#pre regression timeline

[crynussy]

a bunch of pre regression hjyj to celebrate my prison escape (my shadowban was lifted) 🧚✨

edit: ik no one's gonna see this but catjin ver of the first pic

I can't see prereg hyj without cat ears they're just as natural on him as that fugly smirk on shj's face 24/7

(also the little gap between his clothes. drawing it with one hand was hard and i did it deliberately. so worth it.)

[lycankeyy]

Gonna go to bed but my Final Message. I do think abt cyborg!bf in the rgbfverse a lot (lets call him Cyber in this context) and honestly it would be hard to write anything until I 100% iron out his Deal but the idea of him latching onto YS as a big brother figure makes me. Very happy. For both of them LMAO

[transsongtaewon]

Pre-regression version here

[rizzanon]

Ages and background info

m.list

Current timeline:

Bruce - 42

Dick - 25

Jason - 20

Cassandra - 20

Tim - 17

regressed!reader - 16

Damian - 11

Alfred - 64

Barbara - 28

Stephanie - 18

Duke - 15

sadly Duke won’t be making an appearance anytime soon because I think he only comes around in the timeline when reader is like 17/18¿? 😔

Background info (Alfred, Bruce, Dick, Barbara, Jason centered)

You don’t know who your mother is. You were left at the doorstep of Wayne Manor the moment you were born. (don’t ask how she managed to get through Wayne Manor’s cutting edge and state-of-the-art security system..) Bruce took you in and became your parent after getting a paternity test that proved that he is your father. At this time, it was Dick’s first year of being Robin.

You’d be initially taken care of by Alfred during your early years. When Bruce was busy fighting crime or with board meetings at Wayne Enterprises, it was Alfred who rocked you to sleep, tended to your needs, taught you how to read and draw. His soft and steady preference was reader’s anchor in that big, lonely manor.

Growing up, you constantly heard about your father’s brilliance—Bruce Wayne, the untouchable billionaire philanthropist, praised for his endless contributions to Gotham. The public’s expectations for you, his daughter, were impossibly high, and your every achievement was either dismissed as trivial or compared to his legendary feats.

You worked tirelessly to prove yourself worthy of the Wayne name, pouring everything into becoming the perfect daughter. But no matter how hard you tried, there were always people who’d be better than you in certain aspects, you can’t always win, can’t always get the top place. And that was the only thing the public focused on.

It hurt, but you buried the pain, telling yourself to try harder. Because that’s what it meant to be a Wayne—always striving, even when it felt like no one cared. You hoped till the very end that one day, your achievements would actually mean something to your family. To your father.

And mind you, this was before you found out your father was the Batman. And when you did, that’s when you changed trajectories and tried becoming a vigilante just like your father, like your siblings. You took up the mantle of Batgirl at 13, you trained hard, trying to hone your skills. But you weren’t meant for this life of crimefighting. You were always sidelined, and at every moment, it felt like your family was waiting for you to fail badly, so that they’d have a reason to prevent you from picking up the mask ever again. You could never be good enough, strong enough like your family. But you still pushed through, tried to prove yourself, and that was ultimately the cause of your demise.

When Dick was still in his pre-teens, I would think that he liked the idea of having a baby sister. Whenever he wasn’t off at school or out being Robin, he’d always come and play with you. But as he grew older, his teenage years, Dick would spent less and less time around the manor, and more time with his friends and the Teen Titans. He’d be consumed more and more by his missions and bonds with his teammates.

At first, you didn’t mind of course. He was your big brother. He always promised to make it up to you, he’d always promise to come back. But as the days stretched into weeks, and then months, his time spent with her became shorter, and his attention became more divided. He still loved you of course—he always tried making that clear—but his life was no longer centered around the manor, around Gotham. And by extension, that meant you too.

But that changes when you find out about your family being vigilantes. You’d feel betrayed at first upon finding out, especially because they hid this from you for so long, and if you hadn’t found out when you did, you doubt they’d even tell you.

And that makes you want to prove yourself to the family, and that’s what makes you pick up the mask and become a vigilante as well. Dick was definitely against this, and that’s what initially causes your relationship to strain with him. After all, this was when Jason had just died not too long ago. But you were adamant. With that, he did try to train you for a bit, but he ultimately ended up focusing more on Tim, who was the next Robin, and Bludhaven. He “left” you to figure out the ropes of this yourself. He was sure that Bruce or Barbara would train you.

This widens the gap between you and Dick, and at first, you ruled it off as him gaining control of his life and trying to figure out what he plans to do with his responsibilities. But then as the years go by, you notice the blatant distinction between the way he acts around you versus your other siblings.

He kept his distance from you, his interactions were friendly, but always brief. He didn’t exactly linger to check on you or talk to you after patrols. At first, you thought it was Jason’s death that was making him distant, that he was just coping in his own way. But as time went on, it felt like he didn’t see you as worth the effort. Or maybe he just thought you were fine. When he did make plans with you, most of the time, it’d get postponed, or it would slip his mind. He never really thought it was a big deal, and what made things worse was that you never pointed it out as well.

You didn’t want to confront him about this. Maybe you were just afraid to break that loose strands that was holding your relationship with him. Your bond with him. Or maybe you did not want to admit that the bond was basically non-existent.

Whereas Dick remained blissfully unaware of the way he’s treating you. Did he notice that he doesn’t spend as much time with you as he does with the others? Maybe. But did he choose to do anything about that? Not really.

Maybe one day he’ll come to realise the consequences of his actions. That maybe, he wasn’t the best big brother he could be for everyone. Dick Grayson was a man who cared about many things, a man who wore his heart on his sleeve. He was fiercely loyal, protective, and deeply committed to the people he loved—whether it was his adoptive family, his friends, or the people of Gotham. But that didn’t include you.

Dick’s commitment to his own life and responsibilities, both as Nightwing and as a person, pulled him further away from you. He was no longer the older brother who would spend hours with you, teaching you how to be better, how to be a hero. Instead, he was often wrapped up in his own struggles—focusing on Bludhaven, or dealing with the aftermath of Jason’s death. Even when he did offer advice or training, it always felt half-hearted, like he was only doing it because he had to, not because he wanted to.

There were times when you did try to approach him, to bridge the gap that had grown between you two. You wanted to confide in him, to seek his guidance and maybe find the comfort you desperately needed. But every time you tried, it was like talking to a wall. He was distant, distracted, and no matter how much you tried to show him how much you were struggling, he never seemed to truly see you.

The bitterness began to grow, and with it, resentment. Why didn’t he care about you like he used to? Why was it so easy for him to focus on everyone else while you fell to the wayside? It hurt more than you wanted to admit, especially because you still looked up to him, still wanted to be close to him the way you had when you were younger. But now, as the years went on, you realized that maybe the bond you once had was slipping away for good.

He was still the person you wanted to be, but in a way, he had moved on from you. And as much as you hated to admit it, it was easier to hide behind the mask and do things on your own. Because at least then, you wouldn’t have to face the painful truth: Dick Grayson, the brother you looked up to so much, no longer had time for you.

As for Bruce, I don’t want to make it seem like he didn’t care about you. Bruce loves his children, and I don’t want to take that trait away from him. But at the same time, you have to admit that he’s quite emotionally unavailable. From the moment you were brought into his life, Bruce is terrified. He doesn’t know if he can be a good father to raise you, especially with his line of work. And it’s not like you were like Dick. Dick was a growing boy, you were just a baby. Completely dependent on him. You were so and fragile in his arms, and he thinks you’d break if he held you any tighter.

Bruce wanted to love you the way a father should, but love didn’t come easily to him—not in the way most people understood it. His life was a constant battle, filled with shadows and danger, and the idea of bringing a child into that world felt wrong. He couldn’t protect you the way he wanted, not with Gotham always demanding more of him.

So, instead of letting himself get too close, Bruce focused on what he could control: providing for you. He made sure you had the best of everything—your education, your safety, and most importantly, Alfred.

In truth, Alfred did most of the parenting. Bruce rationalized that it was for your own good. Alfred was patient, kind, and steady in ways Bruce felt he could never be. Alfred would shield you from the darkness of the world Bruce inhabited. But deep down, Bruce knew the truth: he was keeping himself at arm’s length because he was terrified of failing you.

But with him keeping you at an arm’s length all the time, Bruce is unaware of the repercussions of his actions. That in a way, he was in fact failing you. Just, not in the way he thinks. He doesn’t necessarily realise how much of your life he’s missing. Sure, he knows he misses out on some of your events, but he tries to make up for it by gifting you more toys and clothes.

Though, that could only work for so long. By the time you were in your pre-teens, you needed more than just trivial gifts.

You needed your father.

But Bruce couldn’t see that. He never did. He only just checked in on your well-being through Alfred. And everytime Alfred tries to tell him about how you needed him in your life more, Bruce always ends up brushing it aside, claiming that you only just need Alfred.

And then comes Jason’s death. That puts a huge hole in Bruce’s heart. The death of his son is something that will haunt him forever. He vows to never fail like that again, not with anyone else he cared about. This was the whole reason why he kept his vigilante life in the dark from you. But you found out anyways. And when you did, you wanted to follow in his footsteps.

That was the last thing he wanted you to do. He tried to dissuade you from this path, but you were determined. Stubbornness was the one trait you did share with him. And eventually, he relented.

He always assigned you cases that he thought was “safe”. Cases that he knew you could handle. But everytime, you demanded more, and each time, Bruce always said no. You were his daughter, he couldn’t risk putting you in dangerous situations. He knew what you can or can’t handle. And unfortunately, that did not change over the years. He was fixated on the very fact that you weren’t cut out for this life of crime-fighting. And you never will be.

Which is why he only watches from afar, the gap between you and your father growing too far apart for any of you to try and bridge it. He only gets updates about you from Alfred, and even that was rarely asked about. And eventually, you just fade into the background, into the shadows of the family.

As for Jason, I believe there would be two parts for him. Before his death, when he was first brought into the family by Bruce, he was this small, energetic boy who had a certain sass to him. He was only 4 years older than you, and that allowed you to build a fairly close bond with him. That is, before he suddenly becomes “busy” with other stuff. Though he spent lesser time with you, he always did try and check in with you when he could. You two always read together in the library, he’d tell you all sorts of stories about Crime Alley.

But that all changed when he died. Jason’s death left a void in everyone, including you. You didn’t understand why he died, what caused his death, and you were literally heartbroken. You saw how his death destroyed your family, and you tried desperately to fix it. But nothing ever worked. Which is why you shifted your grief towards your studies, trying to make sure that you could be the perfect daughter that could fill the emptiness Jason left behind. But nothing worked. You wanted to heal, wanted to help your family move forward, but without their support, it felt impossible.

When you take up the mantle of Batgirl, part of the reason is because you wanted to honour what Jason did. His time as Robin. You thought that maybe he’d be proud of you, for stepping up and doing this. And maybe, just maybe, you’d be able to become half the hero he was.

But no, Jason was far from proud. And you only know that once he is revealed to be Red Hood years later. Jason is furious. His fury cuts deeper than you expected, not just at the fact that you’ve taken up the mantle of Batgirl, but because of the underlying betrayal he feels.

He looks at you, his younger sister, the one who was supposed to be protected, and sees someone who is willingly stepping into the very nightmare he couldn’t escape. The life that broke him, the endless cycle of violence and pain, and the years of grief and rage that had consumed him. He sees you and wonders: Why? Why would you choose this path, knowing what it did to him?

His anger isn’t just about the mantle—it’s about the idea that you’re following in his footsteps, as if you’re willing to become just like him. Worse, you’re doing it without understanding what it costs. He doesn’t want you to end up like him, as someone who can’t find redemption, who is trapped in a life of revenge. He’s already lost so much—first to the Joker, then to Bruce—and now it feels like he’s losing you too. The only family he has left.

But for you, the choice to take up the mantle was about honoring Jason. You didn’t want to replace him. You didn’t want to erase the pain he went through. But as much as you wanted to fight for the family, you couldn’t help but feel like you needed to prove yourself in a way he never had to. Your family was broken, and you thought that maybe, by stepping up, you could fix it. Maybe you could become the hero Jason never got the chance to be.

But that’s not how Jason sees it. He’s angry, and hurt, and feels betrayed—because he knows what you don’t fully understand yet. This life doesn’t fix anything. It destroys. And if you keep going down this path, you’ll end up like him—scarred, alone, and full of rage that will consume you, just like it did him.

The tension between you two becomes unbearable. The sibling bond you once shared is strained beyond repair, and Jason makes it clear that he’ll never accept you as Batgirl. He’s no longer the brother you knew—the one who once taught you how to laugh, how to stand up for yourself. Now, he’s just a stranger, a man whose hatred for the life he was brought into has twisted him into something unrecognizable. And you? You’re just another casualty of it.

No matter how much you try to explain, no matter how much you try to reach him, the gap between you two widens. He’s Red Hood, and you’re Batgirl. The two identities, both born from tragedy, will never be able to coexist peacefully. Every time you suit up, every time you fight to prove yourself, you feel the divide grow stronger. You’ve both chosen your paths, and with that choice, you’ve irreparably lost each other.

For a while, you only ever saw Barbara as the GCPD commissioner’s daughter, Dick’s friend. She had always been around, and was a frequent family friend. You never really understood why she was so deeply tied with your family until you found out the truth.

When you found out that she’d been the first Batgirl, you were amazed, and frankly, you wanted to be just like her. She, who has done so much and fought alongside your family in many battles, who has done so much to protect Gotham. Maybe this was the way for you to get close with your father and older brother. You had to prove yourself through this. That’s what you thought.

Which is why when you approached Barbara one day with the idea of being Batgirl, you expected support, encouragement, maybe even a bit of excitement. After all, she had once worn the cape and fought crime in Gotham’s shadows. But no, apparently you were getting in over your head.

Barbara’s face hardened the moment you mentioned the mantle. Her mantle. She immediately refused, telling you that it was dangerous. At first, you thought she was being protective. Jason had died not too long ago doing this, so maybe that’s why. Which is why you relented. But as she continued, you saw the weight of her words—the deep, painful truth that came from experience.

She recounted her time as Batgirl, her fight against the criminals of Gotham, and how the Joker had shattered her body and soul in a way that no physical injury could ever heal. She spoke of the night she was shot, of how she had lost everything—her mobility, her sense of security, and even a part of her identity. It wasn’t just the pain of what happened to her body—it was the mental toll of knowing that every choice she made brought her closer to losing herself.

You were taken aback, shocked by how strongly she felt. Was she really trying to stop you from becoming Batgirl? After everything she had endured, you couldn’t fathom why she wouldn’t want you to follow in her footsteps. But Barbara wasn’t just speaking from a place of worry; she was speaking from experience. She had seen firsthand how dangerous this life was, how it consumed you piece by piece, and how it left scars that would never fade.

But even as you understood her perspective, the desire to prove yourself still burned fiercely inside of you. You wanted to be more than Bruce Wayne’s daughter, more than someone who had to hide in the shadows. You wanted to stand beside your family, to help Gotham in the only way you knew how. You wanted to honour Jason for what he did for Gotham, and continue it for him. Which is why you relented, and eventually, just like everyone else, Barbara gave in. Because she knew couldn’t change your mind no matter what. Which is why she takes you on and helps with your training.

However, just like Bruce, she too only assigned you cases thst she knew you could handle. Even though Barbara had reluctantly agreed to help you become Batgirl, it was clear from the start that she wasn’t going to make it easy on you. She trained you relentlessly, teaching you the ins and outs of combat, tactics, and the stealthy finesse that Gotham’s criminals required. But even in her guidance, you could feel her hesitation. She never pushed you too far, always stopping just short of testing your limits, as though she was holding something back.

She would assign you cases, but they were always ones she knew you could handle—petty thefts, low-level gangs, the type of cases that wouldn’t put you in direct danger, that wouldn’t challenge you too much, and that she could step in and call someone else to take over if things ever went south.

At first, you didn’t mind. You were just glad to be training, to be doing something. But as time went on, the restrictions started to chafe at you. You could see how Barbara’s protective nature was keeping you in a bubble—one that was too small, one that didn’t prepare you for what Gotham truly was. You didn’t want to be stuck fighting the small-time criminals; you wanted to face the real threats, the ones that could change Gotham for the better after being dealt with.

The frustration mounted. Every time she handed you a case, every time she stopped you from pursuing something more dangerous, you felt your desire to prove yourself slipping further and further away. You knew you couldn’t keep doing this forever. Gotham was too big, the stakes too high, and you were capable of so much more. You had to break free from Barbara’s shadow, from her protective grip, and finally prove that you were ready for the challenges that came with being Batgirl—not just in name, but in action. Which is why you started doing more. Did more than you needed to, took one too many unnecessary risks.

But everything shifted when Barbara took in Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown, both taking up the mantle of Batgirl at some point. It stung. The sense of being sidelined was undeniable, and it hurt more than you had expected. Were you really that replaceable? Did you being Batgirl mean nothing?

Barbara’s training shifted with the new additions. She wasn’t the same mentor to you as she had been when you first started. She had become consumed with building Cassandra and Stephanie up, preparing them for the same Gotham streets that had torn her apart. Except, it was obvious that Barbara saw then as more capable, more stronger to take on the streets. More prepared than you’ll ever be. You were no longer her first priority. In fact, you were hardly a priority at all.

The worst part was how Barbara handled it. Instead of talking to you, explaining her choices, she just… distanced herself. There were no more long training sessions, no more subtle encouragement. Your bond, the one that had felt so strong when she first took you in, weakened and thinned, becoming strained and distant. It was as though she had replaced you with them. Maybe she had.

It wasn’t just the feeling of being replaced by two new recruits; it was the complete lack of acknowledgment of everything you had sacrificed, everything you had worked for. You had pushed through every painful night, every bruise, every tear, just to earn your place. But now, it seemed like all that hard work meant nothing. You were left alone in the shadows once again, watching as the people you cared about, the people who had once been your mentors and family, moved on without you.

The rift between you and Barbara widened with each passing day. You tried to hold on to the hope that things would change, that things would go back to how they were before. But deep down, you knew they never would. Barbara had chosen her new proteges—her Batgirls—and you were left to try to make your own way in a family that no longer felt like your own.

And as the years went by, you still held onto that mantle, and Barbara grew more distant. She checked in on you doing patrols and missions as Oracle, but that was that.

Part 2 (Tim, Cassandra, Stephanie, Damian, Duke centered)

lmk your thoughts on this because this has been on my mind for so long <33

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[last-words-ofashootingstar]

SHORTCAKE!

Baby Series!

❥Platonic Song Mingi x fem reader

❥Yandere Park Seonghwa x fem reader

➯a/n: MING !!! MING MY BELOVED !!! i was so excited to finally be able to write with the members and baby being the main focus because i have so many ideas and so many scenes that i couldn't fit into chapters. this is just the first of the drabbles, i'm definitely going to do the other members as well !since mingi and jongho tied on the poll i did, ill be posting his version later tonight ! enjoy <33

♡'･ᴗ･'♡genre: drabbles, angst, fluff

✫彡wordcount: 2k

ಠ_ಠwarning/content: non-linear(most moments have no set place in timeline), unhealthy relationships/trauma collective bonding, stockholm+lima syndrome, mentions of violence, anxiety, physical affection

✩index: little space- a regressed state of mind where someone feels like a child. little / age regressor - a person with a little space. hyung - a close male friend older than you, used by other males.

➯disclaimer: this is a work of fiction, and baby and seonghwa do NOT represent a healthy little and caregiver relationship, or a healthy relationship at all. everyone in this story needs therapy and LOTS of it.

MDNI.

❝nap time❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

"Lunch!" Seonghwa yells into the apartment, setting down the plates on the kitchen table.

You always eat meals together, like the fucked up family that you are at this point. He insists. Even before he 'brought you home', he made it a point to always have time to eat with San and Mingi. He kept the tradition even when the first few weeks after you 'came home' were beyond awkward and anxiety inducing.

"Baby-ya!" He peeks his head into the hall and pouts when he doesn't see you and Mingi coming. San is out and about, so it will be just the three of you — if you both decide to ever acknowledge him, that is.

He wipes his hands as he makes his way, ready to chastise you both for ignoring him because he knows that his voice can reach through the apartment. "Hey, wh-"

Seonghwa pauses in Mingi's doorway, a small smile taking over his face.

You aren't ignoring him. You're fast asleep.

He can only see the top of your head, the little butterfly clips he put in your hair that morning. The rest of you can only be perceived as a lump under Mingi's blanket. You're cuddled up with your face in his chest, his arms wrapped around your blanketed form and his chin on top of your head.

Lunch can wait a little while longer, Seonghwa thinks as he watches you with something akin to fondness in his eyes.

❝battleship❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

     "A..." You drag on, narrowing your eyes at Mingi from across the table, "A6?"

     You have really bad luck. You haven't hit a single one of his ships in the twenty minutes you've been playing. 'Battleship' would probably be forgotten at the bottom of the game cabinet.

    "Hit!" He smiles brightly, making you perk up.

    "Really?! I got one?"

    No, you didn't. Mingi doesn't have a game piece in 'A6'. But he's already sunk two of your ships and you've yet to even hit one of his.

     "Yeah, you got me!"

    He loves to see the excitement in your eyes when you start winning. His competitive nature flies out the window when it comes to you.

❝dinasaaaurs❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

The television lights up the dark living room, the four of you gathered in front of it to watch a pre-history documentary because you are currently obsessed with learning everything possible about dinosaurs; and they can't lie and say it isn't fascinating.

San is laid sideways across the recliner, Seonghwa sprawled out on the couch. You're sitting on the floor infront of Mingi, watching the TV with a child-like wonder as he plays absentmindedly with your hair.

"... of the dinosaurs." Morgan Freeman says on the show, his pronunciation of 'dinosaurs' making you giggle.

"Dinasaaaaurs." You repeat it, wiggling in your spot.

"Dinasaaaur," Mingi laughs while rubbing your head, getting you to settle down as the show goes on.

"-apex predator in the dinosaur world-"

"Dinasaurrr." Mingi smiles as you look up at him with a big grin when he speaks. He always plays along with whatever you're up to at the moment.

"Dinasaurrr~"

Seonghwa chuckles, watching as you go back to looking at the CGI in awe. Your eyes never leave the screen, and his never leave you. He'll never get over how cute you are while in little space.

"But how did the the dinosaurs-"

"Dinasaaaaurs!"

"Dinasaurrrs!"

"Take a shot every time they do that," San jokes, "be plastered in five minutes."

❝calm❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

    Seonghwa folded up a couple blankets on the floor and you now lay on top of them on your stomach; within his view as he cleans the kitchen. You're supporting yourself on your elbows as you draw. Still dressed in your pajamas, you look almost comfortable.

But Mingi knows that isn't the case. The reason you're on your stomach is because Seonghwa spanked you yesterday. You said a bad word and you faced the consequences, right in front of all of them.

"Hi, Ming," you greet him quietly as he enters the living room. You're still deeply embarrassed, but you suppose that's part of the punishment. Seonghwa said if you could say bad words in front of them, you could take your disciple in front of them too.

    "Hey, shortcake."

He doesn't bring it up. He doesn't say he's sorry. He knows that you don't want to hear it. You're thankful for that.

"Hand me that yellow one," now hunched over a paper across from you, he points to the crayon by your side. "Thank youuuu."

The soft scraping of pastel crayons against crinkling paper fills the silence along with the rain outside weaving with the wind.

He doesn't have to say anything more, his presence is comforting enough on its own. He gives you a sense of calm, even when all you really want to do is scream your throat raw.

❝late❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

      "Ming."

      He stirs in his bed.

      "Miiiiiing."

      He peeks his eyes open and shoots up from his spot when he sees you, "shortcake? Are you okay?" He swings his legs over the bed and cups your face in his hands, frowning as he notices the tears in your eyes.

     "I'm okay," you nod in his hands, playing with your sleeve, "I'm sorry for wakin' you up-"

    "It's okay," he cuts you off quickly, wiping the stray tear that makes it past your waterline, "can you tell me what's wrong?"

"Uhm," you sniffle, shifting on your feet, "well, I can't sleep without Mommy and Joonie said that maybe I could try to sleep with you — if that's okay with you, cause I' just used to being in bed with someone and if not it's okay, I can stay up an' wait for Mommy to be home. It's actually not a big deal! I can just wait, please don't be mad I woke you up..."

He lets you ramble on, nodding along slowly.

Seonghwa would be home pretty late, he was at a fashion show and he left you in Hongjoong's care; but neither of you really like each other.

But you do like Mingi. He's your best friend. He'd never be mad at you for waking him up, for any reason. That's the whole reason he keeps his door open — so you can always come to him when you need him. Deep down you know that. Mingi would never be mad with you. But you're so confused right now with the fact that you're missing Seonghwa. It's making your brain fire off all kinds of jumbled and scary signals.

"Okay," he nods again, rubbing your cheeks with his thumbs, "it's okay, I'm not mad. Look, I'm not mad, see?" He smiles softly as you lift your gaze to him hesitantly.

"N-no?" You're extra sensitive when you're in little space, all of the trauma you've endured weighs heavily on your regressed mind.

He knows that you just need reassurance... because that's what he needs too.

"I'm glad you woke me up, you shouldn't stay up so late. Did Joonie say he'd let Mommy know where you are?" Because if Seonghwa gets home and can't find you immediately, he'll raise literal hell with a tantrum that would rival one of yours.

"Mhm," you bite your lip, chewing nervously.

He pouts, tapping your cheek, "you're gonna hurt yourself, shortcake. Why don't you go get a paci while I find a movie for us to fall asleep to?"

"Really?" You perk up almost immediately. Falling asleep to nap while watching movies or videos with Mingi is one of your all time favorite things. The background noise and the way he lets you decide how to snuggle up gives you just the best sleep.

"Really." You're running out the door before he even closes his mouth, yelling to Hongjoong that 'Ming said I can sleep in hims bed!'

     By the time you come back, he's got one of your favorite movies pulled up on his phone and he's back under the covers. "Can I be little spoon?" You ask as you crawl under the blanket, all of your previous anxiety gone.

❝backstage❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

     Activity is rushing around the room, people weaving together and pushing past and everything looks like it's in choppy slow motion to Mingi.

    It's a large performance with multiple groups involved, so it's not surprising that people he's never seen are coming and going. Usually it doesn't bother him, he meets new people everyday. But something about today is making his head spin.

   He's sitting on the couch: knee bouncing, fingers fidgeting with his rings, focusing on the water bottle in front of him in attempt to calm himself.

    From your seat in Seonghwa's lap, you see him. You know that little furrow in his brow.

     "Mommy-ya?"

    He looks up from the script, eyes immediately on you and his studying of the language abandoned, "Baby-ya?"

     "Can I go sit with Ming? He looks scared..."

     Seonghwa's gaze follows yours, seeing the anxious way that his member is moving. He needs something to get his head on straight. And you always seem to do the job.

      "Yeah, go ahead, Baby," he kisses your head softly and helps you stand. His eyes go back to the page, but he's always watching you in the corner of his vision.

    You shuffle your way over to the couch and plop down on the floor in front of it wordlessly.

    His eyes are trained on the bottle cap, his breathing uneven.

    He jumps when you wrap your arms and legs around his leg, koala hugging onto the limb.

    "Don't be nervous, Ming. You're so cool! You're gonna kick butt," you smile up at him, your cheek smooshed to his leg.

    "Thanks, shortcake," he places his hand atop your head and breathes slowly. Just your presence alone is making him less nervous.

❝grilled cheese❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

"That's pretty, Baby," Seonghwa smiles as he looks over to your painting.

The three of you are on the floor with an array of art supplies spread around, the afternoon sun filtering through the blinds on the lazy Sunday.

"Thanks!" You smile back before rolling onto your back with a tiny groan. "Mommy-yaaa?"

"Yes, Baby-yaaa~?" He's already packing up the colored pencils he was using because he knows what you're about to say.

"I'm a little hungry," you peek to him with your best puppy dog eyes, "can we have grilled cheeses today, please?"

"Yeah, grilled cheese, Hyung?" Mingi pouts with you, making Seonghwa chuckle a bit as he stands.

"Sure, grilled che-"

"Yay!" You cheer, rolling back over onto your stomach and hugging his leg briefly before scooting over to Mingi and giving him a high five.

"I told you, shortcake, the puppy dog eyes never fail!"

Mingi helps you clean up the rest of the arts and crafts things, setting the papers to dry with a small smile as you fall onto your back again.

"You made some cute stuff today," he says as he sits on the couch, "that sunset one is a fridge hanger for sure!"

"You thinks so?" You tilt your head to look at him, "I'm not bestest with watercolor."

"Well, practice makes perfect, doesn't it?"

"Yeahm, true that-"

"Food!"

Mingi jumps up, running over to help you as you stumble on your feet, "c'mere, shortcake." He lifts you gently, carrying you the few feet to the table even though you playfully grumble that you're fine.

"Grilled cheese for My Baby," Seonghwa says as he sets your food in front of you. A grilled cheese cut in half in one section of the plate, some fruit in another, and some gummies in the last.

"Grilled cheese for my Minki," he and Mingi's plates are the same, grilled cheese and fruit.

"Thank you, Mommy."

"Thank you, Hyung."

You chime together as you all settle into your seats, a peaceful meal of grilled cheese shared — besides when Mingi tries to sneak a gummy from your plate, earning himself a Baby rendition of Wooyoung's death glare.

"Gosh, you really spend too much time with him, that's scary accurate." Mingi chuckles, taking the gummy you then offer to him.

Seonghwa pats your head softly as you giggle, nibbling on the grilled cheese with a smile. You two really act like a sweet brother and sister duo, and he thinks it the cutest thing in the world that the most precious people to him have found comfort in one another.

❝SHORTCAKE!❞ ✧ ೃ༄ ｡

[microwaving-tesilid-argente]

HOWLS

tesilid & ephael braiding hestio's hair, send post

[a-student-out-of-time]

The Post-Tragedy Horrors of Despair Time

Hello everyone, Mod Bubbles here!

This Halloween, I decided to do something a little different. Rather than a dedicated post or song parody, I've decided to share a worldbuilding analysis. A pretty fortuitous one, since we've recently completed Chapter 2 of Despair Time.

I'm sure it's no exaggeration to say that DT is a pretty dark fangan, especially within its own context. I wouldn't say it's as grimdark and nihilistic as some people are convinced it is, but there's some elements to it that I feel are worth analyzing going forward.

See, it's been established that DT is set within the Hope's Peak continuity. This would mean that the canon games sans V3 (and if you want to have fun with it, other fangans like the Another series) have all happened here.

According to a Q&A, DT is set around 70-80 years after the end of the Tragedy, so if you wanted to estimate based on in-universe dates (such as Makoto's Hope's Peak brochure saying 2010 in the earliest version of the game but 2014 in a re-release), that would put it sometime around 2080 to the mid-2090s. Veronika backs this up in Chapter 2, when she mentions the Tragedy happened "almost a century ago."

Why do I bring all this up? Because if you looked at DT, you'd probably never guess it was that deep in the future. I know I didn't at first. And this is all by design, but it goes beyond simple cosmetic details. Allow me to explain to you why this is probably the darkest timeline that could've happened after Class 78's victory over Ultimate Despair.

___________________________________________________

Modern Stagnancy

So if we look at the obvious, the world of DT looks pretty much identical to our own, which should be a good thing. When you consider that this is set after The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History- an event that saw societal collapse, wars happen for the sake of destruction, massive pollution, rampant murder, and countless killing games- then it almost seems utopian.

Cities have long since been rebuilt, the skies are clear, there are functional trains, movies, celebrities, schools, music, art, Ted-Talks, the internet, all the trappings of normality. And that's really the problem.

Once the recovery efforts were underway, the goal of those in power was to rebuild things exactly as they used to be. Bear in mind, the world looks like our modern day, yet this is set deep into the late 21st century. In that context, the world almost seems stunted in its growth or even that it's regressed, given that CDs and DVDs are used rather than USBs or digital downloads.

Not only that, but this extends to societal attitudes as well. Nico was the victim of bullying over their status as an enby by everyone who knew, including their own father. It's almost the 22nd century and anti-LGBTQ bigotry like this still exists.

In that context, it feels less like the world is recovering and more that it's been stuck in its pre-Tragedy status quo, right down to continuing the Ultimates program that contributed to The Tragedy in the first place. And who would be motivated to do that?

2. Hope's Peak And Their Kin Are Stronger Than Ever

Probably one of the most contentious aspects of DR3's ending is that, after everything the people in charge of it were responsible for- exploiting their students, covering up crimes, human experimentation- Hope's Peak Academy was rebuilt by the survivors, now with Makoto as headmaster.

Now, one could make the argument that Makoto is a better example of hope and thus better suited to lead the school to follow its stated ideals than the Steering Committee ever was. That very well may be true, but as they also proved, nobody stays in charge forever. And now, because of his decision, Hope's Peak isn't contained to Japan.

There now exist Hope's Peak branches in every major country on Earth, with two in the United States. Teruko and co. are students of the East Coast Division's 27th class, meaning that one opened almost thirty years ago. This would also mean that Japan's Hope's Peak would have seen over 150 classes since its inception.

I bring all this up because, as has been made very clear by canon, Hope's Peak is a terrible place even in concept. When you remove the idyllic aspect of fostering talent and guaranteeing its students are set for life, the truth is that ultimates are stunted in their development. They're only encouraged to excel in their particular field, whether they really want to or not.

In addition, Hope's Peak has always quietly held this belief that only people with talent hold any worth; those without talent are just "ticks" who leech off the success of their betters. Characters like Byakuya and Nagito echo those very same sentiments, this extreme elitism that encourages people to view the "99%" as inherently inferior.

Even if you wanted to say Makoto managed to undo that idea, can we really say this divide would never come up again? No matter how many years pass or how many divisions of Hope's Peak are set up across the world? That seems really far-fetched to me.

Consider Min's bonus video. As she explains, she was never scouted by the school. Instead, America's Hope's Peak announced something called the Ultimate Contest for Eminent Students, where eligible high school students would be allowed to take a test, the best of whom would be admitted to the school when they graduated. The catch is that they had 12 years to prepare. Min, who was only 5 at the time, wasn't initially going to participate, but then the founder of a company called XF-Ture Tech approached her family- who was quite poor- and wanted to sponsor her in exchange for her participation.

She spent her entire life preparing for that test. And when she passed, she realized it was all really just an experiment to create their ideal version of the Ultimate Student. She even doubted that she was the best in terms of raw score, just that she met their desired expectations by cutting out everything else in her life for that test.

It also extends beyond just Hope's Peak itself. Those with power and influence now hold a strangle hold over the most vulnerable people out there, as we can see with the Lacroix family.

Rose wanted to help her family out of their financial limitations using her painting skills and her photographic memory, which lead to her becoming an art forger. However, at 15, she was found out and her family faced tens of millions in fines. This would've been the end, but then they were bailed out by a billionaire named Richard Spurling, founder of the Spurling Foundation. In exchange for clearing her charges, Rose had to sign a contract that meant she doesn't own the rights to anything she paints.

She hates what her life has become, where she can only ever really paint things at the whims of the Foundation because it was the only way her family could survive that mountain of debt. The exploitation there is undeniable.

No matter where you look, there's still exploitation and experiment abound with the school, corporations and the wealthy. And if you think the Spurling Foundation sounds bad here, they're implied to be responsible for something much worse.

Which is also brings us to Xander. See, there's a curious detail when we first meet him in the prologue:

And I agree. Xander being the Ultimate Rebel really doesn't fit him, as he's better described as the "Ultimate Revolutionary." Except there's no chance Hope's Peak would call him that, instead paying lip service to the idea in a digestible format to still support the status quo.

Xander is an activist who works to oppose corruption, but the ones who benefit from corruption wouldn't want him to flaunt that. It's a subtle but very clever detail that shows those in power still maintain a hold even over their beloved Ultimates.

They probably had no issue throwing the obviously corrupt under the bus to save their own hides, and raised Xander up with a quasi-supportive title. It gives them a chance to look like they're supporting what he's doing while still tying an element of a "rebellious child" to his image with the name.

Had Xander survived, he had a good reason to want to bring them down, especially the Spurlings.

3. Illness and Poverty

Xander's bonus video clued us in on what I believe is one of the most important parts of DT's continuity: the fate of the town of Chariton, implied to be where he lived. It seemed to be a small town, home to a couple hundred or a couple thousand people, where the only hospital for miles was "dinky, understaffed" and barely able to handle a minor flu outbreak. They were completely unprepared for what became known as the Chariton Incident.

When he was around 14, the town was hit by a disease that caused those infected to decay from the outside in; their limbs would stop working before their organs did, meaning they would just lay there and feel themselves slowly dying. So many died that nobody was left to move the bodies, so they were left where they fell, rotting in the summer heat.

The cause of this outbreak? A contaminated river that served as the town's water source. Chariton was an impoverished community, where people had no money to treat their water, get medicine from a nearby city or to even move out. It's also implied, based on Xander's anger, that Duke Spurling was partially responsible and that he got off the hook, which may be what drove Xander to become the Ultimate Rebel. Especially when you consider he's the only surviving member of his family.

Duke Spurling is, as the named implies and Dev has confirmed, the younger brother of Richard Spurling. The money and influence needed to get his brother off the hook is the very same that has the Lacroix family under his thumb.

So as we can see, Chariton was a major event in DT's canon. Not only does it showcase corruption, it also showcases understated but still prominent problems in the post-Tragedy U.S. If you pay attention, you'll also notice Teruko, Min, and Rose mention poverty playing a role in their lives.

As we can see, poverty plays a major role in their lives, and that extends beyond a personal level. Chariton's poverty is why the incident happened at all, and a big reason is because it's also an example of a medical desert.

"Medical desert" is a term used to describe regions whose population has inadequate access to healthcare. This can be all healthcare in general or in specialties such as dental care or pharmaceuticals. This is an especially prominent problem in rural areas, but it can affect urban ones too.

If that sounds implausible to you, today it's believed that around 30 million Americans- over 1% of the population- live over an hour from a hospital. Can you imagine how bad the problem is in a world after The Tragedy? All the damage to infrastructure, established institutions, the economy, and the population? I doubt Chariton was the first to see something this bad.

Ace's execution gives us more clues. In the Death By Illness section, there are several newspaper clippings on the wall, most of which are readable. One flashes on screen saying "Unexplained Illness Kills Thousands," which I believe is another reference to Chariton (why else would it flash on screen?), but there's more as well:

"More people are dying of cancer than ever before"

"Flu season claims thousands of lives"

"Falling rates of survival for hospitalized patients"

"Antibiotic-resistant infections a growing threat in this hospital"

One is harder to read, but I believe it mentions Chronic Kidney Disease being tied to an early death

Now, the interesting thing is that most of these are modern headlines, and they can be pretty misleading. The cancer one is actually based on the fact that more people are living longer lives, thus are reaching ages where they develop cancer due to their cell infrastructure breaking down naturally. It doesn't mean there's more cancer cases overall across all ages.

The only one that's not true is the falling rates one. Which suggests that not only was it Chariton, but healthcare infrastructure in general after the Tragedy seems to be a mess.

See, I was assuming that these articles are identical to what we see today. But it's also possible that the cancer one is now literally true, and it could be because The Tragedy was rife with this kind of horror. We know that terrorism, coups and wars happened for no reason other than to spread despair across the world.

Could you imagine how many nuclear, chemical, biological and radiological weapons were used? How many diseases and hazardous materials were seeded into the environment? If it's unsafe to drink tap water after a serious hurricane or earthquake, how bad is the problem when contamination is the goal?

And this doesn't even touch on how disturbingly easy it would be to spread long-term illnesses such as HIV or CJD in contaminated food and medical supplies. Some diseases have latency periods that last decades, meaning they could still be killing people even by the time DRDT is set.

Antibiotic resistance is also a very real and serious problem. Even today, some strains have become immune to even the strongest antibiotics available. This has given rise to Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci or VREs, which are immune to basically every medication we can throw at them.

Now, it's still possible to deal with them, such as with naturally antimicrobial metals or experimental treatments such as CRISPR and Phage Therapy, but in a world that saw such a massive hit to everything? I'm certain antibiotic-resistance bacteria have become much more serious, potentially resulting in epidemics over the years.

And when these things happen, it's always the poor who suffer the most.

4. Lethal Repetition

Now we come to the most obvious example, something highlighted by the same reveal that DT is set nearly a century into the future:

Veronika, who provided us with information on the effects the Tragedy still has, apparently has never heard about The Killing School Life.

Now, it's important to keep in mind that most of the Killing Games in DR were pretty secluded and motivated. SDR2 was only broadcast to Future Foundation with the goal to allow Junko to escape into the real world, for example. However, DR1's Killing School Life was broadcast globally as a means to break humanity's hope by showing the Ultimates slaughtering each other. Instead, Makoto and co. managed to reinvigorate the world's hope and played a pivotal role in ending the Tragedy.

...And yet Veronika apparently hasn't heard any of it.

Now, there's two possibilities here, neither of which are good:

One is that the Mastermind has removed their knowledge of previous killing games, specifically. Now, I actually consider this an unlikely explanation because, not only does Teruko seem to vaguely remember the Killing School Life happened, but what's the goal in doing so for the participants?

The canon games all had solid reasons why the other masterminds erased the participants' memories: the revelation that they'd been killing their friends, the fact that their past identities were supposed to be undone to save them, even the fact that they weren't even who they were supposed to be in V3.

But what's the purpose of suppressing the memories of the Killing School Life in the participants themselves? Especially since this game is also apparently being broadcast to the outside world, although we only have MonoTV's word on that. Is it to undermine everything the survivors achieved or to get the participants not to consider the same strategies?

The other, more plausible explanation to me is that the mastermind isn't the one who erased their memories. The outside world did.

It's possible that, in the decades since the Tragedy and the drive to return things to the status quo, knowledge of the Killing School Life has been suppressed. It would be so easy to blame Makoto's decision to rebuild the school, but it's just as plausible that his attempts to genuinely reform the school were undone over the years.

Corporations and those that came after had a vested reason to improve their own reputations, and why would they allow their connection to the Tragedy to remain public knowledge? The entire thing began as a revolution of lower classes against the rich before it became a whirlwind of mindless violence.

So what does this mean for DT? This is more hypothesizing on my part, but I'd say this could tell us a lot about the potential motivations for this very killing game. Could it be someone trying to remind the world about this event and how we got here? Is it more retribution against the wealthy? Is it someone who was inspired by Junko to slaughter her friends? Or is it something else entirely? And what role does Teruko have if someone involved is so hellbent on trying to kill her?

For now, we can only speculate. But I can tell you that, based on what we've seen here, DT is probably the darkest future we could've gotten out of the canon series.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

[dreamingaboutsakuratrees]

I have roughly twenty 9-1-1 WIPs that have been sitting in my Google docs for the last ~7 months, please tell me which fic should I focus on because I need to have a clear goal or they'll sit in my drafts for another 7 months

1. say my name like a slur, but i've been called worse

• 5 times Buck hates his first name, and 1 time he's never loved it more.

2. won't you kiss me on the mouth and love me like a sailor

• singer/musician buck, lawsuit arc, buck is fucking loaded but he doesn't like to spend his parents' money for obvious reasons, enemies to friends to enemies to lovers. inspired by the thousand songs I listened to and said "oh that's so Buck-coded".

3. i sleep so i can see you, cause i hate to wait so long

• supernatural elements, dream sharing, HEAVY pining, requited unrequited love, everyone is so fed up with them even the universe decides to intervene

4. bury my body in shallow soil, for death was never meant to embrace me

• supernatural elements, immortal buck, heavy angst, sort of dark because buck's mental state is even worse than it is in canon. also buddie because of course

5. the blood of the covenant

• 5 times someone realizes something's wrong with Buck and 1 time he asks for help. sliiiight buddie

6. but i self sabotage (what the fuck is wrong with me?

• heavy pining, heavy angst, implied self harm, sex as a(n unhealthy) coping mechanism, Buck regressed to Buck 1.0

7. somebody should've had your back

• misunderstandings, post lawsuit, miscommunication, buddie are stupid and they physically cannot talk to each other. they kiss in Eddie's kitchen, because of course they do

8. blood is thicker than water but both feel the same when your eyes are closed

• kidnapping, Maddie leaves Doug earlier, pre-canon, timeline what timeline, Bobby acting as Buck's dad even before they really know each other. weirdly enough, not buddie because Eddie isn't even in LA yet, but rest assured that they become canon in my heart

9. rotten children don't deserve heaven

• past sex worker buck, child abuse, csa, the Buckley parents suck ass even more than in canon, Hen acting as Buck's sister, Maddie also left Doug earlier but that's not relevant, extremely slow burn full of angst and pining

10. put your hands to the heavens (kill your pride)

• time travel fix it, smart buck, bamf buck. and buddie. because of course.

11. To be loved by everybody (but you)

• Eddie starts going on dates set up by his aunt, so Hen sets Buck up with her friend Casey (the gay firefighter from Hen Begins). Eddie... doesn't take it well.

12. smokin' hot (working title)

• Buck smokes, he thinks no one knows, everyone does. Eddie finds out and bluescreens.

[celis22]

DC x Marvel AU

"Gotham Dynamic Duo" AU

Okay...this crack-ass AU was born from one of my wildest dreams to date! In essence, Gambit and Spider-Man end up in Gotham together!!

After watching X-Men 97, my mom telling me she was obsessed with Gambit in her youth, and reading a ton of "Spider-Man in Gotham" fics...I had a weird dream where a lot of different concepts were mixed together! It was seriously a freaking weird dream.

How did Gambit and Peter end up in Gotham?

• After Gambit's death, there was a glitch in the universe because at that moment Doctor Strange was casting the spell that would erase Peter from the collective memory (but as happens in many fics) instead, Peter was erased from existence and sent to Gotham... Gambit's soul got caught in the middle and traveled with him!

Where do our two unfortunate victims end up?

• In a Lazarus Pit! Yep! Rage pit for Remy and Peter >:D I like to think that the regenerative properties of the pit basically undid Gambit's lobotomy and gave him back, at least partially, his original powers! While Peter is more spider-like than before!

• The rage pit presents itself differently in Gambit and Peter! For Peter, it's like his spider-sense goes haywire, putting him in a fight-or-flight mode... while for Gambit, it's more mental; he doesn't become animalistic like Peter or lose control like Jason. Instead, Gambit suffers from not having a way to stop violent intrusive thoughts, like... instead of attacking senselessly, he plots murder!

Relationships and Interactions!

• Between Peter and Gambit: Since they're both kind of trapped together in Gotham, they stick together! With Peter creating false identities for the two of them (with Gambit assigned as his legal guardian after Peter's parents "death") and Gambit being the responsible adult who brings home the bread!

• Between Peter/Gambit and the Rouge/villains: I'm a sucker for the aunt-nephew relationship between Peter and Harley (plus Ivy) so...yeah, just silly stuff between them! While Gambit has more of a working relationship with some villains. Example: he works on the iceberg lounge for the Penguin as a waiter...and dancer!

• Between Peter/Gambit and the Batfamily: Gotham's favorite stalker bats mostly interact with Peter, since (surprise surprise) Peter goes to Gotham High and has more opportunities to interact with them. Gambit, on the other hand, is more of an afterthought to the bats; he's only Peter's legal guardian...but not for Jason!

Here we enter the strangest part of my dream...a crack ship! Please don't hate me

• Peter/Gambit’s relationship with Jason: Since our pit boys are broke as hell, they both live in a small apartment in Crime Alley…Red Hood territory! Peter is another alley kid to Jason, an interesting one since he’s caught the attention of his family…but Gambit? He’s love struck with our favorite Cajun man! After seeing him leaving Penguin’s nightclub and getting jumped by some drunks, Jason springs into action to protect him (keeping in mind his code of looking out for the sex workers/escorts in Crime Alley…though I’m not sure WHERE that iceberg is…so just roll with that!) he determines that, as a dancer, Gambit falls into that category…but who knew that Louisiana charm (and accent) would end up giving Jason a crush!

Ages & Timeline!... only for some though!

• Gambit: 27 years old. I know in the series (X-Men 97) Gambit is supposed to be between 30 and 35 years old, but I wanted to make him a little younger... That and because I thought he was around 25 when I saw the series! So... yeah...

• Peter: 17 15 years old. Following the movie canon (NWH), it's speculated that he's between 17 and 18 years old! But continuing with the cliché of Peter being younger, he physically and mentally regresses at the age of 15... the same could apply to Gambit.

• Damian: 13 years old... because I like the idea of Damian being a dangerous little pre-teen!

• Bruce: 40 years old... listen! Old and tired dad, Bruce! Besides, the life of a vigilante is stressful. This man has aged quite a bit due to the stress of fighting crime... and being a father to wild children!

Extras & concepts I don't know where to put!!

• Gambit and Peter are permanently trapped in Gotham! Peter because of Doctor Strange's spell...and Gambit because he died and his soul is no longer in his original universe, so...no Deathbit for X-Men 97!

• John Constantine!...listen, I love Constantine, my mom is a huge fan of his movie and she recently started reading his comics, so I wanted to include him. Plus, I have an AU with Constantine I'm working on.

He's just Gambit's drunk friend. The two met by chance and Constantine smelled the "this guy doesn't belong here" vibe as soon as he met Gambit, so...they just see each other from time to time to drink and shit.

• Gambit's powers, while not at the same level as pre-lobotomy, are quite strong! managing to charge things (and living matter) with kinetic energy without touching them if he concentrates enough.

• The relationship between Jason and Gambit was the main reason for the existence of this AU and an important part of my dream. I think... since Gambit is still heartbroken because of Rouge, Jason would have a hard time trying to win him over...and if we add to that Jason own conflicting feelings about being in love after so long, Jason and Gambit have a complicated relationship, like friends-to-lovers kind of thing but also puppy-love!

maybe i'll do art for this AU later, but it all depends on my motivation...also, i don't know too much about DC or Marvel, so pls don't hate on this AU! it's all harmless fun!

[fawnyflower]

babyreg!lottie headcanons

-> padded agere, cg!nat, little bit of angst but mostly fluff, she/her lot he/him nat, wilderness teen tl

ohhhh my shayla…..

- Lottie is the tiniest little baby ever!!!! 0-2 although sometimes she might go up to 3 if she’s feeling rambunctious and not too overwhelmed. she’s fully non speaking when she’s little, opting instead to hum and babble

- Nat is her dada and has been since before the crash. Even when he’s upset at her big self, Nat can’t stop himself from caring about little her and wanting to make sure she’s safe and happy. Plus, he genuinely loves caring for her and it helps him manage his own emotions.

- She is such a sleepy and cuddly little bub… she loves taking naps and being held. She doesn’t have any stuffies in the wilderness so she cuddles extra hard with Nat, often falling asleep on his chest with one of his old shirts or the arm of his jacket clutched to her chest. She will also mouth at his hair and clothes sometimes - she doesn’t have a paci either :( nat makes sure she rinses off her hands before her thumb goes in her mouth, at least.

- She’s a little too small to really play but she does like to watch critters in the forest or her friends run around camp. Sometimes, in nice weather, Nat will take her just a little ways into the forest and show her what forest friends he can identify… he doesn’t know very many, but he can point out tracks and say who they belong to, and he knows who likes to eat what in the forest! “Little raccoons eat these yummy berries with their little hands :) oh and do you know who likes to eat the grass here? They’re your favorite, baby, it’s deer!”

- Lottie is a VERY sensitive and emotional little :( she will burst into tears at the smallest things. A loud sound, someone getting hurt or upset (even if it’s just a scratch or playful bickering), or just Van hollering in excitement tend to have her sobbing and clutching onto Nat’s shirt for dear life. He’s always very kind and patient with her, reassuring her, helping her cover her ears, and providing lots and lots of cuddles until she feels better.

- Her feelings are often too big for her little body. She gravitates towards harmful body movements just to get the feelings out — hitting her head with her hands, chewing her fingertips, and kicking things super hard are all too common :( Nat is very good at holding her and helping her get that energy out in a safer way, like squeezing his hand or chewing on her clothes.

- Nat teases her very gently but he makes sure to keep the mood light — anything that implies he’s actually upset with her breaks her little heart. Lots of “silly girl” and “goofball”… when she’s in a good headspace she likes being called a rascal/scoundrel/imp too because it makes her feel silly :p

- He also calls her “perfect/sweet girl”, “little love”, “dove”, etc… lots of sweet names for his sweet bubby

padded agere below ^_^ (nonsexual diaper use + changes)

- She was actually the one to get herself diapers. She’d always been a bedwetter due to nightmares, and pre-crash, a maid would just deal with it, but after, she was really starting to get afraid that she was ruining the few blankets the girls had when she had accidents. She spent a lot of nights in the wilderness miserable and completely dehydrated because she’d decided not drinking water would keep her dry overnight (it didn’t always work) before admitting she needed something more. She sewed together a bunch of layers of rags and underwear, and it worked surprisingly well.

(In the version of the adult timeline that I made up that will never happen, when they reunite again, Nat buys her real ones and helps her regress after so long…)

- She feels ashamed of needing padding. She will never ever ask directly for a change — Nat is just good at reading her and can usually tell that when she gets extra teary or squirmy she needs it.

- She loves it when Nat will sing her little songs while he changes her. She will always giggle and clap for him, especially if they’re silly, and he loves it. He especially appreciates that they keep her mind off what’s happening, so she doesn’t get so embarrassed during or after.

- Still, she feels horrible for “making” Nat do it, even though he cares for her willingly and is always telling her as much. After changes, she is either extra cuddly and clingy, or she darts off to her art supplies to make him a picture as thanks. No matter how many times Nat tells her he wants to help her out, she still feels like she owes him a thank you :(

- Because of her nightmares, she wears protection every night. If she’s not regressed she can put them on herself, but more often than not, she’s little by bedtime. Sometimes if she’s having trouble slipping Nat will get her dressed & in her favorite pattern padding and that always does the trick.

[crynussy]

new addition to my tiny guys collection 🙏😭😭💔

thank you l(eye)t (perhaps yagami) ((we will never know)) we all say in unison for forcing me 2 draw them and providing me with 1/5 of my monthly expenses for them 🙏🙏🙏

also just to remind of other tiny guys in my collection:

we have the babies (they are all completely innocent)

orv edition from before i read orv (such a happy family 🥹)

my and my friends' silly little cod ocs (found family but it's against the child's will)

i really love them all so i have to show them off every full moon or i will explode

[crynburne]

tbh hyj is an awful fucking dad and here's my 13 reasons why (under the cut)

(there's actually a lot i don't recommend reading allat)

anyway like I'd say he's probably? a good brother because I'm not complaining about him rasing hyh. i think he was actually pretty good considering their circumstances. before dungeons there seemed to be a good work/life balance, it's not like he'd work 24/7 and never see hyh and they probably spent a lot of time together and emotionally they were really close, as for their financial situation i don't think hyh cared about it much, if he could spend time with hyj he was happy and content and hyj gave him that time, attention and love because hyh needed that and hyj knew that

sure hyh was suppressing himself at that time but he seemed just fine with even that, there was also the point about hyj fitting his brother into his own mold but that was just teaching hyh what he himself knew and how to live with the best intentions in mind, because he wanted his brother to live good and well and once again hyh was all for it. (and also neither of them really knew hyh's nature at that time) so yeah. he's a great older brother/guardian

on the pre regression timeline, really neither of them were at fault for what happened (my honest opinion the one to crucify and end is pre regression seok simyeong he's like my №2 hated guy in the whole novel cus he was the reason those dumb kids kept being stubborn and were hurting because he had all the time and age and brains to find the best way to keep hyj safe (THE ONLY GOAL HYH HAD. AND HE KNEW ABOUT THAT. I FUCKING HATE HIS GUTS.) anyway №1 is pre regression hyh because I'm biased and he's stupid (it's not his fault but still) and he had FIVE years to find a better way to keep his brother safe (at least on earth) but he DIDN'T. his ass did NOT consider hyj's mental wellbeing or the harassment or the violence he had to go through because of him or the self loathing and hate and despair and anyway i dislike him. it's also diarma and co's fault but he died pretty quickly and honestly i couldn't give much fucks about him)

let's get back on track, what hyj sucks at is being a dad. and the one I'm most sorry for is my poor boy gyeol, he's a kid through and through but he's already trying to grow up too fast because of his shitass dad (and when hyj wanted his kids to not grow up as fast as he did and stay kids when they're kids with a good childhood. which is the opposite of what happened with his first). and he's also very reliant on him. and he's already doing his best trying to suppress his emotions and wants and be quiet when he wants something because he tries to be a "good kid". and that's so fucking sad. and I can't even begin to imagine how it must feel when your dad can disappear literally any moment and you can't even do anything and like when he doesn't disappear he's away WORKING. he's way too busy to make time for you and like he tries sure but it's still not enough cus kids at that age want constant attention and love and hyj just can't give that to his kids no matter how much he tries or how good his intentions are for them

not like I don't feel sorry for the other kids but seol isn't all that attached to his dad or anything so he probably doesn't gaf if he dies or disappears and all he needs is his and byeol's basic needs met (in fact he knew hyj would be a shitty dad even when he was just born, so he wanted to leave right away with byeol and honestly i don't blame him for it)

and byeol also doesn't seem too attached to her dad either and she's just living her best life enjoying it, she has her brothers and her family and people who feed and play with her so she's not that bothered if her dad is away, because his role is being filled by other people in that time

while yoobin is still way too young to even grasp anything BUT HYJ IS ALREADY FAILING HIM (and yes him cus hyj said something about not being able to not see hyh in binnie so he'll probably be a boy for now). 70% of the time while he was trying to get back home he left his infant with other people and only got back home to feed him and sleep (if he even GOT HOME because this man is, and i quote, 'a kidnapping expert' and likes getting tied up beaten up taken away from home and maybe even getting sold) and well idrk how infants work but not having his dad must be pretty bad for binnie and yj himself mentioned that his kid might be getting separation anxiety (still proceeded to get kidnapped and leave him alone for hours) ((AND THEN HE SAYS BINNIE 'NEEDS TO GET USED TO IT QUICKLY'. WHAT THE FUCK. this man is so ass at being a dad I'm actually crying 😭😭))

in fact the one good thing about hyj is that he has money so he can provide the necessities for his kids, he tries to get them the best and even open a kindergarten and school for them and he literally saved the world and made it a better place for his kids and other kids and literally all of humanity.

BUT.

he's so so busy with all his work he has basically no time to spare for the kids. what the kids (mainly gyeol and yoobin I'd say) need at this exact time is his attention, and when he's done with all his work it might just be too late and they'll already distance themselves and lose the need for said attention (because they barely get it)

in conclusion, i think he's doing his best but he's doing it in the wrong (?) direction. not that changing the world so it's a better place is wrong but like. he's so emotionally unavailable to his kids and that's my main point. and they also have to worry their asses off about his wellbeing, him getting kidnapped, him fucking dying, him not eating or exercising, him probably dying earlier than all of them and i can go on and on (this is mainly his grown kids tho, byr, hyh, peace, and for some fucking reason his toddler gyeol)

and no i don't have an always working parent who I'm emotionally distant from what are you talking about

[sfstranslations]

Hello! I would just like to ask because I feel like you are the most suitable person to ask this question.

Did HYJ and SHJ ever meet their pre regression self? Because I don't know if I made it and imagine it so so I thought it was canon.

(it was an extra I think. Between ch 100-200)

Major spoilers under the cut. (EDIT: FOR SOME REASON TUMBLR TOOK THE CUT OUT?? I'M SO SORRY TO ANYONE WHO GOT SPOILED BY THIS POST.)

I must admit I laughed upon seeing this question. By god the answer is yes. They could stand to meet their pre-regression selves less, frankly. Egregious amounts of pre-regression self meeting happen for multiple characters in this novel. It's not necessarily the actual pre-regression person time-travelling, usually it's recreations of them through dungeon magic or the like, but close enough.

Most notably, Yoojin meets his pre-regression self in the Nightmare Before Christmas dungeon in the upcoming arc. Sung Hyunjae's pre-regression self is around and making trouble for a good while in the latter half of the story. (A character summons pre-regression SHJ for post-regression SHJ to talk to, and one of the first things he does is go "me and Han Yoojin have a kid, look, here are photos" [pulls out his phone and shows him Changeling], LMAO. That's around chapter 629–631, I believe.) Versions of pre-regression HYJ/SHJ from an alternate timeline where HYJ didn't regress also show up in the side stories, as I understand it?

So, TL:DR, yes. The pre-regression world will simply not let being overwritten stop it from featuring front and center.

[shiraoyagi]

Waittt I hadn’t even peeped that the roles switched around to each other BUT THAT MAKES IT SO MUCH MORE INTERESTING (gonna reread everything with that bit of context)

I wonder, in the epilogue, if they do end up getting back together, how long it would take for them to surpass rad weekend from that point or even if once they surpass rad weekend if they’d continue to take on the world.

Or alternatively would they even be able to?

Mita won’t be forgiven as easily I feel (if he’s still singing)

Tono probably came back by the time this au is in effect, but would there be a similar play out of SBD, and from there would he join their events

Ever may have quit by now no? I think they were planning on disbanding at some point (Pre Taiga but I may be misremembering)

And Finally would Taiga even have been around to tell them all about Nagi? Would Ken have told them?

And that’s not adding the little bits of how different their positions are in this timeline

ken likely would've told them, because lutf has subtext that ken was apparently planning on telling an around then but taiga got around to... being an asshole about it first, LOL. taiga has already come and gone to visit an and ken based off the timeline, and while he is a dick, he's not enough of a dick to just tell her the truth when she has no team as a support system (i think part of taiga's motivations is that he felt threatened by vbs + the other teams with them, which he wouldn't feel with just an by herself because... there's no way she can surpass rad weekend on her own)

i don't remember ever's lore much, so i'm not sure about them tbh..

kotaro, i think, has already quit music by now or just has no intention of surpassing rad weekend. he's got huge insecurities, and he's always looked up to akito (which played a role in his bias against an and what he did out of pettiness towards her and kohane in the first place). if he hasn't quit already since akito left, then he probably is just doing music by himself still— without the motivation to surpass rad weekend, because he ALSO got that from akito in the middle of vbs's general arc.

stray bad dog might play out worse if we contemplate how much akito has regressed maturity wise (his behavior towards touya in his chapter isn't very convincing of his character). considering it seems there's no sekai, i don't think akito and touno will ever see eye to eye, and the only person who MIGHT be able to is touya .. or potentially an? with the whole carrying dreams thing?

also something else

even if they "get back together", something tells me it might just be as friends rather than as a unit... which would kinda tie in how important it is that vbs in canon are more than just good friends, you know??

but if they do try surpassing rad weekend after (which i feel also works), they're going to have a MUCH tougher time. an's reputation has suffered a bit, akito's been gone for a while (and he's going to end up having the most skill/talent of the 4, consequently), touya is going to be very rusty in his singing ability, and both him and kohane will likely be at an all time low for their confidence, which will also affect their singing and performance onstage

there's some other factors, too, like the fact that touya's relationship with harumichi is even worse in this timeline than it was in canon. idk how well harumichi is going to take touya quitting music altogether and then finally doing music again but it's just street music. AGAIN.

touya will have a really hard time with this, and i wouldn't be surprised if he actually ends up living with someone else like tsukasa (depends on how the tenma parents feel.. which idk they're kinda ??? about the aoyagi family situation anywyas) or someone in his unit kinda like mafuyu with kanade because of it (since I don't think the "suffocating" feeling of his house will exactly go away now...)

an's abandonment issues with kohane might be Better if kohane convinces her enough that she won't leave again, but I could see them getting worse because kohane left before— i do like to be optimistic, so i'd go for the former interpretation rather than the latter. an's issues are probably going to be more related to the town's perception of her, since that's already a central piece of her character (but it takes more of the stage with kohane indirectly causing less problems for an emotionally)

kohane's impostor syndrome will likely be a whole lot worse, especially if she's not the one who brought this unit back together. even if she is, i think kohane is going to really struggle with feeling like she's an outsider or that she doesn't belong

this leaves akito, who i think might be taking a sort of leadership role on everyone's behalf/shouldering their feelings. it's a bit of a contrast to canon, where i think touya does this the most as of recent (it's the most obvious with how he behaves in kohane4/oyf, but also in touya4 where he's tasked with understanding all of his unitmates's feelings and writing a song about that). also his overworking habits will probably be worse because there's been nobody to reel him in (note that this person in the past seemed to be kotaro (?))

this is just what i think or how i would write it, I guess !! thanks for the asks, it's fun

edit: thought about it more and i think the most likely answer for the living situation is that touya would live with ken, yuka and an. i say this because they'd objectively be the most welcoming because ken knows touya personally and knows he's a good kid, unlike kohane's parents who r notably overprotective of kohane (and touya's gender might not help if they somehow think they're going to... do anything? 😒) and akito's parents who r notably kinda neglectful/emotionally distant + ena who would be like totally thrown off by touya just. living with them. 😭

[teecupangel]

wanted to contribute to your otome AU brainrot by proposing a complete alternate take on the oneshot + another au

So the Apple does some real fucky wucky stuff in that Desmond isn't the only one stuck in the game like the team assumes

Nay, every love interest's soul too is locked within this game, all of them have the game description as well as notes of their own roles, and it seems simple, they're stuck in a game with two-dimensional characters

the conditions of escape are only half dependent on them

Desmond achieves 30% approval from them (something they can't fool the game on) and since this Desmond isn't real either, but they also need him to escape, and cannot fool the game, they simply accept the game as it is

Until they notice ... discrepencies in one another and realize, wait ... who said I was the only one stuck in here??

And Rebecca is like "I did NAWT program that! 💀💀💀" but everybody is watching eachother to make the first move while they figure out who is an isn't a person

for drama we could extend the game itself, either pre or post picking an escort so there's more time to investigate and confront others, plus the fact time isn't linear in this game and will timeskip itself could make for miscommunication or whatnot

======

Alternate Alternate Universe, instead of being isekaied into the game, they instead reincarnate in post-mortem into a legit fantasy world

Maybe it's instant, or some time after birth they remember everything, or a mix of both, but they have memories of their first and new lives and are like "alright lets use my first life to my advantage for my second one"

Not knowing there are other reincarnators running around, plot ensues

The otome AU oneshot that I’m planning to write a sequel soon-ish (if Eagle of Alamut cooperated with me XD): Badump Animus Destiny

So, for this one, Desmond transmigrated to what he assumed was Rebecca’s otome game but turned out to be an actual fantasy world that the Animus had ‘tuned into’ to create Rebecca’s story.

The others though have already went through this game once.

To be more exact, all of them remembers their first life where Desmond got a bad ending and died in front of them.

When they woke up, they remember their first life AND also their lives as an Assassin.

So, in this case, Desmond is just continuing what he assumes is Rebecca’s game while the others have actually regressed and have different plans to get their happy endings.

All of them don’t realize that there are other regressors and a trasmigrator because they believed that the changes made by the others are butterfly effects in motion.

Desmond thinks this ‘game’ is making him have otome worthy moments with everyone because that’s the genre of the game.

The truth is that all regressors are in love with Desmond and all those moments happen because they want to be with him.

This will also put a lot of angst in place when Desmond learns that all of them are carrying a torch for another Desmond and he would think he was meant to be a replacement in their eyes.

.

The easy way out of this is that Desmond is actually a regressor too. Unfortunately, he regressed after his death in the first timeline and that’s why he doesn’t remember that he was the Desmond that everyone lost. It’s actually more accurate to say that when time rewinded, Desmond’s memories rewinded as well.

The hard way is that the endgame pairing will be the one who pushes past their love for the Desmond of the previous timeline and learn to love this Desmond as himself, not as a replacement.

[chaoortu]

today's hs reaction

if nick has a breakdown on/around christmas i'll actually dance a fucking jig, anyway, spoilers below the cut.

i only say that bc i LOVE writing angst set around the holidays bc it just adds another layer of stress that is so tasty!

today's chapter really was for chaoortu specifically, thank you alice.

nick having a nightmare that charlie died really reminded me of the fact that i think within the solitaire timeline... doesn't charlie attempt suicide while he and nick or dating? maybe he just self-harms, idk. but it speaks to this fear that nick has and it's not like that fear is unjustified? i do think the dream speaks more for nick's mental state right now and his unsaid anxieties manifesting into a nightmare. but nick CONTINUEING to pretend to be find is sooo! fucking interesting to me. i feel like after charlie returned from treatment, he seriously regressed back to where he was at pre-canon (maybe i'm wrong) but the people pleasing, the pretending? it all rings true as hell and i wonder if anyone will call him on that? what i'm wondering now is if david will be the one to call it out. we haven't seen david since he got back from jess' so i'm wondering if david will, in his own david way, will bring that up to nick or charlie? bc like, i can't remember the specifics but it is david, i think, who calls Charlie's ed and self harm behavior attention seeky and implies nick is white knighting the situation-- but that's not UNTRUE (the white knighting, the thing he says about charlie is heinous af), and i'm wondering if that will ever get touched on again. i think it'd be a good way to show some david character growth. and now that charlie is also getting anxious, and it seems is having ed thoughts again like-- will he bring those up to nick?? if he does, i can't see nick actually bringing up his own anxieties because he seems to have this like; "Oh, well my boyfriend has been through worse than me so why would i bog him down with my silly issues haha" mentality and i feel like if charlie tells him shit's getting tough-- nick will just regress further. although i am sincerely hoping both of their anxieties leads them to a full fight. i think it's needed LMAO. the catharsis of it all. i think nick really just needs the space to come apart and lay himself bare. like, idk. ive always been of the opinion that nick also should've been in therapy when charlie was bc like YEAH THAT'S A LOT FOR A 16 year old. but nick would never, ever see it that way and that makes me so sad. like, same for tori tbh. pov nick and tori go to the same therapist and have a spiderman pointing meme moment. that'd be funny as hell. and the thing is, i feel like if charlie relapses with his ed (which for his sake i PRAY doesn't happen. i dealt with a relapse earlier last year and it was actual fucking hell i hate it here), nick's going to blame himself for it, for not being a better bf even though he's trying to be perfect, for not seeing it coming, etc. just. UGH. and now that i KNOWWW it's the holidays based off that last panel i think Christmas will seriously push those boys to their very limits.