#which was interesting. sort of thing where when you think about it it's obvious

[foxounderscorecube]

[Image ID: digital artwork of a sphinx. She lays on her back on sandy ground with a content, possibly slightly sly expression, her wings tucked, and her limbs splayed like a relaxed cat (because that is what she is). She has dark brown hair, amber eyes, and light, tanned skin. A narrow sunbeam shines over her face down to her stomach. End ID.]

I started sketching this as soon as I saw this post because I liked it so much

here a great and beautiful sphinx lies indolent upon her back, like the housecat of some terrible god

[ahalliance]

qantoine’s coping mechanism to feeling left behind being both self-isolating and becoming possesive of those he cares for is so juicy as a concept . like yeah you go you funky creachure, manifest those complicated and sometimes contradictory emotions

[icewindandboringhorror]

examining a seemingly normal image only to slowly realize the clear signs of AI generated art.... i know what you are... you cannot hide your true nature from me... go back where you came from... out of my sight with haste, wretched and vile husk

[perpetuallyfive]

God, I'm so happy with what they did with Maddie Nolen.

I'm sure there will be plenty of people mad because obviously there was a weird backlash over a character who has sex with one half a ship, so I'm sure some people worry this will lead those people to feel justified in their initial response.

But ignoring people who can't emotionally regulate for a second, because those childish impulses aren't worth dictating the fun things a narrative can do: Maddie is SO INTERESTING as a character and she fills in a lot of the questions people seemed to have about the rest of the season.

Consider for a moment that it wasn't Caitlyn who convinced Vi to be an Enforcer. It was Maddie.

I know that some people took this line to be about Zaunites, a sort of obvious connection to the very racist idea of "one of the good ones," but since Maddie is talking about Marcus and his betrayal of the Enforcers just before this, I'm pretty sure her framing here is something else. The point she's making is specifically targeted at Vi's own beliefs and weaknesses, her desire to protect. That seems clear to me now with all we know about Maddie's capacity for manipulation.

She's not saying, "You're good, for a poor."

She's saying, "Wow, I agree with you, the Enforcers are really bad; it's so upsetting. I think you might be the only one who can change it, but only if you join us." This is what convinces Vi to do something she never thought she would.

Well, this and the fact that Caitlyn believes in her so much which, again, is information she gets fed to her directly from Maddie. It even seems like Maddie seeks her out just to say this, which on first viewing felt oddly convenient. Wow, Vi just happens to meet this naive girl who just happens to say exactly what she needs to hear to do something so out of character.

Except obviously none of it was coincidence. Everyone already knew how much Vi meant to Caitlyn and getting Caitlyn under control would require either controlling Vi or removing her from the equation. This was a push in that direction.

Then there's her more obvious role as the spy in Caitlyn's bed, there to reassure her that the Noxians are only trying to keep all of them safe. Then when Caitlyn expresses larger doubts, she's immediately ready to lay out an alternative. You could just give up, Maddie seems to whisper gently in her ear. Just reestablish things as they were before.

But she knows Caitlyn isn't going to go for that. She's not going to go back to the council as it was, because it's only going to remind her of the empty place her mother left behind. Maddie knows that Caitlyn isn't going to take this offer, which is precisely why she suggests it. She frames quitting as the only clear alternative to going along with everything Ambessa wants because she knows that Caitlyn will refuse, which leads her right back into alignment with Ambessa. She makes continued obedience into an active choice that Caitlyn affirms she's making.

Even Maddie's comments that suggest direct opposition to Ambessa — "you're our leader... I follow you" — are designed to frame herself and her true leader in direct opposition, just as Ambessa's own warning about entanglements is there to further that point. They both make a point of reminding Caitlyn that they are her true ally, isolating her further from anyone who isn't the devil and (other) devil on her shoulders.

This way Maddie and Ambessa can both tug at Caitlyn, pulling in what feels to her like opposite directions, all so that she lands precisely where they wanted her all along but with the illusion of active agency.

And look, I'm not saying my read on her is gospel, because I think they intentionally gave us enough room to really speculate and wonder about her, someone who could have been just a background nothing character but ends up being such a huge part of the second season. That's so interesting!

I especially love that she comes across as really naive and innocent, just some poor little thing swept up in the fervor, when in reality she's a true believer who has been manipulating things to go her way from the start.

[phantasmicfish]

So I saw Dune Part 2 yesterday and I was initially super crushed because of the deviation from book canon but the more I think about it the more I sorta like it…

So without further ado here’s a list of stuff I liked about Dune Part 2:

- all the scenes initially of Paul growing closer to the Fremen. You can clearly see that they become friends, accept him as a Feydakin, that they’re laughing, joking, hanging out. (And contrast that to the end of the movie, where Paul has no more Fremen friends, only followers. In the book, this is echoed, where Paul recognizes that he has lost his friends to the Muad’Dib religion. Take book Stilgar, who truly embodies this… by the end of the book, Paul says: “I have seen a friend [Stilgar] become a worshipper.”

- giving Chani explicit rejection of Paul’s messiah status was an interesting choice. Chani’s main thought over part 2 is that they don’t need religion to save them, that through Fremen power and desert power, the Fremen can save themselves. She recognizes that this fanatical worship can be a vehicle to control and enslave her people, and I sorta wish we saw Paul lean into that more… that they found a way to stay together and ‘fight’ the prophecy together based on Chani’s ideals…

- also, I love how engrained this rejection of religion and prophecy is in her character. Book Chani takes no issue with her Fremen name, Sihaya (desert spring), but movie Chani hates it “because it’s part of some prophecy.” Later, we see that despite her rejection of prophecy and religion, that the prophecy does indeed come to pass— the tears of desert spring save Him aka, Chani saving Paul after he drinks The Water of Life. (Interesting how Jessica has to force Chani to save Paul using the Voice… another example of Jessica explicitly forcing Paul to become the messiah).

- adding more depth to Fremen culture— the South being the more religious fundamentalist tribes vs the North being more secular. Early on, the movie paints this immediate divide between the tribes of Fremen who accept Paul and Jessica versus those who treat them as offworlders (who murdered Jamis). In the books everyone accepts Paul and Jessica after Paul bests Jamis and Jessica quotes some scripture, but I think it makes more logical sense that there’d be friction over these two random offworlders coming in

- I love love loved Paul speaking at the meeting of the Fremen tribe leaders in the South. He fully accepts his messiah status, exercises his power of the Voice + his prescience as a way to command all the Fremen under his name

- I’m a big fan of omitting the two-year time skip, so with that I’m glad Leto II was skipped over entirely. I always felt that Leto II was an unnecessary character addition to the book, especially when he just dies and everyone sort of goes “oh well” and moves on, so I’m glad it’s omitted.

- another interesting choice was to paint Jessica as a straight up villain in comparison to the way her book counterpart was not. The movie Jessica we see here is seemingly corrupted by the Water of Life: she walks around talking to herself (Alia) and scheming Paul’s ascent to Lisan-Al Gaib. She knows about the Holy War, which is the very thing Paul is trying to prevent, yet she expresses no concern about bringing it to fruition. (Probably because Jessica knows it’s impossible to prevent, but still.) The very last line of the movie, where Alia asks Jessica what’s going on and Jessica says “The Holy War has begun” is just total villain in my mind— explicit acceptance of the Holy War, like it’s just another stepping stone in her plan. Plus, the fact that Paul has visions of Jessica leading him into this period of great starvation totally cements her as a villian.

- going off of that, I like that we see Jessica undergoing actual agony when she takes The Water of Life. When book Jessica and Paul take The Water of Life they accept it calmly and without obvious pain (book Jessica was sitting with her eyes closed, as if sleeping), so this physical reaction that Jessica has to the poison adds to the idea that The Water of Life did change her in a negative way.

- I feel like so far we’ve been introduced to Alia as just a weird talking fetus who’s been consorting with Jessica, so Paul’s vision where Alia says “I love you” really strikes home, that she really does care for Paul which we might not have understood otherwise

[alexanderwales]

Everyone is born into a Genre, except for those poor souls who are destined to be side characters and bystanders, or occasionally taken hostage.

You were born to parents of different Genres, which was unthinkable a generation ago but now only raises a few judgmental eyebrows. Your father was a spy and your mother was a ninja, which is one of the more acceptable Genre pairings. There's crossover there, people understood it.

But when you were four, you first put on a cowboy hat, and it just felt right. Your parents were appalled. They didn't even know where the cowboy hat had come from.

You'd think, given the struggles they had in their own marriage and the prejudice they faced from the rest of the world, that they would be more understanding, but your father yanked the lasso you made from bedsheets away from you when you were eight years old, and your mother made you do throwing star drills in the family dojo for hours. You were horrible at it, and she blamed your father. Granted, you weren't any better at dodging laser tripwires.

Eventually you settled into dressing "normal". Dad and mom could pretend that it was a disguise, and it sort of was. Dad didn't wear his tuxedo everywhere, and mom only wore her shinobi shozoku when things were getting serious.

But then when you went to college you saw her, a coed walking across the quad in boots with spurs on them. Her blonde hair was in braids that stuck out from beneath her ten gallon hat. She was wearing chaps, and you followed after her like a puppy dog, trying not to be obvious about it but in retrospect being very obvious about it.

It was a rocky start. You made an awkward introduction, then she thought you were making fun of her when you started asking all kinds of questions. Western wasn't a popular Genre. It's time had come and gone. And even when she realized that you were serious, she was skittish, worried that you were interested for the wrong reasons, a Genre seeker.

Eventually she understood where you were coming from, that you were Western too, even if you didn't look like it, even if you didn't speak the language or have the skills.

One night, a week after you'd met, you asked her some innocuous question and she gave you a playful shove and called you a greenhorn. You felt your heart soar and a frission go across your skin. "Aw shucks," she said as you wiped away a happy tear, "Weren't nothin' but the truth."

From then on it was a blur of rodeos and saloons. You bought new clothes from the one general store they had in the city. You learned how to hogtie and cattle call. You ate beans around a campfire and then went to class the next day smelling like wood smoke and yearning for the wide open plains.

Going home felt itchy. It was too difficult to ignore how the clothes didn't feel quite right, and you wore flannel and jeans, on the edge of acceptability, flirting with the line. But you carried yourself differently too, and that was harder to disguise, especially since it was hard to remember the mask you'd been wearing.

One of these days you'll tell yours parents who you are, but there's a nagging feeling that they should have known all along, that they deprived you of a childhood that could have been happier if they hadn't tried to mold you into a version of them.

But until then, you'll guide your horse through town, moseying along, eating your vittles, and maybe with a cowgirl by your side.

[jjwolves]

POST PRODUCTION ・・・・・・・・・

What: 5 Headcanons of Tenna X Reader

Who: Tenna, from Deltarune (By Toby Fox)

How Much: ~1500 Words, ~8 mins

Credits: Image Banner -> Toby Fox, Divider -> @strangergraphics

Warnings: None

Tenna is a textbook overworker and near-constant entertainer. He is often seen giving 200% effort to just about anything he does, and that includes courting you. Before you were even sure that he was interested, he was haphazardly leaving binders full of minigame ideas lying around, some of which were... suspicious. Sometimes you'd take a peek when he was out of the room, and they'd all be related to things you had mentioned liking in passing. Like fish? There's a crudely-drawn blueprint for a fishing minigame. Did you once say that you always enjoyed those carnival games where you throw a ball to knock a stack of bottles over? It's present in the roster, verbatim. You pretend that you weren't doing anything when Tenna returns in a hurry and grabs one of his binders off the table before urgently hurrying off. You don't think you'll tell him, just to spare him the potential embarrassment. "No need to hold in a LAUGH around me! I know I'm funny!" If only he knew.

Tenna often runs around trying to please you when he's not busy with his show. He always brings you coffee in the mornings--despite his showman flair, it is not smooth nor cute. It is frantic. He sprints to the cafe and bursts inside, leaning on the counter from exhaustion as he orders a coffee with the cadence of a man begging for his life. "Yes--yes, they like it with that lavender foam on top, they say they don't when I ask because it costs more that way, but I know they like it, I KNOW these things, please HURRY UP THEY'RE GONNA BE BUSY ALREADY IF YOU DON'T BREW FASTER! DON'T... DON'T YOU KNOW I OWN YOUR CONTRACT?!" He swipes it out of the hands of the Shadow Man working the counter and bolts to where you are, not noticing that he's slowly shrinking as he starts to doubt his timing and his memory. It was lavender, wasn't it? By the time he reaches you and skids to a stop, he's shorter than half your size. "H-hey, looks like I caught you just in time! I got a coffee for you." When you thank him and ask him how he knew exactly what you liked, he lets out a long sigh of relief as he slowly regains his size. "That's what you got two weeks ago, obviously. Oh, is this a memory game? I'll have you know I'm highly skilled!" You tell him that if he wants to get you a coffee, he doesn't have to pay extra for that sort of flavoring... You'd be happy with whatever he got for you. In fact, you'll get him one next time. "...Is that so. Ha! OK! Well! I'll take you up on that! Anyways, heh, the show's not gonna run itself!" The Hope-O-Meter is filled to the brim with fireworks.

TV Time's host is pretty horrible at hiding his adoration for you, yet at the same time, he'd never come out and confess. You think it's probably because he's worried that you'll say no (you wouldn't). His underlings feel kind of bad for him and try to clue you in as if you didn't already know. In passing, a Shadow Man tells you, "Da Boss really likes ya, if it wasn't obvious already. I don't really see why, but I'm into flatter folks anyhow. Either way, he's never gonna tell ya, so you may as well rip da bandaid off. Or make his day." You start thinking about how to best return his affections without scaring him away. He's obviously terrified of rejection, so you'll have to be subtle about it. As you walk away, lost in thought, a nearby Pippin chatters with the Shadow Man who encouraged you. "The boss is alright and all, but he can be a little scary sometimes, can't he?" The Shadow Man nods. "Yeah, but he's on his best behavior when they's around. I think we'll be in da clear once they's together."

You call Tenna to tell him to meet you in person so you can share some ideas that you came up with for his show. Little did you know, he was just ending a game show segment when you called, his antennae intercepting the signal you sent out. He paused for a moment before offering a comedic aside to the crowd. "When I said 'phone a friend', I didn't mean me!" The audience let out a short bout of laughter as Tenna listened to the signal. He gasped. "Oh! This call is--Them. They want to meet... with me?" The crowd responded with a conspiratorial "ooh". Tenna turned to the crowd and blushed. "Hey! Um, thanks for the vote of confidence, folks, but show's over! I gotta get going! Thanks for tuning in to TV Time! OK, see you next time!" After an animated wave, the show's host was quick to draw the curtains and leap off the stage to go meet with you. You're set up at a table when Tenna finds you, and he's eager to settle his giant body into the a chair which is hilariously small by comparison before twiddling with his thumbs anxiously. "It's so good to see my GREATEST fan again! I'm kind of surprised that you remembered my frequency." Of course you remembered! You also mention that you saw his show today and that it was as riveting as it always was. Tenna seemed to glow a little brighter and fill a little more space after you said that. You then, perhaps in a moment of mischief, asked why the crowd thought it was so funny that you were calling him. "W-wha? I mean, pheh, how should I know!? They're WILDer than TV Times's WILDest prizes, that lot! My fans, ever hungry for RIVETING drama! They're obviously a little... heh, mistaken? On our... relationship?" Tenna gritted out the last part like he was testing dangerous waters. You said that the audience didn't sound mistaken at all as you reached out and squeezed his cartoonishly gloved hand. You liked him a lot. It's why you wanted to see him today. "You--you're not saying--you're--your hand--whoah mama!! You're not saying...?!" You are. You think you're in love with him. He has no idea how to react to you returning his affections. He's elated. He's terrified. "I'm reeling from the feeling!! I--I still don't have those minigames for you done yet! What am I doing?! I bet I'm looking so glooby right now! And the video game isn't ready for you yet, and I still have to--" You shush him and say that he doesn't need to prepare all this stuff to get you to want to be with him. He just needs to bring himself. Tenna gingerly takes your hands in his, which are huge compared to yours, as his screen flickers off with seriousness. "...Okay! Okay. Just myself..." A pause, and then an anxious whisper. "I really want to believe that I can do that."

So, you and the host of TV World are dating now. A lot of it is old hat; even though Tenna acknowledges your sentiment that he's good enough on his own, he's very much a textbook people-pleaser and overworker. You don't work for him, nor are you really a cohost for him, since he asked you if you would want to be and you said no. Before he could shrink, you specified that nobody could do a better job than just him, and he seemed to be OK after that. Still, you tune into every show that he does, and you swear you're not a narcissist, but you're pretty sure you keep finding Easter Eggs referencing you just about everywhere. If you have a favorite accessory you're always carrying around, expect it to appear in some form within a TV Time bumper. Tenna often uses brief asides to allude to you and lightheartedly brag about "winning" you. "Isn't love a WONDERFUL thing?! (I would know, after all!) Luckily, that's the subject of this next quiz: Romance! I'd be a bad host if I didn't know the answers, wouldn't I?" (Which is hilarious--aren't you the one who got lucky?) If you have a theme song, the show's little jingles have your motif in them. And if you ever show up as a contestant? There will be bias--safety nets which don't exist for the others and made-up rankings that Tenna ad-libs on the spot. "I've never seen a score so high! You get... Gamma Rank! I know you don't get paid, but if you did, you'd deserve a rays! Anyone? Anyone?" At the end of the show, the truth is that you won the greatest prize of all, and the love that you both scored is enough to give Tenna the strength to just... be. You both find each other perfect, no post-production needed.

A/N: The day has come to post something unrelated to ENA. A return to form is in order, no worries; I just wanted to make something for this guy. I like him. I... relate to him? I'd be down to write more for him... Honk.

[b1asho]

Inspired by this post!!!!!->

https://www.tumblr.com/paradoxbeta/784635153350852608?source=share

Attraction is very subjective human-to-human, and so obviously things get even more subjective when different species weigh in.

This is kind of an insane question to pull on a xeno, because most of them do not think of humans in that way at all. But if made to think about it, you could get some results. These are just random examples from random people, but the general idea is that they focus on stuff that we don’t immediately view as an instant appeal/something worth looking at.

The wider consensus is that it’s a little weird (or gross and unnatural, depending on who you’re talking to) to find another species attractive, but relationships do happen. They’re just fraught with a few more problems than the average couple.

Some other misc info:

Prectikar are by far the least interested in humans attraction-wise. We’re too unnerving for most of them.

Kixeli ears are a lot like frog ears (aka smooth and flat. The earrings they have are attached to the loose ring of skin around them.)

The Sundyne guy is speaking using an implant, which is why the speech bubble is coming from his neck in the second image. You can also tell he’s with egg from the bright yellow sash covering his back(where they are contained). Compared to the other guys, humans are kind of “hard to tell apart” since there’s no particular color or exposed body part that immediately signals if they’re male or female (Kixeli have their skin markings, rossetians have their horns, Dorest and Rox look drastically different, Prectikar are close but they tend to wear clear gendered jewlery for identification purposes). A human with things like thick clothing or body fat can make it less obvious “what they are”, something that a Sundyne would find unnerving.

As you can imagine, GEIA’s thoughts on humans are uhh complicated. She’s very normal about them.

“Met arch” is a Drecu term for addressing your lead Rox (sort of like“my leader” ), and their up-tilted heads+ little antenna tap is an affectionate gesture.

Rossetians have hair that’s similar to an earth mammal, but it’s Only on their privates and in Tha Pouch. So they have a very strong sexy connotation for it. rossetians and humans are pretty similar, and Rossetian/human relationships are also the second most common inter-species pair!

The most common inter-species pair is humans and muttreazik (because most muttreazik are raised by humans and look like humans with a few quirks.) Things get really complicated really fast, though, when we start talking about the low-congruency guys who don’t have a human body plan.

[captain-huggy-bear]

No because why do I picture that you and Jack are dating in secret, well at least from the public’s eye, and you had talked about going public but you didn’t say when, and Jack accidentally posts a picture of you guys in one of his photo dumps and the secrets out

Totally happy to take requests/ideas/prompts at the moment in my ask box :) Writing Masterlist

It's an accident, a genuine mistake. He doesn't mean to include a picture of the two of you in his latest photo dump to his instagram, he certainly doesn't mean to select a photo in which he has his arms around you from behind, lips pressed to your cheek in a kiss that was clearly not friendly. It's not that he's ashamed of you, rather it's that the two of you had agreed to keep things private for a while, to give yourselves a chance to really settle into your relationship without the peanut gallery getting involved. You'd discussed going public, but not set a date or made a decision and he was certain you weren't going to be happy with it happening suddenly without your knowledge...#

"Shit." He's trying to delete it frantically, but he can already see the comments flooding in. Even if he deletes it he knows someone will have screenshotted it, someone will have seen it and already written a blog post about it...the cat is out of the bag. He doesn't bother, leaves the post where it is, knowing it would draw more attention if it disappeared now.

"Jack? Everything okay?" You could hear him from the bedroom, his frantic swearing travelling to where you'd been reading. It had made you curious enough to put your book down even though the main love interest was about to make a massive declaration of love.

He's staring at his phone, tossed onto the coffee table, like it's just betrayed him, elbows pressing into his knees, head in his hands. Jack's fingers are tugging at his hair like he often does when he's stressed and it's enough to worry you that something seriously bad has happened.

He looks a little pitiful when he looks up at you, big blue eyes worried, brow furrowed, lips set in a pout.

"...If...theoretically...if I fucked up and accidentally posted a picture of us on my public insta would you dump me?" Your shoulders are already relaxing, whatever you thought had happened, it certainly wasn't something as minor as Jack making your relationship public.

"Is this theoretical or reality?" You're smiling at him and it only makes him more confused because you should be angry at him right now...you should be telling him off because you hadn't agreed yet on when you'd make things public and with him public meant very public.

"Reality..." Jack reaches for his phone, unlocking it to show you the post and the many, many, many comments already flooding in, "Fuck, I'm sorry I wasn't thinking and must have just picked that photo when I was selecting a few others..."

"Hey, hey...it's okay." You sit yourself next to him on the couch, leaning against him so he knows you're not angry. It's obvious Jack is panicking about this, worried that you're going to be upset with him, "We we're already talking about going public...it's fine."

"You're...you're not going to break up with me?" You're actually taken aback a little bit, that he thinks you'd be so fickle, so petty as to break up with him over an accident, a simple mistake. It has you cupping his face in your hands gentle, the sort of softness that has his eyelashes fluttering against his cheeks.

"Jack Rowden Hughes, do you really think that something as small as an accidental photo posting would get me break up with you?" You smile at him so sweetly that he starts to feel a bit silly, a bit stupid because he loves you and you love him and why would he ever think you'd be so harsh as to break up with him over something like that?

"I don't know...maybe?" He's sheepish as he says it, shrugging his shoulders and avoiding your eyes.

"You're an idiot." You say lovingly, pressing a kiss to his lips even as he goes to protest about it. A kiss that has him melting, all worries about your reacti9on disappearing in favour of pulling you into his lap and kissing you silly.

[idkwhatever580]

You Like Me?

Pairings: WandaNat, WandaNatxreader (eventually)

Prompt: I decided to pair this prompt and this prompt together to create one big mess :)

Warnings: Poly couple, swearing, Nat being kind of a bitch, crying, a wee bit of angst I assume, fluff, soft Wanda, suggestive tones, shit writing, really im serious this writing is so shit, lmk if I missed any!

A/N: I really hope I did y'all justice because this is my first time writing WandaxNatxreader so please bear with me as I probably write a trainwreck of a story @sxlfishbrokenheart

Also don't ask what is going on with the povs I am clearly struggling throughout the whole damn thing T-T

Natasha's thoughts = Red

Wanda's thoughts = Orange

Y/n's thoughts = Purple

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Movie night at the Avengers' tower means cry night for you. Everyone in the tower has strict assigned seating so that nobody gets in a fight, even though it doesn't always keep the peace.

Everything seems to be great except for the fact that you have to sit beside Wanda and Natasha. Which isn't a problem for everyone else right? Wanda, Nat, and Y/N the towers' favorite trio...

Bestie trio, that is.

While Wanda and Nat are the perfect power couple, you're left as the third wheel that also happens to be pining for the both of them. So, while everyone thinks you love sitting with them on movie nights, you sit in agony while watching them out of the corner of your eye.

Sometimes Wanda, who sits in the middle of you and Nat, will pull you into her and claim that it's just what besties do. You of course, can't say no to her, so you end up running back to your room after most movie nights to cry about your wishful thinking.

You honestly can't even remember a movie night where you actually watched the movie. You usually just fall asleep in their arms trying to soak up the affection while you can.

But your dynamic has changed in the past few months...

Wanda is still super lovey and always pulls you in, maybe even more so than before, while Nat has become meaner and ruder towards you. So, you really feel like you're impeding on their relationship, which makes you get into your head.

Maybe Nat is being mean to me because she is jealous. Of course, she has a right to be jealous when Wands has been really close with me. I don't want to ruin their relationship. I'm not even trying anything. Maybe it is because they can sense that I like them. Oh my gosh, it is... Of course! Wanda is being extra nice because she pities me, while Nat is being mean because she is blunter and more obvious that she doesn't like me. I need to leave them alo-

You are cut out of your thoughts when a hand is placed on your thigh. That hand is none other than Wanda's, she leans in and says, "Hey, you alright?"

You quickly nod your head, and she visibly relaxes, but she continues, "Are you sure? Because we haven't even started watching anything and you look like you're zoned out on the tv that isn't even on."

This conversation peaks Natasha's interest, so she leans forward so she can see you past Wanda with an eyebrow raised. She is clearly waiting for you to conjure up an answer.

You quickly stutter out, "Oh- yeah, um, I am fine, I just- I just zoned out for a sec, you know how my ADHD can be."

Wanda squints her eyes and exchanges a look with Nat, but they let it slide. You still decide that you need to pull away from them, you can't be pretending like they are yours to love when they aren't.

So, you scooch over to the other side of the couch you three share, which isn't too far considering there is almost no wiggle room between the three of you. It still saddens Wanda regardless, but you don't see that it also saddens Nat.

The movie starts and Wanda tries to pull you in again, you consider letting it happen, but today is different. Today you pull away again, but the look of hurt that flashes over Wanda's face hurts you more than any sort of cuddling could ever.

Her expression pains you so much in fact that you get up and go to run off. Nat grabs your hand to try and catch you and see what is going on with you, but you are somehow swifter, so you just pull your arm away from her grasp and walk off.

Nobody saw you run off because your couch is in the back, but Wanda and Natasha exchange each other's glances and immediately jump up to go comfort you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wanda's pov

Y/n just ran off after I tried to cuddle with her, so Natasha and I are currently going to find her.

We are standing in the elevator waiting for it to go to our floor which is also Y/n's.

"Wanda, why did she run off like that?"

I look over at Nat and shrug with wide eyes, "I don't know, she doesn't normally do this. She pulled away earlier before the movie started but I didn't think anything of it. Oh God she didn't want to cuddle today, and I did it anyways I totally made her uncomfortable!"

Natasha cuts me off, "Hey! You're spiraling, clearly Y/n needs us to be there for her, so we have to stay calm. I am sure there is a very good explanation as to why she didn't want to cuddle tonight."

The elevator dings and we rush over to Y/n's room and before Nat bangs on the door, I lean up and hear her sniffles.

Nat hears this too and loudly knocks on the door.

I say, "Y/n? Honey? Can you let us in?"

She lets out a sob, but doesn't answer, and I am concerned for her safety, so I say, "Okay, I'm going to come in now."

I carefully pry open the door and see her sitting on her floor in tears, so I quickly make my way over to her and sit down next to her, "Darling can I hold you?"

She shakes her head, so I sigh and stay seated next to her. Eventually though, she ends up leaning into me and I wrap my arms around her. Once her tears cease, I softly say, "Can you tell us what's going on?"

She looks up at Natasha and gets scared and shakes her head. Natasha tries to ask, "Why did you run off Y/n?"

I know that she means well when she asks this, but the way it comes out is really harsh and Y/n starts crying a little bit again, and just starts shaking her head, so I hush her and lean into her ear to whisper, "Do you not want to say in front of Natasha?"

Y/n thinks about it and softly shakes her head.

I sigh and say, "I can send her out if you'd feel more comfortable."

She stays silent for a moment, and right when I think she is going to start crying again, she nods her head into my shoulder, so I lift my head up and use my powers to silently conversate with Nat in her head.

"She wants you out..."

"What?! Why?"

"Not sure."

"Then why do I have to go?"

"I know you don't get it, but she needs to feel comfortable and if that means that you have to leave then you need to go, please, I love you baby, but we have to get to the bottom of what is going on. I'll let you know after."

Natasha huffs and nods her head without another word, and she leaves the room to presumably go lay in our bed waiting for me to come and give her an update.

Once Nat leaves I go back to tending to Y/n. "Do you want to go on your bed? This floor might hurt your back."

Y/n nods softly and I pick her up and carry her to the bed. When I set her down, she sits up, so I know she is ready to talk. "Alright, what was that whole thing about? You never leave a movie night early, and you definitely don't run off crying... Right?"

The defeated look Y/n sends my way makes me realize this crying is a normal thing for her, "Oh dorogoy, why do you do this? Why don't you come to me or Nat?"

She sighs and says, "I can't go to you because- because... I- I can't tell you."

This hits me kind of hard, I don't want the woman that we love to feel like she can't come to us for anything. "Why do you say that?"

She gets frustrated and just blurts out, "Because Wanda! I-" Her face contorts to surprise at her outburst, and she quickly tries to cover it up, "I said I can't tell you for a reason."

I sigh and secretly read her mind, She is struggling because she thinks Natasha hates her.

All I see when I subtly read her mind are flashes of Nat being a complete and utter bitch to her, and that is all it takes for me to realize that she thinks Nat totally hates her guts.

I nod and say, "Okay, well I will let you figure it out, since you seem to want to be by yourself. We're always here if you need us. I am gonna go to bed I guess, Nat is waiting in our room, are you alright on your own?"

She simply nods and I ask another question, "You'll come to us if you need anything?"

She nods again and we say our goodbyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I almost run to my shared room and immediately start telling Natasha everything. "Natasha, she does like us!"

Nat furrows her eyebrows, because I only use her full name when I am mad at her. So, she looks at me and says, "That's old news, but are you mad at me? And it also doesn't explain why she was crying."

I sit down on the bed and tell her, "Nat, I am not mad at you, you are just dumb."

Her jaw drops a bit, and she says, "I'm not stupid!"

I laugh when her subtle Russian accent comes out, (she's been hanging around Yelena way too much recently, but I like it) and say, "I called you dumb, not the same thing as stupid. Anyways, Y/n was crying because she likes both of us, and she is scared she is going to split us up because you don't like her."

She frowns and retorts, "but- I do like her?"

I glare and say, "I know that, but Y/n thinks you hate her because you are mean to her! You know she is a sensitive soul; you have to try a different approach than what you did with me."

The crease across her forehead never goes away, if anything, it gets bigger, "But I am only flirting with her, you know that is how I flirt."

I laugh and say, "Oh Natty, I knew you liked me because I can read minds, Y/n cannot do that, so she can't tell that you like her if you are a bitch to her, no offense."

She looks down and realization washes over her, so she says, "So what do I do? She barely talks to me anymore, and she definitely won't let me in her room right now."

I sigh and say, "you'll have to figure it out somehow."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

idk pov (guys I can't- I seriously don't know right now)

It has been a few days since the day you locked yourself away from everyone, and you have been avoiding both of them since.

You have locked yourself up in your part of Tony's lab and you just can't bring yourself to face them. You also skipped movie night last night and everyone was trying to see if you are okay, but you just told FRIDAY to let them know you are fine.

You are tinkering with one of your suit pieces when you realize you need a tool that you don't have, but you know Tony has it on his work bench.

So, you walk over to his side of the lab and of course none other than the Natasha Romanoff is sitting at his bench looking for something. You sigh and contemplate waiting for her to leave, but you really need this tool, and you see it right on a shelf above his desk. So, you sigh and make you way quietly over to the desk, but while you reach out to grab it, Nat also reaches up for the same tool and you bump each other's hands.

Within the blink of an eye, three things happen; Nat and you bump hands, you end up hitting the shelf, and one of Tony's weird gadgets fall onto your wrists effectively locking around your wrists and binding you together.

You groan and Nat says, "Shit, I didn't see you."

You shake my head and turn away as much as you can, and you say "It's fine, I should have made my presence known."

She starts looking at the gadget and you take a second to examine it closer and say, "Oh. My. God."

Natasha furrows her eyebrows in confusion and says, "What is it?"

You groan and say, "These are the vibranium tondricuffs Tony has been working on."

She rolls her eyes when you don't explain and says, "And what does that mean? I might be a spy, but I don't know this sciencey shit you do."

You shake your head from the soft thoughts of her perfect lips and say, "Oh- uhh it is just what he calls them, but when I say he is working on them, it means that he hasn't figured them out yet and I don't think he knows how to unlock them."

Nat takes a deep breath and says, "So, you're telling me, that since Tony can't seem to put away his stupid toys, we are locked together for the foreseeable future?"

You sigh and nod your head, dropping it the second you feel heat rising to your face at the thought of all the things you might have to do with Nat. "Who do we tell? Isn't Tony on a mission?"

Nat groans even louder at the realization and says, "I guess we should go tell Wanda, and then she will help make a plan right?"

You bite your lip at the thought of facing her, and Nat sees your hesitation, "Hey, what's up with you lately? You always want to see Wanda."

You make brief eye contact with Nat and quickly look away until she puts her fingers to your chin and pulls you to look at her. She looks deep into your eyes and says, "You've been distant, ever since..."

You sigh and say, "Sorry, I guess I don't like when people see me cry."

Nat furrows her eyebrows and says, "You're a terrible liar."

You look at her with shock and say, "I am not lying!"

She laughs and says, "Oh really?"

When you nod your head she smirks and says, "If you really didn't like when people see you cry, then why did you never shut us out before? You have cried in our arms before, and you have never done something like this."

You sigh and say, "Okay, well- maybe I have changed."

Nat rolls her eyes as you decide to continue your work on your suit, effectively dragging Nat along wherever you go, not that she minds. She keeps pressing even though you clearly want to drop the subject, "You're hiding something."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"No. I'm. Not."

"If you weren't hiding anything then why don't you tell me why you couldn't face me the other night? And why you can barely look at me today?"

This seems to break you, her constant nagging is really pissing you off and you just slam your tools on the work bench and say, "Alright fine! You really want to know why I have been avoiding you?"

She nods her head, "yes please do enlighten me."

You groan and turn to her completely and just blab everything, "Because! You clearly see that I like Wanda and you are mad so you have been really mean, which is understandable, because she is your girlfriend, but what you don't know is that I like both of you and I know you probably hate my guts even more than before, but I really needed to get that off of my chest and-"

Before you can let any more word vomit fall out of your mouth Natasha's lips are on yours in an instant. They shut you up really well.

Your eyes widen and you push her away as much as you can, given the fact that you're still handcuffed together.

"Nat what are you doing?!"

She looks at you, "Is that not what you wanted this whole time?"

"Well, yes, but what about Wanda?"

She realizes that you don't know that she and Wanda knew, "Oh! Right! Wanda knows you like her. And I knew I just didn't know how to flirt. I am apparently a really shitty flirt when I am being genuine. I can fake flirt, but when I have a real crush, I turn into an asshole. It worked for Wands, but I realized it didn't necessarily work for you huh?"

You shake your head with wide eyes. Still trying to wrap your mind around the fact that both of your crushes like you back. Before you can fall deeper into your thoughts, Nat asks, "Wanna continue what we were doing?"

All you can do is nod, but her lips are immediately locked on your own. The feeling burns but it burns so so good. You two continue to swap spit until you hear someone speak, "Am I interrupting something ladies?"

You both pull away and look to see Wanda standing in the doorway. You freeze, still unsure if she is okay with you kissing her girlfriend, and she starts to step towards the two of you.

Once she gets up really close to you, she gives you a soft look and walks by you to kiss Nat pulling away to say, "Hi baby."

They exchange some small talk, and you are really uncomfortable because you have no idea what to do. They are just acting like you're not there and that you and Nat weren't just kissing.

Then, they both turn to you and Wanda leans closer to you, "Tell me Natasha, was it your intention to keep this sweet thing from me?"

Your eyes widen as Nat shakes her head aggressively letting out a soft 'no'.

Who knew Natasha was a bottom... they even acted like she was the top around me. Impressive.

Wanda lifts your chin a bit to look at her and she smirks, "What is going on in that pretty little head of yours, y/n/n?"

You snap out of it and whine a bit, and Wanda smiles and says, "Do you want a kiss too?"

You nod your head.

"Words sweet one."

"Y-yes please."

She smiles and looks back at Natasha briefly saying, "This one has good manners. She knows her place well. We've known her for all this time and yet we're just finding this out. Oh, we're going to have so much fun with her Natty."

Nat nods her head, and Wanda turns back to you to say, "Now... about that kiss."

She leans in, and you meet her halfway to interlock her delicate lips together with yours. It is likes soft pillows meeting sparkling fireworks.

You get lost in the kiss and try to push a little more for a deeper one, but Wanda pulls away with a soft smirk. As much as you want to pout for losing contact with her, all you can do is send a dopey smile her way.

Wanda exchanges looks with Natasha and they both look back at you. Nat speaks first, "So, now that we have that out of the way, Wands and I were wondering if you wanted to be our girlfriend?"

Your eyes widen and Wanda speaks up a bit, "Don't feel pressured to give us an answer right now. We understand it's new, and you might be feeling overwhelmed, we just want to put the offer on the table."

Then she leans closer to you and speaks in a low tone, "Although we don't like to be kept waiting."

Her silky voice makes you blush a bit, but you clear your throat and say, "Date both of you? At the same time?"

They both nod their heads and you say, "Yes! A thousand times yes!"

They both smile as you kiss each of them multiple times.

Natasha sighs and says, "Alright, what do you want to do as our official girlfriend now?"

You smile and say, "As much as I would love to go watch movies to make up for the last two movie nights that I missed, I really would like to get this thing off."

You hold up both Natasha's and your connected arms up to show Wanda the tondricuffs.

Wanda's eyebrows raise, she's probably wondering what happened to get that locked onto you. Natasha sighs in defeat and says, "Oh, right... that." You softly grab Nat's hand.

Wanda is about to ask questions, but you cut in and say, "Ask questions later, find Tony now. Please."

Safe to say there was a lot to discuss, but it will all work out now that you have your girls.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: I'm so terribly sorry for how long this took me to write... I genuinely thought it would be quick and easy, but college is kicking my ass, and I really didn't want to leave you with nothing. So, it's a little shitty, but it's something!

Masterlist

Taglist

@ilovesnat @ihartnat @marvelnatasha12346 @moistblobfish @justarandomreaderxoxo @lovelyy-moonlight @symp4nat @ale-estrabao @mrsrushman @kkreader78o @cheekysnake

[mvlders222]

PLS PLS PLS MORE LOTTIE FICS 🙏 (I will literally take anything lol)

a/n ; this new season has given me lottie resurgence oh lawd... i feel like some of my fics are sort of the same but i can't get enough of it. maybe i'm incapable of writing angst... i like love too much...

𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭

pairing ; lottie matthews x fem!reader

wordcount ; 1.5k

summary ; Lottie was the best friend you could ever ask for, but she wished it wasn't so. You loved her, of course, and so did she. But those weren't her true intentions...

warnings ; nothing, just fluff!

You loved Lottie and considered her your best friend. While you were her best friend, she wanted to be something more.

It felt like you’d known Lottie for an eternity, never really remembering how to live before her. You two were inseparable, and that didn’t go unnoticed by the others. You weren’t on the team, but you might as well be since you’re around so much. You were like their own personal cheerleader as long as Lottie was on the field.

Which was where you were now, situated on the bleachers with your homework in your lap. You would look up now and then to watch her on the field, effortlessly gliding along the freshly cut grass. You were waiting for practice to get out since Lottie was taking you home. You did this every day. Lottie drove you home every single day. Of course, you’d only get home after your time at Lottie’s house had expired.

No wonder why the others thought you were dating.

From the field, Lottie was stopped, looking out at you. She smiled when she saw you look up at her, showing her a small wave and a big smile. She reciprocated, showing her hand in acknowledgment.

“Have you told her yet?” Van saw this exchange and appeared beside her, looking between you and Lottie. Lottie reluctantly pulled her gaze away from you, now looking at her teammate.

“Told her what?” Lottie responded, only sparing the girl a glance before returning her attention to you.

“That you like her,” Van said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“I think she already knows,” Natalie piped up, overhearing the exchange, once thought to be private. “Considering you can describe in perfect detail how the shape of her face changes whenever she smiles.”

“What? No, I don’t–” That was true. Lottie thought she hid it so well. “I don’t like her,” she confirmed.

“Nat’s right, though, you’re not exactly good at being discreet,” Van agreed with the smaller girl, disregarding Lottie’s words completely. She gave her a concerned look, seeing the weight of her feelings completely take over her mind. “Look, just tell her how you feel, and then you’ll know for sure.”

“Tell who what?” Taissa had now walked over, interested in the contrast from soccer.  Her eyes landed on Lottie, now suddenly getting the full story. “Oh, yeah, you gotta tell her.”

“Seriously, does everyone know?” Lottie stood there in disbelief from her teammates.

“Everyone except you it seems,” Natalie fired back. “Just do everyone a favor, and tell her.”

“Okay! Damn,” Lottie’s eyes widened, suddenly becoming defensive. “I’ll do it.”

The three others there let out a combination of sighs and small “finally”s, much to Lottie's annoyance. Coach Ben sounded the whistle, calling the team in for final notes and to conclude their practice. You knew you had about fifteen to twenty minutes before she’d be out of the locker rooms from changing to hang out with her. You thought that because of this routine, you still had more time to complete your homework.

Lottie had walked out of the locker room, duffle bag over her shoulder and letterman jacket folded in her arms. She walked out after five minutes. You had no idea what was different, or whether she had even showered or not. You tried not to think about that too often.

Just about five minutes earlier, Lottie had been pressured by just about her whole team to hurry up and get back out there. Every time she attempted to converse with anyone in her vicinity, they’d either ignore her or just mention you. At the very first mention of your name, she quickly shut up. But after constant reminders from her team, she managed to get out of there as quickly as possible. Of course, only to be met with you, so it wasn’t a big difference.

She watched you from the field, you still situated at the near top of the bleachers. You were so consumed with your work that if the kid you were babysitting had a slip and fall, you probably wouldn’t notice their screams until a whole five minutes later when a sudden headache would come over you.

“Hey!” Lottie called out to you, seeing your brow furrowed from the ground. You were so cute when you were focused on being smart. You were even cuter when all your attention was on her. You looked up and your eyes fell on Lottie, her expression unreadable from afar. “You comin’?”

It quickly processed in your mind what she had said, still slightly confused by her sudden emergence from her sport. “Uh, yeah, hold on!” You shouted back, quickly closing the open binder in your lap, and shoving away any other accessories into your bag. You slugged it over your shoulder and quickly made your way down the steps. When you met her at the bottom, you quickly took her right side and continued to walk to the back parking lot where her car was parked.

“So, you were out earlier than usual,” you started in an attempt to make conversation. She had been quiet so far, maybe she was hyper-focused on getting home or simply away from school.

“Yeah, it was just a scrimmage. Only a couple of games today,” she responded, a little hesitant, of course.

“That’s not what I mean,” you confirm. You tilt your head in an attempt to make eye contact with her, trying to get her attention since she won’t look at you herself. “And you’re acting weird now. Did something happen?”

“No, I, uh…” Lottie stopped in her tracks and begrudgingly looked at you. You stopped a step ahead of her, turning back to look at her. You were gorgeous. Even during the smallest moments like this. “I just have a lot on my mind.”

You both stood in your places, neither of you bothering to move toward each other. You furrowed your brows, becoming concerned at her words. “Is there anything I can do? I hate to see you like this.” You always knew what to say, and at the moment, Lottie hated that.

“No!” She answered, maybe a little too quickly. “Um, no… you wouldn’t understand.” But, oh, how she wished you would. She continued walking to her car, deciding to move without you.

“That’s rude,” you mumble. You slightly scowl as she brushes past you, seemingly ignoring you. Despite this, you follow her a couple of feet behind. She doesn’t slow down. In fact, it looks like she’s trying to leave without you. “Hey!”

You pick up the pace, taking a slight jog to reach her before she can even open the door to the driver’s seat of her car. She still won’t turn around or respond to your calls. You put a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to face you. “What is going on with y–”

But before your eyes could be on hers, her lips were on yours. It only took a moment before you could melt under her care. Her hands grabbed at your arms before moving down to your waist, and then finally resting on your hips. You couldn’t decide on her shoulders or her face or her-

“Relax, okay?” Lottie mumbles, her lips barely breaking away from your own. God, that made you weak. You finally decided to hold her face in your hands, delicately to not break the moment you two currently share.

Lottie clearly didn’t have the same concern, turning you too around so your back was to her car. As if she wasn’t close enough already, she pushed you further against the car door, squeezing at your hips that were flush against hers.

The two of you pull away for air, Lottie choosing to rest her forehead against yours. She giggled looking at your now smiley expression, contrary to the one you had just moments before. “I’m glad you feel the same way,” you whisper, as if anyone else would hear.

Before she could respond, however, the sounds of cheering and shouts reach your ears from across the lot. You both turn to look at the source, not daring to pull away from your current positions. The culprits are Van, of course, along with Tai. You smile at the other two, finally putting the pieces together.

“Go home!” Lottie shouts at the other two, playful but still a bit embarrassed. She looked at you, “I’m sorry about them, really, I–”

“I’m guessing they knew the whole time?” You interrupt her, because, no offense, but just a moment ago she was ignoring you to your face.

Lottie blushed, even more than she had been before, giving you a sheepish smile, “Yeah, sort of. I didn’t even have to tell them.” “I guess, it takes two.” You shrug, “We weren’t exactly discreet.”

[beifong-brainrot]

I am definetly in the minority here, but I was always so deeply touched by Mai's confession during that scene.

There's just something about Mai's confession that makes me feel so unbearably sad. I think the first thing that hits me is just how... empty she seems in this situation compared to the rest of the Firesome Foursome. Zuko is angry™️ and lashing out, Ty Lee is sad and concerned and Azula is posturing. But Mai is just so devoid of even sadness around her chidlhood trauma.

It's sort of like she shut down emotionally to some extent, (even more than usual) especially after her fight with Zuko.

This is quite a common reaction to arguments from someone who was raised to be obedient and non-confrontational, so I'm not surprised she was acting like this.

Analysing Mai's behaviour on the beach is interesting.

She seems to try to reach out to Zuko in her own, tepid little way by greeting him, but clams back up when he asks her where "her new boyfriend" was. This leads to her smacking his hand away when he tries to reach out to her by asking if she's cold. They're both trying to mend the bridge, but end up escalating the conflict further.

She remains silent for a good while, but does speak up in order to defend Ty Lee from Zuko lashing out. Despite this, when Zuko persists, Mai doesn't push the issue, perhaps due to her upbringing to be placid.

Due to this, I find it intriguing when Mai mocks Ty Lee for attention seeking, since she had attempted to defend Ty Lee from Zuko's ridicule. But perhaps its due to jealousy or frustration by Ty Lee's freely expressed sorrow and trauma that made Mai lash out in her own way.

Or it's just because the writers didn't know how to jump from Ty Lee's traumadump to Mai's lol

This is where we get into the meat and potatoes of Mai's confession.

Ty Lee bites back at Mai and parrots Zuko's opinion of Mai being "a big blah" as he said.

Ty Lee : Well, what's your excuse, Mai? You were an only child for fifteen years, but even with all that attention, your aura is this dingy, pasty, gray ... Mai : I don't believe in auras. Zuko: Yeah, you don't believe in anything. Mai : Oh, well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy as the rest of you. Zuko: I'm sorry, too. I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once instead of keeping all your feelings bottled up inside. She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?

I think what's interesting here is that while Ty Lee saw Mai as recieving the attention Ty Lee had craved, Mai seemed to receive less loving, parental attention, and more scrutiny. Mai's parents also seem to be actually rather neglectful emotionally towards Mai and them just leaving Tom Tom unsupervised behind a screen in Omashu leaves me questioning if they actually cared that much.

Mai deflects, not adressing Ty Lee's question, but rather focusing on the nebulous concept of auras instead. When Zuko butts in, trying to rile her up, Mai gives a sarcastic apology. I find it very interesting that she sets hereself so aside from the others in terms of her not being "high strung and crazy", because it really shows the difference in Mai's upbringing and that of her companions. Azula and Zuko were raised to be leaders and fighters, and their "firebender instincts" were encouraged, while Ty Lee persumably had to compete for attention with her siblings. While Mai was raised with the :be seen and not heard" mentality.

Now is also a good time to mention that I think Mai has almost comically obvious signs of depression, which wouldn't be a stretch.

Zuko calling Mai out for not getting angry over Ty Lee insulting her aura leads me to my next point. Persumably, being a child raised by parents like Michi and Ukano, Mai wasn't allowed to voice her discomfort, offence or upset. Hell we see this in Omashu when Mai complains about being bored and Michi basically shuts her down and tells her to enjoy it.

I mean look at the expression Michi gives Mai when she starts complaining about being bored, a very normal teenager thing to do.

And when Mai finally does speak her mind, it is no less heartwrenching.

Mai : What do you want from me? You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well, it wasn't. I was a rich only child who got anything I wanted... as long as I behaved and sat still, and didn't speak unless spoken to. My mother said I had to keep out of trouble. We had my dad's political career to think about.

The first thing that jumps out at us is how Mai presents her trauma. She doesn't explicitly express any pain or sadness, despite it being rather obvious to us. This is in stark contrast to the rest of the group. Ty Lee and Zuko are both very open about their negative emotions, hell, even Azula admits that Ursa's actions hurt her.

But Mai? Mai kneecaps her complaint. This can also be seen as an effect of her upbringing. No complaining, no making herself inconvenient for mom and dad.

We also see the theme of conditional love, an implied idea that Michi and Ukano would only give Mai affection or gifts if she acted the way they wanted her to. Now conditional love from people who are meant to raise you will fuck you up.

The comics also add that Michi actively told Mai scary stories about the Kemurimage to keep her in line. Now, telling kids stories about magical beings to get them to behave isn't anything new, but it appears to be so bad that Mai had nightmares over it. Also we're in a world where spirits actually exist, evil chidnapper spirits don't seem too far out the realm of possibility.

Also as someone who got raised by a heavily Catholic mother who made me believe I would burn in hell for an eternity if I even mildly displeased her, I do sympathise

Azula: Well, that's it, then. You have a controlling mother who had certain expectations, and if you strayed from them, you were shut down. That's why you're afraid to care about anything, and why you can't express yourself. Mai : You want me to express myself? [Stands up and yells.] Leave me alone! Zuko: I like it when you express yourself. [Approaching, attempting to put a hand on her shoulder.] Mai : Don't touch me! I'm still mad at you. Zuko: My life hasn't been that easy either, Mai. Mai: Whatever. That doesn't excuse the way you've been acting.

I love when Mai yells at Azula for frying to psychoanalyse her. Like Azula was right, but it understandably upset Mai, and it's a good thing she expressed that. It means she's growing.

I also do adore that Mai does not let Zuko get away with acting out, particularly towards her. I like that the writer's didn't just have Mai give Zuko a free pass because he had a shitty life and she actively called him out on his actions. It's probably my favourite part of their relationship. And Mai expressing so much anger and upset is a perfect crescendo to her little scene.

I don't know why but Mai confession scene just holds so much weight and emotion for me, I can't help but feel something whenever I watch it.

Also, side note, I find it an interesting detail that Azula's confession only came after the fire was extinguished. Perhaps it wasn't intentional but it kinda feels like its symbolising that the light "went out" for Azula (at least narrativewise) and that while Zuko, Ty Lee and Mai would be able to get out of their shitty situations and from under the Fire Nation's influence, she would not.

[ialwaysknewyouwerepunk]

I wouldn't mind if you wanted to share your feelings/thoughts on the Louis matter. I always liked reading what you had to say. I did notice that that tweet seemed to be the last straw for a lot of people in terms of keeping quiet about a lot of stuff that's been bothering them for a while. Also the fact you've been sort of away from it for a while means you'd have a more balanced and less heated perspective haha

yeah, ig that's true...... i was thinking of my perspective as incorrect bc i was so far from all of it but maybe it is an advantage. most ppl here know how much i've loved louis and for how long, so it's weird for me to admit how annoyed or even indifferent i've grown towards him. what i'm gonna say now is gonna piss some ppl off but ig i don't mind, but also pls keep in mind that this is literally just how i'm feeling, one single person somewhere on this globe. at this point i wish i cared less

i know that, for me personally, it's mostly been the tone of the fandom that has turned me off, which ofc has been fed by him: pretty superficial, about his looks, that have been pretty basic. empty platitudes about life, about being authentic without actually feeling real to me. oasis without the maniacal edge (which is what makes someone like liam gallagher intriguing). back when i felt like he really was still signalling it kinda felt like not a lot of people were genuinely interested in that part of him. like. im not here to thirst at a picture of that man im sorry i don't care how he did his hair and if that's all my dash is, i'll lose interest

another major reason, as well, is that i was projecting a lot onto him: memories of how he used to be (in public), ideas of how interested he is in queer history or his queer identity, how left-leaning or anti-establishment he is, etc. and some of that might be true but i can't see it in the way he profiles himself now, and i'm over the idea that i should be seeing through three thousand layers of his 'image' to the point where there is almost nothing that indicates that i've got the story straight yk. the way he wants to be seen is not the way i see him, so then it's me who's got to move on. i've accepted that gradually now to the point where it's so obvious i was lying to myself and pretending to love him more than i did for a while there. most of all, i was waiting for him to do something else, something more. if i then get annoyed bc he doesn't fulfill those imaginary expectations i've set, then that's on me. i'm annoyed now that i was wrong, but mostly that i was a bit delusional about him for a long while

and i get closets, i get the problems of the industry, i still know all of the things i knew when i was convinced that i should stand by him/them. that doesn't mean i have to pretend i like whatever he's doing with his solo career atm. i'm not going to another tour with red/black lighting and chicago songs, i've seen it by now. at the end of the day, i'm a fan of good (live) music, and i haven't listened to his solo stuff anymore since the obsession died down.

i was letting my feelings die down quietly for a while tbh and yeah, the recent stuff has really irked me. hinting at the new album and that it's going to be basically fitf all over again, tweeting that the fandom is toxic and for what? but before all that the new 28clothing collection, accompanied by the saddest fucking interview i've ever read about someone i wish i didn't care so much about.

at this point i don't know why im typing all of this out. what is the reason. i don't mean to make anyone angry. ig i just needed to vent, let these thoughts go. anyways. if he comes back with an album that wins me over again completely, then all i can say is that i'll be extremely happy.

[fluffydeoxys]

my jeb design, now including the character analysis/design thoughts as part of it! under the cut

Alrightyyy, Jeb is a pretty interesting character, and it took quite a bit of fiddling to get him right and encapsulate the very distinct personality, demeanour and role that he has. I primarily took inspiration from his live-action MPN design, but I changed quite a few elements to suit this vision/image in my head.

Jeb clearly has a very particular, highly egotistical, and composed image of himself. He pronounces himself a saviour (to the point that it's literally his title in MPN, lol), but I don't think this is in a really "clean" or "pretty" way. I purge the wicked. His means of saving is brutal murder, which he occasionally relishes. (But he scorns the brutality and crudeness of others, most notably Hank. Funnily.) Yet, despite that, he talks so eloquently and clearly has a lot of pride in his work and is exceedingly protective of this idea of saving Nevada, making it a better place. Though that's long since fallen to the wayside.

I greatly enjoy the live-action design, but it has a very obvious "combat" focus by placing the body armour over top of his tattered and repurposed scientist coat, which I think is a cool take on him, but I prefer communicating this sort of... eloquence? That contrasts very prominently with how haggard, unkempt and messy he is now. Which I think is a very apt summation of his character; he presents himself well and means well, but he has left a long string of destruction in his wake that he cannot escape from. That will haunt him down to the very bone.

It's why I retained elements such as his tie and coat (more obviously resembling its past appearance), like they're symbols of his past in Project Nexus. The red tie has nice contrast and draws emphasis to his chest, where the dark body armour under his coat lies. Simultaneously, the body armour loosely resembles a waistcoat (or some kind of nice-looking undershirt), giving the illusion of a more composed, tidy appearance. But the belts attached to the sword holster on his back recontextualise his appearance, reminding the viewer that Jeb is a fighter, no longer a civilian scientist.

The coat has multifaceted symbolism. It's a piece of his past for one, but it's worn and tattered and no longer looks like a scientist's coat. What was once more 'civilian' attire now accentuates his appearance as a capable and experienced fighter. It's also the only prominent white piece of clothing on him, and it's worn on top of everything else. It's like wearing shed skin. He is no longer that same man; he should abandon it, yet he clings to it. That old innocence.

Deep down, he's broken and tormented by the things he has done, and it reflects in the arrangement of his colours. The innermost parts of himself are dark layers, punctuated by red, while a facsimile of purity is draped over top.

But you could interpret it that there is still some scrap of good buried in there, deep down, even despite how the halo has twisted and warped him into something borderline unrecognisable. It is a desperate attempt to hold onto the good he still has, the good that he still wants to do.

Further to this idea, the undersides of his shoes being dark, dried red was done intentionally. It's meant to represent the idea of the people he has stepped over and the lives he has ruined in his attempts to fix and save Nexus City and Nevada at large. And he has been doing this for a long, long time. Enough to stain the entire sole of his boots.

Some interesting thoughts/lore bits that came about when making the design were:

A reason why his scientist coat doesn't have long sleeves like you would expect is due to the injuries on his hands. When channeling the halo, the scars on his forearms conduct the dissonance energy from the halo in various arcs of power. Subsequently, the fabric has been charred and burned away, leaving his forearms exposed. One of several downsides granted by the halo and another rather literal example of how it has damaged and ruined various aspects of Jeb's life.

The bandages covering the wounds on his hands are so loose and half-assed because Jeb has to change them daily, which he has found exceedingly annoying and frustrating. While he's not perpetually bleeding from them perse, leaving them exposed poses a risk of infection. But by now, Jeb kind of doesn't care. Caring for himself is kind of the last thing on his mind.

Speaking of his wounds, they're very blatantly paralleling crucifixion wounds, but they have a 'reason' for existing. When Jeb first took the halo, when it bound itself to him for the first time and responded to his desire, it pierced his two hands and chest. It left permanent, painful injuries through which he can channel the halo. These injuries turn purplish when he uses his power to reflect the dissonance steeping into his blood and body.

Having scars extending down his forearms and up his fingers in cross-like designs has some religious imagery, but I think it also nicely conveys some gnarly consequences for having the halo. It's not pretty, and it's definitely not good for him, but being separated from it now would practically kill him. It's a pretty tough lose-lose situation, and it's disfigured both his mind and his body. Further to this idea, it's why he bleeds, and his body barely holds itself together when exerting the full strength of the halo. It's breaking him; his body and mind weren't meant for this power, but he can never let it go. Whether that's because of his ego... or because he believes he's beyond saving.

I do enjoy some interpretations where Jeb is taller than Hank, but personally, with my vision of Hank, that really doesn't work for me. I just like this size difference a lot more. It subtly conveys the difference in 'power' between them as well. Sure, Jeb has killed Hank many times but in the end, it is a force that is of infinite potential, and Jeb is one person. Merely a man. Yet Hank is in endless motion of the Machine's cogs, and Zero is a piece of tapestry woven into subconscious dreams.

To that point, I pretty easily settled on a wiry but still fairly muscled build for Jeb because that just made the most sense to me. He just strikes me as the slender type, and it works in nice contrast to Hofnarr/Tricky, who I see as shorter and rounder. He does NOT take care of himself, and he's probably running on nothing but fumes and the power of the halo on many days, but he's not entirely emaciated. He needs to be strong enough to protect himself and to hunt down well, mostly Hank. And if you're not prepared to face Hank, then you're blindly walking into death's maw.

There's a nice distribution of mostly angular (especially pointed, more narrow shapes) and straight shapes in Jeb's design, especially in his head and fingertips, which are distinctly blocky. His narrower, slanted rectangular head helps convey his age and how it's worn down on him. (It directly contrasts Hofnarr, as well.) These go in direct, nice contrast to the spiky fluff of his hair, which I am quite pleased with. It looks haggard, and it's very good at accentuating his emotions when drawing his expressions. And at his worst, when it looks mangy, it looks very mangy.

Why I draw his halo like a square has no real particular reason, it just kinda happened the first time I properly drew him. But I grew quite attached to it, and it means there's fewer, almost no round elements in his design. However, the choice to make his halo 'emote' was an intentional decision.

I personally believe the halo is directly intertwined with his psyche, and for as much as it corrupts and deludes him, it is also 'affected' by Jeb's mind. While this doesn't really mean anything, the halo isn't really "sentient", it is nonetheless an extension of his "being" whenever it is connected to him. While Jeb is not a forthcoming man, only really letting anger and frustration escape easily, his halo is always transparent. Much to his disdain. It grows pointed and sharp when angry, it drips with sweat when nervous, and it shakes and warps when taken by surprise. I think it's a cute detail, while not being an especially deep one.

Jeb doesn't have as many scars as Hank or Zero because while he has fought a lot, it's nowhere near the sheer amount that those two have. Additionally, it's primarily stitching scars from how many times Jeb has been torn apart and blown up, which is his primary cause of death. The big two-part stitch in the middle is from MC3, I went frame by frame to see how he died there LOL. I probably could've done it for his other deaths, but I'm content with the placement of his stitches. Not too many, but enough to go "wow, he's been stitched back up a lot huh"

His colour palette is also in the 'warm red tone' category once again because I've latched onto it for a few of these characters. I find it a little more visually appealing than giving them primarily monochrome tones (though this is intentionally not the case for Zero, although my thoughts on that are split). I'm not sure if I'll carry this same idea into Sanford and Deimos when I get around to them, but red is a very prominent and reoccurring colour in Nevada, so I think it makes sense. It's not too warm, and it still leans into making Jeb look quite... tired. Plus, I've always found the gradient on his head to be appealing.

He's a man who will forever live with his mistakes, wearing them like skin and bearing them as scars etched into his flesh. In contrast to his worn appearance, the halo on his head shines brightly like a cursed crown perched just above him. A mockery. A man steeped and damned to sin that he cannot escape. And whether he will right his wrongs, who's to say? But I like to think that he wants to try. If how he treats Deimos and Sanford is anything to go by, even if that kindness quickly slips into his delusions...

[whoreash]

a dream with a soccer player ──★ ˙🍓 ̟

synopsis : sae is intrigued by your freak.

itoshi sae— who, imagined things like this as his personal nightmare— attended the event his managerbegged him to.

a charity event where the rich ask for money from the poor— a joke, really.

and through his half-assed smiles and sloppy smiles, the drainage of social battery caught up to him quicker than expected.

the soccer prodigy ends up leaning against the wall, far from the crowd of people, trying to find a moment of silence. his eyes flutter shut and body relaxes.

“we’re so twins.”

sae, failing to find the moment of silence, gazes at you from the corner of his eye. you looked just as tired as him— no attempt at a smile or formal greeting.

“i’m sorry..?” what did you mean ‘we’re twins?’ is this another meme he doesn’t know of— oh my god, he’s going to lose it.

“sorry— sorry. not— hic— actual twins.” you try to answer through hiccups “like— ‘cus we’re both like— hic— not really into this—.” with a shake of your head, you state the obvious.

“look, i’m drunk.” the words, though meant to be as an apology, simply sound irritated at your own actions.

“i’d be worried if you acted like this when sober.” sae responds, intrigued by you.

there was something so interesting about people that sae couldn’t quite understand.

most people were predictable— overly so.

there was no harm in investigating when it already seemed like you spoke a different language (metaphorically).

he wondered what bought you here. this event, no offense, didn’t look like your sort of scenery. maybe you had a date? although you didn’t look entertained. or delighted. or anything positive, for that matter.

“hey, you’re—hic— itoshi sae, aren’t you?” your words spill out, leaning in closer to inspect the midfielder’s face— making sure you weren’t making a fool out of yourself.

a begdrudging nod corrects your theory.

you nod back— three times just to be precise.

“i’m pretty sure my date has a— hic— boner for you.” this captivates sae, yet again. your way of speaking is odd. to the point it frightens and amuses him.

“why do you think so?”

“—hic — you’re all he talked about on the way here. like, like— ‘i’m not gonna let him take my spotlight’ or like, ‘he’s gonna be so jealous of me when you’re on my arm’” you turned around at that, fully facing him.

“now, that confused me. do i know you?” you ask— almost in a dreamlike state.

sae shakes his head, absorbed in every intoxicating word that escapes you.

“yeah, exactly. why would you care that i’m there— what the fuck,” you look up at the ceiling as if actually searching for an answer which sae couldn’t help but smile at. before going back to his stoic expression, of course.

he would never admit it but, in that moment, sae was definitely jealous of your mysterious date.

“so, itoshi sae,” you drawl his name in a whisper— a secret between the two of you “go shoot your shot ‘cus i knowwwww someone who wants you. real. real bad.”

and, just like that, itoshi sae shoots his shot with someone who compelled him more than anyone could.

he took you home. to his home, because he couldn’t understnad your drawl of words that were meant to be your address. let you rest in his bed. made you soup to help with the hangover. and, even, gave you his moisturiser to use, in the morning.

in summary, sae was smitten for you and your endless, questionable sentences.

[anim-ttrpgs]

Why You Should Try Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy Part 10: It Has Intense Action

This is part 10 of a multi-part series of posts about the awesome features of Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy, in no particular order.

Find the earlier parts here:

Part 1 Link: We Worked Hard on It!

Part 2 Link: It's Easy to Learn!

Part 3 Link: It's Easy to GM!

Part 4 Link: It's Easy to GM and Supports Narrative and Roleplay!

Part 5 Link: It Revolutionizes Investigation and Mystery Solving in TTRPGs

Part 6 Link: PCs are Not Just Mystery Solving Automatons

Part 7 Link: Excellent Time-Keeping Mechanics Keep the Pressure On

Part 8 Link: Fun and Easy Character Creation

Part 9 Link: Themes of Disability

For a while in its development, Eureka had a section dedicated to combat, but now that section is more broadly called “dangerous situations.” It’s rare, but dangerous situations will inevitably come up. The question is, will the PCs be prepared for them? Eureka has rules to cover everything from gunshot wounds to car crashes, from falling off buildings to drowning. If something bad can happen to a person, there’s probably a section in the rulebook covering how it would affect a Eureka PC mechanically. A lot of the times the answer will be they die, but how fast they die, and what they can do to save themselves in that time, is crucial.

Eureka takes a very “trad RPG” approach to this sort of thing, where violence and other dangers are something highly lethal, and therefore best avoided if the PCs are smart, but that the nature of what they’re doing means that it’s bound to happen eventually, and therefore the game rules need to provide a lot of “tools” and options within those situations, thereby creating agency over whether they live or die. PCs do not necessarily have to have “good” combat stats to survive, as many players so far can attest. It encourages them to be clever and cautious about things, and allows them to exorcise that cleverness and caution, without bogging the game down in too many numbers or charts.

Weapons will usually take any character down in one to two hits, and even when unarmed, characters have a wide variety of techniques that they can attempt, including the world’s first ever TTRPG grappling rules that are actually fun and advantageous!

Guns are as deadly in Eureka as in real life, and the type of gun matters a lot. That isn’t to say the exact model makes a huge difference, that would be too granular for what we’re attempting to do. A Glock 19 and a Beretta 92 would both fall under “Semi-Automatic Pistol” and function identically. Trust us, this all runs smoothly once you read it.

Bullets do 4 Penetrative Damage each, and most firearm categories are capable of firing multiple bullets within a single turn, each rolled separately. Direct hits are usually fight-ending, but that isn’t as easy as it sounds. Even with a high Firearms skill, these shots are being taken under extreme duress, and factors like cover, distance, movement, etc. will affect them too. Most shots fired will miss, and you might think that would be boring, but it’s not because of the next thing I’m going to talk about.

The Woo Roll

Named after director John Woo, the Woo Roll is a mechanic that’s makes it so that bullets don’t just disappear into thin air when they miss.

When any shot misses, a Woo Roll is made, which means something is going to happen that changes the situation as a result of that shot. (That’s one Woo Roll per turn, no matter whether one or thirty shots miss.) This roll determines whether the effect is good or bad for the shooter. A good result might mean that the shot hits a fire extinguisher behind the target, spraying him with foam and gas, disrupting his next shot. A bad result might mean the shot hits a gas line, and now the building is on fire. Usually the rule is that it’s whatever the most obvious and interesting thing within the confines of being good or bad for the shooter, but if there isn’t anything around, then we also have tables you can roll on.

Chase Mechanics

Combat is only likely to last a few rounds, but everything characters do in those rounds is crucial. These situations dynamic and deadly, and evolve rapidly, and if things are going south, run away!

Eureka has rules and incentives that can quickly shift the location of a conflict as one or more parties tries to flee. This works pretty similarly to combat, but, of course, the parties are moving and fighting across larger areas, causing the situation to evolve even more rapidly. Characters will have to overcome obstacles to keep ahead of their pursuers or catch up to their targets. These obstacles are rolled on a table that matches the environment the chase is happening in, heres a few highlights [images of entries]

As you can probably see, some of these obstacles can take a character out as easily as an enemy could. The kind of dynamic, cinematic car and foot chases these rules create are always something special.