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mythicalviper-fr · 9 months

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FR Skin Contests and You (and Me)

Let’s talk about festival skin contests.

This post will be 1) about win conditions 2) my breakdown on my wins/losses. Before we start, please know a lot of this is guesswork, and based on my own perspective. Still, I hope this will be useful for some people ^^

***August/888 and I (but August mostly as it’s his idea) will be hosting an event encouraging new artists to join festival contests on 8/8. It will have a lot of tips and references to help get you started, so please keep an eye out!

When it comes to skin contests, people generally enter for one of three reasons: 1) for fun 2) because it’s seen as a milestone of skinmaking, or 3) out of a desire to push yourself to the limit knowing you’ll regret it like a Sunday hangover– but I hope that’s just me.

In my two years of participating in skin contests, I’ve seen a lot of artists join with a lot of excitement, only to give up or drop out because they aren’t winning. Some blame it on skill, others blame it on the staff, and some blame it on fellow competitors.

Here’s what I will say: like any contest, winning the festival skin contest is based on a combination of luck, knowledge, and skill. Just like any contest, there is a strategy to it and there are win conditions that you have to fulfill if you want a chance at winning. Some artists find these win conditions quickly and are able to adapt and cultivate the skill needed to pull off a win. Some are aware of these win conditions but do not yet have the skill to pull off a win. And some aren’t aware at all. A loss is usually (but not always) a result of not fulfilling those win conditions, or not fulfilling them as much as another artist.

So, let’s talk about these win conditions.

The Biggest Win Condition: Breed Variety

In my opinion, the biggest factor that makes or breaks an entry is breed variety. Over the past ten years, there's been a consistent trend of staff picking one winner per breed/pose, though there are occasional outliers (most recently, two Aether M for Brightshine, but previously also Undertide M and Spiral M). This means whenever you submit a skin, you’re competing against artists that also submitted the same breed/pose.

For those who aren’t aware, breed variety has been dropping in contests, along with the number of submissions. The result is that there are very few submissions for less popular breeds. Take a look at Brightshine 2023 - the majority of the submissions were Aethers. But even if there ended up being three Aether wins, that meant none of the other Aether skins made it in.

I want to explain this with numbers. Say Aethers (M&F) made up 60% of the Brightshine 2023 submissions but could only make it into 2 or 3/16 of the winning slots. That’s 60% of the submissions eliminated from making it into the remaining 13/16 slots. Where would the other 13/16 skins come from, if staff were to stick to their trend of 1 breed/pose skin per festival? The flight breeds - Imp and PC might take up 4 more slots. But that’s still 9/16 slots that need winners and only 30% of the submissions to pick from. Additionally, ancients will generally make up at least 40% of the winning submissions, if not 50%. That’s why having 100 submissions might mean there aren’t a lot of winners the staff could pick, and why there weren’t any Fae skins for Starfall 2022 or Spiral M skins for Mistral 2023.

I tested this theory with F Ridgeback submissions. I mainly focused on three breed/poses that I saw as the least submitted - F Noc, F Bog, and F Ridgeback. I went with Ridgeback because it was the base I liked the most. The result? Out of the 22 contests I’ve entered, I won 5 with F Ridgeback. That’s a 25% win rate with one breed/pose alone. If we factor in wins I’ve had with these three poses combined, that’s 8 wins or a 36% win rate.

Drawing on an unpopular breed/pose is a good way to make sure you don’t have too many competitors (and also show some of the more unpopular breeds some love). This is particularly true if you’re a newer artist like I was. I started doing art in June 2021, so I knew there was no chance I could outcompete better artists on the same breed/pose.

Of course, choosing the right breed will not always net you a win - you still need good skin composition and skills to catch the staff’s attention, which is what we’re going to talk about next.

Statutory Win Conditions: Flight Themes & Colors

When it comes to making a skin for a festival contest, I always recommend people look at the apparel, lore, and familiars for that flight, because these items are usually the closest to what’s canonically considered a flight’s aesthetic. A lot of the entries I’ve seen win are based off of the fest fams or match a fest apparel.

There are exceptions. The game aspect of the Lightning Flight isn’t canon, but we’ve had hivemind and gaming skins win. Why? Maybe that contest only had a total of 12-15 breed/poses submitted, maybe it was just the best executed skin for that breed/pose, maybe a staff member just really liked it. However, generally winners will match the flight’s canon aesthetic.

The trend of skin contest winners also suggest a favoring of elements that are placed on the dragon’s wings and head (leaves, vines, fairy/insect wings, gears), or accent/tattoo-like effects that involve gradient, sparkles, or abstract smoke (see 888’s 2023 brightshine win). Skin compositions that are balanced (elements throughout the body, as opposed to just one part of the body) see a higher win rate. Skins that have lower accent coverage tend to see higher win rates when they’re gradients/accents (linings on the dragon, runic/circuit effects) or when they’re concentrated on an easily noticeable/central part of the body (like the wings, or the dragon’s back).

In the end, knowing what to draw really comes down to research and knowledge. Before each contest I would review all the past winning entries and try to glean what staff did or didn’t pick. I noticed that staff didn’t tend to pick whiteout or body morph skins, and they tend to pick skins with higher coverage. I also checked past festival winners to see the color theme for each contest. There are some contests during which colors that aren’t necessarily the flight’s colors are still picked, and there are contests that haven’t seen a festival skin which didn’t match the flight’s colors. Like any contest, there’s always going to be a small bit of luck involved.

Ultimately, while I can’t speak for the staff, I do think there are win conditions that need to be fulfilled. You need to have a basic level of art skill. You need knowledge on skin composition and colors. Then, of course, you need to know which breed/pose to choose.

I hope my analysis helps a little when you’re entering your next contest, or that it made for an interesting read. If you just came here for general tips and tricks, that’s all I have for you - you can also scroll all the way down to see my final thoughts on contests. But generally, just keep trying different things, doing your research, and making sure you’re sticking to the flight theme.

For people who want it, here’s my breakdown on each series of contests that I’ve entered, and reasons why I think I won or lost.

Personal Analysis - Brightshine 2021-Brightshine 2023

I’m a very competitive person and more importantly, I love to compete. So the moment I found myself capable of making skins, festivals were on my radar. I studied what previous artists did, what techniques and designs seem to win the most. What skills did I need and what skins caught the judges' eyes? More importantly, what bases did I feel confident with and could perform the best on? As soon as I felt like I understood the contest, I entered Brightshine 2021 with about 2 weeks’ worth of art experience.

Then I proceeded to lose four contests in a row.

So, what happened?

Brightshine 2021 (loss)

Sometimes unearthing your old art is like watching an old video of yourself in your cringey teenager phase. But knowing why you lost is important in understanding how you can win (and what to absolutely not do again).

For Brightshine 2021, I submitted a Guard F design with two recolors. At the time I only had the skill to draw lanterns and filigree, so I went “that’s Light enough” and did exactly that. Although I would say my theme was (kind of) on point, it was my execution that was lacking:

Issue No. 1: Colors. In review of previous Light winners there’s a umber/gold palette or gold/sunlight palette that appears to be the meta. There have also been cases of red or purple winning even though they aren’t used in official Light items, and some rainbow entries. While one of my recolors followed this scheme, it fell short because–

Issue No. 2: Composition. Skin composition is the balance of elements and how well each element pulls their weight in a piece of art. In my Brightshine 2021 entry, most of the base was left bare. Artists like August are really good at skin comp where their entire piece looks tied together; mine was far from that.

Issue No. 3: Quality. If you compare my Brightshine 2021 submission to my 2023 one, you’ll see what I mean. My art style relies on rendering, or applying lighting and shadows, to bring out each element. Basically I need rendering in order to win. This isn’t necessarily a requirement for you; some artists do lineless, others do painterly, and others don’t render at all, but overall the art style should have a specific level of quality that rendering brought out in my art.

In short: wrong colors, bad lineart, skill issue, no skin comp - overall it was a piece of art not even its creator could love. (I tossed the psd in the recycling bin and hit delete. Except looking in the database now apparently I printed it, so now I have to live with the shame of its existence.)

There is one takeaway that I got. By the time the contest ended there were no other Guard F entries. I realized then that had my art been better, with the breed/pose’s lack of competition, I could’ve had a shot at winning the contest.

Thundercrack 2021 (loss)

Alright, 2021 Myth thinks, I’ve learned my lesson from Brightshine. The skin composition was not good. That means I should put more stuff on the base and I’m sure to win!

Have you ever just looked in the mirror and realized you, yes you, are the most punchable thing in the world?

In all fairness, the skin comp of my TCC entry did improve. Like Brightshine, I did a single design with two recolors on an unpopular breed. Improvements I made: additional elements to the skin aside from the one big element on the wing, and a color palette that matched the flight. Of course, I wished my theme of hivemind/code also matched the flight aesthetic, but just like my love life, the only thing my submission matched with was loss and disappointment.

Issue No. 1: Design. Upon reviewing past winners, very few featured fake apparel or clothing. As mentioned previously, staff do not appear to favor whiteout or body morph skins, and prefer elements that adhere to the dragon (like wings) or add to the dragon (like bones/feathers).

Issue No 2: Technology. For my entry, the circuit patterning on the wings did not take resizing well. I drew this on a 750x750 canvas and the resizing blended the many circuit lines into a single line. This isn’t a program issue. It was a lack of understanding of how resizing works.

Issue No 3: And we’re still here with my biggest problem: skill issue. Art is not a skill you learn in two months. I did learn to render, but not well enough. I wasn’t good enough. Yet.

Starfall 2021 (loss)

So… fun fact! During all of this I was writing my thesis. As in, I was writing my thesis after not writing my thesis for a year. It was stressful. I don’t have much to say about this contest because I did this skin as a meme for the sole reason that somewhere in my 3 am sleep deprived brain I thought “Emergency Portal-col” was hilarious.

I did not expect to win and I didn’t. Still, I did notice more and more that certain breeds just weren’t submitted for contests. Ridgeback F, I noticed, had anywhere from 0 to 1 submission for each contest while M pose generally had 0. Same for Nocturnes.

Riot of Rot 2021 (loss)

By this time, 2021 Myth had given up on the “one big element + some other accessories” idea. It hadn’t worked for Light or Lightning and it wasn’t going to work. So I thought, what if I just went for the accessory elements? My ROR skin featured the spider lily, smoke, and sparkles. I also started experimenting with dark gradients on the limbs of the dragon, which I’d noticed in winning fest entries.

Gradients and sparkles help with skin composition. Especially if you’re a newer artist who can’t pull off more complicated effects. Oftentimes a skin looks empty in certain parts, but adding elements to those parts would make things look messier. That’s where gradients/sparkles come in. However, I lost because:

Issue No 1: Composition again. While my elements tied together well, I had no main attraction other than the empty void that was the center of the Ridgeback wing. I essentially did a background scene and didn’t add a main character for it. This made me think that maybe my “one big element” skin comp idea was still worth a shot, but I needed a different take.

Issue No 2: Aaaand skill issue again.I was still bad at rendering, and sometimes skill is just why you lose. Not because you don’t have good ideas or because your execution was bad, but because you do not yet have the skills to defeat your competitors. You can do a really good looking skin, but if someone else in the contest did an even better looking skin on the breed/pose, then you’re not going to win.

Gala 2021 (win)

Losing four times in a row was pretty discouraging. But here’s another important element to skin contests: consistency. The frequency of your submissions should result in a win so long as you fulfill all of the other win conditions such as good composition, understanding of the theme, and the basic level of art skill required to win.

For the Gala, I realized that wings would be the best big element to put on a base while tying in all of the other elements. This is probably the most complicated skin I’d worked on at that time. But because I’d learned minimal rendering, because my skin composition was actually good, and there was no competition for Ridgeback F, I won. For the very first time.

Trickmurk 2021 - Starfall 2022 (6 wins 2 losses - 12 skin designs submitted total)

Here, I’d found my strategy. As long as I kept to the theme and made sure my skin comp and rendering was good, I would win. Especially because I had no competition. Again, breed variety is a huge issue in skin contests, because people - particularly the really skilled artists - are more likely to go for a breed that they like or is popular. As a newer artist, I was well aware that there was a 100% chance I’d lose if I tried to fight anyone for the same breed/pose. (And part of knowing the win conditions is also knowing artists you definitely are not winning against.)

3/6 of my wins during this time was F Ridgeback. The others were: F Coatl, which had no competition during Trickmurk, and F Nocturne, which had no competition during Wind and Arcane’s fests (but competed against my will to live because this is a terrible base to work on).

But relying on unpopular breed advantage was about as reliable as internet connection in a college dorm. 3/6 of my wins were ridgeback but that meant all of my losses were also ridgeback. On top of that, the number of Ridgeback submissions peaked at one point to 5-6. I was still winning, because I had the skill to beat my competitors. But I had to up my game. My skins had to be more elaborate, closer to the theme. I began submitting two designs per competition, which was… going to be a problem for me later.

The idea behind submitting two designs per competition is simple. Instead of just relying on one unpopular breed/pose to net you the win, now you have two shots at winning.

My goal that I’d made during this time was to either win 11 in a row or to win once for each holiday. This was to keep my motivation. Keep in mind I was also writing my thesis, so I really needed a goal to go towards, especially when I committed to doing two designs per contest.

(I defended my thesis successfully in May 2022 and graduated with high honors!)

ROR 2022 - Brightshine 2023 (7 wins 1 loss - 16 skin designs submitted total)

Here’s where I found another niche in the skin contests. Flight-breeds. These are breeds that belong to each element and surprisingly - they don’t actually get that many submissions. Seeing Starfall 2022’s skin turnout as an Arcanite was tough. When it came to reviewing Starfall 2022, anyone would’ve won as long as they submitted a good quality Fae skin that didn’t break the rules or stray too far from the theme and had a skin composition that the staff liked.

I decided to put my theory to the test with Earth, Ice, Wind, Water, and Nature. Are you surprised there were only three Snap F submissions for Earth, one Tun M for Ice, two SDM for Wind, and something like two Undertide F entries for Water? I was. Especially with Undertides because the breed had been released only five months ago. By noticing the flight-breed meta, and having the time, skill, and experience to make skins for those breeds that fit the criteria, I was able to win.

At this time I started straying away from my “one big element + smaller accessories” composition. My art had gotten better so I was able to expand my designs. Wavecrest 2023 was the biggest show of that, and I’m really proud of my entries for that contest. It was essentially a turning point in my art style… but it did take a lot more time and effort. From that point on, my skins were hitting 90+ layers and taking me at least two weeks to draw.

The last skin contest I entered with that art style was Brightshine 2023. By the time the contest ended, I was pretty sure winning would take a miracle or a relationship with god that I did not have. The competition for Imp M was difficult, and I was pitting my submission against artists who had far more experience and skill. I had some hope for my Ridge F entry, but again, relying on unpopular breed advantage is, well. Not reliable.

I lost. It was crushing, because not only did that mean I lost Brightshine three years in a row, Brightshine was the last contest I needed to win to fulfill either one of my goals: winning 11 in a row or win once for each elemental holiday. However, losses happen and it sucks, but it’s not the end of the world. I simply lost to a much better artist, and I am okay with that.

Final Thoughts

Heart-to-heart time.

I know some people become discouraged because they don’t think they have the skill, or they compare themselves to other artists. I felt discouraged for the same reason. After losing so many contests in 2021, I thought I would never improve. I would never be as good as artists that started long before me, or even some that started after me but learned so much faster.

I still think that’s true. I have a long way to go and I may never catch up to these other artists. But here’s the thing about art: it’s a skill that constantly evolves and you cannot see that evolution unless you keep trying. And you need to keep trying if you want to win, because you aren’t going to without reaching the right skill level.

The hardest truth about competitions is that you can’t expect to win just because you tried. If everyone could win just by participating – that contest isn’t worth winning. There are no stakes so there is no value. But when you put in a lot of effort and time, and you win? That win is something that will stay with you. That is a worthwhile win - because it was hard and because you lost so many times.

Sure, the staff could let everyone who enters win. Maybe winners should be judged solely on participation. Maybe that would make more people happy. But would you really be happy to win, knowing there’s no chance of losing? At that point, would being a festival contest winner mean anything?

In the end, a contest is supposed to be fun. Throw everything I’ve said out the window if that’s made contests un-fun for you. Most, MOST importantly, you should join the competition because you enjoy it. If you’re joining just to win, and you take losses very hard, and participation becomes a chore - then that is never going to be worth the toll on your mental health.

Take it from someone who took it too seriously. Drawing two skin designs monthly was taxing (remember it was taking me at least 2 weeks per design), and by Nature 2023 I had severe burnout. When Brightshine rolled around, I sat down for 11 hours to finish my Imp entry, because I knew I wouldn’t have time for art later. By the time I finished, I was running on about five hours of sleep and a very unhealthy attachment to caffeine.

Then, three days before Brightshine, I was diagnosed with tendonitis.

I started feeling discomfort in my arms/wrist since March, hence why I stopped releasing public skins. But this is effectively the worst arm related injury I’ve had, and while drawing is not the main cause, doing so for 11 hours straight didn’t help. My left arm has minor pain. My right arm is swollen and in a brace. This could’ve been avoided by taking breaks and doing exercises. But the lack of proper precaution led to injury. (And yes, I drew my Bogsneak TCC 2023 entry with a mouse for this reason. I could not use my tablet pen so… circle and line tool it was. But I had fun ^^)

I hope my analysis of the contests will be of some use to you. But please do not hurt yourself, mentally or physically, in competing. UMA artists make around 3kg per run of skin, so if you are entering contests for the prize, that’s not the best use of your time and energy. When it comes down to it, you are going to be doing free art for the site, and that is never worth injuring yourself for.

As a final note, thank you to the FR staff for allowing artists to participate in the site. My art experience is purely derived from skins and contests have encouraged me to improve myself. Thank you also to my friends who cheered me on along the way, the many wonderful artists who gave me tips on line weight, coloring, and rendering. And of course, many thanks to August for being the best cheerleader I could have. I would not have made it to Brightshine without him as a competitor and fellow artist.

(However nothing you do will make me like Gaolers and that is a hill I will die on.)

Happy almost-Flameforger’s everyone! Here’s to the next fest cycle.

#flightrising #flight rising #flight rising skins #fr skins and accents #fr fest #skins and accents

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chrysalis-the-butterfly · 16 days

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What I Mean When I Say, "I Ship Huskerdust"

When I say, "I ship Huskerdust," I don't mean that I think it would be a perfect example of a healthy relationship. Because it wouldn't be.

They've both got issues that they would need to work through if they wanted their relationship to succeed.

On Angel's side, there's the fact that his prior interactions with Husk basically consisted of him flirting with Husk, and Husk making it clear that he wasn't interested, and Angel ignoring that and doing it again. That's harassment.

Yes, Angel stops doing it after Episode 4, but he never explicitly apologises for it. That was a missed opportunity, in my opinion. It was a change for the show to say loudly and clearly, "Hey, trauma sucks, we get that, but it's not an excuse to treat people badly yourself. You grow by owning up to your mistakes and trying to be better than the person who hurt you."

Speaking of trauma...

Angel is being abused by Valentino and exploited in the porn industry. That's not a personal failing. It's not Angel's fault. But it has affected him deeply, and it's something that he and Husk would need to work through.

It's not going to be all sunshine and rainbows. Angel will cry, Angel will get angry, Angel will lash out. He will behave inappropriately, and he will keep being hypersexual because he knows how to do it and sometimes it feels like the safest option. And he will have no idea how to just rest with a loved one and trust them. So Husk will need to be the bigger person and take all the ups and downs and keep loving Angel through the dark days.

But I don't know if Husk has what it takes to do that.

That leads me nicely onto the issues on Husk's side. For starters, there's his judgemental attitude. He's a gambler, and therefore believes he can read people and know everything about them. Angel's "It's not an act!" outburst shakes Husk and makes him realise that he didn't really know what was going on.

But even after that, Husk is still judging Angel. It happens in Episode 6, when Angel is offered drugs by Cherri Bomb and Husk says, "Look, you wanna fuck up all your progress, be my guest. I just ... I just thought you were better than that."

Addicts can relapse if they go back to their old environments and old relationships. It happens. And it's probably not a good idea to be so condemnatory about it.

Can you imagine what Husk's reaction would be if Angel really did relapse? Would Angel feel safe opening up to Husk again if he knew how badly Husk could take it?

Sometimes, it seems as though Husk puts Angel on a pedestal. In Episode 8, when he tells Angel, "I guess you have changed," Angel doesn't look convinced, instead changing the subject. Husk sees Angel as better than Angel thinks he is.

And that goes hand-in-hand with when he was judging Angel more harshly in earlier episodes. Husk applies higher standards to Angel.

I think part of the reason why Husk is so hard on Angel is because Husk sees something in Angel that he doesn't see in himself - youth and potential. Husk has made it clear that he isn't trying to get into Heaven. He probably doesn't think he deserves it. That's why he told Angel not to look for answers to problems at the bottom of a bottle, but continued to drink himself.

My theory is that Husk is working on Angel because he finds it easier than working on himself.

It's much easier to judge and boss around others than to acknowledge and rectify your own flaws. To borrow a metaphor from Jesus Christ himself, Husk is trying to take specks of sawdust out of Angel's eye while he's still got plenty of planks in his own eye.

One of those planks being his complicity in the Overlord system.

Yes, I should probably mention that Husk used to be an Overlord. He used to participate in the very system that is now trapping and torturing Angel.

And he gambled with the souls that he owned! He put their afterlives at stake! Can you imagine being owned by Husk, thinking you knew where you stood, and then waking up one day to be told that you were now owned by someone else? Potentially someone as bad as Valentino?

(Now, I don't think Husk ever actually played a game with Valentino, given that he can't seem to remember Val's name in Episode 6, but still, the implications are horrifying.)

Angel didn't have too big a reaction when Husk opened up about his past. But that's probably because he was still reeling a bit from his own outburst. Once it had sunk in, how did he feel?

How can Angel feel safe and loved around someone who used to own souls and gamble with them carelessly? Someone who apparently still has his Overlord powers? Someone who could turn into yet another Valentino in the wrong circumstances?

How can a romance work?

Can a romance work?

Despite all of that?!

No, when I say, "I ship Huskerdust," I don't mean, "I think they're fluffy and adorable and 100% unproblematic." I mean, "Huskerdust contains interesting dynamics that are fun to explore." There's something about their interactions that I enjoy.

And Huskerdust could be a good way for the cartoon to dive into its themes of redemption and second changes.

Husk could change Angel for the better. We can see that, after Episode 4, Angel is willing to be more honest about what he's going through. He actually tells Niffty about the gruelling 16-hour shift Valentino put him through, instead of trying to pretend he's been all right.

If they became an official couple, Husk could show Angel what it's like to have someone genuinely care for him and his wellbeing, not just use him for money-making or self-gratification. Since Husk isn't interested in Angel's hypersexual porn star persona, it would be a chance for Angel to take the time to figure out who he (Anthony?) really is.

Angel could change Husk for the better, too. Other Tumblr bloggers have pointed out that Husk seemed to be drinking a little less after Episode 4. Perhaps watching Angel attempting self-improvement encouraged Husk to give it a go as well, albeit in a more low-key way.

And if Husk was the one who got Angel out of his contract with Valentino, that would be a great culmination of his character arc. It would be his own personal redemption for participating in the cruel Overlord system, because he'd be freeing someone from an Overlord's control. He'd be correcting his past mistakes. I for one would love to see that in a future season.

That is what I mean when I say "I ship Huskerdust."

TL;DR Angel and Husk are not perfect people, not by a long shot - but they could be perfect for each other.

#hazbin hotel #angel dust #anthony hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel anthony #husk hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel husk #huskerdust #valentino hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel valentino #cherri bomb #niffty #sir pentious

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soapisahimbo · 1 year

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Their S/O Already Has A Kid - 141 (+Alejandro & König) Edition

Anonymous asked: Your work is god tier, absolutely slaying rn. I'm not sure if you're taking requests but if you are... hear me out- can I please get the mw2 boys with an s/o who already has a kid? How would they interact with the kid?

So I wasn't entirely sure on what angle to approach this from, but I've written this as if reader has been a single parent who has worked with 141 for a while (not necessarily a soldier), the other parent isn't really in the picture and the kid is somewhere around 4-5 years old. I'm not sure if this is what you had in mind, but I sincerely hope you enjoy!

warnings: none! couldn't find a good gif to use though :(

John 'Soap' MacTavish:

From the second he finds out you have a child, way before there's even any suggestion that you will one day be a couple, he's on a mission to become The World's Best Uncle. It's like he's participating in a competition that no one else signed up for - he wants to be your kid's absolute favourite and he'll be damned if anyone else tries it. Will frequently ask you about the kid; "how're they doin' in school?", "do they have friends to play with?", "what do they want for Christmas?", "are they growin' well?", and even checks up with you to see if they need new clothes or anything. He will always have something for them for their birthday or Christmas and will happily say to you, "this is from Uncle Soap, all right? Take pictures when they open it, I wanna see how they like it!"

He has a natural desire to look after the people around him, and since he considers you a close and fast friend, he'll want nothing more than to help you out if he can. The closer you grow, the more he gets the urge to prove himself worthy - to prove that he'll be good to you and that you can trust him - and it's a sentiment he keeps long after you get together. You and your child become like a family to him, and it's a family he's keen on keeping.

The two of them will be like two peas in a pod. He'll play around with them near constantly, tell them stories from his job (adjusted to be more child-friendly) and teach them how to play football. He asks them about school, helps them with homework and he will happily treat the kid as his own. You're the love of his life and this child is his best little friend. He loves you both dearly and it fills him with immense happiness to have you two to come back home to once you live together. If he's available for it, he'll go with you guys to events and theme parks, and hopefully longer vacation trips. He doesn't ever expect them to call him "dad" (although if it were to happen, it would probably have him sobbing uncontrollably), he's just happy to be with you, and to be The World's Best Uncle Soap.

Simon 'Ghost' Riley:

It's worth mentioning that he'll be hesitant to get any closer to you than necessary at first, not because of any sort of disdain towards you or towards kids, but because of who he is. Simon has been through some terrible shit, and his work consists of doing even more terrible shit, and so he thinks that being any sort of role model to a child is way out of his range.

This doesn't mean he doesn't care, though. When you first get to know him, he seems cold and aloof and he doesn't seem to show any particular interest in you. What with you being on his team though, and him knowing that you're a single parent, he might approach you with the intent of at least showing some sort of support, whatever support he might be capable of showing.

He'll get something for the kid, like a stuffed animal or some sort of toy, but he doesn't hand it to you personally; he'll leave it somewhere where he knows you'll find it, like on your desk if you have one, and pretend like nothing happened.

He wants to keep his distance, but he can't deny the strange urge to look after you. It starts slow. He never asks, but he'll listen when you tell him about your child; how they've been doing lately, what you've done during the weekend, something funny they did or said. At first you might think he's ignoring you, but then one day he hands you a little trinket and tells you it's "for the little one, figured they might like it."

Growing closer and realizing that he has feelings for you is a complicated ordeal for him and he tries to keep it locked away deep down, but he's unable to stop himself for some reason. Once together, he cares greatly about you and your child, even if he might not always know how to show it.

He makes an unspoken promise to never let anything harm either of you, and so he keeps you under the radar as best he can. His team might know that you're together, but that's as far as they're informed. You won't hear much from him while he's out on missions, and he rarely mentions you or your kid to anyone, keeping any information about you sealed up tightly in the back of his mind, and if anyone asks he'll only give short-clipped answers, if he even bothers to answer in the first place. It's all to keep you safe.

With you, though, he's much more loving and gentle than others would even guess he's capable of. If you live together, he'll pick your kid up in his arms when he gets home and plant a gentle and loving kiss on your lips in greeting. Never raises his voice at anything if one or both of you are near, even if he's aggravated or annoyed. He plays ever so gently with your kid, even if they're play-wrestling and he's tossing them around because he's incredibly aware of his strength, and he sits patiently and quietly while they doodle on his arms or even his face and tells them bad (child-friendly) puns to get them to laugh. You and the kid are practically the only ones that get to see him smile.

His own childhood was incredibly traumatizing, and he tries his damnedest to make sure that that doesn't bleed over onto you or the kid, even if it means that he has to step away for a while. He's working on it, you might just need to give him some time. If this is as serious as he thinks it is, he wants to be the absolute best that he can be for you.

Kyle 'Gaz' Garrick:

He is oh, so gentle with your child. He's the dude that calmly and casually follows your kid around to make sure that they don't get in trouble while they explore. He's done it since the first time they met, and he still does it now, only interfering when they're headed somewhere they shouldn't be, or when they turn to him to play or talk. The type to offer to take care of them so that you can rest or focus on other things, and tells you "it's no skin off my nose" when you tell him that he really doesn't need to. He lets the kid approach him rather than try to get them to interact with him, and it's because of this exact mindset that kids usually love him. If they want to hug him, he'll happily wrap them up in a big and warm hug, but he's not going to convince them to because kids deserve their own bodily autonomy just as much as any adult.

He's one of those people who just magically makes kids fall asleep even when they're in that "I am dead tired but I refuse to sleep for some ungodly reason so I'm just gonna scream and cry at everything"-state, and it baffles you every time, but you're certainly not complaining. He has this air about him that is just very calming, and he makes both you and your kid feel immensely safe just by his presence alone. He starts out as just a close and caring friend, and the transition to more than just friends to an actual couple is a smooth one; one day you just kiss and you're not even surprised. It feels natural to have him around and when you see him interact with your child, it's like he's supposed to be there. You can't imagine anyone else, as if whatever empty space was there had been Gaz-shaped all along.

Gets your kid to laugh delightfully without even trying, wipes their tears gently and kisses their cheeks when they've scraped their knees or bumped their head, listens intently when they talk, even if they're just speaking nonsense ("but of course, all superheroes are from Norway."*) and will absolutely not laugh when they call Soap a dumb stinky poopyface.

Despite his calm demeanour though, Gaz is still a soldier, and very well-trained one at that. Should anyone approach you or your kid with the intent to harm you or threaten you, rest assured that he will not just let that slip by. He would give his life to protect both of you without even a hint of hesitation.

*based on an actual conversation I had with one of my nephews

Alejandro Vargas:

He doesn't care what anyone says, doesn't care what anyone thinks, doesn't care about what the kid looks like or how old they are, he is Dad™ now. Will wholeheartedly claim your child as his own and fight anyone who questions it. What the hell do you mean they look nothing alike, that's his fucking kid, are you blind?

He's so eager and willing to help, even long before you start dating. Takes any chance he gets to invite you and your child over, be it for food, for movie nights, to go to the park, or simply to talk. Before you know it, he has clothes and toothbrushes dedicated to both of you at his place, reminding you again and again that his door is always open for you; no need to even knock.

Let's be real, as generous and charming as he is, it's his sincerity that has you falling for him. He offers to take care of the kid while you rest, or to come over to clean up your home (Rodolfo might join as well, partly because of his goodhearted nature, partly because Alejandro roped him into it), and he looks you deep in the eyes when he tells you that his family is your family, be it Los Vaqueros or his own blood relatives. It's how he confesses to you as well, telling you that even if you don't reciprocate, he'll still be there for you.

If you didn't know any better, you yourself would start to question whether or not Alejandro is somehow the actual father. It's like they have some sort of telepathic connection, almost. The only one who knows that kid's moods and mannerisms and habits better than him, is you. He works with you like a team to make sure that you're always on the same page and make sure that you know that he only ever wants the best for you and the kid. Teaches them Spanish if it's not already their native language, and if they happen to pick up a curse-word from somewhere, he'll be horrified (kid said "puta" once and you thought he'd have a heart attack).

Much like Ghost, he'll keep you under the radar to keep you safe. Sends letters and gifts in secret when he's deployed, and now has a stronger determination than ever to stay alive. He doesn't ever want to imagine that one day might be the last he'll ever see you, so he'll walk through hell and high water to make sure he will return to you.

König:

He doesn't really know how to handle kids, but he sure does try. He is huge compared to this tiny little human - his calf alone is almost the same size as the entire child - so he tries to shrink himself down as much as he can. They might be a bit intimidated by him at first, but once that passes he is practically given the role of a human jungle gym. He stays alert, making sure that he's able to catch them should they fall off, and as awkward as he might feel, he would never let this little one come to harm. When you tell your kid to leave him be or be gentler with him, he quickly assures you that it's no problem and that he doesn't mind it at all; thinks it's quite fun actually. Before you know it, this tiny being less than a quarter of his size will be like his little sidekick, and it's honestly the funniest thing you've seen.

He's nervous around you though, not only because it's your child, but because over time the harmless little crush he's had on you grows stronger and stronger and stronger, and he's not sure how to handle it. When he tells the kid to be good to you, it's partly directed towards himself as well, as if he's telling himself to look after you. The idea of holding the child in one arm and you in the other fills him with such warmth that it almost catches him off guard. You're the one who tells him how you feel, and it kickstarts a full avalanche of stumbling words out him, because he's trying to find the right way to tell you that he feels the same and that he wants to be a part of your life.

He will be incredibly gentle with that child - he'll fuzz over the tiniest little bump or bruise or scrape, even if they're not bothered by it in the slightest. Picks them up very carefully while they can pull and tug and jump on him with all the strength their little body can muster without him ever budging - play-wrestling and tickle fights will be very carefully done because he would hate to accidentally hurt them. Loves teaching them German if they don't already speak it, and much like Alejandro, he will practically see his life flash by his eyes if they ever happen to learn a curseword from somewhere - especially if they accidentally picked it up from him.

Will keep any semblance of violence away from you and your child to as far of an extent as he can, but if anything happened to either one of you, he'd crush the skulls of everyone involved with his bare hands, that's for sure.

#cod x reader #cod mw2 fic #john mactavish x reader #simon riley x reader #soap mactavish x reader #kyle gaz garrick x reader #simon ghost riley x reader #alejandro vargas x reader #könig x reader #konig x reader

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noirandchocolate · 1 year

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So now that the polls are closed on Round 1A, here's some comments on each match that had me on the floor throughout yesterday and this morning:

Match 1, Vimes vs. Mal

First of all PLEASE read this story of how @thestuffedalligator imagined the fight would go, it's GREAT.

Maladict would win the fight. Vimes would make sure of it.

--@thisblogisboundforglory-blog

Vimes is meaner. Maladict's a sweetie but also a poseur.

--@ellynneversweet

Match 2, Moist vs. Whiteface

See I love Moist he's my boy. But I don't think he'd actually win in a Fight. I think he'd find some way to get out of it rather than actually fighting in it. Meanwhile that clown is absolutely out to kill.

--@omicheese

Ok this one's decently close. But Mr. Slightly Damp could run circles around him. Clown on clown violence. But frankly Mr. Mildly Wet is the Stronger Clown. Not physically but in Clown Logic. Listen it's borderline toon logic. The winner the one for whom it would be Objectively Funnier for them to win.

--@nonbinaryspacegoo

Moist does some of his best work when he's trying to avoid something. IE participating in this fight. he's also self aware of the whole can't con a con-artist/can't cheat a cheater way of the world, and knows how to work that to his advantage. I have limited knowledge of the doc but even if he's capable of the same thought process, I think Moist would be more successful just because he'd put on a better show of being a sad pathetic wet meow meow boy. In order to make an opportunity to pull a trick. On account of being a poor wet little meow meow boy.

--@violetren

Match 3, Cohen vs. Reg

Reg I am so sorry. But you are dead and he doesn't want to be.

--@coredesignixandnekonee

This one is contrary to what most people would think, I think, but like, Reg Shoe was so determined in his goals in life that he came back as a zombie. So. I think if he were determined enough to beat Cohen, even though Cohen is nigh unbeatable, he would do it. Even if that's just simply by outliving Cohen or something ridiculous, as long as he has the conviction, he'd do it.

--@theeldritchbat

Trick question. Neither would win, they'll keep a back and forth of avoiding death for ever. Creating the first ever perpetual motion machine.

--@fefeman

Match 4, Mrs. Gogol vs. Rob Anybody

THIS ONE IS TOUGH. Because I think Rob would be very conflicted about fighting any hag, they'll curse you so hard you know. In the end I did vote Rob though, either because he'd avoid any curses by stepping in and out of reality, or just by annoying the shit out of Gogol enough to where she's like "Yknow what?? FINE. YOU WIN. LEAVE."

--@purpledemoncat

ppl saying Rob would win smh. listen love the guy. maybe in a straight fistfight with no other factors at play but like. They're freaked by witches my guy. She could use even her easiest headology and he's OUT.

--@nonbinaryspacegoo

Match 5, Detritus vs. the Dean

I mean...yes, the Dean is a wizard, he's got magic...but he's *the Dean*. Historically, not known for making good choices. I think Detritus could handle him.

--@theeldritchbat

Detritus may have his weaponry much closer to hand (and much more weaponizable hands), but the Dean fought his way to the upper echelons of UU and gets *distressingly* into mock-fighting (see: the Paintball Incident). I know that this fight is supposed to start friendly, but the Dean is going to escalate faster than Detritus, who is well aware that everyone who isn't him tends to squish.

--@the-damn-things-overlap

The Dean would take a bit picking the right spell and preparing it. So my first instinct is Detritus. But then again the Dean only got where he is and stayed there by being good at not getting got and being able to get others. However on second thought he is used to working against other flimsy old white men. So yeah no still Detritus.

--@violetren

Match 6, Granny vs. Susan

Their fight would consist of a staring contest and you can't change my mind. Susan would last a good long time but blink eventually because she has young, plump eyeballs. Granny will not blink, because she has fallen asleep with them open. Granny don't give a fuck.

--@purpledemoncat

Look Granny Weatherwax would probably win in like 98% of situations. But this particular situation feels like it'd be similar to taking her to the theatre and she'd just be vaguely annoyed and unsure what was going on. And Susan would find the whole situation inconvenient and stupid but would understand the assignment. So she'd just steamroll through just so it would be over. And if she did it quickly enough I think she'd get a technical win over Granny. However she would then have an unhappy and clued in Granny on her hands at the end of it. So like then she'd be in trouble. Anyways I voted Susan because sometimes it's fun to go for the perceived underdog. Honestly believe that who would win would be purely situational because they are both stone cold badasses.

--@violetren

Match 7, Nutt vs. Harry King

I didn't know where to go with this one. I feel like Harry King Makes Shit Happen (no joke intended) and Nutt needs a solid reason to make shit happen. Nutt might accidentally win, but Harry King would win on purpose.

--@theeldritchbat

Ok in a real fight Nutt would win. But in a play fight he'd be too nice to not lose you see.

--@handern

Match 8, Magrat vs. the Librarian

Both are capable of speakable violence (casual willingness to use Goodie Whemper(maysherestinpeace)'s Turn Your Bones Into Hot Lead spell vs get twisted apart) but I have a hard time imagining the Librarian convincing his opponent that he has agreed to nonviolence. The Librarian probably proposes some sort of game since he understands he isn't meant to do any twisting. But then you are in a Chess with Chewbacca scenario. You had better be too foolish to see why winning would be bad or have nerves of steel and ice in your veins. I say foolish but really I mean foolish and talented or foolish and lucky. You do still have to win after all. But the Librarian won't twist you apart if you beat him. The only trouble is convincing yourself of that. I don't think Magrat is built right for this challenge.

--@theensorceler-blog

I'm in two minds about this one. Either the Librarian would win outright bcause Magrat can't get mad enough to use her strengths, or he would win by simply not being present for the fight (per the rules, running away successfully constitutes a win, and I don't think Magrat can outrun an orangutan). Someone would say, "hey, you gotta fight this witch -indicates Magrat-, my...ape", and he'd say, "ook," and then shuffle off to eat bananas and read under his desk because who the fuck has time to fight witches when there are bananas and books, right?

--@theeldritchbat

And that's how this has to go. The Librarian has to win because it's funnier if Magrat gets her ass kicked by an orangutan. Like I love her but it would be so funny.

--@omicheese

Keep it up everybody, this is super fun so far! =D

#discworld fight club 2023 #discworld fight club round 1a

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anisaanisa · 11 months

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Limerence: The Masterpost ☆

I couldn't miss the opportunity for another canon-flavoured masterpost, so here I go again with Limerence. This collection is a prequel to Homecoming, so if you're not ready to say goodbye, by all means, carry on! The structure remains: above the cut lies links, and below lurks a prompt breakdown where I attempt to justify everything that just happened. Onward!

Tumblr: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Read it on AO3 ▶ Previous Masterposts: Homecoming〡Evermore

This is your rest stop. Beyond the Keep Reading banner are many words and manga caps for those with a vested interest in Inuyasha headcanons/meta/anecdotes. Snacks applicable!

The Personal Bit ☆

ALRIGHT, masks off besties. Are they your OTP? Cause they’re my OTP too, and we should consider bursting into flames about it together (ɔ◔‿◔)ɔ ♥

I didn't think I’d participate with writing this year, until about a week before the event, when I was frying-panned with some notions. As a fellow bearer of the curse, it started with a seedling of Kagome looking out for Inuyasha in the modern era, whether she realised it or not and even if, logically, she knew better, and snowballed from there. So, I blasted through each prompt with the intention of keeping them short, and after a survey back, each chapter grew deceptively longer, and I thought: why not add a stair [100 words] to Kagome's case for each day?

This particular canon universe is approached thusly: the prompt is the starting point, and the characters do the rest. I don't control the narrative, the narrative controls me, type thing. Hence, chapters are plot-negative, and times skips are abundant. Anyway. Enough waxing!

Note: I am working with the Viz English translation of the Inuyasha manga with some anime filler for seasoning, and the timeframe for the 3-year separation falls loosely between 1998-2001.

Final Note: Limerence spoilers start here.

Prompt Breakdown ☆

Day 1: Love Language(s)

Summary: Kagome's been distracted. Or, I hc that Kagome spent a good amount of time away with the fairies (and trying to catch up with school) when she first got back. Thoughts and Feels:

Love Language(s) were coined in 1992; the likelihood of them being such a commonly adopted phrase/ideology was as slim as Kagome knowing what her friends were going on about. They're a relatively new conception of navigating romance, but that doesn't mean buzzwords didn't make it into those teen mags we remember so well, though! Point for fuck it we ball!

For better or worse, friends are gonna be a tad nosy, and Kagome’s definitely were. Consistently and without fail:

Chapter 23, Volume 3, Mask of Flesh ☆

—and how else to feel her “snapping back into the room” in 100 words, if not when confronted with mathematics?

Chapter 411, Volume 42, The Kind One ☆

Fun Fact: There is a small high chance I spent the most time on this one overall because trying to spin a tale in 100 words is wild.

Day 2: Possession

Summary: Kagome acts on impulse. Or, I hc that uncanny resemblances might ruin a girl's day out. Thoughts and Feels:

Okay, yeah, okay, technically the baseball cap didn't happen in the manga. But this is why filler episodes are good for the ecosystem, or something.

Shock can have a lot of side effects. Confusion, agitation, complete and utter lack of personal or road safety (to name a few), and in Kagome's case here, shoving Inuyasha-shaped familiarity under her nose when she least expected it had her acting up, because not only has the well been sealed off for X time, she was used to him acting up whenever he stepped foot in the modern era:

Chapter 392, Volume 40, A Peaceful Meal ☆

Her friends still care, though! Cause that's what friends are for! As wild of a creature as Kagome can be, they're aware of her “struggles” with her health, and are oddly used to her odd ways:

Chapter 35, Volume 4, A Little Imp ☆

Fun Fact: I rewrote that last line, like, 7 times. The free writing tag is actually fake news.

Day 3: Safe

Summary: Kagome's has a nightmare. Or, I hc that a brave face doesn't do much when she's at her most vulnerable. Thoughts and Feels:

If you've ever had nightmares/night terrors/sleep paralysis, you'll know how, well, terrifying they can be. Lucid states between sleep and wakefulness has a nasty way of warping perceptions, and with everything Kagome witnessed, her dreamscapes had to be vivid, especially after her stint in the jewel, where reality and fantasy blurred real bad, and what's worse, it taunted her about it:

Chapter 554, Volume 56, High School Life ☆

To further that point, Inuyasha gets brutal - beheadings, graphic slaughterings (sometimes at the hands of an MC eheh), you know, justgirlythings - and therefore toned down for television, as anime adaptations often are. Kagome was 15, and while she did that, it would leave a mark. Trauma, guys. We're talking about trauma now.

If the reference was caught during her tiny tale: the scene with Mama H being shook to fuck over her baby glowing is anime-only, but I really dig the idea that she knew something was up with Kagome from Day 0, really aided in reasoning why she was so okay with her daughter doing all that, thank you for understanding. Another point for filler!

Fun Fact: I…barely remember writing this one, actually, truly, read it back a week later like: don't know her. I love her like any proud mother, though!

Day 4: Modern

Summary: Kagome asks a question she doesn’t like the answer to. Or, I hc that curiosity killed the cat. Thoughts and Feels:

The trickiest one, in terms of setting. I spent too much time looking into the availability and flavours of historical records in Tokyo (particularly 2000ish, bc digital archives weren't that hot then) and came to the conclusion that while yes, it was possible for her to gain access to [something], no, it wasn't very likely she'd come across any death records, (specifically Koseki) for her friends, with the added bonus that family names are notably lacking until 1868. But take Kagome's resourcefulness + Japan's love for paperwork, and it led me here – to some kinda fake archive with fake books and fake names that could potentially be somebody that she used to know. And while I try my best to be respectful of the people and the setting I'm writing within, I asked myself bluntly, if I really gave a fuck about being accurate in this regard/fictional setting, and the answer was also: no. There isn't a Sunset Shrine either, so a fictional National Archives with The Right Documents there shall be.

Of all the Fuedal-Inuyasha characters, I feel like Sango is the one that would have Done Something to leave a mark, somewhere written on paper. You know...Badass Women For Agriculture Union [codeword for demon slaying], something. Yeah, Miroku was a holy man, but we're not talking about history right now, we're talking about Herstory.

And finally, that moment. The one where Kagome almost cracked and unleashed self-inflicted rage on some guy, cause time didn't cease to exist for them. The thing about Kagome, apart from her being an all round great character, is that she isn't tame, nor timid, and certainly no shrinking violet. But where she's brash and loud and (sometimes) quick to anger, she's also kind. And reasonable, and at the core, a wonderful person, and that duality is what makes her so lovable, relatable, and fun to write. Lookit her:

Chapter 175, Volume 185, Where They First Met ☆

Fun Fact: I really wanted to point out that Kagome was supposed to be in her high school uniform, but writing restriction said naur. Irrelevant. Also, this is my favourite chapter. Weird, right? Haha?

Day 5: Heat

Summary: Kagome hears a bump in the night. Or, I hc that stranger things have occurred than a random bout of sleepwalking while living with PTID (Post Traumatic Isekai Disorder). Thoughts and Feels:

There was a small blip in time where this chapter skewed Mature. Explicit, even. Something about imagining a certain someone in a compromising position, but then the wind changed direction, and I went for literal heat. Japanese summers are stifling, and heat...is hot. Ace card, go!

Lunar charts and such: they don't add up when you compare two points in time, 500 years apart. But there could still be some peculiar celestial moon stuff that led a sleep-deprived Kagome to have a gander at the moon, especially when it's new.

Chapter 140, Volume 15, The Other Side of the Well ☆

Inuyasha had a brilliant way of turning up when she least expected him, or staying away when she wanted to see him the most. There are little things that happen, like an open window or remnants of a dream that might stay with her upon waking, to lead her to think-maybe it was him?

Chapter 287, Volume 29, Mimisenri ☆

BEHIND THE SCENES REVEAL: Kagome was the one who opened her door and tried to feed the cat, but it didn't work, because sleepwalkers are silly. Easter Eggy Subtext: Buyo is the catalyst, but Kagome is the key. Think about it.

Chapter 494, Volume 50, Two Worlds ☆

Day 6: Courting

Summary: Kagome tries her best. Or, I hc that Kagome gives it the old college effort, a la jewel illusion. Thoughts and Feels:

Kagome's family want the best for her. Kagome's friends are boy-crazy hen-peckers. Hojo is cute, and has always shown an interest in Kagome. Therefore: it would be wild to assume she didn't at least say yes, once, to going out with him, even if she knew it really wasn't going to go anywhere:

Chapter 140, Volume 15, The Other Side of the Well ☆

Sometimes you have to do things to understand how much you don't want to do that thing. At this point in time, Kagome's coming up for graduation, she's spent almost 3 years dealing with everything that happened to her, and she's not a complete tool. However, the mind wanders, especially when you'd rather someone else's company:

Chapter 69, Volume 8, Sensing Presences ☆

She's going to give the modern era one last shot – because while romance isn't everything, it can be part of something – before throwing in the towel and saying fuck it, I tried. And as Kagome's will Kagome, she'd want to make an effort for the sake of others:

Chapter 35, Volume 4, A Little Imp ☆

Fun Fact: This chapter (and the next) ended up floating around 1.5K at first draft. I'd like to formally apologise to the words lost in transit, you will be missed.

Day 7: Smile

Summary: Kagome comes home. Or, I hc that Kagome finally puts her wants, needs and feelings first, and those might suspiciously man-shaped. Thoughts and Feels:

Yeahyeah, the “I never thought I'd write this”, we've all seen it. But it's true! Never thought I'd write a chapter retelling, and this one is that fact's poster child. They aren't my bag (to read or to write) but the ending was there all along, obviously:

Chapter 494, Volume 50, Two Worlds ☆

The right wish, the wrong wish, a selfish wish, a selfless wish – as many Isekai's go, wish fulfilment is a huge part of the narrative (not just for Kagome, but so many of the characters) but she, unlike others, had a huge weight on her shoulders about making the right one that I wanted to tease out that moment where she gets it:

Awfully familiar cap is familiar, Chapter 558, Volume 56, Tomorrow ☆

Are you sure you're supposed to be there, Miss Thing? Life doesn't end just because you finished a job, or have to feel beholden to a sense of home. Home can be anywhere! Home can be a person! You can do it, bestie. Do it for her! Her is you! Go Kagome!

Chapter 79, The Fruits of Evil ☆

She made her dreams – from acing school, to making her family proud, to seeing Inuyasha again – a reality. There's really nothing more I can say about that, it's all there. She chose herself! And that included him! Ain't that neat!

Fun Fact: In Japanese, Inuyasha calls her a baka. In the scanlation, he calls her an idiot. In the English sub/dub, he calls her an idiot. In the Viz translation (the one I refer to most) he calls her a fool. Imho, in English, he says idiot, cause Inuyasha has zero respect and carries that no-finesse kind of rizz. Bless him.

Bonus Fun Fact: Chapters like this are why I'm such a flaming monster about writing advice being a tool, not a rule. Those last two lines, without the use of But and And at the beginning, would not carry the same weight and timing I wanted to achieve, therefore, you can pry them as sentence starters out of my cold, dead hands.

The End.

Weehee! This could have been way longer (you're thinking how, I'm thinking I'm proud of how restrained I was) but alas, we've reached the end. Thanks again to @inukag-week for hosting the event of all time! I love them sooo much. Sososo much, they're the best little guys 🎉

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, click here to send me an ask! I love not shutting up about them 🛸

ttyl bbs 🤸

#girl help: a novel by yours truly #posts to keep #Limerence #inuyasha x kagome #inukag week 2023 #inuyasha fanfiction #inukag fanfic #kagome #kagome higurashi #inuyasha #fanfiction #inu meta #anisaanisaff

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cf56 · 1 year

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My thoughts on episode 4

SPOILERS for season 3, episode 4 of the Animaniacs reboot

This review will have less substance than the last one because I just don't have as much to say. You can skip the next paragraph if you just want to hear my thoughts on the episode.

It's only been four days, and I've already gone insane. It's killing me to be separated from the fandom. I see the snippets of discussions and the filtered posts I can't view and I just desperately want to be a part of it all. Participate in the discussion, share in the same emotions. If that wasn't a factor, I'd have absolutely no regrets about watching one episode a day. Especially after typing up my reviews, I find that one day is the perfect amount of time to thoroughly digest each episode and prepare myself to watch the next one. I don't feel myself chomping at the bit to watch two or three episodes a day. I don't even think I have the time to do that and also keep doing these reviews. The only reason I want to go faster is so that I can return to the fandom sooner. There's six more days and six more episodes. The emotions are super mixed, though, because while I desperately want to exit my self-imposed prison, every day that passes is also another day closer to the end of Animaniacs for me. Do I go faster and get back to the fandom, but risk less thoroughly enjoying the last season of Animaniacs? Or do I keep watching slowly but risk missing the most active period this fandom will likely ever have again? THIS is why shows need to be released weekly. It's a dilemma I can't solve, and it leaves me feeling anxious and detached all day, thinking about absolutely nothing else than all of this.

What? The episode? Oh, it was decent.

Here's a closer look at the three abominations:

Could these be the animals the Warners are based on? I think a gold earring suits Yakko well.

"Do they watch us when we go to the bathroom?"

Only once, Wakko.

I loved Yakko's expressions and animation here.

I found it cute to see Dot looking at her spider with such love. An underrated, consistent part of her character through the original and the reboot is her fascination with keeping creepy little horrors as pets.

POOR BABY! Can't you see he needs his chicken tendies?!

I just got this joke. There were actually three spiders, Dot already lost one, and Andrew Garfield was forgotten.

Sad to see how far seniority gets you in this field, because lord knows Dr. Scratchansniff has never helped a single patient.

Like I said about the previews, Yakko is super cute in this segment!

The ambulance driver said they were going to make another stop, and Wakko's daily activity was never followed up with like Yakko's and Dot's. Is this implying Wakko ate so much at the hot dog eating contest that he had to get an ambulance?

It was a pretty funny segment that felt like the classic Scratchansniff-Warner cartoons you'd see in the first half of the original series.

It still confuses me, though, how they said they were listening to fan feedback for season 3, but they still didn't bother to make Scratchy more fatherly like literally every single fan wanted. We went from Scratchansniff willingly taking the Warners in his car on trips to being upset that they happened to join him in an Uber because he chose the wrong option in the app. At least give us a few moments that show he has some care for the Warners- like when Wakko starts to cry, have him feel bad and willingly give in to going back to the restaurant instead of the Uber driver doing it. During the best parts of their relationships in the original series, he was considerate towards the Warners' feelings and asked about their hobbies. Have him show some interest in Dot's pets or Yakko's passion for yodeling. The segment doesn't have to go any differently overall. Just a few caring moments would make all the difference. The decision to revert Scratchansniff to being a typical cartoon antagonist for the Warners was universally panned in the original and it baffles me that they still carry it forward to this day. No one wants to see that.

The Pinky and the Brain segment was good but nothing special. I'm getting a little sick of the same old formula for the reboot. Why not start a couple episodes off with Pinky and the Brain and end with the Warners? Or any other combination of segment order you could do. The formula in the reboot has always been either Warners-PATB-Warners or Warners-(sometimes some other segment)-PATB.

I find it interesting that this is their normal cruising attire:

I thought this part was an interesting symbolism for the two conflicting human ideas on climate change. Do we stick around and try to salvage what's left of our original home, or do we just try to bail Earth and start over in the stars?

My favorite part of this segment was how it all instantly devolved into total nonsensical chaos in about one second.

Poor guy will never get his revenge :(

It was a decently funny segment. Not much more to say about it.

The episode was good. It didn't stand up to the last one, but I didn't have any major complaints that ruined the whole thing for me. There wasn't really a major musical number in the entire episode. I think they've been too light on the music so far this season. The Warners have only had two songs in six segments, and only one of them was super great in my opinion. Take advantage of these characters and legendary voices while you have them.

This episode was definitely worse than episode 3, but it's hard for me to decide between this one and episode 2. Episode 2 had a better PATB segment but a Warner segment that didn't do much for me like this one did. By virtue of me being a Warner fan first and this episode having some very cute moments with them, I think I have to put episode 4 above episode 2. Despite the lack at even an attempt at a song.

My current ranking of season 3 episodes:

Episode 3

Episode 4

Episode 2

Episode 1

I encourage you to participate in the discussion on this post if you have anything to say about episode 4 or those that came before it, but don't say anything about the episodes that come after. Pretend like you haven't even seen them. I have to thank my friends in the replies who humor me every day and discuss each episode without spoilers. You two are the only reason I'm still semi-sane. Without you, I'd feel completely isolated.

I don't know if I'll cave and start doing multiple episodes per day. This takes a lot of willpower, but for now I'm still tentatively planning to tough it out.

#animaniacs #animaniacs reboot #animaniacs 2020 #animaniacs season 3 #animaniacs screenshots #animaniacs analysis #animaniacs spoilers #animaniacs episode 4 #cfposts

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asordinaryppl · 2 days

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A3! Main Story: Part 4 - Act 13: Budding Spring - Episode 13: Doing it comfortably

Citron: This is not a private theater?

Izumi: There’s not a lot of theater companies that have their own theater.

Izumi: I think it’s very rare for a theater company to debut with its own theater.

Sakuya: When I perform as a guest for other theater companies, they get jealous when I tell them we have our own theater.

Izumi: It’s also not so easy to find a place for rehearsals.

Izumi: I think there’ll be even more heated competition for rehearsal spaces and theaters now that there’s so many new theater companies thanks to the Fleur Award…

Sakuya: Oh, are they starting?

???: … *ahem* Thank you very much for coming to “Working Overtime Again Crew”’s debut performance.

Mameda: I’m the host, Mameda. I’d like to say a few things before we start.

Mameda: First, I’m certain a lot of you thought we have a rather strange name…

Mameda: Myself included, this troupe mainly consists of people who were involved in theater as students, but found employment as office workers instead.

Mameda: We watched the press conference for the New Fleur Award during a drinking party we had after working overtime and were excited to participate.

Mameda: Our motto is “let’s enjoy acting comfortably”, and our members are a mix of beginners and people with experience.

Mameda: We are a mishmash of people that came together simply because we want to act.

Mameda: Some parts of our performance might make those of you more used to watching theater cringe.

Mameda: We would be happy if you treated this like a play that you can watch while enjoying a drink.

Mameda: With all that said, please wait as the performance will begin shortly.

Sakuya: … A mishmash of people. That kinda makes me think of MANKAI Company.

Izumi: That’s true. We also started out as a mix of beginners and people with experience.

Citron: I feel an ability with them!

Izumi: You mean affinity here.

Sakuya: It might’ve been because of the host’s greeting, but there was a warm atmosphere through the theater.

Izumi: Right. Even though some of them were beginners, everyone seemed to be having fun.

Citron: And the story was interesting because it comically depicted a company that exploits its exployees!

Sakuya: They took full advantage of the fact that they’re a troupe mostly made of office workers!

Izumi: It was easy to watch and studying it could help us with our own performances. If it’s available for streaming, we should watch it with everyone else too.

Sakuya: We should!

Announcer: Next, on-location news for the International Arts Festival.

Citron: — —

Newscaster: “Everyone here is excited because the International Arts Festival is being held once more.”

Newscaster: “It attracts attention every year, because invitations go out not only to big players representing each country's theater and movie scenes, but also to national celebrities.”

Izumi: Oh, the International Arts Festival. Will the Zahra Kingdom be participating?

Citron: We have received an invitation for the first time, but we have not decided whether we’ll participate yet. This is an important time for our theater company, so I want to focus on this first.

Citron: I am rather useless as the Minister of Arts and Culture.

Sakuya: The people of Zahra were happy when we performed there. That was because of you, Citron-san.

Sakuya: Because you came to love our country…

Sakuya: And because you introduced us in such a friendly manner.

Izumi: I think you’re building a bridge to other countries through theater, Citron-kun.

Citron: Thank you, you two.

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#a3!#translation #a3! translation #sakuya sakuma #citron #izumi tachibana #it's 3 am i might regret posting this late at night when i wake up but until then...

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kalevalakryze · 8 months

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Guilt

Bo-Katan Week Day 6: Bo-Katan Kryze & The Armorer Pairing:Bo-Katan Kryze/The Armorer, Bo-Katan Kryze & Background Child of the Watch Characters: Bo-Katan Kryze, The Armorer, Axe Woves, Background Niteowl Characters, Background Children of the Watch Characters Warnings: Background Character Death, Canon Typical Violence, Injury Descriptions Notes: I was trying to write this for day 4, got sidetracked, and figured it could be nice for day 6? Summary: “Lady Kryze-“ The young Mandalorian started, her arms wrapping around her abdomen, trying to keep pressure on the wounds Bo could not see. Her abdominal plate was gone, and her belt had been sliced, leaving her holster drooping low and tangling in the plates of armor at her thigh. The young woman hit the ground before Bo-Katan could catch her, though the woman did manage to catch her helmeted head before it could bounce off the floor. Settled on the ground with Xiti’s head in her lap, Bo-Katan spared one last look to what was left of Tumul. Getting to her feet wouldn’t have been too much of an issue, if she hadn’t needed too get an unconscious Xiti back up as well. It hurt like hell, but she’d had to use her injured arm to help get the woman up, before she could yank the woman close and force her body weight to rest mostly against her shoulders, before she started the trek back to the surface. Word Count: 4,246 AO3 Link: Here! Important COTW Original Character Mentioned:Here!

There had been a tradition, a long time ago, that a Mandalorian would go on a hunt for their first Alamite after taking their creed. Their mentor would lead them through each step on tracking and felling the beast, and then would show them how to handle the remains in a way that would benefit the clan, and not disgrace the beast whose sentience neared the complex.

Even Satine had participated in the hunt, both her first, and Bo’s own once she was of age. It was as traditional as the Pog soup that often kept the redhead fueled for each day’s horrors.

When Bo enlisted with The Death Watch, many different traditions had been opened up to her, though the Alamite hunt stayed consistent, even when The Duchess Satine’s New Mandalorian’s saw away with it. When Bo-Katan had made it to Lieutenant, Pre had given her the ever important task of teaching the newer recruits how to handle their first hunt, where to hit, the best ways to avoid getting maimed, and the evolved tracking tactics they’d had to create as they picked up and moved locations often. Concordia didn’t have the Alamites, so they were often forced to sneak to Mandalore with help from the inside to ensure everyone had a piece of their ancient ways.

The Children of the Watch however, never had to deal with Alamites, living in seclusion as they repented against the actions of their predecessors and the lost ways of the ruling clans. They were hidden in the depths of Concordia where even Pre’s governance had not reached, and continued to survive that way, even after being forced from the entire Mandalore system when the purge turned their lives upside down.

Bo-Katan had helped lead dozens of expeditions into the ruins of the Imperial Base, and the ruins of Sundari as well, though each mission had been almost entirely staffed by her Niteowls than The Children of the Watch, who’d busied themselves with setting up camp, tending to those injured in the battle, including those hurt fighting the pirates, and handling some type of scavenging in the designated safe-zones for food and materials.

It wasn’t too long, however, when the owls needed a rest, and Bo-Katan had pushed for volunteers from the other tribe, itching with their pent up energy to move again. It was supposed to be a simple mission, really. Bo-Katan, Tumul, and Xiti were just jumping onto the old trail that Axe and Koska had chased down with her the day prior. A small group of Alamities, five at most, with two deemed lame from warning shots by the hunters.

It should have been easy, but nothing ever worked out that well for Bo-Katan Kryze, who was the only person in the squad with any experience handling the beasts, the only one who could follow the tracks, and the one who should have remembered to brief her companions on the enemy before jumping in. The lack of sleep and over exuberance of energy and need to get the place clear may have had a part in her skipping over their safety, but she’d be sure to never forget it again.

Bo-Katan had spotted the way the dirt above their heads had shifted, and the false root system had started to shift. She’d managed to get herself out of the way and raise her shield in time to block the heavy weapon that pushed her back. Over the beasts’ shoulder, she watched in a slowed down horror as not only did the two Mandalorian’s not move out of the way for the drop, Tumul hadn’t been able to protect himself from the claws and teeth that lashed out against the soft pieces of his armor. The third Alamite that dropped had zeroed in on Xiti, who’d at least been able to fight back, blaster fire ricocheting off the cavern walls as she tried to fight it back.

The redhead shook her head back into focus, just in time to raise her opposite arm to block a set of sharp claws. Searing pain tore through her arm as three razor sharp claws ripped through her bicep, across her elbow, and through the open inch of her forearm, paint scraping away from her gauntlet as the claws glanced off the edge and retreated. Her hand twanged from it’s brace, the healing tendons and nerves reacting poorly to the feeling as well.

“Dank Farrik!” The woman growled, tucking her injured arm close before pushing her weight into her shield, unbalancing the beast long enough to force her injured arm to move. The pain was blinding, a dark fuzz glitching into her vision as she forced herself through it all, soon finding the sweet reward of the warmth of it’s blood seeping down her arm, and trying to avoid thinking about the wounds it was seeping into as well. Her fist pressed against it’s chin where her gauntlet’s blade burrowed into it’s throat, fingers bent much further than they should have been able to in the healing process, but certainly a problem for later Bo.

Once the green eyes of the beast went dark, Bo-Katan used her boot to nudge it off her blade and to the ground, before she lowered her shield and yanked her Westar from its holster with a grunt. The smell of burnt fur, skin, and the iron twang of blood filled the air around her, her own burning hot plasma joining the disgusting aroma as she put four yellow bolts into the back of the feeding Alamite. It’s body slumped over what was left of Tumul, and she managed to force her attention to Xiti.

Xiti was bleeding heavily from the abdomen, but she’d quickly found the pattern the Alamite attacked in, nearly dancing with the beast as she dodged, giving as good as she got, if the blood caking dirty fur were anything to go by. Bo managed to step in just in time, however, once it got it’s arms around her torso and forced her to drop her blaster. Another four shots to the back of the head, and the beast was going slack, letting Xiti break from its grasp before it dropped top the ground.

“Lady Kryze-“ The young Mandalorian started, her arms wrapping around her abdomen, trying to keep pressure on the wounds Bo could not see. Her abdominal plate was gone, and her belt had been sliced, leaving her holster drooping low and tangling in the plates of armor at her thigh.

The young woman hit the ground before Bo-Katan could catch her, though the woman did manage to catch her helmeted head before it could bounce off the floor. Settled on the ground with Xiti’s head in her lap, Bo-Katan spared one last look to what was left of Tumul.

Getting to her feet wouldn’t have been too much of an issue, if she hadn’t needed too get an unconscious Xiti back up as well. It hurt like hell, but she’d had to use her injured arm to help get the woman up, before she could yank the woman close and force her body weight to rest mostly against her shoulders, before she started the trek back to the surface.

It was grueling work, both physically and on her mind, knowing she’d left not only a corpse, but two other hostiles down there to do whatever with Tumul. But eventually, the light broke through the blood and dirt caked around her visor, and she was face to face with at least a dozen of Mandalorians on the other side, several of whom appeared to be ready to launch into the caves themselves.

“Bo-Katan,” Axe greeted, the first to notice their approach. His expression grew worried when he took in the sight. Xiti’s feet dragging as Bo-Katan struggled under the weight. Blood thick on both women’s armor, and the all too noticeable lack of a third. “Medics,” His voice was quiet at first, though in short order, he was stepping away from Koska and calling for them louder.

Part of her hadn’t wanted to let Xiti go, when armored bodies started to try and take the young woman from her, though she was in no condition to fight, her own vision swaying from blood loss, warmth tingling in broken fingertips as the body was pulled away from her grasp, and her arm was able to return to it’s tucked position against her chest.

Axe caught her by the shoulders, her free hand grabbing onto his elbow to steady herself as she struggled to reign in her focus. “Tumul, two more ‘mites,” It was all she needed to say before his mission face came back on, and she was being passed off to another to keep her steady.

“Koska, Cina, on me, recovery and extermination!” He barked to the two Niteowls that had been geared up to go in for three already. With the efficiency she’d come to appreciate, the Niteowls were retreating back into the caves to recover the remains, and finish off the last two beasts keeping them from the sector.

“Lady Kryze, come with me,” A smooth timber broke her from racing thoughts, bringing her focus back onto the woman Axe had handed her off to. The Armorer’s grip on her shoulders was firm, though not unkind, and while Bo could sense worry on the other woman, for one of her own was being carted away to the medtents, she still handled Bo-Katan with a calmness that even the Mand’alor could not summon.

The Armorer led Bo-Katan away, finding the back ways to their recently shared quarters, keeping Bo-Katan out of sight from any who may be wandering the residential zones at this hour. The second they’d breached the flimsy wood of the door, and Akaan started to nuzzle at her hand in greeting, the redhead finally snapped.

“I should have given them pointers, I didn’t give them anything they needed, I just assumed-“ A dry laugh, as she shrugged off the sewer drake with a shake of her hand. The hand pressed against the drying blood on her armor shook along with the growing cold and the tingles that still ached along rebooked bones. “I should have never assumed, that was so-“

The Armorer stayed silent as she started to move around the pacing Niteowl in their living room, which Bo-Katan paid no mind to as she wore a path into the prefabricated flooring. “Even the smallest indication that they hid up there,” Her hands flexed, and her face twisted up in a wince, her free hand grasping onto her wrist with her thumb pressing into the swollen and bruised skin of her hand beneath the glove.

“May I remove your helmet?” The Armorer asked at last, not phased in the slightest when the taller woman’s head snapped to look at her, almost as if Bo was just now remembering she was in the room.

“Yes, it’s fine, I got it,” The hand she raised to the lip of her helmet was lowered, both of The Armorer’s gloved hands moving to rest on either side of her helm before lifting it away with a soft hiss.

The Mand’alor was… messy was putting it easy. If it weren’t for her headband putting in overtime, her hair would be plastered to her sweat slick forehead. Her lips were chapped and bitten, and yellow-green eyes had a gloss to them, whether it was from pain, exhaustion, or from riling herself up, The Armorer had not been able to place immediately.

Either way, when she rested her gloved hand on the side of Bo’s cheek, the taller woman’s head dipped before she was leaning into the touch and quieting herself.

“This is not your failure, Lady Kryze,” The Armorer tried to placate the pacing Mand’alor, while attempting to take a closer look at her injury, the woman’s arm was held close enough to her chest that blood smeared against her chest plate.

“I should have known! If I would have-“ The Armorer cut her off once more, a firm hand grasping her shoulder and guiding her to the edge of their bed. “Sit,” The Mand’alor dropped into the bed at the command, finally taking a moment to breathe since the attack.

The Armorer continued to move about the room to gather supplies, as Bo dug her elbow into her knee and dropped her head into her hand, her other leg bouncing against the floor to expel some of the nervous energy brought upon by adrenaline.

The Mand’alor startled when an ungloved hand touched her pauldron, her eyes zeroing in on the pale flesh that worked away the silver beskar with hawklike focus, even with the nebulous glaze that still coated eyes that shone more yellow than green.

Her body pitched forward, just until her overheated forehead met the cool beskar of The Armorer’s chest plate. The hand not focusing on carefully stripping away her pauldron and gauntlet, wrapped around her back, so her fingers could loop into the space between her flight suit and her back plate.

Bo-Katan stayed silent as her armor was removed, even biting back the hiss of pain from a careful hand peeling away the edge of her flight suit from the mark. With a thoughtful sound, The Armorer went to the medkit to slide the disposable clean gloves over her hands, before she started the careful process of deciphering torn skin from torn fabric, to cut away the fabric to give her more room to work.

Eventually, Bo did have to pick her head up so The Armorer could work. Slow, measured breaths kept her heart slow, even as The Armorer worked on patching her up with a delicacy one would not think a metal worker could obtain. Though, Bo knew the truth about the woman who bent steel to her desire. She knew the woman tended the flowers in the gardens, and often helped younglings even with trivial wounds like splinters and scraped knees, had even watched The Armorer help her nurse Akaan to health when they’d found him as a wounded foundling in his own right.

“I apologize,” Bo started, staring at the layering of white gauze over batch doused stitches. The Armorer stayed silent, so Bo-Katan pushed onwards. “Yes, I should have done more to ensure Tumul and Xiti were fully prepared, but it was entirely unbecoming of me to lose myself in a manner,”

There was a brief moment of fear, as the golden woman stepped aside, before exiting the room entirely. When the door was open, Akaan came bounding in, wings flapping as he pounced on the bed and made himself comfortable next to her. Dread settled in next, as she stared at the open door and tried to listen past the lizard’s snuffling against the sheets. Then, came the ice bucket of relief, as The Armorer pushed past the door once more, a canteen in one hand, and a plate with Uj cake, with a bowl of pog soup settled hazardously between the plate and her elbow.

The Armorer settled each plate on the nightstand she’d made, before her gaze turned to Bo-Katan’s lizard. “What did we say about you being on the bed?” She spoke, though the lizard simply blinked at her, before a forked tongue smacked against his own emerald eyeball. Bo reached to tug him into her lap, a small smile tugging at her lips as he got comfortable, and the shorter woman could finally take a seat beside her.

“Xiti will be alright, though she will not be in any fighting shape for quite some time,” The Armorer informed as she unscrewed the cap of the canteen and passed it to Bo-Katan, a sugary sweet smell wafting from the contents when she’d raised the container to smell it.

“I’ll take her duties on,” She promised immediately, it was her lack of teaching that had led to the losses, anyways. “And Tumul’s,” The liquid was smooth going down her throat, though her eyes narrowed at the imitation berry taste hit her tongue. “You drugged this,” She commented, without any true malice in her tone, or any thought as she took another drink.

“A sleep aid, yes, you need to heal, lady Kryze. As for their duties, it is best discussed once both Xiti and yourself have gotten rest.” The Armorer took the canteen back once Bo was finished, before turning her head and lifting her helmet enough to finish the rest of the ‘spiked’ drink. It wasn’t the first time either of them had done the same to each other, when both of their unhealthy habits took over. The proactive thinking would surely pay off, since Bo had no intention of resting at all, until she was certain Tumul’s body had been retrieved,

“You’ve lost a great deal of blood, and you haven’t been taking care of yourself while handling these expeditions, it was only a matter of time before problems arose. It is unfortunate that these were the results, but we will learn from them, and prevent future mistakes from being made,” She spoke as she stirred the still steaming bowl of soup. The herbs floating around was a signature of Axe’s cooking, which, while she was loathe to admit, was to die for. “That starts with food, rest, and a reset for the morning,”

When the spoon rose to her lips, Bo wasted no time in opening her mouth and allowing the warm broth to bite at her tastebuds, before the sweetness of Chando Pepper soothed it away. The edging feeling of unworthiness loomed overhead, though with each spoonful of soup that was shared between the two women (and the very excited sewer drake, who jostled The Armorer’s hand every few turns so he could lap up whatever dribbled off), the feeling would subside. She was certain it would always be there, looming like a storm on the horizon, but The Armorer made it just a bit more bearable to focus on the light while she had it.

Her eyelids were growing heavy by the time the Pog soup was gone. Her right arm, wrapped in secure bandages and her hand recasted, were a dull thrum in the back of her mind, in an almost comforting way, as her left hand trailed knuckles across her lizard’s dry scales. “Just a little more,” The Armorer’s voice was free of the barrier of the vocoder, though, even after all this time, and vows passed between them, the redhead did not raise her gaze to stare at features she knew by heart. Instead, she allowed the dense desert to be pressed past her open lips, chewing slowly to appreciate the sweet and spice packed into the cake. Even with bakers on world who kept the treat in near all Mandalorian homes, it was still a delicacy meant to be savored (no matter what Grogu said, he was a little gremlin, that she loved, she just could not process his ability to inhale food the way he did).

Once their meal was finished, and their armor shed, with Bo-Katan’s empty promises to clean the blood from her armor later, and The Armorer cleaning it up for her, as the redhead curled into her side of the bed. The Armorer didn’t take long to clean up, before she soon joined her Riduur in bed, who immediately gravitated to her warmth and curled into her side. She even forced herself to remain tolerant of the lizard that soon sandwiched himself between them.

Morning came with another bout of anxiety from the Mand’alor, found pacing the length of their living room, already cleaned and armored up for the day, a mug of caff clamped between two jittery palms. She was worrying her bottom lip, though when The Armorer’s bare frame came into view from her peripherals, she’d immediately righted herself. “Good morning,” The Mand’alor greeted, setting her mug down and smoothing her hands against her thigh plates as she approached the woman.

“Your hand is supposed to be in the brace, and your arm is meant to stay in the sling,” The woman pointed out as Bo’s hands rested on either side of strong hips. It wasn’t often she got to see even a sliver of the woman’s skin, so seeing her entirely naked in the morning was certainly a treat she would not waste.

“I didn’t want to wake you,” Bo explained, cheeks darkening at the admission that she had needed help to rebandage herself after her shower. She pressed on in her affections, chin resting on the dip of a soft shoulder, close to the scar that enunciated the sharp line of her collarbone all the way to the back of her shoulder blade.

The Armorer’s sighed through her nose with a huff, as her arms wrapped around the mildly clingy Mandalorian pressing into her. “Come, when we are ready ,we will go see Xiti,” It took more prodding, more soft kisses, and allowing the redhead to cling onto her for longer than she would have initially liked, but soon enough, Bo-Katan’s hand was back in the brace, her arm was rewrapped, and a sling kept her from pulling any (more) stitches.

The medtent was full of Mandalorians that had stopped by to check in on their vod’ika, as well as pay their respects to Tumul’s memory. The Mandalorian in the cot was as small as Bo-Katan remembered, though she seemed fuller of life than even the green plated warrior at her side.

“Lady Kryze,” Xiti spoke, dressed in nothing but her helm and a patched together flight suit, bandages wrapped tight around her torso, and her hand in a similar cast to Bo’s as well. Her spirits seemed high, despite the situation they’d found themselves in.

“Xiti,” Bo’s head dipped as she stepped into the room, The Armorer stepping to the neatly stacked pile of armor in the corner to double check each piece, staying just in earshot, in case either her grown foundling, or her Mand’alor needed her.

“How are you feeling?” Both women questioned at the same time, the Child of the Watch’s laughter echoing from her vocoder. “I could be better, though I am eager to learn what I can to further prevent such a series of events,” She continued, as bo-Katan perched on the edge of the cot, hands folded in her lap.

“I can imagine so, though I would like to apologize for my failure to keep you informed on our enemy,” The redhead’s expression fell, however, she managed to pull herself away before she could delve any further into it. “I will not make that mistake ever again, and I will be ensuring everyone gets the same training on what we may face here as soon as I am able,”

The Armorer had lowered herself into an empty seat, one leg crossed over the other and a pauldron in her hand. “May I?” She questioned the bedridden Mandalorian, who nodded her head. Bo hadn’t known where she hid the chisel, and she was content to keep it a mystery for the time being.

“There is the issue of your duties, and ensuring they are distributed evenly across the tribes, Lady Kryze has offered to cover some, is there anyone else in particular that may have the experience to fill in until you are well?”

“Perhaps Akdath, he has been assisting me in many of my duties when he is free, as well.” Xiti spoke after a moment’s consideration, glancing to The Armorer at the sound of the chisel breaking away pieces of beskar. “We will speak with him to see if he can work it in his schedule, I spoke to Axe and Ragnar last night, they have offered to fill Tumul’s duties until one of the younger foundlings are prepared to learn the trade,” The trio spent the rest of their visit in silence, aside from the sound of The Armorer chipping away at metal. When she had finished, she had risen from her seat and perched on the other side of the cot, opposite Bo-Katan, before she handed the pauldron to Xiti. Against smooth metal, four ‘eyes’ were carved into the metal, along with the markings of claws across the metal. The sigil of the Alamite, one earned that would bare her victory against a beast that would have bested her. Xiti turned the pauldron around in her hands, thumb brushing over the carved metal. “I will clean it up, once we can venture to the forge, together.” The Armorer promised. “A fitting sigil, The Alamite hunts used to be a tradition honored by our people for generations, once we have everyone up to par, we can see about settling back into them,” Bo promised. There would be no Alamite hunt where Tumul’s song was not sung, she would be sure of it. “I’m looking forward to it, Lady Kryze,” Xiti said, fitting her pauldron onto her flight suit, despite the rest of her armor being set aside. It was an important thing, earning your mark, Bo hadn’t taken her own off for weeks after she painted the Niteowl into her own armor. “Now, we are going to take care of Shriek-hawk foundlings, I believe it will be a two person job, while we acquaint ourselves with the foundlings,” The Armorer and Bo-Katan bid their goodbyes, before they headed to the deep caverns they’d changed to fit the three growing hawks.

Translations: dank farik - expletive vod'ika - little sibling

#bo katan kryze #Bo-Katan Kryze #The Armorer #Bo Katan Week #BKW2023 #nitearmor #armorkatan #children of the watch #the mandolarian #bo katan x the armorer #star wars #fic writing

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flightfoot · 1 year

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Yeah, that’s one of the few problems I have with S5. It’s not like they need to give Alya multiple centric episodes or something, but all she’s really done for the last 9 episodes is be a soundboard for Marinette’s love life problems and provide emotional support. It just kinda rubs me the wrong way, and I’m not quite sure why. Of course, we’re only nine episodes in (and we know Scarabella comes back for the Kwamis’ Choice two-parter), but so far I’ve been super disappointed by how they’ve used Alya so far. If they’re gonna have Alya play the emotional support so frequently, they could at least make it two-sided by letting her get to share something too at least once, y’know? Anyway, thanks for listening to me ramble! :)

I'm betting it rubs you the wrong way because it plays into the Black Best Friend trope, where the Black best friend (though granted, Marinette's biracial) mostly revolves around the White lead, often being their sounding board and emotional support, but without much reciprocation. They exist to be there for the lead character, not to have lives of their own. They're usually seen in a positive light by the characters and the narrative, but exist more as props than anything. When you ask "What is this character's own personal story, what are their personal goals, what are their obstacles, and what are they feeling as they encounter those obstacles”, just generally look at their personal plotline... it’s pretty close to nonexistent.

Alya sometimes trends towards these tropes, but avoids falling fully into them by virtue of having a life and interests of her own, even if she does still tend to function as Marinette's emotional support a lot. Season 4 in particular, she got to have a lot of screentime and focus, with Gang of Secrets, Mr. Pigeon 72, Optigami, Sentibubbler, Hack-san, and Rocketear all prominently featuring or majorly focusing on who Alya is as a person, even if she was still mostly helping Marinette - she was largely doing so through her superheroing, which was something she enjoyed and wanted even independently of Marinette, it wasn't JUST for her sake (though that was a major bonus). Alya's own feelings and relationships were important.

Season 5... yeah it's fallen down on the Alya focus. I love her being there for Marinette after Monarch stole the Miraculous, but I want some answers about her seemingly endlessly sleeping over at Marinette's place. She's had a role in several episodes, but it's mostly just been to listen to Marinette lament about her problems, not to drive the plot or to do anything for her own personal story. So far, the best episode in season 5 for Alya has been Illusion, since she got to really be her own independent character (and the voice of reason) in that episode - she wasn't just there for Marinette to bounce her own problems and concerns off of. And while I loved Exaltation, I don't much care for how Marinette just up and left Alya in her room for like, an hour, with no word on what was going on. Alya later helping to distract Glaciator before he could take Chat's Miraculous was pretty great though.

I'm hoping that with Kwami's Choice coming up, we get some more Alya focus, maybe something delving into her own emotions and problems, which we haven't gotten yet this season.

On the bright side, at least Nino has consistently avoided falling into the Black Best Friend trope. He and Adrien are friends and Nino would like to help Adrien with his terrible father, but Nino has a lot of interests and personality and screentime and focus that isn't associated with helping Adrien - actually, that's only Nino's main role in two episodes I think? The Bubbler and Party Crasher, and in both of those Nino is a very active participant in a way that lets you see his personality and viewpoint. Adrien also listens to Nino's own emotional problems and tries to help him with them, like in Animan and Rocketear, and helps out with plans that Nino comes up with, like in Illusion. Nino and Adrien are on fairly equal terms when they interact, it's not just Nino revolving around Adrien - actually you could make the argument that Adrien tends to revolve around Nino more when you see them together, than the other way around.

#ask #ml salt #I love season 5 but it hasn't been great for Alya #alya cesaire #miraculous ladybug #ml spoilers #nino lahiffe #marinette dupain cheng #adrien agreste #ml analysis

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mittenwonders · 1 month

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youtube

Upon learning that Jason Kelce played baritone saxophone after giving a huge lesson why band and music education is so important, I felt so. Much. Joy.

First, bari sax players are rare to come by. We are a unique breed. Saxophone players are already weird people but Bari people are even weirder. One time I tried to sneak skittles into class but someone bumped into my stand and they all fell into the bell. When I played, the rainbow rattled & I got yelled at for throwing skittles into my instrument. 🤣 You mostly start off on alto and once you master that, you can move to bari. The Bari is hard to play though. It takes a massive amount of air power & breathe control to blow into it nonetheless sustain notes. Me, a former asthmatic, somehow conquered this and it did help put my asthma into remission. Learning that beast is what got me from 8th grade band straight into Wind Ensemble in high school rather than going through freshman and sophomore band like a normal person. It’s hard to play and if you find someone who can, you take advantage of that. It’s how I also got swindled into doing jazz band for a semester.

Which leads me to this YouTube video. I never participated directly in my high school theater group except twice. I hated the teacher as he was creepy and a little too touchy feel-y for my taste. However my friends did theater & they were doing this Stephen Sondheim musical, Merrily We Roll Along. It’s actually a really funny show & the music is fun.

Anyway, I was starting my driver training at the time but my band director told me he really needed a Bari saxophone for the orchestra pit as a good chunk of the music is surprisingly driven by it. I was the only Bari saxophone player in my entire school. Mind you, we had a huge band program which consisted of 150+ students. I kept saying no because of drivers Ed. I was promised I wouldn’t have to deal with the theater teacher at all and if I could just give it a go at a few rehearsals and make a decision from there. So I finished up my drivers Ed class, walked down to the band room where they had a rehearsal going and sat in to see what it was all about. Mind you, they were already 10 practices deep into it before I showed up to one. It seemed fun, I had never done orchestra pit before and I like a challenge so I said sure. Wasn’t like I was doing anything else and it was a chance to still see my friends who were in the play.

My. God. First anyone who has ever done musical theater knows Sondheim is on crack to begin with but from the music side of it, holy fucking shit. It’s like he snorted a bunch of coke before deciding to just go crazy. There’s all types of random key changes, tempo changes….nonetheless there are a few parts that are insane finger movements. Once I realized that was basically a solo moment for me, I probably worked on this overture alone for 4 hours a day for a month and a half straight. Sometimes this still comes on shuffle for me and I immediately feel the cold sweats all over again of sitting in the dark pit with nothing but my music stand light on, opening night like lord baby Jesus do not let me fuck this up. I might not be on stage and not able to see an audience but I’m well aware they are there and can hear every little sound I make. And they will come visit at intermission and try to throw us snacks and put a face to the person who messed up or did good.

The whole experience just really made me appreciate orchestra pits more. The amount of practice they go through separately in order to support the production and the actors is an entire process. We’re learning the music plus the actors cues and how to make it work with our own notes. We literally are there to support and are relying on the actors to help us move it along. Next time you’re at a live show, professional or school level, make sure to thank them because I can tell you, they get just as nervous and have put in almost the same amount of time and effort as the people you see on stage. I was lucky to be apart of a few shows at Disney and the orchestra went through the same processes I did back in that high school band room.

This will always go down as one of the hardest pieces I ever had to learn and I nailed it! Idk why Jason Kelce triggered this core memory for me but it did teach me so much discipline that I’m thankful for.

#Youtube

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ratboomerang · 3 months

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kit dekarios

I just finished Baldur's Gate III for the first time. Yeah I'm in my emotions 😭 If there's anywhere to do the necessary gushing about my tav(and the game in general)(mostly the game in general), I figured this is probably the place to do it. cue the recipe blog exposition:

So here they are, in all their glory. I feel like getting sappy so here we go. Before Baldur's Gate, the only PC game I ever really played was the Sims 4. Even then, I only ever really build, as that's the fun part for me. I didn't realize how much I actually enjoy games that have more concrete depth and plot progression.

I didn't even know Baldur's Gate was a thing until I started seeing the flood of posts about a flamboyant vampire I'd never seen before. My first thought, deadass, was "alright, who's this cunt then?" because boy, had this caught my interest. Of course then I dove in. I've been blessed with multiple weekly D&D 5e games for a few years now, which I'm so thankful for. Fantasy vibes are absolutely a special interest of mine and D&D is an amazing resource to get consistent delicious content for it. Unfortunately, I didn't have any way to play this game. At the time, I was unemployed and facing the monster that is student loans. I didn't have a gaming laptop—just a macbook air from 2017 with a shitty battery life due to my 1000+ hours on the sims over four years. I was feeling MAJOR fomo as my friends all played, having fun conversations about what their unique experiences were like. I got so self-conscious, fearful that it would be blatantly obvious that I wasn't as "in-the-know" as everyone else participating. Fake fan, and all that. Of course, this was not a rational thought, but it was definitely a worry of mine at the time.

Cut to me finally getting a job—at my alma mater, no less. Almost immediately, I felt the weight of financial instability decrease significantly. To celebrate this accomplishment, I treated myself to a gaming laptop and Baldur's Gate. As a D&D player, to say this game is impressive is an understatement. I will continue to recommend it to folks who don't have as much luck when it comes to finding D&D groups. To actually SEE a fantasy world and my character in it is incredible. Theatre of the Mind is fantastic, but getting to see my characters in front of me, realistically animated, is something so special.

That's where Kit (they/he) comes in. For my first play through, I didn't want to use a character I already had. I wanted him to be my Baldur's Gate Character TM. I had finished a mini campaign as a monk a few months prior, and was sincerely missing him. Thus another trans monk was born.

When it came to romance, all I knew going into the game was what I had learned through assimilation. With that, I had come to the conclusion that if I had to guess, Gale or Wyll would win me over. Proud to say I was absolutely correct in my prediction. Wyll is charming as hell, and I am looking forward to the day where I start a run with the intention of romancing him. Something about this LOSER of a wizard though... (something something relatable trauma about self-worth, et cetera.) I'm currently working on a Gale cosplay, so wish me luck as I try to navigate constructing and sewing a costume from scratch for the first time.

I'm so happy with the way my game ended. Karlach lived. Gale proposed. Our party is tadpole-less. I accomplished things that, despite taking a few reloads, seemed impossible for a while (looking at you Raphael and the Boss Battle to End All Boss Battles). I've grown to love these characters so much, and Kit will always have such a special place in my heart as my first hero of Baldur's Gate as well as my first to romance Gale, hehe.

Anyway—this ended up being not SO much about Kit and more about my emotions finishing the game, but maybe I'll end up posting more about them. Shoutout to me for thinking to record the final blow of that last battle as well as the epilogue, and to my computer for swallowing the hour+ video like a champ. Now I have this little token of a gif to celebrate, and I'm so happy with it. I decided to combine that with a photo of Kit super early on at camp, versus him toasting at Withers's party. He went through no actual magic mirror changes, but he LOOKS older. LOOKS accomplished. I love it.

I think that's all I really have to say for now, I do indeed have work tomorrow (today) and it's past midnight. Just,,,,,,,, wanted to write out a sincere love letter to the game, as I'm feeling so lifted and satisfied right now. This is far from the end though—I've got two other active campaigns running, one multiplayer, and where I decided to pursue Astarion, which proved to be a challenge at first as someone who was having a hard time not being the most good-aligned hero. I'm excited though! There's so much more to explore! My heart is full.

#bg3 #gale x tav #d&d #baldur's gate 3 #gale dekarios #also i cant NOT mention it: the gif is so cute and sweet to me but also fucking SENDS me because #here you have the happy couple sharing a Moment and then the perspective shifts and laezel is just: 🚶‍♀️#not pictured (unfortunately cropped) is the other part that was hilarious to me:#tara giving herself a bath in the lower right corner. her and laezel in solidarity saying “they're kissing. i don't care. anyway—”

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theloveinc · 7 months

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Is it bad I want to hear the professor tea 😭👀

LMFAO NO tbh i'd ask too plus i'm happy to share really😭😭😭

ANYWAY IT WAS SO STUPID but essentially, both my friend and i showed up late to class on tuesday (for separate reasons) , and there's two other people in the class who consistently show up late ALSO... and so i guess it really pissed off my teacher that day for 4+ ppl to be late??? esp since we were talking abt the reasons why, AND our class discussion ended up sucking (as usual tbh)...

but she sent out this really mean-spirited (other people thought so too) email after class titled "gentle reminders" that essentially was like: "i know we usually spend the first 15 minutes of class time talking (which my professor is a huge part of LOL), but it is ESSENTIAL for you to show up on time, after that period you will be counted absent, it's part of your participation grade" blah blah...

and like... idk. it just felt really demoralizing cuz FIRST OF ALL, she was glaring at us in class, and second of all, my friend was late because she attends AA at seven in the morning every day, another girl has soccer practice in the mornings AND has a sprained foot, and my bus only comes once every 30 minutes so if i miss it, i'm automatically late by extension...

(and that day, even though i woke up late, i literally made an effort to go to class instead of skip)

SO I DIDN'T WANNA GO THE NEXT CLASS AFTER and be all happy and smiley when i honestly felt a little disrespected on everyone's behalf.

sounds so stupid typing it out but. LOL a big group of us from class are mad abt it :/

#there's more stuff too like it's an intro class and ive had this professor as a ta before #so i feel a little aged out of this level of conversation #so ofc im not great at conversation and participation #ESP since i led the class once and no one spoke.#and she didn't encourage anyone #so my willingness to be a good student is waning #idk SORRY IF THIS IS LAME AND BORING #but i was mad LMAO and it made my whole day better not to be there #i was also gonna say something else but i forget #SORRY THIS WAS LAME AND I WAS SLOW TO RESPOND #roomie is still talking #lol #caitie answers #anon

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hamliet · 2 years

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Hello, this is a long ask about RWBY. I asked someone else about this too but I wanted to gain more insights.

Do you think that Yang's and the Branwen Twins writing is lacking in some parts?

Magic is considered to be a heritable trait in Remnant, so why does Yang show no signs of shapeshifting? (Unless it's a mistake done by the creators since Yang and Raven were supposed to be in some scenes back in Volume 2 and 3)

Raven and Qrow both shed feathers after transforming into a bird/back into human, would it a stretch for people to think that they are faunuses since they don't know about magic?

Raven is a possibly well known bandit considering that she used to be in Team STRQ who were given media coverage during the time they participated in the Vytal Tournaments and Raven is wearing a grimm mask which the general public associates with the White Fang. Shouldn't the residents of Patch/Mistral be more wary about Yang considering her heritage and her action's in the tournament?

What about Yang's writing in Volume 4? CRWBY didn't show us the ugly sides of it since they didn't want to show the audience about Yang "moping" around and when they showed us Taiyang being a "good" father, the message didn't come across as good (especially with the not every semblance is basically a temper tantrum, and the lost some braincells with her arm). Also shouldn't Yang also have some PTSD about her incident when she almost got herself and Ruby killed?

Yang and the Twins story are very interesting to me, but I don't think that Roosterteeth is using their full potential like Adam Taurus. It would actually be interesting if Yang played both sides to found out what happened to Summer Rose, it would be interesting if we are shown the effects of what happened after Yang almost got herself and Ruby killed.

I'm sorry that I rambled a lot to you, I could have said more but I can't articulate my thoughts properly. I just want every character in the series to get the same treatment as Oscar, Ruby, Jaune, Weiss, Salem, Cinder, and Ironwood since their writing/characterization is well done (even though it also has some mistakes, but nothing is perfect) compared to the others.

Thank you for seeing my long ask, and I hope that I don't overwhelm you or annoy you by this. Good day.

Hi!! Don't worry, I'm not annoyed! I 'll answer each of your points, but my answer is honestly for the large part that I don't think they're lacking.

The turn-into-birds thing isn't entirely explained, but it's clearly not a faunus thing. It's also definitely not a hereditary thing, and this is directly stated in the show. Why people don't think this I'll get into in a bit, but first:

Volume 5 has Raven, Ozpin, and Qrow all state that Ozpin gave them that power through magic, and that it was wrong to do so. Raven clearly views it as a violation, and when she proves it to Weiss and Yang and they in turn tell the rest of the crew, everyone is disturbed and upset. Why it is so disturbing and upset I don't quite understand honestly (seems a little disproportionate?), but the implication is that Ozpin misused magic to do that to them. It may be further elaborated on.

Why everyone instantly knows it's not a faunus or hereditary thing is because faunus are people with animal characteristics. That is clearly very, very different from literally transforming from a person into an animal. I don't think it's strange that people don't notice--plus, a lot of people don't know that Raven and Qrow can do this, nor really do Raven and Qrow want them to know.

I don't think many people know Yang's heritage (I don't think Team STRQ is known very well outside of certain communities of hunters--think about how the kids don't know Jaune's heritage even though it's also pretty substantial usually). I think the implication on the show is actually pretty consistent and normal--yeah, people in cities and places that pay attention are very in tune to what happened in Beacon, but the majority of people especially in rural areas don't give a damn or don't pay that much attention. Yang probably had notoriety among other academies for a bit (but that also probably changed when it was revealed her opponent was one of the enemies). But that doesn't equate to the general public being intimately aware. This is actaully highly realistic, imo.

I cannot disagree more with the portrayal of Yang in Volume 4, though I do agree that Tai wasn't always framed well. I wrote a whole meta on Yang and PTSD actually!

I also do think that Yang shows trauma from the time she almost got herself and Ruby killed. (That also said, not everyone responds to each trauma in the exact same way!) Yang's entire arc is about finding balance. She's been kind of a maternal figure to Ruby her whole life, and struggles with that. When she refuses to accompany Ruby to Mistral at first, Yang feels incredibly guilty (even disproportionally so) because she's seeing it as Raven abandoning her (hence, the symbolism of Yang going to Raven to get to Ruby). I do think this has been fully explored as it should be up until this point, honestly, though I also expect Raven to come back at some point (likely to die saving Yang--which may give final closure for that incident).

Thank you for the ask!

#ask hamliet #yang xiao long #raven branwen #qrow branwen #rwby meta #rwby #rwby theory

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papersak · 4 months

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I like the idea of New Year's Resolutions. They're kinda sentimental to me. But this year I can't come up with a single goal, a single bar that I should try to meet this year...

... so I'll just type out all of them and check back in a year to see which one sticks.

Read 6+ novels

Pass Valkyrie Dimension

Finally learn conversational Japanese (bonus points if I can read a doujin)

Enter a Pokemon VGC regional again

Make another animation

As for how and why...

Read 6 novels: this starts all the way back mid-2020 where y'know, boredom and anxiety had me seeking healthier hobbies than doomscrolling. I actually got 4 for Christmas 😮I think they're all romance novels. When the library was close to work, I could power through 4 ez, so let's aim for those and finding 2 more.

Pass Valkyrie Dimension: It's a DDR song. 😅 This might be the hardest, if not second to 3, because of how much consistent work it would require. Before lockdowns, I was able to pass light 16s and POSSESSION. It was the peak of my DDR ability and it was a huge rush. But gah... I've fallen so far that I'm shaky at 15s now, and 14s are exhausting. It's always been a goal of mine to pass VD, and my true "DDR retirement" goal is to pass Paranoia Revolution. They're just the coolest boss songs to me. On Expert, not Challenge... experts know that chart is better. 😆

The problem here is my home pad is giving out, and playing in the arcade is not only expensive but... time consuming? I've actually grown to dislike going in a group because of how much waiting is involved. 😓

Japanese: The last time I was in Japan I had told someone I've been studying for 8 years. He seemed shocked; I was shocked for a different reason. Like, I started 8 years ago and I still can't hold a conversation??? What's up with that? I absolutely love going to doujin events, and I have quite a pile of (all-ages) comics from artists. But even when it was two artists I was a huge fan of, it frustrated me that I could never really befriend them. Even though Yanada remembered me after multiple visits, even though I spent all that time talking to Yato, and participated in all those DDR prompts...

I'm getting too old to still have "a second language" on my todo list. And sure, Japanese is at the top because I'm a weeb at my core. I know it's sort of a selfish reason. I just also have a really wonderful time when I do visit for vacation. I want a better understanding of the people I talk with when I go back. And uh... there's seemingly credible companies that let you work remote for the US while in Tokyo, particularly for IT jobs, and I have at least one of those tools in my belt already...

Pokemon VGC: I'm only 70% sure I wanna do this again. Which is still pretty sure. But I'm worried it won't be quite as fun as before. I participated in Reg C and it was AMAZING. Unfair how much fun people can have for an event hosted by such a scummy company. 😆I can't stress enough how much the other players made it so memorable, maybe even more so than some indie events. People were so helpful and so passionate, it's contagious. Team building was stressful, but I really did have fun showing off an Oricorio team with my random shiny Revavroom, and taking even the few wins I did had me over the moon.

I worry that with whatever the hell regulation it is in summer 2024 (like, wow, they are so awful with rule sets), it'll make it near impossible for someone like me to make a team that's viable, let alone a team that I'm happy to show to others. But with how swiss works, maybe I'll run into other people like me and just have fun. Or, y'know, maybe I'll find out that VGC truly does suck when Inceneroar and Landorus are legal, and I'll never have FOMO again. Either way, it'll work out! Now I've talked myself into going...

Another animation: I've been trying to figure out... why I keep making characters teary-eyed every time I make a non-parody animation. I never make sad characters in comics or art... animation just opens up my power or something. And yet, I still have parodies I want to do. I guess if you read this far, I'll go ahead and confess that the two I want to do are smooooch and the Madoka Magica (first) opening with DDR characters. I also started brainstorming a DDR parody to Mephisto from Oshi no Ko. But I don't have a lot more story ideas in my head. I'd like to do a humorous one just to prove I can. I honestly felt to powerful making the Silver and Lance one earlier, and that sort of "I'm doing it because it needed to exist" principle is why I make all the art I do, I think.

So maybe that's why I never improve, because all I care about is bringing an idea into existence. There's definitely part of me that cares that others can see what I'm thinking clearly, and without any polished skill I am certain the internet won't care. I'm uh... grateful? Surprised? Honored? that while I have plenty of flaws in art, I've improved enough to convey something I was emotionally attached to and share that feeling through animation. I think I can stop saying "I'm not good enough to do this idea" whenever I get an idea for a large project like that. So I meeeean... yes, I do remember my beginner methods making some of those scenes a nightmare, and if I was truly skilled then I could've got it done not only in better quality but with less stress. But maybe this year is the start of just going for an art project instead of saying I'm not ready.

Anyway. Happy year of the dragon. It's not my zodiac sign, but I kind of feel lucky in 2024 because my old persona was a dragon and dragons are adorable. May we all go into this year with extra ambition.

🐉

#ramble #2024

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