#and the fact he's the “bully” so the playing field feels fair

[kolechiart]

* god my all time favourite running joke in this show has to be bishop catching diabolical strays unprovoked. it's never when he's attempting to be antagonist and therefore it would be warranted no it's always when he's just sat there quietly minding his own business.

like how in mitchell junior one of the first things mitchell does when he enters the late class is to call bishop ugly by saying he's aged terribly despite the fact the guy hasn't uttered a single word. something about it always makes me laugh that poor thing is always in the cross fire

[heliads]

first of all i just wanted to say that i’m actually in love with your writing and i can’t wait to read more from you!! anyway i was thinking of some good ol’ peter hayes x fem!reader where they were both in candor together and hated each others GUTS, but then when they transferred to dauntless, peter starts developing feelings for reader so he follows her around like some puppy but she’s still on the peter-hate-train. maybe also like he starts talking to some other female dauntless initiate and stops giving reader as much attention and she finally realizes that she likes him

(this is such a long request i’m so sorry)

thank you so much!!

'Bad Liars' - peter hayes

masterlist

Starting out life on your own terms. A fresh page, a blank slate. This is why you decided to switch factions in your Choosing Ceremony, why you agreed to never see your family again except by something as meager as coincidence. Friends, neighbors, blood relations, all left behind with one swipe of a knife against your palm. It’s worth it, though. Running through the streets of your city like your world is on fire, you’re free for the first time in your memory. It’s just you in this new, grand place they call Dauntless.

Well, you and Peter Hayes.

Of all the people to come here with you, of course your fellow transfer from Candor would be Peter. Bold, callous Peter. Peter, who’s had it out for you since you were kids. No child should know that much bitter hatred, but the two of you have been arch rivals since you were small. You’d be lying if you said that leaving him behind didn’t factor into your decision to transfer from Candor to Dauntless even a little bit, but yet here he is anyway. Turns out you couldn’t run that far from him after all.

To you, it makes perfect sense that if Peter Hayes had to go anywhere, he would go to Dauntless. All throughout his time at Candor, for as long as you can remember Peter, he had been crafting his words to inflict as much misery as possible. In the eyes of the faction leaders, anything he said was fair game so long as he was telling the truth, and Peter did just that. He told his truth, which was precisely like reality except warped to cause as much hurt as he dared. 

Peter’s words were honed to a knife’s sharpness, easier for drawing blood than the syringes of your faction’s truth serum. Of course he would go here, where bullets are no longer how he shapes his syllables to spike into your throat but a real thing. Why bother with figurative pain if you can produce the genuine article?

The two of you had ended up here for precisely opposite reasons. Peter wanted to hurt, you wanted to fight back. Candor is full of self-righteous bullies who believe they’re doing the right thing by being uncommonly cruel to anyone they pass. In Dauntless, everyone is finally on a level playing field. If someone insults you, you fight them, and no amount of callous words can save you then. Talk is nothing if you can’t back it up with prowess. For someone who had to swallow plenty of poison back in Candor, Dauntless is like a holiday.

However, the one thing that makes your paradise fall short is the fact that Peter decided to come here with you. He had made his decision independently of you, of course, but you’re still infuriated about the whole affair. This was supposed to be your fresh start, your one chance to escape your past and become something no one expected of you. That’s the whole point of the Choosing Ceremony, isn’t it? To kill off the old you and transform into the best version of yourself?

That had been your plan, at least, and then Peter had made his choice. You wouldn’t go anywhere but Dauntless even if your entire faction transferred over here, but it did complicate things. You had hoped that you and Peter would always end up on opposite sides of the room, then opposite ends of the faction, and never come in contact again, but as per usual, it looks like Peter isn’t much inclined to follow your whims.

From the first day alone, you knew he was going to be trouble. You were one of the first to jump, fresh off the exhilaration of the free fall plunge from the top of the roof, and reeling in the lingering aftereffects of your largest adrenaline rush to date while waiting for the jumpers to take their turns off the edge. The room was crowded, more so with each new jumper to make their move, yet somehow in all that chaos, Peter managed to find you. It didn’t bode well for the remainder of initiation, to say the least.

You had been hoping that the two of you could exchange silent, wary eye contact and then move on, your past shattered and gone for good, but instead Peter wove his way through the throngs of people and came to a stop by your side.

“Look who we have here,” he says, drawing the words out, “Y/N L/N. I never thought you’d have the guts to come here.”

“And I always thought you’d be too much of a coward to leave Candor,” you reply. “Looks like we were both wrong.”

Peter’s eyes widen and he chuckles, evidently not expecting your retort. “Careful, L/N. Didn’t know you had such a sharp tongue.”

“You’ve known me for years,” you say, eyeing him coldly. “If you didn’t know that, you’re about to be very surprised indeed. I hope you didn’t set your hopes on making first place in initiation, Hayes, or you’re going to be sorely disappointed.”

Up ahead, one of the initiation leaders is calling for the trainees to fall in after him. You take this opportunity to breeze past Peter, who’s standing there and staring openly, mouth agape. You’ve put up with his bullshit for many years now, always taking it silently in fear of jeopardizing your position in your faction, but no longer. You’re on even footing again for the first time in a very long time, and you have absolutely no intention of ever caving to Peter Hayes again.

For Peter, it seems, your decision is a very rude awakening. You immediately fling yourself into the intricacies of fighting and running and shooting, which causes you to rise quickly through the ranks of initiates, much to Peter’s chagrin. Although he’ll tell anyone in earshot that he’s only letting you do so well because he thinks it’s funny to watch you struggle, you can see the panic in Peter’s eyes when you crush one fight after another. You meant what you said, after all. It’s first place or nothing, and you don’t intend on settling for anything where Peter’s concerned.

Your rivalry becomes just as well known among your new friends in Dauntless as it was back in Candor. Hardly a day goes by without you and Peter getting in each other’s way, whether it be slamming each other into the ground during a fighting match in the ring or running yourselves ragged in an attempt to be faster, stronger, better. It’s like you can’t get away from him. 

Everywhere you go, Peter is there too. Staying late after initiation to get some more practice with throwing knives, he just so happens to choose the target right beside you. Walking over to the training gym in the middle of the night because you can’t sleep and might as well use the empty hours to improve, Peter seems to have the same bright idea to practice with the punching bags even despite the midnight hour. You don’t like the fact that Peter seems to have such a good knack for telling when you’re awake or asleep, you have half a mind that he might get frustrated of the close competition and take you out while you were sleeping, but he’s never gone that far.

Your friends seem to have a different view of the whole affair. Every time you complain to them about Peter never letting you have a moment’s peace, Tris and Christina, your closest friends in initiation, just exchange knowing looks and begin to tease you. They seem convinced that Peter doesn’t hate you but actually harbors a crush, which is beyond you. There’s no earthly way that Peter likes you. The two of you have despised each other since before you could talk. The whole idea is absurd.

Still, if you were nothing more than an unknowing bystander, you supposed you could see how the situation might be misconstrued. A lifetime of truth-telling in you has to admit that maybe it is a little suspicious that you and Peter can’t seem to go an hour or two without running into each other, that Peter is both your greatest threat and the object of your every waking thought. It’s just because you want to beat him so badly, of course. Of course. If it weren’t, though. If you were thinking of him not because of hatred but for something more–

You wouldn’t. You would never be so foolish. This is how Peter wins, by twisting his way inside your mind until you’re second-guessing every single thing he does, and you’d die before you let him win. If he’s willing to play the game, though, you’ll do anything to beat him at his own technique, so you up the ante and repeat it right back to him. 

Sarcastic comments slip from your tongue whenever you see him. When Four takes the initiates out on guided runs, you make sure you’re jogging right by Peter the whole time, your pace steadily increasing until both of you end each race at a sprint. The rest of the trainees have learned to leave two targets side by side for you two whenever it’s time for sharpshooting practice, and heaven help the hapless initiate who asks one of you to spar as if the other wasn’t standing right there, guarding their territory.

It doesn’t mean anything, though. You still hate Peter to the ends of the earth, and everyone around you had better know it, too. You despise him as much as it’s physically possible for a human being to hate anyone, but then he starts spending a lot of time with someone else, and suddenly the hatred is far harder to come by than it ever was, and you’re not sure what to do with yourself at all.

He’s spending time with another girl. Which isn’t bad, of course. He’s got friends. You do too. But. One time at dinner, you heard Tris saying that he’s looking at the girl the same way he used to look at you, and she wasn’t talking about hate, and you cannot tell whether you were supposed to deny that he’d ever done anything but hate you or be furious at this new girl for stealing his attention away from you, so you didn’t answer at all. You didn’t sleep a wink that night, and gave up a few hours in to try and train some more. He didn’t follow. He always follows. Not this time, though, and when you came back, he was quietly whispering with the other girl. Hatching sinister plans, no doubt, or planning to stab someone in the back. He didn’t even look at you when he came in. It was like he didn’t even care.

You feel sick to your stomach. You intentionally ask other trainees to spar in the ring– look, Peter isn’t the only one capable of moving on– but it’s like he doesn’t even notice. You want to slam your hands against his chest and shout in his face, do anything to make him look at you, but instead you stay sullen and quiet and pretend like nothing has changed even though everything, everything, has.

It hits you, about two weeks later, what the problem is. Like a lightning strike in the dark of night, all of a sudden you know, a knowledge that had been blank and absent before but totally unavoidable now. You like Peter. Hell, you might even love him, if you gave him that chance in your heart. Peter might have liked you, but you brushed him off for so long that he moved on.

It hurts like a jagged hole in your heart. Someone has reached inside and broken your ribs to claw this feeling out from where you’ve so cleverly hidden it, and there’s no disguising the horror of the wound now. You couldn’t escape it if you tried.

You found out this truth about yourself in the middle of a Dauntless party, and it kills your mood completely. You can’t stand the loud music or flashing lights anymore, so you put down your half-empty cup on one of the debris-strewn surfaces and make your way out. No one notices you leave. You’re a ghost on the outskirts of a celebration of life, and there is nothing here for you anymore.

You wander until you end up on the bridge overlooking the pit near the center of the Dauntless complex. You stand as close to the edge as you can, hands gripping the flimsy railing until you’re not sure your fingers could peel away from the rusting metal if you tried. If you’d felt any buzz from the party at all, you’ve sobered up by now. You have no idea how long you’ve been standing here, skin chilled by the drafts of the pit, and then a voice sounds from behind you, and you’re abruptly dragged back to reality once more.

“I thought you’d be back in there with the rest,” Peter says, coming to a stop beside you.

You don’t dare to look at him, opting instead to keep your eyes firmly trained on the drop over the edge of the pit. “I could say the same thing about you.”

Peter sounded genuinely curious when he asked, but your tone is harsher, colder. You still haven’t forgiven him for moving on just when you realized that you liked him, and it’s leaching into your voice. Peter chuckles even still. “No, not me. The best part just left.”

You risk a glance his way, and to your surprise, he’s looking at you. “Are you being honest with me, Peter?” You ask.

His face twists into chagrin. “Looks like we can’t beat the Candor out of ourselves after all, even despite all the training sessions we’ve pulled. I’ve tried, though.”

“You’ve done a good job,” you muse. “It’s me who needs to be fixed the most.”

Peter’s brow furrows. “What are you talking about?”

You shake your head. Maybe you weren’t as sober as you thought. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.”

“Says who?” Peter asks plainly. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

You regard him suspiciously. “You haven’t always.”

Peter has the grace to look embarrassed. “I’ve done things I regret.”

“I don’t believe you,” you say, and laugh to hide your heartbreak. “I know you, Peter Hayes. I know what you do. I’m not falling for it. Not again.”

“It worked before?” Peter asks, genuinely surprised. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

This time you do laugh for real. “Why would I? And give you another weakness to exploit?”

Peter flinches as if you’ve slapped him. “I deserve that, probably, but I’ve been trying to be better.”

“Why?” You ask. “You’ve never cared what I thought, and you certainly don’t care about being better. Nothing about you makes sense, Peter. You’ve got a girl back there in the party who’s probably looking for you now, but instead you’re trying to apologize to me. You’ve never cared about that before.”

“But I do now,” Peter says, voice unexpectedly strong. When he turns the force of his gaze back on you again, you feel totally rooted in place, unable to move even if you wanted to. And, when he starts to move closer to you, one hand coming to rest on top of your fingers, you’re not sure that you do. “I do care. I’ve been trying to tell you that for weeks.”

“I thought you were excellent at telling the truth,” you whisper.

“So did I,” Peter replies. Hesitates, then says, “Only other people’s truth, it turns out. You were always my best secret. I wanted to keep you the most.”

Your breath sticks to your lungs, refusing to grant you release. None of this makes sense. Peter would never– But he is now, standing in front of you, telling you as much as he can. Peter still wants you. It’s up to you if you want him, too.

After everything he’s done to you over the years, you owe him nothing at all. He’s hurt you more times than you could count. When you’re cold, bitterly cold, freezing down to the bone with no way of rescue save your own rough and ragged principles, you burn everything around you. Clothes, shoes, furniture. Even people. Peter burned you, and so severe was the flame of your mutual hatred that it made it impossible for anything to grow between the two of you but a jealous wrath. 

Peter has left the cold of Candor and traded in his shivering bones for Dauntless’ natural warmth, and now he finally has the room to put out the fire again. He’s stamped out the inferno, or tried to, at least; but upon inspecting the last flattened spark, Peter can’t tell if he went too far. It is immensely difficult for him to discern if he has left anything of you but char and ash. 

What could have been a beautiful thing went up in smoke the moment he first raised a harsh word against you. Peter loves the truth, loves most of all to twist it, but in the end, the truth cannot help him here. Peter knows what he wants the truth to be, but the truth is no substitute for reality. It is up to you if you can ever forgive him, and no amount of pretty words on Peter’s end can change that.

It’s up to you, and for the first time since you came to Dauntless, you know precisely what you want. “I know what you mean,” you tell him carefully.

Peter’s face cracks in a tentative smile. “You know? So you–”

“I do,” you interrupt. “I like you, Peter.”

You have seen Peter furious, filled with righteous vengeance. You’ve seen him bloody and bruised on the other end of a sparring ring. You thought that the brightest emotion you’d ever see on him was the pure flame of hatred, but it turns out there’s one thing better than wrath, and that’s sheer, incandescent joy. He wears it now like the finest of luxuries, and you decide that you’d like to see it many times again. As it turns out, you’ll have plenty of chances.

divergent tag list: @blondsauduun, @gods-fools-heroes, @23victoria, @manyfandomsfanvergent, @imwaysthelastchoice, @crazyhearttragedy, @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed, @alex-1967s-blog, @aoi-targaryen

all tags list: @wordsarelife

[pepstarvanmoon]

I don’t think Mike always thought of his first meeting with El in this way. As the series progressed, Mike started seeing their relationship differently (to be fair, it was declining), but it has to do with more than just seeing how powerful El is in comparison to himself.

A lot of the time, the situation is out of Mike’s hands. His ideas are effective, of course, but in the first half of S2 he’s always brought face-to-face with how little control he has.

I imagine Mike gave himself the role of ‘protector’ a long time ago, before the start of the series. A girl with powers popping up in the woods the day after your best friend goes missing is a lot to take in, but I don’t think they fully processed how dangerous the situation was until they were attacked directly.

Aside from the very real possibility of them dying, Mike was hit with the fact that he was powerless to save Will. Not without El, anyway, which is why he fought to keep her despite how upset he was with her for hurting Lucas.

Plenty of people have already discussed why Mike might’ve been willing to jump from the cliff (that shot of the rocks is very intentional. It tells us Mike won’t survive the jump, and we can assume Mike understands that as well, but it also shows us how small he feels)

Mike felt the crushed under the weight of his own weakness, and was raised up by El’s strength. Bottom line, El has the power to save, and Mike believes he doesn’t. So to save Will, he needs her, but he ultimately loses her.

It’s more than that, though. He lost her while she was saving them. None of them could do anything to stop the Demogorgon on their own. Mike can only sit back and watch.

Still, El is gone, so it’s up to Mike to be the protector again, and the opportunity comes in S2.

Mike cares a lot about Will, of course, they’re best friends, but it’s not a stretch to say Mike wants to be needed. Specifically him, for something only he can provide.

Mike ‘saved’ El by taking her in and showing her kindness, but rather than believing that it could’ve been anyone like he expressed in S4, I think he thought it could only be him, like it was expected.

The Wheeler family set-up is about the same as the Sinclair’s, except Lucas is the oldest. They never explain why they didn’t take El to Lucas’ house, given their proximity, for the time being because they don’t need to.

Mike is purposefully presented as a caring person who takes charge, but that also proves to be a problem as well. S1 was a sort of push for Mike, strengthening that need to protect after spending a few days feeling helpless. He fought back against bullies during this season, but it’s not something he’d usually do given everyone’s reaction. He might’ve felt inadequate even then, and El still protects him so who knows how he felt.

In Beyond Stranger Things, Finn talks about how Mike craves that feeling of being needed El gave him, and how happy he was to feel useful again when Will needed saving.

(I like how Mike doesn’t even mention how El’s powers could be helpful, but rather her ability to understand what Will’s going through. Since he can’t relate, Mike shares how he’s been feeling since El’s disappearance, choosing to be vulnerable with Will so they’re on an equal playing field.)Being there for Will helping him see his ‘powers’ in a more positive light was gratifying for Mike, but then it got out of control again, out of his control.

Mike believes he doesn’t have the power to save because he’s not strong enough. Fortunately, he’s a lot more determined in S2 (I like to think it’s because Will is still in their dimension, like he can actually see and touch him so it can’t be that bad, but it’s absolutely that bad lmao). He assured Will that they wouldn’t allow the ‘shadow monster’ to spy back, but he does, so he has to keep Will from inadvertently hurting other people. They lose Bob, but that pushes Mike to act.

(S2: Episode 8 is just leader Mike in his prime I’m so proud every rewatch 🤧)

Bob was a hero in his own right. He didn’t have to fight to save them, and given that he was the original founder of the AV club, they technically look up to him (or his brain, but you get it)

Point is: Part of Mike’s arc is realizing he’s capable of protecting, of saving, just not in the way he’s always envisioned, and his contributions—ideas that are entirely his own—are a lot more helpful than he gives himself credit for.

S3 makes Mike’s character a little tough to watch, but that’s only when he’s centered on his relationship issues. When questioning his own worth, it was always: am I strong enough? And now it’s: am I mature enough? He can guide El through the fundamentals of human life, but it’s all improv when navigating a real relationship. Unfortunately, Mike still sees himself as lesser than her (reinforced in S4), and having her back to help them fight only pushes this.

In S2 it may have been easier since everyone around him was a regular person going up against something so much bigger than themselves. He could do about as much as them. When Will was struggling, there were moments where he could only stand there and watch, but they eventually pieced together a solution.

In S3, the sauna test only trapped Billy for a short time, and they could distract the meat flayer, but without El, Hawkins is toast (and proceeds to become toast in S4 even with her around so ykw maybe Mike's valid in his self-doubt wait who said that)

Anyway, identity is very important in ST, and Mike's 'regression' in S4 makes a lot of sense even if it sucks watching him try to be someone he's not when it seemed like he was a lot more sure of himself in earlier seasons.

(let's not forget that social pressures and traumatic experiences are leading factors of insecurity, so pls give my son some grace 🙏)

[skelteroid]

Wait how does the story with mary go???? Does Marlene ever go with Sirius?

okay so i’ve always loved the idea of marls realizing he’s into sirius when he’s going out with a (close) friend. i have this au set up in my mind where she hears them having sex through a wall and she feels awful about it because that’s her (best) friend’s boyfriend but she so desperately wishes to be her in that moment.

while on the other side we have sirius who’s going out with this friend of hers and is either hearing a lot about her and/or spending a lot of time hanging around each other as a result and he realizes that not only he has more in common with marlene, but that she gets him in a way not even james does. to james he has to actively explain things and talk about his issues. marlene on the other hand just gets it on a deeper level.

so if the friend is mary and marlene haven’t realized yet he’s into sirius, she does once he explains to her why he couldn’t say the words back at mary because 1) since when sirius black opens up about feelings around anyone, let alone her? and 2) his words feels oddly familiar (she’s also going out with someone and isn’t really that into him). so sirius breaks up with mary. they start spending a lot of time together. marls feels awful but reassures herself thinking they are just friends. they get each other. that’s all. that’s fiiiine (spoiler: is not, marls has kissed her bf twice now picturing sirius).

eventually they share a drunk kiss and marls tries to deny everything and avoid sirius at all costs. and mary because she can’t look at her straight in the eye. mary ofc has figured everything out and is mad about it, but with time she figures is really a matter of pride and respects the fact that marls is going to extreme lengths as to spare her feelings at the cost of her own. she’s also realizing she has feelings for someone else and was using sirius in a way to avoid looking into them so really, it’s not exactly good, but she feels she and sirius are even.

now if marlene already knows she’s into sirius at this point she will be the number 1 supporter of him and mary being the perfect couple to the point she doesn’t even realize they no longer want to be together so mary has to intervene and basically slap her in the face as to explain to her that she. marlene mckinnon. is irrevocably in love with sirius black. and sirius is with her. and can she please put everyone around them out of their misery and kiss the stupid guy already. pretty please.

marlene is offended and despite everything, she still tries to play hard to get but there’s no fooling sirius black, so eventually she surrenders. but only in the love field. quidditch and duel practices are still fair game.

also in this scenario mary and sirius get together after sirius is the one who defended her against mulciber and in time mary realizes that while mulciber is an ass (and obviously a bigot) sirius is not exactly much better, he’s just happens to be on her side, but still he’s a bully and an arrogant asshole. she really shouldn’t be surprise that things don’t work out between them.

(i also have this hc i’ve been carrying for ages where mary is the first in the group to die the summer before seventh year which makes marlene want to actively fight in the war and it makes things with sirius awful and complicated and emotional and fills her with dread and guilt but we’re not gonna talk about it)

[blonde-batgirl]

“Soccer and teams are born from an overwhelming striker.” This is what Isagi deduces Ego is thinking in chapter eight, following the match with Barou where Team X rapidly forms around him.

I have a theory that, pre-Blue Lock, Kunigami is used to being that overwhelming striker that teams form around. This is the fourth time I’ve taken a crack at writing this out, because it keeps getting far too long, so to make this easier we’re going to stick to the First Selection and split it into sections starting with…

The Team Y Match

In the Team Y match, Team Z have a bold new plan: each of them (except for Chigiri and Iemon) will be the striker the team revolves around for ten minutes of the game. During Kunigami’s turn, here is what Isagi thinks about his playstyle:

“He lets his teammates take care of moving the ball up… so then he’s free to go right to the front line! Rather than the penalty area, which is crowded with players, he positions himself just in front of it… receives a pass from his teammates… and once his teammates clear a space for him… he drives in the ball with his powerful left leg!!”

This is very much where this theory springs from. There’s repeated emphasis here on how much he allows his teammates to do for him. Within the Egoist Four, this makes Kunigami unique – the other three have all expressed the desire to go it alone at one point or another, whether its Isagi’s obsession with scoring his own goals, Bachira trying to take back his lonely soccer, or Chigiri declaring that his ideal self doesn’t want to pass. Additionally, we’ve seen both Bachira and Chigiri carry the ball up the field to the goal entirely on their own with their dribbling skills and speed respectively (Team V match and Manshine City match respectively). We also know that all three of them experienced some level of alienation from their previous teammates: Isagi felt like he couldn’t be himself around them, Bachira was himself (affectionate) and suffered for it, and Chigiri was also himself (derogatory) and got bullied by the Wanima brothers. We don’t really know anything about Kunigami’s backstory yet, but the fact that he’s so willing to rely on teammates he barely knows suggests he didn’t have that problem and implies that he's used to his teammates working to support his goals.

Speaking of which…

The Tag Game

One of Kunigami’s first acts as a member of Team Z is to try and enforce fair play during the tag game. This is after Ego has told them that the only rule is that they can’t use their hands. At this point, most of Team Z don’t even know each other’s names – he has no authority here and there’s no reason for him to believe that anyone will listen to him besides confidence or, perhaps, experience. He’s not doing this from a place of assumed equal footing either – even if some of the guys in the room didn’t know who Kira was, Igaguri has just loudly announced his identity.

It's worth bearing in mind here that we can only speculate on what Kunigami makes of Ego and this whole situation. Isagi, Chigiri, and even Imamura (at the start of the tag game) have established opinions on Ego’s trustworthiness. Kunigami is less bothered by being in the soccer Hunger Games than he is about said soccer Hunger Games not being adequately policed. As mentioned above, we do know that he puts a lot of emphasis on playing fair, and he always shares credit when he feels it’s warranted (yes, sharing the steak, but he also tells the rest of the team in chapter eight that his goal in the Team X match wouldn’t have happened without both Isagi and Bachira). Neither of these seem like very pro-Ego’s-philosophy character traits (although Raichi does point out that there could be a selfish motivation to sharing credit - if people keep passing to him, he can score more).

However, Kunigami plays pretty fast and loose with playing fair when it suits him…

The Team X Match and Kunigami VS Raichi

Technically, Team Z come into the Team X match with a plan. I say technically, because Raichi breaks formation almost immediately and Kunigami charges right after him. There are three ways to interpret this:

Learning from previous mistakes: he already tried enforcing fair play during the tag game and (shockingly) nobody listened

Pragmatism: yeah, he cares about fair play, but it’s not fair play if no one else is playing fair. If this is how things work here, then fine, he’ll play along

Blatant hypocrisy: this one is arguably backed up by Isagi’s thoughts over a panel of Kunigami, Raichi, and some of the Team X guys battling over the ball – “All of them are only thinking about themselves.”

Kunigami himself puts it down to the second one. Regardless, this throws Team Z into immediate disarray. As Team Z are all scrambling to be the main character, Barou is succeeding in becoming that on Team X. He overpowers the rest of his teammates and they promptly fall in behind him – after all, if their team comes in first or second overall, they all get through regardless of who scores. The only reason the same thing doesn’t happen on Team Z is that they’re the main characters none of them manage to score alone.

Kunigami does score in this match, but it’s not his goal that pulls the team together - it’s Isagi’s pass to him. With Barou coming at him, faced with a choice between Raichi (who was free) and Kunigami (who had a defender on him), Isagi chose to pass to Kunigami. Which brings us to one question: why does Isagi pass to Kunigami? Isagi himself tells Raichi that this was subconscious. Later, with the benefit of hindsight, Isagi hypothesises that he did this because he had personal experience with how hard Kunigami could kick and he thought Barou could potentially take on Raichi. But, as noted, Barou was on Isagi at the time and not really any closer to Raichi than he was Kunigami. Of course, this is Isagi’s weapon in its earliest stages – Isagi subconsciously realised that he himself could not beat Barou and, given a choice between Kunigami and Raichi, he identified Kunigami as the one overwhelming striker of the three of them.

To Conclude

I don't feel like I should be hitting post without adding some form of conclusion, so a quick summary of my argument: I think, pre-Blue Lock, Kunigami was used to being the one overwhelming striker that teams formed around and I think this informs his behaviour throughout the First Selection. This would also track with the rest of the Egoist Four, who all behave the way they do because of backstory baggage (Bachira has been lonely his whole life, Chigiri is terrified of reinjuring his leg, Isagi passed a ball once...) Once they're officially working together, Kunigami has no problem trusting his teammates to support him in scoring and he also comes into the story with the confidence to believe that he can lay down the law and people will actually listen to him (nope - ball to the face). Additionally, Isagi instinctively identifies him as the character most likely to make a goal out of the two of them and Raichi.

[idontblushsrry]

Love Language|| Jujutsu Kaisen

“I wanna be fluent in your love language. Learning your love language.” 

A/N: If you didn’t guess from the tagline this is inspired by the song love language by Kehlani. I’ll probably do more of these with different shows and what not because why not. If I missed anyone lmk and I can make a part 2. Also please tag spoilers appropriately esp for manga readers, that being said spoilers for the prequel? manga on Yuuta’s part.

Characters: Itadori, Fushiguro, Kugisaki, Maki, Inumaki, Okkotsu, Gojo, Nanami, Sukuna

Warnings: said it b4 but spoiler warnings in general but esp on Yuuji, Yuuta, and Maki’s parts

Plot synopsis: The 5 love languages; physical affection, quality time, words of affirmation, gift giving and acts of service, and how each jujutsu kaisen character shows their love and affection for you. Ft. a gender neutral reader!

Word count: 2352

Itadori Yuuji

Love Language: Quality time and physical affection

Ok listen-

So for physical affection, Yuuji’s just that kind of person

He is all about giving to you

He’s holding hands with you if you’re ever walking anywhere, and if you’re not a hand holder pls pls pls let him hold your pinky he likes the reassurance

No but seriously he loves to hold you like yall could be walking in completely opposite directions and he’ll try to find some way to hold onto you until the very last second

And even then he’s all ‘:( babe imy’

‘Yuuji we just talked 2 minutes ago’

Another way he shows his love is through quality time

I think for him this is the biggest thing overall, esp as a jujutsu sorcerer bcus you never know yk but also because you’re important to him

Like remember how he literally went to occult club so that he could get out of school in time to go visit his grandpa...ye :(

He also loves finding dumb touristy things to do with you while in Tokyo or anywhere yall go together on a mission 

If you get together before he died and came back then that time he had to spend away from you literally killed him

Like my mans was goin THROUGH it

He almost considered spoiling Gojo’s secret

When he sees you again, he’s not gonna let go for like a solid day

Fushiguro Megumi

Love Language: acts of service and words of affirmation

This boy loves you so much

He loves to tell you all the things he loves about you when you’re alone

But he’s a little awkward with his words sometimes, hence where acts of service come in

He’ll immediately offer to hold your things, run to help you train or study, and if you’re cold? He’s fully prepared to never see his jacket again

Also he can’t cook but he’s fully prepared to suffer hearing Sukuna and suffering through Yuuji’s antics if it means he can learn how to make your favorite food

He also will surprise you by making you a playlist of all the songs that you’ve had stuck in your head and sends it to you randomly out of the blue one day like ‘thought you might like this’

However the best of both worlds is when he leaves you little notes throughout the day or sends you texts asking if you need anything or just encouraging you to keep going 

Negl he’s lowkey the president of the Y/N support club bcus-

You need anything? It’s yours

Cravings? Sad? Angry? What do you need bby, I’ve got it for you

Also he’s totally the type to be like you need help fuckin this person up? 

Also before yall started dating, Fushiguro was a mess

He was constantly asking to spar with you and go on missions, basically anything he could do to be near you  

End of the day, Fushiguro loves you and makes sure you know it whether it’s through his actions or his words

Kugisaki Nobara

Love Language: physical affection

So, she’s not the best with words, she tries but like someone help her bcus she is LOST

Like when she had a crush on you she was like “c’mere dumbass i wanna give you a hug”

In fact, she still is like “c’mere” but now you are dating :)

She loves you though and at first she doesn’t really know how to show it 

But one day you both come home from training and you just look at each other like ‘yeah today sucks’ and yall both just held each other for the rest of the day 

After that, she decided that she wants to do that with you but like always

She’s holding your hand, kissing your cheek when you go shopping, etc. etc.

She really loves to cling to you because she always has this fear that maybe one day you’ll get killed or just disappear so she figures might as well hold onto you for as long as we’ve got

After missions, she’s running up to you and if you aren’t prepared for the tackle, you’re probably gonna fall

On dates too, like if you guys have to meet up for a date, she’s tackling you

On the subject of dates...

She doesn’t mind PDA, and while she might hold your hand or arm so that you don’t get separated

She also doesn’t mind wiping food off your face and eating it, only to then kiss the spot on your face the food was previously at

She will split her shopping load between the two of you, however she will be slightly pouty if she’s carrying more than you (she then cheers up when she realizes she can do more shopping to “balance” the two of you)

In private she’s very cuddly and kissy which honestly isn’t that bad until it gets hot

At which point she’ll just say turn on the ac or convince you to walk around in a tank top (or something like it) so that she can continue holding you

Tbh she prefers the big spoon, but if she’s ever upset you let her be the little spoon >:(

All in all a very loving girlfriend who tries her best to show how much she loves you by glomping you at any given moment. 

Zenin Maki

Love language: acts of service and quality time

So you’re telling me that Maki wouldn’t immediately go out of her way to make sure her and her s/o can spend as much time together as possible?????

Like she’s super observant (which can cause her to be a bit harsh, see Yuuta) but she can always tell what’s bothering you

So if you’re upset that you haven’t been spending enough time together due to her being out on missions or otherwise busy she’s immediately running to finish her stuff and spend time with you.

((She’s very sorry, but on the bright side she brought your favorites!))

Maki is also an acts of service type

This mostly ties in with her kind of direct action way of thinking

She thinks she’s slick but you can always see her sneaking around to do small things like grabbing your laundry for you and folding it

She’s very much like if you love someone, you gotta prove it

Overall, dates with her are very intimate and personal to the two of you

Like she’ll take you to a frog pond you landed in during a fight once

Or you’ll take her to a street fair that serves this exclusive food that Maki mentioned wanting to try 

However, Maki shows her love through quality time and acts of service and while she does receive love from these to a degree, she is very much a words of affirmation gal

She’s not insecure in her day to day life but she has her moments, everyone does

Sometimes, she’ll feel like shit and a failure and all she wants is for you to say that she’s doing amazing and that she’s a great girlfriend.

Inumaki Toge

Love language: Physical affection

Because of his curse, he can’t exactly express how he feels about you through words

He does text you frequently throughout the day (I’ll have to do a hc abt that someday)

But he’d prefer not to be on his phone to communicate if you’re right in front of him

So he does the next best thing and just smothers you in physical affection

He loves kissing you the most

Like he could spend hours just kissing you if you let him (please let him)

But in public, he gets if you’re not a big fan of pda he’s willing to tone it down as long as he gets kisses later in private

He’d still prefer it if you held his hand or linked pinkies maintaining touch in some way

Also, unrelated, but it means so much to him if you try to understand his sushi language

He knows realistically the foundation of any relationship is communication so already he’s at a disadvantage because of his curse 

But if he sees you like take notes after he says something or start to need him to text you to translate, his heart is swelling

Like ‘omg this person loves me enough to learn a whole new language <333′

Another tangent but before you were together he was struggling so muchhhh

Like how does one express their feelings for someone without words?

If you’re Inumaki, you buy some flowers and text said person to meet you at a cafe

It took an embarrassingly long time for you to realize it was a date, but once you did, you ever so gently linked pinkies with Toge

Okkotsu Yuuta

Love language: words. of. affirmation. 

He’s literally so sensitive please tell him you love him regularly

In return he’ll be sure to tell you how much he loves you too

He knows that he can’t really be there for you as much as he’d like but he likes to let you know that he’s thinking of you

Doesn’t matter the time, if you call, he’s answering

If he doesn’t he’ll cry he’ll immediately call you back and is apologizing for missing your call

You assure him it’s no big deal but the man has his volume turned all the way up and changed your ringtone to one specific for you by the time you’ve even said hey

Aside from that, he really is sensitive

He’s been through a lot especially with Rika as well as growing up alone and bullied 

So for him, it’s everything to hear that you like having him around and don’t think he’s too much or anything like that

Of course, he gets better with time, trusting you and having the confidence in himself to not need constant assurance

That being said, if you ever just whisper in his ear, “I love you, Yuuta.”

That’s not your boyfriend, that’s a puddle of love on the floor

(Maki, Panda, and Inumaki had a field day when they saw him, Fushiguro now questions if Yuuta really is a respectable 2nd year.)

Gojo Satoru

Love language: gift giving and quality time

So Gojo doesn’t exactly get to spend a ton of time

Between missions, him beefing with higher ups, and you and him playing parent the baby sorcerers yall don’t exactly get time to go out much

In which case Gojo tends to default to two options:

He’ll either go the extra mile to try and spend time with you 

Whether that be an at home date where he tries and fails to surprise you with a home cooked meal

Or a date out at a restaurant or cafe (which you tend to visit after his home cooking efforts)

OR he’ll bring you various souvenirs from his missions

He loves to spoil you, and if he could he’d probably bring you back a whole store’s worth of stuff

But alas, airport security regulations

Anyways, he loves to spoil you especially if he can spoil you with sweets because it benefits him in two ways 

He treasures all the time you spend together, and he does try to overcompensate for his absence with gifts

Despite your assurances, it’s kind of a guilty pleasure at this point (just let him, trying to argue just goads him on further)

He doesn’t only buy you small things, he enjoys buying you outfits

And he especially likes seeing you in them 

Kento Nanami

Love Language: acts of service

Y’all remember the episode where he killed that curse that was bothering that baker lady?? Yea that

He’s literally such an acts of service boyfriend it’s not even funny

Before you got together, he would memorize your coffee order and bring you a cup pretty much everyday like clockwork

Now that you’re togehter, he wakes up before you so h=that when you wake up there’s the smell of coffee throughout the house

When you come out of you’re shared bedroom and he’s just scrooling through his phone like “mornin’”

Of course you already made the bed and ironed his clothes because relationships are give and take

And then when you leave for your jobs in the morning, he kisses you and holds the door open for you

He’ll draw a bath for you if he gets home before you, if you let him join or not is up to you

Also, if you ever get sick, he’s actually the best

Like he isn’t the best cook but he can heat up soup and tea

He’ll run to the store while you’re asleep and when you wake up, there’s like a whole tray of food in front of you and he’s like ‘it’s important to eat and drink so your body can heal’

And when you inevitably fall asleep after eating and taking medicine at his insistence, he tucks you in and clears away the dishes, exiting with little more than a kiss to your head

Ryoumen Sukuna

Love Language: gift giving and acts of service

So like Sukuna never says he loves you...ever

But he does notice if someone or something’s making you uncomfortable, and if so, said entity’s head will be presented to you later that day

You also just so happen to be the only person he can tolerate being around him for longer than 20 seconds

He also loves to give you jewelry, he likes seeing you adorned in something from him

He also isn’t gonna just handle all your problems for you, he will push you to become stronger by training with you 

He’ll also expect this energy to be reciprocated, as long as you’re pushing yourself to be better, he’s content with that

(He wants to see you grow because he’s scared that if he ever gets caught lackin one day you’ll end up dead)

He’ll never tell you or admit it, but Sukuna truly does care for you and hold you in a regard that he doesn’t have for others

So be grateful jkjk

[marshmallowprotection]

Playing saeran‘s route again, and am currently on the part where suit saeran is. I have a habit of talking to myself and almost sorta responding to the characters as if they were in front of me… and holy the amount of sarcastic and a little bit of self depriving comments/jokes I make whenever he’s there. It’s not the mean kind it’s more so, just me giggling at myself and the dumb sarcastic comments I made to whatever suit saeran had said. Honestly though looking at he would most likely think I’m mocking him in a way, and probably wouldn’t like that. But I wanna sort of know what you think about it

Please, God. I am the master at talking to myself. I am always doing that and I will babble at the game, at the characters, at anyone who is making me feel something. This isn't really a problem since there are a lot of people who do this same thing. However, I should point out to you that if you have done this for a long time and you physically feel like the characters are there and you get lost in the fantasy, that's just maladaptive daydreaming. Which is...

Well, I lose a lot of time from the day when I daydream. I used that to cope with childhood trauma all the time and now struggle with longer bouts of dissociation and stuff. It's not great, but uh, that's not really what you asked me. I just have strong thoughts about people getting to the point where I am and have been. It's a struggle.

Now, I honest to God know Suit Saeran, Ray, and Unknown talk to themselves.

They do it all the time in canon and it's not really any sort of surprise to me given how much time they have alone to just exist in the darkness. They're alone all the time and they have nothing else to do with work. They're with their brain and thoughts... and sometimes you just talk looking for a reason to make a sound to make you feel less lonely. So, I know that they do that stuff and it can be intense since they go overboard with their intentions and what they fantasize about it.

Especially Ray.

He spent weeks trying to learn how to make you happy... closing his eyes and thinking about what you might do or say when he first met you. He mentions it in his diary as he worries he may not be good enough for you. He builds this idea of you in his head that screams “you’re perfect and every time I close my eyes, I see us together in a field of flowers where nothing goes wrong.” But, he gets so afraid and caught up in his head!

Unfortunately, Suit Saeran often projects insecurities, too. I can't put it past him to not insult you or bother you. He will eventually feel bad about it later, but he sees these things in you that Ray struggled with and it's hard for him to stomach the fact that other people do what they do to get by. It's weird, it's difficult, and for some reason, he is upset that you can do that and he can't. You’re doing these things that Ray did... and you’re not in trouble for it. It’s not fair to him.

You know, because anything Ray did to survive is now "weak" and "meant to be destroyed."

It’s not fair that whatever he does or wanted... it’s not supposed to be his. So, you know, it’s kind of like how Ray could have love and he can’t. He’s denied the experiences he desires because it could get him thrown into the basement. It’s this whole thing with his sense of strength so be ready for him to go off the rails about this stuff. He’ll degrade you about doing it, about how Ray did that, and so on and so forth. He will not be nice at first, but it’ll be no different than his usual bullying.

Talk to yourself if you want. Suit Saeran will see it as nothing more than another reason why you and Ray were meant to be together... and he’s meant to have a world of nothingness no matter how hard he fights to understand what he wants and desires deep down inside. You’re not weird for it... he just won’t be able to understand that until later on when he’s had time to think clearly about what is right and wrong.

Even if you blurt something out that confuses him, it won’t be out of line with what he already does.

[female-malice]

Swimming — like most sports at elite level — is tough. It demands early starts, long, gruelling hours of training, absolute dedication, and utter, single-minded determination.

You must face down disappointment and criticism and carry on. The mental resilience I developed as an Olympic swimmer — I competed in the 1976, 1980 and 1992 Games — has served me well over the past four years as I have campaigned for fair sport for females in the face of a ferocious campaign by a small but aggressive trans- activist lobby.

They have unleashed horrific, often misogynistic abuse and intimidation on anyone who disagrees with them. They issued threats to me and my children, calling me a ‘transphobe’, a ‘bigot’ and far worse.

I barely worked for three years because trans activists made my life hell. I have many friends in the transgender community, and all I have ever wanted is fairness. But the trans-bullies don’t care about that.

Their aim is to silence me, and anyone else who believes in a level playing field — if you’ll pardon the pun — in sport.

Transgender activists can do or say anything, it seems — no matter how vile — while those who disagree with them are silenced.

But, at last, common sense has prevailed, at least in swimming.

FINA, the world governing body, has passed a policy (with a 71 per cent majority) barring anyone who has experienced male puberty, or who has not transitioned by the age of 12, from elite female competitions. It did so after consulting members of 152 national swimming federations.

I couldn’t be more pleased about this decision, which was welcomed by the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, Nadine Dorries, yesterday.

It means that female-born swimmers who dedicate their childhood and youth to reaching the very highest level will no longer face being beaten before they have even begun — not by superior talent or training, but by biology.

Because that is what happens if female athletes are forced to compete against those born male who passed through male puberty before transitioning.

In swimming, the issue was brought to worldwide attention when, earlier this year, Lia Thomas, a transgender American swimmer, was photographed beside swimmers she’d beaten in a race.

The wider public immediately recognised the absurdity of the fact that someone who had been ranked 554th in the country when competing as a man beat three women with Olympic medals.

Why must feelings be allowed to trump biological realities? Whatever happened to equality?

Men and women’s bodies are biologically different from birth. After puberty, when testosterone levels in males increase, these differences are multiplied and magnified, permanently.

Larger lungs and hearts give biological males more oxygenated blood, greater muscle mass, greater bone density — and an overwhelming physical advantage that no amount of testosterone-suppressing drugs will eliminate.

Mediocre biological males will always beat even elite female athletes.

In America there are 13 and 14-year-old boys in the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle who all swim faster than the women’s world record holders in these events.

I have some experience of this, to my cost. In the Olympics, I lost out to swimmers representing what was then East Germany who had been dosed with testosterone by their coaches, giving them on average a nine per cent advantage.

In Moscow in 1980 I was beaten to gold by Petra Schneider, who later admitted to taking testosterone.

Without it, she would have been 17 seconds behind me. The injustice still smarts.

My father, who was my swimming coach, spoke out against this. Strangely, he was never selected as an international coach despite training Olympic medallists.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) didn’t want to acknowledge the truth. Then, as now, it put politics and money above athletes.

I have more than one friend who came fourth in an Olympic final behind three testosterone-fuelled East German women.

My friends should have got gold, and if they had their lives might have been different, enabling them to build careers on their Olympic success. But today nobody even knows their names.

This injustice is partly why I have committed myself to fighting for fairness in female sport. Nobody stood up for my generation in the 1970s and 1980s.

But my campaign is also fuelled by the many phone calls and emails I have received from young female athletes and their coaches and parents.

Many are desperate: how can they and their families sacrifice so much — training before school and after school, and at weekends, as I did — when they would have no chance of winning against transgender competitors?

The young female athletes themselves cannot speak out. They are barred from doing so by their sports’ governing bodies which, like the IOC, tend to be dominated by men who make decisions behind closed doors, without consulting anyone except the trans lobby.

That is what the IOC did in 2015 when it changed its guidelines to enable anyone who has self-identified as a woman for a year and reduced their testosterone levels to ten nanomoles per litre of blood to compete alongside women.

Until then, you needed to have had surgery and lived as a woman for many years. Almost no one was in that position.

As far as I am aware, no athletes or governing bodies were consulted; nor were any independent scientists.

Despite this week’s victory, the battle is far from over. Incredibly, while FINA has listened to unbiased scientists, FIFA — football’s governing body — has just done the opposite, reversing a decade of hard-won gains for women in football by drawing up regulations suggesting that anyone who identifies as a woman is welcome in the women’s game. They don’t even have to take testosterone suppressants.

This is discriminatory and dangerous — women will be pushed out by biological males who are stronger and faster.

Forcing women and girls to compete against trans athletes who were born male leads not to greater inclusion, as activists claim, but to exclusion. It will push women out of sports, including cricket and rugby, where they have made great strides.

How will they get selected for a team or attract sponsorship if sponsors know they will never win because they are competing against those born male who are bigger, faster and stronger?

Those of us who point out these obvious, scientific facts are vilified.

Yet in a recent Twitter survey of 60,000 respondents — young athletes, parents, coaches and the public — 97 per cent thought that male-born athletes should not compete in female sport.

FINA has done what no other governing body has done. It consulted athletes, coaches and, most importantly, scientists, who were unequivocal: hormone suppressants cannot mitigate against the advantages male puberty brings.

Other sports’ governing bodies must follow FINA in recognising this, otherwise women will be eliminated from competitive sport altogether, turning the clock back a century.

FINA’s decision doesn’t exclude transgender athletes, despite what the trans-bullies claim. FINA is consulting on the possibility of a third category open to anyone, including trans athletes.

And transgender men and non-binary athletes — born female — often opt to compete in women’s competitions, against other biological women (provided they have not taken testosterone), as seen in U.S. college championships and the Tokyo Olympics last year.

Categories have always existed in sport to ensure fairness: we don’t have under-15s competing against under-11s, or heavyweight boxers against bantamweight. It would be dangerous and unequal.

Likewise, Paralympic sport categorises people according to their disability.

Common sense and science must prevail similarly when it comes to trans athletes.

We cannot throw fairness for female athletes under the bus of inclusivity and see female sport destroyed while men’s sport carries on unaffected.

The Government must instruct publicly funded sports’ governing bodies to ensure that girls and women can compete equally — that is, with each other — from the grassroots level upwards.

Otherwise, where will tomorrow’s female Olympians come from?

[poisonedlovedarling]

OH MY GODS!!! I love MOXIE!

So I just watched the new Movie MOXIE! And Yes! I loved it! (BTWs Spoilers Ahead!)

So I watched MOXIE! And I love it! Not just because it shows female empowerment at its best and worst, but because it shows the consequences of going about a rebellion the wrong way. I say Yeah stand up for what you believe in but don't go pushing people down while doing it.

Moxie puts this on full display! Feminism isn't about pushing up by pulling men down. It's about Making all people equal by pushing everyone up on a level playing field.

In the movie, they do this by showing the truth of going about fighting the toxic way, that fighting can be toxic and claims can be unfounded. Showing that yeah fighting is hard and there will always be new roadblocks, new glass ceilings. There will be people who want to silence you and people who will stand with you without raising their own voice. Yet fighting battles in a way that silences any voice that disagrees with you or may sound different. Is toxic and makes your cause become the problem you were trying to fight against.

I like the movie because though the main character has a love interest, but their relationship is a side story. I went online to find another movie like it. However, it was labeled under romance and I got nothing but romances as suggestions. Not movies that will inspire me to do something, like MOXIE does but instead suggest that romance is all I need. MOXIE! Is not a romance movie, it's a message about the ways to go about change in our world. Our main character eventually gets way too into her female empowerment and takes everything that doesn't follow her views and puts it down.

Just because the two men at the table aren't including her in a conversation she takes it as they don't think she's good enough to include. When all that happened is that they found a common interest and were talking, she just didn't seem to want to participate in anything to do with the dinner. Which is why they hadn't included her out of respect not because they didn't want to.

The double standards throughout the film were apparent and a few were addressed. Such as the fact that a busty girl was pulled out of class for her tank top, while a not-so-busty girl wasn't. While on another hand a guy in the school who kept taking off his shirt and harassing the female students was ignored and never even talked to about his behavior.

When another male was bullying a girl and when she tried to report it she was shut down and told not to use certain langue that would make the principal have to take action against that male student. However when the same male student said that he was being bullied; which in a way he was. The point the movie was trying to give what that he wasn't ignored, and was even allowed to speak up about it in front of the entire school.

Things that would allow the students to fight back were kept from being told how they could go about it properly, though to be fair they didn't try to go looking for those methods and just took it all as blatant insults to their cause.

They also put in the movie that men were also supporting the cause, and the teachers weren't legally allowed to do anything without fear of losing their jobs. One particular male student supported the female's cause from the sidelines. In his way, he was showing support without trying to take it over or make it about him. He honestly was the least toxic character in the movie. Sure perhaps his support was to get the girl he liked to like him back, but he didn't stop her and even tried to voice his option when he thought was going too far. Like when she started defacing the school property.

Yes, what she did was toxic in a way, she could have been heard without making others feel bad. Stickers that she forced on people saying they were A**holes weren't positive and shouldn't be the way to fight. She cause was seen sure but people were hurt along the way. We saw that when her best friend took the fall for the actions of the main character. This movie is great in its own way and deserves to not be just labeled as another love story.

[sleeping-lilies]

robin era jason, dick, and babs headcanons because there’s too much comedic potential to ignore

- dick and babs were the ultimate gossip buddies. whenever dick was with the titans for long periods of time, babs always filled him in on everything

babs: dick you’ll never believe what hal said to bruce last night, i even have videos. dick, the look on his face please—

dick, immediately locking doors so his teammates don’t hear the mad shit about to be dropped on main: tell me everything

- vice versa too, dick filled babs in on everything going on with the titans and all they can say is thank god those lines are bat secured with no villains being able to listen in, imagine deathstroke hearing through bat gossip that joey’s dating who?!?! 😳

- batkids have been and always will be the holder of superhero gossip. it’s a business, you see, but we’re getting off topic 😡

- lmfao anyways this is literally how dick finds out about jason

babs: anyways, jason—

dick: who the fuck is jason

babs: ....

dick: barbara?!?!

babs: ok promise you won’t freak out

- babs and dick’s first reaction upon meeting jason being “why is he so small i wasnt that small” “dick you were literally nine when you were robin—“ “he’s tiny” it’s like those two share the same braincell

- i’m making it so that dick gave jason his number earlier because i feel like it 😡😡😡 (not that it changes much other than the fact that i want more gossip dropped in dm’s)

- when dick gave jason his number, he went to babs like “give me jason’s number” “didn’t you literally just give him your’s?” “ya but i’m gonna make sure he texts me” “ya ok that’s fair”

- whenever jason didn’t want to be in the manor (fight with bruce, boredom, etc) he went to wherever the fuck babs lived and they would facetime dick and talk mad shit. it was a thing.

- despite them all being able to drive, babs was the only one during this time with an actual, legitimate, legal license (jason was too young to have a license and dick is too lazy/busy/whatever-excuse-he-wants-to-use to take the permit and driving test) so babs drove them around everywhere and it was a mess™ consisting of a bunch of backseat drivers

- “dick omg look at this video i found from the batcave” “omg he said robin gives him magic” “robin gives him magic” they both cry about it for years to come

- babs sometimes kidnapped jason after school after telling the head of wayne manor (alfred) and took him to get ice cream, then to the library while she worked. jason was the greatest kid in the library, he even had his own throne special chair just for him whenever he came provided by library staff who adored this absolute angel.

- jason 🤝 babs 🤝 dick -> i believe in annoying yet endearing nicknames supremacy

- nicknames include (some used by some more than others or just one, or by both equally because they’re annoying pick and choose my good people)

little wing (iconic, we all know this one fellas and who uses it)

red (used for babs, absolutely fantastic, but in the future it gets confusing because some people with their goddamn hero names 😡)

boy wonder (classic, babs calls them both that)

barbie (for babs, jason uses this one and he’s the only one able to get away with it)

dickie (jason just really gets away with everything huh)

dickhead (jason’s lucky he’s cute)

baba black sheep (jeez i’m on a roll with babs’ nicknames she’s so nickname-able and that’s very cool and sexy of her)

jay z

jay allen

jay jay jay (shut up, dickhead—)

big bird

and a bunch more i’m too tired to look for them in canon or make new ones up, but you get the idea

- dick can totally bake, and babs and jason keep bugging him when he’s baking and add more chocolate chips while pretending to not notice that he can see them 😡😡😡

- headcanon that jason had hero worship for babs and dick because they’re so cool in and out of costume and it never really went away when he got older listen his older brother and pseudo sister are so cool and that’s not his fault but he’ll never admit it

- barbie movie marathons because barbie is an iconic legend and they all recognize it. they have the fucking “she’s the queen of the WA-A-A-AVES” song memorized along with all other barbie movie songs, they sing it on patrol.

- dick and jason’s sibling dynamic was and is basically “ur a little shit and i hate you but i will literally kill for you”

- dick had tension with bruce while jason was just a little shit who would totally cause drama for the sake of it, and people never take advantage of this absolute power duo for destroying bruce

- dick sending cryptid texts to jason through a burner phone because he’s dramatic jason totally knew it was him about things that drive bruce mad, like leaving the shower turned to the coldest setting before bruce got there, leaving the lights in the batcave on, etc. jason, a wise little child, totally took advantage of this. bruce came to accept his fate

- the gc names, guys the group chat names

- jason crashing into titans tower whenever he wants and dick doesn’t bat (hAH) an eye, occasionally he very sweetly asks babs to come with him and she agrees but only sometimes because some people have jobs, jason—wait dick is being flirted with by who?!?! i’ll leave it up to your imagination ;) and they totally crashed titans missions too

- one time bruce was busy with the league while alfred was on vacation and bruce absolutely could not dip (i’m imagining bruce getting a call from the headmaster during an honest to god fight and bruce just picking up while punching the daylights out of some asshole) (“mr wayne, what is that noise in the background?” “sorry, headmaster, the cat is having a seizure”), so when jason got into a “fight” (read: some jackass picking on jason before he snapped and yelled at him and the bitchass kid tried to punch him and jason’s no quitter) bruce called dick who was an adult and legally family (yes dick is adopted sometime after jason was, stay mad) like “son... son please” and dick was like “oh no need to plead with me, this is too good” but of course this bitchass doesn’t have an actual lisence yet and he was hanging out with babs anyways so he and babs rolled up to gotham academy and the kids stared at them like “holy shit they’re so cool” ya dick and babs are those power couple, whether romantic or not, that turn heads, they’re just that powerful strolled into the office, bailed jason out while intimidating the headmaster because the altercation was the result of school staff negligence of actual bullying like those cliche tropes, said “ayyy you got that brat good” and get him chili dogs or whatever the fandom made robin jason’s favorite food. omg i just made an entire fanfic in rough draft form someone please steal it and write it in full form and send me the link

- jason is very very tiny, you see. babs and dick pick him up and move him for any reason, whether because they want to sit on that chair or to just throw him out of harm’s way and take the bullet for themselves.

- jason and dick both get adorable blushes on their faces it’s genetic yes that’s how genetics work shut up meanwhile babs’ ears turn red when she’s embarrassed and all three of them clown each other for it

- i yelled about this to my mutual (cough cough @littlespaceboii) who also added to this absolute dogshit headcanon and then in the discord full of mutuals, but the basement of wayne manor is haunted. dick found it when he was a little gremlin (i stand by that dick was the original demon child) (“you see damian, before there was you there was me” the real reason he was good with damian lmfao) and was like “omg this is so cool” @littlespaceboii came up with that it was just alfred fucking with bruce and so when jason first came and dick was comfy around him he was like “so have you been in the basement” and jason was like “im literally robin i’ve been in the batcave?!?!” and dick goes “no the basement, the haunted one” and jason’s like “hAUNTED?!?!” cuz jason has at least some self preservations and knows not to fuck with the spookies until he too became a spooky and bruce was like “there’s no ghost it’s not haunted” because he’s a skeptic and a party pooper and babs is like “no go on let him finish” even though she knows full well there are no ghosts or does she? and uhhhh basically they becomes ghostbusters 2.0 but cooler and funnier

- this trio is basically baby pan/bisexual jason and two resident expert pan/bisexuals solidarity but that’s literally canon. they go to pride every year that jason’s alive what who said that?

- they all tease each other for their crushes like all siblings/family friends do, i don’t need to say it but it’s important that’s emphasized for my well being

- yelled about this in the discord to the mutuals who added onto this absolute train wreck too, but jason used to play baseball during his robin days, and dick never showed up to those games with being busy as an excuse, but babs always showed up with bruce and alfred and took pictures for dick so dick could be like “mlb players are jobless now that little wing is on the scene” babs (and sometimes bruce) always shouted loudest for jason whether he was in the field or in the dugout and jason would get this extremely adorable blush on his face (jason finds out in the future why dick never showed up (cough cough ptsd from two face’s massive baseball bat which led to everything that came after including being fired and veangance academy and nearly killing two face and omg that’s a ride) and is like oh my god my childhood is even more ruined—)

- remember when i said dick got adopted after jason did in this new absolutely fabulous canon i just created? bruce did that because “ahhh fuck that’s my kid and i want him to know i love him through every means possible since i have the ability to do so” i believe in good dad bruce supremacy and made a whole thing where he invited dick to dinner for like a week to work up the courage and bonding to ask him and show him the adoption papers and then everyone cried :) bruce decided to finally adopt dick after jason referred to dick as his brother and bruce was like “...oh” and alfred was like 👀

- dick, as the first child hero and one of the first heroes period like at least a year or two before babs, holds the “back in my day” card over literally everyone in the hero community in general and pulls it out to annoy babs and jason even tho babs literally joined the scene only a year or two after dick

jason, shaking in his panties: it’s so fucking cold

dick, standing strong in his tits out outfit, who had to wear the panties on his own decision: oh, you’re cold? back in my day—

babs, throwing her boot at his face: god shut the fuck up—

and then dick doesn’t give back her boot and it becomes a whole thing with lots of tackling and play fighting and someone nearly gets thrown off they rooftop for funsies but anyways

also on a side note, babs would take off her cape and wrap it around jason whenever she noticed his discomfort with the weather, or use the weather as an excuse whenever she saw him uneasy for whatever reason and they never mention it to each other

- yelled about this in the discord to the mutuals at some point too holy shit i have friends, but those three are team rocket. they went out as team rocket for halloween one year after bullying bruce to let jason out only jason because he can’t tell dick and babs what to do and jason is under his care and when they do convince him, dick and babs bully jason into being meowth. manifesting jason in a meowth onesie ARTISTS PLEASE—

- dick finally took his license seriously and took his driver’s test after babs became paralyzed.

- those were a rough few months for those three. and then another rough few months for those two

- yikes, sorry to throw angst at you (sorry (unfeeling)) anyways, in the future alfred finds those old photos and shows the rest of the fam, so dick and babs bully jason, 6’2 jason that towers way above both of them, and once again bullies him into being meowth “for tradition, little wing!” “shut up, dickhead” the rest of the batkids lose their shit over this, naturally. bruce and alfred stand in the back teary eyed reminiscing the old days when things were a little more simple.

- discowing walked so terrifying handsome squidward red hood helmet could run (even tho the ugly helmet tripped and fell and missed the mark because discowing wasn’t ugly and will always remain superior, i feel i have committed a terrible crime comparing the two)

dick: jason what the fuck is that

jason: it’s fashion

dick: it’s terrifying

jason: i’m only following in my older brother’s footsteps 😔

dick: listen here, you little shit strangles him haha just kidding that illegal wait theyre vigilantes they don’t follow the law—

- these three and cass refer to the rest of the batkids as “the kids” (if she’s older than jason, sometimes she is and sometimes she isn’t and i’m really confused but whatever)

- babs and dick’s relationship with jason pre death literally shaped how jason treats his siblings post pit madness like he literally goes “what would red and big bird do?!??” when he needs to go into big brother mode over the “little ones” (“little” because tim and steph are adults and duke is nearly an adult himself oh my god he’ll graduate from high school soon and jason never got to do that himself he’s totally going to the ceremony legally dead or not) 🥺

- holy trinity continue hanging out with each other, whether lunch or games or whatever, and just enjoy each other’s company after long, rough years

[storiesforallfandoms]

stood up ~ draco malfoy;harry potter

word count: 1625

request?: no

description: after being stood up on a date, an unlikely replacement decides to join her

pairing: draco malfoy x female!reader

warnings: swearing

masterlist

Against my better wishes, I checked the time on my watch again. I had been waiting at The Three Broomsticks for nearly an hour on the arrival of my date, and so far there was nothing.

I watched my fellow Hogwarts students laughing and having a good time together. I searched through the crowds of people to see if I could see his face, but he wasn’t even there with any of his friends. I sighed heavily and chugged down the rest of my Butterbeer. I began to collect my things when the door to the Three Brooksticks opened and in walked a familiar head of bright blonde hair.

Draco showed up alone, very unusual for him. I was used to seeing him being tailed by his little entourage and his obsessed non-girlfriend. Not that he seemed to mind being alone, in fact he seemed much happier with his goon squad behind him.

His eyes searched the room, presumably for an empty table, before landing on me. I awkwardly shuffled and quickly looked away. I didn’t have any ill will towards Draco, we never really spoke. But I knew of his reputation. Who didn’t? The last thing I wanted was for my first introduction with him to be after being stood up. I knew he’d have a field day with that.

Just my luck, he began to move towards me. I was too awkward to even think to move. I just looked away from him, trying to stay focused on my empty mug.

“Is this seat taken?”

His voice made my heart leap into my chest. I looked up at him and saw his piercing blue eyes looking back down into mine, almost looking right through me.

I couldn’t form a proper sentence, so I just nodded. Draco smiled and nodded towards my mug. “Want another one?”

“You don’t have to,” I started, but before I could say anything else Draco was taking my mug and making his way to the bar. When he returned, I smiled sheepishly at him. “Thanks.”

“Least I could do,” he said as he sat down. “You seemed a little down when I walked in.”

“I’m surprised you cared,” I blurted before I could stop myself. I felt my face burning with embarrassment as Draco raised an eyebrow at me. “Wh-What I mean is-is we’re not exactly...acquaintances or anything. I didn’t even know you knew I existed.”

“I guess you have a point,” Draco said, taking a sip of his Butterbeer. “I figured you were alone and said, I was alone, maybe I’d try to talk to you.”

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Very unusual for a Slytherin to want to talk to a Hufflepuff, but I suppose I’ll take it. Better than sitting here waiting for a date who isn’t going to arrive.”

I looked down at my Butterbeer before taking a mouthful of it. The look on Draco’s face turned to one of concern as I spoke. “A date that won’t arrive? What nutter would stand you up?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at this. “You are giving me far more credit than I deserve. But, if you must know, it was Seamus Finnigan.”

A laugh slipped from Draco’s lips before he could stop himself. I glared at him and started collecting my things again. Quickly, he took hold of my arm to get me to sit down again. “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just laughing that you’d even say yes to a oafish git like him.”

I shrugged, although I knew he was right. Seamus wasn’t exactly the most popular kid, and dating him would be a constant threat of being blown up. But he seemed so sweet, I just couldn’t turn him down. I figured he would make for at least a memorable first date, if nothing else.

I didn’t peg Seamus for the type to stand someone up. I figured he would’ve warned me before he cancelled the date. It’s not like he didn’t have ample opportunity, he had even told me the day before he’d meet me at the Three Broomsticks.

“He seemed nice,” I admitted. “And no one exactly shows interest in me, so I thought...why not? Bad decision on my part now, obviously.”

“More like bad decision on his part. Anyone who would stand you up is a nutter.”

I was shocked at Draco’s kind words. For all I had known, today was the first day he knew I even existed. I was shocked he felt so comfortable saying these things to me, although after being stood up, I was also sure he was just playing a prank on me.

“You don’t even know me,” I mumbled. “How can you confidently make those remarks?”

“Because, even if I don’t know you, I know I have eyes.”

I didn’t know how to respond to this. I had never met someone so brave to say these things to anyone, let alone to say them to me. My whole life, I had just been very...plain looking. I was told that I had hit a “good puberty” during the summer between my fifth and sixth year, but even then I hadn’t attracted too much attention.

Not to mention that Draco’s little non-girlfriend and her group of friends loved to make fun of most of the girls that weren’t a part of their circle, even other Slytherin girls. Because I was also pretty smart academically, I found myself the target of their bullying often. It was hard to think of yourself otherwise when a group of girls are constantly mocking you for everything.

“You’re cute when you’re embarrassed,” Draco said with a smile. He took another mouthful of his Butterbeer, leaving a foam moustache against his upper lip.

I giggled. “You’re cute with a foam moustache.”

He laughed at this as well and wiped the moustache off with the back of his sleep.

“So, you sure Pansy and her girls didn’t put you up to this?” I asked, my eyes darting around the room to see if Pansy was hidden somewhere among the crowd of students.

“Pansy is back at the castle sulking because I turned her down after she asked me out,” Draco responded. “And her friends don’t actually like her, they just hang out with her for the status.”

That feeling of worry slowly came off my shoulders. His answer seemed genuine, which meant that he wasn’t doing this on a dare.

We continued to talk for a few hours. I got our next round of Butterbeers, and Draco got the next found after that. The students were slowly starting to file out of the Three Broomsticks as the skies began to grow dark, and it wasn’t until the owner told us we should be heading back to the castle.

On the way back, Draco walked so close to me that our hands kept brushing against one another. At first, I pulled away thinking I had just bumped him, but when it kept happening I realized it was because he wanted it to happen. Every time our hands touched, I felt a light spark of electricity go through me. I wanted nothing more than to take Draco’s hand in mine, but I figured I should let him make the first move.

When we finally arrived at the castle, Draco stopped outside. I turned to face him, confused by his sudden stop.

“I feel like I should tell you something before we go our separate ways tonight,” he admitted. I felt my heart race, afraid of what he was about to say next. “I...I actually came looking for you today. I wasn’t planning on going to Hogsmeade but...I heard Finnigan talking about how he wanted to cancel your date but didn’t have the guts to. I knew you were going to be waiting at the Three Broomsticks alone today, and that you were going to wind up disappointed with the outcome.”

It was a slight pain in my heart to know that Seamus was aware he was standing me up, but I was able to push that aside with the warm feeling of knowing that Draco had specifically come looking for me because he knew I was being stood up. “And that made you want to come find me?”

“It did. I didn’t think it was fair what he was doing to you, you don’t deserve that.”

I put my hands in my pockets, now cold from the chilly air. “Okay, that brings me to my neck question...why do you care so much?”

Draco ran a hand through his nearly white hair. “I...I think you’re really pretty, and really nice. I never thought you’d ever like me since...well, I know I’m not the nicest person in Hogwarts. But I decided to try tonight, it was killing me not to know what your reaction would be.” He shrugged as he put his hands in his pockets, mirroring my image. “So...now it’s out there. It’s up to you what you’d like to do.”

I couldn’t help but smile at Draco before looking down at the ground in front of me. I pushed around a stray pebble with the toe of my boot as I said, “If you promise not to stand me up, I’d like to go out on another date sometime.”

I could hear the smile in his voice as he responded, “Another date?”

“Well, yeah. First dates are way too awkward, we should just could today as ours and see where things go from there.”

“Okay, I’d like that a lot. I’ll send you the details of our next date when I come up with them.”

I giggled as I responded, “I’ll be waiting.”

I’ll be real, I was high while writing half of this so I’m sorry if it’s so bad.

[kaleidoarms]

RWBY: Unknown Semblances (Part 1?)

Semblances have always interested me, so much so that I’ve developed a surefire process to come up with interesting ones that feel somewhat true to their character without fail. It works for developing OCs, but I always wondered how it might look if I did the same for some canon characters who never had their semblances revealed/never unlocked one.

Penny: Buddy System

Penny has always been a friend-oriented person, especially during Volume 7 & 8, and actively takes risks to protect others with less regard for her own safety. 

The semblance I chose for her takes this aspect of her personality and pushes it harder - “Buddy System” allows Penny to identify attacks directed at her allies and coat them in a one-hit cloak of her own aura, using it to prevent that hit from landing on her friends, but costing some of her own protection in the process.

Watts: Clock Speed

Watts didn’t have a semblance - in fact, he canonically never unlocked one, but I like to imagine he did have one and didn’t know it (or couldn’t admit his actions weren’t attributed simply to his genius).

When interacting with technology, Watts’ calculation, operation and general brain processes become infinitely faster than that of the average person. 

This explains how he managed to literally live edit a broadcast as it was being recorded.

Lionheart: Overlook

Once a more resolute man according to Ozpin, Lionheart’s semblance allowed him to passively make foes forget some of their tools of the trade. In his prime he would throw himself into fights with the Grimm, making Boarbatusks neglect their ability to turn into a buzzsaw or depriving Sulfur Fish of the knowledge they could combine as a swarm - he was a shoo-in for any fight against the Apathy - making the playing field much more manageable for his allies.

Unfortunately, Overlook is also useful against humans. One might ask “Why didn’t Ruby use her semblance to get to Jaune and Cinder?” or “Why did Mercury not use his death tornado move?” Overlook is the answer. With Lionheart in the room, many of those at the Battle of Haven, and many of his students prior, were often prone to forgetting abilities or weapons in their arsenal.

This one builds on an idea from an ask I received. It’s kind of a play on how characters forgot some of the stuff they could do during the battle of Haven.

Cardin: Cauterize

As a bully, Cardin wants to dish out as much pain as possible without feeling the consequences. The semblance we picked for him was inspired by this, as well as his allusion to Henry Beaufort, who oversaw Joan of Arc’s trial and eventual burning at the stake.

As his body temperature rises, Cardin takes less damage and feels less pain - allowing him to dish out more while suffering less backlash. This is aided by the inclusion of a fire dust crystal in his mace.

Under the cut is my original idea for Lionheart, which I felt was a little too similar to Ironwood’s “Mettle”;

Lionheart: Mediate

Once a more resolute man according to Ozpin, Lionheart’s semblance allowed him to be a bold force in any discussion -- but later become another tool in his arsenal of cowardice. “Mediate” allowed him to literally lock away and temporarily forget his opinions and bias on any topic so they could not cloud his judgement, and in doing so become the perfect neutral party in any discussion.He could see two sides of an argument equally, and help the parties come to an agreement or compromise. Was it bold to guide any situation to a fair conclusion, or was it cowardice to not take sides?

...Perhaps it makes sense that his semblance later became a tool for him to hide his actions and pull the trigger on Mistral's huntsmen.

[evera6234]

Gotham’s Salty WIP: Chapter II

CHAPTER I

RATING: T (Teen for cursing and stuff, this may change)

SUMMARY: 

Basically, the typical Daminette with a bit of lime and spice. Borderline crack fic bc i cant without humor. 

Marinette Dupain-Cheng goes to Gotham whilst carrying three years worth of emotional baggage, what she does with it, we don't know. Does she lug it around? Probably. Does she kick it off a skyscraper? Not probable, but maybe. Does she use it to drop kick an unsuspecting liar. Most definitely.                ~~~> EDITED BY OLLIETHETURTLE ON AO3

Transferred from AO3. 

Lemme know if u wanna be tagged

   “Yeah, your signatures don’t line up…” says the man at the front desk. “You said your name was… Lila Rossi, right? I’m looking for a... Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

   “Present,” an amused Marinette announces.

   “No! There must have been a mistake. I personally talked to Brucie and his 4 sons, Jason Grayson, Tim Todd, Dick Drake and my precious Damibear!”

   “Yeah no. That 100% didn’t happen. 100%,” the somewhat peeved front desk attendant grins.

   “How dare you talk to Lila like that! What’s your name? Give me your manager's number!” Alya fumes in a french accent (A/N: total karen moment intentionally placed). 

   “My name is Andrew Winston, and my supervisor….”

   “Hey Andrew, what’s poppin!” says a voice. After observation one could say that said voice comes from a tall muscular man, with a white streak in his hair, wearing a leather jacket.

   “My blood vessels, Jason. My blood vessels. Why are you here? You weren’t supposed to be here today.”

    “Yeah, Dick broke his arm yesterday at home. He fell down the stairs. And since I am such an amazing brother, I decided that I would fill in for him today!”

   “You were forced,” concludes Andrew as he scratches out Lila’s name off the previously mentioned thicc stack of papers with a black marker. 

   “Yup.”

   “This is the class you are supposed to caddy around WE. And they seem to be a bit peeved right now.”

   Jason sighs, “Ok. what’s the issue…”

   “They are saying that Lila Rossi, here” Andrew points to Lila, then looks down at his notes “says she spoke to a Brucie, a Jason Grayson, a Tim Todd, a Dick Drake and her precious Damibear to set up this field trip. My info here says that a girl named Marinette Dupain-Cheng set this trip up but they don’t believe me.” Andrew nonchalantly continues “Speaking of which, Marinette please sign on all the starred lines. Lila and her friend already filled out everything else.”

   “Tim Todd!” Jason chokes. 

¬`

   The tour had slowed down in the corridors of Wayne Enterprises as Jason let the students go on a quick bathroom and water break. Lila had left for the bathroom, and it is safe to say that Marinette learnt her lesson to avoid bathroom confrontations with Lila. They were never fun, and right now she doesn’t think she can handle a wet shirt in winter. 

   “Really, Marinette. You take credit for all of Lila’s hard work,” says Kim passing by.

   “Do you have any idea how hard Lila worked on this, and you know she hardly has any time to spare.” Max pitches in. 

   “Yeah. Lila worked so fucking hard concocting the names Jason Grayson, Tim Todd and Dick Drake. Sounds like the revamped cast to The Three Stooges,” Chloe crackles giggling.

   “I sure wonder how Tim Todd and Jason Grayson are today? Are they well?” Marinette questions sarcastically.

   “Absolutely fucking amazing after hearing that!” Jason wheezes, overhearing the conversation. Jason gave Marinette a knowing look that confirmed an earlier inference. This Jason was Jason Todd. This was priceless. 

   Adrien’s eyes narrow on his angered face. “What was she doing.” “She promised to take the high road.” “She only needs me, I’m her best friend.” He watched the situation from a distance, unnoticed by Marinette. But as sly he is, he did not slip Jason’s radar. 

¬

   “So y’all, 1:30pm. That means, Lunch time!  Right and you’ll be at the cafeteria, I’ll be joining you guy in about 15 minutes. So fuel up. Remember to show your IDs, lunch is on the house! Bon appetit!” Jason cheerfully announced as bows dramatically (like actors at the end of a play) and he turns around.

   A bit into lunch Mrs. Bustier came up to Marinette and Chloe’s table. “Marinette, can I talk to you?” asks Mrs. Bustier. 

  “Can I come too, Mrs. Bustier?” asks Chloe suspiciously

   “No, Chloe. This is just in between Marinette and I, sorry.” Mrs. Bustier replies sternly.

   “It’s okay, Chloe. I’ll be fine,” reassured the ladybug holder, squeezing the bee holder’s hand.

   “Ok, fine. Let me know if something happens.” Then Chloe leans in to whisper to Marinette, “Audio record it, just in case.” Marinette nods. 

   “Ok, Mrs. Bustier. I’m coming!” replies the bluenette happily as she follows Mrs. Bustier away from the crowd. 

   Adrien, from his table with Nino, Alya and Lila watched, “Hey guys, I need to go to the bathroom,” he said before standing up.

¬

  “Marinette you should be setting an example for the class. What you did today, making fun of Lila was wrong,” Mrs. Bustier frowned. “You of all people know Lila's condition and you should be more accepting of her.” Disappointed, Mrs. Bustier continues, “I expect you to apologize to her before we head back to the hotel.”

   “With all respect, no thank you. I will not apologize for my actions,” Marinette sternly begins. “Does the school have any medical record of her illness?” Marinette asks. “Why should I allow her to take credit for my hard work? And why do I have to be the model student who is obligated to be kind to everyone, when no one ever is to me?” Marinette, now more frustrated than before, questions the teacher. She felt a storm of emotion begin to stir. 

   “Because you are the class representative! It is your responsibility to lead the class with your example! Lila is a student with needs, she needs to feel accepted by all her classmates and it is your job to fulfill her needs.”

   “I’m sorry Mrs. Bustier, but sometimes I can’t shove a square in a circle. Sometimes I can’t do things. Lila is lying, and I can’t lie with her. I will not lie.i will not pretend to like her. And why must I be responsible for all the students in class, but receive no respect for it. Receive nothing but hate and insults. How is that fair for me?” Tears begin to collect in Marinette’s eyes. Mrs. Bustier, for the longest time, has been one of Marinette’s favourite teachers. The fact that right now Mrs. Bustier, couldn’t give less of a shit about her feeling hurt. 

   “I understand but what about Lila’s feelings? I cannot let you bully Lila. You are being selfish right now, I never thought you could act like this. I am disappointed in you.” Mrs. Bustier finishes as she walks away. 

   “What about MY feelings. What about me, what’s so wrong with me being selfish every once in a while. Have you ever looked into my family’s bullying complaints against Lila? What about me?” Marinette cries  desperately, as Mrs. Bustier walks away. “Why is everyone ignoring me?”

   “The real question here is, why are you ignoring me?” growled a voice from behind Marinette. “I thought you promised me to take the high road.” Marinette’s eyes widen as she realizes who’s talking to her. 

   “I never promised, Adrien. Not once. I can’t keep silent and alone for longer.”

   “You are not alone, you have me. And I even LET you talk with Chloe.”

   “Yes, I have Chloe and thank you your majesty for letting me communicate with another human being. And no, Adrien I do not have you,” Marinette raises her voice. “Lila has you, you only talk to me in secret. You let Lila lie, you let her hang off your pretty model arms when she wills. You are and were never on my side.”

   “So you really are jealous?”

   Marinette, delirious with anger frustration, her voice laced with contempt, “No, never.” 

   He looks down at Marinette and smiles “Stop lying Marinette.” 

   “I’m not.” Adrien looks back at Marinette, as if he knows something as he too stalks away. “I’M NOT!” Marinette yells. 

¬

   “So she said that she talked to Brucie, Jason Grayson, Tim Todd, a Dick Drake and her precious Damibear!” Jason nearly on his side from laughing too hard. 

   “DAMIBEAR!” Tim howled in laughter, with his hands wrapped around his torso to somehow hold his ribcage together. Both brother’s are laughing their asses off in Tim’s office.

   “I KNOW!”

   “Are we gonna tell him?” Tim begins to ask before he interrupts himself, “No! We are not. What we are going to do is call him that and let him figure it out, sooner or later he will meet the class and when he does…”

   Jason let the scenario Tim described play in his head, “YES! You now speak my wavelength, to be honest maybe Lila wasn’t lying. You may be a Todd.”

   “No fucking way am I one. By the way, you should check on the class, how long has it been since you left them?”

   “Shit! Twenty minutes! Farewell, dear Replacement.”

   “Have fun, report back on any juicy lies, specifically ones about sweet baby Damibear or even Brucie.” 

¬

   “What the fuck was that?” thought Jason as he heard two people arguing in a secluded hallway, “Marinette?” he thought when he saw the girl, immediately putting a name to the face. But he didn’t know the boy. Jason whipped out his phone and quickly took a picture of the situation, making sure to get a clear shot of the boy’s face. For research purposes.

Gunz Blazin: Hey Tim Todd

Gunz Blazin:  Can you gimme a background check for this guy 

(*attaches a cropped image of the mystery boy’s face*) 

Boy Wonder: ???Tim Todd???

Replacement: I gotchu fam. 

Boy Wonder: ???fam???

Boy Wonder: ???

Boy Wonder: Can I be a Todd too

Replacement: No you're a Drake 

   Jason heard a voice coming from behind him, “That’s Adrien Agreste.” 

   Jason turns his head to look at the boy again and hears more of the conversation. He turns back and she’s a tall-ish blonde girl with blue eyes. “You are? Marinette’s friend?”

   “Yes.”

   “And he is not Marinette’s friend?”

   “He absolutely is not Marinette’s friend. He’s the ass-hat who thinks he owns Marinette. Are you SURE I can’t punch him in the face?”

   “Yes.”

   “What if I just break his nose a little.” (Requested by Ollietheturtle, my new dear editor)

   “As an employee of Wayne Enterprises, I’m supposed to say no, but in all honestly I kinda wanna do that myself…”

¬

TAG LIST: @jeminiikrystal @demonicbusiness @i-am-ironic @woe-is-me0 @miracleofadisaster @clumsy-owl-4178 @onmywaytoloveyou

[clevercorvidae]

BNHA Common Misconceptions

I’ve been seeing wayyy too much bs on my dash lately. So I thought I’d share some of my thoughts on some Controversy™

***Spoilers For The Manga***

1. “What the HPSC did to Hawks wasn’t bad”

A government organization putting a young child through rigorous training so that he can be used as a tool is bad. I don’t know why I have to spell that out

Hawks had to abandon his real name at a very young age. That’s damaging for a kid’s sense of identity. His identity as a person no longer has any separation from his work as a hero. Being a hero is all he is now. I wouldn’t be surprised if (provided Hawks’s wings are gone for good) he has an identity crisis after this arc because he can’t be “Hawks” anymore.

Hawks is based on Lionel Messi, a soccer player recruited at a young age in return for paying for his medical procedures. I’ve seen people say that Hawks chose to be a hero. One, he was a child, young children shouldn’t be making decisions like that. Two, we know based on context clues that Keigo was more than likely living in poverty, possibly with alcoholic parents, and we literally are told that the HPSC payed for his family’s living expenses. Do you really think Keigo had much of a choice here?

I’ve seen people say “it’s just like what UA is doing”. First of all, UA is called out for being irresponsible and endangering their students IN UNIVERSE. Second, Keigo was a young child, the UA kids are 15+. There’s a huge difference.

2. “Mitsuki isn’t abusive”

Honestly when it comes to her smacking Katsuki, I could excuse it as a joke done in poor taste and not hold it over her as a character.

Hitting him WASNT just discipline tho. You should never, ever, under any circumstances hit your kid. Fuck that noise.

What I really have an issue with is what she SAYS to Katsuki. Her guilt tripping him isn’t a throwaway line either. He repeats the sentiment that he is responsible for Kamino during Deku v Kacchan 2. It’s one of the main reasons he fights Deku.

Horikoshi says that Katsuki has a good relationship with his mother. In that case, he did a horrible job at presenting that. What is written in the canon is what should be used as the basis for how we interpret her character.

3. “Shigaraki chose to kill his family/was born evil”

No...just...no. He was FIVE for crying out loud.

He wanted to be a hero, and took extra care to play with kids that had no friends. He definitely wasn’t born evil lmao.

His quirk manifested while he was having an emotional crisis. Decay is controlled by emotion so of course it went haywire.

He didn’t even know it was him doing it at first.

“But Shigaraki said he WANTED it to happen” Shigaraki is an unreliable narrator. What we actually SEE tells a very different story. He reaches out to Hana and his Mother for help. His grandparents are just caught in the shockwave. The ONLY person he killed on purpose was his father.

Now when it comes to his father, he had just beat him and locked him outside. He’s FIVE, and he has no healthy outlet for his anger and frustration. Hell, we see that in his “itchiness”, he only feels like this in the house, because his father makes him suppress his love for heroes and his dream to become one. He takes joy in killing his father because it’s the only release he’s ever experienced.

The fact that you guys forget that this is an abused child with no real control over his quirk that just got beaten and locked outside... Nope, no reading comprehension here.

4. “The League of Villains are justified/are a revolutionary group”

...Shigaraki has stated over and over again that he just wants to destroy everything. He doesn’t care about reform or improving anything. That one panel in Ch. 222, where he says he wants to destroy everything I think sums it up perfectly.

He wants to destroy EVERYTHING good or bad or neither or both. There’s a newborn baby, a field of flowers , Nine, various heroes, the UA kids, etc all varying in innocence.

The rest of the league have very different goals and reasons why they continue to support Shigaraki. Twice wants to protect the only people that accepted him. Spinner just wants to have purpose for his life. Toga wants to live the way she wishes with no consequences. Compress is also here.

The only “revolutionary” is Dabi. But his views are not universal throughout the league.

Even if they were trying to improve things. They have killed countless innocent people, they’ve tried to kill the UA kids too. That’s not ok. And it’s not erased by the fact that they’ve done good. (I do appreciate them for killing the MHA version of the KKK, truly epic of you)

5. “Hawks is abusive”

It’s not abuse to manipulate someone for info when you’re a double agent. It’s kinda shitty, and you could argue that it was unnecessary for Hawks to do so in context. But it’s not abuse.

Y’all need to stop using the word abuse/abusive tendencies to describe all immoral actions

I’ve also seen people say that Hawks has abusive tendencies (as in he’s abusive in all his relationships with other characters) and...do I really need to explain why that makes no sense at all?

6. “Twice deserved to die/it was necessary to kill him”

Feel like I need to remind people that we’ve only ever actually seen Twice kill one guy and that was one of the KKK guys.

Twice isn’t evil, even Hawks admits that he is a genuinely good person. Good people don’t deserve to die.

It wasn’t necessary, and here’s why: Hawks could’ve just knocked him out or even just severely injured him. (Or the HPSC could’ve just grown a brain cell and sent more people to back him up, making it easier to hold back his quirk and arrest him)

Hawks shouldn’t have killed Twice, he only killed him because he’s been raised as a child soldier and I wouldn’t be surprised if what he told Twice about taking out villains was a direct quote from the HPSC

Also, Hawks would’ve killed Twice with or without Dabi’s intervention

Something I do have to say though is that Hawks was right not to just let Twice go. It’s tragic because Twice WAS leaving to help his friends, but the other side of that tragedy it that his friends are terrorists. If he was allowed to leave a shit ton of people would have died (again that doesn’t mean he deserved to die either, don’t get it twisted)

The WHOLE POINT of Hawks v Twice is to make you question who the bad guy is. Both characters are morally gray and the only reason they even have to fight is because of the outside forces controlling their fates. It’s supposed to be tragic it’s supposed to be unclear who is in the right, so stop arguing about it.

7. “Bakugou is abusive/irredeemable” (I know it’s been talked to death but I still see it everywhere)

People are, in fact, allowed to grow past the person they were in middle school.

Most people get hung up on the “throw yourself off a building” line. Which is fair, but again, he was in middle school.

People also say “he hasn’t apologized yet”. Yeah? And? The story isn’t over yet. Horikoshi has already acknowledged that too. I don’t know what you want? People who like him know that his arc isn’t over yet.

I’ve seen a lot of people denying his character development. In the beginning of the series he was a bully and let his ego control him. I don’t think he’s bullied...anyone since Deku v Kacchan 2. He insults people but they obviously don’t take it seriously.

He’s also gone from preferring to fail a final exam to avoid working with Deku, to following him into battle against Shigaraki.

Also, when he actually likes and respects someone he doesn’t mistreat them. This is the same thing with Hawks where y’all NEED to stop misusing the word abuse. He was an abusive friend to Deku when they were kids, that’s it.

8. “Rei was abusive too!”

I’m BEGGING YOU to learn what the term “abuse” means istg

She had a psychotic break. She genuinely thought it was her abusive husband coming through the door, and she acted out of fear.

“Well that’s not an excuse” yes it fucking is. Not to mention that as soon as she realized what happened, she sobs hysterically because she hurt Shouto and tries to use her quirk to help him.

I genuinely don’t understand why people think this

9. “Dabi actually does care about the league”

Listen, I know it sounds harsh, but y’all need to get your heads out of your piles of headcanons.

We know next to nothing about how Dabi feels about just about anything. But we do see that he’s aloof and distant with the league, he doesn’t put in more than he needs to. The rest of the league think of each other as family. Dabi straight up says he doesn’t give a shit about them.

“What if he was just putting up a front for Hawks” Why? Why would he do that? When asked who he was he answered him. He tells him how he feels about hero society and Stain. Not to mention that he was getting ready to kill him. If he was hiding his true feelings about the league I doubt he would’ve so easily said that he didn’t care about them but rather how useful they were.

At this point it’s just wishful thinking. Based on everything we’ve seen in the series so far and everything we know about Dabi, I think it’s safe to say that he doesn’t care about them all that much. If he secretly does care about them, I’d say it’s likely that he doesn’t even know he does.

Idk why all of a sudden villain stans and hero stans are feuding over things that shouldn’t even be up for debate in the first place. Sorry if this came off as super aggressive, I’m just sick of seeing this stuff all over the place. If anyone has anything to add go ahead

[outlanderfandomfollies]

I’ve noticed going on about 2 years now that Cait stans, ex-shippers, and those who used to love Outlander but can’t stand the show now formally started a side group for the sole purpose to gang up on Sam. The disdain towards Sam from these sad women started to escalate once Cait officially married Tony I noticed. Why do you think that is because I don’t think the treatment he has received has been fair? I also remember watching an interview Cait did last summer when she was asked about Sam’s 4 page harassment letter and she backed up everything he said in support of him. So, why do some of her so-called fans continue to mock, degrade him and spread the false rumors that they believe he is “gay” and lying? She has said on numerous occasions that she doesn’t like this type of behavior from any fan. Cait described them as “mean girls.” She also went on to say she understood his frustration because she experienced the harassment too. What we know about Cait and how she has spoken out about this in the past as you have described in your previous posts about bullying, then why do some of her stans think it’s okay or proper to continue this type of behavior on any SM platform? I think if she found out who some of these bloggers or fans were then she would be embarrassed and appalled by it. I would love to hear your thoughts on this. One last thing, I know there are some Sam fans who can be very mean to Cait and that needs to stop and it’s unacceptable. Thanks!

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Anon!

“The disdain towards Sam from these sad women started to escalate once Cait officially married Tony I noticed. Why do you think that is because I don’t think the treatment he has received has been fair?”

I just want to point out that prior to C & T’s wedding, I think that many of the current “S critics” were pretty snarky towards S’s girlfriends and T. But after the wedding, it does seem that most of their snark became centered around S (although to a lesser extent they continue the snark towards the women he dates).

I assume Anon that there are many different reasons for the S “disdain,” depending on the individuals and the subgroups within the larger “S critics” group. Here are my best guesses (based on common sense and logic, nothing more) about why certain subgroups might feel “disdain” towards S.

THE EX-SHIPPERS. I would guess that some of the “disdain” towards S from the ex-shipper subgroup might have to do with the possible difficulty some might have in accepting responsibility for their choice to believe in the faux ship. It appears that some would rather blame S & C for having “led them on.” But they blame S more than they blame C because S continued to give more fan service to shippers after the IFH.**

I also think that some of these women in a way “vicariously” had a “fantasy relationship” with S through identifying with C. Consequently, finding out that S & C were not a couple was a major letdown for them. Since I think most were focused on S in their fantasies, the anger towards S might have been greater when they realized the fantasy wasn’t real. 

“THE CLOSET CREW.” Fueling some of the ex-shippers’ animosity towards S is the fact that many of them jumped from the SC conspiracy theory to the “closet” conspiracy theory after they left the ship. Therefore, (like certain members of “the closet crew” who were never shippers) they now believe (or strongly suspect) that S has been “playing with them” for years about his private life because he is “closeted.”

[It never seems to dawn on any of these women that much of their anger comes from their beliefs in absurd conspiracy theories that would be very impractical for a C-list actor to implement in real life. They also don’t seem to understand that S’s private life is really none of their business. 🤷]

THE CAIT “ONLY” FANS. Some (certainly not all) C “only” fans might be annoyed with S because they view him (and/or his fans) as somehow trying to steal C’s spotlight. They also seem to blame S for not “protecting” C from the criticism of some of the S “only” fans. [BTW, you are right Anon, the hate towards C is not okay either. I also agree that it is doubtful that C would be pleased to know that some of her fans are constantly criticizing S.]

THE DISAPPOINTED FANS. Finally, I think a number of these women (like many in the fandom) used to idealize S. Ever since S’s Hawaii trip during the pandemic, they seem to have become disappointed that S has not behaved in a way that is consistent with their former idealized view of him, especially regarding their perceptions of his behavior during the pandemic and/or their beliefs about how he might have behaved towards some of the women he flirts with and/or dates.

SUBGROUP OVERLAP.  Most of the above subgroups overlap, making the potential reasons for the S disdain among the “S critics” even more complicated to parse out.

OTHER REASONS: Most of us have observed that anger, outrage and snark are ubiquitous on social media. Some people have hypothesized that that anger and outrage can be “addicting.” Some think that the lack of nonverbal social cues on the Internet, the anonymity of social media, and the propensity of human brains to be “wired toward negativity, both to give it and to remember it,” all contribute to this phenomenon. Some think that the lack of privacy that is fostered in this culture makes people feel entitled to “expose” others and to tell it as they see it. People also think that comments on social media that are snarky are more likely to get attention.

In addition, there are probably other reasons I haven’t considered, but as I said, I’m only guessing.

Still, I want to point out that the snarky criticisms of S have been going on for nearly 2 years now. The “S critics” appear to mock S nonstop for anything and everything--nothing seems too petty for their snark. 

At this point I wonder if some of these women are just bored during Droughtlander. I’ve noticed from time to time they talk about the show or something from the books. I wish they would do more of that. They can have a field day being snarky about fictional characters. But I still don’t think it is cool to constantly mock a real person on public social media-even if that person is a celebrity. JMHO

__________________

** To understand why I think that former shippers put too much blame on S (and to a lesser extent C) for their own choices to keep shipping, see the following posts: POST1, POST2,  POST3, POST4, POST5, and  POST6.

[notveryglittery]

birthday prince (3)

summary: virgil decides roman deserves a day off.  words: 2,100 / ship: prinxiety (roman/virgil) author’s note: this is part three of my Giving The Gay Anything He Wants series for roman’s birthday (june 4)! all ships are written implied romantic but i’m not stopping you from interpreting it otherwise. check the end notes on ao3 for credit on these gifts (bc i don’t know where to put them in this post)! i hope you enjoy!!

part 1 (roceit) | part 2 (logince) | part 3 (prinxiety) part 4 (royality) | part 5 (dlampts)  read on ao3

— — —

“Best two out of three.”

“I thought this was a birthday gift!”

“Yes and?”

“So why don’t I automatically get to pick the first movie?”

“Because I know you’re on a princess kick and full offense, if I have to deal with a talking animal as the comedic relief sidekick, I might actually die.”

“... Okay. Fine, okay, that’s fair.”

“On shoot.”

One, two, three, shoot — Virgil’s scissors versus Roman’s paper meant that the birthday boy did, in fact, not get to pick the first movie. He feigned upset for only a few moments longer before flopping back into their pillow fort. He supposed, given all the hard work Virgil had put into this, he could put up with one non-princess Disney film.

Earlier in the day, Virgil had rather unceremoniously kicked Roman out of his own room, claiming he had something important to do. Were it not for how close they’d grown, Roman would have been upset and suspicious; he trusted Virgil now, though, and knew that nothing would go wrong. He’d spent an hour playing cards with Logan and Patton before Virgil shouted for him from upstairs. When he’d arrived back to his room, it looked almost unrecognizable. It was mostly illuminated by fairy lights, providing a cozier feel than what he was used to; the floor to ceiling windows looked out into a rainy forest instead of the usual rolling hills; his bed had been turned into a truly impressive collection of blankets, pillows, cushions, and stuffed animals. The canopy had been removed which bothered him a little but only until he realized the projector that had been set up, pointing at the ceiling. There was a basket at the foot of the bed, filled with snacks and bottled drinks. Roman figured they could stay here for the next twenty four hours and be perfectly fine.

Surrounded by what was possibly every soft thing to be found in the Mindscape, Roman clutched Mrs. Fluffybottom to his chest as Virgil got the movie set up. She’d been his favorite plushie for the entirety of his existence; he’d taken her on many adventures over the years but she’d comforted him through a number of breakdowns too. He swore there was actually something magical about her.

Virgil threw himself down next to Roman; he had swapped out his usual hoodie for one that was fully dark purple and had even longer sleeves. After Roman had stopped gawking around his room, Virgil had tossed a sweater at him. It was so bright it was practically neon but it was rainbow print and he loved it. He’d immediately changed out of his t-shirt and had grabbed Virgil in a tight hug. Roman definitely intended on starting a sweater paw fight at some point during their movie marathon.

“You good with Hercules?”

“No comedic relief sidekicks, huh?”

“Phil is not a sidekick!”

“What? Are you trying to tell me right now that Philoctetes is a main character? You can’t say he isn’t comedic relief! He gets hurt just for laughs way too often!”

“No! I mean. Maybe?”

Roman laughed, bumping his shoulder against Virgil’s. “Whatever, you dork. Of course I’m good with it. You could have picked The Black Cauldron and I would’ve been good.”

“Talking animal. Comic relief. Sidekick. Gurgi checks all of those boxes. I would’ve been going against my own word.”

“Hmm, fair,” Roman said, humming a little.

As the Muses began singing them through the opening, Roman took a moment to appreciate everything Virgil was doing for him. The basket of goodies was stocked with every one of Roman’s favorite snacks, including enough chocolate to make him sick. In fact, it’d been the first thing he’d decided on, before Virgil could even tell him what the plan for the day was. Not that it was really much of a plan, anyway. Today specifically had been set aside just for Virgil to spoil Roman however he wanted. That apparently meant marathoning Disney movies, napping as much as they pleased, and eating all the junk food they wanted. It was a far cry from how Roman usually spent his time; what with all of the projects he was constantly juggling, or the content he had to help Thomas produce, or the issues to take care of in the Fantasy Realm. He didn’t really realize even how hard he was always working.

Apparently, however, Virgil had.

Something was shoved into his face, startling him out of his thoughts. He shot a glare at Virgil, who was watching the movie and acting totally inconspicuous. The item turned out to be a stuffed dragon, one he didn’t recognize from his usual pile of plushies. The scales were shimmery, a nice ombre of purple and blue shades, the wings were tucked against the body, and… Holding his hand against the stomach was warmer than the rest, as if it had a belly full of fire. That was so cool! He squeezed it tight in his arms and went back to watching the movie, feeling even comfier than before.

With the credits rolling, Virgil ushered them both out of bed and into a couple minutes of stretching.

“I’m not having you complain to me later on when your bones start creaking.”

“You make it sound like I’m so old, Virgil!”

“Older than me,” Virgil teased. He ducked out of the way of a thrown cushion. “Oh, is that what we’re doing?!”

Roman took a face full of pillow and suddenly it was on. He couldn’t begin to guess how long they fought for, darting around the room and over the bed, swinging their feather-filled weapons at each other. He did know that by the time he collapsed on the floor, he was breathless with laughter. Virgil was so far gone that he’d dissolved into alternating between wheezes and complete silence. Eventually, they did manage to get back into their nest of blankets, though there was plenty of shoving, poking, and tickling as they did so.

“I dunno if I’ll make it through this next movie so pick one that I won’t mind falling asleep during.”

“You besmirch the name of Disney if you think there’s a single film boring enough to allow that!”

“You dozed off the first time we watched The Good Dinosaur.”

Roman spluttered. “I had just come back from a week-long quest! And that’s Pixar!”

Virgil actually cackled. “You can’t pull that excuse! Disney owns Pixar!”

“Stop bullying me,” Roman cried, “it’s my birthday!”

“It’s two days before your birthday, actually, so I can bully you all I like.”

“I’m picking The Black Cauldron, then! See how you like dozing off during your favorite movie.”

It perhaps hadn’t been his best choice. With Virgil snuggled into his side, warm and soft, the sound of his even breathing accompanying the utter lack of any songs… Well, Roman really didn’t last much longer. They found each other in the Dreamscape. Edges were fuzzy, sounds were muffled, and touch was electric. The Dream Palace was a blurry shape in the distance, attracting his attention every so often when its crystal spires caught the light. Virgil sort of just appeared, as if created from the colors of the setting sun. Roman had a feeling he was made of the field of flowers he’d woken up in.

“I like it here,” Virgil said, sitting down next to Roman.

“Remy does a nice job with it,” Roman agreed, slowly picking daisies and dandelions to weave into a crown.

“You do, too,” Virgil argued. “You have a hand in almost everything, you know.”

Roman frowned at him. “I do not.”

“Yes, Ro,” Virgil insisted, “you do. The Memory Archives look the way that they do because you and Logan watched one episode of Doctor Who together and had the inspiration to redesign.”

Roman chuckled, a little nervously. “I guess.”

“Memory Lane doesn’t hurt Patton because it knows better than to hurt anyone you love. It might be connected to him and his room, but you’re the one that created that safety net.”

“Virgil…” Roman tried, voice slightly strangled.

“I just need you to know how important you are. You aren’t told enough.”

“It’s fine—”

“You’re important, Roman. You matter. You make a difference.”

Roman finally stopped trying to tie together the stems of the flowers. Virgil took his shaking hands into his own and held them tightly. It was just enough that Roman could actually feel it versus the tingly sensation that the Dreamscape normally worked with.

“We love you. We appreciate you and your hard work.”

If it weren’t for that everything around them was already blurry, Roman might not have noticed his vision swimming when tears filled his eyes. It was hard to not know suddenly that he was crying, though, regardless of how physically present he was in this space.

Virgil let go of his hands and instead, cradled his face gently. “I know I go against you sometimes but in the long run, I want you to be just as happy as you make the rest of us.”

He waited a moment longer before smiling and squishing Roman’s cheeks. Roman giggled a bit in response. Virgil gave him two careful pats before pulling away. Picking up the flower crown Roman had abandoned, he set to work on finishing it. Roman wiped his tears away and sat still in the sunshine, content to simply let himself soak it up until he was completely warm from the inside out.

When they woke, the screen projected onto the ceiling was displaying a screensaver of 3D pipes. The forest outside the windows had been replaced with a cliffside view of the ocean. Virgil stirred next to him, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He absentmindedly pressed a kiss to Roman’s cheek before getting out of bed. He was gone for a little while, during which Roman found two more plushies that he didn’t recognize. They were a gryphon and a lion, both extremely soft to the touch, and with fierce expressions that reminded Roman of how Virgil looked when he was in fight mode. He wondered how these new stuffed animals kept sneaking into his collection but he certainly wasn’t complaining.

When Virgil returned, Roman burst into laughter, because yes, he supposed there was no chance of sneaking that one into the pile.

“There won’t be any room for me in bed, Virgil!”

“Guess you better get used to sleeping on the floor then,” Virgil said, dropping the massive Simba plushie on top of Roman.

This just made Roman laugh harder. The fabric on this one was fluffier than on the others, something he could sink his fingers into if he wanted. It was nearly as big as him, or maybe it just felt like that right now since it was smothering him. Before he could move it, though, Virgil sank himself down onto it as well.

“Virgil!!” Roman gasped between snickers. “Get off, you fiend!”

“Hmm…” Virgil hummed, pondering. From where he was laying, he could just barely look directly into Roman’s eyes. This made it all the funnier when he finally decided, in the most deadpan tone, “nah.”

After some wrestling, which led to them both falling out of bed and Roman bumping his elbow and howling for five minutes about his funny bone before Virgil kissed it better, they were finally settled back in to continue their movie marathon.

They watched Moana, Tarzan, and, Mary Poppins before sleep began to take them once more. Seeing as the sun had sunk below the sea quite some time ago, it was safe to assume it was late enough to call it a night.

“I got you…” Virgil paused to yawn. “Got you one more thing…”

“Vee—”

“‘S not much.” He held out Mrs. Fluffybottom for Roman to take. “I just… I made it so that she can never be hurt.”

For a moment, Roman’s lethargy was chased away by astonishment and surprise. He could feel the enchantment just from holding her, though it was passing by the second as the magic was fully absorbed.

“I know you… take her on adventures a lot. Fightin’ bad guys ‘n stuff.” Virgil shifted further into the blankets as sleep continued to take hold on him. “Wanna keep her safe. Know you will, anyway. But jus’ in case.”

Roman rolled onto his side so that he was facing Virgil. He kept the bunny plush tucked between them and took one of Virgil’s hands in his. “Thank you…”

“Love you. Happy birthday, princey,” Virgil told him, papping him once more on the cheek.

Sleep settled over them quickly after. Roman would wake in the morning, feeling more secure and warm than he had in quite some time, surrounded by plushies and Virgil’s arms, and know that he had so much to be grateful for.