#<- the main culprits generally

[light-blue-glazed-terracotta]

MCYT BLOGS: PLEASE READ

hi :) TL:DR please stop posting mcyt content in the #minecraft and the #mineblr tags.

long explanation under the cut

#minecraft and #mineblr are for minecraft content. this is anything from modded, to builds, to OCs, to art. it's about the game at its core.

if you post about minecraft content creation, please do not post in these tags. please. you have your own selection of tags to post in — mcyt i believe is an umbrella category for all minecraft content creation, and sub tags, like creator names and actual SMPs exist also.

they are, at the end of the day, two different fandoms with different sub-fandoms, and mcyt is bigger and louder and (sorry) more annoying. if you're a twitter/reddit refugee and genuinely didn't know this, fair! please just cut the tags out. if you just don't care about it and want more reach you're a dick, and if it's something you've forgotten about then please start doing it again <3

i realise it's maybe hypocritical of me to put this in your tags btw but it's you guys i'm talking to. so.

this is what drove me and many other people out of mineblr and y'know. it's got to the point where minecraft is no longer an umbrella tag, but a completely different fandom, and i'd appreciate if people would treat it as such!

and then there's the even deeper rabbit hole of the fact that some mcyt content is. eh. uncomfortable. and there's people who post shipping content in mcyt and you guys get annoyed! because it's completely different content! and it's the same thing here — we don't care about mcyt because it's not relevant.

keep them separate, please. and if you're posting to minecraft because it's a big tag with more exposure then your brain has been fried by twitter and you sound insufferable

#i've got to the point where i get Very close to asking the ops of posts to remove their minecraft and mineblr tags #but i feel like that would be too targeted/mean and i kind of want to make some noise abt it first #<- based on that if you're similarly bothered by this it might be worth making a post of your own abt this #so i don't look like one crotchety old woman yelling at clouds lol #mcyt #qsmp #qsmpblr #minecraft youtube #mcyters #dsmp #qsmp live #dsmp live #<- the main culprits generally #minecraft

[goldensunset]

people who go through the main tags of big and tumultuous fandoms looking for new fresh good posts to reblog are essential to any circle. they’re like true hunter gatherers leaving the safety of settlement and braving the unknown wilderness to find food for the flock. they risk their lives every day and will come back with a few scratches at best and severe psychological damage at worst

#peach rambles #hall of fame i guess #i love hearing everyone share their stories in the comments. me personally? this is about kingdom hearts #usually the main culprit is disdain and dusty old misogynistic takes for kairi (the main girl) #there's x reader occasionally #cursed content with random disney characters #or people who complain about how much the series has expanded #that don't understand that over half the story is contained in the so-called 'side games' #or just generally dusty takes that have been disproven already

[myreputatioooon]

The dichotomy of wanting to get into more MCYT content because you fucking love that medium of storytelling versus the sheer emotional burnout of series and fanfics with too much hurt and too little comfort inflicted upon you which you still haunts you tok this day

(and also you dont have anytime you ain't reading all that but that isn't important)

#Dream SMP is the main culprit tbh #but also submas fadom SORRY NOT SORRY— 🤪🤪🤪 **gets shotted** #also maybe Aphmau but I dont recal being that emotionally connected to it plus I got bored during that lvoe love paradise sequel #MCYT #as much as id love to get into that Kenadian lore. everythign LDshadowlady and Grian are into plus Stampy's Lovely World and other series #one. they're too fucking long especially together and I have an education to get throuvh #two. emotional burnout. Im drawn to hurt like a moth to a flame but I cannot bring myself to get into or devote myself to soemthing thattl #burn me out further #this is also why I wont even check out QSMP and other series barring soem exceptions (Sp!lt L!fe (dont wanna flood the tag and what youtube #s i am already into or get my attention decide to do themselves)) #just cuz I wanna not burnout #Dream SMP it hink was ultimately a good thin in the long term #but one of the side effects of its success (or maybe a result of the pandemic and lots of people being mroe nihilistic or hopeless idk) #according to what I can tell from tumblr posts Ive seen every once ina. while #and also my own minimal experience #is that most series have tipped their feelgood emotions and feelbad emotions balance in much more favor of feelbad than feelgood #and yeah those feelgood is still there but in the grand scheme of things series feel ways more miserable because general happiness looks li #e its overshadowed by tragedy and whatnot #this isnt go say its objectively bad. its just my own eprsonal feelings. #do I still enjoy miserable media liek S!GNALIS? yes but that shit lasts for like 6 hours per run #and mcyt is .millions upon millions of hours #and when I devote myself to a piece of media instead of beigna. casual fan I wanna be a completionist about so. yeah #this was judt fucking rambling bwuh #hoghly encourage you to do your own worddumping or qhateverdumping in comments or reblogs #i like interavtions

[tj-crochets]

Crafting update!  - I drew the pattern for a teddy bear and/or bunny yesterday - I got all the fabric cut out, and about half the sewing done - it would have been more, but there was a fabric fundraiser sale thing in town today and I had to go to that (I got some random fabric and a bunch of faux suede. No idea what I’ll make with that yet but I love the texture. Maybe doll clothes?) - While I was out, I stopped by a pharmacy to see if they had thigh high compression socks* (they did, but if I’m spending that much I want colorful compression socks so I did not buy them) and found salsa without vinegar!! Salsa I am not allergic to! I haven’t had salsa in so long!!! This one is not craft related I’m just excited - My sewing time was also limited by my discovery of a new book series that I thought was going to be a legal drama/thriller, and then like a third of the way in it added magic and hinted at the fae and I was like “okay, sure?” and then another third of the way in it unexpectedly added the CIA and references what the CIA was doing in the 60s????? In what had been a magical realism legal thrilled???? And the initial legal case, previous heavily implied to be magic-related, might have instead been a coverup orchestrated by the CIA, possibly also using magic???? So I had to finish the first book before I could sew and now I can’t start the second book until tomorrow or I will not sleep until I finish it lol *I have chronic low blood pressure and/or tachycardia. My cardiologist said I should try thigh high compression socks to see if they work better than knee high, but if I’m wearing thigh high compression socks they are darn well going to be colorful! I’m not spending $60 on a single pair of beige socks

#the person behind the yarn #crafting updates #food mention #medical mention #the two tags are unrelated #I just try to tag for anything people might have blacklisted? #the vinegar thing is because I am allergic to vinegar #(well. possibly a pseudoallergy possibly an intolerance? either way if I eat it I have a reaction that can escalate to anaphylasis #depending on the quantity and concentration of vinegar and how long it's in my system before I take a benadryl) #I'm not judging vinegar in salsa in general. I suspect it is very good in most salsas #my theory for the book series is that the person who did the crime they are trying to solve did it for magic #to heal the main character as a child. I do not know which character did it but that's my working theory lol #(I am notoriously terrible at guessing the culprit in whodunnits so I don't think that counts as a spoiler lol)

[girl-bateman]

An apple a day does NOT keep the doctor away, I have carotenemia now

#i thought it was a marker stain for the longest time lmaooo #i eat a lot of foods rich in carotenoids in general but we recently got bags of apples home from 3 different ppl #so ive been eating like 1 or 2 apples a day plus putting apple in the food bc it gives it a little savoury undertone #so im like 90% sure the apples are the main culprit here #which is a shame bc now im gonna have to cut back on the apples (and the carrots too lets be real) #two of my faves 🥲💔 #also fun fact im allergic to apples but idk if that has anything to do with this

[dustofthedailylife]

"General, This Ain't A Cat"

-> Masterlist || → Taglist

Pairing: Jing Yuan x (gn!) Reader

Summary: One day you find a cute white lion cub scratching on your front door, little did you know that the actual owner of it was Jing Yuan, the General of the Xianzhou Luofu himself. And he might have the wrong idea about the little thing, too...

Tags: Fluff, Crack, Jing Yuan's Lion loves you, inspired by the General's Diary you can find in HSR, flustered Jing Yuan

A/N: I love him a very normal amount, your honor! The fact he is a cat dad too is just too cute! And also that he got scammed trying to buy a cat and instead unknowingly managed to buy a lion makes it so much funnier. I can only recommend reading his diary ingame lmao

A distinct scratching sound on the front door of your home made you perk up in your seat. You waited for the sound to reappear a couple of times before deciding to check what was causing it.

You slowly opened the door and looked outside. But both to the right and to the left you spotted nothing that could’ve caused the sound. It was also relatively windstill on the Luofu today so that also couldn’t have been it.

Just as you were about to close the door again you spotted the culprit behind the flower pot right next to your door. It was a small, snow-white lion cub, not older than a couple of months at best, and it looked at you pleadingly with its azure-colored eyes.

Did it want to come in?

You knelt down on your doorstep and stretched your hand out towards it, prompting it to come over to you. It hesitantly tiptoed in your direction from behind the flower pot, carefully smelling on your fingers first before bumping its head into your hand. You began scratching its head and not too long after a loud purr could be heard.

It was such a cute little thing you were almost tempted to snatch it and keep it. But a beautiful animal like that had to belong to someone, right?

You picked the soft bundle of fur up and walked towards the main road to look around. Maybe it ran away and the owner was still around looking for it? They had to be since you never heard of any instances of strays on the Luofu.

A little bit further down the street, you spotted two Cloud Knights with a bag of treats in their hand. They were eagerly shaking them to make rattling sounds and simultaneously scanned the ground for something. Looks like they are the people the little cutie belonged to.

"Hey," you called out to them. "Are you looking for this snow lion perhaps?"

"Oh, thank the Heavens!" One of the guards exclaimed. "We've been looking for it the entire day already.”

One of the guards stretched out their arms to take the little lion cub into his arms but it made no fuss to go anywhere. In fact, it was clinging to you and started purring loudly, bumping its head into your chest.

“Hey, you little cutie. You have to get back home. I’m sure you’re hungry by now, aren’t you? Enough adventure for one day.” You said in a higher-pitched voice. Its eyes almost looked sad and it let out a squeak the moment you handed it back to the soldiers and waved them goodbye.

As soon as you were back home you couldn’t help but think about the little lion again. It was the first time you had ever seen one with such a majestic fur and eye color. Whoever it belonged to could surely count themself lucky. 

A couple of days passed and you went about your days as normal until you heard the familiar scratching at your front door again. 

Unlike the first time you immediately knew it must be the same lion from a few days prior. You went to open the door again and the white bundle of fur immediately zoomed inside of your home.

Alerted, you immediately began chasing it around your living room. As much as you wanted to actually keep it as well, you absolutely couldn’t. Someone was waiting for it and probably worried about its disappearance once again. You for sure would turn the Luofu upside down if it was your missing pet.

Snatching the little complaining bundle of fur up again proved difficult as it was clinging and clawing at your carpet for dear life, but you eventually managed.

Carrying it outside once again you looked for Cloud Knights you could return it to again but this time a blonde teen boy, dressed in blue and no older than maybe fourteen was walking down the street with treats this time. And for some reason, he seemed oddly familiar.

“Mimi? Miiiii-Miiiii. Come get your treats!!” The blonde boy shouted and shook the treat box in his hands like a rattle.

The little lion cub, apparently named Mimi, perked its ears up in your arms and began trying to wriggle out of your grasp. You let it jump down and watched it zoom in the direction of the boy, sitting down and looking up at him with hungry and expectant eyes.

“There you are, you little troublemaker!” He says furrowing his brows and throwing Mimi a handful of treats.

Going off of the way the lion reacted to his voice you assumed it was probably his pet lion.

He picked it up and started petting it, eliciting it to close its eyes, start purring and relax in his arms. The boy smiled at it fondly and slightly shook his head in disbelief over the little rascal before looking down the street to where you were standing.

“Hey, you!” He shouted and started trotting in your direction. “Were you the one who found Mimi?”

You nodded in response before wondering how he could’ve figured that out considering he didn’t see you with Mimi at all.

“Wait how did you-?” You inquired with furrowed brows.

He just pointed at your chest, or more specifically, at your shirt in reply. Following the direction of his finger with your gaze you soon realized that you were entirely covered in white fluff from when you were holding Mimi.

“Ah. Well of course. That makes sense,” you chuckled. “Does it run away a lot?” You asked pointing at the still happily purring snow lion in the blonde boy’s arms.

He simply rolled his eyes and smiled in reply. “All the time.”

“Well, it seems to be fond of my front door as of late. I live just a bit further down the street. So chances are if it runs away again, it might be near my house again.”

“Good to know. Certainly makes things easier,” he nodded. “I’m Yanqing, by the way!”

That’s why he seemed so familiar. He is the lieutenant of the Luofu Cloud Knights and you had seen him here and there in an official capacity but you generally didn’t pay too much attention to those so you couldn’t quite put your finger on it earlier.

It certainly explained the beautiful and special-looking animal in his arms.

You grabbed the hand he held out to you and introduced yourself as well before bidding him farewell for now not too long after. Looking after him as he walked back home you smiled to yourself and hoped for him that he would be able to keep his little lion cub in check from now on.

A couple more days passed once more after that encounter until someone rang your doorbell. You weren’t expecting any visitors, especially not this late in the evening so you wondered who would possibly come over at this time of day.

Out of every possible person on the ship, however, you certainly didn’t expect the General of the Luofu in the flesh to be your late-night visitor. He was standing in front of your door with hands folded behind his back and staring down the street, waiting for your to open the door.

“Good evening, General… Can I help you with something?” You carefully inquired with some hesitancy in your voice. 

You suddenly felt very small, and that was not only because he was a tall, handsome, and quite muscular man but also because you were more than just a bit intimidated.

Nothing to worry about, right? It was only the most important man on the entire ship standing in front of your house. 

Naturally, your mind immediately came to the conclusion that you must’ve done something wrong.

“Uhm-,” he began, scratching the back of his neck. “Do you happen to know where my cat is?

Out of every possible thing he could’ve said, this was the last thing you expected.

“Your… cat?” You asked in disbelief. He simply nodded and looked around your front yard once more.

“It’s white with bright blue eyes. Yanqing has informed me that Mimi is quite fond of you and keeps escaping to your house.”

So it was his pet. But wait, didn’t he just say…

“Cat?”

“Yes. A small grimalkin, up to no good, constantly runs away. My cat.” He elaborated.

At that point, you couldn’t help but burst into laughter. He seemed very taken aback and confused by your outburst and you were almost inclined to say that it made him, this big hunk of a man, look like a huge, gentle teddy bear.

“Care to explain what is so funny?” He asked crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“Forgive me, General,” you wiped a tear out of the corner of your eyes. “I do not wish to burst your bubble here but your cat may not be what you think it is.”

“What are you implying?”

“It’s a lion, General. I can assure you, it’s most certainly not a cat.”

You observed how his eyes widened in surprise and a hint of pink began to dust his cheeks behind his long bangs. You had to bite your lip in order to not start laughing again. He really didn’t know. And the fact you made him aware of it seemed to be quite embarrassing to him.

“Oh. Uhm… well, I actually had my suspicions already.” He stated, once again scratching the back of his neck. You couldn’t help but wonder how a man like him could manage to look this cute when flustered. And to think this was the first face-to-face contact you had ever had with him made it all the better.

Without a doubt, he was an attractive man, and that was something everyone aboard the Luofu would agree to. However, after witnessing him in this flustered, and quite frankly, adorable state tonight, your desire to get to know him on a more personal level increased.

“What would it take for you to not tell anyone about this?” He suddenly inquired. But before you could answer, he made an offer himself. One you couldn’t possibly refuse after everything that transpired tonight.

“How does a dinner sound? My treat of course.”

“Hmm, very well. Or you could let your cat stay with me more often?”

“Well, that can also be arranged,” he chuckled with a playful smile. “But we come as a pair.”

Do not repost, copy, translate or edit - © dustofthedailylife || reblogs, comments, and asks about Genshin or my fics are always greatly appreciated and motivate me! Maple dividers are mine - do not copy.

#honkai star rail #hsr #hsr x reader #jing yuan x reader #hsr fluff #hsr fanfic #honkai star rail fanfic #honkai star rail x reader #hsr drabbles #hsr imagines #jing yuan #🍁 dust writes #🍁彡 hsr

[sylibane]

Pop Culture and Fandom-Themed OC Questions

I came up with some pop culture-y OC questions because I like silly OC games. Some of these are more general, while others are for a specific genre or piece of media. Go ahead and reblog to use for your own OCs!

Was your OC influenced or inspired by any particular fictional character(s) when you made them?

What genre (not counting the one they’re in) would your OC thrive in?

What genre would your OC do badly in but it would be hilarious or interesting to watch?

What media does your character enjoy? (For characters in settings that aren’t modern Earth, could be media from their home setting or what they’d like in a modern Earth AU)

What song(s) do you associate with your OC?

Alternatively, do you have any OCs you associate with the song(s) I just sent you?

If your OC had to cosplay as a fictional character, who would they choose?

Has your OC ever had a crush on a fictional (to them) character?

If your OC wrote fanfiction (or if they already do), what type? (fix fic, ship, crossovers, AUs, smut, etc.)

How would your OC do in the last book/movie/tv show/game/etc. you read/watched/played?

If your OC was a superhero, what would they be like? (powers, title, general vibe, etc.)

What animal would your OC have as their His Dark Materials daemon?

What Pokémon would be on your OC’s team and/or what would be their preferred type?

If your OC was a Dungeons and Dragons character, what would their class be? And/or: If they were playing D&D, what kind of character might they play? (these aren’t necessarily the same thing)

How well would your OC do in a standard slasher movie?

What stock character would your OC be stuck as in a sitcom?

Who would your OC main in Super Smash Bros?

Who would your OC play in Mario Kart?

If your OC was in Star Trek’s Starfleet, what would be their role/position? Or, if that doesn’t really fit your OC: why would they get kicked out of Starfleet?

What role would your OC play in a heist story?

What kind of classic horror monster (vampire, werewolf, alien, etc.) would your OC be?

What type of Avatar The Last Airbender-type bender (or non-bender) would your OC be? Any bending specialties?

Your OC gets isekai’d to a bog-standard fantasy world. What does your OC do and how badly does it go for that world?

In the Muppet version of your story, is this particular OC a Muppet or the one human?

What would be your OC’s My Little Pony cutie mark?

Your OC is stuck in a musical episode. What song(s) do they sing? (And how thrilled or annoyed are they about being stuck in a musical?)

In a murder mystery, what role would your OC play? (e.g. detective, sidekick, wacky suspect, rival investigator who gets in thew way, red herring, true culprit)

What is your OC’s Warrior Cats name?

Gun to their head, what is your OC’s fursona?

#oc ask #oc question #oc questions #oc ask game #oc ask meme #ask meme

[munv]

𝗜𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗜𝗡 𝗘𝗦𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗦𝗬

𝗜𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝘁𝗼𝘀𝗵𝗶 𝗦𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗲𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂? 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼?

could you tell kaiser brain rot won? could you tell? could you tell?

September was just starting, but now looking back..you were already sick of it. Taking care of Sae was a journey in its own right, but your mother expecting a baby in possibly a few days?  You needed some fresh air. 

So that's exactly what you did.

At least..that is what you thought. 

"Where are you going?" Sae's voice rang out through the living room. Staring at you with intent, trying to figure out what exactly was your game plan for today. Your Maine coon "Miko" was currently purring at your feet. She circled you in a way that made you feel caught. Which was scary in its own little way. 

You shook a bit at the type of duo they both became, always seemingly to catch you in the act. "I'm going for a walk..I'll be back" 

Sae gave you a stern glare in response "You said we'd play soccer this week" he stepped closer with each word before he was just inches in front of you. He looked up at you judgmentally. Miko let out a small 'meow' in agreement.

The sick little shit, you would have never picked her ass up from the street all those years ago if you knew she would pick sides. "I'm taking a walk Sae, and I said this week not today." You said stepping out of the circle Miko called home before putting on your shoes.

You ruffled his hair before opening the door, "I'll be back soon. Kay?" 

"Hmph" Miko let out a dissatisfied mewl before trotting back on over to sae.  "Alright love you!" You shut the door on him once again.. just like a particular chapter.

The small boy flushed before walking away from the door "Nee-San is so weird..isn't she miko?"  The cat purred in content before making way to her corner of the house once again.

It was a random park, very random indeed. How you ended up in this neighborhood? Not even you have the answers to that question.  You walked aimlessly, at truth. It was a little bit windy but nothing that couldn't be handled. 

A few birds, a cat here and there, a small stall you picked up teriyaki from, nothing beats this type of routine. Which was the initial thought before your teriyaki was snatched out of your hands "HOLY-" The culprit? A soccer ball in all its glory.  'a soccer ball...just..took my teriyaki? am I finally reaching insanity?...oh my god, is this the world getting payback for not playing soccer with Sae?' what you failed to notice was that there was a voice calling out to you. 

before you was a young boy, most likely around your age, with messy blonde hair almost completely spilled over his shoulders with a generous shade of blue to shade his eyes. He was only a little bit taller than you, but other than that he seemed worried at your downcast expression. If the boy didn't see what the soccer ball did to your teriyaki, he would have thought he hit your dog and killed it on the spot! 

"Geht es dir gut? Oh Gott, habe ich dich irgendwo getroffen?!" at this rate he was shaking with despair and worry. Snapping out of your senses, you realized he wasn't exactly speaking Japanese, and by the time he finished spluttering, he probably had a self-realization he wasn't exactly speaking Japanese either. Now, you weren't any language on a star, but you were smart enough to know this kid was probably German or something. 

But from the worry in his voice, you could at least pick up that he was probably asking if you were ok and a hint of extra sorry's in there. "uh.." you didn't have much to say, but being on your second life did have its benefits, for you studied a bit of french and german here and there. Though French was much easier you were grateful to have at least put a bit of effort into learning German. "Mir geht es gut, danke?"

The blonde boy looked surprised, which worried you by a hell tone. Did you say it right? oh shit, did you accidentally curse him out? he gave you a small smile before waving and picking up his soccer ball to run off to..wherever he was beforehand. 

So, you lost your teriyaki, met a cute German boy, and almost got spiraled into the pearly white gates in the process by the same soccer ball that took your teriyaki; but..looking back that hit could have been a serious one, that kid had some serious potential to become a striker. 

You've decided from the short encounter today that you've had about enough, and it's about time to start your mini trek home. Well, that was the old plan before you ended up looking at Google Maps. You weren't lost! no no, it was simply called..adapting to your new surroundings, you know. The little einsteins shit where they have a destination in mind but end up soaring somewhere weird. Maybe the magic school bus would explain this better, you know where you ended up where you wanted to go but got up in a small situation and lost. This was you we were talking about though! Not lost, just a little clueless. 

You turned a corner and managed to spot the same little guy from earlier, you realized that you could've pulled out Google Translate but that would've been rude. So sucking in your ego, you approached the blonde boy and tapped his shoulder. 

You weren't all too sure as to what he was doing, just holding the soccer ball and all but he seemed pretty lonely, and you were pretty clueless right now so it was a win-win situation. Not to assume he doesn't have friends or anything right?

He looked at you with surprise again, Jesus, it looked like he wanted to express himself so badly but just couldn't. I mean, if you were in Japan with little to no Japanese skills you don't think you would be able to speak German expecting almost anyone you meet to understand you. 

quickly hoping to get this over with, you typed out something on your phone and showed it to him. Thank God your parents actually trusted younger you with a phone and an even bigger plus you knew how to use it properly this time. he looked back at the translation on your phone before looking back at you and nodding. He took it from and you carefully typed out a few responses, and to be frank with yourself, the boy you learned whos name is "Kaiser" suited him. 

If only your Sae was this nice..you wouldn't have a stroke every now and then. he gave a small laugh to one of your snarky responses on google translate before finally leading you down a path, the more you two walked and talked (more like typed) the more fun it was. 

something in the conversation went like  "you have a little sibling?" 

"yeah, i got another one on the way right now too."

"what's it like?" 

"wouldn't you like to know?" 

and some more that went into depth like 

"it's ok to feel in the dumps yknow, but you should always carry some self-respect and discipline too"

"you sound a bit old, but..i'll think about it. thanks"

"i'll ignore the 'old' person comment and your welcome"

By the time you finished sharing your last laugh, you had arrived at your destination. Waving a small goodbye and a quick hug you made it inside your home with a small content sigh.

                                                                         ITOSHI OMAKE "why."

Sae's face was adorned with a frown while staring at his mother, sometimes his eyes would stray down to the round belly she had, where his new sibling would soon come from. But that wasn't today's topic. His tone was demanding for someone of his age, and his father had to remind him sometimes of how he sounded, but he knew his son couldn't help it. 

He was just naturally blunt he supposed.

He just needed to know why.

"sae, sweetheart..you're saying it as if your older sister isn't allowed to be happy?"

That's not what he was asking, and she knew that. He wanted to know the reason why you felt so off when he went to bother you earlier. 

You weren't even gone for that long! Miko told him everything and those two have an inseparable bond, so he would know what she was saying, and she told him you met a male. Not a boy, whoever interacts with his nee-san is stripped of the same title as him. Therefore by default, he is above all those bone-picking fiends that have tried to come close to you so far.

With a huff he got up and marched his way upstairs with his cat companion, opening your door to little to no knocking whatsoever.

"who is it."

he questioned

you looked confused, of course, you'd be confused, whatever boy turned fiend it was, screwed up your perfectly healthy and beautiful brain that would help him with homework, and now you've taken a liking to it. He can't believe it! it was just a couple of days ago you rejected one of those things too! 

Did they swarm you and infect you regardless by chance?

"Sae..what on God's infected earth are you talking about?"

"That's the exact problem. It's infected, and you've become one of them." he sighed.

what the fuck was he talking about?..

"miko, hold her down, we must bring her to her senses."

before you could react, a big white main coon had already jumped unto you and suffocated you in her fur as you wriggled for air. "WHAT THE HELL?" 

Sae closed the door behind him as he approached your already struggling figure.

"don't worry nee-san..we'll fix you."

Your parents sat on the couch that day listening to screams and cries for the rest of the day.

#{-muxis writes #x reader #x y/n #headcanons #headcanon #oneshots #blue lock x reader #blue lock x idol reader #bllk x reader #blue lock #sae itoshi #rin itoshi #itoshi siblings #itoshi brothers #itoshi reader #itoshi sae x reader #sae x reader #rin x reader #rin itoshi x reader #blue lock sae #blue lock rin #blue lock x sibling reader #older sister reader #blue lock series #micheal kaiser x reader #young Micheal kaiser #kaiser michael

[inbarfink]

One of the major themes of ‘Ace Attorney’ has always been trust, obviously. Like, this is the most important creed that Mia Fey passed down to Phoenix and from there to anyone he has touched.

As well as just generally being one of Phoenix’s most important positive qualities.

The entire arc of the first game hinges on the idea of the Power of Trust, with it being a core pillar of Phoenix's relationships with both Miles and Maya.

And even the main gameplay themes of ‘turnabout’ and ‘turning your thinking around’ are linked to this theme of Trust. The whole idea around the narrative of a ‘turnabout’ is that the Defendant seems obviously totally guilty, but the defense attorney proves them innocent by Trusting in their innocence. 

And ‘turning your thinking around’ is generally framed as - rather than the general mystery-solver mindset of trying to deduce what has happened from the evidence given - trusting in your client’s innocence and looking for evidence that should be there if they are innocent/that other person is the culprit. Using the Trust in the client as the foundation to build your logic from.

And being such a core theme of the franchise, the games started reiterating on and deconstructing it almost immediately. “Farewell, My Turnabout'' having a Guilty Client feels like the most obvious example, maybe. But actually the game starts casting suspicions on Engarde pretty early on, and most of the emotional turmoil related to him is more of the, like “will Phoenix sacrifice the truth for Maya’s sake” hostage situation stuff. 

I think the more important stuff in that case is more about the Phoenix-Edgeworth drama. How Phoenix’ sense of trust, which seems like such an unwavering and unbreakable virtue in the first game, does actually have limits. Phoenix feels that Miles has betrayed his trust by, y’know, running off to Europe and making him think he was dead - and it takes him time to learn how to regain this sense of trust in him.

Meanwhile, Matt Engarde, he considers himself strong because he trusts in no one. In contrast to Adrian, who both he and she herself see as ‘weak’ because of her tendency to blindly trust the person she is dependent on. But at the end, it’s Matt’s distrust in everyone around him that brings on his own downfall. 

And the game after that adds in Dahlia Hawthorne who is, as Mia Fey’s nemesis, a sort of representation of the dangers of trust. A character who uses and manipulates those who put their trust in her.

“Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney” establishes its more cynical and deconstructivist tone compared to the original trilogy in part by always putting some sort of element of distrust between the Lawyer and the Defendant. With Apollo basically unable to really have a decent conversation with any of his clients, many of them being antagonistic towards him or hiding things from him. Phoenix Wright was basically the only defendant Apollo went into court actually 100% putting his trust in him… and we all know how that worked out.

And this moment is especially effective because… if you’re playing this game unspoiled after finishing the Phoenix Wright Trilogy, you probably trust Phoenix as well! The emotions Apollo feels as he sees who Phoenix had become are meant to mirror the emotions the Player probably feels at this very moment. And the hints and questions about what Phoenix did in the trial seven years ago are a challenge to the trust of both Apollo and the Player. Both of them are stuck between what they knew of Phoenix before and the revelation of what Phoenix confessed to in “Turnabout Trump”. Apollo’s uncertainty is the player’s uncertainty as well. 

And even if Apollo’s image of Phoenix is somewhat improved by “Turnabout Successions” and it’s clearly established that, no, Phoenix never knowingly used forged evidence as an attorney… There’s no big reconciliation that fixes everything like with Phoenix and Miles. It’s clear that Apollo’s sense of trust, in Phoenix Wright and in general, never quite recovered from the events of AJAA. Later games do still reiterate that he’s a lot more distrustful than other playable attorneys.

(And that’s also a point where the Player-Player Character Synergy from ‘Turnabout Trump’ kinda diverges, since I think most Players do regain their trust in Phoenix by the end of AA4 at least. Especially as unlike Apollo, we actually got to be inside his head again - that’s not exactly an experience Apollo will ever get to have. )

But, well, maybe it’s because it’s just really fresh in my mind, but I just think what ‘The Great Ace Attorney’ Duology does with this theme is just… really cool!

These games really play on the idea of challenging the trust… not just of the Player Character Ryunosuke, but also of the Player themselves. Because Ryunosuke also gets to have a Guilty Client… as his very-first actual client who is not himself. And since the game doesn’t lay on the suspicion quite as thick as with Matt Engarde, and since there’s no hostage situation of course… This plotline can have emotional synergy between the Player and the Player Character and focus a lot more about the emotional repercussion of putting your trust in someone totally absolutely unworthy of trust. 

And how this betrayal of trust haunts the characters moving forwards. How Ryunosuke now finds himself being held back by his doubts due to the memories of this terrible trial, and... not necessarily a lack of trust in others as much as a lack of trust in himself. How Susato is driven to do something she considers unforgivable - tempering with the Crime Scene behind the police’s back - because that trial had made her lose trust in the entire British Justice System.

The entire climax of the first game is thus a reaffirmation of the power of trust. By unwaveringly defending Gina - a girl they have bonded with, but has also been extremely uncooperative, shady, dishonest and literally involved in what went down in the McGilded Trial, in a very grueling and seemingly unbeatable trial  - Ryunosuke and Susato rediscover their ability to trust their defendant. Because, yeah, trust is a leap of faith - you never know when you’re gonna meet a McGilded or a Dahlia Hawthorne - but it’s also absolutely worth it.

And then with the themes of conspiracy strawn throughout the games and especially ramping up in the second game, that’s really kinda a thing that’s bound to sow seeds of paranoia and distrust in the Players about… all sorts of characters. Like, okay, I am fairly sure that pretty much every player who first walked into the Lord Chief Justice’s office and saw Mael Stronghart was like “Oh look! That’s the Final Boss!”. But with the hints for there being some sort of web of intrigue being hidden in the shadows, there’s plenty of other characters that skirt the line between feeling suspicious and trustworthy. The reveal that Seishiro Jigoku is actually a culprit was one of the best-done reveals in the whole franchise. And on the other hand, there are many reasons to be suspicious of Yujin due to the amount of secrets he clearly keeps, and yet he turns out to be a very straightforwardly heroic character. 

And then there’s Kazuma. And Mael Stronghart might be the Obvious Final Boss to the Conspiracy and Murder Mystery parts of the game, but within this thematic throughline of the challenges of trust, Kazuma is pretty much that part’s Final Boss. 

Initially designed to be someone both the characters and the players intently trust, both in terms of the meta-perspective of how he’s set up to be a kinda Mia-Miles hybrid and any Player with knowledge of the previous games will know that’s a kind of person you can rely on. And in general, even to newcomers, everything he says and does in the first two chapters of the game make him feel like just a very upstanding guy you can trust.

Then, when he comes back in the second games, he comes back with a new attitude that feels colder towards Ryunosuke (and thus the Player) and that’s also coupled with a whole bunch of mysteries about him that were hinted in the previous game, but are now coming to the forefront. 

And as the Trial of Barok Van Zieks progresses, it becomes increasingly clear that Karuma has, theoretically, all the possible motivation to kill Greyson and frame Barok for it, that he was one of the last people to see Gregson before his death and that he literally brandished a sword at him. And despite how cagey and shady he acts, he still insists he never killed anyone.

And the reveal that he has knowingly participated in an assassination plot behind the backs of both Ryunosuke and Susato is bound to cause a feeling of shock, confusion and betrayal not just in these characters - but also in the Player. The Player and Player Characters are in a lot of emotional synergy through this entire Kazuma storyline. These feelings of conflict between wanting to trust Kazuma after seeing him in his best and all the mounting suspicions due to all the revelations about him are really felt by all three of us.

And in the end the challenge for Ryunosuke and Susato is not to abandon Kazuma completely, and it’s not to continue blindly trusting their old idealized view of Kazuma - it’s to face the fact that he has kinda lost his way for single-minded revenge, while also still trusting that he is deep-down the same good not-murdery man they have known him as before.

#ace attorney #the great ace attorney #great ace attorney #gyakuten saiban #dai gyakuten saiban #dai gyatuken saiban #tgaa #tgaac #tgaa2 #ryuunosuke naruhodou #kazuma asogi #ryunosuke naruhodo #gaac #dgs #dgs2 #dgs sherlock holmes #tgaa chronicles #tgaa 2 #aa #pwaa #phoenix wright #phoenix wright ace attorney #aa meta #ace attorney meta #phoenix wright trilogy #aa trilogy #ace attorney trilogy #apollo justice ace attorney #food #phoenix wright: ace attorney

[kp777]

By Frederick H. Decker

Common Dreams

Nov. 29, 2023

National news media often broadcast misinformation when discussing the debt of the United States government, erroneously targeting Social Security as the main culprit whether intentionally or from genuine ignorance.

The coverage of the federal debt by news media generally considered credible often mirrors, unfortunately, the falsehoods heard from Republican lawmakers in blaming Social Security as a major driver of the federal debt. Such misleading news coverage was embedded in a recent segment aired during the week of Thanksgiving on the PBS NewsHour, which is an hour I watch regularly to typically be informed by sound journalism. But in the segment at issue here, I witnessed misinformation broadcast to the public that could shape public opinion into thinking, quite erroneously, that Social Security needs gutting because it is the culprit increasing the federal debt. It isn’t.

This particular segment on the federal debt on PBS NewsHour was introduced on Tuesday November 21 by coanchor Amna Nawaz stating how the “U.S. government remains open this Thanksgiving week, thanks to a temporary funding deal Congress passed last week.” But when that temporary funding starts expiring in January, Nawaz added, “conservatives are signaling they won’t pass another funding deal without addressing a bigger issue, the swelling U.S. national debt.”

Then coanchor Geoff Bennett and correspondent Lisa Desjardins, standing before a screen with varying charts, discussed the growing interest paid on the federal debt. As Desjardins put it, “just the interest on our debt is so large [in the past year] that it is almost [the size of} the entire Department of Defense budget.” That statement may be true, but that was not the punchline of the segment.

Social Security hasn’t reduced available general revenue nor been the reason why politicians are not funding programs for younger constituencies.

The NewsHour segment ended mirroring the Republican Party’s mantra that Social Security is the major driver of the federal debt. As Desjardins concluded “the three largest drivers of the debt are in reality” Social Security, Medicare, and interest on the debt, with each in the chart displayed indicated as accounting respectively for 21.2%, 12.9%, and 10.5% of total federal expenditures. Desjardins added, “Really what’s happening here is Congress is not addressing the big drivers of the debt at all.”

In a recent piece with misinformation embedded in its title alone, “Why We’re Borrowing to Fund the Elderly While Neglecting Everyone Else,” columnist Catherine Rampell also implied that borrowing to fund Social Security benefits will, as she wrote, “continue to crowd out future spending obligations in years ahead” on programs for the young like “pre-K, or child care, or paid parental leave, or a more generous child tax credit.”

One problem in such depictions exemplified by the NewsHour and in Rampell’s article is that Social Security, specifically, is funded almost exclusively by its own revenue source. Not by borrowing, as Ms. Rampell implies without providing supportive evidence for that contention (because there isn’t any). Nor funded by general revenue as likely many believe when seeing typical charts on federal spending (like that shown in the segment aired on PBS NewsHour) that include Social Security expenditures, which are not at all funded by general revenue but, rather, by its separate targeted payroll and income taxes.

Actually, as I have written about previously, Social Security is today the entity owning the most debt, $2.7 trillion in Treasury securities (Monthly Treasury Report, Table 6, Schedule D as of October 31, 2023). More than the two foreign governments owning the most U.S. debt, Japan today owning U.S. securities valuing $1.1 trillion and China with under $1 trillion.

Surpluses in Social Security revenue by law have to be invested in U.S. securities. And revenue surpluses have over the years been the norm in the program. Thus, Social Security for years, in essence, funded the debt with its surplus revenue, not caused it.

Social Security hasn’t reduced available general revenue nor been the reason why politicians are not funding programs for younger constituencies as Ms. Rampell alludes to in her piece. Tax cuts during the Trump and Bush administrations, however, did help do that. Growth in deficits and debt, as analysis by the Center for American Progress indicates, has largely been driven by those tax cuts. Tax cuts reducing general revenue applicable to programs like the earlier expanded child tax credit that, before expiring, lifted more children out of poverty.

The Social Security program has nevertheless, according to reports by the Board of Trustees overseeing the program, recently incurred shortfalls in its dedicated revenue stream. In 2022, a 4% shortfall noted in the trustees’ current report (Table II.B1, page 7). And those recent shortfalls have been met simply by just cashing in some U.S. securities the program acquired over the years with revenue surpluses.

But true enough, within current parameters of the program, the trustees predict the program’s reserves (i.e., securities) will be depleted by 2033. Then relying solely on Social Security’s separate tax revenue, it is predicted only 77% of benefits due will be payable. That’s not being totally broke, but it would have an adverse effect on the income many elderly depend upon.

Raising the Social Security retirement age to purportedly reduce costs also has adverse effects that, as I discussed earlier, the Congressional Research Service among others have outlined. For one, among those of lesser means who also on average have lower life expectancies, increasing the retirement age would reduce their lifetime Social Security benefits collected disproportionately relative to reductions among higher income earners with typically longer life expectancies. Increasing the retirement age would, furthermore, disproportionately harm those retiring early due to work-related health impairment suffered most prevalently in blue-collar occupations.

A different option some propose to increase revenue is eliminating the cap on the income subject to the Social Security payroll tax. In 2024 the limit on income taxed will be $168,600. Income above that limit would not currently be taxed.

However Social Security is made solvent for the future, one thing is quite clear. Social Security has not been the reason for incurred and increasing U.S. debt.

#PBS #social security #misinformation

[galaxygolfergirl]

Watcher's Expenses

I didn't major in accounting: I took three classes and it grinded my brain to a fine powder. However, after graduating with a business admin degree, being a former eager fan of their videos, and from a cursory glance over their socials, there's a lot to consider in their spending behavior that really could start racking up costs. Some of these things we've already noticed, but there are other things I'd like to highlight, and I'll try to break it down into the different categories of accounting expenses (if I get something wrong, let me know. I was more concentrated in marketing 🤷‍♀️). I'm not going to hypothesize numbers either, as that would take out more time than I'm willing to afford-- you can assume how much everything costs. Anyways, here's my attempt at being a layman forensic accountant:

Note: All of this is assuming they're operating above board and not engaging in any illegal practices such as money laundering, tax evasion, not paying rent, etc.

Operating Expenses

Payroll: 25+ staff salaries and insurance

Overhead Expenses

CEO/founder salaries

Office space leasing or rent (In L.A, one of the most expensive cities in the US)

Utilities (water, electricity, heating, sanitation, etc.)

Insurance

Advertising Costs

Telephone & Internet service

Cloud Storage or mainframe

Office equipment (furniture, computers, printers, etc.)

Office supplies (paper, pens, printer ink, etc.)

Marketing costs (Social media marketing on Instagram, Youtube, SEO for search engines, Twitter, etc. Designing merchandise and posters, art, etc. )

Human Resources (not sure how equipped they are)

Accounting fees

Property taxes

Legal fees

Licensing fees

Website maintenance (For Watchertv.com, Watcherstuff.com, & Watcherentertainment.com)

Expenses regarding merchandising (whoever they contract or outsource for that)

Inventory costs

Potentially maintenance of company vehicles

Subsequent gas mileage for road trips

Depreciation (pertains to tangible assets like buildings and equipment)

Amortization (intangible assets such as patents and trademarks)

Overhead Travel and Entertainment Costs (I think one of the biggest culprits, evident in their videos and posts)

The travel expenses (flights, train trips, rental cars, etc. For main team and scouts)

Hotel expenses for 7-8 people at least, or potentially more

Breakfasts, lunches and dinners with the crew (whether that's fully on their dime or not, I don't know; Ryan stated they like to cover that for the most part)

Recreational activities (vacation destinations, amusement parks, sporting activities etc.)

The location fees

Extraneous Overhead costs (not sure exactly where these fall under, but another culprit, evident in videos and posts)

Paying for guest appearances

Expensive filming & recording equipment (Cameras, sound equipment, editing software subscriptions, etc.)

The overelaborate sets for Ghost files, Mystery Files, Puppet History, Podcasts etc. (Set dressing: Vintage memorabilia, antiquated tech, vintage furniture, props, etc.)

Kitchen & Cooking supplies/equipment

Office food supply; expensive food and drink purchases for videos

Novelty items or miscellaneous purchases (ex. Ghost hunting equipment, outfits, toys, etc.)

Non-Operating Expenses

These are those expenses that cannot be linked back to operating revenue. One of the most common examples of non-operating expenses is interest expense. This is because while interest is the cost of borrowing money from a creditor or a bank, they are not generating any operating income. This makes interest payments a part of non-operating expenses.

Financial Expenses

Potential loan payments, borrowing from creditors or lenders, bank loans, etc.

Variable Expenses

Hiring a large amount of freelancers, overtime expenditure, commissions, etc.

PR consultations (Not sure if they had this before the scandal)

Extraordinary Expenses

Expenses incurred outside your company’s regular business activities and during a large one-time event or transactions. For example, selling land, disposal of a significant asset, laying off of your employees, unexpected machine repairing or replacement, etc.

Accrued Expenses

When your business has incurred an expense but not yet paid for it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(If there's anything else I'm missing, please feel free to add or correct things)

To a novice or a young entrepreneur, this can be very intimidating if you don't have the education or the support to manage it properly. I know it intimidates the hell out of me and I'm still having to fill in the gaps (again, if I've mislabeled or gotten anything wrong here, please let me know). For the artistic or creative entrepreneur, it can be even harder to reconcile the extent of your creative passions with your ability to operate and scale your business at a sustainable rate. That can lead to irresponsible, selfish, and impulsive decisions that could irreparably harm your brand, which is a whole other beast of its own.

My guess at this point is that their overhead and operation expenses are woefully mismanaged; they've made way too many extraneous purchases, and that they had too much confidence in their audience of formerly 2.93 million to make up for the expenses they failed to cover.

It almost seems as if their internal logic was, "If we make more money, we can keep living the expensive lifestyle that we want and make whatever we want without anyone telling us we can't, and we want to do it NOW, sooner rather than later because we don't want wait and compromise our vision." But as you can see, the reality of fulfilling those ambitions is already compromised by the responsibility of running a business.

And I wrote this in another post here, but I'll state it again: Running a business means you need to be educated on how a business can successfully and efficiently operate. Accounting, marketing, social media marketing, public relations, production, etc; these resources and internet of things is available and at your disposal. If they had invested more time in educating themselves on those aspects and not made this decision based on artistic passion (and/or greed), they would have not gotten the response they got.

Being a graphic designer, I know the creative/passionate side of things but I also got a degree/got educated in business because I wanted to understand how to start a company and run it successfully. If they’re having trouble handling the responsibility of doing that, managing production costs, managing overhead expenses, and especially with compensating their 25+ employees, then they should hire professionals that are sympathetic to their creative interests, but have the education and experience to reign in bad decisions like these.

Anyways, thanks for coming to my TedTalk. What a shitshow this has been.

#watcher #watcher entertainment #ryan bergara #shane madej #steven lim #watcher tv #watchergate #accounting

[shiut]

How much did Yakou know?

Very long and detailed analysis of Yakou's involvement in the plot beneath the cut.

Yakou is an interesting character to me. He gets his own mildly insightful short story about his detective origins. However, I crave to think that there's gotta be more to him than just the kind of pathetic (affectionate) stressed out dad-like figure that mostly kind of nags and bosses Yuma around for the majority of the game.

Ok, it sounds like I'm ragging on him, but he does have an occasional side of him in dire situations where he shows a selfless loyalty and trust in his team that proves he takes his leadership position seriously, even if he does really rock the irresponsible mess look. And he gets to be cool in his own chapter for a minute.

But there is a moment that sticks out to me, especially in hindsight after finishing the game, and that's the prologue where you get your first and probably most substantial talk with him.

He says that he does not want Kanai Ward to change practically within the same breath where he explains how terribly he's treated as a detective in this horrendously corrupt murder infested police state.

Although he makes it clear that he has a deep personal affection and nostalgic attachment to this city that shows a bias for why he would say this, we hear from multiple people throughout the game that Kanai Ward has not been the same in recent years as it has been in the past that Yakou has rooted his love in.

So why does he feel as if any change to the current state of Kanai Ward would disrupt the "peace and quiet" it deserves?

Unless he knows something about the city that's just so fundamentally irreparable that this is the closest to peace and quiet that it'll ever get again, and trying to fix it would only somehow destroy it.

Everything about the rooftop scene, from talking about the city, to Shinigami commenting on how ominous he feels to her, to the fact that he's the person who explains the rumor that the rain affects peoples' bodies.

Highlighted text tends to be easy to overlook, but I can't help but feel like there's some significance to his usage of "illusion in the rain". It's like he knows something that nobody else can see (and an obvious foreshadowing of how the rain is one of the main means of covering up Kanai Ward's mystery).

But this segues into the themes of his later chapter which also focuses on Vivia, who mirrors Yakou in a lot of ways, beyond just being another guy who muses on about peace and quiet.

Speaking of, a mirror is what Vivia uses as a metaphor for the benefit of blissful ignorance and the potential catastrophic dangers of the painful truth.

For the purposes of this chapter, he is explaining the type of pain and the effect on Yuma's world view that uncovering Yakou's crime will incur. It also acts as a setup for the development of Yuma's conviction that he will later need to use in the final chapter of the game. But the distorted reality the Vivia explains in the mirror does call me back to Yakou's "illusion in the rain" comment.

Vivia also explains that the truth that Yuma uncovers for truth's sake will lead to the destruction of the world. While he could be referring to the world and humanity in general, in the context of this chapter, world can mean a lot of things though, such as Yuma's innocence in the way he views the world as he knows it.

Or namely, from Makoto's point of view, it could also mean the destruction of the homunculi and the only version of the world that Makoto believes they can exist in.

Did Yakou come to a similar conclusion as Makoto based on what he found out?

Like Vivia in chapter 4, who did not want the culprit to be revealed, it seemed like Yakou had the full intention of not cooperating with investigating the Kanai Ward mystery until he was forced to by a directive from Number One. Even so, he came off as if encouraging the detectives to drag their feet on it for the sake of staying out of trouble.

But we know that he is not lazy, unmotivated, or stupid. In a world where you're competing with people who are fast-tracked into the WDO if they have literal super powers, Yakou was inducted by pure detective skill. He had definitely been spending a lot of his time laying low and investigating Kanai Ward himself, because he didn't trust the UG or the WDO if they turned their attention to the city.

Yakou already knew about the homunculus research in some way.

Even if he didn't know about everyone being a homunculus, he at least knew enough that he believed that the city itself would be shattered by the involvement of the UG and WDO.

And then we get to chapter 5 with the mindless zombie homunculi.

Except, they're not all completely mindless. As a matter of fact, I had come to notice something about all the non-aggressive homunculi: they all seemed to have some degree of awareness about Amaterasu's research.

The fake Zilch, who was one of Yomi's closest advisors and knew about all of Dr Huesca's and Yomi's activity in the lab concerning homunculus research, and was implied to be the one who killed Yakou's wife for whistleblowing. Fink, who was propositioned by Makoto himself to infiltrate the lab, and who was then killed by Makoto for 'knowing too much'. Dr Huesca, who was the head researcher for the homunculi. And the former CEO, who was the prime overseer of the research.

And then there was Yakou, who gives Yuma the video evidence of Dr Huesca's death at the hands of the homunculi as he explained the results of the experiment. The easy explanation is that Makoto planted this video on the zombie Yakou to be given to Yuma in the restricted area.

However, another thing that the non-aggressive zombies had in common is that they seemed to be stuck thinking about what seems to be their final thoughts before their death, barring the former CEO who was unusually lucid compared to all of them.

Considering this, I feel like Yakou's final thoughts were for Yuma to expose the truth about the homunculi for him, and to give him the DVD as the key evidence he needed. Whether Makoto gave Yakou this video, or if Yakou already had this video himself, his final thought before dying was to make sure Yuma got it.

I always thought it was a bit strange for Yakou to go and decide to murder Dr Huesca at the slightest provocation by Yomi, and then had this whole complicated coverup plan. If Kurumi could look into Yakou's background for only a day and come to the conclusion that Amaterasu had killed his wife for whistleblowing, then Yakou himself would've definitely already known and could've tried to kill Dr Huesca a long time ago.

I don't think the provocation was by Yomi's letter. I believe at some point, he had found out that Huesca and Yomi could possibly leak information about the homunculus research. He decided to kill Huesca as a gambit reveal Yomi's involvement with leaking research before it could get out into the public and destroy Kanai Ward, and he entrusted this truth to Yuma and the rest of his detectives. Yakou knew that the lie that they were living, the one that was keeping Kanai Ward together, wasn't going to last much longer.

This conveniently aligned with Makoto's motives to oust Yomi. Makoto, the one who also knew that Yomi would cause the lie holding Kanai Ward together to unravel, and who happened to introduce Fink to Yakou. Fink thought that Yakou did not know about Makoto orchestrating their meeting, and perhaps he was right in that Yakou didn't know that it was Makoto specifically, but maybe Makoto was the one who tipped Yakou off to Amaterasu's homunculus research possibly being leaked and may have even given Yakou the DVD.

Makoto may not have exactly manipulated Yakou. It just simply that both Yakou and Makoto similarly knew that the UG sticking their nose into Kanai Ward about the homunculus research was incredibly dangerous. Makoto simply gave Yakou the ultimatum and means to stop Yomi. The difference is that Makoto's goal was to get rid of Yomi and assume full control of the city in order to further suppress its secret, but Yakou's goal was the provide the truth to his detectives in order to fix things.

And I wrote all this BEFORE the Yakou DLC came out.

Where we find out that Yakou has had the prototype cure for homunculi the whole time. And depending on whether or not his wife here is a ghost or a hallucination, it seems like she had always known that there would be a need to regenerate the zombified brain cells of homunculi. Yakou might've been biding time not only to try and figure out how to reconcile the whole homunculus research issue without the UG destroying Kanai Ward, but maybe also for someone to finish research on this medicine.

TLDR; Yakou had always known about the homunculus research and was hiding it because he believed that the info getting leaked would cause the destruction of Kanai Ward by the hands of the UG. In the end, he figured out that the secret would not keep up for much longer, and his plot in chapter 4 wasn't for revenge, but to entrust that Yuma and the rest of his detectives would be able to uncover the truth and work out a way to save Kanai Ward.

#rain code #raincode #master detective archives: rain code #rain code spoilers #yakou furio #shiutpost #my analysis #analysis

[sh1-n0bu]

congrats on reaching 5k!!!!!

PomPom!!! (Hsr, platonic)

Hi!!! How are you?? I'm sorry I'm only able to help out when everyone else besides Miss Himieko is off the Express, or in the dead of night. I get soo nervous around them but you two seem to be the only people I can relax around. Especially when the General Jing Yuan came to visit??? I nearly had a heart attack when I thought they saw me. Don't get me stared on how Stelle/Caelus and March have been getting noesy especially about me in particular. Despite being the main culprits I know Welt and Dan Heng are also growing curious about me. I don't think anyone else besides the two of you guys have seen me, and I really hope to keep it that way. I hope keeping me a secret isn't that much of an issue,,, I promise I'll make your favourite hot chocolate and cookies for our movie night! (I am eternally thankful that Miss Himeko and you let me have my own personal kitchen in my room) Love you PomPom, I'll see you and Miss Himeko tonight!! Tell her I said Hi!!

Lots of Love,

your shy helper

𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜! 𝙣𝙤𝙗𝙪’𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙡 𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙚!

to: pom-pom from honkai star rail

lately, there has been some rumors floating about the astral express. which, most times, is completely fine since one of the passengers loves to make up all sorts of stories with her wild imagination. and it has only been fueled by their latest passenger, the trash loving one. so, with their imaginations running rampant, it was only normal for them to come up with all sorts of stories to tell the express visitors at times. mainly the younger ones.

however, one day, the general of the luofu’s cloud knights had decided to visit his express friends with his retainer. the young boy went about everywhere, taking in the atmosphere and the magical energy of the galaxy traveling train. of course, taking his young age and curious nature into thought, the trailblazer told the young retainer how the express had its own spirit. they went on to great details of how the spirit of the express keeps the train in check, helping the conductor but also sometimes, stirring up trouble.

it didn’t get better as march joined in, talking stories about how one night when she came back from another trailblazing mission only the cute tiny round plushie replicas of the astral express crew. when march went to thank pom-pom about it, the conductor only expressed concern and confusion while himeko only giggles with a knowing smile.

yanqing believed every word of course, thinking that the express had its own ghost and was haunted. it only calmed down a bit when dan heng came over, gently smacking the two unruly adults over their heads and telling them to stop spreading lies. however, jing yuan stepped in at that.

“i feel something” the general of the luofu said, rubbing his chin softly as he looked around the main cabin of the express in deep thought. “there is indeed something here. a weird and new energy. something that’s a bit… inhuman and i’m not talking of the conductor” he briefly nods towards the rabbit, where they were watering the plants. briefly, jing yuan looked towards the chessboard out of the corner of his eyes, where he was sure something tiny zipped across.

and with that incident, what started as a joke quickly became a case that march and the trailblazer would diligently chase after. acting like they’re detectives, the two would speak of something being on the express to every visitors who visited. some getting scared, some finding the story funny and some seeming to have an odd recollection in their eyes. but one thing stayed the same. the two didn’t give up their detective work.

and their suspicions were further solidified when after argenti — a certain dramatic knight of beauty — helped the express to get out of the stomach of a beast that happened to swallow them. the express’ outer sides were completely alright! not a single hint of blotch or hint of being burned with stomach acid. completely clean and pristine as usual. that’s when the two came to the conclusion to call this entity “guardian of the express”. meanwhile, a certain guard of the express sighs and rolls his eyes at the shenanigans of his friends. a certain former herrscher laughing it off, telling the guard to leave them to their own devices as they seem to be having fun. on the other hand, a certain navigator and conductor stay hush hush about something, whispering to each other about something as the conductor hands over a letter to the coffee loving woman to let her read over it as well.

it wasn’t until after the rest had went to their separate rooms to rest up for the night, did the two of them sit down on one of the tables of the main cabin. pulling out a paper and a pen to write their own responses back.

“dear ‘guardian of the express’,

what do you think of the new nickname the trailblazer and march thought up for you? i think it’s pretty cool! since in a case, you are indeed the guardian of the express. passenger dan heng may be a guard of the express and an amazing one at that, but he’s also a human that needs his own rest and therefore, can’t keep the express safe 24/7. i forgot to say thank you when you kept the outer sides of the express safe when it was swallowed by the true sting. i was so worried that the stomach acid of the creature would damage it (ᗒᗣᗕ)՞!

thankfully you were here with us to keep the train and us safe.

i’m sorry if i can’t keep both passengers march and trailblazer from being too nosy about you. they tend to get a bit too excited at times about certain things. and that time is specifically now more than ever as we are cruising the star rail towards penacony. i just hope you can stay out of sight whenever they’re awake!

and as for the general of the luofu, i was quite scared of the man too! he seemed to know so much and visited the express a lot of times to the point of almost finding out about you. i was so worried when he first came over! and he also tried to steal me away from the express as well the other day ٩(ʘ益ʘ💢)۶ ٩(ʘ益ʘ💢)۶!

well, i hope you can stay safe and out of the shenanigans of some of the passengers and even the visitors. it’s alright if you don’t want yourself to be seen, me and himeko would keep your secrets safe!

with love, pom-pom the conductor of the astral express”

#nobu.writes #hsr x reader #hsr x you #hsr x y/n #hsr x gender neutral reader #honkai star rail x reader #honkai star rail x you #honkai star rail x gender neutral reader #astral express #hsr #honkai star rail #5k followers

[darkveracity]

Does Hinamizawa Syndrome Actually Exist?

Keiichi, Shion, Satoshi, Satoko, and Rena all develop extreme paranoia and resort to violence in various timelines

This is just what happens when a young person under extreme stress feels powerless and desperate and goes without food or sleep or healthy social interactions for a long time. All of them have internal justifications for their actions that make sense to them and feel like there's no other choice. Hinamizawa Syndrome functions as a metaphor for all the broader forces that put them in this situation and bear partial responsibility for their actions but precisely because it's a metaphor it's not actually required to explain anything

Satoshi struggles violently when they stop sedating him

Yeah because you kidnapped him and strapped him to a table in a scary looking medical facility. Anyone would be terrified and fight to get away under those circumstances!

Patients have similar delusions (paranoia, footsteps following you, maggots in your throat)

This should actually be expected regardless of Hinamizawa Syndrome since paranoid delusions are very culturally mediated and Hinamizawa has legends about all of these. It's not any more meaningful than American schizophrenics commonly believing that the CIA is spying on them

Hifumi Takano saw many men from Hinamizawa go insane during the war and tear out their own throats

Did he check at what rate non-Hinamizawan soldiers lost their minds and killed themselves after the stress of committing war crimes? Isn't this just selection bias at work? The unique manner of death is interesting but not conclusive beyond their local culture having an approved method of suicide

Irie vivisected the culprit of the dam murder and saw evidence Takano attributed to the disease. Later Irie drilled a hole in Rika's head and Takano vivisected her mother as supposed 'Queen Carriers' and they again saw what they believed to be evidence of Hinamizawa Syndrome

However they never did any controls to check that what they saw wasn't true of all humans or unique to their few victims. A few vivisections with no controls that no one else can attempt to replicate for ethical reasons performed by a scientist with the kind of strong motivation to find evidence that leads to confirmation bias doesn't constitute proof

Irie developed a drug that controls Hinamizawa Syndrome symptoms and a vaccine for the disease. Takano developed a drug that induces symptoms

Anti-psychotics and anti-anxiety drugs both already exist as does drug-induced psychosis. It's totally plausible that they just invented new drugs in these standard categories. Irie supposedly developed a vaccine but Takano was inoculated and still developed symptoms under extreme stress so it's not clear that it's effective

At one point Irie and Takano make the dubious claim that Rika's health controls the health of the whole village and when she's sick everyone gets sick at higher rates

I'm pretty sure this has to be confirmation bias or reverse causation. The whole queen carrier theory is nonsensical anyway and it's canon that the part about her death driving the whole village insane is wrong. It's true that Rika's family has been passed down through firstborn daughters for eight generations straight but that only takes us back a couple hundred years and Hanyuu lived 1000 years ago. What does Takano think happened in generations where the firstborn child didn't have kids or where the main family died out and it went to a cousin or what have you. Rika could easily disprove the whole thing if she just went digging around in the Furude archives and drew a nice family tree

It's somewhat implausible for so many kids in the same area to be at risk of psychosis

This type of mental health issue is very genetic and Hinamizawa is the kind of isolated village where everyone is distantly related. It's more than possible

#higurashi #umineko #takano miyo #furudo erika

[pandabaozi]

type a

main: thief king bakura x malik ishtar [citronshipping] word count: 777 general cw: blood drinking artwork by: @aestromeri

[au, supernatural] Bakura never considered himself particularly squeamish. In fact, he’d seen enough unpleasantness to last him more lifetimes than he’d care to have. Broken bones, shattered teeth, disembowelment — if he hadn’t been the culprit, then there was a high chance he may have been the recipient.

[read on ao3]

#thief king bakura #malik ishtar #citronshipping #yugioh #ygo #ygo:dm #pandablahzi.fics #i got to collab with cali for this 🥺💗💕 #i hope i did her artwork justice aaaaa 😭😭 #happy halloweenie 👻🤍 #cw: blood

[teecupangel]

Hello Teacup! I just need you to know I've basically devoured everything on your AO3 and a multitude of the snippets here and I've adored everything!

But now I have a Thought that I must share.

Imagine Umar Ibn-La'Ahad is mid-mission, fleeing Saladin's tent and just about to attack a general in his way, only for said general to be knocked unconscious by a young boy. He looks a bit like Umar's son too.

The two stare at each other for a moment before the boy opens his mouth.

"You're a bit shit at this, aren't you?"

The boy disappears in the chaos and Umar returns to Masyaf safely if a bit put out at being called out like that and worried for the boy.

Later, Saladin sends a message stating he will retreat on the condition of compensation for his concussed General, warning them that he would have demanded the Assassin's head had the General died. (In other news, Ahmad also returned to Masyaf looking very disgruntled and ruffled, muttering about nosy boys and he WAS a Master Assassin thank you very much.)

So all's well that ends well. Except that no one has any idea who this kid is or where he came from.

Umar wants to know if the boy is ok.

Ahmad has a small grudge and is sulking a bit. (Abbas is also holding a grudge in solidarity.)

Al Mualim wants to see if this boy could be of use.

Altair just wants to thank the person who saved his father. (He can read between the lines.)

Meanwhile, Deaged!Desmond is kicking himself for opening his mouth like that in front of Altair's father. All he wanted to do was make sure Umar got out safely! (and maybe rescuing Ahmad would ensure Abbas didn't grow into such a dick.) The next stop though is Jerusalem for the Apple. He'll go from there.

(There's a Tiny!OP!Desmond loose in the Levant. Nobody knows what he's going to do next, least of all Tiny!Desmond.)

Thank you! It always makes me happy hearing/reading how you guys adore my stories in AO3 and the snippets/ideas here in Tumblr <3

.

Okay, you know what would be funny? If said general knew that it wasn’t an Assassin who knocked him out. Noooo, he definitely saw it was a boy.

And he also know the Assassin he was chasing saw the boy as well.

So the main reason why he asked Saladin to just ask for compensation was because his pride was wounded so badly that he just wants this entire situation to end already. He’s afraid Umar would tell everyone that a boy, a waif, was the real culprit and he’s too honorable to lie.

When Umar goes to them with the compensation, he can’t even look into Umar’s eyes and Umar ignores him because he’s worried of how Saladin would take it if he does say that it was all that boy’s fault.

They asked him if any wayward brothers had returned during the night and he has no real idea what they’re talking about, only realizing they were asking when he saw that Ahmad had left, mumbling about how some waif had no reason to tell him to take care of his son better, who does he think he is?

So now Umar is wondering who this child is…

And why their paths seemed to be intersecting strangely too much.

Unorganized Notes:

Desmond is either super unlucky or the Calculations is at play because he bumps into Umar too many times that he stopped counting already.

I’m thinking Desmond is around Altaïr’s age because (1) it would make him knocking out a general two or three times his age funnier and (2) it would make Umar’s worry for him easily meld into Desmond reminding him of Altaïr and he can try to reason it’s because of the similar age and not because Desmond… pretty much have some of Altaïr’s mannerism.

You know what would be funny? If the general finally confesses to Saladin and Saladin starts to get curious about this ‘waif’. This would mean another powerful man is out looking for him.

Desmond is winging the entire thing but is also being chased by the Templars because he stole the Apple right under their noses (in this idea, there are already Templars in Levant but they were lying low, waiting for the perfect time to infiltrate the vault underneath the temple when Desmond did his thing).

Desmond turns into an ‘urban legend’ among the Assassins who say that seeing him means some shit is gonna go down. There are even whispers that he’s a harbinger of chaos and destruction because that’s what usually happens when he’s there. (It’s really not. Desmond is mostly stealthy and a lot of Assassins don’t actually see him and they just start attributing those chaotic ‘issues’ to him because… well… they needed a reason XD)

Altaïr starts to think of him as this… strange person who caught his father’s attention which means he caught Altaïr’s attention. Whether that’s a good thing or not is up to you XD

Abbas and Altaïr are friends here but they have differing thoughts about the ‘harbinger’ with Altaïr wanting to meet him (and maybe tie him up so he can bring him to his father) while Abbas wants to punch him because he always feels annoyance about him thanks to Ahmad always being annoyed when he hears the word ‘harbinger’.

The Al-Sayfs want no part in any of these… except Kadar. Kadar supports Altaïr 100% even if it’s something illegal. That’s just a fact at this point.

#this is like… #more humorous and chaotic #because umar is alive #desmond isn’t actually a waif #he just stole clothes two sizes larger than his current body #so people think he’s a waif #ask and answer #assassin's creed #desmond miles #altaïr ibn la'ahad #umar ibn la'ahad #ahmad sofian #abbas sofian #teecup writes/has a plot #fic idea: assassin's creed