i think it would be less that even doesn't have a moral compass anymore after All That Shit and more that they just. need it to be re-calibrated a little bit. their ability to tell right from wrong got a bit fucked up in the need to survive a little longer, and if you just put them in a slightly healthier environment, they would figure it out.

Toph Beifong doesn’t hold up as disability representation - Disability in the Media

[ID: A screenshot of Toph, a twelve-year-old girl with black hair in a loose, green and tan short-sleeve shirt and shorts, cheering in an arena. Next to text written in a rough, blocky font: "Disability in Media - Toph Beifong Doesn't hold up as disability representation" /End ID]

Avatar the Last Airbender is one of my all-time favourite TV-shows, and Toph is still easily one of my favourite members of Team Avatar. I was a few years younger than Toph when the show first started airing, and being a disabled kid who was into martial arts, constantly being dismissed by my able-bodied opponents and teachers, meant that I connected very strongly with her right from the get-go.

But upon my last couple of rewatches of the series, I began to come to the realisation that my opinions on Toph as a shining example of good disability representation were... well, pretty heavily influenced by my nostalgia for the show and that many aspects of Toph's character just don't hold up today. Which, honestly is fair, the show is nearly 19 years old (if it were a person in my country, it would be old enough to drink) and I think it's pretty ridiculous to expect every part of every character from an 19 year old show to age well. So today I wanted to talk about the things I think Avatar the original Last Airbender did right with Toph, where I think they missed the mark, and what changes I think would need to be made to Toph to make her work for a modern audience.

So let's start with why I think Toph doesn't really hold up as "good disability representation" today, and the elements of her character that just haven't aged as well.

For me, one of the biggest issues I noticed upon rewatching the show, is how often we are told (often by Toph herself) that she is blind, but how infrequently we are actually shown it's impact on her life beyond her bending or outside of jokey contexts. Outside of her bending, we only ever see her blindness impacting her ability to do things like read or write, otherwise, she functionally has full vision -so far as the audience is informed - with the only exceptions being when she's in the air or water (e.g. on Appa or in the submarines) or in loose soil (e.g. the desert). Having places and circumstances where she doesn't have access to her power that allows her to "see" was a step in the right direction, but I do think it would have been better if her seismic sense wasn't quite as accurate, even in the most ideal of circumstances.

But why? Well, I think Suki explains it really well, long before Toph is even introduced. when Sokka says "I should have seen you as a warrior instead of a girl" Suki stops him and says "I am a warrior, but I'm also a girl". Being a warrior and a woman are both important parts of Suki's character, and only recognising her as one or the other means ignoring a big part of who she is, and the same is true for Toph. Being blind is a big part of toph's character that has informed a lot of her life, but so is being a warrior and bending master. Many people see Toph as a warrior or fighter, but ignore her disability, but both are important. She's disabled, and a warrior, and those things don't cancel each other out, the same way being a warrior doesn't diminish Suki's status as a woman.

When the show was still airing though (and even still today) it was very common to see non-disabled fans of the show exclaiming that they honestly forget that Toph is even blind sometimes, with many people going so far as to say that she's not even disabled (and that this was a good thing). While I do think some of that comes from the fact they weren't used to seeing a disabled character as both disabled and an active participant in these kinds of stories, I do think this mostly happened because of the show's lack of, well, showing the impact of her blindness on her daily life and allowing her earthbending and seismic sense to erase the effects of her disability to some extent. It's much harder to forget a character is blind when it impacts their daily life in ways that are shown to the audience. This doesn't have to be in big, showy ways mind you, showing things subtly but consistently works way better than one "very special episode" type setup.

In the show as it is though, the seismic sense functionally gives Toph a perfect image of her surroundings until it's just not available anymore for *plot reasons*.

[ID: A black and white shot of Toph and how she sees the oponent she's fighting, with shockwaves radiating from him towards her to indicate how she's interpreting the scene. Her foe has jumped into the air and now has his hand dug into the ground of an arena, about to launch rocks towards her. /End ID]

In many ways, her picture of the world is better and clearer than what the non-disabled characters can see, leading to this feeling of her disability being erased. It may have been better though if the seismic sense could give her a general idea of big things in her immediate vicinity but she still missed the finer details, functioning at least a little bit more like a tactile/earthy-vibration version of the limited sight some legally-blind people have in real life. Things like a person's position, movement and overall pose would still be "visible" to her in a general sense, as well as big things in the environment (including things underground, since there are a few plot-points that require that), but smaller things like details about objects and creatures, people's facial expressions or what they're doing with parts of their body that have no direct contact with the ground (like their hands) is less clear. On top of this, she may struggle to detect smaller, lighter objects or creatures that realistically wouldn't cause much of a vibration at all. creatures as small and as light as Momo and Hawky for example might be detectable, but "fuzzy" to her, and anything smaller might make enough of a vibration to tell her it's there when it moves, but not enough for her to be able to tell what specifically it is without some other cue (such as sound). There are a few moments in the show that seem to imply this is what they were initially going for, but it's not really consistent, and is directly contradicted in her debut episode, "the blind bandit" when she explains that she can even "see" something as small as the ants off in the distance.

[ID: A shot of Aang, a twelve-year-old bald boy with an arrow tattoo on his head, dressed in a yellow and orange outfit, standing with Toph at night. In the foreground is an anthill will a trail of ants, which Aang is looking for. /End ID]

With an adjustment like what I'm suggesting though, she still serves her narrative purpose of teaching Aang the importance of being able to wait and listen - possibly even more so, as her needing to wait and collect more information in order to get a clearer image before striking, would back-up what Bumi tells Aang that he needs in an earth bending master. It would also still help to illustrate the connectedness of the world, a theme Toph continues to embody heavily in The Legend of Korra, while still showing the ways her disability impacts her more frequently.

When I talked about the "super-crip" trope a while back, I mentioned that one way to avoid the more harmful elements of the trope (where the character's disability is erased by their powers) is to use the ability in question more like a mobility or disability aid than a straight-up cure. The power should help them, but shouldn't make their disability redundant. People are creative and we would find ways to use a superpower or magic to help with our disabilities if it were available in real life, but what's the point of including a disabled character if you're just going to functionally erase their disability? For a character like Toph, I think this is the kind of approach that should be taken with her. Her seismic sense still helps her, but it's not a perfect replacement. (Ironically, I did use Toph as a "good" example of that trope, but I do think after this last rewatch, for the reasons I'm discussing here, I might have to backtrack that a bit).

I considered giving an alternative approach here, to keep the sensitivity of toph's seismic sense as it is in the show as is, but giving it draw-backs such as making her susceptible to sensory overload similar to what autistic people experience. However, while replacing one disability with another can work for some characters and stories, I don't think it's the best adjustment to make for Toph or any blind character, largely thanks to this also being a trope. The "blind (or d/Deaf) person who's other senses become super-human to make up for it" trope is very common in fantasy, sci-fi as well as older martial arts films, and while I'm not really the best person to cover it, I do know that members of both the blind and deaf communities have expressed a lot of frustration with it. Toph already falls into this trope quite a bit, and any suggestions I could make would have just dialled that element up to 11, and fixing one problem with another is never a good idea.

Another thing that actually did bug me for a while, even before my most recent rewatch of the show, is how Toph is treated on the rare occasions she does point out something won't working for her. There are a number of times where Toph advocates for herself and points out that something The Gaang is doing isn't accessible to her or sets a boundary to do with her disability, and she's either left behind, her concerns are brushed off or she's ignored entirely. The three most noticeable examples of this are in the Episodes "The Ember Island Players," "The Library," and Toph and Katara's segment of "Tales of Ba Sing Se."

In the Ember Island Players, Toph complains that the seats they have for the play are too high up and too far away, and she's unable to "see" what's happening on stage. Her friends don't really take any notice of her though except for Katara who tells her not to worry, "I'll tell your feet what's happening."

[ID: A shot of Katara, a fourteen-year-old girl with long brown hair and blue eyes, sitting with Toph, who is sitting with her arms crossed, annoying in a theatre seat. Both Toph and Katara are wearing red and gold, fire-themed outfits. Katara is looking at something off-screen. /End ID]

My problem here is that this particular kind of situation is something that is familiar to a lot of disabled people. Even the least independent disabled people I know get annoyed when their access needs or requests for accommodations, even among friends, are ignored and their pushback is brushed off with "don't worry, I'll just help you!" It's one of the first things that many disabled people tell non-disabled folks wishing to be better allies to us: you offering help instead of actually accommodating us isn't a good thing. We don't want to rely on others if we can avoid it, because honestly, non-disabled people often aren't very good at actually helping or in this case, relaying information to us without training and more often than not, it just results in us being left out. I find it very hard to believe a character as independent as Toph would accept that without any protest, especially considering that is pretty much exactly what ends up happening (even if the show didn't really acknowledge it). Katara never actually conveys anything about the play to Toph, except when she's attempting to throw Toph's words back in her face when she asks for clarification about the actor playing her - which ends up backfiring on her.

[ID: A shot from the same location as before, this time Toph has a huge smile on her face and is leaning on the balcony excitedly while Katara is leaning towards her, annoyed by her reaction. /End ID]

While it would have been better if Toph was actually listened to, it would have been…fine? if a justification was given for why they had to sit there (e.g. to avoid being recognised), if Katara had actually described the play for her. This wouldn't have been ideal, but it would have been better at least. In real life, many movies, TV shows (including this show's sequel series, The Legend of Korra) and other forms of visual media have an Audio Description track that does exactly that. If they weren't going to move for Toph to be able to see better, having Katara describe the play could have introduced kids to the fact this is an option. but instead it's brushed off, and I'll admit, it left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, even back in 2006.

The Library is a bit more forgivable in my opinion, since Toph is still new to the group, but in this episode, she states that she doesn't want to go inside the spirit library because she isn't able to read and therefor there wouldn't be anything for her to do. However, it still would have been nice to see her friends consider this at all before they actually arrived. They could have (and should have) still gone, but some acknowledgement that they at least thought about the inclusion of their disabled friend would have been nice.

[ID: A shot of Aang, Katara, Sokka and another man are talking while looking down at a map on the table. Meanwhile, Toph is sitting on the other side of the table, completely disinterested as she sips from a large ice cup with her feet up on another chair. /End ID]

Alternatively, I do feel like Wan Shi Tong, a self-proclaimed all-knowing-spirit or his assistants would have been able to point her in the direction of something to interest her, since he does imply books aren't the only form of knowledge he collects.

The reason I mention this though is two-fold. In real life, disabled people are very often left out of "fun" group activities, whether that be in formal settings or in casual ones, like hanging out with friends. If the episode had been framed as "the Gaang learns about the library and decides to track it down," I might have been less critical, but it's specifically framed as something that at least starts out as a kind of break for the team where they all take turns picking out fun things to do so they can rest, and Toph's access needs not being considered at all until they're already there hits a bit close to home, especially since they just end up leaving her outside. Secondly, there's also a stereotype that disabled people (and especially blind people) don't belong in academia and places of learning, such as in this case, libraries. This stereotype is about as old as the concept of organised institutions of learning, and definitely isn't unique to AtLA, but the assumption is often that disabled people wouldn't be interested in more formal methods of learning, so it's not worth accommodating us. With blind people in particular, when I've seen this in media, the premise is often "well I can't read anyway so why bother?" which Toph definitely falls into here with no push-back against the trope.

[ID: A close up of Toph and the rest of the group, Katara, Sokka and Aang standing in a desert. Toph shrugs, looking bored, while the others looks confused and surprised with the exception of Katara, who looks mildly annoyed, standing with her hands on her hips. /End ID]

It does make sense that she would have been resistant to going in, and I'm not saying this episode should have turned Toph into a bookwork akin to Wings of Fire's Starflight (another blind character) or anything. But there was a chance in this episode to push back against some of these assumptions, and I think it's a shame they missed it. How cool would it have been if Toph had mentioned not feeling welcomed in more formal learning spaces because of her disability, which was just reinforced by the way her old earthbending instructor and her parents treated her. She decides to go inside the library anyway as "backup" in case something goes wrong, grumbling about it the whole way down. Wan She Tong starts his introduction mostly the same way, saying humans aren't welcome and Toph makes a snarky comment about it. Wan She Tong, equally offended that this human thinks he, the all-knowing-spirit, wouldn't have considered something, shoots back with an annoyed comment about humans being so self-centred. He explains that spirits come in all shapes and sizes, and not all of them have eyes, but they can still access his library. She's not the first sightless being in his study, and he-who-knows-ten-thousand-things knows this too. Once everyone is permitted entry, one of the knowledge seekers shows her to a series of slates about a lost earthbending form that she can actually read (or at least, "see" the pictures on) because it's carved. Or instead of a slate, it's a series of statues outlining the form, similar to what Aang and Zuko find in the episode "The Firebending Masters". Perhaps this form is something that helps her develop metal bending later on, and lays the groundwork for Toph becoming interested in teaching in the comics.

And finally, Toph and Katara's segment of Tales of Ba Sing Se. Katara convinces Toph to go get a makeover with her as part of a girl's day. Overall, this segment of the episode is pretty nice, and I liked that they showed that a person's gender expression (in this case, being a tom-boy) doesn't mean they can't like things outside of what we usually associate with that. Tom-boys can like girly things on occasion, and vice-versa, and I think this is an example of an episode that would seem a bit ham-fisted today, but honestly, was needed in 2006. However, there's a throw away joke where Toph says "as long as they don't touch my feet," and it immediately cuts to show spa workers filing down the calluses on her feet in a way so painful several staff are required to hold her down.

[ID: An image of Toph in a bath robe being held down in a chair by two spa workers while a third scrubs at her feet so hard that she is sweating. Meanwhile Toph is fighting against the two holding her down and has a facial expression like she is in a great deal of pain. /End ID]

this might be a minor thing in the grand scheme of the show, but it's still another example of Toph's boundaries about her disability and her access needs being disrespected by her friends, which the show just doesn't acknowledge it at all. People ignoring Toph's wishes about a part of her body she depends on in a much more direct way that others do is played off like a joke in a montage of otherwise enjoyable and goofy activities and this is a very, very common experience in disability circles.

There are a number of other, much more minor issues that show up with Toph as well, such as the fact she's the only one of the main cast who never has an on-screen (or on-page) relationship. not in the original show, not in any of the comics and not in The Legend of Korra. Again, it's not a big issue on it's own, especially because in AtLA, she's young enough where it's possible that she was just not interested yet, and she does have kids in The Legend of Korra where she mentions a relationship with a man named Kanto (Lin's father). So it is implied she does have some form of relationship eventually, but the issue is that it's never shown on screen or on the page. This feeds into a wider pattern in media of disabled characters being the only ones in their respective cast not given on-screen romantic relationships in stories, and so I still think it's worth pointing out, especially since the creators have had a lot of opportunities to correct that by now.

Toph is also portrayed, pretty much undeniably, as the best earthbener in a way that, at times, comes across almost like the creators felt like they need to compensate for her being on the team "despite" her being blind. This trope is one that I think Toph, at least partially, helped to popularise with the current generation of story tellers: The Disabled Savant. In this trope, disabled characters aren't really given the same room for growth as other characters; they aren't permitted to be average or still learning, they start good and get better. If they do progress, they often become the best, which is the case for Toph. To be fair, everyone in the The Gaang is the best at their respective skill by the end of the first series, which is why I say this is a minor point. She dose, however, have the least amount of on-screen growth in skill out of the whole team. Katara starts out barely able to lift any water at all, let alone actually bend it. Sokka is skilled with weapons from the start but does get his butt handed to him a number of times by others with more experience than him whom he learns from throughout his story arc. Zuko spends most of the early-to-middle of the show having things "blow up in his face" (to use his own words) and being belittled by his family of prodigies. While Aang is an airbending and, to a lesser extent, waterbending prodigy, he fails at pretty much everything else for a while before he starts to find his confidence - especially earth and firebending, not to mention the entire situation with locking himself out of the Avatar state. Toph is the only one who doesn't seem to fail or struggle all that much from a combat perspective. She does grow and improve in her bending (she invents metal bending after all) but she never has any moments where she really messes up or even struggles in combat all that much compared to the others.

All of these points and criticisms I've mentioned are not necessarily big in and of themselves, but when looked at together, they build up to create some issues with how Toph is depicted and how the people around her treat her disability

So that's it then? Toph is bad disability rep and Avatar should be "cancelled"?

God no. Like I said at the start, I still adore Toph and Avatar as a whole, but the show is a year away from being two decades old, it's bound to have some elements that don't hold up and I think it's worthwhile discussing them, specifically because I love the show and it's characters. Despite all the negativity I've brought up, I do think there are a lot of things AtLA did well with Toph too.

I've mentioned a few times that we rarely see how Toph's blindness impacts her life outside of her bending and combat abilities, and there's a reason I made that specification. Unsurprisingly, if you know much about the show's development, the ways in which Toph’s blindness and seismic sense impacts her bending and fighting style is one area where the show really does shine, and I still think that is worth a mention. The various types of bending are based on different styles of martial arts, specifically, different types of Kung Fu. Most earthbending in the show takes heavy inspiration specifically from Hung Ga, but Toph is different. Her bending heavily references Southern Praying Mantis Kung Fu, something unique to her within this world.

The reason for this (outside of simply wanting her to be visually distinct) was because the show’s creators made sure to consider what limitations Toph might have and what parts of the more common earthbending styles wouldn't work for her. Since her connection to the earth was critical in order for her seismic sense to work, they decided on a style that would keep her feet on the ground more, prioritised strong stances with minimal jumping and put more focus on attacking with her upper body. While not an intentional choice, the style they went with for Toph, according to the show's head martial arts consultant, Sifu Kisu, was supposedly developed by a blind woman in real life, at least according to legend. The creators also made further adjustments to the style with the help of martial arts consultants and just watching Toph fight is evident that a lot of love and care was put into the decisions made on that front.

I also appreciate that Toph's disability wasn't off-limits to joke about.

[ID: A picture of Toph waving her hand in front of her face with an exaggerated smile to remind the others she's blind. /End ID]

As I already mentioned, they didn't land 100% of the time, but lot of shows are afraid to use disability as a source of jokes, which would have felt weird and out of place in a show like Avatar. I see this hesitance in real-life too; people get extremely uncomfortable when I joke about my own disabilities and I've heard several people and even disabled comedians talk about the same observation. My last video on Tik Tok that got outside my usual audience was a joke about my prosthetic leg, and every single stictch and duet I received was people saying some variation of "I'm such a bad person for laughing!" "I'm going to hell!" or just straight up asking if they're aloud to laugh. If I didn't want you to laugh, I wouldn't have posted the joke! But joking about disability does make it more approachable. Despite how often Toph and the others made blind jokes though, outside of the one instance I mentioned earlier, they never felt mean-spirited or like they were punching down. Even when a very sleep-deprived Katara was intentionally trying to be.

I think it's also worth keeping in mind the context of the media landscape when Avatar The Last Airbender was airing. Today, characters like Toph are very common, so much so there's a whole trope about them (super-crips) but at the time, having a character with a major disability be a main character in an action-orientated kids show like Avatar was really rare. She wasn't the first of course, but a lot of the time, if they were included, they were almost certainly sad and depressed, wishing for a cure or they were designated to the roles of "Guy in the chair" (which is a character, usually a tech person, who helps from the background), inspiration, scary villain fake-out (or other variations of "creepy" character) or the actual villain. Having a character that was not only comfortable in her skin as a disabled person, who didn't want or need to be "fixed" or "cured" to be directly involved in the story, and who's main obstacle (at least in season 2) were how the people around her treated her, was pretty ground-breaking at the time (pun not intended) and went against the most prevalent stereotypes of it's day.

And I really want to emphasise that. For many Millennials and older Gen Zers, myself included, Toph was the first character that didn't tell us we were broken and needed to be fixed in order to be part of the group (even if they slipped up with that messaging occasionally). Prior to seeing Avatar, I honestly thought there was something deeply wrong with me for being happy with my life (a reminder, I was 10 years old when this show first started airing), because every other disabled person in the media only ever talked about how much worse their life was because of their disability, how much they hated it and how much they hated themselves. Many outright said that they wished they had died rather than become like me. Toph wasn't the first to go against those tropes, but she was the first example of a disabled character who wasn't like that many people my age saw. Did she do it perfectly? Hell no, but personally, back then, I was happy to have a character who maybe over-corrected and took things a bit too far than another sad character talking about how lives like mine weren't worth living.

I also deeply appreciated that Toph did struggle with her independence, at least initially, and where to draw the line with accepting help. Because of how much she'd been coddled and overprotected as a little kid, she saw any attempt at people being helpful and working as a team as them trying to baby her. It was very on the nose, but I liked that the show gave her an episode just dedicated to realising that it's ok to accept help. Again, this is a bit of a story telling trope today, but having the disabled character realise that it's ok to accept help, and to do it without talking down to them or saying that them wanting independence was bad, was a refreshing change compared to what was around at the time.

[ID: a zoomed out image of Toph, standing before her parents with Aang, Katara and Sokka standing behind her. /End ID]

While I think the show's creators could have benefited from consulting with disabled people and specifically blind people the same way they brought in consultants for the martial arts featured in the show, it's very clear to me that the intention behind Toph's character was good, and that actual effort was put in to make sure they depicted her well, even if some of it was a bit misplaced. It's also worth noting that the groundwork for a lot of my suggestions is already in place, they just didn't follow it all the way through. Overall, I'd say Toph was good for her time, and she's what was needed in the 2000's, even if she doesn't hold up as well today. I also think it speaks to how far we've come in terms of disability representation. When I first started engaging with the online fandom directly, almost no one, even other disabled people, argued that Toph wasn't good representation, because honestly, the bar was on the floor and we were just happy to have something different. But now there are options, and the standards are higher, and that's so, so good. It means that people, even in the media, are starting to listen and be more thoughtful about their depictions of disability than we were in 2006.

And finally, I want to really quickly mention The Netflix adaptation of Avatar. A few people have asked me now what I think they should do with Toph when they get to her, and what my predictions about the show are. I'm not going to talk about my predictions here, because this post is already way too long and that's not what this is about, but I don't think the suggestions I made today would necessarily work in this particular remake, primarily because of the tonal differences. Some adjustments definitely could, such the other characters doing a better job at listening to Toph when she points out inaccessibility and them actually considering her in the first place, but others might be harder to balance. The original show could get quite dark and serious at times, but it was primarily a light-hearted adventure story for kids. From what I've seen of the live action remake though, they're more heavily leaning into those serious elements - for better or for worse, and as such, trying to tone Toph down in the specific ways I mentioned might not balance out as well as it would in the original show. At the very least, the specifics would need to be different. To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what approach they should take, that's not really the point of this post, but I did want to quickly address it to avoid confusion. My suggestions today were specifically on how to approach the cartoon version of Toph for a modern audience, and were not meant to be read as suggestions on how her live-action counterpart should be depicted.

ʚïɞ — gift giving with enhypen.

pairing. ot7 x gn!reader

genre. fluff, hcs

wc. 1.8k

note. its kinda embarrassing how easily you can see which hcs i enjoyed writing the most 💀💀 and also damn i really didnt think id be this excited to post these every 3 days 😭🙏🏻 so i hope you enjoy <33

taglist. send an ask or reply to this post if you want to be added to the taglist.  —  you can also sign up for my general taglist here if you want!

➝  5 love languages masterlist.

ʚɞ. lee heeseung — 이희승

handwritten cards

it's such a lovely thing, you can't help but laugh out of happiness every time you get another one of heeseung's handwritten cards. you think it's silly (obviously in a loving and positive way) every time you open the card and see that there's a block of handwritten text dedicated to you. you think it's silly until you read heeseung's short love poems for you at the end, and you can feel your heart doing literal backflips. either he has a way with words, or you're just insanely and hopelessly in love with him (probably both). most of the time, though (more like always), he insists you read them when he's not there - which you can understand, and therefore do. the only problem with it is that, once you're done, you can't kiss or hug him like you desperately want to every time. and well, heeseung's only problem is that, no matter how insanely beautifully he writes those texts for you, and how much he pours his heart into it, he knows there won't ever be a word to do his love for you justice. hell, there will never even be anything that comes close to putting how much he loves you into words. that's probably why he takes his time with the cards too - he wants them to be perfect, knowing you keep and reread every single one over time. and every time you intimately kiss him without saying a word as a really heartfelt thank you, he feels like writing them for you until the day he dies.

ʚɞ. park jongseong — 박종성

jewelry

from necklaces, to earrings, bracelets and rings - after a while, you almost lost count as to how many things jay has gifted you by now. you love jewelry; even more when it's something jay bought you. some people would find it rather too materialistic and simple, but for you, it's like you're wearing a tiny reminder that jay loves you - no matter what kind of jewelry you put on that day. especially when you know how picky he can get, only wanting the best things for his love; so he often takes his time when choosing what to buy you. and because they're quite on the expensive side, you always try to make sure you're taking care of them well; just looking at the way you put them in your jewelry box in the neatest way possible so they won't get tangled up alone. you try your best to take care of them, despite wearing something out of your little collection basically everyday. and with time, you eventually learned to stop feeling bad about how expensive these things must be - knowing jay would literally give you the world and more if he could. although sometimes you still feel a tad bit bad, you just appreciate every yet so tiny piece he gives you so much. jay absolutely loves seeing you wear whatever jewelry he got you one day, as it brings a tiny smile to his face that he tries to hide every time.

ʚɞ. sim jaeyun — 심쟤윤

clothes

usually, you'd go shopping together at any given chance. but when jake is at the mall by himself and quickly (mostly randomly) goes into some stores and does end up buying clothes, he finds himself buying clothes he thinks would look good on you as well, or just clothes you'd probably like and wear regularly. technically, it's (probably) not a 'classic' gift for many people; but as you both share a big interest in fashion and definitely influence each other's style in a way, you'd go as far as seeing the clothes he buys for you specifically as unspoken gifts every now and then. and well, like nine out of ten times, the things he buys actually end up in your closet (like the rest of the clothes you bought together, or he simply bought for you). jake absolutely loves seeing you wear the things he bought you - and it's hard for you to not notice that, with the way a big smile forms on his face when he sees what you're wearing. and without denying, you love it just as much, possibly even more. it's something so simple, and maybe rather small to other people, but you two always have and will cherish it.

ʚɞ. park sunghoon — 박성훈

flowers

it's the classic gesture, but that definitely doesn't make any flower sunghoon brings home to you any less special. it started with - and also still is - most of the time a whole bouquet of flowers, where he (most likely) handpicked which flowers would go in the bouquet to make it perfect. or at least as perfect as possible, according to himself. from classic roses and peonies, to colorful lilies, tulips, pink carnations, dahlias and so many more - you've seen them all, and you've seen them in every color there is. however, when it's not a bouquet, it's something simple like a few flowers he picked up on the way home. like, literally, just a tiny set of random flowers he thought you'd like and therefore keep - because after a while, he realized that he doesn't need to go all out with big bouquets all the time, but small things like four to five small flowers would make your heart flutter, too. a few daisies and verbenas or whatever else there might be on the way home are enough, he realized. it's the simple fact that he takes time out of his day to put together a bouquet of flowers just for you, or simply stops on his way home to pick some up because you crossed his mind once again. and, really; you grew to love flowers because of it. every single one you see now reminds you of sunghoon, and all the countless times he walked through the door with at least one flower for you. there won't ever be a day where a smile won't grace your face instantly when sunghoon, yet again, walks through the door with another flower or a whole bouquet as a surprise for you.

ʚɞ. kim sunoo — 김선우

beaded jewelry

surely, you would have a collection with the amount of beaded pieces of jewelry sunoo has given you over time. whether it be necklaces, bracelets, or even rings - he made sure to cover everything, so you'd have quite the collection! sunoo loves to wear his own beaded jewelry whenever he gets the chance to, but nothing compares to the feeling and smile on his face when he sees you wear it. especially when (weirdly enough) it's not even outside, - although, he must admit, he absolutely loves when you wear it outside too - but rather when you just wear one/a few pieces casually and on the daily, barely ever taking it/them off; even if you're just home during that time. he knows what you like, so he simply puts your favourite color/s together, colors that he knows would go well with your wardrobe or simply color that are easy to style with any outfit. and you can trust him that whatever he makes, will look insanely good - perfect, even. hell, if you didn't know any better, you'd think he's been doing it for years and might even sell them. but imagine your major surprise when he told you that it's 'just' one of his dearest hobbies. and the look in your eyes, when he added that he felt like sharing it with you.

ʚɞ. yang jungwon — 양정원

buying matching items

whatever he buys, he will look for a matching piece to it. not something too obvious, though. nothing that screams that you two are a couple, but rather something vague, and simple. most of the time even something small; like if he finds a bracelet he likes, he looks for the same one, but just in a different color (possibly your favorite), so that you could have something small to match with. it can be jewelry, a keychain, a cute charm, or even something as silly as vaguely matching pajamas - mostly wearable stuff. whether it be worn outside or only at home, jungwon doesn't miss an opportunity to buy something that matches somehow. and of course, you can't help but smile with him when he shows you what he got - for both of you. it's cute, really, and you both always agree to keep the two items in the same place, so you definitely won't lose your matching piece. and you especially love it when, like nine out of ten times, you decide to wear whatever you have on the same day; so you can, even when you're not together, still match with at least one item that no one else will even notice. and maybe that's also what makes it special; it's really vague stuff, so nobody else would ever know or guess, but you both know that although you're not together that day, you have something that still connects you.

ʚɞ. nishimura riki — 西村 力

self made things

when riki gifts you something self made, best bet he will get creative as hell with it. while he could quite literally gift you a piece of paper with a heart on it (and you'd probably frame it), he tends to take his time to really make something out of it. most of the time it's paintings (whether it be somewhat big or smaller ones), which is already insane to you, considering he's really just talented like that. what you always like about his paintings, - beside the fact that they look like they're straight out of a museum every time - are the details and how much thought he put into it; always explaining each and every detail from his initial inspiration to verbally guiding you through his thought process. the way you always switch between admiring the artwork and him while he's explaining it all to you might be the reason why he keeps doing it, but he'd never tell you that with words - his art speaks enough. however, it can also be something small, yet still thoughtful and creative, like origami - which you ended up loving, so he kinda stuck with it. and god, riki thought his first origami looked so unbelievably tacky, but he still decided to gift it to you (recalling how you'd literally keep and frame a piece of paper with a heart on it, mind you); he figured you'd still like it. yet when he saw your eyes light up at the, according to him, 'tacky' origami flower, a huge smile graced his face and he fell in love all over again. the paper flower looked literally perfect to you, and you were convinced that he couldn't get any better than that - but hell, he did; which still leaves you speechless every time. from all kinds of flowers, to several colorful butterflies, your favorite animals, different sized hearts and whatever else he could make after watching a million tutorials. you had already admired him in every way possible, but whenever he stands in your door frame with another creative, self made gift for you, you simply find yourself at a loss for words - while admiring both, riki and the artwork in his hands, which he's showing you so proudly with a smile on his face.

taglist @tyunni @geombyu @jaeyunverse @yjwfav @sieuneo @choconyu @czlluvriki @envirae @aureliaxuuu @4xiaojun

I saw some of your tags on your recent reblogs, and it made me wonder what you tink of the recent outcry against "AI art" tools? With your tags, it sounds like you'd have different thoughts compared to what digital artists posting about it right now, and it got me kind of curious. No pressure to answer publically if you think you'll get flak for it - I'm just curious to hear your perspective because of those pieces you resurfaced.

I typed out a bit long thing about my own thoughts, but then realised that dumping that in your inbox would be a little unhinged. TL;DR - I'm neither here nor there. Selling the results is wrong, at present at least, but the tools themselves... ehhh? are they really??

That's the jist of it. If you'd like me to, I can elaborate with some of the play in 5 acts that I edited out. For context, I do art but I don't want to pursue a career in art in the current digital age, and I've worked on """AI""" (text to speech vocalisation) in the past but I'm not a staunch defender or anything, I just know some stuff about what "AI" is.

the outcry against ai art is because people are worried it'll take the place of actual artists and more recently because there have been a lot of artists whos art has been used in these ai programs databases without their permission or against their will (I think there's even a few instances where they used art from dead artists.) And I definitely agree with the outcry against that. I don't think ai generated art can meaningfully replace actual human art because art isn't just about creating images, ai cant replicate the self expression and communication and, well, humanity of human art, but I do think in the future it may take some jobs away from artists if an employer/company can get the same thing they want for free or cheap from an AI as they could with a human artist. there is also a real concern that ai images (not art this time but photographs) will become convincing enough in the future that it can lead to misinformation being created and spread incredibly easily.

I use Artbreeder mostly and sometimes Wombo and I use it to generate photos rather than art, I like using the shittier programs bc the stuff they generate is very uncanny which works great for horror art lol. I also don't just post the thing I generate on artbreeder, all my ai posts are heavily edited and I'm basically doing photomanipulation and collage somewhat, they genuinely take a lot of work and time. Ive been inspired by uncanny ai images for my own horror art for a good while (back when that "this image is meant to simulate a stroke" post/hoax was going around, which is how I learned about artbreeder, then called ganbreeder) before I started seeing ai "art" become a thing or neuralblender get popular. Im rly into the idea of horror that comes from something that looks familiar but not quite right and you cant quite figure out what you're looking at. I think you can see the ai influence in some of these,

I think ai is a great tool for artists that should be explored, and I personally haven't seen people object to that use of it, there's artists that use it to visualize their ideas before making the art themselves or use it to help come up with ideas for their art. but i don't think just generating an image and posting that is really art, there has to be some element of transformation from you.

I’m not sure how to ask this, but could you write something about Arven wanting to start a family with the reader?? Or just how he’d do with kids in general.. I’m sorry if this goes against any personal rules on this account..? Or makes you uncomfortable. ☹️Thank you!!

LISTEN. I am in a season in my life where I want a baby so very badly. I'm not uncomfortable at all with stuff like this. You're fine. 💖💖

Oops!!!

Arven x fem!reader, wanting to start a family, NSFW actual super duper breeding kink not just theoretical like "oh there's a creampie so I'm tagging this as breeding kink" like this is probably a lot...so forgive me father Turo for I have sinned

-

It's a strange thing to watch you sometimes.

You're a champion, one of the most powerful trainers in the region, and well-known for it. You've tamed literal monsters, not just sweet little smolivs and fidoughs, but nasty dragons and beasts of terrifying places.

Yet there you are, squatted in front of a group of five or six grade school children, one hand on your astoundingly well-behaved Slither Wing (one of the aforementioned literal monsters), as you teach them about its needs as a paradox pokemon.

The children ooh and ahh at it and reach out their hands to touch.

Arven listens as you very sternly but kindly tell them that Slither Wing can be a very, very dangerous creature. That while your one is friendly, they should always do their best to stay safe out in the world. Be respectful of wild pokemon and steer clear.

Then you let them have a pet at its soft fluff.

They marvel and giggle, and Slither Wing chitters softly. You coo at it, praising both the pokemon and children for their good behavior. Arven's heart melts.

He doesn't really know a practical thing about kids. He didn't really get to be one himself, and he didn't spend time with them even when he was one... But he really loves them. He feels kind of awkward about it in a lot of ways, especially as a man. Like, he doesn't want to be seen as a creep or something like that. He just really loves the thought of getting to be a dad someday and getting to take care of a kid and do things that he missed out on when he was little, like little league sports and birthday parties and holidays and stuff like that. Obviously it would be different doing them as a dad than as a kid, and he wouldn't live vicariously through his child... But he could give someone a whole world that he didn't get to have...

And he really wants to be able to do that with you.

You stand from your squat after having signed autographs for the kids and return Slither Wing to its ball, then jog back to Arven. His hand immediately goes to the small of your back as the two of you keep walking along side by side.

"Sorry about that," You tell him with a chuckle. "You know I can't say no to fans."

"No worries, I get it," He replies easily enough, scratching lightly at your back through your jersey top. "You, uh... You have a soft spot for kids...?" He asks it softly, almost as if he were embarrassed, but you're the one who blushes a bit, looking to your feet.

"Haha, I guess I do. Yeah... They're cute, y'know?"

Arven nods, and his fingers twitch just the tiniest bit against you, but other than that, the two of you are mostly quiet on your way back home.

-

Eventually as your relationship progresses, the subject of family planning is broached.

Arven notices that your PokéBook reel feed has been filled with videos of babies lately, from newborns to toddlers to videos of little kids playing with young and old pokemon, to pregnant influencers talking about...pregnancy trends? He's not spying on you or something, but when you cohabitate, it's an easy enough thing to hear if you're not constantly wearing headphones, which you generally don't. A good trainer needs to protect their hearing after all if they want to have an extra leg up out in the wild areas, and he gets that.

So one day as you're scrolling through your videos, and he hears a cooing sound of what is most likely a human baby, he asks. "Whatcha watching?"

You blush and turn the volume down. "S-sorry. I think I destroyed my algorithm... I keep getting these baby videos... They're really cute..."

Arven leans over. "Can I see?" He hopes he sounds nonchalant, but sweat is prickling at the back of his neck.

"Oh! Yeah, sure." You lean in, too, basically meeting him halfway, and restart the video. It's a cute little baby, definitely not even a year old, dressed as a mareep in a little onesie and hat. "Cute, right?" You bite your lip and press a palm to your cheek as you fawn over the sweetness of it.

Arven smiles; you look so adorable like that. "Y-yeah... Um. Would you wanna, y'know, dress your kid up like that? One day?"

You gush a bit and squirm. "Oh, I don't know! I mean yes, but I don't know about mareep specifically. Maybe? But a maschiff could be cute too! Don't you think?"

Arven has to resist the urge to grasp at his chest. That would be too fucking much. "So...you want...a, uh..." He clears his throat. "A...kid?"

You pop cherubi red right away. "O-oh! Uh... I mean. I-I think so? Yes... Would you?"

Arven worries his bottom lip with his teeth and nods. "Yeah... some day."

You smile, small and giddy, and scoot a bit closer to him. "Would...would you want to...together?"

Arven chokes on his answer, but you can guess what it is.

-

He wonders if there's something wrong with him... Or if maybe this is a thing with getting older, or a part of his "biological clock." Is that even a thing? He knows women are constantly put under pressure regarding theirs, but do men have one as well? Is it even a thing at all?

Regardless, he still feels like something is wrong. With him, of course, not you. Never you.

Every time the two of you are intimate lately, he can't help thinking about...certain things. It's probably harmless? But at the same time he still wonders if he's a creep.

He's got you on your back; he's pressed against your side, two fingers deep in your cunt. Your legs are splayed wide, one thrown over his hips as you grind erratically against his hand, just coming down from an orgasm. The aftershocks still occasionally jolt you, making your breasts bounce deliciously. Arven takes the nearest nipple into his mouth, worrying it into a stuff peak with his tongue. Fuck... He can just imagine your tits getting bigger and heavier...ready to burst with milk for your baby. They'd bounce so much more.

Shit, he feels his cock twitch needily against your thigh, and he grinds against you without thinking. "You ready?" He asks, husky and low.

You nod and give a breathy reply of "Y-Yes please..."

Arven sits up and moves between your spread thighs. He parts your folds and pauses a moment, just looking at you, your dripping center, still visibly pulsing from cumming around his fingers just moments ago.

You grind against nothingness. "A-Arven, please!" You squirm under his gaze. "I need you inside me..."

"Don't worry, Sweetness," He replies, taking that moment to rub the tip of his exposed cock over your clit. You jump at first then try to match his movement and get more of him, more friction. "I'll take good care of you, kay?"

You nod, and he continues grinding between your folds, properly lubing himself up before spearing you through in one swift motion.

You choke on a moan, and he watches with rapt attention as your tits bounce for him again. God, he needs more of that.

Arven moves a bit, adjusting his angle and your legs such that your knees are around his shoulders. Now when he fucks into you, the angle is deeper and rougher, and it nearly makes you cry from how good it feels.

When he leans down, effectively folding you in half, he almost wants to cum deep in you at that moment. Your tits are right there in his face, and your tummy looks deliciously pudgy. Sure it's not like a real pregnant belly, but he knows he could make it one. Your body would be his, and he'd watch you get fat with his baby, and your tits would get fucking massive, and he'd help relieve you when they got too heavy and full of milk and sore, and fuck he's gonna cum thinking like this, and isn't that just fucked?

He bites down gently on one of your breasts because it's right there, and with shaky hands, you hold his head in place, your pussy fluttering around him in a tell-tale sign of your mounting orgasm.

"A-Arven, god, it's good... I-I'm...gonna..."

Arven releases your nipple with an audible pop and noses against your breast. "Gonna cum for me, Sweetness? Fuck, do it. Please, do it." He begs. "C-cum on my cock... And let me cum inside... I'll be good. I'll be so good." He kisses around your nipple lovingly and teasingly all at once. "Let me knock you up. Make you a m-mommy, yeah? You'll be so pretty." One of his hands goes to stroke your side, and he feels you tighten around him all at once as you cum hard. Your mouth is open, but nothing comes out but the glottal stops of the starts of moans that keep getting choked up.

Arven talks you through it, his hips losing their rhythm and fucking against you erratically while his own pleasure mounts. "Y-you like that? You want me to make you a pretty little mommy? Knock you up with my kid? Fuck," He almost cums but barely holds back. "It'd be so good. I'll treat you so n-nice..." He bites down on your other nipple and finally lets his load go deep within you, all while he can still feel your heartbeat pulsing around his cock, heavy and hot and wet and tight.

He holds you there, folded in half like that for as long as he can, panting against your breast, until eventually his cock softens to the point that you actually tighten and squeeze him out of your cunt in the aftershocks of your orgasm.

He chuckles as it happens then lets himself fall off to the side of you.

"I-I...uh..." He starts, still breathing hard. "S-sorry..."

"Sorry?" You ask with a breathy and cum-drunk tone. Your eyes look like they're swimming in the afterglow. "Fuck, don't be... That...that was something else..."

You're quiet for a moment, and Arven isn't sure what to say. You're the one who ends up breaking the silence. "Did you maybe wanna...see if we can make that happen...for real? Like, for real-real?"

part 3 with just gale lmao

GALE: tavaris has always been fascinated by magic, by the people who can truly use it, who study it, who can tell you exactly why this and that happens and how. he will unconciously put them on a little pedestal, admiration always mixing in with any feelings he might have towards the magic user. he's not versed with it himself, just a few quick and easily memorized spells taught by a distant mentor from his first years of barding, but he doesn't really understand how he's doing it and never had much use for it, having always been better with his tongue and his daggers of course this means gale impresses him from the start of their relationship, instinctively assigning him the role of 'teacher' in his head. gale's general personality is a breeze of fresh air for tavaris, too, as he (a bit hypocritically) appreciates people that are (seemingly) open and honest about their intentions, and gale, despite all his secrets, is genuine about his desire to help and provide support throughout their adventure, which really puts tavaris at ease. gale's genuine love for his studies and the manipulation of the weave are also things that tavaris finds both admirable and endearing, actually loving whenever gale takes his time to explain things to him in length even if unprompted. gale's occasional claims of excellency in the field are absolutely justified and true in tavaris' pov so they never really rub him the wrong way, either. basically the man can do no wrong in his eyes during the beggining of their relationship hahahah and gale's super hot and cute to boot, in tavaris' eyes, so of course all of this leads to tavaris developing a very intense puppy crush on gale during act 1. he's not used to it, though, that kind of honest, genuine praise and support from someone outside his childhood circle/found family, much less a 'love' interest, not in many, many years, so he doesn't quite know what to do with it or how to even approach it on his side, gale sees tavaris as someone with great potential and noble intentions, under the rogueish mask, but also as someone who still has a lot of maturing to do, someone who can be really impulsive sometimes, careless when enthusiastic, and some of tavaris' responses in the face of stress aren't really his cup of tea, so there's no attraction on his part, really, he mostly perceives tavaris as someone who can help him, but is also in need of guidance outside their shared problem the relationship balances out a little during act 2, when gale is truly considering his self-sacrifice. tavaris has already started his own form of self-sacrifice by consuming tadpoles, thinking that if someone's going to, it might as well be him. keeping others safe at the cost of his own wellbeing comes to him too naturally, unfortunately. seeing gale so willing to throw himself away and getting to know the real reach of mystra's influence and manipulation hurts, alot, but he's also partially frustrated because shit, he's already risking a lot to keep them in one piece, why would gale give up so easily, yknow it's messy but gale is no longer on a pedestal, he's on equal ground, and that makes them have more honest, face to face conversations. tavaris gets over his puppy crush, not just because of this shift in dynamic, but because he's feeling like shit all the time and just isn't in a good place mentally tavaris ultimately discourages gale from sacrificing himself, as gale has come to trust him enough to believe that he will find a different way

ok more of a debate but I think that the scene where the spy girls find out Lou is a prototype is some what significant.

So from rough memory I'm gonna just briefly explain what happened. Tuesday is still kinda ditsy about the whole thing, her main focus is on whether that's a bad thing. Lydia doesn't seem very fazed but still shocked to an extent. BUT (to me at least) Kitty seems kind of uncomfortable. She's clearly seen kind of backing away.

I think Kitty felt uncomfortable because she felt lied and betrayed to. Well I mean yea obviously all of them would have felt like that but she seemed to be the most loyal to him in a way. Yes, Tuesday and Lydia were too, but Tuesday was mostly distracted by Lou's charms and good looks, Lydia seemed to be kind of meh about it. But Kitty seemed the most dedicated to him? Like this guy she works for turns out to be a fake? everyone's shocked yea, but based on her body language she seemed extremely uncomfortable and disturbed.

Maybe it just clicked in her head faster that Lou literally manipulated all of them to think that the uglydolls were bad. Probably most heavy on the spy girls because they did Lou's dirty work in sabotaging them and all that. Also another piece of evidence I have to support the fact that Kitty was the most loyal to Lou is that she was not easily distracted. Like when they first say Ox, Lydia was about to start talking about how she loved bunnies while Kitty was focused on the main goal.

There's so much other things I have to say but I CANT REMEMBER

This is probably just me digging in too deep lol but this movie has a chokehold on me 💋💋💋

ooh that's interesting... also yay i get to talk about my favourites (kitty and lou)

stuff under the cut, i feel like i'm going to ramble A LOT (we gotta love digging in too deep into some silly kids film WEEEEE)

i just rewatched the scene, and yeah i totally see that. i first thought that kitty was uncomfortable cause lou said he was a prototype (which seems like the dolls consider it a bad thing) and called them all "sycophants", but even before that she's got her eyebrows furrowed and her body language is closed in and kinda on the defensive.

i personally feel like the girls have been working for lou for years, as that would make sense as to why they would feel so betrayed by lou. if they were new dolls, they wouldn't care as much, just like the other prettydolls.

i was thinking that perhaps lou wanted a message man (or rather spy) of sorts. sure, he has the robots, but they were there to assist in training only. he wanted a doll to do more dirty work, like spying and receiving information (e.g. learning about gossip etc) so he could gain more power and influence over the other dolls. so, he hired kitty (perhaps since he noticed how strategic and calculated kitty is through her training etc). and since kitty was friends with lydia and tuesday, and was probably inseparable from them, lou hired the three of them. that would make more sense if lydia and tuesday just tagged along for their friend since, and as you said, kitty normally is the one to take action whilst tuesday and lydia are normally distracted.

...but whilst on this topic, i'd like to bring up another thing. i suppose that, yeah, the moments after the gauntlet do show a turning point in the spy girls' (and especially kitty's) trust towards lou, as well as when lou says something along the lines of "and if you think that you're going to take that away from me, you're just as empty-headed as the rest of them".

but there's another moment when you see kitty's trust waver. when lou breaks mandy's glasses.

mandy is obviously devastated, but look at kitty! the other spy girls seem unbothered, but kitty seems upset. and i don't think it's because of lou breaking mandy's glasses, as she was still smugly grinning as lou took them off and smashed them, but she's rather upset over mandy's devastated expression. it seems like kitty genuinely cares about mandy, and seeing her upset makes kitty upset too.

so i think that lou, kitty and mandy all had a close bond. and in this moment, kitty is probably internally debating which side she's on, because she seems to care about both lou and mandy.

on a side note, another moment where kitty seems to care about mandy is trying to get her to join in with the girls' conversation when they first appear.

it's a small gesture, but it seems like mandy is the outsider of the group, and kitty is trying to get her to be more involved. how sweet <3

back to the recycling scene, kitty expresses regret in this shot too. tuesday is like "uhh what just happened", lydia is like "HE DID NOT JUST DO THAT" and kitty is genuinely rethinking EVERYTHING. it looks like she's almost reaching out, thinking about holding lou back to stop him. i doubt the spy girls have seen lou go to such lengths before, as recycling was only recently opened up again. so seeing this must be such a shock to kitty, and probably made her uncomfortable of lou after that point.

yo here is a fun headcanon i have that you might like

ex delinquent Sayuri, Satsuma knows about it and knows she can easily beat him up

masaru and chika are unaware about it and just think that their mom was in some kind of school club that involve fighting or something

This energized me for the day, so please have these doodles and a new AU/personal HC

So this is the Sayuri ex-Deliquent thing; my personal little HC for it is that she and Satsuma are actually childhood friends (neighbors, probably) and that Sayuri and Suguru met in school, and clashed heads (a lot like our two beloved boys in the modern era....) (thie little chibis of the main trio represent their mirror for the back in time AU trio) Rentarou (calling him by first name feels sacrilegious, but it feels even weirder if I don't bc I refer to the other two by first name LMAO) does have a crush on Sayuri, but it's the type of thing that passes/is dealt with as they get older, bc he respects her and Suguru. He is very very much the one that kinda reigns them both in, but also gets dragged along. Suguru is a doctor, which is why he's being deligated Smartie Pants role; after all, Touma is a genius but also loves to box and isn't a weakling, so I figure Suguru is similar. Suyuri is very rambunctious; I think she's not only a regular delinquent, but definitely one of those girls that don't want to be looked down on for being a girl. So she likes to be tough and fight like the boys, and she doesn't take it well when someone (coughcough Suguru coughcough) criticizes her because he means well- the only person she kinda listens to is Rentarou, because he's her childhood friend. Suguru is fairly polite, actually; he's not an overly violent guy and while strong and athletic, has a more passive personality where he tries to solve things with words. It's Sayuri that later changes that mindset a bit, and gets him to enjoy and see the merits of talking with one's fists LMAO (so a good influence!). Rentarou comes from a strict, law enforcement family and he is under a lot of pressure to do good; his family isn't fond of Sayuri given her delinquency, but they're friends and there is no stopping that. He often feels more refreshed and encouraged after spending time with her, which is one of the reasons he develops a crush on her. Suguru and Sayuri try to avoid each other, and get into fights and arguments nearly any time they DO see each other- but then they keep getting into silly shenanigans (with poor Rentarou dragged along one way or another) I kinda want them to find out abt Digimon around this time, but I'll delve into it later.

Sayuri is a little embarassed about her past? She was quite a bit worse than Masaru; yes he gets into street fights but he's also good about chores, caring for his sister and trying to do right by her- he doesn't skip as much school as she had, and usually she can find a valid reason why. Embarassment aside, she wasn't going to let Masaru tackle the world without knowing proper technique, and Suguru left too early to really teach him (but late enough to get him riled up, and you know Sayuri gave him an earful abt that when he came back LOL) She lets her kids believe whatever, not really ready to tell them she was a wild child herself. (Chika later finds out; Masaru does not and Chika is both excited she knows something Masaru doesn't know, but sad she can't share her findings, given they theorized about it) Sayuri of course chilled out and became softer as she got older, but it was mostly when she got her kids that she really calmed down. She wanted to be someone that they could tell mistakes to, who they could be honest with, etc etc., But when Masaru or Chika get out of line, there's a certain edge to her voice that definitely has their backs straightening. This is a really fun AU and I bet you weren't expecting me to want to delve into it but I 10/10 will. This is gripping me by the THROAT what have you DONE to me.

alright hold on here are The Thoughts

i think growing up it was very like... leland trying to fit himself into a box, or an image that people had for him. which started with his dad and literally just trying to get the 'i'm proud of u' one singular time. dad was tough on him, only son, 70s, a little more sensitive than most boys his age etc. truly the root cause of why he can so easily get caught in cycles of people-pleasing, and is so easy to manipulate, and so easy to knock down a peg. bc he already has those preconceptions of himself, and when those things get confirmed, he just goes oh. yeah i guess so. you peaked in highschool? sure did man. you're not good enough for your friends? true!

leland who pushed himself into a golden boy status in his tiny little town. who made that his entire Thing for a while. he pushed himself in athletics and he pushed himself in academics so he could make it into that ivy school. and then getting to university where just about everything ripped a stripe off him. a lot of it was good humbling (from his friends), that made him loosen up and stop trying to exist in that box. but it was also just a wake up call of like, not being the best, and in fact being mostly average. which there's 0 things wrong with but when you have the ex golden boy complex it's so over for the mental.

i think about how after he had to drop out of school it was like. extra tough. going back to your small town after you were supposed to make something of yourself in college. seeing the people you knew from highschool, some of them having never left, some of them looking at you with judgement like haha how did you mess that up golden boy omg??? having to be there while his friends finished up their schooling, and then moved away. nothing like coming back to your childhood room after you've outgrown it and remembering being just a little younger than you are now, and all the things you thought you would be and get to do. spending basically a year rotting at home with zero motivation and just a completely gutting fear of being out in public until it's like. well i can't just do this huh.

and then having to go work for/with his dad so he doesn't put too much of a burden on his mother who's helping april with her kids now. just contractor work stuff and having to listen to his dad yap about whatever all day. having that oppressive influence on his shoulders again cutting down any personal growth he had made toward things like... self expression in the realms of his appearance or sexuality or identity and even just embracing silly interests or whatever. it all just went back in the box, bc he knew he wasn't going to be able to get out from under his dad's roof until he could save enough money to pay off school (lol rip the scholarship) and then move out. and generally just being like oh thats cool. i'm going to never leave this town. just like him (: cool cool cool!!

and he doesn't!!! he doesn't leave for twenty years. he gets a house and a dog and lives his quiet life. losing contact with most of the friend group after everything sort of cemented something in him that said hey don't bother letting anyone know you like that again, they'll leave you and it'll be your own fault. you don't want to trap anyone with you, you don't want to get your heart broken over and over, either. he never gets married, just has some messy short relationships, messy one night stands with people he can't bring himself to call back. he's the kind of person that's still like... warm and friendly for the most part, so people think they're his friend, that they know him, when he doesn't rly talk about anything real about himself anymore. i love 2 laugh

Final Fantasy XVI - Martyrs, Individualism, and other Review-like Stuff (Spoilers!)

As one might suppose by the title, I've recently finished Final Fantasy XVI. Playing the game I had a lot of Thoughts, which isn't uncommon, and happened to encourage me to create this little blog for me to store these thoughts for posterity. Therefore, while I'm not yet sure who this introduction is even for, at least it's over. Onwards!

I will start this by getting the easy part out, which I have prior dubbed "the Review-like Stuff" - how "good" are the game's, y'know, things. I'll be pretty direct on this paragraph: visually and musically, the game is a whole meal. The scenarios look amazing, the big magical effects look, well, big and magical (in the best way! also very colorful). I just don't dig the character design all that much, personally, but it does deliver on the sort of realistic medieval fantasy air they set out to deliver - and hey, Jill's clothes actually look like functional female fighting clothes! Progress, I suppose. And the music, of course, delivers just as well - Masayoshi Soken, not content with putting out banger after banger for Final Fantasy XIV (the critically-acclaimed MMORPG, etc) decided to grace XVI with a series of adequately epic-sounding tracks, going as far as to reference musical motifs from prior entries in the series and toss us franchise fans some delicious treats. Yum.

Alright, onto the meat of what I actually wanted to write here - the story and gameplay. I'm gonna bundle both of these up because I think they're intertwined to an extent - or at least, some of the criticism I have about the gameplay is a direct product of how they wrote the story. But I suppose I might be putting the cart before the horses here so let's take a step back.

When playing FF XVI, you control a single character - Clive Rosfield, Ifrit's Dominant and certified Chosen One. You get other companions fighting alongside you here and there, and for most of it you're also accompanied by bestest of boys Torgal, but you never get to control any of them, they have no customization in terms of equipment, and actually the effect they have on gameplay is very minor - mostly making it less annoying to fight large hordes of enemies. So much so that you also never choose who's tagging along, they just join or leave the party automatically according to the story beat.

I recall being a bit disappointed when the previous entry in the franchise, XV, came out - because I had three buddies with me for the journey but I never got to play with them, only edit their equips and perform some dual techs with them during fights. XVI seemed to double down on this departure from party member control, straying even further from the molds of a party-oriented game and coming closer to the likes of Devil May Cry, the Witcher, both of the Nier games, and so on. I should note the influence of the first I cited is quite noticeable.

"Alas, Daka, it could not be helped!", I hear you say. "For Clive is one of only eight people in the world who can freely use magic, AND even if he parties up other Dominants, he'll drain their power eventually! So it can't be helped!". Well, voice in my head who is trying to predict an argument, that's still just a narrative choice they made. Had they decided to make it a party-oriented game, they could easily have written the story in a way that doesn't have Clive strip other Dominants of their power (and even that's kind of finnicky, because Jill is still added to the party for the DLC, far after Clive absorbed her Eikon), or just strip them of the power to Prime but leave their magical ability intact. Or have his fellow party members all be non-Dominants like Gav. Or have them share Clive's power through some sort of covenant, like if he could donate them the power of any Eikons he's not currently using (you do end up with five more Eikons than you can wield in combat, after all).

All this to say that they made a very conscious choice in making Clive's journey be so solitary - he wields the power and bears the burden for it, since being magical in this setting comes with a side effect of slowly turning into stone. Even when he has his (long overdue and very awkwardly paced) romantic development with Jill, she doesn't even try to dissuade him from bearing all of the burden himself - just reassured him that she believed in him and would be by his side to the end. Kind of bold words when you're speeding your new boyfriend along the route of becoming an Ifrit-shaped piece of rock, but it sort of cements the narrative that Clive is the very special Chosen One, and it's useless to try to relieve him of his burden - best to simply give him emotional support when necessary and help in whatever ways a mere mortal can.

Eventually, the narrative reveals that what's been killing the land all along (through a drying out of all life called the Blight) is the usage of magic itself. It's been happening ever since a different race discovered magic, ages ago, in what one may call an Original Sin (!) of sorts. Clive's battle is to, ironically, amass as much of the capacity to use magic without crystals into himself as possible, to then destroy humanity's creator, who both discovered magic and gave humans the means to wield it, and finally use all this accumulated power to destroy the ("sinful") practice of magic and die in the process, overwhelmed by the weight of this feat.

So our dear protagonist is, to recap, a Chosen One, born to be the physical vessel of a godlike being, and he sacrifices himself to cleanse humanity of the sins that are plaguing them. You know who else reportedly did that? That's right, baby: it's Jesus Christ.

Did I write several paragraphs just to arrive at this allegory? Perhaps. But pointing out the symbolic connections between Clive and ol' J.C. is important to eventually arrive at my main argument regarding FFXVI and its place in the franchise: it is very Western. It is prominently influenced by an occidental zeitgeist and ideology (which are indissociable from Christianity as a cultural system of rules and values). This manifests in the narrative itself, yes, which also has a big focus on defending "free will" and rejecting what sort of amounts to what one might describe as, uh, spiritual communism; but it also manifests in the gameplay itself, which is both emblematic of this narrative (via having you control a solitary martyr upon whose shoulders solely relies success or failure), but also more literally influenced by the West - with the gameplay mechanics and quest dialogue structure more closely resembling western action RPGs than any other game in the franchise.

My intent here was not to say FFXVI doesn't have any community-oriented themes (many sidequest chains are explicitly about that), but to point out the ways in which the tone and feel of the game reflect certain staple Western values - individuality most of all - beyond the simple fact of the game's European fantasy setting. I'm also not saying that's a bad thing, just that it is a thing, and these are some of the elaborations I arrived at when I tried to ask myself questions like "why does this feel the way it does?". I'm also very particular about not saying things like "this feels or doesn't feel like a Final Fantasy game" because this is a franchise that loves nothing more than reinventing itself, and XVI was but the latest one to do just that. And for what it's worth, the game was great! I had a blast. I have my nitpicks about it but, hey, none of them was a dealbreaker.

...I do wanna have a party again for the next one though.

I love the magical girl scar au so much. And especially cub in this universe. Truly l am rotating him in my mind at all times.

How does him getting possessed actually go? Obviously lots of chaos, but I'm curious what happens from an interpersonal perspective. He doesn't really seem like he'd react very well to not just losing control of himself, but also putting scar in danger.

Out of curiosity, does he have any issues when he first gets actual powers, what with them being at least somewhat similar to what happened when he got possessed?

I AM SO GLAD. i too love cubfan so i am glad other people rotate him, even if in the context of this au.

so like... okay. how the possession actually goes is that, if you ask cub, he fucks up. he lets his guard down. he goes "yeah sure man i'd love some chaos" without thinking because, and this is a thing he'll only admit to himself: he'd felt drained of chaos, lately. he'd had to be too responsible. he'd also been... afraid, a thing that he hadn't been in a long time. cub isn't the kind of person who fears easily. cub's the kind of person who's certain in himself. cub is - maybe none of those things, right now.

so a spirit whispers in his head: hey, you seem like you need an outlet. wanna just cause some chaos?

and like, spirits don't make it easy. they override everything in you to make you want to agree. but the thing is, this isn't the first, or even the thirtieth time cub has heard a spirit. hell, it's probably in the seventies. and sure, the spirit isn't normally possessing him, but he should know better. he should probably fight back at least a little.

cub doesn't. he just... relaxes into it.

the good news is, that like many spirit victims, his memory of his time possessed is a little hazy. he doesn't remember a lot of the stuff he did to scar directly. but it feels like he's the one who did it. according to scar, it had been mostly "pranks". cub is fairly certain some of the things he pulled don't count as "pranks", given his main abilities seemed to involve scrambling the properties of things, and he's pretty sure he scrambled a lot of things that... aren't meant to be scrambled.

(he's... pretty sure he killed at least someone. which. not processing that one very well over here. at least later, when he meets the support group, he learns he's not the only one trying to mentally process that, even if the magic is largely reversed later. he didn't expect that hearing from other spirit victims would help so much, given he hears from them all the time in the context of helping scar, but... yeah, the support group helps.)

and then. here's the thing. it is seeing scar that makes cub try to start fighting back. to remember everything jellie and scar had talked about when it came to spirits. in the end, scar doesn't re-capture the spirit of chaos; cub forces it into an equilibrium because he refuses to hurt scar, no matter how much he wants to just have an outlet where he doesn't have to care. no matter how exhausted he is of being scared, of being responsible, of being uncertain, of having to care about consequences, he refuses to let that let him hurt scar. he'll find another outlet for chaos. he'll -

well, what he does is burst out of the possession and transform properly for the first time, the spirit of chaos relegated to a partner in his head, powers directly influenced by the spirit in his hands. the only thing that stops him from panicking is how proud scar looks. when he detransforms and the small ferret the spirit of chaos turns into lands on his shoulders, though...

well, you ask if cub has hangups, given that his powers are also based in the chaos he caused while possessed? yes. absolutely. cub HATES having to work with the spirit of chaos to properly transform and only does it because it will make him better at what he does than he already was - and he was very good at what he does. it takes a combination of the support group, advice from jellie, and finally just talking to the spirit and admitting to the fact he really, really just wants to be able to cause problems without feeling like he's about to bring the world down around them for him to get over those hangups.

it turns out that 'getting therapy' makes you better at magic. who knew?

Okay, 2 things I really, really love about your writing and DLB (be prepared for praise)

1. Your commentary and meta on the Force. Reading through your post on how western (Christianity) theology ruined the prequels— yes! I have been saying this for years but I never knew how to put it in words or explain why the force felt so different in the PT vs the OT, and why I always preferred the force in the OT more than the PT (you hit the nail on the head). And I appreciate that this is the route you’ve taken in your writing, and I have to say since I’m writing my own SW fic I have been reading through that post and applying it to how I write about the force in my own story, and looking at things with a more critical eye and being mindful of what the force is and how it does/doesn’t work.

2. Your characterization of Anakin. I think yours is the best characterization of him I’ve ever read in a fic (I mean it). When I read DLB, I feel like I’m actually reading an Anakin from the PT. I think when it comes to a lot of fics about Anakin, I think authors tend to write him more like he is in the TCW, which is totally fine (I love the TCW) but DLB is just refreshing to me, and I know it’s because you’re sticking mostly to the movies with added bits from the TCW. For me, TCW Anakin feels a lot different from PT Anakin (sometimes it feels like they’re two different people), and Ive always preferred the Anakin in the movies (which is why I LOVE DLB). And it’s not just Anakin, but all of the characters are just written extremely well and true to their portrayals in the movies: shmi, padme, obi-wan, the list goes on.

3. (I know I only said 2, but I feel like being a Rebel). I think you’re one of the first authors of a SW time travel to bring up the very poignant point that just because it’s a time travel fic does not mean that we’re owed a big reveal. I mean, honestly, if I was Leia and I was dropped into that situation, I would do the exact same thing. My mouth would be wired shut, you’d have to tickle/torture me to get that out of me. Leia doesn’t owe anyone that part of herself and it’s not super relevant either, so why bring it up just to bring it up. If it does end up being relevant to the plot then I would very much enjoy a reveal, but you’re such a good writer that no matter where the cards fall I know I will not be disappointed either way— I am all here for how you write it. But the way you’ve written so far feels realistic and authentic to how a real person would react in that situation

I’ll end it here, but yeah! I appreciate you and DLB and I look forward to seeing where you take things.

I am blushing like crazy, you're so kind.

1) I know my rejection of an even semi-sentient Force isn't popular and doesn't mesh with current canon, but I prefer and stand by it. I'm glad that it resonates with someone else!

2) I agree that Anakin characterization is So Hard because he's not really consistent between the OT, PT, and TCW. I find my interpretation strongly influenced by TPM Anakin specifically (another Anakin!). That bright, kind little boy who was too smart and too talented for his own good! I love him and I want to protect him!

3) Be a Rebel! :) The "reveal" issue is something I think about a lot. I get lots of comments--ever increasing as the story goes on and the silence holds--about how excited or anxious people are for a reveal. What they think people's reactions will be. Why it must happen at some point. I can understand the underlying tension issue, and how people are probably on the edge of their seat. But I agree with you anon, Leia doesn't owe her past to anyone. There have been, are, and will be consequences to her silence. If and when she chooses to break it, it will be a Big Deal for whoever she trusts with the truth.

But for now, get comfy folks. Leia isn't going to break so easily.

what do you think about the search for spock

LOLL thank you for asking. i wasnt expecting someone to actually send me an ask when i said that but youve opened pandoras box. so.

i think the thing about the search for spock that makes it stick in my head so bad is that in reality its like. a mid movie. its okay. it falls short in almost everything it tries to do but it hits the emotional highs and lows and looks good which means it gets by just fine. it's one of those 80s movies where you get about an hour in and realize oh okay the plot is happening. like this is it. TMP suffers a little bit in this way too but its also why i find myself thinking about it much more than the "good" movies.

the curse of tmp and tsfs that particularly riddles me is that i think they have some really interesting things going on conceptually that never come to fruition-- not necessarily at fault of the movie because they're ultimately minor and i dont really know how they would explore them in greater ways-- but that i find personally very compelling. i've said this before but i yearn for a star trek space horror movie so deeply and im not gonna punish either tmp nor tsfs for not being something they're not trying to be but i think the horror elements of both movies are really untapped in terms of fan exploration/meta/content. the spock/mccoy stuck in the same body mind meld thing is played mostly for laughs (because it is a good bit. and very funny) but honestly i find the fact it like. physically makes mccoy sick and absolutely freaks everyone the fuck out like good for haunting reasons.

THIS SCENE in particular i think hits the mark on the weird creepy aspect of mccoy being partially posessed by spocks katra

it also helps its shot and lit clearly with some horror influences in mind; the way bones is sitting creepily in the chair while spocks voice speaks through him, enshrouded in shadow, etc.. of course the movie has to split itself between the ship and what's happening on the genesis planet but i really would have loved some more of these moments where spock is Haunting the enterprise and its freaking everyone the fuck out. there is that bit later on where bones actually speaks in spocks voice on the bridge and kirk turns around like wow bones that was really cool never do that shit again that was freaky as fuck and its mostly just funny but the implication that spocks actual voice can be spoken through mccoys body is something im thinking about. really bad.

i really enjoy the ways the movie shows kirk is so deeply haunted by the death of spock (i mean, the movie opens with him saying "the death of spock is like an open wound" so.) and obviously by extension, mccoy, who is stuck with spocks literal soul in his brain the whole movie. the mind meld scene with sarek is also a really good moment which is also just shot and lit well. are you sensing a theme here. im easily swayed by pretty colors.

this in combination with the weird gross regenerative process spock's body is going through on the genesis planet is very compelling to me. i was talking to a friend about this recently and he brought up that he was imagining that spock and the genisis planet had kind of a symbiosis; that he could feel the terror and disaster of the planet even outside of the biological regeneration process his own body was going through which i thought was fascinating. especially because of all the moments during the series where spock would mind meld with a being everyone else was unable to comprehend as a life form. theres something there.

its not really explored in the movie, and really not in depth in any of the further movies, but i also think spock losing his memory after being rejoined with his body is an interesting addition to the themes of rebirth and memory. the rift created between everyone who remembers spock before and wants to allow the New Spock to be the man he wants to be, but they're ultimately haunted by the lives they all had with him before. kirk having spent a whole life with him, only to lose him, gain him back, and then have spock not really remember what they had before. kirk trying not to resent him for it, spock knowing it doesn't make sense to be hurt that kirk wants him to be something he can't, etc etc. its good stuff.

tldr they should send me back in time so i can make the 80s star trek horror movie ive always wanted.

Inspired by @houseofhopeofficial's post, I've decided to ramble a bit about our very first Tav, the one I said we abandoned after creating them. Abandoned is a strong word though, we were just too depressed to keep playing so our Tav is stuck right before Moonrise. Whoops.

Anyway! I don't remember much about Val (our Tav's name) and we don't know much about DND or its universe so our headcanons for Val can be kind of.... weird, I guess. But here goes!

Val is a half-elf, half-drow.

They're AFAB and nonbinary. Their genitals remained untouched but they got their breasts removed.

They're hag-eyed because they'll try everything once and their sense of self-preservation isn't exactly the best. Since they're a ranger who mostly relies on archery, being blind in one eye really fucks up their ability to aim correctly as well as their depth perception and general survival capabilities. But if you'll ask them if they regret letting the hag take their vision? They'll just shrug and say no because it was worth the try.

Their romantic partners are Astarion and Wyll.

Karlach has a crush on them but they just don't feel the same for her.

They grew up as a street urchin so their perception of the world is very give-and-take – Everything and everyone has a price.

They will help others seemingly out of pure goodwill but in reality they are either bored and just want to see what happens or they seek to gain something from helping whoever it is they're helping.

They feel the most comfortable in forests and the Underdark.

They're an insomniac and only really manage to sleep when they collapse from exhaustion.

They use substances to calm their nerves (we imagined them smoking an herb mix). They try to hide this from the others because they are extremely vulnerable when under the influence so they do this in some desolate corner of the camp, out of sight. Only Astarion and Wyll got to see them high.

They have a high pain tolerance.

Sexual Trauma™.

We didn't decide where their facial scar came from, but we lean towards them getting it during a fight they were disadvantaged in. Maybe fighting someone bigger and stronger than them at a younger age.

They are generally pessimistic/nihilistic in the sense that, to them, the world is an evil place full of rot and that it is what it is. The end justifies the means.

They use their tadpole to their advantage and seep its powers. They convinced Astarion to do the same. This likely stems from their "survival of the fittest" hunter-esque worldview.

They hated Shadowheart at first but she slowly grew on them.

They're mostly a bottom but they do like to top sometimes because they like being in a position of power.

They can speak to animals.

Their preferred familiar to summon is the wolf. You can sometimes find them sleeping/resting cuddled up with the wolf too, because it makes them feel safe, like a therapy dog.

They're very nervous around Astarion at first because they don't want to do or say the wrong thing. With Wyll they are much more open and relaxed, flirty/goofy even.

They can play the violin.

Gale makes them extremely uncomfortable.

They like to dress feminine sometimes, when the situation permits it. They also like wearing lingerie, and seeing it on others.

They are sometimes overly blunt, which can cause.... unease in others.

They're on their own side – They'll normally avoid picking sides when witnessing an argument/fight unless personal bias is involved, as in, if they like or dislike one of the people involved in the argument/fight. They're very morally gray and have the wish to be liked/on good terms with everyone so it's difficult for them to take a solid stance or side with someone during sensitive situations.

They're an extremely good tracker.

They're much like an abused dog – Trust issues mixed with the vehement wish to be loved and cared for. That's partly why they easily fall for Astarion's flirtatiousness, and why they're wary of Karlach because her affections are too intense and invasive for them. They need to be coaxed into coming closer.

They'll run straight into danger without thinking first if someone they love is in trouble. They are loyal until the end if a real bond has been established.

That's all I could think of right now, but there might be a part 2 sometime later if we ever fucking go back to playing that particular save.

– Alex

| K A D A N |

[ Category: Misc OCs ]

| So this is Kadan, he's like a young (like 17, turning 18 if I remember?? Idk..) lil lad who has a major crush on the neighbour's son who's like... Just turned 20 or something Idk I don't exactly remember, the kid's only young so he'll grow out of that weird phase... Unless it's actually full on obsession then no he might end up worse than that, he gets rather jealous easily and loves hanging out with the son (who I shall name another day when I make his ref cuz he actually used to be a sona of mine) so the possibility of him gettin' real obsessed and creepy seems very HIIiiigh...?

But oh well we'll see!! Other than that he's sweet, adorable and very active just in general! Loves playing and also being a menace to his own parents and street he lives at.... All the adults think it's adorable though so we'll see about that..

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

INFO

Name: Kadan Species: Human General Personality: Jealous, caring, upbeat, silly, is a cry baby, creative, energetic Height: 4ft "3" Relationship Status: Single

Extra Info:

He's on very close terms with a lot of people in the neighbourhood, has loads of friends and overall; NOT popular, but just very tolerable and nice to call a friend

His obsession with the neighbour's kid was very unknown and very sudden, so even though his parents see it as just like innocent and adorable little fascination/idolization at the moment; It might start seeming weird if he were to still act like this in his adult years

Goes to a local cooking club with his friends and other locals where they would bake all kinds of sweet treats, pastries and so on; He tends to go for an hour or two after school unless he were to be sick; It's something he enjoys and thinks about opening up a bakery one day

He's very sensitive, so he will cry if someone raises their voice at him, it was only once in school but he got yelled at by a teacher for yelling too loud because of asshole older kids influencing him; Not to worry though, the kids got their fill after the teacher hears him out

Arts and crafts are his favourite, and the guy he likes also loves music; So he would enjoy working on covers and such to advertise one day. He only dreams in the meantime as the neighbour's son doesn't seem to wanna take it up as a profession yet

His nickname is literally "Kid", and that's what the son usually refers to him as when they hang out together; The relationship is like "super awesome babysitter" and "super clingy but adorable" kid. On the outer perspective anyways, not sure about what Kadan sees it as of course

Very much an attention seeker and loves getting all the attention from others, especially when it's from what he's made or baked by the other adults, even better when they either hang up the things he's crafted or tried AND enjoyed the baked goods he makes; Which is to be expected because A) His baking experience is not to be underestimated, and B) He takes massive pride in the things he does and manages to accomplish

Has quite the sweet tooth, so of course him enjoy baking will be something he does quite a lot

Doodles from time to time, mostly loves doodling and inking tattoo designs of what he would want to get one day. That is if his parents would allow him to of course is another question

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

And that's it for this little bundle of sunshine and madness, there'll obviously be plenty more to post and hopefully I'll actually either finish or get on with... So if you are not of that (to which no shit sherlock) then unfollow me, I would like to post more fan art at some point but ngl I don't have much for that sort of art right now... Or maybe never tbh, all my FCs will be put into their own thing once I get to them, the fan art or AUs and ideas and stuff I had are being scrapped from now on... And overall I have no reason to be a fandom artist when that doesn't get anything along with my personal and OC works..

So I don't know, nor do I really care anymore.. This will all probably be like a month or so since I've posted anything.. Not like I have a schedule or a "need" to keep posting all the time anyways...

..

Whatever!

. Kadan, Art © Me . DON’T RE-POST .

Mari piano music playlist

Okay so I made a short playlist of piano pieces that I think Mari would play or like. There are unsurprisingly a lot of waltzes and a number of other romantic era piano pieces. I also put a few impressionist pieces because they also feel like they fit here very well. I tried to get a decent range of composers but Chopin is obviously the most prominent composers on here, being the king of the piano and waltzes.

Mostly just a nice set of piano background music that I've attributed to things mari would like or play that make a good listening list when reading or want very unobtrusive background music. It's mostly unordered with vaguely trying to split up stuff by the same person.

If you do have any suggestions for additional pieces then I'm happy to add as I threw this together fairly quickly.

Big reasoning behind all the pieces and just general rambling on them below the cut:

Schumann: The two Schumann pieces I have here are both from his work Kinderszenen, translating to "scenes from childhood" into English. This is obviously very thematic for Omori. The first piece Träumerei is known as the reverie or dreaming movement. It's a nice peaceful and slow piece and fits very well into this playlist. I chose to put it right in the second spot on this playlist simply because of the name. The second piece is Kind im Einschlummern, known as "Child falling asleep" in English. This too has a fairly relaxed feel to it but it feels more sombre to me than the first and I decided to put it right as the penultimate piece because of this.

I'm not too familiar with either of these pieces as I've never really listened to them extensively or played them myself so my understanding is fairly superficial. I considered adding the Arabeske in C because it's one of my favourite Schumann but it didn't really feel appropriate here

Chopin: I'm just going to get him out of the way right now because he has so much influence over this playlist. Chopin is easily the most famous romantic era piano composer and one of the most famous piano composers in history. He particularly specialized in waltzes and nocturnes and gave up concerts to play in the back of saloons in Paris. He very much epitomizes the romantic era piano and I assume would be someone Mari played a lot of given his overall influence and style.

The most notable piece he has here is the Prelude in E minor Op 28 no 4. This piece is particularly notable to be because of the fact it was played at Chopin's funeral (Liszt even made a transcription for organ for the occasion). The piece isn't particularly difficult for the most part but still requires great control over dynamics and rubato. The piece ebbs back and forth with the single chords played in a steady rhythmic fashion. I put this piece right at the end simply because of its use at Chopin's funeral and how much more harrowing it feels compared to the others (less melancholy and more just painful sadness to me).

The other pieces are mostly waltzes with one of the nocturnes I particularly like thrown in. I didn't look too deeply into most so there isn't a lot more other than they feel very fitting. Some of the Waltzes are a little more lively than the others pieces which I think is fine and feels kind of fitting.

Ravel: Ravel's only piece in this list is his famous Pavane. I don't know many Ravel pieces honestly but I do know he was very meticulous and precise with how he wanted his pieces. This trait is something I think Mari does share in her perfectionist ideas. The Pavane is a surprisingly difficult and precise piece and both in sound and performance I think is very fitting for Mari.

Liszt: Like Ravel, Liszt only has one item on this playlist. Liszt is typically very dramatic and is the height of 19th century dramaticism (see Lisztomania). For this reason however most of his pieces don't fit so well to Mari I don't think. Stuff like his Liebestraum (His version of Nocturne) is great fun to play and highly emotive, is simply too much for this playlist and I don't feel it matches the more modest theme that I've given this playlist. However, the third consolation does fit into this, although you can still hear some of Liszt's dramatic tones coming through. This consolation is specially known to be written in memory of his contemporary and friend Chopin and ends up as a much more melancholic and modest piece. I did consider some of his other consolations but none of them ever grabbed me as much as this one (I never really bothered to learn them to a performance level either).

John Field: John field is probably the oldest composer on this list and you can hear the much stronger classical era influence on him. He is well known for popularizing the genre of Nocturne which was later taken up by more famous composers like Chopin. The three pieces I have on here are just some of the ones I particularly like by him and I feel are fitting for this playlist. There's nothing particularly special about them other than they sound nice. The 11th nocturne is my personal favourite of the ones here and what actually made me feel like compiling all these into a playlist (I was reading an omori fic while listening to all his nocturnes).

Debussy: This is the other impressionist composer I decided to add to the playlist here. The first piece on the playlist is one of his early pieces, known as Reverie, a piece of dreaming. This style of early impressionist music feels very fitting to Mari for me and this piece makes a great opening to the piece. Its form isn't particularly structured and it just shifts between different sections in a very dream-like fashion. The first Arabesque is a very famous Debussy piece and requires particular care around the 2:3 polyrhythms in it. It is also a fairly early Debussy piece so it fits into the older style of harmony he did. It mostly just feels right to include this piece into the playlist because of how well known it is and how it fits into the overall theme.

The final Debussy piece here is a much later work of his from the series Childrens Corner. This is my favourite piece from the set and it's not too difficult. It's probably the most out of place in the playlist in terms of harmony but I kind of wanted to include it because I just like it and it still feels fitting enough, particularly with the series being pieces representing children's toys.

Tchaikovsky: Tchaikovsky isn't really a piano guy but I still included a waltz he wrote here as he is a famous composer and it's a nice waltz. I don't particularly care for it as much and I think Tchaikovsky's abilities really shine through in his orchestration. I was tempted to include the famous Waltz of the Flowers but it isn't actually a piano piece and it feels a bit sly to just use a transcription when it was never meant to be a piano piece.

Fauré: You might notice neither of these pieces are actually really piano works in their own right and I didn't really want to include things that are mostly transcriptions. However, the Fauré Pavane was first written as a piano piece before the orchestra + optional choir version was written and the Sicilienne was written for both piano and cello + cello at the same time so the piano version is just as valid as an original piece. I mostly just like these pieces and think they fit and are both quite nice romantic era piano works.

Karganov: I'm going to be honest I'd never heard of this guy until today until I was reading through one of my ancient early 20th century piano books I have with a bunch of music and saw this and decided to look it up. He maybe was more famous in the past, hence why his piece appeared in a book of "World famous piano pieces" from the 1930's. Just ended up listening to it after reading the score and it's a nice fairly fitting waltz for this playlist.

Schubert: I've never really listened to this piece much or Schubert honestly but I do quite like this one. I've seen people say this is a precursor to the Liebestraum and I just thought it was generally a very nice piece. I also have a soft spot for Gb/F# major because it's such a beautiful key. The double cut common time signature in this is also quite amusing but not particularly notable unless you read a copy of the score.

Other stuff: I might add more to this list in the future as I remember certain pieces exist. I considered adding the spring song by Mendelssohn but ended up not doing so. I tried to stay away from anything too classically classical and too modern. I'm sure there are a handful of minimalist pieces that would fit and the final duet in omori is very much a modern sounding romantic inspired piece. A lot of these are in here because of Omori as a game or sunny (see the two about dreaming and such). Either way I added them because I want to. Big rant on all the people and songs here because I'm a complete music nerd and play the piano myself.