#she does know for a fact that the supernatural exists (she's got the power to see magic things no one else can)

[halloweencatsart]

Updated references for my ocs Erica and Ana!

Erica is a conspiracy theorist/paranormal investigator and Ana is her best friend who has magical true sight.

[sanyu-thewitch05]

Yandere Superhero X Villain! F! Reader

Wanna buy me a coffee: ☕

TW: Dubcon, spankings, kidnapping, bodily horror

PT.2

Your real name is Y/N L/N, but your villain name is Anima. After your latest failure in trying to find a job, you went into the woods to end it all. Then, by some miracle, an entity older than any Abrahamic religion found your dead body and brought you back to life. Your senses were heightened, and you could hear the animal's chatter and noises as words. With a new feeling of power, you went through society doing whatever you wanted. Even if it meant a few people with broken bones or blood on the floor. That was until a superhero by the name of superhero by the name of Ultimate Man appeared and started defeating you in battle.

He isn't going to be a problem anymore after you take him out with your new suit. Not only does it have the abilities and strengths of every animal alive, but it has the strengths and abilities of the extinct ones. It took kidnapping a paleontologist, but it is so worth it.

"Anima, surrender, and you won't get hurt," Ultimate Man commands, floating a few feet above the ground.

"Sorry, but rent's due," You say, running off with the bags of money from the bank.

As you run, he shoots lasers at you, but you dodge them by zigzagging. Unfortunately, this leads to you not paying attention to where you're going, and you run yourself off a harbor walk. The money sinks into the ocean, and you struggle to swim back up. You switch to the abilities of any marine animal, but it's still not helping you. You see your feet entangled in seaweed and try to break free. Your struggle to free yourself has worn you out, and it seems like this is your last run. Your vision goes black as your instincts tell you to go up to the surface and breathe.

~~~~~~~~~~

When you open your eyes, your jaw and ass feel sore. You try to talk, but there's a gag in your mouth.

"How dare you be such a bad girl and cause so much trouble? Do you have no respect for anyone in this city? Who cares if your rent is due? Get! A! Fucking! Job!" Ultimate Man rants, spanking your ass after every word.

"MM! MH! AWCH!" You scream, your legs kicking as Ultimate Man uses his godly strength to spank you.

The tight latex suit didn't help with the spankings, in fact, the material made sure your body could feel them at their full force.

"Oh, I see the worst girl of the century has awakened. How does it feel knowing you almost got yourself killed trying to steal money?" Ultimate Man asks, taking off your gag.

His blonde hair with light blue highlights, aquamarine eyes, and skin-tight latex white and blue suit is a sight for the eyes. His appearance is ethereal, representing his alien origin from outer space sent to help out Earth on its newest supernatural threat(you.) Who knew having the power of every animal in existence would warrant alien help for the planet Earth?

"I'm sorry, Ultimate Man. I was only trying to pay my rent. Honest," You plead, bracing for another swat to the ass. "I didn't get the raise at my job, even though I deserve it, and I couldn't pay this month's rent."

"I believe you," Ultimate Man says, his hand still rubbing your ass. "But that doesn't mean I forgive you for what you did. I was so worried when you didn't rise from the water. I thought I lost you forever. I need a suitable mate, and you're the only one with abilities almost equal to mine on this planet."

"I'm sorry, WHAT?! I thought you were in a relationship with that news writer, Lora?" You ask, lifting your head.

"Are you kidding me? We're just friends. She couldn't compare to your beauty and strength. Now then, how about we get to know each other."

Ultimate Man peels off your eye mask, then takes out his contacts. There are no pupils in his eyes, just pools of aquamarine. It creeps you out, but at least he's still hot.

"I'm ☍⍀⍜⎍☍⟒⋏ ⏃⏃⍀☍⟒⋔. But you can call me Krouken Aarkem, which is pronounced Cro-oo-can Ar-kem. My human father calls me Ken. Now, what's your name?" Ultimate Man asks, lifting your body with ease.

"It's Marnie," You lie, not wanting to give him your real name.

His fingertips glow blue, and he places them on your head. Pain takes over your head as he searches through the deepest parts of your memory.

"Y/N M/N L/N. What a beautiful name. I'll make sure to bring over your cat so you can have your baby," Krouken says, removing his hands from you.

You slap him and stumble to the other side of the couch.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" You groan, holding your head.

"What did I do wrong? Please don't be mad at me!" Krouken cries, jumping onto your body and hugging you tightly. "I'll never do it again unless you want me to! I promise! Just don't be mad at me!"

"Alright! Alright! I'm not mad at you! Just get off of me!" You yell, pushing him off you after feeling his boner on your leg.

"Yay! Now, we can engage in the Plutonian ritual we call Improving."

Krouken starts taking off his suit, revealing his naked body to you. You back up but bump into the couch, leaving you nowhere to run. He touches your suit, liquifying the material and making it fall off your body like water. Krouken kisses you, his hand tracing every part of your body as if he were memorizing it.

"Your heart is beating fast? Do you want to fight me?" Krouken asks his hand on your chest.

"No. It's just something the human body does when we feel certain emotions," You explain, holding Krouken's hand.

"So you are excited to Improve too? Excellent, I can move forward," Krouken replies, his two dicks merging into one with the width of an adult's fist.

Your eyes widen in fear of the inhuman cock in front of you. There was no way it was going to fit. It was too wide to fit in your human pussy. If it were to go inside you, you'd feel it in your lungs.

"Wait, I think we should-" You plead, only for Krouken to shove his massive cock inside of you.

You can feel it moving inside as if his dick was made from thousands of little suction cups that were kissing your vaginal walls. Krouken's arm holds you in place, and he thrusts.

"Keep going, Krouken!" You moan, lifting your leg and putting it on his shoulder.

Krouken bites and sucks your nipples as he thrusts faster, his dick suction cups losing their grip and becoming more slippery.

"You're never going to be a bad girl ever again. I'm going to fill your stomach up with so many babies that you'll never be able to think of doing stupid shit without having trouble standing up. You're going to birth the next generation of my people. You're mine, all mine. Not those villain's colleague or someone else's enemy, mine," Krouken rambles, thrusting at an inhuman rate, destroying whatever tightness your pussy had.

His eyes become white as he cums, his alien cock suction cups releasing thousands of sperm. Upon his sperm's release, his genital suction cups regained their grip on your walls, and sucking on them, making you go into overdrive. You cum on his dick, and he shudders. Both of you relish in your afterglow, sweat dripping from your body.

"So, what did you think of Improving?" Krouken asks, his head resting on your breasts.

"It was good. By the way, why do your people call it that?" You ask, rubbing Krouken's wet hair.

"Because we improve each other's bodies. Once my seed is in you, it will rework some human DNA so you'll be more like me and vice versa. Your skin is already starting to become shiny and ethereal like my skin," Krouken answers, kissing your neck.

Your body feels extremely hot, like lava is in your veins, and your eyes are burning like no tomorrow. Your spine releases a horrifying crack as your body involuntarily jolts upwards. All you can do is scream as your bones and body transform permanently.

[stevengrantshubby]

some random musings ive been turning over since ive seen the movie (ive only seen it once at this point)

the fact that remmick only knew about the juke joint because he ate the KKK couple is so...interesting and i cant even articulate why. like yea the ppl at the juke joint were always going to be in danger (cause of the KKK who were coming in the morning) but all the vamp stuff happening to them cause of that just...i dunno! ive been thinking about it

grace and annie both being mothers (even tho annie's child had passed). theres a connection there somehow, but my brain is mush.

mary, even tho shes married to some yt guy, is still in danger by being there. i think the movie is explicitly telling us that when the KKK husband makes reference to "light-skinned niggers" and then obvi she gets turned and made into a double agent

i think the way the vampirism works in the movie is interesting cause both stack and mary seem to have genuine grief/anger when annie is killed. theres this...tension (i dont remember fully what annie said about what vampires are outside of souls being trapped in a dead body) cause yes remmick is in there too, sure. but mary and stack are also in there (as evident by the final scene with them). this makes the bo bits interesting. tho i think (or like to) part of it is remmicks desire to connect to his own ancestors and past, mixed with his victims desires to reunite with their family (but remmick's wants take precedent which is why no one just leaves him and goes to eat the town or something)

every sammie/peraline scene was cute as hell. ill never get over the "im married/happily?" exchange hehe. sammie being down to be an cheater is a great bit for him. he was so smooth with it as well. sammie is smooth when he wants to be.

i wish, i wish, i wish sammie and pearline got a song or something together.

when all the vampire stuff was happening but pearline was being kinda difficult, i think it sorta, highlights that shes not apart of the community in the same way everyone else is seems like. i think this makes her a...foil/parallel/whatever to mary in a certain way (theyre even introduced at the same time)

sammie keeping hold of his guitar, and getting it fixed, is really powerful as how he expressed himself and his musical gift that God (as per the movie imo) gave him.

interesting that both smoke and sammies father tell him to give up the guitar, but for different reasons, sammie doesnt listen to either of them

annies spiritual work (hoodoo) is pretty interesting in connection to the movies themes between connection with their/our ancestors (also id say that within the movie and the black american context christianity has been a tool of colonization and assimilation, even tho christianity has existed in africa for a long time, listen dont ask be the specific number but i think its more than a millennium, but yknow what i mean) especially cause it works and the prayer does not

very funny that remmick does his little song and dance of "oh pls help me" on the KKK couples porch but they only let him in after he flashes his gold at them. and then he tried the same trick at the juke joint. the loser cant talk his way into anywhere lol. (i also dont know much about irish mythology, spirituality, ect outside of pop culture stuff, but i feel like remmick may also tie into fae from irish myth as well as like being a vampire)

something about...smoke saying he doesnt believe in like demons, ghost, haints, things like that, he only believes in like money and power and here comes remmick, a supernatural being, with money an power

i prolly have more but these have been rotating in my head and are the ones i can mostly put into words. everything else is still a jumble and vibes.

🤔🤔🤔

[coraniaid]

Couple more thoughts about I Robot, You Jane, largely in response to @btvsfemslashenjoyer's recent post. Specifically:

What is the Council's take on Slayers committing crimes? Why does it seem to bother Giles so much?

What's Moloch's whole deal, anyway? Does he have supernatural mind-control powers or he is just oddly persuasive? Is the green humanoid figure we see in the opening flashback Moloch's original body, or something else?

How can we interpret Jenny's scenes in this episode through the later retcon about what she's doing in Sunnydale in the first place?

(1) "Bureaucracy, the pulling of political strings [...] They can kill you with a stroke of a pen."

Obviously the boring [but accurate] take is that the Council didn't exist as an idea in these opening episodes. Giles is worried about Buffy breaking the law because he's a fairly prim and proper English librarian with no special influence and there's nothing he could do to help her if she got in any trouble with the police.

But in a world where the Council does exist I agree it must be true that they don't have any strong objection in principle to the Slayer committing crimes. Kendra certainly commits crimes, after all -- her introductory scene involves her stowing away on a plane and then knocking out the person who stumbles on her hiding place -- and she's presented as very much the model Slayer. I think the Council's objection would be Slayers committing crimes (especially crimes their Watcher didn't sign off on) and getting caught.

Even when the Slayer kills an ordinary person, it sounds like the Council don't like to get the legal authorities involved: in Season 3's Consequences Giles describes the usual procedure when a Slayer accidentally kills a human as "the Council investigates [and] metes out punishment if punishment is due". I think it's reasonable to assume they operate similarly for more minor crimes. I assume that the Council wouldn't ever want the current Slayer to be imprisoned, rightly or wrongly, because who would fight their war on the forces of supernatural evil for them then?

To me, Giles's reluctance for the young Slayerettes [I've decided I'm sticking with that name until the show tells me otherwise] to break the law can be explained in three ways. First, whatever protection the Council usually offers to the Slayer wouldn't be extended to her friends; friends which, in the eyes of the Council, the Slayer shouldn't have anyway. Second, Giles might get in some sort of disciplinary trouble if the Council thought he was recruiting random teenagers to help him out researching demons and vampires. Maybe they'd bail Buffy out by insist on assigning her a new Watcher too. And third, there are presumably cases where the Slayer gets in serious legal difficulties that it would be really hard for the Council to quietly make go away -- too high profile, maybe, or the Slayer doesn't play along, or the government in question isn't as amenable to Council influence as the US government is implied to be -- and at that point I would assume the Council prefer to have the Slayer in question discreetly gotten rid of so that they can start fresh with somebody else.

[This is slightly complicated by fact that the Council are seemingly happy to leave Faith in prison for years -- and before that were content to leave her in a coma for months -- but I guess you can explain that away by the Council knowing there was another Slayer at the time, not ever being sure if Faith's death would even call another Slayer or not and never finding out about Buffy's death in The Gift.]

(2) "[The demon] can only exist in this reality by possessing an unconscious host."

OK, first of all, I really like the idea that the Moloch we see briefly at the start of this episode wasn't his original body but instead a possessed host (something like what we'll later see with Eyghon).

I think this take ties really nicely into some of the discussion about demons we were having at the start of this rewatch (and my own pet peeve about 'the Dark Ages' not generally being considered to include the 15th century). It also makes a lot more logical sense. When Willow's computer "reads" his book, Moloch goes into Willow's computer. So if a human being had read the book, wouldn't Moloch have gone ... into them? And it would perhaps add to the rationale for his epithet of 'the Corrupter' too: you read from the cursed book of Moloch and you yourself become corrupted, eventually transforming into something like the creature we saw in the flashback.

My rough Moloch timeline (building on @btvsfemslashenjoyer's earlier posts) would be something like the following:

For "untold eons demons walked the Earth" until something [never defined on the show] caused them to "lose their purchase on this reality". The demons are explicitly immortal (Giles contrasts them to "mortal animals"), so perhaps Moloch was one of these original pure demons.

The phrasing above suggests demons naturally have a somewhat looser grip on our reality than humans do. Which makes sense if we assume (pure) demons inherently have reality-altering powers (powers like Billy's accidental manifestation of his nightmares later this season -- something Giles explicitly says is "easy when you live on a Hellmouth" and so ties into the demonic world -- or Jonathan's reality-changing spell in Superstar. Adam dismisses that spell as "unstable, corrosive ... [it] will eventually lead to chaos", so maybe that's what happened to the original demons too. Individual demons kept rewriting reality around them and then having that new reality altered by a rival demon, and so on, and the natural endpoint of all this chaos was that they ended up collectively writing themselves out of reality: their souls (whatever a demon's soul is) were sent somewhere else (or rather to multiple locations: we know that there are many different demon dimensions).

At some point in the Dark Ages [that is, the early Middle Ages] some monks -- maybe forebears of the monks who'd later be linked to Glory and the Key -- figured out how to summon demons from one of those dimensions back to Earth. Instead of summoning them in the flesh (the way the Master wants to do, and that maybe you can only do on a Hellmouth) or into a human host (the way GIles and Ethan would later do with Eyghon), they hit on the idea of summoning them into a book. Maybe the idea was that this would let them study the demon somehow? Unfortunately for them it turns out that reading the book releases the demon into whoever reads it ("infecting" them, to use the Double Consciousness Model, which I think must apply here). This newly embodied Moloch isn't a pure demon anymore, but retains some demonic abilities.

The books can't be safely destroyed without releasing the demon either (if scanning a book counts as the computer 'reading' it, do you want to bet that burning it doesn't count as letting the fire 'read' it? or that throwing it into the sea doesn't count as the ocean 'reading it'?), so they had to be kept safely locked away.

But at some point in or just before 1418, somebody read Moloch's book, releasing him. Actually, maybe this wasn't the first time this had happened: the monks we see in the flashback certainly seemed well prepared for it. In any case, from there everything plays out as we see it in the episode.

I think this also explains some of Moloch's fascination with Willow: if normally he takes over the body of whoever releases him, it must be a strange experience to be released and not have had that happen.

I suggested that Moloch 'corrupting' his hosts like this might be the reason for his title, but I do think we're meant to understand that Moloch's powers of persuasion are not entirely natural. A week is a very short period of time to recruit a decent sized cult of followers otherwise. But I don't think we're meant to think Moloch was using his powers of persuasion on Willow. Yes, she's very taken with some pretty anodyne chat messages, but I think you can explain that away with her being ... well, Willow. She doesn't exactly have much experience of talking to boys, and certainly not of anybody seeming to be interested in her as a person.

(Look how quickly she imprints on Buffy in Welcome to the Hellmouth, for example. Buffy didn't need supernatural powers for that; she just treated Willow like a person worth talking to for five minutes and promised to come back and talk to her again and Willow was nodding along and agreeing to "seize the day" and generally acting in a way her closest friend wouldn't have believed possible.)

(3) "You thought, what ... you are Jenny Calendar now?"

I agree that the Season 2 "Janna of the Kaldersash" retcon is ... uh, Not Good. And I don't think it was something anybody involved in this episode even dreamt of at the time. But in a world where Jenny was sent to Sunnydale to keep an eye on Angel, I think we have to assume she's lying about quite a bit more than just her name. Actually, I think she has to have already guessed Buffy is the Slayer.

Yeah, she'll claim not to know when Giles tells her the full truth in Prophecy Girl: "the part that gets me is where Buffy is the Vampire Slayer". But ... well, she would say that, wouldn't she? She certainly doesn't seem at all fazed by the news. And why become a teacher in the first place? Why that cover story?

Up to this point, Angel hasn't ever been seen on school grounds. He hasn't shared a single scene with GIles yet. We've seen him out and about town in Sunnydale's finest cemeteries and alleyways, we've seen him in or nearby the Bronze a few times, and we've seen him at Buffy's house and his own apartment, and that's it. I don't think there's any particular reason to link Angel to Giles, except through Buffy. But there is quite a bit to link Buffy to Angel.

Consider what Jenny must know, in this scenario. Her family must have been keeping an eye on Angel for a while: after decades moping around LA, he suddenly moves out to a small town on the Hellmouth. Why? Well, who else recently moved to Sunnydale from LA? And as a teacher (assuming she didn't start teaching last week), Jenny will have been shown Buffy's permanent record by Principal Flutie, just like Dr Gregory was. Maybe she already knew some of it: as a technopagan, she'll be able to do her own digging as well. She's know about Buffy's sudden history of violent behaviour and unexplained absences and falling grades. We know for a fact she knows Buffy by name, which is more than some of Buffy's actual teachers can say.

She'll know that Buffy burned down her old school gym: and maybe, through her connections, she'll have a good idea vampires were involved in that. And she'll surely have seen how closely Buffy's move to Sunnydale lines up with Angel's own departure from LA. Multiple witnesses must have seen Buffy and Angel together at the Bronze last week, or Angel talking to her in the Bronze during her date with Owen. Maybe Jenny was there at the Bronze to see for herself, assuming she was trying to keep an eye on Angel.

And I don't think it takes much of a mental leap -- assuming you already know about vampires and vampire slayers, which Jenny canonically does -- to see all this evidence and realize what Buffy's whole situation must be. Given all the books about vampires and demons that Giles keeps leaving around the library, I don't think it's going to be hard for her to figure out what Giles relation to Buffy is either.

I think -- again, in the version of the show where this was all planned out -- we have to imagine that Jenny's questions on seeing Buffy -- in her computer lab, or in the library -- are meant to be a bit of a private joke on her part. If Jenny has guessed Buffy is the slayer, innocent lines like "don't you have somewhere to be?" and "you kids really dig the library, don't you?" start to sound awfully like hints that she's in on the secret and that she's almost chiding Buffy for not doing a better job of hiding it.

Granted, Jenny doesn't really seem to try to get to Angel through Buffy. In fact, prior to the Surprise retcon Jenny and Buffy don't rally interact very much at all, and Jenny mentions Angel I think exactly once ("isn't he supposed to be a good guy?" when Buffy tells her and Giles about seeing Drusilla meeting with Angel the night before). And ... okay, I think it is very obvious that the actual reason for this is that the writers didn't have any prior idea what they were going to do with (or to) Jenny's character. But if we pretend they did, couldn't we assume that Jenny's seemingly rather relaxed attitude to her mission is just because she assumes the Slayer is dealing with it? She doesn't know anything about the curse, only that she needs to keep an eye on Angel and make sure he's still suffering. And -- luckily for her -- there's a Slayer in town to watch over this vampire for her. She hasn't staked him, which her family don't want to happen anyway, so she must be using him as an informant about what the more dangerous vampires are up to. That's why he keeps hanging around the Bronze.

It's only later, when she's formally been let in on the secret, that she realizes Buffy might not be operating by the proper Slayer handbook rules. And by that time, she's stopped sending letters back home anyway, since she's definitely having second thoughts about this whole thing.

Finally, something of a tangent, but: thinking about it in the context of Season 1 and last episode specifically, it's pretty weird -- in-universe, anyway -- that none of the people who cursed Angel seem to have ever cared about Darla, even though eventually we'll see in flashbacks that she played a pretty big role in the death of their "most beloved daughter" too. But then "it's pretty weird" is perhaps the kindest thing that can be said about this whole plot point.

[leighlew3]

What were the aspects of Supergirl (show in general or character) that resonated with you personally?

First and foremost, Kara herself... as someone with a ton of trauma, who would have every reason to do not so great things or wield her power for evil, yet does good things and channels her energy into trying to help people -- she's amazing. She is someone who feels isolated a lot of the time and struggles with anger issues but ultimately is such a light and a good person and somebody that just wants to do good for the world, even when it's not always appreciated or understood. Even if it means constant self sacrifice.

I relate to pretty much all of that.

I also loved the idea of Supercorp obviously, because it was such an epic tale in how they were so similar but so different and so inherently fated to be side by side. It could've been so successful if canon romantic on the show instead of just baited. Taking the decades-old lore of Super vs Luthor and instead turning into Super & Luthor -- a story of hate turned into a love story -- that's an incredible concept, and so rich and full of so much storytelling potential. Them just being friends is the 'lite' version of turning that lore on its head. But to go even deeper would've been nothing short of revolutionary.

Alas, instead they chose to tarnish the show's legacy and taint the good it DID do elsewhere in LGBTQ representation (because YES a show can have ancillary rep but still queerbait a lead dynamic -- especially when it's bait that existed before any other rep was even introduced on the show) ...by choosing to be one of the worst examples of queerbait in TV history (due to all of the romanic tropes and parallels and teases and lack of denials by TPTB who very clearly wanted people to stay tuned in based on hope for canon endgame since that very first Clois parallel in 2x01). It was also just an absolute waste of creative potential and true travesty that ultimately only hurt the show and cast and fans and everyone involved, whether everyone is ready to admit it or not.

Anyway, I enjoyed the fact that so many of the characters -- from Kara and Lena (these two especially), to Alex, Nia, and Kelly... so many of them came loaded with one form of trauma or another, but they still were ultimately inherently good people, a great example of 'found family', and heroic as heck in the end, no matter how dark it got at times for some. In large part because they had each other. I mean, I wish they all weren't LITERAL superheroes or supernatural by the end because I think the show (amongst numerous other issues) lost sight of their own messaging that "anyone can be a hero even without powers" but -- they really were inherently such good / ripe characters, the women especially (plus Brainy and J'onn).

Sure, they all (again, the women especially) often were sadly let down by superficial or just plain poor writing and overall creative direction a lot of the time, especially in the end -- but at the core, everyone could find something to relate to in at least one character, if not multiple characters, and that's great.

I know much like fans of Dana Scully in the 90s, a LOT of girls/women were inspired to get into STEM over this last decade now because of Katie McGrath's portrayal of Lena Luthor. And even more people related to Lena's trauma as a survivor of lifelong abuse at the hands of her family and especially her unhinged brother. Seeing that someone can slip into darkness as the result of years of sadistic mind games and abuse of all kinds but still come out the other side a hero, empowered, and a good person who helps others and is capable of loving and deserving of being loved? That's beautiful, and Lena offered that to SO many viewers, so it's no wonder she was a top fan favorite second only to the lead herself. And seeing how that impacted people, was so very moving.

Seeing people impacted by Alex's coming out arc in Season 2 was amazing. Having the first trans superhero on TV was amazing. And so on...

Look, there's a lot the show did wrong. In fact, possibly more was done poorly or wrong than well or good, overall, unfortunately. Alas, there were some little sparks of light to be truly appreciated.

But again, for me, I connected most to Kara's story, her strength, her dichotomy, and her indelible sense of HOPE... despite every reason at times to give up. And to the Kara/Lena love story, in all its infinite, incredible, and still mostly untapped potential.

[multifandom-madne55]

Byler doubt has seeped into my mind and the thing about it is I see an argument for Mileven and Byler.

I will briefly mention that the fact we hardly see Will and Eleven interact onscreen kills me. These two understand the Upside Down and supernatural crap in a way the whole group does not and it kills me we don’t see them talk about it. Not only that, but they are among the most selfless of the group and they have received nothing in return.

Anyway, here’s my reasoning for both:

Originally I was like “Y’know what? Yeah, Will hasn’t got a single good thing going for him like the entire show, he deserves something good and Byler canon would be perfect.” But couldn’t the same be said for Eleven? She’s suffered just as much if not more. If anyone deserves someone romantically I’d argue it’s her over Will.

However, I am not saying Eleven needs a man. What Eleven has always needed most was a sense of belonging and an exploration into who she is. In support of Byler it would make the most sense that she needs to explore her autonomy and figure out who she is and what she wants. Her whole life has been for everyone but her. As much as Hawkins needs Eleven’s help, I hope we can spend some time for her to discover herself and gain control of her life in Season 5. Her best future would be without Mike romantically, it would be with Mike and the party platonically. She needs support and love from friends and family. She needs to know she has value beyond what she can do for others and beyond her powers. She needs to know she matters.

Eleven wants to feel like a normal teenage girl and doesn’t want to feel like she’s wrong or a mistake. Max gave her the chance to be a normal teenage girl and Eleven’s happiest memories are from time spent with Max. I’d also like to add that these moments with Max subvert the makeover trope because she wants Eleven to discover what she likes rather than Max choosing for her. Max has always wanted to give Eleven exactly what she wants: autonomy and normalcy.

Will needs romantic love. Eleven needs support and platonic love from those around her, and while Will needs support as well, him receiving romantic love would help him justify his existence. He feels like a mistake and that his love for Mike is wrong. Will gave up on Mike’s love in an attempt to save Eleven’s relationship. Will needs to feel like he matters, especially to his best friend and possible love interest Mike. Will receiving Mike’s love would complete his arc with him understanding he’s not a mistake, his love is normal and natural. He has been pushed aside for too long and the boy needs some serious love, care, affection and attention. At this point in the story Will must feel incredibly hopeless and without a future. His friends no longer have interest in his interests, he doesn’t appear to have any friends in California, he’s given up on his crush on Mike and the world is quite literally ending right before his eyes.

Mike’s love saving Will from Vecna and the end of the world and finally understanding what has really been going on between these two best friends would be a gorgeous choice narratively. “Yes we can play D&D and Nintendo in my basement for the rest of our lives, I love you.” This narrative would disprove his idea that he would never fall in love. It would be a beautiful message to all gay people, you’re not a mistake, you’re worthy of love. It would also explain to Will it was never about wanting to leave “childish” things behind, it was always about fear and internalized homophobia.

Now, let’s talk Michael Wheeler. Will and Mike have a falling out over Mike and Lucas not wanting to play D&D with him in ST3. Then Will leaves and suddenly in ST4 the remaining core four members are playing D&D again? My theory is that Mike playing D&D was his way of connecting with Will. D&D was their medium to be their true selves and when they stop playing D&D and Will leaves, Mike feels like he lost Will. I think Mike was the first to show interest in the Hellfire Club and by playing it with his friends he hoped to recreate the same feelings of happiness when he used to play D&D. However, it doesn’t work which is why Mike doesn’t appear happy in early ST4. When they beat Eddie’s campaign we don’t see him celebrating with his friends and that’s when he begins to realize what’s wrong: It doesn’t feel the same. He doesn’t miss playing D&D, he misses Will. It was never about the fantasy role playing game, it was always about how he was able to spend time playing with the boy he loves.

Anyway, here’s some honorable mentions and details I’d like to talk about:

Max and Eleven the duo you are 💗☹️ I really wish we had more moments for them as friends, I feel like Eleven would’ve really been there for Max while she was depressed following the events of ST3.

I feel like Eleven’s supernatural plot for ST5 should be focused on Max, it would make more sense that she and Lucas are trying to free someone who meant so much to them. Max was the most positive influence on Eleven next to Hopper. Beyond that, Eleven should have some time to discover her wants to some extent this season. She’s more than a weapon.

I think it’s so interesting how Will and Eleven are almost foils. In ST1-2 it’s almost like they cannot be on the same place at once (Will gets taken to the UD, Eleven has to save him, Will is saved, Eleven replaces his spot in the UD, Will is possessed, Eleven returns to help him, Will is freed and Eleven must return to hiding until the Snowball. It’s a very interesting choice), they need the opposite forms of love and Eleven is empowered to fight while Will is only able to flight.

There are a few parallels between the two, such as Mike’s “love” hurting both Will and Eleven and strangely enough the love they need from Mike is the opposite of the love they’re receiving from him. They also both feel like monsters or “othered” because of things that they aren’t in control of.

My recent obsession has been Mike Wheeler edits with “Like Him” as the song

I need Stranger Things 5 trailer now right now please please pleaseeee

This was written way better but I was outside the app too long so my progress was lost 😭🤚

[phoebehalliwell]

In terms of conspiracy theories... i strongly dislike the one that says that bc Leo was an Elder when Chris was conceived the second time around, changed future!Chris has better/stronger/more powers

Like I literally prefer to swing in the opposite direction of "Leo became an Elder in the Titan attack regardless" bc he is the only person that would actually turn the sisters into gods. I'm sorry but none of the other Elders would ever

In fact (because its another one of those popular headcanons/theories that bug me when used seriously): Chris didn't break his parents up on purpose. Their marriage was already on the rocks per canon and in his past the only reason they stuck it out long enough that Wyatt's kidnapping ended it is because there wasn't another whitelighter to step in for Leo during the s6 time period. Chris's presence broke them up by accident bc he was there and could take over (which was admittedly the plan but how the hell was he supposed to know that that would end his parents marriage when in his past it takes like 18 months longer for them to call it quits)

On the flip side I love the one that says that Paige's active power was only telekinesis once Prue died and her weird dreams and instincts about things are an afterimage so to speak of the premonition power she could have had and that if it had been Piper of Phoebe that had died then she would have had their respective power instead.

for the first one i agree i don't think becoming an elder gave leo anything in supernatural to tap into that whitelighter leo couldn't already pass down you know? i personally do like the headcanon/theory that chris will develop lightning powers i think leo becoming an elder gave leo the necessary power boost to wake up dormant powers he got somehow in his magical whitelighterification. you know? imo, lightning!chris exists both in the light and dark timelines.

and then follow up also yes! so it is a moot point that i think both timeline chrises would have lightning powers because i think both timeline chrises had leo as an elder! you have converted me into this belief bc you're so right actually. the elders would never! they don't even like those girls! and it does make such sense from a narrative point that leo would leave And makes further sense when you realize chris's conception is meant to align with wyatt's birthday party which would probably be leo's like first time returning to earth like for wyatt but he and piper just have this connection yada yada yada. and they conceive. that darklighter bullshit was entirely chris's fault.

oooooh and i love this too! literally because it's always kind of bugged me that paige didn't have her Main Power for her Entire Life she only had orbing but this kind of all makes sense like it was destined that One would die but it was never clear which one. i also really like this as an explanation for paige's unexplained dream visions about the titans. like the only other option i think is all three sisters Could have been receiving these omens but phoebe's subconscious was too full of jason in hong kong subconscious thing to tune into and psychic waves and piper doesn't remember her dreams. i like premonition Potential wayyy better

[florallylly]

finally caved and posted bc i have the most delicious idea ...

those spiderman/deadpool crossovers for steddie but like also following mcu backstories bc i unforch have never read the comics OKAY . be patient with me please

eddie munson as deadpool and steve harrington as morena baccarin's character but set in high school. like maybe after breaking up with nancy and getting beat up by billy, steve goes looking for something to help with the pain (migraines? maybe bc he just got the shit kicked out of him a week ago and he has a hairline fracture from that dumb plate? you decide...). either way, everyone says that eddie munson deals at that picnic table behind the school.

somehow, the two of them end up together. i'm trying to decide between a fwb situation with mutual pining or a whirlwind romance established relationship, but it always ends with eddie munson being diagnosed with cancer.

now this follows the general plot from the deadpool movie with the experimentation/clinical trials for a miracle cure and eddie becomes a mutant (bc deadpool is part of the x-men universe right... i actually have no idea what the correct term for him is. he has powers basically). ALSO, opportunity for a horrible lack of communication. does steve know that eddie has cancer? does he just think that eddie disappeared in the middle of the night? what if he told eddie he loved him and that was when eddie made the decision to go through with the experimental treatment because if there was a possibility to live and stay with steve, he'd do anything to have that.

considering a steve harrington mourning the loss of eddie after he disappears/dies depending on if he's aware of the cancer diagnosis, and not applying for college at all or submitting lackluster applications. his parents don't understand his grief bc they don't know/care that he just lost someone he loved, and he ends up working at scoops with robin.

and robin is great, like platonic soulmates i'm going to spend the rest of my life with you great. she encourages him to get back up and apply to college with her (nyu? to be more canon to spiderman. it could also be indianapolis, but a city either way for a superhero who swings off buildings)

anyways, maybe a year or so passes but the time frame doesn't matter as much as the fact that steve harrington was bitten by a radioactive spider. and now he's spiderman and all of the whatnot that goes into fighting crime and secret identities.

this could also be somewhat canon compliant with stranger things in a steve "why does supernatural shit keep happening to me" harrington way. he got bitten in the russian bunker perhaps? i think it would make most sense for the upside down to be closed off completely after starcourt because hawkins isn't... doesn't make sense to me for deadpool and spiderman to exist in, but also like personal preference.

ugh anyways pls let me know thoughts bc i desperately need someone to talk to about this

[vanisagi27]

The double standards in Manhwas are absolutely crazy

These days I saw ppl liking the Villainess' half siblings from a Manhwha just because when they first met her, a maid's affair child with the Emperor, they acted disgusted towards, this is from Into The Light Again and yes it's about Marianne, okay I know Marianne isn't exactly the best girl ever and she's honestly really good at being a villain and a bitch in general

I don't think it's okay that Marianne was treated like that by the fans, the circumstances on whether or not Marianne actually saw her more legitimate siblings got disgusted with her or that was just her being an unreliable narrator, but I would take it as face value since well after Marianne did the whole face switched thing with the FL, Aisha's appearance but not their birth facts, Marianne is still a maid child and Aisha was the Empress' child, so yeah the excuse that they were brainwashed by Marianne was clearly bullshit to me if they really love Aisha that much, honestly this brainwashed trope can go so good or so bad, also the Manhwa and Webnovel adaptations have many differences so it was muddied (Apparently in the novel, the legitimate siblings were very welcoming and think how to greet the new child, Marianne, so yeah I have no idea where to go)

I don't even read this Manhwa and I have no big issues with it, even though it has some really questionable stuff like the 1000+ age gaps, I'm not buying the immortal x mortal ship with this

My problem is the fandom, everyone hates Marianne for just existing, I don't think this mindset is good at all cuz now they're using that to attack other fans cuz they're in love with Marianne for whatever reasons, I kept seeing comments about demeaning Marianne as a character, saying that she's a stupid maid child who doesn't know her place, outright stating that she's a worthless dirty child just because of her bloodline, yeah she's basically hated by everyone cuz she didn't come out of a royal womb. It's the classist toxic culture I hated, I used to do that and honestly it was draining more than exhilarating, mindless hatred is a waste of my time, that's why I really hate that attitude too

So, I took the time to read 40 chapters, I think, of the manwha as well as reading some spoilers myself, to be able to have a proper opinion on the matter.

(Spoilers if you haven’t read it)

I’m not sure if it’s my bad memory, but I’m pretty much sure that Marianne’s origin as a maid’s child wasn’t brought up in the first chapter. But we do see how Marianne is manipulative and how she orchestrated Alyssa’s execution, which I think does validate any feeling of disgust towards her.

From what I found, Marianne’s half-siblings were welcoming of their new sister into the family. All the other children were practically ignored by their parents, and were supportive of this new sister regardless of her parentage and “status” as an affair child.

After the brainwashing, Marianne was loved despite her previously mentioned parentage, so I don’t think she needed to change it if she already got what she wanted. And, I might be wrong since I’ve not read the novel, so I don’t know the full story, but Marianne doesn’t strike me as trying to clean her origins or improve her “legitimacy.” Maybe if she were after the crown and was planning on eliminating the other direct heirs, it would have made more sense if she had also switched her parentage with Alyssa. 

I don’t think the brainwashing was BS if they loved Alyssa so much, as you put it. Since we are not talking about a brainwashing done by human hands, with their horrific implications. We have the supernatural factor of it having occurred by demonic magic. I’m not a big fan of magic systems (I liked SVTFOE, and even then, I had many questions on how the magic was supposed to work), so I didn’t pay much attention to the scenes where they talked about spirits and demons. But I’m aware that demonic magic is very powerful. 

From Marianne’s few scenes (Like, seriously, when I was reading, I was hoping for her to appear, but she had so few appearances. Why?), we can say that she’s a villain with no remorse for her actions and, even if she was given a chance to redeem herself, she wouldn’t take it. 

So, on that hand, I can understand the hate she might get from readers who vouch for the protagonist. However, one completely different thing is hating her for something she had no control over as how she came to be and who her parents are. As you put it, it’s classist and toxic. 

 Similarly to how Rashta was often referred to by some fans of TRE as “A lowly slave who doesn’t know her place”, and that mentality angers me so much. 

Hate her, or love her, or both, as much as you want, but I don’t think it’s justified to hate someone (a character in this case) just because of their origin, as I said, it’s something nobody has control over and shouldn’t be held against them like a crime they voluntarily commited.

If I was wrong in anything I said about Marianne, please feel free to correct me.

[charsimsalot]

READ THE ANCIENT ARCHIVES: ENTRY 17

I didn’t meet Grim at Club Eternity as I’d hoped, but I did meet someone else! Someones else actually; I shouldn’t let the excitement of meeting Esther Gomes induce me to forget the odd and very notable meeting I had with Kai Aether.

I met Kai while waiting for my Plasma Jane. I was very glad to find they serve them at Club Eternity — more on that later! Kai is a ghost who resides over in Whispering Glen with his husband and son. However, despite coming out to Club Eternity that evening with its mostly ghost clientele, despite being a ghost himself, he claimed not to believe in ghosts and not to “want them around even if they do exist.”

Oh dear. There are vampires who, after being non-consensually turned, take some time to accept the reality of their new occult identity. This can happen even if their new master or some other vampire informs them of the facts. Of course, there is only so long a vampire can go on like that. A fledgling needs plasma. Vlad has taken it upon himself to call new turns on the phone, welcome them to community, and send them plasma packs. Apparently, he senses new turns with his “ancient plasma senses.” Lilith says he only does it because knows how to make himself an appealing port in a storm.

Kai was none too happy when I said I was in Ravenwood on behalf of the Occult Historical Society and in Mourningvale on a quest to meet Grim. He said he knew none of that nonsense was real and reacted as though I was trying to trick him. No tricks, I told him, just the pursuit and sharing of knowledge! Then the bartender served up my Plasma Jane. He frowned at it and made his excuses to leave. I wished him a good night. He shook his head and wished me one too. I hope he has had a good night! I hope he can work through his supernatural scepticism soon. I can understand it, but it does no good. Best to make the best of one’s situation and make from this a new and better situation.

And oh, I did have a good night! Not long after Kai left, Esther came over and asked — rather meaningfully I hoped — if the seat beside me was taken. I looked back and saw xem, glowing at the edges, electric-green. I was already very glad the seat beside me wasn’t taken and I only got gladder as the night progressed.

Xie introduced xirself, and I realised who xie was, Zelmira’s mother’s sibling and the Ghost Host of the Order of Lenore. Xie hadn’t realised who I was before I introduced myself either. I told xem that xir nibling had mentioned xir, and xie said that Zelmira’s parents used to be dead too! Tziporah, Esther’s sister, resurrected herself with ambrosia, and xir brother-in-law was reborn at somewhere called the Baleful Bog, in Mourningvale. Esther said xie will help me investigate the Baleful Bog further when I am not so busy with quests for Zelmira and Nyon! I’ve heard of ambrosia resurrection from Caleb, he’s on the Ambrosia Society mailing list and says he’d love to cook it himself and would love to know the taste of it, if only he were sure that it wouldn’t bring him back to life after all the work that he’s put into developing his vampire powers. He’s almost certain it wouldn’t but he says he can’t risk it — even though he’s really tempted. Lilith says she’s almost certain he’s not stupid enough to try.

Esther said Zelmira had mentioned that I had taken on some quests for them and Nyon, intending to put together a deck of Lady Ravendancer Goth’s cards. Esther thinks very highly of Lady Ravendancer, and said they go way, way, way back, and that even though the Order of Lenore has dwindled to four members these days, it’s something that there are people who still care. I told xem yes, that’s why I was in Mourningvale, in the hopes of happening upon Grim. It turns out Esther and xir best friend Zuleika work as Reapers! Still, Nyon entrusted the gnome to me. I need to be the one to pass it on.

I was a little hesitant after my conversation with Kai to explain my work with the Occult History Society, but this hesitance turned out to be entirely unwarranted. Esther did not accuse me of taking xem for a fool and in fact was very excited to hear more. I was a little worried too, what with how close xie is to Lady Ravendancer, what with how far back they go, that my being a vampire would not be well received. It’s not something I hide. It’s usually received just fine, by all except werewolves I mean, but well, Zelmira had had their concerns about my meeting Lady Ravendancer. I really needn’t have worried about Esther. Xie knew already from Zelmira that I am a vampire, and that I too go way, way, way back.

Xie doesn’t know that I was not a vampire the whole time. No-one here knows. I haven’t known anyone here very long at all. Still, we talked for hours. It sounds to me like Esther enjoys being a ghost, which doesn’t exactly match up with the Book of Life Zelmira said their mother wants to write for xem. I didn’t ask. It might have been too personal for now.

We talked about my research into the occult history of Ravenwood so far. Esther said xie really admires my efforts for the Occult Historical Society and said xie would be glad to teach me more about ghosts and Ravenwood. We talked about Esther’s long-time interest in ghosts, even back when xie was still living, and xir post-mortem interest in ghost history.

“Just because I lived through centuries of history — afterlived, for much of it — doesn’t mean I know it all,” xie said. “There was ghost history before I died, and of course I don’t know all the ghost history I was around at the same time as either. I want to know it all better, you know?”

Oh, I know! Of course, I know! Esther said xie wants to feel like “the most knowledgeable ghostie” xie can be. I can relate ever so much to that! Esther did say xie’s partially motivated by spite. Xie said xie doesn’t want Waylon to be able to lord knowing more about ghosts over xem. That’s… well, it isn’t my motivation, spite I mean, but I think I understand it. It works for Lilith; she’s always becoming a more and more formidable sparring opponent. I can well relate to having my frustrations with Waylon.

We both had to really focus to hear each other over the club’s music. We were trying to have the kind of conversations you have in an archive perhaps, not a nightclub. I had to watch Esther’s shimmering lips closely. We had to lean closer and closer. When we’d both finished our first drinks, xie offered to buy me my next, and it tasted all the better for it.

Esther said she was curious about the taste. I told xem that unfortunately only vampires could digest plasma fruit, I’d only ever known it to make everyone else sick. I told xem Morgyn insisted on trying it despite Caleb’s warnings because they just had to know what it tasted like and had ended the night throwing up in the bar’s toilets, with Caleb looking after them and being good enough to only tell them once that he told them this would happen. I told Esther that Wolfgang set his mind on trying “just a little” because “there are some things you cannot understand without experiencing them yourself” and he wanted to understand vampires better. I didn’t see the point in this because, with him being a werewolf, I had no idea if it would even taste the same, and certainly I doubted it would be as satisfying, but he tried “just a little” anyway and was more than “just a little” sick in a nearby bush. At least he didn’t throw the whole glass back like Morgyn had.

“You've got some gutsy friends,” Esther chuckled.

“Spilling-their-gutsy friends,” I said. Xir assessment was very correcct and I couldn’t help but laugh fondly.

Xie asked how I knew ghosts couldn’t drink it, after all, we’re both dead. I had to say I didn’t know. Well, xie said with twinkling eyes and a pink glow flushing quickly from xir heart through all that electric green, as ghost researchers, perhaps this is the sort of the thing we’d better find out — if I didn’t mind xem trying my drink, that is. So, I watched xem watch me as I took another sip, and pushed the glass that small distance between us, and xie lifted it aloft and met my eyes over the top of it.

“To knowing us better,” Esther said, not shouted over the music, but said with surety, leant in close enough for me to hear.

Then xie placed xir lips where mine had been and drank. Oh, my heart was beating so fast. It was a good thing xie had bought me that second Plasma Jane to make up for it! Xie licked xir lips and was clearly telling the truth when xie said xie liked the kick of it.

Still, Morgyn and Wolfgang liked the taste too. They just didn’t like how it tasted coming back up.

I told Esther xie would need my number to report back on xir findings, and xie told me, “Smart thinking!” and took it with a gleam in xir eyes. Soon afterwards, xie shook my hand, xirs magnolia pink and thrillingly cool in mine, and said xie looked forward to learning more with me. I watched xir float away through the rainbow of ghosts on the dance floor.

I await a response. For all that Esther was willing to risk the Plasma Jane disagreeing with xem, I hope xie will text me back tomorrow to say xie’s been none the worse for it. Xie’s right! Maybe it will work out better for xem as a ghost than it did for Morgyn or Wolfgang!

I think I will call Caleb with the good news of our encounter. If I were still living in Forgotten Hollow, we’d probably already be debriefing together over whatever baked goods he’d made in the last couple of days. Or maybe I’d be telling all to Elle. We have a long history of talking about romance with each other. Well, it was only her romance initially, with Dillin. I didn’t have any of my own and of course I don’t really remember those conversations, but after I was turned I continued to be the person she went to for this kind of talk, and I had romances of my own to speak of, and then Dillin became someone whose name she cursed, and ever since things soured between her and Dillin she has been very insistent that I know my worth in my relationships, and that just because a relationship has been long doesn’t mean I should settle in it if that means compromising on who I am and what I deserve.

I haven’t called Elle since I moved to Ravenwood. I don’t really want to call her tonight. I wonder what she thinks of me, leaving it so long without a word about what I’ve been doing? It’s just… she does not fully approve of what I’m doing here, researching for the Occult Historical Society, moving away to do it. I don’t want to listen to her tell me I shouldn’t. I even feel a little like I don’t want to listen to her in general, right now. Oh, what kind of thinking is this? What good is it? Soon. I’ll call her soon.

Oh! Just received a text from Esther: “Research findings are thus: ghosts cannot digest plasma fruit either. Sigh! It was so sweet. Well, the more we know the better, and either way I get to be in these detailed notes of yours.”

And xie signed the message with two kisses!

start ❘ prev ❘ next

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I've been so excited for entry! I've had a great time playing Inna and Esther together. Maybe Inna's particular kind of cheerful and Esther's particular kind of macabre will go together well?

I may have credited this in an earlier post but I'll do it again! It's such a good idea! The specific idea that Elle DeVampiro and Dillin Derito are going through a messy divorce originated with @dead-lights and she goes into detail about it in this post.

[wouldntyou-liketoknow]

Hi, do you still take x reader requests?? If you do, I was wanting a Phantom x reader/Y/N (she/they pronouns) and maybe Y/N got kidnapped by a rival being and he shows up rescue Y/N? Possessive Phantom is one of my favorite ideas, and he’s barely, just barely by a thread holding back from going full on eldritch being on the kidnappers + the rival. Maybe Phantom comforts Y/N afterwards too?

Call me Cos :D (for anon, I’ll be space anon if that isn’t taken)

Well, I do so love my body horror, so I'll admit that I kinda went further than that "just barely by a thread" part. . .

(This is based on a set of headcanons I posted a while ago; go here if you'd like to see them.)

Sorry this took so long, but it's finally finished! I hope you enjoy it!

(Trigger Warnings: violence, body horror, eyes, teeth, mentions of snakes, mentions of insects, implied kidnapping, implied illegal business, talk of death/dying, strong language. Please let me know if I missed anything.) 

___

“I’m really not sure what you’re hoping to gain from this,” you announced, resting your cheek against one hand as you looked out at the world through the bars of the cage. 

Your captor—an admittedly stunning woman with a halo of crystals orbiting around the golden points of a crown protruding from her silvery hair—hummed thoughtfully.

“Not too much, if I’m being honest,” she answered with a dismissive shrug.

You quirked a brow, straightening your back a little. It was difficult to look her in the eyes; they glowed with undeniable power. The most piercing, dangerous, otherworldly shade of blue you’d ever seen. 

Your brain was begging you to focus on something else. Anything else, really. The room outside your cage was extravagant, boasting marble floors and looming pillars and filigree carvings on the walls. Everything was inlaid with blue gemstones in some way. Even your cage, nestled in the corner, was polished and decorated to perfection.  

But you still made a valiant attempt to keep eye-contact. You couldn’t just let her think you were some shrinking violet. 

“Then why did you bring me here in the first place? Why did you bother to just wait in my mirror until I finally got home?”

The Multiverse Monarch took a few steps closer to further scrutinize you. 

“Why does anyone do anything?” She responded. “Why do you mortals insist on making sacrifices, traveling to places you’ve never seen before, crossing bridges that don’t even exist yet?”

“Because we’ll eventually get paid for it,” you replied. “Or, we all hope to, at least.” 

Monarch blinked, a small snicker forcing its way through her teeth. She quickly shook her head, engaging in the rolling-your-eyes-with-your-whole-body gesture. 

“Because it’s there,” she stated in the most matter-of-fact tone you’d ever heard. “Because it’s just something to do. Something to temporarily keep your little lives from continuing to be mundane as fuck.”

You hummed at the explanation. There was definitely some truth to it, but you thrived on sarcasm. You couldn’t help that; it was a survival mechanism. “I feel like doing any kind of business with Phantom already pretty far from ‘mundane as fuck.’ I almost ended up being one of his contractors when we first met, and now look where I stand with him.”  

Monarch tilted her head to the side, folding her arms across her chest. “That kind of thing happens with a lot of dealmakers and potential clients. Much more frequently than you’d think. Don’t feel special.”

“I never said I felt special,” you argued. And now it was your turn to smirk, since it was so obvious that you and Monarch were now thinking the same thing. 

Phantom was many, many things. And one of them was, so simply, shady as they came. However, he could also be honest when the mood suited him. 

When the two of you had first met, he’d seen you as just another soul with enough potential and enough need of supernatural assistance to be considered for his collection. You, on the other hand, had long-since honed your instincts to sense ulterior motives. And at that point in time, you’d been, for lack of a better word, tired. 

Before that point, you’d been stepped on and laughed at and criticized so. Many. Damn. Times. 

You’d gotten tired of that. 

You’d gotten tired of trying so hard and putting out so much and only getting a few breadcrumbs here and there to show for it. 

You’d gotten so tired that it was miracle you’d even bothered to read Phantom’s contract in its entirety. 

And even with the potential consequences literally written down right in front of you. . .you’d been tired enough to not care.

So what if your soul became the property of an eldritch abomination?

At least you’d get some time to finally enjoy a few things before that. 

You’re not sure what Phantom saw in your tiredness. Hell, you’d flat-out asked him before, and he hadn’t been able to give you a clear answer himself. But that was just it: he’d seen something that he wanted to keep. Not just for his collection, but. . .

Well, Phantom had been quiet for most of that particular meeting, mainly relying on his elevator pitch for small talk as you read through the requirements and expectations. When you took hold on his feather quill, he went silent. He’d stayed silent as you hesitated. You’d felt his eyes boring holes through your skull. And just as you were about to sign your name on the dotted line, Phantom had yanked the contract away, insisting that he needed to make a few updates to it. 

The rest, as they say, is history.

“Plus,” you added. “I’ve heard all about the spats the two of you have gotten into. And when you combine those with the business angle of things. . .I mean, I’m not sure what to call it, but it’s still not mundane at all. Isn’t that enough?”

“You’ve only heard about those spats from his perspective,” Monarch snarked. Insanity glinted in her eyes. A buzzing, humming, keening music suddenly stabbed its way into your ears, and you finally had to look away from her, ducking your head and kneading at your temples. 

More footsteps clicked closer, and a cold hand was suddenly grasping your chin, slowly forcing you to look back up. 

Her eyes. . .they looked even less human than before. Now they were compound, seeming to shudder in their sockets as that frightening blue light glowed brighter and brighter. 

A pair of long, sinuous antennae now protruded from her forehead, covered in a network of crystalline veins. They reached down to lightly tap against your scalp, making that unearthly music reverberate in your skull. 

“And enough is ภєשєг єภ๏ยﻮђ,” she concluded, allowing you to catch a glimpse of something shuffling about between the rows of her teeth. “ภєשєг ђคร ๒єєภ, ภєשєг ฬเɭɭ ๒є.”

“MONARCH!” A familiar voice suddenly shouted from somewhere outside of the throne room. . .or, it had to be outside the throne room, at least. But then, that voice shouldn’t have been echoing and bouncing around the corners with such violence. “I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!”

Not if it was a human’s voice, that is. 

And that’s why you immediately recognized it. You’d been hearing it almost every day for a good couple years now, after all.

You’d been waiting to hear it today.

“I know you know,” Monarch called back, only slightly raising her own tone as a smirk played at her lips. She released her grip on your chin, strolling away from your cage to settle down onto her throne. “That’s what makes this kind of stuff so fun.”

What sounded like a Category 5 earthquake slammed against the towering side-by-side doors that waited across the room. The thunderous sound was followed by a cacophony of screeching, like razor-sharp claws being dragged across ornate wood and stone.

“Well, if we’re going with that logic,” Phantom seethed from wherever he was, “then you also know that if you don’t bring [Y/N] out here right now, I swear I’ll 𐍂𐍊Ƥ 𐍈𐍁𐨠 𐌴𐌰ζ𐌷 𐍈𐍆 𐌸𐍈𐍁𐍂 𐐎𐍊𐍀𐌾Ⲋ 𐍈𐍀𐌴-𐌱𐌸-𐍈𐍀𐌴!"

Phantom’s pitch seemed to warp like metal, now twisting and rattling in the air. It gave the impression of a hissing, growling, churning well; like he was speaking through multiple people—or multiple monsters, really—at once.

“And I’ll just grow replacements for them,” Monarch replied, examining her fingernails, looking extremely cool and collected someone who was facing promises of dismemberment. “If you’re gonna threaten me, then maybe aim for something that’ll be more difficult to recover.” 

Another shockwave pounded against the doors from the other side. The entire room shook; you could feel the floor vibrating through your shoes for a long moment. 

Phantom’s voice hummed, shifting from ferocious anger to vicious mockery in a heartbeat. “Like those clones of yours?”

You craned your neck to glance at Monarch through the cage’s bars. You had to bite down a chuckle at the way she stiffened; if there was one thing you and Phantom had bonded over, it was the art of schadenfreude. 

“My clones are scattered across the multiverse,” Monarch contended. “It would take you at least six-thousand-nine-hundred years for you to find all of them!”

She let out an icy snicker that made your spine want to crawl its way out of your back and go somewhere a little more quiet. “ץ๏ย’гє คɭгєค๔ץ ђคɭŦ-รєภเɭє; รђ๏ยɭ๔ภ’Շ ๒є Շ๏๏ ɭ๏ภﻮ ๒єŦ๏гє ץ๏ย’гє คɭɭ Շђє ฬคץ Շђєгє.” 

“Oh, now you’re in for it,” you murmured. Though the speculation was mainly to yourself, you had no doubts that your captor could hear you.

An animalistic roar echoed through the walls, and the doors shook in their frame yet again. This time, the boom was accentuated by the undeniable call of something shattering. 

“𐍊 ꡕ𐌰𐌸 𐌱𐌴 𐐎𐌴ࠋࠋ-𐍈ⱱ𐌴𐍂 𐌰 𐨠𐌷𐍈𐍁Ⲋ𐌰𐍀Ɗ, 𐌱𐍁𐨠 𐍊 𐌰ꡕ 𐍀𐍈𐨠 Ⲋ𐌴𐍀𐍊ࠋ𐌴!”

The latest tremor lingered, not just fading away like the last two strikes. You subconsciously held onto the bars in a white-knuckled grip.

Phantom knew you were here; he wouldn’t make Monarch’s entire palace collapse if it meant the risk of you getting crushed in the rubble. Despite your trust in him, your instincts were on still fire now, screaming that the floor was absolutely going to cave in beneath you at any second.

Phantom spoke up again, dripping with surreal danger. “What about all the souls you’ve gathered? What if I set my sights on those, Moth? They aren’t exactly easy to replace. We both now that better than anyone.”

Monarch stood on her throne, her movement too fluid and quick to be natural. The entire lower-half of her face seemed to have eroded away. Smooth, human-esquse flesh had been replaced by the mandibles you’d seen earlier. They shuddered and snapped, making an odd, almost musical chittering noise.

And right above them. . .her eyes. . .

Her eyes had grown disturbingly wide, rolling around in her head as each of the hexagonal units adorning either of them reflected everything around her. You could see yourself in the corner of them. She was still watching you as much as she was watching Phantom through the doors. 

Her antennae now almost resembled crooked swords, twitching so violently that it was a wonder how her crown stayed in place. 

The lights of the room flickered, growing dark and insidious. The temperature automatically dropped through several degrees; goosebumps prickled over every square-inch of your skin. Your senses were so shocked by the change that you almost didn’t notice the awful chorus of stretching and tearing that coiled through the room. 

By the time you finally looked back at Monarch, you choked on air. 

Her fair skin and silvery locks had just finished practically ripping themselves apart to make way for. . .not bones, perse. An exoskeleton: a shining, jagged, horrific carapace that looked like it was molded from liquefied diamonds. 

The woman was gone.

An enormous insectoid monster stood in her place. 

It was like nothing you’d ever seen before (which was saying something, since you’d seen quite a lot thanks to your relationship with Phantom). 

As though you were looking at the impossible result of a mythical threesome between a primordial praying mantis, spider, and butterfly.  

Far, far too many long, spindly, dagger-like legs and clutching, serrated claws to count. 

At the center of them all was a glowing abdomen that trembled with every breath Monarch took. It ended in a glittering stinger that would make even the world’s sharpest harpoon look like a toothpick. 

Her mandibles were now large enough to easily decapitate you with one bite. Each time they moved, an otherworldly chittering rhythm leaked out.

Four billowing wings as vast and blue as a trench in the ocean, covered in organized lines of piercing eye-spots.

No. . .those weren’t spots. 

Honest-to-fucking-goodness eyes.

And they were still keeping some focus on you. 

Monarch snarled. Against all odds, her voice remained soft. When it mixed with that chittering, however, the sound felt like needles. “ץ๏ย ๔๏ภ'Շ ђคשє Շђє ภєгשє.”

And with that, the doors finally buckled, flying off their hinges to embed themselves in the walls. 

A haze of heat and terrifying energy swept into the room, followed an instant later by another abomination. 

Despite the anxiety prying at your ribs, you still managed to smile. You even felt butterflies in your stomach.

Phantom was here. He’d come to take you back home.

At first, he seemed to be a sentient, slow-moving tornado of smoke. With your personal experience, you knew that he was simply wearing that fog sort of like a cloak. 

As more and more of his true form rippled into the throne room, as all the smoke sliced around him, you could easily see the shapes of bones that all fit together to form a colossal serpentine skeleton. 

A vast array of organs writhed further inside the seemingly endless ribcage, glowing similarly to the embers at the bottom of a firepit. 

That glow had absolutely nothing on Phantom’s eyes, however. 

Then again, you weren’t sure if you could really call them eyes. 

The sockets in his triangle-shaped head emitted spiraling plumes of fire. Beneath them, a maw filled to the brim with serrated fangs; the largest ones dripped with luminescent venom that sizzled as it hit the marble floors. A long, forked black tongue flicked in and out between all those teeth like a party favor. 

So, in short: the richest, purest form of nightmare fuel for anyone with ophidiophobia. . .well, almost. Two arms (only two at the moment. You knew more could be summoned and then retracted at a second’s notice) jutted out from his sides, each ending in a clutch of five talons.

And there was something peculiar pinched between two of those talons. 

“𐨠𐍂𐌸 ꡕ𐌴,” Phantom hissed as he raised his arm to show it off. 

It was spherical in shape, almost looking like one of those pretty glass marbles that always seemed to be in antique stores for whatever reason. 

But you knew better. 

The longer you started at it, the more it seemed to bounce—no, to pulse in the air. It gleamed with a soft, warm, colorful light. A living light. 

That was someone’s soul. 

You’d seen Phantom handling souls before, but those all had been his (technically) legal property, having been signed over to him by his clients. 

Judging by the way Monarch screamed as Phantom tossed it for his other talons to catch, this one had to be part of her collection. 

“𐍊𐨠'Ⲋ 𐍂𐌴𐌰ࠋࠋ𐌸 Ⲋ𐍊ꡕƤࠋ𐌴, ꡕ𐍈𐨠𐌷. . .” Phantom put a little more pressure on the soul in his grasp. It responded via turning a darker shade, almost partially deflating like a smoker’s lung. “𐌸𐍈𐍁 𐨠𐌰𐌺𐌴 Ⲋ𐍈ꡕ𐌴𐨠𐌷𐍊𐍀𐌾 𐍆𐍂𐍈ꡕ ꡕ𐌴, 𐌰𐍀Ɗ 𐍊 𐨠𐌰𐌺𐌴 Ⲋ𐍈ꡕ𐌴𐨠𐌷𐍊𐍀𐌾 𐍆𐍂𐍈ꡕ 𐌸𐍈𐍁.”

Monarch bristled. For a brief, horrible moment, you worried that she would reach over and clamp the cage to crush it around you like a soda can. 

You’d heard stories of her power. As far as you knew, she was one of few beings strong enough to have a stalemate with Phantom. 

The two of them stared at one another for what felt like hours. 

“คภ๔ ץ๏ย คɭฬคץร รคץ ՇђคՇ ๏Շђєг קє๏קɭє ςคภ'Շ Շคкє ן๏кєร,” Monarch accused, clicking her mandibles. She then let out an acidic sigh. “Ŧเภє. ﻮเשє ՇђคՇ ๏ภє ๒คςк Շ๏ ๓є, คภ๔ ץ๏ย ςคภ ђคשє ץ๏ยгร.”

“𐍀𐍈,” Phantom snapped. “𐌸𐍈𐍁 𐌾𐍊ⱱ𐌴 𐨠𐌷𐌴ꡕ 𐌱𐌰ζ𐌺 𐍆𐍊𐍂Ⲋ𐨠.”

Monarch hissed, leaning back, tensing up.

“How about you both move at the same time?” You called out, having finally reclaimed your voice. 

Both of the crimes against nature swiveled their heads in your direction. One part of you instinctually wanted to curl into a ball. The other part stood firm. 

No matter how terrifying Phantom was, no matter how much of a psychological hurdle it always was for you to see him in his true form like this. . .you still knew that he cared about you. He just wanted to keep you safe, to have you stay by his side. Once you were with him again, everything would be fine. 

He and Monarch side-eyed each other. 

One of Monarch’s legs reached over, clutching at the door to the cage. Simultaneously, Phantom pushed his talons, the soul still in his grasp, toward his rival. 

Then, less than a second later, they moved in tandem. 

As Phantom passed that unfortunate soul back to its owner, there was suddenly a gaping hole in the middle of the bars. You sprinted out and across the throne room, just barely managing to not trip over that long blue carpet. 

Phantom met you halfway, one clutch of talons hovering behind you, gently pushing you to stand closer to him. He lowered his skull, angling it to keep his fangs away as you leaned against him, stretching your arms in an awkward attempt to hug him.

“Շђєгє, รєє? ՇђคՇ ฬครภ'Շ ร๏ ђคг๔,” Monarch piped back up. You didn’t look at her, but you could guess at the snide grin slowly-but-surely spreading over her mandibles. Was this part of the adrenaline rush, or. . .whatever she’d been after? “คɭฬคץร ฬเՇђ Շђє ๔гค๓คՇเςร.” 

“𐌸𐍈𐍁'𐍂𐌴 𐍈𐍀𐌴 𐨠𐍈 𐍆𐍁ζ𐌺𐍊𐍀𐌾  𐨠𐌰ࠋ𐌺,” Phantom growled, holding you closer. You could see his horrific excuse for a heart thrashing and shifting through various colors unlike any you’d ever seen on Earth. “𐍊'ꡕ 𐌾𐍈𐍀𐍀𐌰 𐍂𐌴ꡕ𐌴ꡕ𐌱𐌴𐍂 𐨠𐌷𐍊Ⲋ 𐐎𐌷𐌴𐍀 𐍈𐍁𐍂 𐍀𐌴𑀌𐨠 ꡕ𐌴𐌴𐨠𐍊𐍀𐌾 ζ𐍈ꡕ𐌴Ⲋ 𐌰𐍂𐍈𐍁𐍀Ɗ. ʝ𐍁Ⲋ𐨠  𐨠𐌷𐍊𐍀𐌺 𐌰𐌱𐍈𐍁𐨠 𐨠𐌷𐌰𐨠."

[danthediamondminecart]

Hi! Took me awhile to think of these questions but here we go!

1. In the RBB Superheroes AU! Do some of the heroes recognize each other as civilians but not in their hero identities?

2. In your RBB Superheroes AU, do they recognize each other through their voices or is this the same kind of thing that miraculous has going on?

3. In your RBB TMA AU! I noticed your new video but I'm confused on a particular thing. What does Russo mean, "I see a man who makes it out alive, but it's no longer you?"

4. How is DJ and Russo's friendship in your RBB TMA AU? Like how does a hunt avatar and a eye avatar manage to be chill around each other?

5. In BLSMP, is there an alternative way for the battlers to leave the SMP or are they forced to do the whole, "Last man standing" kind of thing?

6. In BLSMP, if you lose all your lives and get well kicked out of the server, are they permanently dead or no?

7. Are there any hybrids aside from Booshot in the RBB Contestant?

8. If PinkLeaf dies again in a world with no respawn. Does he die or no? Considering he is dead himself.

9. Do you have any RBB ships, if so what are they?

10. In your RBB Pokemon AU, what are the specific types each gym leader and elite four use?

That's all for now!

Let's go, more questions!

Q1) Not really. Well, Kreek and Devoun know each other in their civilian identities, Leah and Ashley have interacted as part of their civilian jobs and maybe Kreek and Denis have chatted a few times, but they otherwise don't interact much outside of work - and the Hero Organisation much prefers it that way.

Q2) Some of this is done via Jack and Sanna's experimenting and limited glamour on the suits, some of it is that their features do change when they use their powers. For people like Devoun, his eyes change colours completely - from blue to green, others like Kreek remain having blue eyes, but they look much brighter when using his powers. Also, Kreek and Leah both get hair colour changes when using their powers. There is probably jokes passed around that they 'look' like the heroes, but a lot of people get that, not just them.

Q3) What Russo is saying is "You [Kreek] could've made it out of the supernatural side of reality with your humanity intact...but at the rate you're going, it's unlikely." After all, you often need to die to become a full avatar, don't you?

Q4) They were friends before they got claimed by their respective entities. When Russo became the Archivist, he explained the whole thing to DJ (Sabrina knew about it because she worked full time at the Foundation, but DJ isn't on the contract and really only assists when he can, so he didn’t know about the Entities.), so DJ doesn't care about his Eye allegiance. When DJ started going down the path of being a Hunter, Russo tried to stop him, which strained their relationship (Sabrina had been replaced by a Not-Them at this time), but after the real Sabrina was found and the Not-Them killed, they were able to repair their friendship.

Q5 + 6) No spoilers, you'll find out eventually :)

Q7) Yes! Many, in fact. Actually, just take my species tier list.

Flamingo is a flamingo hybrid (duh), Calixo is a shark hybrid, Jake is a tiger hybrid. There’s a sliding scale between the three of them of how much their hybrid DNA shows (Albert has strong flamingo traits, Calixo’s somewhere in the middle, and Jake’s tiger hybrid barely show except from fangs and oddly coloured body hair growing in weird places.)

NightFoxx and PrestonPlayz are…weird, species wise. Preston is a lava-creeper-human hybrid, so he has power over lava and fire as well as having creeper traits. Because creepers don’t exist in Robloxia, his Lava Elemental traits show through far more in Robloxia. NightFoxx is a hybrid between a Starborne and the Starborne equivalent of a fox - a Night Fox. Since starbornes are elementals, he’s an elemental-human hybrid. Even they don’t like explaining it.

Q8) Yes. See: Antithesis.

Q9) No, I've never been big on shipping at all to be honest. Technically I ship TeraBrite (DJ X Sabrina), but that's about it. (I've assumed you were asking after romantic headcanons specifically and answered accordingly.)

Q10) Some important context first: The Elite 4 (and Top Champion) in my Pokemon AU have achieved a rank called 'Champion Rank', earned for beating the Elite 4. Kreek and Tanqr have both earned the 'Top Champion' rank, as they've both beaten the Top Champion respectively. Because of this, the Elite 4 (and Top Champ) can use two types in their teams, but they must have a 'primary type' which is a type unused by any gym leaders.

On with the list, primary types are bolded. I'll include Tanqr as well:

Thinknoodles: Ground

OminousNebula: Ghost

MeganPlays: Bug

LeahAshe: Psychic

Calixo: Water

Jayingee: Rock (Flamingo: Flying)

Jackeryz: Ice

Bandites: Fighting

DenisDaily: Normal/Ground

iBella: Fairy/Psychic

PinkLeaf: Grass/Dragon

KreekCraft: Fire/Fighting

Tanqr: Dark/Ghost

Thanks for asking!

[cawthorntales]

"What are you doing here? Did I do something wrong?"

"No Blake." Grim answered. "I've done some thinking and realized that I can't expect you to trust me over the society if I don't tell you everything."

"Really?" I asked surprised.

"Yes." Grim replied.

"Can I ask a question?"

"You may."

"Why do you care so much about Ambrosia? Is it because it brings people back? And you are against that. There would be no suffering for you to enjoy?"

"Is that what you think?" Grim asked. I could tell I'd offended him.

"Well you are the Grim Reaper."

"I lack morality yes. But I am not heartless or cruel. I don't take delight in what I do."

"Then why do it? I was a kid. I needed my family."

"I know you did and I am sorry I had to reap them, but it was their fate." Answered sadly.

"Their fate was to be with me. To see me grow up." I retorted trying to not cry.

Look a balance needs to exist in the world. Do you know what would happen if everything just existed forever? Eventually resources would crumble from overpopulation."

"Then how come supernatural's are immortal? How is that fair?"

"But they aren't Blake. If a werewolf is attacked with silver they die, if a vampire is exposed to sunlight, staked in the heart or doesn't feed they die, if a fairy is exposed to poison or attacked with steel they die. It's true that they can go on forever unlike humans, but they aren't invincible. They can die too. And look at all they give up. Vampires can never feel the sun, werewolves can lose themselves and control if they aren't careful, fairies health are tied to their home. And all of them have been persecuted and hunted just for who they are before humanity got better."

"I-I never thought about any of that."

"As to why I care about Ambrosia that ties into the society. Despite what you think I would have no issue with people using Ambrosia to bring a loved one back for a second chance. In fact I am a believer in second chances. But I also fill it is something that effort should be put into and earned. Not something you could just do willy nilly."

"I guess that makes sense." I answered.

"Plus the society uses it for evil."

"What do you mean?"

"I know the founder of the Ambrosia Society in fact three hundred years ago she was my best friend."

"I never would have pegged the Grim Reaper to have friends."

"There's a lot about me you and other mortals don't know Blake. Anyway I trusted Deanna more than I had any human before. I knew she was scared of dying, but as her friend I tried my best to reassure her that when her time came it'd all be ok. I even broke my own rules and told her how old she'd be when her time was up. Little did I know she was using me. Our friendship was never real.

She learned as much as she could about me, my powers and the supernatural world as a whole. She used that knowledge to craft the first ambrosia and the first young again potion. She then fled with her findings and went into hiding. She built her society up with other criminals and together for centuries they've built their criminal empires. They've done every crime you can think of. I've tried and tried to stop them, but reaping them when I do catch one does no good as they just use the tools at their disposal to revive.

Because of the Ambrosia Society and my own foolishness for thinking I could ever have a friend thousands of people have died or been harmed of the centuries before their time. I have to stop them and I have to make Ambrosia something only people with pure intentions can access."

"I'm sorry." I said." I can't imagine that kind of burden. They sound awful. But why are they helping me?"

"They usually don't interact with the mortals who partake in my quest to learn ambrosia. That is why many don't get far. They must see potential in you. Deanna is wanting to recruit you."

"I'd never join."

"He said that too."

"Who?" I asked.

"Mortimer Goth. He told me he just wanted his wife Bella back. I saw him as a potential friend."

"What happened?"

"The society got to him. They told him they could bring his wife back and he could make himself even richer off of the schemes the society had. He feel for it."

"Mortimer doesn't seem like that?" I questioned. I'd only met him once when I first came to town and he sent me the Grimophone, but I'd not heard from him since.

"Because the society betrayed him. They brought his wife back like he promised, but she was disgusted by what the society is about and she didn't want her or Mortimer involved. She threatened to expose them. Deanna killed her. They then tossed Mortimer out and moved locations. He once again lost it all."

"That's awful. However I can promise you I am not swayed. I do not care about money, power or whatever else they can offer. I just want my parents and sister. So I will continue to learn what I can from them. I can play stupid until I have the information you need."

"I hope so." Grim said before he vanished in a cloud of black smoke.

[graysongraysoff]

hearts section!! gimme all cat's hearts!!

oc details ask meme

all cat's hearts!!!!!!

❤️ RED HEART — what are three of your oc's positive traits?

she is very loving!!! her heart was found full of love!!! it has not so far worked out great for her but the love persists, and though she is afraid of basically everything she will face those fears to protect her loved ones every time!!!

she’s generally very patient with other people and tends to give them the benefit of the doubt. even after suffering terrible abuse from her father and eventually from joseph, she still has a lot of faith in and empathy for people in general. she understands very deeply that fear can make people do insane things and she tries not to judge them for it.

she’s very good at like artsy/crafty things - obviously doing hair, since that’s what she does for work, but also things like makeup and drawing and making little knick-knacks and stuff. she tends to hand-make cards and gifts for people.

🤍 WHITE HEART — what are three of your oc's neutral/questionable traits?

this is a neutral trait in the sense of like, it’s not her fault, but her past has made her very susceptible to Cult Tactics, hence her ending up in a cult. there is a non-zero number of red flags she will wilfully ignore because she wants to feel like she belongs somewhere, even if that somewhere is a little fucked up.

she is extremely shy and timid, which can be a challenge at her hair salon job, but she is a favorite among clients who prefer not to have small talk while they get their hair done.

she isn’t very “book smart”/good at school, which is one of the reasons she pursued cosmetology. her best subjects were math and art, but even in those she was a solid low b/high c student.

💔 BROKEN HEART — what are three of your oc's negative traits?

she is not immune to jealousy, especially once solevi well and truly starts up. it’s bad enough that levi is romantic with a demon who wouldn’t even be here if isaac hadn’t been killed, but the fact that clearly some part of isaac is still stuck to solas makes it even worse. think like “neither of us should be kissing this demon regardless, but if anyone should be kissing this demon it’s me” kind of vibes.

relatedly, remember when faramir was like “you wish now that our places had been exchanged. that i had died and boromir had lived,” and denethor was all “yes. i wish that”? since levi was slated for sacrifice from the moment she first met him, she is also not immune to wishing he had died instead of isaac (unlike denethor though she hates herself adequately for wishing this bc unlike denethor she actually does love levi lol).

she is more than a little codependent/clingy.

💘 HEART WITH ARROW — what and/or who do(es) your oc consider the most important to them?

the cassidys 🩵

🧡 ORANGE HEART — does your oc tend to prioritize family or friends?

she kind of considers her friends her family bc her actual family kind of fucked her whole life up, so. yes?? lol.

💛 YELLOW HEART — how many languages does your oc speak? what language(s) are they learning, if any?

she only speaks english :,) she took a little bit of french in high school, but wasn’t very good at it and didn’t stick with it. she knows some latin phrases from Cult Stuff, lol.

💚 GREEN HEART — does your oc prefer being inside or outside?

inside! but she’s got nothing against being outside, especially in like Nature. mostly she just likes to minimize the chance that a stranger will try to talk to her, lol.

💙 BLUE HEART — does your oc have any cool/special powers and/or abilities? how are they with magic, if it exists in their world?

she’s got a witch eye! so she can actually see through a lot of supernatural illusions/glamor which is why one of her neutral/questionable traits is like. willing to stay in a cult long after learning just how fucked up it is, lol. she’s definitely got a little bit of “i didn’t think the leopards would eat my face” about her before isaac is killed, because the cassidys are Cult Elite, right? nothing bad is going to happen to them, and if they just have to torture a kid once in a while to live in omelas…

💜 PURPLE HEART — what is your oc's ancestry/genetic background?

HWHITE BABY, ambiguously White, super pale with freckles. i think her last name is french but like. she’s just one of them White Americans. like the cheese.

🖤 BLACK HEART — has your oc killed or seriously wounded anyone before? have they broken someone's heart and/or broken someone's trust?

she isn’t the one who actually ends up killing joseph, but she definitely helps, haha. the morningstar cult involves a lot of blood rituals and sacrifices, too, so there’s that. but i think for the most part she’s more of a crime of negligence type girly — she knows that people are being killed and being turned into horrible silent hill beasts, and she chooses to do nothing about that. thinks it’s probably a good thing, even! if joseph is turning someone into a silent hill beast he must have a good reason right??

THANK YOU i really love rotating her so much ahhh 🩵

[im-out-of-it]

season 1, episode 2 list of more stupid thoughts

1. I don’t see why clary doesn’t ever tell Jace to not talk to her supposed bff the way he does. I’m sorry but if you’re talking to MY friend that way, I’m calling your ass out. but she probably thinks he’s “got a sense of humor” or whatever

2. when Izzy says “it’s not good for any of us” YES IZZY! the fact that clary and Simon think the cup only involves clary lmao

3. yes Simon and clary are naive but they’re informed what happens if the cup goes into the wrong hands but clary’s only concern here is her mother

4. I wish they would empathize how VALUABLE AND IMPORTANT the mortal cup truly is. because they’re like it’s the most powerful cup but they only really state so far what it would mean for shadowhunters. like it literally affects everyone

5. I like the technology they have and it actually makes sense to me. probably makes fighting demons in a way easier and locating enemies. it’s still funny to me that CC later tried making fun of it in TDA

6. Izzy is making Simon blush 24/7 which is valid because she’s gorgeous 🥰

7. Alec seems to be the only one concerned that they have a mundane in the institute. aren’t they supposed to be protecting them and making sure they don’t know of the supernatural world? this is one of the reasons why Simon gets turned into a vampire

8. also Izzy is such a true friend. there’s no competition and she is super nice to clary. she makes sure clary feels accepted and that she is comfortable there. honestly Izzy is too nice in my opinion

9. and I would’ve been down for an Izzy + clary pairing. I can’t stand clary but with Izzy’s presence? maybe she could be better

10. “I don’t care what the clave or you wants”- clary to Alec. showing that she doesn’t care about any of their rules and how things are run, as long as she gets her way. tells Alec my name is not little girl yet you’re throwing fits when you don’t get your way.

11. I don’t think Alec gets enough credit for putting up with clary. GIVE THIS MAN A RAISE

12. literally laughable that Dot is like hElP mE mAgNuS sO wE cAn SaVe JoCeLyN. what has she or other shadowhunters done for Magnus and the warlocks? does dot even realize how much all the downworlders and especially warlocks are in danger? but it’s all Jocelyn clary Jocelyn!!! (EVERYONE IS AFFECTED BY THE CUP)

13. I don’t know if it’s me, but the way clary walks and just acts in this episode is so cringe

14. Magnus is a whole mood in this episode

15. I don’t think many really get what this means for alec to have jace chasing clary. Jace is doing all the things he’s never and would never do for alec. no wonder alec is hurt, upset, and having to clean up after his and clary’s messes

16. Luke isn’t alpha yet but I hate that he’s going to be. he’s a terrible leader and he acts as though the wolves don’t exist.

17. “It literally never stops talking” I love an annoyed Alec

18. I don’t see why Simon is there in the first place. Clary blames Izzy and Alec but why is Simon there? once again, it can be pinpointed back to clary of all the stuff that Simon practically goes through. because let’s take the mundane to some graveyard with some skeleton scratched out men because what’s the worst that can happen?????

19. Alec isn’t being that outrageous when he finds out that clary’s father is Valentine. she comes out of nowhere, makes them go on stupid missions, so why wouldn’t he be concerned?????? how are they all supposed to trust her? THEY DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HER.

20. adding on- the outsiders are usually the ones with the agenda. Sebastian comes in with an agenda and he’s an outsider so it’s really not that alarming if clary was doing the same. she’s done absolutely nothing to gain Alec or the claves trust. I don’t like the clave but they do have rules for a reason. but jace can’t see that because “she’s lost everything like me” yet he has Alec and Izzy and Maryse but let’s just ignore all the people who have supported you for the past ten years

21. lastly clary blaming shadowhunters for Simon getting kidnapped is comical. he shouldn’t have been there!!!!!!! instead of taking accountability and being like I should’ve made him stay home and never introduced him to all of this- she goes on and blames Izzy and Alec. THEY ARE NOT BABYSITTERS. only been two episodes and I have a migraine because of her lmao

thanks for joining I forget the club name and criticizing shadowhunters but love show Malec meeting. let’s see what number we get for our next meeting ✨alec gif because he is THE MOOD

[shimmywhenyoucantbounce]

The Unsleeping City Chapter Two and Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

Ally Beardsley said, "I get her Kitchen, that really old book" and I perked up a little bit because I know a book called Kitchen, a niche one that I have analytical thoughts about and love as a piece of art and have never heard anyone mention outside of the class wherein I read it. And then they said "it has this really cool trans character in it," and I had to pause the video to scream about this, because the book I know does in fact have a cool trans woman in it. Her name is Eriko. When I had calmed down enough, I pressed play again and Ally Beardsley said "It's by this writer Banana Yoshimoto" and that is as far as I am into that episode because at that confirmation I had to stop and scream again.

Kitchen, the novella, is made of two different pieces: "Kitchen," about short-novel length by itself, and "Moonlight Shadow," a much shorter story. Both stories are about grief, isolation, connection, and food. Notably, both stories start with the main characters already in mourning, their loved ones already dead. We enter their world as one that is notably empty. This parallels the setting of season two, which opens with introductory scenes that still keenly feel Kugrash's absence.

I have been thinking about Kitchen through this entire season, which is part of why I got so excited when Ally Beardsley mentioned it. Kitchen is a book about grief and grieving and relying on others in your time of need to help you and care for you and give you food. Yoshimoto uses light and dark imagery not as symbols of good and evil, but rather of isolation and connection. Multiple times, she brings us the image of distinct points being connected by light in a dark void, including the main character looking up at the moon in a dark sky and, in one of the closing images of "Kitchen," a lighthouse tracing a road of light across black waves. When our narrator meets one of the people who will become her new household, she sees "in the black gloom before my eyes...a straight road leading from me to him" (Yoshimoto 6-7) (I don't have my book with me but I did find one of my old essays about it :) ). The darkness in these images is that which is not known, that which the characters cannot see through, which is why it represents isolation. They do not have knowledge or connection to that place, even though they may in the future. That way, the imagery is also connected to agency and the act of exploring and reaching out to one's world. Kitchen portrays characters in grief and dangerously deep in self-isolation, and the events and relationships that help them deal with that and figure out how they are going to live now. Yoshimoto characterizes the universe not as malicious but uncaring, and proposes that the response to this is to look for meaning instead in each other and the world we make. Which is exactly the struggle our characters are embarking on against NULL! Meaning, value, the things we personally hold dear; and it doesn't matter if they're "cosmically insignificant" or doomed or can be corrupted or whatever because they exist while they exist and they matter while they're there. Aaaaaaaaaa!!!

I've just remembered that one of the characters in "Kitchen" climbs up on someone's roof in the middle of the night to eat katsudon with them. They were not invited there! It was not katsudon that was in the hotel room! They bought the katsudon in the middle of the night and put it in their backpack and climbed up onto the roof and tapped at the window and said "Hello I brought katsudon"! I love this. It's so good. It's also Kugrash behavior.

Victoria Brown also persistently cares for people by providing them food, which is just to say that these two stories are both thinking about the comforting and communal power of cooking for people and eating together.

If I had a nickel for each time a mysterious, apparently-human but probably supernatural figure connected to a liminal location appeared to a character in need and offered them specifically tea in the Unsleeping City and Kitchen, I would have at least three nickels. Also the liminal location in "Moonlight Shadow" is a bridge over a river, which is traditionally a powerful symbol and also something that holds significance in Unsleeping City geography and lore.

In "Moonlight Shadow," a young man in mourning for his girlfriend wears her clothes every day after her death. I'd like to show Ricky Matsui this bit and hear his thoughts on it because of how he has taken on some of Kugrash's role. Ricky feels pressure from other parties as well, the Questing Blade and the Peasant's Sword, to carry on a legacy (that is symbolized by something one wears or carries).

I think that's all the thoughts I have about it for now, except that I seem to remember a line in "Moonlight Shadow" about a cloudy sky hanging heavy like stone, which might characterize the emotional state of New York in Chapter Two as well.

I'd like to know Pete's (and Ally Beardsley's) thoughts on Eriko as a character, and also if they talked to any of the other people in the season's production about the similarity of themes between the book and the series. If anyone has thoughts they'd like to share about this or about Kitchen in general, please do let me know! I vibrate whenever I get to discuss parallels between different media I'm into.