrote it. It was like a really short fic I came up with so yeah! I like it enough to post it. Sidenote: I always have a hard time with tags. There’s just never any lol unless I do that whole preference thing with 9 characters. Pronouns used: She/her Length: 748 words

Summary: Venti’s known you for a while but you’ve never met him. He somehow fell in love but the only way he can express it is writing a song which manages to find its way to you.

Venti giggled as he heard two women talking about the mighty Barbatos and how he’d left, never to be seen. He was the only god that “no longer resided in his city”, but that wasn’t true at all. Venti never left, he didn’t make himself known, but he never left.

Venti preferred a free life, much like the freedom Mondstat signified. He didn’t want to be tied down by his former name… but there was one girl that just made him throw all caution to the wind. Her name was (y/f/n).

She had been working with the Knights of Favonius for a while, in search of her brother. She was beautiful, with (h/l) (h/c) hair, glimmering (e/c) eyes, and a small figure.

She was strong, determined, and confident. He loved seeing her, he loved seeing her smile and hearing her giggles. He had given her his powers and deemed her worthy. Unfortunately, she didn’t know him.

Venti sighed as he saw (f/n) walk past him. She didn’t even know he existed but was it really her fault? Everyone knew of Barbatos, the Anemo Archon, but nobody really knew of Venti the Bard.

This helped Venti and he was able to create a new song and story. About the woman who stole a God’s heart.

***

“Did you hear?!” Paimon exclaimed excitedly as she flew to (f/n).

“The new song? It’s odd, unlike so many bards to sing and tell the same story.” Jean commented as Lisa giggled.

“It is a rather beautiful and romantic story.”

“Oh? What’s it about?” (f/n) inquired as she sat down on a nearby chair.

“It’s about a god who falls in love with a human girl. She- hmm,” Lisa paused before smiling at (f/n), “maybe you should go and take a listen for yourself. It might be better that way.” (f/n) nodded, taking the idea into consideration.

***

(f/n) walked down the streets, staring at the orange sky when Lisa’s words returned to her. Maybe she should go listen. She headed to the square where she saw a bard in green, strumming his lyre and telling the story. She moved around people and found a spot nearby as she listened closely.

“The god watched the girl, smiling down at her every achievement, crying at every loss, and laughing at every joke. He blessed her with his protection, he loved her like no other. It was his first time falling so deeply in love.

Yet it was not meant to be, for she was human and he was not. His love for her brought him eternal happiness. Whether she would ever see him or realize he existed mattered not. For his love lit the darkened sky. Even as she slipped away, never having met him, he was happier than ever knowing her.”

The audience clapped and so did (f/n) but she frowned at the words. Eventually, the crowd thinned out and she finally stood from her seat and walked towards him.

“The story… do you know anything more about it?” The bard jumped before smiling at her.

“Only heard this version. I’m sure there are different ones out there.” (f/n) nodded and looked down for a moment before speaking up.

“Was he happy? Happy never being with her? How?” His eyes watched her with amusement before he spoke.

“He loved her so much that just seeing her brought him happiness. He didn’t need to have her.” (f/n) looked back at him, with a look of curiosity.

“Do you think he could’ve been happier knowing her? Maybe being with her?” Venti shrugged but deep down he knew the answer.

“I’m not sure. Maybe. That all depends on whether she loved him as well. Tell me, how would your version of this story end?” (f/n) was silent as she thought it over.

“I… I would want the god to reach out to her, I suppose not every story needs a happy ending but it would be nice if this one did. I guess… I think the god deserves it.”

“Why?”

“I’m… not sure.”

“You’re an odd one indeed, outlander.” (f/n) shied away before she held her hand out to him.

“(f/n). It’s nice to meet you.” The bard smiled as he slowly reached out and grabbed her hand. Yeah, it definitely felt perfect. Their hands fit like puzzle pieces and it set his heart ablaze.

“Venti. The pleasure is all mine.”

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin venti #genshin x reader #venti x reader #venti imagine #genshin impact imagines

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rivalsforlife · 2 years

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Do you have any head canons for your favorite Ace Attorney characters? (Basically free pass to rant to your hearts content 💙)

Hi anon if you're still out there you sent me this ask nearly six months ago and then I never really needed an excuse to rant about a topic. but now I do and I feel bad for letting this sit so long so here's a bunch of very specific headcanons about the relationships between the protagonists and assistants.

Phoenix and Maya: the Dynamic Duo. The Best Friends. Canonically Maya is the most important person in Phoenix's world in JFA (and of course Trucy ends up taking that position but Maya is always up there in a comfortable second place.) They'd die for each other within a few days of having met. I think they're both fundamentally lonely people and the shared tragedy of losing Mia trauma bonded them for life. Insert elaborate headcanon of Phoenix not really having many lasting friendships and just latching on to all the people who are nice to him (hence switching careers to meet a guy he hasn't known since he was nine) and also Maya growing up as the heir to the Kurain Channeling Technique and not really having anyone her age to hang around with. They are undoubtedly Siblings but I don't think they're Siblings in the same way as like Miles and Franziska are Siblings. I don't think they'd necessarily introduce each other as their siblings (... which I don't think Edgeworth and Franziska do either but that's a whole other long dramatic topic) but they do secretly consider each other their annoying younger sibling. Like canonically at least Maya does. They have weekly gossip sessions which also has canon support. They'll make fun of each other all day and then die for each other in a crisis. Their dynamic means the world to me. I could go on for a very long time.

... sidenote that I don't consider Franziska an assistant at all but I want to briefly throw in some headcanons for them in here because I think Franziska Hates Phoenix's Guts but after JFA develops some respect for him and throughout Bridge and post T&T she does actually like him (platonically, just to be very clear,) but doesn't know how to express that so she just acts the same way she always does and Phoenix is convinced that she despises him for like the rest of his life or at least until Edgeworth tells him otherwise.

Phoenix and Ema: I don't think they're as close as Phoenix and Maya. I think that like they can go years without talking to each other but then when they're both in the same place and hang out they are like the best of friends for a week. Ema came to visit in the middle of the 7yg and she and Phoenix went around town and partied (or whatever social things people do I don't have a social life) and confided about all their troubles but it wasn't until Ema left that Phoenix realized he completely forgot to tell her about Trucy hence why Ema had no idea when she came back in AA4. I think that's funny.

Phoenix and Pearl: there's lots of parent trauma here on Pearl's part. Insert elaborate headcanons here about Pearl partially being so fixated on Phoenix and Maya being a romantic thing because she's subconsciously substituting them as parents in a perfect nuclear family that isn't horribly traumatizing. I don't think Phoenix ever considers her his *daughter* daughter not like Trucy but definitely if he hadn't been partially taking care of her throughout JFA and T&T he'd be even more unprepared when taking on Trucy. Also probably Pearl has some degree of jealousy at first with this but I think they sort it out early on in the 7yg.

Edgeworth and Kay: You Know This One. They are father-daughter but I don't think they ever admit it. like I think Kay after losing her prosecutor father in a horrible murder and then like took a break from school to avenge his death and then went to find this other prosecutor who helped nearly catch the murderer the first time and also says things that often remind her of her father kind of went "oh this is a dad now" but the trauma of losing her dad means she doens't. fully. like you know there's that scene at the end of aai2-4 where Miles hands her the promise notebook and it flashbacks to Byrne with the promise notebook and their hands are overlapped so it's like you can't see Byrne's face and it's an extremely clear Parallel of these two people occupying similar spaces in Kay's mind, but of course Kay doesn't fully embrace this because she does love Byrne a lot and doesn't ever really. move on from him or ever want to think she's replacing him in her mind. which she isn't, but it's something she's scared of. And obviously Edgeworth has a lot of father trauma too. I can't see this man readily accepting that he's a father in any way I think he just represses it but he does like want to protect Kay and make sure she grows up safe and eats her vegetables. and someday if he does manage to sort out father trauma I think he'd recognize he sees her in a daughterly way but by this time Kay is well into adulthood and he thinks she doesn't really need that anymore. she does and I think in a narumitsu world where edgeworth adopts trucy it's going to cause a lot of complicated feelings for her. it's very elaborate. another thing I could probably write way too much on we're going to move on

Edgeworth and Ema: It's so cute when Edgeworth is all polite to her because she's his boss's younger sister. I think he was nice to her when he was prosecuting the Joe Darke case and Ema (deeply traumatized suddenly being ignored by her sister and fourteen years old) gets this gigantic puppy crush on him because he's like just distant enough to be safe to have a crush on and is older but not too old and is also very gay. which she doesn't know yet but it contributes. anyways when she grows up it's more of a professional idolization sort of thing instead. edgeworth never knows about the crush thing because he's oblivious until ema and kay get married and kay makes a joke about ema using her to seduce her not-dad and ema nearly divorces her two hours after getting married

Apollo and Trucy: siblings by blood and in heart. Even when they don't really know each other well Apollo was sobbing when he thought Trucy got kidnapped which was really sweet. I think Trucy takes advantage of him not really knowing how she works a lot in the beginning but eventually he grows wise to her tricks and doesn't fall for them (as often). He considers her a sister figure long before he knows they're related. Definitely for most of Trucy's life the only one who really understood her was Phoenix and I think it would be sweet if eventually Apollo learned to see behind her facade sometimes too. Also I'm shaking the ending of soj really hard. Umm what else I don't always adhere to this headcanon but I think it would be very funny if Trucy knew the whole time that she and Apollo were half-siblings. Like she has the picture of Thalassa with the bracelets, and she knows Perceive power is a Gramarye thing, I think she knows. She just doesn't know how to break the news to her dad.

I could here add in Athena but I don't consider her an assistant and I probably should add in Rayfa but I can't remember enough of SOJ honestly. Also I want to add in that despite the lack of canon interactions I think Apollo and Maya teaming up would be fun. Anyways DGS time.

Ryunosuke and Susato: by the transitive property of siblings these two are siblings. But to be perfectly honest I don't see them as siblings in the same way I'd like see Phoenix and Maya as siblings and definitely not as Edgeworth and Franziska are siblings. I think they're Family but I can't really fit them into a neatly defined box. Uhh I could get into some specifics but I don't want to put a bunch of spoilers in here I guess I could make a separate post later. But I think they also really bonded over shared trauma throughout like the whole series and I think they remain really good friends for the rest of their lives, and eventually they run a law firm together. She gets to be Auntie Susato to Ryu's eventual kid(s) which I think she adores because I feel like Susato really likes kids even though I don't see her having any of her own... maybe adoption but my elaborate post-canon Susato headcanons aren't really solidified on that front.

I could probably go into Ryu's relationships with Sholmes and Iris because they're technically considered assistants to some degree but this is long enough already, I want to avoid spoilers, and Susato's really the main one.

#asks #headcanons #this is. very long. I'm sorry.#long post #uhh sorry for leaving this so long again anon I hope this is coherent #the pseudo-familial relationships between some guy and a weird little girl are something that can be so personal

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crossdressingdeath · 3 years

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Every so often I’ll come across a fic that has a summary that essentially reads: “after JFM brings WWX to Lotus Pier YZY takes JC to MeishanYu where he becomes the sect heir” and it always acts like this situation is a fix-it for the entire plot of the novel. And I was thinking about this premise over the past few days and realising just how little it makes sense. (I would like to clarify that I have not read any of the fics with this premise but that is because they all look to be written by JC stans and I decided a while ago that I wasn’t interested in anything like that. I would also like to say that I have only the vaguest understanding of Chinese culture so if something is glaring wrong in here I accept corrections.)

So. The logistics of the events coming to pass. The summaries imply that YZY left Lotus Pier with JC in tow, marched into her natal sect and without question JC was named sect heir and never had any problems ever.

Firstly: if YZY is such an amazing mother to take her son away from the ‘awful’ environment of Lotus Pier under JFM, why does she leave her daughter there? There never seems to be any mention of JYL also going to Meishan so this really just feels like YZY doesn’t actually care about anyone other than JC (in a similar way to the author not caring about anyone other than JC).

Secondly: the actual inheritance thing. As far as I can tell YZY and therefore JC are so far down the line of inheritance for the MeishanYu sect that it doesn’t actually matter. JFM calls YZY ‘Third Lady’ which based on my understanding means that she has two older sisters who would be the First and Second Ladies. In the line of succession her eldest sister would be first, then her children, then her second sister, that sister’s children, and then YZY and JC behind them (this isn’t even taking into account any older brothers she might have). I think I read somewhere that marriage order is based at least partially on age so we can assume that the two older sisters got married before YZY, and it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume that the eldest child of the eldest daughter could be fifteen when JC is nine, so at the very least the eldest sister could have a child who is close to being of age (though I freely admit that I have little idea as to what is classed as ‘of age’ within this world) while the son YZY brings is a child who throws a tantrum over having his pets sent away for someone else’s mental health and being told he’s going to share a room.

(Sidenote: I know JFM has JC’s dogs sent away but for all we know they’re just taken out of Lotus Pier itself (as in the bit where the cultivators live). We know there’s a market area where non-cultivators live literally right outside so rather than sending three puppies miles away to other cities, couldn’t JFM have just found someone living outside of the cultivator’s part of Lotus Pier to give the dogs to? Wouldn’t that have been the easiest option? And one that could potentially allow JC to visit the dogs he was so upset about? Did he just not ask to see them so JFM decided that he didn’t actually care about them? Did JC go see them every week until they died and was just angry that he wasn’t allowed to own them anymore? What proof do we have that JC never saw those dogs ever again?)

Anyway, back on track. Thirdly: YZY married out of the MeishanYu sect and into the YunmengJiang sect. She was very insistent on this. She wanted this a great deal even though we know that JFM didn’t particularly want to marry her. I believe that by the culture of the time marrying out of a family meant you were no longer part of that family. Like you might visit or write and introduce your children to them but you weren’t part of the family in the sense that you weren’t in the line of inheritance for anything of that family. So YZY marching into her natal sect with her bratty son behind her, declaring that he would be the sect heir to MeishanYu honestly reads to me as YZY flat out not understanding anything about how family inheritance works. She married into YunmengJiang. By the rules of the time, she should be devoted to building up the YunmengJiang sect, not leaving and returning to her natal sect because she doesn’t like the mother of the child her husband brought in off the streets. JC especially isn’t in line for inheriting MeishanYu because he is a member of the Jiang clan. Honestly the best equivalent I can think of is if people expected Jin Ling, heir (and sect leader and the end of the novel) to LanlingJin to also take over the running of YunmengJiang even though nowhere is it implied that he’s in any way in line of that — JYL married out, any children of hers were part of the Jin clan with no inheritance in the Jiang clan (it’s also for this reason that I am firmly of the belief that Jin Ling was mostly raised at Koi Tower rather than Lotus Pier, who lets the heir to a sect be entirely raised by another sect? For all we know Jin Ling spends a couple of months a year with JC and the novel just happened to take place during those months, and it’s saying something if Jin Ling spends the entire time he has per year with JC running away on night hunts without JC there). So, to put a long point short: YZY married out of the MeishanYu sect and has literally no inheritance there and neither do her children.

Also, at this point hasn’t she essentially kidnapped the heir to YunmengJiang? I doubt JFM is going to say “oh you don’t like my best friends’ son so you want to take our son away. Of course you can do that I have no problem at all with losing my sect heir due to your petty dislike of someone who has been dead for years now. Goodbye.” JFM may not really stand up to YZY, but there’s some things even he isn’t going to tolerate from her. So YZY is causing a political disaster between her natal sect and the sect she married into by kidnapping the sect heir of one and attempting to make him the sect heir of the other. At the very least I feel like JFM could divorce her on the grounds of kidnapping his son and trying to depose the sect heir of her natal sect in favour of a child who by law cannot inherit that sect.

From what I can tell these fics look like they’re set up to be fix-its. Again, I haven’t read them, but I can feel just by reading the summaries and glancing over the tags that they’re intended to be stories about how without the father who ‘hates him so much’ and ‘that awful WWX who always held him back from his true potential’ that JC is so much happier and more skilled and also absolutely going to be the best person in their generation at everything and in at least one of these it looks like he ends up marrying LXC (which is just. No). Honestly it could be a fix-it for JYL and WWX who would no longer be being berated for their general existence (WWX) and hobbies (JYL, specifically how she likes to cook). Them growing up without YZY constantly breathing down their necks and having better mental health as a consequence? Yes please.

Honestly I wouldn’t mind seeing something where the concept was written by someone who didn’t think that ‘actually all the positive traits of other characters are JC’s character traits and also JC should have been the main character’. Something where it’s set up as YZY taking JC with her to Meishan, expecting everything to obviously work out the way she wants, only to be shot down. Her eldest sister is potentially sect leader if their parents have stepped down and has a fifteen-year-old child who everyone in the sect is pleased with as their sect heir. YZY and her expectations get shot down, it’s made clear that she and JC aren’t even in the line of succession since they’re officially part of YunmengJiang and not MeishanYu, and she’s told to leave. She returns to Lotus Pier, angry but still convinced everything there will go her way because JFM has never stood up to her before, only to get back and find JFM in the process of organising their divorce. This isn’t an internal matter due to her not doing the duties expected of the mistress of Lotus Pier anymore, this is a political matter where she kidnapped the sect heir and tried to depose the sect heir of MeishanYu. She’s legally part of YunmengJiang, her actions reflect on the sect as a whole and could be taken as hostile intent. Really the only way to keep this from potentially escalating is to divorce her so that everyone knows her actions aren’t condoned by JFM individually and YunmengJiang as a whole. The end result is that instead of JC somehow fixing everything as a result of having less political influence/lower status than before (sect heir of MeishanYu which is a minor sect compared to the sect heir of YunmengJiang which is a great sect) and without an extremely loyal WWX supporting him, YZY instead undergoes some consequences for once in her life and the family dynamic of the Jiangs + WWX might even manage to be healthier without her constantly being around to antagonise everyone.

Yeah, I’m pretty sure YZY’s children would be so far down the line of succession that they’d have to murder a bunch of people to stand a chance of ruling Meishan, and her taking JC, the heir to the Jiang sect, to another sect without his father’s permission and with the intention of deposing the rightful heir of that sect would be... just a bit of a problem, yeah. Also like. I suspect the reason YZY doesn’t canonically do that is because not even she is that stupid. That goes beyond being a bitch and straight into Actual Crimes. Also love the idea that JC, the most useless of all the great sect leaders, would be less useless in a position of infinitely less power. ...To be fair he would certainly do a lot less damage.

#lotus mom #grapehate #anon #asks

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dappercritter · 3 years

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Godzilla vs Kong: Brutally Honest Thoughts

(Took me long enough, eh? Depending on home video releases be like that.)

So first things first, I have a confession to make: I spoiled the movie before I watched it. I was impatient and they had only announced an HBO Max premiere in the states and a theatrical run in Canada at the time. Afterward, I got heads-up from a friend and immersed myself in the opinions of those lucky enough to see it early. I’m just saying that I have some preconceived opinions that I’m sticking to.

That said, Godzilla vs Kong turned out to be more fun than I expected! But you already knew that. Everyone did. The two kings of movie monsters had their rematch and this time it was with glorious Hollywood SFX powering it this time.

The human story was fun but it’s clear they stopped trying at this point. Team Kong stole my heart, especially Jia. Team Godzilla (although the Conspiracy Crew would be a more fitting term since they spend more time chasing down mysteries than trying to back or understand Godzilla) was more fun than I expected and their dynamic was surprisingly enjoyable. Bernie is actually kind of funny, it's nice to see Madison acting more assertive, and Josh was fine--he was the only sane man of the bunch but he was also the butt of the jokes. Still, all the hardcore conspiracy jokes got old fast and it feels off seeing the daughter of two scientists turn into an edgy conspiracy crackpot. Why not an edgy science major?

Team Apex are fun villains, especially Walter Simmons who's a great megalomaniacal CEO type, but Ren Serizawa is a joke. I like his actor's performance but he's just another footnote. Nobody bats an eye at his last name, although the only heroes he interacts with are Nathan Lind and he just misses Team Godzilla. He really could have just been any other villain, but instead, they had to sully Serizawa’s legacy further while robbing a good actor of some interesting material. (As is, it turns out he was just an egotistical jerk with daddy issues--an easy puzzle to solve on day one--after all...)

However, I still cannot and will not approve of the fact that somebody thought it would be a good idea to make the heroes of a sci-fi story into hardcore conspiracy theorists in this day and age. Likewise, I’m not a huge fan of how they essentially made the Hollow Earth into its own universe complete with a crazy portal and an environment with its own laws of physics, nor am I totally crazy about the huge leap in technology that was made between this and KOTM, or G’14 for that matter.

The monsters as awesome as they are, are the biggest mixed bag in the show.

Kong is at his best in ages, and while I am all for the new heroic warrior character that Legendary have crafted and I acknowledge that making him a worthy opponent for their god-tier Godzilla was going to be a hurdle, I think they did a splendid job. Seeing Kong using agility and acrobatics was a glorious sight to behold, and something about Kong becoming a tool-user and weapon wielder just feels right. It’s a far better demonstration of Kong as a “thinking animal” (*wink, wink*).

I’m much less thrilled about their treatment of his greatest opponent ever. After everything they’ve done to build up Godzilla as the incredible force of neutral good fighting to maintain balance and all the build up to ancient rivalry debating back to a great Titan war--even going as far as putting his name in front Kong’s this time!-- they’ve reduced Godzilla back to glorified bully for Kong. He only gets the minimum amount of sympathy from the cast of his movie before they go off to deal with the conspiracy plot or focus on Kong and the Hollow Earth. Worse still, he is somehow more powerful and more aggressive than ever for a good chunk of the movie which leads to an outcome I’m sorry to say we all saw coming. Somehow, I suspect that the reason behind this was how Wingard cited Godzilla vs. Mothra, vs. Destoryah, and Shin-Godzilla as influences for the monsters scale and story, which while cool and all, are all movies where he was played up as a mostly stoic antagonist rather than a three-dimensional character like Kong. (Though ironically vs. Destoroyah and Shin did a better job of making Godzilla feel more sympathetic and in both of them he was a walking nuclear reactor meltdown.)

Due to the unfortunate time constraints of the three-way deal between Toho, WB, and Universal at the time this was in production, Kong was unable to secure a proper sequel that could develop his skillset like Godzilla’s did. Nevermind the fact the filmmakers completely surrendered to the “nothing matters but the monsters” mentality that a chunk of the fanbase has been spouting since this universe unofficially kicked off almost 10 years ago. (Sidenote: Oh god, I’m turning in an old fart already.) As a result, the movie trips over itself trying to set up Godzilla and Kong’s rivalry as well as building up Kong as a worthy opponent to Godzilla while expanding on their shared lore, and as a result countless plot points set up in in the previous movie and tie-in movie are thrown out the window. I’m sorry to say but in spite of all hopes and illusions of grandeur, it’s safe to this damn thing is a Kong movie with Godzilla as the bad guy.

...at least until HE shows up. Yup, Mechagodzilla. The biggest spoiled twist of the centuries steals the show so the movie can pull a Dawn of Justice. But! It does it much better than the fractured DCEU’s most controversial entry ever could. Mechagodzilla’s inclusion gets a decent amount of build up thanks to Team Godzilla/the Conspiracy Crew, and when he shows up, does he make an impression! At first, I wasn’t sure how to feel about his inclusion or his design, but I’ve come to like this one. He’s basically a kaiju terminator built in Godzilla’s image made purely out of heavy machinery piloted by the best Ghidorah head. It’s a jarring change of pace compared to previous MechaG’s but it grows on you after a while. With the abundance of weaponry stuffed into him, he feels like a fitting update of the original killing machine, and even if his inclusion feels like an easy way out of the big showdown, it’s fun to see him played as a literal colossal heel for the kings to team up against. Not to mention he looks shockingly good with those red highlights. However, one still can’t help but wonder how and why he was made in this universe, or how he feels like pure heavy machinery one minute and then an extra-large Ultron unit the next.

As for the the big throwdowns we’ve all been waiting for... well, we’re still in the mixed bag deparment. While the fights are all exciting and excellently choreographed, and benefit from some more eclectic lighting and cinematograph, I’m sorry to say that as far as the rematch of the century goes they dropped the ball on this one.

Don’t get me wrong, the fights are all great in their own ways, but there’s a drastic change in the feeling of weight and power with the monsters. Godzilla, Kong, and even Mechagodzilla all feel strangely floaty in most of their fights. One moments they feel like true behemoths shaking the very earth with every movement and then it’s like they’re in Godzilla Unleashed, running, jumping, and throwing each other around with speed that feels that almost makes you wonder if the Hollow Earth’s gravity inversion stuff is leaking out into the world. While it’s all perfectly cool, you can’t help but wonder how Kong is able to leap between aircraft carriers and buildings, when Godzilla got the ability to blow a hole through the Earth itself, or how a colossal machine is able to move so nimbly or why it has to be flashing blue all the time.

It’s fascinating and fun but you just can’t help but wonder how we got from almost posthuman disaster and war movies exploring how we’re at the mercy of the ancient almost mythical forces beyond our comprehension, we’ve found ourselves smack dab in the middle of Bayformers meets Jurassic World levels of Hollywood absurdity where anything and everything can and will happen in the name of getting to the monster fights. Although I can’t say I’m surprised given the director’s take on Death Note made some questionable choices with it’s take on the infamous cast while still coming up with some genuinely inspired choices. Still, all things considered we could have gotten worse compared to ther cinematic universes made by WB and Universal.

As for some misc. thoughts to close up this rambling mess:

-The soundtrack is fantastic. A great continuation of the feel of Skull Island’s mixtape with some truly wonderful picks. Special mention goes to the opening and ending songs, and they GOT AN ELVIS PRESLEY SONG IN HERE! YES!!! The three kings of pop culture together at last!

-While this movie didn’t need to be any more overstuffed, it would have been nice if the rest of the Titans didn’t disappear entirely from this movie. I get that Godzilla: Dominion already explained what happened to them all more or less, but it really is a missed oppurtunity that we never got to see another Titan war. Or Rodan attacking Kong to avenge his pterosaur bretheren from days long past. Speaking of which...

-“Save Mothra” jokes be damned, Mothra would have been a welcome gues star, not just to help break up the big fight, but to show off Godzilla’s softer, more protective side. And yes, I want more Mothzilla. Shut up, we deserve it.

-Boy, Monarch sure does a whole lot of nothing up-top, huh?

-The cinematography is a great update but there’s a little too much neon lighting, especially in the Apex HQ and the Hollow Earth throne room. It feels like they’re trying just a little too hard to sell the more futuristic, Hollywood sci-fi feel.

-The score is... great but not that great. Of course, I’ve always had mixed feelings about Tom Holkenburg (AKA Junkie XL)’s music. I liked Kong’s themes, but they REALLY dropped the ball with Godzilla’s theme. Mechagodzilla’s works really well as long you ignore that it’s just Godzilla’s theme in this movie with an ominious choir added in.

-The new Hollow Earth creatures are all perfectly fine. Actually, I thought they were another highlight! Especially the Warbats, Hellhawks, and Doug the Titanus Foetodon Man.

-I want to do a release the extended cut campaign but I don’t think any of us have the energy for that s**t anymore.

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the-girl-who-cried-wolf · 2 years

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9, 11, 30, 33, for the ask thingy (bonus 13 cus im struggling with writers block rn and it sucks)

- random anon

hello random anon!! thanks for the ask 💜 as expected, i rambled. i would say sorry but i literally knew this was going to happen. so. i hope you wanted detailed answers...

9. Least favorite trope to write.

this is a hard one! i can't think of any that i actively dislike, but ig...enemies to lovers?? i LOVE reading it, but every time i've tried writing it, it turns out horrible and i never post. so. maybe i'm just too soft for that trope, idk, but its hard to write. thats literally all i can think of-

11. Describe your writing process from scratch to finish.

well. i doubt any of this will make any sense, but lets dive into the terrifying depths of my Writer Brain anyway...

most times, fics start with An Idea. its usually just a random thought i've had, which could be anything from an outfit i would love to see a character wear to the Deepest Darkest Feelings of a certain canon moment - it's varied and fucking wild - and then, i just think. for a few days or weeks maybe, depending on how long i intend the fic to be, i have this fic idea growing in the back of my mind as i start to build up the beginning of a plot, and i outline some goals and things i want to achieve when i write this fic. (i picture it as a little timeline running of into the distance with tags stuck on the Important Plot Points, with relevant words and images, but that's just me. its weird, i know, bare with me.)

once The Idea is settled and some semblance of a plot has been mentally sketched out, i open a doc and just start writing. for longer fics, i may keep a doc for planning - writing down scenes that are in my mind, or random visuals and lines that i think of, and sometimes even song lyrics that i find inspiring for the fic, etc - but for shorter fics, i just dive right in and get writing.

(sidenote: i've found that the process is different for longer fics vs shorter fics. obviously. theres a lotttt more planning for long fics, and i usually end up making a playlist and a pinterest board for them to keep the ideas coming as i write. short fics usually get smashed out in a few hours, probably at midnight, then i edit a little and post. im kinda lazy with editing and rewriting tho. rip.)

now, we come to the writing itself. i like to set aside a fair amount of time for writing, like, i dont just randomly write a line every now and then - i make time for me to sit down for a hour or however long i've got, and focus on writing. i follow the hazy map of plot points in my mind, and i fill in the blanks as i go. if im completely honest, i dont plan a lot of shit. i just blurt words and sometimes it comes out nicely.

i think that pretty much covers it. other than obsessively editing and rereading over the long fics, or scanning the shorter ones a little, i post it and move on <3

30. Favorite line you’ve ever written.

oh god. this is...hard. ill just throw some random lines in without context or explanation bc im crazy. here goes-

- He tries to muster some kind of smile in response as he tugs his headphones down around his neck, Led Zeppelin blasting out the speakers freely now, but he must fail terribly because Calum’s smile slips from his face, just like the batter that drips from the spoon he’s holding, landing in the mixing bowl underneath. It melts smoothly into the rest of the mixture and disappears, and Luke stares at where it landed, wishing he could bring it back. (x)

- Luke’s lingering hand tangles back in Calum’s hair. Soft strands of it threading through his fingers and Calum’s eyes fluttering shut like a butterfly’s wings, then gently pushing his head up into Luke's hand as he rolls over a little more, searching for just a little more of the warmth of Luke’s body against his. (x)

- And he’s gone. But she’s still there. The world has suddenly and violently stopped spinning, but she’s still there, smiling at painting in her mind, of a spinning girl. (x)

- He opened his eyes, and for a second, the silhouette of a boy still stood in front on him, a spark in his eyes and hope in every breath. Wishing for a bright future, planning for great and marvelous things that would never come to pass. (x)

33. Do you listen to music when you’re writing?

as a general rule, yes. i like blocking out the rest of the world and listening to music that fits the fic im writing, because music is always my biggest inspiration. for many fics, especially longer ones, ill make a playlist that suits the vibes which i can then listen to whenever i write that fic. but sometimes i write without music just so i can focus better, and not be distracted by the music, which helps me make more conscious word choices and structural/grammatical choices too.

13. How do you deal with writers block?

ahh writers block (derogatory). sigh. honestly, i dont think there is a cure for writers block, but staying open to inspirations is one suggestion i can offer. listening to music, watching the world around you, consuming media you enjoy...all that helps your mind take in ideas, and even if you can't seem to write anything out, it's good to keep your mind open and filled with something. and with writers block, i would say to NOT make yourself write if you dont feel like it. that takes the enjoyment out of it and makes it seem like a task you have to complete, which it isn't!! writing is here for you to have fun!! you just have to wait it out until you want to write again, and in the meantime, take in all the inspiration that you can.

thank you sm for asking all this, i had a lot of fun writing these answers out! and i hope your writers block doesn't last long too. sending good vibes your way!!! 💜💜💜

writers ask game

#random anon <3 #ask #writers ask game #my writing

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agardenandlibrary · 3 years

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Eye of the World - Chapters 25-30 p454/782

I’m more than half-way done now! wahoo!

Perrin can sense the wolves, can differentiate between them, knows their thoughts and somehow continues to think this isn’t the coolest thing that ever happened to him.

They encounter the Tuatha’an, Traveling People/Tinkers, and, uh, travel with them for a while. They’re friendly folk who practice non-violence. Tuatha’an are looking for a song they lost during the Breaking of the World. If they can find it again, the paradise of the Age of Legends will return.

Egwene gets to flirt and have some fun and relax. Perrin gets to pace around anxiously. We learn some about Aiel. Basically everyone on the Borderlands is prophesying the return of the Dark One. Sidenote: Aiel call him “Leafblighter” which is incredibly funny. It’s obviously meant to be “blight” but instead what i see is this:

continued under the cut because there’s a lot

Back with Rand and Mat, they make it to Whitebridge. It’s called that because it has a white bridge. Each separate party spends time wondering if the others are dead.

They had to believe the others were alive. Why? So it will all turn out like one of Thom’s stories? The heroes find the treasure and defeat the villain and live happily ever after? Some of his stories don’t end that way. Sometimes even heroes die.

News from the world: The False Dragon has been captured. The Great Hunt for the Horn is going to start soon. An Ominous Figure has been asking around for their party. Also Padan Fain the peddler appears to be two steps ahead of them. (I’m assuming that’s the weaselly fellow mentioned)

A Fade finds them and Thom launches himself at it so Rand and Mat can escape. Somehow I feel like Thom Merrilin survives this?? I know he’s got a Mysterious Backstory involving Court but I can’t for the life of me remember what it is. Anyway, the characters with the fewest braincells are now out on their own.

BACK TO PERRIN - they’re moving at a leisurely pace. Elyas (wolfbrother) is waiting for “something” to happen. Perrin has the most relatable moment so far: “Perrin could not make himself relax. At night he wandered among the rainbow wagons worrying, as much because no one else seemed to see anything to worry about as for any other reason.”

Perrin’s dreams have been mostly normal lately but the Dark Patriarchy finally finds him again and throws a bird in his face which attacks his left eye. He’s now marked? The Eye of the World will consume him? Not sure what that does. Anyway that’s the impetus for leaving the Tuatha’an and heading out on their own again.

“Ila was giving me advice on being a woman,” Egwene replied absently. [Perrin] began laughing, and she gave him a hooded, dangerous look that he failed to see.

“Advice! No one tells us how to be men. We just are.”

“That,” Egwene said, “is probably why you make such a bad job of it.” Up ahead, Elyas cackled loudly.

“Perrin did not want to think about his dream. He had thought that the wolves made him safe.” The wolves tell him he has to accept them fully and then he’ll be safe from the dreams. Does he do this? Bafflingly, no.

Nynaeve is traveling with her future polycule Moiraine and Lan and this chapter is mostly about how hot-tempered Nynaeve is versus how cool-headed Moiraine is and how often Lan wanders off so he’s not in the middle lol. Nynaeve has a moment where she’s like “I wish Moiraine would leave. Lan can stay though. Because he knows the paths to take and he’s a useful person to have around. Yep. That’s the only reason.”

I don’t feel like I have a good handle on why people think the One Power is evil and Aes Sedai are all also evil? It’s been pretty obvious that there are two aspects to the Power and the Aes Sedai can safely use it without becoming corrupted and in fact they do their best to prevent people from accessing the corrupted Power? We’ve also heard that the Dark One uses his corrupted Dragons/whatever to attack the Aes Sedai like... all the time. idk I just haven’t had any actual evidence that Aes Sedai are evil. (they’re not a monolith of good, Moiraine herself says that, but all the “evil” AS stuff has been hearsay?)

Anyway, Nyrainelan reach Whitebridge and Moiraine senses Rand and Mat and they decide to search for Perrin and try to catch up with R&M in Caemlyn.

Perrin et al are being chased by ravens sent by the Dark One. Elyas takes them to a stedding (WHAT’S THAT, PRECIOUS???) where the One Power doesn’t work! Which I suspect is going to make Moiraine’s quest to find Perrin a little difficult.

We also get the history of Artur Hawkwing. Elyas knows a lot of history for a dude who spends all his time in the woods with wolves. Every party leader has a repository of stories to share.

Anyway the Children of the Light show up (booooo) and the wolves say “they smell wrong, sort of the way a rabid dog smells wrong.” Perrin and Egwene are captured and one of the wolves dies trying to help them get away.

hnghgh children of the light being dipshits etc etc -- everyone who disagrees with them is a Dark Friend, yadda yadda yadda. They’re rushing to get to Caemlyn (to intercept the False Dragon who has been captured? maybe?). They show an interesting dichotomy with Byar and Bornhald. Just because Bornhald has a friendlier manner doesn’t mean he’s going to let them go. He’ll just say how sad he is that you’ve refused to see the Light before he sends you off to die.

#cara reads eotw #eye of the world #cara reads #robert jordan #wheel of time #cara reads wot

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goldenkamuyhunting · 3 years

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Ramblings and crazy theory time about GK chap 264 “The woman he saw at the hospital in Otaru”

And so here we go with the first new chapter for the new year that starts with a great battle...

Too bad the fight get interrupted (and no, I don’t really want to see Tsukishima crushed but to see Sofia in action is always SO GOOD), but okay, let’s go with order.

We left Sofia jumping on Tsukishima’s horse. She then parts Tsukishima from Koito and Nikaidou by slapping the horse’s backside and causing it to run away while Koito can’t give chase because his horse is dead.

Well, Nikaidou could but Sofia’s men kill his horse too as their purpose is exactly to split them up before more soldiers will come. They seem an efficent bunch even if they’re just two, in the sense they know what they’ve to do, they aren’t just blindly shooting, they’re shooting with a purpose. Too bad they’re clearly meant to be nameless red shirts, stuck in the story just to be extra characters that are ‘killable’.

Anyway Koito tells Nikaidou to cover him as he’ll try to move around and flank Sofia’s men.

Really, Ogata should have kicked his head sooner. Koito has somehow developed from that kick into a guy who can think of a plan before rushing to attack.

If this were to be solely a humoristic manga I’ll wonder if, with another kick in the head Koito would reach genius level or would revert back to the boy he was previously.

Anyway, Nikaidou agrees with his plan but we don’t get to see the two putting it in action yet as the action shifts on Sofia and Tsukishima.

Sofia cuts the rope that ties the bag to Tsukishima’s horse then tries to shoot him in the head. She undervalues the hardness of Tsukishima’s head though, as the latter, grabs her wrist and then ‘uses his head’ metaphorically and litterally to hit Sofia’s face, following it with another blow with his elbow.

Really, Sofia, you made a mistake, I know why you prioritized curring the rope tying the sack but you should have stabbed that knife in Tsukishima’s side first when he didn’t expect it.

Anyway Sofia fires the gun, the discharge seems to be accidental as she looks surprised as the gun kills the horse, causing them both to fall from it along with the bag. Sofia, who believes Asirpa is in the bag, lets go of the gun and grabs the bag to protect her.

They roll on the ground and Sofia crashes her head rather badly against a pole.

She still manages to open the bag, to discover it’s filled with clothes. At this she tries to get back her gun but Tsukishima kicks it away... only to be punched away by Sofia as if he were a leaf.

Tsukishima flies backward, slamming on the ground, Sofia hot in pursuit... only for her to fall on the ground as the blow on her head she suffered previously causes her to lose consciousness, a large amount of blood dripping from her forehead.

Tsukishima, who normally is a tough nut to crack, raises himself a bit, a bruise on his check, wondering ‘what the hell is this woman’.

Honestly he was very lucky. It’s only thanks to Sofia hitting the head she ended up out of commission.

Back to Koito we go.

Noda didn’t really add much to the fight, either he’ll develop in the volume version or didn’t think it was important.

We can see that Sofia’s men only amounted to two, one of whom is now seriously wounded and telling his companion to run call the others who should be nearby or the main force in Otaru. His companion might be wounded too, meaning Koito and Nikaidou have good aim after all.

Still, this means Sofia still has a good number of men with herself, just not there as, in that moment, she was strolling around Sapporo only with two of them.

What’s not clear at all is WHY SHE IS IN SAPPORO and, more importantly, HOW SHE KNEW ASIRPA HAS ENDED IN A BAG.

Sure, she knew Tsukishima and Koito were among the ones who took her, but really, in Otaru she saw them wearing uniforms, which should have identified them as men working for the army, so it feels a bit weird she assumed they still wandered around in Sapporo with Asirpa in a bag and anyway... how did she know they were in Sapporo?

That is unless someone tattled out how everyone was there and how Asirpa ended up captive of Tsurumi.

Did she met up with Hijikata as the latter was chasing Tsurumi’s men? Maybe.

I’ve never heard of Hijikata talking Russian but maybe they managed to use Sofia’s broken Japanese to talk.

I don’t know if Ogata could send her words, he was allied with Kiro so he might have means to communicate with her but the last we saw him he was busy in his sniper duel so at most he could have summoned her in Sapporo, not tell her Asirpa was Tsurumi’s captive... unless the duel ended previously and Noda just didn’t show it to us.

I don’t know, we’ll see.

Anyway back to Sofia’s men, Kikuta and Tsurumi join the fight and it’s implied they made a short work of them as they opened fire against them so no, reinforcements aren’t on the way.

Tsurumi’s group and Tsukishima’s group... well, regroup, Tsukishima reporting Sofia, who’s still unconscious and bleeding, was speaking Russian and that he previously saw her at the hospital in Otaru. Koito notices Kiro’s knife on the ground and wonders if she chased them all the way from Ankou prison, evidently figuring she could be the Sofia Asirpa was talking about.

Tsukishima points out they should be after Asirpa but definitely got a serious grudge against them.

Oh Tsukishima, dear, you can’t even begin to imagine how SERIOUS this is.

Nikaidou suggests to kill her before she’ll wake up but Tsurumi instead decides to take her with them so as to try to get info from her as he thinks she could be one of Kiroranke’s allies and therefore a good source of info.

Really Tsurumi, hadn’t you recognized her yet?

Anyway Tsurumi admits they’re too far from Tsukisamu so they should hid Asirpa’s nearby.

And, all right, Sugimoto knew him well, Tsurumi has kept Asirpa with himself.

And about Sugimoto, we see him still trying to run after Tsurumi. I’ll admit he has stamina even though he’s probably running out of it, considering how bad he’s panting... and how he ends up throwing up.

Shiraishi, on the bottlemobile, reaches him so Sugimoto can hop in but Shiraishi is not Boutarou and his driving speed is slower than the one of a cat on a stroll so Sugimoto demands to be the one who’s left to guide because he knows exactly the right technique to speed the car up... punch the steering wheel.

Really, Shiraishi was doing better.

Shiraishi explains him the basics so Sugimoto shows us his skill as a driver... promptly crashing against some trunks...

...with the result Boutarou’s corpse flies out.

Sugimoto runs to recover it, apologizing to Boutarou. Really, considering he wanted to kill him and didn’t care at all about him previously his apology feels weird.

Shiraishi suggests to put Boutarou in the back and then the two resume going.

Sugimoto asks Shiraishi if he had met Kikuta previously but Shiraishi doesn’t really remember him among the men with Tsurumi.

Sugimoto goes back to ‘gold’ business and asks him if Boutarou told him anything.

Shiraishi tells him Boutarou told him to give up on being the escape king, settle down and tell his kids about him.

He then continues saying Boutarou always insisted he wanted to become a king but what he truly longed for was just to get back the family he lost and a home he could return to.

This causes Sugimoto to remember Kikuta, in civil clothes and without facial hair, asking him where does he call home...

...before making clear what he really wanted to know weren’t Boutarou’s hopes for Shiraishi’s future or Boutarou’s true dream but if Shiraishi got any of the Ainu info out of him.

‘Jā kekkyoku Ainu no jōhō wa kikidasenakatta no ka’

じゃあ結局アイヌの情報は聞き出せ無かったのか

Which loosely means "Then after all, you couldn't get the info about the Ainu out of him, right?"

Shiraishi admits having gotten them...

‘Iya... Shikkari oshiete kureta ze’

いや... しっかり教えてくれたぜ

“On the contrary... he informed me well.”

...but there’s a shadow on his face which doesn’t promise anything good.

On a funny note they’re going a little faster as they now can keep up with a running dog.

Meanwhile Tsurumi’s group is in the ‘Nihon Kirisuto Kyōdan’ (日本キリスト教団 “United Church of Christ in Japan”) in Sapporo, the church that, in Jack/Ostrog’s mind, replaced St Mary's Church.

They’ve taken Kiro’s knife from Sofia and Asirpa’s hunting knife and makiri from her and had sat them on one of the church’s benches. Asirpa is awake but Sofia is still unconscious even if they had cleaned up part of the blood on her face and she doesn’t seem to be bleeding anymore.

Tsurumi sends Koito Tsukishima and Kikuta to search for the other soldiers that got separated from them, telling them to return to the church only when they’ve eliminated pursuers, warning them Sofia’s men are guerrillas so not someone they should undervalue.

I wonder if Tsurumi is sending away Kikuta and Tsukishima because they know Russian and he wants to question Sofia in ‘private’.

As for Koito, since he figured out something changed in him thanks to Koito newfound ability to speak in a normal way to him, Tsurumi probably think it’s better to keep him out of the way, should he decide to do something Koito might not blindly approve anymore.

Meanwhile Tsukishima dared to inspect Sofia and found the photo Tsurumi took of her, Wilk and Kiro so long ago... which reminds me the funny thing of how Sofia still wears the same clothes because no one ever changes in Manga, not even after 17 years has gone by.

Whatever, the next panel shows Tsurumi’s face completely shadowed, with as only visible thing the fact that his brain is leaking which, as usual, doesn’t promise anything good.

On a sidenote I’ve always wondered about that leaking.

Sometimes it seems a gross metaphor to Tsurumi’s excitation but sometimes it just seems tears. I wonder if it’s both, I wonder if a side of him is excited at having Sofia in his hands along with Asirpa and the other side is just heartbroken because he’s again reminded of Fina and Olga’s deaths.

Tsurumi is a complicate man and I wonder if in his head something is split and pain for his loss conflated with excitation for getting his revenge.

Anyway the chapter ends with still no mention of Ogata and Tsurumi left unsupervised with Asirpa. I’m honestly worried for her. My poor child is not in a good situation.

Metaphorically speaking it’s interesting they’re in a church considering all the parallels with Christian religion. I’m very curious to see where Noda will go from here.

#Golden Kamuy #Sofia #Tsurumi Tokushirou #Tsukishima Hajime #Nikaidou Kouhei #Koito Otonoshin #Kikuta Mokutarou #Asirpa #Sugimoto Saichi #Shiraishi Yoshitake #Oosawa Fusatarou #Wilk #Kiroranke #Golden Kamuy Ramblings and Theories

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