#but i could not find an instance of that in the reference pages i used for the alphabet
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another comic emulating the style of NofNA, which will feature Legend and Pegging meeting. page 1 of 8.
#art#sequential#idletry#i have a feeling that the C letter doesn't have a dot in the middle option which i'm pretty sure is supposed to represent putting your#tongue a specific way in your mouth which you should be able to do with a C mouth shape if you can do it with a < mouth shape#but i could not find an instance of that in the reference pages i used for the alphabet
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I’m trying to figure out when exactly Pyrrha realized that Nona was Alecto. I had been thinking that it was after Kiriona woke up, because at that point Pyrrha would have understood that Nona’s eyes came from Alecto, not Gideon, but I think it may have actually been a bit earlier…
After the fight between Ianthe and Cam, when Pyrrha and Nona go off to find the corpse, Nona tells Pyrrha that she’s dying, and Pyrrha says, “‘Course you are…the soul longs for the body, Nona. Even a fucked up soul…even a soul that’s been changed forever. It takes a lot to acclimate a soul to a body it wasn’t born in, if that original body’s around for it to miss.”
Now, she could still be talking about Gideon. BUT something about the way she phrases this, with the “fucked up soul that’s been changed forever” …feel free to disagree but to me that sounds a heck of a lot like Alecto. I think it’s possible that Pyrrha has even worked out Alecto’s true nature, so when she refers to the ‘original body’ she could be talking about the planet earth itself.
Pyrrha goes on to say, “Kiddie, when you were yelling…” but she trails off and doesn’t get to finish her sentence. We know that Nona “screamed like the captain had screamed.” We also know that when the captain screams, Nona hears her speaking in varun’s voice, and it’s interesting that Pyrrha describes it as yelling, not screaming, which to mean indicates that Nona may have said something. Something that alerts Pyrrha to the fact that Nona is not who they’ve all been thinking she is.
Yes - Pyrrha does say within the next couple of pages that Gideon’s body “might be you, kiddie.” But I don’t think that necessarily means she doesn’t at least suspect that Nona is someone else. I know the rest of that scene heavily implies that Pyrrha still thinks Nona is Gideon…but I’m suspicious. I think what she wants to believe and what she knows to be true might not match up.
This post is getting away from me but I just have to add that after the roof incident, both Nona and Pyrrha know who she is, and Nona is desperate to keep herself in the dark. Pyrrha starts to call Nona “A…” but Nona stops her and begs her not to make her remember. And then Nona slips into her Alecto self, and mocks Pyrrha for playing house with her (hello, more doll references), and that must absolutely break Pyrrha’s heart, but she lets it go.
So when Pyrrha finally says her “what’s like except a love that hasn’t been invited indoors?” speech, she’s reckoning with her feelings towards both Nona and Alecto, has probably been wrestling with those feelings for a while, and it’s just. So devastating. Pyrrha loved Nona. Nona loved and was loved by Palamedes, Camilla, and Pyrrha.
But Alecto? Nona is terrified that when she realizes who she is, she won’t love anything. We know that John loved Alecto, and I think we can infer that Anastasia did too, and Alecto loved them back. But then Pyrrha tells us that she and Gideon liked Alecto, and for some reason that feels even more significant to me—maybe because there are all kinds of twisted love in these books and to like someone, while less intense, is more…mundane. There aren’t a lot of instances in these books where people just like each other, plain and simple. And I think that the love everyone has for Nona is a lot less complicated than the other types of love we’re shown. Truly a like that’s been invited indoors.
#does this make any sense#I just really need to know more about everyone’s relationship with alecto#don’t even get me started on ‘love is a revenant’#pyrrha dve please tell me what’s going on with you in this book#what does she know??#pyrrha dve#nona the ninth#nona the ninth spoilers#ntn spoilers#alecto the ninth#the locked tomb#tlt#tlt analysis#tlt meta
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Traditional Chinese Translation of Homestuck Analysis-Beta Troll Typing Quirks
That's right, there's a full traditional Chinese translation of Homestuck. You can find it, along with links to other translations, here. If you want to jump to Hivebent when all the beta trolls are officially introduced so you can see this for yourself, here's a link to the first page.
But first, I'll give as succinct of a rundown of the elements of the Chinese language that are relevant as I can. The Chinese writing system doesn't have an alphabet, instead words all have unique characters. So a lot of the trolls' quirks just can't be 'transliterated', because they have something to do with spelling. Similarly, Chinese characters don't have upper or lower cases.
There are multiple ways to type Chinese on an electronic device, but the most common is using a Latin script keyboard. You type out the pinyin of a Chinese character (which is the system mostly commonly used to romanize Mandarin Chinese nowadays) and some suggestions for characters with pinyin romanizations spelled that way pop up in a little window, and then you pick the one that you want.
Chinese also has A LOT of homophones because instead of making a wider variety of noises like English, Chinese opted to differentiate words partially based on the tone they're spoken in. This is absolutely fantastic for puns and wordplay, English could never hope to be anywhere near Chinese's level in that regard. This comes into play with some of the trolls' typing quirks.
And just to clarify, sometimes I say 'Chinese' and sometimes I say 'Mandarin', that's because Mandarin is the official dialect in both mainland China and Taiwan and now the mostly widely spoken one in the world. It isn't mutually intelligible with most other Chinese dialects (this is part of why some people argue that Chinese isn't a single language but a language family). However, written Chinese can generally be understood regardless of the dialect you speak, even if people speaking in different dialects often have different ways of saying the same thing, like greetings and whatnot. When I say Chinese I mean things that broadly apply to written Chinese or the Chinese language/language family as a whole, when I say Mandarin I mean things specific to the Mandarin dialect. I think that about covers it. This post is already getting a bit long so I'll put everything else under a cut. Here's the breakdown:
Aradia: Replaces characters with the Arabic numeral for zero 0. I looked it up and apparently the Chinese character for zero also carry connotations of negation or mean things like 'nought' or 'no', which seems to fit with at least most of the instances she uses it in. Apparently this character can also have some link to death and dead spirits, which would fit given how she's a ghost at the beginning of the story.
Tavros: Uses the character 呃 a lot, which can be used like 'uh' or 'eh'. Uses 嗯 which can be used like 'hmm' or 'uh' as well, or like a general mumbling/light groaning sound, but with less frequency. Still, types haltingly, and uses commas, a lot, like in English, without any periods, Since Chinese doesn't have upper or lower cases, Tavros cANT DO THAT THING HE DOES IN ENGLISH, WHERE HE TYPES IN ALL CAPS OTHER THAN, THE FIRST LETTER OF SENTENCES, sO UNFORTUNATELY, there isn't a lot else to say here.
Sollux: Still refers to the others by their nicknames like KK and AA. He uses reduplication more often than most of the others, which is when you repeat part of a word or even a whole word for various reasons, often to stress your point. He also replaces characters that are pronounced as 'shi' in Mandarin with the Chinese character for 4, which is pronounced as 'si' and written as 四. I'm pretty sure this is supposed to be reminiscent of his lisp. EDIT: AS @autumntides reminded me, in at least Mandarin and Cantonese four is a homophone with death, and thus it carries the stigma of death and unluckiness. This fits in well with Sollux's mage of doom class and everything related to it, like Vriska mind controlling him to kill Aradia and him dying during the vast glub because he didn't make it into the game in time before Feferi revived him. I still think it's also the lisp, though.
Karkat: He doesn't type in a larger font size then the others so he doesn't really have any typing quirks, at least none I've been able to ascertain, but he's just as imaginative with his cursing. It can be pretty rough for me to parse and equally rough to translate into English in a way that doesn't sound really awkward, but one of my favorites is 'Rotten bloated corpse of God Almighty! Goddammit, what the fuck does your pockmarked think stem want?'
Nepeta: Uses onomatopoeias that equate to 'cat sounds' like meow and roar, as well as a good bit of reduplication. Still uses asterisk marks and speaks in the third person to indicate when she's role-playing.
Kanaya: Doesn't use punctuation. That's it, since she can't capitalize things like she does in English. I really wish I could say more but that's all I can see. She's still verbose, though.
Terezi: Replaces words that are homophones or near homophones with the numbers 1, 3, and 4 in Mandarin with their Arabic numerals, presumably to resemble how she types in leetspeak in English.
Vriska: Still types out characters 8 times occasionally, but rather than letters (since the Chinese writing system doesn't have an alphabet) it's the whole 'word' like 月月月月月月月月. Replaces words that are homophones (or almost homophones) with 'eight' in Mandarin with the Chinese character for 8 八. I'm pretty sure it's meant to signify that she's dragging the word out rather than repeating it, like when she does thiiiiiiiis in English.
Equius: Still uses % like X's, but he just types it and then types out the word. Again, I don't know exactly what kind of keyboard he's using, but if he's using a Latin script keyboard, he's just typing things like %xuan but when he's finished typing it looks like this %選.
Gamzee: Types out every other character in a slightly smaller font size then the default, he's the only one that changes his font size to resemble his English typing quirk. I'm guessing/hoping they have a set up where he can just as easily change font size as Latin script keyboards can change between lower and uppercase by hitting a certain button, but who knows. He uses ta ma de 他媽的 a lot, which is pretty much the Chinese equivalent of 'motherfucker/motherfucking', and cao 操, which is just 'fuck' but the verb.
Eridan: Still refers to the others by their nicknames like Fef and Kan. A lot of reduplication. A LOT of it, way more than Sollux or Nepeta even. I think this is supposed to be reminiscent of how he doubles his Vs and Ws in English rather then symbolizing true grammatical reduplication, though. It also seems to be that his specific flavor of reduplication is like Vriska's, it's meant to signify he's dragging the sound of a word out rather than repeating it. He also types ~ right after reduplication, seemingly to resemble the waves on the ocean and that he's sort of saying it in a 'wavy' manner, like how in English the comic remarks that he has a 'really weird kinda wavy sounding accent'. Honestly it's annoying to look at, and other Chinese speakers have told me the same thing when they saw how he types. Maybe that was intentional?...
Feferi: She does the same thing as Equius does with X but uses ) ( in front of words whose pinyin romanization starts with H. Uses 'gulu' in the place of 'glub' as transliteration. Replaces characters like those for 'is' 是 and 'have' 有 for characters that have that character in it but also have the character for fish 魚 like 鯷 and 鮪. Also occasionally uses ------ before characters, I think it's meant to symbolize that she's saying something excitedly.
And there you have it. This was rough and took a lot of time, but it was fun if at times deeply frustrating. I may do more of these posts comparing the Chinese translation to the original English, I'm particularly interested in the alpha trolls, but who knows. If you enjoyed this I'd greatly appreciate you sharing it :)
#homestuck#karkat vantas#gamzee makara#vriska serket#terezi pyrope#sollux captor#aradia megido#nepeta leijon#equius zahhak#feferi peixes#eridan ampora#tavros nitram#kanaya maryam#Chinese#chinese homestuck
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Big question: Who or when was the first use of the term UMA?
Cross posted to FR's forums but I thought fr tumblr meta readers would like this too!
Introduction
What is a UMA? It stands for User Made Accents, where the companion term is User Made Skins, but UMAs caught on as the catch-all term instead of UMS. I was in the Arcane discord server where foxaquinn made a joke about UMAs and wondered who was the first to use it. If you are on GASP (general accent and skin pinglist), UMAs pop up regularly where I got pinged 60+ times for threads with UMA in the title.
I research by day and play pet sims by night so here I am, combining research and pet sims to unravel how language changed throughout the years in the skins and accents community! I included in text citations for my sources because I like those and I don’t like making works cited lists. :)
First, what language does the staff use for skins? Maybe UMAs came from them? The Kickstarter uses the word “customs” in regards to the skins (Kickstarter, 2013) The first skin submission competition for the festival, Undel used the word “customs” to refer to the skins users made (Undel, 2013). Note that the current competitions and even the tooltip for blueprints use the word “customs” as well. The blueprint page even uses “user-created” and not “user-made” so "user made" must have stemmed from the community as a more casual way to say user-created.
Results
Let’s rule out some approaches that may give an easy answer. I tried to use the FR search tool to see if I could find the first use of UMA, however it only indexes up to one year of results or 100 pages, whichever you hit first when you sort by age so I wasn’t able to glean anything from that. Note that I tried to stick with UMA as the search term because use of UMS just overlaps too largely with the sound “um” when I use the search bar, which also means that plurals are captured by FR’s search. I can also tell you that FR’s search lets you type in user-made or user made and it will pull up the same results.
Then I tried google where I used the key terms site:https://www1.flightrising.com/forums/ "UMA" with a time range from 2013 to 2014. It looked promising at first because it looked like there was an instance as early as 2013. When I actually checked it though, it pulled up the most recent use of UMA in the forums in the first two hits as seen by the timestamps of May 2023 next to it. Google indexed when the forum board was established instead of the individual threads for this search. I dropped the time range and just checked what results it would pull up.
There was an individual thread called the FR Abbreviations Guide that got pulled up. It was made in 2014 and includes both UMA and UMS in the definition list. However, UMA was added to the page in 2020 (FR Abbreviations, 2020).
I decided to just look back at some of the early Skins and Accents posts to see what language they use. It was pretty interesting, where many people just used skins and accents. There is no distinction yet, likely because there weren’t any festival or coliseum skins that users could submit yet! There were still categories though, since blueprints were so expensive, some artists offered “premades” which were skins people could buy for a certain cost on top of providing a blueprint. There were also options for “ghost artists” where the artist could design a custom skin but pass the psd files to the patron for them to distribute instead of the artist selling them instead. “Customs” was also another common term, where it works the same as it does today. People commission an artist to design a unique skin for them. The majority of skins on the market right now would be considered premades back then, which makes sense as it lets the artist have their creative liberties and will allow like minded users to support them.
I was clearly a fool to think UMAs were old because with the skins and accent threads research, I decided to comb through my forum posts to see what I ended up using. I first used UM accents in 2016 since that is when I first started collecting them, then the last time I used it was in early 2018 because I started using UMA by early 2019. I have no posts between 2018 and 2019, but clearly there was a language shift for me that preceded the FR abbreviations update just a year later (FR Abbreviations, 2020). I’m usually slow in the uptake so I decided to try and track down other forum boards besides the skin specific threads to see what terms were used.
As I was thumbing through the pages, I think I may have overestimated the age of UMA use popularity because I thought it started back in 2013-2014 since that is when the site first got started and I felt like UMA was such an old acronym. The General Skins and Accents Pinglist (GASP) started in 2016. I raked the first version for mentions of “UMA” and there was nothing ! The use of “UM skins” and “UM accents” was the norm (GASP, 2016; GASP V2.0, 2016; GASP v2.0, 2018). One of the first instances of UMAs being used in this thread was in 2018 (GASP, 2018). Can I do any better than 2018? It surely is an older term!
The accent trading hub was established in 2014, so chances are, there are some time points there! The results for “user made” predates “UM accents” by one year, and “UMA” by two years which were 2014, 2015, and 2016 respectively (Accents Trading Thread, 2023a; Accents Trading Thread 2023b; Accents Trading Thread 2023c). There were 14 pages of results for “user made”, 64 pages for “UM accents”, and 96 pages for “UMAs” from the accent trading hub thread. “UMA” was used by two people in 2016, then 5 pages worth of posts in 2017, then another 6 pages worth of posts in 2018, and it took off with 25 pages worth of posts in 2019. Clearly the language was developing around 2016 but exploded in popularity in 2018. This trend was similar in the UMA mentions in the skins and accents forum board. I used ctrl + f with UMA to see when it started regularly showing up in titles, and that was in 2018.
Discussion
According to the UMA searches in the discussion boards, do you know what cultural icon got a revival in the minds of mainstream media? Uma Thurman specifically because of Fall Out Boys who released a song with her name. And you know what Uma is like? UMA, User Made Accents. I’m not saying that Fall Out Boys planted the idea in our heads, but it’s quite the coincidence the song came out in 2015 and UMA as an acronym use started in 2016. In fact, when I searched the FR threads for UMA across the site, the early ones were Uma as a name and Uma referring to the song. The earliest mention of UMA that was actually relevant and broke containment from the skins and accents board was in 2017 in the tiny little questions thread asking what does UMA stand for. (tiny little questions, 2017).
I would like to say that while this user wasn’t the first to use it, they repeatedly popped up when I tried to see who used UMA the earliest. And that user is chocomonster, they showed up and consistently used UMAs in the forums since 2016. I’m saying they showed up in the bug reports, suggestions, dragon trading posts using “UMA”. They are definitely an early trendsetter for UMAs and repped it across the forums.
Popularity of UMA rose in 2018, you know what else got popular in 2018? Reselling UMAs to the secondary market. Typing in UMA in a title means you have more characters for other things. You know which artist got really popular in 2018? Ravenhearst. She has since changed her username but I will keep Ravenhearst for the search results legacy.
I know correlation doesn’t equal causation, but her skins were massively popular when she was regularly releasing skins for the highly rendered wings and sky scenes where there were skins sold in the 100s range. I looked at the game database for Ravenhearst’s earliest skin which was #24078 and compared it to my hoard of festival skins as a year benchmark. The Flameforger’s event in 2017 has a skin with #23992 while the Crystalline Gala in 2018 had a skin #25608. She started her night sky niche around skin #25001 so it lines up with the 2017 - 2018 timeline.
A stronger communal identity was also created with groups like accent addicts anonymous in 2017 or aaa for short, which is a group of collectors and artists who came together to make collaborative skins. An early "big hit" for them were the wildclaw male line where the participating artists made flower/halo/wings skins that were super popular at the time but also being hated on by the vocal minority. If you weren't around for the bustle, one example that came out would be Invidious by fenmori or Bewitched by Churyu. Some examples of the aaa's recent work would be like aaa. Amanita Ambrosia where three artists take turns, one sketches the concept, one lines the skin and one renders it .The increase of more people interested in buying skins and artists flexing their creativity allowed for a great burst of interest that has carried on to this day.
Conclusions
Can I pinpoint who first used user made accents, UM accents, UMAs? No, but, I can guess that it was sometime between 2015-2016. It is clear that language has evolved in small ways right under our noses and that human memories are terrible as I thought we were using UMAs since the very beginning. The customization and uniqueness of the UMA system on FR is such a joy and I can't wait to see how the community changes in the future!
If someone wants to try to tackle who first said UMA, be my guest and let me know! My earliest mention of UMA was October 2016 in the Accent Trading Hub Accents Trading Thread 2023c.
In conclusion, I love umas and will probably look at their sales and trends more.
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Journeys: Great RPG Mechanics
#RPGMechanics: Week Five
In Playing at the World Jon Peterson mentions the impact of the board game Outdoor Survival (1972). It influenced early D&D– framing the act of crossing wild distances as an adventure unto itself, with perils beyond monsters. This theme appeared in several early board games– traveling out into a blank map, filling it in, and dealing with random events (Source of the Nile, Magic Realm, The Mystic Wood). The third booklet of original Dungeons & Dragons, “The Underworld & Wilderness Adventures,” specifically references Outdoor Survival and using it in play.
So, while dungeons have always captured the imagination, travelling through great spans has always been a close-run second. The popularity of hex-crawls and point-crawls, moving through unknown space, illustrates something basic. There’s no functional difference between different spaces and locations within a game. A dungeon, in terms of motion through it, mechanically operates like a forest or a city. The party moves through a space and arrives at an event. There’s some description possibly of the passage, but functionally it is the same.
The difference lies in the trappings and mechanics: time, obstacles, physicality, travel resources, etc. There are some meta-considerations as well. I remember running a city-based campaign which had a set of maps I’d drawn of different neighborhoods and areas. I had a player complain that he wanted a traveling campaign, to see different things. I explained that the city was varied and interesting– going to other places and neighborhoods could be just as cool. We went back and forth as I tried to drill down on what he wanted.
It eventually came out that he wanted a game where his character could loot, destroy, and shit on folks and then move on. Having a game in a city meant he’d have to deal with people and potentially suffer consequences.
In any case, if time and distance function mechanically the same across different sizes and instances (dungeon, wilderness, city), how does a game differentiate? The most common tool has been random encounters– with chances varying based on the terrain. Different environments have different appearance rates. That’s an approach ubiquitous to early FRPGs. That might then be elaborated with guidelines for speed, exhaustion, weather, supply, and encumbrance. The level depends on how crunchy the game is. In fact these kinds of systems have been a hallmark of trad approaches.
So it was interesting to see a more modern, story-driven game take a swing at travel and work to integrate it into play. The One Ring (with the original subtitle of Adventures over the Edge of the Wild) aims for this. TOR has some trappings of the trad game, like Encumbrance but handled simply. It has the need for a map and the calculation of possible distance and travel time. Resolution here goes through setting route, judging distance, multiplying by terrain, and comparing that to speed. That generally determines the number of fatigue tests being made.
Those tests are made by the traveling companions, with each having a different role. We have the Guide (making decisions), Scout (setting up camp), Huntsman (finding food), Look-out Man (keeping watch). Journeys have a set procedure beyond fatigue tests with players carrying out their role and comparing it to a hazard target, with different events possible.
Forbidden Lands takes a page from TOR, echoing this procedure. It falls somewhere between Mutant: Year Zero’s zone exploration and TOR’s role system. In practice it feels a little more mechanical and wearing than a Tolkien-esque journey. Forbidden Land’s travel can be brutal– that’s a feature of the base game system. The land is supposed to be harsh, newly opened after a post-apocalyptic calamity. In that sense it works, but in play it can seem absolutely punishing for players who don’t expect it. I definitely want to explore travel in play– with something more than just an Undertake a Perilous Journey move. In theory I love the idea of a deep journey procedure, but neither TOR or FL exactly hit what I want. The former feels like too much calculation and too many rolls potentially and the latter like a procedure for beating down the player’s resources. I love the idea of Journey mechanics, but I want something which falls in the middle of those– offers interesting play, adds to the story, and feels like the sweeping grandeur of crossing great distances.
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Help! My fiance won't stop not killing people! Do you know of an rpg that plays well with one DM and one PC that still has the aesthetics of DnD or classic fantasy, but where violence is more of a last resort than the primary way to resolve conflicts? One where you can actually feel like a good guy.
THEME: Non-Combat, Heroic Fantasy
Hello there, so I’m going to include games in this recommendation that may not be explicitly for two players, but can be conceivably be run with one player and one GM. This is because a number of duet games are built to provide roles for the players that don’t slot easily into the “GM” and “Player” role. I hope you find something that fits both of your goals!
GROK?!, by Lester Burton.
GROK?! is an adventure role-playing game where you assume the role of an adventurer in a gonzo world of boundless plausibility and use your ingenuity and resourcefulness to overcome strange and perilous threats.
Planet Grok was once a haven for trans-dimensional migrants and a bastion of advanced technomancy, until a cataclysm rendered it a desolate hollow planet. Now, feral monstrosities haunt its chasms, cities float among the clouds, and a derelict space station encapsulates the planet and bathes the world in perpetual phosphorescent radiation. Yet, a new era of enlightenment is dawning. Civilizations grow from the ashes, relics of immense power await those who would learn their lost secrets, and threats of caste warfare loom as leaders vie for power. All the while, a creeping black nothingness peers up through the hollow of the world.
This is a game heavily inspired by a lot of heavyweight games that exist in the ttrpg scene, such as Cortex Prime, Savage Worlds, Numenera… the list goes on. The creator describes a “universal resolution” system that is also “fail forward.” This means that you use the same resolution mechanic for every action your character takes, and instances where you fail still move the story forward. I won’t say that it prioritizes other methods before combat, but it certainly looks like you can play it that way. Aesthetically it’s a bit more science-fantasy, but the digital copy is only a dollar, and the Quickstart is free to download on the Itch.io page, so it might be worth checking out.
A One In A Million Chance At Adventure, by Jocher Symbolic Systems.
This is a game where you play the roles of, often unwilling, sometimes zealous, pawns in the cosmic octarine coloured narrative. Your character is not necessarily a "hero" per se, instead one could possibly see it as being important to the story. Characters like yourself do have a knack for not dying as often as a common mortal (or undead if that has been your unfortune). With this follows that you'll naturally have a higher chance of actually, possibly, doing some heroic deeds, just by sheer mathematical logic. Unless, of course, you are the type of adventurer who'd prefer a cup of hot tea and soft slippers and a reliable day job. That does severely reduce the odds of let's say beheading a mythical beast of ill repute or befriending the immodest wood nymphs of Howondaland.
This is a game designed for two or more players, one picking up a GM role and the rest acting as players. It’s a loving tribute to the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett, and is therefore free! It is a setting that provides a tongue-in-cheeck reference to classic fantasy, and uses a 2d10 system to follow your character’s humorous attempts at becoming an adventure, and all of the one-in-a-million outcomes that make their stories interesting.
I like that this game uses narrative points to give your character a chance to do something really cool in situations where they don’t have a realistic chance of success. I also appreciate the de-centring of violence in that there are no health points or systems in place to keep track of physical harm. This doesn’t mean that conflict is impossible - it just means that it has to be figured out collaboratively between the players and the GM. What there is a great deal of focus on, is magic, with some really interesting effects that could pop up whenever you cast a spell.
This game is cheeky and knows exactly what it’s trying to emulate, and if you’re familiar in any way with Discworld, I think you should check it out.
Mausritter, by Losing Games.
Take up the sword and don the whiskers of a brave mouse adventurer in Mausritter, the rules-light fantasy adventure roleplaying game.
It’s a huge and dangerous world out there, and it does not look kindly on a small mouse. But if you are very brave and very clever and just a bit lucky, you might be able to survive. And if you survive long enough, you might even become a hero amongst mice.
Mausritter is, at its heart, an OSR game, and while many OSR games are pretty dark in tone, one thing that they excel at is providing characters with situations in which violence can’t be the answer. The costs of trying to fight something as a mouse are just too high - cats and owls and other large creatures are dangerous endeavours that only large large groups of mice have a chance at defeating. So for a two-player game, you’re going to understand narratively the necessity of using your wits. This game gives you a setting that makes it possible to have a game that mirrors more closely some themes in epic fantasy as well, including a magic system with spells that can give characters an even bigger toolbox when it comes to solving problems.
The Weaver’s Observatory, by Gem Room Games.
The Weaver’s Observatory is a two player dramatic fantasy adventure about an explorer seeking to change their destiny by asking a boon of Fate herself. Set in an ancient tower outside time, the Climber shares memories of their life as they cross a moat of living dye, ascend through the threads of discarded fates, and navigate the mechanisms that construct the fate of all living things without knowing if their request is even possible.
While this game doesn’t explicitly call the two roles within it GM and PC, it was designed for Tunnel Goons, which does use those sorts of roles. In The Weaver’s Observatory, one person is a solitary explorer, climbing a tower to request a boon from Fate. The other is Fate itself, representing the tower and the few inhabitants that reside within. The solitary Climber will encounter puzzles, hazards and guards that they will have to solve, avoid, and reason with - so I don’t see much of combat set within either the style of gameplay or the structure of the adventure.
This is a game that can be played as a one-shot, or can be set within a larger campaign. The entire game uses weaving metaphors and iconography, to set a tone for the overall narrative. If you like a tone that is intentional and purposeful, and want to tell a story that has great consequences for the person involved (and possible for a larger world), then this game is definitely worth checking out.
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Decided to see today if a ChatGPT instance could help me find a quote I had in mind, since it's supposedly read and memorized so much of the internet. It was surprisingly bad.
>Me: What's that quote which goes something like: 'I took up my pen to let my enemies know they have not convinced me' ?
>ChatGPT: The quote you are referring to is often attributed to French philosopher and writer Voltaire. The exact wording may vary slightly, but the essence of the quote remains consistent. Here is one popular version: "I have only ever made one prayer to God, a very short one: 'O Lord, make my enemies ridiculous.' And God granted it."
LOL wut, no, that's not at all what I asked.
>Me: No, it's not Voltaire. It's about writing.
>GPT: I apologize for the confusion. If your question is related to writing, could you please provide more specific details or clarify what you would like to know or discuss about writing?
>Me: I would like help finding the quote from an aristocrat about why he's writing. It's something like: "I am not writing to convince, I am writing to let my friends know I agree and let my enemies know I disagree."
>GPT: The quote you are referring to is often attributed to French diplomat and writer François de La Rochefoucauld. Although the quote has different variations, it captures the essence you described. The most common rendition is: "I do not write to convince, but to evade being convinced."
>Me: Please suggest a different quote along the same lines.
>GPT: "The only way to do great work is to love what you do." - Steve Jobs
oh wow this instance is moronic, now I'm starting to wonder how much of the good performance is carefully cherrypicked and arranged. at this point I went on a detour and found the quote via arcane other means and Internet Archive to get a page from a 2014 blog where I'd seen it, and found the author's name: Georg Christoph Lichtenberg. Let's see if GPT is any better with that.
>Me: What's the Lichtenberg quote about having taken up his pen, not to convince people, but to encourage his friends and allies?
>GPT: The Lichtenberg quote you are referring to is: "I have only taken up the pen to encourage my friends and to irritate my enemies."
still wrong! it's getting closer, but seemingly only because I prompted it with big hints.
>Me: No, not that one. What's the Lichtenberg quote about having taken up his pen in the year 1764, not to convince people, but to encourage his friends and allies?
>GPT: I apologize for the confusion. Here is the quote you are referring to: "I have taken up my pen in the year 1764, not to persuade you, but to condemn a conduct which appears to me to be highly unjust. I wish only to exhort and encourage my friends and allies, and, if it be possible, to awaken the attention of those whom I esteem, to the rights and liberties, the interests and happiness of mankind." - Georg Christoph Lichtenberg
still wrong! this quote from GPT appears to be part hallucination and part cribbing from JS Mill. The actual quote I wanted is here on azquotes:
I ceased in the year 1764 to believe that one can convince one’s opponents with arguments printed in books. It is not to do that, therefore, that I have taken up my pen, but merely so as to annoy them, and to bestow strength and courage on those on our own side, and to make it known to the others that they have not convinced us.
This was my experience last year too (and not in the haha last week sense) - ChatGPT seems frequently worse and dumber for me than it does in the demos and examples, and I speculate it's because I'm asking something offbeat.
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Thanks for the ask, @strrwbrrryjam ! i'm flattered that you think I do a good job of that, because I'm still learning! (and I also struggle heavily with proportions. I have to resize my heads and arms so, so much...)
I'm afraid I don't have any secrets. I think the answer is to just practice, over and over again. But specifically, this is what I try to focus on as I'm learning:
references
quick practices - 30 second to 5 minute studies that help with getting a full scope of the shape and energy of the body, not meant to be perfect
studies - deep dives into certain anatomical structures (videos linked below)
Below the cut is how I use references go from this to this:
References:
Use a bunch of references! Pictures you take, stock images, from shows--practice real people. Even if your style is heavily stylized, it all starts from an understanding of anatomy.
How I Use a Reference When I Struggle With Proportions:
The first step I take while looking at a reference is to just draw a very loose sketch with a line of action that goes then entire length of the piece, and I try to section it out. I find if I don't think about the body as a whole, and just start drawing a head, the head will be way bigger than the rest of the image. So my first step is just really boxy and basic, just to get all appendages on paper. My first pass could look like this:
Okay, not bad. But the right arm is going way too far down--the forearm is really long. The head is too big for the style I want, and the left arm is at a 90 degree angle, unlike the picture. But, I have the general scope of everything on the page, so it's easier to adjust and look at the full picture!
Then, I try to focus on landmarks. I look at where certain body parts fall in the reference. For instance, Blackbeard's right elbow doesn't reach his belt, so his elbow shouldn't be near his waist. I can tell that his left arm is closer to being straight than at a right angle, and I can see that his head isn't as big on his shoulders as I have. I can also look at the negative space and see that the gaps between his right arm need to be smaller. So my next pass might look like this:
(I don't usually draw on the reference image, and I just "draw" the lines in my mind, but the for sake of things...)
Now it's looking a bit closer!
The next is the harder part. It's making things shapes, and is closer to the lineart stage. I try to follow curves, separate the chest from the torso, get the angle of the shoulders and head, etc. I have some video links at the end that explain this step much more in def.
You may notice that the head angle is a bit different than the image, and the shoulders are a bit lower. Sometimes, following a reference image completely either doesn't fit your style or, in some cases, the more accurate drawing following a reference can actually look "wrong" (anatomically) when drawn. Figure out what works best for you, and for the message you're trying to get across in the piece!
[sliiiight flashing in timelapse]
And here is the final timelapse, with a little refining and polishing of the anatomy. Not everything is completely accurate to the reference image, but I've created a believable image in the likeness.
I hope this helped! This was a quick and dirty post of something I'm still learning. Here are some youtube tutorial artists, resources, and books that I use to learn!
Youtube:
-ModerndayJames has lots of videos on creating shapes and understanding anatomy, and placing people in perspective. He has a lot of free videos, and then some cheap ones on gumroad that go more into it.
-Proko has lots of videos on anatomy!
Practice Resources:
-Pose Maniacs - figures in different poses. You can move the camera around to see different angles.
-QuickPoses has images for figure drawing and quick gesture drawing! You can even have different timers.
Books:
Morpho Series. There used to be the one on "Fat and Skin Folds" that was a free PDF download that was on tumblr for a while, but I don't believe the books are that expensive.
Taco's Books, published by Lezhin. This is heavily anime styled, but talks a lot about anatomy, and is a great resource!
#art tutorial#asks#mytutoirals#myart#proportions#turns out you can't add videos to asks and if you try it makes the post uneditable#so i couldn't answer your ask directly. hope you see it sorry!#anatomy tutorials
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Hey, you got any tips for using TV Tropes? I have a comic I wanta put a page for up on there, but the mountains of tropes is rather intimidating to sift through. I'm not real familiar with the place either so that clearly doesn't help. XD
First recommendation is getting familiar with the site, so I recommend carving out a period of about two weeks to six months where you don't need to do anything like go to work or eat food.
Start by looking up a story you like and reading through its tropes page, and if any of the individual listed tropes looks interesting, pop it out in a new tab and check it out after you're done with the first page. Repeat as necessary. One wiki-walk fugue state later you'll be pretty well-acquainted with several key narrative tropes, and you might find it can be oddly fun to just read through a story's tropes page, especially the sub-pages for particularly emotionally impactful moments. A nice way to revisit the high points with a little appreciative analysis from fellow fans!
I wouldn't recommend starting a new page for the comic until you sort of know the lay of the land - it's been a long time since I submitted any edits to TVTropes, but at last pass the mods were a bit draconic about certain kinds of changes, and there are large behind-the-scenes forums where the value of specific tropes getting their own pages is debated - running afoul of them wouldn't be a good start. If you want, you could start small by adding references to the comic to the examples lists of specific tropes that apply to it - maybe even with a link to a page of the comic that highlights that specific trope's usage. For instance, there's a tvtropes page for Aurora, and the "Related" tab shows all the pages on tvtropes as a whole that link to it as an example:
So that means that people have gone through and added examples to those pages that reference the main page for Aurora. For instance, if I click "Crack Pairing" out of morbid curiosity and do a search in-page, I find that someone added this in:
So that's fun! Anyway, I recommend getting the lay of the land first. It's quite a fun site, and there's something very pleasant about reading an alphabetized list of the story elements in a story I already like.
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Oh hey! Another note about the highly clinical language thing:
So we have a really hard time explaining our symptoms to doctors. But we sometimes come across descriptions that match up perfectly with our experiences. So we start to use those descriptions to give an explanation. And often enough, we will forget the specifics of what led us to find that explanation so good. So we will rely more on the clinical description.
For example, executive dysfunction. We have really bad times where we just can't get up and do something. Some sort of mental block or feeling exhausted without lacking energy. But when we simply try to describe this to a doc in our own words, they just hear depression.
Which, is like the point of clinical language right? To be precise? Especially with how it take folks an average of 6 years to get diagnosed, I imagine a lot of folks using clinical language do so because they've had a lot of time to refine their words for their symptoms and struggles into that precise language.
-Faye
Yeah, I totally get that. I imagine a lot of people use clinical language for that reason.
I do kind of see the perspective of the psychiatrists on this too though. I think it's reasonable to want people to describe their experiences themselves instead of relying entirely on the jargon.
I was doing a write-up on another Imitated DID article. Overall, the paper has a lot of misinformation, a lot of bad practices for determining who is or isn't a system. And is really only better than its predecessor in the way that it wasn't actively sexist in shaming its subjects, or trying to paint patients as monsters out to slap malpractice suits on innocent therapists. 🙄
There were some nuggets of wisdom hidden in there though...
I think this is actually valid, even if I have other problems with the above lines.
While patients shouldn't be dismissed for using clinical jargon, if I were a psychiatrist, I think I would want to make sure that they were using that jargon correctly.
Heck, I'm not a psychiatrist, but still think it's important when talking to people and explaining different experiences that we're on the same page on what different words mean. Especially when those words are complicated and meanings change based on context.
Way too many psychiatrists will take this too far and decide to completely dismiss someone for using clinical language, which is gross and actually ableist.
But you also want to make sure that when someone is identifying with PTSD and describes having "flashbacks" that they're using the word the same way you do, and aren't referring, for instance, to pleasant memories.
...
Okay, now I'm going to comment on the quoted lines, and how I think it's indicative of the psychiatrists failing in the reverse way.
Because I can't simply post the screenshots without calling that out.
In the case of someone using clinical jargon, they expect elaboration because they understand that someone may not understand how jargon is used by clinicians.
But with Mary who clearly describes people in her head talking to her... they dismiss her because she denies hearing voices.
To me, it sounds like Mary simply didn't realize that voice hearing in psychiatry could include mindvoices.
So while Mary is dismissed in one instance for not using the clinical jargon correctly (flashbacks) they also dismiss her described experiences in another when she likely simply misunderstood their jargon. (Voice hearing.)
...
And so I think currently there's a huge problem where if you describe experiences without knowing the clinical jargon to accurately illustrate them, you'll be dismissed or misdiagnosed. (As with your own problem with doctors interpreting your executive dysfunction as depression or Mary's voice hearing being dismissed because she didn't call it voice hearing.)
But then knowing too much makes doctors think you're faking and just reading your symptoms off of the internet.
It makes this ridiculous paradox where you need to jump through hoops just to get doctors to believe you.
There's no way to win. At least not reliably. And it all sucks.
#syscourse#psych critical#psychology#psychiatry#mental health#therapy#plurality#plural#multiplicity#systems#pro endo#pro endogenic#ableism#disability#neurodivergent#system stuff#sysblr#plural system#actually plural#actually a system
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Okay so looking at the word frequency list for Les Miserables available on intratext dot com, here are some words that stood out to me (although everyone could look at this list and would find something different and interesting):
9589 il (he)
2556 elle (she)
2089 je (I)
1182 homme (man)
906 Marius (more than any other character but to be fair, other characters are frequently referred to by aliases)
727 Jean
685 Cosette
680 Valjean (There are 47 more Jeans than Valjeans!)
520 Père (Father, or in some cases, something like "old man")
508 Thénardier
454 Enfant (child) (plus there's 193 uses of children)
384 yeux (eyes) (157 instances of eye singluar)
364 femme (woman, wife)
349 mère (mother)
346 main (hand)
340 voix (voice)
338 dieu (god)
337 vieux (old, masc.) (194 old, fem.)
334 Paris
321 Hugo (actually this is a huge outlier. Hugo doesn't appear many times in the text at all, but it's in a lot of footnotes and the footnotes also get counted)
315 Javert
313 évêque (bishop)
283 Gavroche
270 maison (house)
267 Madeleine
251 mort (dead)
227 jardin (garden)
226 Fauchelevent
224 ombre (shadow)
221 Fantine
189 coeur (heart)
184 matin (morning)
176 lumière (light)
170 amour (love)
161 Courfeyrac
157 France
153 Napoléon
144 Révolution
133 Enjolras
129 eh
117 waterloo
116 barricade
83 dents (teeth)
81 Eponine (I was surprised there was more Courfeyrac and Montparnasse than Eponine!)
79 Grantaire
79 terrible (This is about where I got bored of scrolling but there were a couple words that I think of as quintessential Hugo that I had to look up also)
46 lugubre (lugubrious)
24 sépulcre (sepulchre)
20 lugubres (lugubrious make it plural)
19 spectre (Dumas complained that Hugo used "spectral" every ten pages, although spectral actually only appears twice but I see his point)
13 spectres
7 lugubrement (lugubriously)
4 sépulcral (sepulchral, plus three more instances but feminine)
3 spectrale
2 spectral
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Okay, you want to talk Ronsey, you better buckle up! (This is going to be long, sorry!)
As the formerly known TRK Anon, I can confidently say that trc is still somewhat fresh in my mind, so I have lots of examples to support my argument. Now, given that I have only read the series once, my character analysis might not be as deep or intense as yours.
If you don't know already, I am a huge Gansey lover/supporter/follower/fan/worshiper/bitch. (Will Patton’s rendition of Gansey drives me absolutely feral!!!!) I have loved him since the very first time we know about his existence (Which is page 15 of TRB). If Gansey is part of the equation, I ship it! Bluesey, Ronsey, Declansey, Adansey, HELL…even Chengsey (I could care less about Henry, so the fact that I acknowledge this ship is a big gesture on my part) I just want to make it clear that I am not an Adansey hater, it's just not my kind of jam (*shrugs*)
I know that what Gansey means to me, Adam is to you. But Adam was tough for me. Like REAL TOUGH to discern. It was not until halfway through TRK (practically when Pynch becomes canon) that I was finally able to appreciate him, to see him eye to eye and say: You ARE knowable. I will give it to Adam, he has the best, most memorable, character growth/development in the entire series (Ronan being a close second). But his stubbornness during TRB/TDT was so unbearable to me. He was such a DICK to Gansey. And yes, there were instances when Gansey deserved it (like the hospital scene) but most of their interactions (at the beginning of the series) are somewhat tense. They are constantly walking on eggshells, afraid to trigger/offend/provoke the other. There are MULTIPLE references to them fighting pre-canon, mostly about money, occasionally about who owns who. The whole DC trip was so stressful for all parties involved. In fact, Adam was so unapproachable that Gansey and Blue kept their relationship a secret because of how difficult he had been back then. (Honestly, I think he would have unalive them both) Plus, he is a hypocrite (I guess we all are) because when the rent thing happens, he goes to Gansey first and throws a fit about it!! But when he finds out that Ronan actually paid his rent, he is “cool” about it. He doesn’t argue with him. He doesn’t feel offended. He just accepts it (it being both the money and the fact). The one thing that really upsets me is Adam wanting the favor for himself. I understand why he wants it, but he knows it is Gansey’s life purpose to find Glendower. It feels like a betrayal, you know? I just cannot stand people being mean to Gansey, it triggers me!!!!
And yes, I get it, there are some good moments between them. Like the call with Mallory when Gansey is trying to make Adam laugh. Or Adam fixing/diagnosing the pig. Or the two of them being ushers on Raven Day. But these moments are so…normal (mundane?) that they don’t feel special.
To me, Adansey is a somewhat “toxic” ship. It is a one-sided relationship, because Gansey gives and gives and Adam refuses to take. Adam practically (and literally) loathes? abhors? despises? everything that Gansey stands for (money, friendship, status, family, you get the gist). How can you possibly love someone that is the poster child of everything you hate?! I think Adansey would be the perfect ship for enemies to friends to lovers.
But Ronsey, oh my dear Ronsey!!!! To me, Ronsey is all about Gansey and Ronan meeting before Niall’s death. The way Gansey describes Ronan before his father’s death is so intoxicating. Gansey mourning the joyful boy that Ronan used to be. Gansey getting emotional over Ronan’s laugh. Gansey being completely and utterly amazed by Ronan’s dream creations (“You incredible creature”). Ronan being unconditionally devoted to Gansey. Ronan being devastated that Gansey has other friends; that Gansey is going to DC with Adam and not him. Ronan and Gansey. Gansey and Ronan. Maybe I am not making any sense right now because my brain convulses just thinking about these two.
They have been through it all. God, there are so many moments pre-canon that I wish we could get to experience. Can you imagine Gansey panicking at the hospital with Ronan’s blood in his hands? Can you imagine Ronan teaching Gansey how to punch?! I can’t remember if canon ever confirms how Gansey acquired his journal, but can you imagine if Ronan bought it for him!?!?!
@singersargentboi said it best: “The thing I love about Ronsey is that even in the books theres this sort of unhinged devotion between them that toes the line at being romantic/sexual.” Let’s unpack this together. Exhibit A) Kavinsky’s substance party. O.M.G. Gansey being such a deranged version of himself that even Ronan cannot stop smiling about it. (“What is it my dog needs?” JUST KILL ME ALREADY) Exhibit B) Ronan dreaming the keys to the Camaro in such a steamy delicate way that I am pretty sure he woke up with a tent in his pants. Exhibit C) Gansey bribing a full-grown adult for Ronan. Exhibit D) Gansey constantly scolding/disciplining/bossing Ronan and somehow stopping the Lynch brothers from killing each other. Exhibit E) Ronan going back home against his dad’s wishes, but still turns to Gansey for comfort (“Can I go and see mom?”) And if all of this does not convince you, I’ll leave you with this: “Gansey was far more of a brother to Ronan than Declan had ever been.”
However, I come to you with a peace offering, a secret third option: RODANSEY. Throughout the series it is constantly noted that 3 is the perfect number for magic ;)
THANK YOU FOR SPILLING YOUR THOUGHTS INTO MY ASK BOX 😍 this is delish and wow a HOT TAKE (to me, a simple woman who will live and die on the hill of adam parrish 🫶) although I understand your grievances from a protect-gansey-at-all-costs point of view! I think you’re right about them having the potential to be a toxic ship because of how much they fight. What’s funny to me is how it seems like they don’t understand each other… yet there’s at least 3 times in TRB alone where they communicate just by looking at each other which is amazing considering from what we know they have only been friends a few years but they’re that close and on that exact same level together. But then… they’re not. I think Adam has just had to rely on himself for so long that he can’t reprogram his brain to think differently, and gansey has had loving parents and a good sibling relationship and intense friendships therefore he can’t even begin to understand adam. They’re on diff planets right? They can’t relate to each other in any way shape or form. But then…. love comes along and makes it work??!??! This is why I’m an adansey girl.
BUT everything you said about ronsey…. That ferocious love I will never ever be over it ever 🥹 unhinged devotion is exactly right. And we all know the when I’m gone dream me the world quote but FOR ME it’s “he couldn’t say it, though. There were a thousand reasons why he couldn’t say it” like???? We were just supposed to move on from that? I can’t I wont.
(side note cuz I gotta defend my boy declan and say he is the best brother ever and I will not expand at this time bc spoilers but the dreamer trilogy will)
Rodansey…… now you’re talking my language. Truce? 🤝 thank u for this ask it’s made my day xx
#living for rants like this#took me on a whole journey#adam parrish#ronan lynch#gansey#adansey#ronsey#rodansey#trc#the raven cycle#declan lynch#niall lynch#ask#meledde#pynch
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Localization Changes: Takumi #ProtectThePineapple
Paging @theeeveetamer / @teaveetamer
I love Takumi! Easily Top 5 favorite Fates characters, probably number 2 after Xander if we’re being honest. The complex machinations of his self esteem issues, imposter syndrome, desire to be loved by his family, among many other aspects, is what makes him very endearing and loveable to me.
His antagonizing actions and harsh words made him divisive, especially when Fates first released, but to me that only made him that much stronger of a character. Raw anger and bitter resentment paints a wonderfully contrasting color to his heartfelt and even downright cute moments.
However, I feel like there are instances in Fates’ localization that kind of cheapen Takumi a bit. Moments where he lashes out are made into quippy one liners and can make him seem bratty and immature first instead of genuinely upset. His xenophobia gets amped up to a point where, while present in the JP script, it now became a trait that’s associated with him the most due to localization changes. Most of all, there’s even some instances where his agency and character growth within the story are, I feel, completely erased or blurred to the point of being unrecognizeable.
I wanted to detail stuff about Takumi that was changed, so this is what I could find. I get these things from this JP supports Pastebin , a Fates translated playthrough (all routes are on the channel linked) and Pegasusknight.com (the latter of which I do my best to interpret from translation tools, which is very subject to me being wrong lol). Keep in mind I also took a few liberties in writing down the lines from the JP version. I trust that the translators got the message across well enough, but the English major in me couldn’t help but clean up some things here and there to help the translations come across less stiff.
The rest will be under the cut! Any instance of me referring to Corrin, I’ll be using he/him, and I’ll be using the JP version of the character names when applicable and appropriate. Also, if you want, give a watch to the Fates Drama CDs! The first two volumes deal with Takumi’s thoughts, feelings, and character in regards to Corrin’s return to Hoshido during chapters 4, 5, and 6! While I won’t be citing them here, they give extra insight to his character and are very cool!
Prologue
JP Version
Hinoka: What!? The river dried up...!? Did they use the power of the Dragon Vein...?
Takumi: ...It looks that way. The enemy is drawing near...
[...]
Takumi: Pull yourself together, Kamui. The enemy... The Nohrian royal family-they’re strong. If we don’t stick together, we’ll... ...No. Right now, we have to work together. You let me know if you have any ideas.
[...]
Hinoka: Good, you’ve defeated the enemy! Kamui, Takumi, great work! This is the power of the bond between siblings.
Sakura: A-amazing, Big Brother...
Takumi: It went well thanks to someone’s well-planned instructions. If we join our powers together, we may actually win this war...
Hinoka: Well then, let’s hurry back to Ryoma!
Treehouse
Hinoka: The Nohrian army used a Dragon Vein to dry up the river! But I thought only royals held that power...
Takumi: Yeah, which means there must be some real big shots over there. Suit me just fine. I've always wanted to use a Nohrian royal for target practice!
[...]
Takumi: Hang in there, Corrin. The Nohrian royals are not pushovers... We'll have to work together to beat them. As the eldest, I guess you're in charge. Tell me what to do and I'll do it.
[...]
Hinoka: Corrin, Takumi, good work fighting off that ambush.
Sakura: You were amazing, Corrin.
Takumi: That went well. Probably because SOMEONE gave you good advice. ...And you're welcome, by the way.
Hinoka: No time to talk! Let's see how Ryoma's doing.
I’m glad that memes surrounding how characters sound in Marvel movies and Disney channel shows exist, because now I have something to describe how Treehouse makes Fates’ cast sound: right out of a sitcom. The whole “he’s right behind me, isn’t he”, tryhard ironic vibe is everywhere in the localized script, and it can suck the tension out of certain scenes. Takumi’s “I’ve always wanted to use a Nohrian royal for target practice” line is an example of this. I think it’s funny, tbh, but it evokes a different feel of his character, especially since this is the first thing the player sees of him. What I find more egregious though, is that Treehouse replaced his more sincere words of worry and doubt with cockiness across the board. While this can be charming in its own right, again, it changes the first impression. It gives you the idea that he’s genuinely overconfident, rather than finding out later that he’s compensating hard.
I didn’t include some context, but in the ‘well SOMEONE gave you good instructions’ line, the JP version of the archer tutorial just has him tell you how he fights rather than it being him telling you exactly what to do. Small changes, but it causes a ripple effect that extends to the line being changed, because what was intended in the original was him complimenting Hinoka (or maybe Corrin?) on her planning and how working as a team of siblings will get them through the war, but Treehouse changed it to him saying that it was him that saved the day.
Chapter 5, in the plaza.
JP version
Kamui: It’s just like you and Sakura said, the Hoshidans are all good people. Everyone seems to enjoy themselves here.
Aqua: I’m glad you like it. I love it here, too.
Takumi: Aqua. And Kamui…I mean, Brother. Mother wants me to start calling you that, now.
Kamui: ...
Takumi: Don’t get carried away, though. I don’t trust either of you.
Aqua: Takumi…
Takumi: Don’t speak my name so casually. You’re a Princess of Nohr, the kingdom that killed Father. There’s no way I can trust you. Kamui, you’re the same. You’ve been a Nohrian Prince for so long, after all...
Kamui: No…You’re contradicting yourself, Takumi.
Takumi: What?
Kamui: Aqua has been in Hoshido for as long as I’ve been in Nohr. By that logic she should already be one of your comrades, right?
Takumi: ...Hmph. Either way, I don’t trust you two. I just wanted to let you both know that.
Sakura: Big Brother, if it suits your taste... These dango are very good. Here!
Treehouse
Corrin: Everyone really is friendly here. And it’s so…bright…and open. It’s quite a contrast from the fortress I grew up in.
Azura: I’m glad you like it. Like I said, I’ve always been happy here.
Takumi: Just don’t get too comfortable…BROTHER.
Corrin: Pardon me?
Takumi: I don’t trust you. Shouldn’t you be heading back to Nohr soon?
Azura: Takumi…
Takumi: Hey, who said you could call me by name? You haven’t earned that privilege either.
Corrin: That doesn’t even make sense.
Takumi: Excuse me?
Corrin: Azura has been in Hoshido for as long as I’ve been gone. Shouldn’t that be enough to consider her part of the family?
Takumi: I don’t care. I don’t trust either of you. I just wanted to tell you that to your face.
Sakura: I apologize for Takumi’s rudeness. He’s a bit of a hothead. Anyway, how’d you like to try a sweet rice dumpling? It’s a Hoshidan specialty!
He’s giving his feelings towards the situation of Azura and Corrin both being Nohrian, but the way it’s written between versions conveys differences. Now from what I know of the logistics of the Japanese language, lots of context can be missed or hidden. The JP version can probably be seen as him being just as rude as he is in the Treehouse script, but from what’s here he does come off more... immature? Plus some context as to why he doesn’t trust Azura or Corrin gets cut, and Sakura calling him a hothead gets added in.
I considered putting the after battle conversation from Chapter 5, too, but there’s not enough significant difference between the JP and Treehouse’s version of Takumi’s lashing out to really warrant it. Though one difference is that when Corrin gets the Yato, Treehouse has him just say “Impossible.” whereas the JP version has him say nothing. The drama CDs do go more in depth into what he’s thinking, and given how Takumi’s written later in the game, it makes sense why he would stay silent rather than continue talking shit. But again, I don’t wanna cite the CDs too much, cuz I don’t know how much they can be considered canon even though I think the same writers (sans Kibayashi I’m guessing) wrote them.
Chapter 6 Birthright (After the Nohrian siblings react to Corrin’s choice)
JP version
Takumi: I will do it... For my fallen kinsmen, and for Mother’s sake as well...
Treehouse
Takumi: Stupid Nohrian jerks! I'll kill all of you!
Once again, a more thoughtful reaction was changed into a more juvenile anger. Not completely surprising coming from Takumi, but makes him a bit more one dimensional, imo.
Chapter 10 Birthright (Takumi shows up possessed)
JP Version
Hinoka: Ugh!? Why did you do that, Takumi!?
Kamui: Takumi, stop! You could’ve shot Hinoka...!
Takumi: Kill...
Kamui: Huh...?
Takumi: Me... everyone should only... appreciate me...
Hinoka: It’s as if he’s a completely different person...!
Sakura: B-brother... What’s happened to you!?
Takumi: I’m strong... I... have a divine weapon... But even then... all everyone talks about is my siblings... all everyone talks about is Kamui...
Kamui: What are you saying!? Takumi, please come back to us!
Takumi: There’s no need for people who don’t look at me... there’s no need for people who stand in my way... why don’t you all just... DISAPPEAR!!
Kamui: Takumi!?
Treehouse
Hinoka: Gah! What's wrong with you? That arrow almost hit me!
Corrin: Takumi, what are you doing?!
Takumi: Kill...
Corrin: Um...
Takumi: I should have been the chosen one...
Hinoka: This is creepy...
Sakura: *sob* Takumi... What h-happened to you?
Takumi: I am ignored...alone...forgotten. But I am more powerful than they can imagine!
Corrin: What are you saying? Snap out of it, Takumi!
Takumi: Ughhhh... I will not stand in the shadows any longer... They will all see me for the first time! I will make them pay for what they've done. I will make them...I will make them... DIE!
Corrin: Takumi?!
The JP version of this exchange centers around Takumi’s own inheritance of a divine weapon as well as his inferiority complex in regards to not only Corrin, but his other siblings as well. This is important, because it was never only Corrin coming back that caused Takumi to feel left out and ignored, but also Ryoma’s natural talents making Takumi feel inferior and Hinoka’s unintentional aloofness towards her siblings as a result of purely focusing on her training (these are things that are touched on in his supports with both of them btw). Sakura is exempt from this sentiment though.
Chapter 10 (Azura cures Takumi’s possession)
JP version
Takumi: ......
Aqua: Takumi... your eyes, and that gaze... Maybe, just maybe... If my hunch is correct, my song can do something about this. I can only hope it’ll be enough...
Takumi: No one...no one... looks at me... No one at all...
Aqua: Wait, Takumi.
Takumi: You are...
Aqua: Listen. You're being controlled by an unseen force. How awful... This isn’t you. Which is why... Please listen to my song... (Sings Lost in Thoughts)
Takumi: Ugh...! Gaaaaaaaah!!
Aqua: ......
Takumi: Ungh... ! Aqua...?
Aqua: Thank goodness. You’ve come back to us.
Takumi: Come back...? What do you mean? W-where are we...?
Aqua: I’m sorry, but we don’t have time to discuss that right now. The people of Fuuma have ambushed us. Can we count on your assistance?
Takumi: Oh... okay. I understand.
Aqua: ...Hey, Takumi.
Takumi: What is it?
Aqua: I can always count on you. You are very strong and intelligent. You have a charm that your other siblings don’t have. That’s what I think.
Takumi: H-huh!? What does-
Aqua: Hmhm, well let’s be off. Standing idle won’t do us any good.
Takumi: Hey, wait up! ...Hey, Aqua! ...... (smiling portrait) ...Well it can’t be helped. All right, time to show them what Prince Takumi can do!
Treehouse
Takumi: Unnnhhh...
Azura: Look at the color of his eyes... Could it be? There's only one way to find out. I'll have to sing to him...
Takumi: No one...notices me. No one...cares. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die.
Azura: Takumi...listen to me.
Takumi: You... You are...
Azura: It doesn't matter. I'm someone who can help. You're being controlled by a dark force. This is not who you are! You don't have to give in. You can survive this! Listen carefully... (Sings Lost in Thoughts)
Takumi: Ugh... Gyaaaaah!
Azura: Takumi, can you hear me now?
Takumi: Ohhhh... Azura? Is that you?
Azura: Yes, it's me! Oh, thank goodness.
Takumi: Uh...where am I?
Azura: Unfortunately, we're right in the middle of a battle. I don't really have time to explain. Are you in any condition to defend yourself?
Takumi: I...I think so. I feel OK.
Azura: Very well. Just remember.. You're strong and intelligent. There's a certain something about you. I believe in you, Takumi.
Takumi: Um, OK...
Azura: That's the Takumi I remember. Now, come on! You'll need to focus to make it through this battle.
Takumi: Wait! Azura! Ugh, I'm still a bit woozy. So many questions... (angry/cocky portrait) I guess I'll just have to stay alive to get them answered.
I touched on this in my general Birthright script changes post, but I thought I’d bring up the overall tone shift here. Takumi’s genuine happiness in the JP version was replaced with an awkward reaction and a cocky response in the Treehouse version, hence why I also noted the portrait change. Not out of character per se, but I think Takumi having his first real establishing moment of joy being replaced does a disservice to both his character and the player getting to see it.
Chapter 10 (after battle)
JP version
Sakura: Takumi!!! You... you’re back to normal...!
Hinoka: (voice clip of her crying) Moron...! We were... so worried about you...!
Takumi: H-hey, quit crying. Aren’t you both too old to be doing that?
Sakura: I don't care about that! You’ve come back to us, so I’m fine with crying!!!
Hinoka: Me too! I love you too much to care about things like that now!
Takumi: Sakura, Hinoka... Thank you. I’m sorry that I worried you this much.
Kamui: I’m curious to know what’s been going on. What happened at the border battle, Takumi?
Takumi: That battle... it was a struggle. We fought by Izumo’s border at first... But before long the battle extended all the way to the Infinite Chasm. During the march there, I got separated from Ryoma.
Kamui: I see, so you don’t know where he is either...
Takumi: During the battle, the enemy’s attack triggered a massive rockslide. I got caught up in it... and fell into the Infinite Chasm.
Kamui: The Infinite Chasm!?
Hinoka: But... you’re alive. How did you manage to come back?
Takumi: That I still don’t know... Everything after that is a blur... I can’t remember anything before I woke up here.
Hinoka: I see... Well, at any rate, I’m relieved that you’re back alive. It’s a miracle you were able to survive that bottomless pit.
Takumi: Hey... what have I been doing all this time?
Aqua: It's best not to worry about it, Takumi. Some horrible magic took hold of you and brought you here against your will. That’s all it is.
Takumi: No... that can’t be it. Hinoka’s arm has been grazed by an arrow. It looks like it was cause by the Fujin Yumi... I attacked her, didn’t I?
Hinoka: Well, that’s...
Takumi: Tell me... what did I do in front of all of you?
Kamui: ...... ...Takumi. When you met us here, you immediately started attacking us. Until your sanity came back, you were fighting Hoshidan troops.
Takumi: !! That’s...! Attacking my own countrymen... Unforgiveable. I don’t think I’m qualified to be a part of Hoshido’s army after doing that...
Kamui: No, being qualified doesn’t matter. I was in a similar situation, being raised as a prince of the enemy country... but even so, you all accepted me without hesitation.
Takumi: No... I wasn’t like that...
Kamui: Er, well, be that as it may... What matters now is you’re here with us. If you feel you’ve made a mistake, you can make up for it from now on. I’d really like to fight alongside you, Takumi. Do you feel likewise?
Takumi: ...... I will, if you can forgive me for the harsh words from earlier.
Kamui: Of course. Those are things of the past.
Takumi: ...Thank you, brother. And thank you too... Sister.
Aqua: ...No, it’s quite all right. ......
Kamui: ...Aqua, are you okay? You look kind of pale...
Aqua: ...I’m fine, just a little tired. Don’t worry, I’ll get better soon.
Kamui: Um, okay...
Treehouse
Sakura: Brother! I'm so glad you're back to normal. We were all so w-worried about you.
Hinoka: (voice clip of her saying “I won’t allow it!”) Yeah. Don't ever do that again, OK?
Takumi: Whoa, guys! Stop crying. You're making me all embarrassed.
Sakura: I don't care. We didn't know if we'd ever see you again. And then when you showed up all weird like that...
Hinoka: Yeah. We didn't know if you'd ever be the same Takumi we know and love again.
Takumi: Well, it's definitely me guys. Thank you for your concern. And I'm sorry I made you all worried.
Corrin: It's good to have you back, Takumi. But as much as I would like to savor this moment. Ryoma is still missing. Can you tell us anything about what happened to you two?
Takumi: Yeah. It was insane. We ran into Nohrian troops just outside Izumo and began fighting. Ryoma and I were separated in the early stages of combat, before we had to retreat. We were outnumbered...and pushed to the brink of the Bottomless Canyon.
Corrin: So we still have no idea where he is...
Takumi: No, I'm afraid not. Something triggered a massive landslide, and I was caught up in it. That's how I fell into the canyon.
Corrin: You actually fell into the Bottomless Canyon? How are you still alive?
Hinoka: I've never heard of anyone returning from there before.
Takumi: I...I have no idea. All I remember is falling. There was a period of darkness, and then I woke up here.
Hinoka: Well, I'm just glad to have you back. It's a miracle you survived a fall like that!
Takumi: So, um, can anyone tell me how I ended up here? Or what, exactly, I was doing before I woke up just no?
Azura: It's best you don't worry about it for now. Just get some rest.
Takumi: No, I need to know. My Fujin Yumi was in my hand when I came to. And some of you have wounds in your backs...
Hinoka: Well...
Takumi: Tell me! What did I do?
Corrin: Takumi...you must have been under some sort of spell. You stumbled out of the woods and started attacking our party. Please, try not to worry about it. We know it wasn't really you.
Takumi: Oh, what have I done? A prince attacking his own men? How can I show my face in Hoshido again?
Corrin: Please! Someone... or something...was controlling you. We know you were not in your right mind.
Takumi: That's small comfort right now, I'm afraid.
Corrin: Well, I'm sorry you feel that way, but all that matters now is that we're all here. Will you join us in the search for Ryoma? Perhaps something along the way will jog your memory. Can we count on you?
Takumi: Yes. If you can forgive me for all the hurtful things I’ve said and done.
Corrin: Of course. We must move forward—not dwell on the past.
Takumi: Thank you, Corrin. I also need to thank you...Sister.
Azura: Oh! You called me— I mean...you're quite welcome, Takumi. Ahem... *cough* *cough*
Corrin: Is everything OK, Azura? You don't look well.
Azura: I'm fine. I think I'm just a bit tired. Please, don't worry about me. I'll be better in no time.
Corrin: If you say so.
Hinoka was made kind of... less concerned over Takumi in the localization. Or at the very least, less worried like how an older sibling would be, where her crying is replaced with more of a reprimand.
In the JP version, Takumi specifically mentioned attacking Hinoka and her having an arrow wound to signify it, the localization changed it to a general “some of you have wounds in your backs.”
The instance of Corrin comparing his own situation to what just happened with Takumi was cut and replaced by talking about the possession (even thought it’s been talked about already), meaning a nice moment of character bonding and calling back to previous scenes was cut.
And lastly, there’s another instance of Treehouse Corrin in Birthright acting like an douchebag that I actually missed in my general Birthright post. In the JP version, when Takumi says he wasn’t as accepting of Corrin at first, Corrin tries to just shift the conversation to something Takumi can be more positive about. Treehouse replaced it with Corrin basically saying “well, I’m sorry that you feel that way, but can you help us now” which is such an asshole thing to say to someone who’s just now realizing he hurt his sister and has lost his memory up until this point.
Chapter 11 (before battle)
JP Version
Kamui: ...Phew. We made it to a ship just before it set sail. I never thought there’d be Nohrian soldiers at the port. We haven’t been attacked since Fuuma (Mokushu), so my guard was down.
Sakura: Yes. But somehow we managed it. Big Brother... you should probably rest a little bit, at least.
Aqua: I don’t understand... how did those soldiers track us down in the first place? No one should know that our party is crossing into Nohr.
Takumi: Don’t tell me... there’s a spy in our mix, isn’t there?
Aqua: Spy?
Takumi: Yeah. Haven’t you considered it? There could be a spy among us working for the Nohrians, reporting our movements. That mage... he’s especially suspicious.
Zola: H-huuuuh!? I am!?
Hinoka: ...Well, you are suspicious. Very much so.
Takumi: Big Brother Kamui said... before joining you guys, he tried trapping all of you. I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried something again.
Zola: W-what!?
Hinoka: ...Right, then. As promised, I’ll strike to kill.
Zola: Eeeek!
Kamui: ...No. Please stop, everyone. It’s not good to doubt your comrades.
Hinoka: Kamui...
Kamui: All right? There’s no proof that he’s a spy. Once we decide to believe someone, let’s keep believing them.
Takumi: Brother... Even so, I can’t trust this man.
Kamui: Yes... Well, it’s not something I can explain right now, Takumi. I’m sorry. Let’s talk about it later. For now, I’d like for you to trust in him a bit.
Takumi: ...... ...Very well. If you’re insisting that much, I’ll make an effort to believe him, too.
Zola: Lord Takumi...!
Takumi: What is it now? I never said I’d trust you right away. I’ll start considering it after hearing what my brother has to say. And stop saying my name so casually.
Zola: Gah! No, sir. I'm sorry, sir.
Treehouse
Corrin: Well, this should be interesting. I've never sailed before. And we made it just in time to catch the last boat leaving the harbor. How lucky!
Sakura: I know. It's been such a long march—I'm really looking forward to r-resting a bit.
Azura: I wouldn't get too comfortable. Remember, we are on our way to Nohr. Some of the passengers on this ship could be our enemies.
Takumi: Yes, and there could be a spy among us.
Azura: What are you talking about, Takumi?
Takumi: You know exactly what I'm talking about. That whiny little mage from Nohr! Whose idea was it to let him tag along?
Zola: Gah! I'm no threat, guys! I promise! Haven't I been helpful so far?
Hinoka: Don't worry, Takumi. I've been keeping a very close eye on him.
Takumi: I don't know. Didn't he set everyone up back in Izumo? I wouldn't be surprised if he were plotting something.
Zola: But...but...
Hinoka: OK, I'll get my knife ready...
Zola: Eeeek!
Corrin: Calm down, everyone. I trust Zola, and I believe you should as well. He stood with us through one battle without stabbing anyone in the back. Besides, how could he even really information to Nohr? It's a preposterous notion.
Takumi: Sorry. I can't just take your word for it. I don't trust him.
Corrin: That's fine. A little healthy skepticism won't hurt. Just try to be civil, OK?
Takumi: I'll do my best.
Zola: Lord Takumi...
Takumi: What's wrong with you? Did I say that you could speak my name?
Zola: Gah! No, sir. I'm sorry, sir.
Never caught this before. In the JP version the party apparently got ambushed by Nohrian troops at the port, and that’s why the topic of there being spies is brought up, since Azura wonders how the soldiers even knew of the party’s whereabouts. Treehouse cut out this information.
Takumi in general is more abrasive, which is consistent to how Treehouse has been so far. I’d also like to note that Corrin’s insistence on believing in people is diluted a bit in Treehouse’s version, where he says civil skepticism is fine instead of trying to get Takumi to trust in people more. While this can make Corrin seem more palatable and smart, this doesn’t line up with his established character. He’s supposed to have a backbone when it comes to trusting in people and peaceful, diplomatic solutions. It’s why he almost got killed by Xander for not wanting to kill prisoners of war. If Corrin actually believed in “healthy skepticism” he wouldn’t let Zola in the party, especially after almost hurting Sakura.
Also, Takumi’s supposed to be softening up to Corrin as a brother at this point and be more willing to listen to him, and Treehouse’s version of the exchange-while not bad in the logisitic sense-does a poor job in showing a family bond growing between them. A family bond which, if you recall, was mentioned in the JP version all the way back in the prologue. So... points for being consistent in cutting out themes, I guess.
Chapter 11 (after battle)
JP Version
Kamui: All right, we took care of them.
Takumi: No problem. Even invisible, there’s no way they could beat us.
Kamui: Haha, you’re very reliable, Takumi.
Takumi: (Smiling portrait) Well, yeah. I have to make up for my mistakes. A certain someone told me as much, anyway.
Kamui: (Smiling portrait) Takumi...
Treehouse
Corrin: That's the last of them.
Takumi: Ha! Those stupid things didn't know who they were messing with.
Corrin: Well, I'm glad to see that you're feeling like yourself again. Takumi.
Takumi: Me too. (Frowning portrait) After all, I have a long way to go to redeem myself...
Corrin: (Neutral portrait) Takumi, that's simply not true.
Corrin in the JP version: Takumi and I are starting to get along and he’s happy, that makes me happy too :)
Corrin according to Treehouse: Takumi, you’re really fuckin up the vibe :/
Jokes aside, it really does baffle me what Treehouse’s obession is with a) making Corrin kind of a dick and b) not letting Takumi smile/be happy more often, like wtf. I know that Corrin saying Takumi doesn’t have to redeem himself could be taken positively, but since a specific tone has already been set by Treehouse, it unfortunately comes off as patronizing instead.
Chapter 11 (after Zola protects Takumi)
JP version
Kamui: Are you okay, Zola? Thank you for helping Takumi earlier.
Zola: No need for thanks... That was something I wanted to do. When I saw Lord Takumi in danger, my body moved on its own.
Kamui: Even so... thank you.
Takumi: Hey... Zola.
Zola: ! L-lord Takumi! Ah, forgive me. I said your name again...
Takumi: No, it’s fine. You can call me whatever you like. I’m sorry for doubting you earlier, Zola.
Zola: What...?
Takumi: Yeah. You just saved my life at the risk of your own. If you hadn’t done that, that guy could’ve killed me. So I’m sorry I didn’t have faith in you.
Zola: That’s...! Please raise your head, Lord Takumi! There’s no need to thank me for this. I merely did what Lord Kamui did for me back in Izumo, when Lord Leo was about to execute me.
Takumi: What!? Kamui, you did something that reckless?
Kamui: Ah... haha... well, something like that...
Zola: Yes. Since then, I’ve changed. Thanks to Lord Kamui.
Takumi: ...I see. Well, with a story like that, I have no choice but to believe it. I’ll be counting on you as a friend from now on, Zola.
Zola: Likewise... thank you very much.
Kamui: (Smiling portrait) ......
Treehouse
Corrin: That was extremely courageous, Zola. Are you all right?
Zola: It was nothing. I'm just glad that Lady Sakura was able to heal me.
Corrin: I beg to differ. It was not nothing. It was a remarkably selfless act.
Takumi: Zola...I have something to say to you.
Zola: Yes, Lord Tak—I mean yes, milord?
Takumi: Please. You've more than earned the right to speak my name. I'm sorry for doubting you.
Zola: Really? You mean that?
Takumi: Yes. Talk is cheap, and I still think I was smart not to trust you at first. But you may have just saved my life. It was a heroic act.
Zola: Thank you, Lord Takumi! I'm just following Lord Corrin's lead. If it weren't for him, I may have died at the hands of Lord Leo in Izumo. Now maybe you'll have the chance to perform a similar gesture.
Takumi: Wait, Corrin jumped in front of an attack meant for you? Right after you tried to kill him?
Corrin: Ha! No, Takumi. It wasn't exactly like that. I merely asked Leo to spare Zola's life. He was helpless and defeated.
Zola: Yes. And that kindness was enough to sway Lord Leo. He merely exiled me instead of taking my life.
Takumi: I see. Well, I just hope we can put all of this behind us.
Zola: Of course, milord!
Corrin: (Neutral portrait) Yes. It's time to focus on what's next. Who knows what's waiting for us in Nohr...
Takumi in the JP version is more willing to admit a mistake without a kind of “but I was still right” line, Treehouse adds one in anyway.
Also Treehouse made Corrin into a buzzkill, in other news, the sky is blue.
In further chapters, it’s mostly the same routine. Takumi is more abrasive and certain tender family moments involving him are diluted. I mentioned back in my general Birthright post that Takumi in his sickness, bed ridden delirium in chapter 16 talks in bigger detail about the “truth behind this war” and while this doesn’t have much to do with Takumi in particular, I thought I’d bring it up again.
Chapter 24 (pre battle, Takumi talks to Iago about possession)
JP version
Takumi: How dare you manipulate and mock me? What you said earlier about my feeling inferior is true... but I've learned something in this fight. There’s things only I can do! That's why... I would never betray my beloved siblings or my precious friends! As a proud prince of Hoshido!
Treehouse
Takumi: I just woke up for good. That's what happened. You were able to exploit some of my deepest fears and flaws, but that's over. My brothers and sisters need me, and I won't let them down. I'm a proud prince of Hoshido, and from now on I will live up to the title!
Both are fine, but the JP version is a bit more self actualizing, whereas the Treehouse version is more dependent on Takumi feeling like his siblings need him.
Chapter 24 (Takumi vs. Iago boss conversation)
JP version
Takumi: I’ll never forgive you...How dare you...how dare you take advantage of me. Macbeth...
Macbeth: You just regained your senses, and already such cheek...! You should’ve stayed as a good little pawn right until the end.
Takumi: When I was freed from your control, I remembered everything... How I’d send an owl with information of my whereabouts every night. How I’d lose all memory of it every morning. How I suspected my allies without knowing I was the traitor all along... What an absolute disgrace...
Macbeth: Then repent for your sins and quickly die. Isn’t that better than living a life of shame?
Takmui: Shut up! I'll live to pay for this crime! First, I’ll start making up for what I’ve done by defeating you here, Macbeth!
Treehouse
Takumi: Yes! I was hoping I'd get a chance to kill you myself. This is for everything you've put me through!
Iago: *yawn* You know I chose you because you were the weakest, right? You should never have come out of that spell—now you're going to suffer!
Takumi: Wrong! Now that my head is clear, my aim is truer than ever. I'm going to turn your face into my own personal bull's-eye.
Also touched on this in the Birthright post. The fact that Treehouse cut out the entire explanation for how exactly Takumi relayed information to Iago is freaking weird. Like... why?
Overall, though that’s about it for major changes to Takumi in Birthright’s story. Now for Conquest.
Chapter 10 (pre battle conversation)
JP version
Hinata: Lord Takumi, it seems the Nohrian army is stationed at the port.
Takumi: …An ambush, is it? Well, I expected no less of them. We won’t run away with our tails between our legs. It’s what they want.
Treehouse
Hinata: Lord Takumi! It seems the Nohrians aren't going to back down.
Takumi: So they plan to fight us, do they? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Nohrians aren't like normal, decent people. They live for the thrill of battle. All the better. I shall delight in putting those cowards in their place.
While I’ve said before that Conquest’s localization changes aren’t as egregious as Birthright’s (at least when not concerning Xander), I do find it funny that Takumi is consistent for the most part, aside from taking little jabs like he does in Treehouse’s version. Here’s another example:
Chapter 10 (Corrin vs. Takumi)
JP version
Takumi: ! Kamui...
Kamui: Takumi...
Takumi: Never expected to see you here, Prince Traitor. For the person who left Hoshido in such a wreck, you’re sure doing well for yourself.
Kamui: I’m sorry... I’m afraid I have nothing to say to that.
Takumi: Hm... guess you’re still man enough to feel guilt, after all. Then you can start regretting your mistake as I kill you right here!
Treehouse
Takumi: Any last words, Corrin?
Corrin: Takumi... In your heart you must know this is the last thing I ever wanted.
Takumi: Ah, how quaint. More pretty words from the Prince of Betrayal. How can you stand to live after the horrors you caused in Hoshido? My suspicions must be accurate. Nohrians don't have souls.
Corrin: Words could never express my sorrow for what took place...
Takumi: Oh? Are you still human enough to feel remorse? Fascinating. It's a fitting last emotion. I hope you feel its sting as I strike you down!
Takumi being a little shit towards his enemies is always hilarious, that’s one thing that Treehouse did that I think is fun. Another one I like is in chapter 13, where when Camilla calls Scarlet a traitor, Takumi responds with “Nohrian logic never ceases to amuse me.” And again in chapter 23 where, while not funny but more dramatic, he tells Corrin he “...shall cherish the sound of life leaving your body for all eternity.” Lines like these weren’t in the JP version, but since they are harmless additions and not replacing anything, they’re all fine. It only becomes an issue to me when said moments start replacing genuine tender scenes or cutting out details, like in Birthright.
Endgame (Corrin talks to Takumi in purgatory)
JP version
Takumi: Thank you. It would have been if we had fought alongside each other. Kamui. The truth is... I always wanted us to get along as siblings. I wanted to call you ‘brother.’ I wish I could have said that when I was still me... but I'm so stubborn that I just couldn't be honest with you. ...... I'm sorry.
Kamui: I’m sorry, too... Your resentment is my doing. ...I have always wanted you to call me ‘brother’, as well. Once the war was over, we could have been close as siblings should be. And yet...I am so sorry that things turned out this way.
Takumi: No, it’s all right. You accepted my resentment and came all this way. That's enough. Thank you, brother...
Treehouse
Takumi: Thank you, Corrin. I wonder…what it would have been like to fight on the same side as you. I always wished we could have been close, as you are with your Nohrian siblings. Right up until my last moments, I wanted so badly to call you my brother. To look up to you and love you…and never allow anything to come between us. I wish I had told you that before I died. While there was still a chance… I was just so stubborn, so hurt. I couldn’t admit those feelings even to myself. For that, I am truly sorry. I’m so sorry for letting you slip away, dear brother.
Corrin: Takumi…I’m sorry too. I caused you so much pain. The truth is, I longed to have you accept me as your brother too. I never let go of the dream that after the war we could all be together again… I’m so sorry things turned out the way they did.
Takumi: It’s all right, Corrin. We finally got to say all the things we needed to say. You have done more than enough. My heart… It’s finally at peace. Thank you, Brother…
I mentioned in my Conquest post that, while the Treehouse version is perfectly fine, it could potentially be read as putting more of the onus of Takumi and Corrin’s falling out on Takumi rather than Corrin. The JP version makes it more clear where each party is responsible.
Anyway, since Conquest’s localization has a fraction of the issues that Birthright’s has and Takumi showed up less frequently since he was an enemy, time to move on to Revelation... or at least, I would, but like Conquest, Revelation doesn’t have nearly as many localization issues as Birthright. Plus, Takumi has to share the spotlight with 7 other siblings and Azura, soooo... not many lines to screw up, anyhow.
So instead, time for supports and other general dialogue!
Corrin Support
In the JP version, when Corrin notes that it’s harder to draw a bowstrong than he imagined, Takumi notes that it takes a lot of physical and mental strength to do so. Localization just has him say “Well of course, did you think it’d be easy?” Similar message, but fewer details. Corrin then notes that because of that, he realized once again how talented Takumi is. In the JP version, Takumi gets flustered and nervous, in the localized version, he asks if Corrin is being sarcastic. Again, same message, but comes across a bit differently.
Other than those things and few lines being rearranged, the support chain is pretty faithful for the most part.
Felicia Support
In the JP version at the end of the A support, Felicia says that, while satisfied with Takumi’s apology for being rude, she still wants to share stories of her hometown, so he should be prepared. In response, Takumi laughs and says something like “Is that so?”. Treehouse changed this to have Takumi say outright “No more Ice Tribe stories anymore.” The reason why this was changed is most likely to fit in with how the S support is framed, where Takumi says he was frustrated with Felicia only talking about her hometown all the time instead of about herself. The JP version kept it intentionally ambiguous because there’s no guarantee that Takumi and Felicia will S support one another, so meh. Not a huge mistake, but thought I’d mention it. Other than that, the support was done well.
Azura Support
Again, not many major differences. Just in the JP version of the A support, Takumi says “from now on, let’s get along like brother and sister” whereas Treehouse has him say “we’ll both make more of an effort.” Less familial, so it can be seen as lacking a bit.
Sakura Support
JP version of the C support has Takumi mention that prominent aristocrats of Hoshido will attend the party/banquet attending, so that’s why he and Sakura can’t skip it. Treehouse cut out this small detail. Also, in the JP version Takumi says the atmosphere of these kinds of parties are stuffy, whereas Treehouse has him say “I wish we could leave all this highfalutin stuff to someone else”, which honestly got a chuckle out of me. Love words like that.
Treehouse version of the B support adds the line where he suggests lighting the guests hair on fire and running for cover, alongside the pre-existing line of faking being sick. Again, pretty funny to me tbh. Takumi saying crazy shit is a-ok to me, so long as it’s not at the expense of other lines being removed or moments being ruined.
Hinata Support
C support in the Treehouse version has Takumi pull rank by saying “Is that any way to address your superiors? “Show yourself”? Seriously!?” JP version just has him say “If you need anything, just tell me.” The idea of Takumi pulling rank isn’t exactly surprising per se, but he’s more the type to lash out at unfamiliar people speaking too casually with him. Hinata is a close friend and retainer, so it’s a bit out of place.
Oboro Support
In the Treehouse B support, Takumi says the fabrics that Oboro chose get the “Takumi seal of approval.” Not a negative addition at all, it’s cute.
Kagero Support
In the Treehouse C support, Takumi says “It seems like stealth comes naturally to you. After all, just a moment ago you popped up and scared me so bad I peed a little.” The peeing line wasn’t in the JP version. They made my son a pissbaby.
Kana Child Support
I felt obligated to mention how Takumi says “Well mold my onions, aren't you clever?” in response to how Kana has been helping Corrin out during the little father-son contest. Not in the JP support, obviously. But y’know. Onions, lol.
Camilla Support
Bit of a change here.
JP version
Takumi: I may seem unreliable as I am now, but if it's for you...I will definitely become even stronger, no matter what it takes!
Camilla: ......
Takumi: That's why...please marry me!
Camilla: Prince Takumi...You were...very dashing just now. I...didn't know you could be so bold.
Takumi: Princess Camilla...
Camilla: I...happily accept your proposal. Please let me watch over your growth by your side, okay?
Takumi: Yes. Of course.
Treehouse
Takumi: I know you still see me as cute, or childish, or as a fun plaything. But I have more to offer than that! Give me the chance to prove it to you!
Camilla: Hmmmmmmm... That was shockingly mature, for you. I've never known you to be so solemn and direct.
Takumi: Princess Camilla, I...
Camilla: I accept your proposal. Perhaps I flatter myself, but I suspect it's my care which has helped you along. In which case, staying by your side for years to come will only improve you further.
Takumi: N-not exactly the response I was hoping for...but I'll take it. Here's to our life together!
Like Camilla says herself in the Treehouse version, she flatters herself more. She also says him being mature is a shock, which is kinda mean, and that feeling only gets cemented when Takumi says it wasn’t exactly the response he was hoping for. JP version more or less has Camilla be more genuinely surprised at how bold he is.
Leo Support
More significant differences. First is a part of the C rank.
JP version
Leon: I'm telling you in advance that we probably won't be getting along well.
Takumi: Hm, What a coincidence. To tell you the truth, I thought so too.
Leon: What...?
Takumi: That haughty attitude, and that condescending way you look at other people... I knew you were a disgusting sort of person from the beginning.
Leon: ………… …Okay then, your childish way of thinking makes me want to vomit. I won't ever approach you, so you also must never approach me.
Treehouse
Leo: We might as well get this out of the way. You and I are not going to be friends.
Takumi: What a coincidence! I was just thinking the same thing.
Leo: Of course you were. You have such an arrogant attitude and—
Takumi: Me?! I'm not the one going around patronizing everybody! You're the jerk!
Leo: Is that the best you can do? You sound like a whiny, little brat. Just as expected. Let's make a deal. You stay away from me, and I'll stay away from you. Think you can manage?
Consistent with certain other instances of Treehouse, the same message is getting across, but the tone is a bit different. Both are definitely hostile, but the Treehouse one could come across more... immature, I guess. I personally don’t take issue with it, but I thought it was relevant to bring up. Now on to a part of B rank:
JP version
Leon: Prince Takumi... What's your favorite food?
Takumi: I like miso soup...
Leon: Miso soup?
Takumi: Ah, you mix miso and dried bonito in hot water, season it, and add other ingredients such as vegetables or tofu to boil and then eat.
Leon: Wha...?
Takumi: Hm, what's wrong?
Leon: I... like food such as soup and stew. To put it simply… Food where you mix meat and vegetables in boiling water which you then season …In other words, it's something like miso soup.
Takumi: Wh-what?
Leon: W-well then, what's your favorite kind of book to read? Novels or essays, or poetry anthologies? What's your favorite genre?
Takumi: Books, huh… I read all kinds, though I mainly like philosophy books. Philosophers from the past who expresses a different way of thinking compared to the people who are living now. That's what's interesting to me...
Leon: H-how is this possible!? How can this be the same too!?
Takumi: Then, what about your favorite pastime... What's your hobby!?
Leon: I-I like chess. Chess is a strategic game where you use pieces to battle on on a board.
Takumi: Th-that's... In Hoshido, that's something called Shogi!
Leon: ...And do you like this Shogi game, Prince Takumi?
Takumi: Like is an understatement, I'm the best in our family. How... how do we have so much in common?
Leon: …………
Takumi: ………… Hey, Prince Leon. Maybe getting to know one another isn’t such a bad idea after all.
Leon: What a coincidence… I was thinking the same. Do you want to continue talking about each other's tastes?
Takumi: Y-yeah. Who knows, we might find out about other things we have in common.
Leon: In the unlikely event we do hit it off, I’m sure we’ll get along well, h-hahaha...
Takumi: Hahaha...
Treehouse
Leo: They say that people with similar personalities like the same things.
Takumi: I like miso soup.
Leo: Mee-so soup?
Takumi: Yeah. It's a Hoshidan dish. You got a problem with that?
Leo: No. My favorite food is beef stew. It's kind of like a soup. Hmm...
Takumi: What kind of books do you read?
Leo: I read all kinds of things, but I have a passion for history.
Takumi: Is it...because you love to study the strategy behind past battles?
Leo: Gods, don't tell me... Do you like to read history books too?
Takumi: Yes, but I'm sure our hobbies are different.
Leo: My favorite game is chess. It's a tactical board game where—
Takumi: In Hoshido, our version is called shogi.
Leo: And do you like to play this "show-gee" thing?
Takumi: I'm the best shogi player in my whole family.
Leo: I can't believe it. Who would have guessed we have so much in common?
Takumi: I don't know, but I'll tell you—it's hard to hate someone with such excellent taste!
Leo: No kidding. I was about to say the exact same thing. Hmm... Maybe we should do this again sometime.
Takumi: Ahaha! Oh? So now you want to be best friends?
Leo: Ha! Of course not. That will never happen.
Takumi: Never!
Once again, similar message gets across, but lines are rearranged. However, this time, some details are cut, such as discussion of how both Takumi and Leo take their miso soup and stew respectively. One significant change is how originally Takumi and Leo loved philosophy books, but Treehouse changed this to battle strategy and history. Don’t know why this was changed, I thought it was neat. Also near the end, while both versions of the support have a kind of “in-denial” aspect about becoming friends, it can come across a bit differently. Though this is just linguistics in general, tbh. Japanese itself is a more... indirect language when it comes to speaking. There’s also Leo saying “mee-so” and “show-gee”, which some can probably think is cringe, but meh. It fuels my “Hoshido and Nohr speak different language” headcanon, so I’m fine with it.
Anyway, in the JP A support there’s another description by Leo of the miso soup recipe and him detailing a bit why he enjoyed it, but other than that, that’s it for their support. And for supports as a whole, too.
Private Quarters
When inviting:
JP version
"Brother, what did you want?"
"Brother, what should we talk about?"
"Brother, I’m here. What’s going on?"
"What’s wrong? ...Am I in the way of something?" (When Married to someone else)
Treehouse
"What is it? Did you want to tell me little secrets or something?"
"What's with all the racket in here? Are you playing the drums or something?"
"What do you want? There's no point in sparring. You couldn't keep up!"
"Huh! If this is how it is, I'll get my slippers. We can all cuddle." (When Married to someone else)
The JP version of these lines are a bit generic, so I appreciate the changes Treehouse made here.
Last, but not least, while there are other changes to his lovers lines in Private Quarters, his S rank line in particular I wanna bring mention too.
In Treehouse’s version, it’s this:
“I would do anything for you. Would you do anything for me? I need to know...”
In the JP version, however, it’s this:
“I love you. If there were another world in which I raised a hand against you… at that time kill me to stop me. Promise me that you will definitely do that.”
Big difference. Treehouse did this a lot with certain private quarters lines and confessions, where references to story happenings get outright replaced. Off the top of my head, Xander’s S rank private quarters in the JP version talks about how he’d be fine with dying if Corrin was the one doing it, referencing his death in Birthright. Elise, Ryoma, Flora, and as seen here, Takumi, have similar cases. It’s a shame that these were replaced, because I find it pretty neat that tragedy involved with these characters gets invoked in personal settings.
Anyway, I couldn’t find any more significant differences! I looked at DLC lines, My Castle lines, and the like to make sure, but all of it was pretty faithful to the original script. Overall, yeah, there are pretty significant changes here, with Birthright being the main offender as per usual. Some of them are baffling, some are effectively harmless, but regardless thought to do this because Takumi remains one of my favorite characters in Fates and Fire Emblem as a whole.
I hope you all enjoyed reading it!
#takumi fire emblem#fire emblem fates#fire emblem#fe14#hoshido#fire emblem if#treehouse localization#meta
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Ineffable (Dream of the Endless x f!Reader) - Chapter 6: Dazed
Also with Corinthian x f!Reader
Story Masterlist - Playlist
A little more is revealed about the Reader's past, and her destiny. Morpheus and the Reader make plans to see his former lover. And, the Corinthian makes an appearance and as per usual, stirs a bit of envy.
The Dreaming never loses its wonder.
I didn't realize how exhausted I was until my back hit the mattress. Then, I was out like a light.
Since I'm able to control my dreams, I envision myself in Morpheus' palace, and I find him in his usual place in his throne room, seemingly pondering something grave as usual.
About my nifty ability to manipulate my dreams, as well as others', Morpheus had tried his hardest to figure it out. Where my power comes from, whether I am actually just a human. He and Lucienne had put me through tests when I first met them, and they even peered into my earliest history from the records of my life and my dreams in the palace library - as much as I would allow them, at least - but strangely enough, they could not find anything from before I was 5 years old, and I'd already started to use my powers then. Morpheus had wanted to read every word to the present, but Lucienne kindly stepped in, sensing my discomfort on the matter.
"I'm sure there are other ways, my lord. We don't need to pore into every detail of y/n's life right now," she said, ever so considerate, "Besides, as she said so herself, she has lived quite a relatively ordinary human life. Apart from stumbling upon her powers by chance, of course. She's just as unaware about the source of her powers as we are."
"It's alright," I had said, even though I didn't feel that way completely, because I was damned curious as well, "We can just take a little peek. Juuust a little."
I propped the main volume on its side, the one roughly outlining my life, as absurd as that concept seemed to me then, and even now. Every being that has ever existed has their own volume, and each one's content is partially overseen by the Fates. I was told that the writings in each living person's volume may also morph and change according to their choices, and any other abrupt divergence, as their lives unfold. I let it prop open on a random page, somewhere in the middle. But it was... blank.
"What the...." I turned a couple of pages forward. Still blank. I started to become worried.
"Does this mean that my life ends early, or what?" I looked up at Morpheus, and he appeared just as worried. He snatched the book from my hands, and began turning the pages backward, finding the place where the ink comes to an end.
Just when I thought that we wouldn't find the spot, that perhaps I would only be granted a short existence, and that I should maybe tie up some loose ends soon, he found the page.
He read out the final passage -
"Their eyes meet, and it's as if the other has recognized something dear. Some unfamiliar being, albeit wholly captivating. It is a first meeting, yet it feels as if both of them have found home.
For it will take time, but in due course they will ascertain, that they are destined to be each other's home. Each other's dream."
A long silence follows.
Until I couldn't help but blurt out, "What the fuck does that mean?"
Morpheus' head shot up to glare at me, "Leave it to you to speak so crudely."
"Sorry," I half-heartedly apologized, "but why does my story end there?"
"It seems as if," Lucienne started to say, in an attempt to break the tension, "you meet someone. Someone of the greatest importance. However, that doesn't still explain why your story ends there." She glanced over the pages, "From what I can deduce, in this point in time, this is the very first instance where you first came across..."
She paused then, and she glanced up at me in an instant.
"Came across who?" I asked, but somehow, I had a feeling I already who knew she was referring to.
He stood there, face warped in concentration, studying the words on the page, still as a perfect marble statue. Like a dream.
Morpheus took a deep breath, and closed the book with a thud. "It seems as if we won't find anything of note in this," he glanced at me, "Lucienne is right. There may be other ways to learn about the source of your powers. For now, we just need to get you to control them. Avoid drawing any attention to yourself, or doing anything too rash."
"That's what I've been trying to do all my life, Dream Lord." I was slightly dismayed that he seemed keen to learn only about my powers, and not myself. As if without them, I wouldn't be worth all this effort and attention.
I do appreciate that they are trying to help me, given that I have absolutely no clue how I can do the things that I do either. But I also do feel like amoeba under a microscope, and being studied so closely is starting to get under my skin.
And, well, there are some things in my life that I'd like to keep hidden. Especially the one thing that I most regret, to this day.
▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎
Now, he sits on his throne, leaning casually on one armrest, talking to Lucienne.
I've been told to wait, so I stand a few feet away, in order to give them some privacy. They speak in hushed tones, well, more like Lucienne speaks and he ponders, while ocassionally glancing in my direction.
Are they talking about me? Before I could let my assumptions go further, he beckons to me.
"Lucienne suggested that you may need some training, before we see Amelia, and I agree."
"Training?" I ask. Just what exactly are we going to be facing?
"Yes," Lucienne says, in a kinder tone, "This is in no way meant to undervalue your abilities or the progress you've made thus far. I just worry because," she clasps her hands together, "all your missions have been mainly in the Dreaming, which are quite manageable. And with the very few that you've undertaken in the Waking World, you did not have to deal with supernatural beings, like witches, for instance."
"Notwithstanding the serial killer that Corinthian so smartly brought you to," Morpheus mutters icily, and I glare at him briefly before turning to Lucienne.
"Okay, well, if you think I need training, then I won't argue. But, is the nature of our mission so threatening that you think I may need training for it?"
Didn't Morpheus describe Amelia as, more or less, a good-natured individual? Or is there more to it than he is letting on?
"I suppose you should know that Amelia called to me in distress. She vaguely described some peril that she is facing, but she withheld most of the information. Perhaps, she thinks it best or easier that we find out for ourselves." Morpheus speaks, worry lacing his voice.
"She's in trouble? And you don't have any clue as to what the problem is?" I try to clarify. He has to have some idea of what it could be.
"I do have an inkling as to what it may be. Witches are," he pauses, pacing in contemplation, "well, in truth, plenty of them are benevolent women. Only practicing magic and the spiritual arts for self-betterment and altruism, such as Amelia. But a select group, have strayed from the flock. They exclusively practice dark magic, an unsavoury means to an equally unsavoury end."
"So she may be under threat from a dark witch," I offerred, now realizing why I am need to hone my powers. I've never faced such a being before, much less tried to fight dark magic.
"It has happened before," he responds, "and I was there to help her through it once. So I wonder if it's a similar case this time."
I nod, taking in the gravity of the situation. But I have to wonder, if the case is really as grave as it sounds, then why is he taking me? Why not someone more experienced, someone who won't be as vulnerable to dark magic?
"Perhaps, I should take y/n to the library, my lord," Lucienne says, "There are some basic incantations that she can learn to defend herself."
"Of course. In the meantime, I will try to check on Amelia, see how she's faring."
I try to ignore the feeling of jealousy tightening my chest. We have much bigger things to deal with right now.
Lucienne addresses Morpheus with a tilt of her head, "My lord," and begins to walk out of the throne room, expecting me to follow.
"Y/n," he stops me, one hand on my arm, "Are you okay with this? If you wish to withdraw from this mission, you can tell me. It's all right."
I'm caught off guard, not thinking he would ask this now. I internally chastise myself for being distracted by the gentle pressure of his hand on me, keeping me in place. Damn it. Why must I be like a little schoolgirl with a crush? Get yourself together, y/n.
"I want to help you," I assure him, "so I'm going."
"I don't want you to get hurt." His voice sounds so deep, so sincere, that the line tugs at my heart.
A small smile grows on my lips, and I catch his eyes flit down to them.
"Don't underestimate me, Dream Lord," I say teasingly, "I'll be fine. Besides, I'll have you there with me, so we can take on anything."
He smirks back at me, and I can't help but admire at how roguish he looks in the moment.
Our tense dynamic has improved as of late, and I only want to take things further. I want him to feel free to open up to me. I want more.
So I do something. What do they say? Life's too short? Well, for me at least. I doubt Dream Lord here will ever face the same conundrum.
I step forward, and use his arm to pull him closer, slowly. So there is but the smallest space between us, and I look at his eyes, captivated by how iridescent they are. They become heavy-lidded, and I am glad that I have an effect on him.
He gaze travels all over my face, from my eyes down to my lips. His lips part, and he whispers my name, "y/n". Then, he inches closer, but he seems to be contemplating something, "We shouldn't do this."
Our foreheads touch.
"Why not?", I ask, lost in the feeling of his proximity. This is the closest we've ever been.
"I'm not... how you think I am," he breathes, his face reflecting inner turmoil, "I can't give you what you want."
"You are," I press on gently, "You can."
He fingers graze my cheekbone, and another hand moves to rest on my waist. He relents, and moves even closer.
I feel it. The slightest touch of his lips on mine. A most tantalizing brush, barely felt, but it already sent shivers up my spine. He leans back slightly, calmer now, and he draws forward once more.
I close my eyes, and part my lips.
1...2...3... seconds pass. But I don't feel him. Rather, my eyes fly open and I find him stepping away from me, hands to his sides.
"Corinthian," he says loudly.
"Hey, boss," I see Cor standing there, and he looks between Morpheus and I, "Am I interrupting?"
"No," Morpheus declares quickly, not even glancing at me, "Not at all. Have you come to report anything?"
I feel as if I've been pushed to the side. The moment was certainly gone now, and Morpheus seemed poised and ready to bury it. Just when you think you're getting close...
"I have," Cor replies, "I've had a few hours to kill, so I actually went off and dealt with yet another Collector. The Scream Queen. Thankfully, not a psychotic devil-dealing one this time." He smirks at me, and I feel lighter inside, appreciating his sly humour.
"Very well. I'll be monitoring her in the Dreaming as well, to ensure that she doesn't get much respite here as in the Waking World."
"Of course, my lord," Cor says, "I suppose that's all I have for now."
"Great," I turn to him, "You can accompany me to the library then. Lucienne is waiting." I grab his hand, and almost drag him out of the throne room.
He chuckles at me, and I look past my shoulder and call out, "See you later, dream lord."
Morpheus says nothing, but I do catch his eyes land on mine and Cor's hand intertwined. Take that. I'm not even sure why I'm so frustrated with him, since I can deduce that he tries his best when it comes to learning more about connection and engaging in it, and that it's not easy.
But I'm not in the mood to be fair-minded today. How quickly his disposition can switch like hot and cold can be exasperating.
"You seem tense," Cor squeezes my hand we stride through the corridor, "Should I be worried?"
"Not at all," I reassure him, "I'm better now that you're here."
He smiles, "I'm better now that I'm with you too, trouble."
End of Chapter 6.
taglist: @notabotiswear @mischiefmanaged71 @5sosjay @pinkpunkdynamite @lu123sworld @iloveangstposts @shaewithyou @layla2-49 @littleblackspider @fate-huntress @kintsugi-keys @dame-sunflowers @cool-ontherun-world @poohxlove @seninjakitey @katiemrty @boofy1998 @witchxlove
Well, well, who do y'all think the passage from the Reader's life volume is about? Morpheus? Or Corinthian?
Also, there are some hints there about the Reader's history... plus the fact that they can't find anything from her earliest years. Who is she??
taglist is open - simply comment to be added :)
#dream imagine#dream x reader#dream x y/n#dream fanfiction#dream of the endless#dream of the endless imagine#dream of the endless x reader#dream of the endless x y/n#morpheus#morpheus imagine#morpheus x reader#morpheus x y/n#the sandman#the sandman netflix#dream the endless#netflix the sandman#sandman#sandman netflix#tom sturridge#the corinthian x reader#corinthian x reader#boyd holbrook#lord morpheus x reader#lord morpheus#ineffable dream#dream of the endless fanfiction
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I've been feeling discouraged about my art recently. Could you possibly give me some tips?
Ok I wanna preface this by saying I am by no means a professional or even "good" artist, BUT I shall try!
These are all tips by a digital artist so I can't help much when it comes to other forms
This got long so under the cut, 20 ART TIPS TIME LETS GOOO
1.Try to draw most days, or at least once a week. The more often the better BUT I don't mean like hardcore, a complex drawing every single day (recipe for burnout right there). I mean like even just 30 seconds of SOMETHING. You can draw shapes, maybe fill a page with circles. There are programs u can find online that give you like a min to sketch something and challenge yourself in a really short time frame. Guess what?? When you draw often you're building those neural pathways (I think) and the more you do it the easier it'll get
2. Don't obsess over making stuff look perfect on the first draft... or at all. I recommend making a "draft" layer or 2... or 3 over the initial sketch. The more you go over it and change stuff, the better it'll be. Also, If you spend hours on it and still hate it?? Who cares! You put in the work and now you have an idea out on paper that you can go over some time in the future and improve if you chose to.
3. DON'T DELETE STUFF!!! Unless it's literally just mindless scribbles, save everything you draw. Like I said, you can go over it again and improve it someday. You can also look back at it in like a year and compare your art to see where you've improved! I deleted all my old art from beyond like a year ago and regret it so much. Don't berate yourself for the stuff you need to work on, be proud of what improvements you've still made
USE REFERENCES!!!!!!! Please just do it, I know it's annoying but I promise it helps so so much
4. Invest drawing tablet, preferably one with buttons that you can map to undo, sketch, fill and such. This will make drawing sooooo much easier (and faster). My quality of art has improved just from drawing the same thing and redoing it like 20 times at a time, and it takes way less time when I can just click a button to do that. It might seem daunting at first but it quickly becomes instinctual. This is the one I got and I'm quite happy with it! It's got good sensitivity, a pen you don't have to replace batteries for or even recharge, and it's mid-range so not wayy too expensive. However, if you're just starting out, I'd recommend this (I got the corded version but I assume it's about the same) since it's small, cheap and you can focus on just learning basics like improving lines n such.
5. Use a bigger canvas size. I started out with 1000x1000, and that's still fine for smaller stuff and doodles, for better quality I recommend bigger sizes. If it's too small it'll look all weird and pixel-y
6. THERE ARE LITERALLY SO MANY FORMS OF ART, maybe the one you're trying just isn't something you vibe with! There's mosaics, digital, traditional (and all the many sub-categories of that), sculpture, photography, etc. All are equally valid and you will improve in your craft if you choose something that 1. you enjoy, 2. are consistent with it!
7. SEGEMENT OUT THE LIMBS drawing DCA stuff for over a year has helped me improve on anatomy sooo much literally just because it forced me to think of each part of a limb in terms of segments, shapes- for instance, instead of an upper arm, I think of a tube which connects to a circle that allows it to rotate and another tube... followed by a weird shape for a hand that connects 5 smaller tubes, whiCH ARE THEN SEPERATED IN TO 3 TUBES EACH.
Yes it sounds confusing but breaking it down like that instead of just trying to figure things out helped an absolute shitton
8. Have some kinda hobby that makes you draw frequently. For instance I have a discord sona I draw a new pfp for every month or so. It's a simple design and since the pfp won't show many flaws I can pump out lots of art for it in a small timeframe and I find it relaxing. I've actually improved a shitton just drawing pfps This is one of my first pfps from maybe 2 yrs ago compared with one of my most recent ones
(yes I'm a bit of a furry deal with it) It's cute, there's nothing wrong at all with it! However, you can see how things have changed.
See how the lines are a lot more even, less jagged? The proportions of the shoulders are much wider, the ears aren't just popping out of the hair, the shading makes a bit more sense and isn't just thrown around at random. There's also a broader range of color, with a few bright highlights to catch the eye, colored shading I think as well. The former is just like 3 simple colors. These are all things I learned from drawing pfps consistently.
9. CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! And FUN, if you have fun drawing it'll be a lot easier to do frequently
10. Whether it's drawing pfps, blorbos or landscapes, find something that brings you joy and it'll be MUCH easier to stick to. Draw, draw a lot, do not worry about "good" art and "bad" art cause there's literally no such thing. Compare what you draw now with what you do in like a year or two from now and I promise, if you're consistent, use references and are patient, you WILL amaze yourself with how much you improve.
11. Challenge yourself! Join secret santas (assuming you know you can complete it within the allotted timeframe), draw your friends' sona/ocs (if they're cool with it), do palette challenges, do monthly stuff like drawtober or whatever it's called (BUT I don't recommend doing something every single day for a month cause again, gonna cause mega burnout)
12. Draw when the inspiration comes, it will move your hand. These days I make much better quality art that I'm proud of when I just let inspiration flow through me instead of begrudgingly making myself draw. You shouldn't be forcing yourself!! If you are, you probably are burned out by either drawing too much, feeling a lack of confidence or some other stuff going on irl. Inspiration comes naturally, and when it doesn't it's prolly your mind trying to communicate that something's up. If resting a week or two doesn't help, take a deeper look at your life and see if the artblock is a symptom of something else (for me it's most often depression).
13. At the same time, sometimes you just need to start. Kinda on the previous point of lacking confidence, often we scare ourselves out of even trying. It might feel insurmountable. Nah, try. If all you can do is a wobbly, vague sketch?? You got the idea out!! Start drawing fuckin eyeballs or something, just start. Sometimes the hardest part is just facing a blank canvas and putting a couple lines on it
14. Not all brushes are equal. Some just make drawing easier- at least for me. I dunno the science behind it but when I use my sketch brush (it's got a similar look to pencil) rather than my lineart brush it makes drawings just... look better. Also using thicker lines in general helps. Why?? NO CLUE, maybe thinner ones just show flaws easier or intersect better or something.
15. Music or some other distraction can help, idk why. Some days I like to have a movie/show/podcast going in the background for a mild distraction that keeps me slightly stimulated on other stuff even as I draw- maybe it increases brain activity or??? No idea. Sometimes just listening to music. Sometimes I need total silence. Do what works for you! Give lots of different stuff a try, you may love drawing while listening to a podcast in the background
16. Take breaks!! The pomodoro method works with art as well. Every 25 mins or so, take a 5 min break. Get up, stretch, get some water, maybe watch a yt vid. Call ur friend and tell them you love and cherish them. Then get back to it and you will feel oh so refreshed. After maybe 3 rounds take a 15 min or longer break and then repeat if you still feel like it
17. SLEEP IS INCREDIBLY FUCKING IMPORTANT you will see a deep decline in the quality of your art when you're tired, plus you just feel like shit and art is about feeling good and expressing yourself. Sleep is important, even tho yes I stay up too late drawing most nights, I do my absolute best to get at least 7 hours of sleep every night, as should you!!
18. DO NOT BE SCARED OF STICK FIGURES AND MESSY SKETCHES, they're actually the best way to start bc 1. it's a quick way to get an idea out before you forget it 2. the finished piece will actually look a lot more fluid since you weren't spending all that time obsessing over making the first draft look perfect- which often just makes it look stiff. You can do a whole lot with stick figures. Focus on that good ol' line of action.
19. Random but when drawing the face, I like to first make a circle and then like a "mask" over it for the actual face. For me it just makes sense. Then two lines, one up/down and one left, right, it'll make it easier to align the eyes and ears. In general, the ears usually go where the "mask" begins and just below the left/right line
20. Finally surround yourself with people who encourage you. I grew up in an environment where people would gawk at stuff my sibling drew and ignore me bc they were ~naturally talented~ and it made me not want to draw at all.
Well guess what?? Now that I spend time with people who encourage me and genuinely care about my interest in art I've improved a lot bc I have the motivation, the joy of showing ppl who care about me new pieces. If people in your life aren't encouraging you, or gods forbid insulting your art (excluding constructive criticism that you've explicitly asked for) then TOSS EM OVERBOARD THE BOAT OF LIFE and find people who will treat you with the love and respect you deserve
P.S
This isn't a tip, just a recommendation: Chicory, a colorful tale. It's a game where u play as a cute lil dog who gets a magical paintbrush that lets you color the world. The only issue? You have no ~talent~. My gods, this game struck a cord with me.
Feeling like you don't have any talents that come naturally to you. Being overlooked even when you try your best. Feeling like a complete joke when you try to pick up the brush (or in this case stylus) because there are so many "real" artists and you're not one of them.
Also the things people say and how they can affect you even when not intentional. Damn. It's just a beautiful game. It's made by the same people who made Wandersong, another absolute banger game with a character who is seen as a joke and I cannot recommend them enough.
bonus tip bc why the fuck not: OVERLAYS!!!!!!! In clip paint studio you have all these layer options, I can never memorize what they all do so I just make like an ombre color layer over my base colors and try all of them to see what looks cool
#Answer tag#Metaltea Talks#ref#art tips#long post#*gives anon a thousand tiny cartoon hearts in a bottle*
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The Scarlet Pirate - Chapter 1
Well, ladies and gentlemen...this story has been a LONG time coming. XD
This is the first of a six-part "Chapter Story" for my OC for Twisted Wonderland, James Killian - based on Captain Hook from Disney's Peter Pan. (Also featured are Smitty McCarthy, based on Smee, and Matthew Satyr, based on Peter himself...oh, and Nakoda - my Kaa OC - also has a role here.) The basic premise of this story has been in my mind for almost as long as James has, but for numerous reasons, it wasn't till just within the past few weeks I finally got a chance to develop and write it out.
The result is, I think, the single longest "Chapter Story" for any of my OCs for TW I've created so far. Take that information however you will. So long as this tale, that it went from a planned three-parter, to a planned five-parter, to now being a six-parter, standing at approximately 150 pages in total! Hopefully, all the work and length will be for the best. XD
As is typical for my Chapter Stories, I will be posting this one chapter at a time per day over the course of this week. For future reference, you can find the next chapter here.
WARNING: While this story, throughout all six parts, does not FOCUS on my kinks, there are instances of very mild stuffing/belching related content sprinkled throughout, as well as various instances of implied or near vore situations. If you're into these things, good on ya. If you aren't, just be warned they will show up here and there, although not with any degree of spectacle.
With that said...I hope you enjoy.
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“COME BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE MEAT LOAF!”
“WE’LL RIP YOU APART!”
“YOU CAN’T GET AWAY FROM US!”
You panted as you ran at top speed out of the cafeteria of Night Raven College. Behind you, three Savanaclaw students - one with the ears of a jackal, another with the ears of a leopard, and a third with the ears of a binturong - were sprinting after you, charging like mad wildebeests.
Hearing little gasping sounds beside yourself, you shot a glare at the cat-like little creature who was running on all fours alongside you, ears crackling with flames as his trident-tail worked to keep him steady while he bounded along. He noticeably licked at a few stray crumbs of food on his whiskers as you both bucketed along at flying speed.
“Chernabog damn it, Grim!” you coughed between your own fast-paced footfalls. “Haven’t you learned any self-control at all?!”
“Nyaaa! They were eating tuna sandwiches!” wailed Grim. “I couldn’t help myself!”
You just groaned as you continued to flee.
“If we die, I am SO going to kill you,” you muttered to yourself.
You knew you couldn’t just head to Ramshackle Dorm straightaway: the Savanaclaw trio behind you would be expecting that. Your best bet was to lose them and give them a chance to cool down, then you could go home and try to forget this whole misadventure. So, you decided to take a risk, and ran across the athletics field, towards the woodlands beyond which encircled the campus. As you led Grim through the bushes and into the forest, you could still hear the three angry beastmen chasing you. They snarled and hissed in rage, showing no sign of tiring any time soon.
You raced through the woods as fast as you could pelt, with Grim trailing not far behind you, and your would-be antagonists continuing pursuit. You had entered these woods enough times by now to know a way to circle through the greenery and find a path back to your dorm; you hoped that the trees and foliage would help your escape, as you bobbed and weaved between them, thinking they would slow down your half-animal attackers. You soon realized your folly: these were athletic beastmen, with senses and strength superior to your own, and skill as a hunter. Instead of slowing down your pursuers, the heavy greenery was slowing YOU down, giving them a chance to leap through the gaps in the trees, gaining on you inch by inch, foot by foot, yard by yard…
A shrill “YIPE!” soon signaled what would be your downfall: Grim stumbled in a patch of dirt that collapsed beneath him - some spider’s hidden den - creating a pothole just large enough for his paws to catch. He rolled through the dirt and grass before bumping into the side of a tree.
“MINION!” he called out in a wheezy way.
You skidded to a halt, cursing under your breath, and hurried back to help the little rascal…but in the time it took you to reach Grim and give him a brief check for injuries, your three attackers were upon you. You stood up and tried to run one direction, letting Grim rest on your shoulders…but the binturong boy barred your way. You whirled about in another direction, but the jackal stepped in front of you then. Finally, before you even had a chance to turn, the leopard man blocked you off. The three grinned viciously as they moved closer in unison. You backed up instinctively…and soon felt your breath hitch as you found yourself backed up against the tree behind you.
Grim hissed angrily, hackles rising, as the three Savanaclaw students closed in around you.
“Nowhere to run now, meatballs,” smirked the leopard.
“C-Come on, guys,” you laughed nervously, with an anxious smile. “We…we can talk about this, can’t we?”
“You can negotiate with one of our guts,” replied the leopard, licking his chops.
“Hey! They’re not your kill!” snapped the jackal, baring his fangs as he snapped at his friend. “I caught up with ‘em first!”
“We’ll decide who gets to eat the human after we tenderize ‘em,” suggested the binturong, and punched one fist into his free hand with a ferocious grin. “I call the furball.”
“Fine by me,” said the leopard, cracking his neck and knuckles, while the jackal shrugged in agreement.
You shuddered and groaned again, trying to restrain the blush on your face. Great. Just great. You were going to be beaten up and eaten up because Grim couldn’t curb his own appetite. The irony and unfairness were equally abundant here…you wished you could convince your heart to stop beating so fast, especially since it was pumping blood into your cheeks with the knowledge of what was coming…
However, before any of the three could strike, there came a rustling from the treetops above you. All of you looked up, confused and startled…and the three Savanaclaw students hastily took a few steps backward, as something dropped out of the trees with a bold, brassy sort of cackle…
“HA HA!” the something declared, and landed nimbly on their shiny black boots. “Villains, beware! Stand ready!”
To say you were surprised was an understatement. The three Savanaclaw students seemed equally bewildered. Standing between yourself and Grim, and your presumed predators, was a young man, dressed in a Night Raven school uniform. His red vest, and the black-and-red armband around one arm, indicated he was a student of Heartslabyul. His hair was long and raven-hued, flowing a little past his shoulders; the top of his scalp was wrapped up in a violet bandana. He wore golden rings on several fingers, between both hands, and a daring, dashing sort of grin was on his face, which lit up his rich, dark, chocolate-colored eyes.
The Heartslabyul student adopted a pose like a skilled fencer; in his right hand, he held a most peculiarly-shaped, gold-topped cane. He pointed the ferrule end towards the three Savanaclaw bullies, holding the item like it was a rapier. His left hand flourished grandly up and behind his head. The outer spot of the palm was facing you and Grim.
You felt Grim’s head tilt, as you both noticed the strange tattoo on the back of the stranger’s hand: it was the image of a hook. “Three of you, eh?” the youth snorted. “A pity. I was hoping for an honest challenge!”
The three Savanaclaw students growled angrily, and adopted predatory poses.
“Back off, pipsqueak!” the binturong spat. “These two belong to us!”
“I think they rather belong to themselves,” sniffed the cavalier newcomer, twirling the tip of his cane in a rather taunting fashion. “Perhaps you’d care to officially claim them? You are quite welcome to try.”
“You got a death wish or somethin’?!” snapped the jackal.
“Oh, I wish for death daily,” shrugged the new arrival. “Just not for myself.”
The jackal snarled violently, as did the binturong. The leopard stepped forward and bared his clawed fingers.
“If you wanna try and keep our breakfast away from us, you can join it,” the cat hissed. “Looks like there’s enough here for all of us, boys!”
This made the binturong and the jackal cackle as they stepped up to clearly support their leader.
“I call the loud one,” the jackal replied, and licked his chops sloppily, drool splattering across his plump, shapely lips. “I think he’s gonna have a rich flavor…”
“Fine by me,” rumbled the leopard, and rubbed his belly through his uniform fabrics. “Looks like the Prefect’s mine…”
You shivered, cheeks pinkening again, as you licked your own lips nervously. You shifted your gaze from the hungry leopard’s eyes to the apparent swashbuckler’s face, to catch his reaction.
To your surprise, for just the most fleeting moment, you could have sworn the young man’s cheeks turned a similar shade of rose to your own…but the hue soon vanished as he adjusted his stance, and lifted his cane a bit higher, pointing it towards the leopard’s nose.
“So be it, gentlemen,” he said, somewhat gravely. “Heave to it, then, and fall on!”
The three snorted almost in unison. The jackal, who seemed eager to enjoy his very brazen meal, was the first to lunge forward, charging towards the Heartslabyul student. The raven-haired duelist laughed and ducked, scurrying to one side, and then whirled about. He swung his cane about, smacking the jackal in the backside. The canine demi yelped shrilly, and spun towards the offender; he raked a wild haymaker towards the young man, who blocked the punch with his rod. He did the same with a second punch, then jumped forward and jabbed the “point” of his weapon hard into the jackal’s gut. The canid grunted, clutching his stomach and doubling over…before the heavy end of the cane’s gold topper bashed into the side of his head, knocking him to the ground.
“Aye, this takes me back. To basic training, that is,” sighed the man in red and black. He smirked, pointing his weapon at the remaining two beastmen. “Would either of you gentlemen care to try me next?”
The leopard and binturong seemed stunned. They looked at each other, then their expressions hardened. The leopard growled and - clearly having some sort of authority - he tossed his head, and the binturong took the hint, letting out a fierce battle cry as they ran at the swashbuckler, one fist reeled back and ready to strike.
The swasbuckler’s smirk widened, and he ducked to avoid the harsh punch, then threw himself upwards, jamming his cane into his enemy as he hurled them over his shoulder, causing them to land right on top of the jackal. Then, before the binturong could stand - WHAM! - a booted foot kicked him unconscious.
“Pitiful Philistine,” sneered the cavalier. “You’re not even worth using my finest moves upon-AHA!”
The man spun around like a top, holding his cane in both hands as the leopard struck. He had tried to attack the duelist from behind, while the Heartslabyul member was distracted. Said student grinned boldly as the leopard’s tail lashed in irritation.
“A fine attempt, sir!” boomed your savior. “I can’t think of a single seven-year-old who could do better!”
“I’ll chew that smug look off your face!” spat the leopard.
The Heartslabyul student grimaced, crinkling his nose. Once again, you swore his cheeks turned a somewhat rosy hue.
“If your fighting skills are as rank as your breath, I’d say good luck. Either way, you’d find it quite indigestible.”
The animal-man just growled louder as the fighter pushed him off. He lunged forward again, but the swashbuckler soon settled things: he cracked his cane against the leopard’s arm as it prepared to hurl a punch, then across the shoulder, then smacked it into the leopard’s face. With a pained sort of snarl, the leopard seemed ready to throw out a kick, but the duelist’s cane slapped against his shin hard. The cat yowled loudly, and comically lifted his leg and bounced on the other, clutching his wounded limb…at which point the skilled fencer lunged and plunged the butt end of his cane into their stomach. The leopard staggered back and collapsed to the ground in a heap, beside his other two comrades.
The cavalier smirked proudly, and lifted his cane in a swordsman’s salute, before twirling it and letting its length rest across his shoulders.
“Well, that was thoroughly pathetic,” he mocked. “I suggest, gentlemen, that you take up knitting: brawls are clearly quite beneath your abilities, in many respects.”
The three defeated Savanaclaw students - in dubious and varying states of consciousness - just moaned in pain where they lay.
The swordmaster nodded, satisfied, then his smile fell as a look of concern came over his face and he turned towards you.
“Are you alright?” he inquired.
You and Grim just stared, amazed. Each of you bore eyes as wide as dinner platters, your jaws practically on the ground.
“Halloo?” your helper checked, and waved his left hand - the one with the hook tattoo - in front of your face. “Is there a mind working in that skull, shipmate?”
You shook your head and blinked, coming out of your stupor.
“Y-Yeah,” you finally stammered out, and began to smile. “I’m alright.”
“Excellent,” smiled the Heartslabyul student.
“Thanks for the save,” you said gratefully. “That…well…that was-”
“THAT WAS TOTALLY WICKED!” exclaimed Grim, all but screaming in your ear, causing you to flinch. As you wrung out your aching audio receptor, the little imp bounced off your shoulder back down onto the ground. “Those moves were INCREDIBLE! Naturally, nothing is quite as awesome as the Great Grim, but that fighting skill was INSANE! I’d say it was almost as cool as I am!”
The Heartslabyul student let out a loud, boisterous laugh. His chest puffed out and he held his head high with clear pride.
“Why, thank you, thank you!” he said, using one hand to swipe a few stray hands of black hair out of his face most flamboyantly. “I suppose I was rather fabulous, wasn’t I?”
You cocked your head to one side, looking your savior up and down. The uniform, the voice, the theatricality…something about him clicked in your mind…
“I think we’ve met before,” you realized aloud.
“Nya? We have?” Grim blinked at you, perplexed.
“Sure!” you smiled at your companion, then stepped away from the tree to grin at the Heartslabyul student. “We met that time Ace got conked in the head with a Magift disc.”
“Indeed! Oh, how we laughed!” your new acquaintance drawled.
“Actually, you seemed kinda upset at the time.”
“Well, we laughed afterwards,” shrugged the youth, and then flourished his cane as he spread out his arms and bowed most low, even shifting his legs in a most courtly, elegant manner. “James Killian, at your humble service!”
Grim giggled at the melodramatic introduction. You just smiled and introduced yourself more casually.
“What were you doing out here, anyway?” you couldn’t help but ask.
“Practicing,” James said, indicating his long cane. “One mustn’t allow one’s talents to get rusty, especially under the current circumstances.”
“Nya?” Grim meowed, tilting his head and blinking his large, blue-green eyes. His trident-tail curled into a question mark shape behind him. “What ‘circumferences’?”
“Circumstances,” you corrected patiently.
“That’s what I said!” huffed Grim. “Circumventions!”
Before you could try to correct him again - and before James could give a proper answer - a new voice broke onto the scene.
“James!” it called out, in a high, flute-like sort of way. “James, there you are!”
The three of you turned to see a small figure hop out of the bushes and onto the scene. It was a short young man - about the same age as James was - also dressed in a Heartslabyul uniform. He was small and stout, with a plump belly that pushed against his vest and shirt tightly, giving him a round, “cuddly” appearance. This was accentuated by his equally round face, with very large, bright, blue-green eyes - almost the same color as Grim’s, though not quite as vibrant. His shaggy-looking hair was white as chalk, but didn’t seem to have this color due to age; similar to the silvery hues of those like Azul or Jack Howl. A brick-colored newsboy cap sat atop his head, and upon his small, round nose, a pair of rimless, square spectacles perched.
“James!” smiled the little man with relief. “You’ve gotta warn me before you-”
The little fellow stopped short in whatever he was going to say, his smile fading and his teal-toned eyes going very wide, as he saw the pile of unconscious beastmen. He looked at them, then at you and Grim, then at James.
“...Did, uh…did I miss something?’ he peeped.
“Nothing of great importance, Smitty,” yawned James. “I simply got some decent exercise. Well. Almost decent, anyway.”
Smitty scratched his head, looking confused.
“Exercise?” he repeated slowly, and looked at you, as if hoping you’d have an answer. You could only shrug helplessly.
“It’s a long story,” you said.
“Not really,” retorted Grim, and pointed at James with one paw as he spoke to Smitty. “Your buddy here just kicked the crud outta those bullies! It was so cool!”
Smitty grinned.
“Oh, yes!” he nodded enthusiastically, nearly knocking his own cap off. “James is amazing when he’s fighting! That’s why we came out here: he wanted to train his fencing skills for when he meets Matthew in that competition!”
“Matthew?” you repeated.
“Competition?” mewed Grim.
Before Smitty could answer, he let out an “eep!” as, without warning, James stomped over and grabbed hold of his tie, tugging the fellow Heartslabyul student towards him. He leaned down with a fearsome glare, bringing himself nearly nose to nose with his compatriot.
“Smitty!” he shouted. “If you weren’t so incomprehensibly dimwitted, I’d clap you for mutiny!”
“J-James, what do you mean?” squeaked Smitty, holding onto his hat and looking quite startled, to say the least. “Wh-what did I do?!”
James narrowed his eyes…then sighed and released him, dusting himself off.
“Let’s recap,” he said, much-too-patiently. “Smitty McCarthy…what are the rules?”
“Of the Queen of Hearts?” blinked Smitty. He blushed and removed his cap, wringing it in his hands with a bashful smile. “Sorry, James, I’ve only memorized the first fourteen of those.”
“Not those rules!” James said, exasperatedly, pinching his brow. “MY rules. The ones you and I agreed upon.”
“Oh, I’ve got those memorized perfectly, James!” smiled Smitty, blithely. He began counting them off on his fingers. “Um…lemme see…Rule One: each of us, when we go out to sea, will be entitled to an equal share of the -”
“Start at thirty-seven,” droned James, boredly.
“Oh, right! Ahem…Rule Thirty-Seven: never trust a pixie. Rule Thirty-Eight: never carry a pocket watch, nor use an alarm clock. And Rule Thirty-Nine: never say His first name.”
“Thank you,” mumbled James, with a long-suffering sort of expression. “Please, try to remember that last one.”
“Aye, James,” Smitty nodded, his blissful look indicating he still had no idea of what he’d even done. “I always do!”
James just rolled his eyes, then looked towards you and Grim. Naturally, after that, the pair of you were quite puzzled.
“Apologies,” he said, oh-so-sweetly. “Disregard that name. It’s a…personal matter, between the two of us.”
“I…I see,” you said, simply, not sure what else to say.
“You still haven’t explained what you were talking about with a competition though,” Grim pointed out, then began to swish his tail eagerly. “Is it a magic competition, huh? Where we get to show off how awesome we are as mages?”
“Not exactly,” said James with a shake of his head. Now it was his turn to look surprised. “Don’t tell me you haven’t heard of it already!”
“Heard of what?” you asked.
“Well, I suppose that’s a no,” chuckled James, and cleared his throat importantly. “Ahem! Every few years, the twin schools of Night Raven College and Royal Sword Academy engage in a special event called The Scavenger’s Hunt.”
“It’s a treasure hunt!” cheered Smitty.
“TREASURE?!” exclaimed Grim. “Like…like REAL treasure?! Gold, jewels, tuna cans?!”
“You’re wrong about the tuna cans, but you’re right about the first two,” Smitty giggled. “See, a long time ago, pirates used to have a habit of hiding and burying their treasure here on Sage’s Island. Back then, the place wasn’t as populated, and a lot more remote. So it was easy for them to go ashore, bury their gold, and then come back to fetch it later.”
You could practically see the madollar signs in Grim’s eyes. No doubt he was imagining how rich he could get…and how much tuna he could buy with the money.
“Every few years, the two schools hold a competition,” James continued the explanation. “In homage to this storied past, a chest is filled with money, and teams of seven from each school are assigned to try and find the “treasure.” We’re given a couple of clues to start off with, then it’s all on us. The teams have to try and find the treasure in two days, with the team that wins being the one who brings the chest to their school before nightfall on the second day.”
“It trains the participants in a lot of ways, including survival skills, since you have to set up camp and spend a night in the woods for the first evening,” added Smitty.
“Sounds like a pretty tough challenge,” you observed.
“Nya! Any challenge is worth it if you can get money out of it!” Grim exclaimed.
“My thoughts precisely,” smirked James. “The teams haven’t been chosen, but I have high hopes of being selected as one of the participants.”
“Why? Do you have any special skills they’d be looking for?” you asked.
“Nope!” Smitty interrupted, before James could answer. “The choices are totally random!”
You and Grim shared a look.
“Then…how can you be so sure you’ll get in?” you asked.
“Call it a hunch!” sang James, with an innocent shrug.
The conversation was broken by a groan from the three Savanaclaw scoundrels. They were starting to stir.
“I think we should probably get out of here,” you said, with a nervous laugh. “Those guys won’t be happy when they get up.”
“I concur,” James nodded, then waved his stick around in the air in a dramatic gesture. “Come, Smitty! We must resume my practice!”
“Aye-Aye, James!” Smitty said, saluting the taller student with a grin.
The four of you bid hasty farewells, then you and Grim ran off towards the direction of Ramshackle Dorm. James Killian and Smitty McCarthy began to walk off in another direction.
After a few moments, James looked down at his friend.
“Well, Smitty?” he asked seriously.
“Well what?” Smitty asked, blinking innocently behind his glasses.
“Did you do as I asked?” urged James.
Smitty’s smile fell. He looked away.
“Yeah,” he whispered. “I, um…I made sure you and I would get picked.”
“Perfect,” smirked James, a devilish gleam in his brown eyes. A low laugh left him. “Then everything is going according to plan…”
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You had become quite used to going to bed and waking up in a place that was not your room.
You found yourself in a gilded chamber; beyond the darkened windows, you could hear the sounds of the ocean, and a muted, muffled ticking noise, which you quickly came to ignore.
You were more focused on the giant figure before you: a tall, limber-looking fellow, with a hooked nose on his proud, lean face, and long black hair. A thin moustache slashed over the top of his lips, and he wore a long coat of vibrant scarlet. Along with the fingers, a golden hook - with a ruby-studded ring encircling part of it - stood in place of his left hand, scratching at his chin thoughtfully. He was pacing in front of a fine-looking harpsichord.
You glanced to one side, and noted another figure: a small, fat man, with glasses and a red cap, dressed in blue and white. He was holding a large green bottle; some sort of alcoholic beverage. You had come to speak to the pair, hoping to receive some help. With a thunderous bellow, the Scarlet Pirate seemed to come to a decision, as he used his hook to grab hold of his companion by the back of their shirt, dragging them towards the door and nearly making them spill their drink
“Come, Smee!” the Pirate boomed. “We must leave immediately, surround Peter’s home-!”
“But Cap’n!” the Little Man piped up. “WE DON’T KNOW WHERE PETER PAN LIVES!”
The Pirate immediately dropped the little man, his expression one bordering on horror in realization.
“Great Scott!” he barked. “You’re right, Smee!”
An idea sparked into your head. You rose up and rang out an alerting noise, gaining the pair’s attention. You flew with your pixie wings to a table in the cabin, where a map of The Island was visible.
“What’s that, my dear?” the Scarlet Pirate cooed. “YOU could show us, the way? Why, I never thought of that!”
The Pirate then surreptitiously whispered to his friend - “Take this down, Smee.” - but you barely noticed. You dipped your tiny feet into an inkwell, and waited for the two to move closer, so you could show them the way on the map. You thus began to walk across the map, the Pirate announcing the directions you indicated while the Little Man wrote them down in a notebook.
“Start at Pegleg Point. Forty paces West of Blind Man’s Bluff, yes, yes…h-hop, skip, and a jump across C-Crocodile Creek! Then…Nor’ by Nor’east, one, two, three…”
Something made you hesitate, as you neared the final spot on the map. You glanced over your shoulder. The Scarlet Pirate’s eyes shone with anger and impatience as he slammed his fist down onto the table.
“WELL?!” he yelled. “GET ON WITH IT-I mean…heh heh…continue my dear.”
You glared and flew up into the Scarlet Pirate’s face, snapping out your one desire. He blinked, surprised, the feather on his hat flopping in front of his face.
“I mustn’t harm Peter?” he repeated, and sniffed snootily, brushing the feather out of his face. “My friend, Captain Hook gives his word not to lay a finger-”
You gestured in a hook-shape with one hand, crossly.
“-Or a hook…on Peter Pan,” smiled the Pirate, assuringly.
That did it. You swooped back down onto the map, and - with the last of the ink - drew an X on the spot with a helpful smile. The Scarlet Pirate grinned and nodded, then winked at the Little Man.
“Ah, Hangman’s Tree,” he crooned, while his friend bounced excitedly beside him. “So THAT’S the entrance to his hiding place…”
A shrill sound left you as - YOINK! - a huge, spindly hand sprung out like a jumping spider, and the Scarlet Pirate’s fist grabbed you, his smile turning truly villainous.
“Thank you, me dear,” he purred like a cat with a canary. “You’ve been MOST helpful.”
A malevolent guffaw heralded you being thrust into a glass container - perhaps an old lantern - and the hook latched it inescapably shut. Desperately, you pounded on the glass with your hands, watching as the Pirate and the Little Man left. As the door closed, you soon felt the air growing thin, you felt your wings falter, you felt yourself sink the floor of the lantern…and then…
…You gasped sharply and woke up in bed. Not sitting up, but simply breathing heavily where you lay, head on the pillow.
As you took in the familiar sights of your room in Ramshackle’s haunted house…you groaned and slapped a palm across your face…
“I wouldn’t have this problem if someone would just eat me already,” you grumbled.
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“You had another one, didn’tcha?”
You blinked and looked up from the book you were reading. Grim was sitting beside you, half finished with his sixth tuna can for lunch.
“What do you mean?” you asked the inquisitive not-cat.
“Your face,” said Grim, simply.
“What about it?” you huffed, and looked away to read the book. “I’m reading. This is my reading-for-class face.”
“Nope,” Grim insisted, shaking his head and pointing with one plump paw. “That’s your ‘I had a super weird dream last night’ look. Another one o’ those creepy visions again?”
You sighed and looked up towards the sky, snapping the book shut.
“I really don’t want to talk about it,” you groaned.
Grim sneered and shrugged.
“Fine, if yer gonna be a sourpuss about it,” he pouted, then his sparking ears lifted as he heard the distant, familiar voices of Ace and Deuce not so far away. “I’m gonna go see how the guys are doin’. You stay right here, Minion!”
You gave a mock salute, with a tired smile, and watched as Grim tossed his now empty can away and trotted off towards another part of the grounds. You were sitting on a bench beneath the castle’s proudest apple tree, near the fabled wishing well. It was quiet; not many people were around here at this time of the day. You tried to remove the thoughts of last night via your studies…but to be honest, the Annotated History of Magical Economics was not exactly a page turner, and your mind kept wandering.
You were unaware of a pair of great, big, yellow eyes, watching you from the shadows of the nearby colonnade. The eyes blinked once. As they did, a brief flicker of mesmerizing, pastel colors seemed to float around the irises and pupils, before flitting out with a second blink. The figured then slithered out from the colonnade, strutting towards where you sat - hips swaying, pelvis shifting alluringly - a sensual, slippery smirk upon their face.
You heard the creak of something - or someone - leaning on the back of the bench a moment later, and a familiar, sibilant voice slid into your ears.
“Sssay now…what have we here?”
You jumped, a bit alarmed by the voice in your ear…especially as you could sense the dampness of a slimy tongue very close to your earlobe. You turned around fast, then sighed with a mixture of relief and mild annoyance as you saw the face of the slinky, smirking Savanaclaw student, who peered down at you with a smug, seductive sort of expression.
“Good afternoon, Nakoda,” you greeted, crisply.
“Hello, breakfassst,” hissed the naga-in-human-form, with a flirtatious wink and lick of his lips.
“It’s lunchtime,” you replied, blandly, not to be taken in.
“Even better,” Nakoda said, and snickered in his usual way. “Sss-sss-sss-sss! That means I don’t have to ssspend an entire day digesssting you. Only part of one!”
“Doesn’t it literally take days for you to digest anyone?” you drawled back.
Nakoda grinned wider.
“Awww…you remembered,” he crooned, and licked his lips. “I’m sssimply touched.”
You blushed, and firmly turned back to your book.
“I’m trying to study,” you grumbled. “If you just came over here to talk sexy, can you please do it later?”
“Then you admit I’m sssexy,” smiled Nakoda, sidling into the bench, sitting beside you.
“I never ‘sssaid’ that you weren’t,” you replied, addressing him without looking at him. “You freaking KNOW you are. But there are more important things than bed and breakfast.”
Nakoda looked at you as if you had just spoken some heinous and unfathomable blasphemy.
“Is there something you need?” you urged, hoping you could get him to leave. The serpent wasn’t really what you needed, with all the things on your mind.
“Not really,” Nakoda answered with a shrug. “I sssimply noticed that one of my favorite sssnacks ssseemed a bit distressssssed, so I came over to sssee what the issssssue was.”
You looked up from your book doubtfully. You were surprised to find that Nakoda’s smile seemed…sincere. Warm. Different from his usual sultry, greedy expression that indicated equal parts hunger and thirst. It was…friendly.
That was new.
“Well…if you really want to know, I had a bad dream last night,” you confessed, then chuckled to yourself. “Jeeze…when I say it THAT way it sounds like I’m a toddler or something, doesn’t it?”
“Mmmm…you’d be sssurprised what an…IMPACT dreams can have,” Nakoda replied with a pleasured shudder.
You decided you could live without asking what THAT was supposed to mean. Instead, you explained to Nako about your recurring visions, about the past events and ominous signs of foreshadowing you’d seen so often in the past. You even admitted you’d had a similar dream strike you when Nakoda Spivak had tried to get Jamil thrown out of school.
“Interesssting,” murmured Nakoda, his expression uncharacteristically serious as he nodded, taking in the information carefully. “Ssso, basssically, anytime you have these dreams, you know sssomething bad is gonna happen.”
“Yeah, and I’m most likely gonna be roped in the middle of it,” you droned.
“I don’t sssuppose I can do anything to help?” Nakoda asked.
“Could you eat me so I don’t have to clean up the mess later?” you drawled sarcastically.
Nakoda grinned VERY widely.
“Is that your final anssswer?” he hissed, eyes flashing with gluttonous excitement.
Quickly realizing your mistake, you held up your hands placatingly.
“N-Never mind! Just a figure of speech!” you squeaked out.
Nakoda snickered and leaned in till your noses nearly touched. One of his hands swept across and rested on your thigh.
“Your ssscent, and your blush, sssay otherwise,” he breathed out, in a voice that could only be described as famished.
Before your flustered, sputtering brain could produce an answer, the sound of a school bell was heard, making both you and Nakoda jump in surprise. The bell was followed by the voice of Dire Crowley over the school loudspeakers, announcing that all students were to go to the assembly hall immediately.
Nakoda pouted, looking deeply disappointed; even a little sad.
“Well, ain’t that always the way?” he grumbled.
You smiled weakly, not sure if you should be relieved…or a little disappointed, yourself.
“Guessssss I’ll sssee you around, sssweetheart,” Nakoda smiled, and stood up, giving a reassuring smile. “In all ssseriousnessssss…if you need sssomeone to talk to about those dreams, or jussst to help you sssleep…you can always trussst in me.”
“I’m not so sure of that,” you chuckled nervously, very easily catching the sound of the serpent boy’s stomach gurgling on the last three words. “But thanks anyway, Nakoda.”
Nako smiled a bit wider, then tucked his hands in his pockets and swaggered off in his usual cocky, slithery way. You couldn’t help but stare, watching him go…watching the way his wide hips swayed…watching his rear bounce and shift, so tightly packed into his pants…
“NYA! MINION, SNAP OUT OF IT!”
“Wh-wha…?”
You quickly shook your head and looked down, as you felt - and heard - Grim tugging on your pants leg.
“C’mon!” the little beast urged. “We gotta go to the assembly! I do NOT wanna deal with Trein if we’re late.”
Well, that was a good incentive if you’d ever heard one. You nodded and stood up, and followed Grim in the direction of the Assembly Hall. You already had a feeling, after recent conversations, of what the assembly was going to be for…and you were correct.
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“Ruggie, Azul, Sebek, James, and Smitty…I gotta say, that’s a pretty colorful group of people to go on a treasure hunt with. You two must be under some pressure.”
“Nya! It’s nothing the Great Grim can’t handle!”
You just chuckled and ruffled Grim’s headfur; he hissed and swatted at your hands with a petulant expression. You then smiled at Deuce, who had been the one to speak first.
“Honestly, I’m surprised,” you admitted. “I wasn’t even sure Grim and I would be on the ballot. You know, on account of the fact I don’t have any magic. Didn’t they discount Ortho because of all his technomantic doodads, after all?”
“Hey, Ortho had too big an advantage, not the same as your problem,” Deuce shrugged, and smiled at you gently. “Besides, you two are still students of Night Raven College. Magic or no magic, you’re one of us! Right, Ace?”
“Yeah. Sure. Whatever…”
Deuce frowned as Ace - with the most sour and dour expression - carelessly stuffed some popcorn into his mouth, chewing boredly. You and Grim and invited your two best friends over to Ramshackle to watch a movie together, in celebration of being chosen for the Scavenger’s Hunt. However, all night, Ace had been moping and grumpy.
“Okay, seriously, what’s the problem?” snapped Deuce, fed up with Trappola’s guff. “Aren’t you happy for these two?”
“To be honest? Not really,” Ace said, blandly.
“Well, gee, thanks a ton,” you said, with a smile as sarcastic as your tone.
“Ha! You’re just jealous because we get to go find buried treasure instead o’ you!” teased Grim.
“Yes. Yes, that’s it exactly,” huffed Ace, and sighed dismally. “Seriously, how come you two have all the fun? Just thinking of all those coins, waiting to be dug up, and how I can’t even touch a single SPECK of it…”
“Hey, it’s not like they’re gonna be able to do much with it,” Deuce snorted, lounging back in his sofa seat.
“Nya?” blinked Grim. “What do you mean?”
“Well, first of all, the ones who find the treasure can’t really KEEP it,” Deuce said.
“WHAT?!” screeched Grim and Ace at the same time, looking aghast.
You winced at their volume and then answered: “Weren’t you both paying attention? Once the donated treasure in the chest is found, it’s distributed amongst the native islanders. We get a prize trophy, sure, but we can’t keep the loot itself.”
“WELL, THEN WHAT’S THE POINT?!” shrieked Grim.
On his part, Ace just pouted more intensely, grabbed a bottle of soda, and began chugging it down as if he were trying to drown his own aggravation. Deuce rolled his eyes and patted his friend on the shoulder.
“Hey, look at this way,” he said, and smirked at Grim. “Even if you DID find it, with Ruggie, Azul, and James all in the group, do you really think you’d get any of it anyway?”
Grim opened his mouth to answer…then closed it again…then shrugged.
“Guess you got a point, with the first two,” he said.
“Wait a minute, why are you lumping James in there?” you asked.
“Psh. James is in our dorm, remember?” Deuce said, gesturing with a thumb between himself and Ace, who was still silently downing cola like his life depended on it. “After Azul and Ruggie, I think he might be the single greediest guy I’ve ever met. He’s always looking for some way to make more money, always going out with his pal to see if they can find any valuable salvage off the port, always reading books about where the different treasures of old pirates may be found on the island…if there’s anyone more interested in gold than those three, I’d like to meet ‘em.”
You frowned and looked away thoughtfully. You took a sip of your own bottle of soda - tuning out the sounds of Ace chugging his down - as you reflected on this information. Suddenly, something didn’t seem right.
“What’s the matter, Prefect?” asked Deuce. Meanwhile, Ace finally finished his drink, and wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve.
“Grim and I met James and Smitty yesterday,” you answered. “They seemed pretty confident about getting chosen, even though Smitty said it would be random. They were also the first names that the Headmage pulled out of the hat.”
“You think maybe they rigged things to get in?” Ace reasoned, sounding a bit out of breath after his long drink..
“Maybe,” you nodded.
“But HOW?!” Grim exclaimed. “If it’s totally random, how’d they do that!”
You winced and wrung out your ear.
“Maybe if you stopped yelling directly into my eardrums I could answer that,” you groused. “Seriously, Grim, you’ve been doing that a lot lately; I’m gonna have tinnitus by morning…”
A grunt from Ace caught your attention. All three of the rest of you turned towards him as he massaged his stomach with one hand, and gave a sort of tight smirk, one eye closed.
“Heh…nah,” he half-grimaced, half-grinned. “THIS is what’s gonna give you tinnitus.”
So saying, he slapped his belly with both hands, and let out a rumbling, fat, wet burp, all of the carbonation he’d ingested rocketing free in a blast of foul gas.
“BLLLUUURRRUUURRRLLLUUUP!”
Ace sighed with deepest relief, then flashed a smug grin at the rest of you.
“How are your ears NOW, Prefect?” he teased.
You coughed once, your face red as a strawberry, while Deuce and Grim fanned the air before their noses.
“...When I stop being deaf, I’ll answer whatever you just said,” you replied.
Ace barked out a laugh in reply. It wasn’t long till all of you were giggling away.
Unknown to all of you, two other Heartslabyul students happened to be passing Ramshackle Dorm at that very moment.
“Yeesh,” Smitty McCarthy said, with a slight flinch, and looked up at James Killian beside him. “Well, Ace seems to be taking it pretty well…heh heh…”
“Indeed,” mumbled James, with a very slight blush to his cheeks. He shook his head and swaggered on, the ferrule of his cane tapping the stone path beneath his feet. “Thank you for taking care of the choices.”
“No problem, James. Soon as I told him what was in it for him, he was ready to say yes!” grinned Smitty, seeming proud to receive his fellow student’s gratitude. His smile fell soon after hower. “Um…James?”
“What is it, Smitty?”
“Don’t you think it’s…kinda dangerous, making that bargain? I mean…what if he causes us trouble?”
“Hardly,” shrugged James. “After all, by the time he gets any sort of chance to, the deed will be done.”
“Yeah, but still, tricking them all like this,” worried Smitty. “It’s not good form, you know.”
“You insult me, Smitty!” huffed James. “I’ll have you know I am the PARAGON of good form!”
Smitty looked dubious, but nodded anyway.
“Aye, James,” he said, slowly. “I…I guess you’d have to be.”
“Of course I am!” James blustered, and smirked. “Besides, it’s only bad form if you get caught.”
With a laugh, Smitty slung an arm around the shorter man’s shoulders, waving his cane about over his head.
“Now come, Smitty! Let us sing a shanty together; my victory is soon at hand!”
Smitty giggled and grinned, nodding as he wrapped one arm around his partner in return.
“Aye-Aye, Cap’n!” he cheered, and the two strolled off into the night. Their voices - especially James’ - sang joyously into the air, contrasting with the foreboding tone of the lyrics…
“Sing a Yo-Ho! I’ll slaughter the swine! Yo-Ho! Must be Fate’s design! At last our tales will again intertwine! Revenge, Revenge, REVENGE is Gonna Be Mine!”
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The date of the start of the Scavenger’s Hunt had arrived. You and Grim walked side by side, towards one of the wide, sandy beaches on Sage’s Island. The beachside had been selected as the meeting place, where the teams for both Night Raven College and Royal Sword Academy would see each other face to face for the first time, before the great treasure quest began.
You paused to adjust the backpack on your back; while you had not actively participated in the Camp Vargas events the school regularly held, you had learned enough from watching your fellow classmates to know what sort of essentials were going to be helpful to spend the night. (One of them was quite a number of tuna cans, just to keep Grim from going stark raving mad if hunting, fishing, or foraging didn’t produce much.) You were feeling rather nervous; there would be no instructors supervising this game, you had learned. You and your fellow students would be totally on your own, and not simply having to survive one night in the woods, but also having to track down the clues to a treasure chest, AND having to deal with Royal Sword at the same time.
“This is gonna be one heck of a weekend,” you sighed to yourself.
“Mrmph,” grunted Grim in reply, his tone and expression clearly quite sulky. Ever since he’d learned that none of the treasure could be claimed by you all, he’d been pouting. You smiled sympathetically, and reached down to scratch behind his ears, chuckling as he soon began to purr softly.
“Come on, don’t be such a grump,” you teased. “This’ll be fun! Think of it this way: if we find the treasure, then everyone will know ‘the Great Grim’ is the best treasure hunter of all, won’t they?”
Grim smiled.
“Well, when ya put it THAT way…”
You sniggered and rolled your eyes, then tossed your head to beckon Grim to follow you, the pair of you resuming your walk.
It wasn’t too long till you spotted the section of the beach where the meetup was to take place. From a distance, you could see Dire Crowley pacing back and forth; his yellow eyes shone behind his raven’s mask, as he peered at a pocket watch he held in one hand. A little closer to you were some of your teammates…
“Ah, there you are, Prefect!” Azul Ashengrotto grinned, as he saw you approach. “You’re right on schedule!”
“I was a little worried we’d be late,” you admitted, then nodded to the second figure, who stood a small distance away from Azul. “Good morning, Sebek.”
Sebek Zigvolt grunted. He was dressed in the long green waterproof (and other clothes) you’d seen him wear during Camp Vargas, while Azul was wearing a long, green-and-purple camouflaged, hooded trenchcoat. You recognized them as the same coat he wore during Beanfest, on the Monster team; other pieces of gear on him were similar in style…in fact, all that was really missing were the glasses, as he wore his own typical spectacles instead.
“Nya! Where’d you get those?” Grim asked Azul, also noticing the outfit.
Azul smiled and held his head high, clearly quite taken with his own costume.
“Sam was selling off some old pieces of Beanfest gear; this set was in good condition, and I remembered rather liking how it all looked on me. Besides, one must dress appropriately when preparing to ramble in the woods,” he replied.
“Awwww,” Grim whined, dipping his ears and looking up at you. “And all my Minion wore was their gym uniform!”
You shrugged.
“Hey, unlike Azul, I’m not made of money,” you retorted. “I had other things to worry about than looking spiffy.”
“Oh, don’t be so modest, Prefect,” Azul smirked, adjusting his spectacles. “When it comes to physical labor in the forest, I’d say you look like the perfect choice.”
You blinked.
“...As soon as I figure out if you’re insulting me or praising me, I’ll come up with a witty reply,” you said.
Azul just chuckled. You then raised an eyebrow as you looked towards Sebek. He was unusually silent, seated on a large rock near the very edge of the shore, looking out towards the horizon with a pensive scowl. His arms were crossed over his chest, his navy green eyes glittering in an icy sort of way.
“You’re a lot less noisy than usual,” Grim remarked, rather rudely, then smirked, crossing his forelimbs over his fluffy chest. “Somebody steal your breakfast this morning?”
Sebek just growled irritably, clenching one of his gloved hands into a fist.
“Human?” he rumbled. “Would you kindly silence that overgrown hairball before I take a bite out of him?”
“Sorry, Sebek,” you apologized with a mild sort of smile. “I haven’t been able to find the mute button yet.”
“NYA! WHO YOU CALLIN’ AN OVERGROWN HAIRBALL?!” Grim snapped.
Sebek growled again in response, this time bearing his fangs at Grim.
“I’LL THANK YOU TO BE MORE CAREFUL WHEN ADDRESSING THE GUARD OF THE MIGHTY MALLEUS!” he bellowed.
Grim let out an “eep!” and hid behind your leg. You couldn’t help but smirk.
“There’s the Sebek I know,” you said, somewhat teasingly.
Sebek just puffed through his nostrils and turned away again. Concerned, you took a cautious step forward. “Are you alright? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you act this, um…thoughtful.”
“‘Thoughtful’ isn’t the word,” Azul spoke up. “I’d say he’s more ‘sulky.’”
“SULKY?!” yelled Sebek, rounding on Azul this time. “INCONCEIVABLE! The attendants of the great Malleus Draconia are far too dignified to sulk!”
“Oh, really?” smirked Azul. “Then what would you call your petulant behavior when ‘the great Malleus’ wouldn’t let you sit in his lap, as I recall?”
Both yourself and Grim giggled at the pinkish hue that overtook Sebek’s cheeks.
“That’s…that’s different,” Zigvolt replied, feebly.
Azul chuckled again, louder than before, then gave you a smile.
“You’ll have to forgive him, Prefect,” he said, smoothly. “It’s my understanding that Sebek here has been acting like this practically since the team members were announced.”
“Let me guess,” you smiled at Sebek, not unkindly. “Are you worried about having to leave Malleus’ side for so long?”
“As a matter of fact, yes,” sniffed Sebek. “But concern for my liege and his protection are NOT the sole reason for my…absolutely-and-completely-NOT-sulky mood right now.”
“He’s upset about a specific teammate of ours,” Azul explained, adjusting his own gloves.
“Which one?” you asked, curiously.
You soon found out.
“AHOY THERE!”
All eyes turned to see two new figures coming up the beach. You immediately recognized them as James Killian and Smitty McCarthy. The Heartslabyul duo were no longer in uniform; the hunt allowed participants to wear any choice of clothes they wished. For Smitty’s case, his ensemble still included his square-lensed glasses and red cap, but he also wore blue jeans and brown leather shoes. His top consisted of a blue-and-white striped shirt, which seemed to fit him a bit too small, exposing part of his plump, round tummy, and an olive green seaman’s jacket.
It was James, however, who most assuredly stole the spotlight. You could have spotted his ensemble from a mile away: he still wore the black boots, purple bandana, and assortment of rings upon his fingers, and still carried his gold-topped cane. His legs were shrouded by maroon britches, which were held up by a black leather belt with a golden buckle, shaped in the image of a skull and crossbones. A somewhat loose-fitting white shirt was visible above this, with sleeves that ended in foppish frills; the shirt’s top couple buttons were undone, giving you a good view of the upper portion of his athletic-looking chest.
However, beyond even this show of “eye candy,” the most attractive feature - certainly the one that drew the most attention - was James Killian’s coat. It was a long piece, somewhat similar in fashion to a morning coat, but with a high, stiff collar. The garment was colored a vibrant shade of crimson, with black shoulder pads and lapels, and gold thread lining on the aforementioned collar. The inside of the coat was lined with pale purple. It was a bold and flashy sort of outfit, on the whole, and on many people it would probably look rather gaudy…yet James wore it with such confidence, and held such pride as he sauntered along the beach, twirling his stick like an aristocrat out on a stroll, that he somehow made the whole thing look exquisite.
“Sorry we’re a bit late!” Smitty apologized as he scampered over. “We were just-OOF!”
Smitty tripped on something in the sand and flopped face down onto the beach. James paused as he came up behind his friend. He blinked down at him boredly, then poked Smitty’s backside with his cane.
“Get up, you idiot,” he droned, dully.
Smitty immediately hopped up, like a bouncy ball, and dusted himself off.
“Aye-aye, James. Sorry!” he peeped, with an apologetic smile.
James just smirked and rolled his eyes in amusement, before stepping towards you.
“Good morning to you, Prefect!” he greeted warmly. “And the same to you, Grim!”
The two of you nodded back in greeting, then looked towards Smitty. He gave you both a wave, fiddling with his hat in a shy way, clearly embarrassed after his clumsy tumble.
“I’m glad you both could make it,” you smiled, looking at Smitty when you spoke. The words seemed to make him feel a bit better, as he visibly perked up, blue-green eyes dancing behind his glasses.
“It’s good to see you again, James!” Azul spoke up, smiling broadly as he approached the red-dressed swordsman, holding out one gloved hand. “Is all well?”
“All is very well!” James practically sang back, and shook Azul’s right hand with his left. “And I must say, I was quite pleased to see you as part of this team! I dare say we’ll make quite the magnificent crew!”
“Oh, I haven’t any doubt,” said Azul, and noticeably tightened his grip as he leaned in close. “I presume we shall prove mutually beneficial to each other, in finding the treasure.”
James’ expression matched Azul’s as he squeezed back.
“Oh, most assuredly,” he slithered out. “After all, we can’t allow it to fall into…unworthy hands, can we?”
“That depends on your definition,” replied Azul, quite honestly. “I’d say helping our neighbors here on the island is a most worthy cause.”
“Because it puts them in your debt?” you couldn’t help but drawl.
“Why, Prefect! WhatEVER gave you SUCH an idea!” Azul gasped, as if insulted.
You and Grim shared a look.
James just narrowed his eyes slightly.
“It’s not the islanders I’m referring to,” was all he said.
A clearing of the throat finally indicated Sebek’s presence to James. He looked towards the half-fairy…and his beaming expression immediately shifted to a sour sort of look.
“Oh,” he muttered. “Crocodile.”
“Human.”
“Suddenly, my excitement for this event has significantly dwindled,” huffed James, straightening his back as he held his cane before him, and lifted his head high in an imperious fashion. “Shouldn’t you be glutting yourself on some old, rotten fish or something about now, you cursed beast?”
Sebek’s eyes narrowed, and he rose up from where he sat. He towered over James with his own great height as he strode close, glaring down at the far less impressively tall person.
“I can think of a few things better to eat,” Sebek answered, ominously.
James held his ground, but once more you noticed his cheeks becoming flushed. Sebek seemed to notice as well.
“Oh, I would be very nervous if I were you,” he said, indicating said blush. “I’m going to ensure this game goes well for the Honor of the Great Malleus Draconia! If your arrogance causes any trouble, I’LL SWALLOW YOU WHOLE!”
“Trust me, I would love to see you try,” drawled James, in a tone that you weren’t entirely sure sounded all that sarcastic. “And if you want to talk arrogance, I recommend looking in the water. Your reflection and yourself shall have much to discuss.”
Sebek glared and lifted a finger, opening his mouth as if to shout something else…but Smitty suddenly slipped in to stand between the two, looking up at Sebek with a soothing sort of expression.
“Hey…l-listen, can’t we just…save these arguments for later?” he asked, with a nervous little laugh. “I mean…we all have to work together, don’t we?”
Sebek glared…but grumbled out something in the affirmative and sat back down on his stone. Now there could be no doubt: he was DEFINITELY sulking.
“Well, anyway,” you piped up, wanting to change the subject. “That seems to be everybody but Ruggie.”
“Nya…where is he, anyway?” Grim wondered, looking around as if trying to spot him. “It’s not like him to be late.”
“I was wondering the same thing,” Azul nodded in agreement, and looked at the Heartslabyul pair. “I don’t suppose you have any idea, James?”
“Hardly,” James answered, shaking his head. “I am not Savanaclaw’s keeper, after all. What that hyena gets up to is hardly my business.”
“Especially since he’s always talking about how James would probably taste like-YIPE!” Smitty’s words were cut off by James flipping his hat over his eyes. As he struggled to remove it, the taller fellow went on…
“My point is, your guess is as good as mine,” James said, oh-so-innocently.
Azul smirked in a knowing sort of fashion.
“Indeed,” he said, softly, then placed his hands on his hips, still smirking. “For the record, you know, whatever Ruggie thinks you’d taste like…he’s probably correct. For I doubt it could be anything bad.”
James narrowed his eyes, face still faintly tinted red, but said nothing. You and Grim once again shared a look, this time of slight confusion.
“I’ll speak with the Headmage briefly,” Azul said. “After all, as the upperclassman of this group, I have automatic seniority as captain.”
“Aye, Cap’n,” Smitty said, saluting Azul. James bowed his head respectfully in agreement, but you caught a hint of envious green in his eyes. Azul bowed his head right back, and wandered over to speak to Crowley, who was still pacing a couple yards away.
“I get the feeling you two know each other,” you spoke up, waving a hand between James and the retreating Azul indicatively.
“Ah, yes!” James grinned, with boyish delight. “Azul and I have been lab partners a couple of times, you see. I’ve also offered my assistance occasionally at his Lounge…naturally, for a fee. I daresay the two of us are on quite amicable terms!”
“Well, that’s always good to hear,” you smiled. “It’s great to have friends who have more experience than you.”
James’ smile faltered. Something flickered in his brown eyes, like sparks flying off of copper coins.
“Experience you are correct about,” James replied. “But I hesitate to call us friends.”
You smiled in a weary sort of way. Of course. This was common across Night Raven.
“It’s not a weakness to enjoy friendship,” you said, simply. “Trust me, at some point or another, everyone here has felt that way.”
James looked you up and down and then turned away.
“A thousand pardons, my dear Prefect, but you misunderstand my belief,” he said, very calmly, “Friendship is not a weakness. It is worse than that. It is an illusion.”
You felt your eyes widen. That was a new perspective. Your eyes suddenly felt drawn to Smitty, who was standing beside James, on the opposite side of him from you. You saw the little man wince, but he said nothing, quietly looking askance with sorrow in his large teal eyes.
You were about to speak up against this idea, but before you could, Azul returned. Behind him, you could see Crowley tapping his watch and scowling, as if he were worried about it running properly.
“Alright!” Azul announced boldly, clapping his hands together to get everybody’s attention. “It appears Ruggie will not be joining us for this hunt.”
“WHAT?!” Sebek suddenly shouted. “How dare that hyena shirk his duties?! SUCH BEHAVIOR IS MOST UNBECOMING!”
All of you flinched at Sebek’s volume before Azul took a deep breath and spoke again.
“He is not ‘shirking his duties,’ Sebek,” he correctly, very patiently. “He is sick.”
“Oh, dear,” you heard Smitty murmur.
“What’s the matter with him?” you asked, concernedly.
“Some sort of stomach virus, possibly food poisoning,” replied Azul. “He should recover in a day or two; my guess is he ate something that didn’t quite agree with him.”
You sighed. Yeah. That sounded about right, considering Ruggie would eat just about anything (and anyone) that wasn’t too expired.
“At any rate,” Azul went on, adjusting his glasses. “A new student from the same dorm has been selected to take part. Things are running very last minute, however, hence why they’re running a bit late.”
“Not as late as Royal Sword,” huffed Grim, noticing then and there that you and your Night Raven colleagues were the only ones on the beach at that moment. “Jeeze, what’s keepin’ those goody-two-shoes, anyway?”
“Typical,” huffed Sebek, snootily. “Trust them to have no regard for the importance of punctuality. Not that a certain human here was any better…”
“Oi!” snapped James, crossly. “I’ll have you know, I’m only fashionably late!”
“There is nothing fashionable about tardiness!” Sebek rapped back. “SHOW SOME RESPECT FOR OTHERS’ TIME!”
“Perhaps after YOU show respect to ME, for a change!”
“HA! A loudmouthed human like yourself is hardly worthy of anything resembling respect!”
“Pot to the kettle, YOU OVERGROWN LIZARD!”
The two were soon bickering hotly. Grim hissed and covered his ears. You awkwardly turned to Azul, who was pinching his brow in frustration.
“So, uh…I’m guessing you and James aren’t the only ones with history, huh?”
“Picked up on that, did you?” Azul smiled, in a sarcastic sort of way, then sighed and shook his head. “To tell you the truth, I don’t know the story behind these two. All I know is that any time they meet, in any capacity, sparks fly.”
You nodded. That much was evident.
“H-Hey, that’s enough!” Smitty’s voice suddenly called out, and he stepped once more between Sebek and James, throwing out his arms as if to protect the taller student. “I-If you can’t stop yelling at James, then don’t say anything at all!”
“Me?! Yelling at him?!” boomed Sebek, infuriated. “And what about-?!”
“ENOUGH!”
An uncharacteristic shout from Dire Crowley silenced all of you, and made you jump. The Headmage shook his head, clearly annoyed, and grumbled as he shook his watch and held it up to his ear.
“The time MUST be correct, I CAN’T be mistaken!” you heard him mutter to himself. “That careless lout, Ambrose…!”
James and Sebek shot one another a glare, then finally turned away from one another. Arms crossed, like a pair of pouting schoolboys. A moment later, however, their cross expressions faltered, eyes opening as they heard a sibilant snicker echo across the beach.
“Sss-sss-sss-sss! Well…if these are the ones I’m gonna be sssleeping with, one way or another, I mussst be in for a fun time, huh?”
Swaggering along the shore came Nakoda Spivak.
To Be Continued in Part 2…
#fanfic#kink-related#but only peripherally#gonna tag the kinks#just in case#implied vore#stuffing#belching#burping#disney#twisted wonderland#chapter story#chapter 1#the scarlet pirate#oc story#ocs#james#james killian#smitty#smitty mccarthy#nako#nakoda#nakoda spivak#non-ocs#azul#azul ashengrotto#sebek#sebek zigvolt#grim#ace
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