#And then a study on Serizawa's powers

[emeraldoodles]

Sometimes you use too much psychic powers and accidentally break a rib or two. It's ok, Reigen is the epiphany of *slaps roof of car* "This baby can fit so much physical trauma."

[mickules]

Or we'll give you a discount on your next visit; Guaranteed!

---

Well what a year that was. and rounding it out with the long awaited finale to the Mob Psycho 100 anime certainly was a much appreciated way to see it off.

Please let me ring in the new year by indulging in some some future musings of the Sprits and Such Consultation staff, past and present.

Serizawa got his high school diploma from night school with flying colours (his mother's very proud), but never graduated from working part time at Spirits and Such. Now that he has his compulsory education complete, he studies subjects he enjoys - discovering that he likes learning really, he just didn't like the kids at his middle school.

Mob, on the other hand, was never too academic but his passion for athletics continues to grow (along with his height, stopping just shy of Serizawa). After high school he goes on to be a non-sponsored semi-professional athlete, working all kinds of odd jobs in the off season. When things get a little too lean, he's always welcome back to the office on an adhoc basis.

Ritsu, ever the overachiever, pursues higher education. Studying to pass the bar (to Reigen's concern) at one of the top universities in the country. A university which Shou may or may not have manipulated into accepting him on as a veterinary student. Despite their different disciplines Shou regularly sneaks into Ritsu's lectures using those powers he 'won't use anymore'.

Teru has no qualms utilising his powers. In addition to his responsibilities as a middle school teacher and in demand private tutor, he runs special afterschool sessions for ESPer children. He aims to establish his own ESPer friendly school one day. He has attended every single one of Mob's competitions.

Tome continued to secretary throughout high school, wheedling her way onto more on location exorcisms. Documenting her many supernatural encounters blossomed into a thriving career as a paranormal investigator, debunking fake phenomena alongside Hoshida Origo as her cameraman and co-author. Her first book was sold exclusively through the 'Spirit's and Such' website.

Dimple becomes the only true full time employee at the office becoming the 'Spirit' to Reigen's 'and Such'. After his and Reigen's mutual possession Reigen developed an ability to call out to Dimple as a means of summoning him. Meaning even when Dimple is enjoying his time visiting Mob, he can get the obnoxious equivalent of a spectral phone call when Reigen encounters a real spook. Dimple delights in ignoring such calls until the very last minute.

Reigen finds out, after a truly mortifying display at the now annual 'Spirits and Such New Year's Hike and Afterparty', that he is missing the enzyme needed to break down alcohol.

Happy New Year

[azumasoroshi]

suzume no tojimari spoilers ! hi guys im Insane

literature analysis brain is going haywire so here’s a bunch of incoherent ramblings some themes motifs and symbolism i love in this movie because AAAAAAA

Love and Sacrifice.

Obviously, but like the different kinds of love and devotion and how they’re never perfect and sometimes self-destructive but they’re so powerful and just waughhh. It was so important to me how after exploding at her Tamaki (suzume’s aunt, ik im not the only one who forgets names) was like “you know I don’t feel that way all the time, right?” like not denying that yes, she has felt exhausted of taking care of Suzume and sometimes wished she didn’t have to take care of her, trying to be the parental figure she needs while also trying to not encroach on her sister’s memory. It means so much to me that she didn’t deny those feelings but instead told Suzume that it’s not how she always feels, because loving someone means sacrifice and ewughghgghfgfh im not putting this into words well but htrggfhgf.

and ALSO the reciprocation of kindness with daijin - as thanks for the taste of freedom at last, and wanting to be with someone whom you love but not really comprehending that what they want (that “suzume doesn’t love me” killed me) and how by the end daijin helped her pull souta out and sacrificed himself for suzume because he really loved her ggrgfggfhfnfnch

And just. everyday love. This is kind of a mix of themes and motifs but every time we flashed back to the memories of whatever abandoned place they were in - the simple “good morning”s and “be back soon” and “it’s so hot”s made me choke up. the mundane love of Chika and Suzume in their newly found friendship, Rumi’s kindness in picking Suzume up off the street and her love for her children, Serizawa’s platonic love for Souta letting him drive these two crazy women with crazy beef for 7 hours across Japan, there’s just so much expression of love and the hardships people go through because of it and rhgrjgrjhgdhgjhb

Mourning and Closure.

Makoto Shinkai himseld said that he wanted to write a story about “mourning deserted places” (at least according to Wikipedia) so this one is all but textual but like yeah. the motif of opening/closing/locking doors and locking the bike and things like that? AaAAaAaa

To close the gates, you need to imagine the emotions of people who once lived there - i can only imagine what Souta was thinking in the abandoned bathhouse area, but hrhggejghw the school and the amusement park and the shots we got of normal life in tokyo before the worm revealed itself in the climax, it just. really speaks to the beauty of everyday life. im a sucker for that kind of stuff as both a psychology major and just a weird person who thinks “man i wonder what happened to this person for the past 22 years of their life that led them to be here with me in this moment” whenever i pass someone in the grocery store. Hodaka could let japan be flooded in weathering with you because of his love for hina, but suzume’s whole arc was learning about the common people and living their lives and embracing all the kindness they had to offer to herself and others and it really hits that like. of course she can’t just let tokyo get destroyed to save Souta, every person in all of tokyo is just like Rumi and Chika and Serizawa and they’re all people who love and are loved. She finds herself in Souta’s place as one who stretches himself thin between being a gate closer and studying to be a teacher because he loves life as well, and-

oops i forgot i was talking about mourning and closure

anyway the doors keep getting reopened because the grief never fully goes away and the worm of “calamity” is letting yourself be consumed by the grief and destroying the people around you and not being able to move on, and it comes from the Ever-after becomes ever-after is a place where time doesn’t exist and you wish you could be there forever because it’s where you can relive the events of your past, it’s where you can live in denial that time moves forward and you have to move with it, it’s where Suzume goes after her mother dies because she wants people to stop giving her condolences and just give her her mom back. “Ever-after” in itself is a “happily ever after” - a place where mortals aren’t meant to go, no matter how beautiful it looks. Souta goes there too because he is the catalyst Suzume needs to go back and face Ever-after - and it’s no longer beautiful, but it’s torn apart by grief and everything is in flames. The idea of a keystone as well, locking the memories and hurt away, is one that Suzume removes to relive her memories and puts back in place when she’s ready to move on. htrhgfhgfghfghf. she won’t let souta be the keystone because she refuses to move on without him.

Also both Souta and his grandfather tell Suzume to just forget everything she’s seen, but it’s too late for that because connections aren’t so easily forgotten. Even when Tamaki couldn’t remember telling Suzume she’d be her new mother, that doesn’t change that she cared for her for the next 12 years anyway. Suzume visits Chika and Rumi by the end, and obviously she’s never forgotten her mother, both because her chair was still in her room by the start of the movie and because she looks like her by the end. Even though relationships change, they’re never forgotten in the movie, and I think that’s beautiful, really.

(also cool detail: 12 years ago is when the tsunami that killed suzume’s mother struck. the movie came out in 2023, and the touhoku earthquake/tsunami that inspired this film was in 2011. nice)

Reality vs Fantasy

The scenes where Suzume goes out into public again following stopping the worm from destroying Tokyo were especially poignant to me. This girl’s been going on a fantastical adventure with her talking chair and talking cat, meeting nice people and making friends, excited at the idea that she’s doing something important, but after Souta’s gone she shuts down. Her feet are bloodied, her clothes are destroyed, and people keep giving her strange looks and calling her homeless because she may have stopped the worm but even without being consumed by grief, it still isn’t pretty or picturesque. Standing out in Japanese society is discouraged, as most of us are well aware, but she’s been doing nothing but that with all the running around and talking to chairs and flying through the sky she’s been doing. Without a concrete goal in mind, without Souta as company, she’s alone in the world of adulthood and has no one to tell her what she should do, no Souta to guide her through Tokyo. And without that confidence or charm, people don’t come to her aid like they did before. It’s only once she finds her resolve to save Souta, quite literally walking in his shoes/footsteps, that the next helpful stranger (Serizawa) comes in.

She could imagine those abandoned places as alive, but the truth is that they were abandoned and will stay that way - none of them miraculously revived by the end, unless something happened in the credits that I couldn’t see through all my tears. Reality will not bring those places back, but what really matters is how we carry the memories of those places with us? I think. man maybe it’d be easier to write this post if i had actually seen the end credits

this post is really fucking long so im calling it here 😭 makoto shinkai has done it again. goddammit

[shigayokagayama]

serizawa !

Sexuality Headcanon:

i think that he is bisexual <3

Gender Headcanon:

i actually really like transmasc serizawa

A ship I have with said character:

sigh. ok. look. i like serirei, i think it can work really, really well if done right. i do not like how a lot of fanon serirei content feels more like a vehicle through which to explore reigen. either its "people projecting onto reigen to put themselves with blank slate big hunky gentle shy guy who will comfort them when theyre sad" or "people who are attracted to reigen treating serizawa as a blank slate to project themselves on because they convinced themselves x reader is cringe". and like obviously its fine, people write stuff for themselves, youre not obligated to write big indepth character studies when youre making ship fics. but theres so much of it and its so hard to find anything thats not that.

also i think dimple x serizawa is underrated ok bye

A BROTP I have with said character:

I FORGOT TO SAY THIS IN THE MINEGISHI ONE i always feel like these two were really close at claw. theres a line that- i cant tell if it's a wonky mistranslation or not- but minegishi says something about owing something to serizawa when they save him and that combined w the fact minegishi wouldve been like 16 when they met and serizawa is good with kids... dies.

like ive heard people say "they mean he owes mob something" but unless its mistranslated "i still owe him one" is directly linked to "i dont want to boss to end his life" when he's catching serizawa so it wouldnt really make sense if it was about owing mob?

A NOTP I have with said character:

sighhhhhhhh ok. i will prelude this with "i do not think it is on the same level as shipping pedo and/or incest shit and it's weird to treat it like it is". seritoi makes me deeply uncomfortable and i do not trust people to be normal with it to the point where will probably block people for posting it.

A random headcanon:

the first time he and reigen got drunk together reigen told him he didnt have powers but he got so fucked up that he completely forgot he said that and serizawa is trying to pretend he didnt say anything and that he'll tell him sober in his own time but it makes it every exorcism so fucking awkward

General Opinion over said character:

i like him soso much like. as someone who was in a very similar "i dont want to leave my house because im paranoid about being hurt and people hurting me" rut for a not insignificant chunk of my life having a character like that who isnt treated as a joke and is treated as a person with feelings capable of growth who solidifies his place in the world and makes friends... man....

[candyskiez]

i love shou. guy who unintentionally foils each of the other 3 esper kids just by existing

he and mob are both carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. the two kids who fought toichirou and what it meant for both of them. mob’s “the only way to use these powers responsibly is to never use them against people” vs shou’s “the only way to use these powers responsibly is to use them against people (who use them for evil)” and how both of those perspectives are forced to develop

shou and ritsu’s parallels are actively discussed in the show and also deal with responsibility (especially the responsibility of having a super powerful and potentially dangerous psychic family member). also their relationship with their powers is opposite which is another point of comparison

and of course. teru and shou don’t even Interact but they’re also the most superficially similar, as the loud, brightly colored guy who got Immediately attached to the kageyama brother they just fought with, and of course their main character complexes where they Have to be the protagonist. because if they aren’t then all of this is real.

(also as i was typing this i realized how much ritsu does play by these narrative rules and how much mob doesn’t. like even the Defeat Means Friendship thing that teru tried actually worked with ritsu) (like it didn’t really bc the defeat was more of an obstacle to that but i am here connecting these dots for fun not glory)

God ALL of this. The fact that Shou has so little relationships is a crime. Like I get why. Only so much time. But god I want to see how he views everyone. I saw someone with an au where. Y'know those Mob and Serizawa swap aus. It was instead where Shou recruited Mob to help him stop his dad. And I saw an au with a Shou and Teru team up. It was so good. I need to study every relationship this lil guy has. What is up with you. Why do you have so many foils boy.

[hellolulu]

The anime made the telepathy arc more about the aliens haha funny anime girls than it did about what the arc represents and I'm still sad about it! I didn't post about it until now because I'm sad! Especially because the animation was quite beautiful!

The point of this small arc is to show that Shigeo has made peace with himself. Both as a person, by genuinely exhausting himself to help the friends he loves - putting all that effort in and continuously choosing to keep going, even when Tome is saying she doesn't want to and everyone is tired. And as an esper, freely using his powers to do something that could be regarded as useless, silly, or maybe even a touch playful; which he hasn't done since he was a child. He has only ever used it when told to, ever since the accident with Ritsu. And remember, during the last season, he was having an extremely hard time being stuck between his esper half, and his human half. It's incredible progress!! Seeing him able to combine both sides of himself in front of others, knowing he's accepted by these people?! That's crazy! I'm so proud of him!! He's grown!!

And this arc is also about him connecting with the other important part of himself (and of all of us), too: the truth of your heart.

Tome disbanding the club, leaving so quietly and dejectedly because she realises that all this time they hadn't taken her seriously. The club members being genuinely upset about it because they love her and didn't realise that she was that serious.

Takenaka being amazed by the truth in Shigeo's heart (a straightforward person who doesn't like to lie or put up false pretenses, which is rarer than you'd think, genuinely wanting to help his friend by doing something crazy like communicating with aliens) and choosing to join them because he had actually wanted to meet others like him, and because he felt like his power could be used for the sake of good for once (as he had used it when he was a child). Because he was moved by Shigeo's honest heart.

Reigen complaining that he has to babysit a bunch of kids, when in reality he knows he's spending time with people he loves and is just a little happy about it. Serizawa being genuinely upset that he can't join Reigen for drinks, worrying about him, until he knows Reigen will be with someone he cares about at the turn of the year (btw this is quite funny to me, because any typical person would go hey I'm sure my classmates wouldn't mind if I invited a friend along to drinks! We're all adults after all! Do you want to join? I can ask :D but he's autism honour bound and doesn't realise he can probably bring anyone, and Reigen's self confidence is too low to invite himself smh)

Tome crying because she was so frustrated that they only started to care when things were about to end, but knowing the truth in her own heart being that she, too, wanted to stay - so she showed up to go with them even though it hurt. Only to learn that even though they hadn't thought she was serious, they put this plan together because they do care. Because the truth is they value their friendship with her as much as she values them, and they want to make an effort to prove that.

Takenaka then putting in even more effort than he had expected to, because he realises he had let his hurt feelings (loneliness) get in the way of the type of friendships Shigeo had formed. The type of friendships he had yearned for all along. He'd even stayed awake that whole night prior, studying and memorising and taking notes, because he wanted things to go well, because these people could be onto something deeper than he'd thought friendships could be. Because the truth is he wanted to take part in something like that, too.

And Shigeo, in this arc, despite pushing himself to exhaustion, is doing it for the sake of love. For his friends. We've seen him exhaust himself before; after big fights and overwhelming moments, he becomes tired and exhausted to the point of collapsing or passing out. But here it's different - he's doing it for the sake of those he cares about. He wants to see Tome happy because she's a very dear friend to him, he wants to enjoy a day out with his group of friends that he just happened to become close to over the year, and he wants to show them how much they mean to him right now; and he wants to see Takenaka open up to others and learn that sometimes friendships are formed out of things that you don't have in common. Out of the things you learn from each other. (The mortifying ordeal of being known, if you will.)

Because what matters is the truth in your heart, that you care about your friends, that you want to be there for them, to push yourself for them, and that you know they'd do the same for you. That maybe they already have. That's the point of the arc. (That's what the point of the arc is.)

The aliens section in the manga touched on it too, in a "we were able to communicate because of a common understanding of each other, despite being unable to verbally communicate, and I was able to return home" and not.. whatever that was in the anime.

[mjesechii]

Spirits and such ends up being a family business and i don't think they end up closing down anytime soon. While i think reigen keeps s&s even after the "???" arc mainly so serizawa has a place to be at during his studies at night school, serizawa definitely likes being there. Like, the only reason why reigen DIDN'T close up the business after the separation arc was because he wanted to see and help mob grow, plus when serizawa joined he had a reason to keep the business for his employees. Because reigen, deep down, loves spirits and such for the people who come there. Serizawa on the other hand actually enjoys coming there because, first of all, his jobs include helping people with his powers, and second of all, he is surrounded by those who care for him and support him. He grows immensly during the year he spends working there. I think its safe to say that he sees reigen, dimple and mob, and later on, tome as family. As close friends rather than co-workers and that he loves spending time with them. Like yeah, he would be able to navigate any new workplace, but he knows where he wants to stay and actually doesn't intend on leaving (as per the spin-off manga). So this determination to stay with them from serizawa would definitely cause a chain reaction of reigen staying there for him, even though he thinks seri could do so much better than an underpaid exorcist job (plus tome would return there after uni she loves the occult way too much not to i'm afraid lol)

[scribefindegil]

Katsuya never tells his mother what happened. She tries, at first, tries gentle coaxing, tries a firm tone, tries begging him to talk to her, but nothing works. Katsuya makes it back from that last day of school, and then he goes into his room and shuts the door.

And he doesn't come out.

Serizawa Kimi loves her son. And she'll keep loving him, no matter how many years he spends in that room, no matter what his powers have done, and no matter what she has to give up to look after him.

(A study of Serizawa's mom from his birth to shortly after the events of Mob Psycho canon)

Hi! This was supposed to be a short little thing for the day of Mob Psycho GirlWeek dedicated to moms but it. Uh. Got away from me a bit! Anyway, here's Part 1 of what will eventually be four chapters!

[fiendishartist2]

too alien to take you home– mp100

Once the dust settled over Seasoning City, and Toichiro Suzuki was finally taken away, Shou found himself with nowhere to go.

For a few hours, he wandered. He scaled rubble, looking for anything to occupy his mind with. Anything that could push away the static in his brain– that could stop the leftover shockwaves of adrenaline shooting through his restless limbs.

Eventually, he found himself perched on an upside-down park bench. Over and over, he spread his aura thin over the city, marking names and faces on a mental map. He counted them on his hands, making sure to take stock of every single Claw member first, then smaller, less familiar auras second.

There, on the outskirts of the city, in an apartment carefully crafted to be inconspicuous, were Fukuda, Higashio, and Ootsuki. Another familiar aura– Serizawa, in the lower-end suburban area. Minegishi and Hatori were together, picking apart what remained of the centre of the city. A few Scars were scattered around as well; Tsuchiya and that little girl Shou never got along with were near the train station, while Sakurai and Koyama were in a restaurant. Joseph and his father were long gone, but their auras left behind a trail of power in their wake.

He ran over them all in his head, dwelling on his father's violent red explosion in the centre of the city, where a giant broccoli now grew out of the ground. It hurt, deep and sharp like a hole in his gums where a tooth used to be– but he kept running his tongue over the bloody spot regardless. It loosened something in his chest, the constant reminder that Claw was over for good. His father left his mark on the city, but that mark was an outright confirmation that he wasn't coming back.

Then something else caught his attention; something cold, in deep indigoes and bubbly cyans. Glittering, like it wanted nothing more than to distract him. Next to it, two more auras sparkled, overpowering to anyone else, but just background noise to Shou compared to the alluring blue.

"Ritsu…?" Shou mumbled to the empty air. That's not his house, Shou thought, icy trepidation spider-webbing through his gut. Goosebumps spread across his grimy skin, and Shou was overcome with the sudden need to find his newfound best friend.

--------------------------------------------------

Shou landed roughly on the fire escape of an apartment. Through the haze of his brain, he remembered vague definitely-illegally-dug-up information he studied for weeks before his coup. This shitty little flat on the bad side of the city belonged to Reigen Arataka. He only really bothered to look into ways to get Ritsu's brother to flip out, which lead him to Spirits and Such and eventually, this apartment. Other than what he saw of him on the Culture Tower through the pain of being thrown around by his father, Shou didn’t know anything about Reigen.

He perched on the windowsill, willing his double vision to come back– if only to stop the sharp tunnel-vision of his gaze giving him a headache. Pain pounded behind his eyes in time with his racing heart.

He squinted through the window, trying to parse out what was what. And more importantly, where Ritsu was.

Soft, orange light filtered in from a side room no bigger than a closet, illuminating everything inside. The single room apartment was cramped, furniture packed together to give just enough space to walk between them. The couch and desk were unoccupied, but if Shou squinted, he could see three distinct lumps curled up on the bed. Ritsu's brother, flat on his back and dead to the world, was the most distinct, due to his whole face being visible above the blankets. Ritsu laid sprawled out next to him, clutching onto his brother with an iron-grip. Only his untameable, sea urchin hair poked out of the top of the blankets. Shou wheezed the closest thing to a laugh he could manage without aggravating his ribs. On the other end of the bed– someone Shou only recognised as the guy Shimizaki nearly killed– was starfished over both of them, barely covered in the wrinkled duvet he was wrapped in.

A lanky young man came into view and Shou zeroed in on him. He manoeuvred around the closely packed furniture, with a laundry basket balanced on his hip. Shou wrinkled his nose at the pretty ugly bear graphic on his sweatshirt.

He was padding around the apartment as quietly as possible, picking up clothing from the floor and placing it in his basket. It made Shou a little nauseous, the amount of blood on some of them.

Shou leaned in closer, nose nearly touching the window as he studied the man.

Absolutely no psychic power emanated off of him. Reigen didn't even have a visible aura, just the traces of someone who spent a lot of time with very powerful espers. But that just served to make Shou more confused.

Espers with as much power as Shou was convinced Reigen had couldn't suppress their auras to that degree. Shimazaki, Kageyama, even his own father– they could do nothing about the halo of pure psychic energy that surrounded them at all times.

But Shou was convinced he had to have some kind of psychic abilities. Otherwise, why would he have shown up at the Culture Tower and attempted to stop Ritsu's brother from fighting Shou's father? If he didn't have a way to defend himself, why did he try to go toe-to-toe with a man who could render him a stain on the floor, armed with only a small handgun? Kageyama could handle himself, even if he was losing to his father because he was too much of a saint to fight back. So why step in unless he's more powerful than the both of them?

Shou focused harder; there had to be something he missed. Some detail he had forgotten to look into that made this frankly weak looking guy make sense-

With a loud resounding thunk, Shou smacked his face on the window he was spying through.

He froze as a muffled squeak came from inside the apartment. The man he was essentially stalking had heard him and knew he was there.

Shou's instincts screamed at him to run. His rational brain wanted nothing more than to jump into the alleyway and hide from the man approaching the window who, for all he knew, could be double the esper his father was. But his body was so tired. For once in his life, Shou couldn't muster up enough energy to fight. Maybe it was the way his ribs ached with every breath, or how despite his open wounds all healing over with Kageyama's explosion of light, fresh blood still dribbled out of the corner of his mouth. And despite himself, maybe it was the relief in knowing that his father couldn't hurt anyone anymore and it didn't have to be through death. For all he talked of putting a stop to his father by any means necessary, Shou didn’t know if he could kill him. Even if that meant he lost.

Either way, Shou couldn't move from his spot slumped against the glass.

Reigen roved across his apartment slowly, picking up his TV remote and brandishing it like a weapon. Enough crazy shit had happened today and he would rather die than let anything else happen to the three boys crashing on his bed. Logically, he knew that if it was any of the nutjobs they ran into today, a remote and his own scrawny, tired body wouldn’t last in a fight. But he was ready to die on that tower for Mob, and that same protective adrenaline was still burning inside of him.

Stepping around the couch, Reigen set down the laundry basket under his arm. He wielded the remote in both of his shaking hands. The floors creaked as he prowled closer and he thanked his unbelievable luck that the kids were still fast asleep. Just as he raised the remote over his head, ready to strike, he got close enough to see through the window and-

And he sighed, nearly collapsing with relief. He was less relieved to see the little redhead boy from the Culture Tower slumped and unconscious on the windowsill, but anything was better than a Claw grunt coming to finish them off.

Reigen tossed the TV remote back onto the couch with the basket. He pushed open the window, holding out his arms as the boy nearly tumbled out.

“Woah-!” Reigen stared back at the boy’s wide, electric blue eyes. He braced himself on the window, gripping the frame with his knobby knuckles. Reigen tried to ease the tension in his trembling shoulders with an easygoing smile.

“Don’t you know spying on others is illegal, kid?” He said before he could stop himself. The boy wasn't deterred by his bluntness– in fact his expression hadn't changed at all. His piercing blue eyes shot holes into Reigen. Now that they were face to face in the light of his apartment, Reigen could clearly see the blood splattered all over his face. His stomach turned.

"Do you need help down?" Reigen subtly invited the boy in, trying for a gentle tone. He didn't move.

"Are you hurt?" He didn't even blink. Reigen swallowed the urge to groan, "You got brain damage or something, kid? C'mon in before I kick you out." He didn't mean to be so short, but it had been a long day and the weight of it all was making him a little high-strung. This kid's unwavering stare in place of any actual answer was grating on his nerves.

All of Shou hurt, a bone-deep soreness that couldn't be attributed to any visible injury. But, he couldn't admit that to anyone, especially not a potentially dangerous adult esper like Reigen. He shook his head and grit his teeth against the way the room spun.

Carefully, Shou lowered himself down from the windowsill, until his tattered sneakers hit the floor. He let his white-knuckle grip loosen, causing him to stumble back into the wall with a soft thump. A hiss escaped past his clenched teeth.

"M'fine," he slurred. He shoved his trembling hands deep into his pockets, "Jus' need a min- m'nute…"

"Uh-huh." Reigen scoffed, eyebrow raised. It made Shou want to punch him in his smart mouth.

Reigen sighed, "How about you sit down before you faint?"

Shou crossed his arms. The impact of his glare was hindered severely when he winced. Something twinged violently in his ribs.

"I said… I'm fine." His breath came out in bursts, exhaustion pulling at his wobbling knees, "Leave me alone. I don'-don't need your help…"

Shou leaned his head back to rest on the wall, closing his eyes. It soothed his nauseating headache and his vision stopped swimming for a moment.

"Well, at least I know you're well enough to sass me." Reigen's voice floated around in the blackness behind his eyelids. He walked away with soft footsteps. The distance between them eased a little tension in Shou's shoulders.

Shou cracked an eye open at the sound of a drawer opening. His eyes narrowed in on Reigen's hands on instinct, watching as he pulled something out of the tall dresser. He kneeled down to rummage in the bottom drawer, holding up clothing and checking the tags. This went on for a while; Reigen pulled out a shirt or pair of pants, checked the tag, glanced at Shou, then grimaced as he put it back. Eventually, Shou felt his eyelids grow heavier and he couldn't fight to keep them open anymore. Sounds fizzled out the longer he spent with his head ducked down and his eyes squeezed shut.

Something soft was shoved into his chest in the darkness and Shou gasped. His heart caught in his throat as he brought his aching arms up to block his face.

Except, no other attacks followed, and Shou was left reeling with the anticipation. He chanced a peek at what had startled him, finding a stack of clothes and a towel in Reigen's outstretched arm.

Reigen was giving him a weird look– eyebrows furrowed and eyes crinkled in a mock wince, mouth pulled into a deep frown. Shou's staring must have made him uncomfortable, because Reigen started to ramble.

He cleared his throat, "Uh- I got you a change of clothes. Y'know," Reigen's other hand started flopping around, landing on a thumb pointed over his shoulder, "So you can take a shower and stop tracking dirt all over my house." Sluggishly, Shou realised it must have been some kind of joke because Reigen was laughing, high-pitched and stilted. He scowled.

Shou's heart was still stuttering in his chest, adrenaline pumping with every short panicked breath he took. He pinned himself back to the wall, trying to get as far away from Reigen as he could without his knees giving out. His vision blinked out every few seconds.

None of this should be happening. Someone like Reigen shouldn't be helping him. It wasn't normal for an adult with as much supposed power as him to be here, speaking softly to Shou and trying to coax him into taking care of himself.

Maybe, Shou reasoned, he's trying to get my guard down. If I listen to him, he'll just double cross me. I mean, it wouldn't make any sense for him to be so nice to me. Shou didn't know why, but the thought comforted him a little. At least if he was tricked into thinking he was safe, he wouldn't be in uncharted territory anymore.

Reigen started sweating under Shou's glare. For a kid who looked like the wind could knock him over, Shou was incredibly intimidating.

"C'mon Suzuki, I'm not gonna bite." That broke Shou out of his one-sided staring contest. He ripped the stack of clothes out of Reigen's hands.

"It's Shou." He bit out, stomping across the apartment and shutting himself in the bathroom.

Once Shou had locked himself away in Reigen's dingy bathroom, he realised his mistake. He just trapped himself in a room with no exits, where he would be a sitting duck to anything Reigen was planning to do. If he was ambushed in here, that would be it.

With wheezing breaths, Shou encased the door with the strongest barrier he could muster. He braced himself on the counter, too occupied with the door to care about how it dug painfully into his back.

He waited there for a few minutes, carefully trained ears straining to make out any sounds outside of the bathroom. Once in a while, a floorboard would creak or blankets would shift and Shou's whole body would tense. It was agony, knowing something was coming and just waiting for it to happen.

Ten more minutes passed and Shou's barrier was starting to flicker away. His raised arms shook with exhaustion, but he couldn't let them drop. Not if Reigen was playing the waiting game, tiring him out before deciding to strike. Not if Reigen was going to barge in and reveal himself to be another Toichiro Suzuki.

Except– except, if he was just like Toichiro, why would he be here, watching over the Kageyamas and their blond friend? Shou's father hadn't ever shown that level of care, at least since Claw started getting big. Shouldn't he be on top of that weird broccoli tree, claiming the remains of Seasoning City for himself?

Irrationally, Shou wanted to believe in this idea; there was stability in someone he could hate, someone he could fight back against. Honestly, he didn't know what to do with being shown genuine kindness. It wasn't normal.

Again, his barrier wavered as his thoughts pooled around the fight with his father. Reigen had put his life on the line for Ritsu's brother, promising to protect him even when Toichiro was ready to kill them both. When he shut his eyes against the memory, all he could see behind his eyelids was Kageyama's subtly grateful expression. His trust that Reigen would take care of it. The way he relaxed for a moment, relieved at the sight of Reigen strolling up to a losing battle with the arrogance of someone who had the world in the palm of his hand.

This is so stupid.

Shou let his barrier fall as he slumped on the floor.

If Ritsu's brother trusts him, then that's going to have to be enough for me too.

It took a long time for the water to run clear, but eventually Shou had scrubbed all of the grime and blood (both dried and fresh) caked on his skin and hair. Now, under the lukewarm water spewing unevenly out of the dinky showerhead, Shou felt the full force of his exhaustion. He could have fallen asleep right there, leaning against the yellowing shower tiles. Instead, Shou got out and dried himself off, shivering against the stale, chilly air.

The clothes Reigen gave him definitely belonged to a kid, which surprised him. He didn't remember his guys telling him about Reigen having any children. The matching pyjama shirt and pants were adorned with cats, each with a speech bubble telling a horrible cat-themed pun. Their only saving grace was the fact that they were a peaceful blue, not unlike a certain best-friend's aura (which was quickly becoming Shou's favourite colour, incidentally). Shou wrinkled his nose at them, his cheeks growing warm with embarrassment at the thought of putting them on. If anyone caught him wearing these– god forbid if Ritsu saw these– he would die of mortification on the spot. He eyed the bloodied and ripped jacket he shucked off, but dismissed the thought of putting it back on. Reigen told him he was making a mess and Shou's stomach squirmed at the prospect of angering him.

Despite probably belonging to someone a few years younger than him, the pyjamas swallowed Shou's meagre frame. He floated a little to reach the small mirror hung up for someone much taller than him. As he poked and prodded at his ribs in his reflection, Shou realised just how prominently they stuck out. It was normal for Shou, but alongside the twinge in his stomach, he couldn't ignore it. He grimaced, trying to remember when his last meal was. Fukuda might have made him choke down a few spoonfuls of rice the day before he met up with Ritsu. He couldn't remember; Shou could barely keep the days straight in his head in this state.

At least his ribs weren't broken like he thought they were. They definitely cracked during the fight, probably when his father blasted him into a wall. Silently, he thanked Ritsu's brother, not for the first time that day. Before he healed everyone, Shou was sure he was going to die on that tower, with broken ribs and a few missing teeth to show for it.

He was paler than usual and his eyes were still a little unfocused. But, judging by how most of his dizziness had gone away and his head splitting headache was reduced to a low thrum, Shou didn't have a concussion. That stumped him, since Toichiro had fought him without mercy, incapacitating him to an extent that coming out of it without irreparable damage was shocking. Shou snorted; not like he hadn't tried.

--------------------------------------------------

Reigen paced around the apartment as quietly as possible. He couldn't stop, even when he kept bumping into the corner of his couch. Everytime he knocked his shins into something he froze, whipping around to make sure he didn't wake the kids. He was buzzing with nervous energy and continued his pacing anyways.

Reigen had been on his feet since they made the long trek to his apartment. The last few hours were spent cleaning up after the boys and watching them like a hawk, even after they had long since fallen asleep. It was irrational, but Reigen didn't want to shut his eyes for a second. The thought of leaving these kids vulnerable when he was supposed to be responsible for them again filled him with dread.

This was a different kind of restlessness now though; Shou was obviously tired and hurting and Reigen couldn't help but worry for him. He was even younger looking than Ritsu– shorter than Mob and with a frame so underweight, Reigen wondered if he was malnourished. Everytime he looked at the boy, Reigen's heart rate spiked thinking about what that meant for Toichiro. Yeah, beating up middle schoolers was awful, but a kid younger than that? Now that was deplorable. Seeing the small teen tattered and nearly falling asleep standing up left a sour taste in his mouth.

It took Shou so long to start his shower that Reigen wondered if he was even in the apartment anymore at all. Was he the one that could turn invisible? Reigen couldn't keep all these espers and their different powers straight. A few months ago he didn't even know espers other than Mob existed. He stopped his pacing, waiting for the water to start. After a few moments, the sound of his shower filled the silent apartment and he sighed with relief.

Eventually, Shou finished his hour-long shower. He finally creeped out of the bathroom and Reigen could see the full extent of his fatigue.

He limped across Reigen's cheap flooring, favouring one of his legs and walking stiffly, trying to move his hip as little as possible. An arm rested around his chest protectively; he was hunched over it and breathing shallowly, breath stuttering every few seconds as he rubbed circles into his ribs. His nose was crooked, like it had been broken and set wrong, and when he grimaced, Reigen spotted a few missing teeth. He really hoped they were baby teeth.

Reigen knew that if he looked, he wouldn't find any evidence of injury at all– Mob's powers took care of that. Where they failed however, was the details; broken bones set imperfectly or leftover pain where no cuts or bruises lie. He saw it in the kids already, when he looked them over for the source of their soreness. Teruki complained the whole way home about his chest, until Ritsu shut him up with his own grumblings about the twinge in his back. Mob was completely out of commission, barely able to keep his head up as they floated him to the apartment, but he too complained about various aches and pains in due time. But when he sat them all down after their showers, he couldn't find a single scratch on any of them.

The quiet rage that had been simmering beneath his skin since he met Toichiro on the Culture Tower was near impossible to set aside now. Reigen couldn't imagine the type of person you would have to be to see literal children as fair game to fight. That cold, merciless look in Toichiro's eyes– different, yet just as immature as the ones reflected in the 7th Division members'– set something dangerous aflame inside of Reigen. That same something that let him aim Sakurai's gun at another person without hesitation.

While Reigen seethed, Shou shuffled over to the couch. He tried to sit as far away from Reigen as possible, crossing his arms and eyeing him with blatant suspicion.

"Where does it hurt?" Reigen asked without preamble, "I've got painkillers, but I want to make sure nothing else is wrong before I give them to you. No concussion or anything, right? I don't actually know how to check for those…" He rambled, trying to fill the gap in conversation. Shou's heart pounded in his ears, and his mouth was wired shut. He didn't want to answer, but Reigen was getting more animated by the minute and each fast, sudden movement made Shou's want to scream.

"No." He stated, emotionless. Sweat gathered under his wet hair laying limp against his forehead.

"Oh, well, that's good then. Great. Let me just-" Reigen scrambled into a side room, emerging with a squat bottle of liquid medicine and a glass of water. He handed them to Shou, watching him expectantly.

The bottle of generic kid's painkillers was nearly full and obviously old. He could see a layer of dust on it and the label was yellowing with age. Shou tried very hard not to crinkle his nose at it.

"I know it's ah- not brand new or anything. But it's not expired! Don't worry, I checked." The smirk he sent Shou was not reassuring, which must be why he continued despite getting no acknowledgement, "Sorry, I just haven't had to buy medicine for kids in a little bit," he laughed, "Mob outgrew that stuff pretty soon, so I stopped stocking up on it."

"...How old do you think I am?"

Reigen paused. He wasn't sure what the right answer to this question was.

"Um… like ten? Eleven, maybe?" He said, tentatively.

This 'totally harmless' front Reigen was putting on was pretty convincing, because Shou contemplated throttling him for a moment before he caught himself.

He handed the bottle back to Reigen. It was probably– no, definitely– laced with something.

"No thanks." Shou's patience was growing thin. The urge to escape back out the window itched just under his skin.

Reigen blew out a long sigh, "Alright, guess we're doing this the hard way. No medicine." He ran a hand through his hair, "You hungry, then?"

He didn't wait for a response, already halfway to the side room (which Shou could now see was a tiny kitchen) that he got the medicine from. Shou sat rigidly on the edge of his seat, hands balled by his sides just in case. He was spring-loaded, ready for anything, like always.

The microwave beeped. Shou scolded himself for flinching at it.

Reigen was soon sitting in front of Shou on the coffee table. Once again, he handed Shou something he had long since learned to never accept.

Shou took the plate, staring down at the food Reigen reheated for him. The smell of barely seasoned rice and eggs, scrambled together haphazardly, attacked his senses. His hands trembled as he fought with himself to refuse it, just like the medicine.

He looked up at Reigen, venom in his voice betraying the shaky smirk on his face, "How do I know you didn't do anything to it?" He challenged. Reigen visibly paled.

"Wh- you think I'm trying to poison you?! What kind of person do you think I am?" He whisper-shouted.

Shou shrugged, "I don't know, you tell me." His stomach turned– whether from the nearly irresistable temptation of the food sitting in his lap or from the frustrated pinch of Reigen's face, he didn't know.

"Just eat, kid. You look like you're going to faint if you don't. I promise I'm not plotting to kill you– I can't believe I even have to say that." He said, exasperation clear in the way he buried his face in his hands. When that didn't convince Shou, Reigen moved to stand up. He might as well get some laundry done while the boy sulked.

Shou jumped back with a choked shriek. He threw up a bright orange barrier at the abrupt action, flinching away. Reigen sat down just as fast.

"Hey- hey! It's okay– look I'm sitting, don't worry just- kiddo, just calm down!" He babbled, hands up in a placating manner as he tried to reassure Shou. His teeth were chattering, but by the strain in his jaw, he was desperately trying to hide it. His eyes, wide as saucers, were trained on Reigen. The rest of his face was tense, trying to keep a mask of aloofness over his fear. It looked wrong on a face so young.

He kept rambling until Shou stopped tracking his hands with his eyes. The crackling barrier between them fizzled out soon after.

"Sh-shut up." Shou mumbled, voice shaking. He picked up his spoon and took a bite of the first full meal he's had all day.

"Woah- slow down! You'll make yourself sick!" Reigen exclaimed. Shou tuned him out, continuing to shovel mediocre rice and eggs into his mouth with reckless abandon. He barely took a breath between bites. Now that food was in front of him, the ravenous hunger tearing through him was making itself known.

Shou got up from the couch and mindlessly walked into the kitchen.

Reigen blinked, "Where are you going?" He asked dumbly. Shou could barely stand just moments ago, so why was he suddenly keen on stumbling around Reigen's apartment?

Shou rummaged through Reigen's barren fridge. He spotted the rest of the leftovers immediately, popping open the container and helping himself to its contents. He didn't even heat it up.

Alarms were going off in Shou's head; he was seriously pushing his luck acting like this. No matter how nice Reigen seemed to Ritsu's brother and how strangely accommodating he was being to Shou, there was no telling how much annoyance he would take before lashing out. But Shou couldn't help it– this newfound instability was like a rug pulled from under his feet and he needed something familiar to hang on to. And being a smartass was unfortunately very familiar to him.

"I'm getting more obviously." Shou grumbled in between bites.

"Please don't overeat. I am not cleaning up vomit tonight." Shou padded back into the main room, crashing on the couch and curling into the arm.

"Whatever, old man. I'm not g'nna barf…" He drifted off, finally giving into the tired itch behind his eyes.

He shook his head, suppressing a sigh. Slowly this time, Reigen stood again. He tip-toed around the apartment, searching for something to lay on top of Shou. Reluctantly, he nabbed one of the blankets he piled onto the boys. He hovered in front of Shou. Will he freak out if I tuck him in? He's kinda jumpy… Reigen thought. He didn't want to think of why the kid was so skittish– it was too late for that kind of rumination.

After a few awkward moments of shuffling, Shou started snoring and Reigen gave up. He threw the thin fleece blanket over the boy.

God, finally, they're all down. He scanned his apartment, chuckling softly to himself. How did I manage to become a temporary guardian to four kids? What the hell are their parents doing instead of watching their kids?

Reigen had asked after they found Mob if the boys all had somewhere to stay, which was met with a resounding (and reluctant, in some cases) no. Apparently, their houses had all been destroyed right before their attack on Claw. He decided to ask more about that later, unease settling in the back of his mind at Mob's faintly haunted expression. Teru skirted around the issue, but Mob chimed in absentmindedly that he lived alone and Reigen decided right then that they would all be staying at his place.

Suddenly, he realised that with the boys taking his bed and Shou passed out on his couch, there was nowhere for Reigen to sleep. Although, after the day's events, Reigen didn't even know if he wanted to. He settled into his squeaky desk chair, crossing his arms over his chest and reluctantly shutting his eyes.

[mangatxt]

title: 🌱phototropic🌱 (5.6k words, complete)

fandom: mob psycho 100

relationship: no romantic relationships, serizawa & his mother, serizawa & suzuki, serizawa & reigen

details: rated t, character study, 5+1 things, hurt/comfort, canon compliant, healing, personal growth, angst with a happy ending, serizawa-centric

collection: written for serizawa week 2023

summary: Five times Katsuya couldn't control his powers and one time he could. [Serizawa Week 2023 Day 4 - Emotion / Control]

[hongherbac]

[Serizawa centric] The Humanity of S&S - Chapter 4

Read it on AO3

Chapter: 4/6

Fandom: モブサイコ100 | Mob Psycho 100 Rating: General Audiences

Non-Romantic Relationships: Seirizawa Katsuya & Reigen Arataka & Dimple

Summary: Reigen and Dimple set out for an exorcism.

CW: mild horror, insects, worms, body horror, mild self harm (all due to the evil spirit)

Chapter 4

"I got it. Now, just get some rest."

Reigen slid his cell phone closed. It would be a lie to say that he wasn't worried. Maybe he should have taken Serizawa out yesterday.

"It's quite rare that Serizawa actually takes a sick leave." Dimple said.

"Well, we all have our moments."

"I remember you have an appointment this afternoon, don't you? What now? Want me to do you a favor?"

Reigen looked at the calendar, "Oh, it's the gentleman who came two days ago. According to his description, his wife had a stroke a few months ago, and has been bedridden ever since. I think his daughter got an OCD because of the stress of a sudden change in the family. The parents, however, refuse to acknowledge it. I will refer them to a couple of ‘psychiatric clinics’. She should get better with continued treatment. Anyway, you should come with me, just in case."

"At least say thank you."

Later that day, they arrived at the client's house a few minutes early.

It was a traditional wooden bungalow nestled in a quiet residential neighborhood. The exterior walls were unpainted, showing the dark wood that had been weathered by time, giving it an eerie, somber look. It had been sunny on their way here, but now the clouds were dark, circling the house and casting an ominous shadow.

Dimple looked up at the sky, where a large amount of black resentment energy continued to emerge from above the house. He turned his head and realized that Reigen was staring in the same direction with a grim face. If it could even be seen by a human, the evil spirit must be very, very powerful.

"Reigen, this isn't something you or I can handle. Just go back."

"We've already made the appointment with the client. We can't just go back." Reigen swayed reluctantly, hands in his pockets, but his feet moved forward toward the door.

"You're kidding me! Even Serizawa can't beat that one. Ask Shigeo to take care of it. Hey! Reigen!"

-Ding-dong.

Within seconds of the doorbell ringing, the client came to greet him, apparently having been waiting. It had only been two days, but the middle-aged man was even more haggard than the last time. He was in a trance, and his hair was visibly falling out one by one.

"Come in, please."

They followed the client into the house. As soon as they stepped through the door, the air turned cold and stagnant. There was a rustling of insects and a buzzing of flies from somewhere. Out of the corner of his eye, Reigen thought he caught a glimpse of something flash by. But when he looked again, there was nothing. Reigen felt an itch on his cheek. He slapped himself. Is that a mosquito or something?

"Dimple, what's the situation?" Reigen asked in a low voice.

"Well…" Dimple said with a rare complex expression, "You're lucky you can't see it."

In the eyes of the evil spirit, the house was coated in black. The walls, the floors, the pillars, the ceilings, and the furniture. Without a gap in sight, they were all covered with soft, slimy, and dense black worms, disgustingly countless, crawling on the client's emaciated body. As Reigen walked by, the worms climbed onto his shoes, wriggled slowly, and crept into his pants.

They went up to the second floor. The client knocked on the door and called out weakly, "Rico, the exorcist is here. Please open the door. I promise he will help you."

"I told you not to bother me while I'm studying."

A girl's voice came from the room. A little later, the wooden door opened a small crack, revealing the girl's grim, skeptical face.

"I'm sorry, Rico, but please let the exorcist take a look inside. It won't take long." The client pleaded in a low voice.

The girl glanced at Reigen, and without saying anything, opened the door for them to enter. Her face was pale and riddled with pink scratches, some of which were oozing blood, while others were scabbed over and broken, leaving bruises everywhere. The girl turned back to her desk, where several reference books were spread out in front of her, tattered and dirty from repeated pencil scribbles. She picked up her pen and scratched her face, her neck, her arms, and her body with the left hand.

Reigen looked around. It was an ordinary room of a girl. Of course, he could not see the black worms all over the place, otherwise he would not be so calm. But he did feel that the atmosphere here was even heavier than downstairs. Seeing the girl scratching herself, even he couldn't help but feel itchy, but he resisted the urge to scratch it.

Reigen cleared a space on the girl's bed to sit down, spoke in a kind voice, "Hello, my name is Reigen Arataka. Your father has hired me to help you."

"… Just shut up. Do whatever you want. I'm trying to concentrate." Scratch. Scratch.

"Have you been disturbed by any paranormal phenomena lately?"

"… No. Dad is overreacting. He gets everyone upset."

"You're studying hard. Are you preparing for an exam?"

"… High school entrance exams are in a few months." Scratch. Scratch.

"They're very important to you, aren't they?"

"Of course they are!" The girl slammed her pen down and yelled angrily, "High school determines college, and college determines your life! You can't even get into a company without good grades! Getting low wages for life! Being looked down upon! It's a world of academic qualifications, and a person's place in society is determined at this time. It will become a lifelong imprint!"

The client said timidly, "But, Rico, you're pushing yourself too hard… You need to sleep and eat something."

"Dad is in no position to say that! Didn't you and Mom teach me that? I will get into the best high school. You'll see! It's nothing to work a little harder now."

The girl turned her eyes back to the reference book.

"Ahhhh, I'm getting itchy again talking to you guys. There are too many bugs around. So itchy. It's driving me crazy! Leave me alone! I need to study. If I concentrate, it won't itch anymore…"

Her fingers scratched harder and harder, her already red and swollen skin was scratched to the point of breaking, but she didn't stop. Bright red blood gurgled down from her cheeks, only to be smeared by her fingernails, as if turning into a strange rouge.

Reigen decided to stop stimulating the girl and signaled for the client to leave the room temporarily. They came out into the hallway to discuss the matter. The client looked at Reigen pitifully, almost in tears, with a few more strands of hair falling out. He begged in broken words, not even knowing what he was saying, just clinging to a piece of driftwood for salvation.

Reigen pondered for a long time before finally looking up, "Anyway, let's call an ambulance first."

"A-Ambulance!"

"We can't let Rico hurt herself any further. At least she will be protected for a while in the hospital."

"Aren't you a psychic? Get rid of that evil spirit that's haunting my daughter now!"

"Ah, ah, yes. This spirit is more vicious than I expected. The spiteful energy has spread throughout the house. I'm afraid it's dangerous to stay here. I remember your wife also lives here, right? I suggest that you two move out for a few days, and I will bring my apprentice to perform the exorcism ceremony. I'll let you know when it's over."

"Uh, uh…"

"Hey, Reigen." Dimple said, "Something is wrong. The evil spirit isn't possessing the girl."

"What?" Reigen frowned, his mind racing, "So, that means--"

A terrifying voice echoed through the air.

"Do not take my daughter."

A woman's voice came from all directions, old, weak and hollow, and unshakably insistent.

"I heard it all. Kaishi, how could you end up with such a crook? SEND THEM OUT NOW."

"Darling, please don't!" The client pleaded.

Reigen looked around. He had already seen the general layout when they passed by the first floor. Since it was a family of three and Rico's room was known, he quickly deduced the location of the master bedroom. Without hesitation, he moved forward and opened the door.

Inside lay a woman. Disheveled gray hair fell across her forehead. Her cheeks were sunken, her face pale and ashen, and her eyes were wide open, out of focus, but somehow giving off an intense feeling, as if she were actually staring at everything. Withered hands reached out from the dirty blanket, the skin flaccid and fragile. The thin lips opened and closed without making a sound, like a fish out of water struggling for air. Something black crawled out of her mouth.

"Oh, it's a living wraith." Dimple said in wonder.

"Rico NEEDS to focus on studying for her exams."

"I will KILL anyone who tries to bother her again."

"… Bullshit."

"What did you say?"

"I said, I'm sick of your bullshit!!" Reigen snapped, pointing his finger directly at the woman, "Everyone is talking about exams, exams. It's just high school, a liiiiiitle teeny tiny part, not your whole life! There are still plenty of opportunities in the future. Fine, kids can be like that, but what's an old hag like you fussing about?"

"Nonsense! To get ahead in this society - "

"What do you get by pushing a girl to that extent! Without everything else in life, you are nothing but an empty shell. Isn't she your daughter? Don't you feel sorry for her?"

"So it is. I see."

"Glad you've finally seen it! … Uh, let me just ask, what did you see?"

"You're those bad friends who come to confuse Rico, the stumbling blocks to her bright future."

The woman's eyes were hanging, her neck pulled by invisible threads. A mass of eerie black smoke seeped out of her mouth.

"You must be eliminated NOW."

[bakushinverse]

シン•モスラ | Shin Mosura

[Divine Guardian Moth]

“Mothra does not wish harm your people, however she wishes to tell you that Gojira intends to wipe this world clean of the one you call Shin Gojira for fear it will overrun this planet. And he will not cease until every atom of its existence is gone!”

Despite the Kiryu Mecha being moved from Japan to a remote Monarch outpost in Antarctica, the Second Godzilla still moved to attack Japan, infuriating the Government. Monarch promptly warned Japan that a second Kaiju was rapidly moving to intercept Gojira. Mothra, in Larva form, confronted Godzilla in an attempt to stop him from doing more damage however he injured her during a brief fight and Godzilla persisted, eventually making his way to a secret bunker which held remains of Shin Godzilla. The remains had regenerated to the point that they had become sentient and was influencing the scientists. It was uncovered that rogue scientists had gotten their hands on the remains and were promptly trying to study them and create biological weapons. Godzilla destroyed the entire bunker, rouge scientists included, before retreating.  The Shobijin relayed that Mothra would be happy to act as a go between for humans and Kaiju as she had for Monarch in the past. Prime Minister Yaguchi accepts the offer. The frequency of the purple auroras become unnatural almost intentional, concerning astronomers as radiation of an unknown kind spikes over the poles. This radiation causes the Kiryu MechaGodzilla in Antarctica to briefly go haywire, it's eyes turning red and killing several workers in the freak accident. Despite growing concerns, Operation Kiryu still continues under the authority of Dr Mafune.

Wingspan: 125m

Attributes:

Shield like scales

Telepathy and Telekinesis

Illusion. Her spores can create hallucinations in opponents.

Blinding aura. Emits light to blind and confuse opponents.

Larva form has more powerful shields and can shoot a web like substance which hardens and can freeze attackers.

Air superiority and surprising speed.

Highly intelligent, protector of Earth and all creatures.

Centipede like stingers. These are venomous and can paralyse opponents with nervous systems.

Front four legs are bladed and barbed. can penetrate gaps in armour and deliver painful shocks.

Fluffy.

Personality:

Has a mutual respect with YoroiGoji, knowing he only seeks to protect Earth.

Seeks diplomacy with humans, knowing they are intelligent unlike YoroiGoi who sees them nothing more than insects. Important to the ecosystem but otherwise trivial to him.

A very benevolent creature in most cases, convinced Yoroi Gojira to foster an infant creature that bears a striking similarity to himself. Is protective in nature and despite their differences, treats Godzilla as an equal in authority.

Only really shows anger to those who harm or insult her fairies, the Shobijin, whom reside with her on Infant Island. It was on an expedition to the elusive island, that Dr Serizawa met and gained favour with Mothra after saving the fairies from a creature she called Gorosaurus. 

__________________ ShinMonsterVerse Series FIRST | PREVIOUS | NEXT __________________ SHIN MONSTERVERSE INDEX

[chef-mordo]

The First King of the Monsters (Part Two)

“The Savior of Tokyo” (The last photo ever taken of Doctor Daisuke Serizawa before his sacrifice, it is also the only known photo of the Oxygen-Destroyer.)

[This Series is heavily inspired by Trollmans’ “FOLLY OF MAN” series on DeviantArt, so be sure to follow him if you enjoyed my work]

A scorching beam of bright blue plasma erupted in a spiral from Godzilla’s mouth. The foul beast began to turn its head down at the ground units, and within mere seconds no trace of them was to be found. It then turned to face the surrounding skyline, it cut through the buildings like a warm knife through butter leaving nothing but an endless sea of flame and rubble in its wake. When the creature had finally ceased its atomic ray, it continued its march deep into the heart of the city. It is reported by survivors of the Tokyo incident that it paused to stare into the window of a subway train before continuing its assault. For many years this was the only sign of the creature showing any sort of intelligence. As it continued to wade through downtown Tokyo, it eventually completely ceased the demolition and seemingly froze hunched over. 

Meanwhile, Doctor Yamane’s daughter Emiko had become aware that her former fiance, one Doctor Daisuke Serizawa had supposedly invented a biological superweapon. Nicknamed the “Oxygen-Destroyer” the weapon was a true scientific breakthrough. In his research, he discovered a microscopic species of crustacean that was supposedly millions of years old. It is said that this species thrived in oxygenless environments by producing a compound now known as “Micro-Oxygen”. He dubbed the creatures “J-MO7” and began to study the compound. He intended to find a way that his discovery could benefit humanity, but his effort was in vain as further testing only showed the potential destructive powers of micro-oxygen. With the purpose of lowering air quality through deactivating airborne pollutants, his invention instead seemingly did the opposite. It became apparent that the only use his device could ever have is as a super weapon, ripping flesh from bone as it destroys all surrounding oxygen atoms. 

Having volunteered to nurse others in emergency shelters, Yamane had witnessed the effects of Godzilla’s radioactive onslaught first-hand. She begged Serizawa to deploy his invention upon Godzilla, yet he refused believing that it would begin a new era of inhumane superweapons being used in the future. He finally reluctantly agreed after watching the live destruction of Tokyo on the news later that night. 

The following morning, another emergency summit was called. It had been agreed that if the American air raids were not successful, Godzilla would be lured out to sea, and the oxygen-destroyer would be used to finally end the demon’s rampage. 

When the American forces finally arrived, Godzilla was still hunched over, resting in the wreckage he had caused. Several “Mark 65” explosives were unloaded onto the back of the creature, though it only seemed to irritate the creature. Godzilla had awoken due to the shockwaves hitting its highly sensitive dorsal plates. The beast slowly rose as a massive blue forcefield released from its glowing back, incinerating the airborne bombardment as well as any surrounding structures. Its dorsal plates started to once again glow blue and a massive beam of light erupted from the crystalline structure present on the end of its tail. The blast shot down all five American aircrafts before it stopped. 

That afternoon another squadron of jets had been sent out to lure the beast out to sea. The “Shikine” was sent out to sea with a small group of government officials, reporters, and the Monarch research crew. A sonar system was used to find the gargantuan creature resting on the ocean floor. The previous night, Doctor Serizawa had set his lab aflame as to prevent his research from ever being seen again. He requested to be put in a diving suit so that he could perish alongside Godzilla so that all memory and traces of his research would be destroyed. Later that day, he was lowered down onto the ocean floor in a diving suit, clutching his creation. Onlookers watch as the surface bubbled non-stop as all oxygen was ripped from the water. 

No flesh remained from anything below a certain area of the waters of Tokyo Bay at the time. Millions of Godzilla’s unidentified victims were buried along with the dead of WWII in Chidorigafuchi National Cemetery. Doctor Serizawa’s skeleton was additionally found and a memorial service was held and televised to honor him. Godzilla’s skeleton was also extracted from the Bay and was held by the Japanese government for a time before being sold to Monarch.

Serizawa is now regarded as a national hero, a statue now stands of him in “Serizawa Memorial Park”. It is located on the site of his former lab. Though his research may not have been preserved, his legacy forever will be. This was the first of many incidents that brought kaiju to the attention of the world; as a result, numerous organizations were formed. The G-Force was formed by the Japanese government on October 27, 1954, to prevent and defend against kaiju attacks as well as tracking any known kaiju. Monarch was additionally expanded to further research other kaiju and would partner with the US government to develop anti-kaiju weaponry. 

Of course, after an event as grandiose and horrific as this, it was apparent that more enormous beasts lurked within the Earth. But it was not expected that another would be unearthed so soon…

Well, I hope y'all enjoyed the conclusion of the first chapter of "GODZILLA: Age of Monsters". I hope that as my writing and art skills slowly improve, more of you follow me on this journey. A few bonus works should release sometime soon, so keep tuned in for more! Feel free to share any thoughts, questions, praise, or criticisms of my work. As always, likes, comments, and reposts are welcome!

Tune in for more updates and future posts. Peace and love! ✌️🏽

[palant1r]

hello. for your mp100 ageswap au. how did mob and teru meet.

love the contrast of reigen "you're the protagonist" arataka and (i may be misinterpreting this) teru saying the same thing to mob but in a malicious way.

also, how did tome pick up reigen and serizawa?

this is a wonderful au. love the specific flavor of bastard that teru is.

hehe thank you for the question! i have Answers

mob is kinda similar to serizawa in this au. he didn't have anyone to go to after hurting ritsu so his anxiety about hurting people festered, causing him to go 100% more often, causing more injuries, causing a vicious cycle. after Ritsu tried to bring him out of 100% and ended up losing an eye when they were in their late teens, Ritsu started the Awakening Lab to study psychic powers and try to find a solution and Mob shut himself in his room.

enter teru. without any intervention, he was free to become a Bastard unchecked. he believes that his powers give him the right to do what he wants and basically overall acts like a clown. he hears about mob somehow (maybe through ritsu, since ritsu would want to study teru) and is intrigued. because mob is insecure and poses no ideological threat to teru's worldview in this au, and his true power isn't immediately apparent, teru isn't immediately hostile to him. he basically gives mob a twisted version of reigen's lessons: that he is the protagonist, and that makes it good to use his power for his own gains, and that hurting other people is okay as long as it's in the pursuit of what mob wants. it's not a good lesson, but it brings mob out of his solitude because it gives him an excuse to push all his worries aside — but they still eat at him under the surface, making 100% ever more powerful.

tbh i think in this au they start dating. teru genuinely cares about mob and mob is very loyal to teru, but the dynamic is Bad for both of them. they start up an organization similar to claw i think. deep down, mob knows what they're doing is wrong, but rationalizing that villainy is the only way he can cope with his powers and their potential for harm. That rationalization only takes him so far, and eventually he's confronted by Serizawa.

soon after Tome started her paranormal detective agency, she received a guest: serizawa. he'd recently hurt someone with his powers, and wanted her to investigate where they came from and make them go away. she tells him that everyone has the capability to hurt others. anyone can pick up a knife and cut someone with it, but he just happens to always have a knife in his hands. so what do you do when you always have a weapon? make it into a tool, hey kid, come work for me for less than minimum wage and help solve people's problems!

this continues for a bit, then Serizawa enters middle school and meets the Psychic Club made up of the rest of the Ultimate 5. they tell him to join. he meets the club president.

"he's the most powerful out of all of us," shimazaki says. "he can control and read minds."

reigen didn't really MEAN to trick the psychics into thinking he was psychic, but he never loses arguments and always wins at rock paper scissors, so these kids whose only frame of reference for extraordinary things are psychic powers and who are immaturely unwilling to attribute excellence to "normies" decide he's psychic and their leader now. he's not gonna tell them the truth, why would he?

serizawa takes all this at face value and hears reigen talking about wanting to make a difference and is like "hey, you should come work for my boss! we help investigate mysteries and solve problems!"

reigen does, and starts to really develop his talent for business and bullshitting. and so the Alien Agency is fully staffed!

[hebezunet]

mob psycho split au vaguely comprehensive post

due to a hasty and half asleep decision that mob decides to make, he performs a variation of the out of body experience that ends up splitting him into two versions of himself. "mob", his 0% half, containing no emotions or psychic powers, and "shigeo", his 100% half, who personifies every bottled up emotion and has all of his psychic powers. shigeo is not a complete flesh and blood human however, and just a boy-shaped spirit. he's still corporeal and can touch and interact with things, but he has a slight whispiness to his appearance with his edges looking translucent and such.

now that the two boys are awake enough to realize the issue, they need to try and find a way to put themselves back together. hijinks ensue, as folks like ritsu, teru, dimple, reigen and serizawa get caught in the mix and really damn confused as to what's going on.

there is a catch to how the power distribution works between them. since shigeo contains all of the emotions amped up to 100, he's very easy to send over the edge. his behavior is very erratic and can fly off the handle at any given moment. however, if shigeo were to reach "100%" of any given emotion (ie expressing said emotion to it's peak, which is pretty easy for him), then said emotion gets broken off of him and transfers back into mob. therefore, since mob is previously emotioness, the broken off emotion would the only emotion he could experience. for example, should shigeo get really angry over something and it breaks off of him, shigeo would be unable to feel anger anymore and mob would only be able to feel anger. in addition, for each emotion, mob recieves a little bit more of his powers back. it starts out quite weak but every new emotion that gets added on, his powers get a little stronger, and shigeo gets a little weaker.

this comes with a price too, as with every piece of his emotions that breaks off, a piece of his physical (technically ghostly) body breaks off. losing anger can result in his hand fading away, and more pieces disappear the more emotions get stripped away. as far as mob goes, for every emotion that breaks off, it essentially replaces his current status. if he receives anger, he can only feel anger. if he then recieves sadness, the anger takes the back burner and sadness. comes the forefront emotion he can feel. this of course leads to plenty of issues as shigeo has to almost manage the specific emotions he feels as to not make mob stuck with something bad.

shigeo also worries what will happen if every piece of his emotions gets broken off of him. he's unsure if it'll fuse the two of them back together like normal, or if he'll disappear and his powers will go with it. none of the other characters know how to deal with this either, so it's a big learning curve for them and kind of a character study for the reader.

[andrewtverylegitimateblog]

Godzilla (1954)

Bring out the big lizard right now- George Lucas

Did George Lucas actually say this? Probably. Can I prove it in any way that's meaningful or scholarly. No. Even if he did it wouldn't even be close to the most impressive thing about this film. Godzilla is a cultural icon of immense renown. Spawning multiple films and inspiring the Kaiju film genre as a whole the very first Godzilla film is unique in its political message that would be lost over time as the focus in subsequent films shifted more to spectacle and Kaiju wrestling each other in Tokyo Bay. I'm something of a fan of Godzilla and feel that there's a lot to be admired about the original from the thrilling score that punctuates every film in which the eponymous manifestation of man's hubris appears or that the man who played Godzilla, Haruo Nakajima, could only film scenes for roughly three minutes at a time because the original Godzilla suit weighed over 200 ibs and very poorly ventilated. What I'll be focusing on though is not the things I already know about Godzilla but what I feel I noticed now after a second viewing after my time spent studying Japanese film.

If Godzilla asked a single question of it's audience I feel it's this: What is a monster?

Godzilla is a creature of pre-historic origin who has continued their life since ancient times living in the deepest and most obscure crevices of the sea. They're a force of nature, not generally moving beyond the coast of Odo Island where they hadn't appeared for some time and became a thing of legends. Their life was however utterly disturbed during hydrogen bomb tests in the waters of their home which set them out on a trail of rampage. As characters debate how to respond to Godzilla and prospectively how to defeat him the focus often is brought to his creation through bomb testing. Godzilla is a direct product of the misuse of science. Dr. Yamane, a zoologist and one of the main cast, frequently emphasizes that Godzilla is after all things a living thing and is highly opposed to killing Godzilla insisting that there's much to be learned from studying him.

The character that I felt I was more drawn to on a second watching or perhaps who I could better contextualize was Dr. Serizawa. Much like Dr. Yamane, Serizawa is another scientist. Having spent weeks in seclusion it's revealed that he's discovered something incredibly deadly. Serizawa is aware of the danger his research poses to humanity and that if those in power were to be made aware of what he found it would not be long until it was transformed into a weapon so he dedicates all of his time for finding a way in which his discovered could be beneficial to humanity. Dr. Serizawa was compelling to me in a way now that he wasn't originally. Among all of the films we've seen up to this point in class Dr. Serizawa is the only character to take war time accountability. While he may not have been responsible for the creation of the atomic bomb it's use has made him aware of the power that scientists wield, that their discoveries can and will be used for destruction, and that as a scientist himself he is complicit if he allows his discoveries to be used to this end.

Serizawa uses his Oxygen Destroyer, the product of his research, to kill Godzilla and in the final scene Dr. Yamane laments "If nuclear testing continues, then someday, somewhere in the world, another Godzilla may appear". It was not Godzilla that was a monster, it was that which cast him from his home.

I feel very much that this is among the greatest films of all time. It's discourse on our relationship with the environment and our power to influence the world around us for better or worse is still and perhaps more than ever a very salient message. Even for the obvious technical limitations of the time the creativity and attention to detail involved in Godzilla is impressive. It's one of the greatest monster movies for a reason. The giant lizard is one of my favorite allegories for mans hubris.