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hongism · 4 years

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mists of celeste ➻ 18.5

➻ pairing: ??? x fem reader ➻ genre: space au, pirate au, space pirate!ateez, angst, eventual smut ➻ Word Count: 3.2k ➻ Rating: M ➻ Warnings: language, violence, guns and weaponry, blood, future warnings tba ➻ summary: Sneaking aboard the ship of a renowned space pirate may not have been the best idea, but you’ll have to make do with what fate has handed to you

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act two ➻ part 8.5

Jongho doesn’t need to be told what’s going on. He senses it before Yeosang even comes to the door, feels Yeosang’s presence outside the door, the heat of his emotions, and the slight panic that courses through his veins. He doesn’t need to be told that Mingi is having an episode because he can feel it. Which is why when Yeosang goes to knock on the door, Jongho opens it a breath too soon, and Yeosang nearly topples forward and trips over the air. Jongho doesn’t need to reach out and catch him – Yeosang stays on his two feet just fine – but he does regardless, rough hands hitting the much smaller man square in the chest to keep him from falling forward. He doesn’t need to ask, yet he does.

“Mingi?”

“Mess hall.”

“Okay. Did he hurt anyone?” Jongho has the questions memorized. No matter how many times he says them, the answers rarely change, and he knows Yeosang well enough to pick up on the emotional cues. That’s how he knows Wooyoung is fine before Yeosang even opens his mouth to tell him so.

“No, I got Wooyoung out of there before he could.”

“Hongjoong?”

“Tried already.”

“Yunho?”

“Couldn’t help.”

“Ah,” Jongho exhales, even though he already knew the answers to those questions before asking them. He’s the last resort. He always is. Hongjoong demands priority – he needs to feel useful somehow, but it always backfires and hurts him in the end. Then comes Yunho, the ever desperate healer, the arrogance that drives him to believe that he can fix everything and everyone – including Mingi. The reality, however harsh and cruel it may be, is that none of them are Jongho. None of them understand Mingi the way he does. None of them are Berserkers. It’s just a simple fact, but one that they can’t seem to wrap their minds around, which is why Jongho is always the last resort.

He pushes past Yeosang to step into the corridor. His steps are hurried but not frantic; there is no panic or worry in his bones as he walks towards the mess hall. It’s routine almost. Perhaps someone else might feel bitterness or some sort of resentment towards this system they have. Not Jongho though. He bears no hatred or thinly veiled anger about the arrangement they carry out. Part of him feels the tuggings of responsibility when he looks at Mingi. When he looks at Mingi and sees… something. Something different, something painful, something raw and broken.

When Mingi first joined the crew, the others all expected Jongho to understand him. To read him like a book and take him apart with ease. He hadn’t been able to do that at any point in time. Because he and Mingi are not the same, never have been and never will be. Jongho was raised by a loving mother and father. A mother who was a Berserker just like him, who took care of him and looked after him without any hesitation. Taught him everything there was to know about what it meant to be a Berserker. Mingi, on the other hand, was not given that luxury. His father never loved him; he loved money. Power. Blood. And that’s what Mingi gave him, because it was the only thing he knew.

The mess hall is quiet when he steps inside. Not empty, but quiet. Hongjoong stands at the edge of the room, leaning up against the frame of the entrance with arms crossed over his chest. Disappointment radiates off him in waves, but not directed at anyone except himself. Yunho stands beside him with a similar stance, although he can’t look at Mingi’s curled form. The room is otherwise empty, and that’s probably for the best. And Mingi. Mingi lies on the floor, not near the center but somewhere off to the side between a few tables. He’s on his hands and knees, back curved in a way that is painful to look at, and as Jongho draws nearer, he can see the tremble in his shoulders. He doesn’t think to ask what happened. It wouldn’t be necessary anyway. He barely notices that Yeosang is no longer hot on his heels and following his steps.

“It’s too much of a burden to put on his shoulders.”

Hongjoong doesn’t verbalize the words, but he can feel them regardless. Words that have been muttered and whispered against hot ears when they think Jongho can’t hear them. None spoken with malice or hatred. Just… concern. Worry. Fear.

“He’s so young. Why do we push this onto him?”

Because Jongho understands him. Knows Mingi better than Mingi knows himself. Feels the things he feels, even if they were raised differently and experience it differently. He understands the control, the taut thread keeping Mingi tied to sanity, and how it threatens to snap. And when it wavers and trembles — that is where these episodes find him.

“I’m the captain. I should handle this myself.”

Hongjoong doesn’t understand it. The things that he wishes to understand are things that he can never hope to grasp.

“I’m a healer. A medic. This is my job.”

Yunho fails to realize that it isn’t his responsibility. It is his job, but not his burden to bear. He sees Mingi as something broken, when Mingi isn’t broken at all. Mingi is a bird that never learned to fly, a slave without a master, a boy robbed of his innocence too young. Not broken.

Jongho hesitates near Mingi. The older man doesn’t shift or make any indication of acknowledging him. The emotions are there though, and that’s how Jongho knows that Mingi is fully aware of his lingering presence behind him.

“Mingi,” he starts, tone so soft and quiet that he can barely hear it himself. Ever so slowly, he lets himself squat down beside Mingi’s body. Heat. It radiates off him in waves. Then in the corner, concern from Yunho, the lingering taste of disappointment from Hongjoong, and nothing else. Patience is a challenging game to play, even harder when it comes to Mingi, but necessary. Thus, Jongho waits. Watches the way Mingi’s shoulders tremble from effort, the tethered thread in his mind wavering but never breaking. He’s fighting it so hard. “Mingi, can you hear me?”

“I-I… can’t. Can’t. Need. N-Need it.” His tone is desperate and fragile. Nothing like the cruel and heartless killing monster he seems to be. Mingi brings a hand up to clasp the back of his neck. His nails tear at the skin in attempts to break it and draw blood.

“No, you don’t.” Mingi’s fingers falter. He hesitates. For a moment, his nails cease their warpath on his skin.

“I want to – want to k-kill.” Mingi lifts his chin a little. He doesn’t look up quite yet, and Jongho knows it’s because he can feel the lingering emotions at the other side of the room. He is more afraid of losing control than he should be. The danger is minimal. Mingi won’t kill either of them. Hongjoong knows it, as does Yunho, and Jongho as well. Mingi is the only one who doesn’t trust it.

“You don’t want to, Mingi,” Jongho insists, letting his elbows find purchase on his knees. Jongho gets it on occasion. The sudden urgings that Mingi suffers from – the need to take control over all the emotions hitting him from all sides. It manifests itself differently for every Berserker. For Jongho, it takes the form of guilt. Brings all his wrongdoings to life and places them before his eyes in a way that’s almost tangible. He can never overcome it alone, and that fact almost makes him feel weak. Yunho’s soft hands in his hair, San’s mellifluous voice in his ears, Seonghwa’s mint-like scent that permeates his senses until the hallucinations pass, Hongjoong’s emotions hitting him square in the chest and reminding him that this is real. It isn’t violent. Emotional, yes. Painful for himself and only himself. But for Mingi, it manifests in violence. Anger and every emotion on the spectrum of rage.

Mingi’s fingers draw away from his neck, but he brings the hand down to his other arm a second later. His nails dig deep, he’s desperate to break skin, he’s burning for the red that will flow from his flesh. Jongho can’t let him have it. If he does, then that thin thread of sanity will snap. Years of progress down the drain. A hard reset. He reaches out, hand brushing against Mingi’s shoulder blades.

Mingi jerks at the touch, almost as though he’s been burned. He doesn’t verbally cry out, but Jongho hears the pained cry in his movements and emotions. It hurts every time. A small and nagging sensation that never leaves Jongho alone, one he will think about for hours if not days after this. Mingi cries out for help and support but pushes it away at the same time. Desires help but doesn’t know how to ask for it.

“Mingi,” Jongho exhales as he brings his hand down on the man’s shoulder blades again. Mingi jolts at the touch, hand drawing up but not coming down on Jongho. He prepares himself for a hit and everything, but it never comes. Instead, Mingi brings his closed fist down on his own head, smacks his skull with too much force, an expression of pure anguish on his features. He’s fighting it. Jongho knows that Mingi’s mind is screaming for blood. To close his hands around Jongho’s throat and try to end it. The desire to kill… it’s not Mingi, but rather the Brute of Kebos. The monster his father created. It’s not Mingi. Jongho has to remind himself of that over and over again. It’s the only way he can look Mingi in the eye every day. His tone softens as he speaks. “They’re loud, aren’t they?”

“So loud. S-So loud. Can’t think. C-Cant–” Mingi cuts himself off, unable to finish the thought. Yunho once told Jongho that Mingi didn’t feel emotions. Just didn’t have the proper mind for it, and that he would have to be taught how to handle things. Jongho dared to tell Yunho to his face that he was wrong. Mingi feels emotions. He has them. It isn’t that his brain is wired the wrong way. It’s that he was never taught how to understand them. Mingi doesn’t know how to talk about his feelings because of that. Jongho can read him like a book, feel the heat radiating off him in waves and know what’s going through his head even if he blocks it out. Mingi’s emotions are overwhelming, even with Jongho’s resilience and restraint. All that to say – the pain Mingi is in now is enough to cripple Jongho and bring him fully to the ground. The aura is overwhelming, and for a breath of a moment, Jongho isn’t sure he can do what he’s supposed to do. The face of his mother taunts him at the edge of the room. He responds by closing his fingers around Mingi’s wrist, stopping the hallucination from blossoming as well as stopping Mingi from hitting himself any more.

“It’s okay, Mingi. They can’t hurt you here,” Jongho murmurs even though he knows that isn’t the brunt of the issue. Mingi’s wrist goes slack in his grip. For a second, Jongho thinks that the episode has passed, but then weight slams against him, and pain blooms in his chest. He falls back against one of the metal tables. Metal scrapes against metal, creating a loud and abrasive screech, then the floor disappears out from under Jongho. He doesn’t have time to defend himself. Mingi’s fingers close around his ankle, yanking back harshly until Jongho hits the floor. Pressure hits his chest. Jongho doesn’t even process it at first. Mingi’s knee stabs into his chest and pins him to the floor with little effort. However, Jongho is stronger than Mingi. They both know it. Jongho could flip their positions and have Mingi facedown on the floor in seconds. That isn’t what this is about though.

Progress.

“Mingi!”

Steps forward.

“Stop!”

Steps backward.

Yunho and Hongjoong are shouting, voices getting louder as they move closer, but Jongho manages to bring a hand up to stop them. They have zero reason to listen to him and no incentive either, especially because Mingi has one knee square in the middle of Jongho’s chest, the other pinning his right arm down, and both hands wrapped tight around Jongho’s throat. Perhaps he should be scared of what might happen next. Afraid that Mingi tightens his grip and chokes him to death. Both Yunho and Hongjoong are exuding so much fear and panic that it clogs Jongho’s senses, and if it’s affecting him that badly, then that means that Mingi is having a much worse time with it.

Yet despite having his life dangled before his eyes like this, Jongho isn’t afraid that Mingi might kill him. Maybe he’s psychotic for that, or perhaps he just trusts the fact that Mingi doesn’t want to do this that much. Yes, it has to be the latter. He lets Mingi keep him pinned to the floor, hand still raised in Hongjoong and Yunho’s direction and keeping them warded off for the time being. Mingi’s nails dig into the flesh of his throat.

Pain.

Pain, but not from the small crescents Mingi leaves in his neck.

The pain radiates off Mingi’s shoulders. He’s fighting himself so hard, fighting the instinct to kill, the urge to kill, the need to kill. He’s fighting the other part of himself, the one his father forged in blood and dark arenas. Mingi doesn’t know that he’s feeling pain necessarily; he merely knows that he’s hurting. He knows the strain hurts and burns, makes his skin crawl and itch, makes even breathing become a laborious task. Jongho lets his free hand move towards Mingi – each inch breached is slow and calculated as not to scare the man – and lays it atop the ones clasped over his throat.

“You can’t hurt me, Mingi,” he whispers. Mingi’s resolve flickers. For the briefest moment, he believes Jongho, eyes trailing over his own hands like they don’t belong to him.

“It… it hurts.”

“I know it does. Everything hurts, right? They’re loud in your head, telling you to kill.”

“Blood. They w-want blood.” Mingi’s fingers twitch around his neck. His nails dig a bit deeper, and Jongho feels them breach skin. It isn’t deep enough to draw blood, which is for the best because the second the first drop falls, Mingi will fly into a rampage.

“You don’t have to give it to them, Mingi.”

“They’ll hurt me if I don’t.”

“You’ll hurt me if you do.”

Mingi freezes at his words. His hands loosen a bit but don’t move away from Jongho’s body. It’s the last thing he wants, because as cruel and heartless and merciless as Mingi is, he doesn’t want to hurt Jongho. Doesn’t want to hurt Hongjoong or Yunho. Any of the crew. He wants to protect them; he just doesn’t understand how to do that because of the war that goes on in his mind.

“I… did I not already hurt you?�� Mingi inquires, gaze curious as he tilts his head to the side. “Your emotions… they – they feel – I hurt you.”

“You didn’t. Tell me what you feel.”

“I don’t know what I feel!” Mingi argues, a spike of anger shooting out towards Jongho. He can barely choke out his next words thanks to the sudden clench of Mingi’s fingers around his throat.

“What I feel. M-Mingi, tell me – tell me what you feel from me.” He’s pushing hard, and perhaps it’s too much of a burden to put on Mingi’s shoulders like this, but at the same time, it’s not enough. Mingi is caught off-guard long enough for Jongho to gasp several deep breaths of air.

“You’re… warm.”

“Does it hurt?” This is the only way Jongho knows how to communicate with Mingi. He can’t name the emotions off one by one because Mingi wouldn’t understand what any of it means, but he does know how to talk about how he’s feeling without naming anything directly.

“N-No.”

“So, are you hurting me?”

Mingi shakes his head ever so slightly. Denial. This time, he believes it for more than a second. Mingi withdraws his hands from Jongho’s neck, letting him fully breathe again, and Jongho rolls out from under the taller Berserker before he can be pinned once more. He doesn’t move because he fears having his life in Mingi’s hands. He would gladly give his life over to the man time and time again if it meant protecting the others from harm. The storm that swirls in Mingi’s dark red eyes calms for the time being. The waters are peaceful. The voices are quiet. And Mingi… Mingi cries. Not for the first time, and not for the last, but he cries nonetheless, hands trembling as he holds them close to his chest. Behind them, the panic and fear radiating off Hongjoong and Yunho slowly dissipates. It grows calm again.

Jongho draws closer to Mingi, kneeling beside him and pressing a hand again Mingi’s shaking ones. It doesn’t stop the trembling or offer any comfort in the slightest. Jongho doesn’t expect it to. Mingi doesn’t understand comfort, only the need for it. But they’ll just keep trying until they find something that works. Like what Hongjoong does next. The short captain walks towards where Jongho and Mingi are and squats down in front of ashy-haired Berserker.

“You pulled yourself out of it, Mingi,” he says, tone quiet but clear. It carries weight with it, one that Mingi picks up on within an instant.

“I al-almost–”

“But you didn’t. You didn’t kill anyone. Didn’t hurt anyone.” A smile twitches across Hongjoong’s lips, soft and gentle as he gazes down at Mingi’s slumped form. “I’m proud of you.”

The simple four words hold more than should be humanly possible, but Jongho supposes that it makes sense since he and Mingi aren’t wholly human. Mingi’s tears halt only long enough for him to offer an awkward yet grateful smile. Hongjoong eats it right up. He reaches across the gap between him and Mingi, not concerned for a second that Mingi could snap his arm in half at the slightest trigger, and drops his hand to the mop of hair atop his head. A small ruffle of the locks, fingers gently combing over Mingi’s scalp, then pulling away. Jongho wants to imagine that Mingi leaned into the touch, eyes fluttering shut as an overwhelming sense of peace washed over his body.

✧✧✧ a/n: surprise?? this is definitely one that was unexpected for me but i was struck with a sudden realization and plan for mingi’s character progression and how he functions as a character, and this idea wouldn’t leave me alone so i just had to write it and post it today because we’ve got regular chapter tomorrow osidjafoidj but i hope you guys like it!! i think this is the most important interim chapter and has a lot of impact on mingi’s character in the main plot sooo yee lemme know what you think!

if you would like to, you can take the survey here!

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electricbluebutterflies · 3 years

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Soft babes + kisses to shut them up

Chris/Melissa, post-canon, PG-ish, also on ao3. A year into writing these babes and I’m at least getting CLOSER to some intended tangents...

He apologizes too much.

Melissa always has a berserk button with men. She can ignore a whole parade of red flags, and has too many times in the past, but everyone she so much as looks at the right way has some particular trait that gets right up under her skin from the moment she notices they do it and drives her crazy. It’s usually something petty but legitimately irritating – she’s dated a few too many reckless drivers over the years – and she’ll hiss but she never does anything because whatever that bad habit is it always ends up being vital to who that man is and-

This one, her domestic partner of six months and they’re calling it that because nothing else even comes close to covering their unusual set of situations, apologizes too much.

She’d expected different, last year when she started thinking maybe he wasn’t human after all because nobody survives that many passive-aggressive suicide attempts at their age. Expected whatever crazy-making flaw he’d have would be something that would make sense with the public persona she’d first encountered. But like everything else in the wild world, appearances were misleading. Chris is as quiet and damaged as she’d figured, yes, but he’s also kind and overprotective in that way it turns out she likes and he has rare glimmers of a sharp sense of humor and-

This time, she’s trying to avert a fight because he accidentally got the wrong takeout.

With anyone else, this wouldn’t have been an issue. Melissa has never been one to turn down free food, even with her apparently-now-slightly-more-comfortable life circumstances (that could be even more different but that’s a whole other conversation she’s not in the mood for), nor is she particularly picky when she has a choice. Cashew chicken will never make a list of her favorite foods, but she’ll still eat it, especially if it came from that one good place, and-

Honestly it is frustrating that a man roughly her age is that prone to kicked-puppy eyes. She knows it’s not her fault, trauma instincts die hard and all that, but how long will it take him to realize that she wouldn’t hurt him even if she was capable of it? And that’s ignoring the fact that she isn’t, she’s not that small but he’s solid and was trained from birth to kill anything that moved and-

“It’s fine,” she says for what feels like around the tenth time, and it really is. She will live. Her plan for dinner involved frozen pizza, and having a partner who brings home takeout of his own free will is this side of a miracle as far as she’s concerned.

“I should… I should know what you actually like by now,” he says again, not quite as on repeat but oh they’re starting to spiral.

“You brought me crab Rangoons. You do know.”

This is apparently not the correct answer.

Melissa has learned how to pick her battles in these situations, and one battle she has decided not to pick involves dragging her partner to therapy. She knows that’s not a fix for all things, and it probably wouldn’t resolve his whole mess as much as some people would hope, but there are days when it would be nice to have some strategy here that isn’t wait it out until he calms himself down or gives up on his spiral. Usually they end up with option two, and she suspects this will end with almost-reverent sex and she’s almost okay with that and-

She’s not even trying to follow what he’s saying, other than that apparently they are now at the part of the spiral where he’s convinced he’s the worst partner ever. Lovely.

Look, Melissa’s bar for romantic relationships is pretty low and most men still manage to trip on it. That part of the female brain that’s supposed to want to avoid dangerous men never developed in her, and add in the fact that she’s consciously attracted to competent men with weapons and… Chris is this side of a miracle, honestly. All of her weaknesses but still good, still completely hers since a year ago when she decided the unusual quiet was a good excuse to ask him what she should start preparing for damage control, and…

And he doesn’t see any of that. Doesn’t see he’s the best thing to happen to her in a damn long time. And she is not going to fight him on this, that only makes the self-loathing spiral worse and she’d at least like him in her bed tonight and-

She won’t fight him. She will distract.

She’s learning, as they evolve. He rarely initiates physical affection but he’s responsive when she does. In this sort of situation here, pulling him down for kisses is perfectly acceptable, and she goes for it. Deep warm breathless, saying without words that he’s not whatever he’s gone and convinced himself he is right now and she doesn’t even care because she’s chosen him anyways.

When they break for air, he looks… not quite like he’s about to cry, because that does not happen here, but his version of that, overwhelmed and slightly confused and in awe of her. She is getting used to this too.

“It’s… fine?” he says, hesitant but trying.

She clings. They’re working on this, they’ll get better, they have time. And every moment is enough, she isn’t pushing anything, she just…

One of his hands tangles up in her hair, and she presses her lips to his jaw because it’s close and casual affection is a fun way to get up under his skin, and that whole conversation about too many apologies can wait until later. As can the crab Rangoon.

#pixievixen #ebf writes fic #melissa mccall #chris argent #chris x melissa #mcargent #am i the only person in some of those tags lately? probably but i'm not checking #this is my comfort rarepair mkay

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ladyloveandjustice · 4 years

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Winter 2020 Anime Overview: Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun

Ok, so let’s get this out of the way first, 1. I adore this story so much and 2. Toilet Bound Hanako-kun has a horrible, horrible English title that is not actually at all representative of the story’s content and I have no idea what happened when it came to the team choosing that name. To the average English-speaking viewer/reader, this name 100% implies gross stuff and bathroom humor, and there is none in this show.

A Japanese reader on the other hand, would be more likely to recognize the name Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun as a spin on the classic ghost story “Hanako-san of the Toilet” only A BOY THIS TIME WHHHHA?” Basically, the story goes that a girl named Hanako in a red skirt haunts girls’ bathrooms in Japanese schools and if you knock on the third stall and call “Hanako-san” three times, she’ll appear. She might grant you a wish or pull you into Hell or something else, it varies.

(Her Wikipedia image, aww.)

Anyway, I dunno why the English title didn’t at least go with “Toilet Ghost Hanako-kun” or something that would have gotten the premise across even a little better (HE NOT TECHNICALLY BOUND BY THE TOILET EVEN, HE CAN GO ANYWHERE IN THE SCHOOL GROUNDS THE BATHROOM IS JUST HIS HOME BASE), but our boy Hanako haunting the girl’s bathroom only leads to broad jokes about our heroine being tasked with cleaning the bathroom and “dude you really shouldn’t be in here” comments, it’s pretty incidental.

Now that THAT’S out of the way, let’s talk about my LOVE FOR THIS STORY

Hanako-kun tells the story of a “regular” high school girl named Nene Yashiro, the mischievous and mysterious school ghost she befriends, and all the other weird monsters, exorcists, spirits and curses they encounter. It’s got a gorgeous, colorful bold aesthetic and art style that combines gothic and cute! It has a great mix of humor, intrigue, angst and fantasy action. basically if you love ghosts, monsters, Japanese mythology and legends, supernatural-human relationships, supernaturally fueled angst and drama, stories about trying to fix an unfair system the world has set up, wistful romance, a good shoujo manga with a Lot of Feelings (yes this is a shonen technically I’ll explain that later), weirdo dorks becoming friends AND MUCH MORE...this story will have something that will resonate with you. It’s got a lot going on, and it’s a ton of fun.

Hanako-kun is really one of those surprising stories that fits right into a hole in my story-loving heart I didn’t realize was still there, or that I’d actually been carrying since childhood. I love ghosts, see, and have since I was a kid!!! I knew this, but I kinda forgot how intensely I love them until this show reminded me again??? That’s because regular ghost stories/mysteries/whatever- I like them, but they don’t quite do it for me in the way more character-driven ones exploring the nature of being a ghost and humans and ghosts trying understand each other etc do. Stuff that really gets into the tragedy AND the fun fantasy aspect of ghosts, and plays the long game with it- and Hanako-kun scratches that itch perfectly.

Getting a little bit deeper into the premise of Hanako-kun, Nene is a very brave and sweet but not-all-that-bright girl (or, to put it more bluntly, she’s an idiot in the best way) who has a lot of romantic fantasies and insecurities and is VERY focused on them. After hearing a rumor at school that “Hanako-san of the bathroom” will grant wishes, she wishes to be able to confess to her crush and finds out its actually a weird ghost boy her age named Hanako haunting the bathroom! A lot of things happen, and she ends up cursed and bound to Hanako-kun, but also ends up slowly forming a friendship.

Turns out Hanako is the ghost in charge of the “seven mysteries/wonders” aka seven powerful supernatural entities that haunt this school (he’s number seven). These apparitions only supposed to terrorize students a LITTLE, because apparitions need to have rumors spread about them to remain in the human world.

(‘HAVE YOU HEARD?’ Oh hey shadow girls from Utena see you’ve moved to a new school.)

The rumors also generally dictate how powerful and dangerous the apparitions actually are- but SOMETHING MYSTERIOUS is changing the rumors around the school and making the apparitions go berserk and actually harm humans. So Hanako needs a human assistant to change the rumors and help him calm and seal the apparitions! That’s where Nene comes in.

Hanako himself is a very fun character- he’s very chaotic and revels in his whole “ gremlin ghost” persona, and is upfront about being a bit of an asshole. BUT he also makes his kindness, often good intentions and the fact he’ll have his friends back when it counts obvious from the beginning. B U T! He’s also got darkness and hidden depths to explore, and a lot of his persona is affected and masks deeper issues!

Our ghost boy is genuinely A TAD unstable deep down (as in he straight up has several untreated PTSD symptoms and that’s as disastrous as you’d expect) and packing some serious tragic backstory, as you might expect from a kid who died young and carries around a butcher’s knife, and it’s gonna come back to bite him and and all who care about him hard.

Especially when an overly enthusiastic exorcist named Kou Minamoto shows up! Kou is another one who’s very dumb and very good, a wannabe-shonen-protag with a heart of gold and strong sensitive, domestic side. He rounds out our main trio. Also he gets a tragic, emotionally intense relationship with yet another ghost boy that sings to my heart.

(Yes Hanako’s helping Nene to do the thing)

You may be able to tell, this story has INTENSE good-shoujo vibes despite technically being a shonen in a way that I love- it’s story very driven by big emotions, a variety of fucked up and tragically complex relationships, teen hormones running wild, etc, and it’s just delicious.

Nene is the normal-person-audience-surrogate-girl in a way that is more common for a shoujo protag, and the way her emotional connections to everyone, her sweeping romantic fantasies and her interiority are consistently in focus when she’s there- yeah, she’s definitely a plucky shoujo protag, 100%. And I’m all about that!!!

One thing I especially appreciate (though this comes across more strongly in the manga than the anime thanks to the anime rearranging things) is when Nene finds out about Hanako’s Heavy Baggage, she actually takes some time to herself to consider whether she can handle dealing with someone with these intense issues as a kid who’s never encountered stuff like this before- it’s not assumed by the story that the Sweet Girl is Obligated to help the Tragic Boy. I go into more detail about this part in this part here, but it’s that kind of attention to Nene’s needs that makes her role in the story work. Hanako and Nene and everyone’s struggles to get the hang of and properly navigate honest communication and mutual support in relationships are often really great and real-feeling

The story has a lot more things I love packed in to it- a dorky-but-still-deeply-unsettling villain gang who’s screwed up interactions are just as fun as our protagonists, yokai, A CURSED LIBRARY, some great ladies in addition to Nene, meditations on the nature of life, death, themes about fighting nihilism, and so on...I could seriously go on forever. It’s good stuff, and there’s lots of good weird supernaturals to meet.

The story’s also got tons of intrigue! The overarching plot and Hanako’s Mysterious Past is still in the process of unfolding, but it’s been great drama every step of the way! As mentioned before, the story also really relies on funny character dynamics, interaction and development to carry the whole thing and balance the drama.

The anime itself does have some pacing issues bc they crammed a lot into the first season and rearranged some stuff- an entire two chapter arc was skipped and was unlikely to be covered in the anime and some parts are noticeably rushed. I still really like the anime and it’s a solid adaptation. I love how much of the manga’s detailed aesthetic it managed to keep as well as the amazing voice acting and it made a few small but important additions. But there are some notable bumps- of course this just led me to go binge the manga (up to volume 12 is legally available digitally) and BOY DO I NOW LOVE THIS STORY EVEN MORE.

Now obviously, just because it is Exactly My Shit in a lot of ways doesn’t mean Hanako-kun is the much quested for “unproblematic fave”, there’s several caveats you should probs be aware of- its shoujo vibes also mean some classic shoujo ~Problematic tropes~ and a couple shounen ones.

THE LIST:

-Just as a general content overview thing: if this wasn’t clear the show deals heavily with death, body horror and other horror aspects. There’s heavily implied suicide and abuse and so on- as mentioned, the main character is traumatized and shows a lot of symptoms of PTSD, and Nene has to struggle to navigate her relationship with him because of this, as does Kou.

-Hanako himself has the whole ~loveable pervert~ and ~slightly possessive shoujo bad boy~ schtick going as part of his mischevious persona. In the anime so far, he never actually gropes or comments on not-in-his-naughty-mags-people’s breasts or anything of that level thankfully, but he’s very flirty, clingy, will loudly bring up porn, fond of the ol’ *says something that purposefully sounds sexually possessive* HAHAHA U THOUGHT I MEANT SOMETHING DIRTY RIGHT LOL ACTUALLY I DIDN’T.”

(My unnecessary ‘this part is kinda interesting!’ ramble: Nene always lists “sexual harassment” among Hanako’s flaws (she loves listing them), but doesn’t get visibly uncomfortable with his flirtiness or seem to mind it most times, which at least makes the whole thing more tolerable for me.

(since she doesn’t seem to mind that part and its clear he does it bc of actual affection for her, it’s actually p. cute how huggy he is.)

The one time it does cross the line and genuinely upset her, it’s treated seriously, Hanako is genuinely regretful and apologizes. That’s one of my fave moments in the story and the way it’s handled is well done.

This incident that he’s honestly pretty socially clueless as kid who died young and a lot of his bravado is to cover that up and keep people at a distance- this is a trope into itself that can use unpacking but I do at least appreciate that this is a considered character trait that’s part of his whole messed up package rather than something that thrown in there Just to Be a Fanservice Trope. (Especially since the manga confirms he never acted particularly pervy while alive, further cementing this is an affected persona).

-There’s a running gag around Nene’s insecurity over her thick ‘daikon shaped’ ankles and boys treating her badly for it.

One one hand, her body image issues are relatable, on the other, it feels cruel and annoying just how much the show finds ways to bring it up and humiliate her over and over again.

(My unnecessary “this is part is kinda interesting” ramble:The one thing i did realize that despite bringing it up constantly, we at least have no “i’m going to do this to lose weight” or “go on a diet” rhetoric,like this is just part of Nene’s body type and she knows she can’t change it? Which is kinda interesting. And I’ve spotted what might be foreshadowing something plot relevant’s going to happen with her ankles (I DON’T KNOW HOW, BUT GOD I PUT NOTHING PAST THIS STORY) so uh yeah??? either way it’s not good tho)

-”Obsessive and twisted love” is a running theme in this story, and while it’s generally acknowledged as unhealthy, it can be played for comedy in a way that could make viewers/readers uncomfortable. There’s a couple characters who’s entire thing so far is “obsessively in love with this one person” (and the one only focused on in the manga so far is one of the least interesting characters tbh ugh)

-The antagonist of the show is a member of a main character’s family, and the manner he acts towards pretty much everyone, including (and really especially) his family member, verges on seductive. This is presented as deliberately unsettling and treated as a marker of how unstable and scary he is- and though the backstory between them hasn’t been fully delved into, it’s pretty much all but confirmed he abused this family member physically and emotionally.

-The story has like, A LOT of queer subtext and pretty-heavy queer coding for one character especially, but the few times queerness blatantly comes up in the story, it’s played as a joke in the “haha that’d be kinda weird” way (aside from the rando boys who have a crush on Teru, handled pretty neutrally). It’s not as malicious as a lot of animanga can get (ONE MANGA INCIDENT ASIDE), but it’s something to Be Aware Of, and it makes it clear we’re unlikely to see subtext rise to text and makes some moments feel baity.

-And probably more I might have missed! The manga also has Some Shit in addition all the Good Shit that hasn’t been adapted yet, an early arc has Hanako crossing a serious line etc.

BUT despite how messy it is, I think it’s clear I have a lot of love for this story. In fact, I wouldn’t trade away a good chunk of its messiness (DEFINITELY SOME JUST NOT ALL), it kinda works for the characters and works in the “this story really feed my inner teen” way. Some of the trashy parts are exactly My Trash, basically.

So, I knew I’d ramble on for a while when I talked about his show, but if you’ve read this far, thanks, and I hope that means you’re gonna check out and maybe enjoy this story, bc i need more people to join me in Hanako Hell.

#toilet bound hanako kun #jibaku shounen hanako kun #jibaku shonen hanako kun #winter 2020 anime #anime overview #hanako kun #nene yashiro #yashiro nene #kou minamoto #minamoto kou #yugi amane #amane yugi #my reviews

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p-artsypants · 4 years

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Arcadia or Bust (16) Corner of Main and State

"Yeah, so mom…we made it to New Jersey, and we're all safe...but the Heartstone isn't really...impressive. So, we're bringing what we found home. See you soon!" In Which Arcadia welcomes back it's underground citizens, Jim gets used to mundane life as a Troll, and drama seeks them all out like a magnet.

Ao3 | FF.net

I’m rewatching Trollhunters, because it’s been like a year since I watched it, and the more I listen, the less the plot of Wizards makes sense to me. Don’t get me wrong, I loved it, but there’s some lore and continuity issues. That being said, I’ll continue to write this story using Trollhunter’s lore primarily, with a sprinkle of Wizards and 3Below lore as I see fit. :)

—

Jim had been through a lot of trauma in his life. At least since becoming the Trollhunter. But nothing was as jarring as looking down to his chest and seeing his ribcage, muscles, and heart beating.

They had taken the amulet from where it was nestled, and in return, left the gaping hole wide open, oozing with blood, and exposed. Could trolls get infections? Because humans certainly could, and this was just asking for infection.

He had been lying here alone for a few hours now. It was hard to tell exactly how long in the vast passage of time while drenched in pain.

When Colonel Kubritz appeared at his side, he wasn’t even surprised. Had he fallen asleep?

“How do you get this to work?” She bit. In her hand, she held the cleaned amulet, and it glowed, aching to be back with him.

“You can’t. You have to be chosen by it. Even if I die, it will pick someone else. And it might not be you.”

She slapped him for that, but it looked like it hurt her more than him, by the wince on her face. “Don’t give me that crap. Tell me how to work it!”

“Just speak the incantation inscribed.”

“We already tried that.”

He shrugged. “That’s all it is.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Teach me to use it, and I’ll let you go home.”

Jim sighed. It was pointless, but he may as well try.

—

Claire rang the doorbell at the designated house.

A surly man opened the door. “Yeah? What do you want? No solicitors! Unless you’re a girl scout…no, you’re too old. Are you with the tamale lady?”

“Hello sir, I’m not here to sell anything, I actually came to ask about the car you had totaled a few days ago.”

“Are you here to hunt down that devil that flipped my baby?!” He gestured to the smashed in car in the driveway. It looked drivable, but one bump away from death.

“Not quite...I’m actually here to fix it.”

“Fix it? You want to fix that? My mechanic couldn’t even fix it! And you want to! What are you, 15?”

“17, actually.”

“I doubt you have the experience for this, little lady.”

“Oh, I’m not a mechanic, I’m a sorceress.”

“A what now?”

“Sorceress, a witch! Do I have permission to fix your truck?”

“Girlie, if you can fix my truck, I’ll owe you a huge favor.”

“I was hoping you’d say that!” With a little skip, Claire went over to the truck and rested her hands on the hood. “Ad initium redire...” Her hands glowed purple, and pulsed against the metal, making it groan. Then it began to twist and crunch, popping out dents and welding pieces back together.

The old man stood in shock as his beloved truck knit back together, and when she was done, it was in perfect condition.

“How did—where did you—?!” He rounded the car, circling it like a vulture. “It’s perfect! You even took out that bump from years ago! You’re a miracle worker, girlie!”

Claire fell on her butt on the driveway, dizzy and winded. “Glad to help.”

“You alright?”

“Just a little winded. I’m still getting used to using magic, especially without a staff. It’s exhausting.”

“Well why don’t you take a seat up on the porch instead of the road? I’ll get you a beer.”

“I’m seventeen.”

“You’ve earned it!”

Claire chuckled to herself and climbed to her feet. She followed the man up his steps and took a seat on the porch swing while he went inside.

Only a minute later, he returned with beers in hand. “Here you are darlin’. Summertime ale. I’m partial to dark ale myself, but my neighbor got me this pale ale. It’s pretty good! You have a favorite?”

Claire took a sip and tried to hide the grimace. “I don’t really get to drink very often, unless it’s a special occasion.”

“Right right, we’ll keep it our little secret. Now then, I owe you a favor. You just saved me a whole chunk of change and a basket of anxiety. You must have something in mind since you offered?” He suddenly sat up straight. “Oh god, you don’t want my soul do you?”

Claire snorted. “No no, you can keep your soul! Don’t know what I would do with it anyways...You know the boy that damaged your truck in the first place?”

“I only saw a glimpse of him, that blue devil? What about him?”

“He’s actually my boyfriend, and he’s really very sweet and usually not like this. But he was...fed something he shouldn’t have had and it made him go berserk.”

“Crying shame.”

“I’ll say! So the army came in and took him away! They wouldn’t listen to us at all!”

“So what do you want me to do about it?”

“We are going to run a campaign to get him out. Hopefully, if we get enough attention on the issue, they’ll let him go.”

“Oh, I gotcha.”

“So if you could just...spread the truth around town? He’s actually the one that stopped that troll invasion back at the beginning of summer.”

The man looked surprised at that. “No kidding, that was him? Well, he’s a local hero! He’s been talked about a lot since then! Sure I’ll set the record straight! What’s this kid’s name?”

“Jim Lake Jr.”

“Got it! Don’t worry, I’ll bring it up at the lodge, and the rotary, and the chess club...”

—

The phone was ringing, he had been successfully patched through. Strickler sat in his office after hours, wanting to make the call as private as possible.

“Stricklander, I haven’t heard from you since the fall of the Janus order. What reason have you called on me?”

“Can’t I just call an old friend to catch up?”

“You? No.”

Walt cracked a smile. “Fine. I need a favor.”

“Changeling to changeling, or school principal to army general?”

“The latter, actually.”

The man on the other line laughed. “Color me intrigued.”

“You know of the human Trollhunter, correct?”

“Just what you wrote in your dossier, a human male, 16 years old, lives in Arcadia Oaks, California, turned half-troll by the wizard Merlin. Responsible for the death of Bular and Gunmar. Quite a remarkable young soul. Is there anything else to know?”

“He’s been captured by the United States Army.”

The man let out half a chuckle. “Captured? What dumb trouble did he get into?”

“His deadbeat father left out some cocaine for the boy to find, he thought it was trash, and ate it.”

Distantly on the other line, there was laughter, a strong bark of laughter that lasted far too long. When he came back, he was calm. “How unfortunate.”

“He’s a good kid. Why would there be a kilogram of cocaine in the trash anyways? I fail to see the humor in the situation.”

“Of course. So, I assume, he went on a rampage following his meal, and then attracted the attention of some of us?”

“So you haven’t heard about it?”

“Not where I’m stationed. But give me a moment.” The line went silent, only a very distant and quiet tapping of keys on a keyboard being tapped. Then the man returned. “I’m glad you told me about this. This incident hasn’t been reported to our database. That shows evidence of misconduct. Did you get the name of the commanding officer responsible, by chance?”

“Colonel Kubritz, I believe.”

More typing. “Area 49-B.”

“That name was also passed around.”

“Technically not my jurisdiction, and since she didn’t report it, I’m not supposed to know about it.”

“I’m afraid you will officially know about it soon.”

“Oh?”

“His friends and family, myself included, are going to put on a protest for his freedom. Drawing attention to the situation.”

That echoing laughter was back again.

“It wasn’t my idea, in case you were wondering.”

“I know, you wouldn’t come up with something so bold. Regardless, go ahead in through with it. I’ll make sure whatever protest happens gets brought to my superior’s attention, and then I will take it from there.”

“Thanks. I will owe you one.”

“Oh come now, Walter, we Changelings that survived the Fall of the Janus order have to stick together. Besides, I heard rumors that you’re caring for my familiar?”

“He’s still in the cradle stone, and the moment. One baby at a time, for now.”

“Then we’re even. Besides, this is the most interesting thing that’s happened in a while. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“Your kindness is refreshing. I’m glad Gunmar didn’t eat you.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“We’ll be in touch then, Samuel.”

“Of course, Walter.”

—

“How goes the car repair?” Asked Merlin, as he met up with Toby and Claire in the park.

“Ugh, exhausting. First I stopped at the mechanics, and they’re still backed up with fixing other cars. Apparently, Gunmar’s army did a number and backed them up for months. But they gave me the names of all the clients who got totaled from Jim. I had to hit the scrap yard for four of them, and I just finished another two in driveways.”

“How many does that leave you with?”

“Seven more,” she sighed. “How goes the road work?”

“It goes. Now come along, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.” He didn’t wait for them to follow as he turned and started walking away.

Sharing a dubious look, Toby and Claire quickly caught up with him. He led them to a bookstore, where a young man was sweeping outside.

“Hisirdoux, my faithful and loyal apprentice—“

“You're damn straight I’m loyal!” He shouted. “Where have you been? I’ve been cleaning tables for the last 900 years!”

“Calm yourself boy, I’m here now, aren’t I? And I need your help.”

“Finally! What is it? Just say the word!”

“I need you to go with Miss Claire Nuñez and help her restore recently smashed vehicles.”

“What?”

“Or, you can repair street damage.”

Douxie crossed his arms. “What is this? I saw what happened! There were trolls, and evidence of Morgana! And now you need my help? To clean up, several months later?”

“That is correct.”

“Why didn’t you call for me back then?!”

“I forgot.”

“You forgot? About me?”

“Oh come now, don’t take it personally. I was busy trying to prepare the Trollhunter to fight Gunmar. And get my magic back from Morgana.”

Douxie seemed to become more sympathetic at that. “Morgana stole your magic?”

“Yes, but it’s all in the past now. Everything is fine. Well, not really. Seems that the US Army has declared the Trollhunter as a menace to society. We must get the trust of the city on our side if we are to get them to trust us, and agree that his capture is unjust.”

“Please,” said Claire. “We need all the help we can get.”

Douxie sighed. “Alright. Afterwards, you’re training me again.” He gave Merlin a hard look. “And no amateur magic either. I’ve been doing the same drills for 900 years. I think I’m ready for more advanced work.”

“Oh, you will be. Starting with helping Miss Nuñez field her shadow magic.”

Douxie looked at her, in awe. “You’re practicing shadow magic? Truly?”

“It’s a recent development…”

“She took Morgana’s Skathe-Hrün, and wielded it without any training. Because of that she has a tether to Morgana in the Shadow realm, who has been teaching her ever so slightly. I’m not allowed to train her, but she could use the guidance of a Wizard in the physical realm. Do you understand Hisirdoux?”

“I do, and I’ll be happy to teach her…I’m just…I’ll need a moment or two to digest the sentence you just said.”

“Well, don’t take too long, we have a Trollhunter to rescue!”

—

There was a heavy knock on the door, which was never a good thing. Especially nowadays.

Still, Barbara went to the door.

Standing there was Detective Scott and James Lake Sr.

“Does this belong to you?” Asked the detective.

“I don’t claim him, no.”

Her almost ex-husband smiled at her, pleadingly, “Please Babs?”

“What is he even doing out? You arrested him!”

“About that…” Detective Scott winced. “We don’t have enough to keep him on.”

“What!” She shouted. “He confessed in front of a bunch of people!”

“Which would be helpful if we had a case for a trial. But as it stands, he doesn’t actually have any drugs on him. And we don’t have a confession on tape. So…we’re shit out of luck.”

“Oh come on Louis, you know the cocaine came from him! Where else would Jim have gotten it from?”

“Look, the chief’s not thrilled that we didn’t arrest the guy responsible for trashing the town, but we’re supposed to arrest someone else without evidence?”

Barbara threw her hands up in the air. “With probable cause!”

“That doesn’t work with drug dealers. He’s clean, Barbara. All the blood tests came back clean too.”

“Ugh.”

The house shook slightly, and Barbara felt the floor bow behind her. “Is there a problem, officer?” Asked Draal.

“Nothing you can help with, Draal. Thank you.” Barbara sighed. “James is not being charged.”

“But he is a criminal, this degenerate flesh bag poisoned the Trollhunter! He should face banishment for his crimes!”

James withered a little with the glare Draal gave him.

“Well,” said Officer Scott. “Maybe you can keep an eye on him from now on. If you have evidence that he is dealing, like physical traces of cocaine on the premises, call us. But for now, there’s not much else we can do.”

“This is ludicrous.”

“I know, I’m sorry Barbara. How is Jim?”

She frowned. “You haven’t heard? The army came and collected him from the hospital!”

Louis sputtered. “The army came?!”

“Yes!”

“Where were they when Gunmar was terrorizing us?” He scoffed. “Again, sorry Barbara, I can’t help you here.”

“It’s alright. We’ve got a plan.”

“Love to hear it, but I’ve got to get back to the office. I’m sure Toby will tell Darci, and she’ll tell me. Good luck!” And he left James on the porch.

“Babs, I’m sorry…”

“Save it.” Barbara scoffed, but allowed him in the house.

Draal never took his eyes off the man.

“Well, you’ll be happy to know I have no more supply. And after Rudy found out what happened to my last Kilo, she’s not getting anymore for me. So…”

“I’ll have to thank Jim for keeping a kilogram of Cocaine off the streets of Arcadia. We have a fairly low rate of drug use around here, and we don’t need you to ruin people’s lives.”

James sighed, knowing he had dodged a huge bullet by being let off the hook. He’d rather deal with his wife than with his ex-associates in jail any day. “I think I’ve still ruined people’s lives anyway.” He walked into the living room, only to halt at the signs on the table.

Release Jim Lake Jr.

Justice for Jim

Let Lake Go!

“Babs, what is all this?”

“That’s part of our plan to free Jim! I’m friends with the councilwoman, and she suggested that we campaign for his release. Bringing a lot of unwanted attention onto his capture will stir the government to let him go!”

James jutted out his jaw, a sign of barely concealed rage. An expression Barbara had grown very used to in the last few months. “So, you’re going to put his name—my name in the news? You’re going to broadcast what city we live in?”

“Yes.”

He whirled on her, grabbing her arm. “Babs, people are looking for me! Horrible, mean, and ruthless people! If you put his name out there, they’ll know where to look!”

“All the better! Then they can come take you off my hands!”

“You don’t understand! I owe them a lot of money, and they’ll take it anyway they can! That includes extorting you, Jim, and whoever else they connect with me!”

Draal stepped in, removing his hand from Barbara’s arm. “This house is under my protection. If anyone dare tries to enter, they will be dealt with swiftly.”

“You don’t know what these men are capable of.”

“I assure you, I’ve decimated armies of flesh bags in my day. These men are no different.”

Barbara smiled. “If you’re really that scared, I hear Vermont is lovely this time of year.”

James just narrowed his eyes, before storming out of the room.

—

The first rally took place from 3pm to dusk, starting from after school, and leading up to when Trolls would be able to participate. Granted, it was only a handful of people, but standing in the middle of downtown did garner a lot of attention. More than a dozen people walking past had stopped to ask about the cause. They were then given a short synopsis of the situation, as it pertained to them:

“Jim is a 16 year old student who was chosen by the trolls to be our protector. He willingly gave up his humanity to defeat Gunmar the Black, the monstrous troll that attacked the city at the beginning of the summer. Now, he looks like a troll, and was sabotaged to go into a rage and damage the city. The US army took him away without a trial! He’s a hero to the city, and deserves fair treatment!”

Reactions ranged from:

“Oh, he stopped that thing?”

To:

“Oh my god! He’s just a child!”

Overwhelmingly, there was no negative feedback, at least in person. But it was only day one.

—

“This daylight...is it significant?” The colonel asked, as she circled his table.

“It’s just a name.” Jim lied. “A sword with a name is stronger than one without.”

“Interesting. Interesting indeed. According to my notes, trolls turn to stone in daylight. Any correlation there?”

So she already knew? Then what was the point? Was she just playing with him?

“I’m the Trollhunter, and I fight bad trolls. It would make sense to name my sword after something they’re afraid of.”

She hummed. “And what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Are you afraid of daylight?”

“Why would I be?”

The colonel laughed. “Oh Jim Lake Jr. You’re the worst liar I’ve ever met. You are honest and forthcoming with truths that work in your favor. You freely told me of your transformation, and of your victory against a Troll tyrant. But now that I’m edging on the topic of your weakness, you clam up and give me vague answers. I can do this all day, beast. What does daylight do to you?”

“Nothing. It doesn’t do anything to me.”

“Really? Even as a troll? That’s interesting.”

“It’s fortunate.”

“I would say so. Though, now you’ve got me curious. These burns on your skin…where did they come from?” She dragged her fingernail over one of the dark marks.

Jim winced. “I don’t know. I wasn’t aware in my rage state.”

“Then you won’t mind if I find out for myself?” She crooked a finger towards the shadows. Jim could hear the creak of wheels before a lamp with several fixtures was wheeled forward.

“Oh no…”

“UV lights, all different wattages. Let’s see what works the best, hmm?”

—

ARCADIA TRIBUNE

Justice for Jim

By Nadja Chamack

Who is Jim Lake Jr. anyway? This is a question I asked myself as I drove downtown three days ago. No doubt, you’ve seen the crowd of students and teachers holding signs on the corner of Main and State Street. It’s pretty hard to miss, quite honestly. Among the students, there’s also Councilwoman Nuñez, and resident Troll Mascot, ARRRGH! Signs range from ‘Justice for Jim’ to ‘Free our Lake’.

But who is Jim Lake Jr.? And what happened? A precursory search on my end showed only a scant few facts. Jim is a student at Arcadia Highschool, in his Junior year. He was nominated as Spring Fling King last year, and played the part of Romeo in the school play. His criminal record seemed pretty clean too. A misdemeanor for scratching a rental scooter was all that showed up. But hey, who hasn’t done that?

So I went to the source, his family and friends campaigning for him. On Saturday, the group was downtown, campaigning all day long, so I had the chance to interview each and every person about why they were there.

Turns out, Jim Lake Jr. might be the most amazing person in Arcadia.

From his mother, Dr. Barbara Lake, I learned that Jim is an Arcadia native, born and raised here. He enjoys cooking gourmet food, working on his vespa, and acting.

Oh, and he’s the first human Trollhunter.

What? You’ve never heard of a Trollhunter? Me neither. But Barbara and Blinky, another resident Troll, gave me the scoop.

You all remember that night at the beginning of the summer that we all promised not to talk about? Well, I’m going to talk about it. In fact, I’m here to give you all the answers you’ve been craving.

Many months before that fateful night, a new Trollhunter was chosen, after the previous one had perished. “The Trollhunter is chosen according to his mettle, by the amulet of the Trollhunter, as created by Merlin, the wizard of Arthurian legend. Jim was chosen after the fall of Kanjigar, his predecessor. Jim is the first human to be chosen, also the smallest and weakest. But, he was the first to defeat Bular, son of Gunmar!” Said his mentor, Blinky. None of this made any sense to me at first, though it was said with great enthusiasm.

It turns out, the trolls that we’ve gotten used to seeing around town, mostly ARRRGH, are ‘good’ trolls. The bad trolls, ‘Gum-gums’ are what invaded our town and destroyed my car. The Trollhunter’s whole job is to fight off these bad trolls, and gnomes, and goblins, and everything else that goes bump in the night. And so he did. The Gum-Gums invaded from the ‘Darklands’, being led by a fearsome troll named Gunmar the Black, the Skullcrasher, the Dark Lord…he had a lot of names, and it was obviously a bad dude. Gunmar had plans to invade the whole world by blotting out the sun, a.k.a the eclipse we saw. And he would have gotten away for it too, if it weren’t for those meddling kids!

Mainly Jim Lake Jr. and his friends.

And how does a sixteen year old defeat a couple millennia old, bloodthirsty, all powerful tyrant? With a fancy sword? Close. With some magical armor? Closer. By giving up a part of his humanity and becoming a half-human, half-troll hybrid? Now you’re getting it! Yes, to protect Arcadia, to protect us, Jim Lake Jr. allowed himself to be changed. You may have seen him around town. Blue skin, big horns...okay, I just described most of the trolls that are around here.

“Jim works the night shift at my store,” said Stu Harding, owner of Thrifty Furnishings. “He’s a very hard worker, and always willing to do the heavy lifting that is hard for the other employees to do.”

“Despite his appearance, Jim ultimately decided to attend school,” said Principal Walter Strickler. “After the school found out about why he had missed so many days of school, they were willing to move him onto the next grade to be with his peers. He was a good student before all this, and he fought really hard to keep his grades up regardless. We felt he should still have the opportunity to graduate. We were looking forward to having him on our football team, and in our spring production of Beauty and the Beast.”

So what happened to Jim? And why is there such a big campaign for his freedom?

Well, the truth is that Jim is a victim of unfortunate circumstances. In more ways than one, obviously. Trolls eat our trash. That’s why Arcadia has such a small carbon footprint! (Be sure to thank ARRRGH next time you see him!) And this trait was adopted by Jim too, when he was transformed.

“He just picked a bunch of items out of the trash. Cans, an old sock, and what looked like a VHS wrapped in duct tape,” said Jim’s best friend, Toby Dolmzalski. “It was a normal lunch for him. But right in the middle of gym class, he turned crazy town banana pants and took off! I had never seen Jim act like that! Ever!”

After an 8 hour rage through town, Jim collapsed and was taken to the hospital for evaluation. It turns out what Jim had ingested turned out to be a kilogram of pure cocaine!

At this time, it is unknown where the cocaine came from, or if it was planted purposefully. (Seriously, who throws away a kilogram of cocaine?)

But the damage that Jim caused was extensive enough to catch the attention of the US army, who has taken Jim into captivity from the hospital. No trial, no rights, they even took him while he was unconscious. His friends and family have not heard from him since.

“I’m so worried,” said girlfriend, Claire Nuñez. “He was injured from the battle with Gunmar, and didn’t completely heal. In the hospital, he was covered in burns from the sun. I have no idea if they’re caring for him properly, or dissecting him like some creature. But he deserves so much better than this. He saved our town, he saved my life, and the life of my baby brother. That’s why we won’t rest until he’s home!”

“Not bad,” said ARRRGH, long time friend of Jim. “Good troll have bad days, best trolls have worse days. Jim need some good days.”

Couldn’t have said it better myself, ARRRGH.

Friends and family of Jim are asking everyone share #JusticeforJim on social media, hoping to get the attention of someone in charge. All the damage caused by Jim has been repaired, and there were no casualties from his attack.

Of course, the whole ‘troll’ aspect of this story has to be a local legend. So when sharing it to social media, kindly leave that part out.

—

“C-Bomb!” Mary shouted from the other end of the hall. She came running and almost crashed into Claire and Toby, holding her phone up in the air. “My twitter feed is blowing up, girl! Look at all of this!” She held the screen up so they could see.

“Citizen abducted by the government, is this China or North Korea? Neither! It’s the US! #JusticeforJim”

“Imagine if this was your son. So sad, and so scary! #JusticeforJim”

“This is real life, not science fiction #JusticeforJim”

“Whoa, where did these all come from?” Asked Claire. “What did you post?”

“Did you know Snapper Karr did a report on it!?”

“Snapper Karr? From KTTV in LA?”

“Yes! Thankfully, he left out the whole troll thing. I’ll send you a link. In his story, Jim is just a kid that has a rare genetic disorder that makes him look different, and so the government took him away!”

Claire winced. “This is…kind of spiraling out of control.”

“I don’t know why you’re worrying, Claire,” said Darci. “We want people talking about Jim getting abducted. It doesn’t matter if the world outside Arcadia doesn’t have all the facts. They still know he’s been taken away without a trial, and that’s all that’s important. Besides, Jim doesn’t want the whole world knowing about Trolls, right?”

She nodded. “As long as this works, I’ll be happy.”

“And sensationalist stories like this blow up for like a week, and then they die out and are forgotten. This won’t last.” Mary waved her hand. “It should work long enough to get Jimmy Jam out though.” Then she squealed. “OMG you know what we should do?! We should totally have a welcome home party! Or-or a parade! Like they have for veterans!”

“Mary, I don’t think—“

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it! You’re not the only one with ties to the city!” And she hurried off, texting frantically.

“What’s up Claire? I would have thought you’d be ecstatic the hashtag went viral.” Asked Toby.

“Don’t get me wrong, I am happy. And I’m happy that Snapper Karr chalked the troll thing up to local legend or superstition…but I can’t help but worry that something bad is going to come out of this.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. It’s just a gut feeling.” She scoffed and went to her locker. “It’s dumb, don’t worry about it.”

No sooner had she said that, did Strickler appear. “Claire, Toby, come with me.”

“What?”

“I’ve already spoken with your teachers, now come along.”

Claire and Toby shared a look, but followed regardless.

—

They were led to the parking lot, where a black van with tinted windows waited, a huge red flag, if there ever was one.

“Umm…” said Toby.

“Don’t worry.” Strickler assured.

A man in an army uniform stepped out of the driver seat. “Walter, good to see you again.”

“Glad to see you as well, Samuel. And thank you for following through with your promise.”

“As I said, this is the most interesting thing to happen in a while.” He glanced at the two teenagers in attendance. “We’re just waiting for his mother, correct?”

“She should be here soon.”

Toby muttered to Claire, “Who’s Jorgen Von Strangle over here?”

“No idea.”

And just like that, Barbara pulled into the parking lot, haphazardly parked, and ran over to them, still in her scrubs. “I came as soon as I could! We’re going to get Jim?!”

“What?!” Screamed Toby. “We’re rescuing him?!”

“That is the goal,” the man answered. “I’m General Samuel Attila. I’ve been given authorization to intervene in this situation, given that this project, whatever it is, hasn’t been officially recorded. But, bear in mind, you may not like what you see. We may be bringing home Jim, or just his body. I don’t know. So if anyone is uncomfortable with that idea, I suggest you stay behind.”

“I’m going,” Said Toby. “No matter what.”

“Me too,” said Claire. “It’ll hurt, but I want to know what happened to him.”

“Alright, then let’s hurry. The facility is about an hour away.” He ushered everyone into the van, which had two front seats, two benches along the walls, and a gurney in the middle. As soon as everyone was buckled, they headed out.

“Hey, if you know Mr. Strickler, does that mean you’re a…?”

“A what, Toby?” Asked Walt, with a hint of amusement in his tone.

“A…man of culture?”

“Yes, I am a changeling.”

Toby exhaled. “Okay, it’s like super hard to ask that question when you don’t know who knows, you know?”

“I owe the Trollhunter a debt of gratitude for stopping Gunmar. After he ate the entirety of the Janus order, we the few that weren’t present for his return stayed in hiding. Had Gunmar taken over the world, my death as a traitor would have been slow and painful. We were thinking about sending him a thoughtful gift basket, but I think this is more fun. I love to bully those in lower ranks. The fleshbags get a few pretty badges and think they’re invincible. I love watching them cower!”

Toby leaned closer to Claire. “He was so nice and helpful, I was beginning to wonder if he was actually a changeling.”

“Same! But I actually feel better knowing he’s got ulterior motives, and that they have nothing to do with us.”

“Have you heard from Nomura lately?” Samuel asked Walter.

“She was in Arcadia for a while. She helped with the fight with Gunmar. Right now, I believe she’s on her way back from New Jersey.”

“New Jersey? What was she doing out there?”

“After Morgana and Gunmar destroyed the Heartstone, Jim and Blinky went in search of a new one.”

“Oh, yes. I forgot there were rumors of a source in New Jersey. Did they find it?”

“Yep,” said Claire. “But it wasn’t very big, so we brought it back to Arcadia in a truck. The rest of the tribe is making their way back on foot.”

“Ah, that explains it.” Samuel nodded. “You’re both very lucky. Not many Changeling’s are allowed in Trollmarket.”

“Now that Gunmar’s out of the picture, I’m sure you could visit too!” Toby exclaimed, before getting elbowed in the gut by Claire.

“It’d be nice to see it once. I’m sad I didn’t get to see the Heartstone in its glory, but such is life.”

The rest of the ride continued in relative silence. Strickler and Samuel spoke to each other, mostly catching up. But Toby, Claire, and Barbara were far too anxious to keep up with the conversation.

There were no windows in the back of the vehicle, so there was no way of knowing where they were. From the front, they looked to be in a weaving forest trail.

Then there were huge cement walls in front of them.

Samuel pulled in the front gate.

The man at the gate didn’t look up from his computer. “You’re not authorized to be here.”

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t recognize your vehicle, so I know you don’t have clearance.”

Samuel sat up a little straighter, glaring at the soldier at the gate. “How about you scan my badge first, and then tell me if I have clearance, Lieutenant.”

The soldier gave a little shrug and reached out for the badge, his eyes widening as he caught a glance at the four stars on the man’s shoulder. “Oh.”

“Problem?”

“No, sir. I just…I don’t need to scan your badge, you can go in.”

“Thank you. At ease soldier.”

Toby held back a snicker.

“And, let Colonel Kubritz know she has company.”

“Yes sir.”

“As you were.”

The gate rolled open, and they pulled through.

It seemed like Samuel’s message was received pretty quickly, because the woman that had taken Jim was waiting for them, flanked by soldiers with strange weapons.

“Stay in the car.” He told everyone, before getting out.

“I was not aware of any sort of inspection. You are not my commanding general, and therefore not welcome here. This facility holds highly dangerous equipment and confidential projects.”

“Stand down, Colonel. I am here on behalf of general Adele. I’m here to recover Jim Lake Jr. General Adele will be speaking to you about your discharge.”

“What are you talking about?” She demanded.

“You kidnapped a teenage boy from a hospital. Surely you didn’t think that wouldn’t go unnoticed? I have video evidence of you leaving the hospital with him.”

“He’s not a normal boy—“

“I’d say so! His whole town is hailing him as a hero for saving them from an invasion! I thought this facility was for research on protecting Earth from invaders. And you’re punishing a boy for saving a town?”

“He also destroyed it. Don’t give into their little campaign. Jim Lake Jr. may have done something good once, but that doesn’t stop him from being a monster.”

“I was just in Arcadia, Colonel. There is no damage. There’s no lawsuits against Jim Lake Jr. There’s not even any pending arrests.”

“I have video evidence of his destruction!” She barked.

“Then let the local police handle it.”

She growled, then commanded her men to stand down. “Fine. But if he does this again, no one will stop me from taking him.”

“Actually,” he clarified with a smirk. “You’re being discharged. So you won’t have any means to take him again.”

Her mouth opened in shock, as she fought to find an argument.

But he was a general, he was above her.

“Now, Jim Lake Jr.?”

She grumbled something and started off towards a big central building.

Samuel was quick to beckon the others out of the car to follow him, and headed towards the same building as Kubritz.

When Barbara reached them, she spoke, “you didn’t hurt my son, did you?”

Kubritz didn’t even look at her. “I don’t have to share information with civilians.”

Claire clenched her fists in anger, a black haze coming over her hands.

But Toby simply patted her on the back to ground her.

Colonel Kubritz led them through the research facility, ignoring their questions.

They reached the room Jim was being held in, and she entered her code to open the door.

Of course, Jim wasn’t the only thing in the room, being surrounded by specimens of all sorts of living creatures, but he was right in the center, with a spot light right on him.

“Jim!” Claire shouted first as she ran to him.

The poor boy was naked, lying on his back and strapped to the table with thick iron bonds. His wound from Morgana wasn’t the worst on him anymore, as he was covered in blackened burned spots. The spot that had the amulet was now just a hole in his chest, that went right down to the ribs. Claire could see his heart beating, and his lungs moving, thank god.

“Jim...” she cried, seeing the carnage.

“What did you do to him?!” Toby shouted at the Colonel, but she didn’t respond.

“Honey? Jim? Can you hear me?” Barbara asked, as she assessed the damage.

His eyes opened ever so slightly. “Mom? Is that you? Are you...really here?”

“Yeah kiddo,” she wiped some tears from her eyes. “It’s me, I’m here. Toby, Claire, and Walt are here too. We’re going to take you home.”

His smile was just a hint, and he stated, “I’m tired.”

“I’m sure you are. We’re going to get you fixed up!” She turned to the Colonel. “Get me a gurney or a wheelchair!”

She scoffed. “I don’t take orders from civilians.”

Samuel interceded. “Then get me a soldier who isn’t completely incompetent! If you’re going to continue to endanger the life of this young man, then I suggest you get out of my sight before I endanger yours.”

The Colonel didn’t waver, though a tremor went down her spine. “Lieutenant!” She called.

A man hurried into the room, standing at attention.

Kubritz just gave a roll of the eyes. “Follow whatever order the general gives you.”

“But—“

“No, I’m done.” With one last glare to Samuel, she added, “I'll be sending my evidence to General Adele, then we’ll see who’s the one putting the nation in danger.”

“Go ahead, I’ve already given my report.”

She growled at him, turned and left without another word.

The lieutenant just stood at attention in front of Samuel instead. “Orders sir?”

“Get someone to fetch the gurney from the back of our van, and send for the medic! And get someone to get these shackles off this kid!”

“Sir yes sir!”

Meanwhile, Claire stood right by Jim’s side, holding his hand, brushing the bangs away from his face and combing his hair with her fingers. He had a pretty strong fever.

“You’re going to be alright Jim. We’re going to take good care of you.”

“I’m…cold…” He breathed.

Barbara found some vinyl gloves nearby and got to work examining her boy. “I don’t know about the Troll half, but this tissue looks alright. I don’t see any infection yet, or any tissue death. Of course, we need to get this covered immediately.”

“Where’s the amulet?” Asked Walt. “That’s what’s missing.”

“The amulet!” Barbara addressed Samuel. “His amulet, we have to find it!”

He nodded, “we can’t let these psychos have it. They have no idea what magic it possesses, even without being the chosen wielder.”

Only a beat passed before the army medic came with the gurney, and another soldier came with a crowbar to undo the shackles.

“Lieutenant, we’re looking for an amulet that came with Jim. It’s what’s missing from his chest.”

The Lieutenant blanched. “I don’t know anything about it…I can ask the Colonel?”

“She won’t tell.”

The shackles fell free from Jim’s limbs, but he didn’t seem to register it.

“Alright,” said Barbara, “Let’s move him onto the gurney. We can worry about the amulet later.” It took everyone to lift him and carefully slide him over. Then, he was covered up to his stomach with a blanket.

“You’re going home, Jim. Mi amor, you’re safe now.” Claire whispered, kissing his forehead.

“Hmm…” Jim weakly groaned. “…for the…glory…” But before he could finish, he fell back into sleep.

#arcadia or bust #tales of arcadia #Trollhunters #troll jim #jim lake junior #claire nunez #toby domzalski #fanfiction

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leonthecardboardunicorn · 4 years

Text

The Oracle Prince, Chapter 7

Pairing: Viggo/Liz

Summary: We’ve found the gems of the Dragonkin, but now Hawkeye has their eye on the treasures of the noble families. The Foundation Day royal ball seems like the perfect time. Luckily, we have the help of the crown prince- Viggo?!

First: Chapter 1

Previous: Chapter 6

I couldn't help but marvel as I looked around the tournament hall. Banners had been hung from every corner, representing the different families competing.

"It looks like they pulled out all the stops for this," I said. "Who's up first?"

Luca looked over his pamphlet. "According to this, Viggo versus Caesar."

Squealing hit my ears. "Look, there he is!"

My breath hitched in my throat as Viggo entered the hall. He was dressed in silver, something akin to armor. I had seen him out of uniform a few times before, but this time was different.

'He looks handsome.' I shook my head, hiding my face. 'Where did that thought come from?'

But Viggo paid no heed to the fangirls, walking by our booth.

"Hey, Viggo!" I said. "Good luck out there. I know you'll do well."

He smiled, full of his usual confidence. "Will you kiss me if I win?"

"Viggo!" I'm sure my face went bright red. He was poking fun at me again- but I found my heart racing. "A-all right. But only if you win."

"I'll be sure to." Just like that, he was off.

"Attention!" All eyes fell on the king, sitting at the head. "It looks like all of our competitors are ready." I saw Viggo adjusting his pipe; Caesar was standing on the other side, fiddling with his necklace.

"Let's have a good, fun competition! You may begin!"

Viggo immediately leaped into action. "Pugnus Tempestus!"

"Ira Tolnis!"

Worry was starting to creep in as I watched them. Caesar was giving a good fight, but he couldn't stand much against Viggo. But the crowd didn't seem to notice, cheering loudly with every hit.

'Caesar can't last much longer. What if Viggo goes berserk?'

Caesar dropped to his knees. "I yield! I yield!"

Viggo pulled back, pipe still in hand. "Come on, get up." He reached down, helping Caesar to his feet.

"And the winner is Prince Viggo La Rochejaquelin Gedonelune!" The crowd burst into wild applause, cheering for him.

"Don't you think it's strange," Lucious said beneath the applause, "that they pitted Viggo against Caesar?"

"Daniel probably had a hand in arranging the matches," I said. "It would make sense that he'd try to pit Viggo against his friends. Either embarrass him when he can't fight- or turn him against him when it can."

My heart ached. We'd made it through this round, but there was still a lot more to go.

The afternoon flew by, in a flurry of fights. It seemed like snapshots. Leslie and Cerim doing their best, Lucious shouting at Zeus not to lose, Alfonse patching up Klaus at the medical tent..

Through it all, I kept looking for Viggo, but he was nowhere to be found, even night fell.

"What a wonderful first round!" the king said, clapping his hands together. "We'll pick things up tomorrow!"

"Could he have gone this way?" My heart was in my throat as I walked down the hall.

'This is Viggo. He knows how to handle himself. So why am I so worried?'

"Cleanse the curse.." My heart jumped as I heard Viggo's voice, quiet and strained. He was leaning against a wall, that distant look in his eyes, Daniel standing by his side.

"What do you see?" Daniel asked.

I quickly ducked behind a pillar, listening to his voice. "Follow the filthy prince to find the shining sea.."

My heart ached. 'He sounds like he's in so much pain..' I heard another set of footsteps.

"You hear that?" Daniel said. "There's only one family who fits that description."

"How useless." There was no mistaking that voice. "The time is soon approaching. We can't mess this up this time."

"Yes, Milady."

'Jaden! I was right, she must be another member of Hawkeye!'

Suddenly, something caught my attention, a glimpse of silver hair, a familiar face. 'No, it can't be-'

"Cordelia?" But when I turned to face her, she was already gone. "Wait!"

"Who's there?" I froze at the demanding voice. I turned around, seeing Viggo. His complexion was ashen, barely standing up. I saw Daniel sitting behind him, but there was not a glimpse of Jaden. "Oh, it's you."

"Y-you didn't show up after your match," I said. "I was worried, so I came to see you."

"Ah, that's right!" Daniel laughed. "I heard about your little promise to the prince."

"T-that's-"

"His Highness was training hard for the next round of the tournament," Daniel said cheerfully, walking up behind Viggo. "I was bringing him to rest."

I had to bite my tongue. "Thank you for taking care of him."

Daniel cheerfully clapped Viggo on the shoulder. "Why don't you go and spend some time with her, Viggo? Since you did so well in today's match."

"..All right."

I took Viggo's hands, bringing him up to the rooftop. When I was sure no one could hear, I turned back to him. "Are you all right? I heard you give another prophecy."

"Tch." He slumped against the wall. "I didn't want to tell him anything. But Daniel's been making me train ever since the first match ended. I always get more visions when I'm exhausted."

White hot anger flared in my chest, and the words came pouring out. "I had no idea that it was like this. They should be taking care of you, not using you!" I realized Viggo was staring at me. "Oh, uh, sorry.."

"No. It's.. nice to have someone be concerned for me." He smiled. "What did I say anyway?"

I carefully repeated the prophecy back to him as best as I could. "What do you think it means?"

"It must have to do with the gem of water. I saw it in my vision. But heck if I know the rest."

"And it sounds like they've already figured it out.." How frustrating. Every time we seemed close, it felt like we took another step back. "What if this vision turns out to be a false lead too?"

"Impossible," he said.

"My visions have never been wrong."

"Never? Not even once?" I said it without thinking, but he avoided my gaze.

He looked off in the distance, avoiding my gaze. "..I'm not sure. There was a time.. I had a vision of a man with the shadow of death. A walking corpse. But the shadow passed, and he's still here."

I'd heard those words before. "Are you talking about Caesar?"

"I saw him transform. But he's still here."

"Well, it's complicated. He did turn into a Wanderer for a little while. It was a little scary," my heart hurt at the memory, "but.. we were able to buy him enough time."

I looked out at the night sky as the memories played out. "It's funny. It was a night just like this. The moon was shining so bright even when we were running for our lives, on a path we thought would disappear. I thought we'd be lost in the waves. It seemed like we'd be lost so many times that night. But we survived. We found the Star Sapphire, and we saved Caesar."

"The Star Sapphire?" Viggo froze, comprehension dawning.

"Yes, it was a gem that was said to cure curses-"

And it hit me. A shining sea. A filthy prince- and a family as old as Gedonelune. Just as Daniel had said, there was only one family that it could be.

"You don't think-"

"It has to be. House Baroque."

"But that's impossible! The Baroques were from the Kingdom of Daylight, they don't have any ties to Gedonelune!"

Viggo stared off, dazed. "Yes, they do." He grabbed my hand. "Come on! We need to find the others!"

The others were all gathered in our meeting room, tending to their wounds, when Viggo ran in.

"Where are the books of nobles?"

"Huh? They're over there." Viggo grabbed one of the books, flipping through it.

"Here! Teresa Adrian, an illegitimate daughter of House Adrian. When she married Ivan Baroque, she brought him an ancestral gem said to break curses!"

"Huh?!" The others stared. "Then that must have been the Star Sapphire!"

"But wasn't the Star Sapphire made by the Dragonkins?" Zeus asked. "That's what Willem told us before."

"We helped to shape the six gems when Gedonelune was new. That's why I can sense which ones are true,” Felix said. “It's entirely possible that it could be the gem we're looking for.”

"But we got to the Star Sapphire through the Labyrinth last time," Hiro said. "And now that the portal's closed, it would be impossible to get back to."

"Actually.." Caesar looked bashful. "When we were fleeing the castle last time- I swiped it."

"What?!"

"Here."

My breath hitched in my throat as Caesar set the gem down on the desk before us. A shining gem the size of a pomegranate, as blue as the sea. Even seeing it the second time, it was no less impressive.

"This is it.” Viggo's eyes widened. “This is the gem I saw in my vision."

“Let me scan it.” My heart raced as Felix's horns began to glow.

'Please, please, let this be correct!'

The light faded. "..There is no doubt. This is the gem of water."

Caesar picked up the gem. Despite his injuries, he was smiling. "To think the gem was with me all along."

"Yes." Viggo gave a weary smile. "Thank you for keeping it safe all this time."

"Not a problem."

"With that, we now have four gems!" And only one left to find.

"I still can't believe it.."

Viggo and I walked on the rooftop together, my mind still reeling with the day's events. First the tournament.

But I noticed Viggo had been strangely silent, staring up at the stars. "Are you all right?"

"We have four of the gems, and Hawkeye only has one. It just feels like everything's going too well. I just keep waiting for the moment that the rug's pulled out from under us."

"I'm sure that won't happen. We have the strength to keep the gems safe."

He shook his head. "I don't have the same optimism you do. I already know how this story ends."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's nothing." He turned away from me, leaning against the railing, and his silence tightened my heart.

This was just like in the library. Once again, he'd closed off himself to me. I wanted to believe that we'd gotten close enough now..

"Viggo, please, talk to me!" I said. "Whatever it is, I'm sure we can face it together..!"

His steely gaze fixed on the horizon. "I wondered what it was like to live without knowing what crap the future is going to bring. To be able to dream of what the future could be. Like you have endless time before you." A ghost of a smile touched his lips. "But the future wasn't promised to me.

"For as long as I could remember, I've had the same vision, and it grows stronger and stronger every time. Stone falling away- and a horrible screeching, and then he's there- The Dragon of Time."

No. No. No.

"That can't be right! You're saying.. the Dragon of Time is going to awaken?"

I don't know how, but it'll happen. No matter what we do, it'll all come crashing down on us, and that's it."

"This is.. You've carried this all your life." Everything made sense. Viggo fought without regard for anything, even his own life.

What would it be like, to carry that burden for so long, trying to face a future when you knew how the world would come crashing down? It would be enough to make anyone apathetic. "Oh, Viggo.."

Lucious: I can't believe you kept the Star Sapphire after all this time!

Caesar: Well, I thought it might be useful if we ever needed to break a curse.

Lucious: You mean like a curse that traps people in the Labrynth? Sure would have been useful around then.

Caesar: I didn't even think about that.

Lucious: Or someone cursed without memories.. Or or-

Caesar: I think that's a bit of a tall order for one gem! It couldn't even break my curse fully!

Lucious: I guess you've got a point. Next time.. Fear.

#wizardess heart #viggo la rochejaquelein gedonelune #dragon's song #The Oracle Prince

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square-enix-headcanons · 5 years

Note

Headcanons for Isa and Ienzo (maybe even lea, too) falling in love with someone they're mentoring. Their own ages, of course! It's just that these guys have some crazy-good skills that I imagine others would want guidance for... How do I put it? They're the best kind of senpai.

Ienzo

Ienzo was really surprised when you asked him to be his mentor. Like, are you sure you don’t want Even? Aeleus or Dilan? Maybe Ansem the Wise himself?

Most of what he knows he learned from them, so wouldn’t it make more sense to learn from them directly, too?

But nope. You are set on Ienzo (He does seem like the most approachable of the bunch, after all…)

You still end up working with Ansem and the other apprentices pretty often, too. After all, you all use the same lab and they do have a lot of expertise

He’s a very very patient teacher, and he’s willing to explain things twenty times if that’s what you needed

However, that’s only if you actually want to learn - Getting distracted it fine, that happens, but he gets frustrated if you don’t even want to learn what he’s trying to teach you

(Then again - If you’re not interested, you wouldn’t have asked him, anyway)

He’s falling for you very slowly. 50k Slowburn Friends to Lovers

Really, it starts out at just acquaintances, then you two slowly start to hang out a bit more outside of him teaching you, you become friends, etc

Since it’s such a slow progression, it takes Ienzo quite a while to notice

Though luckily, he’s pretty observant, so not as long as it could have.

He just eventually notices how often he smiles when he thinks about you, that his heart beats just a little bit faster when you’re around, etc

Once he notices, it’s like the feeling is suddenly enhanced. Like, one day he didn’t even notice that he felt warm inside when your hands brush while handing the other one something… And then the next, he blushes deep red when that happens

It’s really really cute. A bit annoying for the other apprentices though, considering being distracted in a lab can be kinda problematic (He’s still focused enough that nothing bad happens, but has spilled a few things, for example)

He’d love to just ask you out but like… He doesn’t really know how. He doesn’t have too much exprience with it, after all

He may or may not end up reading a romance novel for advice

At some point, he gathers up all his courage to ask you whether you’d maybe like to go to the cinema and watch a movie with him?

You can very easily tell how nervous he is. Be nice to him

Way better at focusing once the two of you are actually dating, much to the other apprentices’ relief

He likes to give you quick kisses at times when you’re working together in the lab, though, especially if you two are the only ones

Isa

Flattered, but really really surprised because? Why? Why him especially?

He’d be chill with teaching you how to use his… weapon-thing (yes I know it’s officially a claymore but it just really is not a claymore), but he’d be hesitant about teaching you how to use Berserk mode

Sure, it’s helpful, but it’s also kind of a two-edged sword. So, weapon it is.

He’s a fairly strict mentor. At first, he’s actually kinda worried he might be going to far and often asks you after training if everything is okay, etc

You learn a lot, and very quickly. Your whole body probably hurts after each training session, but hey, it’s gonna be worth it!

It’s kinda interesting to see how much gentler Isa is outside of training vs when he’s actively teaching you. (Now, if you’ve ever met Saix, though, you might notice some similarities…)

The first few times you meet outside of training, he’s kinda careful around you - Kinda like he’s trying to make sure he doesn’t spook you

After a while, he shows his snarkier side though

He isn’t too mean (And if you hang out with him and Lea - which is likely - Lea will probably tell you that Isa used to be much worse)

The more time the two of you spend together, the more Isa notices that he’s got feelings for you

However, he mostly tries to just… Not think about that

Even he himself isn’t entirely sure why; maybe it’s because he’s worried he might end up less strict during training if he admits it. Maybe he’s scared of getting rejected. Who knows.

It’s getting harder and harder to ignore, though. Especially when he sees you smile.

Lea is wondering whether he should just tell you to cut this whole thing short

If you don’t notice it yourself anyway, Isa will at some point tell you, though. It just takes a very long while.

He ends up inviting you out somewhere to watch the sunset (Not the clock tower; probably somewhere near your training area, a bit away from the nearest city). Might as well make it romantic, right?

He’s uh… Kinda awkward about confessing. Something like, “I… Think I’ve started to have feelings for you. I’m trying to not let it impact the training, but I just… thought you should know.” There’s a pause before he adds, “And maybe we could get dinner sometime?”

Absolutely thrilled when you say yes, though he only shows it via a smile

Whatever he was worried about, though… Trust me, your training is just as hard as it always was. But at least now you’ve got someone to kiss any bruises you might’ve gotten?

Lea

He is sooo flattered! That you want him to teach you!

Though his exact reaction depends a bit on what you ask him to teach you

If it’s, say, Chakrams and fire magic? No prob, he’s a total pro at it, after all!

If it’s keyblade, he’s kinda torn between “Of course you’d ask him, he’s just that good” and actually being a little insecure considering he pretty much just started with it

But either way, he’s totally up for it!

(Meanwhile, mod is sad that the German idiom “Feuer und Flamme sein” (”to be fire and flame”), which means being really enthusiastic about smth, probably doesn’t exist in English bc it would’ve been so fitting)

It’s not really the first time he’s taught someone else; after all, he used to be kinda Roxas’s chaperone for the first couple of weeks after he joined the Organization

Still, teaching you is pretty different from that

(You’re not a 15-year-old with absolutely no memories who doesn’t know how chests work, for example)

First of all, he tells you to show him what you already know, and then goes from there

After a bit of time to get used to it, he’s actually a really good teacher. Kinda obnoxious about it at times, though

Say, you’re arguing about something completely unrelated, and he might go “Well, as your teacher, …” as a joke

In general, there’s a lot of teasing going on between you two. Lea loves teasing people, and he expects you to shoot right back

At times, the teasing might even be slightly flirtatious, but not really serious. More stuff like, if you have to e.g. fix your hair during training, he might say “Come on now, looking pretty isn’t gonna help you in a fight, even if you’re good at it!”

It goes kinda seamlessly from there. The flirting just little by little increases and gets a bit less teasing (though still rather jokey)

Until at some point you’re probably both not entirely sure whether you’re like, just joking around or if you’re actually dating

Lea basically decides to shoot his shot one day after training by giving you a kiss on the cheek

If you seem okay with or, even better, happy about it, he’ll try for a kiss on the mouth (though he’ll give you plenty of time to draw back)

Assuming you’ve got a crush on him too and let him do that (or take the initiative to kiss him right back) he smirks and says something like “Guess we’re dating now”

He already likes physical affection, but he gets even cuddlier afterwards (though he rarely goes for prolonged hugs unless it’s really cold)

Also, totally introduces you as his datemate now

#Kingdom Hearts #Kingdom Hearts Headcanon #Ienzo #KH Isa #KH Lea #sfw #Precious boys #Be good to them

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straykidsnerd255 · 5 years

Note

Hi! I can't seem to find your masterlist and I don't know why... But I'll try to request you this anyway: could you write a Manigoldo Cancer x reader, pretty please? 💛💛 Thank you 💛💛

Hope you enjoy and I just fixed my masterlist but I can check it again if its not working!! I am gonna be a little shit and make the ending angsty. I sorry!!!! I want to test my skill in something sad!! Hope you like it!

Song: Right Here- Ashes Remain

Title: Promises: Cancer Manigoldo x Reader

Genre: Fluff/Angst

I can see every tear you've cried

like an ocean in your eyes

All the pain and the scars have left you cold

I can see all the fears you face

through a storm that never goes away

Don’t believe all the lies that you’ve been told

I’ll be right here now

to hold you when the sky falls down

I will always

be the One who took your place

When the rain falls

I won’t let go

I’ll be right here

Manigoldo sat in the meeting with the rest of the gold saints sitting around him. They were listening to what Athena was explaining about the holy war but he was focusing. His mind going a million miles a second. He was scared. Scared to tell you that he wanted to be more. He was scared that you would reject him like the others did. He was scared that you would leave him all alone and never look at him again. A sigh left his lips as he sat at the meeting with Athena and other saints. They turned and looked at him with confusion that absent look in his eyes and the pain they could clearly see on his face made them realize what was going on. Dokho and Shion knew exactly what was on his mind and a small grin covered their faces. They turned their attention to Athena before walking over to her. “Can we stage something. It's going to sound weird coming from us, but it will work.” Dokho said telling Sasha(Athena) the plan he had in mind.

Manigoldo looked around as he was told someone needed his help. The area was completely wasted and nothing was growing. A scream was heard and his blood went cold. He turned his head to see the girl that he had fallen for, tied up and thrown to the ground with four men standing around her. They laughed like maniacs as one of the men raised his arm above his head. It came down fast and Manigoldo reacted just before the weapon even raised up. He snatched your from the ground and swung around in the dirt. He faced the enemy and growled lowly. “Don’t touch what doesn’t belong to you.” He snapped. He didn’t notice that your face had exploded into a dark shade of red. The group noticed what was going on and turned to face each other. “It’s working. Keep it up.” Dokho said as he put the voice disguise back on.

I will show you the way back home

never leave you all alone

I will stay until the morning comes

I’ll show you how to live again

and heal the brokenness within

Let me love you when you come undone

When daybreak seems so far away

reach for my hand

When hope and peace begin to fray

still I will stand

When the rain falls I won’t let go

I’ll be right here.

Manigoldo held you close to his chest as he watched the men slowly walk forward. His eyes widened when, in the blink of an eye, you were ripped from his arms and he was shoved to the ground. You screamed and begged the men to leave him only but they just laughed and continued to press him against the ground with their shoes. Manigoldo looked up at you and saw your tear stained face and nearly went berserk. His scream lit the area up and all he could see was red. “GIVE HER BACK!!!” He screamed. The men narrowed their eyes as they watched him raise his arms high in the air. Dokho’s eyes widened and he started to panic. He didn’t expect it to go this far. “Hey Y/n, it's just us. But, we might have a big problem.” Dokho said. Y/n turned her head and glared at him. “What were your thinking!” She screeched quietly.

“Well, for starters, this big idiot had a crush on you and he didn’t know how to tell you and so, we decided we would stage a fake kidnapping to see if it would work but, we may get our ass kicked.” Regulus said looking back at the very pissed of Manigold as his cosmos started flaring out around him. You noticed that this was going to end badly if you didn’t do something. “Well, he returned the feelings, guess I can do this than.” You said walking towards Manigoldo.

You placed your hands on his chest and leaned up. You pressed your lips against his and felt his body slowly begin to relax. You felt his arms wrap around you and pull you close against him. “Wait. What’s going on? You were being held hostage by these gu-” He stopped when he realized who was standing all around him and you. His mind clicked and felt his body shake with anger. “Man. You guys are going to be the death of me one day.” He said glaring at all of them. They laughed before waving to the two and taking off before Manigoldo could even think of a punishment for embarrassing him. You turned your head towards the cancer saint and pressed a hand to his cheek. He turned towards you and smiled softly.

“I wanted to tell you I liked you on my own. I guess that can’t even done.” he said laughing as his hand was intertwined with yours. You couldn’t help but laugh along with him. After a while, his mood changed. He turned towards you and gave you a soft, yet sad smile. “You know, I always tell myself, I want to live a long life, but I know that can’t be done. Not when I am a saint.” He whispered. His head dropped to your shoulder as they had returned to Sanctuary. You smiled sadly and ran your fingers through his hair. “I know. It's hard.” You whispered.

Time-Skip: Holy War

Manigoldo couldn’t believe his eyes. His heart felt like it had been ripped from his chest and thrown to the ground. “Y/n.” he mumbled. The rest of his friends, Tenma, and Athena stared in horror as Thanatos held Manigoldo’s dead wife. “YOU BASTARD!” He screamed racing forward. “Sekishiki Meikai Ha!” His voice roared with emotion as he used that same attack over and over again. “Pathetic.” Thanatos said waving his hand. A single blow that sent Manigoldo flying backwards. “You humans should bow before us. We are truly more superior to you.” Thanatos said laughing loudly. Manigoldo laughed and stood from his spot.

“You? More superior? That’s one of the dumbest things that I have heard. What you really are, is just monsters. I could care less that you are a god. You sure don’t act like one.” Manigoldo hissed as he stood from where he had been thrown. His friends watched with worry etched into their eyes. He slammed his fist against his gold cladded chest and grinned triumphantly. “Even if our lives look like trash-like garbage- to a god, we want to sparkle at least once, you know. Screw you, god(Thanatos). Don’t take us humans so lightly.” Manigoldo yelled as he raised his fist and ran forward. He knew that he was going to end up dead, but that was ok. He was ready to die. His fist sparked blue as he slammed it against Thanatos’s face. One flick of Thanatos’s wrist and Manigoldo was sent flying again.

“You really want to see your wife that badly, I will send you to her.” Thanatos said narrowing his eyes. A sudden feeling of death filled the air. All the saints shivered as the male before them conjured a powerful spell. “It will be my honor to put you to rest with your wife.” Thanatos said. Manigoldo could see sadness swimming around in Thanato’s eyes as the magic ripped through his body. His mind went blank and his mouth opened in a silent scream. His body spazzed out in pain. His body dropped to its knees as the pain became too much for him.

“Soon, Y/n. Soon I will be by your side again.” As the dust from the explosion settled. All that was left, a crab made of gold. The cancer saint was gone. Forever.

#Saint Seiya #Manigoldo #Cancer Manigoldo #punch that bitch my boy #Requested #Anon #Enjoy #Saint Seiya Lost Canvas #Lost canvas Holy War #I’m a sap for cute stuff, but I got to put a little angst in there right?!

#Keep the requests coming! #Hope this is what you asked for #Manigoldo needs a lot more love then he gets #Fluff at first #angst at the end to rip your heart in half

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cheemerthelizard · 4 years

Text

Crusader of Life 2: Chapter 2

Oh, one more thing I should clear up: this story isn’t finished yet, meaning updates might take a while if I’m having writer’s block. Anyway, enjoy!

“Jotaro! Hey, Jotaro!” Lily called. The man turned to her voice, and waved at her as she ran across the street to catch up with him.

“Where’s Kakyoin?” he asked.

“Keeping watch over Emily,” Lily answered. “Did you sort everything out with Josuke?”

“I did,” Jotaro nodded. “Strangely, he started apologizing for causing chaos in the family. I was prepared to take a hit intended for the old man. I also told him about Angelo.”

“And how did he take that information?”

“Pretty well, actually. He didn’t freak out, but he also didn’t just brush it off like nothing.”

“Did you figure anything out about him? Like, his personality?”

“He’s a pretty passive guy, except for when you insult his hair. Then he goes berserk.”

“Huh.”

“Well, I’m going to check into the hotel. I’ll see you around.”

“You too.”

And with that, the two went their separate ways.

***

“Come on, Emily,” Kakyoin cooed. “It’s time for a nap.”

“I don’t wanna!” she screamed. “I don’t! I don’t!” Walking on Sunshine started to materialize behind her.

“Emily,” Kakyoin said sternly, grabbing onto Sunshine’s wrist with Hierophant, “it’s time for a nap.”

“Yessir,” Emily said quickly, crawling into bed.

“Goodnight, sweetie,” Kakyoin kissed the little girl’s forehead.

“Night night, Daddy,” Emily yawned, drifting off to sleep. When she was completely out, Kakyoin sighed.

“This girl is wearing me out,” he mumbled to himself. “Maybe I should’ve let Lily take care of her.”

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. “It’s Jotaro.”

“I got it!” Kakyoin said. He unlocked the door and let Jotaro in. “Lily was looking for you, actually.”

“I passed by her on the way here,” Jotaro replied.

“Ah, I see. Any luck as to where Angelo is?”

“Nothing, so far, but we just got here.”

“True, true.”

“Well, good luck with the kid. I’ve got to get back to Stand user hunting. I just wanted to check in with you before I went out again.”

“Thank you, and good luck with that, too.”

As soon as Jotaro left the room, Emily asked her dad, “Who was that?”

“That’s Jotaro,” Kakyoin answered her. “He’s a friend of mine. Now, you’ve gotta get some sleep, or your naptime will be longer today.”

“Okay,” Emily said, “but can you tell me a story first? The one about Egypt?”

“Okay,” Kakyoin chuckled. “But only if you promise to go right to sleep afterward.”

***

Koichi was walking home when he saw Lily strolling along the sidewalk. Apparently, she saw him, too, and called his name.

“Koichi! Hey!”

“Hi, Mrs. Kakyoin,” Koichi replied.

“Please, just Lily,” she laughed. “How was your first day of high school?”

“It was pretty good,” he said. “Apparently Josuke and I are in the same class. He actually introduced himself to me.”

“Yo! Koichi!” Josuke came running down the streets.

“Speak of the Devil,” Lily muttered.

“Hey, Josuke!” Koichi called. “Have you met Lily yet? She’s a friend of Jotaro’s.”

“Jotaro’s friend, huh?” Josuke asked, and held out his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

“You too,” Lily greeted. “I’ve been told that you already know what’s happening with Angelo.”

“I do,” Josuke answered. “To be honest, it’s a little scary. A murderer, in my hometown?” He shivered. “I don’t like thinking about that.”

“Well, don’t worry about a thing,” Lily told him. “Jotaro, Noriaki, and I have got it covered.”

Suddenly, police sirens blared from behind them, and headed in their direction, whizzing past.

“Looks like there’s trouble,” Koichi said. “Do you want to follow the cars and see it?”

“Sure,” Josuke replied. “What about you, Lily?”

“Well, my Stand could probably take care of any victims,” she answered. “Sure! Let’s go!”

And with that, the three chased after the police cars.

“Wait, your Stand?” Josuke finally processed what Lily had said.

“Yes,” Lily laughed. “It’s called Ace of Pentacles, and it can duplicate anything that has life. That means I can stitch together open wounds in a person’s body if they get injured.”

“What a coincidence!” Josuke said. “Mine can heal people, too!”

What? Lily thought. This kid just nullified half of my usefulness! But maybe it’s not as quick as mine. “How long does the pain last?”

“Doesn’t last that long at all, actually,” Josuke answered.

“How easy is it to fix someone?”

“Usually just a simple touch from Crazy Diamond. Why?”

“Oh, no reason.” This guy just replaced me! I’m no longer the healer of the group! “Oh, would you look at the time! Little Emily must be waking up! I should be on my way!”

“See ya, Lily!” Koichi called out.

“You, too! Bye!”

When Lily was out of sight, she started groaning. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said to herself.

“What’s the matter?” Jotaro asked. Lily hadn’t noticed him there.

“Josuke’s Stand has healing properties, and they work faster and more efficiently than mine.”

“Jealous?”

“Of course I am!”

“Don’t be. You can make two of him. That’s something he can’t do.”

“I guess you’re right,” Lily sighed. “Still, all I mostly did was heal others back in our glory days.”

“You also saved multiple innocent people on many different occasions from enemies.”

“Yeah. Well, I’m going back to the hotel. Time for Noriaki and I to switch out. Bye!”

“Bye,” Jotaro repeated.

***

“You won’t believe it, Noriaki, you just won’t believe it,” Lily came into the hotel room already ranting.

“What will I not believe?” Kakyoin asked.

“Josuke has a Stand with healing powers,” Lily groaned.

“Are they better than yours?”

“Much better.”

“Mommy!” Emily ran to her mom.

“Hey, Emily!” Lily bent down and let the small girl run straight into her arms. “How was your day?”

“It was great!” Emily said. “Me and Daddy had a contest to see who could go higher!”

Lily looked at Kakyoin. “What does she mean?”

“I held her up with Hierophant, and she lifted me up with Walking on Sunshine.”

“I see,” Lily nodded.

“So, this Josuke kid?”

“It’s unbelievable! Just unbelievable!” At this point, Lily was joking around. “I can’t believe HIS Stand had the audacity to copy MY power!”

“Don’t be jealous, Lily,” Kakyoin laughed. “After all, the healing was your creativity. If we ever have a problem with a possession-type Stand, you’ll be the one to save us.”

“That’s what Jotaro told me,” Lily chuckled. “At this point, that’s all I’ll be good for.”

“Mommy,” Emily looked up into Lily’s eyes, “what are we having for dinner?”

“I think we should go out,” Kakyoin patted the little girl’s head. “What do you think?”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea,” Lily picked Emily up, and started carrying her out the door. “We’re going out to eat tonight!”

“Yay!” Emily could barely contain her excitement, which is never good for a young Stand user who barely has control over their powers. The two parents started flying up in the air, and Kakyoin had to grab onto the vases and paintings decorating the hallway with Hierophant.

“Emily,” Lily urged, “you have to calm down, baby.”

Emily quickly realized everything around her was floating around, and let Sunshine’s grasp go, sending everything straight down. It was a good thing Kakyoin had caught them, or they’d have some big bills to pay.

“Sorry,” she mumbled.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Lily consoled. “That’s what we’re here for. To help you control your Stand. Now, how about we go get that dinner?”

***

Lily’s eyes were slowly cracking open, expecting a bright morning sun. Instead, she was greeted with a full moon. She checked the time on her alarm. 3:30. What could have possibly woken me up this early? she wondered.

“Mommy!” Emily’s wails were heard from the other room. “Daddy! Help me!”

Oh.

“Noriaki,” Lily said groggily, nudging him awake. “Noriaki.”

“What is it?” Kakyoin yawned.

“Emily’s crying in the other room. Very hard.”

Kakyoin sighed. “I’ll get Hierophant ready.”

The two opened the door, and saw everything flying all over the place, almost tornado-like. Little by little, Hierophant Green grabbed the floating debris, and made a walkway for Lily to get to the fretting girl. She was lifted up, too, but she made her way to Emily thanks to a tentacle from Kakyoin.

“Oh, baby,” Lily cooed, hugging the little girl tightly. “What’s the matter, Emily?”

“I, I, I, I had a bad dre-e-eam,” Emily bawled.

“Oh, poor girl,” Lily comforted her, stroking her hair and letting the storm roll on around her. “I promise nothing will happen to you. The dream wasn’t real. You’re safe here, I promise you. You’re okay, you’re okay.”

Slowly but surely, the tornado of objects wasn’t whirling around the room as fast, and the objects were getting closer and closer to the ground until everything was either completely still or being put back in its place by Kakyoin.

“There we go,” Lily set the girl back down on her bed, and handed her her favorite stuffed animal. “Want Mister Bear to make you feel better?”

“Yes, please,” Emily sniffled, grabbing the teddy bear from her mother’s grasp.

“Crisis solved,” Kakyoin whispered as the two closed the door to Emily’s room. Now for their good night’s sleep.

***

“Lily,” Jotaro’s voice seemed to be coming from a dream. “Lily!”

“I’m fine, Jotaro, just focus on Dio.”

“Lily, wake up!”

The woman jerked up, breathing heavily, then looked to her side.

“Ah! How did you get in here?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll have Josuke fix the door later.”

“That kid can fix inanimate objects, too?” Lily groaned. “Why’d you wake me up, anyway?”

“Because there’s one thing that you can do that Josuke can’t, and that’s deal with possession type Stands.”

Lily stared in awe at Jotaro. “You’re serious?”

“Am I ever not serious? Now, if you don't want anyone dying, I suggest you get dressed and get in the car right away! We’ve got a murderer to catch!”

#oc #crusader of life #diamond is unbreakable #jojo's bizarre adventure #fanfiction #my fanfiction

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borderlandscast · 5 years

Text

so i’m sitting here, typing up a post

and realise said post comparing all the rythians in their aus is longer than i thought it’d be, and realise star wars rythian is the cause. it’ll probably get its own post.

i have four different rythians for aus and they’re all slightly different in some way, whether it’s in interests, background or personality quirks.

common factors:

they’re all massive nerds, and have a specific interest that often drives them. it’s usually knowledge or book related.

tall. they have to be the tallest in the au, or one of them.

they’re all adventurers in their own way, but like having a place to put their feet up and rest.

borderlandscast:

the saddest and gayest one of them all. goes through the toughest and soul crushing experiences.

also has the highest alcohol tolerance of them all thanks to his on and off alcoholism.

is the most cynical out of all of them, but also had some wild optimism in there? he can be very tenacious, and vicious when pushed. also one of the nicer vault hunters around.

in essence, can be considered a true vault hunter, since he’s willing to die for a vault.

tough as nails. his third skill tree ‘timeless’ essentially lets him ascend if he exceeds critical damage. it also stalls bleeding and wounds acquired, but he goes into a berserker state (rythian isn’t sure if he’ll ever gain enough control over it) that causes potentially life threatening mental and physical strain upon cooldown. however, he can cross dimensions, barriers and ignore all and any damage taken while ‘phasewalking’.

also unlocked a passive skill that’s a part of the ‘timeless’ tree: royal blood. the joke here is that purple used to be considered a royal color, and he’s from a highborn fami- anyway, rythian’s eridium tainted blood possesses an even more potent nature than raw eridium, could prove intoxicating to sirens, or serve as a substitute to eridium in extentuating circumstances (like opening eridium dependent vaults, cough). it also drives lalnable nuts for a different reason since he can’t do proper blood tests.

afflicted with lactose intolerance, as if his life wasn’t bad enough. enjoys cheese. forgot it existed while on pandora. likes chocolate.

estranged from family. doesn’t consider himself to be a stellar example of said family (which is explored in star wars au).

hates public speaking, never gets used to delivering seminars, or becoming an esteemed guest to conferences. as a result, a lot of megacorporations have their eye on him and his activities.

has the most number of scars. not particularly concerned with how people view said collection, but he has an ambivalent view towards his own, damaged body. he’s on the path to healing and having a better relationship with his body (which is also helped along in part by ravs).

discworld:

the youngest rythian! he’s in his late twenties.

he hasn’t got that much practical experience as a wizard, and specialises in studying and assessing materials that have magic potential. he could be classed as a ‘thaumaturgist’ (i think that’s the actual title of his job, noted somewhere in one of discworld books) that’s before he got distracted in updating the compendium of magic styles.

that said, he’s got fairly extensive knowledge in wizarding theory. you could probably call him that one student who puts their hand up to sidetrack the professor/lecturer by asking insightful but hard questions. all the other students actually prefer this since they can escape learning.

branded as an oddity amongst his peers by being wiling to mix and match casting styles and schools. wizards are all about formulas, flair, tradition and pomp. rythian cares more about the result than how he got there and how he looks while doing it. he’s not inattentive as how to how he casts magic though.

born as the eighth and youngest child of a book doctor (someone who repairs books and texts) and tanner. grew up used to the smell of paper, glues and dyes. got sent to wizarding school as a favor since his parents are used to the weirdness of repairing magic books. they’re also the only people in the business within anhk-morpork since everyone else doesn’t want to deal with that weirdness.

all his other siblings help out with the family business. he’s not particularly close with any of them who are a lot more dedicated to their jobs while rythian would rather read the book he’s assigned to repair, and he hates dealing with dead animals so he never got any tanner jobs as a kid.

so, known as the wizard in the family, he can do whatever he wants. his family consults him from time to time on strange books, and how to troubleshoot if a book happens to react badly to being fixed.

can navigate library space like a seasoned veteran. he has a unique knack to it; he jokes about ‘talking to the books’...which may or may not be true.

he favors practical, small scale magic, like making a fire, getting a good tail wind, or removing old tea stains from lace.

a little absent minded when he’s deep in thought, and can read while walking, eating or doing something else. he has no preferences about reading material. once, he had a romance novel; his siblings thought he had someone. they were wrong, he just picked it up on recommendation.

due to his wizarding background, sometimes he completely misses obvious solutions or meanings since he’s used to less straightfoward terms and inquiries. i.e., lomadia wants him to teach a chicken a lesson? okay, instead of decapitating said naughty chicken, rythian will educate the chicken on the basic differences on good and bad, and proceed to accidentally give said chicken higher sentience.

athiest, as far as religion goes. he’s aware of higher beings, he just doesn’t feel the overwhelming need to make them his greater calling in life, or ask for any favors.

personality wise, he’s fairly mellow, polite and well-meaning, knowledgable and for a wizard, surprisingly street smart. he can be judgemental and set in his ways about how people treat books and wizards, and easily defensive about said teachings.

he grew up on anhk-morpork cuisine, home cooking and street food, so his tastes heavily lean towards greasy but/and filling. he has a ridiculous metabolism since his brain is so active.

asexual, biromantic; this may change later on. has no romantic experience. is baffled by people’s fixations on sex. knows what sex is, though, and embarrassed.

his dark materials:

roughly the same age as borderlandscast rythian. i.e, early thirties.

orientations undecided.

will get to his daemon in another post!

scholar, particularly interested in the studies of forbidden magic and the origin of daemon development (especially mythical or legendary forms). officially, he’s his own scholar and one of the curators of sweden’s university library. he assists other scholars in finding and examining texts and delivering them. he’s also tasked with retrieval of texts if needed, from other archives and by extension, other countries.

he actually has a fairly neat collection of ‘destroyed’ texts. these are papers about the nature of dust, rebuttals, banned authors and such. he hates getting ‘please destroy’ letters from the church.

he passes his daemon off as an unusual variant of thorny devil, provided ender keeps their wings tucked in tight and hidden.

rythian’s magic is fairly weak in this au; he rarely finds time to nurture his magic, nor has the slightest idea of the best way to do so. he can tap into basic elemental manipulation, but that’s about it. he’s convinced it’s tied to his daemon’s form.

he’s tasked with finding any existing volumes of althiometer readings and symbols from oxford for sweden’s own archives; rythian takes this opportunity to leave sweden and undertake his biggest and secret goal yet.

brown haired and blue eyed; missing the pale stripe from his hair in this au.

speaks english, latin and swedish. knows a handful of useful phrases in other languages. can read and write a couple of other languages. not sure what ones yet.

knows his ways around the social politics of the scholars that visit; doesn’t actively partake in rivalries, spats or dealings, generally keeps his head down and just does his job.

well educated, spoken and mannered. rythian rarely loses his composure unless he’s surprised, angered or excited. it usually takes a lot to get him to break his straight face.

did consider applying to become a missionary to travel widely but realised he had little interest in preaching since he doesn’t have that much faith in god to begin with. plus, his daemon is proof of his deviance from the norm, or so he rationalises. he can understand the dedication of worship but he views himself and ender exempt from the doors of the church. yeah, he has mixed feelings about religion. i don’t know if i’ll explore this since it’s a topic i’m not equipped to handle.

#borderlandscast: extras #borderlandscast: his dark materials #borderlandscast: discworld

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staticsamuraiart · 5 years

Text

Hoo boy, this one's a long one

There's a TLDR way at the end.

I had one of my longer running games come to a messy head last night where a couple of the players enacted a party betrayal. Here is your cast primarily involved so I don't have to keep using full titles to keep everything straight. We're level 17.

The Tiefling Barbarian who's been having a mental breakdown for the last 3 or 4 games as his entire life up until a certain point has been revealed to him to be a lie, thus causing a downward spiral of paranoia and a refusal to trust literally anyone, party members included. Shortened to "The Barbarian" from now on.

The way-too-hard-to-explain Ranger turned Devil Vampire Queen (there's a lot going on here). The character was once a Tabaxi with a hunger for treasure hunting. Now she wishes to ascend to godhood and become what is essentially a god of piracy and treasure hoarding. Shortened to "The Ranger" from now on.

The Undead Warlock/Life Cleric who has thus far been an amazing healer and generally has a fix for everything and is unaffected by most things who gets the most screwed over in this scenario. Shortened to "The Cleric-Lock" from now on.

And the more minor involvements, a Lycan bloodhunter, our demi-god Bard, and myself as the circle of the moon druid. We were affected but not nearly as directly.

The situation! We were in the Feywild and crawling through a dungeon. I'm not gonna lie, I wasn't expecting this dungeon because I was under the impression we were gathering allies in the Feywild because our plane is at war with the Devils but that's another story. We split the party (first mistake) because the dungeon has two paths to go through and one team was forcibly separated after a cave in. The Bard, Bloodhunter, and Barbarian go one way. The Cleric-lock, Ranger, and Druid go the other. Party A and B respectively.

Party A proceeds forward. There's pretty much mostly harmless or not at all dangerous traps laid out through this place so they kind of murderhobo on through. They uh.... let's just say an innocent child gets straight up murdered by the Barbarian who betrays them and tries to book it for the item at the end of the dungeon. Shenanigans ensue and the Bard traps the Barbarian in a Forcecage, while he and the Bloodhunter bamf out to continue through the dungeon.

Party B has a significantly easier time, because overall we are the less* murderhobo side (*one of the traitors is in this group, guess whooo). We power through a much more significant portion of the dungeon and make it to the boss room. "The Boss Room" being the room where the treasure is guarded by goblins...

Now to condense the story, the Vampire and the Barbarian for different reasons were trying to obtain AN INSANELY RARE AND POWERFUL LEGENDARY SWORD THAT GRANTS WISHES. Like high tier shit. The Ranger's plan was to trap or kill everyone in this dungeon because she is the reason it even exists. She has been meticulously planning with the DM for months on her ultimate betrayal and finally reached her point. She plays her trump card (although it ends up not being as awesome as expected because she misunderstood a mechanic, nbd) but proceeds to continue. Here's where things get complicated so let me explain piece by piece:

The ranger supposedly had a wish saved from a previous session when she encountered multiple wish granting items all at once (Frankly she's had insane luck in obtaining wishes all through this campaign). Many of us at the table were pretty sure she did NOT have the wish saved, but the DM ruled she definitely did even though the math didn't line up. The Ranger used this wish spell to force the Cleric-Lock to have amnesia.

Clarification; the DM specifically stated there is no save, no counter, no anything to stop this wish. It happened and there was nothing the player could do about it. Now you might be thinking "but you're the druid, couldn't you have still stopped her?" or even "that's not very fair, shouldn't there still be some kind of DC if the wish copied a spell that exists?"

Well to answer the first thought as simply as possible, I am a homebrewed version of an Eidolyn. You know? Those things Summoners essentially make a bond with and can summon out to fight and shit for them? Yeah, it's neat. The second answer is like, wow hey same bro, I agree. That doesn't make much sense to me. DM ruled "It happens because it's not the 'spell' wish, it's like the 11th level bomb ass crazy powerful WISH wish." and personally I didn't agree but DM rules so I wasn't gonna fight it out. Powerful magic is powerful. Other players at the table were incredibly upset over it and the tensions rose.

Back to explanations, I was originally bonded to the Bard, because at the start of the game we were playing a dnd skin of El Dorado but our "Tulio" left left the game early on. Anyway, here's the problem; I wasn't bonded to the Bard. I was bonded to the Ranger.

"But Static, how can that be? you don't just un-bond to your chosen person!"

Yeeeah well, there was a situation where I got petrified and that sucked. I failed my saves twice. The Ranger had a very powerful ally who had unpetrified me, but he also apparently marked me and bonded me to the Ranger. The DM's argument was that because I "died," I was no longer bonded to the Bard, and was open to have a new bond made. Now I'm not mad or anything at the situation, I'm a very flow with the punches player, but my problem is that that seems like something I should have known, right? I didn't though, I had no idea my bond was shifted; no idea I was even remotely connected to the Ranger in such a way. It was well hidden, because we WERE connected BEFORE that situation came about. Devils' rules, souls being traded and shit, partially due to my Eidolyn heritage; it's complicated.

Why is that important? Well technically speaking, because I was HER Eidolyn, I was HER minion. She ordered me to go ahead and grab her legendary wish sword while the Cleric-Lock was essentially reverted to a mindless Spectre- complicated- and proceeded to possess the Ranger because he still had the general notion that the situation was a hostile one. Ranger failed her save, became a vegetable. I was still following my order. Those Goblins? Used the wishes to wish for Fire toads, and then wished to be okay with fire. AKA they're slowly burning to death on their new Fire Toad mounts as I grab the now innert sword. Okay well it's still a wicked sword, but the wishes were spent.

ALLLLLL things come to a head. The druid goes wild berserk for a while as her "summoner" has essentially been incapacitated, a powerful ally the Ranger summoned whisks the Ranger's body away as the Cleric-lock still maintains control of her body, the Barbarian is trapped in a Forcecage, and the Bard and Bloodhunter bamf the fuck out of there (don't worry we had a sort of anchor that kept the time dilation at bay and they successfully saved on the memory loss thing). Eventually the druid returns to herself, and also bamfs out back to the anchor point with successful memory saves; leaving half of the party essentially wiped and the players for the Barbarian, Cleric-lock, and Ranger will be rolling new characters.

Now this was a lot to go over, because it is a very complicated set of characters with crazy backstories and hordes of batshit insane items and powers because we're so high level and it wouldn't be easy to understand from an outside view if I hadn't provided as much context as I did. The situation with the wish being un-salvagable for the player, combined with the seemingly random entering of a dungeon when our goal was nowhere near such a thing, and the overall out of character tensions that kept rising with disruptive players ended up causing a lot of arguments and a lot of strife; DM and players alike.

What I'm trying to get at is that it's okay to disagree with how your DM runs things. It's okay to think a situation in game was handled unfairly. It's okay to clash opinions. Sometimes DMs are set in their ruling, and sometimes a DM enacts Rule 0: DM says, therefore it is. That is valid. That being said, if you communicate your concerns with [insert clashing opinion here] and you feel you are just butting heads with the DM with no resolution, compromise, or even validation then it is OKAY TO LEAVE THE GAME.

The Bard's player was the most upset with how the game turned out; what with disagreeing with the wish rulings, finding the lack of any possible inklings to our evil players plotting schemes (by that I mean there was only secret conversations with the DM and no in game nuances noted with no rolls involved), and overall finding the betrayal to be from left field and otherwise just an unfair game with multiple examples of the DM railroading certain party members into being or acting some kind of way when they didn't have the chance to save themselves, notice the issues, or generally be involved in the decision that was forced upon their characters (Cleric-Lock and Druid as the main examples). it resulted in the Bard's player deciding to leave the game prematurely. The DM and him got into a heated argument in person and over facebook, and they just couldn't agree and it ended up getting to that point of "well if you want to run the next game go ahead" attitude.

The situation is fresh, so it's still heated between the two people. Maybe they'll make up, or maybe they'll see that they clash and don't even want to be friends anymore. Idk, but I for one see the game as a learning experience. I myself have had reservations about the game and the DM for a long time, and in general just haven't really felt a deep connection with my character or the story. There were moments, but they were pretty few and far between. I don't hate the players, and I don't even blame the ones who took evil routes and betrayed us. I just wish there was a better synergy between us with Players, Party, and DM. Things probably would've been better.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk. I just wanted a place to unload the story and organize my thoughts on the situation. I want to clarify too that the DM isn't a bad DM or a bad person, in fact he even pre-game warned us that things might get heated and cooked for us while he tried to be as fair as he possibly could be. This isn't a blasting on social media, nor is it a callout post. I just don't like putting these things on facebook because do you see this novel I wrote? Fuck that noise I just wanted to journal it somewhere and voice out that not every DnD game is perfectly balanced or perceived to be handled fairly. He did his best, he made his calls, and he urged us all to make sure we knew we were all still friends after the game was over.

TLDR; Our DM kind of railroaded a couple players and made some questionable decisions on how he handled some PvP scenarios which angered a chunk of the players and overall it was just a bad time. We're still friends but sometimes friends get passionate over the things they have strong views on and arguments happen. It's okay though, humans aren't perfect. We cool.

Thanks for reading. <3

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