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#like it's so cute but also i want any fragment of that cuteness in my life please
angeltism · 9 months
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when 99% of the content of one of uur fragments is weird icky stuff
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locally-normal · 2 years
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lazydoodlesandfanfic · 10 months
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Accidentally Finding Family (Bucky Barnes X Teen!Fem!Reader) *PLATONIC, PARENTAL
Characters: Bucky Barnes X Teen!Fem!Reader
Universe: Marvel, Avengers
Warnings: HYDRA, mention of kidnapping, mention of torture, mention of death of family, mention of amputation
Request: Hi can I request a teen reader where she is kind of like Bucky and is a hydra agent that is from the 40s and the team finds her in a base in cryofreeze and Steve and Bucky help her learn to adjust to the future and maybe Bucky helps her deal with nightmares? Or maybe she also has a metal arm and he helps her become less insecure about it idk. Also she ends up seeing Steve and Bucky as parental figures with cute family bonding? Sorry if that’s all over the place!
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“Do you have any goals you have in mind for the next year or so? Next five years?” The question, targeted at Bucky, was being asked by his therapist. A few months ago, Bucky wasn’t sure what he would have answered with. A few months ago, Bucky was still filled with grief of a life lost, a life tainted with torture, his memories torn and ripped to shreds with only little fragments he could make out. But Bucky had done a hell of a lot of healing since rejoining his best friend. With therapy, Steve and Wanda’s help, those shreds of his past were being sewn back together, he’d come to accept that while his past is something he’d never fully recover from, he was still in possession of a young body, ready to try to live the life he actually wanted to live before HYDRA. A life with his new friends, and his one old one. He was ready to look into the future. 
He sat back, relaxing into the settee, thinking to himself, before he let his thoughts leave his mouth. “A family.” He started. He looked over at his therapist, who smiled, nodding and notioning him to elaborate. “I loved looking after my little sister before the war. I loved looking out for Steve when he was still a punk… I think it’s always been a part of me to want to look after and care for people. Biological or adopted… the idea of having a child, someone to look after, someone to care for, be there for… to be needed by someone… I’d like that.” 
“That’s definitely a doable goal I think. I think you’re finally in a place where you’d be able to be a caregiver. If you want to be sure, there are volunteering positions to help people at events- young children, camps for teenagers, so on, so forth. There’s also courses to give people more skills and knowledge on raising children that I can enrol you in?” She suggested. Bucky agreed. Not long after all of that, the session ended, and Bucky began his walk back to base to see if anyone had heard from the rest of the team yet. Almost all of the Avengers- except Bruce- had gone out on a mission. Originally he had been meant to go himself, but when the team found out that he had a session booked the same day and he might not make it, they removed him from it, knowing that his healing is far more important than another gun on their already overpowered team. 
About halfway through the walk, was when his phone in his pocket buzzed repeatedly. He felt it easily, and he pulled the phone out, seeing Steve’s name on the front, and he answered it, pressing the phone to his ear. “Hey Steve, I’m on my way back now, are you already back?” He asked Steve, continuing his walk. 
“Bucky I need to ask you a serious question and I need you to answer me to the best of your ability.” Steve’s serious tone made Bucky freeze on the side of the street. His eyes darted around the busy streets, finding a corner that was silent and hidden in shadows, and dashing over to it, before answering Steve. 
“Alright. Ask away.” Bucky answered. 
“Do you know of any other Winter Soldiers?” Steve asked, and immediately Bucky’s heart thudded.
“N-No. Wait, did you find more?” Bucky asked. 
“We don’t know… she’s a kid, Buck.” Steve answered. Bucky wanted to be sick, his mind already racing on what exactly they had found. A girl, a young girl, a child, according to Steve. And from whatever information and evidence they had found, it was enough to point them back to the Winter Soldier program and him. Bucky squeezed his eyes shut. 
“Is she alive?”
“Yeah. Yeah she’s alive, we’re trying to treat her for a few injuries, but we’re having issues… James I think… she’d really benefit with you being here.” He told his best friend. That seemed odd to Bucky. He was a mythical monster to the other weapons of HYDRA, used to scare them into obeying, and he had no doubt that stories of him, even after he had escaped, would have been used to bring fear, especially to children. Still, he trusted Steve and his judgement. 
“Alright. I’ll be there soon.” Bucky answered shortly, hanging up, and his once leisurely stroll back to base, turned into a long sprint marathon. 
He arrived back in less than 20 minutes, finding Natasha already waiting for him, her motioning for him to follow her. “How did you find her?” He asked her. 
“They realised we were attacking them and raised the alarm, and seemingly let her loose with some of their other agents to try and slow us down. That didn’t happen though.” Natasha explained, power walking through the base. 
“What do you mean it didn’t happen?” Bucky asked. 
“She turned on them. She killed several of the guards and scientists herself and we found her in the process of trying to kill the head researcher. He’s getting medical care- it’s 50/50 whether he’ll live or not, not that I really care. After we stopped her, she surrendered to us, but she’s not talking and won’t let anyone touch her. We really don’t want to restrain her Buck, since that will undoubtedly make her worse, but I realised she was bleeding from her leg and we think she’s been shot but we can’t treat her.” Natasha explained, stopping at a door, and finally turning to him. 
“How can I help with this? If anything, she’s going to have heard about me and become terrified.” He questioned, her features softening into a sad smile. 
“Can you take your jacket off and your glove? So she can see it?” She asked. Bucky’s eyes darted down to his arm, flexing his robotic fingers, before looking up at Natasha, unsure and confused. “We’ll introduce you, just… be as soft and kind as possible with her, okay? Trust me.” She asked. Bucky sighed, and with some hesitance, he removed his glove, shoving it into his jacket pocket, before pulling his jacket off, leaving him with just his short sleeve shirt, his arm on full display. Bucky nodded to her, and she opened the door, stepping in and aside to let him in. 
“Come on kiddo, I promise it’ll be over before you know it.” Bucky walked into the scene of Tony trying to talk to you, offering a small bag of fruity snacks, though you kept your head down and totally ignored his presence beside you. Bruce was on the other side of you, looking lost on what he can do without making anything worse. Steve was leant against the nearby wall, spotting Bucky and Nat first, and he stood up straight. Bucky glanced at him, before properly looking at you, and when he did, he understood. 
You were sitting on the medical bed, legs stretched out, your head low, and your arms hugged against your body. Your arms were what Bucky hyper fixated on. They were metal, both of them, all the way up to the shoulders. You had tucked your arms to the best of your ability under the thin blanket that already had a growing blood stain where one of your legs were. Bucky wasn’t sure what had happened to you that meant you had to have both your arms amputated and replaced by robotic ones, or even if there was a reason or if they just did that, but that didn’t matter right now. You were clearly uncomfortable with them being seeing, and your hatred for being touched was something that Bucky empathised with. 
“Thanks for coming so quickly.” Steve spoke up, making Tony and Bruce turn as well, and after a moment, Bucky watched as your eyes also looked up to see who was there, and met his. He was convinced he’d see you flinch, be terrified, and he would make this whole situation worse, but then your eyes left his, and fell onto his arm, and he watched you relax. You actually relaxed in his presence. That immediately made Bucky relax as well as he slowly stepped closer. Tony moved out of his way so he could be by your side.
“English?” Bucky clarified and you nodded at him. “Alright. I’m James, but my friends call me Bucky. I know better than anyone how scary this all is, and how you probably really don’t want anyone prodding or poking at you anymore.” He spoke softly, keeping eye contact with you. He caught in the corner of his eye that you raised one arm from under the sheets, hesitantly reaching for him, specifically his metal arm. He reached out as well, carefully taking your metal arm in his, and your eyes stared at his arm, as the metal sheets slid and moved to adjust, similar to your own, before you looked back at him. 
“They hurt you too?” You asked quietly. Bucky swallowed hard, knowing who ‘they’ were, and he nodded. 
“Lost it originally from falling out of a train, but they kidnapped me and did this… my friends have helped me adjust, and they want to help you too.” He explained to you.
“They…” You hesitated, looking down at your hand holding his, before continuing. “They took mine. I don’t know why. They just did.” You explained to him, and Bucky nodded along, listening to you while also clenching his jaw, trying not to cry. Trying not to squeeze your hand on accident because of his anger. 
“They were wrong for doing that, they were pure evil, and I promise you, you’re safe now, and they can’t hurt you anymore, I promise.” He smiled reassuringly. “As soon as we tend to that bullet wound, we’ll get you settled in, you can start school, be a normal teenager, or as normal as you can be, how does that sound?” He asked, and after a lot of hesitation, you nodded, and with Bucky holding your hand, you allowed Bruce to tend to your wound. 
You didn’t talk to anyone for the first week, other than Bucky, but slowly started talking to the others as time passed. They got you situated in one of the bedrooms on base, but after FRIDAY reported you kept hiding under the bed or locking yourself on purpose in the bathroom and sleeping on the cold tile floor, Bucky made the suggestion to move you into a smaller space. He didn’t have to go into detail when explaining you weren’t used to sleeping on a nice warm bed in a giant room, and how it probably felt alien and wrong to sleep there. Tony didn’t have any rooms that were smaller that could function as a bedroom, and it was Steve who suggested you move into an apartment with one of them, that someone clearly being Bucky. Bucky, like showing up to see you in the first place, wasn’t sure about that idea- worried he’d have a relapse with his nightmares and scare you, but he trusted Steve. Tony paid for an upgraded apartment- a two bedroom in brooklyn, still a small walk away from Steve if he was needed, and Bucky moved all his stuff in before they moved you in. 
“This is the place.” Bucky told you, opening the door to the apartment, and you cautiously stepped inside, looking around. Bucky didn’t have a lot of things, so other than a bookshelf crammed with books, an old radio, the bulky television and some photos before the war on one wall and another wall of photos from after escaping HYDRA. James wasn’t sure how you’d react to all this, so he watched you diligently. He walked around, leaning on a wall, just watching you. He saw your eyes look around, before you spotted his old radio- one that was close replica to the ones before the war- and you seemed to relax, before walking over to it, gingerly touching it, before turning it on, tuning it a little, seemingly disappointed at the radio station, before looking around, and spotting the pre-war photographs, and walked over, looking at them, and smiling. “You like them?” Bucky asked, walking over slowly. 
“They remind me of before the war.” You commented, before seeming to think and turning to him quickly. “Are you from before the war too?” You asked him. Bucky’s eyebrows pinched together. 
“Are you? Y/N, what year did they take you?” He demanded. 
“1940… 1945? I think? The war was still on…” You explained to him, looking back at the photos, spotting him in his uniform. “You were a sergeant?”
“Y/N.” Bucky stepped closely, gently grabbing your arm and turning you to face him. “You were kidnapped by HYDRA before the war? You were frozen?” He asked. You nodded. Bucky hated that. He hated that there was yet another thing you shared with him. Metal arms, HYDRA, lives before the war, being weapons, and thrust into a new world. He’d long accepted that it’s just his life now, but that it happened to you? A kid? He hated it. “Y/N… What do you remember about your life before the war?” He asked. 
You talked for hours. Sitting down on the couch, you just talked about all you remembered, bits and pieces, sometimes certain memories popping up from talking and you’d interrupt yourself just to talk about them. You told him about your parents, your dad being in the army, your mom working in a factory where they made ammunition and ballistics, where unfortunately an accident happened with fire and an explosion, and your mother was killed, leaving you alone for a period of time with your dad other seas and unable to return, and no other family to care for you, before you were sent to go live with a foster family until after the war. That family were actually HYDRA. You didn’t know what happened to your dad, if he survived the war, and if he did, if he looked for you or if he was told you had died and he moved on, maybe had a new family. Maybe you had a step mother, half siblings, maybe you were an aunt now… but you didn’t know. Bucky took the time to text your dad’s name and rank in the war to Natasha and ask her to look into him, and she responded an hour later with an obituary, and a date of death and cause. Killed in action. Bucky told you the news softly, and it was then you stopped talking. You sat there for a period of time, just processing what he had said, and Bucky remained sat there, waiting for you.
“...I’m alone, aren’t I?” You finally spoke up. “I’ve lost everything.” 
“Not necessarily.” Bucky pointed out. “If your dad was in the military, then there’s probably photographs of him. If any photos were taken of you and your family before the war, I know for a fact that Natasha and Tony can find them, and we can get them printed and framed for you, so you can have something of theirs… and you have me.” He told you. You turned to look at him. 
“Really?” 
“Of course. As long as you need me, I’m there. I’ve been through exactly the same thing as you, I know exactly how you’re feeling and I want you to be happy and to have as close to a normal life as possible. Since you live with me, that makes me your guardian. If you want to go to school, I’ll go to all your parent-teacher meetings and help with your homework. If you want to do after school activities, I’ll go to all your games and shows and awards. If you want to talk about the 1930’s and 40’s, let’s talk about it, if you want to talk about what happened with HYDRA, let’s talk about it or we can try therapy if you want. Whatever you want to do with your life, I’ll support you no matter what. I’m here for you, no matter what, and I’m not going anywhere.” He told you. You didn’t respond at first, and when you did, you didn’t respond with words. Instead, you crawled across the couch to be closer to him, wrapping your arms around him, and resting your head on his shoulder, and Bucky hugged you back. 
“I’d like that. Thank you.” He heard you speak. He held you as the sun went down, and only after realizing you had fallen asleep and he was gonna have to carry you to bed, that he realized something. He’d done it. He’d reached his goal that he had set with his therapist just over a month ago. It was totally unconventional, nothing he could have predicted, but he’d gotten his family. He’d found the child he wanted, the person he wanted to care and be there for, to watch grow and thrive and to help them with that. He’d found you. 
Hope you like it! If you have any questions, please send them in!
*Not my gif
TAGS: @dailyteambucky @mxrvelsaos @klanceiscannon14 @marvelhoeingismyhobby-blog @bellamyblakemorley @dummiesshort  @freyathehuntress @abbybills22-blog @mutantjediavenger @theoraekensnotsosecretlover @alicedanganh @sleutherclaw @sleepy-coffee-bean @stawwpp @courtneychicken  @graysonmalfoy @bellero @originalpottervengerlock @supernatural-pan @esoltis280 @lady-of-lies @lenaswritingandstuff @macbetheliza @mandywholock1980 @cdwmtjb8 @caswinchester2000 @determinedpines @huntheimpossible @automaticbakeryfreakshoe
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jeonqkooks · 1 year
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jungkook #33 from the fluff list 💗 (even better if its like fboy badboy jungkook getting flustered and shy around oc hehe)
daft pretty boys | jjk
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pairing: jungkook x reader
prompt: "i can't think around you."
rating: G
word count: 0.8k
genre/warnings: classmates to .. lovers?, college au, basketball captain!jk, he's neither a fuck boy nor a bad boy he's just a cute boy <3, fluff, swearing as per uzh, i plagiarized MYSELF bc the shit mentioned here was actually taken from my final paper for a film class two years ago lmaooooooo
as always, i’d appreciate any thoughts or comments you may have, and please drop a like and/or reblog if you enjoy reading ♡
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If there's one thing that Jungkook absolutely despises, it's when people think jocks are dumb. It's a common misconception and it's downright hurtful sometimes; just because Jungkook is the basketball captain, doesn't mean that anybody has the right to assume he's got hay for brains.
However, if someone were to come up to him right now and say it to his face, he probably wouldn't disagree.
"So yeah, if they lose the memories of these relationships, I think they'd also be losing parts of themselves that make them whole, because an individual's identity is an accumulation of multiple smaller identities they have with every single intimate relationship that ultimately forms one collective identity, y'know?" you finish, and it's not until then that Jungkook comes back down to earth, realizing that he's just been staring at you this whole time. "Anyway, what do you think?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah! Same, uhm," Jungkook stammers. "I also thought about their collective relationsh- I mean, collective identity and multiple identities and-"
You purse your lips as you take in his whole demeanor, like a nervous child fumbling with his words. "Did you not watch the movie?"
He did watch the movie. In fact, Jungkook watched it three times over the weekend because that's how much he liked it. When he registered for this class - History of Popular Cinema - at the end of last semester, he was hoping that it'd be an easy elective so he could focus more on basketball and his core courses. And for the most part, this film class is easy. All he has to do is watch movies and hand in a few short essays every now and then. Piece of cake.
Then the final paper rolls around and the professor assigns everybody a partner to work with. In theory, it should still be a piece of cake, because there still isn't that much to do anyway.
So why is it so fucking hard all of a sudden?
Jungkook had never really noticed you before you became his designated collaborator for the month. Never saw you on campus, never saw you attending the games. Hell, he didn't even know your name until this final assignment.
"I watched it," he defends himself lamely.
"Okay. And?"
"It was good."
You frown, and all Jungkook can think about is how adorable that crease between your eyebrows is. How he just wants to reach across the table and smooth it over, or better yet, kiss it away.
He's fully aware of how stupid he must look, with his sweaty palms and his words falling over each other like goddamn Jenga pieces, in front of a girl that he's been obsessed with for weeks now. Jungkook doesn't normally do crushes, but the more time he spends with you to work on this lame ass paper, the more he finds his mind drifting to you even when you're not in his vicinity.
He thinks you're so pretty when you absentmindedly bite your lip whenever you're concentrating. He thinks you always smell like jasmine, and he's delighted by how your scent lingers on his own clothes after every time you meet, like he's carrying home a reminder of you. He thinks you're ten leagues smarter than him when you text him whole paragraphs detailing how postmodern filmmakers flirt with the concept of identity fragmentation through different types of cinematic manifestation as a reflection of the realistic postmodern person, because what the fuck does that even mean?
"You're not doing a very good job at convincing me you watched the movie," you say.
Jungkook groans internally - and a little externally too - as he runs a hand down his face. "I watched it, I promise," he tells you. "I watched it, and I really liked it. It made me think about a lot of deep shit that I don't normally think about."
"Uh huh," you say slowly. Your frown is still there, but now it's embedded in confusion as you try to understand his dilemma. "Then tell me about that. What was the deep shit?"
"I can't."
"Why not?"
How is he supposed to explain that every single thought he had suddenly grew legs and yeeted itself out the window the second he saw you arrive today, wearing a stunning smile and a t-shirt that says Caution: Full of Shenanigans? Not once in his entire life had Jungkook felt so no thoughts, head empty.
"Because I can't think around you," he settles on being honest. "Because I keep thinking about you when you're not here, yet when you are, I can't even think at all."
It takes a minute for his words to sink into your brain, and Jungkook watches nervously as a blush spreads across your cheeks, so rosy that he just wants to grab your face and pepper kisses all over. For the first time since he has known you, you don't know how what to say.
The sight of you, rendered speechless by him being rendered an idiot, has Jungkook blushing too. Despite the patch of bashful silence that ensues, somewhere outside the metaphorical windows of his and your minds, both your thoughts are riding off into the sunset together, holding hands.
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all rights reserved © jeonqkooks. reposting, translating and/or modifying is not permitted by any means. [posted 27.05.2023]
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maleyanderecafe · 4 months
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Your favorite yandere visual novels? PS:can you reccomend some for me?
Hmmm, good question. I think most of the yandere visual novels I like tend to be ones that are less well known since I've played so many (as a person who has to feed my blog), I tend to like more unique yandere games instead of those which are more popular. And also anything that has a sub yandere (personality or otherwise) tends to have my heart as well. That being said, there are some more popular yanderes on here too just because I do like some of those ones as well.
Cemetery Mary - I'm procrastinating on doing a recommendation on this one because I want to also play Blackout Hospital since it goes a bit more into the yandere, but I really like how this story is and how is shows the reveal of the yandere. Mary is also very cute and a very interesting and fun main character.
The Snake's Taken a Spouse - this one is r18 and plays more like Degrees of Lewdity, and the artwork isn't that good, but Shimil is... charming. I like him and I feel bad for everything that he has to go through. It's cool seeing how he tries his best for you.
Sweetest Valentine/Where Two Flowers Meet - I'm lumping these two together mostly because I just like the way that Syllphan writes stories. They both are very different from each other but have pretty interesting takes on yanderes. I need to double check if For Amerta has one, but even if it doesn't I'll probably still love the game.
Karamu - Karamu... is just really well done. I really like stylized games and Karamu does it wonderfully with it's blue color scheme and comic book like aesthetic. Plus we get to slowly unveil the mystery the main character has gotten herself into.
Stuck in a Yandere Visual Novel.... Help!! - from what I played in the first demo, I really like the comedy in this one. It knows the yandere trope pretty well so I like how they play around with it. Everything is kind of in a cutesy pink aesthetic, which is also a fun thing. I really need to get around to finishing the game.
ITYH: Horror Otome/Saccharine - Saccharine is less of a visual novel, but like with Syllhan, I really like Amiralo's writing style. Most of their stories are bittersweet with not so happy endings in a lot of them, and very interesting yanderes overall.
Mushroom Oasis - I'm pretty guilty of trying to get a bunch of people to play the game but listen, Mycheal is very cute and I really like his design. The creator is still working on it and it has become one of the most popular yandere games under the yandere tag on itch.io, so that's probably a good sign right?
Froot Basket Valentine / Froot Basket Dark Chocolate - Dark Chocolate is a prequel to Valentine, but they are both fun to play through. Valentine is a bit more goofy since you see everyone's heads as fruits for the most part while Dark Chocolate is far darker. But it is cool seeing how the yandere progresses in each of these stories.
Heart Fragment - very well made game, though Kay is kind of a light but clingy yandere. And boy do I love my clingy yanderes. Still this is probably one of those games that we play more for the story rather than the yandere. Still would totally recommend it because it is very, VERY well made.
The Science of Staying Awake - big fan of the concept of someone- Something that so desperately wants to hold you but also drives you insane if you do? That's very cool and the horror on that is really creepy if you think about it and also a bit sad.
Kimbark Street - I like seeing the point of view of yanderes, or just any character that is on the more evil side. You can really see how their obsession drives them and what they will do to get what they want, whether the person they love knows it or not.
You can probably see I don't have as many dark yandere games on this list, which is mostly because while I do enjoy darker yandere content (in terms of murder sims and whatnot) I also am not the target audience for them since I love to torture my yanderes, not be tortured by them. Still, I can admit that they are fun to play through. I have a lot more that I like, but here is hopefully a good list of games that you too might enjoy.
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thewertsearch · 11 months
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TG: i will be your server TG: and past me will stay as roses server TG: which is to say present me will TG: the one in the black suit GG: ohh… GG: i guess that makes sense TG: he can keep managing her for a while TG: until she sorta checks out soon and becomes totally useless
Rose is already detached from the party, following unseen orders in service of an unseen plan - but according to Dave, she's going to get worse.
This, I assume, is the point at which she becomes obscured from Kanaya's viewport. Rose is going to keep digging this hole, right up until she reaches some critical point on her timeline - and then, if I'm reading correctly between the lines, she's going to fall apart.
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Final alchemy session, let's go!
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Hey, calm down! Just because it's snowing outside doesn't mean it's Christmas just yet.
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We're certainly getting close...
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STEP OFF. … You decide he can keep the SORD….. though.
Abandoning your best weapon? A poor tactical decision by the Knight.
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TT: Did you do anything on the moon besides rifle through my belongings? TT: Such as remove your shades and turn your gaze Ringward, by any chance? [...] TG: i did TT: What did you see? TG: horrible things [...] TG: when i saw them TG: their voices became clearer TT: What were they saying? TG: i couldnt really focus on anything specific TG: but TG: in totality TG: im pretty sure it was TG: like TT: ? TG: a plea for help
That's a little vague - but then again, they may be so alien to us that they're not able to communicate more clearly. This might be the closest thing to a human-readable message that the Gods can create.
This is probably a good place to put my transcription of the Squiddle song from Jade's nap. Much of it is unintelligible, but the parts we can hear are rather illuminating.
Squiddles are no ordinary friends, they work, and play, and work again. But they have homes, and mommies too; yes, they have mommies just like you.
Firstly, the Squiddles try to explain that they're not completely different from us. They're extraordinary creatures, practically incomprehensible to the Players - and yet, they have a home. They have loved ones. They play.
They repeat this assertion twice, as though they desperately want the Players to understand this.
So let them go to bed right now, so they can rest, and make cute sounds. If they can't rest they won't be strong …and they are really tiny.
They go on to say that they're exhausted. They need to rest, but something is keeping them busy. As a result, they're becoming 'tiny' and weak.
They can't make the 'cute sounds' that they're known for, which I suspect is a metaphor for the advice they normally dispense to Derse Dreamers, but I'm less sure about that.
[Unintelligible] …so let them sleep... …cause they will die if…
At this point, the music begins to fade out - but not before we hear that the Squiddles' lives are in danger. Something out in the depths of space is killing the Noble Circle of Horrorterrors.
Squiddle dee dee, squiddle dee dum. Everyone sing, a Squiddley song. Let's all be friends, And work as a team. Squiddles for you, Squiddles for me.
The final verse is self-explanatory.
It's unclear what, exactly, is happening out in the Furthest Ring, but it's dire enough that the Horrorterrors are reaching out to their neighbors, the Players of Sburb, and asking them to form an alliance.
We're seeing that alliance through Feferi, who has convinced them to blow the Dream Bubbles and link the two sessions. We're also seeing it through Rose, the only human Player willing to listen to the Squiddles' song - but her situation is more murky. I do think I understand her mental state a little better, though.
Rose is acting on Horrorterror advice - which means she's acting on whispers, corrupted images and half-heard fragments of a song. I don't think the Gods are manipulating her so much as they're playing a game of Telephone with her brain. They can't relay direct instructions, so the best they can do is transmit the vibe of what needs to happen, and the Seer has to figure the rest out for herself.
No wonder she's so evasive about her plan - I don't think she understands more than a quarter of it. She isn't nearly as in-control of the situation as she's pretending to be, and if she admits as much to John, she'd probably lose her nerve.
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wishwingalpha · 6 months
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I drew were I think Joel and Lizzie’s fragments would apear. I know they don’t actually glow out of cloathing/shoes— but I wanted to show where they were. (Yes they are falling in the void, shhh it can be different colors they are glowing.)
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Explanation;
Lizzie has two fragments, one from last life and one from secret life. I hc that she fragments more easily and hers are much larger than pretty much anyone else’s. (Other than mumbo)
Her fragment from last life is on her back for the amount of times she was backstabbed/ betrayed in the series. (Obviously I couldn’t draw her back and her face so.. too bad-?) but I imagine that the fragment covers the majority of her back.
The fragment from secret life is on her face almost like tears. This was the heartbreak of no one coming to her party, and how the rest of her series played out after that was quite tragic to be fair, she never really got any revenge or closure.
Joel are e v e r y w h e r e.
He’s been on every series and never won so he’s just got a bunch. Most of his fragments are small because I don’t think the watchers would get much from him. The only times they get to feed off of him is usually because of the loss of his wife, only sometimes from a team mate. He isn’t usually close to people in most series, just causing chaos.
3rd life’s fragment is on his foot. I did this because of the kinda funny way he dies trying to put the fire on his house out but dies in the process. So yeah— he kinda just stepped in the fire. (Fairly small fragment cause he ain’t got no friends)
Last life is the neck because of how he always had it out for people, putting a target on him. (Again no friends except for scar but they barely counted as allys) ((lmao I didn’t know where to put this one really ))
Double life is his hand. I did this because boat boys and it’s like he’s rowing the boat (idk that’s my reasoning) I imagine Etho has one on the opposite hand because they are rowing the boat together <3 ( you get it right? They both have an oar to row the boat with) This was the first time Joel has a meaningful alliance, and it’s bigger than the first two fragments.
Limited life is his chest/heart. I felt that this was when Joel had the biggest connection with his team and was completely distraught when Jimmy died. The watchers were eating that shit UP. ( the fragment reaches out to his arm that’s why it looks like there’s six. I totally DIDNT make a random one somehow and am making an excuse for it being there)
Secret life is on his face, matching his wife, how cute. This was because of all the heartbreak he endured in the episodes including and following the wither-warden battle. He loses Lizzie, Jimmy, and mumbo all in one day and then on the last episode is the reason that Scott is able to kill Bdubs when he accidentally shot him. Overall just real sad times for him. And not even that— he dies to Scott once again, the one person he wanted dead the entire episode.
His fragments grow larger each season as he grows closer to the other players.
Edit— yes I know the fragments don’t look how they do canonically, but they look cool so shhhh. Also the ones I said are small but don’t look small in the picture, also just mistakes.
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arachnidamoon · 10 months
Note
Ok may I shall make request,
It’s basically a fluffy hyperfixation I had that I wish to make true but I am no writer sooooooo-
Plz?
Request: Do you do muzan stuff I hope you do- ok ok listen, muzan finding a child (y/n) in the middle of the woods and some how fell in love with the sweetheart, like loves us so much he will literally have the upper moons be body guards for this little human child-
And when I mean fell in love I mean platonically- I hope this is good- you can change whatever you want, your the writer!
Yes, I love the idea! So cute! Also, I'm weak for anything related to Muzan or the Upper Moons.
I tried my best to fit everything into one story, but I hope you like it 🥺!
Adoption (Muzan + Upper Moons + Child! Gn! Reader)
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"You will look after my child until I get back."
Muzan glared at the Upper Moons as he made his order clear. His gaze only softened when he glanced at (Name)’s sleepy form in his arms. Muzan brushed a strand of hair out of their face, admiring how adorable they were. He would never admit that out loud, though. At least not in front of his subordinates.
"Not even an ounce of harm should come to (Name), so make sure you attend them correctly."
Muzan had to leave to investigate a lead that could bring him to finally find what he had long been searching for: the Blue Spider Lily. That led to a problem: he had to find someone to take care of (Name). A frown appeared on his face because, in all honesty, he didn’t want to leave his child with the Upper Moons. (Name) was human. Fragile. His subordinates, some more than others, could be a menace to the safeness of the little one.
He had no other option, though. They were the only ones strong enough to protect (Name). Muzan rubbed his temples, trying to calm down. The memories of when he found (Name) were still engraved in his mind.
——————————————————————————
The demon lord was walking around the forest, trying to find some sort of information about the whereabouts of the Blue Spider Lily. It had been snowing since the morning, making walking around the area at night difficult. Even for him. Still, he wasn’t going to let any sort of valuable information go to waste without checking it first.
Like always, it was useless information. His face turned to one of pure anger as he hit the nearest tree, which made some fragments of snow fell on top of him. Muzan brushed it off his clothes, his red eyes narrowing. He only cared about one thing right now: his and his subordinates' constant failures to find the flower he desired so much. And that was the sole reason behind his anger.
He was about to leave when a mumbled crying noise got his attention. A child. A small one, too. Muzan got closer, trying to see what was going on. And he found (Name). The human child was covered in snow, sobbing, shaking, and trying to warm up. They were quite young—around four years old. As soon as their eyes met, they stopped crying.
"Dada!"
The child wrapped their tiny arms around his leg, their (e/c) eyes fully focused on the man in front of them. Muzan wasn’t the type to feel sympathy for anyone, but his cold heart slightly melted as the human child called him father. He decided to pick them up, wrapping his arms around (Name). Muzan tried to warm the child's body, his free hand cleaning the snow off their shoulders and hair. It wasn't long until he heard a grumble from the little one's stomach.
"Let’s get you something to eat."
——————————————————————————
Now, Muzan had fully adopted (Name) as his child. All the demons knew about it since he told them. They also remembered that meeting very well. His announcement included two things: a phrase about adopting (Name) and some threats. Just in case someone decided to hurt his child.
Muzan stopped recalling the past. He had things to do. So, he finally tucked (Name) in their bed, leaning in to kiss their forehead. After that, he sat on the edge of their bed, giving instructions to his subordinates. (Name) kept peacefully sleeping the whole time, unaware of what her father was still talking about with the Upper Moons.
"If (Name) has even the slightest complain about any of you, be sure you’ll never live to see another day."
After the threat, Muzan promised himself to go back home quickly. He would check if the information was authentic, and he would return. After all, he never fully trusted the Upper Moons. Muzan put his hat on, staring at the door of (Name)'s bedroom. His eyes met a drawing (Name) had made of them, making him smile for a mere second. Then he left.
——————————————————————————
The time (Name) was able to share with the Upper Moons went by without incident. All of them acted in different ways, but the demons grew to adore the little human child.
Kokushibo acted like a guardian, not allowing anyone to hurt (Name). The Upper One was once on a walk at night with the child. As soon as they kept walking, a group of kids slightly older than (Name) crashed into them, making the little one fall to the ground. The situation didn’t end well. At first, Kokushibo asked several times for them to apologize. When they didn't, he didn’t hesitate to unsheathe his katana. A warning look in his six eyes.
"I’ll not repeat myself anymore. Apologize to (Name)-sama or face the consequences."
The kids were quick to bow now, apologizing to (Name). Once they finished, they flew away with pale faces filled with cold sweat. (Name) turned to Kokushibo, thanking him. Their eyes glinted with admiration, and their adorable smile was back on their faces.
"Whoa, you are amazing! Dad has such a strong warrior by his side!"
Kokushibo couldn’t help but crack a slight smile as the child praised him, picking them up in his arms as they carried the child back to Muzan’s house.
Douma loved playing with (Name). He was the most outgoing and affectionate of them. The Upper Two liked to make sure the little one was happy and entertained. He bought (Name) toys, tickled them, read them stories before they went to bed, and even took them to the Eternal Paradise Faith. His followers whispered and looked at the child with confusion, unable to fathom where they came from. Still, they treated (Name) with the uttermost respect. After all, their Lord Founder's guests were their guests too.
"(Name)-sama, look! I made an ice sculpture of you! Isn’t it cute?" The Upper Moon placed a small sculpture on the child's hands, signaling them to look closely at it. An excited expression in the Upper Two features.
"It is! Is super cute!" (Name)'s bright smile as they admired their present was contagious, which made Douma smile back at them.
Much like Kokushibo, Akaza was like a guardian for the little one. He was always around the kid as much as he could, trying to avoid other demons from hurting (Name). Akaza always stayed by their side as they slept, alert to any sound. One of those nights, Douma tried to enter (Name)’s room to sleep by their side, wanting to give affection to the child.
"(Name)-sama is sleeping. Get lost." With that, Akaza closed the door in Douma’s face, not allowing the Upper Two to even speak before doing so.
Hantengu used his clones around (Name) since they were able to take better care of the child than him. Sekido was the scariest one for (Name). Not only because he acted like an authoritative figure but also because of how easily he got angry. Patience was not his strong suit, but luckily Aizetsu was always by their side to calm Sekido down. Meanwhile, Urogi and Karaku cracked jokes around (Name), wanting to make them laugh. Urogi also loved taking (Name) in his arms as he was flying, always making the kids' eyes widen in amazement. Their little hands held onto him as they giggled.
"More, please!" (Name) always begged when Urogi landed, wanting to experience that again.
Gyokko spent his time with (Name) doing more creative activities. He taught the child how to paint and draw, although only the basics. (Name) loved his explanations, admiring his work as he taught them. The child got closer to the vase he was painting, and when he was about to tell them to step back because of how easily it could break, (Name) said something.
"Your work is so pretty!" That was such an ego boost for Upper Five that he even allowed the child to paint one of his vases.
Daki was the most reluctant to bond with (Name) at first. She didn’t want to interact with the human that now had Muzan’s full attention, not understanding what was so special about them. Still, she was unable to avoid the kid when, one day, they grabbed her leg, giving her puppy eyes and the most adorable look she had ever seen. The Upper Six melted, hugging the child.
"I’ll be your older sister from now on!"
Since then, Daki started pampering (Name) a lot. She bought them cute, expensive clothes. She made sure (Name)'s outfits were always up-to-date with the latest trends. Daki would brush the child's hair, loving to see how shiny it got each time she brushed it. When Gyutaro was out too, they went out for walks or even to food stalls
All of this led the Upper Moons to want to spend more time with (Name), becoming both attached and protective of the little one.
But soon, Muzan came back. The demon lord was quick to snatch his child away from them.
"Your work here is done."
The Upper Moons were all devastated when Muzan told them that. Some showed it more than others. Daki was even about to whine, but then (Name) spoke.
"Dad, I want to see them more often. Please."
(Name) begged, not wanting to say goodbye to the Upper Moons. Muzan sighed, but he ended up agreeing. He would go to any lengths for (Name), after all.
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hiiragi7 · 23 days
Text
Related to my post the other day regarding rethinking different aspects of my identity: I've decided I'd like to try out she/her pronouns in addition to they/them.
Gender identity is... complicated. Growing up, I always felt like an imposter regardless of what gender I presented as. I was always anxious about my friends finding out I wasn't really like them. There was always all this pressure to be gender-conforming, and I never quite fit into any gender.
When I was little, I presented as a boy, and prior to final fusion most of the littles in my system were boys. Being a boy meant I could do whatever I wanted, be interested in whatever I wanted, wear whatever I wanted, as long as it wasn't feminine. I was fine with that, for a while.
Sometime in middle school, I decided I wanted to experiment with femininity and presenting as a girl, and I leaned very hard in that direction - I started growing my hair out, tried to make my voice higher, wore clothes I thought were "girly", wore cute hair accessories, anything I could to be seen as a girl and fit in.
Exploring what being feminine meant to me was a very important step forward in my life and I learned a lot about myself and what I liked, but I also faced a lot of sexualization and violence for being a girl. There was a lot of trauma that came with it. Prior to final fusion, a lot of the parts in my system from this time period and going forward were either girls or ambiguous, with a handful of very feminine boys. I learned I liked being feminine, but existing as a girl scared me.
In highschool, I came out as nonbinary and started using they/them pronouns, which I was bullied for. I didn't really know what exactly my gender was, just that it didn't neatly fit into a box. I wanted both masculinity and femininity, but I rejected being either a girl or a boy. When I was 17, I started HRT and was kicked out for being trans & on hormones.
At 18, I learned I was intersex. I then had a total hysterectomy related to hormonal issues.
Living as a multiple with DID, I had all these different lived experiences with gender that were all seperated off from each other and fragmented into parts. I couldn't even begin to imagine any sort of collective gender for myself. Everything about my experiences with gender felt so contradictory. No matter what labels I tried out, none of them ever really felt right for very long. It always felt like my attempts to describe and make sense of my gender identity were approximate at best, never quite grasping what my gender really was. (Nowadays, I find a lot of comfort in vague queer identities, ones that are broad and don't stress about the details.)
Now that I have fully fused, I have access to all these different varied experiences of gender that each of my parts held and it's been really forcing me to sit down and rethink my entire approach to my gender identity. It's rough but I can tell I've been needing this for a long time. When I really think about it, I really do want to be a girl in some form, I'm just scared of how others will react if I say that.
Along with that fear, though, is this need to live as myself regardless. If my gender shifts again sometime in the future, that's okay, and either way I can deal with how others may or may not feel about me.
This is a more personal post than usual, but I've been finding myself wanting to talk more about how final fusion has been for me, and how the ways I view myself has changed following it, and gender is a pretty major one for me.
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nobody-for-sure · 2 years
Text
Language Barrier
If you didn’t pay attention to the interludes, they’re going to start tying in now. Also, if you have yet to read the story’s important notes (I don’t know why you wouldn’t have, since I’ve already asked on a previous chapter as well as the masterlist), it’s never too late to correct a mistake. It’s been semi-updated recently as well, so another quick reread/skim is never a bad idea.
Chapter 14
(~3.2k words, see chapter list here)
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You didn't expect this.
Maybe you should have. But by all accounts, your life has always been... pretty average. Things happened. People came and went. You were there, but not really. Sometimes, you seemed to be an outside observer of your own life, just watching things happen with no control over them. Sometimes, nothing felt right. You were the sort of person who wouldn't mind getting isekai'd, because you didn't have a ton of attachments to your world... at least, that's what you always told yourself.
So then why are you crying?
You lift a hand to your tear-stained cheek as your companions snooze away nearby. The sky is getting lighter, but the sun has not yet broken over the horizon as you rise from your borrowed sleeping bag and take a few steps away from the camp. You take a seat on the riverbank, watching the water lap gently against the shore.
There's no 'if's, 'and's, or 'but's about it: you're homesick.
You had a dream again. Like before, you can't remember all of it, but you cling to fragments, trying to piece them together.
You were back home again... though the word 'home' feels funny on your tongue, as if it's not quite right. You remember a bunch of people: friends and loved ones of yours. You can't recall if they were gathered for a specific event or purpose, or if they were just all there by coincidence because that's how dreams work. Nor can you recollect what anyone said to you, which leaves you the most ill at ease, because you have a feeling it was something important.
Even Autumn was there. You don't know what Autumn looks like in real life, but your dream had assigned them a random figure, and you knew instinctively who they were. Who else could it be? They gave you a sad smile from across the room as the others were talking, and it haunts you. Why are you sad, my friend? Why am I?
Answers. Liyue will have answers. It has to.
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Your first encounter with slimes happens around mid-morning. You haven't quite reached the Stone Gate outpost when you pass a rich vein of Cor Lapis, and out pop several small geo slimes.
They're cute, just as you expected. Not quite as cute as the official art made them out to be, but very small and squishy. Very... squeezable.
You want to hug one.
Luck must be on your side, because the slimes start bouncing directly toward you. Your companions ready their weapons, and Noelle moves to shield you. She succeeds in blocking most of them, but one of them slips past her and bumps against your leg.
"Ouch!" It wasn't a hard bump by any means, but even without the thick armor of a larger geo slime, the little rock-horns on its head are sharp enough to scrape your leg. The slime seems a little surprised as well, and nudges against your leg more gently. Aw... that's kind of sweet.
"Xaue kigxm, kxg aue egqu?!" Amber exclaims frantically.
You imagine she's concerned for your welfare, so you wave your hand dismissively. A little scratch is far from what it takes to do you in; but your companions are here to take their escort mission seriously. Fischl twirls her bow with dramatic flair and gestures to Oz. "Ujrgbfu, rxalta enz ymtoc jtg kmtarv kyknz yjtkol uzto rgtxkzk yyktqxgj!"
"Es ymtoc kxg ejgkxrg jkrxalta, toks tokragxl," he responds, swooping up next to Noelle as the outrider and the princess take aim from a short distance. Meanwhile, Bennett rushes over to you, preparing to defend you from the slime currently rubbing against you.
You wave your hands frantically at him. "Wait, no! I think they're friendly!"
He pauses, giving you a searching look. "You... ztuj ztgc us uz qigzzg?" he says, sounding unsure of himself. The others stop to glance at you as well. In response, you lean down to pet the slime. It's got a bit of a dusty texture, like a box that's been in the attic too long, but it's not wholly unpleasant. It's also really...
......really......?
For some reason, your mind feels hazy as you search for the right words. It's...?
You slump to the ground, causing shouts of alarm from your companions. Simultaneously, the slime puffs up, expanding to more than half the width of the walkway and gaining a rocky plate of armor. Amber and Fischl unleash a volley of arrows, and Oz starts firing off bolts of lightning. With a sweep of her claymore, Noelle bats what's left of the smaller slimes into the stream nearby and rushes back to you, inserting herself firmly between you and the still-growing slime. "Kygkrv kbgkr yonz uz ya, xaue kigxm!" Bennett also steps up, his eyes narrowed in fiery determination as his sword starts to glow with pyro.
You clutch your head, too dazed to stop them. What the fuck just happened?
With difficulty, you try to focus as your companions whack away at the giant slime. You're tired... no, not tired. You're weak, like all the strength has left your body. But how? And why? Are you such a weak god that you're so easily bested by a slime of all things?
Nope, you're pretty sure this is the clincher. No way are you a god. Goodbye, cruel world. I hardly knew you.
The fight is over almost as soon as it began. You don't know who deals the final blow (or shot). One second the slime is there, getting battered from all sides; the next, it's gone. You can feel the difference, though. It's like a change in the air. A sudden wave of energy washes over you, and the fog in your head clears abruptly as your strength returns to you.
You feel... fine. Better, in fact, if that's even possible. But your confusion doubles now that you can think clearly again. Did that slime absorb your energy somehow? Did you just absorb energy from a slime?? ...Come to think of it, the game had those elemental particle things... have you charged up your (nonexistent) elemental burst??? Can you-
"Xaue kigxm!" The collective voices of your companions snap you out of your thoughts. Now that the danger has passed, everyone crowds around you anxiously.
"Sorry- I'm fine, thank you... sorry," you repeat. You're not quite sure what you're apologizing for - you didn't manifest the slimes; but you seem to be to blame for making the battle of greater difficulty than necessary, so it feels like the appropriate thing to do.
Bennett translates while rapidly shaking his head, as if disagreeing. "No 'sorry'!" he says when he finishes, obviously trying to use words you'll understand. "'Thank you'... yes; no 'sorry'!" It's awkward phrasing, reminiscent of Razor, but it gets the message across. You give him a small smile.
Amber puts a comforting hand on your shoulder while Noelle kneels and starts digging around in her bag. "Yzgnz znmox, yzo zut xaue zragl, xaue kigxm! Ztuj exxuc zauhg g mtonz, krrkut rroc kbgn aue jknizgv va to ut ksoz!" the outrider says cheerfully. The maid pulls a cloth and a roll of bandages out of her pack and starts dabbing at your leg. Now that your initial shock has worn off, you realize that the slime's horns gouged you a little deeper than you originally thought. You wince as she gently fishes a pebble out of the shallow wound.
All in all, not a great start to your day... and your disappointment that you won't be gaining a slime companion is immeasurable. But as Noelle sets the cloth down and begins diligently wrapping your leg, you realize something good did come of the situation.
The cloth is stained a vibrant gold.
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Your mood picks up considerably when you reach Dihua Marsh, and Wangshu Inn looms in the distance. With your destination in sight, the party is rejuvenated, and everyone picks up the pace. Truthfully, it's bigger and even more beautiful than you imagined, especially with the afternoon light hitting it just right - but that's not why you're excited, of course.
"Eh knz egc," Amber ventures as you cross the bridge, "yonz yo erhghuxv g jgh ksoz uz qyg, zah... uj etg lu aue qgkvy kykaeor? O zyap cutq tgoxksay."
"I cutq g zoh," Bennett replies proudly. "Knz yjgj kbgn tkkh mtonigkz me. You xkbkt cutq zgnc kxaue mtoum uz xkztauitk mtoxaj tg kxaztkbjg!" He scratches the back of his head sheepishly. "Na, zgnz jogy... uy xgl yzo erzyus ioygh tuozgyxkbtui jtg rgtuozgazoy llazy zauhg ykosktk, uy so zut kxay cun ralkya zgnz rroc kh."
Fischl gives a closed-mouth laugh that reminds you of an anime villainess, minus the ill intentions. "Xgkl zut, es rgeur yzikphay! Enz jkskkzyk toyykftoxv yo jkztogawig nzoc etgs ykamtuz to xkjxu uz erxkvuxv kzgiotassui nzoc rrg xkn jkzubkj yxkcurrul."
"Knz zygr quuh to xkn kzoxubgl ykoxky ztjoj zkm jkzgrytgxz, uy kny jkojazy kzoaw eryauoigxub uz kky zo uz yzo tuoyaritui."
"Fu!"
Noelle clears her throat. "Errgazig, o uyrg cutq kzoaw g zoh. O ztjrauc um uy xgl yg uz rrgi lrkyes ztkarl, zah o tgi kzgmobgt zyus ytuozgyxkbtui."
"Qtgnz yyktjuum!" Amber breathes a sigh of relief. "O ztjoj cutq zgnc kc kxkc mtoum uz uj xul g kzatos kxknz."
As she speaks, a man hurries down the steps of the inn. Spotting your group, he rushes over, planting himself in front of you in a deep bow. "Xy wy ro varal ax uf ry veai ugruwuvs, veai uryzyh ugovk. Uzub ruuf kryxguscu eai hro veai huquuxwu wuxipago, hro ub hpeab uf huwoups hraiuf uvewouq ax vujja vea upfqel wugyzvuw aw xolx eai xlkyq xwuv iwou kryveh veai wpuzovx."
Blankly, you look to your companions, waiting for one of them to handle it. Fischl steps forward. "Veai ixypoxyswal wy xwaq huxoyguvsso," she says, and is it your imagination, or does she sound slightly less confident than normal? "Vyulx ugovk wxsuggo ilx- veai weavuruk vujja, hro hpealw unyp ax ukpehry ry o pouq hro o wxlkyr xwuv uvajuf iulx hro vyulx ueryxuv ueryxrag vyulx rayxoryvkuvus- iurveam."
"Erkiot ktuj, toks tokragxl," Oz murmurs, and she puffs out her chest a bit, looking pleased.
"Ja uwveag, ja uwveag!" The man rises, sweeping a hand toward the building. "Vuzuxolb vyulx ugovk wuvywuh, jy xy wy rylxyb vea vubas ax uhyzavs, ub ppolw. Uwoups, bappo uq ax balw eai ax ulx vaxozupu." It would seem you're being offered a formal invitation. Fischl's gaze flickers to you, and you dip your head cautiously. She gives him a dignified nod, and Noelle waves you forward when he turns and starts walking. The others fall into step behind you.
When you get to the wooden platform, the man heads left toward the elevator. You pause. It took you forever to get the commissions to fix the stairs, so you're damn proud of them. But if no one's going to use them, what was even the point?
So be it. You'll use them, if no one else will.
You extend a finger in that direction and tip your head to your companions, indicating you want to go that way. They look at each other, shrug, and nod amicably. Everyone changes their course to see the fruits of your (aka the traveler's) labor; but as you reach the bottom step, you notice Bennett hanging back warily. "What is it?"
"Sa... ykxknz no mtorogx tu ktu kjoy," he says, licking his lips nervously. "Zo yquur jtoq lu- I zyap qtonz- zo znmos kh xkzzkh xul me uz kqgz knz xuzgbkrk yonz ksoz, gngn. Sorry." He points apologetically to himself, and then in the direction the other man disappeared. You're confused. He wants to take the elevator? Everyone else looks like they understand his request immediately, though, so you give him a nod.
Fischl falls back as well. "To zgnz kygi, enz toyykftoxv rrgny etgvsuiig aue to knz ztkbk lu... skng... tkkykxulta ykitgzysaixoi." She puts a hand on his shoulder and gives you a wave as the two of them round the corner, disappearing from sight.
Well... alright then. Their actions strike you as a bit strange without further context, but you assume they have their reasons. Even if they're just tired from walking the whole day, that's good enough for you.
You turn back around. Noelle gives you a supportive smile, and Amber gestures eagerly, already climbing the steps. The three of you set a leisurely pace, stopping to lean against the railing and admire the new view every time you round a corner. Mondstadt is no less scenic, but it’s full of rolling hills; Wangshu Inn is perfectly positioned between the flat marsh and the plains, providing a rare and spectacular view of nearly all of Liyue. Amber is enthralled by the floating Statue of the Seven in the distance, pointing and gawking in excitement. Meanwhile, Noelle seems content to simply enjoy the way the sunlight glints off the water as the first autumn leaves flutter past.
...Autumn.
You shake your head. Think about something else. Think about... think about Xiao. The thought spurs you on. Wangshu Inn might be a convenient place to spend the night, but you didn't come all this way to not see the yaksha. In fact, you'd been privately hoping to stop here for that very reason. With renewed vigor, you urge your companions onward, taking the steps two at a time in an effort to leave your less-than-pleasant thoughts behind you.
In no time at all, you reach the landing, and you round the corner without stopping, ignoring the gaping passerby and giving a wave to an unfazed Verr Goldet as you continue up to the second balcony. Your excitement grows with every step. If your friendship level theory is correct - as it seems to be - you should be able to understand Xiao better than anyone else you've encountered so far.
...In fact, being who he was, he'd probably know you were coming, wouldn't he? Do you dare to hope that he might be... waiting for you? You put on a burst of speed, stumbling up the last couple steps. And, sure enough, standing by the overlook waiting for you is-
-no one. But up on the roof-
...also no one.
In your dreams, a voice taunts in your head.
This is just not your day.
You purse your lips, reluctant to give up so quickly. There's still one option. Should I call him?
You don't get time to think about it. Amber and Noelle finish pounding up the last flight of stairs behind you, looking mildly winded from the sudden exertion. "Xaue kigxm-" Noelle starts, but doesn't get any further before Oz swoops over the balcony.
"Toks tokragxl ygn ztky ks uz sxulto aue zgnz knz xuzgbkrk yo qiazy," he says calmly. "Kny yegy, jtg o kzuaw, 'yg jkzikvdk'."
This draws a sigh from both of them. Amber brings a dismayed hand to her forehead. "Qig, kc kxkc zyap zauhg kaj xul mtonzksuy kqor yonz, ztkxkc kc? Zo kxay ztjoj kqgz mtur xul yon jgh qiar uz qioq to kitu kn jkzgxgvky suxl xoknz kigxm."
"Xuuv zzkttkh," Noelle says sympathetically. "Rro zkr knz xkvkkqtto cutq yzgnc jktkvvgn, aue kkxnz um qikni tu sknz." Amber nods and takes your hand. With some disappointment (which you do your best to hide), you allow her to guide you back down the stairs at a brisk pace, with Oz leading the way. This time, you cut straight through the inn and onto the opposite side of the landing, where the elevator and the teleport waypoint are.
Where the elevator should be, anyway.
Amber lets go of your hand and leans over the railing. "Kxg aue yeam znmoxrg?!" she shouts down.
You hear Bennett's awkward laughter as you peer over behind her, and you're alarmed by what you see. The elevator is stalled, dangling halfway between the two platforms. Even further down, the man who greeted you appears to be frantically checking over some sort of pulley system. Immediately, your eyes dart to the rigging at the top. Fortunately, nothing looks like it's about to snap... for now.
"Ztuj exxuc, yonz yo zyap xknzutg egj to knz klor lu tg xkxaztkbjg!" Bennett calls back up. He gives you both a thumbs up through the open doorway, though you notice he's otherwise pressed snuggly into a corner, looking cheerful as ever but not taking any chances. Fischl has made herself comfortable leaning against one of the walls, seeming almost bored with the whole affair. Justifiable, since you can only imagine how many times she's been through something like this. Oz glides back down to join his mistress.
"Ykrrkut mtozzkm knz xkvkkqtto," Amber responds. "So gttum qikni knz mtommox - o qtonz o kky mtonzksuy jkmmgty to kxknz." She gestures for you to stand back near the waypoint before shimmying up a post and beginning to fiddle with something out of your range of sight.
You do as she says, absently running your fingers over the waypoint as you look on uselessly. It's yet another instance where you can do nothing, and you're reminded again of just how much dead weight you are. It's beyond frustrating, and all the more so now that your golden blood has been revealed to you. What you thought would be a blessing is now seeming like a curse in disguise. Being a weak human mistaken for a god is one thing, but being a weak god? Why can't you do anything? Ugh, at least if these teleport points actually worked like they were supposed to, you wouldn't have to bother people with the mundane task of escorting you, if nothing else!
......Actually, wait a minute.
Do the waypoints work like in the game? When you cool your head a bit, you suddenly realize you haven't tried. Excluding the statue at Windrise, you haven't been this near to any until now - at least that you were paying attention to at the time.
You don't have the map, of course, but maybe you can just... think really hard about where you want to go? It's worth a shot. Best case scenario, you wind up exactly where you want to go. Worst case, it only works for the traveler (or as a game mechanic) and nothing happens. Either way, there's no harm in trying. If it works, you can just come right back and inform everyone.
You reach up to press your hand against the floating device. It's higher off the ground than it looked in the game but still easily within reach. The bluish material has an odd feel to it, one you're not quite sure how to describe. Magical, perhaps. The waypoint pulses with energy, and you feel confident it has to do something.
I want to go to Liyue Harbor, you think to yourself, trying to picture it in your mind's eye.
Nothing happens, but you're undeterred. Maybe you need to say it out loud. "Take me to Liyue Harbor," you say firmly, visualizing the overlook by the waypoint just outside the city.
...Still nothing.
You let your hand slide to the bottom in disappointment. This really isn't your day. First the ominous dreams... then I touch a slime and end up nearly fainting for some reason... and after that, I want to see Xiao, but he's not here, of course... and now all of this. What does it take for something to go my way, for once?!
And then everything goes white.
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John Doe (Malevolent) Propaganda:
Spooky gay eldritch disaster (am I doing this right?)
Could have chosen any name for himself and picked John because a kind person called him that :)
fractured piece of an eldritch god that shares a body with a private eye after being fractured. chooses the name John Doe after said private eye goes into a coma
Because he's an eldritch god who wants to feel human and who overcame a lot of obstacles and dangers!!! He sincerely cares about the main character!!! And he chose a name himself! Isn't he cute??? He lost his body, he almost lost his memory, he fought for his right to exist, he loves animals, he loves his friend Arthur and I love him!
Being an ass, friendship, spooky supernatural stuff, he’s got it all
My man heard the name John Doe, realized he didn’t actually have a name, and just. Took it for himself.
I LOVE HIM. MY SON. HE'S TRYING TO CHANGE AND BE BETTER AND :(((( He's a fragment of the soul of the King in Yellow (god of trickery and suffering iirc??) that gets trapped in a book in our realm while the rest of the King stayed in his own separate realm. When a human named Arthur Lester opens the book they get linked and John gains control of Arthur's eyes & kills his partner (oops!). They proceed to go on a quest to find a way of separating them because neither likes the situation, and at first John (or The Entity, which is what he's called at first) just wants to trick and use Arthur, and control his entire body (through the first season he also gets a hand & a foot) even though he doesn't remember being The King In Yellow at the time, but Arthur makes him change and become more human. His turning point is when Arthur is shot and falls into a coma for a month. They get treated at a hospital and while John waits for Arthur to wake up so they can carry on, the body itself still gets taken care of. The time John spends alone, contemplating on humanity & everything he's seeing and learning from Arthur, as well as the way a certain nurse speaks to him every day (specifically, she greets him good morning and good night, despite the body being unresponsive, John still hears because he is an entity linked to the body) and calls him John (they didn't have ID on when they were found so they were classified as John Doe), changes his outlook and plans for good, and he asks Arthur to call him John; from this point on he admits he cares for Arthur, looks for his wellbeing too, and in general attempts to be a better person and to live for himself. The rest of the podcast (ongoing!!) explores Arthur & John's relationship, struggle to survive, adventures in the eldritch… All while tackling each of their issues with themselves and each other and watching them both grow. John in specific learns to be the person he wants to be, how sometimes you'll take a step forward and two backwards; he can be cruel and manipulative sometimes but he still tries. Personally I love his journey, it's very realistic and you can see he is trying his best, and how he wants to be better than he was as the King In Yellow, and how much Arthur has changed him and how much he cares about him because of that; and how he's slowly growing into being his own person :) if it ends badly ill cry so hard but!!! he's John Doe because that's the name he was being addressed as, and he's made it his, and being John means he's no longer the King and that he wants to be different, and John can fail or make mistakes but it's part of who he is now, and that's what matters. I am So Normal About Him
JOHN DOE (Malevolent) SWEEP
John Doe (Ace Attorney) Propaganda:
technically John Doe is the fake name he uses to hide his identity as an assassin but uh, that's still the name he goes by. its because his real surname is literally "de killer" so.
His real name is Shelly de Killer, but he uses the pseudonym John Doe. Does that still count?
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borisbubbles · 8 days
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Eurovision 2024: #18
18. SAN MARINO Megara - "11:11" 33rd place
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Decade Ranking: 66/153 [Above Aiko, below Hooverphonic]
Soy "Otra Gente".
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Yes, ~Megara & Aiko~ back-to-back as a tribute to the blossoming new relationship. (how cute that these are the two LAST EVER entrants for both of those countries ♥). Star-crossed pansexuals forever tethered side-by-side in this ranked afterlife. THIS is how you do serendipitous running orders, Christer, fucking take notes. (Another fragment of my neurodivergent soul destoyed when he decided to put Megara 10th in the r/o and make 11:11 the 12th overall song to be performed that night).
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But Aiko and Megara also represent the duality of modern day NQs. While Aiko delivered a good vocal, glammed-up to a 7.5/10 and still died (lol though luck fighting those bookmakers, girl), Kenzie delivered an ABSOLUTELY ROTTEN VOCAL, downgraded to a 7.5/10 and logically died because it's San Fucking Marino. 😍
Like, idk how to break it to you, but for once, San Marino actually earned the Ironic Standom label. Let's start with the fact that they're repped by my fave act from last year's Benifest with a song about how unfairly robbed "Arcadia" was. ♥
M E
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P E L A
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M E P E L A
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Y si tú no me quieres otra gente me quierian
This year's line-up was so up my alley even the fanfiction was fucking me-coded.
And a fanfic it fucking was because in order to rep Scam Marino, Megara had to beat the following at Una Voce:
Jalisse, Italy's 97's reps (and erstwhile BubbleFaves) who TVSM found in a dusty retirement home somewhere in Italy, recruited as a Big Name, and who reportedly stormed out of the venue as soon as they were eliminated by the jury. (😍)
David Bowie's former flame Dana Gillespie, who sang an AI-written composition about climate change called "The last polar bear" (sample lyrics:" I'm just a polar bear trying to survive :old:" // "Is there someone out there who has mercy on a polar bear?" :old:) (and they HAD to admit this in the final because Una Voce's main sponsor was the company that wrote the AI script which composed the song lmfaooo ♥)
Nusa Derenda's son, who was part of a three-himbot boyband and was absolutely HORRIBLE (the other two did ALL of the lifting ♥), only for them to be completely omited from the first recap of the night (WILL THE BULLYING OF SLOVENIA EVER END?!)
Loredana Bertè, Mia Martini's estranged blue-haired sister who crossed over from San Remo for the sole purpose of terrorizing her ex-husband Björn Borg, and performed in her usual style: dressed as a schoolgirl (she's over 70 btw), hands in her pockets, fully disassociated, sounding like she was halfway through her fourth bottle of Disaronno.
How is ANY of this a waking reality?! Megara beating Loredana last-minute was the icing on the cake because while the notion of Pazza is funny enough (it rhymes "artifice" with "toothpaste" <3), Megara at least had... a concept? an Idea? A song?
And then we got to the contest itself. The preview comes in and has THE EXACT SAME IMPACT ON ME as Bambie's did in the first semi - STOP ALL THE PRESSES, I WANT TO SEE THIS IN FULL IDGAF ABOUT ANY OF THE OTHERS OR MY PERSONAL HEALTH AND RESPONSIBLIITIES!!!! you know, the usual hinged eurofan stuff.
When we finally got to the full live omg ♥ A fantastic act completely PULVERIZED into death by Kenzie's inability to perform ♥ From actually WALKING OFF THE SCREEN
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to having her own small Emily Roberts moment in the second chorus
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Shittastic. it worked because, thankfully, the song WAS fodder to begin with (no losses there) and the staging -conceptually at least- was visionary. This is probably the best San Marino have ever staged.
The delectable Dias De Muertos flamengo break ♥
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the haphazard trigger happy hazbin hotel fuschia fiesta freakshow aesthetics ♥
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the silly overlays that actually WORKED BETTER THAN LUX'S ♥
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THE DEMON RABBIT INTO DEMON CORPSES DANCERS ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
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This (metaphorical) shit was masterfully staged and Kenzy still served LOOKS AND ENERGY despite failing at everything else.
If you're going to be hopeless, then be hilariously bad at giving hope, is what I say.
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11:11 was pure chaos on a black-and-pink demon barber pole, which for experimental art rock serving as a middle finger to Spain's lack of taste, is a pretty good medium of expression. The way Megara were guaranteed double digit points because the Mericones (this year's honorary name for Cigarillos/Spanish Fags btw..x) were casting votes in this semi (♥) allowed them to give zero fucks. ♥
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Of course, if Megara (and specifically Kenzie) had been in any way competent, then 11:11 could have qualified with that act, and that would have been ICONIC. But they weren't and we missed out on another SF2 epic turnaround, which is probably why I'm not ranking them amongst the very good entries this year. (also, if I did I'd be compelled to rank 'em 11th and LOL @ bumping Aiko up to 12th place). I'm accepting of 11:11's shortcomings, but also acknowledge that it has them. The quality standards were surprisingly high this year, and I enjoy the remaining entries sufficiently that I don't need to cling to Megara as hard as I normally would. Fun filler it is, and that's the perfect endpoint for San Marino's journey.
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THE RANKING
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quitealotofsodapop · 6 months
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So in the Shadowpeach route of the "Reincarnated LBD" au idea, Mac becomes pregnant in Yuebei while having the Canon!Eclipse twins (mini female Macs with SWK's eyes) or another version of the Eclipse twins?
Well it's going to be an interesting discussion with the gang when they ask what's going on.
MK : Hey Monk- Are those baby clones of Mac?
SWK : Well...
Eclipse opens their eyes (SWK's eyes) and smiles eerily similar to a certain King.
LMK Gang : ...What...
SWK : Also we found out what to do with the soul...
Mac : I am craving for noodles and tea.
LMK Gang : ...What...
Referencing previous "Reincarnated LBD" post. Heavily inspo by @ninjasmudge's "Double Trouble" au.
Its the Canon!Eclipse twins!
Basically they started as little shadow clones who stuck around longer than usual.
Macaque and Wukong were tackling some old confliction emotions on 1: Being back together, and 2: The fact that they never managed to have kids back in the day. And since Macaque was being used as a "fridge" for the New Soul/LBD's soul, he needed to leech soul energy/magic off someone super-powerful like Wukong to stay healthy.
Recipe: Intense shared emotions + shared soul magic + smouldering desire for kids + primordial monkey powers = A pair of shadowy baby monkey demons popping out of Macaque that have his and Wukong's dna.
Macaque & Wukong: *staring into the makeshift nest/crib* Macaque: "I blame you." Wukong: "What!? Why me? They popped out of you!" Macaque: "We've been sharing *soul energy* Wukong! Why our powers manifested this way is a complete mystery to-" Eclipse Twins: *interupts arguing with adorable sleepy yawns* Macaque & Wukong: *overwhelmed by cuteness* (-‸ლ) (´∀`)♡ Macaque, realising: "Oh sweet Buddha... I think I know why." Wukong: "We wanted kids. Remember we talked about starting a family before I got mountain'd? Guess I never really... lost that want." Macaque: "And now we have kids..." Wukong: "Well at least we know we make super adorable babies." *kisses the twins' noses* Eclipse Twins: *bleps happily* :p Macaque: "I make adorable babies."
(Later when the gang visits)
MK: "How???" Macaque, holding a twin: "In short; Wukong got me shadow-pregnant." Wukong, holding the other twin: "Takes two to tango, mango!" MK: "...I'm regret asking. In any case; Red Son says there's an easy way to relocate the Soul!" Red Son: "The easiest way in theory is to create a new body for it to inhabit i.e find a person capable of becoming pregnant, and let the soul settle in as a future child. My parents have already agreed to host the other fragment we found." Wukong & Macaque: *share a look* MK, dreading: "Whats with the faces?" Macaque: "I have good news and bad news. Bad news is, I have no idea where the fragment I had went." MK: "Whats the good news!?" Wukong: "We think it sorta just petered into these little guys!" *nuzzles babies* Eclipse Twins: *delighted chirping!* MK: "Ok, phew! That solves that."
The gang later tries to voice concerns that the twin shadow monkeys might have parts of LDB's powers, but they lose all worry the second they're allowed to hold them for the first time. Too adorable to be scared of.
(later again)
Macaque, thinking really hard: "Wait... after the fight didn't me and Wukong- oh sweet Guanyin."
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Mac is gonna wait a bit before voicing his new theory.
Now if a certain Lion were to mind his own damn business...
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zwy01 · 8 months
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Kaelestis Doodles!!!
My OC Kaelestis Blerster, son and only child of Karias Blerster. His other parent is Rael Kertia (soul fragment donor). For more info on his bio check out my pinned post!
1. Doodle dump of changes in Kaelestis’ appearance as he grows up. As a small child his hair was basically kind of like Rael’s, except even messier. Karias didn’t really do anything about his son’s hair because he thought his fluffy baby was cute that way haha. And it’s true! Though as soon as Kaelestis became aware of his own appearance he started taking care of it by combing it to the sides of his head. In general kiddie Kaelestis had a round face and this feature stays with him well into adulthood. Karias’ features kick in fairly late, when Kaelestis is much, much older. Far future Kaelestis still has that same frowny expression though. He reminds people of his uncle Razark and paternal grandfather Krasis. Kaelestis isn’t trying to frown but that’s just what his face looks like when relaxed. Dammit, he’s trying his hardest, but people just keep asking him what’s wrong. Nothing really, he’s quite content actually. Orrr maybe he could be concerned about something, who knows. Hopefully he’s not worrying about Karias doing something over the top for the nth time.
2. Karias with his tiny son! While there are some… perhaps problematic things in their father-son relationship, Kaelestis’ early childhood was a very good one and arguably the best time he’s shared with his father. Which leads to the thing I want to discuss next, and that is what’s exactly going on between the two of them, and the details of what their dynamic is like.
In general, Karias and Kaelestis have a pretty decent father-son relationship. If you asked, everyone would basically tell you that oh, they have a great relationship. And that is a correct observation, because it is true. For the most part, at least. There’s nothing abnormal or strange, and they don’t have conflicts with each other. There are even affectionate moments here and there too, though there’s more to it than what people generally see.
Remember when I said that Kaelestis is more like a parent to Karias than the other way around like it’s supposed to be? That’s actually a very long story, and it goes all the way back to Kaelestis’ early childhood, to when he was a toddler, so roughly a 20 year old ish. You see, Kaelestis was a very, very well-behaved child. So well-behaved, it’s actually quite unbelievable when you think about it in hindsight. Even the other now elegant and sophisticated nextgen nobles had to be disciplined and educated to some extent to correct rowdy, weird, and sometimes unacceptable behavior. Which was basically all of them, even the super nice ones like Asa, Alethea, and Cordelia. Except for Kaelestis. He was the only exception. People were actually kind of envious of Karias, and to them he very much won the lottery with his kid. Not to mention Kaelestis is Karias and Rael’s kid… people intially expected him to be some sort of mixture between the two of his parents, but worse. Turns out, they were totally wrong. Kiddie Kaelestis was as sweet as you could get with any child. He was honest, patient, kind, and generous. He always waited for his turn to speak, always politely and correctly addressed everyone accordingly (except for that one time when Karias convinced him with the lie that Lord Raskreia is his auntie and he actually called her that lol), and never caused mischief. It’s not that he had superior self-control; those things simply just never crossed his mind. It wasn’t in his nature to do anything out of line. People kept praising Karias for his superb parenting and everyone dreaming of having a kid like Kaelestis. He’s the best you can ever get, right? And as a parent, of course you’d want to support your kid. So Karias tells a young Kaelestis how much he loves him, he’s his baby son. Sometimes Karias would also throw in a comment about how well-behaved he is, and that he’s proud of him. Of course kiddie Kaelestis would be very happy to hear that. It’s praise from none other than the Blerster Clan Leader, his dear father who he loves and respects more than anyone else in this world! That’s where everything started, and you could say it’s for the worse. Kaelestis, who holds his father in such high regard, would take this praise as a very serious thing and more or less it got engraved in his mind. You know when you were a small kid and someone said something that could be trivial but you remembered it forever and it basically impacted the trajectory some aspect of your life? Basically that. And so Kaelestis began to take pride in the fact that he was so well-behaved, and continuing to do that would make his father as proud as ever. Before this, he wasn’t even aware of the fact that he was the “perfect” child, he simply was. Now that this became a new addition to his knowledge, of course he’s going to act on it. But to Karias, Kaelestis was still a small child (toddler equivalent) so Karias isn’t going to take it too seriously anyway. He still showered his baby with affection and always gave him attention. And Kaelestis very much enjoyed every moment of it.
Fast forward to the time when Kaelestis was the equivalent of a 8-12 year old human. You know when kids are very young the parents always treat them like baby and when they get a bit older and have thoughts of their own the parents start to really have fun with their kids? That’s what happens next. Karias doesn’t need to watch Kaelestis all the time anymore, hovering over his son and worrying about him getting himself into some sort of danger. He could let him run free for a bit. Let him be on his own, and do his own thing. Karias still spends time with his son and is affectionate with him, in a different way. Because Kaelestis now takes pride in being so well-behaved, he actually makes a conscious effort to be even more well-behaved. He’s become obsessed with the idea, more or less. Be the perfect son, don’t ever cause trouble, make Father proud because he doesn’t need to worry about me, and then Father can attend to his duties as Clan Leader with high efficiency. This was what Kaelestis knew at the time, and it truly was out of good will, as he’s being considerate of others. But what young Kaelestis didn’t know was that this also meant that he’s sacrificing his own well-being and need for closeness to his father. And Karias wasn’t even aware of this, he just thought that this is just what his kid is like, being nice as usual and that, and he can focus more on clan duties. And so Kaelestis never got the extra recognition that he yearned for, and even worse his father now spends less time with him. He got what he wanted, didn’t he? For his father to be the best Clan Leader ever? But something doesn’t feel so right, and Kaelestis starts to doubt his own decision. Even worse, Kaelestis doesn’t do anything to fix the situation, he just goes with the flow because he started this himself. His Clan Leader never asked of him for any of this. But now that it’s done, there’s no choice but to endure the consequences and move on, right? For now, he’ll continue to be the best son for his father. Because he loves him. It’ll do. This won’t go on forever, right? At least Kaelestis had thought so, though this optimism would soon be replaced with even more regret and exhaustion.
Fast forward to Kaelestis’ teen years, so the human equivalent of a 13-19 year old ish. Kaelestis’ hobbies are expanding, and his talent is truly blooming. He had discovered his love for the arts… painting, sculpture, anything really. This was his purpose in life, and his skills were really impressive. Karias is of course overjoyed and thrilled to learn that his son is so talented and that he has found his passion. And so Karias gets Kaelestis all the materials he could possibly find both inside and outside of Lukedonia, and Kaelestis is very touched by his father’s gestures. He has all this stuff with work with now! It was a real moment of joy for him, and yet another memory for him to remember forever , which would later also become tinted with melancholy. Now that Kaelestis actually has time to spend on projects, he is indirectly pushing his father away even more. Whenever Karias would drop by to check on his son and ask him how he’s doing, Kaelestis would always answers that he’s doing well, and Karias doesn’t need to worry about him, because he has art, and that’s all he needs to be happy. Which was a lie, because he actually longed for time with his father. He misses his early childhood where the two of them would spend time together everyday, all day. But he needs to not be a distraction to his father’s schedule, because he’s well-behaved right? He could hold in his feelings of yearning… right? So Karias never learns of his son’s true feelings. Because he never tells him. Which just hurts Kaelestis even more because now he’s actually reinforcing Karias’ belief that his son is all good and that his role as father isn’t one that is needed too much, because he’s a good boy who can entertain himself in peace. And that’s when they start to see each other less and less. They still have dinner together and talk about the day sometimes, but the frequency is nothing like before anymore. Not even close. Kaelestis is hurting himself, and he can’t bring himself to admit to his father that he needs him. No, no, there’s no way he can be an inconvenience to his father. Of course Karias would never think of his son in that way, ever. But Kaelestis’ tendencies to overthink and internalize things drives him to this conclusion. And this doesn’t change much even after Kaelestis becomes a young adult. And so, even to this day, whenever Kaelestis picks up a paintbrush or a chisel, he’d always be reminded of the fact that he (partially) traded away his father’s bond with himself for this. Perhaps this melancholy doesn’t sting Kaelestis as much as it did at first, but it will always be a thorn in his heart, a mild, reoccurring pain.
Kaelestis’ feelings of responsibility over his father carries over to different aspects too. You see, Karias’ personality is drastically different from Kaelestis’. That’s literally just how he is. He’s flamboyant and always going over the top, sometimes he’d say or do something inappropriate by noble standards and get yelled at by Rozaria and Gejutel… etc etc. The usual drill. Kaelestis feels like he needs to keep Karias in check to make sure he’s not being an inconvenience to others. He’s Karias’ son, and it is his duty to make sure Father doesn’t do something so out of line again. And this involves reminding his father of “ahem, Clan Leader, please don’t do that” to reprimanding him if he comedically wails about how he’s not allowed to have fun and his son is just sooooo not fun either. To be honest, Karias has always been like this since the start but Kaelestis just never took it seriously until he got older, because he didn’t think it was a problem. Now that his sense of responsibility is ever so strong, of course he’d be concerned with Karias’ self-representation out there. To Kaelestis, Karias’ image is heavily tied with the entire clan’s image. Karias just thinks his son is hilarious. Which does not amuse Kaelestis because he essentially still needs to parent his parent and being laughed at in the face isn’t exactly helpful either. Kaelestis’ duties includes apologizing to others when Karias does something weird, warning others about what might come, reminding Karias about what and what not to say at meetings, etc etc. You could say that Kaelestis thinks this is exhausting, because it really is. But to him, maybe this is some other form of bonding, to fill that void in his childhood. In a way, this is spending time with his father whom he misses dearly. But still. Kaelestis yearns for Karias to interact with him like they did in his childhood. Just gentle affection and attention from his father. He wants to be a small child again, because he had never been able to smile out of true happiness for a very long time now. He wishes he’d never taken being well-behaved so seriously, because that one phrase of praise led to everything that causes him sadness in the present day. In a way, he misses Karias. Karias was never out of reach, as the two of them live in the same manor and they’re often together on duties and errands. Mentally and emotionally? That’s the complicated part. Kaelestis is there, and not there in the same time. To Karias he’s still his precious son and everything is totally normal. But to Kaelestis there is this gap between them that will never close, and it’s entirely his own fault so he can’t complain. Perhaps if Kaelestis didn’t see clearing a misunderstanding as such a heavy burden, he would’ve done it. Just admit to Father that you were unhappy all along. Just do it. He thinks about it often, but ends up failing every single time. Just can’t bring himself to say it. And so this eats him from the inside out, causing him to be in a constant state of burnout. The kid he was never able to be, and the peace of mind he will never get. The ever so gracious maturity and sophisticated energy that he emits and perceived by others, is a curse to him. The burden does not end there. When he’s with his friends, the others automatically assume that he’ll be the chaperone and take responsibility for anything that happens. Even their joke nickname for him is “dad” because he’s so much like one, right? This puts even more pressure on him, and he has to constantly be on lookout in case any of them does something stupid. Hearing them tell the others “Kaelestis didn’t stop me, so I did it anyway” doesn’t exactly help either. He’s getting blamed for something they decided to do? He never signed up for this, but he doesn’t want to make things complicated, so he keeps it inside and… boom. Stress and more stress. It’s always, always there. He still enjoys being in the presence of his friends but sometimes the burden overrides the joy and in the end, everyone had a good time, except for himself.
One of his deepest unspoken desires is for someone to come hold him, and tell him he can stop and put down everything and just cry. Come and rescue him, and help him out of this cage that he put himself in. To this day, he awaits for someone to burst down that wall he spent his entire life maintaining. Someone. Anyone.
Aaaand this is about it for now! I’d love to talk more about my precious Kaekae in the future so I might do that when I have the opportunity again!
(+ this is why Kaelestis falls for Izar! Unlike virtually all of the others, Izar doesn’t cause much trouble. He’s mostly obsessed with doing research in his own lab and rarely leaves it. Sometimes there’d be an explosion, but that’s pretty much it. Nothing dramatic or extra involved. Izar is also very chill in general and would take care of Kaelestis when he’s a visiting his lab as a “guest” : offering him snacks and drinks, showing him his figure collection and letting him play with them, showering him in plushies to hug, putting a blanket over him after he’s fallen asleep from listening to him reading research papers… all those small but heartwarming things that make Kaelestis feel being taken care of. Izar isn’t even aware of the fact that these simple gestures mean so, so much to Kaelestis and that this dude is in love with him… how lovely! +for more info in Izar feel free to once again check out my pinned post+ special Izar post from before!)
((again sleep deprived so excuse me for any typos haha hopefully it all makes sense! See you again in the future!!))
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Fragments - episodes 15-18 author notes
Shall we sit back and go over the recent episodes together? C:
You can find similar breakdown posts on older episodes in my pinned!
Obligatory ShB spoiler warning.
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Any theme song enjoyers? I associate this song with this moment, and generally with Exarch’s longing and excitement that can’t be shown. “And in my usual voice, I say, there you are”.
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Go away grandpa, you crashed an otherwise perfect party :’>
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Had this followed the msq more closely, i.e. had Feo Ul not been the first to find Vivi, or had it happened in an environment more familiar to him, he might've asked Exarch if he's shy, or just ugly. Kinda like if you’re a bully in your school, you might still wanna keep a low profile in a new school.
Vivi treads lightly in a new world, at least tries to. He doesn't yet know how thick or thin is the ice under his feet.
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Exarch doesn’t know about the tree since he was busy waiting for Vivi in the Ocular, having just finished the summoning spell, tense and giddy, hood up and all. Minutes passed, nothing happened, then Exarch started getting antsy and finally turned on his tv to find Vivi in Lakeland.
“Hey it could’ve been your spine” I hope is clear: as in Vivi could’ve landed on Lyna instead of the aforementioned tree, not a threat to snap her spine in a fight. He knows better than taunting random people.. Moreover, people stronger than him x’D
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Artist achievement unlocked: managed to make a hooded person look expressive. IN THE BACK VIEW.
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SPROUT?!
He’s more cute than he deserves to be here and you’ll perceive him.
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Being at the end of the episode, “we’re friends, yes” is the first and only line almost nonchalantly tossed to Vivi! Exarch wanted to buy time and observe him, how he’s changed, how’s best to approach him now.
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..And Vivi needs rest and new clothes, he spent AN ENTIRE DAY in one outfit. We've seen him around several people so far, and, while he's always genuine, he's the most himself with Exarch, even at this early stage.
But yeah, he’s jaded, regrets many choices in his life and wants his money back.
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Vivi's tailored for this ship. Before I even knew that I wanted to write a comic of this size, I asked myself, what condition does he need to be in at the beginning of ShB for the chemistry to happen? The answer was, well, "terrible". I’ve got the juicy deets, but you’d have to be patient and keep an eye out for more flashbacks sprinkled in throughout the story.
What matters now is that, finally, both of them are sufficiently tired to start noticing something else than gremlins in each other.
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Have fun living with the knowledge that there’s no face where it’s supposed to be :>
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Exarch has a way with the fae: don't flinch, offer them something nice. He offers rest to Vivi without hesitation, as soon as he sees his emotionally battered state. And, oh, he’s still an archer, landing that perfect shot first try. This here is a genuine spark of interest, surprise and gratitude in Vivi’s eyes.
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I went balls deep with the visual subtext here. Despite being shown up close, Vivi’s broody face takes on a secondary role as his mind literally closes in on Exarch in that moment, on the mystery man that’s suddenly so unlike the rest. Even if he’s yet another quest-giver, even if shit’s on fire, he allows Vivi to go? Rest? Have some time for himself???? Exarch is, or is about to become, his only light in the darkness :3c
Exarch’s stiff posture is also intended here. He must’ve rehearsed this scene sooooooooo many times, he was prepared for hostility, interrogation, tantrums, but this Warrior’s indifferent and just wants to leave?
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Magical boy de-transformation! Headcanon time, two of them even.
Firstly, the Tower can register living presence in its vicinity, a passive ability which Exarch can casually tap into. Being aware of an entire city’s population is, mildly put, overwhelming, thus he’s learned to shrink the “radar” area down to his Ocular, or wherever he’s at the moment and whenever he actually needs it. He feels that Vivi’s indeed left, therefore he can safely remove the hood.
Secondly, the hood shadow’s magicked. The panel above demonstrates how it’d look naturally, if it were a normal shadow. But he casts a pitch black glamour that also extends to his hair.
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Just a cool crystal flare that I feel like showing off :>
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None of you would believe me now if I said this isn't a horny scene? Although this looks lewd, for someone who’d spent a century clinging to memories and tales the lingering scent is just another confirmation that all of this's real. He can't even touch the WoL (or so he thinks), the scent could be the most he ever gets. Bearing in mind the stress of the day, I genuinely don’t think that he’s in the mood here. But no worries, he’ll get plenty of horny opportunities later on :>
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The subtle characterization in the way he opens a door to a supposedly empty, still unknown room.
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An unironically normal reaction to the Light, and shadowbringing \o/
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This. This goes into my personal collection of the best vivifaces I’ve drawn.
He’s quick to react to a threat (?) popping out of nowhere in a supposedly safe room.
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GOMU GOMU NOOOOOOO-
I know the arm’s too long, but I like to incorporate some animation princliples :>
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The Champion of Eorzea uses a stick to cure a 100 years old depression, ca. 2023, colorized.
Vivi didn't mean to pierce him, actually. While the space's more than enough for living, it's still cramped for fighting as a dragoon, and he simply misjudged the distance while spinning around and lunging at the source of that eerie voice. There’s also an ooc explanation: I couldn’t quite align all of this in one frame, and thought hey, Ardbert’s a ghost, it’s okay to pierce him!
Both are quick to handwave the fact, and let’s be honest, self-defense of that sort must be a mundane thing for a WoL.There’s more important stuff to discuss. Both are desperate to vent to someone they could trust. They may disagree on things, but generally they vibe pretty well with Ardbert.
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A lil shoutout to @agent-jaselin​ for commenting this under the respective episode. I almost forgot to point it out while making this post. Vivi tries to see if he can relate to another WoL, if his struggles are valid, or if he’s overreacting to a typical hero life. Ardbert had a whole friend group adventuring alongside him, the Scions don’t measure up unfortunately, on top of that Vivi (emotionally) stays the fuck away from anyone post-ARR for their own protection (and his own if he ends up losing someone else), so it’s not quite the same experience for him.
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One of the few redeeming qualities: Vivi keeps his word. This's gonna be relevant in like 2025 :'>
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He baby, THAT’S his problem.
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From pointing his spear at him to comfortably undressing and falling asleep in his vicinity. Ardbert's possibly the first man to be asked to stay and not get laid by Vivi :’>
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While the Crystarium and its people seem nice, it’s still Vivi’s first day (one loooooong day since the beginning of chapter 2) in a brand new world, and Ardbert’s the only somewhat familiar person here. A ghost? Even better. The supernatural’s easier to deal with and is less likely to backstab you.
The sweet-voiced hooded guy says that it’s okay, that he’s safe here.... Yeah that on itself is a flag for our mr doubter. He’s grown reasonably paranoid since ARR, (almost) everything he does has a nice cynical-flavored logic to it.
While this’s a wolgraha comic, it’d be bland without support characters. Ardbert doesn’t play a massive role in this particular story, still you’ll keep seeing him here and there.
The next several episodes focus on the main two and Feo Ul, they’ll claw their way in even if they were left out x’D
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batrogers · 2 months
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I'm glad you picked up this game because oh gosh so many appealing choices! Can. Can I ask about two of them. XD Cuz LU Ravioli Interrupted definitely sounds fun but I'm also curious about some of your personal/general stuff. Like Rabbit Bio Piece?
Oooo two fun ones. Of course you can ask for two!
LU RavioLi Interrupted is one I need to restart, because it's barely a fragment but it absolutely is meant to be a Spicy making-out fic, and maybe PWP if it works out (although the "interrupted" obviously implied it wasn't going to actually get anywhere, bo both boys dismay.) Mostly, it was my intention to write really cute Ravio/Legend ship fic and it's definitely still on my roster, I just probably won't continue that one.
The Rabbit Bio Piece is a That Broken Promise fic. I have a few "Bio pieces" done, like Chief's Coming Home and Skyloft's Where Demons Have Gone Before. I actually have a set of them linked in the main series if you check on AO3, and (try to) link them all in their bios in my pinned post here, although I'm behind on keeping up with that. I do intend to have one for everyone and I actually am done all but Rabbits so far!
I've had some trouble with his. I know roughly what I want to write, but it's uh, extremely dark in directions I don't normally write. I'll include a snippet from the fic (It's technically complete) under a cut, but the gist is that Rabbit had an abusive marriage after LttP that ended with him suffering severe post-partum depression. The trip to Labrynna and the start of Oracle of Ages was part of him trying to move on and recover. So...
As much as I write dark fics, the really dark reality of how abusive long-term relationships go isn't one I explore often and I'm having some struggles making it work as a one-shot that feels satisfying!
Nevertheless, snippet under the cut. CW for abusive partner, and flashbacks/PTSD from combat.
They had a large courtyard; across it was his in-law's rooms, opposite their own. Link thought nothing of it. He exhaled slowly and passed his short sword between each hand, adjusting to the now unfamiliar weight on his arms. It had been too much to pick up a sword again for so long. Too close to the pain.
He waited, as if expecting the memories to sneak up on him, then brushed it off. This was a conversation he’d had with his uncle, while he tried to talk him out of the marriage: that the memories would fade, but still be unpredictable. That the pain was normal.
(Link hadn’t asked him if he remembered dying. He hadn’t asked him if he’d heard, or asked, or spoken to the other guards, in case any of them remembered it, either. He didn’t dare. He knew, and Zelda knew, and that was bad enough.)
The drills came back without much conscious thought. He’d done them since he was seven, and he could practically do them in his sleep. He was so focused, he didn’t notice anyone coming into the courtyard – didn’t think to stop, because he’d grown up a knight.
What idiot would step into his space?
His husband grabbed his wrist mid-swing and wrenched the sword from his hand.
“What are you thinking?” he snarled. “You said you were done with this!”
Link jerked back and punched him in the ribs, hard enough his husband let go, then spun and slapped him, open-handed across the face. Link staggered and saw his sword and only barely didn’t lunge for it. His heart was pounding in his chest and for a moment, all he could think of was the next sequence:
Seize the sword. Stay low, spin. Cut across the left side waist. Hemorrhage from the liver, or severe gut damage. He'd need a fairy or potion, or he’d be dead.
He swallowed, frozen, long enough the man grabbed his arm and pulled him around to face him again. “Talk to me. Tell me you won’t do that again. Look at you, you look ill!”
He felt ill. Link struggled to find his voice, and all he could manage was, “I’m sorry. You’re right. I wasn’t thinking. Please, don’t startle me like that. I could’ve hurt you.”
“I’m just looking out for you.”
He pulled Link into his arms, and Link melted there as he wished for the shakes to stop. He was right. If he hadn’t been playing with swords again, he never would’ve thought of killing him.
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