#if a large portion of the fandom is setting itself on fire over something and I'm not reblogging it or talking about it

[lifblogs]

End of the year book-reading ask game.

Yes, I decided to answer every question.

Did you set a goal for yourself this year? How did you do? If not, why not? I did not set a goal this year. I just told myself to have fun. I really only set a goal in November, which was to read more books this year than I ever have because I was two books away from doing so. And wow, I really read a lot of books. Way more than ever before.

Did any book inspire you to seek out further media, such as the movie/show/fanfiction? How did you feel about that take? I don't really think so.

Did consuming any piece of media inspire you to pick up the book? How did it compare? No,

If you DNF any books, what was the pettiest reason you put a book down this year? I DNF'ed one book because there was a description saying a character's eyebrows rose into her hairline. Yep.

What's a scene you read this year that sticks with you? The last scene of The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin when everything just really comes together and the main character's past lover leans in and asks her if she's ever heard of anything called the moon. Totally broke my mind because they didn't have a freakin' moon!

Any new favorite authors? Marshall J. Moore, N. K. Jemisin, Martha Wells, Freya Marske, R. F. Kuang, and Rachel Smythe.

Any old favorites let you down? Jennifer L. Armentrout. She became one of my favorite authors last year. All I can say is: girl, get your shit together.

If someone were to ask you what your top ten books for this year were, which would you choose? So this is 16 instead of 10, but I couldn't narrow them down. They're all so good. Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn, Torn by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Artificial Condition by Martha Wells, The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin, The Awoken City by Marshall J. Moore, The Broken Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin, She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan, Life by Pumpkin by Leslie Popp, Shards of Earth by Adrian Tchaikovsky, The Librarian by Air and Nothingness Press, Dracula by Bram Stoker, A Power Unbound by Freya Marske, Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree, The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson, Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson, and The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman.

What book(s) had the biggest influence over your life this year? The Lord of the Rings because it genuinely kept me alive when my seizure disorder made itself known, and when I first developed the autoimmune disorder as well. It kept me alive when my leg was broken and I was bed-bound. It saved my life.

Any books you hate-read this year? Yeah, no. I never do that. Why hate-read when you can go read something you would genuinely enjoy?

Any books with large fandoms? The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, Good Omens by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe, any book by Brandon Sanderson, The Chalice of the Gods by Rick Riordan, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, and I think Blood and Ash and Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L. Armentrout has a big fandom.

Did any book inspire you to create? Perhaps Babel by R. F. Kuang. There was an interview with the author at the back that made me feel better about choosing to write Chinese fantasy despite not being Chinese myself.

How would you summarize your reading choices for this year? Popular, yet somehow a bit niche at the same time.

Did you binge any series this year? The Lord of the Rings, The Fifth Season, Inheritance (also by N. K. Jemisin), The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang, The Rites of Resurrection by Marshall J. Moore, The Final Architecture by Adrian Tchaikovsky, The Summer King by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Murderbot by Martha Wells, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, and Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe.

A book you never thought you'd be into but were proven wrong Definitely The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin. A good portion of it is written in second person, and I was surprised I enjoyed it so much.

Most read trope this year? Was this intentional or unintentional? Honestly, I have no idea. I haven't really been keeping track of that stuff.

A book you reread this year. Did it hold up to how you remembered it? The Lord of the Rings. Always.

Some books you bought this year (insert picture of my bookcase and my stack of books to read here)

Did you utilize your library this year? What were some library events you went to if yes? Any new library cards? I used Libby a lot! I have a library card with my local library, and a virtual one with the Boston library. I also have a card from The Librarian.

Would you say that you had any kind of growth as a reader? Yes. I read a lot of books I thought I wouldn't like. I read more diverse authors. I also read so much more than I ever have despite all my difficulties this year.

How have you kept track of the books you read this year? I just write them down on the notes app when I finish them. I also started using Goodreads in April.

What are some books you discovered this year that you added to your tbr? Yeah, uh, there are a million for this.

What new releases did you read this year? The Ashen City by Marshall J. Moore, Heart of the Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan, The Awoken City by Marshall J. Moore, Son of a Sailor by Marshall J. Moore, The Sun and the Star by Rick Riordan & Mark Oshiro, A Soul of Ash and Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout, A Restless Truth by Freya Marske, He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan, Fall of Ruin and Wrath by Jennifer L. Armentrout, The Chalice of the Gods by Rick Riordan, Prisoners of a Pirate Queen by Marshall J. Moore, A Fire in the Flesh by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree, and Brandon Sanderson's Secret Projects.

What new releases are you looking forward to next year? Definitely the third Crescent City book by Sarah J. Maas, and I think the sixth book for A Court of Thorns and Roses is coming out too. And anything by Marshall J. Moore, obviously. I'll give more Jennifer L. Armentrout books a try, I suppose.

If you had to give a TEDTalk on a book you read this year, for better or worse, which would it be? Probably Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson. I could talk about the slow build-up with the romance and how when the climax hits you realize just how invested you actually were with the romance the whole time. I could talk about the different cultures it's based off of. I could also talk about it's anti-AI sentiments (one of my favorite parts), and I could talk about the message about all art created by humans being important, no matter what medium it may be in, and there was also the message about respecting art and cultures you may not understand.

What are your reading goals for next year? Honestly, if I had a goal it would be to read 100 books, which... doesn't seem doable. The number is just too intimidating.

#books #reading #at the end of the year #i'll be posting the official list of books i read #trying to add two more to it still

[mittensmorgul]

I don't understand, jack is back but dean is fine with him but he will be at odds with cas because he blames him for his mom's death? I'm trying to make sense of this, after all jack was the killer

Hi there! I’m assuming (since sdcc was like a month ago) that you’re referring to one of the garbage clickbait articles going around in the last few weeks pretending to be new “interviews.” I’ve seen a couple of them, not linking here because I refuse to drive traffic to any of those sites. That’s what those sites exist for-- to post clickbaity articles that will get people worked up enough to talk about incessantly and profiting off ad revenue.

They’re a mishmosh of out of context quotes slightly reworked from other journalists’ SDCC Roundtable Q&A sessions. So not only are the quotes worthless out of context, they’re also nearly a month old. It’s stale news, even for the bits that actually come out sounding even remotely accurate.

This particular comment was made by Robert Singer at sdcc... but for CONTEXT, please have SEVERAL different tables (and remember these interviews run about 5 minutes per table, with multiple reporters at each table who are all basically asking the same questions that these guys literally are not allowed to answer honestly...) enjoy this bit of tap dancing:

1. In this video, the question is posed about how the season starts (at approximately 2:05), and at about 2:45 he mentions that there’s “a bit of housekeeping” to be done in Dean and Cas’s relationship. He doesn’t say the CAUSE, which is not “Mary’s Death,” but the actual fallout of 14.20 where DEAN WAS LITERALLY ABOUT TO MURDER JACK, and Cas had LITERALLY PUT HIMSELF BETWEEN DEAN AND JACK TO STOP HIM. They’re not still stuck back in 14.18 here...

2. In this video, he’s asked about the relationship between Sam, Dean, and Cas in the final episodes of s14, (at approximately 5.10), with the reporter asking about how their relationship “became fractured because of Jack,” asking about how CAS felt betrayed that Dean could’ve killed Jack... and you can see in the video (sorry for the angle in this one, you can’t really see the confusion on Singer’s face here...), and then he starts freaking waffling like mad...

“Well, conflict makes drama,” and “it’s gonna take a while for that rift to heal,” and “they will come together.” Mentioning it’s one of the goals of the first part of the season.

(reminder that earlier in these videos, he mentioned they only had the first six scripts at this point, so “a while” to him happens at some point during those episodes).

Let’s also be clear here, that the out of context articles have taken his quotes out of context, that in these interviews he’s SPECIFICALLY referring to the rift caused in 14.20 (which I might remind everyone they ended literally standing back to back, i.e. UNITED TOGETHER with zero evidence of any sort of “rift.”) And yet... when journalists repeatedly ask him about this... part of the job of PR is to... shuffle and answer with SOMETHING. If the audience thinks there’s emotional drama, as he said, Conflict Makes Drama. 

*HEAVY SIGHING*

This is like 9 things I hate all mixed up in a big pot: 

PR is not Showrunning. 

these interviews are FUN but they’re in no way SPOILERS for the season.

if you listen to all six roundtable interviews (well, there’s video of five for Singer specifically), you can hear him answering half a dozen similar questions in ways that he attempts to make sound slightly different without changing the underlying meaning of what he said. That’s how this weird form of PR works, and it’s a really interesting exercise in understanding what is actually the concrete truth IN CONTEXT.

here go try it for yourselves have a complete list of interviews from sdcc... https://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/186598314405/sdcc-2019-spn-roundtables

oh right, people don’t actually watch them all because it would literally take HOURS (something just shy of five hours total, I believe? delivered in 5-10 minute snippets for each of the 9 participants being interviewed across six different tables) and it gets BORING watching the same people answer the same questions over and over again...

spoiler alert: I watched them all, which is how I knew these new “interviews” being published this week were garbage clickbait because they read like someone put all these videos in a blender.

When you remove the CONTEXT for a reply (i.e. the question asked, and often the question asked BEFORE the question that led to it, and often the FOLLOW UP) you can make it sound like the people being interviewed said ANYTHING THAT SUITS YOUR AGENDA!

the agenda of these clickbait sites IS TO GET YOUR CLICK! to get you worked up enough to talk about their article enough to link back to it and drive OTHER people to click their link. That’s the point of clickbait. They don’t care if what they’re presenting is HONEST, just that you CLICK. That’s how they get PAID.

Go back and read the actual articles written by the actual journalists who conducted these interviews in the first place immediately after SDCC, and you can see ACTUAL CONTEXT!

Wow I think that’s at least 10 things that irk me about this situation.

As a fandom can we PLEASE stop falling for this BS? Have we already forgotten s14 canon? Is that why people are willing to believe this garbage?

After 14.20 aired (and heck, even after 14.18 aired), I was writing about how Dean and Cas may have had some conflict there, but in the language of the show, the rift between Dean and Cas is already on the road to healing. If it wasn’t, Cas wouldn’t have been standing by their side in that final scene of 14.18. Dean wouldn’t have admitted he did the EXACT SAME THING to Sam, of failing to express his concerns about Jack to either Sam or Cas more clearly.

Did they have a big heart to heart conversation about it on screen? NO! BECAUSE WHEN DO THEY EVER?! And yet... they all continue to work together as if they had come to an understanding, and we-the-audience are supposed to understand that they are not actually “dead to me.” In an episode where we spend like 2/3 of it being reminded that things happen offscreen (sometimes MAJOR things, via the flashbacks to Mary’s life) and where the beginning and ending are mirrored like bookends with Dean’s line about what they’re going to do now (evolving from “get her back” to “let her go” over the course of the episode), we’re given to understand that Dean and Cas are finally able to “let it go.”

We saw them talk about Cas’s trip to Heaven, how he’d begged to be allowed to resurrect Mary and was told no, because he saw her at peace in her own Heaven. Dean knows he tried... and knows that Mary’s happy at last. In ShowSpeak, there is no conflict there anymore. Dean’s anger is at the situation, and not at Cas. Do you see the difference? Because he’s about to have a REAL target for what’s ACTUALLY behind ALL of this suffering...

By 14.20, Dean-- out of his own personal sense of guilt, and not any sort of anger with Cas-- believes he has no choice but to kill Jack himself using Chuck’s horrific weapon. Cas goes to Jack directly in his frustration, hoping he can convince Jack of what Mary failed to-- that there is something very dangerously wrong with him. Jack finally agrees, and acknowledges that he doesn’t feel anymore. And Cas is literally trying to save BOTH of their lives, because if Dean uses that magic gun on Jack, they will both be dead...

Cas’s anger isn’t at Dean, it’s at CHUCK, for refusing to fix this problem and healing Jack, despite clearly having the power to do so. Dean isn’t angry at Jack, because in the end he can’t bring himself to shoot Jack-- not even when Chuck shows up and eggs him on, and Jack kneels down perfectly willing to accept his fate. Not even when Chuck offers to resurrect Mary as a reward...

WHERE THE HECK IS THIS NOTION OF A CONFLICT BETWEEN THEM COMING FROM?!

I mean, any more so than like... the “conflict” between them at the beginning of s11? Which also devolved into this same sort of scenario with them both feeling guilty while neither blamed the other, and their nonpology involved Dean refusing to let Cas heal him for a few episodes so he could wallow in his own guilt a little longer. The acknowledgement of their mutual guilt served as their “apology,” and the fact they both kept standing by each other throughout it proves their relationship was never actually in trouble in the first place. This is the language of the show.

I don’t blame Singer for this one, I blame the reporters who asked those questions and made those implications, that he then scrambled to answer with a bit of tap dancing.

CAN WE ALL PLEASE COLLECTIVELY CHILL NOW?!

#pr is not showrunning #fandom problems #spn s15 speculation #spn 14.18 #spn 14.20 #destiel #just for the specific subject matter #if a large portion of the fandom is setting itself on fire over something and I'm not reblogging it or talking about it #it usually means the thing they're all worked up about is either clickbait or fake news just fyi #i try to stay out of that sort of drama because it's idiotically pointless #Anonymous

[framecaught]

[S] Cascade After the Death of Flash

Most of us familiar with Homestuck are familiar with [S] Cascade. This seminal flash animation concludes Homestuck’s fifth act and is still considered by many fans the most important, climactic animation in the comic (even ahead of its successors [S] GAME OVER and [S] Collide).

Many of us may also be familiar with the extraordinary circumstances of the animation’s release. A user called Vivi on the now-defunct MSPA Forums made a commemorative comic documenting the occasion, which, to my view, really captures the essence of the release-mythos. In short: On October 25th, 2011, Homestuck updated after a year-long hiatus with a thirteen-minute flash called [S] Cascade. As fans raced to watch it, the influx of pageviews crashed Newgrounds, the site where the flash was hosted. Hussie temporarily uploaded the flash to megaupload.com. Megaupload.com crashed. The Homestuck website crashed; the Homestuck forum crashed; livestream.com crashed as fans who had “gotten in” tried to stream the video; and, finally, the Homestuck fandom crashed Twitter. [1]

Today, it is hard to imagine Homestuck fans crashing Twitter. Back in 2011, Twitter was a lot smaller, and Homestuck was a lot bigger. But it wasn’t just the long year of building anticipation and the mad scramble to watch the flash which cemented [S] Cascade as one of Homestuck’s most iconic pages. The Flash itself is aesthetically ambitious beyond any previous flash in the comic [2]. Not only does it combine detailed illustrations contributed by fan collaborators with an absolutely fire soundtrack; it manipulates the traditional Homestuck “panel” in a completely unique way. 

Among the various stunning moments in the flash, I find Bec Noir’s dramatic release of the red miles one of the most memorable. The YouTuber Precision F-Strike captures my same reaction when I watched [S] Cascade for the first time in this video around 1:20, exclaiming: “My screen is getting bigger! My screen is getting bigger!!” What made this “expanding panel” trick so dazzling upon my first watch? The release of the red miles marks the first instance in which [S] Cascade modifies the traditional size of the Homestuck panel. By no means does it mark the first time the comic as a whole has deviated from its own standard panel size; elongated panels, multiple panels, and links-to-panels have all been regular features of the comic up to this point. However, [S] Cascade is the first page to modify the panel size during a Flash sequence, changing in motion. This novelty, combined with the surprise of the effect, sets the reader up to expect a flash of epic proportions—and [S] Cascade delivers.

After expanding for the red miles, the panel never quite shrinks down to its original size. For the rest of the animation, the plot unfolds within an extended panel-space ripe for dramatic exploitation. At 2:53 the panel shrinks back down to show Bec Noir’s journey to post-reckoning earth, then grows again to get back into the action. At 4:22 it shrinks and breaks into multiple panels to illustrate Bec Noir wreaking destruction in the troll’s session. The proliferation of these moving rectangles mimics a film reel, reminding us that we have technically already seen these events, but underscoring their importance as a conglomeration of memories for the trolls. 

Transitioning to the human sessions’ Derse at 4:38, the panel blows up again to its traditional size and adopts an exterior “wallpaper.” This “wallpaper”, as I’ll call it, shifts with the content of the Flash for the next few minutes. It shows the exterior of Derse as Rose and Dave fly through, then it takes on the red and yellow colors of the quest beds; the black and white colors of The Tumor; the red and blue colors of the “mass of two universes” device; and finally the fleur-de-lis pattern of the Felt mansion. During the sequence between Sn0wman and Slick, at 6:08 Slick’s bullet actually pushes out the corner of the traditional frame, extending it back into the full extended-panel space. Then again, during the climactic moment at 10:02, panels grow and shrink and replace others, flashing in time with the soundtrack, drawing the plotlines together and anticipating the finger-frame with which Jade creates the Fenestrated Plane. The animation finishes with John and Jade busting through the Fenestrated Plane, which cycles through the comic’s own panels, culminating the meta-referential panel distortion with this final act of “escaping” from and through the Homestuck panels themselves.

As a result of the extended panel-space established at the release of the red miles, we get to experience the majority of [S] Cascade’s action (and gorgeous artwork) on an enlarged canvas. Just as we go to the cinema to see movies on the “big screen,” Homestuck deploys its own big screen at the start of the flash. Then, all the growing and shrinking between segments contributes to the narrative flow of the flash. The “shrunk” portions leave room for the panel to blow up again once the next climax comes. I think the “wallpaper” effect employed mid-flash is especially effective, as it allows Hussie to continue utilizing the extended panel-space while keeping the frame small in advance of the Sn0wman’s death, at which point it expands again. It’s also important to note how Hussie manipulates our other preconceived expectations, aside from panel size, to enhance the animation’s drama. The website itself gets a special [S] Cascade color scheme and header. In the unfamiliar layout of this Cascade-ified website, readers prepare themselves for the best and the worst—then their expectations are thrown off balance again, for good measure, with the expansion of the panel and the big-screen execution of the flash. With all of this in mind, it’s easy to see how [S] Cascade generated such a massive response.

As you may be aware, as of January 2021 Adobe has discontinued its support for Flash Player, with all major web browsers following suit. This means it’s near impossible to run flash content on any normal computer, and it won’t be long before flash only exists in archival projects. Luckily, the new denizens of the Homestuck website have worked to keep all of the story intact despite the changing media landscape, with some interactive flash pages broken down into videos or screencaps and animations converted to embedded YouTube videos [3]. If you are interested in experiencing Homestuck’s flash content as originally released, a fantastic project called the Unofficial Homestuck Collection has worked to archive the entire comic in a custom browser which natively runs Flash (all you need is 4GB of space on your computer and some time for the assets to download). This archive has been invaluable for my art historical investigation into the comic [4].

As it stands, though—unless forced by a concerned friend to download The Unofficial Homestuck Collection browser—new readers to Homestuck can’t experience the Flash games and animations in their original format. The same goes for folks rereading the comic. In the case of [S] Cascade, significant losses must be mourned. The effect set off by the red miles (the surprise and novelty of your “screen getting bigger”) is hampered by the embedded YouTube format. When you open the [S] Cascade page, now, it presents you with a mid-flash thumbnail, a YouTube play button, and YouTube framing elements such as a watermark and title (pictured above). You can’t avoid already seeing the extended panel-space of the flash page with this new format. Even though the panels within the embed begin in their “shrunk” state and grow to fill out the video frame, the expansion can never be a surprise to the same degree it was in the original Flash format. Flash animations were unornamented by watermarks, titles, and scrubber bars. They were so indistinguishable from regular static panels and gifs in terms of size, image quality, and framing that this gag (pictured below) actually worked. The indistinguishable quality of flash animations from regular gif panels created the necessary environment for [S] Cascade to surprise us by suddenly growing and filling the screen. That drama is inevitably lost in the flash’s new format.

On the other hand, the YouTube format presents some obvious benefits for readers. For one thing, you can now scrub back and forth in the animation, pause it, and even see its timestamps. This is beneficial to any reader who wants to revisit key moments and enormously helpful for someone like me analyzing the animation in detail. I would argue that the inability to pause the animation in its original format contributed to its monumental quality—readers couldn’t pause to breathe, and the comic took merciless control over the pacing—but of course the inability to pause something is also terribly inconvenient. Furthermore, the video format solves an issue that plagued Homestuck readers (including myself) throughout the comic’s lifetime: it’s inaccessibility on mobile devices. Adobe Flash famously failed to transition into the world of mobile touch-screens after Steve Jobs decided not to support it on the iPhone, writing a letter denouncing the software for its errors [5]. With Flash no longer functioning, the reformatted pages in Homestuck are all compatible with mobile devices, meaning readers can now enjoy the comic while lying sideways in bed like we always dreamed. Among other considerations, Adobe Flash was a complete pain to work with [6] for many large-scale projects, and its technical limitations cannot be ignored. On the whole, the death of Flash speaks to a greater evolution in our 21st century media sphere—the growing importance of mobile browsing, the shift from web-hosted games to apps and game launchers, and the increasing “convergence” of platforms into all-purpose devices. While much of Homestuck’s impact and charm resulted from its innovative use of Flash, like the example I’ve given in [S] Cascade, the unique bubble of history in which Flash existed should be fondly remembered and effectively preserved as we continue to navigate the comic’s legacy. 

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Happy 4/13! If you liked this post, you can follow the blog on tumblr for updates or, if you don’t frequent tumblr, sign up for the mailing list to receive an email whenever I publish a new mini-essay!

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[1] I unfortunately can’t say I was around for the original [S] Cascade release (I started reading the comic about two years too late). However, even during the Gigapause, what I’ve called its “release mythos” was still widely retold. The events themselves are documented here: https://fanlore.org/wiki/Cascade_(Homestuck). Thank you to @imploder for having saved Vivi’s comic on tumblr!

[2] Hussie wrote about the making of [S] Cascade on his tumblr, now archived here: https://wheals.github.io/tumblr/tumblr.html#about-eoa5-part-1. This gives some insight into the massive undertaking. Previously, the longest animation in Homestuck was [S] Descend, an animation which Hussie calls “Cascade Lite” in his author commentary in Homestuck Book 3. [S] Descend was the first animation to significantly incorporate multiple plotlines moving along at once. Hussie describes this narrative style as an “action-collage” (also in the Book 3 commentary). [S] Descend was also (to my recollection) the first time Hussie significantly incorporated assets from contributing artists into an animation, which he explained was partially to keep the production moving faster. Ironically, during the production of [S] Cascade, organizing contributors turned out to be much more of a hassle—but ultimately Hussie deems the myriad of captivating art styles “a big plus” in his post.

[3] Although some are completely broken, now :(. RIP silly flute refrain.

[4] I seriously cannot overstate how grateful I am for this project. 

[5] This article does a great job of explaining the history of Adobe Flash and its eventual demise.

[6] Hussie goes over some of the issues he had with the software in the post referenced at [2]

#essay post #homestuck analysis #media studies #adobe flash #homestuck cascade

[igniting-quill]

Hello! Thank you so much for writing that Korest piece; it was really interesting and I am slowly eyeing it in order to perhaps expand upon it a little... anyways I was gonna ask if you could expand on the logistics of getting back the spell book/dictionary? You definitely don’t have to but I’m a little curious :) anyways besides that this is just an appreciation ask,,, thanks for feeding the microscopic korest fandom lol

AHHHH I’m unbelievably flattered! I’ve always been one to like rarepairs. Microscopic ships unite!

For the ones confused on what this is about, here’s a link to the Korest piece we are referring to.

To be honest here, I did not have the best of world building, and by the time I got to the point I got to that location in the story I didn’t really look too far into like… how it would work. I say, feel free to take your own creative stance on this.

That being said, totally not in a way that will like… leave me an excuse to just info dump… haha, I think it is good to lay some sort of foundation of my thought process so at least you aren’t totally lost within a magical system that I made myself. But I also don’t want to hinder any creative solutions that you come up with though, so feel free to change/disregard some of the information I wrote below. I go over my thoughts on the fire specifically. Afterwards, I made sections with Eduard and Yong Soo’s abilities and why I gave them the magical “powers” I did. Feel free to use the information and piece together a possible solution. As usual I wrote way too much, but the benefit of that is that you’ll have plenty to look through. Good Luck!

Logistics of Saving the Burning Book

So the remains of a burnt book is probably a ton of ashes, some flying away in the wind as solid clumps, some breaking off and turning into gaseous molecules, and some remaining on the ground. How does our duo get them back together?

I go into Eduard and Yong Soo’s skill sets a little further into this long post. I’d love to see what sort of ways you can piece together this puzzle (I mean, I myself haven’t even really solved it, so I’m intrigued. Maybe I’ll give it a go when I have time.)

Eduard 

Eduard’s inherent power is teleportation. I would like to think that the beginnings of his magical abilities began when he figured out he could transport objects to and from him. (Sort of like the chopstick scene in the portion I did write in my WIP). In my WIP, I had the object disappear and reappear again, but I am also open to having the object “float” in the air to/from him. He can also teleport himself (like his body, clothes, luggage) short distances. I never bothered to lay down a specific length for maximum distance and such, but he could definitely not go from Estonia → Korea. Maybe the distance is transporting from room to room in his house/apartment. Or maybe extend it further so when he’s really desperate he could teleport to work or something? Since I didn’t lay down hard boundaries, that distance he can transport himself to is up to you. I don’t have any instances of this happening in the fic itself, but I would think that Eduard can also transport other people as long as he was holding onto them. Teleporting, especially teleporting himself, takes a lot of magical energy to do, so he often has to chill and recharge. I think that it runs out rather often, but especially when he is not well rested and such. After all, his strength lies in his smarts, not in his power (in this AU, magical ability). I would like to think that he lives life largely like a “normal” person would. He doesn’t necessarily have as much control over his powers because he doesn’t practice them much.

TL;DR: Eduard can teleport short distances, transfer objects from one place to another (no touching non-living things necessary), and bring other people with him as long as they hold on to him.

I gave this ability to Eduard because in canon, hws Estonia is the one that gets to see the alternate universes of mochi-talia and nyotalia in person. It kinda fits in here because Eduard is once again beamed to somewhere that is very foreign to him! I also think that, if you want to add on, feel free to see Eduard improve on his ability while hanging around Yong Soo. After all, I think it is difficult to improve on magical abilities if every single “magical” person is spread out across the world. There’s one “sorcerer-type” per country after all. Meanwhile, Yong Soo had his brother to practice with for a bit, so I think that the increased exposure made him better at magic compared to Eduard.

Yong Soo

Yong Soo has many abilities as he has his spellbook. I brushed up a bit of this in Eduard’s section, but since he and his brother both are magical, I would think Yong Soo is a bit more powerful than Eduard. (I meant for Yong Soo’s brother to be hws North Korea, but I know that there have been other discussions of what sort of country representation(s) Korea split into. Feel free to switch up the siblings and such). Yong Soo’s inherent ability is a brief rewinding of time but it is solely isolated on one object. Physical changes, like fixing broken glasses, for example, would be a demonstration of what Yong Soo would do. Chemical changes, like paper burning, would be harder but still achievable because Yong Soo is pretty experienced. The boundaries to his inherent ability would be that he can’t do anything to a living being: someone got stabbed/broke an arm/drank poison/died? He can’t reverse the wound. However, if a once-living being was affected, Yong Soo can manipulate it. (This could lead to some really creepy story lines. But I leave this open because he manipulates paper, something that came from a tree once) Honestly, you could go into a deep, deep rabbit hole seeing what sort of manifestations of a time-manipulating ability. I decided not to go down that rabbit hole and instead have Yong Soo spend his time researching into other spells: light/fire manipulation (the lamp scene), language translating (“why are you a polyglot?” scene), magic boost (I assume this is how Eduard made it back home, but I kept that vague. I leave that up to you to decide).

TL;DR: Yong Soo can rewind time but only for an object. The object cannot be living. Physical changes are easier to backtrack compared to chemical ones.

My thought process behind giving Yong Soo this ability was that he could be an inventor of some sort. I still had him do this a tad when he was working for the Emperor and such. Like, he would do his normal advisor job and return to his little nook where he would create new inventions. The reason why this would work was because he could just totally screw up on his experiments and all he would have to do was rewind a bit. Hence the whole “____ originated in Korea” would make sense. It’s a bit of a stretch, but it made sense in my head.

ALSO ALSO keep in mind that I give you the power of absolutely whatever you want regarding what Yong Soo can do regarding the spell book. Make him struggle though because he just got the spell book and they slowly translate the text. Maybe his skills are half-baked, or maybe there’s a spell that he uses earlier on regarding flames (Maybe the lantern scene?) that is not so strong but he works on it and at this moment it works! Idk just some thoughts.

Conclusion:

If you do end up expanding on this premise, feel free to cut out the accidental burning of the book. Your story structure might end up a bit different from mine. How vital is this section to the overall story? If it doesn’t fit, don’t force it.

I hope this wasn’t too overwhelming and it helps you out! Again, I love your appreciation: as a writer I devour compliments because they are so overwhelmingly fantastic to get.

#hws korest #korest #hws estonia #hws korea #eduard von bock #im yong soo #hws fanfiction #hetalia #fanfiction #world building #hws #my analysis #i think it'd be analysis lol #finding solid ground #my fic

[idreamofthemeparks]

My idea for an ATLA theme park

Disclaimer: I just finished watching ATLA for the first time the other day, and I haven’t interacted with its fandom at all. If these ideas were already thought of by someone else, it wasn’t intentional. I haven’t watched Korra yet, so I apologize if I get anything terribly wrong.

The park overall

-The setting is 20 or 30 years after the events of ATLA, when the war’s fallout has been (mostly) taken care of and things are generally peaceful in the world.

-The park is in a hub-and-spoke layout, with four themed lands (one for each of the four nations) making up the spokes.

-Each kingdom has an entry gate; these gates are all giant indoor rooms, which open into their respective kingdoms after their brief introduction shows. These introduction shows consist of a master of that kingdom’s respective element (original characters, in the form of animatronics) giving you a brief rundown of that kingdom’s history, and getting you excited for the attractions within. These are mandatory for entering the park at rope drop, but after that, they’re optional for kingdom access. Bonus-- the masters are walk-around characters, and they’ll teach you some bending moves if you meet them in their kingdoms.

-The center of the park is themed like a giant, permanent festival, celebrating unity through all four elements. There’s cultural exhibitions (dances, street food, murals) from all four nations. A couple of times during the day, there’s a “Bending Showcase” show, where master benders from all four nations show off their skills.

-Since this is the current year, there would be a tie-in technology or smartphone app. This would enable guests to interact with the world by “learning bending”; you’d have a smart watch of some kind, or just an app, which allowed you to “bend” to interact with parts of the world, learn from walk-around characters, duel others, etc. Some parts of the world would use this differently than others; in the Water Kingdom you’d primarily use it for controlling water features, but in the Fire Kingdom you’d use it for fighting. You can choose one element to bend per day, and you have the option to reset your choice upon each visit. (And you can mix and match-- what happens if you’re a firebender in the Water Kingdom?)

The Earth Kingdom

-Each of the four kingdom areas is aimed towards a slightly different mood. The Earth Kingdom has a little something for everyone-- you can relax and shop, have an adventure, or go on a thrill ride.

-This kingdom is set almost entirely in Ba Sing Se. You can visit more famous locations from the show (like Iroh’s tea shop, or the expensive table-service Earth King’s Palace restaurant) or you can walk through the streets and find your own adventure.

-Here, you can use the bending system to move rocks and sweep aside the earth to discover all kinds of cool secrets. What’s behind that huge boulder? Is there something in that sand pit? Find out!

-The rides in Ba Sing Se itself aren’t too thrilling, but everyone can enjoy them. The monorail gives scenic views of the whole city. The Tales of Ba Sing Se dark ride is full of fun scenes that we didn’t get to see in the ATLA show.

-Outside of Ba Sing Se is an Omashu area. There, you can ride the Omashu Postal Service coaster, or play in the highly-interactive Bumi’s Challenges play area.

The Water Kingdom

-The mood of this area is a lot more relaxed, and it caters more to adults.

-The setting is the Northern Water Tribe. If the whole park isn’t indoors, then at least this kingdom is; the dome ceiling is made up of screens. It’s pleasantly chilly, all of the structures look like they’re made of ice, and there’s a lot of little fountains and water features.

-This kingdom has no thrill rides, but it has two boat rides. The first is a retelling of the Northern Water Tribe’s history; like a big ride-through storybook, it would show the tribe’s story from its founding to its role in the defeat of the Fire Nation. The premise of the other ride is that you’re the judges of a waterbending festival; you’d watch several scenes of animatronic benders performing amazing feats, and you’d press a button in your boat towards the end of the ride, voting to determine who wins and which ending scene you get.

-The main restaurant and its corresponding bar are made entirely of ice. A “hole in the ice” in the restaurant is filled with a sparkling blue “spirit water” soda, and for the cost of a glass, you can drink as much as you want.

-At night, the sky lights up with the Northern Lights. Every night is a full moon, and just before the park closes, Princess Yue comes out of the moon to wish you a good night.

The Fire Kingdom

-This area is more fast-paced, and it’s geared toward teenagers and the thrill-seeking crowd.

-Rather than one large area, this kingdom is segmented and has a few different places to visit. It’s made up of the Sun Warriors’ ancient city, the outskirts of Royal Caldera City, and a new location: Obsidian Ridge.

-Obsidian Ridge is a town that’s on the very outskirts of the Nation’s volcanic archipelago. It’s a beautiful little town that’s filled with traditional Japanese Fire Nation architecture, but it has a dark underbelly: people here aren’t too happy about Ozai being overthrown, and they still want to carry out his plan to conquer the world. They bide their time, training and trying to recruit people.

-Obsidian Ridge is where the bending system is primarily used for fighting; you can duel other benders (other guests and characters alike) throughout the whole world, but this is where you go if you’ve got an itchy trigger finger. The townfolk and its militia will try to convince you to fight with them, and they tend to challenge people to duels when they disagree. There’s even an Agni Kai stage, where duels happen on an even bigger scale. You can duel the local Ozai or Azula impersonator! (Or you can lay low and just go to the live-fire restaurant.)

-The outskirts of Royal Caldera City are just fancy enough that you can go to nice restaurants and buy expensive art, but not so much that you’ll see the palace from up close. Firelord Zuko’s royal caravan parades through the town square once or twice a day. If you stand in the right places at the edge of town, you can hear Ozai and Azula, complaining in their prison cells.

-Instead of the palace, there’s an ornately-themed and very tall drop tower with a dark ride portion at the top; it’s called Sozin’s Revenge. The story is that you’re going up into the royal astronomy tower to look at Sozin’s Comet and chart its course. When you get to the top, you find that the comet is much closer than anyone thought, and Sozin’s angry spirit uses the comet’s power to come back-- and fling you straight down at 72 mph.

-The Sun Warriors’ city has a cool pyramid and some shops, but it mostly exists to host the Dragon Dance coaster. This flagship attraction has two (red and blue) intertwining tracks. The tracks stretch out over the whole area, so you can see the whole kingdom from up high. No this isn’t a Dueling Dragons clone, I don’t know what you’re talking about.

The Air Kingdom

-This area is fun and playful, and it’s geared primarily towards younger kids.

-This is primarily made up of the Eastern Air Temple; the Northern Air Temple takes up a smaller but significant portion.

-The Northern Air Temple is a huge, intricately themed play area. (Think of Fortress Explorations at Tokyo Disneysea.) Its art and structures have mostly been restored to their former glory, but some of the machinist’s modifications are still there. Maybe you can solve a puzzle on a wall to open a secret door, or turn some gears to make a mechanical air bison move along the ceiling.

-The machinist’s workshop is open, and not only is there a museum of his best inventions (and a mechanical diorama that tells the story of how they fought off the Fire Nation), but plenty of his cool devices can be played with.

-You can fly (zip-line) between the two temples.

-The Eastern Air Temple has the rides and restaurants, which are primarily located in an open courtyard. There aren’t many shops, because the air nomads weren’t very materialistic. You can get an arrow tattoo done in face-paint, though!

-There’s a Dumbo-style ride where you can choose and ride a flying bison. The flagship attraction is a dark ride called Aang’s Animal Adventure, where you fly across the world with Aang to discover all different kinds of fauna. This could be a gentler version of the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride system; you could soar through the air and dive under the sea, and it could end with you coming face-to-face with a lion turtle.

-The bending system would primarily be used in the Northern Air Temple to activate certain features, and it could also be used for interaction with flying bison. There could be a few bison located throughout the kingdom (in both animatronic and screen form), and you could make friends with them if you could airbend for them. (If you buy a bison plush, there’s a ceremony where it “chooses you”. Like Ollivander’s but cuter.) You could probably also “airbend” to get a boost on the zip-line or the bison ride.

Special events

-For one month every year, there would be a festival celebrating the end of the Hundred Year War. There would be re-enactments in every kingdom, and a big parade would go through all four kingdoms every day. You can imagine how the people of Obsidian Ridge would feel about this.

-Every kingdom has its own New Year celebration, set apart by a couple of months. The regular New Year would be celebrated in the central hub.

-The Earth Kingdom would have its own Avatar Day, complete with Aang, Korra, Roku and Kiyoshi impersonators.

-All throughout December, fake snow would fall throughout the park. Each morning, there’d be a ceremony where a group of waterbenders gathered to “summon” the snow.

Bonus

Since I like extinct theme park attractions, here’s how the park would deteriorate/ be replaced, when management inevitably decided it wasn’t pulling enough profit:

-The Water Kingdom would get an ill-thought-out water park.

-Obsidian Ridge would be re-themed to Ember Island. This would probably coincide with the point when the combat/ bending system broke down or lost its novelty. This area would probably also get a water park.

-Speaking of the bending system, people would complain that they could only bend in one kingdom at a time. The park would eventually offer an Avatar upgrade (for a high upcharge) so that you could bend all four elements. This would take away the incentive for a lot of people to visit for more than one day, and ironically, that would further contribute to the park’s downfall.

-Eventually, once the park was more or less dead, it’d be demolished-- that is, except for the Water Kingdom. That would meet the same fate that everything else in Central Florida eventually will. It’d become a Frozen attraction.

#avatar the last airbender #atla #theme park concept #avatar aang #fire nation #air nation #water nation #earth nation

[gemssum]

oh, to be alone with you

Fandom: Fire Emblem Three Houses

Pairing: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd x Isabelle Flores / Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd x OC / Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd x Reader

Rating: General Audiences — Fluff, Mild Hurt/Comfort

Isabelle and Dimitri finally have a calm moment alone within the chaos of the war.

Note: Though this is set up as a Canon x OC fic, there are no physical descriptions, so this could also pass as a Canon x Reader fic. Feel free to use a Chrome/Firefox extension like InteractiveFics to change “Isabelle” and the she/her pronouns to those of your choosing.

ao3 link

Isabelle hummed quietly as she rifled through her collection of tinctures, trying to find the exact ones she needed. Almost two weeks ago, Dimitri had been injured in a skirmish against Imperial troops. The wound wasn’t life-threatening, but still required cautious care and numerous stitches. Today, Dimitri asked her to remove them—though really any of the healers at the monastery could complete the task just as well.

Isabelle, of course, accepted. She enjoyed the calm routine that medical work brought and, in this case, the quiet intimacy it offered with Dimitri.

The importance of their war duties meant that they could hardly have a spare moment for themselves, let alone each other. The war had spread them both thin, the ever-present strategy meetings and wounded soldiers in need of care caused them to seek one another out in the small pockets of time they could manage. For the past moon they had just enough time for short conversations during mealtimes and fleeting kisses in empty monastery corridors. It was tiring, and they were both thankful for this moment of reprieve.

While she continued her search, Dimitri was patiently waiting on the edge of Isabelle’s bed, taking in the scenery of her small room. He had visited her quarters a handful of times prior to this, but none of the encounters had ever lasted for very long. As a result, he still wasn’t used to how much of her was present in the small space.

Dimitri’s eye wandered to the various herbs growing on the windowsill and drying on the walls, their presence making a pleasant floral scent flow throughout the room. The fragrance always stuck to Isabelle’s clothing and never failed to calm Dimitri whenever he came across it.

Slightly smiling to himself at the thought, his attention shifted to the plethora of medical and magical equipment she kept. Her mildly disorganized shelves were full of various potions and balms meant to cure almost any ailment imaginable. The sheer number of them was almost puzzling.

Does she really have the time to use all of them?

“Ah! Found it,” Isabelle’s soft exclamation broke Dimitri out of his roaming thoughts. His gaze followed her as she made her way over to him, arms full of supplies.

She set her collection on the nightstand and moved to stand between Dimitri’s legs, “Alright, let's take these off.”

Her hands reached for his shoulders and made quick work of removing Dimitri’s large cloak, letting it fall in a pool behind him. He followed her lead, his fingers working to undo the clasps attached to his gauntlets.

Despite his attempts to conceal the movement, his hands were slightly shaky as he attempted to loosen the buckles. He wasn’t yet accustomed to having someone so close and regarding him so gently, least of all Isabelle. Even after the time they’d shared since confessing, he was still a mess when it came to her.

He figured he always would be.

The pair continued to move in tandem to finish removing Dimitri’s armor. The small clinks of metal-on-metal as each piece hit the floor were the only sounds that filled the otherwise quiet room.

When the final piece of armor was shed, Isabelle broke the silence between them with slight hesitation in her voice, “Now... your sweater.” Before Dimitri could respond, she quickly busied herself with organizing and sanitizing her tools, trying to give him a semblance of privacy.

Isabelle’s suddenly apprehensive state was nonexistent in her usual procedures. Her method of care had always been straightforward, and she had seen far worse on other soldiers than a simple bare, unbloodied torso.

Excessive modesty was not a problem when it came to her medical work. However, this was completely new territory for the pair. She’d hardly seen Dimitri out of his armor, let alone without portions of clothing.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t his state of undress that her mind was preoccupied with.

Really, Isabelle was worried about the vulnerable position Dimitri placed himself in when he asked her to remove his stitches. Past encounters meant she was already privy to his hesitation in revealing his scars to her. She clearly recalled the time she’d offered to examine his eye a few moons prior. He hastily declined—something that seemed out of place at the time.

Eventually Dimitri confessed his, admittedly unfounded, fear of her being judgemental of the copious battle scars he possessed—the permanent reminders of his darkened past.

Despite Isabelle’s own collection of scars and most sincere reassurances, he had yet to reveal them to her. Until today.

In a different time, the situation would simply be a mildly embarrassing encounter, quickly brushed off after a few awkward moments and shy glances. Though of course, their shared experiences over the past six years had tarnished that lighthearted possibility.

As Isabelle busied herself with cleaning a small pair of surgical scissors, Dimitri timidly removed the thick black sweater he wore under his armor. He shivered as his skin was revealed to the cold air of the room, almost tempted to pull his cloak around himself while Isabelle worked. However, she pulled over her wooden desk chair and placed herself in front of him before he could decide.

Though they were directly facing one another, neither person dared to glance at their partner—unspoken words tense in the air between them.

After what felt like an eternity, but was really only a few seconds, Isabelle was the first to look up. Her eyes finally took in the myriad number of scars littering Dimitri’s upper body.

Some were more substantial than others, with the largest one being a jagged white streak across the left side of his ribs. Others, like the few crossing the backs of his hands, were extremely small, almost to the point of invisibility.

Dimitri sat still, expression neutral under Isabelle’s scrutinizing gaze. She gently grasped his scarred hand in her own, causing him to lock eyes with her.

Slowly reaching up with her free hand, she lightly held his cheek, her thumb running just under the cloth of his eyepatch. Dimitri relaxed into her touch as his visible eye closed. He let out a small, contented sigh as she continued to caress his cheek.

She almost didn’t ask, but a short wave of boldness prompted her to murmur, “You don’t have to show me, but can I see this too?”

A beat passed, and Dimitri removed his hand from hers. Isabelle’s skin prickled and she retracted her hand, fearing she’d overstepped.

Her panic immediately dissipated at the sight of Dimitri reaching up to untie the small piece of fabric. He slowly pulled the black patch away, finally revealing to her the damage beneath it.

The scar was an uneven red, running diagonally from just under Dimitri’s brow bone to below the outer corner of his eye. The eye itself was still intact, the only visible damage a hint of cloudiness across his iris.

Isabelle inched closer, hand still raised, almost as if asking permission. He reassured her, “It’s alright if you wish to touch it. It’s no longer painful.”

Again, she rested her hand against his cheek. His eyes slowly closed, letting her have an unobstructed view.

Using her thumb, she lightly grazed his eyelid. The scar was rough, and looked much larger now that she could see it in its entirety.

“How did you get this?” she probed, wary of breaking the moment between them. Dimitri sighed, his voice wavering, “It happened shortly after my escape from imprisonment. A small group of Imperial soldiers overtook me, and one of their lances caught my eye before I was able to dodge it.”

Isabelle moved to grasp both of his hands in her own, trying her best to soothe him. This was the most he’d ever discussed his past injuries with her, and while she wanted to hear more, his feelings were her current priority.

“Thank you,” she said warmly, lacing their fingers together.

Dimitri’s eyes opened in mild confusion, “You’re... thanking me?”

Isabelle smiled, “I am. I remember how uneasy you were before. So, thank you for trusting me.”

“I’ll always trust you,” He confessed, expression softening.

Her smile widened and she leaned forward, kissing Dimitri just under his right eye, “I’ll always trust you too.”

She hoped her action reflected what she couldn’t find the words to say. I love you. Even through the moments you regret.

“Now, are you ready for me to work on this?” she asked, referring to the bandage still covering his shoulder. Dimitri’s expression widened in mild surprise, taken out of the moment, “Ah, right,” he chuckled at his reaction, “Yes. I am.” Her hands untangled from his, and she slowly began removing the tape holding his bandage in place.

Isabelle worked calmly, the mood between her and Dimitri immediately soothed from their earlier apprehension. She fell easily into the well-practiced routine of sterilizing her hands and the wound, then smoothly cutting the small pieces of thread holding it together.

Using her tweezers, she slowly began to pull each thin stitch from Dimitri’s skin. His face pulled into a slight grimace at the foreign feeling.

“Sorry,” Isabelle murmured.

“It’s alright. It’s just… strange.”

“Do you think you’d ever want to learn how to do something like this?” she asked, trying to distract him. Dimitri chuckled, eyes still focused on Isabelle’s steady hands. “While I’ve gotten a bit better, I still do not think I’m suited for such delicate work,” he paused, “and besides... I like this.”

Under different circumstances his comment would seem strange, but she understood his underlying meaning: “I like seeing the focused look in your eye, the methodical movement of your hands,” and most importantly, “I like that I’ve changed.”

At the start of the war, when he was plagued by survivor’s guilt more than ever, Dimitri would continuously refuse treatment for even the most dire of battle wounds. He would neglect his health until he was on the brink of collapse, forced to begrudgingly seek healing. Over time he became more comfortable with asking for help, something she was definitely thankful for.

Isabelle smiled as she pulled out the final stitches, “I like this too.”

She continued to work in silence, gently cleaning the now unsutured wound with a small cloth. Dimitri intently watched her deft fingers as they placed small adhesive strips to ensure the gash’s closure.

“You’ll need to be careful during training for a little while longer. I still don’t want you to risk it reopening,” she reminded him as she placed a fresh bandage.

“I’ll do my best,” he teased, accustomed to her excessive worry for him.  

She gave him an amused look of mock disapproval and handed him a set of bandages, “And change your dressings at least once a day. Come to me or one of the other healers if it reopens or begins to look infected.”

She stood, ready to put away her supplies, but a pair of arms stopped her. Dimitri’s grasp was lightly wrapped around her waist, loose enough to allow her to pull away if she wished. His face was hidden against her abdomen.

“I’ve missed you,” he mumbled into her dress.

She softened, her surprise quickly dissipated. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders as she hugged him more fully, kissing the crown of his head.

“I‘ve missed you too. But I’m here now, Dimitri.”

Dimitri tightened his hold, her earlier gesture making him bashful. “Would it be alright if I stayed with you tonight?” he asked. ”I wish to stay with you a little while longer.”

Isabelle reached down, gently turning his head to face her. She gazed softly down at him, amusement in her voice, “Is that even a question?”

He averted his eyes, “Well, I didn’t want to be presumptuous and—“ She cut him off, “Of course you can stay. You always have a place here, you know”

He sighed, content, and rested his cheek against her again, “Thank you.”

It was then that Dimitri shivered, still affected by the chill of the room. Slightly releasing her hold, Isabelle reached for Dimitri’s cape and draped it over his bare shoulders, “Here.”

Without missing a beat, he reached to wrap her in the cloak as well, cocooning them together in its warmth. The pair remained in their close embrace, each of them soothed by the others proximity.

“As much as I want to stay like this, I still need to clean up,” Isabelle said, voice muffled by Dimitri’s hair. Dimitri nestled further into her collarbone, reluctant to let her go.

After a moment he finally pulled away, letting Isabelle move to gather her supplies.

While she organized her impromptu workspace, Dimitri began removing the armor covering his lower body. They moved quickly, both of them impatient to be back in the other’s space.

Dimitri completed his task first, and had just enough time to wrap himself back in his cloak before Isabelle followed suit.

Finally finished, she made her way from her crowded shelves back to Dimitri’s waiting form. He started uncrossing his arms, ready to be back in their previous embrace.

Instead of meeting his invitation, she paused at the head of the bed frame and unlaced her boots. Dimitri gave her a mildly puzzled look as he watched her move past him and crawl onto the small bed.

Laying down behind him, she held out her arms, “I know it’s not time for bed yet, but will you still rest with me for a bit?”

He immediately turned to meet her waiting grasp and parroted her earlier words, “Is that even a question?”

“Very funny,” she happily retorted, pulling him in.

Dimitri laid his cape across them as a makeshift blanket, the fur-lined collar lightly tickling their skin.

They quickly found each other, their limbs tangling together as a side effect of the limited bed space and their mutual want to be as close as possible.

“I know I said this before but, I’ve missed you, Belle. I’ve missed being with you. Uninterrupted, I mean.”

Isabelle pushed an untamed strand of hair from his face. “You know I feel the same, of course. At least...” she paused, choosing her words carefully. “When this is over we’ll have time.”

Neither of them wanted to think of the real implications of ending the war, or if they would even be successful in doing so. For that moment they ignored thoughts of opposing forces and the sorely needed reconstruction awaiting them after victory.

They simply thought of having more moments like this.

“I want that. More than you know.”

Isabelle grinned and lightly pressed her lips against his, “I think I have an idea.”

The pair settled against their pillows, noses almost touching and eyes becoming lidded. Before they were completely pulled down by drowsiness, Dimitri broke the silence between them.

“And about my scars...”

Isabelle’s surprised gaze immediately met Dimitri’s calm one. She wasn’t expecting him to return to that subject so quickly.

“Not all of them are shameful,” he continued. Isabelle watched his face with rapt attention, waiting to hear more.

Dimitri smiled wistfully, “There’s one on my back that I received during the tragedy.” He skimmed his hand along her spine, grounding himself. “Even though that was one of the most awful times of my life, one good thing came from it.”

Isabelle reached up and ran her fingers through the hair at Dimitri’s nape, attempting to soothe him. He relaxed under her touch.

“That scar is the reminder of when I saved one of my dearest friends. It causes me to believe that maybe there’s a reason I’m here, whatever that reason may be.”

“I’m glad you’re here,” Isabelle said softly, sincerely.

Dimitri inched forward, gently kissing her, “After everything...I’m glad I’m here too.”

It means I get more time with you.

#Self Insert #self ship #self insert OC #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd x reader #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd x oc #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd x original character #self ship community #my writing #self ship fic #self ship fanfiction #i finally finished the dimitri fic i’ve been working on for the better half of a month fjsjd #this is the first fic i’ve completed in 8 years i hope y’all are proud of me lmao #also if ur reading this ur elite #thank u for reading my fic!! #romantic f/o: dimitri #fic

[meetthetank]

Cruciamen Chapter 5: Rematch

Ao3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25104214/chapters/69006306 Rating: Mature Archive Warning: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Categories: F/M, Other Fandom: NieR: Automata (Video Game) Relationships: 2B/9S (NieR: Automata), A2/A4 (NieR: Automata) Characters: 2B (NieR: Automata), 9S (NieR: Automata), A2 (NieR: Automata), A4 (NieR: Automata), Emil (NieR: Automata), Kainé (Nier) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, genre typical violence, On the Run, Monster of the Week, 9S is a half demon, 2B and A2 are shapeshifter Dragons, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Smut in the future, inaccurate depictions of medical procedures, Fantasy Biology, A2 is Nonbinary If A2 were more inclined to study themself, they’d find it hilarious in a dark way that collecting the salinified remains of human beings with a witch and a skeletally thin boy with his ornery horse becomes a weekly chore. It’d be just a tad less horrible if said ornery horse would stop trying to bite their fingers off if they so much as looked at her the wrong way. Emil had to diffuse at least three fights between them and Halua on the way to the ruins. They’ve never seen a horse so attached to one person, but Halua seems to hate everyone besides Emil, who she constantly nuzzles up against begging for pats and sweet grass.

Despite the complaints toward the heat, horse, and sand, searching for salt statues with Kainè and Emil is much more tolerable. It’s easier for them to defile the remains of long-dead humans when they have someone to chat with. Kainè complains like a molting elder about anything that moves, but especially the sun. A2 has never heard that big bright ball be called so many slurs in so many languages, but they find themselves chucking at the witch’s disdain for it. Emil sings jaunty tunes he makes up on the spot as he gleefully fills and organizes bags of people salt onto Halua’s cart. Sometimes when Kainè isn’t looking he lets his horse have a pinch as a treat. Most of the time A2 lets Emil ramble on about whatever he likes, only occasionally stopping their work to embellish on a one word answer they shoot his way. 

However when the sun begins to set over the dunes and paints the sky a brilliant orange, A2 excuses themself to stretch their wings. They tell Kainè that they’re going to scout for anything weird, but the glare she gives them is telling enough. She knows why A2 wants to wander off, but she says nothing in the way of stopping them. Maybe they had done enough work to satisfy the old witch. 

A2 has another mission sent down by Kainè as well. They’re supposed to search out more of a similar kind of ruins as well as a certain kind of track. The ruins are simple enough to understand. The lingering brickwork and defiant spires are easy to spot so long as there weren’t any dunes or dust storms in the way, but the second thing that they’re supposed to look out for gives them pause.

Kaine described footprints. Large, five-toed footprints with scale imprints. A2 knows for certain that she wants them to be on the lookout for a dragon, but they had never heard of a dragon with a footprint like that. Or that large. Kaine made it sound like the prints were as big as their whole torso, but A2 doubts that there’s anything that big that’ll leave a footprint. The Hegel demon is the largest thing they’ve seen and that thing floats. 

Regardless of the chore they’ve been assigned, A2 is just happy to spread their wings without their chest hurting. Soaring over the expanse of sand on the hot desert winds brings a lightness to their body and mind that they hadn’t felt in a long time. It’s liberating in a way that makes them want to keep flying and see where the winds take them. They inhale lungs full of scorching air and push themselves straight into the bright blue sky. Once they reach the height where the air becomes cold, they tuck their wings into their body and allow themselves to free fall back to earth. The rush of the winds and sky around them makes their heart thunder against their hollow bones. Dust whips past them, their third eyelids doing all they can to protect their eyes from the outside world. Their blood sings through their veins, carrying liquid excitement and terror as they plummet. The moment they feel a rush of hot air they spread their wings out and swoop into a comfortable gliding position. The raw energy in their body causes a roar to break through their throat and echo out through the desert. 

The raw freedom of the skies and the elation that comes with is in a moment replaced with sinking dread.

Beyond the great dunes the size of mountains, something creates clouds of dust and sand. It swirls with powerful gusts of wind, forming a massive wall of infinitely small particles. It almost reaches to the sky and looms over a large portion of the desert like a slumbering beast. A2 doesn’t have much knowledge of desert weather, but they don’t think that dust storms like that are supposed to stay in one area. Judging by the directions of the winds, which blow back towards where Kaine and Emil are, the storm should have been on them about an hour ago. Something is either creating it, or keeping it there.

Suddenly a great bulbous shape shoots out from the clouds of sand and into the sky. The rumbling bellow of Hegel rolls across the desert like thunder as the demon rises from the storm and into the air. Its tendrils slither and writhe across its body, no doubt clearing the dust and sand from its body. Puffs of hot air escape from its mouths, adding more sand to the quickly dissipating storm.

The freedom that sang through A2’s chest is replaced by a burning fury. 

They beat their wings with all the hate they can push through their muscles. Blood roars through their veins as the desert winds sting their eyes and throat.

The grit their beak and teeth together, gnashing them in anticipation of sinking them into the soft flesh of the demon. Their claws ache for the feeling of its blood pouring over them as they tear the skin and muscles apart. With blistering speed they gain on Hegel as it lazily rises into the sky. The demon doesn’t seem to notice them until they’re close enough to smell it’s putrid breath. Its eyes lock onto A2, shrinking in fear the instant it recognizes them. A2 prepares for a blast of energy to come flying their way, but Hegel opens its maw and lets out a trumpeting bellow that rolls across the desert like thunder. It’s body undulates, thrusting itself into the distance at terrifying speeds.

A2 puts all their power into chasing after Hegel. A familiar heat sings through their body, spurring their muscles to work harder than they thought possible, but Hegel proves just as fast despite its size. Each time A2 dives to attack with claws or beak, the demon simply moves out of the way with little effort. As frustrating as their aerial dance is, A2 gains on Hegel bit by bit. Their beak scrapes against its flesh though fails to hook into it. The demon squeals with terror and jets forward with all its might, putting several yards between them in one burst of speed.

Just as they begin to gain on the demon once more, a great shadow passes over A2, something far larger than they expected to see in the desert. They beat their wings in a panicked attempt to avoid the shadow, forcing themself to stop mid-flight. The shadow shifts across the dunes faster than A2 can perceive, and a red shape that dwarfs them appears between them and the fleeing demon.

A powerful gust of wind throws A2 off balance and sends them careening to the ground. They flail their body and beat their wings in a futile attempt to right themself but the ground rushes up to them much faster than they hoped. The sand erupts around them in a dense cloud that obscures the gargantuan thing that looms above them. All they can see is a shape with immense wings.

With one great flap, the creature blows the sand clouds away from A2, revealing a monster they had only heard of in fantastic stories told to them as a cub. Scales as red as blood, leathery wings that call the winds of a hurricane, and a sneer that drips with malice and venom. Its body, from long neck to whip-like tail, moves like a serpent or a lizard’s; undulating with each movement. Each of its four feet, which could be as big as A2, are tipped with wicked black claws on each of the five toes. Its evil orange eyes burn with the same kind of disdain that one would use towards an insect or rodent. Simply being near its body makes the air searing hot to the point where A2 thinks their feathers would catch fire.

“Cease, fowl,” the beast snarls in a voice that rumbles like thunder.

A2 is never one to flinch from anything, but they find themself cowering into the ground at the monster’s words. They press themself to the ground in a submissive pose, though their feathers still flare out in a display of aggression and warning. Whatever good that will do. If this thing wanted them dead, all it would have to do is breathe.

The red beast snorts a small jet of flames and holds its head high above them, “Pitiful. How dare your species call yourselves dragons.”  It beats its great crimson wings and ascends into the sky. “Fool that you are to attack beings greater than yourself. I extend this warning out of contempt, not kinship or kindness. Cease, or be erased.”

And just as fast as the monster appears it takes to the skies once more and soars westward, vanishing into the afternoon sun. It is only after it disappears that A2 realizes they’re shivering so much that some of their loose feathers fall to the ground. Their heart threatens to burst from their chest, and their lungs strain with rapid, uneven breaths. It’s only the sight of Hegel in the distance that snaps them out of their fear induced daze. 

Despite the threat veiled as a warning, A2 can’t fight the instincts that push them to their feet once again. They’d probably never get a chance to kill the demon that something that powerful protects, for what reason they don’t care. It takes all their self control not to fly after Hegel out of pure spite for the red beast, but instead they start in the direction they came from, back towards Emil and Kainè.

They’ve never flown as fast in their life. The ruins come into view within moments; they can even see Emil waving his hands to try and get their attention. Kaine stands at the top of one of the spires, balancing only on the balls of her feet. A2 can see the scowl she throws their way as they pass her. They all but crash into the sand, kicking up more clouds of dust as they transform.

“A2!” Emil shouts as he runs up to her, “Are you okay?! Did he hurt you?!”The moment they land, Emil is on them. He checks them for cuts, burns, broken bones, any kind of injury he can find. They don’t have the energy to swat his arms away.

“No…” They let out a few quick, ragged breaths. “I’m okay…”

Kaine hops down from her perch and approaches the two with a scowl clear on her face. Part of A2 wants to snap at her before she can chew them out for being stupid, but they’re so damn tired after that sprint flight.

“What… What was that thing?” they ask, not giving Kaine the chance to launch into her scolding.

Kaine huffs, “A big ugly bastard.” A2 glares at Kaine and opens their mouth to say something only for Emil to shake his head at them.

“That was Grigori,” he says. “A true dragon.”

Emil’s words send a shiver down A2’s spine. They had heard of creatures like that before, but only in Elder’s tales made to scare cubs into listening to their parents. Even after seeing the wide variety of demons and monsters that lurk in the world, they never imagined something as terrifying a true dragon could actually exist.

“I knew he’d wake up sooner or later,” Kaine grumbles, “Asshole always looking to stir shit up or burn down a few cities for shits and giggles.

”Emil shoots the old witch a glare but decides not to say what was on the tip of his tongue (if he has one. A2 still isn’t sure).

“We should head back home just in case the big red bastard is looking for a snack,” Kaine mutters.

But when A2 stands back from the duo, recognition flashes across Kaine’s face. There’s the same kind of determination, the sorrowful desperation that only a person with nothing to lose has. She says nothing as Emil looks back and forth between the two of them.

“A-...A2 are you coming?” he asks, but the tone in his voice suggests he already knows the answer.

“No,” they say, shaking their head, “I was chasing Hegel before that… before Grigori showed up. I’m not letting it get away again.

”Emil starts to tell them what a dangerous and terrible idea that is, that it’s far too dangerous for them to go in their condition, that they need to stay and recover all their strength; but A2 tunes him out to the point where he’s nothing but muttering noises. It’s Kaine that holds their attention instead. There’s a sadness in her violet eyes hidden, behind a scowl. Yet she remains silent as Emil pleads for them to stay for just a little longer.

“Sorry,” they say, turning back to Emil, “But… I guess I don’t really care if it’s dangerous or not. I’m going to kill every demon I can find.

”Emil is stunned into silence. He casts his eyes to the ground and for a moment A2 almost feels bad enough to apologize and stay with him and Kaine. But their mind drifts back to the black feather that hangs off the pommel of their sword and the pit of sorrow and hatred opens up in their stomach once again.

A long bout of silence stretches on between the three before Kaine finally speaks up. “Well, get going then. If you wait any longer you’ll lose it.”

Emil frets with his sleeves but keeps to himself. With a quiet sigh A2 saunters over to say a quick goodbye to the kid, but once they’re close enough he lunges forward and wraps his arms around her in a tight, bony hug. 

“I’ll miss you.” he mutters, and A2 can’t stop themself from reciprocating.

“Yeah… Thank you for everything. Take care, kid.”

#nier automata #A2 #nier kaine #nier emil #fanfic #Nier fanfic #Tank fics #one day i will remember to post these when they go up

[theliterarywolf]

Yeah problem with fire emblem is they started leaning hard into the shipping simulator thing a portion of the fandom was into and never looked back and that has negatively impacted the quality of the stories since. Still enjoyable but results in unintentionally hillarious stuff like the baby realm. If they ever port Ikes trilogy to the switch I'd absolutely check that out some of my favorite games of all time

Also for context on the baby real in awakening you could max support on certain characters and they would have children that came back in time to help you. In if/setsugekka they wanted to do the same thing but didn't want to do time travel again so the babies get yeeted into a hyperbarric time chamber dimension to grow up to become soldiers in your weird incest war

You know, I remember the slight amount of discourse there was over the 'skinship' I think it was called? Basically you used the 3DS touchpad for a more romantic version of the Pokemon Amie petting mechanic?

And, honestly, I was fine with that being there because, at least in my eyes, it didn't shove itself front and center of the story.

Whereas if something is, for the first large portion of it, based in a certain setting... That's all I'm going to think of it as.

Also, there's just something about the phrase 'weird incest war' that makes me want to laugh so hard, I don't know why.

[kayoiwritingarchivies]

TITLE: We’ve met before, haven’t we? (Part 2)

CHAPTER TITLE: His lucky number is 4

WARNINGS & RATINGS: No warnings apply, Teen and up rating.

FANDOM: Overwatch

SUMMARY:  These three have met the supernatural, whether they wanted to or not. It’s a small world after all. (Or rather, this is the story of how three people keep running into the supernatural, and had favours and boons repaid.

Jack Morrison’s first encounter with the supernatural was when he was 15, overhearing his parent discussion.

“There’s something out there, killing the cows. I don’t know what it is, and honestly, if it ruins more stock, I don’t know what to do…” He heard his father say, and Jack was struck with an idea.

He’s going to get whatever’s killing the cows!

It wasn’t the best idea, but that didn’t occur to him as he snuck into the shed and “borrowed” his father’s shotgun, going out into the wheat field alone.

He’s standing there, in the middle of the field, when something sprung out at the field at him, and Jack didn’t shoot, and just stood in mute terror at the thing flying towards him, only for it to be knocked back by a jackrabbit with antlers.

The horned jackrabbit snarled at the thing, which scampered off, and turned to Jack, who was still paralysed fear.

And then, if the day hadn’t gotten any weirder, the horned jackrabbit spoke.

“What the blazing hell do you think you’re doing kid?” it said in a sort of high-pitched voice. “Trying to go shoot a Chupacabra like that! You suicidal or something?”

“You-I-what…” Jack stammered, trying to wrap his mind around what just happened.

The jackrabbit groaned, and looked at Jack “I’m a Jackalope, which is funny, because my horns are not from an antelope and jackrabbits are not rabbits, but you humans are stupid anyway so what did I expect.” The Jackalope introduced itself. “What’s your name anyway?”

“I’m-uh-what-who.” Jack stammered, still very much overwhelmed by the situation.

“Bah.” The Jackalope said, and turned to leave. “You take care of yourself, ya hear! Don’t want to be saving you again!”

Then it left, hopping off to go knows where.

Jack sat in the wheat field, staring at the empty fields before picking himself and his father’s gun up, trudging back to the farm house.

(Hours later, Jack Morrison would wake up to a pile of fruit on the doorstep of the farmhouse, with a large note reading “idiot” in large, messy letters. Jack didn’t question any of this and walked back inside to scream into a pillow or at his brother.)

-LINE BREAK-

The second encounter was better and worse at the same time, when Jack, fresh out of the SEP program, was currently lost in the tundras of Russia, alone and cold.

His team had disappeared into the blizzard, and his new-found friend Gabriel Reyes was also nowhere to be seen. His com had died ages ago, and even so, he would get no signal in the unforgiving storm of snow and ice.

And god it was cold, the snow already piling up to his knees and the wind howling in his ears, and Jack had collapsed from exhaustion, the last thing he saw was a great flaming bird, swathed in oranges, reds, yellows and golds, descend from the heavens before Jack Morrison blacked out.

When he woke, he was in a house, and he blinked a few times, when an old woman walked in, leaning heavily on a cane.

“Ah good, you’re awake.” She said, her accent thick but the English was understandable to a certain agree. “I was afraid you were dead.”

Jack patted his body a few times, before turning and saying “Ah, thank you Ms?”

“It’s Baba Yaga, and you should be thanking the firebird that brought you here.” She said, gesturing to a bird sitting on a perch with a weathered hand. “Anyway, you must be hungry. Eat something. I have some Guriev porridge and I expect you to eat some.”

She offered a bowl filled with a yellow-brown mix, topped with nuts, and a spoon, and Jack took it, eating a spoonful. It was warm, and was a strange mic between bitter and sweet.

Jack finished the bowl, setting it on a nearby table, before standing up and picking up his equipment. “You wouldn’t to know the nearest settlement, do you?”

The woman huffed, before declaring “I can do better. I can take you.” Before the house rose up a good 3 metres and began to move, unsteadily, but still rather balanced.

Jack sat back down, as Baba Yaga cackled, and the firebird hummed.

(It was a few hours before they reached a village, where the rest of his team were, ready to tell command that he had gone missing. They asked where he had been, and all Jack could reply with was “Someone found me, and got me here. They were rather nice.” He decided to leave out the whole moving house and firebird portion of the story, and instead, palmed the feather the firebird gave him, now in his pocket. It glowed a cheery red.)

-LINE BREAK-

Jack Morrison is in Switzerland now, the newly appointed strike commander of Overwatch, and he’s alone in the base kitchen in the dead of the night, staring down at a cup of tea between his palms when he hears Hissing. He looks up, only to see a large reptile with two, stubby front legs, it’s cat like head resting on the table, the rest of its body trailing off the table onto the floor.

He blinks.

The reptile blinks back.

Jack’s hand slowly reaches out to the creature, and the creature hisses again, prompting Jack to pull back his hand with a slow “Okay…”

It hisses again, pushing itself off the table, it’s tail smacking into Jack’s legs, moving it’s head to the corridor.

Jack had no choice but to follow after it, and he got up, leaving his tea to grow cold.

They go deeper into the base, the grey and orange hallways seemingly going on forever, the creature scampering around corners, its green scales in stark contrast to the rest of the hallways. Jack hears his own footsteps, the clicking of scales, and soon, they’re at a door, one that leads outside.

Jack didn’t have any weapon on him, bar the pistol he carries, and he opens the door, hand drifting to the gun on his hip as he follows the creature, now out of the base and going deeper into the woods.

That’s when they stumble upon a ring of mushrooms.

Jack doesn’t step in (He’s not an idiot, he knows the consequences for standing in one.) and he only stares as the creature gives out a low hiss, and the ring glows.

There is a ball of light forming, and a woman appears, wings seemingly made from starlight and glass upon her back, and she’s smiling, holding light in her hands.

“Greetings, I am the queen of the Fae, and I wish to speak with you, Jack Morrison.”

Jack stood, staring, not trusting himself to say anything.

The creature mewled, and curled up around the Fae queen’s legs, and she smiled as she regarded Jack. “I come with a gift, a warning and a guide.”

Jack considers before saying, slow and steady “There are always prices. There’s always a price.”

The Queen smiles, and says “There is always a price. I will collect my boon in due time, but for now, here is my help.”

A blue trench coat appears, and she hands him the garment, and he takes it, feeling the weighted cotton and other natural fibres, the pads on the shoulders made from a metal that was coloured blue, and the Overwatch insignia on the shoulders.

“A protection, something that will withstand the greatest of magic, of fire and sleet and snow. It will not tear, it will not rip, and it will not burn.”

He looks it over, and he thinks about the rules, of when accepting gifts from Fae. Then he puts on the coat, and it fits quiet well, the ends of the trench coat hitting his ankles.

The Queen continues, and she narrows her eyes. “I now come with a warning. Someone will betray you, a close friend, and they will cause the world to burn.”

Jack’s fists tighten, and he whispers “Who?”

The Queen cocks her head and replies with a quiet “I do not know.”

The she gestures to the creature wrapped around it’s legs. “He, is a Tatzelwurm. He will guide your way out of the forest, and hopefully later.”

The newly dubbed Tatzelwurm hisses, and pulls on the edges of Jack’s coat. Jack looks down before looking back up at the Fae Queen.

“I-Thank You, your Majesty.” He manages to say, and the Queen only smiles before turning to leave.

“Don’t make my gifts go into vain, Jack Morrison. I do hope we meet again.”

(After making his way out of the forest, he stumbles onto his bed in the base and sleeps the rest of the night off. When he wakes again, the coat is still on his shoulders and a note is left in it’s pocket, with only the words “Be wary.”. Jack doesn’t understand, and burns the note soon after, watching ash flutter into the sky.)

-LINE BREAK-

A year after the Switzerland base exploded, Jack, now Solider:76, roams the world with a stolen pulse rifle and an old jacket. His hair is no longer blond, but now a slivery grey colour, and there is a visor on his face. (His blue coat he keeps too, but it’s almost never worn.)

He’s in Mexico, after a scuffle with the local gang (Los Merutos, he think’s bitterly, are a bunch of shitheads.) and he stops when he sees…a skeleton.

An honest to god skeleton.

Jack almost shoots it, when the skeleton turns, waves it’s skeletal joints about, and yells (Somehow) “Don’t shoot! Don’t Shoot!”

Jack stands there, his visor blocking his face of utter confusion because there is a skeleton, wearing nothing but a pair of pants and a large sombrero, its ribcage on full display.  His skull is painted, covered in whites, blacks, blues and reds, the design circling around empty sockets.

The skeleton gives out a relieved rattle, and looks at Jack in the eye. “Amigo, I don’t know who you are, but you sure ain’t Mexican. Your Spanish is shit.” The skeleton says, a finger tapping against is tactical visor, where the mouth should be.

Jack shifts before saying “I’m from America, up North.” His grip on his pulse rifle tightens, and he’s pretty sure he wants to run.

The skeleton looks at him, and begins to guffaw before saying “Oh, you idiota americano, no wonder you sound so strange. Have you even eaten a good Mexican burrito? You haven’t, have you?”

Jack blinks behind the visor, and he’s suddenly reminded of Gabriel Reyes and Jesse McCree.

“No?” Jack says. “Unless Taco Bell counts?”

The skeleton regards him and says “You poor, poor man.”  

(Later, the skeleton introduces himself as Marco, and drags him to a restaurant, muttering about how “Taco Bell is not real Mexican!” and “Fucking pendejos work there that’s what.” Jack does not bother fighting against the sentiment, reminded about how he’s had the exact same conversation with Reyes so many years ago.)

-LINE BREAK-

The fourth time, it’s at Watchpoint: Gibraltar, and he’s sitting on a couch, watching the sun.

He’s met the new Overwatch, with the D.va girl (She’s too young to be here) who yells at nothing and Hanzo (Who’s quiet, reserved, and stares at empty walls and hallways and mutters about inugami and monsters.)

Jack watches the sun, and then he hears a roar.

At first, he assumes dragons, because Hanzo and Genji seem to have them, then he looks at the beach.

There is a snake like monster on the sand, thrashing, wings at odd angles and two legs scrambling for purchase.

He gets up, opens the window, and scales the cliff.

When he reaches the beach, feeling sand on his bare feet as he walks to the creature, a hand out, quietly saying “It’s okay, it’s alright, I won’t hurt you, it’s okay.”

The monster stops thrashing, judging Jack with careful eyes, before letting him closer.

Jack carefully looks the wings over, seeing broken bones and ripped skin, and he drops a few biotic emitters, letting them take over the healing while he comforts the creature, stroking its nose, and whispering reassurances.

After a few hours of being bathed in the yellow glow of the emitters, the machine’s shut off, leaving Jack and the monster on the beach, both asleep.

It’s the first time Jack sleeps without nightmares.

(Later, he wakes up to Hanzo shaking his shoulder, alarm in his eyes and mouthing “Are you alright?” Jack nods, and stands up, and notices a rainbow fish scale in Hanzo’s hands. He thinks about the fire bird feather in his pocket. The monster is long gone.)

#fanfiction #Overwatch #we've met before havent we #chapter 2 #jack morrison

[recentanimenews]

The Must-See Anime That Inspired Countless Creators

  1991’s Otaku no Video is a two-part OVA that serves multiple purposes. It’s a wildly fictionalized parallel to the history of anime studio Gainax, a loving but harsh portrait of what it means to be an otaku, and a severe cautionary tale to those who walk the thin line between normal citizen and all-out maniac. It also sits firmly on the Itano Circus ground zero of a bunch of heavyweight careers, from Hideaki Anno to film director Shinji Higuchi. The former had just wrapped Gunbuster a few years prior, was smack dab in the middle of Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water, and just four years away from sending ripples throughout the otaku community with Neon Genesis Evangelion.

  It is in large part because of its roots in anime history and the white-hot time in which it launched that Otaku no Video manages to remain so relevant and exciting today. Sure, it’s still very much a product of its time, and its references aren’t exactly up-to-date for most modern fans, but there’s no denying its power to inspire. It’s both a love letter and a diss track; the type only true fans could compose, and the type that has no doubt inspired countless careers well beyond those of its core staff.

    Animating Obsession

Otaku no Video is one of those rare fantasy-histories that’s both welcoming to newcomers and full of enough references and insider information to delight even the most hardened of veterans. Its core story centers around Ken Kubo, who lives a fairly decent life with his girlfriend Yoshiko. He’s even a member of his college’s tennis team, which makes his day-to-day activities a far cry from those of his former friend Tanaka. Tanaka, you see, is a hardcore otaku. Kubo quickly learns this when he bumps into him out of the blue, and it doesn’t take long until the lure of nostalgia drags him into the depths of fandom with its thick, relentless tendrils.

  As anyone who has ever taken a deep-dive into obsession knows, it all spirals deliriously out of control from there. Gainax, being composed of a full-on brigade of professional nerds, knows precisely how to bring the birth of an otaku to life in animated form. There’s the camaraderie that comes along with shared interests. The oh-so-intangible feeling of discovering something new. The timeline-altering possibilities of pursuing your dreams.

  Most of all, Gainax shows a true mastery at depicting fandom at its most grassroots level. Anime fans huddle over their VCRs to record the latest episodes as they air, and the truly dedicated lie sprawled across the floor after pulling yet another all-nighter. They watch series over and over again to isolate those perfectly animated moments and key emotional beats that make anime special. Doujinshi and cosplay eventually pave the way for greater ambitions, but it all stems from the sheer love of it all, legs toasted to perfection beneath a well-weathered and instant-ramen-strewn kotatsu.

  In the case of Otaku no Video the aforementioned dream comes to fruition in the form of Grand Prix, a company focused on licensing and mass-producing garage kit models based on a number of properties. Gainax doesn’t try to be too coy about the connection between itself and GP, which would later be taken over, forcing its founders to form another company even closer to the anime studio’s own. Kubo’s transformation from nicely-groomed Guy Normal to half-shaven maniac may seem like a rapid-fire switcheroo, but it illustrates just how quickly one could potentially slide down the “Oh, hey, I remember this show from when I was a kid!” rabbit hole.

    The Minds Behind the Mania

Vandread and Gunsmith Cats director Takeshi Mori is at the helm for Otaku no Video, but the beating heart behind it all is the “Otaking” himself, Gainax co-founder Toshio Okada. Hot on the heels of Gunbuster came a script for Otaku no Video that could only be written by someone who lived that life to the fullest. Kubo may end up being the OVA’s self-proclaimed Otaking, but the fact that his friend Tanaka looks an awful lot like Okada is no coincidence. He’s the real firestarter here, just as Okada helped kindle the flames that would eventually become one of the biggest anime production houses of the years that followed.

  A large portion of the staff roll is a virtual who’s who of anime legends. Character designs come from Kenichi Sonoda, known most prominently as the creator of the Gunsmith Cats and Riding Bean manga and the character designer of Bubblegum Crisis. Art director Hitoshi Nagao pulled the same duties over the years on everything from the infamous(ly awesome) Baoh OVA—based on the manga by JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure creator Hirohiko Araki—to an episode of Dirty Pair and a ridiculous amount of Suncoast-bound hentai like Countdown, F3, and Urotsukidoji II: Legend of the Demon Womb. Sure, he may not be the most high-profile creator who worked on Otaku no Video, but who would pass up the opportunity to mention both Baoh and Urotsukidoji in the same sentence?

  Film director Shinji Higuchi storyboarded the OVA along with plenty of other Gainax projects, including Evangelion, Gunbuster, and the Khara-produced Rebuild of Evangelion films. Despite his impressive anime résumé, Higuchi is just as well-known for the live-action projects that followed. He most recently teamed up with Hideaki Anno on Shin Godzilla in 2016, and helmed the pair of live-action Attack on Titan films that kicked off in 2015. Without diving into each individual career, the list of animators is a doozy, too, including the likes of Keiji Ishihara (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Madoka Magica movies), Hidenori Matsubara (Patlabor: The Movie, Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo), and Takehiro Nakayama (Golden Boy, InuYasha), among others.

  Many of the references in Otaku no Video fold in upon themselves, especially the sequence in which Tanaka shows Kubo clips of amazing animation from an unnamed series. The footage in question comes from Gainax’s own Daicon opening projects, which featured the work of Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise director Hiroyuki Yamaga and assistant director Takami Akai, as well as Hideaki Anno. You can see later takes on the formula in Daicon III and Daicon IV, electrifying shorts that introduced talent such as Mahiro Maeda (director of Blue Submarine No. 6 and Gankutsuou) and Ichiro Itano (Megazone 23 Part II, Angel Cop).

  If Otaku no Video is a feast of visual references to other anime and manga titles, Daicon IV is a Fat Boys all-you-can-eat Golden Corral buffet. Godzilla stomps around while the bunny costume-adorned lead beats up on Ultraman villains and duels with Darth Vader himself. Xenomorphs rage, Dyna Robo attempts to smash, way more copyrights are recklessly violated, and we zip and zoom through the sky atop the Stormbringer sword to the triumphant tune of ELO’s “Twilight.” Gainax wouldn’t be what it became without the Daicon films, so it’s fitting that they made their way into Otaku no Video, even if but for a fleeting moment.

    Portrait of an Otaku

  In what may be Otaku no Video‘s greatest self-referential dig and deepest cut, the OVA goes back and forth between animated segments and live-action interviews with “real life” otaku. Titled “Portrait of an Otaku,” these brief profiles cover people—faces blurred and voices altered for the sake of anonymity, of course—ranging from obsessive video tape recorders and hardcore military otaku to porn-obsessed shut-ins and even the obligatory ex-pat who reveres the Japanese way of life. In actuality, these segments consist of a mix of friends and employees of Gainax, which may be exactly why it hits a little too close for home.

  The interviews are all extremely exaggerated and hammily acted, and it seems as if the obscured subjects are about one take away from busting out laughing. With Shinji Higuchi behind the camera and Hideaki Anno handling the absurdly nerdy sets, the authenticity of each segment is both hilarious and slightly alarming. Previous home video releases of Otaku no Video came with the option to watch the animated portions separately, but there’s something special about seeing it all woven together into a truly bizarre tapestry.

  Beyond all of the careers launched and all of the nooks and crannies of fandom mocked, the most remarkable aspect of Otaku no Video is… it’s true. No, not necessarily in regards to the exact history of Gainax, or to the stars-spanning vision of otaku nirvana, but the depiction of fandom itself. Sometimes it’s ugly, sometimes it’s ridiculous, and sometimes it’s beautiful and inspiring. As a result of its depiction of enterprising spirits and sky-high ambitions, Otaku no Video rarely falls too far outside of being relatable to American fandom. If you have a nerdy bone in your body—and chances are high that you do if you’ve read this far—you owe it to yourself to visit (or revisit) this unique time capsule of anime history.

Watch Otaku no Video on VRV!

  -------

Joseph Luster is the Games and Web editor at Otaku USA Magazine. You can read his webcomic, BIG DUMB FIGHTING IDIOTS at subhumanzoids. Follow him on Twitter @Moldilox.

By: [email protected]

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

[9r7g5h]

Facing the Minotaur - P11

Fandom: Xena: Warrior Princess

Rating: T

Genre: Action/Adventure

Summary: When the Queen of Crete goes missing, it’s up to Xena and Gabrielle to save her. But when that means delving into the depths of the Labyrinth, can they even save themselves?

Words: 3,014

AN: Sorry this is so late today. It's been a merp of a day- neither good nor bad, just kind of merp. Hope you still enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Xena.

P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, P7, P8, P9, P10, P11, P12, P13, P14

It was dark when they finally found the crevice, the opening to the labyrinth hidden behind a shading of ivy that had fallen down the mountainside, covering what otherwise would have been an easy find. It was large, almost large enough for them to ride into without having to worry about ducking their heads, a thought Xena almost considered for a moment. On a horse they would be able to keep up with the Minotaur’s quickened gait, making their travels through the labyrinth that much faster. If they could get Hann into the mountain…

But he bucked as they tried to draw him close to the door, his eyes wild and hooves refusing to touch the ground for more than a moment as he caught sent of the death within, finally only calming when Xena gave him slack on the rope they had tried to use as a lead, allowing him to move to the far side of the clearing that surrounded the entrance. And even then, it took Gabrielle almost an hour to sooth him, her gentle voice and hands driving away the tremble in his flanks that threatened to send him fleeing into the forest around them.

It was on foot or nothing, and nothing wasn’t an option.

Once he was calm, they stripped him of his tack and saddle, Gabrielle standing on the tips of her toes to place a quick kiss on his nose before they stepped back, watching as, with nothing keeping him, Hann turned and ran. It would be cruel to leave him tied to the side of the mountain, especially with no promise that they would return, and while they had discussed selling him, the chances of anyone besides Gabrielle being able to tame him were slim to none. He’d be happier running wild on the island, so they let him go.

They waited until he had disappeared into the forest, both of them pushing down a longing to flee with him, before turning back to the labyrinth.

Xena shuddered as she took that single step in, the magic and the putrid air washing over her. It was stronger this time, an active pull instead of a gentle lure- as if the labyrinth remembered her, wanted to draw her back into its depths, was just waiting to accept her back into its deadly embrace. But she knew its secrets this time, knew that once she was deep enough the terror she could taste at the back of her throat would surround them. She was prepared this time, and even as she felt the labyrinth try to sap her strength, she still stood with her head tall, just waiting for the response.

It came soon enough, a distant bellow telling her the Minotaur had sensed her, allowing her to leave.

She was quickly glad for the fire Gabrielle had built, for the offered portion of jerky and wine bag Gabrielle held out to her as she settled herself to the ground; there was a chill lying beneath her skin that had appeared the moment she had returned outside, an ach in her belly that was almost painful to fill, but she forced a smile. Smiled and ate, neither of them saying much as they waited for their guide to arrive.

At least, that was the plan, until Gabrielle caught her gaze and spoke.

“It’s not your fault, Xena.”

“Most things aren’t,” Xena said, raising her eyebrows as Gabrielle’s statement, her voice forcibly light. From the way her gaze refused to leave the flames, though, it was clear to them both that she knew what Gabrielle was referencing. Though still she played it off as if she didn’t, as if she wasn’t entirely aware of what Gabrielle was addressing. “What isn’t my fault this time?”

“What happens to me.” Gabrielle shook her head as Xena’s eyebrow raised even more, as Xena herself took on that look that said she was humoring what Gabrielle said despite not believing a single bit of it. “I meant it, Xena, when I said it was my decision,” Gabrielle continued stubbornly, her jaw tight and set. “Whatever happens to me won’t be your fault.”

For a moment Xena looked as if she was about to argue, but instead she tilted her head, half turning to look at the entrance to the labyrinth that lay behind them. Standing, brushing the dirt and grass from her legs, Xena instead just gave Gabrielle a little smile and shrugged.

“Gabrielle,” she said, offering her her hand to help her stand, “if I have it my way, the worst thing that will happen to you is that you’ll have to travel by yourself for a while. Nothing more.”  

Gabrielle didn’t get the chance to respond, could only give Xena a confused look at her statement, when the Minotaur appeared within the door, actually looking surprised to find them sitting there, waiting.  

“Not sure coming back,” the Minotaur grunted as it watched them gather their things, its nostrils flaring from the smell of smoke and food as they kicked some dirt over what remained of the flames. “Been long time.”

“We got held up,” Xena grunted back, handing over some of the heavier gear to the Minotaur- even leaving the tack and saddle behind, the villagers had still weighed them down with provisions, plus the spool’s magic had activated, the glow already starting a throbbing headache at the base of her spine. It almost seemed to settle in the Minotaur’s hands, the light becoming steadier, but the Minotaur was already turning away to begin leading them into the center by the time she thought to look to see if it was true.

“We did it, though,” Gabrielle said, a shudder passing through her as she walked through the barrier separating the labyrinth from the rest of the world, though she passed it off as readjusting her bag over her shoulder. “We got Zeus to break his curse.”

The Minotaur stiffened momentarily, but said nothing. It just offered a nod before continuing forward, adjusting its gait so the two of them could keep up.

“What now?”

“We end this.”

Xena’s voice, already slightly tight as a vision appeared in the corner of her eye- Gabrielle once again, her hand pressed tight against her stomach in a vain attempt to pause the steady trickle of blood-left no room for questions. Not that there were any that could be asked as the Minotaur swiped at the apparition, dispelling the vision into the air it had formed from. There was no other course of action, nothing they could do besides push forward, because to do otherwise would be to fail.

Fail and let the labyrinth reign free, something they just couldn’t allow.

So they walked, following the Minotaur’s lead, keeping close on its tail as it led them, once again, into the center of the maze.

The Minotaur had been right- while before the labyrinth had had them wandering for days, searching for the safety of the center, this time it only took them a few hours. A few terrifying hours, hours spent clutching each other’s hand in a vain attempt to remind themselves that they weren’t alone, that they were together and safe, hours spent trying to ignore the visions and sounds that imprinted themselves on their eyes and echoed in their minds even long after the Minotaur had forced them to flee, but still only hours.

Hours that left them pale when they finally reached the center, Gabrielle immediately sinking into the pile of hay, her being shivering as if with cold, though her eyes were too wide, too frantic, to be so. Not that Xena felt any better- she kept her feet, kept moving as she shook off the fear, well aware that it was the labyrinth’s magic turning her stomach and racing her heart, but she too felt like she could just lay down and stop. Never move, never leave, allow the labyrinth to tend and care for her until the end of her days. Drink fine wines and eat whatever appeared on the table, read Gabrielle’s scrolls, let the rest of the world fed for itself- it was almost tempting, in a way, though she soon shook off the desire.

It was another trick, for a death in the center of old age, while still not the bloody death needed, was still a death in the labyrinth, still more fuel for its life, and she couldn’t allow it to live. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t.

But a few hours of rest, Xena decided as she finally lowered herself into the hay besides Gabrielle, immediately wrapping her arm around her friend and drawing her into her side, wouldn’t hurt.

“Eat,” the Minotaur grunted, holding out a plate of food towards them- chicken and bread, olives and cheese, some sweet smelling paste that looked utterly delicious, all of it clearly provided by the labyrinth. For a moment Xena considered turning it down, instead sticking to their own provisions- those, at least, she was sure weren’t enchanted. But when the beast rolled its eyes and popped some food into its own mouth she took it, placing the plate between her and Gabrielle so they could both eat.

Eat and learn, because if they were to go any further, she had to know what to expect.

“What can you tell us?”

She didn’t need to elaborate; the Minotaur seemed to understand exactly what she meant, because the moment she spoke it turned to gaze at the far exit, the one that would lead to the final third of the maze. Even from their spot, far from it, Xena could feel its power, its temptation, though what any of it meant she couldn’t be sure. But if the Minotaur had an inkling, even a small one, she could work with that.

“What you want,” the Minotaur finally said after a few moments of silence, absently mindedly reaching up to brush bread crumbs from its lips. “What you desire most. In your heart. What you don’t even know you want. It shows you. Keeps you. Draws you in.” It shook its great head and turned back to look at the two of them, giving a little shrug as it did so. “Think, anyway. Never been. Can fight in there,” it added, jerking its horns towards the entrance they had stumbled in from. “Can fight fear. But want?” It shook its head again, the look on its face almost apologetic.

Not much to go off of. If it could read what you wanted, even if you didn’t know you wanted it, how could you fight against something like that? And if their guide was affected as well, turning them useless for the upcoming battle…

Not that it mattered. Even if the Minotaur had been unable to give them anything, the plan was still the same- go in, get through, and leave, breaking the curse. Deal with anything that came up along the way. Try not to die.

Because what else could they do? Again, the world was waiting for them, was depending on them, and to not even try was not an option. Failure would be bad, would mean the end of all, but to not even try?

That made them almost as bad as the gods, who could step in at any moment and chose not to, and that was one comparison Xena avoided at all costs.

“Do you at least know the way through,” Xena asked, chewing on her lip as she thought, sorting through all of the stories she had heard and Gabrielle had told her, searching for some kind of answer. A blindfold and beeswax in their ears would work against sirens, but if they had to search for the exit, they couldn’t go in blind. Besides, sheer mortal creations would probably be no match to the labyrinth’s magic, and would do nothing but to hide their companions from each other. No, too risky, and the chances of getting separated and lost were far too large. But if it knew where to go…

“Of course,” the Minotaur snorted, sounding almost offended. “I am guardian,” the Minotaur added with a grunt, smacking itself on its chest as it spoke. “Never been, but feel. Not true maze,” it continued, tilting its head to the side as it thought. “End straight line, with exit. Not even very long.  But must make through. And no one has.”

Frowning, Xena stood a moment later, brushing straw from her legs as she walked over to the other entrance- hesitantly, cautiously, preparing for all matter of horrors to greet her when she reached it. She had never been close- the last time they had been there, in the center of the labyrinth, she had kept well away, instead focusing on the terrors they had just escaped. But now that they were to face it, she needed to know what to expect.

And it was exactly as the Minotaur said; twenty, maybe thirty yards, straight forward, that ended in the brilliant light of day. An easy stroll that would only take them a handful of minutes to walk, fewer if they ran. Though she could feel the magic; feel it pulling at her, even from the safety of the center, feel its warmth welcoming her into its arms. Promising her happiness if she just stood still. Enticing her to fall into the waiting trap and willingly be devoured by the same lips that whispered the labyrinth’s honeyed welcome.

It was hard, harder than she imagined it could be, to step back, to pull away, but she did. Pulled back and returned to Gabrielle’s side, kneeling down to pull together their things, using the bag as an excuse to not meet Gabrielle’s gaze as she spoke.

“If one of us went alone,” Xena said, ignoring the indignant huff that came from her friend as Gabrielle realized exactly where this was going, “what would happen to the other two if they got out?”

“Xena,” Gabrielle said in a warning tone, her eyes narrowed, “don’t you even dare think about it.”

“No need to think,” the Minotaur said, cutting in before Xena could find a response. “Leave all together, or other two die.” It gave the smallest of shrugs at the questioning glance- how it knew it didn’t know, but it knew it knew the answer, and that was enough.

“Then we better get going,” Xena said with a sigh, pushing herself to her feet and slinging the bag over her shoulder. She held out her hand to Gabrielle, pulling her upwards when she finally took it- though Gabrielle only took with after shooting her a deep scowl. She would be getting an earful later, but she had to try. If there was a way to make it even a little bit safer, she had to.

And if she survived this she would argue with Gabrielle about it to the moon and back, but still she at least had to ask.

It only took them a few more minutes to finish getting themselves pulled together, gathering their things for the final leg of their journey. To gather their things and their courage, neither of which they wanted to; it was tempting, to stay in the center of the maze, let it tend to their needs. But it was a luxury they could not take, and so they prepared themselves to move.

Xena paused as she noticed the Minotaur trembling, its hands shaking ever so slightly as it tried and failed to tie the knot to its own bag closed.

“It’ll be ok,” she said softly, gently pushing its hands away and tying the knot for it, making sure it was secure before handing it off. “We’ll make it through. I promise.”

“Mother told me story,” the Minotaur said after a moment, its voice low as it spoke. “Last person who tried stood there and aged. Lived entire life in mind in hour, maybe two. Never took another step, just lived the life they wanted. I am scared.” Its eyes shining as it looked up at her, the Minotaur blinked quickly, though it failed- tears still wet the fur around its eyes and down along its muzzle, its nostrils quivering as spoke. “Scared to die, scared to live, scared to leave. Very scared.”

“I am too,” Xena said, dropping her voice to a timber too low for Gabrielle to hear on the other side of the room, where she was gathering together some last minute food to add to their supplies. “Scared for you, scared for her, scared for myself- but we’ll get through this. We have to.”

She didn’t need to say what would happen if they failed- the Minotaur might not have been aware of the information Zeus gave them, but it did know that if they failed, the labyrinth would be without a guardian, free to run as wild as it wished. The task was quite possibly a suicide mission, one that would condemn any else who found themselves within the labyrinth’s walls to a certain death, but it was one they had to try.

It couldn’t live in there for much longer, not if it wanted to keep its own sanity, so it had to leave. Leave and destroy the labyrinth with it, if it was to truly be free.

They finished up in silence, words lost from their tongues, even Gabrielle’s, as, one by one, they came to stand before the entrance to the third part of the labyrinth. They could feel it calling to them, whispering their desires before even a step had been taken, and while it chilled Xena to hear it, chilled her to the bone, what else could she do? It had to be stopped, had to end, and this was the only way.

She held out her hand, smiling softly when Gabrielle took it, a slight sliver of peace settling upon her as she did. Though it quickly fled as, together, they stepped into the final part of the labyrinth.

#Xena #XWP #Xena: Warrior Princess #Xena fanfic #Xena fanfiction #XWP fanfic #XWP fanfiction #Xena: Warrior Princess fanfic #Xena: Warrior Princess Fanfiction #Facing the Minotaur

[wastrel-words-for-hire-blog]

Bit of a fandom writing sample

Figured I’d post a writing sample to give everybody an idea of my work. This is an Avatar: The Last Airbender bit of fanfiction I did for a Fantasy Lit course I was in a few semesters ago. This is obviously just the first portion of it and there is more to read, but it isn’t exactly completed yet. I may end up posting the rest of it or even continue working on it, but I suppose that somewhat depends if people are interested in seeing it.

Thanks for your time!

A Leaf on the Wind

Dark Night, Dark News

           Gyatso awoke to find Tashi standing over him. The soft glow from the candle that he set on the shelf beside him was more than enough to see that the old man’s perpetually stern brow was wrinkled with worry. Sitting up as swiftly as his creaking back would allow, Gyatso summoned all the calm he could muster before meeting his friend’s eyes again. “What happened?” he asked quietly in the midnight dark.

           “Pasang has summoned the Council,” Tashi breathed. “They’re waiting in his quarters.”

           Fighting the sudden pit that formed in his stomach, Gyatso cast about his darkened chambers. “Just let me get out of my nightclothes--.”

           “No,” Tashi hissed, tugging at the thin white wisp of his beard. “No time. I was told it is urgent we assemble. Just come.”

           That was just like Pasang. He could have at least told poor Tashi what this was all about instead of letting him fuss and worry the matter over and over in his head like he did on his way to fetch him. “All right. But at least let me get my…” He found his prayer beads on the game table and looped them around his neck as quickly as he could so as not to have to watch Tashi work himself into a nervous frenzy. “Let’s go.”

           The night was cool and calm as the pair made their way across the central temple courtyard, the silence punctuated here and there with the muted babbling and occasional shrill screeches of the lemurs nested out of sight among the trees. Gyatso could see little more than inky blackness beyond the yellow-orange aura of Tashi’s candle, but he could smell the mountains that were his home on the gentle winds that tickled his drooping mustache. He took this small comfort gratefully as dark thoughts began to swirl about his mind. All weighed his heart heavy with dread. What had happened now? Was it Yu Dao? Had there been more fighting around the city? Gyatso was confident that if something had happened, his contacts would have informed him. He just prayed that Sozin had not done something incredibly foolish. Roku could only forgive so many times before resorting to something more… drastic.

           They found Pasang’s door open, the High Monk himself along with Sonam and Yonten sitting within. All looked as if they had been dragged from their beds, their robes ruffled and faces haggard; even tall, stately Sonam with his braided mustachios reaching well below his chest appeared decidedly undignified at this hour. “Now that we’re all here,” Tashi announced gruffly as he and Gyatso made their way through the threshold, “will you tell us what all of this is about, Pasang?”

           Seeming to take no notice of his fellow’s lack of manners, Pasang calmly indicated the two unoccupied cushions before him. “Please, sit.” Gyatso and Tashi sat, completing the circle of five Council members. As Tashi was still fussing with his cushion, trying to find a position that did not irritate his aching knees, Pasang quietly began. “Forgive me for the abruptness of my summons, my brothers, but a messenger hawk arrived tonight bearing… ill news.” Gyatso’s stomach was tying itself into knots, but he kept his quiet. “It is a message from Ta Min.” Avatar Roku’s wife! Tashi and Sonam’s hands flew to their drooping facial hair. Fat Yonten shifted his girth on his cushion. Gyatso just swallowed his sudden panic and waited for Pasang to continue, now fearing the absolute worst. “Blackstone Island has been destroyed.”

           “Destroyed?” Gyatso found himself exclaiming as the others exchanged poorly guarded glances that were awash with shock. “It wasn’t attacked, was it? Sozin--.”

           “It was the mountains, Gyatso,” Pasang calmly interjected, raising a hand placatingly, as if that would assuage his fears. “The twin mounts erupted and threatened the entire island. Avatar Roku battled them bravely, but…”

           There was something that that pause did not say, and it was that silence that near confirmed Gyatso’s greatest fear. Yonten seemed to find the words that Gyatso could not will himself to find. “So the island was lost, yet Ta Min’s words reach us. The villagers managed to escape.” It was not a question.

           “Yes,” Pasang said, a weariness beginning to creep into his voice.

           The round-bellied elder continued, his eyes on his feet. “And Avatar Roku?”

           Pasang sighed, and they all knew. Running a hand over his hairless head, he continued regardless. “Fang was seen diving into the clouds of toxic gas that the mountains spewed, but was not seen to rise again.”

           Gyatso felt a cold blade plunge deep into his heart. As powerful a bender as the Avatar was, if he had not been able to stop the sibling volcanos, there was very little chance he could have escaped the devastation without his dragon. If Fang had not made it off of Blackstone, neither had Roku. The others were speaking, but he could not hear their words. It was as if he were submerged in a still pool and the rest all stood talking along the edge, indistinct and muted to him. Avatar Roku was dead.

           No.

           Roku. The tall, thin-faced young man from the Fire Nation who he had learned airbending with, who had laughed with him as they discovered glider tricks together, who had been there at his anointment ceremony when he had been declared an airbending master and received his tattoos. Roku, his friend, was dead.

           It was then that the utterance of the single word, the name, pierced through his blurry veil of shock and grief: “Sozin.” Pasang stopped mid word as Gyatso was suddenly standing. “What did Sozin have to do with this?” he asked, his voice barely more than a whisper.

           “It appears,” Tashi said, eyes still trained on Pasang, “that Sozin’s dragon was also seen above Blackstone that night. Arriving before the worst of it started and departing in the direction of the Fire Nation capital just before Fang disappeared into the clouds.”

           Gyatso clasped his hands before him so they did not clench into fists. “Sozin was there,” he breathed. What had he done?

           “Now, Gyatso…” Pasang was raising his hand again, motioning with the other for him to sit. “These are unconfirmed reports from one or two of Blackstone’s villagers. We do not really know for certain whether the Fire Lord was actually there or not.”

           “I like to think anyone can recognize a dragon when they see one, Pasang,” Gyatso retorted a bit more forcefully than he meant to.

           But Pasang only blinked. “All right,” he said calmly, raising his arms to the group in general. “All right. I realize that this is hard news for us all and that passions burn bright right now, but perhaps it would be best to dwell on it privately. There are other more immediate matters that require our undivided attention in the wake of Avatar Roku’s passing.”

           “Namely identifying the new Avatar,” Sonam stated smartly, clasping his hands in his lap. “As Roku was a son of the Fire Nation, we must begin looking to our own people to find him. Or her.”

           Gyatso knew they were right. As much as Roku’s demise was a loss, for him and for the world at large, their responsibilities as the Council lay elsewhere. Roku would be mourned later.

Sonam was speaking again. “I recommend we begin testing the temple youths first thing tomorrow morning.”

           “Too hasty, Sonam. Too hasty,” Tashi tutted beside him. “The new Avatar cannot be more than a few days old. A newborn babe cannot undergo testing. Too soon. It is far too soon. We must allow more time before we begin the search.”

           Sonam’s knuckles whitened in his lap and his hands twitched violently for the shortest of moments. “We do not have time.” His usually low, level voice trembled with something very much like anger. Gyatso had never heard Sonam angry before in all their years on the Council together. “The situation in Yu Dao continues to deteriorate, and with Avatar Roku gone, conflict may now be inevitable.”

           Gyatso perked up. Yu Dao had occupied his mind of late as well. “There is a very real danger that the Earth King could begin moving troops to his western borders,” he said, turning a glance that said ‘I agree’ to Sonam. “He may try to destroy the colony outright.” And that would mean war between the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation.

           Tashi scoffed. “Well, not to sound cold, but is that really our concern, Gyatso? We have no say as to what happens in the Earth Kingdom or in the Fire Nation for that matter. What will happen will happen, and we will react as best we can.”

           “Which is why we need the Avatar now,” Sonam practically shouted. “We cannot have war--.”

           “Well, how do you propose a child is to help--?”

           “Enough.” Pasang’s voice rung clearly above all else. All eyes turned to him as silence fell. The High Monk met their gazes in turn before quietly and deliberately saying, “This is not the time for fighting amongst ourselves.” After a moment more of silence, he sighed again. “Tashi is right,” he said, looking at Sonam, then Gyatso. “We cannot begin our search for the new Avatar until our youngest are able to be tested. And that means three years, maybe more, before we can begin. I can appreciate your concerns, but as Tashi said, a child can do nothing more than we can for Yu Dao, the Earth Kingdom, or the world… For now, we must wait.”

           Gyatso and Sonam bowed their heads. He was right, of course.

           Yonten cleared his throat loudly. “The people must still be told of Avatar Roku’s fate,” he said lowly. “And reminded that it is now the Air Nomads’ responsibility to find and raise the next Avatar. I will speak to some of the brothers and sisters in the settlement tomorrow and make the proper arrangements. The news will be spread as quickly as possible come sunrise.”

           “Very well,” Pasang responded, rubbing his eyes and sounding tired. “Beyond the sad tidings, though, everything proceeds as normal. Yes?”

           “Yes,” they all agreed.

           “Well, good,” Tashi grunted, already rising on creaking knees. “If there is nothing further to discuss, I think I will be getting back to sleep. I have had more than enough excitement for one night.” And with a yawn, he was out the door.

           Gyatso moved to follow, but was stopped by Pasang’s hand on his shoulder. “Wait a moment, won’t you, Gyatso?” They waited until Sonam and Yonten had also taken their leave before turning to each other. “I can appreciate how hard this is for you, Gyatso,” Pasang said, lowering himself back onto a cushion, ocher eyes heavy-lidded and tired beneath his heavy eyebrows. “I know how close you and Roku were in your youth.”

           “Thank you,” Gyatso replied blandly, fingers absently fussing with the sleeves of his robe.

           “I just wanted to make certain that you understand the circumstances of his passing.”

           ‘Passing.’ Gyatso had always disliked that word. It attempted to distract from the very real inevitability of death with its flowery-ness. It was a nice word, he thought. Death was not a nice thing regardless of what came afterwards. It did not deserve so nice seeming a word. “I understand.”

           But Pasang continued. “Regardless of your own thoughts about the man, you must recognize that Fire Lord Sozin was once a friend of Avatar Roku, just as you were.”

           Gyatso cleared his throat quietly. A friend did not lie and machinate behind one’s back. He did not appreciate being drawn as a comparison to that man. “I understand,” he repeated simply.

           “And you must realize how preposterous it is to think that Fire Lord Sozin may have had something to do with Avatar Roku’s demise.”

           Gyatso swallowed, but just said, again, “I understand.”

           Pasang visibly relaxed, sinking a bit further into his cushion. “Very well,” he sighed, nodding to himself. “Thank you for your time, Gyatso, and I apologize further for keeping you from your sleep. Good night.”

           The elders bowed respectfully to one another before Gyatso turned and left the High Monk’s chambers. In the courtyard, the lemurs had fallen silent, and Gyatso felt as if he were the only thing alive on the entire mountain as he slowly made his way back to his room. He berated himself for almost losing his calm with the other elders. Of course they could do nothing for the Earth Kingdom right now, nor could the Avatar, who was no doubt still in swaddling clothes at this moment. He had allowed himself to become caught up in the heat of the moment, allowed his confusion and grief for Roku to blind him from his immediate duties to his Temple and his people. No, he could not help his brothers and sisters in the White Lotus now, but, it occurred to him, perhaps they could help him. Because now, in the bracing cool of the midnight mountain breeze, he only had a mind for one thing: Sozin. He decided that he would not retire back to his bed until he had sent out the proper messages to the proper people. He would get word out to some of his contacts. Gyatso had questions about the Fire Lord and what he had been doing on the night that Blackstone Island went up in flames.

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