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evilminji · 10 months

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I Ponder The Humble Blob Ghost!

You think they are what happens when you ALMOST but not quite A Ghost(tm)? Like, you have the ectoplasm and the will to continue... but you didn't really have A Thing in life? No Final Crystalizing Thought that brings focus? Just "ow! Ah! I'm scared. Don't wanna die!" And theeeeen.... *poof!*

Why am I Orb? Am squish? No bones.

Like? Remove any one piece of the Critical Formula and you get Blob instead of Ghost? Different KINDS, mind you, but blobs none the less.

Like Skulker! Not enough Ectoplasm. Ended up Blob. He CLEARLY had the Will, the Obsession, the gory end and unfinished business... buuuut? No green goo to power the creation of a full body. He clearly knows what he's supposed to LOOK like? But it's not something FIXABLE? Even with his now unlimited access to Ectoplasm.

Like in utero damage that permanently stunted his growth. HE is fine. All his facilities are on-line and checking in as they should, for the level of sentience expected of a ghost of his people. He just... smol. Same strength, intelligence, and power as he would have always HAD...

He just got handed a really, REALLY crap "customize your eternal meatsuit" option screen. Like for real guys. Basicly NO options. His salt is eternal and entirely justified. He could have had his tattoos. He paid a LOT of credits for those! Sat for DAYS! Had to track down this One(1) artist on this SHITTY little trading hub, that BARELY QUALIFIED as one, to sit in on uncomfortable overturned crate... IN A GAS MASK because the AIR SUPPORT KEPT KICKING IT... for hoooours!

It was a WORK OF ART. You would have CRIED.

This is BULLSHIT.

But wait, I hear you say, staring at the Blob ghost chewing on a lamp post. The one that has wii music playing behind the eyes. No thoughts, head jello, one might say. What about THEM?

Good point! Remember that formula?

LOT of Ecto! But THAT... might be either an animal or a fungus. We'd have to check. ANYTHING can and DOES die. If it's alive? It can die and potentially leave a ghost. But! Consider the noble Ghost Rabbit! *holds up squirming rabbit that is ABSOLUTELY trying to both bite me and kick me in the face* A noble and friendly creature!

THIS is what happens when an animal: has sufficient Ectoplasm at the death site, a reason to continue living (fairly common. It's usually their offspring, escape, the instinctual drive to survive itself or other understandable base drives. Like love, loyalty, or hunger.), and that all important High Emotions End.

Miss any of these? You get Blobbertson over there! He's clearly a hungry boy! But! Not very DRIVEN is he? Just floating along, chewing on whatever seems interesting, looking for a snack. He's food motivated. But not MOTIVATED motivated.

Blobbertson over there? A peaceful death. Too much Ectoplasm too leave, too food motivated in life NOT to carry over, but? No DRIVE. To DEFINE and DEMAND the Ectoplasm in his little body become sharp and active. No highly emotional state to stir it into action.

Is Blobbertson INCAPABLE of higher emotions? No. He is every bit as capable as the Ghost Rabbit that has savaged my hands and escaped while you were reading. It was, in fact, NOT as friendly as originally assumed. I may be bleeding. Unimportant. Blobbertson is PERFECTLY capable of getting attached. Being trained.

Whatever level of intelligence Blobbertson had in life, still remains. And WITH that? Comes the ability to improve and grow in death! IF (and this is the big one) he ever finds MOTIVATION to do so.

Because you see, Blobbertson is quite happy. No thoughts, brain jello. Drifting along in a happy green ocean like a jellyfish. Only concerned about his next snack. It's comforting. His food obsession filled, his tiny motivation barely enough to move him place to place.

He would GLADLY sit in one place and eat for the rest of eternity. Head blissfully silent.

And that's OKAY! It truly, honestly, is. Not everyone has to be conquers and kings, crafters and cosmonauts. Sometimes you just want to spend the rest of time playing in the sand. Resting on a sunshine-y hill. Not EVERY soul is a loud one.

This is the INFINITE Realms.

And there are places like Amity Park out there. THICK as cold honey with Ectoplasm in the air, gently infusing all the life that grows there with greater and greater chance of Ghost-hood. Even the peaceful blinking awake after that final rest to look down and... little nubby green paws.

Congratulations on becoming a Blob, grandma! Yes, I imagine you ARE furious it is inordinately difficult to knit like this. No, I don't think complaining to the king will help, MeMa.

That said? I can not tell you if Blob Ghost all belong to the same Family or the same Order, but they are NOT the same species! The WAY in which you fuck up that ever vital Fomula results in WILDLY different Blobs! Was it an animal? A sentient species? A sentient PLANET? A complexe interlocking colony of fungi? What was the EXACT Ectoplasm concentration at the death site? Was that the historical levels or the At Death levels? Was the individual under sedation?

Yes! All of this IS in fact, VERY relevant!

And you think it ends THERE? HA! The SKIES are FILLED with Fighty Mother Fuckers! Ghosts LOVE to fight! It's built into their social dynamics and hierarchy! Good ol brawls to get the Ecto pumping!

......Local Blob Farmer would like to take this moment to say "GET OF HIS GHOST PEONIES, YOU HEATHENS."

No they would NOT like to join your 24/7 thunder dome in the sky, THANKS! Martha here is trying to compose some Atlantian Shell Poetry. Blobby Jr of Blobbington and Blobbington Incorporated is TRYING to study! You've DESTROYED THE COMMUNAL ZEN GARDEN!!

Get! GET!!! *swings broom*

And THEN you look not even a mile east? And it's the floating island of Blobs. They LIKE that rock. It's just an ever shifting, accidentally rolling off the edge, falling slightly, making an offended squeek, and floating back to the top of the pile to repeate the process, MOOSH of thousands of blobs. No one's certain if they used to be seals or some sort of cat.

Apparently THAT island is Warm(tm).

So there they sit. Making contented noises, chirping and shoving for the best spots. They never leave. You can literally just... float up and sit on them. It's amazing. You gotta be careful not to get buried, but it's So Soft and bouncy? And they are ALL making that soft happy Blob vibrate noise. It's like a giant, island sized, warm and almost fuzzy but not, water bed that massages you.

Just DON'T start anything there! Holy SHIT are they territorial. You Will Die. They SWARM.

And THATS not even getting into the Blobs that are? Literally brainless. Some people eat those. Which? I guess? They ARE basicly Ectoplasm jello. But SOME of them are NOT? Like... it's a debate. Hot button issue, ya know?

Some fungus turns into Ecto Jello with negative IQ and delicious insides. Is this food? But OTHER fungus was SENTIENT in life and become a whole RANGE of Fungus ghosts, from Blob right on up to complexe dryad like ghosts! Clearly NOT food unless you are a MONSTER. But THEY argue the FIRST group are ALSO not food?

Plant Ghosts have strong opinions and are willing to Gruesome Violence about it.

Which brings us back to the Humble Blob Ghost! Check before you pet! That might be grandma! Or planning to eat your hand! Just as Mammal tells you little to nothing about what animal you are looking at, so too does Blob and Ghost! Stay safe out there! And if anyone sees a glowing green rabbit? I want my blood back! That's supposed to be in MY body! Rude!

This has been, the daily ghost!

@hdgnj @stealingyourbones

#dpxdc #dc x dp #dcxdp #dp x dc #danny phantom #blob ghosts #blob lore #i like to PONDER the lore #get my grabby little racoon hands on the set dressings #gib me your SECRETS #gib to the racoon #minji's writing

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tojiswhore-aventurinesslut · 29 days

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A Relaxing Night

Warnings: NSFW, established relationship, unprotected sex, oral (f receiving), fingering

Pairing: Jing Yuan x reader

Word count: 2.8k

A/n: Whew okay this is the continuation of that sneak peek I gave that anon earlier this week! Sorry it took so long 🤧

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Jing Yuan walks in with a sigh. It was the fifth night that week that he worked late, not coming home until well after 2am.

"Shouldn't your aides help lighten the load?" You ask.

Jing Yuan looks up, surprised to see you still awake at this hour and takes note of the fire going in the fireplace. It looked like you had just fed it more logs; you had probably been waiting most of the night for him.

"They do but I don't want to keep them late. It's not fair to them." He sighs.

"Well it doesn't seem fair to you either... You can't keep working like this, you'll burnout or make a mistake." You reply, concern evident in your tone.

He sighs again, "I know...it shouldn't be for much longer. All I want right now is to take a bath and then sleep, though."

You stand up and walk towards him. He wears a small smile as he watches you approach and wraps his arms around your hips when you get closer.

"I can help with that." You say, looking into his golden eyes.

"Oh?" He asks, a playful lilt to his tone.

You lean into his body and look up at him, reaching your arms up and gently tugging on his hair tie. His gaze never wavers from you as his hair comes loose and frames his face.

"I can't tell if you intend on getting me clean or dirty right now, but I will say I'm not opposed to the latter." He gives you a cheeky smile.

"My intention is to run you a nice bath for you to relax in. Go ahead and get dressed while I get the water going." You give him a quick peck on the lips before detangling yourself from him and walking to the bathroom.

Jing Yuan signs again as he watches you go. He was tired, but he also missed you and he missed being intimate with you. He missed how soft your skin felt beneath him and the way his name sounded on your lips as he made love to you.

He could feel his dick getting hard so he tried to shoo away the thoughts. It was late for you too and he was shocked you were even awake. So he followed your instructions to undress and made his way to the bathroom where he was greeted with a warmth in the air and the smell of lavender, along with your naked body.

"Oh? What's this?" He asked, wrapping his arms around you from behind. You could feel his strong, sleek muscles against your back and his half-boner against your ass.

"I'm taking you a bath. But I figured the most efficient way would be to get in with you."

"Ah, and I'm sure you don't have any ulterior motives.." he teased, running his hands down your body to remind himself just how soft your skin was.

You laughed, "No ulterior motives. I just wanted to help you relax since you've been working so hard."

You turned in his arms and wrapped your own around his neck, "So if you would, please step into the bath so I can get on with that."

"As you wish." He says, and kisses you before stepping into the bath.

"Does it feel okay?"

He lets out a breath as he sinks in, closing his eyes, "it's perfect."

You smile, "good." And you climb into the tub behind him.

You start by wetting his hair. It's so long that it dips into the water.

Once it's sufficiently wet, you squirt shampoo into your hands and massage it into his scalp. His eyes are closed as you work your fingers around his head. If it wasn't for the fact that he was keeping himself upright you would assume he was asleep.

After rinsing out the shampoo, you move to conditioner. You separate his hair into sections and apply it liberally before running a comb through each section and rinsing it out.

Next, you washed his body. Running the soapy cloth over his hardened muscles. You couldn't help but get a little turned on. The nights had been lonely without him, and you missed running your hands over his body in the way you were doing with the washcloth. But the goal was to get him clean, so you pushed away your uncouth thoughts and kept scrubbing away at his skin.

Afterwards, you drained the water and grabbed the showerhead to rinse him off one more time.

With the bath water drained you shivered from the cold, goosebumps popping up on your legs that were on either side of Jing Yuan and your nipples hard against his back.

He ran his hands across your legs to warm you up but couldn't ignore the feeling of your breasts pressed against him. His dick twitched at the thought of touching them. It didn't help that your hand was running all over his body as you followed it with the showerhead. He missed the feeling of your hands roaming over him, filled with need.

He abruptly grabbed your hand, halting your movement before bringing it to his mouth and planting a long kiss on it. But he didn't stop there. He kept kissing up your arm, as far as he could go without fully turning around.

The feel of his soft lips on your skin made your pussy pulse. Those lips that treated you so well. It had been over two weeks since you felt them on your body. The memories of how he worshipped you with those lips, kissed and sucked and licked and bit, made your pussy throb against his back and made you hyper aware of his position between your legs.

Jing Yuan noticed you had stopped moving the showerhead and turned to look at you, "are you done rinsing me off?"

You could see his pupils were dilated. You had been with him long enough to know when he was aroused without needing to see his penis.

You nodded, lips parted and face flushed as thoughts of what you wanted to do with him raced through your mind.

"Good." Was all he responded before standing up and grabbing the towel you had left nearby. He wrapped it around you and then picked you up. His strong arms cradling you to his chest as he left the bathroom and carried you to what you thought would be your bedroom.

"Wait we're all wet. We can't go on the bed." You said.

"We're not going to the bed."

Jing Yuan made a right to head back out to the living room where the fire was still crackling. It was the only light in the room and provided a comfortable warmth as Jing Yuan laid you down on the floor in front of it, the towel still underneath you.

You looked up into his golden eyes as he hovered above you, caressing your face.

"That bath was wonderful, but it made me realize how much I missed your touch. How much I missed touching you." He said, bringing your hand to his mouth again to plant kisses over it, asking you permission with his eyes to kiss you everywhere else.

You brought your free hand to his face, "I was thinking the same thing."

"Then let me have you tonight." He whispered against your wrist, planting another kiss.

"You already have me. I am yours, Jing Yuan." You respond, breathless from your arousal and your heart pumping in your chest.

"Oh and I am yours. Forever." He whispers, bringing his lips down to yours.

His kiss is passionate but tender. Drops of water from his hair landing on your cheek but quickly drying against the heat of the fire.

He kisses further down your neck, over your collarbone, until he gets to your breasts. He takes one nipple into his mouth and traces it with his tongue, earning a moan from you.

His other hand reaches up and massages the other one.

His ministrations are tried and true. He knows exactly how to play your body to get you to make the sounds he wants and he has you sighing within seconds, the throbbing between your legs growing even more prominent as you feel a wetness gathering between your thighs.

"Beautiful. So beautiful." He says before working his way down further, kissing over your stomach until he gets to the apex of your thighs.

Jing Yuan wastes no time licking up the wetness spilling from you. His precise licks eliciting moan after moan from you.

He takes your clit in his mouth and starts sucking as he dips one finger into your heat.

"Oh Jing Yuan" you moan. This is what you needed. You needed his hands and mouth on you. Pumping his fingers and sucking your clit in a way only he knows how.

He adds another finger and begins curling them inside of you, your hands tangling in his hair as you writhe under him.

He glances up at your face as he uses his tongue to play with your clit, your thighs clamping around his head as the intense pleasure begins to consume you.

Your eyes are closed and you're breathing hard, his dual stimulation on your cunt making your pussy clench around his fingers as he builds up your orgasm.

His gold eyes watch, ignoring the throb he feels in his cock as he relishes in your taste and the feel of your wetness on his fingers. Knowing he's the reason you're squirming and panting and moaning.

He continues moving his fingers in you as your breathing gets faster and you squirm more.

"Jing Yuan....Jing Yuan...." You whine, the pressure in you built up and ready to be released.

He moans against your clit in anticipation, continuing his movements until you're loudly moaning his name and your thighs lock around his head, hands fisting his hair as your body convulses and cums around his fingers.

Your orgasm is intense but the general holds you to him with his free hand, lips never disconnecting from your clit as he sucks and licks until you're completely still save for the occasional twitch.

Only then does Jing Yuan stop and pull his fingers out of you, sitting up on his knees between your thighs and looking into your flushed face as he brings his fingers to his mouth, tasting you.

"Still just as sweet as I remember."

You look down at his throbbing member covered in precum, making it glisten against the light of the fire. That with the way he towers over you between your legs makes your pussy throb despite the earth shattering orgasm you just had. You wanted him inside you. Wanted to be the one to satiate his needs.

Without saying anything, you opened your legs a little wider and he runs his hands down the length of your thighs, looking at the cum dripping from your pussy. His dick twitched at the thought of being inside of you.

In response to your invitation he slowly crawls over you and positions his hips above yours. He kisses you tenderly, and you can taste the salty remnants of your orgasm on his tongue as he worked it into your mouth.

You ran your fingers through his hair as you savored the taste and feel of his tongue in your mouth, pussy aching for him to give you what you really wanted as you felt his tip at your entrance.

You wrapped your legs around his waist, pulling him to you and forcing him in, moaning into each other's mouths.

He breaks the kiss so he can look into your eyes as he pushes the rest of the way into you. Slowly. So slowly to savor the first feel of your walls around him and the way your eyes flutter closed as he fills you and stretches you.

When he's bottomed out he stays still for a second to let you adjust and kisses your cheek and down your jaw.

Feeling his hard length inside of you makes you feel complete. Like a piece of you had been missing for the 3 weeks and now has finally returned.

When he works his way back up your jaw your eyes are open and he starts moving, slowly rolling his hips into you while you both look into each other's eyes.

The fire lights half of your faces and makes the gold in one of his eyes look like its own flame. You reach up to caress his face and bring your head up to kiss him once more.

His lips are gentle as they move against yours, but the kiss is short as you both quickly release to let out breathy moans as he rolls his hips deeply into you, his pelvis massaging your clit with each movement.

Your hands and eyes roam over his muscular arms that are braced on either side of your head, then over his broad chest, and finally down his strong back. He watches you and relishes in your touch and obvious need for him.

You're so wet he can feel it dripping down his balls each time he rolls into you. When you look back up to meet his eyes you're both thinking the same thing. How you wish you could stay like this forever. Just the two of you in this warm, half-light, connected without the need for words.

It's like your bodies were made for each other as you both moan when Jing Yuan switches from rolling his hips to thrusting into you.

He still goes slowly, pulling out and pushing back in, feeling your walls slide across his entire length as you sigh.

The friction is divine. Every movement he makes fills you with a pleasure that's oh so sweet.

He comes down to kiss you again before picking up his pace. The wet noises coming from your connection adding to the eroticism of the moment.

You can feel yourself climbing to another orgasm as he continues thrusting into you, both of you panting and moaning into each other.

Jing Yuan moves to tuck his face into the crook of your neck to suck on the sensitive skin there, nipping and licking as you gasp.

He can feel himself reaching his own high as his ball tighten and he starts thrusting into your harder.

"Fuck." You hear him breathlessly whisper against your neck.

You moan loudly at his change of pace, hands gripping his hair. It just feels so good. All of your senses are filled with Jing Yuan. There is nothing but the two of you and the feelings of pleasure you're both eliciting from each other.

He takes one of his arms to pull your leg up higher and holds it, allowing him in deeper.

"Oh Jing Yuan." You moan helplessly.

He's pounding into you now, you're both so close, so close to the release you both need.

He takes his face from your neck and looks at your flushed and fucked face. Mouth forming an o as you moan and say you're close.

He puts his forehead against yours and closes his eyes, "Cum for me, my love. Please. Please." He almost begs.

At his desperate command your body his wracked with an orgasm that leaves you seeing stars. Your hips buck up into him as you scream the general's name over and over. Your nails dig into his back and your pussy convulses and cums all around his length.

Jing Yuan finds his own release at the same time, moaning your name and bucking his hips into you with each rope of cum that spurts out, trying to push his seed in as deep as possible.

You're both breathing hard into each other and you can feel the mix of both your releases leaking out of you.

Jing Yuan releases your leg as he opens his eyes to meet your own. You both looked at each other for a second before you start giggling uncontrollably.

This was not what the general was expecting to happen after sex like that, "what's funny?"

"Nothing. I don't know I just feel so giddy now I can't explain it." You say between laughs.

Jing Yuan can't help but smile and chuckle at you. All these years and you still manage to surprise him.

Your laughter is cut short as he rolls you both over so that you're laying on top of him and your other sides are facing the fire.

You give a contented sigh as you lay your head on his chest and watch the small flames flicker. A contented silence settling between you both as he strokes your back with his thumb.

After a while you notice his breathing has evened out and when you glance up at him, his eyes are closed in a blissful slumber.

You smile to yourself before getting comfortable. He had to be up in a few hours for work, but for now he could just be your dozing general.

#posts #jing yuan x reader #hsr smut #hsr fics #hsr #jing yuan #jing yuan smut #my writing #WHEEEWWWW #i think i outdid myself with this one lol #my writing - jing yuan

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flightyquinn · 2 months

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thinking about how cursed objects work in most fantasy RPGs.

typically, they wind up just kind of being a big middle finger from the game master - a kind of "whelp, you should have been more paranoid, so now you get hosed" sort of deal. which includes the somewhat game-y trope of objects that you can't get rid of. it's kind of an un-fun mechanic, when you think about it, which is why in most games I've been a part of cursed items often don't see much play, unless it's as a "punishment", or part of a story arc.

...which naturally leads me to think about how to do it better. in the past, I've tried using a curse as a kind of limiter. restrictions or drawbacks to a mostly functional item that is still worth using despite being "cursed". that's good, but it doesn't let you draw on truly nasty curses, because the item needs to be worth using, but also still needs to be balanced.

so, I'm drawing from a lot of sources here, like the cursed shield in Final Fantasy VI, and especially the comics by @foldingfittedsheets, where curses exist to (literally) teach the recipient a lesson

MEAT OF THE POST STARTS HERE:

what about cursed items that have a way to overcome their curse?

it's actually a fairly common trope in classical literature / fairy tales. every curse has a way to be broken. yet in D&D and Pathfinder, most often the only way to break a curse is to find someone with the specific curse-breaking spell.

so, give each cursed item a condition. perhaps a weapon that fuels a person's anger and causes them to fly into a blind rage in battle waits for them to sincerely forgive a hated enemy. perhaps boots that slow the wearer are actually making them heavy with the weight of past transgressions and a sufficient act of atonement will free them. maybe the perpetually bloody doll that gives its bearer horrible nightmares simply waits for someone to be motivated to action by them, either to right some past wrong, or generally bring a certain number of murderers to proper justice.

...maybe a Bag of Devouring. which is technically actually a creature, not a cursed item (but usually classified with them), can be befriended by figuring out a treat it likes, and will not only carry things for the player if fed and cared for, but even cough up a few things that previous bearers had stuffed inside.

the specifics aren't too important, but the idea is that any item with a curse on it has a reason for that curse, and a way to break it. the players can drop the item at any time, sell it off, give it to someone they hate, whatever, but if they put in the time and energy to actually breaking the curse, it becomes better than it was before, sometimes simply losing a drawback, or sometimes gaining new powers.

for an example, let's look at how that doll idea from earlier could work in D&D 5e;

while the party has the doll in their possession, they will all be afflicted by horrible nightmares, seeing themselves as children being attacked by a group of eight bandits with indistinct features. the details of the dreams change each night, and the players awaken before learning their ultimate fate, but the general gist is always that they are completely helpless, and subjected to harm.

after a long rest, have them roll a Wisdom or Charisma save (challenging DC, but not too difficult), or take a small amount of psychic damage.

if the players bring murderers to justice - meaning deliver them to the proper authorities and see them punished for their crimes - the content of the dreams starts to change. one bandit gets caught or killed by the end of the dream for each real world criminal successfully punished, possibly hinting to the players what they need to do. once eight murderers in total have had their sentences enacted, the next morning the doll will be in pristine condition with a serene expression, emitting a faint glow. thereafter, any player may attune to the doll to gain the ability to cast the Guidance cantrip without components (as thought the doll's ability to project what it wants the players to do into their mind was turned to their benefit.

#tabletop gaming #tabletop roleplaying #roleplaying games #dungeons & dragons #pathfinder #game master advice #homebrew #my ideas #curses #cursed items #long post

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rarastmblr · 9 months

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“Minamoto Teru”

The Perfect Boy — Minamoto Teru

He's smart. Always perfect and answering correctly in academics.

Tests? Perfect. Quizzes? Perfect. Recitation? Perfect.

You can't help but be so grateful when he helps you out and tutors you in subjects that you're having a hard time with.

He's handsome, attractive. No wonder he has so many fans. I mean, who could resist such a handsome face?

His hair; Every strand was so soft to the touch that it felt like a gentle caress. You couldn't take your eyes off it and feel nothing but adoration for the golden hue that filled your vision.

The blonde tresses captivated your soul and forever imprinted itself inside your heart.

His eyes; The blue eyes sparkled like pools of sapphire, reflecting the sun in all of its brilliance. Every time you looked at them, there was a feeling of admiration and profound joy that you couldn't quite explain.

He is invested in his interests and engaging in conversation with him allows one to appreciate his positive outlook on life.

He takes action to bring his goals and dreams to fruition, and is resilient and self-sufficient in the face of adversity and challenge.

He has the poise and class to graciously accept every experience. He is encouraging and motivating of the people he loves and engages with.

He's kind. Some think that he's cruel when he rejects the confessions of the girls who have a crush on him.

But he isn't, not at all. He's not cruel, just straightforward but in a way you'll understand and not hate him for it. He'll apologize and then reject you.

He is caring, tender. He is honest about his feelings and empathizes with the struggles of his friends.

There's a reason to why you love Minamoto Teru but you can't seem to answer such a question when you are actually asked why.

It's because you can't pick which of the many things that Minamoto Teru has that makes you love him so much.

You watch him as he reads the contents of your love letter about your love for him.

As he finishes reading, he gives you a smile. You can't tell whether it's a smile of pity or if it's a sign that he accepts your love.

“I'm sorry—”

The first two words were enough for you to know what his response was.

That had happened years ago, if your memory was correct, maybe when you guys were still first years.

Ever since the confession, you guys have grown distant. From the occasional greetings in the halls to only pass by each other without making any eye contact.

You admit the sudden distance between your relationship was your fault. A day after the confession you were the one who would hide away from him out of embarrassment because you got rejected.

You avoided him like a plague.

Even when your classmates had told you that Teru was looking for you because he wanted to catch up with you and other things, you wouldn't go.

Even if it was Minamoto Teru himself who would walk towards you and try his best to start a conversation, you'd somehow be able to slip away from him.

Now, in second year, Minamoto Teru is still the perfect boy that you always admired ever since you guys first met.

I think back to when we were so close and I would wonder. What would have happened to us if the confession never happened. Would we have been more closer than we already were?

As the both of you pass by each other, a pair of blue eyes look back at the back of your figure. Once? No. Twice.

Unfortunately, you took no notice of the longing gaze.

A/n: This isn't really a long fic, I'm so sorry 🥹. I'm just adding plot to the reader and Teru's relationship. Man I'm a sucker for when the relationship has something like a distance and the guy is the one who is desperate to mend the relationship together again. Also I think I didn't really mention supernaturals/apparitions here 🫣 woopsy.

#TBHK #tbhk minamoto #tbhk teru #jshk #x reader #minamoto teru x reader #teru minamoto x reader #Teru Minamoto #Minamoto Teru

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mostlysignssomeportents · 6 months

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Insurance companies are making climate risk worse

Tomorrow (November 29), I'm at NYC's Strand Books with my novel The Lost Cause, a solarpunk tale of hope and danger that Rebecca Solnit called "completely delightful."

Conservatives may deride the "reality-based community" as a drag on progress and commercial expansion, but even the most noxious pump-and-dump capitalism is supposed to remain tethered to reality by two unbreakable fetters: auditing and insurance:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality-based_community

No matter how much you value profit over ethics or human thriving, you still need honest books – even if you never show those books to the taxman or the marks. Even an outright scammer needs to know what's coming in and what's going out so they don't get caught in a liquidity trap (that is, "broke"), or overleveraged ("broke," again) exposed to market changes (you guessed it: "broke").

Unfortunately for capitalism, auditing is on its deathbed. The market is sewn up by the wildly corrupt and conflicted Big Four accounting firms that are the very definition of too big to fail/too big to jail. They keep cooking books on behalf of management to the detriment of investors. These double-entry fabrications conceal rot in giant, structurally important firms until they implode spectacularly and suddenly, leaving workers, suppliers, customers and investors in a state of utter higgeldy-piggeldy:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/29/great-andersens-ghost/#mene-mene-bezzle

In helping corporations defraud institutional investors, auditors are facilitating mass scale millionaire-on-billionaire violence, and while that may seem like the kind of fight where you're happy to see either party lose, there are inevitably a lot of noncombatants in the blast radius. Since the Enron collapse, the entire accounting sector has turned to quicksand, which is a big deal, given that it's what industrial capitalism's foundations are anchored to. There's a reason my last novel was a thriller about forensic accounting and Big Tech:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865847/red-team-blues

But accounting isn't the only bedrock that's been reduced to slurry here in capitalism's end-times. The insurance sector is meant to be an unshakably rational enterprise, imposing discipline on the rest of the economy. Sure, your company can do something stupid and reckless, but the insurance bill will be stonking, sufficient to consume the expected additional profits.

But the crash of 2008 made it clear that the largest insurance companies in the world were capable of the same wishful thinking, motivated reasoning, and short-termism that they were supposed to prevent in every other business. Without AIG – one of the largest insurers in the world – there would have been no Great Financial Crisis. The company knowingly underwrote hundreds of billions of dollars in junk bonds dressed up as AAA debt, and required a $180b bailout.

Still, many of us have nursed an ember of hope that the insurance sector would spur Big Finance and its pocket governments into taking the climate emergency seriously. When rising seas and wildfires and zoonotic plagues and famines and rolling refugee crises make cities, businesses, and homes uninsurable risks, then insurers will stop writing policies and the doom will become undeniable. Money talks, bullshit walks.

But while insurers have begun to withdraw from the most climate-endangered places (or crank up premiums), the net effect is to decrease climate resilience and increase risk, creating a "climate risk doom loop" that Advait Arun lays out brilliantly for Phenomenal World:

https://www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/the-doom-loop/

Part of the problem is political: as people move into high-risk areas (flood-prone coastal cities, fire-threatened urban-wildlife interfaces), politicians are pulling out all the stops to keep insurers from disinvesting in these high-risk zones. They're loosening insurance regs, subsidizing policies, and imposing "disaster risk fees" on everyone in the region.

But the insurance companies themselves are simply not responding aggressively enough to the rising risk. Climate risk is correlated, after all: when everyone in a region is at flood risk, then everyone will be making a claim on the insurance company when the waters come. The insurance trick of spreading risk only works if the risks to everyone in that spread aren't correlated.

Perversely, insurance companies are heavily invested in fossil fuel companies, these being reliable money-spinners where an insurer can park and grow your premiums, on the assumption that most of the people in the risk pool won't file claims at the same time. But those same fossil-fuel assets produce the very correlated risk that could bring down the whole system.

The system is in trouble. US claims from "natural disasters" are topping $100b/year – up from $4.6b in 2000. Home insurance premiums are up (21%!), but it's not enough, especially in drowning Florida and Texas (which is also both roasting and freezing):

https://grist.org/economics/as-climate-risks-mount-the-insurance-safety-net-is-collapsing/

Insurers who put premiums up to cover this new risk run into a paradox: the higher premiums get, the more risk-tolerant customers get. When flood insurance is cheap, lots of homeowners will stump up for it and create a big, uncorrelated risk-pool. When premiums skyrocket, the only people who buy flood policies are homeowners who are dead certain their house is gonna get flooded out and soon. Now you have a risk pool consisting solely of highly correlated, high risk homes. The technical term for this in the insurance trade is: "bad."

But it gets worse: people who decide not to buy policies as prices go up may be doing their own "motivated reasoning" and "mispricing their risk." That is, they may decide, "If I can't afford to move, and I can't afford to sell my house because it's in a flood-zone, and I can't afford insurance, I guess that means I'm going to live here and be uninsured and hope for the best."

This is also bad. The amount of uninsured losses from US climate disaster "dwarfs" insured losses:

https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/hurricanes-floods-bring-120-billion-insurance-losses-2022-2023-01-09/

Here's the doom-loop in a nutshell:

As carbon emissions continue to accumulate, more people are put at risk of climate disaster, while the damages from those disasters intensifies. Vulnerability will drive disinvestment, which in turn exacerbates vulnerability.

Also: the browner and poorer you are, the worse you have it: you are impacted "first and worst":

https://www.climaterealityproject.org/frontline-fenceline-communities

As Arun writes, "Tinkering with insurance markets will not solve their real issues—we must patch the gaping holes in the financial system itself." We have to end the loop that sees the poorest places least insured, and the loss of insurance leading to abandonment by people with money and agency, which zeroes out the budget for climate remediation and resiliency where it is most needed.

The insurance sector is part of the finance industry, and it is disinvesting in climate-endagered places and instead doubling down on its bets on fossil fuels. We can't rely on the insurance sector to discipline other industries by generating "price signals" about the true underlying climate risk. And insurance doesn't just invest in fossil fuels – they're also a major buyer of municipal and state bonds, which means they're part of the "bond vigilante" investors whose decisions constrain the ability of cities to raise and spend money for climate remediation.

When American cities, territories and regions can't float bonds, they historically get taken over and handed to an unelected "control board" who represents distant creditors, not citizens. This is especially true when the people who live in those places are Black or brown – think Puerto Rico or Detroit or Flint. These control board administrators make creditors whole by tearing the people apart.

This is the real doom loop: insurers pull out of poor places threatened by climate disasters. They invest in the fossil fuels that worsen those disasters. They join with bond vigilantes to force disinvestment from infrastructure maintenance and resiliency in those places. Then, the next climate disaster creates more uninsured losses. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Finance and insurance are betting heavily on climate risk modeling – not to avert this crisis, but to ensure that their finances remain intact though it. What's more, it won't work. As climate effects get bigger, they get less predictable – and harder to avoid. The point of insurance is spreading risk, not reducing it. We shouldn't and can't rely on insurance creating price-signals to reduce our climate risk.

But the climate doom-loop can be put in reverse – not by market spending, but by public spending. As Arun writes, we need to create "a global investment architecture that is safe for spending":

https://tanjasail.wordpress.com/2023/10/06/a-world-safe-for-spending/

Public investment in emissions reduction and resiliency can offset climate risk, by reducing future global warming and by making places better prepared to endure the weather and other events that are locked in by past emissions. A just transition will "loosen liquidity constraints on investment in communities made vulnerable by the financial system."

Austerity is a bad investment strategy. Failure to maintain and improve infrastructure doesn't just shift costs into the future, it increases those costs far in excess of any rational discount based on the time value of money. Public institutions should discipline markets, not the other way around. Don't give Wall Street a veto over our climate spending. A National Investment Authority could subordinate markets to human thriving:

https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/industrial-policy-requires-public-not-just-private-equity/

Insurance need not be pitted against human survival. Saving the cities and regions whose bonds are held by insurance companies is good for those companies: "Breaking the climate risk doom loop is the best disaster insurance policy money can buy."

I found Arun's work to be especially bracing because of the book I'm touring now, The Lost Cause, a solarpunk novel set in a world in which vast public investment is being made to address the climate emergency that is everywhere and all at once:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865939/the-lost-cause

There is something profoundly hopeful about the belief that we can do something about these foreseeable disasters – rather than remaining frozen in place until the disaster is upon us and it's too late. As Rebecca Solnit says, inhabiting this place in your imagination is "Completely delightful. Neither utopian nor dystopian, it portrays life in SoCal in a future woven from our successes (Green New Deal!), failures (climate chaos anyway), and unresolved conflicts (old MAGA dudes). I loved it."

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/28/re-re-reinsurance/#useless-price-signals

#pluralistic #doom loop #insurance #insuretech #climate #climate risk #climate emergency #the lost cause #market forces #risk management #price signals #control boards #decarbonization #bond vigilantes #climate resilience

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artingstarvist · 6 months

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Here's a teaser of some select sketch panels as I plan out this comic's colors. For right now I'm just illustrating from that first panel of Xie Lian coughing up Cuo Cuo till Hua Cheng carries him off towards paradise manor. If I'm still feeling sufficiently motivated by the end I'll illustrate him pulling the needle out of his foot but idk its so long already haha.

#tgcf fanart #tgcf #hualian #heaven official's blessing #xie lian #hua cheng #my art #not included in this teaser: xie lian's gay panic meltdown #there will likely be more teasers- this comic will take me several weeks to complete #its looking like I'll be posting it in about five parts as is tho #hualian first kiss comic

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copperbadge · 6 months

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Hi, please ignore if this is too personal, but as someone with Jewish ancestors who is considering conversion, I'd love to know your reasons for converting? For me it's more about community and reconnecting with that part of my family (there's a complicated family history there) than about religious belief, but I'm worried that might not be enough of a reason, if you know what I mean?

I don't know, I think conversion to Judaism is hard enough that if you don't have "enough" of a reason, you'll find out -- but I also think that one doesn't have to have a "sufficient" reason to convert to any faith which allows it, just determination and respect. If you want a connection to your ancestors and community, that's a very powerful motivation. And if it's not enough to sustain you through conversion, that's still a huge self-discovery for you, and while some practice should remain closed, you can still connect through things like traditionally Jewish foods and appreciation for Jewish art and culture.

For me, it's not that it's too personal, but it's difficult to vocalize; often when I'm asked about converting there's an assumption that I'm marrying a Jewish person, and when I say no, I usually add, "I just hear a call." Which admittedly is much more often said by Christians joining a ministry, but it's the most truthful I know how to be in short. Something in Judaism speaks to something in me. I have very little Jewish ancestry (although every time the DNA websites reevaluate their calculations it ticks up a percentage point, which is hilarious to me; I'm up from 2% to 6% currently) but the attitude towards the divine, the strength of tradition, the respect for learning, they all speak to my soul.

Even the hard stuff -- content in Torah or Talmud that I find difficult to reconcile with modern sensibility -- is at least something to challenge me, and Judaism is a faith that encourages argument, so I'm allowed to have a critical opinion of it. I think a lot about a quote I read from someone (possibly a reader, if so I am so sorry I can't find your name in my memory) who said, "I keep kosher, but sometimes I eat bacon when I'm mad at G-d." I think a lot about my Methodist confirmation class, where I was almost kicked out because I thought the Parable of the Wedding Feast was stupid and continued to argue against it after, realistically, I should have stopped; if it had been a class for a Bar Mitzvah, we might have been allowed to really examine it instead of glancing across it awkwardly and moving on. (As I found out years later, it was basically about how anyone can be a Christian but Jews should be punished for refusing to convert, so you know. Even as a kid I was very Jewish in my approach to theology and knew anti-Semitic propaganda when I heard it.)

I like that so many of the traditions involve things that I find compelling: bread, fire, water, the written word, the cycle of the harvest. I like that there's a search for truth and precision in Jewish scholarship, and that scholarship often seems to reward a neurodiverse approach to faith and study. As someone committed to philanthropy and versed in radical compassion, the exhortation to care for others baked into every foundational Jewish text is also very attractive. Some of the prayers I find viscerally satisfying (particularly the Traveler's Prayer, for some reason).

I find faith in a single divine entity extremely difficult, but one of the first things that got me to seriously consider Judaism (something I'd already been interested in) was being told that you can be an atheist Jew. To be able to commit to a faith community while still struggling with faith itself feels special to me. Whether a divine entity caused the miracle of the oil we celebrate this time of year is immaterial to me; the beauty of the narrative, the righteous rebellion rewarded with eight nights of light, is enough for me.

I might never finish conversion; realistically while I've done a lot of studying I still haven't worked extensively with a rabbi on a conversion path, and I do not call myself a Jew and won't until I complete conversion (I do observe a lot of the holidays and prayers, but mainly because that's generally advice to converts, so they can understand the demands of the faith and the myriad issues with being Publicly Jewish). But that's fine too; Judaism has been around for thousands of years, it'll wait for me, and if I never convert I'm still enjoying the journey.

#judaism #conversion

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astrialuvs · 4 months

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Headcanons for Akabane Karma as Himself | as a Friend | as a Lover

➻ PAIRING : akabane karma x reader

➻ CONTENT WARNING : my headcanons to these red-haired boy 😗🫶 pt. 2

➻ WORD COUNT : 1119 words

a/n: i'm sorry for the late upload (hehe). idrk when will i post the last..

another a/n: i might uplaod my hcs for gakushuu too (idk when) 😅

He boinks a book at you when he notices you dozing off, even though you invited him for a review at the library.

It was expected that his presence at a study session you had organized would boost your motivation to review more. However, the sheer boredom of you—the library and staleness, with lamps flickering in—created by such a dull background was working against you. However, as you focused on your notes, fatigue set in, and your eyelids began to droop.

On the other side of the table, Karma was partially immersed in his world, playing video games on his phone. He watched you fight against the advancing wave of sleep without your knowledge. His mind, however, was unconventional and quick to find new approaches even in silence, so he selected some method of making you stay awake.

Karma smiled slyly as he picked up a nearby book and figured out its direction before throwing it at you. The book hit softly against your head with a ‘boink.’ The shock hit you suddenly, and you glared at him aggressively.

"Karma, really?" you cried out, massaging the area of your head where the book hit.

He stared at you innocently, as if amazed. He quipped, "Hey! You were drifting off. Just doing my part to keep you alert and focused." His reply made you scoffed.

The unexpected wake-up call worked. The interruption caused by Karma had effectively broken down your sleepiness, which was looming large over you. Even if his approach was a little absurd, your lips curled slightly as you realized that, despite the circumstances, Karma had managed to maintain punctuality and spontaneous stimulation throughout the study.

Who's your rival in academics, sports, or video games, but expect a healthy dose of rivalry.

Under the dim light of Karma's gaming console screen, you and Karma were fighting in a video game. The room was alive with the rhythm of powerful blasts from controllers and the overdrive sound of your playful outcasts.

When the unreal battle appeared on screen, Karma couldn't help but smile knowingly. He teased, "Are you prepared to go down this round?" He touched the control with his fingers.

You countered with a confident smile. "I suppose we will find out. I hope you've been reviewing what you've learned, Karma."

The taunting was competitive, with each of you attempting to manipulate and navigate around the other in the video game. Laughter and occasional shouts of victory or defeat filled the room.

Despite intense competition, you and Karma maintained a tacit understanding. Each of you was respectful of the other's gaming abilities, which elevated the game beyond mere contention. Each action received either a respectful agreement or a quick-witted look, as if to emphasize the importance of jest in this competitive environment where fun was the ultimate goal.

Throughout the game, however, Karma managed to gain a foothold on you in a spectacular manner. He declared triumphantly, "Guess I won this time."

"Very good Karma. But the night is just beginning, and you still have a long way to go towards victory."

Whom you two have your own language and gestures, such as all-knowing smirks and eye signals.

You and Karma were always caught in an unusual act of communication while inside a gathering. A conversation, laughter, and the clinking of glasses filled the room, but the two of you conversed silently.

At that point, a mutual wink or fugitive eye signal was sufficient, as was your own secret code that went beyond written language. Those who were preoccupied with other people's conversations were unaware of the silent little communicative move that occurred between you and Karma, during which a sense of trust and unity developed.

Karma suddenly poured an all-knowing smirk on your face as you two shared that moment when nothing was said and no words were required. This was a language born out of shared experiences, inside jokes, and an unwritten oath that would grow stronger over time.

Whether it was a response to the ongoing conversation, a lighthearted joke, or simply two people having fun together, the smiles and eye movements were enough. It became a testament to your friendship, like a secret code known only to the two of you.

Who flicks your forehead at very random moments, whether at a serious moment, when you are spaced out, or eating.

Sitting in the library among rows of textbooks, which you shared with Karma during serious discussions about upcoming exams. He raised his brow with a mischievous look in his eyes, taking advantage of the opportunity while you were deep in conversation with him.

He suddenly warned you, "Watch out!" before flicking your forehead in an unexpected but friendly gesture.

You blinked in surprise and laughed. "Karma? Come on. I'm trying to concentrate here!"

"Absolutely! Distraction helps keep the mind alert and focused.

* * *

The following week, during a quiet moment in the school courtyard, Karma appeared beside you.

He quipped jokingly, "More deep thinking?" and hit you again on the forehead to emphasize his point.

You smiled childishly and shot at him. "Am I not allowed to get away from your forehead flicks?"

"What's the big deal about that?" he inquired, an enticing smile forming in his eyes.

* * *

With a flick, Karma took advantage of even the most casual lunch you two had together in your school cafeteria, for example, when you were about to bite on your sandwich.

"Karma!" You cried, partly laughing and partly protesting.

"Can't get away from that, it turns normal circumstances into extraordinary ones!"

As a result, Karma's forehead flicks have become an integral part of your daily conversations. These playful actions, whether trying to be serious or comical in nature, made your friendship have good moments between laughs and joy as if knitted on quicksilver.

Whom you share your "teas" and gossips with.

You and Karma were seated in a quiet nook of the local cafe, enjoying gentle conversation while smelling freshly brewed coffee and hearing distant murmurs. In that safe space, the "teas" and gossip flowed freely like threads woven for people's sheer amusement and trust.

How remarkable was it that, facing each other, you leaned forward, eager to share current events, even if they were scandalous. Karma began this exchange with a wink of the eye and in secret, initially sublimating it into a joke.

"All right, it's tea time. What is the most juicy detail about the incriminating rumor you have?"

As a result, the conversation became filled with laughter and animated faces. You would occasionally make comical observations about your classmates, teachers, and other characters in your lives.The teas shared were an entertaining mix of witty retorts, secrets offered and whispered, and bantered conspiracies.

#anon ask #karma assassination classroom #karma x reader #karma fluff #akabane karma #karma akabane #karma akabane headcanons #karma akabane x you #karma akabane x reader #request #ansatsu kyoushitsu #karma x you #akabane karma fluff #akabane karma x reader #assassination classroom drabbles #assassination classroom

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astaroth1357 · 1 year

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We Need To Talk About Nightbringer (the Person, Not the Game)

I'm still scratching my head over what Nightbringer's goal is here... How is MC involved? Why send them back in time? And, of course, who are they??

SPOILERS Up to Lesson 12 Below Cut

The Fuck is the Goal Here??

Sending the MC back just to form pacts makes no goddamn sense. If the MC acquiring pacts was the real aim, then that mission was already accomplished in the present-day. There's something more here.

Why send MC back to RIGHT NOW? What about making pacts AT THIS TIME is desirable to Nightbringer? Is the end game even having the pacts at all...?

I posit that Nightbringer wants war, specifically, another war between angels and demons. The imagery of scales brings to mind the fragile balance of peace that Diavolo was mentioning between the realms before. RAD isn't built yet, his goal to improve relations is still in its infancy, and the times are so tumultuous that MC risks an all out fight starting just being there. So if Nightbringer wants to make things come to blows, then this is the PERFECT time to send them to.

However...

What is this "path to happiness" all about? What does Nightbringer think will make the MC most happy...? And what about THEIR happiness is linked to his? Is he assuming that in a war of the three realms, MC would side with the demons and thus if demons win then MC will be glad? That doesn't really track with the MC as presented in game... They're generally shown as a peacemaker or bridge builder. I don't think a war would make them happy at all!

Ultimately, I don't think we can answer this question in any way that makes sense until we have a better idea of WHO Nightbringer is so....

Who is Nightbringer??

It's Barbs

This goes for any version of Barbs: past, present, future, or even an alternate self I guess. This only makes sense because we're dealing with a demon who does time travel and there's only one demon we know who fits this bill but... why?

I can't imagine any reason why Barbatos would betray Diavolo, at least the one we know. This guy is so loyal to his lord that he's the ONLY character who won't completely kowtow to MC's whims even in the OG game. His true loyalty was always to Diavolo. Not the realm, not demons, DIAVOLO. And if Diavolo seeks peace, then why on earth would Barbs want to cause a war?? Is he more bitter about things than we thought...?

If it's a different version of Barbs, then I guess this goes out the window, but even then what's an alternate Barbs care about this world specifically? What would he hope to gain? MC? Why?? The means are all here, but I just can't figure out the motive, so...

It's Not Barbs, but Connected to Barbs

You know. I've been thinking a lot about this and I've been considering how, thematically, it could be appropriate for Diavolo not to be the only one with a progenitor/parental figure out of commission. We can assume that Daddy Devil must of had an attendant like Barbatos to aid him like Dia has Barbs so...

What if Nightbringer is the old King's previous attendant? And what's more, what if they aren't Barbs but related to Barbs? Like a sibling or parent? It's important to note that Barbs' time capabilities are not INTERNAL to him. It's his room of doorways to other timelines. Presumably, anybody with sufficient knowledge could inherit that room and just take over the role of the Devildom's time lord.

I know it goes against all of our previous notions to think that Barbatos was, at some point, just an everyday demon and not some primordial, OG force of nature but none of that was canon anyway. Something to think about.

It's Michael

I know people keep offering up this one, but I'm really not buying it... Yeah, Michael has always been this looming, shady figure over the OM universe and he's canonically and non-canonically done some eyebrow raising shit, but what's the motive here? Plus, Nightbringer's thematic ties to, well, night really feel more demon than angel... The Celestial Realm is always sunny, the Devildom is always dark. I think it's just a stretch...

Michael wanting another war could be interesting, especially since we've seen far more of angels being actively antagonistic to demons than the other way around, but I don't think that makes him Nightbringer. At most, he could end up being a shadow ally in his plot to bring everything to a head once again.

It's Solomon

In truth, even I don't think Nightbringer is the Solomon we're talking to. But I still think it's suspicious that all of this plays out so perfectly for our present-day Solo-pal... Personally, I take anything this guy tells us directly with a grain of salt since we know he'll lie openly, so here are the facts we're working with:

We are interacting with our present day Solomon (or at least one with knowledge of who we are and our timeline's events).

Solomon is the only one in this current space who knows of our full history in the OG timeline.

This Solomon put himself not only in the position of being the ONLY ONE who knows us that we can interact with, but happily isolated us from the brothers and made himself our main point of contact.

And last (and perhaps most importantly) HE'S STILL TRYING TO MAKE PACTS. He approaches Lucifer about it and successfully makes a pact with Asmo centuries before he's supposed to! If my guy is really from the present, that's like, Changing the Course of History 101! What the hell???

Let me present to you a theory. He is not present-day Solomon, sent back to help MC. He is past-Solomon, caught up to MC's identity through Barbs' time powers and just playing the part of our modern-day buddy. If he's from the past, he doesn't have to worry about changing the present timeline like we do because that ain't even him we've been speaking to. It feels like he has this bet going with Nightbringer... they have some kind of wager and MC is key to it. They're the one who'll tip the scales and Solomon is trying to get us to stay on his side.

It's Not Solomon, but Connected to Solomon

There's something off about Solomon that everybody, LITERALLY everybody, makes comments on: how he doesn't seem human anymore.

The OM timeline introduced the idea that a person can become something else, no matter what they started out as. The brothers were angels, but they fell, so they became demons. Simeon violated angel rules, so he was made into a human. The idea of corruption related to Solomon has always stuck in the back of my mind... The guy has over 70 pacts, he's lived for several centuries at least, and there's just something NOT RIGHT about him...

When Solomon and Nightbringer are speaking to each other, this line stuck out to me.

I find this comment so damn weird. If Nightbringer is a demon and has always been a demon, why would Solomon feel the need to lampshade this? He's pointing it out as if it's meant to get under Nightbringer's skin... Why state the obvious?

What if Nightbringer wasn’t always a demon?

Nightbringer refers to and brings up his demonness as much as Solomon brings up his humanness. That, to me, reeks of insecurity. They may not just be fighting on the lines between demons and humanity, but fighting each other/themselves to prove who's side they're actually on.

What if Nightbringer is a fully-corrupted Solomon? Either a Solomon in the future who's fucking around with the past or a Solomon in this timeline/dimension that's trying to use MC to cause destruction for his world??

..... Okay, I do know this is a bit of a reach. As much as I would love to blame the sorcerer, Nightbringer still seems like a being who's just... been around a while. Far too long to start fucking up shit now. It's possible that if he is from the future and just hopping through time, there's nothing stopping him from going back however far he wants to, but then you could get into the "You are your own grandfather" paradox and the next thing you know we're in another installment of Kingdom Hearts where time is our worst enemy.

HOWEVER, the idea of corruption DOES bring me to my wildest theory yet.

What if Nightbringer wants MC to become a demon...?

Think about it.

It could explain why Solomon is trying so hard to make MC remember and side with their humanity.

It could explain why Nightbringer sent them there under the guise of demon to start with.

It could be why he wants them to make their pacts again. He's trying to seduce them into fully embracing the demonic world through their connection with the brothers.

Humans die, right? Why not be a demon and not have to worry about it?

Throw away the Ring of Light.

Stay by your demons' sides.

Embrace the darkness.

Join the damned.

And when that big'ol battle that he wants happens, he'll have the most powerful sorcerer/sorceress, fully demonized, fighting for his side against God himself.

..... Or that's my spec script anyway. Probably too out there, but man would it be fun...

#my money is on option two #but option five would be WILD #or you know #my trust issues are acting up again #obey me #obey me shall we date #shall-we-date-obey-me #obey me nightbringer spoilers #obey me nightbringer #obey me nightbringer theories #omn spoilers #omnb spoilers #obey me solomon #omn solomon #obey me barbatos #omn barbatos #obey me michael

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jacenotjason · 7 months

Text

Eddie's Big Lift!

(Opposite AU edition!)

VV Script VV

JULIE: [Said with laughter in her words] Well it’s.. a hilarious idea, Frank, I’ll give you that. But I just don’t believe it’s possible!

FRANK: No, it’s true! I swear, I swear!

BARNABY: [whispering with concern as he walks outside, limping without his caine.] What on Earth is going on out here?

FRANK: Oh, hi, Barnaby! I thought today was reshelf-ing day!!

BARNABY: [softly] It's, reshelving, Frank.. and reshelving day needs a quiet atmosphere.. How could anyone reshelf with you guys bickering so loudly?

JULIE: [still laughing] Our most idiotic Frank here insists that the local mailman is enough of a unit to lift every! Single! Neighbor! In the neighborhood!

BARNABY: [With the tone of someone who’s heard this before, and is concerned] Oh, Frank, not this again..

FRANK: It’s true, it’s true! Barnaby You’ve seen it too!

BARNABY: Now.. Eddie is very capable what with carrying all his packages and such around, but--

FRANK: [Loudly Interrupting] So you agree!!

BARNABY: I did not say-- Frank, our neighborhood includes the likes of Me, Poppy and Home, no one could--

FRANK: [Triumphantly shouting] EDDIE! CAN! LIFT! A! HOOOUUUSSSEEE!!

BARNABY: [Whimper of fear that becomes muffled as he covers his face]

JULIE: Well, I can’t accept such a boast without proof.

FRANK: Oh, I can prove it! Look, here comes Eddie now! Watch this!

BARNABY: [sound of realization] No, wait, Frank-

EDDIE: [as monotone as always] Mail’s here. I’ve got- oh no.

FRANK: [Overlapping him, running off in his direction] EDDIE, EDDIE, EDDIE, CATCH ME! QUICK! CATCH ME!

[Sound of packages hitting the ground and Eddie grunting slightly as he catches Frank.]

FRANK: TA-DAA!! See? See??

JULIE: [Dismissively, with a scoff] Oh come on, that’s barely an accomplishment! I could lift you Frank! Sally could lift you.

BARNABY: [still worried] Yes, I could probably lift you if sufficiently motivated, Frank.

FRANK: [Hmph’s] And yet you two never play “throw-Frank-up-in-the-air-as-hard-as-you-can-and-see-where-he-lands” with me!

BARNABY: [voice cracking with worry] We’ve talked about this, Frank! I didn’t want you to get hurt-

JULIE: [cutting off Barnaby] Well, I’m not convinced. Eddie, [snapping of her fingers], here!

EDDIE: I ain’t a dog, Julie.

JULIE: I just- [quick gasp as shes lifted suddenly] Ah-!

EDDIE: [still monotone as he lifts Julie above his head] voila.

JULIE: A warning would've been nice you ass. [a small, monotone, "ow" from Eddie as she playfully kicks him.] But, I’m still not convinced.

Eddie: [incredibly sarcastic] Oh no. I'm devastated. [drops Julie] Julie: Wait- ['OOF' as shes dropped onto the path] you ass!

FRANK: [overlapping Julie's unceremonious fall and cursing] BARNABY NEXT! BARNABY NEXT!!

EDDIE: Alrighty.

BARNABY: No!

EDDIE: Why not?

FRANK: [said at the same time as Eddie, but much louder] WHY NOOOOT!!

BARNABY: I will not let you hurt yourself attempting to lift me into the air, Eddie! I’d feel terrible!

BARNABY: [gasp of delight] Oh- look! Wally and Poppy! Hello!

POPPY: What’s up? How did the ground taste, Julie?

WALLY: Hi, Barnaby. Hi, Julie. Hi, Frank. Hi, Eddie. What are you--

FRANK: [interrupting Wally mid-greetings; he keeps going underneath his dialogue] EDDIE! LIFT WALLY INSTEAD!

EDDIE: Alright, c’mere little guy- hup!

WALLY: Oh, I’m up here now.

JULIE: [Scoffs] Oh please! Wally weighs 3 apples soaking wet! Watch, put him down.

EDDIE: And down you go.

WALLY: I’m on the ground again.

JULIE: And hup!!

[Another “ta-da!!” to signify her lifting Wally.]

WALLY: Oh, and now I’m up again.

POPPY: Life’s sure got its ups and downs, huh? [chuckling at her own joke] Uhh, but seriously, Cloudie, what’s this new game of yours?

FRANK: [excitedly explaining the situation to Poppy] It’s not a game, Poppy! I’m proving to Julie that Eddie can lift everyone in the neighborhood!

POPPY: Ohhh, why didn’t you say so? Eddie, ya shoulda started with me. Seein’ as I’m such a tiny li’l birdy and all.

EDDIE: [long sigh] ..fuckin.. okay.

POPPY: I mean, it wouldn’t be much harder than liftin’ a couple envelopes, huh? Pickin’ up a li’l girl like me. It’s hardly even worth showin’ off at this point, when you’ve already managed guys so much bigger! But might as well just so you can say honestly you’ve managed the full collection, right?

EDDIE: [groaning, the sound of a flask being taken out of his jacket and quickly swigged from] Mng, okay, c’mere.. I figure I can... Yeah, yup, here we-- [grunt of effort] Hup-- all right-- little more– shit–

POPPY: [under Eddie’s struggle] watch the talons hun.

[Big, forceful, weightlifter-style exhale as he gets Poppy lifted; little “woah-ho-ho!” from Poppy.]

FRANK: [overlapping others] YEE-EES!!

JULIE: [overlapping others, little applause] Hell yeah!

BARNABY: [overlapping others, gasp of fear, his voice muffled behind his paw] oh Mary please..

WALLY: [overlapping others] Oh, now Poppy’s up there.

[One solid beat. Then, sound of Eddie collapsing and taking Poppy down with him, with a loud “OOF!” from both of them. A terrified yip from Barnaby]

POPPY: Ahah! Holy crap, I don’t even have a joke about that! That was awesome! You okay, Ed?

EDDIE: [Groan, sarcasm in his normal monotone as he speaks into the dirt] Oh yes, just fuckin peachy, augh..

JULIE: I still say it’s just passable. Ma, get over here! I bet I can lift you over my head and carry you to Sally’s window to show her!

POPPY: [snort-laugh] Yeah, all right.

BARNABY: [gasping in fear] NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. I’m ending this right now!

FRANK: Oooh, let’s go see if Eddie can lift Howdy next! We can save Home for the big finish!! Sally can watch from her window!

JULIE: Not if I can lift them first!! [her voice becomes distant as she continues to talk, fading until shes not heard anymore] I bet Howdy weighs less because his heart is so empty! Jackass won’t even see it coming. I bet I can carry Home all the way to…

POPPY: Well, I know what I’m doin’ with the rest of my day. C’mon, li’l buddy, let’s catch this party!

WALLY: Eddie’s going to lift up Home? That’s the most. We can go to Howdy’s together and Home can pick out his own hot dog.

EDDIE: Ain’t the first time I spent the day on the dirt path. [spoken in the dirt, his voice muffled]

[Long beat. Just Eddie and Barnaby are left.]

BARNABY: [soft, concerned voice of a father] Oh, Eddie..

EDDIE: What? [his voice louder as he lifted his head from the dirt]

BARNABY: [small chuckle of delight, then whispers] Thank you for entertaining Frank.

EDDIE: ..I don’t know what you’re talking about.

BARNABY: I just think its funny.. If anyone else had asked you to lift people up you wouldn’t have done it, hm? EDDIE: [laugh] Tch. [groan as he attempts to stand] Alright, yeah.. Figured Frank would get a good laugh out of that..

BARNABY: A good laugh? [the sound of struggle as he lifts Eddie to his feet] I think you made his day, Edward. You, quite literally, bent over backwards for him.

EDDIE: [an unusual sound of joy in his voice] Yeah.. well.. Frank makes mine. It’s the least I can do. [the sound of him brushing the dirt off his clothes]

BARNABY: I’m sure he’d be happy to hear that.

Eddie: [a sigh of defeat] mm..

BARNABY: Well, I’m going to go inside and get my caine so I can join everyone else without limping all day.. I’ll see you in a second.

EDDIE: seeya.. [silence as Barnaby walks away, a few sounds of dirt being kicked around by Eddie]

#welcome home #welcome home au #welcome home opposite au #howdy pillar #eddie dear #frank frankly #julie joyful #sally starlet #barnaby b beagle #poppy partridge #poppy ‘ma’ partridge #Wally darling #eddies big lift #welcome home arg #welcome home puppet show #script

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lassieposting · 3 months

Text

So on the back of my headcanon about the Prototype more or less raising CatNap, I've been watching someone play Project Playtime for the first time, and I'm fucking yelling

If you play as the monster, the Prototype literally teaches you (as Huggy Wuggy) how to hunt. He's the one giving the tutorial instructions.

And honestly? The vibe I got from that "interaction" is that Prototype likes children. More than that: Prototype is good with children.

Project Playtime takes place in the intervening decade between the Hour of Joy massacre and the start of the main game. Based on the fact that Huggy needs the Prototype's guidance, it's probably fairly early in that period - he's not used to hunting for himself yet. So Huggy here is a monster with limited intelligence - he's the most 'animal' experiment we've seen, though he is still able to write - and the soul of a child.

And the Prototype tailors his lessons appropriately. Like, I trained to work with kids, and he uses essentially the same approach I would to teach a young or special needs child a new skill.

Simple Instructions: what Prototype is teaching Huggy here is, at its core, strategy and tactical thinking, and that's a subject he seems to understand well and know a lot about. A more intelligent experiment - like, say, young CatNap - might ask a lot of questions, and Prototype could probably give them long, in-depth explanations of why doing X thing prompts Y response or why Z tactic is useful. But Huggy isn't on that level, so Prototype keeps his instructions and explanations short, concise and easy to understand.

No Guesswork: Huggy, described as having only "sufficient" intelligence post-transformation, likely has limited capacity for complex thought. Where CatNap might be encouraged to think ahead for himself and suggest problems that could arise, Huggy would struggle. So Prototype gives him all the information he needs: here are the ways the humans will try to avoid or harm or mislead you, and here are the ways you can fight back. He even points out little tips that might seem obvious, like listening for the breathing of a hiding worker, because he knows that might not occur independently to Huggy.

Positive Reinforcement: When Huggy successfully incapacitates a human player, Prototype laughs and praises him, treating a potentially upsetting conflict like a fun game. Once Huggy has gotten rid of all the human players and won the match, Prototype tells him he did a good job and that he can rest now.

The Bad News Sandwich: One technique I was taught for dealing with young children is that when you have to give them upsetting or disappointing news, sandwiching it between two good things limits the distress it will cause. And Prototype does this twice with Huggy:

[Praises Huggy for catching a player and putting him in the food chute] [warns Huggy that the other players could try to rescue their friend] [offers a way to stop them doing that]

[Praises Huggy for clearing out the factory] [tells Huggy that more humans will return] [reassures Huggy that for now, he can rest and relax]

Anyway. Prototype taught at least one child-aged experiment to fend for itself and defend the factory: confirmed. And so, scenarios I'm now picturing with Prototype and little CatNap: this

youtube

I'm also 👀👀👀 at the fact that like. While it's directly stated that while his main motive for having the experiments attack the Project Playtime workers is to stop them making more creatures, he's got a secondary motive in that he's using the Bigger Bodies mascots *to gather food for the smaller toys*. The larger toys may have become hostile towards the smaller, weaker, "prey" toys, but the Prototype seems to be at least trying to provide for them, albeit in the only fucked-up way available to him.

Anyway I just think that's really interesting considering he's been implied to be the game's ultimate Big Bad. I think there's more to him than we've been told

#poppy playtime #poppy playtime meta #poppy playtime headcanons #experiment 1006 #the prototype #huggy wuggy #catnap

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