Noir

"When a man learns to love, he must bear the risk of hatred." - Madara Uchiha If you're not up to listening to stuff with obvious anime reference in here, I'll suggest turning away right now. Most of this is a means for me to get back to expressive writing, but discussions like these are pretty fun. Very corny quote from speculatively overrated character and anime aside, true this statement may be to some, moonshine to most, be it any opinion. As a person who indulges in learning and garnering messages from any form of work that screams even the slightest of the word literature, Naruto this obvious anime has given me a very relatable and important message when it comes to hatred. Many a significant character -- particularly antagonists -- have succumbed to hatred, and what I believe an important theme that is delivered through the storyline. To cut to the chase on my overall thoughts about hate, hatred arises due to loving something -- by loving someone or something one is to risk hating what one used to love itself or others surrounding said target. Love is not limited to affection; interest, passion, anything that inclines you to dedicate yourself to it, anything that screams the word "desire", in particular. All that in itself may pave the way of one's descent into hatred. Of course, that doesn't mean loving is a bad thing -- and most of the hatred I personally believe comes from losing said thing you once loved. In some ways, the quote is correct, in others, it is wrongly phrased. Madara became who he was because he lost his brother, and similarly, Obito's loss of Rin, and Sasuke's loss of his clan -- and subsequently his realization of his brother's true objectives behind his actions -- all led them to be bound by hatred. Realistically speaking, even day-to-day, real-life conflicts can arise out of loving someone or something: virtuous as it is to be spared of the hate that would come, betrayal commonly results in the hate of the people who betrayed you because you loved them and dedicated yourselves to them; even something as mundane as a hobby can lead you to be angst-ridden if you are denied something as a result of it. A lack of achievement? Very harsh critique that says stuff like "ditch what you love, you're terrible at it" ? Heck, even the very prospect of not having something you love while others do -- jealousy being perhaps the more appropriate description here -- can be a stem that blooms into an apple of hatred, threatening to poison whomever that had the guts to bite it. That all said, in a better way of defining my thoughts towards hate, it comes from the love/affection/passion/desire towards something but losing/not having it and not handling such loss appropriately. Sure, these characters come from a clan bound by a curse, but it delivers the important message that hatred itself is reminiscent of a curse that one must fight. You don't have a heritage as an excuse in this context. You either fight your way out and handle loss appropriately or succumb to the curse that is hatred and become a monster in the process. It's inevitable that everyone has hated once in their life; be it a second, a minute, a lifetime, it all varies. Long-term hate generally makes your life nothing but miserable unless you find pleasure in destroying the thing you hate, which, even then -- would that actually solve the problem? Would that satisfaction be worth the loads of time you wasted on hating something or some person? Relating to these characters I was a Madara/Tobi/Sasuke once. I succumbed to hate as a result of the loss/betrayal of a person I thought I genuinely loved and became an absurdly bitter person for almost two years until I actually had the inclination to look for bonds and consulted counselling. I was so stuck up that I rejected all friendship and family bonds and practically was...well, alone. That loss led me to hating bonds and everything close so much that it made most of my early teenage days a living hell. But at the same time, maybe it's only by actually hating something that we learn not to harbor it, much like every lesson we learn in life through experience. Going through all I've been, I consider myself a person that's very difficult to arise hate in -- albeit a person that easily elicits hate and disdain in others -- as of the past 2-3 years. Overcoming it comes to self-realization and acceptance of the foreign. It can be bliss to let go of dislike towards something and learn to accept it; bliss to let go of what otherwise would only intoxicate and destroy yourself.

Happy Birthday, CG. You're a pretty enthusiastic person with a knack for bringing a vibrant atmosphere to things and am very talented in general. May your birthday this year and for the forthcoming years be prosperous and filled with happiness for the days to come.

Inspire me.

Inspire me.

Happy birthday, Lost. I wish your birthday to be a blast and for the ones to come, as well.

To put it simply, Dark types are my favorite type. My favourite Pokemon's a Dark type, they're generally great offensively and have an immunity to the OP typing that was Psychic in Gen 1. My name is Noir which means Black/Dark in French so there's that, and I'm generally a very edgy guy as well. Close seconds are Ghost and Ice, because before Bisharp was my favorite Pokemon, Dusknoir and Banette were on that throne. Ghost and Dark are closely related in itself, whereas Ice is well...generally a cool aesthetic type in general.

Whynaut Bronzong? It brings out the sun when it's needed, doesn't it?

To start, a physical Empoleon is simply undesirable. If you're inclined to head back to Reborn City, go to the Lapis Ward and pick up Water Pledge from one of the tutors secluded in a house, for shards. Check it's Hidden Power and see what it yields, as well. I personally think this team won't fare too well overall; you'll need more Bug/Dark types to settle it, and while you have Gourgeist for Radomus' Gallade and Phantom Force as a super effective move, Gourgeist isn't going to tank attacks that well for you, particularly on the Special side. I personally like to get stuff that outspeeds him rather than using Trick Room against him, and while you have Pokemon that can do that very well (your team composition is slow, but it's only good for this particular match really) it's not a viable composition in the long run.

Sharpedo is sorta mandatory in that aspect. It's called the Bully of the Sea and Team Aqua (which to a debatable extent are pirates) has a leader that uses it as an ace.

Happy birthday, Bazaro. May your birthday this year and the years ahead be filled with prosperity and greatness.

Your grandfather was a noble man, for what he did. He lived a meaningful life and I give my condolences and respects to his passing. Requiescat et pace.

Probably the few things I deem important accessories that I carry with me a lot are my locket with my engraved insignia, my Phantomhive ring, and my swiss knife.

Thank you for the review, though I actually linked that thread by accident and had a different work in there instead, not realizing until a while had passed. My apologies. I'll review your work or stuff in the future later on when I head back from work.

Good thread, so let's get to it. Hit this up, if you may; it's a chapter from my recent work. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YlIGAYtxBu8qiCBdKiHNrUFJzUq-0CmVXyrqozHsZfg/edit

Nice as Facade is to deal with burns and stuff, I'm personally not that fond of Facade, in which case you're also getting a bit paranoid there. I prefer Zen Headbutt simply because it strikes stuff like Venusaur, Azumarill, bulky Talon, and a few other things. Speaking of which your team is very weak to Talon in general, especially considering you have no hazards, either. Speed Boosts from Scolipede aren't going to save you from it, nor is Whimsi going to help either.

If you desire pride, I won't hold back. I tend to go overboard, so my apologies if this comes across as bragging/arrogance. I personally like to think I'm very versatile, adaptive, niche, and to a debatable extent, a jack-of-all trades. I tend to pick up skills abnormally quickly but don't really stick in one place bar several exceptions. I also like how I'm very descriptive and expressive in what I do, mostly. Probably the two things I'm most proud of are my language proficiency and ability to play piano. I know seven languages and engage in tutoring high school kids English and doing solo freelance piano recitals for occasional wedding occasions, for instance, and art also runs in the family, so while I'm still learning I tend to think I'm also pretty artistic for a person. I've also done a lot of other things in my life. I've been a chef, a magician, a voice actor, a part-time editor, an officiated guide maker for MOBA, captain of my Kendo club, and a storyteller. I have around 600 gold trophies stacked on my wall from youth till today from various stacked up achievements that I've been proud of.

Iris “The scent of irises,” I breathed as I turned to Sylvette. “Do you sense them?” I watched her eyes close as a smile stood on her face. I could barely hear the faint sound of her gently sucking in a breath of the soothing air. “A faint, abnormally refreshing scent indeed.....” She uttered as her azure eyes reopened. “Just a little more,” I pressed. “We're almost there.” She nodded slightly as we continued through the muddy roads. Staggering our steps were, clumsily landing on the dampness of watered soil, threatening to drag us down and taint us at but a graceless movement. We could notice a tinge of light falling from the canopies that formed a road on the forest path to a place I knew, and wanted to take Sylvette to. I took hold of her hand as she continued towards the pebbles that stood on the shallow river that was crystal clear, sparkling under exposure of the thin slits on light through the hinges of brown leaves. And we crossed through the door of light in front of us. The scenery changed, and I was glad to see her beautiful eyes widen and her smile growing. I too, watched, satisfactory of the wonderful view this place had offered. Nature was but of a fine artist; I could almost see invisible brushes lash at the sky skilfully, blending the orange with fine shades of purple, gold and blue, white, fluffy shades further complementing the compelling sky. The field of irises and dandelions shrouded the ground in a beige that seemed to shine over the green stems that supported them, swaying gracefully at the music of the wind as it caressed our faces, forming endless lumps of spored puffs that kited along as the wind continued to go to places possibly beyond our reach. I watched diamonds twinkle in between the patterned ground; dewdrops were stubbornly clinging on the leaves as they glistened from the recent rain. “Beautiful.....” I could barely hear her say, her voice as equally soft as the passing breeze, hiding her possible breathing as I imagined that she'd enjoy the breezy air. I reached for the white lumps on the ground and picked up the damp stem of an iris. I watched it carefully, the beautifully placed petals that formed a dress on the bud, the white complemented perfectly with a mild yellow, as I too, took in a refreshing breath and enjoyed the heavenly scent of the flower. “The scent of irises,” I repeated. “Wonderful, isn't it?” I placed the flower in front of her, watching the petals make her a new dress that cleansed her white dress that was mildly dirty due to the mud. I watched her beautiful azure eyes sparkling brighter than the stars that formed on the grassy ground, watched her stunning smile that seemed to be more beautiful that the scenery that stood before me – perhaps the best my eyes would see as I felt my lips involuntarily smiling as well. I again found my cheeks mildly reddening at her rosy ones, as she took the flower I offered and hoped she'd enjoyed the exquisite scent. I watched her place the flower near her nose as she yet again closed her eyes, motionlessly taking in the scent as she let out a relieved sigh, fiddling her hands at the petals as I managed to hide a chuckle. “The scent is wonderful.” She said. “Tell me, why did you never tell me of this place?” “I didn't know it for long, actually. This isn't the end of the birthday present, though.” With a gentle wave of my hand, I called for Zephyr – the injured unicorn that I'd saved not just the day I discovered this place – as she soared across the sky and landed gently on the ground. “Unicorn?” She asked again, as I noticed her hand on her lips, in awe. “A friend,” I said, as if I were correcting her slightly. I allowed her to brush her fingers against the soft brushes of her gray mane as I watched her eyes turn at the magnificent creature's entirety, the beautifully curved horn, embracing, welcoming wings powerful enough to arouse a rain of dandelion spores with a gentle flap, eyes almost an azure blue as hers, perhaps even mirrored. I looked at Zephyr and was happy that she was glad and free, as I briefly reminisced how miserable she was in her lethargic, wounded state; and I wondered if Sylvette now thought she was looking at herself as a horse, and again, managed to hide a chuckle. I approached the two as I stroked the creature's back, mounting the warm unicorn as it began to spread its wings, creating again another gust of wind that bounced all the petals and spores up from the blossomed field. “Get on.” I said, stretching out a hand. “But....we're flying?” I could notice both the excitement and nervousness in her tone as she turned her head around in hesitance. “It'll be fine. Trust me.” Sylvette had a bit of a paranoia of heights since she was little, but I knew this was a scene that she wouldn't fear. I was sure of it....... I sensed it from her exterior: her fear and hesitance slowly dissipated as I gently took her up Zephyr's back. Hold on tight, I said, as I felt my waist being held by two warm arms. And thus we flew. I commanded Zephyr to take us to the waterfall that was far from where we lived, but flying there only took but a moment. I secretly turned my eye back to Sylvette and noticed her smile as she enjoyed the ride, although I could still sense a pang of fear in her azure eyes and decided I'd take it easy on her for a while. We stopped as we caught the soothing sound of flowing water, a ray of orange from the sunlight shining directly upon us as Zephyr landed gently onto the lake beneath. I took Sylvette down and allowed my hand to caress the water as Zephyr flew across, as she did the same. I watched her laugh in amusement as she dampened my cheeks with a playful splash of water, as I commanded the unicorn to go higher. We arrived at the piece de resistance– what I found to look most wonderful in such a place. I enjoyed best the mossy rock formations that lined up behind the hills that formed a truly awe inspiring view, as all of us enjoyed the scene nature had to offer. We stared at the pillars which were like soliders lining up, the creeping moss swirling uniquely around them as they stood beautifully under exposure of the sunset that hued everything into a golden orange. Gradually, the brightness in the sky began to diminish, and the orange traces were hidden behind the back of the hills no one could ever see. The sky's colour was rather turmoil, the purple and blue shades still painted beautifully across the sky, blended with mild traces of the sun's orange hue. Odd, but beautiful nonetheless. I landed Zephyr back at the iris field as the breeze from her wings yet again aroused a hail of dandelion spores. I again picked an iris and placed it on her ear, as I knew it was already time to go back to our place. “Today was fun.” Sylvette said, looking slightly tired, but in all happy. “It was an enjoyable experience. Thank you, Zephyr.” She said as she gently stroked her face as she happily neighed in response. For the umpteenth time I hid my chuckle as I felt glad that those two were getting along very well. “It's time I got back.” I said. “It's getting late. I'm glad you had fun today.” Sylvette suddenly ran behind me as she placed an object between the hinges of my hand, before skipping across the dampened roads of the forest. “Thank you....” I wondered again if it was her voice speaking or if yet another gust of wind was toying with my ear, as I stole a final glance at the wonderful scenery of the sun setting behind the tips of the mountains of the darkening evening sky, that rained of dandelion spores again under the flapping of Zephyr's wings. The unicorn freely flew to a place I may perhaps never know, today but a memory I would perhaps never forget. I allowed myself a final whiff of the wonderful iris scent, something I would forever reminisce as I returned back to the forest paths with a smile on my face.

Unless it's just been edited in, like, say minutes ago, doesn't the OP clearly state that Shadow Tag is not permitted?