A word To build a scenario around... Steam
thank you for the prompt, anon! ♡ here it is (with some gratuitous references to contagion... you know me)
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a character who's the type to prioritize self care over everything... who lives luxuriously, the type to resort to everything from expensive spa days to unwind, the type who's familiar with every natural remedy in the book, because really, even the slightest ailment is a perfect excuse to take it easy and even pamper themselves a little bit
the same character who feels themselves coming down with a terrible, incredibly contagious cold. but for whatever reason - maybe their boss urges them to come in (it's just a small cold, after all, and so much work still needs to get done), or maybe because they're just so confident in their home remedies to do the trick - they head to work anyways.
their desk becomes a mini pharmacy for the day - soft lotion tissues, three different tins of tea specifically meant to relieve cold and flu symptoms, herbal cough drops, a few cooling salves for their red, irritated nose, hot packs for their sinuses, a humidifier for the congestion. after all... if they're going to have to work with this cold, why not make their time here as comfortable as possible?
but still, despite every remedy, their cold turns out to be annoyingly persistent - they're just so congested they can hardly breathe through their nose, plagued with a tickle (not severe enough to catalyze a sneeze, in most cases, but present enough to be very distracting) in their nose which won't leave them alone no matter what. even worse, every sneeze is irritatingly unproductive; it does nothing to relieve the tickle - in fact, it almost seems to make it worse...
they make it to halfway through the afternoon where they decide they can't stand it anymore - they're not feeling too terrible, but this is certainly annoying, and that's enough of a reason for them to put an end to it once and for good. breathing in steam can be therapeutic, and even better, it's supposed to relieve congestion, right?
after a few moments consideration, they swipe the small vial of lavender essential oil off their desk. they've never been fond of this particular vial compared to the other essential oils they own - it always leaves them sniffly and teary eyed - but perhaps that would be a welcome side effect, just this once.
from there, they head into the break room and boil some water using the coffee machine (so what if they end up sneezing a few times, all over the coffee machine, misting the company countertops? it's not like they can control when they sneeze... with this cold, every sneeze just sneaks up on them; it's not their fault that they're not always able to cover.) they pour the boiling water out into a large bowl, drop a few drops of the lavender essential oil inside, and take a seat at one of the tables in the break room, which - aside from them - is thankfully empty.
the first breath of hot, fragrant steam does wonders for their congestion, which they can feel start to loosen for the first time, making their nose run. they haven't brought any tissues with them... perhaps that was an oversight, but the steam is just so relieving, they can't just stop now...!
the next few breaths, they can really start to smell the lavender, and... oh, the tickle in their nose sharpens with such intensity it takes them off guard.
"heh... hEhh... HIH-! hheh-Hhehh... heh... hehH..."
god, their nose tickles so badly; it's practically begging for relief. they lean their head down, taking another deep breath in through their nose.
"hehH... hehh-HEH-!" fuck, so close, just a little more... "hheh... HehhH.... hh-heh-Hehh-HEHh-!! HEHH'IIHHSHIEEEW!"
it's as if that first sneeze completely opens up the floodgates, snapping them forward - only for them to inhale a huge breath of hot steam. they wipe their nose on one palm, but even the slightest pressure against their nose seems to increase the tickle tenfold. everything smells like so strongly of lavender, it's - HEHh-! making them - heh-HEHh - h-have to -
"HEHH'ISSSHHIEw! hHAH'IITSHuUH! heh... heh-hEhh-HEHh-hHEH'TCHIIIEEEW! hH... hHIh! hahh-HAh-AHH.... AHH'IIIITTSCHHUueE!"
every sneeze absolutely drenches the table beneath them. they lift their hands to halfheartedly shield the first couple of sneezes, but with the number of particles that escape through their fingertips regardless, does it really even matter? it's not like anyone else is in the break room, after all. they turn their head aside to keep from spraying the table (even if all that accomplishes is spread their cold in the other direction.)
besides... don't they deserve to sneeze after having not been able to sneeze all morning, aside from the few terribly unsatisfying sneezes they'd had to put up with? isn't it only right that they get relief from this annoying cold as soon as possible? they need to get all the viruses out of their system to get rid of this cold... each messy, spraying sneeze sets them closer on the path to recovery. the tickle in their nose is really just there to help them sneeze out their cold as soon as possible, so why not coax it even further, make this process a little faster? really, they're doing their body a favor as they breathe in more steam, as they give in to the tickle in their nose, as they sneeze and sneeze and sneeze...
(maybe that's what they think, but they've left the air so utterly saturated with their cold viruses that it's no wonder that half the office comes down with the same miserable, messy cold in the weeks following, leading to more than a few dirty looks... after all, they brought their cold to work, and they hadn't exactly been subtle about it)
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don't trust her dazai, she's gonna blackmail you to buy every flavor of ice creams and bully you anytime chuuya is around.
i don't trust my writing to be readable so dialogs under the cut:
Kyouka: Dazai-san, is it true that you're going to die of heartbreak if you have to hide your undying love for big brother any longer?
Dazai, earlier that day: If poor Chuuya hides his undying love for me any longer, I'm afraid he'll die of heartbreak!
Dazai, now: 'Not exactly in those words...'
Kyouka: I don't want you to die. So I decided to help you by acting as your illegitimate child. With this plan big brother will take pity on us and agree to go out with you.
Atsushi, murmuring to himself: Could it work? I mean, I wouldn't fall for it myself ofc, but Chuuya-san seems like a kind person... Would I fall for it?? If Aku had an....
Tsushi and Dazai: 'Isn't that the plot of the TV show from last night?'
Dazai: Kyouka-chan, that's a PERFECT idea!! 🌸
Kunikida, from his desk: No it's fucking not!
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'They're children and its incest!!' They're also fucking elves. Like it's not that serious
(Also that post of yours was very well said, someone needed to show 16 year old anti me that)
I think there's a balance. On the one hand, yes, it's a middle grade elf series. On the other, the topics of morality in fiction, media censorship, the distinction between endorsement and depiction, etc. are all serious topics worth discussing.
And there are a lot of valid thoughts and concerns wrapped up in it. I don't want to ignore and dismiss their points--that'll just shut everything down further. They're right to worry about children and harm, we do want to create safe spaces and a better world. I just disagree that policing media and fandom spaces achieves that. (insufficient summary of everything, I know there's more to it)
And it's like I was saying--fiction can serve as practice, though it's valid in its own right too. We're forming opinions about the topic, supporting our positions and making claims, engaging with others and seeing if they hold, etc. And there's that larger margin of error i mentioned because this is fiction; the worst thing that'll happen is fandom discourse/a shift in mutual groups. it's not like laws are being based on any of this or something
Essentially, both serious and unserious elements. And thank you--I tried to be clear and thorough, because getting heated never helps. Though people also have to be willing to converse and engage--that's why I frequently have "if you behave in this manner, I'll stop engaging" in those posts.
I'll have the discussion, but I won't do pointless arguing
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DMC Questions Anon here!
After the success of the female-led spinoff Capcom decided another one should be made (I wish) and have once again asked you to helm it. Who do you want to lead this time? What plot would this game follow?
(While writing this I decided I should specify it doesn't need to follow up on the previous one, unless that's where your mind is headed, of course.)
(sorry for being less active with the asks)
Listen, listen, I don't have strong opinions about the first Ladies Spinoff game, but the second? Has to be Lucia's. She proved herself to be a very capable protagonist, plus her devil abilities and design are very distinct from the main series, and that's a good way to explore some weirder-mechanics for the series.
Personally, I'd like to have 1, just one, with good parkour, or, at least a smooth one. Parkour in dmc5 makes me want to tear my hair out because of the camera, and the moveset is Not optimised for it. Darksiders 2 would be the best comparison here - that game features some awesome, if not very challenging, parkour sections! Timed ones are bad, but the general room-to-dungeon-room parkour is nice. It would also fit Lucia's theme better I think, since DMC2 introduced wall-running and jumping.
At least, give us more mobility options and more level verticality, just that would be great. And Lucia. I need more Lucia.
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