#“CUB student life”

[digital-techtune2024]

https://www.cub.edu.bd/

[tibby-art]

hitman au save me .. its been seven years ..

haven’t been able to draw/write much of this au lately but i want to write a few little scene snippets i have stored my brain :’D ill include them under cut

=+=

“This better be something good,” Scar muttered to Cub as they stepped out of the elevator. The hitman, while bound to his contract, considered ‘boring’ missions to be a waste of his time.

“I hope so,” Cub hummed. “Hope so.”

The ConVex swung open the doors to the NHO conference room, not bothering to check if their bosses were actually ready for their meeting.

“Holy mother of—! Knock next time, will you?” A man setting files down on the conference table jumped visibly as the doors slammed open.

“The Vex require a dramatic entrance, Beef,” Scar said casually. Cub snickered.

“Sure, whatever.” Beef furrowed his brow, used to this behavior. He didn’t have time for this. “Okay. Doc was supposed to do this briefing, but he’s busy with his machines I guess, because of course he is, so.” He huffed, composing himself. “Your new top-secret project. This one’s a doozy. Have a look.”

Beef slid the folder across the table. The hitmen flipped it open, absorbing its contents with hungry eyes.

What caught their eyes immediately were the photos. The person of interest looked nothing like a powerful crime boss or a dangerous anomaly. A young adult with glasses, dark eyes and short, sandy brown hair stared back at them.

“Who’s this?” Scar raised an eyebrow. Is the NHO asking them to assassinate some normal-looking university student?

“That is Grian,” Beef explained, both hands planted firmly on the table. “Grian has been with us at the NHO for months.”

“I’ve never seen him before,” Scar remarked.

“Grian’s case is top-secret. He’s been staying in high-security, private quarters… as well as our research laboratories.”

“I thought you guys seemed super suspicious lately! I knew they were hiding something from us, Cub,” Scar nudged his partner with a grin. Cub did not budge as his sharp eyes combed through the documents. He hadn’t heard a single word spoken to him.

“Cub? What’s the deal?” Scar asked. He preferred to let Cub read their mission files and summarize it for him, anyways. Dyslexia and top-secret government files were not a great mix. Oh, what would he do without Cub?

“Watchers?” Cub finally spoke, looking up at Beef with a quizzical frown. The other man nodded slowly. “You’re kidding.”

“After months of testing and analysis, we can confirm that this individual is the only currently documented case of a mortal possessing Watcher abilities,” Beef nodded slowly.

Scar had heard whispers of the Watchers only a handful of times. As a vex, he knew plenty about the realm of magic, the divine, the fae, you name it! But Watchers were said to be ancient entities, perhaps as old as time itself. So old that they were widely considered to be a myth.

“So this is not a hit,” Scar said after a moment.

“This is not a hit, Scar, good lord, do not kill this person,” Beef put both hands on his forehead and let them slowly drag down his face.

“Mortal, you say?” Cub raised an eyebrow.

“Yep,” Beef said. “She was a completely normal citizen until he got these abilities in some freak accident. Lucky for everyone involved, the NHO was able to take control of the situation before anything… dangerous happened.”

“So,” Scar narrowed his eyes slightly, “If this isn’t a hit, then what do you want from us?”

Beef sighed. “After months of testing to determine Grian’s situation, the NHO has decided that he is too important to return to life as a normal citizen at this time. Instead, we’d like to utilize his abilities in our goals to maintain order in Hermit City, and we need someone to train her how to be a special agent in the field.”

“You want the ConVex to train a Watcher how to be a hitman,” Cub said with a slight smirk at just how insane that sounded.

“Yep.”

“Huh.” Scar put both hands on his hips. “Well, that’s not what I was expecting.”

“I suppose we could give it a shot,” Cub said. Although the ConVex were bound by a fae contract to work for the NHO, the vex took every opportunity to feign control over their situation. There was no choice here. Beef had given them an order.

“Sure, sure! We are very good at our jobs, after all,” Scar grinned. Whatever happened, good or bad, would at least be entertaining, surely.

“You’ll come back here to meet her tomorrow morning,” Beef instructed. “Hand me that file back and be here by 9, will you?”

“Sure thing,” Cub replied coolly, sliding the file back to the man. Scar couldn’t help but grin wider when he noticed Cub’s hand casually in his pants pocket, some folded white paper barely visible in his grip.

“Don’t be late. I’m serious this time,” Beef called out as the hitmen turned and exited the conference room.

=+=

The conference room was tense that morning. Towards the end of the table sat the NHO - Beef, Doc, Etho, and Bdubs. On one side sat Cub and Scar. Across from them, Grian sat alone.

“So, how about introductions?” Doc clapped his hands together. “Er… Cub and Scar, this is Grian. Grian, this is Cub and Scar. You guys already know the deal. Grian is going to come with you on missions from now on.”

The ConVex hadn’t taken their eyes off of Grian since they entered the room, unable to resist their curiosity. They had both read the files, but still found it hard to believe the person before them was a Watcher. Grian sat rigid in his chair, fiddling with his hands, looking tense and exhausted. She eyed the vex curiously as well.

“Well hello there,” Scar greeted. “I’m Scar, and this is Cub.”

“Hey, hey,” Cub said quietly.

“Hello,” The corner of Grian’s mouth twitched in a possible attempt at a smile.

The three continued to stare at each other until Bdubs cleared his throat.

“Wonderful introduction. Now that we’ve broken the ice, let’s talk about your next mission.” The man picked up a small remote, and the large screen on the wall behind them illuminated.

“Before we send our agents out into the field, we meet like this to discuss the details and ensure that the mission is clearly understood,” Doc explained to Grian, throwing a disapproving glare in the ConVex’s direction.

A lengthy file on some high-profile criminal appeared on the screen, as Bdubs proceeded to read off the information. Scar slumped back in his chair. These mission briefings were the worst. It was time to zone out and have Cub tell him the details later with all the fluff cut out.

At about ten minutes in, Scar yawned absentmindedly.

“Oh, are we boring you, sir?” Doc interrupted Bdubs to shoot a piercing stare at Scar.

“Oh, not at all!” Scar said cheerfully, but slumping in his chair slightly lower.

“As I was saying,” Bdubs continued loudly.

Scar glanced over at Grian. Her eyes quickly darted back to the presentation when they made eye contact. Scar looked over at Cub and found he had still not taken his eyes off of Grian. Hopefully Cub was at least somewhat paying attention, because he sure wasn’t.

Grian continued to fidget with his hands. Scar felt a pang of pity for him. The vex were used to this sort of environment, but according to the NHO, Grian had a completely normal life up until a few months ago. Now suddenly, he gains these terrifying powers and spends months in a top-secret lab having tests run on her all day. Who wouldn’t be overwhelmed?

Scar yawned again, this time more intentionally. He earned another death glare from Doc, but Bdubs droned on. He glanced over and saw Grian rubbing a hand on his cheek to help hide a grin.

The art of annoying your boss was a delicate one. Timing is everything. Let enough time pass until they’ve forgotten, or they think you’ve stopped, to continue the game. Scar lets about ten minutes pass before his next yawn, bigger this time.

“Quit it,” Beef hissed. Even Etho glanced over. Doc kept his eyes on the screen, but his jaw was clenched. Grian let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like a laugh.

Five minutes later, Cub clears his throat rather loudly. Bdubs stutters over his words for a second, but because Cub is Cub, none of the NHO seems to be able to tell if that was a deliberate cough or not, and they decide to ignore it. Cub shows no emotion.

After an hour that felt like an eternity of Bdubs explaining every possible detail about the case, it seemed to be almost concluded. That was, until a rather loud yawn was heard throughout the conference room.

“WILL YOU LET ME FINISH, FOR GOODNESS SAKE?!” Bdubs finally erupted, whipping around in his chair to face Cub and Scar.

The hitmen stared back blankly. They glanced over across the table, and Bdubs followed their gaze, where Grian sat with both arms over her head in a large stretch.

“Sorry,” Grian said simply when all eyes were on him, lowering his arms. “Just had to stretch a bit.” He stared back at Bdubs innocently.

The NHO stood there, confused. Bdubs was at a loss for words, unable to get a read on the new recruit. He sighed and turned back to the screen. “Well, regardless, I think we’ve about summed things up,” he grumbled.

Scar made eye contact with Grian once again. The two cracked a smile at one another for a second, too quick for the NHO to notice.

Scar had a feeling that him, Cub and Grian were going to get along just fine.

=+=

[trappolia]

PUT ALL YOUR FAULTS TO BED (YOU CAN BE KING AGAIN)── leona kingscholar x gn!reader, 1.1k

some days, leona thinks about what the word king means to him and how it links back to you.

contrary to popular belief, he does not so easily forget the whispers of rumours behind his back; though, loathe as he is to admit, leona knows that some are less rumour and more truth, no matter how spiteful. he is a prince, after all, and not some spoiled rotten child who's had compliments fed to him on a golden spoon.

leona knows, better than anyone, that you deserve more than him.

he’s well aware of the fact that many perceive him as lazy, irritable and intimidating, and that is only saying the least. the perfect example of a student who has had to repeat a year way too many times, who is probably still in the world’s greatest magical academy because of his royal blood and noble connections.

the second prince is one way to describe him as well. second to everything his brother does is also a possible description. second to the throne, to their parents’ love, to the praise and glory befitting of a king. because leona will never be king. not as long as his brother and his blood live, because leona has always been the second option.

and so he acts like it. what else can he do? surely he cannot try to usurp his own brother; leona may be a better king than falena, but he is also intelligent enough to understand the consequences of a coup, long-term or otherwise. not to mention his nephew, who undoubtedly has the capacity to be a real pain in his ass if leona ever does away with his father.

now leona spends most of his time bored and unpleasant to be around, not so unlike the whispers that circulated the halls of afterglow savannah's royal palace when his signature spell was discovered. it is when you find him, lazing around in the light of the sun creeping into the greenhouse (one of the only times he has ever felt that he has ever felt that he could escape from the shadows), and, for one reason or another, you decide to stay.

leona hates it.

he hates the way you shine a light in his life. it’s too bright, too hot, and he can’t get rid of you no matter how hard he tries. and, at some point, he has become too scared to get rid of you. the underlying fear of losing that light, reduced to the shadow of a king and a crown prince that he once was; it kills leona. it kills him because he was supposed to be a king, grew up wanting to be the perfect one to rule over the kingdom, and kings do not have weaknesses.

but leona is not a king.

he is the brother of one, the second son of a royal family. with enough skills and intellect to survive in the battlefield that is the royal court of the afterglow savannah. he is born to a long line of kings, emperors, leaders; has learned from the stories of the great kings of the past, of which their blood courses through his veins; but he is not a king. never was, and never will be.

but then again, who is to say that he isn’t a king in another sense?

"the only kingly thing you haven’t done yet is actually opening your eyes, leona," ruggie’s damned hyena laugh echoes in his mind, the mischievous smirk on his face while his eyes stay rooted to the pathetic homemade crown on his head.

leona does not think ruggie has the right to laugh, when he doesn't even understand.

because even with his eyes closed, the second prince sees. he sees the way your breaths come and go, the warmth of the sun and the chill of the breeze on your skin, your quickening pulse and heartbeat. he sees it all without ever needing his eyes, and that is the exact reason why he doesn’t want to open them.

because if he does, he will see you, backlit against the sun and light of the greenhouse you both visit so much, and then he will want more; you by his side in the kingdom of afterglow savannah, bathing in the morning light while wrapped in royal robes, the consort's crown on your head, your rightful place on the throne beside his. you cradling his cub in your arms, sweetly whispering to the result of your love, the future ruler of the afterglow savannah. leona knows that there is none other more deserving of a consort's crown than you, and he would kill anyone who tried to take it from you.

(he would kill for you in a heartbeat. no matter what the cost.

one day, leona thinks, he will not be the only one to fear the extent of what he feels for you.)

but what murder is justified when the crime hasn’t even been committed? when you don’t have the consort's crown, because leona doesn’t even have the king’s.

(child’s play. reaching for something he will never get. leona is a master at this game, even when he loses every single time.)

silly lion, you would chide him with a smile. not for these foolish fantasies (for leona would never admit them), but for the most mundane things. being late to class, forgetting to do homework, getting detention, forgetting to go to that detention. such simple, pathetic things, and leona listens because you are his consort, and kings listen to their consorts.

(pathetic, hopeless little fantasies.)

"leona?" you call out his name, your voice the melody of his sweetest, softest, weakest dreams.

leona's eyes flutter open, lashes brushing against his cheeks as he blinks in the light.

he sees you there, bent over to peer at his sleeping expression. the way your head eclipses the sun makes it seem like you’re wearing a halo (angel’s crown), and if leona looks closely, he can see his own kisses tangled between your locks and the light.

he closes his eyes before he can meet your gaze, see your lips and everything else he’s ever wanted. he will settle for sense and touch, if not for the sake of his sanity, then for you.

"what is it now?" he snarls, feigning annoyance. he hears you laugh, and leona knows you see right through him.

just give him some more time, then he will give you a kingdom, the world, and everything else you’ve ever wanted and deserved──

──but for now, this will be all he can offer you.

© trappolia 2024

[meanbossart]

Hi! I'm almost certain you've answered asks regarding Drow being a companion love interest before, but I'm not sure if my question was specifically discussed. If so, I apologize!

Say I wanted the smelly, gore lusting man (God the things I'd do), what would the player find themselves needing to do to gain that relationship with him?

HMM good question, lets see!

Generally speaking, to gain approval you would have to:

Show ruthlessness during dialogue and interactions (succeed intimidation checks or jump straight into combat)

Be kind towards animals, and honest/patient with children (He will be neutral if you just coddle them)

Oppose the absolute and antagonize mindflayers, gith, and drow.

Be nice to Shadowheart.

Pick a lot of the joke/playfully mean dialogue options.

Be a little hard-to-get in romance interactions until act 3.

Responding to his advances with more mellow, romantic dialogue will earn you more points than overt sexuality (In some cases, the latter may even get you disapproval).

Make him laugh.

To trigger his romance, you have to have good approval and sleep with him once. Following that, pressuring him to sleep with you again or shaming him for not putting your life in danger by trying will earn you disapproval, and an eventual break-up if you continue to insist. He enjoys being wooed, but not chased, and dislikes when you misunderstand his visceral attempts to emotionally reach out as sexual propositions; he will play along either way, but it will put him on a Bhaalist path.

Some quest choices that will get you on his good side:

ACT 1 -

He's indifferent if Arabella dies, but you gain approval if you save her.

Let him take on the Loviatar Priest when he requests it.

Don't get the Absolute's mark from Priestess gut.

Save Mayrina, but then either break or keep the wand.

Let Astarion kill Gandrel.

Help Karlach.

Either let Shadowheart kill Lae'zel, or stop the fight.

Don't kill the owlbear mother or cub.

Send Barcus flying (He doubles over laughing)

Kill Minthara.

Side with the mercenaries at Grymforge.

Kill the gith student refusing to fight.

Refuse to give the inquisitor the artefact.

ACT 2 -

Help Arabella find her parents.

Don't release the pixie from the moonlantern.

Help Mol cheat against Raphael.

Let him massacre the goblins at Moonrise Towers.

Get the Thorm bosses AND yurgir to kill themselves instead of fighting any of them (again: You are rewarded with him laughing his ass off about it)

Don't comply with Araj.

If you save Zevlor at the mindflayer colony, shame him for giving into the Absolute's call.

Antagonize the emperor after his reveal and refuse the astral tadpole.

ACT 3 -

Help Yenna with either gold or food, but don't invite her to your camp.

Kill Arfur once you find out about the explosive toys.

Forge an alliance with Gortash.

Win the Laff riot contest.

Don't surrender Dame Aylin to Lorroakan.

Don't sign the contract, but agree to get the Orphic hammer through other means later. (Anything to not rely on the Emperor anymore)

If she hasn't become a Dark Justiciar, don't surrender Shadowheart to Viconia (He will fight the party unless you leave him at camp and succeed a deception check later). He doesn't care what you do if she's a DJ.

Vanra's quest can get you either approval or disapproval at different points. He approves of you agreeing to help her, then also approves of you killing her for the money, but he disapproves of you letting the child die or of siding with Ethel.

Agree to the Avenge The Drowned quest (He just thinks they're hot)

Don't let Astarion Ascend, or kill him if he does.

Kill Sarevok.

Let him take on Orin by himself.

Don't turn into a mindflayer (he will break up with you later), nor let Karlach do it.

If he's become a chosen of Bhaal, let him control the Absolute.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Ruggie, Trey: More and More

TWST once again picks the most INCRIMINATING villain shots to display in the picture frames 😭 I am BEGGING the museum curator to do better/j

A Tale as Old as Time.

A lion cub, a warthog, and a meerkat.

It was an odd trio, a group of animals that, under normal circumstances, would never be together. Certainly not like this—not grinning, snuggling up with each other. Carnivore, herbivore, omnivore. Sharing the lives they had, joined in heart and in song.

No worries for the rest of their days.

Ruggie snickered behind one hand. Man, ain't that the dream?

"They've got nice smiles."

The hyena's ears perked. His eyes shifted to a Heartslabyul student gazing upon the same painting. Tall, built well, in glasses.

"Come again?"

"Their teeth," Trey clarified, pointing. "You see? They have different shapes based on their diet. Warthogs mainly eat vegetables, so they have strong, flat molars for crushing plants. But lions are carnivores, so their teeth are sharper for slicing through meat. And meerkats--"

"Okay, I get it already! Now quit it, you sound almost as creepy as Rook." Ruggie groaned. "Can't believe you take one look at this and your first thought is what's in their mouths."

"You don't?" The joke fell flat, and Trey let it go "How about you? What's your first thought when you look at this? If I'm remembering correctly, this painting is based on a story from your country. Does it have significance to you?"

"Eh, it’s some story about a warthog and a meerkat coming together to raise a lost cub they found."

"Really." Trey's eyebrows raised. "How did they manage to feed a baby lion? They probably need a lot of protein, and I don't think a warthog and a meerkat could hunt enough for it."

"Nah, they figured something out." He pinched his thumb and index finger together, peering through the small gap between them and right at the vice dorm leader. "Bugs."

"Bugs?!" Trey startled.

"Yup, there's plenty of 'm and they're packed full of protein for a growing young prince.”

“Prince?”

“Did I not mention it before? Turns out that the lion cub was a missing prince, and they had no idea. When the prince was all grown up, he returned to claim his kingdom with the warthog and the meerkat. The animals were able to get over their differences and live together in harmony. It all started with bugs—that’s pretty resourceful, isn’t it?”

"I didn’t think there would be a twist that wild from a story that started with eating bugs. We sometimes eat flowers in the Queendom, but usually as a garnish or for a snack, not for a whole meal. Is it a cultural difference...?"

Ruggie shrugged. "Sometimes you don't have much of a choice in what you eat. If life hands you lemons when you're starving, are you going to turn it down? 'Course not."

I can't afford that kind of luxury.

"Well, when you put it like that..." Trey gave a light laugh. "You're going to make me hungry too."

"I'd kill for a big roast pork right about now. Fat, sweet, and juicy, the meat so tender if falls off the bone once ya sink your teeth into it..." Ruggie drooled at the thought. "Yeah, if you just shoved an apple into the warthog's mouth, glaze it with honey, and slow cook it over a fire, I bet it'd be real tasty."

"It sounds like you’ve always got food on your mind.” Trey folded his arms, lips tugging back into a lopsided smirk. “Kinda gruesome when you talk about the prep work like that though.”

“We wouldn’t have any food if we didn’t hunt and gather. ‘S how the circle of life works.”

His gaze slanted toward the painting of the happy trio. A unification, food shared from the same platter—it sparked some desperate hope in him.

A world where kings and hyenas can be friends… Heh, maybe I’m asking for too much.

But he was greedy like that. Seeking more and more, his hunger never fully satisfied.

Ruggie shook his head, letting dirty blonde locks fall across his face. “Maybe it’s news to you, but beastmen don’t exactly see eye to eye with other beastmen. That’s why it’s practically a miracle that those three get along. It’s a tale they tell us in the Sunset Savanna to remind us of what we could be, united under one true kingdom. It’s just that: a story.”

“It’s a nice story,” Trey said simply. “And it would be even nicer if it came true.”

It would.

“It’ll be a looong time before that happens. It’s about as real as my dreams of a roast pork dinner.”

Ruggie sighed as he drew his arms up, hands resting behind his head. He reclined back in that lazy, devil-may-care pose.

Trey watched him, his mustard yellow eyes shifting slightly. “… Are you baiting me to offer to make you some?”

“What?” The hyena feigned shock. “Me, trying to get my hands on free grub? Nooooo, I’d never!”

Trey stared at him indignantly. “You’re not being very subtle there…”

Ruggie showed his teeth. “Was I supposed to be?”

“Maybe you’d have better luck getting a formal invite from Riddle first. I don’t usually prepare whole hams for a single guest either—it’s usually a group meal, so you’d have to share.”

“Tch. Whatever, can’t blame a hyena for testing out a shortcut, can you?”

“Ahahah… I’m slightly concerned that you’d even attempt to have an entire pig to yourself. Your appetite must be legendary.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

More and more—he wanted it all. Gluttony, a sin to the common man. To him, a desire for something greater than this.

He saw it now, a kingdom built upon the jagged cliffs. His kind and other scorned creatures. creeping out from the darkness and into the moonlight. They all looked to the one that stood far above them, the one that would lead them to that shining future.

Someday, it will come.

Ruggie spun, his back presented to the painting. A spotlight upon the trio, and the shadows closing in on his own face.

Even so, his smile was as big and as bright as ever.

“Nishishishishi! Don’t worry so much, Trey-kun~ Just be happy—hakuna matata!”

[seireiteihellbutterfly]

Hi Vee!!! Omg congrats on hitting 300 I'm so happy for you!!

For your sundae tropes event i'd like to order a coffee waffle cone #3 with megumi!!!

Sundae Tropes : I Said Stay

A/N: Hey everyone! I know I kinda went AWOL over the summer but things are looking up and I'm finally able to write! Fic 2 of the Sundae Tropes Event! It's crazy to see that from the time I started this event till now my follower count has almost doubled!

Thanks for your patience Lee! I hope you enjoy this. 🩷

Sundae: Coffee Waffle Cone #3 With Megumi = Friends To Lovers + prompt “Don’t You Dare Walk Away Right Now!”

Follow along using #sundaetropes, #300followersevent and #vee writes.

Event masterlist | Vee's Masterlists

You were another lost child with cursed abilities fostered on the Gojo estate. It wasn’t uncommon for them to bring in strays, mostly waifs who were not associated with a sorcerer family and had nowhere else to go. 

Some whispered Gojo had taken the initiative after his best friend had adopted two young girls with cursed abilities before defecting from the jujutsu world, an extremely low point in his life that he had turned into an opportunity. 

Your arrival at the estate had been a few weeks after Megumi and Tsumiki had been brought in. And of course, as adults tend to do, they had bunched the three of you together since you were close in age. Tsumiki was more open than Megumi, your friendship guaranteed from the moment you laid eyes on each other. The lack of cursed energy felt from Tsumiki wasn’t a deterrent in any way, the both of you running to the playground or taking time to braid each other’s hair. Megumi was quieter, more stoic, and not the kind to enjoy swinging from the monkey bars or playing tag with the other children. 

In fact, Megumi rarely accompanied you and Tsumiki anywhere. The only time you two spent together was when you were in training, sometimes with Gojo, sometimes with a wizened old instructor who would bark criticism at you if you failed to follow instructions. You preferred Gojo who was laxer and made training into a fun pastime rather than the old man, but Megumi never cracked a smile or laughed during any of these sessions, quietly summoning his shikigami, unbothered by the praise Gojo showered on him. His technique was quite developed for someone barely 8 years of age, and you watched him with fascination. 

“Oh, does my young student have a crush on Megumi?” Gojo would often tease you when he’d catch you looking at Megumi during your training sessions, flustering you and sending your little heart into a panic.

“No! Why would I like him, he’s so weird and untalkative. No, not me! I don’t have a crush on him!” You’d deny vehemently, shaking your head no, causing Gojo to erupt with laughter and pat your head.

“Ok ok I believe you calm down,” he’d say reassuringly, grinning at the tears brimming in your large baby eyes. Megumi on the other hand, acted indifferent whenever this question was brought up, making you believe he hadn’t heard anything, watching his shikigami scurry about the room.  

Eventually, Gojo insists that you and Megumi would have to start sparring with each other to test your abilities. In a real battle, there would be no one calling out advice or instructions to help you. You faced Megumi in your yukata, fists raised and ready. You were nervous, and deep down, you couldn’t help but feel you weren’t any match for Megumi in the first place. Tsumiki and some of the other children gathered around to watch both of you, Gojo watching intently to make sure no one got seriously injured. 

Megumi summoned the divine dogs first, the pair of adolescent cubs growling and ready to attack. You prepare yourself as they approach you and to your surprise, your first hit lands true, blocking and stunning one of the wolves which whimpers and disappears back into shadow. Megumi looks unperturbed but you can see his jaw clenching before he directs the remaining wolf to tackle you. You dodge the first one but aren’t as lucky the second time as the wolf catches you and you land on your back winded. The wolf’s hot breath can be felt on your neck, and though you knew they wouldn’t really harm you, you couldn’t bear to imagine the idea of being defeated.

With a cry, you flip the wolf over and it backs away with a yelp, running towards Megumi to regroup. You chase after it, feet gaining speed, ready to slam it with all the energy you can muster when the wolf disappears like its sibling at the last moment. With a yelp, you crash into Megumi who had been too transfixed on the match to realize you were barreling in his direction.

You collide painfully into his slim frame and the both of you go tumbling down, Megumi’s dark eyes gazing up at yours in a daze. You had never been in such proximity with him. You were convinced he would be cold to touch, just like his gaze and his attitude, but he was warm, and looking flushed from having you so close. A few moments pass where the both of you are looking into each other’s eyes, stunned, before Megumi, turning a delicate shade of red, pushes you off.

“What’s the matter with you? Trying to kill me by sitting on my neck?” Megumi yells as he scrambles away from you, his own heart beating faster than normal. He tries to brush it off as being surprised but can’t seem to stop blushing. 

“I’m sorry, I was aiming for the wolf,” you try to explain through your embarrassment but Megumi is already retreating, his back to you as he walks away from the training ring. Gojo declared you the winner but that incident was the beginning of a neverending series of matches to one-up the other that followed you into your teens. That initial childhood match had broken the ice and you and Megumi had developed a competitive friendship, pushing each other to be the best sorcerers you could be. He’d grown into a tall, slim adolescent, his ebony hair erratically spiky no matter what he did to it.

“Is that all you got?” he taunts as his now fully grown demon dogs close in on you, their eyes glowing menacingly. You merely huff, readying your cursed energy in your palms. As usual, a crowd has gathered to watch and place bets, and you make out Inumaki, Yuta, and Maki senpai, as well as Nobara and Yuji who were in the same year as you. It was always difficult to predict who would be the victor in these matches. The statistics had you both at a tie, and some matches ended up astonishing everyone at the last minute about who had won. 

“Naw, I’m just saving my energy. Why waste it on something that isn’t a challenge?” You throw back, feeling your power surge. Megumi imperceptibly smiles, a subtle quirk of his lips before the wolves come dashing at you. It was more difficult to evade them now, they had grown so much, but thanks to agility training, you managed to dodge them a few times before raining down surges of gathered cursed energy on them. The wolves snarl, teeth bared, and try to dodge but your bursts of energy confuse them and not too soon, both of them take a wrong step and are hit by your technique. They lay on the ground, exhausted and unable to move. 

“She won again! Yes! 1000 yen to me!” The crowd begins to cash in on their bets as you look over at Megumi who is hiding his disappointment well. He walks over to you to shake your hand as was his custom after every match he lost.

“Great job. But to be fair, you only have that one technique. Someday the dogs will catch on and avoid it.”

“Oh don’t be so bitter about the fact that my technique can be used so broadly.”

“Why would I be bitter about only having one good technique? Your lack of variety will be your downfall one day.”

The back-and-forth wasn’t uncommon and both of you are grinning good-naturedly as you hurl insults at each other. There wasn’t any malice, just a shared camaraderie from your common past. Nobara and Yuji start to make their way towards you, clapping you on the back for your victory. 

“Oh don’t pout so much Megumi, you’ll get wrinkles,” Nobara says to the tall youth, putting her hands on his cheeks. Megumi immediately pulls his face away. 

“I wasn’t pouting. I was expressing my sadness that some people may never develop more than one cursed technique.” You roll your eyes at the comment. 

“You’re just jealous that my one technique is so strong and you need to summon multiple creatures to even have a comparable energy level.”

“I’d rather be diverse than one-dimensional.”

“Says the guy with only one expression.” You put a scowl on your face and cross your arms and Yuji laughs at the impression.

“That’s so you Megumi,” he says between breaths. Megumi is about to retort when Nobara pulls on his hand. A little too possessively and it has your grin faltering at the sight.

“Come on. I wanted to get boba tea. My treat, Megumi.”

“Why? I lost.”

“Because I don’t want to sit across a grumpy goth boy.” She looks over her shoulder and casually says, “You’re welcome to join us if you want to.” Nobara sounded normal but your girl senses could tell otherwise and you shake your head no. 

“Go ahead. I want to stay in tonight.”

“I can stay if you’re not coming,” Megumi starts but you shake your head, a little too vigorously. Your voice sounds artificially light.

“No! You guys have plans. Go right ahead!” Megumi frowns but is prevented from saying anything else as Nobara gives him another impatient pull. 

“Come on! Otherwise, all the good flavors will be gone!” There’s little you can do except watch her drag him away, and there’s a strange sense of emptiness inside you like you hadn’t won the match at all. Yuji sees your expression and his eyes widen in concern.

“You ok?”

“Oh, yeah. I’m fine!” You smile to mask the uncomfortable feeling settling in your stomach but the image of Nobara holding Megumi’s hand is burned into your mind. Had they always been that way? Since when was Megumi ok with casual acts of PDA like that?

Ever perceptive Yuji wasn’t deterred. “You don’t look ok. Are you sure? Did you want to go with those two?”

You shake your head. “Yuji, wasn’t it obvious that they wanted to go together? Just them?”

Yuji takes a minute to consider and makes a noise of agreement. “I suppose you’re right.” He glances at you then says, “You and Megumi have known each other a long time huh?”

“Yeah, we have. Both of us were fostered by Gojo sensei. We’ve known each other since we were kids. Trained our curse techniques together since we were like 9 years old.”

“It’s normal to feel a little jealous when your best friend makes friends with someone else.”

You snort. “Jealous? Me?” 

“Yeah. That’s what I thought anyway. Are you not jealous that your childhood friend is out having tea with someone and you aren’t with them?”

You feel your pulse quickening. “I’m not jealous. Megumi and I aren’t attached at the hip. He can hang out with whoever he wants.”

Yuji looks unconvinced but decides to back off. “All right then. Well, what do you want to do for dinner?”

You decide to order ramen and eat it in Yuji’s dorm. And though you laughed and joked with Yuji, you kept checking your phone hoping to see a text from Megumi. It never came. After bidding Yuji good night, you lay awake on your bed staring up at the ceiling wondering. You and Megumi had somehow become inseparable after that match so many years ago. It felt strange to be without him. When Gojo had told you you were going to Jujutsu High, the only thing consoling you about being separated from Tsumiki was that Megumi would be accompanying you. 

When had he found another friend that he wanted to hang out with? A girl no less? You sigh, feeling dejected. Nobara, with her pretty face, perfect hair, and princessy attitude. You had originally liked Nobara, but now the thought of her made you feel like you weren’t up to scratch, like you were inferior to her somehow. 

The concept of looking pretty for Megumi had never crossed your mind until now. Maybe Megumi did like well-dressed girls that cared about their appearance. But since when did you care about looking good for Megumi? You had gotten so used to him when you lived with Gojo that nothing fazed you. He’d seen you in pajamas, he’d seen you when you were sick, and when you were a ball of pain during your period. He’d seen you during so many moments where you were vulnerable and remained steadfast by your side that you’d never even considered trying to dress up for him.

Megumi was Megumi, the constant in your life after Tsumiki, and now, you felt unsteady, like he was being pulled away from you. Because wasn’t he a little more ‘yours’ and less ‘hers’ simply because you’d known him longer? Your thoughts swirl together, muddled until you fall into a restless sleep.

The next morning came too early and when you woke up, you felt hollow. You dragged yourself out of bed and got ready for the day thinking you could go to the cafeteria and get some breakfast before you started training again. You check your phone and see you had forgotten to charge it and it had switched off.

Dressed in sweats and flip-flops, your hair up in a ratty bun, you walk to the cafeteria and are relieved to see no one there you normally talk to, just some younger students who had their own clique. You decide on porridge and are about to take a bite from the steaming bowl when you’re distracted by the appearance of a tall brunette at the entrance. 

You freeze, spoon in hand as Megumi makes his way towards you feeling uncomfortably self-conscious about your appearance. Why did he have to find you like this? 

“Hey,” he says quietly, locking his fingers together before him.

“Hey.” Your mouth feels dry all of a sudden. You pick at your porridge to distract yourself. 

“You didn’t answer my text.”

Wordlessly, you pull out your phone showing him the blank screen, and comprehension dawns on his face. “Forgot to charge it huh?” he asks with a lilt in his voice. “That’s so like you. Can’t even remember to put your phone for charge without a reminder from me.”

Not in the mood for your usual banter, you clip out, “What can I say? I can’t always rely on you to remind me.”

Megumi raises an eyebrow at your tone. “Well someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.”

Hostility enters your voice. “Didn’t you have anything better to do than come looking for me first thing in the morning?”

“I hadn’t heard from you. Forgive me for looking for my friend.”

“Like you care! Weren’t you out with Nobara all night?”

“Is that why you’re acting like this? Because I was hanging out with Nobara?”

“No.” You lie through gritted teeth. “We’re in high school now Megumi, do you think I care who you hang out with?” You see him flinch at your words and guilt whacks you in the stomach, causing you to tear up. The group of juniors were starting to give you funny looks from their table. You sigh and shake your head. 

“I don’t want to talk to you right now.” Abandoning your porridge, you sprint out of the cafeteria. Megumi remains where he is for a split second, dumbfounded, before racing after you. 

“Wait! Slow down! Come back here!”

You ignore his calls and continue making your way back to your dorm.  

“Don’t you dare walk away right now!” You hear the hurt in his voice but can’t bring yourself to face him like this, feeling and looking your worst. Emotional turmoil threatened to swallow you whole. When you get back to your room, you allow yourself to cry. 

*・゜・*:.。.*.。.:*・☆・゜

Yuji kept shooting you furtive glances during your classes for the rest of the week. Megumi had distanced himself since that incident and you sat several desks away from him. You ate alone and trained alone. It had been an isolating week and you felt like there was a brick wall between you both. Megumi seemed content to spend his time with Nobara, a fact that he wasn’t hiding, considering that she seemed to be glued to him at all times. 

Grateful for the weekend, you change out of your uniform into the coziest hoodie you had, then decide to wander off campus and eat from one of the food carts outside. Food fried in oil was the only source of comfort your brain could conjure at the moment. 

Your feet automatically took you to your favorite vendor, a yakitori place, and as usual, a line had formed in front of the cart. You make your way to the back of the line just as someone else also reaches the end, vying for the same spot. 

“Oh, sorry-” you start, then stare, gobsmacked as Megumi gapes down at you. Your eyes meet for a moment and it’s awkward, like you’ve forgotten how to say hello to each other. Unwilling to fight for the spot, you swiftly step away and stand behind him. Megumi glances behind his shoulder and sighs deeply.

“You don’t have to do that. We’re not strangers. Stand next to me.” 

Not expecting the invitation, you warily look at him as he gestures at the space next to him. “It’s fine, you’re only one spot ahead of me.”

Megumi huffs, and with a level of impressive maturity, says, “Please stop acting weird and get over here.”

Uncertainly, you step into line next to him, silence falling between you both as you wait your turn. “How are you?” You ask, trying to break the quiet. 

“Not so good. See a close friend of mine blew me off and won’t tell me why she’s upset. And then she has the gall to wear my hoodie out in public even though she’s supposedly mad at me.”

“Your hoodie…?” You check yourself and realize, you were indeed wearing his hoodie, the one you’d ‘borrowed’ from him God knows when. He hadn’t asked for it back and it had remained in your custody, simply because it was too cozy to return. Who knew you’d run into him here while you were wearing it?

“I’m sorry, I had nothing else to wear. I’ll give it back to you after I finish laundry this weekend.”

A strange expression flitters across Megumi’s face and he avoids eye contact. “I didn’t say I wanted it back,” he says in a low voice before taking a deep breath and continuing. “Are you really not going to talk to me?”

Your chest constricts and you try not to lose composure. Not here. Not now. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t talk to you. I just didn’t feel like talking this last week.”

“And you don’t think I deserve an explanation?” Megumi asks quietly and you hear the disappointment in his voice. “When did you decide that we can’t sit together or talk things out anymore?”

You swallow and give him a partial answer. “I thought you wanted to spend more time with Nobara. You guys seem to be getting really close these days.”

“Nobara?” Megumi shakes his head. “Nobara’s nice but how can she substitute you?”

You feel a gentle rise in your stomach, like warm liquid was being poured into it, making your heart beat a little faster. “You guys looked like you were having fun.”

“Nobara is a classmate. And a friend. But you and I have a history. How do you think anything can replace that?” A breeze passes through, ruffling both your hair.

 “I’m sorry,” you say in a soft voice. 

“Do you know how hard it’s been not being able to talk to you?” There’s a tone in his voice that has you raising your head carefully. 

“Are you saying you missed me?”

“Tsk. Yes. There? Are you happy?”

It felt like there were a thousand butterflies alive in your stomach all at once, their little fluttering wings threatening to pull you away into the air. 

“I don’t know about happy,” you say loftily, trying to hide the grin on your face. 

“You’re so bad at pretending.” Megumi bumps his shoulder into you, a typical teenage boy move and you return the action, bumping back into him, the tension between you both dissipating slightly.

“But one thing I don’t get is, why are you so mad that I was hanging out with Nobara?” The question catches you off guard, and you find yourself scrambling to form words.

“Oh, it’s nothing. She just seemed to be acting over-familiar with you. Holding your hand and stuff. You hated that as kids.”

“I’ve come to realize it’s not so bad.” The back of his hand brushes against yours as he says so, sending a skitter of electricity through your body. 

“Oh yeah? So you’ll hold hands with just anyone then?”

“Not just anyone.” Your breath catches as Megumi’s large hand gently pulls yours, his fingers entwining between yours. “Nobara doesn’t really hold hands. She sort of grabs and yanks. Now this,” he raises your joined hands, “Is what holding hands should look like.”

Acutely aware of the fact that you looked like a couple at this very moment you think of ways to free your hand, each more futile than the last. Megumi seemed perfectly comfortable, looking at the surroundings and moving forward towards the cart. 

When your embarrassment becomes palpable, your hand involuntarily jerks, trying to escape Megumi’s finger prison, but to no avail.  Unperturbed by the action, the lanky teenager looks at you with a raised eyebrow.

“Is holding my hand causing some sort of issue for you?” 

You’re aware of the rising heat in your cheeks and try to play it cool. “I just don’t want people getting the wrong idea of us.”

“And what might that be?”

“That we’re a couple.”

“Oh. Does holding hands automatically contribute to us being a couple?” Megumi looks at you with a glint in his eye. “Aren’t there other factors that might have people coming to that conclusion anyway?”

Your heart hammers away in your chest as you meet his eyes, trying to keep your emotions under control. “Like what?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Like the fact that you’re wearing my hoodie. And yes, it’s obvious it’s a boy’s hoodie because it’s oversized on you,” he adds as he sees you about to protest. “Or how about the fact that you’re blushing and despite me giving you a window to pull away, you’re still holding my hand?”

You look down and see that Megumi’s hand has gone lax and you could have very well used that opportunity to free yourself. Instead, your fingers are curled around Megumi’s, holding them at the very tips. As you’re about to uncurl them, Megumi’s draw them in closer and you’re back at square one. 

“So that’s it? You’re gonna hold my hand captive, and then everyone will just assume we’re a couple? Then what?” You ask sarcastically, your go-to defense mechanism. Megumi lets out a small laugh.  

“We could try actually being a couple.” Megumi’s eyes catch yours, and you’re in a trance, unable to look away. “Shocking, right?”

“But we! I! That’s not!” Incomplete splutters leave your lips as you try to process what he’d said. “Us? Be a couple?”

“Yes. Unless you don’t want to?” They’re one person away from reaching the cheerful-looking cart owner. A heavy pause hangs in the air. 

“I want to.” You finally admit and you draw closer to him, finding reassurance when he doesn’t move away. 

“Good. Because I want to, too.” 

*・゜・*:.。.*.。.:*・☆・゜

 Unknown to the shy couple now sitting on a bench and eating their yakitori, Nobara watches them like a hawk, an exasperated Yuji hovering behind her.

“Why are we spying on them? If you like Megumi, then you should have said something.” Yuji chides to her, uncomfortable at his actions.

“Who says I like Megumi?” Nobara looks at him, wrinkling her nose. 

“Then what was with all the flirty moves and asking him to get tea with you?”

“All part of my master plan. Those two are so into each other, but too stubborn to admit they like each other.”

“Wait, what?” Yuji looks stunned. “You knew they liked each other but went out of your way to spend all that time with Megumi?”

“Yes! Because I knew Megumi would never confess, but a jealous girl always gets the ball rolling.”

“That’s…a little messed up but smart.”

“What can I say?” Nobara crosses her arms over her chest, looking proud. “I’m a girl’s girl. I like creating happy endings.”

dividers by @/ cafekitsune Banner by me

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[myeagleexpert]

𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖊𝖛𝖔𝖑𝖚𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓 𝖔𝖋 𝖘𝖕𝖊𝖈𝖎𝖊𝖘

sinopse:The curious case of the prefect of Ramcharcke raises theories and hypotheses, and each has a basis for it. Which one will be right? What do you believe in?

Characters: NRC Staff,Dire Crowley, Divus Crewel, Mozus Trein, Asthon Vargas, Sam.

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙”

Crowley completely agrees with the said philosopher, as a director of a renowned school built on the controversial values of historical figures. He KNOWS that every NRC student is a place full of angry, arrogant, hormone-bombed teenagers, which is why he is so magnificently kind to Yuu. Who would give a complete stranger a place to sleep without magic? Who would do everything to make Yuu return to her beloved world even if it cost hours of work? Oh, how generous the director is, right?

For some reason, Yuu is managing to keep well. Survival is the word that would best define this situation. Now how she is managing to do this is difficult to talk about. At some point the director thought of carefully analyzing the case of the strange student without magic. In a school with cruel students, you, Yuu, are the only one with altruistic thinking and no magic. Why would the carriage that has never made a mistake in all these centuries of power bring a person like that with no aspect other than the basics? Unless…

Yuu has the potential to be evil in her own world, but not in this one where she is in a clearly vulnerable position, Crowley concluded and fell deeper into his reveries. So to survive you will have to adopt a good and pure image until you have enough strength to overcome your enemies, little by little, until you reach the top of the chain. Like every human being he has ever encountered in his secular life, Crowley feels that the thirst for power and blood is deep inside in Yuu. That's why he sends her to do various dangerous jobs and jobs, disguised traps. It's like a challenge: How far the wolf in sheep's clothing go? Roll your dice and place your bets, as Director Crowley will be keeping an eye on you.

“𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚, 𝙨𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙮 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙪𝙥𝙩𝙨 𝙝𝙞𝙢”

Perhaps in the analytical mind of the cruel chemistry teacher, Crewel, he had gone through the stages of denial and finally surrendered to the illusion. Yuu is a sweet and hardworking girl. That's it. Period. They had some time to develop a complicated relationship of father and daughter, mentor and student, but when Divus accepted his “fated role” according to him, it was a one-way thing. He will not allow any rowdy cub to offend her with repulsive lies. Did Yuu poison the students? Yuu blew up old bullying rooms? Did Yuu cheat on tests and manipulate students? LIES! She was just defending herself. His precious little puppy would never submit to such a low attitude.

His “filhota”, a term he learned from her, isn't like that, is it? So stay away from these disobedient puppies Yuu, they tarnish your image, dear.

“𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙣 𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙖𝙥𝙚𝙧”

Trein not only agrees with this theory, but he could prove it from a very practical experience: Yuu.

Having raised his own family, two daughters, a cat and being an experienced teacher at school for years, he knows how to masterfully recognize each type of student in his class: The nerd, the clown, the teacher's pet, the one who doesn't know anything about nothing, the one who knows everything, the one who pretends to know everything, the lazy and many others….but what about Yuu? How does she characterize herself in this group of characters?

What a curious case, a student without any kind of magic, with few memories, and in a school of arrogant boys without any support? How did she survive for so long? How does she adapt so easily? One day she's a nobody, and the next she has contacts with important princes and shady merchants. One day she knows nothing about the world that has stopped, and the next she knows more than Trein himself in his years of apprenticeship. In some way or another the stranger knows every secret of every hallway in the school, and holds them in the palm of her calloused hand.

The blank figure has immense potential for creation and destruction, and something tells Trey that the foreigner's innocent look and sharp tongue have dangerous odds.

"𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙣"

Vargas could not agree with this theory more truthfully! The human body is designed to be challenged every day, and what would be the limit? As the trainer of every type of creature, from beastmen, fairies, merfolk, humans, hybrids and everything in between, he can say with certainty that there is nothing more rewarding than seeing a student overcome their obstacles!

The chest was filled with pride when he closely analyzed Yuu's case. He clearly remembered the student's first days at school, her steps were so light that the wind would carry her away, so weak and malnourished that she wouldn't walk a complete circle around the field without fainting, her look scared, her breathing heavy. She couldn't fly any higher than Azul and every time she spoke, her voice was shaky, like a kitten learning to meow.

Just look at the overcoming! Not only are her steps firm and determined, but she runs very fast as well. And even when an envious person tries to push him in a competition, she pushes him harder, making him fall to the ground. 12 eggs a day. 12 EGGS PER DAY. A diet that the trainer himself follows and just look at the results. The prey body has evolved into that of a hunter. Big, strong, fast and adaptable. Perfect.

Maybe you should be worried about the way she beats the past bullies who tormented her blue and purple? The way she hunts them is different, it's personal, it's physical, it's animal.

It seems like the game has changed, doesn't it?

“𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙢𝙖𝙣’𝙨 𝙬𝙤𝙡𝙛”

The friends on the other side tell every secret and gossip that leaves the salesman, Sam, astonished. Sometimes it's hard to believe, other times he has to check it out with his own eyes. But for Sam, it's much more fun and engaging to analyze the situation like a grotesque soap opera. Each “little thing” is a sign for the next chapter. One day, among the hygiene products that are intended just for her, Yuu bought a different knife, an enchanted amulet and cans of a different type of fish and also a bottle of rat poison. Would it be for the rats of Ramshackle?.... No, the friends on the other side said that Yuu made an alliance with the rats, and so, she gets more information from the school. What type of information? who knows? For what? What will she do with the poison then? Pay attention to the next chapters.

A shadow wandering around in the morning once commented that on one of Jack's morning walks, he commented to Yuu that she "seemed to adapt to Twisted Wonderland fairly quickly.." And as soon as he found out, he ran as fast as his ghostly figure allowed him, so determined to be the first to tell Sam a hot piece of gossip that he didn't stay until the end of the conversation, and consequently left the merchant and his friends on the other side curious to know what Yuu's answer is.

Is Yuu letting her changes show to her troublemaking first-year friends, or has she tried to keep a mask on for a while? We cannot deny that her “strange” behavior is commendable for analysis. The one who enters the lion's den and comes out intact, the one who melts the heart of an evil icy queen, the one who entered as a sacrificial lamb and came back as the leader of the pack. Ohhh~~what interesting character development! More and more shadows surround Yuu now, watchful and thirsty for her next steps.

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ Every like, repost and comment is very welcome and appreciated. ♥

[slitheringghost]

Voldemort and Manipulation of Power Structures

I wanted to explore one of the most fascinating parts of Voldemort's character, which is his immense consciousness of the power hierarchy and structures of magical society and his ability to manipulate them, as well as his consciousness of his own place in those power structures, and how he often plays on those weaknesses.

There are many ways in which he demonstrates this - i.e. he tells Quirrell “There is no good and evil, there is only power" and seems to follow that regarding his own beliefs; he sees himself in followers similarly disenfranchised as him (Harry, Snape, Ginny, Bellatrix, etc.), and we see him use this with them as a combination of genuine identification and manipulation; and we especially see this hyperawareness of the pureblood power structures that killed Merope in the locket protections (see my meta Slytherin Locket Cave: The Life and Death of Merope Gaunt and this addendum) and how that ties into his consciousness of the legal system and who is vulnerable and disposable to it.

In this meta I’ll explore some more of those instances.

1. Chamber of Secrets

His interactions regarding the Chamber attacks are particularly telling:

“It was my word against Hagrid’s, Harry. Well, you can imagine how it looked to old Armando Dippet. On the one hand, Tom Riddle, poor but brilliant, parentless but so brave, school prefect, model student.. on the other hand, big, blundering Hagrid, in trouble every other week, trying to raise werewolf cubs under his bed, sneaking off to the Forbidden Forest to wrestle trolls

Well, how it looks... is that Armando Dippet, until Tom Riddle specifically clarified to him otherwise, was assuming Tom was Muggleborn, while there was a monster petrifying and hospitalizing Muggleborns for months and ended up killing one, and then told him he'd be safer at his orphanage. This is also something Tom plays on to Harry:

“My dear boy, you must see how foolish it would be of me to allow you to remain at the castle when term ends. Particularly in light of the recent tragedy... the death of that poor little girl.... You will be safer by far at your orphanage. As a matter of fact, the Ministry of Magic is even now talking about closing the school. We are no nearer locating the — er — source of all this unpleasantness...." “Lucky that I recorded my memories in some more lasting way than ink. But I always knew that there would be those who would not want this diary read.” [...] “I mean that this diary holds memories of terrible things. Things that were covered up.” [...] “Of course I know about the Chamber of Secrets. In my day, they told us it was a legend, that it did not exist. But this was a lie. In my fifth year, the Chamber was opened and the monster attacked several students, finally killing one. I caught the person who’d opened the Chamber and he was expelled. But the headmaster, Professor Dippet, ashamed that such a thing had happened at Hogwarts, forbade me to tell the truth. A story was given out that the girl had died in a freak accident. They gave me a nice, shiny, engraved trophy for my trouble and warned me to keep my mouth shut. But I knew it could happen again.”

Tom correctly points out Dippet’s embarrassment about the attacks and attempt to cover them up. Dumbledore says that “Dippet was very fond of Voldemort and convinced of his honesty”, yet that didn’t stop Dippet from initially seeing Tom’s life as disposable as other Muggleborns, and it’s clear Tom realized this fact.

2. Half-Blood Prince

There’s Tom joking about being the “half blood heir of Slytherin” with his friends, enjoying the irony of playing on his background:

“I don’t know that politics would suit me, sir,” he said when the laughter had died away. “I don’t have the right kind of background, for one thing.” A couple of the boys around him smirked at each other. Harry was sure they were enjoying a private joke, undoubtedly about what they knew, or suspected, regarding their gang leader’s famous ancestor.

And then the way he flirts with and manipulates Hepzibah Smith is particularly interesting to me, especially combined with his framing of Hokey and using Kreacher for the locket:

“Hurry up, Hokey!” said Hepzibah imperiously. “He said he’d come at four, it’s only a couple of minutes to and he’s never been late yet!” “Now then,” said Hepzibah happily, “where’s Hokey? Oh yes, there you are — take that away now, Hokey.” The elf obediently took the boxed cup, and Hepzibah turned her attention to the much flatter box in her lap.

“Now, now, not so fast, or I’ll think you’re only here for my trinkets!” pouted Hepzibah. “I am ordered here because of them,” said Voldemort quietly. “I am only a poor assistant, madam, who must do as he is told. Mr. Burke wishes me to inquire —”

Just like he recognizes the parallel between Merope’s treatment and a house elf/slavery, you can tell he’s noticing the same parallel with himself - and he’s playing into it.

Of course, plenty of his politeness with Hepzibah is necessity, but in the above quote he’s milking his “weakness” and playing the obedient servant - because he knows that power dynamic between them is what Hepzibah Smith is attracted to (and that she enjoys fussing over him as the “poor assistant” - i.e. Hepzibah feeding him with the cakes and telling him he’s overworked, etc.).

Then there’s his framing of his uncle - while the majority of the specifics of Morfin’s confession is revenge for his mother, you can tell Tom’s enjoying the irony of framing Morfin and getting him sent to Azkaban for killing Muggles as a fuck you to his pureblood relatives in general:

“And so what? Morfin gave a Muggle a bit of what was coming to him — what about it, then?” “Morfin has broken Wizarding law,” said Ogden sternly. “Morfin has broken Wizarding law.’” Gaunt imitated Ogden’s voice, making it pompous and singsong. Morfin cackled again. “He taught a filthy Muggle a lesson, that’s illegal now, is it?” [...] “Summons! Summons? Who do you think you are, summoning my son anywhere?” “I’m Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Squad,” said Ogden. “And you think we’re scum, do you?” screamed Gaunt, advancing on Ogden now, with a dirty yellow-nailed finger pointing at his chest. “Scum who’ll come running when the Ministry tells ’em to? Do you know who you’re talking to, you filthy little Mudblood, do you?”

“The Ministry, on the other hand, knew at once that this was a wizard’s murder. They also knew that a convicted Muggle-hater lived across the valley from the Riddle house, a Muggle-hater who had already been imprisoned once for attacking one of the murdered people. “So the Ministry called upon Morfin. They did not need to question him, to use Veritaserum or Legilimency. He admitted to the murder on the spot, giving details only the murderer could know. He was proud, he said, to have killed the Muggles, had been awaiting his chance all these years. He handed over his wand, which was proved at once to have been used to “kill the Riddles. And he permitted himself to be led off to Azkaban without a fight.

Of course this doesn't stop him being a total hypocrite and looking down on Muggles himself, just like his awareness of house-elf oppression and ability to use it doesn’t stop him from completely underestimating Kreacher.

Because one of the biggest ways Voldemort’s arrogance manifests is his belief in his ability to manipulate these power structures, how he sees himself as an outsider in magical society who is always chessmaster-ing it, his certainty that everyone else but him are simply too imprisoned by those oppressive structures to resist against and fight back against them - that he’s the only one that can truly rise above them.

[angstymdzsthoughts]

omega! Lan Qiren. how the omega was unfortunately sterile. therefore he became a teacher. while walking around Yiling, he stumbles upon little Wei Ying and decides to raise him as his cub. a connection very quickly emerged between them. so Lan Qiren quickly became furious when Jiang Fengmian came to his doorstep and asked for the boy. idiot didn't know: never make omega Lan

At first he was told that he may just be a later bloomer. No one could truly predict when an omega would have their first heat and it was different for everyone. But then he turned seventeen and still hadn’t had a heat or his first blood. The healers examined him and poked and prodded at him and eventually told his father that they would just have to wait. Then he turned eighteen and nineteen and suddenly he was an adult omega who had never had a heat. The healers told his father he was likely infertile.

His father was furious. All of the marriage offers Lan Qiren had before suddenly vanished. He himself had to make peace with the fact that he would never have a mate or children. It’s strange that something that had once made him so anxious now filled him with grief. 

Then he grows a bit more and finds that there would be children in his life in the form of his nephews. Then in the form of his students. Then, finally, in the form of Wei Ying. He would argue that while he loved all the children in his life, it was in different ways. He raised his nephews from infancy and he raised his students into adults and he raised Wei Ying from the streets. All were precious to him.

He just barely stopped himself from smacking Sect Leader Jiang when the man, upon seeing Lan Qiren's ward for the first time, picked the little boy up. He had to be held back when Jiang Fengmian started making claims that Wei Ying's parents would have wanted him to be raised in Yunmeng. He actually hit him when he bluntly told Qiren that he had no rights to Wei Ying and that he wasn't his son.

But there was no denying it- Wei Ying wasn't his son. Despite taking him into his home, taking care of him, teaching him to read and write, soothing his nightmares, and growing to love him- Lan Qiren was no more a parent to Wei Ying than he was to Lan Huan or Lan Zhan and he had no legal claim to him. The clan elders would not let Qiren adopt him and would not let the sect be pulled into a messy custody battle over a street rat.

Lan Qiren did not let himself cry when Jiang Fengmian left with the little boy. Lan Zhan quietly pressed his face into his uncles robes and Lan Huan held his uncles hand tightly. Wei Ying wailed and sobbed loud enough for all of them.

[welcometogrouchland]

I feel like for the first few years of guardianship Darius and Hunter really struggle to figure out how to refer to each other.

Like it's easier for Hunter, he pretty quickly settles on "guardian" for explaining their relationship to other people and just referring to Darius by name when talking to the man himself. Overtime the phrasing gradually warms, becoming "foster parent" and eventually, once Hunter's already an adult old enough to move out, "Dad".

(Sidenote: he doesn't move out til he's in his mid to late twenties, bc he's under no obligation too, Darius low-key doesn't want him too, and the two of them want to make up for lost time in a sense, since Hunter only had 2 years of legal dependency on Darius before aging out of the system. Darius adopts Hunter retroactively as an adult)

Darius on the other hand has a real conundrum on his hands for those first few years. He has a lot of options! But "ward" is too formal and makes it sound like Darius picked him up off the street like after his parents were murdered, "apprentice/student" isn't really accurate considering the focus of Darius and Hunter's relationship has less to do with Hunter learning magic and more to do with Hunter being housed and fed. "Kid" and "foster son" are there...but...

Look, Darius isn't going to refer to Hunter more familiarly than Hunter refers to him! He's not gonna make it WEIRD. He's not a dad, because Hunter doesn't want/need him to be (and also parenthood is scary <3). Darius doesn't know the first thing about being a dad, despite how his friend group teases him.

Eda and Eberwolf are the two who are worst about it. They torture him with how 'fatherly' he's allegedly being (allegations Darius will DENY til his GRAVE!!!) And Eda specifically compares his journey to hers, saying it always starts off with you referring to them as your apprentice (again, Darius doesn't plan on doing that), as your roommate (...kinda weird in Darius' opinion? But okay Eda), or even your pet (????HELLO???). But eventually, they always become your dumb kid when you least expect it.

She's had a couple cups of appleblood by this point, but Darius knows on some level she's right and he's steadfastly ignoring that fact, even as Eber continues to refer to Hunter as his "cub" (kinda cute but Darius doesn't know how Hunter would feel being compared to an animal). The only people who are even remotely reasonable about all this (besides Lilith who's a bit disinterested in kid talk) is Raine and Alador, who both sort of neutrally, a bit awkwardly refer to Hunter as Darius' Boy.

Darius referring to Hunter as "my boy" is funnily enough what sticks the longest before it evolves to son boy. Hunter's crushing it at a derby match? Darius is whooping and cheering, yelling "THAT'S MY BOY!!!" At the other parents in the stands. Hunter is doing something dangerous or inadvisable where others can see him? "Darius, your boy-" "AHH! MY BOY". Hunter, a year into his stay with Darius finally comes clean about everything to do with him being a grimwalker, and is afraid that he's going to go back to seeing him as just an inferior replacement for Darius' beloved mentor? Darius (who has just had to process some of the most bonkers, emotionally heavy information in his life) gently, hesitantly puts a hand on his shoulder (the 'good' one Hunter doesn't mind people touching), and says that Hunter's much more than that. He's Darius' Boy and he's not going to kick him out or get angry or love him any less for things out of his control. It's good. They're good.

Like I said, it evolves over time and 'boy' becomes somewhat obsolete as the two get caught up in the joy of finally feeling able to explicitly refer to each other as family. But unlike "guardian" or "ward" the word never gets fully retired. Even when Hunter is 30 and is arguing that he's more of a man than a boy now, he is still getting referred to by Darius as "his boy", the way some parents never really stop calling their adult kids baby or kiddo (Camila and Eda respectively btw).

Hunter makes one of those corny matching shirt sets at some point for a father's Day gift when he's 17/18, where the two shirts say "if lost, return Boy to me" (Darius) and "I'm Boy" (Hunter). Hunter mostly did it so he could own a funny shirt that says "I'm boy". Darius openly weeps upon seeing them. Like Oh my Titan he's boy. He's my boy. Oh wow

[quitealotofsodapop]

Macaque is 100% down for messing with Wukong by trying to become his cubs stepdad. He is willing to ignore the whole "Wukong fuckong killed me" situation simply because the entire situation is far too amusing for him and Wukong is extremely cute when he's acting like a grumpy tsundere

Monkey logic; can't fight if Baby is there.

So Macaque avoids fighting by making sure MK is watching/is being cared for.

And of course there's the fact that I don't think Macaque would be so cruel as to deprive a cub their parent. Gravelly injuring Wukong in front of his student, yes. Hurting Wukong when he has a baby to go home to, no.

So now there's a hilarious situation of Macaque just Being There as another parent figure in MK's life. Tang, Pigsy, and Sandy just sort of accept that the Six Eared Macaque is here now and helping train the kid's powers sometimes.

Macaque is planning to become Step Dad to a kid whose parent can't stand him rn. XD

Macaque, handing over MK at the end of babysitting duty: "Here he is - tuckered out and less food stains than he started with." Wukong, begrudgingly cus Macaque did good: "Thanks."

Wukong wants to be mad at Macaque - but he's clearly trying to do some good by caring for MK and helping him control his powers.

And Macaque in turn wants answers for what happened all those centuries ago. But at the same time, he fears that LBD may be lurking around waiting to do something terrible to Wukong's cub or himself...

[digital-techtune2024]

https://www.cub.edu.bd/index.php

[honestlyboringperson]

This entire project took almost all of summer vacation…

I know both Cub isn’t part of the life series, but I just couldn’t resist!

Southlanders

Team B.E.S.T.

The Scottage + Gem

Fairy Fort

Joel - “Bolt” - The Chariot Arcana - Zeus/Thor

“Former” delinquent and architecture student, Joel is abrasive, sarcastic, and even a little mean spirited. He has a short temper, but is highly protective of his friends, especially Jimmy. He tends to poke fun at his friends, and refuses to give up on anything, even if the odds are against him and it’s best to admit defeat. The only one who can reign him in is his girlfriend, who he is hopelessly in love with and can match his stubborn personality with her own. And remember; He’s not obsessed with that stupid engineer with the face mask.

His persona in the metaverse is Zeus. Joel’s Empires character was a Zeus like figure, so why not have him as his persona? Zeus is known for messing in mortal affairs for better or for worse, either punishing those who wrong him or “inconveniencing” anyone who catches his eye. He is the god of storms and can summon lightning with ease, and has an ego to match.

His Ultimate Persona is Thor, The Norse god of strength, storms, and thunder, much like Zeus. Thor wields the legendary hammer Mjolnir, which can smite anything that it hits. He’s noted for his temper and the time Mjolnir was stolen and he had to dress as Freyja in a wedding dress to take it back.

Scar - “Mage” - The Fortune Arcana - Pied Piper/Mephisto

An actor for an up and coming popular superhero show. Although he appears as a non-serious, goofy, and lighthearted demeanour, beneath that silly exterior is a cunning and intelligent hitman, with several kills under his belt. With the helps of his teammate and co-owner Cub, he created a hitman business (called “ConCorp”) with several people, ranging from politicians to businessmen, requesting his and Cub’s services for a hefty sum of money. He is in a shaky alliance with the Phantom Thieves, with his and Cub’s cooperation bought through a large amount of money.

His persona is The Pied Piper, the titular character of the german folktale and legend where a Piper in colourful clothing helps a town with a rat infestation by luring the rats away with his flute music. When the citizens refused to pay him for his efforts, he lured away their children, never to be seen again.

His Ultimate Persona is Mephisto, the antagonist of the german tale of Faust. Within the story, he offers Faust a deal; he’ll aid Faust in his pursuit of both knowledge and happiness, but if he ever feels complete and fulfilled, his soul is his to own. This created the adjective “Faustian” meaning someone who risks spiritual values for something in return.

Cub - “Warden” - The Death Arcana - Zeta Reticulan/Sisyphus

Cub is Scar’s business partner, and fellow hitman. Much like Scar, his laidback and chill demeanour hides a cunning sharp as a knife. He handles most of the business and financial matters in his assassination business. Many of his clients often assume he is more put together or “sane” compared to Scar, but he simply appears more laidback and is possibly even more unstable compared to Scar. The alliance between the two hitmen and the Phantom Thieves is intensely unstable, with both parties having contingency plans in case of a betrayal.

Zeta Reticulan is another word for Martian or alien. They are stereotypically inquisitive, and one of the most popular tropes in media is where an alien steals a person or livestock to experiment with. They appear all over the world with several people giving testimonies to seeing them. They are typically seen as on par or exceeding human intelligence.

His Ultimate Persona is Sisyphus, a king who trapped and evaded death itself. By locking Thanatos, the personification and god of death in a trunk, he was able to continue living beyond what was originally planned. As punishment however, he was forced to push a giant boulder up a mountain in death, unable to move on.

[dark-pink-fantasy]

panacea-wishes reblogs

general

Cat!Reader

Lionheart

Pet Time!

Poison Jealousy

Anxious!Fem!S/o

𝔼𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥

Massage Time!

Wonderful Voice

𝔼𝕤𝕔𝕒𝕡𝕖 ℝ𝕠𝕠𝕞 𝕊𝕙𝕖𝕟𝕒𝕟𝕚𝕘𝕒𝕟𝕤

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕚𝕘𝕟𝕚𝕥𝕪 𝕠𝕗 𝕒𝕟 𝕒𝕟𝕔𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣

To Say “I Love You”

𝒦𝒾𝓉𝓉𝑒𝓃 𝒫𝓁𝒶𝓎

Shopping Time!

Getting Lost?

Best Friends

An Odd Greeting

A Little Cub?

I Missed You

You Want to Do What?!

A True Savanaclaw Student

Slight NSFW S/o is teasing them with pictures

NSFW Heats & Love

NSFW getting sucked off

NSFW S/o who likes to provoke them

leona

Rock On!

Golden

Life Partner!

Cuddle Time?

Being a Father

Shall We Dance?

𝔸 ℂ𝕒𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕘 ℍ𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥

Kitsune!Reader.

𝕆𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕓𝕝𝕠𝕥 𝕎𝕠𝕖𝕤

𝔄 𝔔𝔲𝔞𝔦𝔫𝔱 𝔎𝔦𝔰𝔰

𝔸 𝕃𝕚𝕥𝕥𝕝𝕖 𝔸𝕣𝕘𝕦𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥

Flower Beauty

𝔸 ℝ𝕚𝕧𝕒𝕝𝕣𝕪 𝕋𝕦𝕣𝕟𝕖𝕕 𝕃𝕠𝕧𝕖

Braiding His Hair

Goth and Cute~

An Opera Singer

Pocky Game!

Waterbending Fun!

Wearing Something Cute!

Kabedon headcannons

A Meaningful Courtship

A Fairytale Romance!

His Heart Is Captured

Happy Valentine’s!

A Song for Slumber

You and Ice Cream

Married Life with Him

Naps and Cuddles!

A Beauty Underneath!

A Dream to Become an Idol

By the Crimson Sunset

Confession Time

A Nightmare in the Night.

A Worried Father

Being Playful?

Don’t Tease!

An Interesting Hobby!

A Surprising Proposal!

Good Luck Kabedon!

Wedding with Leona Kingscholar! (Remake)

【Ａ　Ｎｏｔｅ　ｏｆ　Ａｐｐｒｅｃｉａｔｉｏｎ】

NSFW Time for Lovin’

ruggie

Body Image Woes

𝔄 𝔔𝔲𝔞𝔦𝔫𝔱 𝔎𝔦𝔰𝔰

A Tailor’s Love

𝔸 ℕ𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕗𝕠𝕣 ℂ𝕠𝕞𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕥

𝔹𝕠𝕟𝕕𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕚𝕞𝕖!

𝕃𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝔸𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕐𝕠𝕦

Such a Tease!

Goth and Cute~

Don’t Tease!

A Fear of Rejection

A Revealing Dress

Kiss, Kiss, Fall in Love!

Wearing Something Cute!

Fatherhood at its Best!

Cooking Up His Favorite Meal

Wedding with Ruggie Bucchi!

A Very Nice Person on the Inside!

jack

Smooth Driver

From the Sun’s Wrath

A Wonderful Voice

𝓒𝓪𝓶𝓹𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓣𝓻𝓲𝓹!

Kabedon headcannons

Happy Valentine’s!

A Fighter and a Lover

Poison Jealous

A Skill in Karate!

Kiss Therapy

The Pain of Pining

Fem!s/o leaving a school dance

[riddles-fiddles]

Can we have a cat? Pt. 2

Synopsis: you ask your boyfriend (+your bff Ortho) if you two can raise a baby kitten together. Characters: all the vice housewardens Tags: fluff, silly scenario to warm the heart Notes: gender neutral reader, slight long post, will make more of this if someone requests for characters not included here

•·.·''·.·•ˏˋ°•*•·.·''·.·•ˏˋ°•*•·.·''·.·•ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

I feel like he's more of a dog person

So when you ask him about it, he's a bit hesitant at first

"A cat? But what's so fun about them? They just lie around all day along and scratch you when they're hungry." Somehow the way he wailed about your suggestion could be sharply directed to Leona, who was, in the end of the day, a big feline. Ruggie also tried to put some sense into you, telling you how it wouldn't work out since you are both very busy students, and he also needed to tend to Leona's whims - and that was enough cat for him. Alas, he's not immune to puppydog eyes. All it took him to have a change of heart was to gaze upon your sad, big shining eyes, and he was sold; there's no way he would not melt and feel guilt under such a powerful spell, specially when you always left him feeling like you could stare your demands right into his soul. By the end of the day, he complied to your request, but settled some reasonable rules before giving you the green card to get a kitten - 1. it shall stay with you at ramshackle dorm; 2. don't let it disturb Leona; 3. if it tries to scratch or bite, he'll bite back (jokingly, you hoped). In contrast to his defiance regarding getting a feline companion, the little cub decided to stick to Ruggie, always on his feet and clinging for his affection. At last, it wasn't so rare to catch both of them snuggled together in a deep, warm nap. "This little ball of fluff isn't all that bad, actually... it's pretty warm and soft."

Growing as a servant, Jamil learned a lot about animal care

But that doesn't mean you get to convince him so easily

"I'm sorry love, but I'm a busy man. I don't think it would be fair to try and raise a baby kitten by meeting its minimal needs." Jamil made it clear to you that despite wanting to share such a wonderful responsibility, he wouldn't be able to do it right, and therefore, would rather wait until you two had more time.

Jamil wouldn't budge no matter how many tear-filled sparkling eyes you direct his way - stubborn and determined to achieve his goals, he would rather pursue a better life and place before settling into the blissful details of domestic life and tending of animals. During all his servitude days to Kalim, he would entertain you by suggesting names with funny meanings, or tell you stories from his family/close friends about some cat mischief, happy to pull some joyous laughter from you by his silly stories - promising that someday he would gift you the prettiest kitten alive. When finally achieving freedom with enough independency and good money, Jamil quickly complied to his promises, waiting for a special occasion to gift you the kitten you dreamed about so much. "My treasure, I'm the happiest when by your side, and as evidence of my undying love and devotion, I want to give you something very special."

Is excited by the aspect of owning a kitten but doesn't show it

Genuinely curious but there's also a low miscievous tone under his smile

"A baby kitten? I think that could be arranged, if so fervently you wish." Complies without much hesitation, but leaves most of the responisbility over your shoulders, mostly because he's busy making sure Mostro Lounge doesn't explode by his brother's antics or managing the patrons since he's the most reliable twin.

Allows you to name the kitten, since particularly he'd prefer to not worry about name meanings or if any sound pretty enough. Regardless of that though, he'll come up with funny nicknames for the little feline, using them to annoy you, entertained by your grimaces. "He's truly an intriguing ugly duck, isn't he?", he would tease with a low chuckle, all while playing gingerly with the kitten sprawled over his lap, hands tugging gently on the toebeans. "It's like taking care of a fluffy mudskipper with too much energy." Despite his odd choice of terms of endearment, you can rest assured that Jade absolutely loves the little feline, though partaking mostly on the fun side of pet care - playing around, sharing snacks, napping together... sometimes he would even bring the little one to Mostro Lounge with him to 'help with the customers'. In no time, both your beloved boys would turn into stars on the fancy lounge.

With Lilia, everything is just another fun llittle opportunity

Eagerly accepts and won't hear a word of protest from neither Sebek or Silver

Like Jade, Lilia allows you to choose a name, as he judges himself terrible with such a matter. Follows you around adoption centers, excitement clear on his step, sometimes even forgetting you two were supposed to actually leave the places with a single kitten in arms - the felines love him, that's clear as day, and he made sure to poke at your jealousy as swarns of baby kittens clinged to him.

It quickly turned clear how hard it could be to settle with a single animal, though, since each and every one had their very unique quirkness and special demands, and everything had to be in tune for you two and the feline to grow happy and welcomed - like it was fun to meet so many cute kittens, but none had clicked right yet. Until, someday while you two walked down the streets of your hometown during the holidays, you noticed a shy and cautious figure hiding away between some bushes - nothing but big golden eyes peeking between the foliage to alert you of its presence, as the deep black fur mingled within. Slowly and surely, the small feline warmed up to both of you as you dedicated some time to persuade it out of its hiding spot with a stray yarn of Lilia's shirt. "The poor kitten is missing a leg," Lilia pointed out the missed detail, though his voice carried nothing but tender esteem. "I think she's perfect for us."

Another dog person

Rook can appreciate the beauty of felines, but much prefers the versatility and utility a dog offers for hunts and guarding duties

Rook watches in amusement as you talk your way into his heart, excitement contagious as you regard everything you appreciate the most about the fluffy critters. "Mon cher trickster," he coos beneath his breath, voice full of love and admiration as he takes your hands between his. "The way you spill the love for such gorgeous and mysterious creatures captivates my soul, though I think we could benefit more from a dog, don't you agree?" Feels sincerely bad for making you frustrated and look so down from his suggestion, he actually takes his time and dedication to learn more about the extensive world of cat breeds. He is the the most pleased bu finding out there actually exists a special kind of cat carefully bred to assist their owners into their exhausting hunts. Alright, maybe this kind of cat wasn't truly suitable for bigger prey like he expected, but the concept of being followed during his chases by such a glorious creature instigated him, since maine coons are known to be an adventurous, curious breed. "My most beloved, after some time of research and contemplation, I came to the conclusion that cats are, indeed, great companions," Rook muses in, arms concealed behind his back as he leaned in to smoother a trail of kisses all over your face, words tender and mysterious. "That's why I have a rather heartwarming gift to match your most exquisite and feline-like beauty." With a charming wink, he carefully craddles a baby kitten of bulky size into your arms, the grey fur glistening against your skin.

The happiest. Day. Of. His. Life!!!!!!!!!

He's so excited he might overheat his systems - talking about it, he already knew.

Ortho already suspected that you were looking for a kitten to adopt - he saw your search history on your device - with the best of intentions, of course, merely trying to get a glimpse of your current interest to gift you something. He wouldn't even need to try and look all sunny and surprised, because he truly was excited!!! Ortho loves animals, especially cats, since they're very chill and cuddly, and don't need as much attendance as dogs do! Of course, he asks his brother first though, to be sure he would be okay with a cat sharing their room from time to time. Ortho quickly convinces his big bro into adopting a cat by giving the biggest, most irresistible big eyes ever known to humanity, and the boy literally wastes no time; by the next time you come in to hang around, the dorm is already adapted with cat-proof furniture and an indoor cat playground with complex and stylized tunnels. The boy gladly bestows an exclusive version of the playground in Ramshackle Dorm so the little kitten can get entertained in both dorms, spending heavy minutes of his day playing and cuddling with your shared feline company - he thinks it's a very good thing you two adopted an animal, since it pushed him into being more in tune with reality. "She is so cute in every little aspect! I want to play with her forever..."

Thinks about what Riddle might think of it so is reluctant at first

But he simply can't say no to you, especially with that heartfelt request

"Ugh... alright, my love. We can have a kitten together, but let's keep it low so Riddle doesn't find out about this." Trey is confident in his ability to pass the details unnoticed to Riddle and the rest of his dorm, convincing you to keep the kitten with you at all times at Ramshackle Dorm.

He dutifully visited Ramshackle to help you with the responsibilities of taking care of the small feline, even bringing homemade special treats he baked, reveling on the simple pleasure of sharing domestic moments between you and the kitten. His favourite time of the day quick turned to be the hours he would be able to spend on the couch of Ramshackle Dorm with you, your head rested against his shoulder as your little kitten laid sprawled comfortably over your laps, his quiet purrs engulfing the silence of the solitary dorm like a magical song to sooth his worries and tension away.

"When I met you, I thought you'd be my one and only fortress to ground myself and easy my worries away when needed, but I'm glad to meet this little fella. You two are both the best things to ever happen to me."

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Hey have you seen the latest Mufasa trailer? It shows us Scar or Taka as he is called in the film in a positive light. He saves Mufasa, who is an orphan, and accepts him as his true brother even though the other lions in the pride reject Mufasa. I wonder if this is the history that is taught in Twisted Wonderland because the King of Beasts is also seen as a noble figure.

[Referencing this trailer!]

Yes, I took a look at it! I believe D23 happened like… yesterday? That’s the annual convention where Disney drops a ton of news about upcoming projects, and the new Mufasa trailer was one of the announcements made.

I was really skeptical about Mufasa when I first heard about it, and that snowballed into dread when I saw the previous trailer. The wording of that one basically yells us that Mufasa is an orphan with no real claim to the throne, which only serves to justify Scar’s outrage when he was overlooked for the position of king. Not only that, but it nullifies Simba’s claim to the throne since the implication is that blood apparently doesn’t guarantee that you’re next in line. The new trailer makes this issue all the more apparent, because now it seems to be completely redeeming Scar…? I think they’re trying to explain his downfall and his turn to “evil”, but from the looks of it, it instead feels like unintentionally give grounds for Scar’s hurt and rage in The Lion King. It’s definitely… a choice… and I’m not sure how much I like them adding that to the animated TLK lore.

Thar being said, I do think this poses considerations for Twisted Wonderland. I had very similar thoughts as you did, Anon! It has already been suggested that the version of history being told in their universe is “twisted” or altered from the versions Yuu/we, the audience, are familiar with. So… what we see in the new Mufasa trailer (up to a certain point) could very well be the “real” version of what is taught in Trein’s Magic History class. It fits SO well with the canon narrative we already have on hand. The King of Beasts is described as a hard worker and someone who accepted animals of all kinds, including hyenas that had once been excluded from the Pridelands. What better way to exemplify that virtue than a story of the King of Beasts himself accepting a no-name orphan cub as his own brother when all the other lions claimed the cub would never be accepted as part of the royal family???

I wonder how the story of Mufasa (if incorporated into TWST in the future) is interpreted by the characters too?? For example, Leona doesn’t think too highly about the concept of the great kings of the past in the sky, nor does he like “Hakuna Matata” (deeming it self-serving rather than as something positive). These are both things introduced in the original TLK. However, I’d imagine that Leona would actually admire the King of Beasts for his act of selflessness. (“He didn’t just talk the talk, he walked the talk too. They weren’t just pretty words, the King of Beasts lived by his ideals. The world he envisioned is one where beasts of all kinds could come together in harmony. Heh, what a guy.”) BUT AT THE SAME TIME Leona might be cynical about himself living to the legacy of the King of Beasts. He still bears resentment toward Falena and he refuses to cooperate with his older brother (despite Falena, their dad, and Kifaji all asking him) to govern Sunset Savanna. The King of Beasts wasn’t nearly so narrow-minded—he accepted a peasant and orphan as his equal. Leona in this hypothetical is, of course, tunnel visioning on his shortcomings and not paying attention to what he has accomplished: many younger students who look up to him, a dorm of students (many of which are beastmen of different varieties) that unite under his rule, and his own acceptance of “lowly” beastmen like Ruggie. I would love to see how he grapples and deals with these kinds of stories and how he reflects on his own life through them.

Anyway, the new Mufasa trailer sure sucks for Scar’s character but this has so much interesting potential for TWST 😭