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#<already knows one of the biggest spoilers it has but still wants to see how emotionally painful the story is gonna be
tianhai03 · 1 year
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some re8 doodles ive done in the past two days
bonus: (featuring dante from the devil may cry series)
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cozage · 1 year
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Zoro, Sanji, Luffy, Law, and Ace with fem S/O with healing water powers. The catch is that whenever she uses those powers, she feels pain from the wounds she’s healing. And this isn’t a Devil Fruit ability. It’s sorta like water bending from Avatar.
A/N: I really debated on how to lay this one out, but I chose to have them find out about her power. If anyone wants a head canon follow up on how they act now that they know, send me an ask :) I maybe made this a bit too long, but those soft moments with each of these boys are my WEAKNESS. (Law may seem a little OOC but I truly believe that man gets tunnel vision when he sees you in pain)
Characters: F! reader x Zoro, Luffy, Sanji, Law, Ace
Cw: blood, pain, injuries, angst, all those fun things. Sanji’s contains slight spoilers for WCI
Total word count: 6.3k
The Pain of Healing
Zoro
Word count: 1.2k
“It’s only five more minutes until my Haki returns.” Luffy says between pants, trying to catch his breath. 
“Then I have five minutes to help you. Sit down.” 
Luffy collapsed onto the ground at your command, and you examined his body as he slept. It didn’t look good. His body was riddled with scrapes, scratches, bruises, and he was bleeding out from his side. Several minor injuries could be more painful than large ones, but Luffy had a mix of both. The best thing to do would be to focus on the large ones first, and if you have energy left, fix the small stuff as well. 
You guided water out of your flask and started with the hole in his side. You were used to the pain that came with healing by now, but it still made you flinch every time you started. You had to grind your teeth together to keep from crying out, not wanting to wake Luffy. He needed rest, and you didn’t want him to see the repercussions of your decision to help heal him anyway. 
After five minutes, you’ve taken all of the major injuries away from his body, and you managed to take a few small ones away from him as well. You wipe the tears from your eyes before you shake him awake. 
“It’s time, Luffy. Wake up.” You put on the biggest fake smile you can muster before his eyes flick open. 
“Aw man, that was the best nap in my entire life! I feel amazing!” You stay seated as he stands up, your body too riddled with pain to move. 
“Go get them, Captain!” It hurts to even speak, but Luffy’s already up stretching, too hyped up to notice your exhaustion.
“Thanks for whatever you did to make me feel so great! Leave the rest to me!” Luffy calls back, bounding off to finish the fight. 
Once he’s out of sight, you fold your head into your hands and weep. The pain was immeasurable, and every time you helped Luffy recover, you don’t understand how he’s still alive. You sit there for a long time, crying until there are no tears left. And then you hear cheers from the village nearby, signifying Luffy has won and your work paid off. Knowing that you helped him win makes you feel a little better, and you need to see everyone again. 
You stand up, ready to go meet the rest of the crew, but your body seems to disagree with your movement. Your legs shake, and when you go to take a step, you can feel your body collapsing, falling to the ground. You brace for the impact of your worn body against the solid ground, too tired to do anything else.
It doesn’t come, though. Someone catches you as you stumble forward. Strong arms wrap around your back and your legs, scooping you up and pressing you into his bare chest. Zoro. 
“Easy.” His expression is stone as he stares at you, but you can see worry underneath. “You gonna tell me what the hell you just did to Luffy?” 
You avert your eyes from his gaze, running the tip of your finger along the scar on his chest. “I healed him.”
You can feel his body tense with your words. “That didn’t look like healing to me. And since when do you have a Devil fruit power anyway?”
You bite your lip nervously. Nobody had caught you healing someone before. It wasn’t something you flaunted, or even something you told people about. “It’s not a devil fruit power.”
“Woman, if you don’t tell me-” he breaks off mid sentence, and you look around for any sign of danger. But there’s nobody around besides the two of you. You risk a glance up at him, and you see his face is pained as he stares down at you with a form of understanding. “You took his pain from him, didn’t you?”
Your mouth falls open from shock. You’re not sure how Zoro was able to guess something so accurate after seeing your power one time. You nod, confirming his suspicions. “He’s got an incredibly high threshold for pain tolerance.” 
“How are you still alive?” Zoro shakes you a little when he asks the question, which causes you to groan in pain. “Sorry, sorry. I’ll be more gentle. Do you want to sit? Stand?”
The thought of being upright makes you dizzy. “Can you just keep holding me for now?”
He nods, and returns to questioning you about your mysterious power instead. “Doesn’t it hurt?”
“Yeah.” It hurt to talk honestly, but you didn’t want to tell Zoro that. 
“How often have you been doing this?”
“Only like three or four times for Luffy, I think.” You're certain it’s been more than that, but you can’t tell Zoro that right now. 
“Three or four times?? For Luffy?” You can feel him trying to figure out the meaning behind your cryptic words. 
“There’s been a few other people I’ve done it for too.”
“Have you done it for me?” He's scowling at you, like he already knows the answer you’re going to give and he's waiting to scold you for it. 
“Maybe once or twice,” you lie, and you feel your cheeks burning. He squints at you, and you know you’ve been caught in the lie. But he says nothing, he just readjusts you in his arms to hold you closer. 
He had been walking for a few minutes, and you had almost fallen asleep. He had managed to keep you mostly still while he walked through the destroyed city, and you were too tired to care if he was lost or not. “It’s a neat power,” he finally comments. “You gonna tell me more about it? Or do I need to keep asking questions?”
“Can I tell you later?” You mumble into his chest. Between the safety of Zoro’s arms, the warmth of the sun on your face, and the exhaustion that’s set in from all that pain, it's hard for you to stay conscious. 
Zoro doesn’t say anything for a few moments, and you struggle to stay awake while you wait for an answer. He was never one for mindless chit chat, but you could tell that something was on his mind, so you decide to indulge him.
“It’s not a devil fruit. I was born with it,” You start, and you feel a heavy weight lift off your shoulders with those few words.  You’re so relieved that you can finally tell someone about your secret now. “I was never supposed to let anyone see it being used. If the World Government knew…” You trail off, thinking of how the Navy would turn you into a weapon. You shutter at the thought, and continue on in your explanation. 
“The power isn’t perfect, though. I feel the pain of whoever or whatever I heal. It’s not permanent, but if it’s too much for my body to handle at the moment, I might die. I’m really not sure, I’ve never tried to heal a fatal wound before.”
Zoro is looking off into the distance with a faraway look in his eye. “Just like Kuma.”
“Who?”
“Back on Thriller Bark we met a Marine named Kuma,” Zoro begins to explain, and you focus all your energy into listening to him. “He took all of Luffy’s pain and told me if we wanted to save Luffy, I had to take his pain upon myself. It was just after his big battle with the warlord Moria, and the pain…” he trailed off, and you knew he was reliving the moment in his mind. 
“Does he know about your sacrifice?” 
Your question brings him back to reality, and he looks down at you. He chuckles at your question, and bends over to kiss your forehead. “Does he know about yours?”
Sanji
Some light spoilers for WCI arc
Word Count: 1.2k
You didn’t realize that your ability was keeping Sanji up at night. 
Anytime he had a cut, or a burn, or any other kind of injury, you waited for him to doze off before you pulled out some water and healed his hands. The injuries were never serious, and after a few times, you barely noticed the pain. 
You didn’t mind, and you knew how much your boyfriend valued his hands. It was your silent act of love to him, something you wanted to give him but could never tell him about. One morning after you healed a bad burn, you found him sitting up in bed, staring at his hands. 
“Is something wrong, Sanji dear?”
The cook was examining his hands thoroughly, flipping them over again and again. “I could’ve sworn I had a burn here yesterday.”
Your cheeks tinted at the thought of being found out. “Oh, well maybe you just have superhuman healing powers!” You laugh it off, trying your best to act natural. 
“Yeah, maybe…” You could tell something was bothering him, but he didn't say anything further. 
You caught him staring at his hands throughout the day, as if he was waiting for a bomb to explode. At dinner you noticed a particularly bad cut on the topside of his hand - a cut he must’ve gotten while chopping vegetables - and you made a note to heal it that night. 
He stayed awake later than usual that night, and he seemed more wound up with anxiety than normal. You peppered his face with a few kisses, trying to get him to relax some. 
“Sanji, are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine.” He sighed, pulling you into his chest and laying down to finally get some sleep. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”
He fell asleep quickly with you pressed into him. His slow, even breaths signified he was finally unconscious, and you pulled out some water to cover his wound. It stung you a bit as his flesh stitched back together, and you let out a low hiss in pain, and you froze as Sanji stirred slightly in his sleep. This wound was deeper than his normal cuts and burns; he must’ve been really distracted when he hurt himself. He wasn’t usually so careless around knives, but you knew whatever was bothering him would be revealed when he was ready to talk to you about it.  
With his wound healed and Sanji’s breath returning to normal, you curled back into place against him, and fell deep into sleep.
You woke to a string of curses falling out of Sanji’s mouth, his body tight and tense against yours. 
“Hm? Sanji?” You rub the sleep from your eyes and open them to find him staring at his hands again. “Sanji, what’s wrong?”
“That’s impossible,” he mumbled, speaking mostly to himself. He looks panicked, staring down at the place where his cut was yesterday. “That’s not humanly possible.”
You feign innocence as you have in the past, but you can’t ignore the nervous look in his eyes. “What is it, Ji?”
“I had a cut here yesterday. It was deep.” His breathing quickened, and you could see that he was scared for some reason. “It couldn’t have healed overnight. It’s not…It can’t be…”
“I’m sure it’s just-”
“You don’t understand.” He cuts you off mid-sentence, something he’s never done before, and it takes you aback. He gets out of bed abruptly, his eyes never leaving his hand.
“Sanji?”
“I need to go. I need to get out of here.” He’s pacing the room now, his stress overflowing into the space between you. 
“Go where? Sanji, calm down. Talk to me-”
“I can’t be here! I can’t endanger you! Or anyone else, for that matter!” His face is contorted with such pain you’ve never seen before. You don’t know what’s going on with your boyfriend, but his reaction to such a small cut is starting to scare you.
You jump out of bed and stride over to him. When you reach him, you clasp his face between your hands, forcing his eyes away from his hands and up to your eyes. His eyes are wide with pure fear, and his breathing is rapid and shallow. You can feel his body shaking as you hold him. 
“Sanji.” You push down your own fear and speak to him in a soothing tone, trying to bring him back to you. “Talk to me.”
“I’m a monster, Y/N.” Tears fill his eyes, threatening to spill out as he speaks. “If my body is regenerating like this…I’m a threat to you all.”
“You’re not,” You whisper. “You’re not a monster, Sanji.” You stand on your tiptoes to try and kiss the space between his eyes, but he pulls away from you.
“You don’t know.” He backs away from you, fear returning to his eyes again. “I am a monster. And now that I’m-”
It’s your turn to cut him off now. “I healed you, Sanji.”
His brows furled in confusion, but his eyes looked less panicked now. “Wha..?”
“I have this power,” you explain. You walk back to the bedside table, gathering some water from a cup and suspending it in the air. “I can heal people with water. I’ve been healing your small injuries for a while now. I wanted to make your life easier, I swear. I’m sorry I kept it from you. I just…I wanted to help.”
You see him relax the more you explain your powers, which was not the reaction you were expecting. He watches you move the water through the air, and tears finally flow from his eyes. 
“Y/N-chan,” he sobs, running over to you, embracing you in a hug. He’s holding you tight, smothering you into his chest. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Why did you hide it?”
Your face burns against him, embarrassed that you had kept it from him for so long. “I’m not supposed to tell anyone, and I knew you wouldn’t want me hurting myself for you, but-”
“Hang on.” He pulls back from you, peering down at your face with a frown of concern. “You’re being hurt?”
“Just when I heal people,” you rush to explain, seeing his frown deepen. “I just feel the pain of the injuries I’m healing, it’s no big deal.”
“It is a big deal,” he corrects, staring at you disapprovingly. “Promise me you won’t do it anymore.”
“Sanji-”
“Promise, Y/N.”
“No! Let me do this for you!” You’re pouting now, but you know Sanji won’t cave on this matter. You know he can’t let you hurt yourself at his expense. 
“I appreciate that you want to help,” he says sternly. You can hear the love in his voice as he speaks, and you know you’ll have to agree to his request.  “But there are other ways for you to help me without hurting yourself. Please-”
“Fine. Promise.” You give him a fake pout, but when he pulls you back into his chest and holds you tightly, you melt into him. “Are you sure you’re okay, Ji? You seemed scared earlier.”
“I’m fine, really.” He rests his chin on the top of your head, drawing in a long breath before he says more. “I just thought my past was coming back to haunt me again, that’s all.”
You all stand there for a long while, just enjoying eachothers closeness. You only break apart when you hear Luffy screaming for breakfast, and you give him one last kiss on each of his hands before you let him go. 
Luffy
Word Count: 1.1k
“Stay still, idiot.” You held Luffy down, looking at his wound in his foot. 
“I can’t! It hurrrtttssss!” 
“That’s what you get for wearing sandals in the jungle!” You could tell from the way the stick speared through his foot, Luffy wouldn’t be able to walk easily, and you still had another half mile before you made it back to the ship. 
You knew you weren’t supposed to heal people while they were conscious, but this was Luffy. He was the love of your life, and the Strawhats were your only family. If you couldn’t trust them, you deserved to be locked up anyway. 
You sighed, pulling water out of your flask in soft, flowing movements. Luffy was still writhing in pain on the ground, overdramatic in his reaction to his current impalement. It was possible that you might be able to heal him without him even realizing it. 
You surrounded his foot with an orb of water, and imagined the wound being stitched together, just like your mother had taught you. You saw his rubbery skin begin to mend together, and braced yourself for what came next. 
Your grip on Luffy’s ankle tightened when the pain came. It was sharp and fast, and it took the breath out of your lungs. You squeezed your eyes shut, but kept your focus on the wound and the pain that came with it. 
“Wooooahhhh!” You could hear Luffy’s sigh of amazement, and you knew he had caught you healing his wound. “That’s so cool! The hole is just closing up!!”
You didn’t speak, afraid that your voice would betray you. The last thing you wanted Luffy to know was that you were in pain because of the healing process. You could hear him freaking out about how cool it was that his injury was healing before his own eyes, but you did your best to ignore him and focus on the healing process. You kept your eyes closed the entire time, using the level of pain to guide how much longer you had to fix his injury. Finally, the pain dulled, and then disappeared. You dropped his foot and opened your eyes again, trying to ignore the lingering effects that your body was dealing with. 
Luffy was examining his foot closely, looking at it from all angles to see if there was any damage. He stood up, putting all of his weight back on his foot, and jumped up and down a few times. 
“It’s like brand new!” He shouted with glee. He came over to you and wrapped you in a hug. “You’re the best, Y/N!”
--
Over the next few weeks, Luffy offered up your services to others throughout the ship. You knew that Luffy was incapable of keeping secrets, and you had never explicitly asked him to keep that information to himself. You never minded healing your family though, and the injuries were always minor. Luffy sent Ussop to you when he got a burn on his hand, and Franky when he got a bad cut on his face. Chopper sent Zoro when he had a sprained wrist. It wasn’t until Nami came to you with a nasty cut on her shoulder that the secret of your healing was revealed. 
You smiled when she asked, and pulled water out to start the healing process. You coated the wound in a bubble of water, and clenched your jaw to prepare for the worst. 
You were aware of Nami’s eyes watching you. Everyone else watched their own wound magically heal, but her eyes remained on your face, watching for any signs of discomfort on your end. You had a feeling that she was suspicious of your powers already. She had been the most interested member of the crew from the start, asking about the stipulations and origins of your power from the moment she had found out about it. 
You kept your eyes on the gash, trying your best to mentally steel yourself for the pain that would come. You knew it wouldn’t be easy to hide the pain, but you were determined to make it look natural. When the feeling of pain ripped through your shoulder to match her wound, you gritted your teeth and kept your smile, but you could feel your muscles involuntarily twitch. 
If Nami noticed, she said nothing. When you finished, you looked back up at her and let out a shaky breath, smiling. She eyed you suspiciously, but thanked you politely and left you alone. Once the door swung shut, you collapsed back onto the couch you were on, desperately needing a nap after that performance. 
--
Luffy was awoken by a smack on the head. 
“What?” He asked groggily. “Are we at the next island?”
“Are you some kind of sadist,” the tangerine-haired girl scolded, shaking her finger at him. “Or are you just a moron?”
“What are you talking about, Nami?”
Nami rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, staring daggers down at Luffy. “Y/N’s power.”
Luffy rubbed his head, wondering if you could fix headaches. “What about it?”
“She feels pain when she heals people, you idiot. She probably feels whatever pain she’s healing.”
Luffy’s brow furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean by that?”
“I mean that she just healed my shoulder. And she was in some serious pain while she was doing it. She hides it well, but I could tell she was hurting.”
Luffy bit his lip, trying to think back to when you had healed him in the forest. But he had been so amazed at watching his own wound heal, he hadn’t noticed your reaction while you were doing it. 
“She seemed kind of tired after mine, but that’s it. I felt great though, so I carried her back to the ship!”
“So you are just a moron!” Nami punched him again. “No more free healing! Stop taking advantage of her!”
--
You woke up from your nap to rubber arms wrapped around you and Luffy’s round eyes staring at you intensely.
“Good morning,” you groan, trying to pull away from him to stretch. 
He let you go enough to stretch out, but kept a tight grip on you. “Does it hurt?”
You freeze mid-stretch, silently cursing Nami for her hyper awareness. “It just makes me tired.”
“You’re lying.” He knows you so well. You move your fingers up to his hair, twirling his locks around your index finger.
“Yeah,” you sigh the word out. You’re painfully aware of his gaze, transfixed on your face.
 “Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because Luffy, it’s not that bad.” Your eyes move back to his finally, and you can see the hurt and confusion that is held within them. “And I like doing what I can to help my family.”
He nods, accepting that answer, and snuggles up into your chest, holding you tightly against him. You let him lay there for a while, twirling his soft strands of hair around in your fingers. There are few quiet moments between you and Luffy, and you cherish every moment you can get like this.
“Nami said no more free healings, by the way.”
You laugh and give his forehead a quick kiss. “Guess I’ll have to charge you double.”
Law
Word Count: 1.2k
“Fuck.”
Law’s breath was ragged as you pressed into his stomach wound. Blood coated your hands as you tried to stop the bleeding, but it didn’t seem to be working very well. 
“I just need to...” Law coughed, and you could see red staining his lips. A small blue orb began to form in his palm, but it flickered out quickly. He was too weak to use his devil fruit powers.
“Fuck.” You repeated. There was only one thing you could do now. It meant exposing your secret and showing your captain your biggest weakness, but you’d do anything to save him. 
You pulled away from his wound, and let your hands guide water from your flask, maneuvering it through the air. “Don’t freak out,” you say, and you cover the wound in water. You let it sit for a moment, and then begin imagining the wound healing. 
It started as a dull, throbbing pain in your stomach. You began to think you were getting used to the pain, but then it began to grow, turning sharp and stabbing. You flinched at the sudden change in pain, but held your focus. 
Law watched you work for a few moments with wide eyes, unsure what was happening or what he could do. You wanted to scream from the pain that was growing rapidly, but you held your tongue, hoping he didn’t notice your facial expressions contorting into pain. Tears filled your eyes, and you finally felt Law move into action, his hand gripping around your wrists. 
“Stop,” he demanded, trying to push your arms away from his wound. You ignore his demand, keeping your arms locked against him, continuing the healing process at your expense. 
“Stop! Y/N-ya, Stop it!” His voice rose in pitch, and you could tell he sensed your pain. His efforts to push you away are getting stronger, proof that his energy is returning to him. You feel relieved in the fact that he is healing, even if it is exhausting you in the process. 
He finally succeeds in pushing you off him, and you fall backwards to the ground and lay there, dazed and stunned from your work. He quickly straddles you and pins your arms to the ground to ensure you’ve fully stopped whatever you had started doing to him. 
“What the hell are you doing?!” Law stares down at you, angry and scared of what you’ve done. 
You know his rage is out of fear, and you give him a small smile, looking up at him through half-lidded eyes. “You okay now?”
He stares at you, baffled at your question. He has energy now, and his wound in his stomach is almost completely healed. He knows it’s due to you, but he doesn’t know how you’ve managed to heal him so quickly. Fear. Betrayal. Anger. So many emotions run through him all at once. He has so many questions that he doesn’t know where to start. 
He tightens his grip around your wrists, keeping you pinned down. “Explain.”
“It’s a power I was born with,” you say, closing your heavy eyes. “I can heal other people’s injuries through water.”
Law watches you carefully, certain that you’re hiding something. He squeezes your wrists tighter until you finally open your eyes again, looking anywhere but at him. 
You can’t make eye contact with him or you know you’ll tell him everything. You can’t afford for him to know your secret, it was bad enough that he knew this much. 
“You were in pain.” He says it as a statement, not a question.
You squirm from underneath him, trying to get free, but his grip doesn’t let up. He’s determined to get to the bottom of what you just did. He needs to protect you. He needs to keep you safe from all harm, even if that means protecting you from yourself. 
“Let go.” You say, still trying to get free. His grip is starting to become painful, and you try to pull your arms away from him again. “You’re hurting me, Law. Let go.”
His eyes stare down at you, unmoving from his current position. The more you squirm, the tighter his grip gets, and you know he won’t let go until he has an answer. “Y/n-ya, why were you in pain?”
“It’s a side effect!” You cry out in frustration, finally giving in. You suspect he knew the moment he saw it. “I feel the person’s pain as I heal them.”
In his shock, Law’s hands loosen their grip, and you finally pull free from him. You try to turn away from him, but he’s still sitting on your stomach, and you don’t have enough energy to push him off. You rub at your wrists, trying to get the sting from his grip out of your body.
Law is frozen, staring down at you with wide eyes. He grits his teeth, watching you massage your wrists. “I’m sorry,” he says, reaching for your hands again, more gentle this time. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me.”
You let him grab one of your hands, and he begins massaging your wrists gently, whispering apologies to you. You close your eyes and try to forget that you’ve broken your number one rule about your power: telling other people. You focus on his wrist massage for a while, his own way to apologize for his outburst.
“Y/n-ya?”
“Hm?”
“Why did you save me?”
You sigh, opening your eyes again. This time, you meet his gold eyes, radiant against the sunlight. “You never want anyone to save you, Captain.”
“It’s my job as a ca-”
“I saved you because I love you, you idiot.”
You can see Law’s eyes twitch in surprise; his hands freeze against your wrist. 
“You don’t get to decide what sacrifices I make for you,” you continue. “You don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t do to save you. That’s my decision. You’ve made many sacrifices for me, some extremely painful ones. Remember the incident at Low Sand Creek?”
Law doesn’t respond, but he slowly starts to massage your wrists again, which you take as a sign to keep talking. 
“I don’t get to criticize your decisions on sacrifice. And you don’t get to criticize mine either. I love you, and I know you love me. Do I want you to risk your life for me? No. But that’s just something I have to live with. And so do you. Okay?”
Your captain says nothing, and you can tell he’s sulking over your lecture. It wasn’t uncommon for you to have to do this with him. Law was one of the smartest people you knew, but relationships weren’t really his strong suit. It resulted in you having to do a lot of explaining and voicing your needs.
“Law, do you understand?” You insist, needing to stand your ground. He had a tendency of not responding when he didn’t agree with something.  
He huffs out an irritated breath. “Okay.”
You scrunch your face at him, shooting him a semi-fake glare. 
“I understand, okay?!”
You twisted your hand to intertwine with his, and grabbed his other hand with your free one so that both of his hands were now holding each of yours. You locked eyes with him, and you could see there was something else there, something that was bothering him. 
“What is it? What’s wrong?”
He was quiet for a moment, as if he were working up the courage to admit whatever he was feeling. His eyes moved away from your gaze and focused on one of his hands instead, still intertwined with yours. 
“Why didn’t you tell me?” His voice comes out slightly choked, and you realize that you had forgotten to explain the most important part to him. 
Your cheeks redden, embarrassed at your oversight. His eyes snapped back to yours, and now it was your turn to avoid eye contact.  
“It’s… I was told to never tell anyone about it. Or let someone else see it.”
You can feel him staring at you, his eyes willing you to look at him, but you refuse. He waits patiently, and you know he’s asking you a silent question: Don’t you trust me?
“I trust you, I just…” Neither you or Law had really talked about your past much. You preferred to live for the now, for the future. The past was just too painful to think about. “People died protecting that secret. I didn’t want to add more names to that list.”
Law gave a dark chuckle at your response. “And after all that preaching about not deciding who gets to make sacrifices.”
Now it’s your turn to sulk. “That is not-“
He cuts you off, pulling you up to meet him, and his lips collide with yours. 
He pulls back briefly, basking in your beauty. “No more secrets. Promise?”
“Promise.” 
Ace
Word Count: 1.5k
Ace wasn’t used to being hit, and when someone made contact with him, it hurt. He grimaced as he limped from battle, blood dripping down his leg from the giant puncture wound in his thigh. You had your arm around him, helping him run, but his injury was slowing you both down, and the enemy was closing in quickly.
“Sit,” you commanded. “Let me help.”
“I just need to get back to Marco, he can help.” His breathing was labored, and you knew he was expending too much energy just speaking to you. 
“I can heal too.” You helped him sit down, and you could feel his eyes staring at you, trying to understand your cryptic words. You chose to ignore him for now, and examined the wound. It was deep, but manageable. You braced yourself, and summoned some water out of your flask, covered his wound, and focused on stitching it back together. 
Pain ripped through you, and you had to bite your lip to keep yourself focused. It wasn’t the worst pain you had felt, but the wound was deeper than you had initially thought, and you could feel your muscles tearing apart, just like Ace’s had when he was cut. You knew that it was just a phantom pain, no actual bodily harm was being done to you, but it was still pain nonetheless. 
You could feel tears pooling at the corner of your eyes, but you refused to stop until the job was done. You watched his muscle stitch back together, and when it was finally completely healed, you sat back and closed your eyes, exhausted and riddled with aches. 
When you opened your eyes again, you could see Ace in front of you, you could feel him shaking you violently. He was screaming something, but you couldn’t make out exactly what he was saying over the loud ringing in your ears. Slowly, your hearing returned, and you realized he was screaming your name. 
“Ace.” Your words were slow. You were still trying to come out of the fog of pain that always came with healing. “Stop shaking me.”
He finally stopped, but his hands were still tightly gripping your shoulders. He was staring at you in terror, fear spread across his face. 
“What were you doing?” His voice was loud and piercing, causing you to flinch. “How did you…What do…Where did…” He struggled to find the right words, and you stared at him with still-glazed eyes while he tried to form a sentence. You were struggling to refocus after the pain, and were thankful that Ace was tongue-tied for the moment. 
Ace took a breath, finally able to form a sentence. “I didn’t know you had a devil fruit power.”
“I don’t.” Normally you let people believe whatever they wanted in order to guard your secret, but this was Ace. If you couldn’t trust him, you couldn’t trust anyone. “It’s just an ability I was born with. I can heal people with water.”
Ace’s facial expressions had always been easy to read. Even in your dazed state, you watched as his concern turned to shock and then to confusion. You waited for the inevitable question to come, and it did. “If you’ve had this power, why haven’t you used it more often?” 
“I…” you hesitate. You didn’t want to tell him the weakness of your ability. Not because you didn’t trust him, but because you did. You knew that if Ace discovered the trade off of your powers, he would never want you to suffer for him or anyone else. 
You had told Marco about your power when you joined the crew, and the doctor had forbid you using your ability except in dire circumstances. Marco trusted you to make judgment calls on what you could handle, but you didn’t think Ace would feel the same way. 
You could hear the enemy's battle cries getting closer, and you take the opportunity to avoid the question. “Let’s go. We need to get back to the ship.”
Ace stands, and you follow to do the same. You take a bit longer to get to your feet, still light-headed from the trade off of healing Ace. His attention has shifted to the enemy pursuing you now, and thankfully he doesn’t seem to notice your sluggish movements. 
Ace’s fist becomes engulfed with flames, and he stands between the enemy and you. “Go back to the ship, I’ll hold them off.” 
“Idiot! That’s what got us here in the first place!” 
“Yeah,” He smirked back at you like the devilish fiend you knew he was. “But this time I won’t lose.”
You can feel your knees start to go weak, but you’re not sure if it’s from exhaustion or from the man in front of you. You hate to leave him, but you know you’ll only be a liability in this fight. With Ace’s energy replenished and the ability to fight in an open space, he’d finish off the enemy easily now. 
“You better not die.” Your words hang in the air, and you take off towards the Moby Dick. 
As soon as you got aboard the ship, you went straight to your room. You didn’t bother giving a report. Ace would do that when he returned. Sleep was what you needed now. 
You woke with arms wrapped around you tightly, and the warm body of Portgas D. Ace pressed against your back. You weren’t sure how long you had slept, but there was no longer any light coming in through the porthole in your room. You shifted, trying to get out of Ace’s grasp without waking up, but his strong arms tightened against you when you moved, keeping you close to him. 
For a long while you laid in the silence, unsure if Ace was asleep or awake. He wasn’t snoring like he normally did when he was asleep and he refused to let you move away from his grasp, but his breaths were even and he didn’t speak to you. You didn’t mind the quiet, your body was still exhausted from the fighting and the pain of healing today, and Ace’s warmth was almost therapeutic against your tired body.
“Your healing…” Ace's voice finally breaks the silence, making you tense from surprise. His voice was low and quiet in your ear. “It hurts you, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
You can hear the sadness in his voice, and you know that he’s figured it out. Whether he solved it on his own or if Marco told him, it didn’t matter now. You’ve always been a bad liar, and you could never bring yourself to lie to Ace anyway.
He squeezed you tighter, pulling you closer to him. There was another long pause, and you let him hold you while he processed everything. 
“How bad is it?” His voice is level, but you can hear it beginning to grow thick with tears. 
“It depends on what I heal. I just feel the pain of the injury.”
His forehead presses into the crook of your neck, and his breath becomes shallow and ragged. You can feel his emotions coursing through him, and all you want to do is comfort him. You squirm, trying to flip over so you see his face while you talk, but his iron tight grip refuses to let you move. 
“Ace,” you speak gently, your hands pulling at his arms, and his grip loosens just enough for you to turn over onto your other side. You’re laying face to face with him now, but his eyes are squeezed shut. His freckled cheeks are wet with tears, and your heart constricts seeing his sadness. 
You press your forehead against his, and use your free hand to brush some of his hair away from his face. You continue softly sweeping your fingers through his hair, soothing him as you speak. “It’s not so bad, Ace. But that's why I don’t use it very often.”
His eyes are still closed, but you feel his hands ball into fists against your back, gathering the fabric of your shirt in them.
“Why did you use it to save me then?” His voice comes out more of a demand than a question. It’s harsh, and you know he’s angry. Maybe at you, maybe at himself, probably both. His question makes you freeze, your fingers still entangled in his strands of hair. 
You feel a slight prick of irritation at his question. You pull your head back and tilt his face up to look you in the eyes, but they’re still tightly shut. “Look at me,” you demand, your tone matching his from a moment ago. You feel him stiffen slightly at the intensity of your words, but his dark eyes open to meet your own. 
Your hands find his cheeks, cupping his face, and you press your forehead back into his. Your eyes never leave his, and you can feel his grip against your back finally start to soften as he focuses on you instead of what you’ve done. 
“I did it.” You pause for a moment, still staring at him. God, he was so stupid. You swipe your thumb across his freckles, wiping the tears from his sad, sweet eyes. “Because you deserve to be saved.”
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chaoticladyfire · 10 months
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Things I screamed about in ATSV (spoilers)
-Got to rewatch the film so I’m just going to add the colours changing to warmer tones when Gwen hugs her father. Not even ten minutes in and I was already crying.
-Realised that we missed the Gwen-Vulture fight BUT got to see Jessica Drew enter the scene like a bad ass in her bad ass bike and hearing the audience collectively say ‘me too’ when Gwen asked if Jessica could adopt her. 
-Screaming OSCAR ISAAC when Miguel spoke
-Lyla. Just Lyla.
- ‘Do you say anything other than no?’ ‘No-YES!’ more of miguel and jessica pls
-The Spot’s introduction. I didn’t see any promotional stuff, teasers or even trailers before watching this film so I had no idea who or what the The Spot was which was great because he really went from villain of the week to villain of the movie. And they clearly had a great time choreographing the fight scenes with him
-Miles’ heating up the beef patty while the spot and the convenience store man argue
-Miles patting the spot’s with a ‘good cow’ text
-Gwen and Miles both having to deepen their voices to avoid being recognised by their respective cop dads
-Miles saying that he can get two cakes when the counsellor says you can’t have your cake and eat it too and then bringing two cakes for his father’s party and neither of them saying what he wanted to convey. 
-Rio and Jeff scolding an annoyed miles but instantly smiling when a relative hugs them what an universal experience 
-Gwen teasing Miles for drawing her in his notebook almost obsessively but also breaking the biggest rule to spend time with him knowing the consequences. 
-As they went to talk, my friend leaned over and said ‘yeah I bet they will talk’ and when they only talked he groaned very loudly at which point I had to remind him Miles was only 15 
-Watching Jeff talk to Spiderman about his son not knowing his son is spiderman
-The DJ increasing the volume when Miles’ parents started scolding him in the middle of the party (the real mvp of the movie actually) 
-JK Simmons cameo that no one seems to be talking about??? Embarrassingly enough I had to literally scream into my friend’s ear for most of the people to realise it was indeed JK Simmons
-Just the entire Mumbattan scene. It was so exciting to see my city be represented like that, still a bit cliched in my opinion but not like Slumdog so obviously they have updated their views. Everything from the traffic gag to Pav’s rant about chai tea had the theatre howling. Also the detail of the thought boxes (?) and sounds being written in Hindi 
-Screaming DANIEL KALUUYA
-My friend and I are huge fans of the UK punk scene (her for the ideologies and myself for the music and fashion) so Hobie was a dream come true. He was already super cool with his guitar and mohawk costume but when he revealed his face it was just so amazing
-Gayatri is every indian’s dream girl with her modern shirt-flannel and jeans combo mixed with bangles and piercings I really wish we get to see more of her in the next movie. Anyway there was a lot of wolf-whistling and hooting for her and Pav
-Also Pavitr literally means pure I don’t know if they did that on purpose or not but I love it
-His pet name being Pav cured my soul
-’This is the most emotional I have seen him’ and Captain Singh has no emotions at all
-I want to see how they came up with so many spider designs because each was so unique and immediately endearing. My friend who is also a big dinosaur fan screamed DINOSAUR 
-Kind of obsessed with how detailed Ben Reilly’s arms are they did not need to go that hard with it
-Tom Holland’s Spider-Man being referred to as ‘the little nerd’ by Miguel
-When everyone was making puns about the Spot my friend leaned over and said ‘i wonder which hole the spot prefers’ it is a miracle we are still friends actually
-The Donald Grover cameo!!!
-Peter B Parker having a cute little baby with the love of his life is what he deserves
-Miguel O Hara is one step away from becoming a Batman-Spiderman 
-Hobie’s admiration for Mayday being the avatar of chaos Spider-baby
-Screaming ANDY SAMBERG
-I think they saw the appreciation for the art style in the previous film and then trebled it for this film and I cannot thank them enough for it
-Peter complaining about how Miguel breaks the Spiderman tradition of being funny and witty and Miguel being the first anomaly 
-Every scene with the Spot is very unnerving because as I said, you watch him transform from this joker to a literal void of vengeance and it is every bit of terrifying
-Miguel is a man suffering from the destruction of an entire universe because of his selfish actions and forcing that anomaly narrative on a fifteen year old boy who became a spiderman on accident and doesn’t want his father to die because of that. Unlike the Spot, who isn’t even human anymore, Miguel is drowning in grief and guilt and trying to ignore it by holding the weight of the spider-verse on his shoulder. I hated him so much for making a boy go through that but then I just couldn’t in the end. 
-Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire cameo!!! Hopefully we’ll get a fun Tom Holland one too in the next movie.
-’Let me guess, he died?’ being a therapist for Spider Men must be a fairly boring job after a few patients.
-I just loved the absolute of wrongness of the scene where Miles returns ‘home’. The rain and darkness. I didn’t really think about Rio asking Miles what happened to his hair because I thought she was referring to the rain (although of course she wouldn’t ask him why his hair was wet when it was obviously raining outside) but realised something was wrong when he didn’t know about comic con but she did because in the first film there’s a joke about Peter B Parker explaining the concept to Miles. 
- This movie is not good for my father related issues
-The glaring neon welcome sign when the gang end up in Earth 42
-How did Uncle Aaron get even scarier? 
-Miles being the Prowler is honestly a great twist I saw it coming but still felt the shock of the reveal
-Prowler Miles having an accented voice meaning his father probably died when he was young and he only had his mom growing up
-Can’t wait for the original spider team to return for the third film seeing as they brought back Spider-Man Noir and Spider Ham and Peni Parker
-Screaming WHAT when the ‘to be continued’ appeared because that cliffhanger is absolutely destructive. All that adrenaline and excitement just popped. I’m still oscillating between being impressed and being disappointed. 
I probably skipped over a lot of other scenes because these were the most memorable and I only watched the film once (unfortunate) but I can’t wait for the movie to hit streaming services and watch it again and again for all the other details I missed. Ill probably keep adding things as I remember
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kunichigo · 10 months
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“SHINE, SHIMMER, GLIMMER!”
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Synopsis:
Klee found something cool about you and she gotta tell someone— doesn't matter how or where, she would tell anyone, even if it means creating a silent war between the acolytes.
Genshin characters x fem!reader.
Warning: grammatical errors, ooc, possible quest spoilers
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"(Name)?" Klee called out, her eyes looking at your focused face to the shining mora on top of Jean's desk.
"Hm?" You hummed, but didn't look at her.
Oh. The child thought, her lips forming the biggest grin she could muster as she stood up from her chair, as much as she would love to stay within your presence, she would rather tell someone or anyone how you're fond of mora.
You ended up unintentionally stole it.
You don't how long you've been wandering on the air, your body on top of an anemo slime as it carries you around teyvat.
You could barely remember the audible concern from Jean's and Lisa's voice when you excused yourself, head hazy and eyes locked on the shining mora on your hand— you couldn't help it, the shine and glimmer of the coin on top of the desk was alluring you.
"Hm, want more of this.." You muttered, eyes still locked on the mora. You are mesmerized at how the coin would shine under the sunlight and you didn't even know that the shimmer of the mora could potentially blind you.
You didn't even noticed how the anemo slime changed it's course, opted to go to Liyue and brought you inside of a cave.
You only noticed that you aren't out in the air when you noticed the glimmer on your peripheral vision.
What? You thought as you turn your head, holy..
The slime's body gently landed on the ground beside the shining and shimmering crystals, there are a couple of luxurious chest surrounding it with mora leaking out of the lid of the chest.
Your expression literally brightens up at the sight of the shining treasures.
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"I'm telling you, she left with this.. Unreadable haze on her eyes—" Jean stopped herself from explaining further.
She could see that the acolytes in front of her won't listen anyways so what's the point of trying to protect herself from their agonizing and menacing glares and gazes?
"That doesn't explain why you let her out of the office." Zhongli said, crossing his arms as he kept his amber eyes on her frigid form, gaze cold and hard whilst trying to compose himself from attacking the mortal.
"How could I stop the divine one? Pardon me, but would you have the courage to stop her grace from leaving if you're on my shoes?" With her rebuttal, the retired archon got quiet, trying to match her rational thinking, but it was hard, especially when you've been seen a few hours ago.
All of them could feel the cold breeze of the evening, the sun had already said it's temporary farewell as the moon made it's presence known towards the people of each nation.
"She's not lying, Morax." Venti spoke up, "I could hear the wind whispering about her safety."
"So she's somewhere safe right now?" This time, the Raiden Shogun asked, she stepped in to the circle of acolytes with her eyes narrowed towards the anemo archon.
"Quite frankly, yes, the wind even told me that she's enjoying herself right now.." He started to spoke in a lower voice, "It said that she's been laughing and indulging herself on something she loves."
He put an emphasis on the word 'something' because he, himself knew how infatuated the acolytes towards you. Jealousy is an ugly emotion and he would rather hear that something has got your attention instead of someone.
"Something she loves?" Kaeya spoke up, "What would that be, hm?"
"It's mora!" Came a cheerful and giddy voice of a child coming from the closet, "She loves mora! I saw her looking at the mora on top of Master Jean's desk this morning—"
"Klee." Diluc said her name in warning, his eyes narrowed towards the wooden doors, "What are you doing inside of the closet? Albedo specifically told you that this kind of meetings are for grown-ups only."
"U-uh.." The child didn't say anything, instead, she went out of the closet and quickly flee towards the door, seeing herself out of the room.
It got quiet after that.
"So," Ningguang chuckled, "It seems that (name) loves mora, as per the child's words."
"Indeed so." Pantalone smiled, pushing his glasses up with his gloved fingers whilst keeping his excitement in check, "It seems that the bachelors would finally have their use after all."
His words didn't only hit Diluc, Ningguang, Ajax, Alhaitham, Cyno, the Kamisato siblings and the other fatui harbingers— his statement also hit him where it actually hurts.
"I'll send mine to her palace in an hour." Ningguang said, starting towards the exit of the meeting room with Keqing and Ganyu hot on her heels as she bid them a farewell, "Have a wonderful evening, everyone."
The others went quiet as they watch her exit the room, eyes narrowing from hearing her statement.
Diluc and Alhaitham both got up from their seat, they didn't said anything while the two of them sent each other a nod of acknowledgement before exiting the room, away from the other acolytes.
"Well, I'll excuse myself as well." Pantalone uttered, getting up from his expensive cushion and walked out of the room.
Ayato gave them his usual business smile, "We'll send Thoma to the palace as soon as possible, till then, we wish everyone a good luck."
He and Ayaka sent them a smile, all the while their eyes mocked the others— even the archons, knowing that they own more money than them. They couldn't help but feel slightly superior due to their riches.
Soon, the siblings exited the room with Thoma following behind them.
"I can't believe them!" Kaveh, hands in the air, exclaimed as he pointed towards the door, "I get that they are filthy rich, but did they just call us poor in different languages? Especially that Alhaitham! Why is he so— ugh, I can't deal with this!"
The others watched the man huffed in his seat, hunching over the blue prints of your requested abode.
They could hear him utter some words, probably cursing the akademiya's acting grand sage whilst scribbling his pen on the paper in front of him.
"What now?" Kuki asked, her hands on her hips as she scanned the room with the remaining acolytes.
Ajax had been suspiciously quiet beside Kaeya, the two of them calmly sitting across of Raiden Shogun and Venti. If there are loud and nosy acolytes then the ginger and dark skinned man would be on top of the list, along with Itto, Wanderer, and Venti.
Surprisingly, the archons are quiet.
Way too quiet, Rosaria thought, she might not be a fan of the archons, but her nation's archon is quiet too which is very out of character of Venti.
The sane acolytes could only wish and hope that nothing too bad would happen.
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You've been missing for three days straight.
It's making your beloved acolytes crazy, it'd starting to scare Jean because she was last in charge of you when you were last seen.
Right now, Diluc and Ajax are on the move towards Liyue, they were partnered with each other by the Raiden Shogun, Buer, and Morax due go their tracking skills. Their sole purpose is to find you and bring you back to your palace safely.
Even if the two aren't in good terms, they put their personal (Diluc's—) grudge and trudge their way on each valley of Liyue.
They heard some rumors that monsters had been gathering around the Qingxu pool, often seen walking in and out of a specific cave with bunch of minerals, foods, and moras that they snatched from the passing adventurers.
Diluc believed that those monsters were drawn to your location which is not illogical to think so, especially when those monsters refuse to attack you— opting to attack them instead.
"That's the cave." Ajax cheered.
The red head only grunted, speeding up his pace and walking past the ginger.
"Nini zido!"
"Ya yika!"
The familiar words of hilichurls can soon be heard as soon as they stepped a foot on the cave, both men materialized their weapons on their hands and got ready to attack.
"What's wrong, guys? Is someone bad her— oh! Goodness, it's Diluc and childe!"
Sensing the cheerfulness on your voice, the hilichurls stopped their attempt to attack and stepped aside when you run towards the duo.
Ajax had his arms open and jumped on him, arms wrapping around his neck as you laugh. He wrapped his arms around your waist and buried his face on your neck, flattening his lips on the exposed skin whilst chuckling along with you.
After hugging for a good minute, you quickly detached yourself away from the ginger and jumped at the red head next.
Diluc was fast enough to catch you, his hands looped under your knees and lifted you up in his arms as you hugged him tightly. He could only bury his face on your chest, inhaling your natural scent and humming contently to himself as you gave him a loving laugh.
"I missed you, guys!" You told them with glee.
The red head didn't bother putting you down and started walking towards the exit, but you frantically stopped them.
"Stop! Stop!" You cried out, "The crystals, the moras, the treasures— the creatures gave them to me, I can't just leave those out here!"
Truthfully, you couldn't say that you adore seeing those shining treasure as you lay on top of it, I mean, that's what you've been doing for the past three days, laying on top of the pile of mora whilst admiring how it would shine under the light coming from the torches of the hilichurls.
"We'll send someone to bring them to your palace, my goddess." Ajax said, patting the top of your head reassuringly as you look at him with the glint of doubt on your eyes.
"Trust him on that one, my grace." Diluc butted in this time.
He started walking out of the cave and Ajax quickly set off the fireworks given to him by Yoimiya, it was a signal to tell the Geo archon that you have been found.
"Besides, you could see a lot of those shining treasures on your palace." Ajax chuckled, "The other acolytes sent their regards and riches would soon be filling your treasure room so there's no need to fret over a pile of treasures.. Those will be sent in your palace before you know it."
You frowned, eyes flickering from the entrance of the cave to the waving hilichurls beside it.
Those past three days felt like heaven and the hilichurls were more attentive to your needs than your acolytes, maybe, just maybe.. Those shining coins had brought you the knowledge you didn't know you need.
Now, you know that, hilichurls and the others creatures around teyvat could answer your call, faster than those archons could do.
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© kunichigo
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1K notes · View notes
rustytrident · 11 months
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the brothers in bed hcs (18+)
spoiler none of them are doms
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ch: lucifer, mammon, leviathan, satan, asmodeus, beelzebub, belphegor
cw: 18+ mdni!! mentions of praise, degradation, hard kinks, pet play, overstimulation, edging, toys, feminisation, pain, objectification, mirror sex, filming, pegging, sensory deprivation, mutual masturbation, punshiments, mind break, somnophilia
a/n: is this gonna be biased cause i like sub men? probably. am i still right? definitely.
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lucifer:
a sub. but like what were you expecting.
really likes praise, to the point where you can see his eyes shine whenever you praise him
one of the most obedient of the bunch, he just really likes being told he's being good for you :((
i can see him being into really hard kinks cause he just wants to plummet into sub space and forget he exists for a bit
can honestly be very teasing and sarcastic with you at times, but only when he has the energy for it.
likes: hard kinks, praise, restraints
dislikes: degradation, spit, quickies
mammon:
switch but mostly subs
he teases the fuck out of u as a dom. like will not give you what you want until you beg and beg and beg
wants to get absolutely destroyed when subbing though. like sometimes he'll just be mean to u so u can use him
puppyboy. i think he'd like a pretty collar but u didn't hear that from me
not too big on being degraded, but it can really turn him on if u mostly praise him and throw a bit of degrading in
likes: free use, pet play, overstimulation
dislikes: monotony, company, blindfolds
levi:
also a switch but the dom side comes out once in a blue moon
likes praise and degradation equally, but be careful not to favor one over the other
toys toys toys!! he has sooo many and loves to have them used on himself, especially likes ones that vibrate
really likes feminisation!! put him in little skirts and lacy underwear and he's already gone like :((((
not the biggest fan of pain (he hates it)
likes: humiliation, feminisation, toys
dislikes: pain, imbalance, mirrors
satan:
100% switch. likes to keep it fresh
the sweetest dom ever. he has read too much erotica to know exactly what to say
catboy!! cliche but come on. don't tell me that he secretly hasn't been crafting the perfect fursona design for centuries
hates being degraded the most. only be nice to him, he can't handle it
i can see him being into pain tbh, but only some times (he'll tell u dw)
likes: petplay, praise, dacryphilia
dislikes: restraints, degradation, objectification
asmo:
is he a switch? naturally. does he enjoy being a sub the most? absolutely.
has a thing about ruining your or his makeup. just. smear his lipstick, make him smudge his eyeliner, yknow how it is
mirrors!! and filming!! he's the biggest star he wants the world to see!!
very open to people joining, but mostly he enjoys the intimacy of being with you
edge him. i think it does things to him idk.
likes: being filmed, mirror sex, edging
dislikes: :/
beel:
subsubsubsubsubsubsub
he's just there to please. use him however u like, he really doesn't mind
auralism?? in this household?? more likely than u think.
wants to touch u at all times. so so soft in how he handles u god i need him :(((
likes being pegged. there's something about feeling full that does it for him yknow?
likes: pegging, slow sex, your voice
dislikes: hard kinks, sensory deprivation, mutual masturbation
belphie:
look me in the eyes and tell me. tell me what u think (he's a switch but who likes domming when u can just let. go.)
very much into mind break. like make him black out make him forget where what who and when
somno. predictable, yes, but like. he was made for this, no one can change my mind
pillow prince!! doesn't care what u call him, just make him feel all important and giddy
a brat.
likes: somno, edging and overstim, being bratty
dislikes: being on top, gentle doms, company (unless it's beel)
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r4izx · 30 days
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This masterpiece, I won't forget.
painter!scaramouche x gn!reader
summary: he paints you everyday, just to remember the face he had long forgotten.
- 904 words and 4,833 characters.
warnings!: implied death, slight spoilers to sumeru archon quest (?)
you took care of kabukimono. teaching him household chores, letting him live with you and all those kind actions that made him trust you. but just like every other of his companions and just like any other mortal, you die at the end. what did he expect? kabukimono always thought he was betrayed. leaving him? just like that? just like the rest? he knew it- you were no different- he assumed and believed such foolish thoughts. but that was because he was too naive. he realized only now that you truly cared for him. otherwise why would you waste your time to entertain a stranger like him? teaching him all kinds of emotions. why would you even accept him to your home? to the point he could call it his home as well? guilt builds up in his throat, he regrets everything everyday. but his biggest regret--
...is that he can't remember your face.
how long has it been since he last saw your face? a hundred- no, more than that, probably. several hundred years has passed since he last saw the face that saved him. saved him from internal emptiness. despite having no heart, every memory of you fills his chest with a warm, stuffy feeling. a bright smile coming from you in every memory. oh how he wishes to see your face. despite barely remembering what you look like, he paints you. every. single. day.
the moment he went from the balladeer to wanderer, he looked back to the past he tried so hard to escape even when you were included in his past. another one of his regrets it seems. all his paintings of you were never finished. he just can't get it right. he knows paintings aren't enough to replicate your radiance, but why does it not give off your vibe-- not even a bit? but still. he tries. he tries anyway. he continues to paint his memories of you. he remembers all the warm memories, every detail but just not... your face. in his paintings, your face is either blurry, scribbled at-- out of frustration probably--, or a face that doesn't resemble you at all. scaramouche wishes he would remember.
he thinks of every possibe way he could to remember you. asking the traveler, nahida, heck- even al-haitham for archon's sake! but it all leads to one thing. irminsul. he got his memories back from irminsul, so what are the chances? he went to irminsul. nahida didn't even hesitate to let him go because she for sure, already knows the reason why he wants his memories back. he doesn't pray to archons. he doesn't want to. but if... just if there's a slight chance of remembering your face. even if it's just a glimpse of it. he would even go as far as to beg to the archons.
he takes a deep breath, closing his eyes, and remembering. deeply focused, he could hear fire crackling. maybe a little bit too loud. oh. too loud. and all of a sudden he sees a burning house. no- a home. his home. your home. he took steps closer to inspect it. 'this is definitely a memory' he thinks to himself. he had forgotten it though. impossible. what could it be in this memory that would make him forget it? especially if it included you- oh.
a faint call for help, slowly fading through the smile you let out. underneath all the burning rubbles, you were there. in a life and death situation. scaramouche now remembers. the one memory he wished he never did remember, even if it included you. the memory of you dying. now, you were a mortal. you dying wasn't really the reason why he wished to forget this memory. it was all because of another regret. he regrets it that he left you there. if he only took a step closer to you and lend his hand for you just like you did for him, maybe you could've been with him right now. but he didn't. at that moment he hated you. resented you. he was far too greedy. how many betrayals has it been? he swore he had good memory but there's no use to keeping track of things like this. he was too naive. when he was out there resenting you with his whole body, leaving you to death- you never hated him. until the very end of your life, you never did. why didn't you scream at him? tell him to go die? why did you smile? you were dying but you still smiled. at him. truly, every memory of you has your smile. this wasn't the way he wanted to remember your face, no. but if there was no other choice then, what could he possibly do? he regrets everything. but now he could finally paint your face. paint the smile that kept him safe and sane the way he is now.
alas, a painting of you is finally finished. just like how he filled in an empty part of your face in his painting, you once again has filled his empty chest with this warm, stuffy feeling. is it comfort? love? the feeling of security? he doesn't know. but what he does know is that he will continue to paint you for eternity. he will paint you until there is no more paint to paint with. until there is no more space in his canvas. because he doesn't want to forget you again. he doesn't want to regret anything, ever again. he truly regrets everything--
...but you.
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spdrvyn · 10 months
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parched P2 — MIGUEL O'HARA
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(( here's the part 2 that i mentioned in the last one !! this isn't explicit, however it is steamy, legally i shouldn't be writing explicit stuff anyway so sorry to the horny horny miguel fans out there. spoiler-free as usual ))
READ PART 1 HERE.
Whatever Miguel couldn't say in words, he'd express in actions.
He's always been like that, when you first met him, when you first started falling in love with him, when you first started dating him. Right now, it was when he was on top of you. Whispering sweet nothings into your ear, kissing every inch of you.
You were well aware of the fact that he's lacked such a gentle, loving touch for most if not all of his life. After all, he didn't seem like the biggest sap when you two were only knew each other as acquaintances.
He kept to himself most of the time when he was with you, he didn't normally engage in it unless you initiated it first. A hand at his bicep, his shoulder, his cheek.
Oh, how badly he wanted to hide that he needed it. Needed you.
Slowly but surely, he started feeling comfortable laying more than a single finger on you. Whenever he walked you home, a hand at the small of your back. Wiping stray bits of food on your mouth whenever you ate lunch together. The little things, it drove you crazy.
Your chest swelled with pride at the thoght of how far he's come, letting his guard down around you.
Not forgetting that ever since he finished 'getting fixed up', he was all over you. Smothering you with kisses, letting you sink further and further into the sheets and pillows.
"Missed this, missed you so much, amor." He uttered, his hand tangled in your hair. Tugging on it occasionally to pull you closer and closer to him, as if you weren't already. "Don't even want to think about what it was like out there. Dios, se sentía como el infierno."
At this point, you had a hard time telling if something really bad happened at work or if this is just him being needy. However, you didn't want to pry. It was clear that he was enjoying himself.
Really enjoying himself from how, once again, you felt something sharp sink into the crook between your shoulder and neck. Wincing, you whine at him. He revels in it.
"Not even one hour has passed of coming home to me and you're already trying to leave a mark." You pout, as to which he responds with a wolfish grin. "Sorry, sorry. Just can't help it sometimes. You're delectable."
Fangs really weren't something that you thought that you'd be into. Not like you've really encountered anyone with fangs in your life, Miguel was the first one. The first time you cracked a joke with him, he laughed. You got a glimpse of the canines that peeked through his gums, yet it didn't terrify you. As shameful as he used to be of them when he revealed his occupation to you.
Now, it felt like he used them daily, on you to be more specific. Like you were a staple and he was a stapler remover, which was silly but an accurate description of what it was like.
As he normally does, he decides to rub it in.
"But at the same time, don't act like you don't enjoy them. I can basically see the look on your face whenever I leave one. On your neck."
He punctured the skin, a little to draw blood. Which made you gasp, moving to scold him until he holds your arm down. Cutting you off.
"Your shoulder."
He moves down, kissing you as he does so. Before he bites down again, a little harder. Rougher this time.
"Your thighs."
The thumping of your heart is drumming in your ears as he hooks your thighs over his shoulders, massaging the soft flesh with his fingers before leaving two very prominent bite marks on them now.
He licks the blood clean off of his lips, coming back up to you with a smirk. His thumb caresses your chin as you stare at him. "Ah, that face. That's the one I'm talking about, mi vida."
You still have no idea what he's saying, before you could even delve deeper into it. He captures your lips with a soft chuckle.
Guess you'll never know.
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dandylovesturtles · 28 days
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we're stressed but we remain silly (actually this is super angsty lol)
more Sidelined + Firefight (Firelined???) propaganda for the @tmntaucompetition
Sorry I keep stealing your boys @remedyturtles
Spoilers for chapter 15 of Firefight, cw: for heavy injuries + blood, no actual recounting of how they got the injuries in this fic, though
Please consider voting for us! Thanks!
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In the time it takes Donnie and Leo to get medical supplies, it's been decided that they'll be teaming up with the Firefight guys.
The situation has also, somehow, managed to deteriorate.
If Leo thought these guys looked like death warmed over before, now they just look like plain old death. The other Donnie is littered with bloody injuries and his leg is bent in ways it really should not be. And the other Leo...
Leo shudders at the cracks in his shell. He's not sure he wants to know what kind of monster could do that.
The Leo is chirping periodically - help help scared - and the Donnie answers back by tapping on his shell. Leo knows enough now to recognize it as Morse code; trying to calm him, coax him into coming out. It doesn't seem to be working too well.
"...I think we should have brought more medical supplies," says his own Donnie, yanking Leo out of his reverie. "This may not be enough."
"I don't even know where to start," Leo confesses softly. Really, they need to see a doctor, but Leo has no idea where to find one. Maybe one of the older turtles here has more medical experience than they do? But he has no idea who to ask...
"We'll just... do the best we can," says Donnie, and he sounds determined. Leo finally tears his eyes away from their deathly still mirrored versions, the Leo cradled close in the Donnie's arms, to look at his own twin. He's got his jaw set and teeth clenched, like he does when he's gearing up for something particularly unpleasant, and Leo isn't going to let him face it alone.
"Alright." Leo starts laying out their supplies on the bleachers, sorting it for easy grabbing. "Let's see what we can do."
-----
When he tries to take the other Leo away, the other Donnie bites him.
Really, he should have been prepared for that.
It's only hard enough to graze the skin on his arm, but Leo still hisses when it happens. The other Donnie's eyes fly to his face, then widen and let go, which is good, because Leo knows what could have happened if he bit down harder.
He looks horribly guilty, his eyes flying between the Leo in his lap and Leo's own face. His eyes are glassy and he may not be able to fully distinguish between them. So now he thinks he bit the brother who is still chirping periodically - help help scared - and boy does Leo feel like a tool.
He holds up his hands in surrender, rushing to reassure him. "It's okay, that was my bad. I could have telegraphed that way better."
"Excellent work, Leon," chides his own twin, who looks thoroughly unimpressed. He immediately grabs Leo's arm in one hand, then reaches for the disinfectant with another. "We're supposed to be treating their injuries, not yours."
"It's fine, it's just a scrape!" he says, but doesn't actually do anything to stop Donnie from cleaning it. His immune system has been pretty much useless since the armor, and mouths are nasty.
Besides, the gentle attention Donnie is giving his wound, despite his harsh tone, seems to be doing something for the other Donnie. He doesn't loosen his grip on his twin, but something unspools in his posture as he watches, attentive, as the wound is cleansed and covered. Like it's finally clicking for him that they're here to help. That things are... well, better than they were.
Leo gives him his biggest, most reassuring grin, and says, "Yeah, see? We're gonna get you guys all patched up."
Donnie finishes his work, then pulls on a pair of gloves, thankfully already modified for three-fingered hands. He holds out a pair for Leo. "Are your hands steady?"
It's not at all an unfair question. Leo nods. "Yeah. For now, anyway."
Donnie nods back, letting the gloves fall into Leo's palms. "I'll start work with Leo, you take Donnie. Start with the lacerations on his back. I... don't think we can do much for his leg."
"Right."
Donnie steps over and settles down on the bleacher next to the pair, body angled towards them. He holds out his hands for his counterpart to see.
"Hello, Donatello," he says. "Can I start treating your Nardo? I'll keep him right here - you can maintain physical contact if you want."
The other Donnie hesitates. He hasn't spoken since they arrived, his only active communication the continuous taps against his own Leo's shell. It's not surprising - there's no way this situation isn't overwhelming. But it's making this whole process a bit difficult.
Donnie's never let difficulties slow him down, though.
"I swear," he says, clear and steady, "I'll treat him like my own Leo."
The other Donnie looks down at the bloody shell in his lap. Then he looks at Leo, who gives another smile and a little wave from his wheelchair.
Again, it seems to be clicking, and slowly, very slowly, the other Donnie unwraps from around his precious bundle, and lets him go.
His chirps get more rapid when that happens, and the other Donnie's taps get more rapid. They're close enough that he can keep a hand on his Leo's shell easily, can keep up the Morse code, keep telling him that he's safe. It means Leo's going to have an awkward angle to get to the other Donnie's own injuries, but that's alright. He's gotten good at reaching things that aren't convenient.
He wheels himself as close as he can get, then leans over the arm of his chair and gets to work.
It has to hurt, but the other Donnie stays stalwart, all his focus on reassuring his twin, barely twitching as Leo cleans and bandages the wounds. So Leo works in silence, lets him tap away. He knows enough to recognize it, but not enough to know what he's saying. Still, he can take a good guess.
Eventually, Donnie has done all he can to the other Leo, and Leo himself is flagging. His hands had been steady when he started, but this kind of work wears him out quickly - his hand muscles are cramping, and his wrists are sore. Donnie catches on, because he always does, and announces that they'll trade places without leaving room for argument.
So after a little maneuvering, Leo has his counterpart in his lap, while his twin works on cleaning the other Donnie's arms and legs as best he can. The taps are still going, and the chirps still come, here and there.
Leo can't do much to help now, so he tries to help. Tries to think of what would make him feel better, if they were switched.
He looks over at the other Donnie, battered and bruised and bloody, his leg twisted and his breaths wheezing.
And the next time the other Leo chirps, he says, "It's okay. Donnie's safe."
And he says it again, and again, and again, each time he hears the chirp, until-
"You're safe, too, Leo."
He looks up, at his twin, whose hands have stalled in their ministrations. He's looking at the shell in Leo's lap, but for a brief moment his eyes flick up, and they lock, and there's something meaningful there that Leo has to rush to catch.
"You're safe, too."
Leo watches Donnie, for the first time he notices the shake in his twin's hands. And it occurs to him, if it hurts him to see a Donnie in this state, like he's never seen before, then for his twin to see a Leo in this state, when he has-
He takes a shaky breath. The chirp comes again, and this time he says, "Yeah. You're safe. Donnie's safe. It's okay. No monsters here."
They keep it up until Raph and Mikey come back with the chairs and the food and blankets, the ones Leo drapes over his legs to keep them warm. By that point, they've done about all they can, and with some maneuvering they get the other Donnie in the transport chair, and pass his twin back to him, safe in his lap.
He still hasn't made any move to come out, but no one tries to force him.
"Let's ask the staff if there's anywhere these guys can lay down," suggests Raph, and they all nod in agreement to that. The bleachers are not comfortable enough for naps, especially not in the state these guys are in.
"Do you need me to push you, Nardo?" asks Donnie. "You said your wrists were hurting."
"They're fine," he protests, giving his hands a shake. "Don't..."
The word "worry" dies when his counterpart chirps again, and he catches Donnie's flinch when it happens.
"...Well," Leo says, "I guess I could stand to take a break."
His twin looks relieved. Leo's glad one Donnie does, at least.
Donnie grabs the handles of his chair; Raph takes the handles of their teammates'. And with that, they're off.
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the biggest, most copium agent 4 theory from this clown of an agent four enjoyer
apologies for the wait on this! i wanted to unlock all of the dev diaries to make sure i could squeeze out every last bit of lore...
anyways SIDE ORDER SPOILERS INCLUDING POSTGAME
so let's start with the common knowledge. most people know by this point that agent 4 has a palette. it's one of the first you get in the game, after pearl and marina's. to the surprise of nobody, it is a splattershot...
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according to what marina says about the memverse, palettes are a portion of a person's soul dragged into the memverse. so agent 4's soul got dragged in here somehow. how did this happen, and why? there are a few possibilities...
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marina mentions in her eighth dev diary that she needs someone to handle system security. she writes: "maybe i can ask that person cuttlefish introduced me to for help there." this is still pretty vague, but we know from smollusk's note on agent 4's palette that it is definitely agent 4. quote:
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"THIS is who mawina wanted in charge of memverse security? this unfwappable, free-spirited so-and-so? i would never abide it!"
the question is: if agent 4 was intended to be security for the memverse, then where are they? this leads us to the parallel canon boss!
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note that figure in the center. even though all descriptions for this boss describe it as "a lot like eight", it is clearly an inkling with its pointed ears and hair.
the hairstyle is significant, too. all art of this boss, including its icon, display it with the "haircut" style. why does this matter? because official art of agent 4 also uses this style:
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on top of that, people have reported that if you have splatoon 2 save data on your switch, the boss will use whatever hairstyle your inkling uses in that game (with that inkling, of course, being agent 4). unfortunately, i forgot to take a screenshot of my save, but maybe someone could reblog this and confirm?
another thing to note about that agent 4-looking robot in the center is that they're wielding the order shot, which is the same weapon you get from agent 4's palette.
so what exactly am i getting at with all this? let's read a little more of smollusk's notes on agent 4...
"buut...no weason such stwength shouldn't be used to pwotect a world of order. an order defense force is MUCH cooler than a new squidbeak splatoon anyway!"
this phrasing is particularly interesting to me because it implies smollusk wants to, or already has utilized agent 4's strength in some way. additionally, smollusk regards fans of chaos in a very similar way. for almost all of them, he argues they must be "punished". examples:
"she must be PUNISHED!" - callie's palette
"her chaotic lies must be PUNISHED!" - shiver's palette
"for the sake of order, they all must be PUNISHED!" - frye's palette
"it annoys me, so he must be PUNISHED!" - big man's palette
"he must be PUNISHED!" - sheldon's palette
"i sentence him to PUNISHMENT!" - dj octavio's palette
almost all of these characters are on the side of "chaos". callie and dj octavio were on the chaos side of the final fest, while shiver, frye, and big man rep the splatlands, basically the land of chaos. no idea what smollusk's beef is with sheldon though that guy was neutral LOL
on the other hand, smollusk is notably softer with characters on the side of "order", like marie, murch, and marina (obviously). he still critiques them, but he doesn't sentence them to "punishment".
agent 4 was on the side of chaos in the final fest. so why didn't smollusk sentence them to "punishment"?
perhaps it's because smollusk is already making use of them...by using their soul to control the parallel canon boss!
think about it! the bosses of the tower are basically security, right? they keep you from reaching the top! since smollusk knows from marina that agent 4 was meant to be security, it could have pulled in their soul to fulfill that job. that's why agent 4's palette is there, and that's why we don't physically see them in the dlc! because they're grayscaled in the outside world!
…it is also definitely possible that the boss is just INSPIRED by agent 4, taken from marina's memories, or something like that. but i like this theory because it explains why agent 4's soul ended up in the memverse.
one other thing - i think the popular opinion is that the parallel canon boss are "robots", due to the way they move, their eyes glowing, the filter on their voice, etc...this is probably true, but have you ever wondered if the boss is actually a real inkling (a digital…real…inkling? you get the idea) if it was just a robot like the others, why would it specifically have ears and hair? not only that, but you can get the parallel mask from the priz shop:
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which you wear on your face. what if this is the real agent four, wearing this parallel mask? their gray coloring could be because they're grayscaled! after all, we never actually see a representation of grayscaling in-game. the name implies that they'd actually turn gray in some way, maybe in the color of their tentacles. but this could be the most dramatic extent of it!
this is definitely a stretch, but you can consider it food for the die-hard agent 4 angsters out there. love you guys <3
feel free to reblog if you have thoughts, add-ons or even counterpoints! i find this all really interesting
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exo-raskreia · 4 months
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Thoughts & Speculations On Utahime In The Shinjuku Showdown Arc
WARNING: MANGA SPOILERS & HIGH LEVELS OF COPIUM
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There are theories going around about Gojo's potential revival & subsequent defeat of Sukuna. Several are interesting & seemingly possible. However, I've hardly seen any involving Utahime & her potential role in all this. While I shouldn't be hoping for anything in this manga 😩, I couldn't help but get some ideas.
With some of the theories out there, I wouldn't want Gojo to sacrifice part of his power in order to come back. But who knows at this rate...? Would Gege let him come back even more powerful? Or only temporarily before losing all, half, or some of his power? I don't want him to lose an eye or something like that... 😮‍💨
Once he returns, what will be the next step to defeat Sukuna? Gojo may get a new power-up or even has something else up his sleeve that he hasn't revealed yet.
This is why I wonder if Utahime could still have a role to play in this arc. She's the only character involved who hasn't gotten a flashback yet with, or in regards to, Gojo. She hasn't even spoken a word! Does this mean anything? Is Gege withholding something important? Will it come into play at all?
She's barely had any screen/panel time & was absent for 3 arcs spanning several chapters since Shibuya. Gege finally revealed her CT for the biggest fight of Gojo's life against the King of Curses. She helped Gojo achieve 200% Hollow Purple along with Gakuganji, while Ijichi hid them from Sukuna's view with a barrier.
They really come in a set, don't they? Every one of her appearances is related to Gojo. She is bound to him. So you see, we may next see her whenever Gojo is about to, or has already, returned.
Neither her, Gakuganji or Ijichi have reappeared since.
It's been 20+ chapters now & we know nothing of their status. Is this the last time we'll see them, especially Utahime, in action? Do they still have another role to play? They have not been shown to be back with the others at HQ, which implies they're still out on the battlefield.
What have they been doing all this time? Watching the fight unfold? Is it just taking them a while to head back to HQ? Or could it be that they're potentially doing something important?
Chapter 244 showcased a flashback scene with the other characters having a meeting before the fight regarding the possibilities of Gojo's defeat. Neither GojoHime, Gakuganji or Ijichi were seemingly present.
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Unless the two people behind Shoko here could be either of them? The one in black could be Gojo & next to him is Utahime, or could it be Gakuganji?
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If not, this could imply they were doing planning of their own, maybe in a separate room. That planning is the key.
Clearly, GojoHime (& maybe Gakuganji) must've practiced the Hollow Purple throughout the weeks-long timeskip since Gojo's unsealing. But is that all they did? Is there something else that they planned? The fact they're not back at HQ could imply this. It almost seems deliberate that there's no involvement of them with the others... unless Gege really doesn't care.
Gojo told Sukuna at the beginning of their fight that he did some "special training."
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What could this special training be? It hasn't been brought up again. Did it involve Utahime & maybe Gakuganji? This further showcases that Gojo's role isn't over yet.
Now, there are theories that Shoko may heal Gojo with her RCT. If so, could Uta help by buffing her to make it quicker & more effective?
We know so little about Uta's CT. Gege stated singing is a big part of it (unless it's just the chanting?). Could it be used for healing (kinda like Rapunzel from Tangled, lol)? What about offensive abilities? How else would she be a Semi-Grade 1 sorcerer if she can't fight on her own? Is it possible, though? We know she has good reflexes based on her encounter with Haruta at the Goodwill Event. Maybe she's good at hand-to-hand combat & wielding weapons? Heck, can she weaponize her voice like a siren?
When Uta buffs someone, does her cursed energy cover them like a blanket? Does it feel a certain way? Is it visible to other sorcerers or does it become one with the buffed person's own CE so that it's undetectable?
If her CE is visible, wouldn't Sukuna (especially as powerful as he is) have sensed it enmeshed with Gojo's? Instead, he thought Gojo's initial HP was a lot stronger than usual due to a Binding Vow (which we know Gojo didn't make) in chapter 234.
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Since Ijichi made a barrier that hid him & the others from view, Sukuna doesn't know about them. If he couldn't sense Uta's CE, that could also mean she might not have been buffing Gojo after the HP. How long is her full range anyway?
Speaking of Ijichi, Gojo told him he had a monumental task in chapter 222 before the timeskip.
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As then shown in a flashback in 223, it seems it was just to put up the barrier to hide them, Uta & Gakuganji from Sukuna.
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Does this mean that Gojo planned their team-up that early after he got unsealed? 🤔 The flashback here has Gojo in casual wear & the place looks similar to the inside of the Tokyo Tower. Could this mean they were headed to Shibuya Sky, the top of the tower, to practice or simply strategize, & maybe meet up with Uta & Gakuganji?
Still, why did Gojo place such importance to this task? Was it just to establish the trust he has for Ijichi despite his antics?
Was it to keep Utahime safe? Not just about the barrier?
So, I've been having these questions for a while now. Here's where my delulu really kicks in.
Absolute insanity mode. You've been WARNED.
There are theories discrediting the fact Sukuna doesn't know about Uta's CT, that it's NOT why he thinks Gojo made a Binding Vow to achieve 200% HP. I know I'm crazy, but I think him not knowing could come into play.
Other than potentially helping Shoko heal Gojo, could Utahime have a hand in bringing him back? Maybe she could even buff Gojo's own RCT, in the case it's still activated (since Gojo's head's still intact). If Gojo is meant to be truly enlightened upon his return, almost like a god, then wouldn't Uta being a shrine maiden mean something? Shrine maidens dance for the gods, communicate with them, summon them.
DELULU THEORY 1:
This scene in chapter 222 made me wonder if Ino told Gojo about him witnessing the summoning of a dead person (which we know is Toji) in Shibuya, as there's been no follow-up to it yet...
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If it's about Toji, did Gojo get the idea that in the case of him "dying", then his soul could be summoned back into his body? And with no side effects as it's his own body, and/or that as long as it's done immediately upon "death"? Is this something that could have been researched?
Since Ino knows a form of necromancy, could he possibly have a role to play in this as well? With his help, could Uta along with Gakuganji do a similar ritual as the granny who summoned Toji in Shibuya?
If Uta sings or chants for the ritual, could Gojo hear her in the limbo & follow her voice or something? Could she guide him north towards enlightenment, make him remember (or realize) who he is & what he has to do, in the case he's temporarily forgotten? 🫢 (delulu, I know, I KNOW 😩)
There's a song called North Wing by Akina Nakamori, the artist who sang Kinku, which is the song that Uta's CT is based on. It was her 7th single released the year after Kinku (7?! A number associated with Gojo?!). It was then re-recorded years later on an album titled 'Utahime Double Decade' (Akina is nicknamed Utahime, meaning Diva in Japan). The lyrics talk about a woman who boards a plane to meet with her lover. Here's an excerpt:
Love Is The Mystery It calls me Love is a mystery With its mysterious power I’m an Airplane, throwing everything away Like a scene out of a movie North Wing I depart all alone tonight For where he is Someone I once gave up on Teardrops, my heart’s punctuation I watch the city lights from above As they get smaller and smaller I take a midnight flight, chasing the night through the fog As if I were wandering through a dream Love Is The Mystery I spread my wings And cross the shining seas. I’m a little nervous The date paints over yesterday Which was nothing but agonizing for you The foggy city you live in Awaits me beneath the clouds
Let's see. If we see it in Uta's POV, then she might've thought loving Gojo was not worth it (as loving someone like him wouldn't be easy), but something happened that changed her mind, maybe before/during the time-skip, or seeing his "death." She could be headed to meet him, meaning to help him? It says at midnight, so could Gojo be revived the following day on Christmas? It mentions yesterday was agonizing for him, meaning his "death" & the fact of whose body/vessel he's fighting?
What if we low-key see it in Gojo's POV? His love for his students (and Utahime?) will make him choose North to return to them. He'll leave his past behind, making peace with it, & depart all alone, as the others in the limbo are going South. He knows everyone must be sad over his "death" (the 'agonizing' part) but he's coming home.
There is also a sequel song to this called Dramatic Airport - North Wing Part II. The lyrics are about a (the same?) woman on her way to meet up with her man at the airport, reuniting with him at night. So, could we see it as Utahime heading towards Gojo to help him, to be there for him on his 2nd awakening?
(There's this amazing theory here, which talks about the possibility of Utahime helping Gojo reach true enlightenment like Buddha's wife did for him in Buddhist myths.)
DELULU THEORY 2:
If Gojo returns through some other means, then that gives us another possibility. He's the only one who knows the location of Sukuna's last finger. What if Gojo had told its location to Utahime & co. (maybe even Ino)? What if their absence in the flashbacks of everyone else making plans is because they were retrieving the finger? And what would they do with it, you ask?
Could it be they had planned & are currently making the preparations for a ritual like the one I mentioned, in which they'll summon Sukuna into another vessel by using the finger? Or simply give it to someone to swallow? And could that vessel possibly be Yuuji, as he's the only one who can really handle harboring Sukuna?
It's scary to think of what this could mean, though... 😥 I will not delve into that.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
Anyway, I know I'm fully delulu & may be burning the kitchen, but I just wanted to get this out there. The theories and speculations are rampant these days so might as well add some more to the bunch.
I know for Utahime, a literal side character, to have a major role in the most important fight of Gojo's life, is too much to hope for. Gege also doesn't have a good streak with giving importance to his female characters (except Maki). Then again...no one expected Utahime, after a long absence, to finally reappear with Gojo the chapter after he got unsealed & having her CT finally revealed for him against Sukuna. Just what is Gege trying to say?
Whatever the outcome, I still have so many questions...
What was Utahime even doing during her long absence since Shibuya? As the main teacher of Kyoto, & all these crazy things happening to her students, not a single peep from her?! Was she training?! Put under protection because of her CT or cuz Gojo would have their heads if something happened to her? Buffing people secretly somehow?
How did she end up teaming up with Gojo? Did he ask for her help, like when he did to investigate the traitor? What did he say? Did he finally fess up & tell her what she means to him? Gakuganji & Ijichi got their flashbacks, Gojo showing them his true feelings/thoughts, so what could this mean for Utahime?! That he trusts her too? That he doesn't find her weak? Did he apologize for his constant teasing? Could he have said something more?
Did she offer to help him? Did he refuse & Uta insisted, giving a sort of speech that shut him up?
Just what happened between Gojo & Utahime during the time-skip?! 😫 Is the fact we haven't been shown yet deliberate?!
I wonder if Gege will ever give us this much, at least... 😮‍💨
While I'd like for her to do more, I just hope Uta will be safe. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her like nearly every other female character in this manga... 😥
LET'S HOPE FOR GOJO'S REVIVAL ✊️
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fuckyeahisawthat · 18 days
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thank you so much for that excellent chani post. i've seen some annoying takes on twitter about how not making her totally devoted and subservient to paul makes her 'unlikeable' and i'm like. buddy. i think that speaks more to how you see women. than anything about her. this chani is very dynamic and interesting to me.
i'll be honest and say i've not read the books. this is me speaking from what i've seen of summaries, but i think giving her a real cause to fight for yet also genuinely loving paul gives her an interesting struggle, and also plays into how the portrayal of the fremen (seems to me to be) more diverse and nuanced. as in, the fremen themselves seem to have more of a push-and-pull to them. the clarification of how different fremen believe differently (the south being more fundamentalist) is a very important thing to include in a movie where you can run into the danger of saying that all adherents to a foreign, islam-adjacent (in coding) religion are all fundamentalists. that can (in less nuanced hands) be a pretty irresponsible thing. so showing that there's also more secular/pragmatic/less dogmatic sectors of the culture seems a pretty good counterweight.
so yeah. this is how i processed it as a movie-goer. and having chani represent that aspect (believing in people over prophecy, action over religion) and having stilgar as the humanized face of the southern peoples (showing that yknow, regardless of being fundamenist beliefs, theyre still PEOPLE with the capacity for love, friendship, honor) makes total logical sense. you're not just "telling" us that there's different aspects to fremen culture, you're SHOWING us by showing different characters who represent those aspects, without demonizing either or turning either into a one-note stereotype.
Thank you! I'm not someone who was a long-term fan of the books before the movie came out (I tried reading Dune as a teenager when I was reading a lot of classic sci-fi but found it too boring) but I did read Dune and Dune Messiah after the first movie came out, both because I wanted to know what happened next and because I wanted to have an opinion on how the movies worked as adaptations.
(book and movie spoilers below and also I basically ended up writing a whole essay in response to this)
My single biggest frustration with the book is that after they arrive at Sietch Tabr and Jessica drinks the Water of Life and becomes Reverend Mother...the book up and skips two years of the story and when we next see Paul he's already got Fremen followers who are ready to die for him and he's in an established relationship with Chani. Oh I was SO MAD when I got to this part. I was like FRANK. FRANK!!!! Did you seriously just skip two years of the most interesting part of your own story???
The thing is, even though I know that Frank Herbert's intention was to write a critique of the idea that oppressed people need an enlightened external (white) savior to liberate them...if you don't provide an alternate explanation for what's happening then you end up falling into some Orientalist tropes anyway. And because, in the book, we don't see the process of how your average background fedaykin comes to trust Paul as a military and political leader, there is nothing in the text to counter the idea that the Fremen are a bunch of unquestioning religious fanatics easily swayed to do violence by belief in a prophecy.
My second biggest frustration with the book is that we're given no reason at all why Chani would fall in love with Paul. While she has some memorable scenes, she doesn't have a lot to do as a character in the book, and she's missing from a whole chunk of the end...because she's in the south...because she and Paul have a baby, Leto II, who's then killed off-page when the sardaukar attack the south. (I'm honestly really glad they cut this from the film, because it never seemed to be given the narrative weight it deserved in the book.)
So you can imagine how happy I was when the Villeneuve movies figured out how to address both these frustrations by tying them together. The fedaykin don't just blindly accept Paul because of some prophecy. They come to trust him because he proves himself as a fighter, and because he starts out from a place of genuine solidarity and humility--which it is possible for him to do because he has no structural power over them at that point. And Chani falls in love with him for the same reason, in that heady environment of fighting side by side for a political cause, and maybe for the first time in a while starting to believe that you can win.
I think the Villeneuve movies improve a lot on what's in the book in terms of how the Fremen are portrayed...when we're with the fedaykin and/or Chani and Stilgar. There we see political debates and discussion and the fact that not all the Fremen think the same way. And we also see little humanizing moments of folks just hanging out, celebrating after a victory in battle and just shooting the shit and being friends.
I do wish the movie had extended this to more parts of Fremen society. If there's one thing I could have added, it would be seeing more of daily life in Sietch Tabr. It makes sense that when we're seeing things from Jessica's POV, she is more distant from and suspicious of the Fremen, seeing them as a force to be manipulated, but I wish we had even one or two scenes of people just being people in the sietch. It felt kind of weirdly empty and not particularly lived-in as a place, and I think they could've easily countered this, with scenes from Chani, Stilgar or Paul's POV, and that would have made it hit even harder when the sietch is attacked.
If there were two things I could have added, I wanted more exploration of the people of the south. Why are they more fundamentalist than the Fremen who live in the north? (We get one line about how "nothing can survive [in the south] without faith" but I wanted more than that.) While I think the movie did a fantastic job of humanizing and differentiating the Fremen we see around Paul, when we get to the south it does backslide a little into "undifferentiated mass of fanatics." Surely the people of the south also have some diversity of political views.
I think there are some interesting threads they could have pulled on in terms of how proximity to direct colonial violence shapes people's ideology. Sietch Tabr is one of the closest Fremen communities to Arrakeen, the seat of colonial control. They have probably had to mount some kind of armed resistance for generations just to keep from being wiped out. I can see that producing skepticism of the prophecy ("well I can't sit around waiting for a messiah but I do have this rocket launcher") as well as resentment at the idea of someone swooping in and taking credit for a struggle that you've put your life on the line for, and probably a lot of people you know have died for. There seem to be some generational differences, too, where young people of Chani's generation put less stock in the prophecy, while the true believers are mostly older. I can see faith in the prophecy coming out of despair--when you've been fighting for decades with no change, maybe you draw the conclusion that only an outside power coming to your aid will make a difference. While the people of the south are still under colonial rule, maybe being generally outside the reach of direct Harkonnen violence (the Harkonnens don't even know they're there) makes the concepts of both oppression and liberation feel more abstract and more receptive to being filled in with Bene Gesserit mysticism. It seems absurd to want more from a movie that's nearly three hours long already...but I wanted more of this.
Still, I do think they managed to improve on a lot of things that frustrated me or are simply dated about the book, while keeping the political thriller/war drama/epic tragedy elements that I think are the heart of the story, and in some cases drawing them out more clearly and effectively than the book did. The best kind of book-to-film adaptation imo is one that has a strong point of view in terms of what the story is About, on a large-scale thematic level, and is not afraid to change individual elements of canon in service of telling that story the most effective way possible in a cinematic medium. While there are always things I want more of, I feel like Denis Villeneuve really, really understood the assignment in terms of the overarching themes of the the story and he delivered so fucking well.
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blackautmedia · 3 months
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Sonic Prime, Nine, Pain and Protection
Sonic Prime Season 3 Spoilers
After watching Sonic prime season 3 it was a real joy to watch. It's certainly not without flaws, but I wanna talk about Nine and how people were reacting to him.
One of Prime's biggest strengths is the sheer amount of expressive faces it uses to indirectly communicate to the viewer. The unspoken storytelling goes a long way.
They emphasize how Nine is laser focused on his ambitions, but his path of trying to convince himself that he can't trust anyone is self-destructive.
He tries his best to hide his pain and assert himself as evil or powerful because Nine is desperate to maintain a sense of control, something that's important to him because his whole life he's only known pain, bullying, physical abuse, and isolation.
The prism itself really takes his toll on him and the show's expressions do not let you forget how much it's hurting him and he can barely hold together. He collapses several time, he grasps his body in pain--this kid was already hurting and he's self-harming in his pursuits.
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Sonic even points out how it's destructive to him and throughout the entire fight Sonic genuinely sees Nine for what he is--a scared and deeply hurt boy in a panic and feeling threatened by everyone around him.
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I'm pretty sure Sonic was going to point out how the prism power is harming Nine, especially because he points out how much the energy is hurting him shortly after this scene too.
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Keep in mind it's not just the strain of using the prism energy.
By this point in the series, Nine was already held prisoner most of season 2. He likely wasn't fed well if at all.
After that, he spends a bunch of time and energy fighting alongside Sonic to escape with the shards. After that, he's having to do more fighting at ghost hill in addition to reassembling the prism.
And then he's doing all of this.
There's a great visual metaphor in Nine's barrier gradually closing in closer and closer until he can't escape having to confront his fears. Toward the end of their big fight, one of the last things Nine does is just form a barrier. Nine is terrified here.
Everyone else sees a traitor they want to get back at, but Sonic is the only one who has seen his vulnerabilities, seen his kinder moments, and sees the humanity in Nine worth saving and fighting for, especially when he's a large part of the cause.
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What breaks Nine is that a big part of him is clearly hurt and wants so badly have companionship in his life, something Sonic is still offering him and something that continually breaks Nine's masking:
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Notice how dejected and exhausted he is and how his metal tails drop down because he's tired of fighting before steeling his focus again. He's not saying how he can't give up with a look of confidence. He's trying to convince himself there's no other option.
He doesn't want to keep fighting but almost feels compelled to and shifts blame to Sonic because of refusing to process his grief or self-reflecting.
Nine yells at Sonic or cuts him off because he knows how much Sonic's words are cutting through his mask and how he knows that it's getting through to him emotionally. He needs Sonic to shut up so it's emotionally easier to keep fighting. Sonic knows Nine too well for him to be able to maintain a facade.
Nine feels violated that the only love he's ever felt after years of abuse was always seemingly for someone else. He feels that he has no other option than to pursue his ambitions and live a life of painful isolation even if his body and heart are screaming otherwise.
He's desperately trying to convince himself that he can't trust anyone so that it hurts less, he tries to make himself seem powerful and invulnerable, he tries to convince himself that he can only have voiceless machines for companions all to avoid feeling vulnerable and hurt.
He very much does not want to fight and can't keep it up, but he's also overwhelmed with feelings of fear and mistrust.
There's a very cool role reversal in how Sonic and Nine fight each other that becomes apparent throughout the big battle.
Nine is trying desperately to maintain some kind of control and when he's not hurting, he's continually frustrated. Look at how he reacts when things don't go as he predicts and despite his belief that Sonic would rush in, Sonic learns and adapts by relying on someone more experienced than him.
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Nine gradually fights more like Sonic--reliant on just his own individual power (or rather the prism's) without slowing down to reflect on his actions--just keep going, just keep pushing. Protect your home. Rush the decay to force Sonic's hand. Gotta go fast.
He targets Sails and Mangey first because the thought of them reminds him of the projection Sonic was doing and he doesn't want to think about it. It also doubles as a way to goad Sonic into acting impulsively, something Sonic wants to do but ends up not going through with.
Meanwhile, Sonic is listening to reason, biding his time, making observations (like the dome shrinking, forming a plan that gives him the upper hand, using the pit to his advantage, etc) and capitalizing on the knowledge he's taking in.
He delegates tasks to other people instead of reacting. He's fighting and thinking like Tails and Nine would, while Nine is acting and fighting more like Sonic would.
I feel the pacing was a lot more tolerable this time compared to prior seasons because while it's one big fight, so much of it represents a gradual change in psyche between Sonic and Nine on top of the other side character moments.
But then Sonic sees the palm tree and finally recognizes Nine's intentions. What makes this scene so great is that Nine makes one last desperate attempt to hold up that same mask he always does. Scare off threats through intimidation. But he's too exhausted.
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But then Sonic protects him. People are angry and threatening and attacking Nine (and while the CC isn't justified, everyone else has valid reason to dislike and distrust him) with no recourse. But for the first time in his life, someone stands up for him and protects him.
His brother still is showing him so much love and trust.
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and Nine is moved by it. Moved by the endless compassion and brotherly love Sonic still is giving him. Compassion Nine doesn't even feel he deserves after what he's done.
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The pained, panicked look as his friend sacrifices him for his mistakes is one of the best shots in the entire season. It's a knife through his heart knowing moments ago he would have willingly sacrificed the only one who showed him so much love.
I'm seeing reactions that people were upset that this was "obvious" when Nine was never trying to be deceitful about his intentions.
The whole reason Sonic and Nine communicate so poorly is made clear in watching the first two seasons. They spend very little time together where they can actually slow down and breathe. They spend almost all of season 2 apart with Nine a prisoner, then they're attacked for two whole episodes before the end when they fall out.
In season 1, they meet, get captured, seize the crystal, get separated, then reunite when Nine makes his offer for the Grim.
There's also this sentiment that Shadow was right about everything and Sonic messed it up--but really, Sonic, Nine, and Shadow were all partially right and wrong.
Sonic genuinely wanted to give Nine a better life, but he also failed to properly listen or communicate with him because he was preoccupied with his own hurt from having destroyed his own home and friends.
Nine does the same thing in how he just assumes Sonic wants what he wants and doesn't contend with how Sonic is hurting too. Both of them are hurting a lot for different reasons. But while they project on each other, they do genuinely love each other too and Sonic specifically argues with Shadow that Nine is real and should be treated as an equal with a stake in their situation.
If they had time where they didn't have a constant threat looming over their heads, their conflicting wants would have gone a lot more smoothly. Sonic could make his case properly and Nine would be a lot more open to see that Sonic not only cares about him, but wants to give him a paradise too.
Shadow is only partially right in that Nine doesn't want the same thing as them, but he believes Nine to be inherently untrustworthy or dismisses the other shatter beings as just fakes or obstacles which fails to get at why Nine is fighting so hard to begin with.
Shadow accuses him of wanting power and Nine agrees, but only in the sense that he's still trying to maintain that control. What he wants is a home, love, and safety.
Shadow routinely dismisses the others as Sonic just being mindlessly sentimental even though they're are a large part of how Sonic even got the shards at all and triumphed.
Sonic could not have succeeded without the others and especially not without Nine. He would have needed a way to extract his own energy and couldn't handle the other shards without Nine's help, Nine's regulators or some kind of cover.
He also would have had his running abilities impaired and that alone would have made things difficult if not impossible. How would he get around the ocean world or search for the shards without Nine's upgrade as a regulator and compass?
How was Sonic supposed to steal the shared from the Chaos Council by himself when his running was affected by the shard energy and he would have had to face that entire army alone? It was difficult to pull off even with the combined strength of five people.
Imagine how heartbreaking it would have been if Sonic agreed to Nine's plan, they try to build the Grim, and Nine learns he needs to sacrifice the brother he fought so hard for.
So not only was it ultimately necessary to work together, Shadow doesn't have the same knowledge Sonic does.
He hasn't seen Nine share his vulnerabilities like he did with Sonic.
He didn't see Nine manipulate the chaos council to protect his friend.
He hasn't seen the joyful Nine who's grown so close to Sonic that he's willing to move heaven and earth to build a paradise for his friend.
He's flat out wrong in the assumptions he makes even if he was right that Nine didn't have the same goals as them.
He didn't see Nine feel he failed his friend by inadvertently unleashing Chaos Sonic. He didn't see Nine stick his neck out so much for his brother.
That's not to say the others were obligated to listen to Nine--they had valid reasons to distrust him--but it doesn't change the fact that Nine is still ultimately an abused kid desperate for a home and has grown up in such isolation that he has no regard for others.
He's not trying to destroy the world--he wants to fix it and isn't against leaving others in isolation.
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When Nine hugs Sonic, his mouth trembles. It's like he's struggling to find words to say but can't get them out.
(EDIT: I've updated some portions with new knowledge about the series when before I had speculations)
Now the bigger issue I have with the show is that only ending at episode seven leaves without a lot of closure for Nine.
Nine is the deuteragonist of Sonic Prime. Part of what made Sonic's plan to take Nine with him to Green Hill so moving was that he wanted to give Nine more than just one friend--he wanted a new environment and life for him and wanted him to be surrounded with people who love him.
It would have gone a long way to have even one scene maybe indicating they can travel to other worlds or have Nine meet the others in Green Hill, showing he has that now.
The moment where he hugs Sonic is very great especially because it's Nine himself initiating it. But as it stands it only leaves it at Sonic and Nine reconciling but not indicating what Nine's fate is after this. The other shatterverse people don't have any reason to trust him so it reads like he's just left alone again.
Even one scene of Nine getting to see a lush, green place for him to live, getting to just have fun with a whole group of friends, sticking him in a safe environment where he'll be loved and respected would have gone a long way.
Having said that, I've watched a few reviews now and find it frustrating none of them are framing this criticism in a way that addresses the fact that more people in the production industry than ever now are striking, we're in a pandemic, and exploitation of employees is a major issue with the advent of AI, among other things.
I can't say for sure, but I wish more of these criticisms were framed less as "man this show is lazy, even fan works are better than this" like I'm seeing on YouTube and Twitter and acknowledging the very real conditions that we're seeing play out in real time.
I'd have ended with the last episode being an entire epilogue or the picnic Scene with Sonic saying "hey guys there's someone I want you to meet" and it's Nine. Sonic would be showing Nine all the little joys in life he could never experience until now.
The final season went to great lengths to use its animation and writing to portray how taxing this all was for Nine, so easily one of the most important plot threads to resolve is him getting the safe home he wanted so badly and giving him some way of being safe and getting to heal emotionally.
The series did pack in quite a few character moments for the rest of the cast and I don't want to take away from that, but I feel a large part of the current mixed feeling or dissatisfaction comes from how it leaves a large portion hanging for Nine. The hug was huge. But it still doesn't really resolve the larger narrative built up with Nine.
That said, a lot of what we have seen was great and a lot of fun. Sonic chose to see what he always knew was in Nine.
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quin-ns · 2 years
Text
Crushes, Chaos, and Confessions (Steve Harrington x Reader)
Word count: 2.2K
Summary: dustin knows how steve feels about you and he can’t stop himself from spilling his best friend’s biggest secret to you
Tags: ST4 spoilers!!, steve being all sweet, dustin, max, and lucas being chaotic/funny, dustin has a big mouth, humor, fluff, love confessions, kissing, mutually requited love
A/N: my second steve fic! I loved writing him so much the first time I had to do it again <3
cross-posted to ao3 • st masterlist • writing masterlist
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Sitting in the basement of the Wheeler house felt odd. Probably because neither of the Wheeler siblings you knew were there. Still, you had a lot of company.
Max was across the room at a desk, her headphones on as she held a pen in hand. Lucas, Steve, and Dustin—in that order—were sitting on the couch against the wall opposite to Max. And you? You couldn’t sit down. You should’ve gone with Nancy and Robin, but Steve had complained about always having to be the babysitter and convinced you that three was a crowd and to stick with him instead.
It was kind of embarrassing, how easy he could sway you. Steve had quickly become one of your best friends after he began working with you and Robin at Scoops Ahoy. That is, before the mall burned down. However, everything that happened was a very quick and strong bonding experience. Then the three of you migrated together to the video store and spent even more time together. Especially you and Steve. After your shifts or on your days off you were almost always hanging out together.
“Can you sit down?” Dustin’s voice broke through the silence and took you out of your head. “You’re making me dizzy.”
“Leave her alone, dude,” Steve muttered in your defense. “She’s scared.”
“I’m not scared,” you were quick to correct, finally stilling in order to face them. “I’m just… anxious.” It was true, you couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen if Nancy and Robin came back with no answers and Max—who you’d become fond of—was left in danger.
Steve stood from the couch and made his way over to you. He put an arm over your shoulder and pulled you against him at an angle. You allowed yourself to curl into him as he provided you with a comforting embrace.
“When’s the last time you slept?” Steve asked as his other arm came around you, hugging you. His voice was soft but full of concern.
“I don’t remember,” you admitted. After everything that happened it was hard to calm down enough to even close your eyes for more than a few seconds. You felt like you couldn’t sleep until the mystery of Vecna was solved and he was stopped.
If your head wasn’t against Steve’s chest, you would’ve seen Lucas staring at you and Steve while Dustin rolled his eyes. Steve didn’t see at first either, but he sensed the sass radiating off of his young friend. He shot Dustin a glare that translated to ‘keep your mouth shut!’
See, Dustin knew about Steve’s feelings for you. Well, practically everyone who saw the way he interacted with you did, but Dustin was the only one he actually told. He would’ve told Robin but she had already figured it out and he made her swear to forget it. There was only one person who didn’t know how Steve felt about you; you.
Somehow, you were oblivious to it. Even Steve at times was surprised you hadn’t called him out on it. Between the longing stares and constant affection, the way his mood always lit up when you were around and how often he wanted to hang out, he figured he would’ve been caught by now. But you never seemed to notice how he was so much gentler and much more openly caring with you than anyone else.
“Just try to take it easy, okay? Please?” Steve asked softly. “You know I worry about you.”
You lifted your head and met his eyes with a soft smile. “Sometimes I think you worry about me too much,” you teased him lightly.
“Yeah, well, I can’t help it,” he replied with sincerity. A light smile tugged at his lips as he stared down at you. He couldn’t hide the absolute adoration in his eyes as he held your gaze, and it took everything he had to not lean down and kiss you.
The moment was ruined when Dustin decided he couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “If you’re gonna kiss can you not do it in front of us please?” he asked sarcastically. Steve shot him a death glare and you blushed a little bit and stepped back from Steve.
“What the hell, man?” Steve couldn’t contain his annoyance at the younger teen. Looking at Steve you could see he was blushing a tad. You figured it was because Dustin had embarrassed him. It was one thing when you and Steve teased each other about your relationship but hearing it from someone else made it awkward.
You rolled your eyes and brushed off the comment. You thought there was no way it was anything more than a joke so you didn’t let it bother you. “I’m gonna go get a glass of water,” you announced, changing the subject.
“No, you stay here,” Steve decided, already walking to the stairs. “Sit down and relax for a sec. I’ll get it for you.” He gestured to the spot he’d been sitting that was now empty.
“Um, thanks!” You called after him as he ascended to the main house. You turned your attention to Lucas and Dustin, furrowing your brows at the weird expressions on their faces.
You didn’t move to the seat, unable to bring yourself to sit down. “Why are you looking at me like that?” you asked the boys.
“I wasn’t joking, you know. Before. He really does wanna kiss you.” Dustin told you matter of factly.
“What?” you questioned, his comment coming seemingly out of nowhere. You had no idea how long he’d been keeping Steve’s secret and Dustin just couldn’t not say anything now.
“He likes you. It’s, like, disgustingly obvious. I don’t know how you don’t notice,” he stated with plenty of sass in his voice. It was the tone he always used when he knew he was right—which was more often than any one of you wanted to admit.
“Yeah, he’s definitely into you,” Max chimed in, apparently having listened in to the whole interaction. You turned your head to her and saw no hint of sarcasm. “You seem like you like him too,” she added.
You opened your mouth to say something, but Dustin cut you off with more revealing information. “He’s too scared to tell you. He doesn’t want to ruin the friendship, whatever that means.”
“If you like him you should tell him,” Max intervened yet again. “He’d actually be a good boyfriend. He’s like, super romantic with you already. You just don’t notice.” The way she said it had an underlying argumentative tone.
That, of course, sparked Lucas to jump in. “And what? I wasn’t a good boyfriend?”
“You cared more about being popular so what do you think?” Max snarked back with her focus on Lucas.
You didn’t even have the focus to register what they had revealed to you before because the conversation devolved into children (okay, fine, teens) bicker amongst themselves.
“I do care about you!” Lucas defended, yelling slightly in exasperation.
“You did miss Hellfire Club,” Dustin muttered under his breath.
“And you missed my game!” Lucas then turned back to Max. “I do care about you, okay? Plus, Steve was popular in high school and now you’re his number one fan or whatever so how is that different?”
Max scoffed. “What does that have to do with anything?” she questioned. “Besides, I’m not his number one fan- Y/N is!”
“Guys—” you said, trying to get a word in.
“All I said was that they’d make a good couple because he obviously cares about her a lot.”
“Once again—” Lucas tried to argue back, but he got cut off just as you had been. This time, by Dustin.
He shot to his feet. “Hey! Quit it!” he yelled to Max and Lucas, causing them to fall quiet. They seemed startled and honestly you were too. All eyes were on Dustin as he firmly reminded, “this is about Y/N and Steve, not you two.” Dustin then looked at you. “Do you like Steve?” he pushed for an answer, causing you to feel flustered. You felt like a spotlight was on you.
This was not how you expected to admit you had feelings for Steve Harrington…
Then, to make everything even more… you didn’t know the word for it. Weird? It didn’t matter. Point was, Steve appeared all of the sudden and questioned, “I heard my name, what’s going on?”
Well, at least he hadn’t heard everything. “Um,” you didn’t know what to say.
“We told her you love her,” Dustin announced, causing both you and Steve to whip your heads towards him.
“What!?” You and Steve exclaimed in unison. You were both shocked, but in different ways.
“Why would you tell her that!?” Steve demanded an answer from Dustin.
Your eyes found Steve. “You love me?” you asked. He looked down at you, his cheeks flushed and his face still wearing an expression of surprise and confusion.
He swallowed, trying to regain his composure. “I thought he said he told you.”
“He didn’t say love,” you told him. You still couldn’t believe it as you said the words. Steve Harrington loved you… that was a lot to take in.
“Well, he does love you,” Dustin confirmed.
“Be quiet, Henderson!” Steve shouted in frustration at the boy.
“No, I’m tired of you staring at her and always talking about her but doing nothing about it!” Dustin argued, somehow sounding just as frustrated with Steve as Steve was with him.
“I thought you said you didn’t want them to kiss earlier,” Max quipped.
Dustin looked at her and she tilted her head, easing her brows. “They need to kiss and get it over with, just not in front of me,” Dustin clarified.
“Okay!” Steve shouted, holding his hands up, signaling for silence. Then he took a breath before letting out a deep sigh. “Y/N, can I talk to you for a minute?” he addressed you calmly. This wasn’t how he wanted you to find out. Hell, he wasn’t planning on you finding out. But if he did tell you, it would’ve been… well, not like this. Now he had to explain himself and hope you didn’t reject him too harshly.
Given the situation with Max, you figured the both of you leaving the room wasn’t the safest and Steve agreed. You found yourselves sitting on the stairs next to one another. You were towards the middle, still in the eyeline of the other three but (hopefully) out of earshot if you talked quietly.
“Here,” Steve murmured, pushing the glass of water he had been holding into your hand. You dipped it, muttered thanks, then set it aside.
“So…” he started off. Steve wasn’t looking at you, but at his hands as he fiddled with his hands. “Henderson told you everything?”
“Yeah,” you confirmed. “It was a lot of information all at once,” you recalled through a small chuckle. The chaos that had ensued was admittedly funny in hindsight.
“And what do you think of that information?” he asked cautiously, finally looking up and meeting your eyes. Steve was so anxious and he was sure you could see it. Maybe he’d get some of your sympathy so you would let him down gently.
Instead, you surprised him. “I wish you had told me sooner,” you admitted. You had no excuse not to tell Steve everything now that you knew he felt the same. “I feel the same way.”
Steve’s brows raised slightly and a boyish smile crossed his face. “You don’t know how happy I am to hear that,” he replied, a huge weight lifting off of his shoulder. His heart still raced but in a different way now.
“I guess I was better at hiding it than you,” you teased. “I mean, I didn’t know—but they did.” You gestured to the kids with a tilt of your head. “Seems like I need to pay better attention.”
You both laughed at that. “I should’ve just said something. I didn’t want to screw things up,” he confessed. Steve then chuckled to himself. “I can’t believe Henderson told you.”
“I guess he did us a favor, huh?” You suggested.
“You’re welcome!” Dustin called over to you. Great, so they had been eavesdropping. It was naive to believe they were actually minding their own business.
“Hey, Dustin?” Steve spoke up now that he knew he was listening. You threw a glance towards the boy and saw he was looking at you guys now.
“What?”
Steve smirked to himself before saying, “Close your eyes.”
Dustin furrowed his brows at that, not realizing the callback Steve was making until he leaned in to kiss you.
The kiss was sweet and full of love and god, his lips were so soft. You smiled against him briefly before returning the kiss with just as much passion.
“Oh, come on,” Dustin complained, likely averting his eyes.
“Leave them alone! This is a big moment,” Max defended you and Steve. You couldn’t help but laugh and the two of you pulled apart, both with smiles on your faces.
“I can’t believe the first time I got to kiss you was in front of,”—he gestured to the teens—“them."
"Me neither," you and Dustin replied at the same time.
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connoisseursdecomfort · 7 months
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Embracing imperfection - Yor's reflection on her marriage
The latest arc, I believe, is an arc about their reflections upon their marriage. Since I've already made two posts about Twilight (one about how he's arrived at chapter 79, and the other about him in Ch.86), I'd like to talk about Yor a little bit more.
Why did Yor get married in the first place?
For Twilight, it has always been "for the mission", although it is turning into an obvious excuse. Yor's is slightly different. She got married because of social obligations, i.e. the warning from her colleagues, and the concerns for her brother.
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Because the Ostanian society deems an unmarried 27-year-old as abnormal, in order to act normal, Yor must get married. She wasn't totally dishonest when she told Loid she wanted to ease Yuri's mind, because Yuri did tell her he would not accept the promotion if she didn't find a good enough boyfriend to take care of her. Of course we also know she needs a cover-up for her assassin job.
But the problem is, Yor is also socially awkward - most probably due to her assassin job - and she's painfully aware of it. She understands what the society requires women to do as wives and mothers. Is it fair? No, and Loid actively rejects this idea. He might have successfully alleviated the pressure, but I don't believe that any person, other than Yor herself, can make it disappear entirely.
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On top of this, Yor has been getting more attached to Loid and Anya, particularly Anya.
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And slowly she became closer to Loid as well. She recognises how tired Loid is and actively tries to help. As she slowly settles into her new life, she also realises how important the Forgers have been to her. It's only normal that she wants to become a better family member to her family.
(Spoiler alert)
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Because of the Forgers, she's able to embrace her own strength, because she feels validated. Anya told her she liked her strong and cool mama, and Loid said she's an excellent mother because she's strong.
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However, she still didn't know how to be normal. Her insecurities remained. She still worried about her neighbours gossiping about her not being a decent enough mother for not knowing where to buy tea cakes for her daughter.
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She then thought to herself:
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But there is no such thing as "good at acting normal". The term "perfectly normal" is an oxymoron. Normality isn't about good at something, as shown in the two gatherings Yor'd joined.
Melinda and her friends told Yor that "not knowing what to do is normal":
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During her after-work drinks with her colleagues, she learnt that "having gripes is normal".
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Normality is imperfect. And that goes against what she's been doing as an assassin. She needs to be the best in order to survive. We can see hints of Yor being the zealous and cutthroat assassin she is:
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In chapter 79 there's a similar scene:
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(In the JP version it should be something more similar to "It's better to win.")
Her assassin mentality was also on full display in the volleyball game - to do it alone and to win.
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As an assassin, she needs to cut to the chase and deal with her targets quickly. She takes in the information and must act on it quickly. The feeling of being new to something, which also echoes her situation in her marriage, could also add to her anxiety of not being able to help as much as she wants to. So when she's told everyone has gripes, she has to act on it.
It created an internal conflict and she short-circuited.
On one hand, not knowing how to be normal has always been her biggest problem. Her getting married was initially a way for her to "act normal". On the other hand, what if "being normal" means hurting her family, who has now become very dear to her:
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And of course she knows she doesn't really want gripes:
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She doesn't want to hurt Loid. That's why she did the backflip in Ch.79.
At this point, Yor finally has to face this question: what is her goal? Does she want to act normal for the sake of being normal and find gripes? Or does she want to reflect upon what she really wants to do when she thinks about the possible gripes she might have?
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And therefore she came to a conclusion and decided to be honest with Loid:
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The arc starts with a pretence - her finding gripes in order to be normal, and ends with her being honest while talking about her true concerns and trying to be supportive. She tries her best, and she's happy.
A lot of people have already pointed out this panel echoes the scene in ch. 14.
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I'd like to think this is a new start for Yor.
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wrathful-banette · 2 months
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sooo.... I've been getting into slay the princess. here are some headcanons for the voices if they were given free reign to exist in the outside world. also they all live in the same house since I'm a sucker for that trope. also the princesses be there
under the cut because it will be very long. endgame spoilers for stp btw.
Voice Of The Hero:
the one that everyone is at least mostly chill with.
all the other voices have a fair amount of experience with him, considering the routes.
overall a pretty kind and considerate guy ←this is literally just canon what am I going on about
Can very easily miss subtext and sarcasm also.
↑the contrarian exploits this for friendly reasons!
↑↑the cold exploits this for evil reasons
I imagine he would look basically like a smaller the long quiet.
him and the contrarian are thick as thieves, as well as him and the long quiet.
struggles with feelings of loneliness and disconnection from the world around him.
semi-frequent nightmares, ranging from mostly being unpleasant dreams to "waking up in the middle of night terrified." thankfully, the latter option is rather rare for him.
very fond of physical affection.
Voice Of The Contrarian:
he's a crow!
very good at using reverse psychology.
However, this comes at the cost of being very susceptible to reverse psychology himself.
forgets to preen with alarming frequency, with surprisingly little consequence.
extremely loyal to those he cares for, just in weird ways.
Shares the hero's trait of being rather susceptible to loneliness.
he really likes giving the other voices nicknames! it's a show of affection for him.
him and hero kind of have what you'd call a bromance going on.
Voice Of The Hunted:
a sandpiper.
He's grown a lot more comfortable with the others, even though he still retains his prey animal mindset in a lot of ways.
very frequently puttering around making sure "the flock" (the other voices) are doing okay.
↑ especially when it comes to food!! his ass WILL make sure you've eaten
one of the main driving forces reminding the broken to eat drink and preen himself.
very meticulous about preening himself, but somehow even more meticulous with the others (headcanon inspired by someone else idr who sadly)
Can go from just standing on the ground normally to flying like 20 feet in the air in just a couple seconds.
he can and has done this on pure instinct when he's been startled outdoors.
desperately wants to carry people around you should totally let him do that pleasepleasepleaseplease
Very nervous around the beast/den, but has been calming down a bit in that respect.
surprisingly protective over the other voices, the broken and paranoid especially.
Voice Of The Smitten:
flamingo <3
struggles with feelings of inadequacy, feeling like he has to give 110% to the acts of service with the damsel at all times, even when that just isn't feasible for him.
He has a... complex relationship with the stubborn.
He struggles to understand how the hell his relationship with the adversary even functions, but is able to respect it for the most part.
↑This respect was only fostered when they almost got into a physical fight because the smitten questioned if he really loved the adversary.
Smitten's really bad at asking for help, sees it as unbecoming for himself.
For this same reason, he's also terrible at expressing his more genuinely bad feelings.
overpreens when stressed, leading to bald spots which he always gets extremely self-conscious and embarrassed about. nobody knows he gets these except himself.
resents the voice of the cold for the burned grey route, but refuses to give him the time of day about it.
Voice of the Broken:
He's been doing better. the others have been helping the best they can.
surprisingly enough however, one of the biggest catalysts for his improving mental health has been... the nightmare/moment of clarity?
it started off as her not having any fun messing with somebody who was already so beaten down, but the paradigm has long sense shifted from that.
Don't get me wrong, he's still a pushover. but less so now.
^these headcanons courtesy of @kalkori btw (hiii kb :3)
His feathers are a mess most of the time. the hunted is his saving grace in this respect.
actually, him and the hunted have grown rather close, in their own weird way.
Voice of The Stubborn:
he's a shoebill stork!
him and the adversary/eye of the needle are in a relationship together.
They've since branched out and gotten other hobbies other than beating the shit out of eachother (though they still do that frequently),
like beating the shit out of invasive plants, and picking fights with the more powerful princesses together
^the tower has not known a moment of peace since this began. she will not know a moment of peace again.
he frequently wrestles with the long quiet for fun!
hotblooded in the most literal way possible. actual walking heater.
likes pestering the skeptic.
Voice of the Paranoid:
most of these headcanons are also going to be courtesy of kb they are the number one voice of the paranoid fan to me
He's a Bittern! longass neck having ass
he is straight up sneef snorfin it
Frequently overpreens, leading to multiple bald spots.
the long quiet has put him into a longass cone over this one at least one occasion.
unlike the smitten, he doesn't really care about the bald spots.
buddies with the hunted!
is not happy about the whole "Moment Of Clarity hanging out with the broken" deal. Is only going along with it because he seems so much happier nowadays. (relative to how he was before, anyway.)
Will instinctively start muttering "heart lungs liver nerves" whenever he senses she's near.
By the way, the mantra still works. and now he can do it on other people, same body or not.
Considering using this ability to become a doctor!
extends his neck out really far on instinct whenever he feels threatened. just bittern things <3
Also, him and the smitten are friends, against all odds. nobody knows how their friendship functions with the way they are
Voice of the Cheated:
dont have a solid bird idea for him but a dodo bird could be really fun
i love him he sucks so much
Somehow keeps getting himself injured in ways that he just straight up could Not feasibly predict or prevent. he is NOT taking it in stride.
absolutely despises the opportunist, considers him a slimy, cheating bastard.
Isn't allowed to participate in board game sessions anymore.
not after the incident.
but he is allowed to observe and call people out if they try and cheat.
He's mellowed out a bit since the construct. just a bit.
he hates preening himself, and tends to get fidgety when other people preen him. but he always relents eventually, if only because he very much dislikes how uncomfortable it is to have unpreened feathers.
Voice of the Cold
also someone who's mellowed out a bit. Still, his walls are up.
But it's a lot harder to keep up a facade of disconnection when you have your own body. when you're more than just an observer. he tries regardless. And mostly succeeds. But the long quiet knows the truth.
The spectre and moment of clarity will sneak up behind him and try to jumpscare him with cold hands on his shoulders. it never works.
always ridiculously cold. counteracts this with the power of always layering.
butts heads with the smitten a lot. and the stubborn, actually.
He considers both of them hopeless romantics with nothing better to do except fawn over their partners.
Voice of the Skeptic
He'd probably be some kind of owl?
i'm gonna be honest i ain't got much for him but he does get along well with the paranoid, being able to reign him in from his more... impulsive worries.
Nobody realises that him and the prisoner are in a relationship. they don't plan on telling anyone until they find out.
he enjoys puzzles of any kind! jigsaw, logic, math, crossword, you name it.
good at white lies, but terrible at telling lies with any sort of substance or ill intent behind them.
tends to pace around a lot when deep in thought.
him and stubborn are shitasses to eachother most of the time.
Voice of the Opportunist
definitely a vulture.
he sucks so goddamn much i love him
he's actually turned the two-faced-ness down a bit since the construct. just a bit.
likes hanging out with the smitten, he thinks he's funny. No, no, he's not getting attached. shut it.
him and the witch hang out a lo too, but in a way that involves, well. a lot of biting.
they basically just playfight, but like. fighting dirty playfighting.
...He tends to avoid the thorn. he feels a bit guilty around her.
quiet ass footsteps. he just... appears in places sometimes. refuses to acknowledge this.
he eats bugs. and a lot of other weird things, actually.
both of these are because he's pretty much always hungry. if you leave food out he will have some.
he is much more impulsive than he would have you believe.
aaand that's all of them for now! if you read all of this we are now married /j
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chorus-the-mutate · 6 months
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This is an edited repost of the Erzsebet Bathory character analysis I wrote yesterday that I refuse to let go to waste. I tried doing the right thing and tagging all of the necessary trigger warnings only for this post to be completely hidden from the Castlevania Nocturne and Erzsebet Bathory tags. Since I can't afford to tag the proper trigger warnings without being punished please do not read this post if discussions of rape or sexual assault triggers or upsets you in any way. I don't take these topics lightly and they are vital to this analysis of Erzsebet Bathory.
This post also contains major spoilers for this first season of Castlevania Nocturne.
This may seem presumptive of me to say but this thought has been stuck in my head for several hours: Erzsebet Bathory is the most rapist adjacent villainess I've ever seen without her actually being a rapist.
The first and smallest point against her is how often she mentions virgins. I know that Erzsebet's initial mention of virgin sacrifices is supposed to tie into the origin of her alter ego and consumption of Sekhmet but it's super fucking weird that it played into why she wanted to sacrifice Maria.
Next point against her is the lawyer's daughter. I'm not sure if this lady was a virgin but when she's first brought to Erzsebet she's already terrified and too dazed to fight back. It's obvious that she doesn't want to be there and that even if she did that she can't really express that desire. But Erzsebet still takes this lady out of a literal gilded cage, sits down and sits this lady on her dress to admire her despair before drinking her blood. The next time we see the lady she's still dazed. The only differences are that she's dolled up and seems more suggestible. Even with hundreds of people in this ballroom scene the lady is literally ignored by everyone except for Erzsebet who dances with her and parades her around for her own amusement. Everyone else knows that Erzsebet likes to make her victims suffer and they still refuse to acknowledge the lady because Erzsebet has made it clear that she's her possession. Hell the only person who is unhappy enough with Erzsebet to go rogue at this point is Olrox and he STILL IGNORES THIS LADY. When the lady is dragged outside to be fed on again without anyone batting an eye it reminds me of a rapist roofying their target and proceeding to do everything in their power to seem interested in their victim's well-being in order to take them to a second location. And no one speaks up since Erzsebet is the Harvey Weinstein, Prince Andrew or Thomas Jefferson of the vampire world; the embodiment of people in power getting away with abuse until the damage has already been done.
The last and biggest point against Erzsebet is the entire scene where she turns Tera into a vampire. For me personally that is just an allegorical rape scene and it's executed very well. Erzsebet makes her entrance at the abbey as a lioness of a woman, a literal predator who wants to take Maria as a sacrifice and turn her into a vampire to ensure Emmanuel the Abbot's loyalty. Tera protests and offers herself to Erzsebet instead. This is such blatant coercion that Tera refers to herself as the ram Abraham sacrificed to God instead of Isaac. And the only question or concern Erzsebet has at this point is if her sacrifice should be a virgin. The only reasons she accepts the sacrifice are Emmanuel's genuine love for Tera and the fact that Tera is a powerful sorceress. Once Erzsebet settles for Tera and physically lifts her to her level no one can stop her. Maria gets knocked out for trying and Richter gets bodied immediately after. Their only option is to get the hell out of there once Annette makes an opening and Richter rightfully runs for his life. Even Maria, the only person that could look back and see Tera turn, is knocked out and that feels like an intentional writing choice to give Tera one last shred of dignity. Erzsebet holds Tera really close in this sort of hug as she feeds on her and once she's fed she literally sits Tera on her lap for her turn to feed. Then Erzsebet cuts herself and the blood starts dripping down on Tera, starting at her skirt, going to her blouse and reaching her face. At first Tera doesn't react but then her body responds to the blood and she feeds even though she doesn't want to. Even though no one wants this for her. And that is exactly what it's like when someone has an unwanted orgasm. Tera's body is protecting itself the same way a victim of assault would and that paired with the blood on her skirt being reminiscent of the blood on a woman's thigh in the aftermath of an assault hammers home the rape allegory. It's very sad and uncomfortable to think of Tera's turn to vampirism this way but the thought lingers hours after like a grimy film on my brain.
I 100,000% believe that Erzsebet would have been an actual rapist if Netflix Castlevania didn't romanticize Lenore raping Hector and ending their relationship on friendly terms. Not to mention Sumi and Taka's sudden shift from allies to sexually assaulting Alucard out of spite. Castlevania Nocturne seems to shy away from rape and sexual assault in favor of allegories or moments so brief that I missed them unlike its predecessor. So I'm blaming the gratuitous depictions of sexual assault in Castlevania on Warren Ellis, the creator of Netflix Castlevania, who doesn't work on this show for a very good reason.
Everything from her size as Sekhmet to her tendency to torture women and girls before killing them contributes to the allegory of Erzsebet being the vampire equivalent of a rapist. She exudes power and not only does she enjoy making others feel helpless she's also great at it. She is a sadist without honor, willing to parade her lady victim of choice around vampire high society or hang a young girl on hooks to drain dry rather than let any of them die a quick death. The dragged out, needless suffering Erzsebet inflicts along with her preference for women and virgins frames her feeding as something more sexual in nature than the other vampire nobles who simply indulge in their gluttony. Even Olrox feeding on his former boyfriend isn't framed sexually, it's framed as a desperate, romantic gesture to keep his lover alive. And every vampire I remember from Castlevania has their feeding framed as a tool for political power or sheer, simple gluttony. Even the vampire general Cho was shown to be more of a tyrant or a general sadist clinging to power in Japan than a deviant.
Erzsebet's sheer sadism actually contrasts quite well with Dracula's humanity and restraint. He understood humanity, only feeding to survive or strike down the merchants who slighted him. (He probably also used feeding as a tool for political power but I don't think we saw that directly.) Dracula ultimately came to understand humanity so well that he fell for Lisa Tepes, the exemplar of what it means to be human. And that love is why I believe he respected Lisa's wishes and let her keep that humanity instead of turning her into a vampire. And after Lisa's death Dracula stopped feeding entirely, hoping to extinguish his life and take out as many people as he could because he believed that humanity should've been better. He believed that the people who lived alongside Lisa would've stood up for her and they betrayed her out of a mix of fear, religious reverence and apathy. Meanwhile Erzsebet doesn't care about humanity, seeing people like the lawyer's daughter as possessions or people like Tera and Emmanuel the Abbot as pawns to further her own rule. She might be taken aback by Drolta's death once she learns of it but there's an equal chance that she wouldn't even bat an eye.
So what do these points of analysis mean for Erzsebet and Tera's future dynamic as master and pawn? The one thing that's certain is that Tera has been fundamentally changed, forced into an unprecedented nightmare scenario that will drag her down a dark path. But I'm an optimist and I believe that Tera will ultimately be redeemed. She may never be human again but her humanity, her love for her son and daughter will save her soul. Ultimately I hope that Tera lives and recovers from the trauma of Erzsebet turning her. I hope that she goes home to her children and is taken in with open arms. But if Tera dies she will die as Tera, not as a pawn, and that is because Erzsebet could never kill her humanity.
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