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#his stats are so unexpected but I could get used to it. still i want an elaboration from devsis on these
cradle-of-darkness · 6 months
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COOKIES OF DARKNESS NATION WE ARE OFFICIALLY BACK 💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💪💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️
(long rambling in tags if u care)
#cookie run#licorice cookie#red velvet cookie#affogato cookie#I KNOW im late to this but i was at school ok 🙄 anyways i have a lot of thoughts#first off LICORICE UGH I MISSED HIM SO BAD IM SO HAPPY FOR HIM#his stats are so fascinating to me. i don't think anyone was expecting his strength to be that high#its pretty average but its still his best stat surprisingly#im shocked his strategy and puzzle solving are only 3. i think that's a strange decision to make them so low but I'm open to accepting it#maybe his avoidance/lack of ability to see the big picture contributes to the low scores?#his stats are so unexpected but I could get used to it. still i want an elaboration from devsis on these#i want them to show his strength in the show because i was expecting his strength to be like. 3 or 4#but anywho. i think its very funny how affo is 0 strength. i love how its canon licorice could easily kick his ass in a fist fight#i really do love affo and im SO happy to see him with the cod fucking finally all we got with him as a cod until now was ODYSSEY 😭#im so excited to see him work with the cod as an actual member. he's a very fun character for me#i cant wait for them to actually make him feel like one of the cookies of darkness its been over a year since he joined by now c'mon#im just so ecstatic that the cod are back. hopefully this is a good omen and will pave the way for more cod appearances soon#bcs u all know how i feel about the lack of cod for the better part of the past year. this better be their comeback i believe in them#😁😁😁😁😁😁 IM JUST SO HAPPY THIS IS THE BEST POSSIBLE OUTCOME IM SO HAPPY U HSVE NO IDEA I LITERALLY SCREAMED#btw ik crepe is there. but they're in a weird grey area of being a cod so i didn't post them BUT IM VERY HAPPY THEY'RE THERE TOO ‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️#♦️charlie's miscellaneous
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arc-misadventures · 3 months
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So for vtuber AU, several of the girls and/or boys from the academy have already made their debut in your entries. So I thought what if "Errantry" reacted to the recent re-debut of one of the members of the cabal, which is a short anime
the jepella rebelion
The VTuber: Maiden of the Cabal
Errant: Well, well, well. Look who’s back.
Errant smiled at the camera as he finished the video. He hadn’t expected an old acquaintance from his past to reemerge, it was certainly unexpected, but a welcome surprise nonetheless.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
GoodDoggo: Who is she?
FallenDesire: You know her?
Lucious: She’s pretty.
QueensGuard: Sounds like you know her.
~~~~~~
Errant: That everyone is, FallenEmbers. No wait, Fall4Me, she goes by that now, that’s right. I knew her back when I used to play, The World of Remnant: Hunter’s and Monsters. It was this massive mmorpg that I played back in the day, it’s where I got the name, and design for my, VTuber avatar, The ErrantryPaladin. Fall4Me was, FallenEmbers back then. Hence my confusion.
Errant: It’s nice to see her coming back to the VTubing scene. I heard she was on before, but something happened. Oh, well I’m just happy she’s back, and hope she does well.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
GrimmKitty: So you do know her.
HellJumper1337: Were you friends?
~~~~~~
Errant’s body fell back in his chair as a deep breath of air escaped trough his nose. He looked heavenlyward as he wistfully remembered the old days.
Errant: I did know her, we were friends… of sorts. I met her back when the, World of Remnant: Hunters, and Monsters mmorpg was at its peak. I was still my lonely, Huntsman self while she was a, Huntress in the service of the, Cabal, the in game version. I never knew this when we first met, we just stumbled across one another, and did some missions together. Just because I played alone doesn’t mean I didn’t occasionally team up with other players. Little did I know she was trying to recruit me into the, Cabal.
Errant: Now, you have to understand something about how the, Acadimies, and the Cabal’s organizational structures work before I continue. You see to join a, Academy you as a player had to reach a minimum level of level ten to join an academy. This was to ensure that all new members were relatively skilled, no greenhorns, and the like. Basically, they wanted the new players to know the basic understanding of the game.
Errant: So once you joined a, Academy your characters bio gets the tag of: ‘Student of academy ‘X.’ And, once you reached level fifty you graduate from the academy, and become: ‘Hunter of ‘X’ academy.’ This was basic stuff to tell where people were from. You get different stats bonuses, and equipment based upon which academy you graduated from, not to mention players with certain individual characteristics tended to gravitate towards certain guilds. Giving each their own unique flavour to them all. The Cabal however, didn’t operate like that.
Errant: The Cabal recruited its members. Whether they be from, Atlas, or Shade Academy, it didn’t matter, their members would find you, scout you, and if you passed their tests they would offer up an invitation for you to join. While a graduated Hunter from, Mistral Academy would be said in their character profile, It wouldn’t say you were a member of the, Cabal. So its members could be anyone. This added a rather unique feature to the games overall gameplay. But, as I said; to join the, Cabal you had to display certain characteristics that the, Cabal would find desirable, and then they would invite you to join them. That’s how they did it to me, when FallenEmbers tried to recruit me.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
QuitenDown: Sounds like the beginning of a love story.
HellJunper1337: Yeah, a tragic one.
~~~~~~
Errant: So, whilst on a mission to find some rare metals to upgrade my gear I stumbled upon, Ember. Ahh, I liked to call her that, because it was quicker to say, and I’m lazy.
Errant: So, it turned out she was also looking for the same minerals that I was. And, since the area we were in is an a royal bitch to fight in we decided to team up, and we made a deal: She gets the first ore we find, then I get the next. Simple as that. We made off with a lot of ore that day… Anyway, after that we parted ways, but stayed in contact, we would occasionally join up on missions together, and generally had a blast. And, then she told me the truth, she was a member of the, Cabal, and wanted me to join.
Errant: Honestly I always had my suspicions about her. She always felt distant, and overly cautious around people. Anyway, I… I don’t remember what I said, but I remember arriving at the, Cabal’s headquarters in the, Grimm Lands, where she gave me a tour of the place. I learned how their operatives operated… ha… That sounds weird doesn’t it? ‘Operatives operated.’ Sounds like improper english, but no, it’s correct.
Errant: Uhhh… where was I…? Oh yeah! So, I learned the ins, and outs of how their operations worked, met some of their members… And, then I betrayed them by luring a, Titan Class Grimm into their base…
And, with those few words his chat exploded into a shower of startled, confused, and dare say, aroused comments.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
UWU_Knight: You did what?!
Lucious: Titan Class?!
RighteousPotato: Why would you do that?!
LRDirection: You betrayed them?
KinSlayer: Betraying an evil organization is one thing, but YOU betraying anyone is another thing entirely!
HellJunper1337: Evil, Errant confirmed!
RunnerDowner: Why?!
LouderDesires: Cue the sexy art!
PokéGirl69: Sexy evil smile~!
LitteDragon: You betrayed someone?
~~~~~~
Errant looked at the last comments before he rolled his eyes, and continued on with his tale.
Errant: Now, before I go on about how I did it, first you must learn why I did it. So, the Cabal was mostly jokesters; nothing overly evil, evil, just general bullies who raided supply lines, and caused the occasional, Grimm attacks on an innocent village. It annoyed people, but they added spice to the game. However, that commonly held opinion changed when the, Apprentice Massacre happened…
Errant: For context, we called players who were below level ten apprentices; They’re not at a high enough level to become academy students since they’re still in training so we called them apprentices. So, the Apprentice Massacre was an infamous incident where a bunch of, Cabal members got together, and started hunting down, and killing apprentices for the hell of it. Now this may not sound that bad, but there was a game mechanic where every time you die you’d lose one level. It happens every ten levels; say you’re level twenty seven; and you die eight times, you won’t go down to level nineteen, you’ll stay at level twenty. So, need I explain what happened, when a bunch of, Cabal members started killing a whole lot of apprentices?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
RunnerDowner: No way?
SumPenny: They dropped them to level one?!
KinSlayer: That’s mean!
RighteousPotato: What did they do spawn-camp them?
LunarFlower: I heard about this!
HeadHunter: I was there when it happened, it was brutal.
~~~~~~
Errant: Yeah, over a dozen, Cabal members who ranged from level thirty to forty started basically spawn camping, and killing apprentices in the starting area. There was about… seventy apprentices there, and they were completely outclassed by even the weakest members. So it was a slaughter, they tried to put up a fight, but what could they do?
Errant: However, fortunately for the apprentices, and unfortunately for the, Cabal members, I was there.
He smiled a wicked smile as he remembered that day, and more importantly what he did that day. It was the day that legends were born, and he was the start of them all.
Errant: I was in the area walking to the next area to do some quests I picked up, when I came across the, Massacre. I made a quick message to the Academies, and several, Hunter’s I was acquitted with for back up, and after that I went on a bloody slaughter. The Cabal members didn’t know what hit them! I mean, I was a solo player in my seventies, and it didn’t matter how many of them there were, I had soloed plenty of, Grimm hordes before so this was a cake walk for me.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
QuitenDown: I bet you looked really cool when you did that
Dragondeeznutz: Bet he looked hot too
VulpineRanger: He’s always hot.
GrimmKitty: But he can be hotter!
HolyNevil: True.
GermanLeopard: Good point
~~~~~~
Errant: I looked cool, least that’s what people said I looked like, chat. Back to the story, it was much easier when other players came in, and started protecting the apprentices with me. But, to make a long story short we managed to beat them off, and save the apprentices. A whole lot of things changed in the community after that happened.
Errant: Mostly codes of conduct, recently Graduated Hunter’s now had to mentor, and protect apprentices until they become students. A right of passage if you will. And, people’s general hatred towards the, Cabal, and what they did. People went inquisition on their asses. Specifically the, Atlas Academy, they really went after them.
Errant: …
Errant: Which now that I think about it actually makes sense since it’s, Atlas. If you know the lore, you’d understand.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
HellJumper1337: What did they do?
RangerFang: We went ham on them
BunnyDownUnder: Witch hunt baby!
LunaFlower: They hold grudges.
WinterBitch: Yeah, they’re a spiteful bunch.
~~~~~~
Errant: Yeah, they’re a spiteful bunch. I’m not spiteful, no I’m not spiteful at all chat.
Errant: I am however… very, very… Vindictive~! Ah~hahaha~!
Errant gave off a roguish smile that as he chuckled as he remembered all the incidents he scored his revenge against those that wronged him. His dark chuckle, and devilish smile brought an explosion of heart emojis throughout his chat feed.
Errant: Ahhhh… Good times.
Errant: Anyway, so I had a grudge against the, Cabal because I thought that what they did was cruel. People may tease, or prank apprentices , but what they did pushed the line. So, when FallenEmbers showed me to the, Cabal base I knew what I wanted to do. You see, the Cabal headquarters was located in the, Grimm Lands. And, there is a whole mess of, Grimm there: From Beowulf, Apathy, Beringals, Chimera Grimm. Delta to Alpha Class. And lastly, Titan Class.
Errant: Now, you may be asking: How does the, Cabal operate in the Grimm lands without getting attacked? Simple: They get covered in a Grimm repellent that prevents, Grimm from attacking you. The Grimm will attack you if you don’t attack them. So… I went over to one the nesting, Titan Grimm’s, and I… woke it up.
Errant: Titan Class Grimm tend to… incubate until they reach a certain… No, no that doesn’t really make sense… How do I explain this…?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
Corgimorgi: Waiting for the butterfly to hatch from its cocoon?
~~~~~~
Errant: Yeah, that’s works, thanks, Corgimorgi. It slowly grows in its cocoon until it hatches, and marches off to one of the kingdoms, and unleashes all hell upon them. If rumours arise that one of these were sighted, and, all available, Hunter’s is tasked to go out, and confirm if there is one. Everyone is terrified of these things, the first one that was ever encountered levelled, Shade Academy. It took them months irl to rebuild the academy, and it took them a year to reclaim all the land, Vacuo lost to a surge of, Grimm attacks.
Errant: At the time of the attack, Vacuo had a strength over nearly seven hundred members, and they barely, barely manage to defeat it. They had to call for help from other academies to kill the damn thing! So… How do you think the, Cabal managed to deal with a, Titan Class Grimm with barely two hundred members?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
GoodDoggo: A bloody slaughter.
Gundam#UWU: They most likely got curb stomped!
HellJumper1337: I almost feel sorry for them.
KinSlayer: Did you stay to fight it?
~~~~~~
Errant: Nope! I got the hell out of there after it started attacking their headquarters. I let them burn! It took them days, like a week to kill it too. I know because I poked the bear, and I got Exp from when it died! Went up three levels because of that. I basically crippled the, Cabal for months after this! They couldn’t do a damn thing to anyone, they were so busy trying to rebuild they couldn’t be bothered with messing with anyone else.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
Likelyaghost: So you destroyed the, Cabal all on your own?
~~~~~~
Errant: No… I crippled the, Cabal all on my own. The Scorpion Incident… That, that killed the, Cabal…
Errant went quiet as he remembered a rather uncomfortable event that had transpired years ago. He took a deep sigh to calm his nerves before he continued to tell his tale of years gone bye.
Errant: So that’s how I met, Fall4Me. You know… I never told anyone that I was the reason the, Titan Grimm attacked the, Cabal. Fall4Me never contacted me again after the attack… I wonder why; Did she know I was the cause of the attack? Maybe that’s why she never contacted me… Probably called me a traitor for betraying her trust, and our friendship…
He stared off into the distance as he pondered these questions in his mind. He sighed another deep sigh before he shook his head, and readdressed his stream.
Errant: It matters not… What’s done is done. For that was then, this is now. So chat, to welcome back an old… acquaintance. We’re gonna raid her! Send her my well wishes, and welcome her into the fold chat!
Errant pressed the button, and sent his chat onward towards, Fall4Me’s stream with a smile on his face, and a roguish smile on his face. Thinking of all the good times they had together, and he couldn’t help but wonder, where did is long lost friend disappear to? But, most important of all:
Why is her model wearing an eyepatch?
~~~~~~
Fall4Me’s Stream
~~~~~~
Fall4Me: Hello everyone, I am Fall4Me, and welcome to my stream.
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Fall4Me: I am a, Huntress in the service of the, Grimm Cabal. And, I hope you enjoy watching me as we plunge the, World of Remnant into absolute chaos~!
Fall4Me: Here we will have discussions about very things: Music, video games, and various other things that… Hmm? What the?
The howl of a Beowulf echoed throughout the stream to signal a notification. One that she had not expected on her debut stream.
Fall4Me: I’m being raided? By who…?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
HellJumper1337: Hi, Ember!
GrimmKitty: She’s pretty
BunnyDownUnder: Love the eye
FallenDersires: Errant sends his regards!
Dragondeeznutz: Whoo raiding!
~~~~~~
Fall4Me: Ember? Wait, how do you know that na… Wait… Errant? ErranrtyPaladin! H-He sent you?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
HellJumper1337: Yeah, he told us all about you
Corgimorgi: It was a cool story
SummerDaysNightmare: Were you friends, he didn’t sound certain about it?
~~~~~~
Fall4Me: We are… were friends of sorts. But, tell me chat, what did he say about me?
There was an eagerness, and an honest desire to know about how her long lost friend felt about her, and she hoped her new found audience could answer her questions.
~~~Stream Chat~~~
DungeonSiver18: Why listen to us when you can watch him talk about you?
QueensGuard: Yeah, watch his vod!
~~~~~~
Fall4Me: Hmmm~? Now doesn’t that sound like a novel idea~! Alright chat, let us see what our beloved, ErrantryPaladin thinks of us~!
~~~
Fall4Me: Ahh, I remember that day, I was looking for, Gundrite. It’s a rare metal used for upgrading a, Hunters gear. I was looking for the ore to upgrade my weapons; I had a pair of twin swords that I could stick together to use as a bow. I wanted to increase my damage output, and then I stumbled across, Errant doing the same thing. Just as we found our first piece of, Gundrite.
Fall4Me: I thought we were about to have a fight over who got the ore. But, he said I found it first, and it was mine to take. It was… surprising really. I often tend to get into fights against players while looking for rare resources. It surprised me more so that he recommended that we team up to gather more resources together. And, it worked very well. I got more then enough ore. It’s not a surprise really, a level thirty, Huntress, and a level forty, Huntsmen such as ourselves is a very powerful duo to face against.
~~~
Errant: ‘And, then I betrayed them by luring a, Titan Class Grimm into their base…’
Fall4Me: HE WHAT?! He sent that damn, Grimm after us?!
Her eye ignited in flames as she looked on his smiling face as he unapologetically admitted his crime.
Fall4Me: It took the entire, Cabal nearly two weeks to kill the damned thing!
Fall4Me: It levelled our training grounds, obliterated the landing pads, decimated the hospital, and spawn camped the entire, Cabal for weeks! Seriously it’s aoe attacks were so strong that a player would die, then respawn, and then be killed by its next aoe attack! There wasn’t a single one of us whose level wasn’t reduced to a tenth!
Fall4Me: Then we all got branded as, Titan slayers, and everyone knew that a Titan awoke in the, Grimm lands meaning we were easily marked out as cabal members because of that! We couldn’t go into the field because of that!
Fall4Me: We were crippled for months, and we never made it back to half of our original strength. It was hell!
Fall4Me: But, why?! Why would my sweet, noble, Wolf do this to us? Why…?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
BunnyDownUnder: She said ‘my wolf’
FallenDesire: Another one?
LRDirection: But why is he a wolf?
Lixxen: Guy knows what the ladies like
QueensBeedom: It’s his roguish charm
~~~~~~
Fall4Me: Lets continue the video, perhaps he’ll explain why he did this…
~~~
Fall4Me: Oh…
Fall4Me: The Apprentice Massacre. That most certainly explains things…
~~~Stream Chat~~~
Gundam#UWU: Were you a part of it?
Dippernipper: We know you’re evil, but are you that evil?
Beowulf#38k: She’s evil, but will she stay hot evil?
~~~~~~
She laughed a whimsical laugh as she read her chat feed. Relishing in delight at their innocence.
Fall4Me: Oh chat, I am always hot; More often than not its metaphorically, but often at times its quite… Literal~!
Fall4Me gave the camera a sultry gaze before holding up her hand as she flexed her fingers as it was enveloped in flames. She held a blazing fist before setting it out, and resuming with his vod.
Fall4Me: But, no I wasn’t involved in the, Apprentice Massacre. Yes I was a member of the, Cabal, but I was off doing other things irl when it happened. Even then I wouldn’t have partaken in such an action. Because the headache they caused us because of that was an ungodly amount of work to fix.
Fall4Me: Well, we mostly went into hiding, and laid low for a while. I eventually went again to see if I could recruit, Errant to our side. He was a loner, and outcast I thought he would easily join the group. I thought he was genuinely interested in joining us. But, he appears more interested in how to destroy us. And, good gods did he ever manage to do so…
~~~
Errant: ‘So that’s how I met, Fall4Me. You know… I never told anyone that I was the reason the, Titan Grimm attacked the, Cabal. Fall4Me never contacted me again after the attack… I wonder why…’
She looked away nervously for a moment before readdressing her chat as she saw them flood her chat with the similar question of why she talk to her precious wolf after the attack.
And, why did she call him, ‘Her Wolf?’
Fall4Me: Oh… I was just too busy rebuilding the, Cabal to contact, Errant. Besides, I thought he would be upset if I tried to wrangle him into helping fix the mess the, Titan Class Grimm caused. Or, asking him to fix his mess as it were.
Fall4Me: Then the whole, ‘Scorpion Incident’ happened, and the, Cabal was done for. There was no chance of rebuilding the guild since members left; they all left, right, left, and centre. To the point it was only a, Cabal of one. No big battle, no final stand, it just slowly burned out, and poof! It was gone.
Fall4Me: I need to talk to, Errant again, explain some things, ask him how things are going. Reconnect with my friend for old times sake. Would you like to see that, chat?
~~~Stream Chat~~~
GrimmKitty: Yeah! That sounds cool!
HellJumper1337: Friends reunite!
BunnyDownUnder: Lets see where she stands
Beowulf#38k: Idk these two seem like a good pair
Lixxen: Old war stories sounds fun.
Helsreach: I bet he’d like to talk to you too.
RunnerDowner: Do eeet!
~~~~~~
Fall4Me: Alright then chat. Let’s go see what my noble, Wolf is there~!
///
Ahhh… This took days to finish… I just couldn’t finish it. But, it’s done!
I like doing these lore posts, it’s fun to let the mind make stories like these.
Do you guys enjoy these kind of posts, or are they just a bore to you? That’s just something I’ve been curious about.
Till later then.
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corporatefrog · 11 months
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╰┈➤ Welcome Back to the Channel part 29; like and subscribe
✧.* featuring yn setting up for their newest youtube video when a few unexpected guests arrive : ̗̀➛ notes - this is the last chapter! thank you guys so much for joining me during the journey of this story. I haven't finished a fic in years so it feels so good to write that final line. I left it pretty open ended to be ready for extra chapters in the future!! I could say a bunch more about how thankful I am for people reading this story and how much it's help me work through the past month but i'll let the chapter do that :) tags - college au, superhero au, smau
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Okay. Let’s do this. 
“Hey guys! We’ve got a really special video today!” I greeted with a beaming grin, micking a high five with the camera. So far so good. “We’re going to be doing an interview I’ve been waiting to make for a long time…” I paused for effect before moving to the side, revealing today’s special guest. 
“Say hello to Mysterion!” I exclaimed with applause. I’d add some cheering effects while editing but without it, it sounded a bit empty. 
Looking back at Kenny, a laugh burst from my mouth at the expression on his face. He’d twisted his mouth into some semblance of a smirk but with the mask he looked cool and suave and more like he’d just smelled a three day old diaper. 
“Dude, what is that face? You look fucking stupid.” I said between laughs. Kenny frowned, giving me a side eye. 
“I’ve got a reputation to uphold!” He whined, gesturing to the dark hooded costume, “You don’t get it because you just started using your persona-”
“KENNY! Just say my social security number too why don’t you-” The frame shook as I lunged forward to stop the recording before any more secrets were shared on camera.
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It had been about a few months since I’d started working with Butters and the guys would not let me forget they had seniority in the hero/villain world. Every chance Clyde had, he reminded me that he was there when they fought Cthulhu. Of course, Kyle was close behind to say that Clyde had done absolutely nothing during that fight. But that was followed by Kyle reminding me that he was sent to hell and was there during the eldritch battle.
I’d been worried when they found out that they’d stop talking to me altogether. I wasn’t quite sure why. They’ve known about Butters being Professor Chaos since they were children and I see him and Kenny hang out more than he hangs out with Kyle and Stan sometimes. He even hangs out with Craig and his group on the weekends. 
The only thing that’s been hurt by my employment at Chaos LLC is my intel source. Wendy stopped giving me insider details about hero movements if they related to Professor Chaos so I haven’t been able to cover as much of his antics but she was still queuing me into other run-ins with minor villains and typical South Park oddities. 
Last week, fucking Slenderman showed up. Like a tall faceless dude in a suit and tie Slenderman. Just standing in the park. He did kidnap Butters which led to an interesting rescue mission. And the video coverage was insane. Marble Hornets could never. 
I didn’t want to trust it at first. I’d spent a month waiting for things to suddenly change. For everyone to turn on me for being a minor inconvenience at best but Craig still asked me to help him with his stats homework at Tweek Bros and Stan still invited me to whatever random board game shop he was visiting that week. The only thing that changed was sometimes we ran around the city in (if I’m being honest) ridiculous costumes and blew off some of the steam that comes with being a college student at Garrison University. 
The entire college almost shut down last month due to Dean Garrison being convicted of tax fraud and publicly attempting to assassinate the President in order to avoid charges. Without anyone to lead the college and the name now permanently connected to an elementary school teacher turned assassin, the only option seemed to be shutting the place down. That was a rough month. The university was literally on the verge of closure and I still had to write a 10 page research paper. What kind of bullshit is that?
Yeah but it was a paper about The Bachelor so was it really work?
Anything that involves citing in APA is work. 
The routine of my new normal set in pretty quickly. Well, as ‘normal’ as things can be when you’re friends with superheroes in South Park. I went to my classes, made videos for my channel, then I’d meet up with Butters and ruin a few people’s day a few times a week. It was scary how easily I fell into the routine. I’d wake up and say good morning to Stan as though he weren’t shooting tranquilizer darts from a nail gun at me a few hours earlier. Certainly not a sentence I ever thought I’d say. 
Looking back on the past two years, I see all the chances I had to end up somewhere else. If I’d gone to a different university and never set foot in South Park or if I’d chosen a different apartment and never ran into Clyde on my first day there I could have led a completely different life. Even in the moments which dragged on my mind, they all led me here. And the feeling of comfort that comes along with that thought makes every struggle worthwhile. 
There’s nowhere I’d rather be and here. Attending a university with an idiot dean, living in an apartment building with my closest friends, and now helping someone I care about get the revenge he’s due. Oh, and making youtube videos about all the stupid shit that happens along the way.
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I restarted the recording, giving Kenny a warning glare before saying the intro again. This time, he kept a normal face which made it much easier to not think about how just a few months ago, I was freaking out at the idea of talking to THE Mysterion. 
Granted, now we’ve seen THE Mysterion vomiting in a toilet at 2 am after eating his taco bell too fast so the shimmer has faded. 
“So, Mysterion,” I started, glancing at my list of questions I’d prepared for the interview, “You’ve been the longest running hero in South Park history! How does it feel to be coming up on 10 years as South Park’s Guardian Angel?”
Kenny hummed as he mulled over the question, “It’s not an easy job-” A knock on the door cut off his answer. I looked over at Kenny with a confused expression. He mirrored my confusion but couldn’t offer an idea on who was interrupting our interview for the second time. 
I paused the video before heading over to the door, looking through the peephole. Toolshed’s signature belt gave him away instantly. He shifted from foot to foot as he waited, tapping his hands against his thighs. 
What the fuck?
I opened the door, leaning against the frame while I deadpanned at my neighbor. 
“What’re you doing?” I asked, looking at him from under my eyebrows. 
Stan flashed a sheepish smile, “Well, I heard that you were interviewing Ken-” He paused, glancing down the hall both ways before correcting himself, “Mysterion today and I was thinking I could join? I haven’t gotten an interview yet after all.” 
“You haven’t gotten an interview because all you’ve done the past three fights is stand in the back with a power drill looking lost.” I pulled up my phone and held it up for Stan to see the footage from the past three hero conflicts. While Kenny and Craig dove into the fray, Stan could be seen in the background, searching through his utility belt for the right tool for the battle. By the time he held up his weapon of choice, Craig would be throwing the final punch.
“Okay those videos are rigged. You got those from the Craig fan accounts.” Stan protested. 
“You’re really reaching now bud-” 
“Is there still time for the interview?” A voice shouted from down the hall. Kyle’s door flew open with him rushing out soon after. The kite strapped to his back caught on the door frame, sending him tripping and falling into the wall across the hall from his door. I sighed, rubbing a hand over my face while the sound of Kyle cursing and tripping over his own stupid fucking costume filled the hallway. 
“Dude what are you doing?” Stan asked, crossing his arms as though he were the one being put upon by the appearance of the Human Kite. Kyle righted himself, brushing imaginary dust off his costume. 
“You said you were going to try and get in on the interview and after my last one-” He gave me a pointed look as though I were the one who chose his stupid name in the first place, “turned into me being berated for an hour and a half.” 
“Yeah but you already had one. It’s my turn now.” Stan whined. 
“Actually, it’s my turn right now.” Kenny said, suddenly appearing behind me at the door. I jumped to the side, holding a hand over my chest to keep my heart from jumping out at the shock. 
“Jesus fuck man. I need to put a bell on you.” I muttered to myself before addressing the slowly growing group of complaining superheroes, “None of you guys get to decide whose turn it is to be on my channel. I set up this interview with Kenny a month ago and we’re finally getting to filming so if you want to have ‘your turn’ you need to fill out the form and join the queue like everyone else. I’ve got Craig and Tweek lined up for next month then Tolkien-”
“How the fuck does Tolkien get to go before me-”
“Because he filled out the fucking form Stan? I literally just told you.” 
“Okay, well I just think it would be more interesting to have Toolshed on before Tupperware.” Stan looped his thumbs through his utility belt, kicking a foot at the ground with a frown tugging at his lips. He looked up at me with pouting eyes, blinking rapidly as he tried to change my mind.
No way this 20 year old is pouting in the hallway right now. 
I blew a breath out of the corner of my mouth, averting my eyes from the pouting college student. I better not regret this. 
“Okay, fine.” I started. Stan’s posture immediately improved as he straightened up and began to walk towards the door. Kyle followed suit with a borderline giddy smile of his own. I held up a hand to stop them, “But this is a one time thing, okay? Don’t go telling the others you can just bug me into doing a video with them because I know Clyde can and will be the most annoying motherfucker to ever exist until I do an entire series about him.” 
Kyle and Stan nodded rapidly, heads moving in sync as they agreed to whatever would get them in the video. I was about to move aside and let them in when Kenny sucked in a breath. 
“We weren’t supposed to tell other people about this?” He asked. When I turned to stare at him, he plastered an awkwardly large grin on his face. 
“Who did you tell?” I asked, holding my breath out of fear for what he’d say next. Kenny paused, eyes moving across the ceiling as he thought over the question. That’s never a good sign. Then he began counting on his fingers, mouth moving in silent words as he continued to tick off different unknown names. 
Letting his hands fall with a shrug, he looked back at me with the still incredibly awkward smile, “Only like a few of the guys-” 
“MUAHAHAHA, THIS IS WHERE YOU FALL MYSTERION!” Butters came barreling in through my balcony doors, fists raised to the sky as he posed in the living room. The four of us turned to look at the villain. 
“False alarm, Butters. Apparently this was a lowkey thing.” Kenny said, pointing to me with his thumb as though I were the buzzkill in the situation. My jaw dropped as I turned to Kenny, appalled that he had the audacity to claim I was ruining our private interview I’d spent a month planning. 
Butters’ arms fell back to his sides, tinfoil of his gauntlets scraping slightly against his belt, “Awe geez, and here I was ready for a scuffle.” He said, scuffing the toe of his boot against the floor in a similar pout to Stan’s from moments before. 
Why am I friends with a bunch of toddlers? 
Before I could address Butters’ appearance, my apartment was flooded with the rest of my friends all clad in their hero costumes. Tolkien waddled behind Tweek and Craig, turning sideways to get through the door with Clyde following close behind. Soon my apartment was filled with arguing superheroes and one very boisterous villain, all trying to figure out how to fit themselves into the frame. 
I squeezed myself onto the couch between Kenny and Clyde, feeling like I should at least have the original planned video guest in the middle of the frame. Voices overlapped as Stan tried to shove Kyle over, pushing Tweek and Craig further to the side. The cacophony of sound bounced off the walls and made the air buzz with the rambunctious energy. 
Normally the noise would send me spiraling, overstimulated by the different sounds all pulling me in different directions, but the noise around me calmed the normally racing thoughts in my mind. I’d spent so long sitting in front of this camera, reading off new stories of the people who now shouted my name to grab my attention from opposite ends of the couch I’d gotten off Facebook Marketplace. The once deafening silence which filled the moments between takes was replaced by shouts to move over and accusations of stepping on their kite string. 
It was the best noise I’d ever heard. 
“I’m starting now! Everyone shut up and follow me lead!” I announced, stabilizing the camera before returning to my spot with a smile.
I smiled for the camera. I smiled at the thought of the views a video with all of South Park’s heroes would get. But I also smiled from the overwhelming happiness that came from being surrounded by my closest friends. 
“Hey guys!” I greeted, raising a hand to mimic a high five with the lens,
“Welcome back to the channel!”
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taglist [reply to be added]: @sula0kin @lacuna-at-dawn @anglettecolours @cocolena@sukisprettyface @feverish-dove @sweetadonisbutbetter @hand-writxen@mishstuff@sophtophie @triphovia  @lacunaanonymoused @inkedintothepaper @toodeepintofandoms@mmmaackerel @sillybilly-123@n0tangeliccc@sophtophie@inkedintothepaper 
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princessbatears · 2 years
Text
Alternative Education - Chapter 9
Casa Werewolf Series #9
Chapters 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
Pairing: Javi Gutierrez x Werewolf Single Mom f!Reader Summary: Another bullying incident causes all three kids to run away from school this time Warnings: sexual thoughts/arousal, implication of human/werewolf sex, parental fear/panic, description of child against child bullying including name calling and violence, children running away, injury, small amount of blood Words: 3.8k
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In the early morning, Javi’s alarm goes off. Normally, he wouldn’t have it set on a Saturday, but he wants to make sure to get up before the kids do.
He allows himself a moment to grin over the incredible time he had with you last night. Making love was more delicious, sweet and fulfilling than he could have dreamed—and he’d dreamed about it a lot.
Damn, now he’s horny again.
After a quick shower to cool his jets, Javi goes to the guest suite. The sitting room that leads to bathroom and bedrooms is dark and empty. He turns on a lamp, grabs a sheet of paper and pen off the little desk in the corner, and writes: ‘When you wake up, come find me with Marci. Leave Mama to sleep. -Javi’.
He sets the note on the bathroom counter, hoping the kids will use it before they disturb you. He wants you to get as much rest as you possibly can while there’s someone else around for them.
Then, he lets Nina know about the unexpected guests who will need breakfast and settles on a sofa with a cup of coffee to wait. Marci glowers at him from her tank, miffed she hasn’t been fed yet. “I’m going to let the niños feed you,” he tells her.
It’s not long before Tallulah and Astrid appear, looking rested in a way that makes him wish he was a child again. “How was your night?” he asks as they plop beside him.
Tallulah stretches. “Good.”
“The bed is too big. I kept getting lost,” Astrid pouts.
Javi runs a hand over her hair, bemused. “Lost?”
“Yeah, I couldn’t find the edges. I was lost in the middle.”
He bites back a laugh. “It is a big bed.”
“Can we feed Marci?” Tallulah asks, waving hello to the fish, who angrily pushes a pebble around in protest of her starvation.
“She’d be very appreciative. Do you want to go get her food from the fridge?”
Tallulah immediately dashes off.
Astrid doesn’t follow, instead snuggling up to Javi. He kisses the top of her head, unease overtaking him. When you wake up, the two of you will tell the children about your romance.
Last night, you prepped him for positive reactions, negative reactions, and in-between. But he’s still worried he’ll screw it up and harm the precious relationships he’s cultivating with them.
Before he has time to obsess, Tallulah returns. Marci is fed and then Bo arrives downstairs. Nina gets an incredible breakfast spread out in record time, and Javi shepherds the kids to the table.
“Thank you, Nina!” they chorus with a sincerity that would make you proud.
“If you need anything else, you call,” Nina smiles.
“When’s Mama getting up?” Bo asks between bites of bacon, still speaking in Spanish.
Nina, who is putting the toast out, says smoothly, ”When her body is done resting. Sometimes mothers don’t get enough sleep, so they need to stay in bed later.” Her eyes travel to Javi and the corners of her mouth tip up slightly in a knowing smile.
His face burns and he quickly shoves some omelette in his mouth, feeling like a little kid who got caught doing something he shouldn’t. She leaves without another word, but he’s sure she’s laughing to herself over how guilty he looks.
Astrid gulps juice, then lets out a satisfied sigh. “Are we staying here all day?”
“I’m not sure what your mama’s going to want to do,” Javi says, grateful for the change in topic.
“I wanna finish the movie. I didn’t see the end.”
“Me, too,” Bo agrees.
Unwilling to promise anything until after the kids learn the truth of your relationship, Javi repeats, “We’ll find out what your mama’s got planned for the day.”
When you do appear in the dining room, you look breathtakingly beautiful in your sleepy state. He desperately wants to kiss you, but contents himself with pulling out your chair. “Good morning. Come, sit and eat.”
“I’m sorry I slept so late,” you grimace as you sit in the chair.
“Nina said mamas need extra sleep sometimes,” Bo replies, dishing sliced pears onto his plate.
“It was very nice to sleep,” you admit, giving Javi a grateful smile.
He winks.
Tallulah rounds on you hopefully. “Can we stay here today? Finish the movie and go swimming and stuff?”
You pause, studying your children, then raise your eyebrows slightly at him in question. Assuming you want to know if he’s ready to broach the topic of your relationship, he nods, his throat going dry.
“Before we do anything else, Javi and I have something we want to talk to you about.”
The triplets look between the two of you curiously.
You continue, tone upbeat and a warm smile on your face, “We’ve been spending a lot of time with Javi over the last several weeks. During which, he’s become very special to me and me to him.”
Tallulah catches on first. “Are you boyfriend and girlfriend?”
Astrid’s eyes go round as saucers and Bo looks a little startled, too.
“Yes, we are.”
Javi jumps in with what he wants them to internalize, “I love you three very much and I am here to support and care for you. But I’m not trying to replace your father, okay?”
They sit still, working on processing this information.
You clasp one of each of their hands in your own. “I love you all just as much as I always have, and me having a romantic partner won’t change that. Do you have any questions or feelings?”
Bo’s the first to speak, expression hopeful. “Are we gonna live here now?”
“No, we’re still living in the apartment,” you chuckle. “But we might stay here sometimes.”
“Will you come to our fútbol games?” Tallulah asks Javi excitedly.
He relaxes, having been most concerned about her reaction. “Of course, mi amor.”
“Astrid, sweetheart, do you want to tell us how you feel or do you need some time?”
Your voice draws his attention to the littlest child, who is staring at her place, eyes swimming with tears. This was not the response he’d expected from his snuggle buddy, but he supposes he should have since most change tends to upset her at first.
He reaches out to touch her head. “It’s a lot, huh?”
Instead of answering, she bolts from the table and out of the room.
Quickly, you move to go after her, but Javi catches your hand. “Let me. Please.” If he’s going to be a partner to you and a parent-figure for the kids, he needs to step up.
You smile encouragingly, squeezing his fingers. “You’ve got this,” you mouth.
“Astrid,” he calls, jogging after her.
Her tiny form runs up the staircase, shouting, “Leave me alone!”
Although he could catch her, he chooses to follow her to a destination she feels safe in, which ends up being the guest suite. She tries to slam the door, but he catches it.
“Go away!” she shrieks before collapsing onto the sofa in the sitting room.
Javi sits on the floor next to the sofa and rests a hand on her back. “I know this is a lot to absorb,” he sighs. “It’s just been you, your sister and brother, and your mama for a long time. Having someone else join your family is naturally unsettling.”
Astrid whips her head to look at him, eyes flashing with flecks of gold. “You don’t want to be our family!”
“What do you mean?” He’s not sure where she could have gotten such an idea.
“You said you don’t want to be our daddy!” The sentence ends in a keening that has her face down on the cushion again.
She must have mistook him saying he wasn’t going to replace Ivan as a rejection. He’s torn between sadness that she’s hurt and a joy that she wants him as a father.
“Oh, nenita,” he coos, rubbing her back. “I meant to reassure you that I did not expect you forget your birth father. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be your papa, too.”
She peeks at him, hiccuping.
“I love you so, so much. More than I can possibly describe.” He wipes the tears on her hot cheeks with his thumb.
Astrid slips off the sofa into his lap, where she clutches at his neck, face buried in his chest. “I love you, too.”
He exhales, closing his eyes, as he cradles her to him. Hearing those words from her brings a different kind of peace than hearing them from you does, and it’s just as powerful and sweet.
After kissing her head, he asks, “Do you want some more breakfast or to stay up here for a bit?”
“Will you carry me down?” she asks slyly.
Javi bites back a smile. “Carry you, huh?” He gets to his feet, her in his arms, and starts out of the room. She grins gleefully, tears forgotten, as she clings to him like a koala bear.
- - -
Weeks turn into months, autumn into winter. Javi’s never experienced a love like he has with you and the children. Your lives integrated to where you spend more time together than apart.
One day in early February, the two of you are laying in his bed after a morning romp, you in Wolf form. He’s nestled against the soft fur of your chest and belly.
“Do you need any water?” he asks, stroking your muzzle.
Shaking your head, you nuzzle your head against his. Then, your tongue caresses his neck affectionately.
“That tickles!” But he doesn’t shift away, loving that you groom him as a member of your pack. You hold him even closer in your front paws, licking the sweat from his shoulders and back. He closes his eyes, petting your coat.
The tender moment is interrupted by your phone ringing from the bedside table. Javi groans, reluctantly disentangling himself enough that he can reach it. He sees it’s the children’s primary school calling. “It’s the school,” he tells you.
You shift back into human instantly, your body changing shape, color and texture in the blink of an eye. Worry creases your face as you take the phone and answer.
He watches as you listen to the faint male voice on the other end of the line. Concern morphs into fear, and you scramble off the bed, saying, “I’m going to go search right now. If anyone finds them first, call me immediately.”
Javi already has a suspicion of what’s going on and is throwing himself at his discarded clothes.
You hang up. “There was a fight at school between Bo, Tallulah and that little monster who’s bullied Astrid before,” you snarl, going for your own clothes. “And all three of them took off.”
“Shit!” Javi yanks on his shoes. “I’m coming with you to look for them.”
“We should split up, cover more ground,” you say, your eyes wild and flecked with yellow. “The school’s called the police, but we need to find them first. Anyone from the government will just scare them more.”
He grabs you in a quick hug, pressing a kiss to your temple. “We’ll find them. I’ll ask Placido to help, too. And have my security team watch for them here on the compound. You’re not alone in this.”
You breathe out, the reminder causing your eyes to soften. “Yeah.” Then, you say with more conviction, “I’m going to go to the school and drive in the direction of the apartment. You and Placido search in the other directions.”
He presses a kiss to your knuckles. “We’ll find them.”
Moments later, he’s rushing to the security room, where Placido is watching the monitors.
“The triplets ran away from school.” Javi’s own panic is starting to rise now that he’s not comforting you. “I need help finding them!”
Placido is immediately on his feet. “Has the school called the police?”
“Yes, but we want to find them first.”
Thankfully, the head of security doesn’t ask questions. He grabs his radio instead and barks into it, “The children have run away from school. They might be headed to the compound. I want three units outside the east border, watching for them. Sanchez, come watch the monitors. I’m going to go with Señor Gutierrez to look elsewhere.”
There’s a reason the Gutierrez family has done everything in their power to keep Placido with them for over twenty years. He knows what he’s doing and wastes no time.
“Their mother has already gone to look for them, yes?” he asks Javi.
“Yes. She went west. We’re splitting up to cover more ground.”
Placido nods, a determined set to his job. “I’ll take north and you take south. If we don’t find them in 30 minutes, I’ll get more men out there to look.”
Javi spends the next twenty minutes driving around the south part of the town, praying that the kids are safe and that they’re still in human form. It’s close to the full moon and it’d be easy for them in their heightened state to accidentally turn. Especially Astrid.
His phone rings through his car’s bluetooth, flashing Placido’s number, and he nearly sprains his finger punching the answer button in his desperation. “Have you found them?”
“I’ve got them, Javi, and they’re okay,” Placido’s confident voice says. “I’m bringing them back to the compound now. Will you call their mama?”
“Yes. See you soon.”
Quickly, he calls you to relay the news before turning his car towards home. Gratitude gives way to upset. Why didn’t they call you? Or him? Why would they run like that? They all know how worried you were the first time Bo did it!
Javi arrives before you do and finds Tallulah, Bo and Astrid seated in the entertainment room with Placido and some snacks. Bo’s holding an ice pack to his left eye. The front of Astrid’s floral dress is caked in mud.
Sighing, Javi walks over to the couch and pulls all of them into a tight hug. “You scared us very badly.” He keeps his voice low, but the emotion still seeps through.
“We had to!” Bo says defiantly, although his words warble with the threat of tears.
Javi lifts the ice pack to look at the injury. Bo’s eye is swollen shut and a nasty purple color. “When your mama gets here, you can tell us all about it.” He looks at the girls. “Are either of you hurt?”
Astrid’s eyes fill, yanking her dress up above her knees. Both of them are skinned and muddy. “Arlo pushed me and ruined my dress!” she wails.
Placido is on his feet, eyes concerned, and then out of the room. Astrid had obviously not told him about her wounds, probably not feeling comfortable enough without her preferred adults.
Javi kisses her forehead. “We’ll get you cleaned up and Reina can work wonders with stains,” he soothes. “Luls? What about you?”
Tallulah shakes her head. “Nobody hurt me,” she whispers. “Are we gonna be expelled?”
Honestly, Javi has no idea what will happen. Bo is already on his final warning with the school, but, to his knowledge, the girls don’t have any strikes against them. “We’ll figure it out,” he promises.
Placido returns with a first aid kit and a damp washcloth. He knees down in front of Astrid. “Let’s take care of those knees,” he says gently.
She looks to Javi and he smiles reassuringly. It’s good for her to know she can trust Placido.
She wipes at her eyes with the back of her hand, watching as he cleans the dirt with the cloth first, then with an antiseptic wipe. She doesn’t even flinch as it connects with her ripped flesh.
“You’re a very brave girl,” he smiles. “We’re almost done.”
You rush into the room, gasping, “Oh my god!” Your expression of relief-induced fury is the exact same one you were wearing when Javi first set eyes on you. Despite the situation, he can’t help smiling at the memory.
“They’re safe,” Placido reassures. “Only minor hurts.” He sticks colorful bandages on Astrid’s knees.
You do exactly what Javi did and crush your children to you. “Why didn’t you call me if there was a problem?” you demand.
All three kids begin mounting their defense at the same time, resulting in nobody being understandable.
“Enough,” you say firmly, holding up a hand. “One at a time.”
Placido grabs the wash cloth, first aid kit, and trash. He’s on his way out of the room when you call after him, “Placido, thank you so, so much for finding and caring for them!”
The older man turns to you with a kind smile. “It’s my pleasure, miss.” Then, he disappears.
You take a deep breath, turning your attention back to the kids. “What happened?”
Tallulah, a tightly coiled spring of nerves, rushes to explain. “We were at recess. Bo and I were playing fútbol when I saw Arlo talking to Astrid across the field, looking all mean. Then, he pushed her into the mud!”
Astrid jumps in, “I was looking at the worms and he came over and said I was a worm, too. I said I wasn’t and he doesn’t get to pick on me just ‘cause he doesn’t like me. He got mad and that’s when he shoved me. I tried to get up, but held me down in the dirt.”
You look as upset as Javi feels, but you remain quiet.
“The teachers were far away, they didn’t see,” Tallulah continues, eyes a vivid yellow. “He was squishing her and she couldn’t get him off!”
“I tried!” Astrid whimpered.
Stroking her hair, you murmur, “I’m sure you did, sweetheart.”
“We ran over and pulled him off,” Bo growls. “I wasn’t gonna fight him, I was gonna go make him see a teacher, but then he hit me in the eye.”
“So I kicked him in the back.” Tallulah’s canines have lengthened slightly and the rest of her teeth are sharpening.
Javi has never seen her like this before, but he can hardly blame her. His own rage is rising, although he follows your lead by not reacting passionately. Instead, he takes Tallulah’s hands, massaging them lightly.
The touch seems to stall the imminent transformation. Her eyes dim a little.
“I went to get a teacher,” Astrid says. “But when I told her and she looked, she saw Bo hitting Arlo and got really mad, yelling that Bo was going to be expelled.”
“Arlo was trying to hurt Tallulah!” Bo says in frustration.
Astrid clutches the dirty hem of her skirt. “The teacher started screaming about the police coming if they didn’t stop.”
“And that’s when you decided to run?” you ask, sadness tinging your voice.
They all nod.
“Are we gonna get expelled, Mama?” Tallulah asks anxiously, once again reminded of her potential horrible fate.
You exhale slowly. “I’m not sure what’s going to happen yet. I’m waiting for the headmaster to call me back.”
Astrid bites her lip. “Are you mad?”
“I was very scared when I heard you ran off, but we’ll talk more about that later. For now, I want you to know that I’m proud of you, Astrid, for standing up for yourself and for telling a teacher what was happening, even though she let you down. Bo and Tallulah, I’m proud of you for protecting your sister and each other when an adult wouldn’t do it.” You give each of them a kiss. “We’re going to figure out a way to make sure this doesn’t happen again, okay?”
You send the kids up to their rooms with the promise you’ll be up shortly to help Astrid clean up and talk more. Once they’re gone, your head falls into your hands.
Javi rubs your back lightly. “It’s going to be okay.”
When you look at him, your eyes are yellow and jaw tight. “How is it going to be okay, Javi? My children are bullied and the school does nothing but blame them! Bo is most certainly going to be expelled and I have no idea if another school will accept him. I’d consider homeschooling, but even petitioning to do so would bring the government to my doorstep. What am I supposed to do?”
“Well, there is the private school David and I attended.”
You scoff. “I could barely afford tuition for one child, let alone three. And separating them is not an option.”
He continues to knead your tense muscles. “But I could.”
Your voice softens. “Honey, you’re so sweet, but I can’t accept that.”
“Why not? That school can offer small class sizes, individual attention, sports, fine arts, better academics, and teachers have the administration support to stop bullying in its tracks. I already donate a sizable amount every year, so they will be quite willing to let the niños start mid-semester and get them up to speed.”
There’s a long beat of silence. You look torn between discomfort and hope. Finally, you say, “We’ve been together for less than six months. I know we’re not exactly going slow, but you supporting them so much financially… What if… what will happen if we…”
Javi hates thinking about a break-up as much as you hate bringing it up. It’s a fair concern, though, even if he’s determined to do everything in his power to keep it from happening. “What if I put enough money in a trust to cover their tuition through primary school? Only you or their guardian can draw from it. Then, you’re not dependent on me every semester.”
You visibly unwind at this suggestion. “It’s not that I don’t trust you. Or that I don’t think we’re in it for the long-haul.”
He gives you a soft kiss. “It’s as important to me as it is to you that my money doesn’t give me extra power in this relationship.”
“I love you.” You press your cheek to his.
He nuzzles your hair. “I love you. Now, I’m going to go call the headmistress of the school and let her know we’re transferring three very bright young students to her care.” He grins, getting up.
As Javi heads to his study, Placido catches him in the hallway. “May we speak privately?” he asks.
Javi nods curiously. “Let’s go to the study.”
They enter and shut the door. Placido opens his mouth, but hesitates. This is so unlike him that Javi’s concerned.
“What is it?”
Placido takes a bracing breath. “Considering the incident with the children today, I feel it is not in anyone’s best interest for me to continue hiding the fact I know they and their mother are werewolves.”
- - -
Thank you SO much for reading this story; I’d love to hear your thoughts! 🥰
Spanish Translations/Notes: chiquito - term of affection for a child nenita - baby girl mi luz - my light fútbol - soccer/football
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Javi Gutierrez Masterlist
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mooncalfe-art · 8 months
Note
Ok. Soo...got to read 142..twice even, just becose I could not believe what I was seeing.
Pretty much, evrything about the turtles gone more or less as expected. Yhea. The "fight" at the start between Raph and Alopex was something...tho, he soo was not serious about the fact he dose not care about her. After all. When I say I don't care about a person ,I don't usually go in their aid, when they are half ded on the floor, looking worried sick. Just saying. Glad to see Don and Leo got their shite together and that Don did finally spoken about Armaggon..even if was a little little bit. Interesting to see how that gose at the end of the arc, seeing what 145 SAYS. Sad to see Lita being traumatized by the fight between the boys, tho, have to respect April for how sick of their shite she was after that and for her and Mikey to get the little one out of there. Blugen and Koya were unexpected tbh, but, was a nice surprise. Even seem to be ok whit Carmen and Bob comeing along.. which, knowing Koya...is quite something ( seeing how "friendly" she can be whit strangers usually. ) . Also. Nice seeing Angel working whit the turtles ones more and for her traying to be like a common ground for her 2 mutant friends...
Now tho. Speaking of that... I talk about how that first meeting between Alopex and Raph happened and how it was more or less what I expected...but..what happened next whit Alopex and especially Mushroom...I am sorry. But, that has to be my biggest negativity about everything that happened.
Alopex being half ded and Mushroom becoming mind controlled by that useless piece of trash called Doc.Barlow was something that made my stomach turn. Yes. Alopex is alive. Not too big of a problem...hell..could have been worse...but seeing Mushroom like this!
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Absolutely horrific. She is just a kid! Barlow made many mistakes in his miserable excuse for a life ...but this has gone waaaay too far.
I just can't bring myself to picture a fight between Alopex or the little ones whit Mushroom like this. What ever happens to her, I can only wish she will not suffer forever from this . Now, Alopex has as much of a reson to want this shite face ded as Venus dose at this point tbh...If not more!. And me along whit a lot more fans would not mind to see Doc Barlow justice to come in the form of the hell flames !
Again. No idea how this maithe play out in the end and how it maithe go later on...but this made my blood boils with rage . This will become a core memory for Alopex after this. I just know it. She needs the help, more so then ever befor. Just hope it will not be too late and that she will at least show some thanks to the turtles..cuz, if not, especially after this stunt ,she would not look good at all in the eyes of no one tbh. Just saying. Would be somewhat of a stat at least.
Now. For my last questions. How did that Doc get back the parts to form that abomination?
Way dose he like those 2 ugly sins of nature that much, to still use them after they shude have been long gone by now.
And still no idea what in hells name are those 2 demons...tho, I think that maithe be explained in the next issue.
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Night terrors, hmm?.. They have to had spawn from somewhere...
Also. Leatherhead is MVP. He saved my girl. For that alone, I wana see him make it out alive!
That would be it. I know is a lot and I am sorry for that..but, this issue was quite something. I am intrigued for what's to come and I think this was a very interesting ...just..it made me feel in a way that no comic made me feel befor. Even from this series.
Sorry if I let myself go whit the Doc Barlow... I just want him ded.
PS. Love how we have pretty much 3 teams going for Barlow.
Doni whit Leo along whit Venus and the rest of her team. Raph, Jeny, Angel, Alopex ( ones she feels good inof to even talk ) and the little ones . And Mikey whit April and Mona, traying to get to the bottom of the situation . I did like that a lot. Ngl.
Now. Just need to burn a Doc to the ground for good this time.😈 ( you are not the only one that is blood thirsty.).
Thanks for reading, as always!! I'm glad this issue got you so riled up, mwahaha. >:D
I can't reveal what will happen to Mushroom, Leatherhead, or Barlow, you'll have to wait and see. ;)
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aurrieattorney · 1 year
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it has been a While since I've remembered/interacted with any fallen hero stuff but I AM dying to know more abt suranga so pls. holds out hands.
(uhhhhh my brain is a little bit scrambled by exhaustion so please heed that there's some tough themes from the source material in this, but at least a cw for mention of suicide and eating disorders)
[inhale] ok SO 
Basically, i missed original suranga a lot given i made him when things were kind of going to shit in my life, and my very nebulous webcomic iteration wasn’t scratching the itch to have him back quite enough, and round about early feb i found out retri was coming out.
So i kinda did a redux of him, keeping some of the things i had and tossing out others while adding other stuff. Much of this i’ve already yelled at with joel and mort, but i’ve never actually sat down and put all those yellings together lol. He’s lebanese-sri lankan (not that he would know, just generally he’s some unplaceable kind of south/west asian and using that to his advantage for fake names) and his voiceclaim, both speaking and singing (suranga sings! both in arabic and english) is hamed sinno (though sameer gadhia also works). For faceclaims, basically the closest person i can get to faceclaim inspo is varada sethu, esp pre-transition with the nose and the skin-tone. He’s also a little bit taller at just under 5’5’’ rather than 5’1 cos I took mercy on him, but he still has to crane his neck to look at ricardo being the giant he is (though suranga Did used to be 5’6’’ before HB fucked his spine up, and becoming even shorter than ortega makes him very grumpy).
freddie purrcury the lint monster is still there, but suranga adopts him pre-hb (ie. sidestep days). It’s thanks to fred that suranga stays with the rangers after a near-miss with the media (which i’m writing a fic up about!), and helps him grow into himself by having to look after another being. After HB, ricardo takes him briefly while he figures out what to do with himself. He’d ultimately love to keep fred but knows he can’t do a very good job of it esp after he decides he can’t retire yet, so fred goes to elena’s (spoilers for retri ending, theres a path where you can visit her ranch!!). I’m still deciding when would be the best point for them to reunite but basically suranga very sad w/o his cat, someone help him :(
however! He’s a mob step (at least, that’s what i’ve tended to default to, i love the crime found family :3 anarchist is also a good fit tho, and i’ve read through the code for thief which could also be fitting, so i’m planning to do), i debated whether he’d want to let the gang in on his identity and the base and ultimately decided yes, it was worth it if he wanted their full trust. He also accidentally becomes a parental figure to nehal, the gang’s driver, which is unexpected for everyone, suranga especially dsakjlfdksj. nehal has spud the pomeranian now, who essentially acts as the gang’s mascot. I have a few ideas about writing fic about their misadventures b/c i am very soft about them and suranga having people who’ve got his back
i changed his suit and his villain name (Argos) to be peacock themed! (here’s some concept sketches i’ve been sitting on a while lol, it’s meant to be imposing but whether it’s actually that remains to be said lol, mysterious might fit better
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I was inspired by my trip to a SL temple belonging to a god which has peacocks associated with him, as well as music and dance. Peacocks fit well with his high arrogance anyway (tho his arrogance/obscurity stat might fluctuate a bit depending on the scenario). Thus, his gang is called the panoptes. This also extends to the cyranga au with @/geek-o13’s cyrus, whose villain name is Helios, and whose namesake is also sometimes described with the panoptes epithet :D if i go into that au this post might double in length so i’ll save that for another one, but thinking about the dynamic between the two and bouncing ideas back and forth brings me so much serotonin :’) 
i know for sure suranga would have the speed mod, as it’s what i always pick, but it might make more sense strategy wise to flip from strength (which, ouch, poor rangers) to telepathy to play to what he does best, (yes to cape, cos he’s a theatre nerd in spite of the inner edna mode telling him not to lol, spent so much time designing the stupid armor and sitting in the library as yasmin poring over books for inspo.) 
i’ve also decided suranga’s got chronic pain/fatigue from the fall in HB, especially in his legs and lower back (like… that was a four storey fall. i’m doubting the farm would bother to fix sidestep’s body enough to given them full mobility/painlessness again if they’re using the MC for experiments, doesn’t seem like giving them back those things was high on the list :V), and therefore also uses a back brace and a custom-made telescopic cane he made himself that can be extended/collapsed as necessary. He also wears a leg holster over his clothes that he can slot the cane into when he doesn’t feel like carrying it. Or doesn’t want to draw attention to himself by having it fall over like thirty times after propping it against something lol. it’s also on the same leg he had the holster for his gun during his sidestep days (and the cane also can function as a self-defense weapon in a pinch). The cane very much becomes part of his physical body language, he’ll gesture/point with it, fidget by twirling it around (he’s dropped it a lot practicing, but he’s a real pro these days) knock on doors with it, or hook things with the handle, etc etc. fhr having a bunch of medical advancements in commonplace prosthesis makes a realy interesting thought experiment about what ableism would look like, esp when chen’s (and to some extent ortega’s) conversations bring up that mods aren’t all great and come with their own issues/challenges.
He’s still a tech/fighterstep, but he’s had to think more like a tactician since then cos he can’t rely so much on his body in fights, which is making me consider doing a tactician run to see if it fits. Anyway, the powersuit mortum makes is basically a mobility aid of sorts, but he has to be careful not to overdo it. He keeps pain meds on him/uses adaptive tools around his apartment (during rebirth, it’s a comfortable flat, and one of the lower ones of the complex in the off-chance the lift breaks down, before he moves into the flat above the tech shop being used as a front for the panoptes) ie. shower chair, a grabber so he doesnt have to bend too far down if he’s dropped something/otherwise would need to get onto a step-stool and potentially eat shit if he loses balance, generally having places to sit throughout the flat in reach, heat pads, etc. 
sometimes he has a habit of drinking (so a secondary vice to sweets) as a way of coping with the pain when it gets a lot, but he tries not to do it too much, and only in the privacy of his apartment. i noticed in the code diving that this vice develops because of telepathy being so energy-intensive, and that a sweets vice mc will also want food in general, not just sweets. Given one of ortega’s love languages is sharing food, they work really well with a sweets vice sidestep, romanced or friendship route :D suranga might have some kind of eating disorder alongside textural issues with food where some days he’s just not able to eat anything. He doesn’t generally do meat, because he likely never had it at the farm and is too expensive in the FEZ anyways, fish is usually ok, but pre-HB if he was having it at his flat, he had to make sure fred couldn’t eat it while he wasn’t looking lol
Basically i’m projecting some of my own crip problems onto suranga and no one can stop me lol. 
Anyway, that also means he really understands chen as a fellow physically disabled person when they start talking in retri (ortega has their own can of worms with the military-grade mods giving back their ability to walk after being paralyzed by the accident way back when they first meet chen), ie. understanding why he named his dog spoon. I’d like to hc that given how happy suranga was with fred, after hb, part of chen’s decision to adopt a dog was that he saw how helpful it was for him, even if he didn’t fully trust suranga, but! given Suranga’s a techstep, it’s canon that techstep mcs used to help chen manage his mods/do tune-up (which would require some degree of trust) and there’s even an option in retri when you meet him at HQ where you notice he’s having problems with his prosthetic limbs and suggest how to adjust it so it works better, which is a nice touch - tactician steps also played chess with him in their downtime!
He’s got yasmin to hop into if his own body gets laid up too bad, but he’s still got reservations about what he does with her body (flirting for information is alright, but no romantic relationships/sex). Her being (presumably) cis, at first it’s a little disconcerting having to perform being a woman again, but the more he gets used to being her, the more he realises feminine stuff isn’t so bad when it’s an opt in thing and begins to experiment with his own presentation sometime between rebirth and retri now he’s got a bit more freedom and confidence to try now he’s debuted as a villain.
He’s always had a fascination with how one can change how they’re perceived just in the way they carry themself, how they dress/behave etc (which then led to an interest in costumes/theatre/fashion, and i’m imagining if there were powerpoint nights at the rangers, suranga would come in with a 20 slide presentation on tearing into x villain of the week’s fit, much to themmy’s delight)
He also has an interest in sewing instead of knitting (although he still does that too, it’s just that sewing is his main thing now, which first started out as fixing holes in his clothes rather than just throw them out, then began teaching himself from books, and then on a trip to tia elena’s, asks about the broken sewing machine she never really used, and then fixes it. Elena teaches him a few of the basics, then he gets into making his own clothes, and makes a gift for elena as thanks (an embroidered shawl with sunflowers on it :3)
this then meshes really well with the puppetmaster scar (in retri, the suicidal scar from rebirth becomes a seperate tag and there’s options throughout the game to convert it to one of the other scars), which has funky implications esp when paired with fate motivation as a fourth-wall break/slightly self-aware kind of step, BUT ALSO THE AUTISM SCRIPT THING (the mc/sidestep is so autistic coded, which makes sense given the author is also autistic). If you’re a baby regene escapee that’s used to following scripts and orders, once you break out there’s only so much you can do before you have to do improv, something something how do you know what your real personality is when you’ve always had to perform? Puppetmaster being similar in flavour to the outsider scar (his original scar, iirc) with a few more bells and whistles, I think it’s p fitting, esp since it works with the strings/thread stuff featuring a lot more heavily in retri, ie. more opportunities to possess people/meet other telepaths/reflect on your relationship to your puppet (yasmin, tall latina gal in suranga’s case). I have no idea how much spoilers you’d want for retri but i’ve been code-diving big time, specifically cos retri is such a sprawling beast of code/divergent story paths.
Suranga is still a pining dumbass for ortega except from afar as the secret crush route, which hasn’t changed (although he’s a bit more clued in that ortega is up to something and has to keep his guard up somewhat). this is made DOUBLY hilarious when also paired with the chenmance (SPOON!!!!!!!!) wherein you find out chen also. has a crush on ricardo. You have to see chen instead of going to hoots with ortega to find that out tho (what a mess lol, everyone here assumes the others are straight.)
I’m angling for the poly route, since so far in retri you can only set up for it, as opposed to chargentstep where if you’re already dating ortega and you get the auction kiss with argent and mention that, you can say you want both of them and there’s no issue cos actually, ortega (julia AND ricardo) flirted with argent when she first joined, and she also likes them lol.
SPEAKING OF ARGENT suranga did enjoy fighting her (if with some degree of stress because ‘oh shit, you would be so mad if you knew i was in your head’ and being an unknown), such that he doesn’t use telepathy against her out of respect even though that’s the only thing mostly keeping them matched. On the bridge, he flirts with her to throw her off, accidentally leaning too much into his yasmin confidence, then gets confused by her actually being interested and then has to re-evaluate what exactly his gameplan is with her. He gets kissed (and bitten) at the auction when he takes his helmet off, and then when he turns up at the HQ has a very awkward conversation with her in the breakroom trying to figure out what the hell their relationship is (some kind of weird friends but the argentmance route is very cute too)
Herald/daniel is kept at arms length, suranga’s his coach and thinks he’s nice enough but a bit sensory overload with all his thoughts (he can’t really teach by sparring since he’s not up to par anymore, and it’s kind of half-true, outside of the suit he can only do so much, but he can offer pointers/maybe bring in nehal?) - maybe or maybe doesn’t pick up on the crush, idk
there's plenty more to add i likely forgot but that has been an Infodump abt suranga the current favourite oc, THANK YOU FOR INDULGING ME <3
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todayimgonnaplay · 3 months
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Today I'm Gonna Play: Mega Man X: Command Mission (Gamecube ver.)
My first introduction to the Mega Man series wasn't from the games but rather one of the anime series: NT Warrior. I remember thinking the character designs looked really cool, and I loved sci-fi/robotic characters at the time too. (Robotboy on Cartoon Network anyone?) I did get into a few games on the GBA and PSP but I sucked badly. So I thought, if I can't get into one of their mainline games, maybe I can try a spin-off? (Apart from Battle Network) And that's how I found this. Never thought they had a proper turn based RPG so I thought to check it out and emulate it.
Right off the bat, I want to commend the character designs. I always felt like that was the series' strong point, but everyone looks great here. Zero is my favourite character in the entire franchise but this is one of the few times where X looks amazing, and maybe even moreso than Zero himself. I just cannot stop staring at his model with awe, it's just SO cool with the red and yellow accents, the use of sharp yet rounded shapes, and this red energy scarf emitting from his back. Another character's design I love is Marino. I usually don't pay much attention to the female characters (although Ciel, and some renditions of Roll are very pretty and cute!), but I'm absolutely in love with Marino's design where a female character looks cool for once. I think the only other character I can think of is Aile from Mega Man ZX, which I haven't played yet. If Marino appears in other games I would totally love to play them!
Overall gameplay loop is simple. Get into random encounters and go through doors or elevators to proceed, fight a boss and repeat. But I have to say that this game now has my favourite RPG combat system, beating Final Fantasy X. That's because it has similar features, such as being able to switch your party members at any time, as well as showing your turns. There are also some elements of the weapons and sub weapons having different attributes although they have stats too, so you can switch around a bit. Although the game doesn't have a nodal system like the sphere grid in FFX, it has something called a Force Metal which are kind of like stat boosters, except you can only hold a couple of them, and some party members can have even more limited slots, for some reason. The reason that this system is my favourite is that it has what I like about FFX, but also doesn't use a menu like traditional JRPGs to input your commands, and instead has 4 simple button presses: Attack, 2 smaller attacks using the sub-weapon, an ultimate attack powered by a gauge, and a menu shortcut to access items or to defend and flee. This makes the usual turn-based combat go a lot faster than having to wait for the animations to play out and repeat.
The music is also pretty catchy for the most part. Lots of electronic beats that still hold up to today. The ending song is also really neat yet very eerie too, which was very unexpected.
The story is alright. I'm not knowledgeable about Mega Man lore in general, but from my understanding there's a group of bad guys that were after mining sources of Force Metal and it's up to X and the others to track them down. Not a lot of groundbreaking narratives going on although it had some interesting twists, but it's okay enough to just follow along with it without focusing on it too much, even though it won't be something I would remember in the future.
I do have some drawbacks though. Since it's an old game and an RPG too, it suffers from random encounters or more specifically TOO many random encounters. Some segments had puzzle sections and I could take two steps and get an encounter! Understandably, this feature existed for technical reasons at the time. But if a game were to release today with random encounters included for any reason (such as the Pokémon franchise), it's crucial to keep a balance on the encounter rate because too much of it frustratingly breaks the flow of the game. I had to take multiple breaks from playing just from getting exhausted with the amount of enemies I was encountering. What's worse, is that the EXP rate is so low that it makes grinding an absolute pain to go through.
The level designs aren't too great either. Because the game mostly uses corridors to navigate, a lot of it is just going straight with some occasional turns. The second half tries to include some puzzles and a lot of backtracking, but the map design felt a bit awkward to navigate around. I mostly had an issue with 1 chapter, but the rest were okay to go through. I think it's hard to make corridor style levels interesting, save one game from what little I've played which was Persona 5 Royal (It is something I'll properly play in the future). A mix of puzzles, exploration, and not making areas too narrow would do well.
Overall, I think this game has a lot of potential that's being held down by its own weaknesses and can definitely be improved upon if it were to get a sequel, or at least a remaster to be ported to modern consoles.
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andypantsx3 · 3 years
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statistically significant | 4 | bakugou/reader
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length: 23,490 words | 7 chapters
summary: You’re the scientist who developed a neural net to model the value of assists. Now that your work is feeding into the hero rankings, pro hero Ground Zero has a bone to pick with your results.
tags: romance, enemies to lovers, sexual tension, reader-insert
warnings: aged up characters, eventual smut, m/f threats of violence, problematic behavior
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For someone so loud and obnoxious, Bakugou was proving incredibly difficult to track down.
You spent the next few days hunting all over Miruko’s agency for him, an apology sitting uncomfortably in the back of your mouth, but no matter where you went, the hero was nowhere to be found. You prowled inexhaustibly through the fluorescent halls of the underground floors, and poked around curiously amongst the messy piles of paperwork on the business floor. You’d even switched up your schedule in case he was specifically timing his entrances and exits around you, and had taken to lingering suspiciously around the training rooms like some kind of leery pervert, eyeing every blonde head of hair with a little too much interest.
The more you thought about it, though, the more you realized Bakugou wasn’t exactly the type to hide and avoid confrontation, so eventually you moved on to interrogating Mina and Kaminari on Bakugou’s whereabouts. Both of them claimed not to know anything, and no one else seemed to have anything more helpful to say either, nothing more than “I don’t know, haven’t seen him.” It was reaching the point where you were honestly considering filing a missing persons report if he didn’t turn up soon.
It wasn’t until Friday morning that you finally glimpsed a head of messy, ash-blonde hair stalking down the hall to one of the training rooms. You all but fell out of your chair and launched yourself out of the surveillance room after him, shoes slapping loudly in the hall.
You weren't exactly being sneaky, but you didn't expect Bakugou to react the way he did. As soon as you got close, he stiffened and whirled on you. You caught a flash of red eyes and white teeth bared in a snarl before the hallway tipped out of focus and your back hit the wall, Bakgou’s hand clenched in the scruff of your shirt.
“The fuck are you doing?” Bakugou demanded, crimson gaze searching you over. A scowl sat heavily on his mouth, and you noticed that the corner of it was bruised. A long scratch ran across the bridge of his nose, tapering off over one high cheekbone. The rest of him looked untouched--he was clean, and dressed in simple, dark training clothes again that hugged the planes of his chest and strong thighs.
You stared up at him, shocked to find yourself against a wall again. “You’re--you’re here.”
A blonde eyebrow went up. “I fucking work here, nerd.”
You suppressed an eye roll. “That’s not what I meant, Bakugou. I’ve been looking for you--I need to talk to you.”
“So you thought you’d charge me like a fucking rhinocerous?” he demanded. His fingers unclenched from your shirt, however, relaxing against your collarbone. You fought down a shiver as his callouses caught on your skin.
“Don’t run up behind a hero like that, idiot. Especially after a mission,” he growled.
You eyed the cut across his nose speculatively. “Is that where you were this week?”
“That’s none of your damn business, is it, you nosy little shit?” he asked, something like a self-satisfied smirk pulling at the edge of his mouth.
You let your head fall back against the wall with a thunk, sighing. You’d forgotten how annoying he was in the near week you hadn’t seen him. It was going to make apologizing so fucking frustrating.
“Can you please just not make everything so difficult for once?” you asked absently, trying to dredge up enough humility to get on with your apology.
Bakugou let out a grunt, but shifted closer, one very intimidating bicep coming up to frame your head. Your mouth suddenly went very dry.
“You’re one to fucking talk,” Bakugou said, staring at you with intent.
Mina’s comments on his romantic preferences flitted to the surface of your mind in a wild flurry. Your face heated, and you desperately pushed the memories down. As much as you wanted to snipe at him with an unexpected comeback on what he really thought of women who didn’t take his shit, you did not want him to know you’d been discussing his inclinations. Besides, that would be presumptuous. Just because he had a thing for mouthy girls in general did not mean that preference extended to under-caffeinated and irritable data scientists.
You pushed yourself away from him, pressing harder into the wall in an attempt to create space. “Look, I didn’t come here to fight with you, okay?”
Those crimson eyes watched you impassively.
“Then what the fuck did you want, nerd?” he asked, leaning slightly closer where you’d just managed to create an inch of extra space. You caught that scent again, hot and butter-sweet in your nose, like burnt caramel, and tried your hardest to ignore exactly how symmetrical his face was up close.
You suppressed an eye twitch. What was his thing about walls and intimidating people? And why was he so close to you? Had this man never heard of personal space?
“Actually, I came to apologize,” you said haltingly, looking up at him. If you hadn’t been watching him carefully, you might not have caught the minute widening of his eyes, the very slightest downturn of his blonde brows.
“What?” he rasped.
“You heard me,” you insisted. “I didn’t mean that you were--uh--weak. When I said I would help the other day. That’s the opposite of what I meant.”
Bakugou’s mouth pulled into an immediate snarl. “Fuck you. I don’t need your pity. I can handle myself fucking fine.”
You huffed. “I don’t pity you. That’s not what I meant.”
“If you fucking think--”
“I don’t!” you yelped, seeming to startle him. “Can you just listen for ten seconds? I’m trying to say something here.”
“Fucking obviously--”
“Bakugou, shut up!” you demanded. “This whole situation isn’t what you think it is, okay? I--I only made a bet with you in the first place because I thought you could jump rank, alright? When I say I’m helping you, I mean that I’m giving you insight because I firmly believe that you are capable of pulling this off. I....honestly, I wouldn’t have even made the damn bet if I didn’t actually want you to try this, because everyone knows you can do literally anything if you want it enough. Obviously you’re going to win.”
He was staring now, and it was all you could do not to shrink under the intensity of his gaze.
“So before you get your panties all in a twist over the fact that I used the word help, just remember that it doesn’t mean I think you’re incapable. I think you’re the most capable out of everyone here. And if you would stop being such a fussy baby for five frigging minutes, we could get back to retraining your habits so you could prove that you are!” you finished, huffing a little with the force of your anger. You forced your fists to uncurl from where they had balled up at your side.
Bakugou watched you carefully, unnervingly silent. You could feel his gaze almost like a touch where it brushed over you, and you fixed your eyes resolutely below his face, not wanting to look at him. You shifted uncomfortably against the cold plaster of the wall, waiting for the dam to break. Where was the screaming? When was it coming?
To your horror, a smirk pulled at the corner of Bakugou’s mouth instead.
“You think I’m the most capable, huh?” he asked. His arm shifted closer.
A flush washed through you with startling speed, heating your cheeks. “Oh my god. Shut up.”
His smirk widened into a predatory smile, baring a pointed canine. “It’s okay. You can own up to your little crush on me, nerd.”
You stared at him in shock. “How is that what you took away from this conversation? I didn’t say that. How in the world would you think that, when all you do is shove me against walls and act like a ginormous baby?”
“You’d prefer I shove you against walls and do something else?” he asked, a blonde eyebrow raising.
Your mind blanked out, fuzzy with static for a moment. You fought down a tiny, traitorous shiver. What the hell was going on in his brain? And how in the actual fuck was this the turn the conversation was taking? All you had wanted to do was get him out of his snit fit so you could get back on track to obtaining software engineers. How had he gotten so off track?
“That’s not what I--! I mean, you--!” you babbled uselessly, freezing up when he shifted his arm. He watched you with obvious relish.
“Ugh, I think I prefer you when you’re screaming at me,” you groused.
Bakugou’s smirk turned wicked, and he opened his mouth to say something you were certain you absolutely did not want to hear. Panicking, you brought a hand up and shoved it over his mouth.
“Whatever is about to come out of there, just keep it to yourself,” you commanded. “Now you’ve wasted enough time dicking around. We need to retrain your habits stat if you want to have enough time for everything to propagate in the model by the end of the month.”
A rough palm came up to yank your hand away from his face. “I’ll do whatever the fuck I want.”
You rolled your eyes. “Not if you want any chance of actually winning the bet.”
Bakugou scoffed, but to your surprise, he didn’t outright dismiss you. His eyes roved over you for a few seconds more, before he pronounced imperiously, “Tell me your big plan then, nerd. I’ll decide if it’s worth my damn time.”
You sighed. It was probably too much to hope that he’d suddenly be totally amenable to everything after your big speech. He wouldn’t be Bakugou Katsuki if he didn’t make everything such a production. At least he was still here and listening, despite the front he was putting up. And the weird conversational detour he’d attempted to take.
“I was thinking you need team training,” you said lightly. “To get in the habit of sticking close by to other heroes, and to practice evaluating situations more slowly.”
He regarded you consideringly, scarlet eyes flicking over your face. “You want me to train with a bunch of these b-list fucking idiots?”
You suppressed another eye roll. “Teammates. I want you to train with your teammates, Bakugou.”
He made a dismissive noise. “As if. I’m not going near any of those annoying little shits.”
You eyed him speculatively, a thought forming in the back of your mind. “....What about annoying little shits that will go near you?”
He scowled. “What?”
You gestured past him, to the window of a nearby training room, where two familiar figures were darting around the space, throwing up middle fingers at each other as often as attacks. “I have some people in mind.”
Bakugou glanced over his shoulder. Enough of his face was in view for you to see the thunderous expression that overtook over his features as he regarded his friends.
When he turned back to you, he was growling. “No. Absolutely fucking not.”
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“Heya Blasty!” Kaminari chirped over his shoulder, pausing when you’d opened the door to the training room. “And stats girl! Come to let a real hero show you how it’s done?”
He shifted up out of a crouch, scrubbing a hand through his hair. Sweat had dried in it, standing some of it on end like he’d been hit with his own lightning. Actually, judging from the singe marks all over his clothes, maybe he had.
“Shut the fuck up before I blow your brains right outta your skull,” Bakugou’s sharp tone issued from somewhere over your shoulder. You could hear debris crunching heavily under his boots, like he was stomping a little.
Mina’s wild pink curls peeked out from behind an overturned car. “Do I hear the dulcet tones of my sunshine boy, Bakugou Katsuki?”
A telltale round of crackling went off behind you, accompanied by a snarl. Mina just laughed, sliding out fully from her hiding place, looking completely unthreatened. “Relax, Blasty. No one’s around to question your tough guy image.”
Bakugou made a dismissive noise. “The fuck do you know.”
Mina made an amused humming noise. Her dark eyes found yours and she smiled conspiratorially. You were struck again by the mental image of Bakugou in makeup and had to suppress a wild laugh.
“Hey, quit it with the fucking face over there,” Bakugou barked, seeming to detect that mutual amusement was being shared at his expense. He surged past you to put his entire palm over Mina’s face. Mina only laughed louder, her peals of bright laughter muffled slightly in his hand. “I’ll fucking end you.”
Kaminari dismissed the two of them, golden eyes flicking over to you. He smiled boyishly. “So, stats girl. What brings you and your angry pomeranian here?”
“Hey, fuck you, pikachu,” Bakugou growled. Then, “You fucking--raccoon--did you just lick me?”
You bit down on a smile, glancing between Mina and Kaminari. It was unexpectedly cute, the way Bakugou was clearly outmatched by his chaotic friends. They seemed supremely unconcerned with the fact that he might actually follow through on his threats, if the way Mina was making kissing noises into his hand was any indication.
“I thought I’d ask if you guys would be willing to train with Bakugou. He needs...adjustments,” you said, making sure to steer clear of the word help. You’d said your apology, and it seemed like Bakugou understood now, but you didn’t want to muddy the waters any on that point.
“Aww, and you came to little old us?” Kaminari asked Bakugou. His tone did nothing to disguise his obvious glee.
“Fuck you, I didn’t come to you--”
“I did,” you pronounced, deciding to help Bakugou out a little. You weren’t going to get anywhere if he spent the whole afternoon flinging insults and insisting he didn’t need anything from Mina and Kaminari. “He has two areas he wants to retrain on. This afternoon I was thinking you could run a couple simulations where he has to stick close to you two instead of going off on his own to do whatever he wants.”
“I don’t go off and do whatever, you damn nerd, I finish the fucking fight--”
“Do you guys think you might be able to spare an hour or two?” you asked loudly. “I’m sure he’d be willing to return the favor for your retraining.”
Kaminari looked positively gleeful, and Mina’s unusual eyes sparkled curiously from over Bakugou’s broad hand. To your surprise, Bakugou didn’t disagree.
“If I get to play villain, I’m in!” Mina agreed, finally shaking Bakugou’s hand off. “I’m gonna melt your legs off,” she told him.
He scoffed. “Good luck trying without any damn arms.”
She made a kissy face at him. “Gonna be hard to come at me if you have to stick to Denki the whole time.”
“Hey,” Kaminari protested indignantly, but he was drowned out by Bakugou descending into an incredibly explicit rant full of choice invectives. This seemed to prompt both Mina and Kaminari to let loose their own shit talk--Mina's comments in particular so obscene and inventive they would make a frat boy blush. It took some prompting and several minutes before the three of them were coherent enough to discuss the training again.
When you eventually managed to reroute them, they drew up the terms of their practice--Bakugou couldn’t go further than fifty feet from Kaminari for the duration of the exercise, and he’d be docked points for every possible opportunity he had where he might have assisted Kaminari and instead went in for the kill on his own. You agreed to code something up quick to layer over the training footage, to identify when Bakugou strayed too far from Kaminari, or went for a shot himself. To make it stick, Mina also insisted that at the end of the exercise, if Bakugou had managed to lose more than ten points, he had to submit to a punishment of Mina and Kaminari's choosing. You shuddered to think of what that was.
Once the details were fully hashed out, you found yourself being immediately shepherded out of the training room by Bakugou. He ushered you along impatiently like a dog corralling a wayward sheep.
“I’m gonna let loose on these fucking clowns--don’t need your quirkless ass getting in the way,” he groused as he led you. This drew you up short at the threshold, and you gaped at him, eyes darting up to catch his.
You...hadn’t told him you were quirkless. In fact, you were sure you hadn’t discussed that with anyone here, not even Miruko. The fact wasn’t something that bothered you, but it also wasn’t the sort of thing you brought up all too often. So....how did Bakugou know?
His scarlet gaze flicked almost lazily over you, and he seemed to catch the unspoken question. Rubble crackled under his boots as he shifted his weight to one hip. “What? You think you’re the only one who’s done their research, brat?”
You felt your heartbeat stutter and then pick up, just the slightest bit. Done...his research? What exactly did that mean? And if he meant what you thought he meant, what was it he’d been trying to learn about you? And why did he need to know?
“Bakugou, what--?” you began, but he cut you off by raising one large hand and shoving you through the door. He leaned out after you, and you caught a hint of that burnt caramel scent again. Your mind fogged a little at his proximity.
“I’m gonna win the fucking bet,” he pronounced slowly, scarlet gaze cutting into you, “and then you’re in for it, nerd.”
You gawped up at him, unable to help the way your mouth hung open. Was he threatening you? And if yes, why was he looking so unusually calm about it? Where was the rage, the snarling and the spitting like a wet cat? And why was he looking at you like that?
Bakugou answered none of your questions, tossing you a wicked smirk instead. Then he turned and slammed the door closed on you, leaving you alone with a swirl of hazy, half-formed concerns.
What....the fuck had just happened?
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bouncingkadachi · 3 years
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Blessed Rain
Summary: A Hunter’s weapon of choice says a lot about them. OR: Kyle upgrades his weaponry and gets caught red-handed in the act. Luckily (?) for him, only Tsukino seems to know exactly why he's having an emotional crisis over this.
Word count: 3,260
Note(s): set post-game
Also available on AO3!
Kyle’s had his new bow for a good couple of weeks before the feel of the limbs and the weight of the draw became comfortable enough for him to consider upgrading it. If he’s going to be injured, he reasons, he’d rather it be purely by way of monster and not because he pulls a muscle wrestling with a bow that hasn’t been properly broken in. His wallet despairs as he forks over the zenny, but this’ll hopefully let him take on some of the bigger hunts like the ones that Reverto goes on. It’ll all be worth the investment up front once he has his completely finished bow and restocked his coatings and finally drops the last of his coin on a couple new talismans.
He refuses to think about the implications of his reasoning with a literal coin, rolling it around and around his fingers as he pushes through the market throngs towards the smithy’s. Perhaps he ought to have a change of scenery—the fog-shrouded summits of Terga were said to be particularly beautiful at this time of year, and the heat in Lamure was becoming just shy of unbearable.
The final product that the blacksmith puts into his hands when he finally makes it to collect is nothing short of gorgeous. Blessed Rain is sleek where his old Rex bow was bulky, far lighter and certainly not as clunky. The upgrades on the riser gives the entire weapon a pleasant solidness in his hand, yet the delicately reinforced plating on the limbs doesn’t retract at all from its flexibility. The decorative grip protector gleams. Just looking at it makes Kyle excited to shoot.
“Bring her back if you’re finding that you need anything adjusted,” the smith tells him after Kyle’s diligently inspected every inch of the bow. “Kept the poundage the same for you, but added another inch to the draw length like you asked.”
“Thanks,” Kyle says. Eventually, he’d like to work up to the point where he can up the poundage again. Even just another five pounds would be good. He can do most of the hunts in his skill range alone now, but extra firepower would make him just that much more efficient, or that much of a better support for team hunts. 
The smith laughs when Kyle sheepishly admits this. “Well, I always like to help a Hunter improve, and you know where to find me,” he says cheerily, clapping Kyle enthusiastically on the shoulder. “Come by again anytime if you need a tune up or want to test out something new.” 
And with that, he waves Kyle away so that another Hunter can step up, holding a tired-looking sword and shield and looking equally exhausted. “Aye, rookie Hunter?” Kyle hears as he wanders off to find a more relaxed corner of the market in which to admire his new bow some more. “If you’ve got the materials I can repair and upgrade that for you.” The conversation peters out and melts into the general din of the marketplace as Kyle slips into the crowd, taking care to step out of the way of a Felyne carrying an absolutely massive basket groaning with produce. He watches the precarious load totter away, trying and failing to locate Tsukino in the brief respite the parted crowd affords him. They’d split earlier that morning and he hasn’t seen her since.
He still hasn’t managed to find even a whisker of Tsukino’s whereabouts by the time he settles into a decently quiet nook next to a stall selling all manner of spices. Pity, because the dappled light spilling through the colorful drapes of the marketplace catches so beautifully on the milky-white sheen of the bow, and he’d been looking forward to showing it to her. As a Hunter, Kyle will always care more about weapon practicality than aesthetics, but as a normal human being he certainly won’t turn down the opportunity to have both an aesthetically pleasing and perfectly functional weapon. He’s still grinning a little when he goes to strap the bow to his back, and it’s in the process of looking up that his gaze catches onto wide eyes staring plainly at him from across the street. 
He freezes, arm suspended awkwardly halfway to sheathing. His beautiful bow glints damningly in the bright Lamure sunlight as his unexpected friend wades through the throngs of people towards him, gesturing for him to stay put with a wave of her hand that really can’t be mistaken for anything other than a greeting.
“Hey,” he says cautiously and lamely when she finally reaches him. Belatedly, he remembers to lower his arm. He is momentarily thankful that she doesn’t try to reach up for his face in the Mahanan greeting, although his goodwill evaporates when she leans in to inspect his bow, body thrumming with unexplainable anticipation.
“Oh, that’s pretty,” she says finally. Kyle can’t help himself from preening just a little, shifting his grip so that she can get a better look. After all, what was the point of spending all that money and materials if there was no one to excitedly show the end product off to? Besides, it’s been a while since they last saw each other. Last he heard, she had been traveling, keen to finally see the world on her own terms and at her own pace.
“It’s fresh off an upgrade,” he answers smugly. “Easier to handle than the Rex.”
“Slightly less intimidating though,” she chimes in, and Kyle bristles, not liking where this conversation is going. And true to form, she goes in for the kill: “Mizutsune? I recognize the plating.”
Kyle can feel the flush crawling up to his ears. Logically, he knows that there’s nothing for him to be embarrassed about. It’s a mark of good smithing that one can tell at a glance which monster a weapon was inspired by, and a Mizutsune was both powerful and extremely iconic. This bow in particular had good stats and the ability to fire rapidly, which admittedly took him some time to get used to after focusing mostly on piercing shots. The paralysis coating that works so well on this bow has also already saved his skin on more than one occasion. There is little more a career Hunter can ask for out of his weapon. It’s not like he’d been heading out to Pomore Garden at any given opportunity and holding onto an increasing multitude of Mizutsune materials just because he wanted some physical reminder of what was probably the most pivotal moment of his life, something that never failed to put a very complicated and jumbled mess of emotions deep within his chest whenever he thought back to it.
He’s starting to feel very, very hot under his collar. The sun is terrible. He resolves that his next big hunt really needs to be somewhere outside of Lamure.
His friend, however, just looks more and more baffled as he launches into an unprompted defense of his newest purchase. Every time she opens her mouth, Kyle talks a little faster. Eventually, she doesn’t even bother trying to interject, which is arguably worse, because instead she just looks progressively more and more thoughtful. Kyle wished desperately for Tsukino to peel away from whatever hidey hole she was tucked in. Then, his train of thought screeches into a rude and abrupt halt.
“What,” he croaks. “What are you doing.”
One of her brows quirks up. “I sure hope your eyes are still working because that’d be a detriment to your job,” she says plainly. “What does it look like I’m doing? I promise it’s not a trick question.”
What she’s doing is holding Kyle’s hand—the one not clutching his new bow—the one that had apparently been waving about with increasing agitation as he jabbered on and on. What Kyle doesn’t understand is why. It’s not like he just did some impressive shot to give them the edge in a battle or anything else that was cool and hand-holding worthy. He’d just been yammering about bow mechanics, and maybe embarrassingly dipping into his talisman hopes and dreams. He stares a little helplessly at his trapped hand. Her kinship stone winks up at him.
“Look,” she says patiently, when it becomes very clear that Kyle is going to need a moment before he can get his brain back online. “There’s nothing wrong with a bow made from Mizutsune parts and I am the last person who will ever turn down pretty things. What I was going to say was that this is an interesting departure from your whole—” She pauses, as though looking for a specific word. “Well, your whole image as a very grown-up and serious and intimidating Hunter or whatever it was you were trying to convey with that scowl you used to like so much. And you weren’t letting me get a single word in.”
“You’re getting plenty of words in now,” Kyle scowls, just to be contrary. “And I’ve grown since then.”
“Someone’s in a mood today.” She smiles, crinkle-eyed, up at him. Kyle very seriously debates wrenching his hand out of her hold like he did the last time this happened and then pointedly doesn’t act on the impulse.
“Why’re you in Lulucion?” he asks instead with a truly remarkable level of self-restraint. “Thought you’d never want to come back again after what happened.”
She shrugs, the greatsword on her back heaving with the movement. “Guess I’ve grown too,” she says loftily, though she sobers quickly. “I was actually visiting my grandfather. He used to go back to Mahana around this time of year… he can’t do it anymore of course but I’ve got Ratha now, so I figured I could do it instead. And then I figured I’d stop by Rutoh before going home, to see Ena and Alwin and wheedle a few more stories out of them.”
She lets go of Kyle’s hand. He tries not to miss it. “Even Ratha can’t make the trip in one go, and Lulucion was closest, so we’re stopping to rest. I dropped by the Scrivener’s Lodge earlier because I was hoping Reverto could give me a few weapon pointers as I’ve saved up just about enough for an upgrade, but they told me that he was out on an urgent mission and wouldn’t be back for a while.”
“Oh,” Kyle says, a little stung that she hadn’t come specifically to see him first, out of all the Hunters in the city. He’s slightly mollified when she grins at him, though.
“And then I met Tsukino by the cannons. She said I could find you here, so here I am.”
“I don’t know anything about greatswords,” Kyle blurts out, and immediately wants to kick himself. She blinks at him, and then bursts into laughter.
“I was just going to ask the smith,” she wheezes when she’s got herself somewhat back under control. “Can’t I see a friend just to say hi to him anymore?” Kyle stares very intently down at some of the finer detailing on his bow.
“Where is my Palico anyway?” he finally settles on, falling into a tried and true grumble. “I haven’t seen her all day.”
She waves her hand vaguely in the air. “Navirou said something about getting donuts. I wasn’t really listening.”
But there was a donut stand right here in the marketplace, Kyle wanted to cry out. He should have seen Tsukino by now if they’d really been going to buy snacks! And how was it possible that he had missed Navirou in his entirety, between the Felyne’s penchant for wearing ridiculous little outfits and his inability to shut up?
“Why? You have a hunt you need to run off to?” 
“Yes,” Kyle says hotly. It’s a lie. He’d accepted a subquest that wouldn’t depart until later that evening for the sole purpose of testing out his new weapon in a relatively stress-free environment. Before that, he’d just planned on hitting up the shooting range in the training arena to break in the new string. His schedule was very, very free. Tsukino was perfectly aware of that.
His eyes widened. Tsukino had been with him on every excursion into the Gardens. She went where he did (usually), and it’s not like Kyle would ever begrudge her a visit home. But she’d been with him every step of every single Mizutsune job he’d ever taken—had watched him craft traps when he needed to capture and had kept watch for opportunists hoping to sneak up as he’d carved. She’d been the one who’d recommended the spinner for all the excess purplefur he was ending up with. At first, he’d simply thought that she’d wanted the thread to mend some of her own items, or to send back home to her brethren, but instead she’d tucked each skein of vibrant, silk-soft thread into the bottom of his pouch with gentle paws, cryptically talking about how strong a material it was, and how nice it looked when woven. Kyle has never touched a loom in his life, but now he’s looking at someone who he definitely knows has.
His stomach drops. Hadn’t Tsukino looked particularly smug ever since he’d lingered on the blueprints for Blessed Rain after getting a look at its stats and required materials?
“She got me,” he groans. His friend just looks at him bemusedly, though perhaps with a touch of wariness at his ferocious frown. Hastily, he tacks on: “It’s nothing. I, uh—I just remembered that I needed to tell Tsukino something. Important. Later, when I find her again.”
“Alright,” she says, though she doesn’t quite look like she believes him. “A quest’s a quest, though, so I won’t keep you here. The bow really is pretty though. I know I just said it doesn’t match your image and all but I really don’t think you can go wrong with something you like. You’ve got the skills for it, anyway.”
“Thanks,” he croaks, feeling a little overwhelmed. He manages two whole steps out of the nook before he pauses, worrying at his lower lip. “Actually,” he says sharply, spinning around on his heel and nearly causing his friend to startle right into a spice display. “How long are you staying for?”
“However long it’ll take to upgrade my sword, I guess,” she says after she collects herself, the words lilting into a question. “Three days or so, I guess?” She skirts nervously away from the glaring vendor, careful not to overbalance on her greatsword.
“Cool,” Kyle says with a nod, steeling himself. “Great, even. Look, how about this. Your last visit to Lulucion was terrible—” an understatement, “—so when I get back from my hunt I’ll show you some of the better sights Lulucion has to offer. There’s a hole in the wall that I think you’ll like. Dad used to take me after hunts—they grill really nice queen shrimp. And the parapets—you can climb them, and they’ve got all these little carvings in the stone that you can search for like a scavenger hunt.” He’s keenly aware that he’s rambling again, but she looks interested, so he barrels on. “I’ll come pick you up tomorrow just as soon as I can get a nap in. We can stay in the city or take Ratha out to the Barrens, down by the water. Just make a day of it.” He’s pretty certain that he looks at her with something akin to hope as she considers. It feels like a lifetime before she finally comes to a decision. 
“I want to take Ratha out in the evening,” she says finally. “I don’t want him to be cooped up too long here ever again.”
“Yeah,” Kyle breathes out, the word rushing out of him in a flood of relief. “Yeah, I can work around that.” She beams at him.
“I’ll look forward to it,” she says, sincere and looking more than a little surprised despite herself at the prospect of looking forward to doing anything in Lulucion. “I’m staying at the inn closest to the stables. Pretty sure I’m the only Rider there currently so they’ll know who I am.” Kyle nods, and lets himself get his hand squeezed again, though not without her hands first hovering in an instinctual bid for his cheeks before she remembers herself.
“Good luck on your hunt. If I see Tsukino I’ll let her know you’re looking for her.”
“She’ll show up in due time,” he mutters darkly. “I’ll let you know if Reverto gets back early or if he’s just been loafing around this entire time. For your next upgrade or whatever.” She laughs, bright, and then slips off into the crowd to wrestle her way into the smithy’s queue. Kyle is left staring in her wake before his gaze is drawn back down to his bow.
“This is all your fault,” he tells it. Predictably, it doesn’t answer. Also predictably, Tsukino takes that exact moment to drop down from seemingly nowhere. 
“I didn’t know we had another job lined up,” the Felyne says delicately, carefully brushing crumbs off of her coat. Kyle groans, sheathing his weapon.
“Don’t tease me,” he huffs. “I’m going to the shooting range. Are you coming?”
“Hmm,” says Tsukino. “I suppose I can spare the time.”
“Of course you can spare the time!” Kyle hisses, indignant. “You just spent the day eating donuts and eavesdropping!” He pointedly doesn’t look towards the smithy, where his friend was patiently browsing the display while another Hunter was getting their hammer looked at.
“One must always be prepared with the latest intel,” Tsukino says mildly. “I’m glad the upgrade went well.” 
“It’s got good stats,” Kyle protests weakly in what is quickly becoming a tired argument. “The rapid shots have been going very well. And I had a surplus of Mizutsune parts.”
 “Yes,” his hunting partner agrees readily enough. “Have you thought of what you’re going to do with the thread?”
“This conversation is finished,” Kyle says abruptly, making a very determined push towards the market’s exit. “Either come or don’t, so long as we meet at the gate for tonight’s hunt.”
Tsukino looks at him with exasperated fondness, which is frankly a little insulting, but readily falls into step next to him. Kyle wonders how many rounds he’s going to have to shoot in order to clear his head again and rid it of thoughts of Hazepetal Garden or Mizutsune or high-grade thread that he’ll never use himself. He’ll examine them again someday—because he’s not a coward—but that day is most certainly not today.
He does his rounds in the training arena and marvels at the way the string slides off his fingers with a satisfying twang, even though it’ll still be a good few days before it’s fully broken in to his liking. Tsukino’s saved him a donut, the cakey sweet sticky with honey and practically melting in his mouth. He’s got some free time even after stocking up for the evening hunt, so he takes a few minutes to browse the quest board, taking careful note of the jobs that were situated near the Harzgai Rocky Hill, or the ones from further afield in Alcala that’ll take him closer to Rutoh. And when he leaves the city, he pointedly doesn’t look up at the familiar shape circling in the dusky sky, even as he knows that they’ll surely see the last rays of the setting sun winking off of the plates of his bow like a beacon.
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remnantoforario · 3 years
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Remnant’s Top Ten Anime of 2020
2020 Was certainly a ride wasn’t it? To those that managed to make to make it through in one piece, or any piece, good job. Hopefully 2021 is better to us all. 
Despite the world mostly being on fire, I’d hazard to say that a lot of good shows came out in 2020 (despite a number of them being delayed to either later in the year or this year altogether). I meant to release this list much earlier, but I kept changing it around. 
Anyway, here are the ones I thought were the best. 
Honorable Mentions:
Dorohedoro
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Synopsis: The plot centers on a man named Caiman and his search for his real identity after a transformation by a sorcerer left him with a reptile's head and no memory of his former life. 
Along with his friend Nikaido, he violently assaults sorcerers in the Hole, with the aim of taking their heads into his mouth, where a strange face will appear and confirm whether the sorcerer he has bitten onto was the one responsible for his transformation or not.
As the residents of the Hole, the En family and the Cross-Eyes gang, along with many others, collide with one another, the mystery of Caiman's identity begins to unravel, reigniting ancient grudges and threatening to forever change both the Hole and the sorcerers' world.
Thoughts: This is the only Netflix anime I watched this year (I missed out on Great Pretender before the year ended), and I can honestly say I had fun with this one. It’s animation was good, the story was engaging enough, and the characters were all unique (Noi best girl). The one problem I would say with the show is that it can come off as unfocused at times, meandering from one plaot point to another with no real connective tissue. 
Still a fun series though. 
ID: Invaded
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Synopsis: The anime follows the investigations of Narihisago, a renowned detective now in prison, who is tasked with diving into the id wells of various serial killers. 
Two years prior to the current events, Narihisago's daughter Muku was brutally murdered by a serial killer, leading Narihisago's wife to commit suicide. These deaths prompted him to hunt down and murder the killer, earning him his prison sentence. He is still depressed and haunted by his wife and daughter's deaths, but also uses this as motivation to take his work seriously and help stop serial killers. 
Thoughts: One of a handful of original series that came out this year. This show gave me heavy Inception/Minority Report vibes from both its premise and presentation. It wobbles under the weight of its own concepts towards the end, but it still a fun ride nonetheless. 
Gleipnir 
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Synopsis: The story centers on Shuichi Kagaya, a high school student with an unusual secret. He has the ability to transform into a monster resembling a giant dog mascot costume with a zipper down his back and a large cartoonish smile. After rescuing a strange girl, Claire Aoki, from a warehouse fire, they join each other to search for Claire's older sister, who is assumed to be responsible for the death of their parents.
Thoughts: When the initial rollout for this show began I admit I wasn’t really a fan. I thought it was just going to be a hyper violent, fanservice show. Now in some ways it is that, but if you really look Gleipnir tells a very interesting tale of identity and what it truly means to have a wish granted. The music was pretty good as well, and that’s really something from me as a person who doesn’t pay attention to soundtracks. 
Hope this show gets a season 2, but if not I’ll more than likely start the manga. 
Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina
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Synopsis:  Fascinated by the stories of Niké, a witch who traveled around the world, Elaina aspires to take the same course. Her determination of studying books and magic leads to her becoming the youngest apprentice witch to pass the sorcery exam. 
However, when Elaina attempts to receive training in order to become a full-fledged witch, she is rejected due to her extraordinary talents until she finds Fran, the "Stardust Witch," whom accepts her. After earning her title, the "Ashen Witch," Elaina begins her exploration around the world, visiting and facing all kinds of people and places.
Thoughts: As a fan of the Light Novels, I was pretty excited when it was announced it was getting an anime. For the most part it didn’t disappoint. Though it skipped most of the stories in the novels, the show still told a few good stories that made for some amazingly animated tv. 
Talentless Nana
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Synposis: In the near future, mysterious monsters known as the "Enemies of Humanity" begin to appear, and with it so do children with supernatural powers called the "Talented". To prepare them for the upcoming battle against these Enemies, all the Talented are sent to a school located on a deserted island, where they have all their daily needs provided for until they graduate and communication with the outside world is forbidden. 
One day, a new student named Nana Hiiragi arrives at the school. Her friendly and cheerful personality lets her quickly make friends with the class. However, with Nana comes a whole litany of mysterious occurrences on the island. 
Thoughts: I can’t say too much about Nana without spoiling it’s first episode twist, but I will say that its a pretty interesting show with a fairly compelling game of cat and mouse being played. 
Now on the the actual list:
10. The Misfit of Demon King Academy 
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Synopsis: After 2,000 years of countless wars and strife, the demon king Anos Voldigoad made a deal with the human hero, Kanon, to sacrifice his own life to ensure peace could flourish. Reincarnating 2,000 years later, Anos finds that royal demons now harshly rule over lower class hybrid demons in a society that values Anos's pureblood descendants over the demons who interbred with other species, such as humans and spirits. 
Finding that magic as a whole has begun to decline and his descendants weaker as a result of the peace he created, Anos, now technically a hybrid himself, decides to reclaim his former title of Demon King, but first, he must graduate from the Demon King Academy where he is labeled a total misfit.
Thoughts: Originally I was going to put Nana in this spot, but its lack of a real ending pushed it out of the list. If only slightly. Misft at Demon Academy is just a fun ride from start to finish. There’s always something about shows with ridiculous OP protagonists (Overlord, One Punch Man, etc.) that gets the blood pumping. 
It’s like junk food. Great for the right moment, but not needed all the time. 
9. Ikebukuro West Gate Park
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Synopsis:  A charismatic troubleshooter tries to keep the peace between warring factions while protecting his loved ones in Ikebukuro West Gate Park.
Thoughts: I honestly had no idea what to make of this show when I first saw the synopsis, but I gave it a try on a whim. I’m glad I did because this was easily the dark horse of the Fall season. I really liked the mostly self contained story format the series had, and there were a few very good episodes here. Check it out. 
8.  My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!
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Synopsis: Catarina Claes, the young daughter of a noble family, one day bumps her head and regains memories of her past life as an otaku. It is then that she realizes she has been reborn into the world of the otome game Fortune Lover, reincarnated as the game's villainess who, regardless of what route the player took in the original game, is doomed to be either killed or exiled. 
In order to avoid these routes that lead to doom, Catarina begins taking countermeasures to try and avoid things going the same way as the game. This, however, ends up having unexpected consequences on her relations with the other characters of the game's world.
Thoughts: Normally I’m not a fan of Reverse/Otome harem series, but somehow Bakarina managed to pull me in, to a good result. This show was easily one of the best comedies I watched this year with a good cast and a likable protagonist. 
7.  Deca-Dence 
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Synopsis: In the fortress city of Deca-dence, the lowly Tanker girl, Natsume, dreams of becoming a Gear warrior following her father's death during a Gadoll attack. She is assigned to a maintenance team led by Kaburagi whom she discovers is more than he appears. Kaburagi has a secret role in eliminating "bugs", humans who threaten Solid Quake's operations. 
When Kaburagi discovers that Natsume is listed as dead in the company database, he decides to keep her under observation and offers to train her to fight.
Thoughts: Giant monsters and giant robots. What more do you need? Watch it. 
6. A Certain Scientific Railgun T
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Synposis: The Daihasei Festival has begun, and that of course means that Tokiwadai Middle School—a prestigious all-girls' middle school—is competing too. Despite the participation of the "Ace of Tokiwadai," Mikoto Misaka, the other students who are participating are still putting their utmost effort into winning, no matter how impossible the feat may seem against her might. However, not all is fun and games. Due to the the festival, Academy City opens to the outside world, and various factions have begun plotting ways to infiltrate the city. Misaka appears to be on their radar, and as the festival proceeds, people lurking from the shadows begin to emerge...
Thoughts: Not really much to say here. It’s the third season of Railgun, but good thing here is that each season of Railgun is better than the last. Truly the best of the To Aru universe. 
5. BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense.
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Synposis: Urged on by her friend, Kaede Honjō begins playing the VRMMORPG NewWorld Online under the name Maple. Not wanting to get hurt, Maple opts to be a shield user with maxed out defense stats, and continues putting every status point she earns in the game into increasing only her defense level. 
As a result, she is left with slow foot speed and no magic, but her high defense allows her to endure most hits without taking any damage. This, along with her basic-level creative thinking, allows for her to make unexpected accomplishments in the game, its quests and events. By doing this, she ends up earning all kinds of equally unexpected skills and becomes one of the strongest players in the game. Thoughts: Bofuri is another OP power fantasy like Demon King Academy, but with the twist of being fused with CGDCT. The cast is extremely likable (especially Maple) and when Silver Link wants to they can make the battles REALLY dynamic. A nice comfortable watch, which was sorely needed in 2020. 
4. Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle
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Synposis: The story follows Princess Syalis, a young princess who was kidnapped by the demon king, and her quest to sleep well while imprisoned.
Thoughts: A simple premise for a not so simple story. Sleepy Princess for me was easily the best comedy of the year, with plenty of heart and action thrown in as well. I was wary of the series at first, thinking that the premise wouldnt be entertaining for more than a few episodes, but boy was I wrong. Each episode was funnier than the last and Doga Kobo pulled out all the stops to make it look as gorgeous as possible.  
3. Jujutsu Kaisen
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Synopsis: Idly indulging in baseless paranormal activities with the Occult Club, high schooler Yuuji Itadori spends his days at either the clubroom or the hospital, where he visits his bedridden grandfather. However, this leisurely lifestyle soon takes a turn for the strange when he unknowingly encounters a cursed item. Triggering a chain of supernatural occurrences, Yuuji finds himself suddenly thrust into the world of Curses—dreadful beings formed from human malice and negativity—after swallowing the said item, revealed to be a finger belonging to the demon Sukuna Ryoumen, the "King of Curses." Yuuji experiences first-hand the threat these Curses pose to society as he discovers his own newfound powers. Introduced to the Tokyo Metropolitan Jujutsu Technical High School, he begins to walk down a path from which he cannot return—the path of a Jujutsu sorcerer.
Thoughts: Originally I wasn’t going to put this on the list, because the season doesnt conclude this year, but I decided to make an exception since the show started so strong. Many people were hyping this up as the next big shonen, and they were right. Mappa really went balls to the wall with this show and I’m pretty hype for what happens this cour. 
2. Akudama Drive
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Synopsis: The bustling metropolis of Kansai, where cybernetic screens litter the neon landscape, may seem like a technological utopia at first glance. But in the dark alleys around the brightly-lit buildings, an unforgiving criminal underbelly still exists in the form of fugitives known as "Akudama." No stranger to these individuals, Kansai police begin the countdown to the public execution of an infamous Akudama "Cutthroat," guilty of killing 999 people. However, a mysterious message is sent to several elite Akudama, enlisting them to free Cutthroat for a substantial amount of money. An invisible hand seeks to gather these dangerous personas in one place, ensuring that the execution is well underway to becoming a full-blown bloodbath.  
Thoughts: Want to know what it would be like if Quentin Tarantino made an anime? Well here you go. An adrenaline filled rollercoaster ride from start to finish with a crazy cast of characters and even crazier visuals. There’s even a bit of social commentary in there if you squint. 
1. Oregairu Climax
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Synopsis: Resolved to become a more independent person, Yukino Yukinoshita decides to smoothen things out with her parents, and the first step toward achieving that goal is to prove herself. As graduation draws closer for the third-year students, Iroha Isshiki—the president of the student council—requests a graduation prom in collaboration with the Volunteer Service Club. Yukino accepts this request of her own volition, hoping to use it as a chance to demonstrate her self-reliance, but what lies ahead of her may prove to be a hard hurdle to cross.
At the same time, a chance for the Volunteer Service Club members to better understand each other presents itself. And thus, Hachiman Hikigaya's hectic and bittersweet high school life begins to draw to a close.
Thoughts: The gif says it all really. I could just leave that there and end this list on a somewhat high note, but I’ll explain it. 
Now objectively, there were better shows than this one (off the top of my head JJK comes to mind) but when you combine all three seasons there is no contest in my mind that Oregairu had one of the most perfect endings to a series I have ever seen. 
It was an ending 7 years in the making. The first season in 2013 was good, the second season two years later was even better, but Climax was Oregairu at is absolute best and that goes beyond the story and characters. A lot of praise also has to go to Studio feel., who took over animation duties from Brain’s Base in season 2. While BB’s animation was much more accurate to the LN, feel’s more realistic designs fit the more mature direction the story was starting to go, giving the anime some of its best moments. 
Watching Hachiman, Yukino, and Yui grow and change from naive teenagers to somewhat understood young adults was amazing and sometimes heartbreaking to watch. Hachiman’s search to find something “genuine”, Yukino’s desire to be independent, and Yui struggling with her feelings of love and friendship all clash and compliment in very interesting ways that makes these three characters even more relatable than they were before. 
Lots of long running series don’t stick to landing, but in my eyes Oregairu stuck it perfectly. That’s why its my favorite anime of 2020.
Here’s to 2021. 
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Note
Speaking of DnD, how would a campaign with the main four, Nena, Elix, the fandom's little meow meow (from now on, I refuse to call Ansel anything else) and August go?
first of all i am absolutely losing it at you calling Ansel "the fandom's little meow meow". what have i done
second of all i'm not including August in this. he sucks. we don't talk about August
third of all i'm glad you included Nena and Elix in this, i wanted to include them
a little refresher on everyone's classes and stats:
Petra: ranger with high INT and low CHA
Finn: rogue/druid with high CHA and DEX
Val: bard with high CHA and low CON and STR (they are Tiny)
Azami: warlock with high WIS and low INT
Nena: monk with high STR
Ansel: paladin with low CHA (let’s pretend he’s been domesticated by the crew enough that they’re letting him play with them, but he’s still, like, kind of an ass)
Elix: the tired DM (if i had to give him a class he’d be a wizard with high INT but i needed a DM and he seemed to fit best)
and here we go. this got long. sorry.
they’re playing a standard fantasy campaign with some quest to find a powerful relic and defeat an evil force. Elix deliberately made it basic to begun with bc he knew the party would derail anything he planned too much in detail.
(he is right, of course. Azami in particular is good at taking the story in unexpected places by making impulsive decisions. she does that to me too when i try to write her.)
Petra keeps getting caught up in every little detail, thinking everything is a clue of some sort, and does investigation checks on literally everything. (eventually Elix catches on to this and starts pointing out insignificant just details to fuck with her. and because Val like to fuck with their sister they play along with this as well.)
Finn and Val constantly use their joint skyrocketing charisma to talk their way out of anything. (occasionally Finn will try to flirt his way out of trouble on his own, and that has varying levels of success.)
Ansel and Azami get at each other’s throats constantly, both in and out of character, until their characters end up trapped in some cave together and are forced to talk things out and things get a little too Real. after that they manage to keep their animosity canned, at least, while they’re at the table.
speaking of siblings, Ansel and Azami’s characters aren’t related in the game, but Petra and Val decided to have their characters remain siblings because they thought it would be fun.
Val is the one who seems to take this the least seriously. they give their character the most ridiculous name and background. they’re the team jester. their horse’s name is Plinko.
Nena seems to have missed the memo that this is supposed to be light and fun and gets a little distressed whenever the party takes detours and has delays in their quest to stop the Evil Force, and is always trying to get them back on track. even Petra, who is by far the most uptight of the gang in real life, has to remind her to relax.
Azami is the one most likely to initiate combat. closely followed by Finn. the amount of unnecessary tavern brawls the party has gotten into because of these two alone is staggering.
Finn keeps stealing random objects with the excuse of “this could be useful later”. more often than not it just gets the party more enemies.
bonus:
there’s a thing i do sometimes while writing if i need to spice up a scene (particularly an action scene) where i will pretend it’s a dnd game and roll dice for my characters to determine what and how they do, and for some unfathomable reason, i keep rolling nat 20s for Azami. it has happened MULTIPLE times, it’s a little ridiculous. so i think this should happen in this hypothetical dnd game too, where everything seems dire, and out of nowhere Azami will roll a nat 20 and everyone will lose their mind.
thank you for the ask and if you’ve actually read all of this i am gently placing a flower in your hair as a symbol of my gratitude.
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Unexpected Places (Pt. 02 of 11)
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Pairing: Ivar the Boneless X Reader/Bjorn X Reader
Word count: 3 K
Summary: As a princess, you've lived in a golden cage all your life, always a piece on someone else's game. But everything changed when the Norsemen came crushing down on Wessex, like waves in a violent storm. Their king spared your life and decided to take you with him to his kingdom, in what felt more like a rescue than a kidnapping. There, you were not only confronted with a completely different culture and lifestyle, but also with two of his sons. The oldest one has his eyes set on you, but it's the youngest one, Ivar, who gets who claimed your attention since the first sight. And he seems to have an unnamed interest in you. Of course you hoped whatever that was would pass, but when unexpected feelings start to flow a different way, things begin to change.
<- Previous part 01
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{Vikings Masterlist}
×
A Christian Among Vikings
It takes two days to share your entire life with the Queen of Kattegat, but she did seem interested after you started. Mostly on the parts where you give voice to everything you couldn't stand. The lies and hypocrisy. That, Aslaug loves, and you have no trouble telling her that. It feels good to say all these things without the fear of being caught.
So, since today you'll finally go to the feast they're still having for the third night on a roll to celebrate this year's raid, you relax in the tub, the warm water slowly getting colder, a sign that you'll have to leave soon.
You're stretching your legs, watching the water drops rolling from your ankle to your knee, before falling back into the water. “Aslaug, where's the–” The voice makes you turn your head at the door, pulling your legs down to the safety of the water. Ragnar stands there, wide eyes and mouth half-open. “I thought this was my wife.”
“Well, it isn't so go away.” Thanks to the distance, you know he can't see anything, but even so, it makes you uncomfortable.
“I live here, do you know that?” He snaps back and you roll your eyes.
“I don't care. I'm not your wife so get out.”
“This is my–”
“Get out!” You raise your voice, throwing water at him. “Or I'll scream for help.” You're not scared of Ragnar, and you don't think he'll try anything. But you know him enough to know he's a teaser, and he loves putting people in uncomfortable positions.
He raises an eyebrow, shrugging his shoulders. “Then do it.”
Squinting your eyes, you move closer to the edge, making sure he won't be able to see anything. “Help!” You shout, trying not to laugh. The situation is quite funny, and, if he wanted to try anything, he'd already moved. So you decide to play along. “Somebody help me!” When you hear footsteps, you smirk victoriously. But, when another man comes in, the smile fades, and out of instinct, you cross your arms over your chest.
“What's going on here?” The guy asks, confused as hell, furrowing his eyebrows at you and then at Ragnar.
“Princess, this is Hvitserk, my son, who so bravely came to your rescue.” Ragnar starts, pacing around to the other edge of the room. “Hvitserk, this is (Y/N). Aslaug has been keeping her in here I have no idea why.” He sounds a little pissed, but you don't mind him in the back, your eyes focused on his son.
“Hi.”
“Would the two of you just leave?” Now you're annoyed, running a hand through your soaked hair. Relieve washes over you when Aslaug comes through the door, her eyes quickly finding her husband.
“What's going on here?” She mutters, and through the corner of your eye, you see Ragnar already moving.
“Just came to take this.” He answers, showing her something you can't see, right before leaving, grabbing his son's arm and pulling him along.
“Your husband is a complete idiot.” You say, relaxing once again.
“I noticed.” She gestures at the dress she brought you, laying on a chair. “Get dressed. I'll do your hair like a Viking woman and you'll join the feast tonight.”
Doing as she says, you put on the dress, which is different from everything you ever wore. The fabric is strong, yet beautiful, in a wonderful shade of blue with golden details that look like flowers. Aslaug braids your hair, way too patiently, and when she's done, you do look like a Viking. She even teaches you how to paint your eyes, and you wonder why she changed so much in these two days. As you wait for her to get ready, with the aid of her slaves, you decide to ask.
“Why are you being so nice to me now?” Playing with the tip of one of the many braids, you rest your back against the chair you're seated on. “When I got here I thought I'd end up living with that Lagertha.”
“Because it's more than rare to find a Christian I don't find stupid.” Dismissing the girls, she stands up. You're not entirely sure that was a compliment, but you decide to take it. “And I have the feeling, mostly after everything you told me, that this was most of a rescue than a kidnapping.”
She has a point. “It certainly does.”
“Now, come. Today I want to introduce you to the town.”
“Introduce me?” Following her, you wonder what that's about.
Aslaug doesn't answer, and it doesn't take much until you start hearing the feast. How long do these things last? Is the third day and it doesn't seem like anyone is tired. The moment the Queen enters, some heads turns, and, as she stands right before her chair, a silence starts to fall. You stat in the back, waiting to see what's going on when she gestures for you to come. Taking a deep breath, you move to stand next to her.
Many eyes lie on you. Probably all of them. You can identify hate, curiosity, disgust, indifference... And other things you can't quite place. At least you look like one of them... It must be of some help.
“People of Kattegat, this is Princess (Y/N), daughter of King Ecbert of Wessex,” Aslaug speaks, loud and clear. “She was brought here by my husband, and now will live among us.” That gets some people talking. They're not particularly excited about a Christian among them... You can't blame them. Your people kill them, and they kill your people back. They're like natural enemies. “I'm aware of the fact that you have no affection for her kind, and neither do I. So that's why she will tell you what she told me.”
A breath gets caught on your throat, and for a moment you feel like you're back home, forced to admit your sins, even though you haven't committed any. You've been in situations like this, but now, it's different. You can speak. You can let out the very thoughts that once had you imprisoned, confined to your chambers for days no end. Maybe they'll understand, unlike people in Wessex. Aslaug did. “Tell what?” You ask because you did speak great too many things with her. You have no idea where to begin.
“Tell them about your relationship with your faith.” She seems so secure, unbothered by how some men and women look so angry at this whole thing.
Taking a deep breath, you look ahead, eyes scanning through the room for any kind face... But it takes a long time until you find that Ragnar son who went to your rescue, Hvitserk. He doesn't look like he hates you, so you focus on him. “I have no love for the Catholic faith.” You start, stepping forward. “Since I was little, they've been telling me you worship false gods, made of stone, wood, iron, and silver. But they do the same.” Hvitserk furrows his eyebrows as if asking something. “My father himself spent hours repeating prayers for a cross made of gold. They accuse you of doing the same things they do.” If your older brother heard this, you'd be whipped, probably. “They're all hypocrites, punishing and condemning people for the same sins they commit, over and over again, and that I could never accept.” Chuckling, you move your eyes from Hvitserk, noticing how some angry faces are now... Inquisitive. “I was told you're all murderers, but so are they. So what if you come home covered by the blood of your enemies? Isn't that what a battle is? If it was me on the battlefield, I'd rather kill a hundred men than die by their hands.” The hall erupts on yells and shouts, hands being raised. It takes you by surprise, and for a moment, you're scared they heard enough, and decided to end your life right here and now. But the yells are from... Praising, approval. “And, as Ragnar Lothbrok as my witness, I'd rather face death than go back into the life I had there. If I can even call that a life.”
“That's true.” Bjorn raises his voice, coming from behind some men. “The moment she learned her father was dead, he stood before my father, ready to face her fate. I've never seen a Christian girl do that.”
“Don't forget about how she stood in the pouring rain with that idiot over there,” Ragnar says, pointing out his hand at Floki, who's standing on a chair or something, at the very back, watching the commotion.
Floki giggles, tilting his head at Ragnar. “Even though she can't swim. And don't get me wrong, I'd still rather she fell off to the mighty waves than have her here with us.”
“Don't say that Floki,” Aslaug warns, moving to sit on her chair. “I plan to make a Viking out of (Y/N) since she's more than eager to leave behind everything she once knew.”
“No doubt.” You mutter, wondering if this is it, if you can go sit down somewhere.
“What about that man, Edward?” Bjorn asks, coming to stand before you. He's so damn tall. You don't think you ever met a man this tall before. “You said something about a marriage.”
“Oh, that.” Rolling your eyes, you shrug your shoulders. “My father would have me dragged down the aisle in chains if it was necessary since the political implications of the union were... Delicate. But you guys decided to show up and ruin his plans. Thankfully.”
“Was he that bad?”
“The most disgusting man I've ever met in my life, so, as the Queen said herself a few moments earlier...” Turning at the people once again, you sigh. You don't expect to be accepted by everyone here, you just hope they won't hate you. Not so much, at least. “This was more like a rescue than a kidnapping.”
“Well, now that you know our new resident, I must make something very clear,” Aslaug speaks up, her voice rising above everyone else's. “(Y/N) is a free woman.” She takes a cup from the small table set next to her chair, spinning it in her hand, not bothering to look up from it. “Whoever touches her loses the balls, the hands, and the tongue... As a start.”
You giggle, thinking she's joking, but by the way, the silence persists for quite a long time, you understand that was no joke. And that's very good. That will surely keep them away from you.
“Well, let's celebrate!” Ragnar shouts, and everyone sets in motion again.
You're not sure where to go, so you find a table that's half-empty to sit down, taking a cup and filling it. Being isolated for two days with Aslaug didn't really help you being sociable, and it does feel like you're from two different worlds now. Because that's the truth, even though you're dressed like them. There's an invisible barrier keeping everyone distant, and not only for what Aslaug just said.
“Hey there.” Someone says as they settle down by your side. Hvitserk glances at you, kindly smiling. “Sorry about earlier. Heard a girl screaming, thought something bad was happening.”
“Well, something bad was happening. Your father was annoying me to death.” Taking a few sips from your drink, your eyes find that man again, Ivar. He's seated on Ragnar's chair, chatting with his mother. As if being called, he stares straight at you, suddenly angry.
“I see you already met my little brother,” Hvitserk mutters, and only then do you notice he had followed your gaze.
Clearing your throat, you look away. “Not really. But by the looks of it, he hates me.”
“I wouldn't say he hates you. Ivar is just... Not really fond of the idea of–”
“Of a Christian girl among us.” The voice comes from the head of the table, and when you raise your eyes, you see the man himself. But this time, you don't let his eyes pull you. Somehow, you manage to distract yourself. “You know you're only here because my mother wants to turn you into a Viking.”
“I'm not interested in being anything else than myself.” Drinking what is left on your cup, you sigh. “Haven't had the chance since I was born.”
“Do you really expect anyone here to believe you didn't like being a princess?” His tone is mocking you, a fake pity expression on his face.
“Being a princess in England might be fun if you just do as everyone says, no questions asked.” For some reason, you're pissed. Ivar pushed some button that got you suddenly annoyed, so you stand up, bending over the table to get the jar and refill your cup. But before you can reach it, Ivar takes the thing, drinking straight from it, some of the liquid dripping on his chin. Sighing, you squint your eyes at him, a humorless laugh escaping your lips.
“Here.” The voice gets your attention, and when you turn at him, you see Bjorn filling your cup again. “This one's better anyway.”
“Thanks.” Sitting back down, you give Ivar one last glance before taking long sips.
“Are you going to live here?” Bjorn asks. “Or are you going to live with my mother after all?”
“I'm staying.” Nodding, you look at him. His mother is the most famous shieldmaiden in the world, a skillful fighter. Also Ragnar's ex-wife, reason why Aslaug can't stand her. “The Queen already helped me settle on my chambers.”
“That's good.” He smiles, and a man pushes his shoulder quite violently. Bjorn turns to face him, cursing, but soon enough bursting into laughter.
Ignoring the two men, you look down at your cup, now almost empty again. Music starts playing suddenly, and it doesn't take much for people to start dancing. It gets louder as the minutes go by, and Ragnar and Floki stand on your table, moving around and laughing, kicking everything out. Your eyes follow the whole commotion, standing up and stepping away from the table when they get a little too close. But you don't mind. You've never seen people acting so... Crazy. So happy. And you can't stop smiling, seeing as other people join them.
“I bet you never saw anything like that,” Hvitserk says, raising his voice a little to make himself heard. “I know how boring the feats are in England.”
“This is so much better.” Ragnar jumps to the ground, but one of his legs get caught in between the bench and the table, making him fall. But on the next second, he's up again, a smile on his lips. “My brother would have a heart attack if he ever saw this.”
“Aethelwulf?”
“Yeah.” Someone bumps on your back, making you almost fall. But Hvitserk holds you up, and he seems quite confused to find you laughing. “What? It's alright, I like it. At least this chaos is real, people aren't faking it.” As your eyes move through the hall, you find Ragnar, behind this weird curtain made of leather. You didn't even know he left. “What's that weirdo doing over there?”
“He's observing.” Hvitserk answers, leaning closer and lowering his voice. “From back there, he can see who's sleeping with who. Who's not sleeping with who anymore, who may be plotting something to put him in a dangerous position.”
“Smart guy.” Nodding to yourself, your attention is stolen by the crowd, that starts moving outside, shouting something you can't really understand. “What's going on?”
“Someone's gonna fight. Come watch.” Hvitserk helps you walk among the people, all the way to the beach. Torches came out of nowhere, illuminating the night. Everyone seems oddly happy for this to be about a fight, but Hvitserck wasn't wrong. On the sand, the two men pace around each other, shouting, cursing.
“What's this about?” It happened out of nowhere, and you're not sure how serious this is. The warriors are clearly pissed at each other, but the public is cheerful. This is when you feel how new and different this culture is. Something like this would never happen back at Wessex, and it will take a while for you to get used and understand how things work here. It's a shock, a sudden impact.
“They're both in love with the same woman. She claims she loves both, but they won't share.” Hvitserk explains, as someone passes him a torch, which he holds up high. “The one who survives gets to be with her.”
“Damn.” You mutter as the two men start attacking each other. You've never seen an actual fight. Girls aren't allowed on the battlefield, mostly not a princess. The only glimpses you had were from soldiers training, and it was nothing compared to this. This is violent, powerful, and you can't help but be impressed by their skills. Of course they're good. They're Vikings, a freaking force of nature, they had told you back in England. It's impressive how they keep getting back up, even after so many wounds. Cuts, punches, everything.
A particular loud shout coming from the crowd gets your attention. It's Ivar, seated on the sand, eyes shining and a bright smile on his lips. He's enjoying this. Everyone is, actually. And once again, as if you called his name out loud, he turns to look at you. And somehow you know exactly what he's looking for. Fear, desperation. He wants to see if you're scared.
But... You're not.
Every single person here is joyfully yelling, and those two men choose their fates. They're not being forced to it, it was their decision, as it was yours to stand up, neck exposed, ready for the ax Ragnar was holding. They're choosing to face death, fearlessly.
Then, your eyes aren't on Ivar anymore, but following the men's every move. It doesn't take much for you to gasp and yelp when one or the other successes to throw a blow. You feel like a savage, laughing at the thought of what your father and brother would say if they saw you now.
When the tallest man, with long dark hair, falls dead, the crowd goes insane. The victorious raises both his hands, still holding an ax. A woman comes from the crowd, hugging and kissing him. “That's insane.” You chuckle, running a hand through your braided hair. “Teach me.” The request comes out suddenly, and you don't even give it much thought.
“Are you sure about it?” He asks, looking down at you. Hvitserk is being nice to you, and that's a surprise.
“I mean, I could never be a shieldmaiden but... I'd like to know how to defend myself.”
“Well, I've got nothing to do tomorrow, so I guess we could start.”
Furrowing your eyebrows, you smile. “Thanks. You're the quickest and... Probably the most real friend I've ever made.”
“Yeah, you'll need someone to help you out around here until you get the hang of things. Ragnar gave me this task.”
“Oh...” Looking down, you start walking back to the hall, following Hvitserk's pace. Maybe it was a little stupid to expect him to be so nice to you. “You don't have to. I will get used to things on my own.”
“I didn't mean it like that.” He quickly responds, leaving the torch on some post along the way. “You're pretty cool, actually. For a Christian. You've been a good friend so far.” He gives you a glance and a smirk. “And I don't have to obey my father, you know.”
Blushing a little, you giggle. “Thanks again, then.”
“Now, get a good night sleep and get ready for tomorrow, I mean...” Hvitserk takes a look over his shoulder, a little too dramatic for your taste. “If my older brother doesn't mind it.”
“What do you mean?” Following his gaze, you find Bjorn staring. He doesn't seem angry, but he's not happy either.
“I think Bjorn likes you.”
“And? If it wasn't for you I wouldn't have watched the fight.” Shrugging your shoulders, you stop at the entrance of the hall, waiting as the crowd moves inside. “You've done more for me than he did tonight.”
“So you enjoyed the fight?”
“I have no idea why, or how, but I did.” Nodding, you smile again. “Now, friend, let's drink some more, and maybe I'll consider dancing.” Gesturing at the hall, you both walk in.
The warmth is welcome, and you soon find your way back to the table. But, as you sit down, you see Ivar again, crawling. He moves fast, talking to a man. As he moves past your table, he gives you a stare. It's different from before, but you can't read it. His eyes, like magnets, attract you in a way you didn't even know was possible. You think about waving, or smiling, but then he looks away and disappears inside the house.
“Don't mind Ivar,” Hvitserk says, and you look down at your cup. “He'll get used to your presence.”
“Let's hope he will.”
×
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morlock-holmes · 2 years
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The other design decision in Mass Effect which sort of bugs me is that you're expected to get more loot by either taking it off the bodies of your dead enemies, or selling the stuff you've looted from their corpses and then buying more out of your own pocket.
I mean... Your character works for the military, you'd think Shepherd could, like, requisition something. Or like maybe they'd feel weird about scavenging from dead men.
It's just one of those mechanics that's there because that was the loot mechanism from original Dungeons and Dragons.
Actually, does Mass Effect even need loot?
The game starts off every character with a pistol, shotgun, assault rifle and sniper rifle, and instead of getting new kinds of weapons (outside of grenades with special debuffs) you seem to mainly just get the same weapon but with supposedly different stats. The game starts off every character with a pistol, shotgun, assault rifle and sniper rifle, and instead of getting new kinds of weapons (outside of grenades with special debuffs) you seem to mainly just get the same weapon but with supposedly different stats.
Except I'm not sure that matters. My character is an infiltrator, which means that they supposedly "specialize" in pistols and sniper rifles. I just did this one mission against biotic terrorists, and basically 3 of them would bum rush me and kill me... Until I switched from my pistol to my assault rifle.
Apparently it doesn't matter if you're "specialized" in assault rifles if you can point the barrel at the torso of a person who is three feet away from you.
Now, this might be specific to the Legendary edition, I know they made some quality of life tweaks. Like, for example, Shepherd can now look down the scope of a sniper rifle without swinging it wildly around like he's using his gun to conduct flight of the bumblebee.
But anyway, my broader point is, when I was a little kid I gravitated towards RPGs because I had trouble with hand eye coordination and split second decision-making, so I preferred games with turn based systems I could think about at my leisure.
I grew up in the 90s, but both computer RPGs and jRPGs at the time basically got their mechanics from Dungeons and Dragons.
So, D&D makes a lot of assumptions but like, the loot in that is just numbers. The game wants to know if you hit a guy with your broadsword and, if you do, how put out is he by the fact that you hit him.
So, to really oversimplify, you have a bunch of numbers that tell you all this, and some dice rolls which add in the randomness that comes from things like uneven terrain, fatigue, sudden unexpected moves by your opponents, your judgements and misjudgements of the situation, etc. etc.
And that's how it works in games like, say, Chrono Trigger or Fallout. The numbers tell you how good your character is at aiming a gun and then the computer essentially rolls a die to see which shots hit and which don't.
But for some annoying reason most RPGs nowadays love real time combat. And so, say, Mass Effect, unlike Dungeons and Dragons, can mimic the effects of terrain, and unexpected enemy movement, and better or worse hand eye coordination by kind of just… putting them in the game.
Like, it's weird that your accuracy with a gun in a lot of modern RPGs is some opaque combination of how well you can aim the mouse at the guys running around and some skill on your character sheet, like you can aim a shotgun point blank at an enemy's torso and some games might still decide you missed because your "shotgun accuracy" skill isn't high enough, but it's also not like you can be completely uncoordinated, you still have to be kind of good at aiming and shooting.
To me, it's kind of like the worst of both worlds, where you get the downsides of both approaches but the mechanics kind of cancel out the good sides.
But to go back to loot systems, the old Final Fantasy games on the SNES would just bury you in huge piles of loot that had slightly higher numbers than the last one, but at least there it mattered; you got a good opportunity to see, in numbers, exactly how many HPs a given sword took away from a given monster, how often they dodged, etc.
Modern games do the same thing but a lot of times it's hard to tell if that accomplishes anything; this new sniper rifle does six points more damage but is four points less accurate.
Okay, but like… Accuracy is also a function of how well I can aim at a moving enemy and I have two other companions also shooting at the same guy or dumping debuffs on him and his health is represented by a tiny bar that I ignore unless it seems like it's taking too long for him to fall over dead.
So what are these piles of guns you keep dumping on me doing for the actual gameplay?
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dangeles · 2 years
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OH MY GOD ROOMMATES IS FANTASTIC THANKS FOR THE RECOMMENDATION
i just listened to it and it's so good oh my god i loved it. yesss give me gay sex scenes in audio format pIONEERS shdakjghjfg
"come over here and objectify with me" adsgfkhfgh what a line cant believe it worked for him
hearing the line "[yes i still have] feelings, or whatever you want to call them" from someone with calebs voice was a nice little bit of unintentional irony xD
and oh my god them getting drunk was SO CUTE. casper all drunkenly trying to say he likes olly and just listing his flaws and olly is like 'okay okay sh sh i get it casper' asghjkhg adorable
"i like you now. a lot. a lot a lot. and sometimes im afraid you'll notice how much a lot" 😭😭😭 how much a lot
and then they KISS and then immediately deny they did and aaahhhhh the whole kiss & dont tell episode was so painful i wanted to cry. them talking about their feelings but not talking about their feelings and just both being like "unless" "unless" "unless?" and denying it aahhh i was in pain
but the finale was so good i listened to it twice. olly finally using his birthday present. "not for this" "especially for this" YES!!!
casper starting out with all the bad things about olly that just bother him because of how much he likes him? chefs kiss nice parallel with the episode they got drunk tbh
them being all kissing and then talking it out all serious and then olly goes "so how did your stats midterm go" and casper is like "shut up i dont care" <333333 thats hot
i called them pioneers jokingly but joking aside ive had a fascination and admiration for audio storytelling since i heard season 4 of wolf 359 and i actually thought the way they did this sex scene was really cool. sure maybe it's just that it's my first audio sex scene maybe this is just kinda industry standard ashdgjfh? it wasnt like super special or anything but it was very effective? it was really elegant and simple and worked well
it reminded me a bit of how the magnus archives uses fabric rustles instead of kissing noises. idk like. the suggestion of the thing rather than the depiction. i think audio storytelling is really a lot about the mastery of suggestion? maybe all storytelling is like that in some way. "show dont tell" and all that. it's all about picking what you show and what youre suggesting with what youre showing and letting the audience make inferences. but i think audio has a stronger relationship with, like, the Mastery Of SuggestionTM or whatever than other media. at least it's a different relationship than film has to suggestion i think. film can use suggestion in really masterful ways too but for audio everything but the dialogue is suggestion. so you have to put all your suggestions IN the dialogue. it's just a really interesting way to tell stories imo
anyway podcast enthusiast ramble over, thanks for this recommendation it was really fun!
oh my gosh YES!! I'm so glad you liked it!!
It's so wonderfully made, I could rave about it!
I loved how Olly called Casper out on the neatness thing, which was him being very pissing with Olly but being untidy at the same time. I think that was really interesting.
And the fact that Olly isn't just a stereotypical jock and is in fact smart and cool at the same time, and Casper slowly but steadily falling for him, YESSS!
That first kiss was so unexpected; like, they were just watching a movie, and then it was just silent and suddenly [kissy noises] and then the episode ends, no dialogue. It took me off-guard so quickly but that was perfect for the way the two were dancing around each other!
In all honestly, I didn't exactly realise it became a sex scene at the finale; I was so engrossed in the fact that they confessed, my brain was still in the making-out section of it. It took me two listens to realise oh my god they're DOING it!! And it was so well deserved!!! And I agree, the Mastery of Suggestion is exactly what it is, I think! Just the subtlest ways of conveying something. the audio equivalent of a silhouette painting. Beautiful, if done right!
Dreamboy did the exact opposite though, and I sat there, rendered catatonic while the two men went at it very loudly, but it was still very apt and perfect for the kind of vibe the whole story had, so I had no qualms with it.
[If Dane Terry and Briggon Snow collaborate, I will physically and mentally combust.]
It was also lovely to hear Briggon play the openly gay nerd instead of the closeted jock, I was so impressed he was able to voice Casper the exact way he looked in the podcast cover.
I loved everything about Roommates, it's the perfect binge series.
I hope he makes more audiodramas, God I would THRIVE!!!!!
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One last party for my farming team. On average I farmed four times a day for each stages, sometimes only two times when I feel exhausted from work, on weekends sometimes I tried to snag one or two extra run. But most of the time I did four times a day.
I’m going to miss farming with these teams, accompanied with their respective background music. Gotta prepare for Regirock tomorrow.
Even with different background music, farming got really exhausting and boring really fast for me. Maybe it’s because I used the same team over and over, but the point of farming is to use the most consistent teams to get the cookies, and I don’t have the energy to use the less consistent ones like the Siebold and Cyrus team against Moltres, so...yeah. Despite that, I do feel that I’m going to miss farming with this team a lot. Subway Bros+Acerola is unstoppable.
At one Moltres run I got really sleepy from work and I timed Potion incorrectly, resulting in Ingo going down from taking a sun-boosted Flare Blitz. He was at 60% health anyway so I can’t blame him. Luckily Moltres was one Rock Slide away to be defeated too, and not even Healing Sun could save it from Hit the Gas 5+Healthy Strength 5-boosted Rock Slide. I could gush over Emmet over and over, honestly, but I already did that a lot.
For Latias runs, I purposely prolonged some of the runs to rack up more debuffs. Because Anni N’s sync damage multiplier is derived from stat reductions, he still could take benefit from capped evasion debuffs from Palentine Dawn and Halloween Caitlin’s attacks.
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The damage there is 77.975, almost 78k. That’s still pretty amazing, especially without supereffective and weather. Imagine a sun-boosted damage with fully debuffed Latias like this, surely Anni N could reach damage cap off-type. Not necessary, though. I just feel like racking debuffs because I wanted to see how much Anni N could reach, because he’s still one of the best units that I pulled, and one of the best investments that I made.
Uxie’s run really helped me to train myself on how to quad-queue, especially because Uxie’s stage is the most relaxed out of all. From all of my runs and training to quad-queue, I realized that I’m still terrible at it. Sometimes I managed to queue Giovanni’s Shadow Ball before Uxie’s first sync, resulting in Uxie’s first health bar finished before it launched an Iron Tail, sometimes I couldn’t, resulting in Sycamore took a lot of damage (it’s not like he couldn’t take it, but taking almost 600 damage from Iron Tail was really scary). Sometimes unexpected stuffs like Sycamore crit-ing his Moonblast which resulted in Uxie dropping to below half health threw my plan off, because I queued Giovanni’s Shadow Ball before Erika’s Toxic/Infestation expecting Sycamore to only do chip damage and not crit-ing since there’s no crit buff at him. 
I guess this just shows that even after months of playing Pokemas, I’m still not used at the real-time battle system like these when I have to take swift actions and plan ahead on everything. And if something unexpected happened, I got panicked and my mind just got blanked out, throwing all of my strategy in disarray (which resulting in me preferring defensive strategies over offensive, me taking hours to choose parameters in CSMM, me not believing in my teammates enough to take offensive parameter pressure in CSMM, me preferring safe options than high risk high reward units, all that).
The games that I am mostly accustomed to are always turn-based RPGs that gave me space and time to plan some strategy, while in this type of game, I have to plan ahead, and if something unexpected happens in a middle of the fight, I have to think fast to save my team from the situation, or just reattempt the battle until I get the result I want (and I’m not a big fan of restarting attempts just for MPR proc and stuff because it’s really exhausting and time-consuming, it sucks to spend my time for fruitless effort). Pokemas’ gameplay is a lot of fun, and I like real-time battle system like this, I’m just still not used and generally not good at planning ahead and handling unplanned things.
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sibsteria · 3 years
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I couldn’t if I tried [gabriel]
prompts: ''do you want me to leave?'', ''what did you just say'', ''I'm not sorry''
characters: Gabriel x reader, (mentioned) Dean Winchester, (mentioned) Sam Winchester, (mentioned) Castiel
set: no particular time
summary: a mystery
warnings: fluff
''I'll be perfectly fine on my own, always am.'' My bore some tone echoing through the atrium of the bunker, as the brothers stood ahead of me.
''Just because we aren't taking you with us on this one, doesn't mean you can empty the cookie jar.'' Dean narrowed his eyes, slyly, joking but still deadly serious.
''Depends if you left pie in the fridge.'' I sigh, turning on my heels, a dramatic edge layered my dialect.
''Don't you think about it!'' He bellowed, Sam holding him back with his arm, shaking his head in disappointment. I rolled my eyes, pouring a glass from my eldest brother's alcohol as the door barred against it's hinges.
Donning my music to the large space I had been left in independently, I turned it up to full volume, a sweet change from Eye of The Tiger 24/7. Losing myself in the alcohol and melodies, I didn't notice the archangel smugly inclining himself on the doorway. 
''Jesus, Gabe!'' I clutched my vascular organ, catching my breath, shock subduing by the minute.
''Not really. Wasn't expecting me, Sweet Thang?'' I chucked at his flirting, unexpected but welcomed.
''No, I just-'' He cut me off, like the smarmy bastard he was.
''Oh do-do you want me to leave?'' The amusement on his features was clearer than Cas' skin, his well founded smirk and mischievous eyes are what pulled me in, in the first place. I'd never admit my fondness for the winged man anyways, I may as well enjoy the company.
''Of course not, stupid angel-'' He cut me off, again. Damn boy needs to stop that before he gets the smacketh.
''Archangel.'' He shrugged, the smug expression remained. ''What do you want?'' I laughed, he gasps in feign shock. ''So rude-'' He lifts his hand to his heart, I bite my lip, dismissing his antics. ''Anyways, I thought you should see for yourself.'' He saunters over to me, brushing the hair out of my face. ''Hold tight.'' He winked, god Chuck why? I found myself in a sunset themed jumpsuit, Gabriel adorned in a shirt that almost matched my outfit. Looking down, it dawned on me that we were weaning giant clomping platforms, albeit mine a little larger. ''Why are we dressed like ABBA?'' I accompanied my dull voice crossed my arms, but failing to hide my excitement. ''That, my dear, is for you to find out.'' The brunette with the honey-slick voice held out his arm, I took it with no hesitation. In front of us was a florescent booming club with a retro sign, the 'Cotton Club'. I looked at him when he ushered me inside, without him knowing, or so I had thought. ''Staring at me, are you?'' He looked pompous and maniacal, but it was kind of hot. ''Who's to say?'' I raise an eyebrow, the other one following in a similar fashion as I observed our camp surroundings. Outgrown styles and an era that wouldn't quit enclosed us in it's infatuating aura. So a 70's club? Cute. But of course he had delved into my mind. ''Not just a 70's club, peach pie.'' I gaped open my mouth, no he didn't. ''Why are we standing here then?'' He gripped his hand with mine, yanking him from the club lobby into the illuminate dance floor. What I didn't see was the ever growing fondness in his smile as he trailed behind me. Hours passed underneath the sparkling lights and the cheesy silver disco ball, I had the night of my life, accompanied by the excessive alcohol it could possibly become my worst. ''You know, people don't give you enough credit.'' I shrugged to the paragon. ''I know!'' He shrieked in agreement.
Elton John's 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' blasted through the superstructure.
''There's a lot of things people don't know about me, you know.'' I rolled my tongue against the roof of my mouth, my drunken state exposing the truth. ''Oh?'' He cocked a brow, ''Do tell.'' His voice made me giggle. ''I'm not the innocent baby Winchester, people say I am.'' I nodded, as a matter-of-factly. ''Really?'' Gabriel was getting amusement out of this. ''Mhm, wanna know something else?'' Damn, intoxication. ''Go on.'' His flirty eyes made me blush under his overwhelming pressure. ''I think I'm in love with you.'' During this moment, the background noise and tune of the decade faded into a muffled white noise. He couldn't believe his blessed ears. ''What did you just say?'' Of course, being me, I took this the complete wrong way. ''Oh, God Chuck, I shouldn't of admitted that, uh snap us back please I'd like to go sleep thank you.'' Except he didn't, so I turned on my feet. ''Y/n-'' I looked at him as he said my name, that's a first. The soft yet calloused pads of his fingers glided over my fabric-clad waist as the unused hand found it's place in my hair, it felt as if time stopped. I almost didn't hear the 'I'm sorry' he breathed against my lips as he found himself in them. In this moment, I think I found myself, for the first time. Instantly, I lifted my fidgeting palms into his soft threaded locks, intertwining my fingers with the individual strands.
Our mouths moved in an intoxicating simultaneous Arcadia. They say it's heaven to be kissed by an angel, I didn't know it was so true. The recurring gentle bump of his nose against mine gave the act a fondness I had never experienced. The feeling of his hand slowly gripping my waist more intensely, bunching the material in his palm, and the other one that rested in my hair sliding down to the back of my neck was a above-earth experience. It felt as if it were nothing but a dream.
We broke the connection, a burning emotion in my eyes as I looked through his. ''I'm not sorry.'' He unsteadily exhaled, an ironic laugh integrated beautifully. ''I'm not sorry that I kissed Y/n Winchester and I'm not sorry for this either-'' He took a short and stat breath. ''I know I'm in love with you, hearing you say it was enough to break me, I never wanted to involve myself but I couldn't stay away. What can I say, I'm selfish.'' Guess I am, as well.
''If you are, then so am I, god the shit I'm gonna get for this.'' You're worth it. I thought. ''You're worth everything.'' This took to me like a boulder. ''What-What's going to happen now?'' I bite my lip, nerves hitting me unwillingly. ''Anything, hopefully, everything. Give me a chance?'' The vulnerability I saw in him behind his sultry façade built me up. ''I'll give you more than a chance.'' I dove into the intoxicating home of his lips once more, taking something for myself for once. ''I'm so happy to hear that, honeysuckle.'' He murmured against my lips. Yep, he's back.
I didn't notice the snap of return, or the gladiator stares of my brothers. ''Pie, huh?'' Dean's gruff tremor made me shriek, yanking my face from my angel's.
‘‘Well, you know, I can be pretty sweet.’‘ Gabe winked.
''Hi.'' I waved. ''You little-'' Before my inconsolable brother could do any harm, Gabriel had snapped us to the comfort of...somewhere? As long as he was here, I had my place.
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