#Brother can be a monster because it was a student who betrayed them

[witchofthesouls]

Isn't Banzaitron Yokotron's twin brother. I think he's a decepticon? Because if he is that somehow that makes things funnier.

(Searches on TFWiki)

WHEEZES

Apparently, he isn't in TFA, but I'm digging the character.

I raise you that Banzai-tron is actually part of the Decepticon's attempts at cloning Yoketron to steal his teachings and skillset.

Instead, they got Banzai-tron, who has a very warped distortion of Yoketron's ideals. ("The strong will eat, the weak are meat.")

The true beast is actually Brother.

Yoketron was Brother's leash, and the mech isn't there...

[alans-maladaptive-daydreams]

The monster living in my mind. Yandere!MC x Obey Me brothers.

I've always seen fics of the brothers being yandere, which makes sense, they are demons but I think I also want to see a bit more yandere!mc so I wrote this. I didn't put a specific brother because the use of pacts and magic is a bit involved so it affects all seven equally, feel free to imagine it with whoever you want.

note: I might edit it again later to change the gender of the witch, since I don't feel completely comfortable with the female gender for the lover, I'll see if I can do it another day (cries in college student) I've been doing this for almost 3 months now so I just want to finish it lol.

Warnings: Violence, mutilation of the human body (self-harm and injury to a third party), infidelity, mental illness, insecurity, and insults related to someone's sex life. (I think that's all if there should be anything else I will edit it immediately, suggestions are very welcome). No-native writing, corrections are welcome.

Reader: Gender neutral.

Genre: Yandere and explicit violence.

Masterlist

You had always managed to control those negative feelings that consumed your brain. Those feelings that made you think that the person you loved was betraying you, those same feelings that convinced you that you deserved it because after all you will never be enough.

Although you were a very jealous person, you rarely showed it to your partner. You suffered in silence and sometimes even other people paid the consequences of your moodiness and insecurities.

Your jealousy sometimes terrified you, the thought of ripping the throat out of anyone who had the slightest romantic or sexual interest in your partner was not uncommon in your head. Sometimes your brain played tricks on you, convincing you that you should make them understand that no one would love them more than you. They belonged to you.

You were aware that these thoughts were dangerous, you usually pushed them into the deepest and darkest depths of your being because, in the end, it was all part of your imagination and insecurities.

You had different partners, and none of them gave you a reason to distrust or get violent treatment from you. So even though you brutally disliked certain friends of your exes, you never said a word and preferred to ignore the violent flame inside you.

That was until you met him, a beautiful demon from head to toe who, while you brought out the best in him, he brought out the worst in you.

Many of your insecurities were drowned out as you moved through life together, yet they never completely disappeared.

The violent feelings became almost extinct, but they were still there, waiting to be fulfilled at the right time.

That's why you were visiting your psychologist almost daily, that violent insecurity resurfaced.

It resurfaced like an unstoppable flame, a bomb waiting to explode.

In a constant state of nervousness, your body trembled every time your boyfriend had an attitude that made you distrust him.

It started out as something you chose to ignore, but it never left a good taste in your mouth. All of his devices now had a different password than the one you knew.

When you questioned him, afraid of making him think you were invading his privacy, he simply replied "Security", you didn't dare ask him for the new passwords because you feared it would make you look bad.

Your second sign was his obvious nervousness every time he received a message or a call which, of course, he had to take in private.

It was then that you decided to blindly trust your boyfriend and avoid at any cost those thoughts that were taking away your sanity.

However things became more evident, from cancelled dates, strange looks at RAD, his brothers' nervousness when you asked for his whereabouts, his disappearance for hours at a time with ambiguous explanations. The relationship became weird, to the point that your boyfriend couldn't even look you in the eye every time you met because he didn't even have time for you, in his words; he had too much work to do.

That part of you that you thought you had buried was resurfacing, but much more violent, psychotic and anxious.

It was as if your brain was screaming at you in a loud voice "He's cheating on you, kill that slut so he can see who he's fucking with".

The thought of your beloved boyfriend with someone else disgusted you and made you completely sick.

It was then that something in you changed. You don't know what it was exactly, and you can't explain in what moment you started to think like that. It just happened, it was as if that sick and violent being that had always lived in you had finally found a way out, and you decided to accept it because, after all, that was your reality.

"We're demons, you're stupid for thinking he wouldn't cheat on you. "The demon mocked you as she showed you a video in which her friend, a witch, and your beloved boyfriend were the main characters in a sexual scene so repulsive that your stomach turned inside out creating a pain you never thought you would be able to feel.

With trembling legs and a broken heart, you walked to the bathroom holding back your tears and the vomit that threatened to come out. The demon watched you walk with perhaps the saddest look she had ever seen on you.

As soon as you entered the bathroom, you stuck your head in the sink, completely emptying your stomach.

Your cold fingers ran over the dark circles under your eyes, caused by sleepless nights of overthinking the whole situation. You reached down to your lips, covered in the residue of breakfast, and with a trembling hand, you stilled the sob of pain that shot through you like a bullet.

Tears soon overflowed from your eyes as your heavy breathing forced you to crouch on the floor, making yourself as small as possible, as if that way you could avoid the intense pain you felt. Your fingernails reached your scalp, digging violently into it, causing blood to slowly stain your hands.

"'Son of a bitch" you whispered.

You were going to kill him. Him and his fucking whore.

You were going to eat his brains while his brothers watch your feast.

Or better, you were going to rip every fingernail off his body, every finger, every tooth and make a beautiful necklace.

You'd open his head like a jar and eat his insides for breakfast.

You were going to tear him apart piece by piece. You were going to burn every part of his body that you touched until you saw living flesh.

Although you knew you were only a mere human, you also knew that the pact that bound your souls together was your greatest weapon. You were not the same human that had started the exchange program, you were a powerful sorcerer and you had seen death with your own eyes, you were not afraid. You were going to ruin his fucking life.

"Sometimes demons need a show of dominance to know their place, you must prepare yourself because eventually, that day will come". Your master had told you a long time ago. You never thought that day would come so soon.

You stood up and looked at yourself in the mirror, the wounds on your scalp looked deep enough for blood to drip down your face.

"MC? Fuck, I didn't know you'd get like that, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have shown you that." The demoness approached you with a worried expression. She placed a hand on your back to comfort you.

"No, thanks. I needed to see it."

Your cold tone sent a shiver down the girl's spine, without looking at her you headed for the exit and before you left she said; "Don't blame her, okay? I know you know her and you exchanged a couple of words. She's not a bad person, it was just a mistake."

"I don't give a fuck, he was my fucking boyfriend, she knew that." with that, you walked out of the bathroom and headed straight to the House of Lamentations.

That day you locked yourself in your room and refused to let anyone in. They were all traitors, they always knew about his affair with his mistress and didn't have the balls to tell you.

Every time you remembered how they told you they appreciated you and thanked you for saving their family your stomach would drop. You no longer saw them as your friends, they were just disgusting beings who needed a reminder of who was in charge.

For seven days you didn't sleep, you didn't go to RAD and you didn't eat. For seven days you watched your boyfriend's every move, his whore's every move. Every move was etched in your brain like a tattoo. You didn't need to think about it for a second to recite it out loud.

By the end of the week, everything you had been repressing and controlling for years had come to light. What you had always been was now comfortable in your brain, the insecurity was gone, but the violence was more alive than ever.

At the end of the seventh day, in the middle of the night, what you had always feared became your nature.

You grabbed your bag and left your room, leaving it secured in case any of the brothers tried to break in, a spell that would shatter any limb that even accidentally touched your door.

"MC?" you heard one of his brothers say, but you ignored him. You were too focused on your plan.

Behind the House Of Lamentations was the place where you opened a portal, one straight to her lover's house. You didn't hesitate for a second to walk through it, standing right in the entrance hallway.

Your ears heard what you had always feared.

The familiar moans along with a not-so-familiar voice. The sharp movement of the bed's wood.

The love you had once felt for him disappeared completely.

You walked through the dark house, trusting your hearing until you reached the door.

Before you opened it you contemplated all that you were putting at stake in carrying out your desires. You contemplated whether it was really worth it. However, that little spark of reasoning vanished as soon as it arrived.

You set your bag aside and opened it.

The heavy hammer saw the moonlight for the first time since you had bought it. You held on tight and opened the door.

If at any time your sanity was present during all that suffering, after what you saw that night it not only disappeared, you killed it and buried it deep inside your annihilated and diseased self.

Silently you approached him and the first blow was directly to his head. Knocking him unconscious instantly.

The whore looked at you with frightened eyes and screamed trying to get the heavy body off her.

"Do you like getting into other people's relationships?" you asked, grabbing her hair in a fist and dragging her into the living room.

"You're fucking insane!" she screamed as she kicked and struggled with your violent grip. You lifted her body roughly and slammed her against the hard wall, squatted down and with your hand gripping her hair you forced her to look at you.

"Do you like messing with other people's relationships?" you asked again. She tried to defend herself from you with a pathetic and weak spell. You laughed and grabbed her face violently. "That's your attempt to save yourself? You should put a little more enthusiasm into it, like when you spread your legs like the whore you are."

She perhaps saw that she really couldn't against you, after all she knew who you were and she knew that no one could control the seven princes of hell as easily as you, so she felt that her only solution was to kneel at your feet and beg for forgiveness, praying for sanity to return to your mind, for your humanity to win over that monster that had awoken.

"I'm sorry," she cried, her voice heavy with fear. "I won't get into your relationship again" she grabbed your legs begging for your forgiveness over and over again.

"I hope it was worth it," you muttered as you grabbed her hair again to drag her into the dining room.

"What are you going to do?" she asked between sobs still clutching your arm, in an attempt to loosen your hard grip.

"You'll see." you smiled as you picked her up and slammed her down on the table in the middle of the room, causing her bones to crack slightly. "Or you may not survive to find out." You placed a hand on her chest as she tried to get up quickly and with a simple spell you completely paralyzed her body.

Her eyes widened gigantically and as she tried to scream for help you pulled the rest of your things out of your bag.

"It's no use, try screaming all you want, no one will hear you."

"What the fuck are you doing MC?" The voice of the main character appeared behind you. You turned to see him, blood was pouring from his head and he was in his demonic form in all his glory.

He was the love of your life, but if he couldn't play fair you would have to get rid of him, and you knew it would hurt you more than him.

"Don't worry, you'll be the only audience to this wonderful show I call 'Whore Anatomy, for cheating boyfriends'. Sit down and shut your mouth." He rushed over to you, intending to stop you. "Sit down, and shut your mouth." you repeated in a loud, clear voice. The pact worked its magic and your boyfriend was sitting there staring at you with undecipherable eyes.

"You know I love you, don't you? That's why I'm doing this because I love you and you must not disappoint those who would give their lives for you," you said as you took different things out of your bag.

You looked at all your instruments and thought carefully about what to start with, the excitement made your skin crawl. You didn't expect it to be so exciting.

"So, that's why I'm going to show you that this bitch isn't worth what I'm worth and hasn't done what I've done for you. It will be…educational." your eyes sparkled at the sight of the sharp scalpel. You took it and showed it to your boyfriend. "Pick a portion of the head. Ears, nose, eyes…" your kind smile faded as you saw his expression of fear, your hand slammed violently against his cheek and you repeated. "Choose a portion of the head. Ears, nose or eyes."

"Eyes…" he whispered to your surprise.

"Wow, I didn't expect you to go straight to it." You laughed and approached the witch, who was silently praying. "Stop praying, hoes don't go to heaven." With your fingers you opened her eyelids and showed her the scalpel. "Eyes are a hollow, fibrous globe, we use them to see beautiful things and to see unpleasant things. Whores, like your friend here, use it to track down men in relationships and crawl like a snake to get some cock" you muttered as your scalpel pierced the socket of the girl, who was crying and trying to scream, or so you thought after all her mouth was sealed.

As your sharp scalpel pierced the socket, her quiet cries became more erratic. " Quiet." you murmured, trying not to lose your concentration. Your index finger buried itself in her lacrimal duct pressing hard in an attempt to pry the eye out as cleanly as possible. Blood stained your fingers and the witch's constant attempts at movement were beginning to annoy you. "Stop or I'll cut your fucking eyelids off."

When she calmed down, you took the opportunity to completely bury your finger in the lacrimal, practically ripping the eye out of its socket and cut the nerve that attached it to her body.

You looked at the orb with pride and showed it to your boyfriend. "I pulled it off pretty well, don't you think?"

Your boyfriend looked at you with a strange look on his face, one you couldn't quite figure out. However, the game had only just begun, and the excitement was altering every part of your body.

Morning came, and your boyfriend woke up to the sun shining directly on his face. He looked around when the reality of everything that had happened the night before hit him violently.

"Good morning." You smiled brightly. "Go get changed and make me breakfast, the ingredients are in the freezer." you pointed to the kitchen as you lazily flipped through the channels.

Your boyfriend looked around, everything seemed normal, as if nothing had happened. He was a demon thousands of years old, he'd seen and done some fucked up shit but what he'd seen you do surpassed anything he'd ever lived through.

He've never seen a human look so… happy while mutilating a living person piece by piece.

He had never seen your smile and gaze as bright as it was last night.

He walked over to the fridge and opened the freezer, finding his mistress's frozen head, along with different pieces of her body separated into containers.

"So? Any idea what you're going to make?" you asked as you sat down on the island with a quiet smile.

It was then that he realized who was in front of him.

The monster watched him curiously as they rocked back and forth gently, perhaps trying to soothe the voices that were tormenting their deteriorated mind.

He realized that he had never truly met the depths of your being, that your loving, human form was nothing more than a barrier to prevent the one thing you yourself feared from coming to light.

But now… you seemed comfortable with this new nature of yours.

Too comfortable for his liking.

[sissa-arrows]

Also let’s not forget the fact that many “innocent” settlers were very fucking extremist, beating up and oppressing Algerians just because they can yknow, they knew their role in that society, they knew that no matter what it’d be the Algerian who pays the price, they’d have Algerians as their slaves and beat up actual kids (my grandfather was one of said victims as a child)

But noooooo, it’s the savage Algerians, and settlers are the victims

Like there was some good apples amongst them, but let’s be honest here, most of them did nothing but oppress the Algerians at the time, extremist settlers were as bad as the colonisers, they are colonisers, and that’s a fact and a hill I will die on

The good apples were rare and they have the status of moujahidine/shouhada like all Algerians who fought. The “porteurs de valises” are people who made the right choice even if they were rare. And a lot of them paid with their lives the fact that they saw themselves as Algerians not as “French Algerians”

Charles Geromini a doctor who made the rights decision said “I joined the Algerian revolution a year ago. Remembering the tension in my contact with the revolution (before joining) at the early stage I was scared I would be excluded. It didn’t happen. I was welcomed like any other Algerian. For Algerians I’m not just an ally anymore, I’m a brother, simply a brother, like all of them.” After the independence he stayed in Algeria. He had the citizenship like all Algerians. He didn’t even try to keep his French citizenship. He became a teacher in the medical institute to form the next generation of doctors in Algeria. His students respected him a lot. Unfortunately in 1993 he left like many Algerians did because of the civil war. The terrorists threatened him personally so he left (like all Algerians he had to go through the visa process and all). But he was Algerian even it was not by blood.

Yvon Bresson was a cop in Setif and he was horrified by the fact that his job consisted in protecting the settlers who had proudly slaughtered 45000 Algerians a decade before. So he helped the revolution as much as he could and was jailed for that. You know what he said? “I did all of that as an Algerian. I don’t feel like I betrayed France. I’m Algerian and like every Algerian I fought and will keep on fighting against colonialism. As a conscious Algerian citizen, my place is alongside the Algerian patriots. So that’s what I did.”

Those people were settlers but they are honored because they were willing to give up their status to be Algerians in a free Algeria and saw Algerians as their siblings.

If they wanna talk about innocent settlers I suggest we talk about Maurice Audin. France kidnapped him. Tortured him. And then they stabbed him to death that way if the body was found they could blame Algerians for his death. They hide his body and then pretended he escaped and left his wife and children behind. They refused to admit that they killed him. He was declared dead in 1963 without his body. His family, especially his widow, kept asking for justice and it’s only in 2018 that France admitted that they did kill him. I remember a couple years ago when his younger son, who was just a baby (2 months) when his father was killed, got the Algerian citizenship. He was so freaking happy he was holding his passport with a huge smile. In an interview he said “in France I’m the son of traitor in Algeria I’m the son of hero of a shahid”.

But as whole? Settlers were fucking monsters. They didn’t care about Algeria but about their privileges. They didn’t see our ancestors as humans either. The few good apples I named don’t change anything about it.

[robbyrobinson]

Hollow Mind (Review)

Ho-ly crap.

Going into "Hollow Mind" I already expected the episode to answer several lingering questions such as the truth behind Hunter's identity, and who exactly the Collector is. But oh my god.

I just feel bad for both Luz and Hunter in this episode. Luz already had to deal with the fact that the person she looked up to was a sociopathic jerk, but now she has the knowledge that the Emperor and Whittebane were one and the same. And she was the one who helped him out by showing him the light spell. So it is kind of her fault that the Day of Unity is coming.

But Hunter. Goodness gracious, all the therapy sessions in the world won't help him. He was so convinced that his "Uncle" was good and that there was a greater good to explain away his atrocious crimes, but his whole world was shattered.

I'll start off by just saying fuck Belos. The fandom already knew that the whole "wild magic" thing was complete bullocks, but to have him stage "witch attacks" to ensnare people into joining his covens is horrid. Along with all the previous Golden Guards. Yes, they turn out to be grimwalkers, but every time they "betrayed" Belos, he killed them. Belos is a fucking serial killer who keeps all the masks and paintings of previous guards as some sick trophy. That is not even getting into him sacrificing demons and witches when he was "Philip." He is more of a monster than King Andrias because, while it does not justify his horrible acts, at the least we know that he wasn't always power-hungry but because of his "mistake" costing Newtopia to lose its way of life, he would spend thousands of years rectifying that blunder while still having shades of regret for what he is doing (along with the Core condoning the worst of him). Belos is just a genocidal prick.

And this fucker has the gall to say "I don't take joy in killing the Golden Guards who always betray me in the end" even when he had a shit-eating grin on his face. This motherfucker enjoys killing them for shits and giggles and yet has to continually justify himself by claiming holier than thou when...I don't know. Philip, perhaps they keep betraying you because they realized what you were really after? That's not even getting into the heavy implications that he killed his own companion/brother when he fell in love (or maybe befriended) a witch who also seemed to be pregnant as well with a potential Clawthorne???

Everything about Belos is a lie: the Day of Unity is just a front so he can kill all the witches and demons because of his self-righteous vow as a witch hunter to save humanity from evil. He never could talk to the Titan but now he has the Boiling Isles wrapped around his metallic finger that no one would dare speak ill of him with the threat of petrification lingering over them. Though it was kind of funny: I once considered writing a fanfic where a new student goes to Hexside also being a human who wound up in the Demon Realm like Luz but was secretly planning on blowing the school up because of their xenophobic hatred of magic. It's kind of funny how that turned out.

But, just poor Hunter. He was betrayed by the one person he was staunchly advocating as being good and now cannot return because it would mean certain death. Seeing the kid have a panic attack and hyperventilating and then throwing his cloak to the ground is heartbreaking. A few episodes ago he was proud to be wearing that cloak as a symbol of his status, but now, it was suffocating him.

We also get to finally formally see the Collector assuming that was the same one who sealed the Owl Beast in that scroll. Or as I like to call them, the long lost relative of Bill Cipher. It is insane how much Gravity Falls had influenced several Disney Channel shows: Philip is an evil counterpart of Stanford Pines who actually works alongside the chaotic evil force in the show; Amphibia season 2 had the Curator, and Darcy has some quirks relating to a certain demonic nacho chip we all know.

Putting the Gravity Falls similarities aside, I am already loving the Collector. I like the jester-like, two-dimensional form they take which compliments the surreal and cosmically bizarre nature the Collector possesses. They rhyme on a dime (despite the difficulty of finding a word to rhyme with Unity). And they are a hoot to watch like some overly-energetic child. However, it nevertheless demonstrates that the Collector is a force not to take lightly. Unlike Cipher, the Collector is upfront about what they want: to wipe out all life on the Isles and party like it's 1999. This was why I would have appreciated a full third season to better establish just why the Collector is imprisoned and what the Collector's reasons for wanton destruction are, but I do like the character.

I am worried about what Luz's course of action is now that the Titan's blood is caput. Sure, they needed to get Luz and Hunter out of Belos' mindscape before it was too late, but that cost Luz the seemingly one chance of returning home.

A real doozy to end on.

[inkandpen22]

Dazed and Confused (S1: 2/?)

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Female!Reader

Warnings: mild langage 

Word Count: 2k

Part Summary: After Steve spends the night at Y/N Jonathan Byers accuses Y/N of getting too close to her best friend’s boyfriend

Masterlist

I wake up to a banging on my door. It sounds like an uncontrollable jackhammer. 

“Y/N! Oh Princess Y/N!” My mom screeches on the other side. “Wake up! You have to pick up Dustin in thirty minutes!” 

The last bit grabs my attention. My eyes fly open and I attempt to sit up but I’m pinned down. My head whips to the side and Steve is sound asleep next to me. His arm is draped across my stomach keeping me pinned. In a rush, I shove him off of me and fly out of bed. Steve wakes up abruptly and falls off the mattress onto the floor with a thud. 

“Shit!” He blurts out. 

“What was that?” My mom asks worriedly. 

Wide-eyed, I stare down Steve who peers up at me from the floor. 

“I’m just getting ready! I’ll be out in five!” I shout to my little brother. 

Thankfully, I hear him patter off as he grumbles various curse words under his breath. 

I must look like a crazy lady as I run around my room getting ready. My hair is going in a ponytail today because there’s no way I have time to style it. Steve moves about me, collecting his things. It’s Friday so that makes picking out an outfit rather easy. It’s game day, so cheer uniform. I start changing from my pajamas into my cheer uniform. I hop on one leg as I remove my shorts and rush to grab my skirt off my dresser. As I slip off my t-shirt and change into my vest, I check my appearance in the mirror on my dresser. 

Behind me, Steve eyes me curiously. He appears in some sort of wide-eyed daze. 

I whip my head around to check on him. “You okay?” 

He hums absentmindedly. Then, he shakes his head repeatedly to snap how of it. “Yeah! Uh… it’s just… um… you…” he stammers, “uh…. Nevermind! I’ll see you in a little bit,” he says as he goes to climb out of my window. 

“Okay? Catch ya later.” I laugh, wondering why he’s acting so odd. 

He’s such a goofball. I wonder if it’s because I freaked him out when I woke him up. Oh well, he scared me last night so karma. 

________________________________________

Once we arrive at school, Dustin runs off to join the boys who have all agreed to dress as the Ghostbusters for school. Since the Demogorgon incident, Dustin and I have grown closer. We live on the same block and being only children help. 

Nancy isn’t at her locker when I arrive at my own, odd. What’s even weirder is Jonathan is waiting for me. 

“Hey,” I greet him with a raised brow. 

It’s not that I dislike Jonathan, we’re simply not close friends. Sure, we had a bonding experience last year but he and I are very different people. 

“Hey,” he stuffs his hands into his back pockets nervously. “Have you… uh… have you seen Nancy?” 

Interesting, Byers looking for Nancy. If this were any other day she would be here beside me and I wouldn’t be standing here with Jonathan but apparently, today isn’t going to be average. 

“Nope, I haven’t. I was wondering where she is myself. Usually, she’d be here by now,” I fill him in on the lastest as I put the combination into my locker. 

“Well if you see here will you tell her I have something for her?” He requests. 

“Is it your love confession?” I tease. 

“Huh?” He acts oblivious to what I mean. 

“Oh please, it’s clear as day you have a thing for Nance," I snicker as I pull out my books. "I’ve known since Steve and I showed up at your house last year.” I glance over my shoulder at him and it’s evident I’ve spooked him. My bluntness tends to have that effect on people. "Look,” I say gently and quietly between us. “I won’t say anything. I understand that she’s with Steve. So, you feel like there’s no point but it’s important to say how you feel and be honest.” 

"Just like how you’re honest with Steve about having a thing for him?” He boldly fires back. 

I scoff, he’s delusional! Me and Steve, really? There’s no way! I laugh, “I don’t have a-” 

“Really? Yesterday in the gym?” He challenges.

His question, more like a threat, takes me by surprise. What, so Jonathan is watching me now? He’s eavesdropping on my conversations? 

 “How about over the summer?” He presses further, stepping closer until he towers over me. “You two were together more than he and Nancy ever were! How about this morning when I was on my way to school and saw him climbing out of your window? Hm? How about that?” 

Okay, now I’m just getting pissed. “I can assure you, Steve loves Nancy!” I growl. “There’s is nothing, and I mean nothing, between us! Now I suggest you stop acting like a tough guy before I remind you who really holds all the power here,” I threaten him. 

He forgets that I’m the captain of the cheer squad. I’m adored around here. He’s some punk who hangs out all day in the photography classroom. If he really wishes to test me, I can promise I will win. I always win. 

“Fine then…” he mutters, mere inches from my face. “But remember, I could easily tell Nancy about last summer.” 

He steps back with narrowed eyes locked on me until he turns around to slip away. I watch, stunned, as he disappears into the cluster of students traveling about the hall. A bit disturbed, to say the least, I lean back against the lockers to catch my breath. 

I don’t like Steve, that’s crazy! Steve… Steve and I… we’re just friends, really good friends, best of friends! Jonathan is psychotic and tossing out random ideas to get a rise out of me. All we did was hang out over the summer! He was already dating Nancy, my oldest friend! I would never ever betray her like that! Screw Byers. 

________________________

After last period, I return to my locker to pack up my homework. As I’m packing up my stuff, Nancy pops up next to me all distraught. She’s shaky and appears frightened, the same way she did when fighting the Demogorgon. 

“Nance? Nancy, what’s wrong? What happened?”  I ask her repeatedly, already worried.

She scans the area, making sure no one is watching us. Swiftly, she pulls into the girls bathroom. 

I stumble inside, immediately checking the stalls to make sure we’re alone. Once I determine the coast is clear, I spin around to face her. 

Her arms are wrapped around her tightly like a blanket. She swallows hard, her glazed eyes meet mine in fear. “I saw Barb!” She whispers as though she’ll be struck for doing so. 

That’s impossible. We left Barb in the Upside Down. She’s gone. She’s dead. 

“You what?” I shake my head in disbelief, pacing away from her. 

“In the library!” She explains, "I saw her! She called out for us! She said this wasn’t me! She said you were hiding! Pretending!” 

Now frightened, I whip my head around to face her directly. I note the hint of hope in her eyes that’s overpowered by guilt. I mourned Barb. We all did. I’m sorry for her parents, I am truly, but everyone is right! There’s nothing we can do! What’s done is done! All we can do is move on and live our lives! 

I refuse to relive the endless guilt, depression, and anxiety that consumed me for months on end. I felt like a shell of a human for almost a year after what happened. I can’t do this. 

“I have to go to drive Dustin home,” I announce. 

Quickly, I cross the room toward the door. I have to get out of here. This is nonsense. 

Nancy grabs my wrist before I pass her, “But Y/N-”

I yank my arm free from her grip, “goodbye Nancy!” 

Shaken for the second time today, I storm out of the bathroom and hurry toward the exit. I grip the handle of my purse, unable to control my shaky hands. Tears coat my eyes and threaten to slip down my cheeks. 

Flashbacks of that horrid night take over my train of thought. I see it clear as day. All of the blood, the sting from my arm, the pressure of that monster pinning me down. Everything I’ve been suppressing demands to be felt again. I’m living in my own personal Hell. 

As I push through the doors to the parking lot, the bright sunlight blinds me for a second. People cluster outside the school in their cliques. I weave between them, eager to get to my car and fly home. I can’t allow anyone to see me like this. I’m the strong one. I have my life together. I can’t break. 

In the distance, Dustin leans against the passenger door waiting for me. I keep telling myself that I’m almost there, just a couple of steps more. 

“Y/N-” Someone grabs my shoulder to stop me. 

Caught off guard and already distraught, I gasp and my bag slips from my shoulder to the pavement. 

I peer up to see Steve eyeing me with such compassion that I nearly slip and start sobbing. I wish I could tell him everything zooming through my mind but I can’t, it’s not his burden to bear. 

Urgently, he gathers my bag off the ground and places it on my shoulder. His hand lingers on my forearm, rubbing up and down comfortingly. I attempt to hide my shakiness by crossing my arms tightly. 

“You’re upset,” he states the obvious but I know he means well. “Are you alright?” 

I hum, nodding my head repeatedly. If I attempt to speak my voice may crack and then he’ll never let me go. Please Steve, I understand that you’re checking on me and I know you truly care but please let me go. 

“What is it?” He scrunches his eyebrows as he shifts on his heels. “Is it about Nancy? She was speaking about Barb earlier. Did she confront you about it? If it is I-” 

“Y/N!” Dustin shouts over to us impatiently. 

For once, I won’t argue with him about interrupting me. “I have to go,” I mumble under my breath and rush off before Steve has the chance to object. 

Once I’m a few feet away from Dustin, he notices my state and instantly climbs into the car without any questions. 

After I toss my bag into the backseat and move up front, I take a moment to gather myself and blast some music before I start driving. 

“Shitty day?” Dustin finally breaks the silence. 

Rubbing my temples, I snicker, “to put it simply.” 

He sighs, “Yeah, me too. First, all of the little assholes at school decide not to dress up this year. My guess is they all formed a pact and kept us out of it. It was all pretty embarrassing. Then, there’s this new girl, Max, smoking’ hot, but thinks she’s cooler than everyone else. Lucas likes her too… We followed her around for a little bit but then… well shit… she was onto us. Do you wanna talk about your day?” He offers to listen. 

I shake my head and open my eyes. Exhaling deeply, I grip the wheel and prepare to go. “No, because if I do then it will lead down a dark road that I don’t wish to travel ever again.” 

Dustin respects my silence and he talks most of the way home. I appreciate him not forcing me to speak about the horrors of today. Right now, I much rather listen and be distracted. Today was one of the worst days I’ve had in a while. At least tonight is the party. I could really use some mindless fun, risky shenanigans, and most importantly, booze. 

________________________________

Masterlist

[musicfeedsmysoul12]

fic title: the girl with flowers in her bones

Izumi learns she has a Quirk age six when the weird bump on her shoulder is inspected by a doctor who cuts it open to reveal a pretty flower.

Said flower quickly changed and becomes deadly, nearly killing a nurse before it’s destroyed.

No one knows how it got there but now people know about it. At first Izumi is happy. She has a Quirk.

Then she isn’t.

“It’s a useless Quirk!” Kacchan taunts her. “Perfect for a useless girl like you! Flowers under the skin! Pathetic!”

Kacchan burns her shoulder and she goes home crying.

Later a flower develops where she’s been burned and after some quiet conversation with Inko about how her husband had left because of Izumi’s Quirkless status and Izumi had heard it, they figured it out.

The flowers bloom when someone hurts her. They bloom and the doctors do a scan revealing many more flowers all over her- some were small and no one could see them. Little hurts the doctors theorized.

They still had to be removed. Izumi has been getting slower, becoming more exhausted each day. It’s the flowers.

Izumi numbly lets it happen.

But it happens again. And again.

Flowers bloom because people keep hurting her. They turn deadly when exposed to the air.

“Freak, monster, liar-“ it’s all shouted at her by her class. Kacchan leads the charge.

His flowers are always an orange lily. Hatred.

Izumi wonders if it means him or her who hates the other. When it becomes a sweet pea, she has a feeling she knows why she is receiving a goodbye.

She stops growing flowers for him. Because she knows she will only get pain from him, because he is no longer one she believes to be a friend.

“The flowers are signs of betrayal,” she changes the classification. “I can only be hurt by those I do not think would hurt me, those I trust. Once I stop trusting or believing they will not hurt me the flowers stop.”

Her mother sobs upon hearing it. Inko then goes and terrifies the Bakugou family, promising that unless Kacchan leaves her alone Inko would go after them.

Kacchan doesn’t listen.

So Inko slaps them with a lawsuit she wins. It’s enough for Izumi to go to a new school where she sits quietly and doesn’t talk.

There people whisper still but it’s sad whispers.

“Her Quirk hurts her.”

“No, it’s people hurting her which sets off her Quirk.”

“She’s so quiet.”

Izumi just works. The only one she trusts is her mother. Inko who tries so hard not to hurt her, who is honest and open. Who gives her books on flowers and smiles.

When Inko hurts Izumi she leaves violets and lavender. And they’re always small, so small. Small hurts, being too honest with her daughter.

Izumi loves her mother for it.

Izumi grows and soon she finds herself applying for UA. She wants to be a hero and her mother frets and admits she isn’t sure if Izumi can do but the two have researched and researched and well, they think they can figure a way out. Sports festival- she just needs to beat all the other students.

She thinks she can. The money they won from the lawsuit had helped Izumi not only get into a new school but also got her into a martial arts studio. Her mother insisted.

Probably was upset with how many flowers Izumi grew from cuts and burns and bruises. Those were the bigger ones, when they were left on purpose. They pushed against the skin, looked strange.

Funny, Izumi noticed that she didn’t gain flowers sparring.

“It’s probably based on intention. When you gain flowers from bruises or cuts and they’re from people doing it to hurt you and betray you, they come as flowers. But when it’s done as a fight or a spar it’s on purpose still but it’s not a betrayal of yourself.” Her Quirk therapist theorizes.

It makes sense.

Izumi goes to UA after failing the entrance exam and ends up in 1C where she finds herself meeting a boy who is like her. Sharp and broken and hurt.

Shinsou is a friend and she finds herself chuckling at his comments.

Their friendship only blooms truly though when she meets Kacchan again. He sees her and attacks, screaming. She fights back. Shinsou speaks and stops Kacchan and Izumi looks at him, seeing something similar back.

The situation ends with Izumi in the principal’s office telling her story. She looks him in the eyes tiredly.

Kacchan is removed from UA- apparently, the lawsuit hadn’t been included in his application.

“It was when he was ten!” His mother tries.

“It still happened and you lied,” Nezu tells her. Izumi isn’t supposed to be there but she went to the office to pick up some papers.

She thinks her homeroom teacher arranged it.

“The papers are supposed to show us if we need to watch out students for anything. You lied on the application.”

Izumi doesn’t know what to think as she slides away. She hasn’t seen Kacchan in years. Hasn’t spoken to him.

Yet he still tried to attack her. He hasn’t learned anything.

Izumi has left him behind. The pain he caused ended any relationship between them.

He is a child. He can learn, if he wishes.

She feels as if she is choking when she runs into someone.

“Ah,” the person says and she blinks at a girl with red and white hair. It’s long and in a braid as she stares at Izumi. There’s a burn scar on her face and as Izumi looks into her eyes she sees the same sort of pain Izumi has.

The girl nods and leaves and Izumi stares after her in confusion.

Then she has to head to class and Shinsou and it’s a mess.

A flower blooms under her cheek as she speaks and she wonders if it’s from the shock someone attacked her at UA or it’s because she always hoped Kacchan would change the longer she left him.

“It’s not the same.” She tells Shinsou. “I was in hell until I was ten and then just isolated after.”

“It’s close,” Shinsou tells her. He touches her cheek and she closes her eyes. “It’s growing?”

“Yeah. It used to be orange lilies. It might be the same now.”

It is. It’s removed by Recovery Girl and Izumi breathes and doesn’t try to think.

She doesn’t know what to think about anything.

She thinks in a way that expelling him was to much. She understands that they lied, that they removed the evidence of the trial. But did they truly know that it counted?

Kacchan is a child and needs to learn things.

At the same time, he tried to attack her.

Her mind feels muddled and confused and Shinsou tries to help but it’s different for him. His bullies were cruel and never stopped and yet he never expected it either to stop.

You can only be betrayed by a friend.

He tries but they fight and eventually he yells that she’s worthless if she wishes to let a boy who hurts her back into UA.

She flinches and he does too.

Shinsou reaches for her but she leaves, feeling sick.

Izumi wanders UA campus after that- a week after the Kacchan incident- a week after the USJ got invaded. With Kacchan in the office the class hadn’t gone to USJ, something all of them expresses relief about.

Izumi wanders and then runs into the red and white girl again. She’s training in the gym that all students are allowed to Izumi wandered to it out of habit. Usually she and Shinsou train- Shinsou finally accepting that he needs to train his body.

He’s not with her though, and she feels her shoulder ache.

Shinsou didn’t mean it, he was angry and didn’t understand. Izumi gets it.

But it still was a hurt.

“... are you okay?” The girl asks and Izumi blinks, realizing she’s been standing in the gym staring off into space.

“I’m fine.” She says. “I got into a fight with my friend.” The girl looks at her and Izumi sighs.

“My Quirk lets me know when I’ve been hurt,” Izumi explains. “The hurts become flowers under my skin. Ever hurt, physical, emotional, mental, minor or major.” Izumi sighs.

“... you were the one Bakugou attacked, the reason we did not go to the USJ.,” The girl says calmly.

“We were friends once. He hurt me badly, and we stopped. He tried again, my mom sued him and his family and they didn’t put the trial in his transcripts. So he’s been expelled and I just… I feel bad for him. He’s hurt me but I cared for him once and is it fair that he was a child when this happened and he’s still himself a child?” Izumi sighs. “Sorry. I-“

“I have similar feelings to my brother and mother.” The girl offers. Her face is slightly blank. She looks at Izumi, cocking her head slightly. “My father is not a nice man and he’s only stopped hurting us due to blackmail my eldest brother has given. I’m under the custody of my second eldest brother. My other siblings were deemed unsuited and my mother is in a mental health institute.”

“Oh!” Izumi blinks. “You didn’t-“

“You told me.” The girl shrugs. “I’m Todoroki Shouto.”

“Midoriya Izumi.”

It’s the start of something.

From the hurt Shinsou dealt jasmine is dug from Izumi’s skin and he apologizes over and over again. She tells him it’s not okay but she understands he didn’t truly mean it.

It makes her sad still.

She and Todoroki meet from time to time in the gym, speaking. Sometimes Shinsou joins them, sometimes not. He wishes to keep his Quirk private, wishing to get into the hero course like Izumi wishes.

Todoroki is kind, Izumi finds. She’s standoffish and blunt but she’s kind.

Her story is a sad one, told over gym meetings. Her father is Endeavour and he wished to overcome All Might. He had children to force it, and the abuse he placed his family through broke her mother.

Todoroki loves her mother. She loves her dearly but cannot face her.

“I used to blame myself, thinking it might be my fault she burned me. Natsuo, my brother, he got me into therapy and I’ve learned it wasn’t. I was a child, it was not on me. And yet my mother is ill.” Todoroki explains. “I care deeply for her but… I can’t face her right now. Because I have learned it is not my fault what she did and I have to adjust.”

Her brother, her eldest brother Touya, is a different story.

“He blamed me for the abuse. Said it was all my fault, hated the fact I was a girl too. Kept going on I was a screw-up, that I was disgusting. He’s in therapy to now but… I don’t talk to him. Ever if I can help it. Natsuo says he’s getting better but he won’t make me do anything. My sister keeps trying to get us to forgive our dad. We don’t want to.” Todoroki tells her. “It’s a mess.”

Todoroki doesn’t know what to do herself. Her brother was young when he became angry, and her mother ill. Neither were fully at fault, and yet she struggles.

It’s nice to talk to someone who understands.

Their friendship grows and Izumi wonders why it feels different then from her and Shinsou.

Yet as she watches Todoroki smile, she thinks she knows.

At the sports festival, Izumi and Shinsou manage to get to the tournament. They manage to claw their way to the semi-finals, determining who will go on to compete for first.

Shinsou insults her, curses her. And then he confesses.

Izumi keeps her mouth shut and shoved him out, even as she feels the flowers begin to bloom.

She does tell him she doesn’t feel the same.

“I know,” Shinsou tells her. “It’s Todoroki. You two smile all the time around each other, you laugh and have fun.” He shrugs sadly. “I just wanted to be honest.

Izumi accepts it, and later she finds the flowers to be yellow tulips.

One-sided love.

Yet first comes the finals, where Izumi screams at Todoroki to use her fire, even as the girl refuses to use it.

“I won’t use his power!” She yells.

“It’s not his! It’s yours!” Izumi cries back.

It’s chaos and destruction and in the end, Izumi has a silver medal.

And she has a smile she treasures.

It’s not love, not yet. But it has a chance to be.

A chance they cultivate, a chance they find becoming stronger and stronger as time goes on. As she and Shinsou enter the hero course, as she fights to protect a boy she barely knows on the streets of Hosu, protecting her hero mentor as well.

It’s a chance she takes, kissing Todoroki after the final exams. Todoroki accidentally burns her in shock and feels horrible.

Izumi treasures the fact a red rose blooms under her skin.

[gch1995]

Alot of the time I see people being like "wah wah, the clone wars ruined the jedi, my best friend george lucas would never do this to me. Non canon! non canon!" When like. My brothers in christ, he was In the writers room. He signed off on literally everything. At least before season 7. My knowledge on the production history of that season is limited. Point is pro jedi dipshits will literally ignore real life if it doesnt fit their view of their precious jedi monsters.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, but I don’t think that George Lucas ever intended for the Jedi as an overall organization to be the heroes of his saga. I think Luke Skywalker was because he was actually a good person in the OT movies, not just a person who learned to convince himself that his intentions were good like his father and the Jedi before him.

No, Obi-Wan and Yoda weren’t as outright scary and villainous as Vader and Palpatine in the OT movies, but they weren’t particularly good people. They spent roughly three movies deliberately deceiving and manipulating Luke Skywalker in an attempt to use him as a weapon to kill off the monster of a man they inadvertently helped turn his biological father in to 19 years before Luke was even born. I don’t care whether a lot fans think that Anakin deserved the death penalty for his crimes or not at that point. For self-defense protection reasons, I can definitely see the validity of his victims wanting Vader dead at that point. I can definitely see why a lot of people hated him in the galaxy at that point. From a realistic legal and psychological perspective, I don’t think it’s fair to place the blame on just Anakin for becoming the horrifying human disaster he grew up to be, considering the lifetime of compromised agency under abusive, corrupt, and oppressive authority figures, but I don’t think he’s wholly innocent either since he did give up on fighting back after going dark, too. Either way, though, his many victims were completely justified in hating him.

However, like I said before, I don’t have a problem with the fact that Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda believe that Anakin/Darth Vader is too great a threat to stop without killing in self-defense in and of itself. I can completely understand why a lot of people in the galaxy would completely and utterly despise Darth Vader, never be able to forgive him, and want him dead. I can completely understand why Obi-Wan and Yoda feel deeply betrayed and hurt by Anakin’s crimes against them and their Jedi Order.

My first issue with Obi-Wan as a mentor and person started from his very first introduction in A New Hope. Right off the bat, he tells Luke that he failed Darth Vader as a teacher because he “thought he could train him as well as Master Yoda.” Sure, Darth Vader is a fully grown man, and he is no longer Obi-Wan Kenobi’s student. Therefore, sure, it’s fair to say that Obi-Wan no longer needs to feel personally obligated to stop his former student from committing these horrendous crimes throughout the galaxy on behalf of the Empire’s ruler Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine and/or a personal desire for vengeance.

While it’s never his fault that his circumstances suck under these abusive, arrogant, corrupt, deceitful, manipulative, isolating, hypocritical, and oppressive extremist authority figures, laws, and systems, Anakin is still an adult with enough rationale and self-awareness in regards to his relationship with objective reality to understand the basic differences between right versus wrong when we see him commit these crimes under their influence, so those crimes are also at least partially on him for choosing to not take the risk of doing what he knows is better out of too much fear to face the unknown.

What’s more, we have also seen an adult Anakin/Darth Vader chose to commit a number of personally motivated crimes out of extreme anger, an extreme desire to gain control, an extreme desire to enact vengeance against those who hurt him and/or those he loves, an extreme fear of the actual and/or perceived threat of abandonment from loved ones, an extreme fear of facing the unknown when presented with enemies or outsiders from the “greater good,” and an extreme sense of impatience when faced with disobedience, disrespect, or rebellion from those under him after going dark. So yeah, regardless of constantly compromised agency and shitty circumstances, Anakin/Vader is certainly no blameless innocent either. It’s not just his fault he could grow up to become a monster, and it’s not his fault that there were no safe escape options from the instability and toxicity of rampant crime and slavery on Tattoine, the Jedi Order, the old Republic, Sidious, and the Empire. He is a victim in that sense. However, he did also become an asshole and a monster who became increasingly willing to enable and perpetuate much of the same abuse, crime, manipulation, oppression, tyranny, and vengeance that he was victim to himself before because he eventually became too angry, depressed, exhausted, insecure, and terrified to make an effort to risk trying any better, even though he knew taking the easier path of enabling and perpetuating that same cycle of systematic abuse of power he got thrust into in these systems, was morally wrong.

Obi-Wan and Yoda may no longer be responsible for the crimes of Darth Vader now that he is a fully grown adult and no longer their student, but how to persuade an innocent young man with no prior formal experience and training in being a Jedi warrior to destroy an enemy of the galaxy who they claim to have had a hand in driving away in the first place through their methods? They don’t have to feel responsible for Vader’s crimes anymore, but why use Luke to finish a monster they helped create in the first place? If they’re as anti-vengeance as they claim to be, then why did Obi-Wan deliberately stand there when confronted by Vader on the Death Star with a lightsaber, egg him by telling him “I’m about to become more powerful than you can ever imagine,” and then allow for Vader to stab him right in front of Luke?

This all happens in A New Hope before we ever find about Darth Vader being Luke’s biological father Anakin Skywalker, or Yoda’s influence on Obi-Wan as the Jedi leader. Obi-Wan already comes off as manipulative and suspicious as hell, regardless of his intentions.

They’re not directly responsible for Anakin’s actions against the galaxy, but Obi-Wan, Yoda, and the Jedi Council were canonically shown to repeatedly be very arrogant, emotionally/psychologically abusive, controlling, deceitful, isolating, hypocritical, and manipulative bastards who refused to take full accountability for their bad choices and mistakes that heavily contributed to the circumstances, environment, instability, and mindset that influenced Anakin’s fall in the first place by following broken, outdated, and toxic methods in their Order and the corrupt Republic. The fact that trying to use his biological son to deal with a monster they helped create in his biological father in the first place, even if inadvertently, is messed up

In fact, while much less outright abusive, creepy, and threatening than Anakin/Vader in regards to Luke, their basic motivation to recruit him and train him through deceitful, dangerous, and manipulative means that they know are objectively wrong to achieve personal worthy ends of destroying Vader is pretty similar to Anakin’s ultimate goal in Empire Strikes Back and the beginning of Return of the Jedi of attempting to manipulate Luke to use him for his own goal of finding a kind and trustworthy ally/family member/friend to turn to the dark side to help him escape from Palpatine. You could also argue that a part of Anakin did feel unduly indebted to Palpatine after years of being groomed in the ways of the Sith and to be submissive to a psychopathic dictator. A part of him likely convinced himself that turning Luke to the dark side was the “best” way to keep his son safe from Palpatine. The point is that Anakin still knew Luke deserved better than that from him. He was being selfish by trying to mold Luke into someone he was not and disregarding his son’s say in the matter of his own fate. Anakin was being selfish by putting Luke through hell that he didn’t deserve because he was too afraid to stand up to Palpatine and do the right thing.

However, in spite of how awful Anakin did become at his worst as Vader, by the end of the original trilogy, he’s still the only surviving member of Luke’s predecessors from the old Jedi Order and Republic, who actually seems to realize that it’s not fair to betray, deceive, endanger, harm, and intimidate his son to pressure him down a path he doesn’t want to take, as a means to an end to escape and/or avoid his own issues with Palpatine, the Sith, the Empire, or his own bad choices.

Meanwhile, for such “wise” and “heroic” monks, Obi-Wan and Yoda never do really seem to realize that it was wrong to use Luke as a pawn for their own ends of “what’s best for him.” Nor do they ever do or say anything that indicates remorse over the shitty ways in which they treated Luke for their own worthy ends. In spite of how great the OT movies of SW otherwise are, this was probably my biggest gripe with them. The Obi-Wan and Yoda were portrayed as “blameless” and “justified” for being problematic in their methods with recruiting, training, and using Luke to try to take down Vader never struck me as okay for them to completely get away with without remorse, just because their enemies were worse. That’s how you get designated heroes and moral hypocrisy in fictional narratives in which the writer wants their heroes to be well-intended morally ambiguous and sketchy extremists, but only allows them to get away with it because the enemies they are fighting are worse. Obi-Wan and Yoda still get the happily ever after force ghost treatment, even though there never was one moment in their relationship with Luke when they weren’t deceiving him, manipulating him, or using him for their own ends.

Sure, objectively, Anakin was far more horrifying towards Luke than Obi-Wan and Yoda were, and Luke would also have had absolutely every right to hate him, no matter what, too. However, at the very least, he actually got consistently framed as in the wrong for betraying, endangering, and/or harming Luke to manipulate him for his own ends. At least, Anakin actually did something to genuinely express remorse for his mistreatment of him by selflessly sacrificing his life for him. At least, Anakin realized he was wrong about Palpatine, wrong to run away from his problems, wrong to try to use Luke to escape them, and tried to make up for it to his son.

Obi-Wan and Yoda never really seem to learn anything in the OT movies from their bad choices and mistakes on screen because it seems like George Lucas wants us to agree that they were justified in deliberately deceiving, endangering, and manipulating Luke for their own ends of “the greater good,” simply because they were facing a greater evil threat. Luke wouldn’t have just blindly and eagerly jumped on board to fight for them at their insistence, if he had been told the whole objective truth by Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda in the beginning, so I do get why they felt like they had to do it.

This is exactly why I love most of the PT movies and SW media. At least, pre Disney. It doesn’t absolve Anakin of his many crimes, but, while it’s still made clear that the entire Order and Republic didn’t deserve mass murder or the Empire, Obi-Wan, Yoda, and the adults involved in the Jedi Order and Republic government don’t get framed as being in blameless victims in the right for being abusive, arrogant, classist, manipulative, and oppressive assholes “for the greater good” either. They actually pay negative consequences for it. Certainly worse than what they deserved at the end, but they are definitely not framed as wholly “blameless” good guys either.

Yeah, I don’t understand how in 2022 there are still fans out there who wholeheartedly support every decision the Jedi have ever made as an overall organization. The only reason they get to be the good guys before Luke in the OT and PT movies is because the Empire and Sith are far worse, which isn’t a high bar to rise above at all. Not to mention the fact that their teachings and lifestyle helped influence the rise of the Empire. That exceedingly collectivist “greater good” line they repeatedly encouraged their students to use to feel better about giving in to pressure to enable and/or perpetuate “necessary” systematic abuse, crime, isolation, and oppression to hold onto security is what helped influence a creation of more dangerous and organized lawful evil Sith, who were able to convince themselves they were being heroes “for the greater good” in the first place in using shitty means to achieve worthy ends more easily.

[ratsoh-writes]

Go kart competition for all the skeletons! Let's raise the stakes and say they were dragged to the event regardless. Enemies can be at opposite ends of the starting line. Who is flat out refusing to race. Who wins the top 5. Who gets last place and who creates a pile up? (Or anything similar)

Lol, the only guys who would opt out are the horror papyri. Noir and willow really don’t want to f*ck up their backs from this and unless there’s a go cart out there that can house 7’11 basil, he’s gonna politely decline. They’ll play cheerleader though.

If this ever happened, I bet it’d be at a barrier festival. I can see the guys running into some of each other and declaring a war between skeletons lol

Sans: he’s a big weenie that’s allergic to pain. The second it looks like someone is going to crash into him, he’s shortcutting out of the cart. Abandon ship!

Papyrus: remember how edge doesn’t really like papyrus that much? Well it’s not fair that edge is friends with sans and not him! So papyrus has declared that him and edge are teaming up for this race! You can’t escape friendship edge!!!

Star: he tried to tell lilac you maybe sit this one out. Lilac refused and accused Star of babying him. Now they are mortal enemies for the day. The first race lilac friggin made Star drive into a ditch lol. The second race Star flipped lilacs kart. Now Jupiter is sacrificing his win ti drive between those two

Honey: he’s a big weenie who doesn’t have the blessing of shortcuts. After getting wiped out the first race, honey plays injured and hangs out with the horrors the next races

Red: oak keeps getting lost on the track and red ends up going after him. They take a detour and have a nice country road drive instead lol

Edge: for some reason sans annoying little brother insists that they team up for these races. Naturally edge betrays him the first round. But papyrus’s face made him feel bad so he plays nice the next two. Mission accomplished papyrus

Mal: he nearly fought with cash over the black and silver kart. Mal won naturally, and he uses the high from his victory to secure first place in all three races. Mal is really good at drifting

Cash: he wanted the black and silver one so bad but his stupid brother had the same idea. So cash ends up with the neon orange kart. He has a fun time causing a pile up in every race with bruiser

Oak: he somehow got off track the first race and went down a deserted country road. Red followed him and they decide to dusty and have a nice cruise instead

Charm: when cash and bruiser cause the pile up, he wound up squashed underneath butch, boss, snipe and the undynes. They were super worried about him even though he insisted he was fine and forced a pouting charm to sit the next two races out.

Sugar: he was also in the pile up, but boss saved his butt by pulling him on top of himself before sugar could tumble with his kart. Sugar spends the rest of the day swooning over his hero

Pop: he gets second place in all three races. Pop isn’t as skilled as mal, but he uses his small size to pick up speed

Rhythm: he was smart. Rhythm could see that bloodthirsty look in bruisers eye and decided to linger in the back. He helps clean up the pile up of the first race lol

Pluto: he actually gets third on the first race. Pluto was inherent in the back but when he saw the pile up, he panicked and floated himself above the others along with his kart. Nobody disputed it lol

Jupiter: with Star and lilac at war, Jupiter decides it’s his personal duty to make sure they don’t kill each other. Normally this is papyrus’s job, but he’s hanging off of edge for some weird reason.

Lord: he ends up sharing a kart with wine. Partly because they have an odd number of guys racing with the undynes, and also because wine doesn’t care about the race and takes them off track to go get Starbucks instead lol. They come back an hour late with some frappes

Mutt: he saves coffee from the pile up by pulling him into his kart and rolling off track. But they both killed their karts in the process, so coffee texts his brother to get him some coffee. They wind up chilling with basil and watching the show

Wine: he was already planning on ditching, but coffee wanted Starbucks so now wine has an excuse

Coffee: dude mutt is his knight in shining armor today. Coffee is super pissed at cash and bruiser right now and is already planning his revenge. Maybe a glitter bomb…

G: for once he’s glad his brother is such a snob. Green wanted his help first at the fairs stand. Greens practice had a display for scholarships for monster and half breed medical students but one of the volunteers bailed. G probably would’ve broken an arm in that race. He’s brittle

Green: he’s much to busy at his practices display to join the go kart race. Not that he would want to anyways. He winds up finding boss later and healing the crack in his arm he earned from saving sugar

Peaches: the farm bros are also out of the race. They have their farmers market section to take care of

Rancher: he’s gonna be pissed when he hears he missed the pile up

Snipe: he knew letting butch convince him to join was a bad idea. With all these enemies in one place snipe could just feel that someone will escalate. After his own little brother caused that first pile up, he plays injured like honey and sneaks off to hang out with the farm bros

Bruiser: he’s the villain of today lol. And for once, bruiser isn’t getting revenge on another skeleton. This time he’s targeting tempest. She had him in a thirty minute headlock yesterday and was still gloating. When the race started, bruiser looked her in the eye and promised that he’d make sure she wound even cross half the track. He delivered

Butch: he does get lucky enough to get third in the last race. Technically he tied for third with Star and lilac. But he still had fun. Butch isn’t even mad at being the near bottom of a pile up that first round

Boss: he’s rather protective of sugar so when he saw him about you be dragged under another kart, boss acted out of instinct. He pulls him out of the way but suffers a small crack on his arm for the trouble. He had bayou didn’t even notice till green healed him later. He has a pretty high pain tolerance

Ace: he also saw that look in bruisers eye and feeling generous, ace decides to share a kart with slim. He knows his brother will pop away at the first sign of trouble. Ace doesn’t even have to go through the effort of shortcutting himself! Genius lol

Slim: like sans, the second he sees danger he shortcuts out. And since ace was in the kart with him, he takes his brother along for the ride.

Rust: he hangs back and avoids the destruction of the first race. Then rust spends the rest of the festival wondering where red and oak went

Lilac: he is SICK AND TIRED of Star treating him like he’s brittle. So lilac gives his younger counterpart a hard time during the races. Star forgets, lilac might not be as fast, but he’s a lot bigger. It just takes a tap from him for starts cart to spin off track. After that it’s game on lol

[animecreator3000]

About the Boueibu iceberg

@delphoxqueen asked me to explain about my list for the iceberg so here it is. I might update this from time to time with links and stuff if I stumble across the original posts. This is all from what I know so feel free to add new info. Also, spoiler warning for RobiHachi and the Boueibu manga and novels. (This is like a masterpost it’s very long)

1. There’s a theory in tumblr about which decade the series is set in, using data like the friday the 13th calendar in s2 ep11. In HK we got a second number for when the next monthly Pretty Boy Contest was happening and using the one from Love it was theorized that around a decade had passed since then, which ended up being true.

2. The stage play had a few original songs and characters exclusive to it so unless you watched the full performance, you probably weren’t able to witness all of them. One of the characters is called “Robato Deniro”, as romanized in the stage play booklet I own.

3. The nurse and the cafeteria staff from the s1 mobile game appear in the background in around the first half of s2 ep3.

4. S2 had an unfinished manga that was only available online and was never released on physical format; it was centered around the defense club and sometimes the conquest club and Beppu brothers. All that’s left from what I know are the scans linked on magicalgirlsandcerulean’s blog.

5. This isn’t that obscure because it’s talked about in the anime, but I’m mentioning it because I think many people dropped it before the ova, where right at the beginning it is revealed that the alien that resucitated Mr. Tawarayama twice was, as described by Io, a “mulberry-colored naked mole rat-looking thing”, and was nicknamed “Moley-san” by Yumoto. At least in the anime, we had never heard before of who this was and it never appeared on screen nor was mentioned again.

6. In HK ep8, Karurusu promises the knights to grant a wish if they show him how earthlings spend summer. Kyoutarou reveals at the end of the episode that he wished that summer lasted one more day so he could spend it doing nothing, which prompts Ichiro to theorize that it’s the 32nd of august, and the next day is the second 1st of september.

7. The stage play was was held from march 10th to 13rd, of which the latter is Ryuu’s birthday. There’s an additional recording of a small celebration with cake focused on Ryuu and Io.

8. Atsushi mentions his older sister in the flashback at the beginning of s1 ep4, but she never appears or is mentioned again.

9. There’s a few posts on tumblr theorizing about what happened to the Hakone parents since Yumoto only says in s2 ep3 that according to Gora, “they are busy with their hot springs tour”. En mentions that it’s a bit suspicious, but it’s all the information we have from the anime. Posts talk about the parents perhaps passing away from an accident or an illness, thus the reason why Gora was so worried about Yumoto’s cold in s1 ep10, but from another post I think it’s implied in the second novel that they actually left their home when Yumoto was still a toddler.

10. It’s no secret that the surnames of the characters are all real onsens in Japan that even the seiyuus have visited, but apparently the Arima onsen has two different kinds of water, “kinsen (gold hot spring)” and “ginsen (silver hot spring)”, with different properties each, and the Kusatsu onsen water also has certain properties, both that were used to build the characters. Additionally, Ryuu’s favorite food are Sato Nishiki cherries, which are grown in the same prefecture, Yamagata, as his onsen, Zaou.

11. The press club lose relevance after s1, with only Kinosaki and Tazawa reappearing briefly in s2 ep2 to interview the Beppu twins after they arrive at the school. Tazawa doesn’t even have lines. Hireashi is mentioned by Zundar in ep11.

12. What the heck

13. Exclusively in the manga we see that Arima met Kinshiro and Atsushi when they were little and they were good friends, but when they met again as adults, Kinshiro seemingly didn’t remember Arima. Atsushi, however, stated that Kinshiro’s talent is remembering people’s faces and names, so Arima wonders if he’s just trying to distance himself from him. He also explains to Akoya that he follows Kinshiro and obeys him because as a child, he was fascinated by his radiant smile. This is never talked about in the anime.

14. Like the previous point, the anime never shows Akoya being bullied, at most just a slight dislike of his full name, but the manga shows that he was made fun of for it and how he actually hates his surname, to the point of introducing himself formally to the president and vicepresident of the student council as “Holy Angel Akoya”.

15, 16, 17, 19. Batonama lives were the livestreams done through the franchise by the defense club seiyuus on youtube and niconico. They’re all on youtube, without any kind of translation.

Love-ko is a girl with a shell bikini drawn on a piece of cardboard that was used as a girlfriend in the Batonama Love! lives, acted by the seiyuus themselves.

RobiHachi has one episode full of official Boueibu artwork and a parody of the series too, a Love-ko doll appears, and Wombat appears as well, named “The Don”. It received an english dub, so for a bit, people were excited that Wombat was going to speak in english too. Also, various mechas appear in both Boueibu and RobiHachi.

18. The director of Fairy Ranmaru (Masakazu Hishida if I’m not wrong) revealed in an interview that he was inspired by Boueibu and aimed to make a show like that.

20, 21. The website super-groupies.com has results for defense and conquest club lingerie sets, dc and VEPPer tote bags, the Beppus’ scarf rings, dc bath sets and the pumps magicalgirlsandcerulean mentioned. I’ve found the s1 Loveracelets and Caerula Adamas’ ring on different sites, the True Loveracelets on TheChara’s twitter and the Happybraces (apparently called “Hapibure”) on broccoli.co.jp but I’m not sure where exactly they were all announced and sold, so I’ll just drop that.

22, 33. Boueibu was originally pretty much a copy of Sailor Moon, I think they were all going to be called “Lackluster Moon” and that stuff and be literally Sailor Moon genderbent. They were all different from color palettes to physical features (except Yumoto’s), and Ryuu was a shota, even smaller than Yumoto. Their names were also very reminiscent of the five Sailor Senshis’. Even if they made it more original, the show is still clearly inspired by Sailor Moon (just look at Caerula Adamas lol) and Pretty Cure. It has also referenced, very blatantly, animes like Doraemon, Detective Conan, Aikatsu and even Vocaloid, when Kyoutarou tries to guess what Karurusu is saying with ““Just Google It, Asshole”?” in ep1.

23. Wombat’s real name and the name of his planet sound like gibberish to the earthlings and ends up being named after the Earth animal, but Zundar, Dadacha, Karurusu and Furanui all have original names. And I think Hireashi means “goldfish”?

24. If you google “zundar technology”, it’s actually a company in Shanghai, China. Aren’t Wombat and Zundar always talking about “advanced alien technology”?

25. Zundar and Dadacha are siblings, so are Karurusu and Furanui, and so are their father King Kamopapa and their uncle minister Wao, but neither are the same species and, except the first two, not even the same color. But they are supposedly related because they share birthmarks or something like that...

26. Everyone who’s in this fandom knows about the pixel blur and voice pitch censor from s1, but I’ve added it anyway because it’s so rare for mahou shoujo and shounen animes to explain why the heroes aren’t recognized when transformed.

27. A good while of s2 ep11 is spent discussing Zundar’s ex-wife and his problems to give child support. Naturally, he gets mad at this.

28. “Money doesn’t betray” (s1 ep6) and “The despair hidden behind your smile that comes from not being understood” (s3 ep11) are sentences that came out of nowhere and implied that the people they were said by (Io) or about (Taiju) respectively had some kind of angst going on but were never explained at all. They’re famous for just that.

29. The Beppu twins’ house in Andromeda shown in flashbacks had strange green circles that apparently are from another anime I don’t know but honestly I didn’t get it very well... It was revealed on a tweet from Takamatsu.

30. Alien language mostly appeared in s2 due to the many flashbacks of Aki and Haru in Andromeda, but in Boueibu s1, it appears on the Zundar Needle before it is shot on the human. It appears a lot through RobiHachi as well, due to being a story about travelling through space. There might be an alphabetical chart somewhere, but I can’t assure it exists, I might even have dreamed it.

31. Hikaru Midorikawa as the melon monster, Kousuke Toriumi as the bishounen monster, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as the kotatsu and panda monsters and Takuya Eguchi as the remote controller monster in s1 and 2, before going on to voice the main cast in HK. Keisuke Koumoto voiced Hatchi Kita in RobiHachi as well as Akihiko in Boueibu, and the characters look similar.

A new addition is that so far Boueibu is the only anime I’ve seen where children weren’t voiced by female seiyuus, but by actual children. Personally, it’s charming and makes it so much more realistic, specifically since no women appear in the franchise at all either (not counting Protag-chan in the game).

32. Speaking of seiyuus, Can I Destroy The Earth? had a dub shown in ep11/12 (?) that made Gora the villain that wanted Earth to stay the same and not progress, against the monsters that supposedly wanted to bring good things to earthlings. Aki and Haru quickly dismissed this dub as fake. (I made a mistake in the title in the previous post btw)

34. As seen in the glossary in the Boueibu Mook (I think, but might not be the mook), Caerula Adamas’ speeches are based on an old japanese detergent commercial that went “Gold, silver, pearl, gift”.

35. In the manga there’s a short parody of the first chapter of Sailor Moon with “Pretty Boy Guardian Gakuran Akoya”. The conquest club manga was released before the anime, so I remember reading somewhere that a fake website appeared for the Gakuran Akoya manga, before turning into the conquest club manga website in the day of its release.

36. Cgi was used a few times in the anime: s2 ep10 for a short sequence of the defense club on a rollercoaster and the carousel monster, ep11 for a cenital shot of the Battle Lovers singing, and HK ep12 for the Honyalaland soldiers and the Wao mecha.

37. The toothbrush incident in s1 ep7. (It’s definitely well-known but it’s so weird lol)

38. “We hope we can see each other again someday!” Something along those lines was the last text to appear in the last episode of HK, implying a s2. We all know how that went.

[seragamble]

Season 12 of SPN but Better

This is my rewrite of s12 in which the main changes are after Lucifer knocks up Kelly he fucks off back to the cage, the BMOL are actually scary, and the narrative finally interrogates how people who aren’t human are treated. Note: I use monster and non-human interchangeably here. (Thank you @autisticandroids for your help with this post.)

The season starts off the same. Sam is perhaps a little more suicidal during his kidnapping, having just lost Dean and fresh off of having to be around Lucifer.

Sam’s myriad of mental health issues pop up here and there throughout the season, after Lucifer and dealing with what Lady Bevell did to him. He does his best to make sure none of this is seen by his family, but Dean eventually figures it out.

At least two episodes where the A Plot is Cas and Crowley investigating a case.

“American Nightmare” is just the start of a theme we see throughout the season of Sam bonding with monsters/non-humans/the ‘other’. He becomes a resource for them and in turn connecting with them helps him feel better about himself.

Cutting the Hitler episode because that was seriously just… :l

Instead Aaron comes back and it’s just a fun episode

Samantha Smith is amazing as Mary but please just take a moment to imagine “Celebrating the Life of Asa Fox” if Mary’s actor was actually ~28

At the end of “LOTUS” Lucifer goes back in the cage 

The events of First Blood take place over two episodes so we can gets stuff like: 

Cas and Mary hunting together

Cas and Mary (separately and together) threatening people they think can help them find Sam and Dean

Dean and Sam (Sam especially) losing their grip on reality whilst in confinement 

Instead of the American hunters largely rejecting the BMOL many of them embrace them. Mostly thanks to the weapons they freely provide. The BMOL also import their idea of “Hey shouldn’t ALL monsters be dead actually.” This becomes a serious issue as we get to see that there are plenty of monsters who aren’t hurting anyone, but are now being hunted.

At the end of “The Raid” we get our first foreshadowing of what else the BMOL are doing when that hunter, who betrayed them to the vampires, is taken to an onsite facility full of various monsters in cages.

The boys have a case that ends up being hunters who fucked around by going after innocent monsters, and found out. It’s a not at all subtle allegory about two monster siblings, where the older sister killed a pair of hunters to protect her little brother. This is the tipping point where Dean finally has a major mental shift in how he views and treats monsters.

There’s also a case where they look into weird supernatural phenomena and it turns out to be the result of hunters disrupting completely (super)natural stuff. It’s an episode about a supernatural creature that has zero interest in killing humans, they’re just strange and otherworldly, and hunters persecuting them has caused a major local disruption in the world.

Instead of the BMOL having their students fight one another to death, they have them kill monster children. We get a flashback of Mick killing a crying werewolf boy.

After Mick has his change of mind about what the BMOL are doing they don’t kill him. Instead he is taken to the facility (seen previously at the end of “The Raid”). This is where the BMOL experiment on monsters, as well as dispose of humans by using them as test subjects. There’s a scene where we see that hunter from before get injected with something, go through a weird mutation, and dies.

The timeline has to be shifted around a little, but instead of Cas being off in heaven trying to find something to find Kelly (which lead nothing to the narrative and went nowhere) the BMOL just make it seem like that’s what he did, while really they have him locked up.

Their reasoning being that if a nephilim is going to be born they want to know all they can about angels, but also they just genuinely don’t see anyone who isn’t human as a person so why not experiment on them. The whole experience is really dehumanizing.

Ketch is there, and I would like to remind everyone about the line, “I do enjoy an angel,” which is a) haunting, and b) implies Ketch has dealt with angels before.

Remember how in “Lily Sunder Has Some Regrets” Cas can immediately identify that angel blade as being Benjamin’s? Ketch has a few and taunts Cas about what he may or may not have done to their owners.

They torture Cas/do a lot of medical experimentation. The torture is “extremely horny for no reason, shave your chest father of two it’s fanservice time”-y (thank u autisticandroids).

On the brighter side, Mick and Cas bond during their captivity because Cas deserves to have a friend who isn’t a Winchester. Also go ask @autisticandroids about this.

We see Mick question his long held beliefs about monsters and grow more as a character. He also gets turned into something, perhaps a Shapeshifter.

During this time we get to know various other monsters being held and undergoing experimentation.

Instead of Mary finding out Mick is dead she finds out about the facility. Same thing happens as in canon where they brainwash her. This time she’s just killing hunters who won’t fall in line with the BMOL, instead of all American hunters (which I feel made no sense).

Garth comes back at some point because of course he does. Why have an entire season about people who want to eradicate all monsters and then not bring back their one friend who would be most affected by this? His whole family and community are at risk of death if the BMOL have their way.

“Twigs and Twines and Tasha Banes” happens next season because I want Max and Alicia to be part of the attack on the BMOL and it’s better for their narrative if they disappear for a while before coming back after that episode. Instead they show up in a standard motw episode to drive home the fact that it’s fucked up to automatically consider witches to be evil.

One of the narrative points would be how the BMOL tolerance of witches is extremely conditional on them only using their magic for them, and the presence of the BMOL in America has led to an increasingly hostile environment for the Banes family.

The people the Winchesters recruit to help them attack the BMOL facility are a mix of monsters they’ve helped out, and hunters who respect them/didn’t fall in line/have noticed their friends getting murdered. 

The end result is the beginning of a new relationship between hunters and non-humans.

It might be odd after a season long narrative about not demonizing people just because they’re not human, to have the Winchesters still be all “Let’s forcibly abort this fetus,” but, with the added element of Sam dealing with his Lucifer trauma all season, I think it would make sense to have Dean be in extra Protective Mode™. That combined with Cas, fresh off of having to be rescued and feeling even worse about himself, decides to take the Kline issue into his own hands. The narrative follows along with canon. Since Lucifer isn’t around it’s AU!Michael who kills Cas and Mary tackles back through the rip.

Alternatively if you hate that and want something more domestic you can picture the following: with their newfound POV TFW rescues Kelly and takes her back to the bunker, promising they’ll take care of her child.

[aspoonofsugar]

What is your opinion about the Maidens in RWBY and their importance?

Hello anon!

I like the Maidens and especially how they explore two main ideas:

1) The concept of cycles and generations.

2) The trope of the chosen one.

THE CYCLE OF SEASONS

I think it is clear Ozpin created the Maidens partly because he wanted guardians and partly as a way to grieve his four daughters. He has symbolically dragged them into the cycle with him and Salem.

In a sense, the story keeps repeating. Salem kills Ozpin, he is reborn and his daughters are victims of the conflict between them.

Because of this, the four Maidens have become one of the many symbols of this endless cycle, which is clealry breaking its protagonists more and more.

This is well conveyed by the Maidens having a season theme. Seasons are in fact linked to the repetition of time aka one of Ozpin’s motifs:

At the same time, the idea of an older woman passing the torch to a younger one can be easily read as a metaphor for a mother-daughter dynamic. This is not always the case, but so far this interpretation is important for two of our four Maidens:

Penny receiving the Maiden’s powers from Fria is important on multiple levels and it plays on Penny alluding to Pinocchio. Fria (The Blue Fairy) recognizes Penny as a real girl, something she has been struggling with since the beginning:

Penny: Ruby... I'm not a real girl.

And is still struggling with:

Cinder: I don’t serve anyone. And you wouldn’t either, if you were built that way.

That said, Penny is not only struggling with enemies that consider her a robot, but also with the (understandable) overprotectiveness of people who love her:

Pietro: I lost you before. Are you asking me to go through that again? No. No. I want the chance to watch you live your life.

Penny: But dad… I am trying to.

She is not only a robot, who wants to prove she is a real girl, but also a daughter, who wants to grow into her own person.

This idea is made even stronger by Penny having been “created” through Pietro’s aura. She is a part of Pietro becoming someone completely different and independent from him. Still, isn’t it what all children are?

Raven is instead Penny’s opposite since she is not a daughter, but a mother. Not only that, but she is a mother, who fails three times.

She fails her biological daughter Yang by abandoning her and putting her in danger.

She fails Vernal, who dies for her.

She fails the previous Spring Maiden, who clearly looked up to her and was betrayed:

Cinder: Vernal was a decoy the whole time. The last Spring Maiden must've trusted you a great deal before she died. I bet that was a mistake...

This is well conveyed by Raven’s case being the opposite of what should ideally happen. Normally an older Maiden should pass her power to a younger girl, so that the cycle keeps going and that a new generation can keep fighting for good. However, Raven steals the powers of the Maiden for herself, just like she uses her shape-shifting ability for selfish objectives:

Ozpin: Everyone has a choice. The Branwens chose to accept their powers and the responsibilities that came with them. And later, one of them chose to abandon her duties in favor of her own self-interest.

She presents herself as a mentor for young women, but in the end she is a failure because she is too self-centered.

In conclusion, Rwby is both a coming of age story and a story that deals with cycles. Let’s think about the many abusive cycles in the story or the damaging cycles present in society, for example. All these cycles need to be broken and I would not be surprised if this will be the case for the cycle of the Maidens as well.

THE CHOSEN ONES

Up until now, the person who should be a Maiden never becomes one.

a) Pyrrha was destined to be the Fall Maiden, but Cinder stole the power.

b) Vernal is foreshadowed to be the Spring Maiden, but Raven turns out to be the real one.

c) Winter has been preparing herself to inherit the Winter’s Maiden’s role, but Penny is the one chosen by Fria.

Why is that so?

The story is clearly playing with the idea of the “chosen one” and asking some questions.

Are people chosen by destiny:

Cinder: It’s unfortunate you were promised a power that was never truly yours.

Or do they choose it?

Red-Haired Woman: She understood that she had a responsibility… to try. I don’t think she would regret her choice, because a Huntress would understand that there really wasn’t a choice to make. And a Huntress is what she always wanted to be.

What if the chosen person is the wrong one?

Lionheart: She was determined, at first, when she inherited her powers, but the weight of responsibility proved to be too much for the child. She... ran. Abandoned her training, everyone. That was over a decade ago. There's no telling where she could be now.

Finally, is it even right to choose a person?

Weiss: Doesn't it bother you? He practically groomed your entire military career.

Winter: It did at first, when the General first proposed it to me. But the more I thought about it, the more I saw it as a privilege, a chance to do some real good for Atlas. For Remnant.

Weiss: But your destiny was chosen for you, without your input.

So far each Maiden has explored this concept in a different way. Moreover, the story has highlighted many problems with the method used by Ozpin and his allies to select their guardians.

First of all there is the machine used to transmit aura:

Ironwood: We've made... significant strides. And we believe we've found a way to capture it.

Qrow: Capture it and cram it into something else. (gestures to Pyrrha as she takes a second to realize what that means) Or in your case ...

Pyrrha: (to Ironwood) That's...

Ironwood: Classified.

Pyrrha: ... wrong!

This method has been presented in-universe as sketchy and unethical both for the person who is having her aura taken and for the person receiving it.

It is also interesting that this machine is basically the technological equivalent of the Grimm used by Salem and Cinder to steal the powers in the first place:

One is the product of destruction (The Brother’s Grimms), while the other is the result of creation (in-universe technology is linked to creation). However, they both do essentially the same thing. They steal another person’s aura and change the one absorbing it:

Raven: You turned yourself into a monster just for power.

Secondly, there is the fact that so far several Maidens have died or have been targeted in horrible ways.

Some of them were specifically attacked because young and less experienced than others, like Amber. Some others made their choice without truly understanding it, like the Spring Maiden. And some of them. like Pyrrha, were not even given all the elements to make an informed choice.

In short:

Hazel: You send children to their deaths for a cause that you know has no victory, no end!

It is true that Hazel is a hypocrite that feels anger for Ozpin sending students to their deaths only to be the one killing them. It is also true that he does not respect his sister’s choice:

Oscar: Did she know the risk of being a Huntress?

Hazel: She was only a child! She wasn't ready!!

Oscar: She made a choice! A choice to put others before herself! So do I.

However, the narrative harshly criticizes Ozpin for not giving people all the information, “the knowledge”, they need to make that choice:

Yang: There was so much you hadn't told us! How could you think that was okay?!

Finally, we arrive at the current volumes where we see how Ironwood has tried to control Penny, Winter and Fria aka all the three people involved in the passage of the Maidens powers...only to fail miserably.

And in this failure probably lies the true mistake which has been made over and over again. The whole point is that probably the whole cycle (thematically) can’t and should not be controlled to this extent:

Goodwitch: At first, the only thing that was certain was that the powers were specifically passed on to young women. But as time went on, it was discovered that the selection process was much more... intimate.

Pyrrha: ... Intimate?

Goodwitch: As we understand it now, when a Maiden dies, the one who is in her final thoughts is the first candidate to inherit her power.

The powers are passed from a person to another through emotions. It is not by chance that the last person in a Maiden’s mind is the one who gets the power. It is because the power is linked to emotions and to ties and you should not try to weaponize them.

MAIDENS AND RELICS

Finally each Maiden is clearly linked to the theme represented by her respective relic.

Pyrrha and Cinder are both linked to the idea of destiny and choosing. I have shared some thoughts on them here.

I would say that Cinder wants to be chosen. She wants to be special and to be given value. This is probably why she is serving Salem. It is because Salem has chosen her for an important role:

Salem: When I chose you as my vessel for the Maidens, I put my trust in you.

This is not positive. It is dehumanizing:

Salem: This game is not yours to win, Cinder, it’s mine. Just because you’re more valuable to me than a pawn, does not make you a player.

But Cinder sees this as a chance.

Pyrrha is instead a person, who chooses her own destiny:

Pyrrha: When I think of destiny, I don’t think of a predetermined fate you can’t escape. But rather… some sort of final goal, something you work towards your entire life.

In other words, Pyrrha has an active role in her own destiny, while Cinder so far has accepted it passively.

This might seem ironic because all in all Cinder has been a pretty active character. She was born as nothing and fought to free herself and to become more powerful. However, she is still leaving her own life in the hands of another person, who is specifically coded as an abusive mother-figure. It is probable that her arc will be about taking back the agency Salem is clearly stealing from her.

This might very well be why she is the Maiden of choice. It is because in the end she’ll make an active choice to get her own freedom back.

At the same time, Pyrrha being active in her choices still leads to her demise. This is because she represents a choice without knowledge, as I have stated in the meta linked above:

She had been explained only a fragment of the truth, while the whole point is that one should learn, meet creation and destruction and then make a choice. This is why we have yet to meet the relic of choice.

As a matter of fact it is clear that knowledge and choice are complementary, just like destruction and creation.

This is highlighted also by their respective relics. On one hand the Lamp offers knowledge of the past. On the other hand the Crown gives its user a vision of a future choice.

This is because one has to know the past to change the future:

Bartholomew Oobleck : History is important, gentlemen! If you can't learn from it... you're destined to repeat it.

In a sense, knowledge is the passive condition of choice, while choice is the active goal of knowledge.

This is why one needs both to contribute to the world in the most effective way possible. If one acts without knowledge they might make the wrong choice. At the same time, knowledge without choice is just passiveness, as shown in The Indecisive King fairy tale.

Too much knowledge might lead to indeciveness or even cynism. This is why Raven is the Spring Maiden. It is because she is Pyrrha’s opposite aka knowledge without choice:

Yang: Which is it, mom? Are you merciful, or are you a survivor? Did you let me walk into that trap because you knew I could handle it, or because it meant you could get what you wanted?!

Raven keeps making decisions only to run away from them immediately after. Knowledge did not make her braver, but just a coward.

Finally we arrive to Penny and the idea of creation.

I have mentioned Penny in the meta linked above:

Penny is an artificial human, a creation who was given life because her father loved her so much that he sacrificed a part of his aura for her… twice. She is at the centre of the theme of creation and it represents the good sides of it. She is a creation with a soul, a child, the fruit of parental love. It is because of the love she received that she is willing to protect creation.

Penny is at the centre of the theme of creation in two ways.

a) She is a child, who wants independence.

b) She is a good declination of technology.

On one hand children are new lives that join the world. They are the embodyment of creation.

On the other hand technology is an expression of human creation and a way humans have to change and influence reality.

Penny is both. She is Pietro’s girl and a robot with a soul:

Pietro: When the General first challenged us to find the next breakthrough in defense technology, most of my colleagues pursued more obvious choices. I was one of the few who believed in looking inward for inspiration.

Ruby: You wanted a protector with a soul.

Pietro: I did. And when General Ironwood saw her, he did too. Much to my surprise, the Penny Project was chosen over all the other proposals.

Ironwood choosing Pietro’s project over others is very interesting and ambiguous. Did he choose this project because at the time he understood the importance of “a protector with a soul”?

Probably consciously yes, but the way he has treated Penny since volume 2 suggests also something different. It suggests a desire of domination. The idea that putting a soul into a metallic body would make it easier to control it.

After all:

Ironwood: For the past few years, Atlas has been studying Aura from a more scientific standpoint; how it works, what's it made of, how it can be used. We've made... significant strides. And we believe we've found a way to capture it.

Each one of humanity’s gift has another side of itself. Knowledge can lead to fear and choice is linked to passivity/agency. When it comes to creation, this gift brings with itself the temptation of control.

Why shouldn’t a creator “own” theis creation? Why shouldn’t they be entitled to it? Why should they share it with the rest of the world?

If one looks at Ironwood, at Atlas and at the other protagonists of this volume this way, a lot of things resonate.

Atlas is the most technological advanced kingdom, but instead of sharing its resources it closes off. Ironwood’s embargo is just another declination of this same idea of losing control.

Similarly the Ace Ops and Winter are all repressing their emotions. They want perfect control over themselves. They are taught they should be like drones.

Technology itself is often misused by the characters. Technolofy should be like Penny. It should have humanity and a soul, but Ironwood likes it because he sees it as something logical that can be controlled (and of course he keeps losing control over it). Ironwood wants to become like he thinks Penny is aka a controllable soul. He fails to understand that Penny is special because she has her own free will.

Finally, this same desire of control is present also in familial relationship. It is not by chance that the Schnee Family is in Atlas. Weiss’s story has always been about exploring this specific idea of a family. A family, which is cold and controlling, just like ice. Weiss’s arc is about melting this ice, in herself first and now in others as well.

Technological control and the control of people. In short, the control over two aspects of creation. This is the the idea Atlas represents and this is why it is currently falling.

In short, the creation must be free and it is not by chance the world is in its current predicament because the Gods tried to control their creations with disastrous results.

CONCLUSION

These are my main thoughts on the Maidens so far. That said, they might chance since the story is far from over as the arcs of all the maidens we have met so far.

As a final note, I find interesting that so far none of our four protagonists is a Maiden. It is an interesting choice and I think that it lets the series make a good use of its ensemble cast.

That said, I wonder if our four protagonists will end up calling back the original Four Maidens instead.

The fairy tale is interesting on multiple levels.

In-universe, it is interesting because it tells us something about how Ozpin was probably inspired by the original Four Maidens to try to save the world again. Ozpin is inspired by four normal people, who are just trying their best to help others.

This is a recurring idea in Rwby and this might be why none of the four protagonists has been selected to be a Maiden yet.

If read as a stand-alone, the story is an interesting tale on how to overcome depression.

The story starts with the old man closed in his house and it shows how he progressively opens up until he himself is able to help others.

Winter is the one who teaches him how to work on his own interiority even when the world is cold.

Springs prepares the terrain for him to come out. It makes the garden more welcoming. It is like when a person has to find the right environment to open herself up.

Summer is the one who finally drags the man out and gives him energy.

Finally Fall is the one who makes the man realize he can now share his new found energy with others.

Theirs is a virtuous cycle and I would say it is very different of the tragic cycle that sees the current Maidens as protagonists. Who knows? Maybe it is about going back to that virtuosity.

Thank you for the ask!

[whoreforthebauteam]

The BAU team as 👆 this picture.

Aaron Hotchner: He grew up with judgement, hatred, bigotry, rage, violence, favoritism. His mother judged everyone against an impossible standard, nobody (him included) was ever good enough. His brother was always the good one, the loved and favored one, Aaron was a blight on the family name. His father beat him, screamed and shouted and blamed Aaron for every little thing. And when caught with another guy... Aaron never truly recovered.

But he grew, he matured, he escaped to college. To freedom.

Now he gives understanding, unconditional love, acceptance, equitable help to his family. He's a shoulder to cry on when spencer admits he's a little in love with Derek (Aaron hugs him, its ok to be gay). He never stopped caring about Elle, he'll always feel guilty and she'll always forgive him. When Penelope gets headaches due to the harsh lights in her office, he cashes in a favor and now she's comfortable. When someone messes up, he's calm. He still loves his family when hes upset because love isn't supposed to leave bruises.

-

Penelope Garcia: In her early years, she had love and life and direction. Parents worth killing for. And then they where gone, she had nobody. All she had left was fear, loneliness. All she had was darkness. She turned to crime, stealing because she had too. Who in their right minds would help someone like her? Loss turned her bitter and hard.

Then she met Hotch, joined the BAU, she found hope.

Now she's bright, colorful and giving and loving. She bakes cookies when her family is sick or hurt. When they need a hug she's there. When Derek called her his God-given solace, he meant it. Shes all of this because she had it once and then lost it. And, even if it kills her, nobody will ever have to walk in the same shoes she got to leave behind.

-

Spencer Reid: Abandoned and neglected, bullied and ridiculed, shamed and used. Nobody wants to be associated with a freak. His father left him. A 10 year old boy left alone to care for a mother that was too sick to get out of bed most days. His teachers used him for bragging rights, his fellow students pushed and sneered and punched because "what makes you so special you freak?". He was never accepted or included or wanted.

But he was wanted, by the BAU, by Gideon, by the team. He is wanted and accepted.

When the team is on a case and there's smart or strange or odd youths, Spencer's there. He knows, he's been there. He knows what its like to be unwanted. So he helps, he encourages, he guides, he makes everyone around him feel wanted and included. He is special, and so is his family.

-

Jennifer Jureau: Her parents where loving and kind. She grew up in a nice place. She didn't want for much. How could she not see the signs, how could she not see her sister giving up? How could she be so blind? She played soccer and laughed while her sister, her assigned-at-birth best friend, lost the will to live. And when her sad sister finally had a day of happiness, laughed and sang and gave JJ her favorite necklace, all she thought was "finally, she's happy again, she'll be okay now". But all there was was blood and death and loss and guilt. That horrible, nasty, green colored guilt that constantly tells you that its your fault. You could've helped her you could've saved her you should've seen the signs its your fault.

And maybe JJ didn't need much growing up, but her sister did.

Now she knows what to look for.

When Hotch comes into her office one day, gives her a fresh cup of coffee and a rare smile, and tells her he appreciates her and all that she does, she stops him. Asks him if he's ok, is he eating? When Spencer can't concentrate, shes there. A willing and eager listener, its because of a paper he's writing. When Morgan comes into work with a bandaged wrists, her heart nearly stops. She almost cries when he shows her the pictures he took, he was busting down a wall and didn't step back far enough and drywall isn't easy to clean out of cuts or scrapes. Hes ok.

She couldn't save her sister but she can save her family.

-

Emily Prentiss: She learned young that people only care about what you can do for them. The hand that feeds you is the same one that takes. As long as she was present and cordial, who cares? Not her parents. Its all about face, don't show anything less than perfect. Reputation. Don't let anyone see that you're broken because they'll use it against you.

"I need to know that I can be human"

She unlearns stoicism, learns that emotions are meant to be shown. Unlearns perfection, bottling up every trauma is unhealthy and her family truly wants to help. She finds that a helping hand is sometimes just that. No tricks, no blackmail, no favors. Just help. When Spencer shares his snacks he doesn't expect anything in return. When JJ gives her a ride to work she doesn't want gas money, just someone to sing along to annoying pop music with. When Rossi listens to her problems, he listens, he doesn't use it against her.

She learns to be the friend she needed, to help without expectation. To have no shame when her and Garcia go to the store at 2 am in pajamas and runny makeup because they ran out of girls night snacks. She's human and humans are fragile, they break down and panic and they aren't perfect. She doesn't need to be perfect and neither does her family.

-

David Rossi: Dave grew up with family, holidays where big and loud and the house was packed with people. There was love and hugs and warmth. How could he not want that for himself? How could he not want to be the one sitting at the head of the table surrounded with his family? He almost had it... he married a wonderful woman and they were having a baby, a sweet baby boy.

But it wasn't meant to be. Premature. Weak lungs. Say your goodbyes. He all but accepted that he wasn't meant to have a family, no one to spoil and encourage, nobody to protect.

He came out of retirement for unfinished business, a selfish reason. But he gained so much. He gained daughters. He planed JJ's wedding and he's a shoulder to cry on for Emily. He listens to Penelope go on and on about computers because she's happy when she talks about them. He gained sons. He protects Derek when he gets reckless. He encourages Spencer to speak up, be himself. Dave has a family, its unorthodox and strange, but its HIS family.

-

Derek Morgan: His father died, his mother worked long hours to feed his family, and his sisters needed him. He was the one to walk the girls to school now. He was the one locking the doors at night. He was the one checking for monsters. Who protected him? When he needed help, who could he go to? And when someone offered help, he was betrayed. Ruined. Broken.... Carl Burford wasn't being nice to him because he was giving, he was nice because he was creepy. Derek didn't tell anyone because he wanted it he didn't tell because he was scared. If he told anyone, he was weak. He was the man of the house now, and men are strong.

He's not weak, he was a kid. He's strong now, he has more power to help and if it was up to him... he'd help everyone.

Now he fights the same monsters that haunt his dreams. He puts the worst people in the world away. When the team goes out for drinks, nobody messes with them. Derek is there and he makes sure everyone takes no for an answer. When Derek picks up Jack from school, because Hotch is sick, he looks at every teacher. Stares them down. Hotch may have done background checks but whats the harm in another one. He goes to the park with JJ and her family sometimes, JJ knows her boys are safe because uncle Derek isn't going to let anything happen.

Derek learns to accept help. Learns not be scared when touched. On a case, their vehicle got cut off, Hotch hit the breaks and held an arm over Derek's chest. A move made with children, protective, comforting, not something to fear. On the same case Rossi pulls him out of the way of a bullet. He doesn't flinch, or try to run. Because his family is safe, they protect him, and he returns the feeling.

[sunnymiles]

angstpril day 2

i scribbled this in my notes app @1am like the chaotic monster i am ... ~enjoy~

-

alt prompt: "i'm sorry"

[summary: anakin tries to make amends for his past choices which were at best questionable]

-

"You have to give her time."

I know.

"I just want her back."

More than anything.

Obi-Wan's smile is reassuring, but it does nothing to ease the pit lodged in his stomach.

"She talks to you." The words snap out, angry and biting. In another life they would have soothed the constant seething in his chest. Now they taste bitter, a reminder of things Anakin would like to forget.

"I'm sorry. I didn't-"

"It's alright." Obi-Wan's hand pats his shoulder, and phantom warmth seeps through.

Oh, the things he'd do for a real hug.

But Obi's here, with him. Here in the way Anakin constantly took for granted.

He remembers Obi-Wan waiting for him, proudly offering to welcome him into the Force. The sight of his mentor swathed in light, hand outstretched, had sent Anakin reeling.

The small smile of forgiveness on Obi-Wan's face, being in the presence of someone he could trust-

Anakin had forgotten what it feels like to not be alone.

Pieces of nightmares spent on ships too cold, too unfeeling, flash through his mind. Traitorously crying out for a master that had betrayed him.

Though, Obi-Wan had never really left him- the mocking voice in his head, perpetually haunting him like a conscience. In the ever-present way a master should be there for his student. Like the person he should be for Ahsoka-

"It's just- it's hard."

Obi-Wan nods, the solemn weight of his gaze suddenly much too heavy.

Anakin glances down at his fidgeting hands, unable to meet his mentor's gaze with his next words.

"I'm grateful for you." Since Endor, he's tried to tell Obi-Wan as many times as he can. The vulnerability is new and different, but he's trying. His master deserves that much.

Because Obi-Wan had stayed with him.

There are no words to express the utter gratitude he holds for his friend. The man who had loved him like a brother, and the one he had broken in return.

"And I you, my padawan." The old adage never fails to bring a proud smile to his face.

His master motions with a flippant hand, "You should be on your way though. Good luck."

"I thought there was no such thing as luck."

He merely shrugs, "Things have changed." A glimmer of that old smirk appears, and then Obi-Wan fades.

The first time he had vanished, Anakin had cried. Full, gut-wrenching sobs. Afraid he would be alone again, no one to turn to for help, mortified with the knowledge that Obi-Wan had left him-

Now he knows for certain, Obi-Wan will be back.

But, the most difficult part of his day arrives.

He concentrates on her familiar presence- now closed off and apathetic- before starting the trek.

This will be the 48th day.

The 48th day to earn her forgiveness. Or her anger. Or her grief. To earn an acknowledgment of his presence would be victory enough.

The day he had reunited with Obi-Wan in the Force, felt peace for the first time in decades, he had wondered how he had deserved it. One good deed can't erase half a lifetime of pure rage.

And yet, this place is both paradise and penance.

Ahsoka lies far away, there are no maps here, but she is furthest from him- always.

He spots her montrals first, poking through the endless fields of gray.

"Hey Snips." He plops next to her, careful not to touch. Today he'll try for normalcy.

"Obi-Wan sends his regards." Nothing.

Her legs are crossed neatly under herself, back held straight and tall. Closed eyes, the usual, not able to face her failure of a master, and shallow breathing.

She could be meditating, if he didn't know better.

Their tattered bond works both ways. He can sense her well enough to find her, and she knows when he's coming.

She'll speak to Obi-Wan, has forgiven him for his role in the trial. Echoes of their laughter ring in his ears from time to time- mocking. Aayla and Plo-Koon meet weekly with "'Soka", and the jealousy burns bright in his chest.

No, Ahsoka only ignores him. He deserves it, knows he does for what he's done, for what he did to her-

"Snips, I-I'm so so sorry." The words linger, ones he repeats daily.

She won't respond. Until he gives up or she gives in, this game will go on.

But, stubbornness is a lineage trait, and Anakin has swathes of it. So he'll keep trying. For her.

For them.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Ahsoka."

Her back stays turned.

[cienie-isengardu]

Can you do headcanons on SubScorp (Kuai Liang / Hanzo Hasashi) and the evolution of their relationship, please? ♡

Sure, just please keep in mind that rock has a better romantic sense than I ever will. I’m not a shipper in general and SubScorp has a lot to overcome in my mind to even get close as friends but I will do my best! In advance, sorry for the long text and especially opening. My hand slipped but I needed to build the romantic headcanons on something.

Oh, and I kinda threw away the canon timeline here and there and went with how I would write their relationship (and story, I guess) if I was given the chance.

At the beginning, Hanzo and Kuai were bitter enemies and their hate for each other was the exact reason why Quan Chi kept them working together. The revenants were creatures of vivid emotions, twisted and corrupted by Netherrealm fire. So the stronger they hated, the mightier were their unnatural powers. But there was also a more sinister reason: Quan Chi kept them together, day after day, because it amused him to watch how Sub-Zero and Scorpion wanted to hurt each other but always were defenseless against his magic, always blindly obedient. To have two deadliest of enemies as slaves under his power was the best perk of necromancy.

When they were revenants though, Quan Chi’s cruel joke meant nothing. Kuai Liang had no free will, no remorse, only hate and pain to go on. Hanzo could - should - run away, but didn’t. He was broken in thousands of little ways and it was easier to follow orders, to not think than take responsibility for his own choices, to face the utterly devastating feeling of failure. It wasn't a good life - it wasn’t a life at all, but it was all they had.

After so many days turned into weeks turned into months, the constant presence of each other became the punishment and the salvation at once. They hated each other and this hate never truly left them for a moment, never let them feel peace of mind. They hated each other but it was an emotion that bonded them together, grounded in reality, made sense in an otherwise senseless world.

Hanzo and Kuai Liang got used to each other that the presence of mutual disdain was as normal part of their cursed life as breathing for a living person.

But then Quan Chi lost and suddenly they both were brought to life against their will. The first weeks were the worst. They were victims of dark magic, everyone was saying but none of them was a killer responsible for thousands of brutal deaths. Not like Hanzo and Kuai Liang and because of that, the burden of guilt was their alone. A burden they didn’t want to share among themselves, so they sought out different paths to find some solace.

For Hanzo, there was nothing to come back. The home of Shirai Ryu was destroyed, devastated beyond any measure. He still heard clearly Quan Chi’s voice in his head, how he failed his clan, how shamed his wife and child. Hanzo felt dirty and unworthy and utterly lost. The once mighty Scorpion was now a wreck, a directionless nomad.

For Kuai Liang, the home was Lin Kuei but it was taken by cyber monsters without souls. Once he returned to living, those monsters hunted him restlessly. For years he ran and hid and killed and killed and killed and killed until he was ready to face Sektor and reclaim what was once his. An honor and a purpose in life, so he could find Scorpion and kill him for brother’s death. But then he learned dark secrets of the clan and even darker truths that changed everything.

Because of that, Kuai Liang invited Hanzo to Lin Kuei Temple, offered peace and a new start, a way to atone for all crimes and sins they committed arm to arm during war. Above everything else, offered the truth that finally set them both free from their cruel past.

They did not keep in touch then though. They met sporadically, when Raiden asked his Champions to assist in this or that little crisis. To hunt the demons that somehow survived the war, to find oh so rare, mystic artifact or two, or do a quick job in the Outworld. They were assassins after all and Special Forces the heroes who shouldn’t dirty their hands.

During those meetings, Hanzo and Kuai Liang tried to stay as far as possible without making a fuss about it. During missions though there was no one who could safely separate them, and thus save them from painful memories of the past.

It was terrifying to Hanzo how much he missed Sub-Zero’s cold presence at his side, even if the so well known hate for Bi-Han’s death still hid beneath the cryomancer's skin like a furious, wild beast, always present, never forgiving, kept in check only by Lin Kuei’s iron will.

It was terrifying for Kuai Liang how well he still understood Scorpion’s body language even though the ninja tried so desperately to hide scars left by Quan Chi on his soul, all those unsaid horrors he experienced, all the doubts and pain and self-hatred that burned as hot as Netherrealm fire that twisted them both.

But those sporadic joint missions alone weren’t what helped them connect once and forever.

Ironically, it was the guilt that let one understand so well the other, to know when it was a good time for jab and when not to speak - not to see - raw pain that both so hard tried to bury under their respective masks, of cold politeness and hot devotion to the past. Surprisingly, it was also the arrogance of united governments that wanted to use them to expand Earthrealm’s control over wild Outworld yet did not see them as human beings. To be seen as a useful tool but never truly welcome wasn’t anything new for any of them. Kuai Liang and Hanzo were a relic of a dark past that should have died years ago yet were too stubborn to just yield and blindly follow orders even again. This burning desire for independence and search for their lost humanity built a common ground, the bridge between past hate and empathy.

This, and their shared disdain for Johnny’s never ending jokes. In the past, every time the Champions of Earthrealm met in the same place and Cage opened his mouth to talk Hollywood's weirdness, Hanzo got closer and closer to Kuai Liang. There was no word of recognition or permission - one look at each other and they understood perfectly it was either stay strong together and endure this senseless, annoying wave of words or do something regrettable.

And because they already had enough guilt to worry about, Sub-Zero and Scorpion simply stood arm to arm, like they did during war. Somehow that comforting familiarity grew up into something much stronger; not yet friendship but unity anyway. Time did not heal them but the mutual hate faded little by little, day after day until pain was nothing more than bitter ache they simply learned to live with.

Despite everything and everyone, Hanzo and Kuai Liang got to trust each other, to rely on a bond that was once a cruel Quan Chi’s joke.

Sub-Zero was the person that accompanied Hanzo to the Shirai-Ryu clan’s ruins, so he could finally bury dead ones left there forgotten by the world. Hanzo should have done that long ago, he knew, but the claw of fear clung to his heart for years and would not let it. The fear that Hanzo Hasashi never truly existed and he was a fraud, another lie begotten by Netherrealm. That there was no Harumi nor Satoshi and in the end he clinged so desperately to a nightmare that never was true to begin with. A nightmare for which he murdered the wrong person and brought someone else this maddening pain.

Seeing the ruins of home - the once so familiar bodies now just flesh spread out, glistening bones scattered everywhere, ripped and crushed, forgotten - was like dying again. Hanzo broke down and for the first time in a decade allowed himself to cry. Kuai Liang was there by his side, offering no wise words, nor comfort. He simply sat there, back to back with Hanzo, so he could know he wasn’t truly left alone this time yet quietly like a shadow to not disturb his grief. Hanzo would never forget this kindness for the rest of his life. He wouldn’t forget the sacrifice made that day by Sub-Zero to come to mortuary ruins, to bury another clan slaughtered without mercy in the name of madness and spite.

But with pain came also relief, that his memories were truly his and not another sweet lie whispered to his ear by a twisted sorcerer.

(Kuai Liang came here because it was the right thing to do. To pay respect and melt the dark past into a better future in which Shirai Ryu and Lin Kuei could be an ally, maybe even brothers in arms. He came for Hanzo, because no one did that for him, when he had countless bodies of comrades to bury after Sektor’s defeat and no one should be forced to do so alone. He came there also for himself, to see and be sure Bi-Han wasn’t part of the heartless crime. The hallmarks of a frontal attack, chaotic destruction and coarse, devoid of surgical precision violence were proof it wasn’t Bi-Han’s work. His brother would never be so sloppy, so random in his attack. He even told so Hanzo, in this moment of relief and social clumsiness and Scorpion just looked at him with the reddened eyes and did not burst in flame of anger, just… accepted the truth and Kuai Liang said no more about it.)

Scorpion was the person that stayed at Kuai Liang’s side when Frost betrayed her master and disappeared without a trace. He never liked the cryomancer girl - she reminded him too much of Sub-Zero who sought him for brother’s death. Young and brash, untamed, always snarling, spitting with venom in their face. But above everything else, Frost’s anger burned too hot like his own and he hated to look at her and to see himself.

Maybe losing such a precious student - an heir - was like losing a child. Hanzo understood this crushing feeling but there were no right words to offer. Even if he knew them, Sub-Zero did not want pity, did not want to talk. All he needed was a space to unleash fury and pain, the excess of emotions too large to bury them in the tomb of a cold heart. And so day after day, night after night, the ice and fire clashed over and over again until all muscles burned and the ache brought finally some peace. Not much, but enough to let Kuai Liang not dwell on his failure and focus on Grandmaster’s duties.

(There was something off about this whole situation but Hanzo couldn’t pick on what exactly. Kuai Liang had secrets he didn’t share, not yet and Hanzo respected his wishes, trusting Lin Kuei’s word. So far, Kuai Liang never had let him down. Scorpion trusted and it was terrifying on its own).

Those were the little steps into a path that brought them closer. It wasn't love for each other then, not even romantic infatuation, but love for the lost one, for family that was once but no longer. They understood this grief too well.

The first time Hanzo felt the pang of love, he and Kuai Liang were debating about the proper course of the upcoming mission. They were sitting in Hanzo’s room, with an open door leading to the Fire Garden. Then, without warning came spring rain and both looked out on instinct. The air was filled with the freshness of trees and flowers coming back to life; a freshness they breathed in greedily to wash out the taste of Netherrealm ash forever.

On that day, everything seemed to be in the right place. Just the two of them, sitting arm to arm delighted by the simplest things in life; a warm rain, nourishing garden, a steaming mug of tea between all of this. There was a peace Hanzo did not feel for ages and the sound of the rain and steady breath of his companion lulled him into half-sleep, half-awareness.

On that day, Hanzo wished to keep this moment forever.

The second time Hanzo felt something toward Kuai Liang, it was on Lin Kuei’s training ground. They spared, like they always did in their free or stressful time, but for whatever reason, Kuai Liang smiled at him, this soft, weirdly cocky smile he rarely shows in company and Hanzo looked at it for a few seconds too long before he understood how fast his heart beat, how warmness filled him - not the Netherrealm fire that burns through his muscles and bones, but warmth that he felt only around his wife and child. He wanted to kiss those lips, to feel its coldness on his own. It was wrong on so many levels and he did what he always does in times of overwhelming emotions he didn’t like. He disappeared into flames and ran the hell away from Sub-Zero’s smile. The burned holes to this day were the proof of his shameful panic.

Where did such obscene thoughts come from, he did not have an idea. But the guilt for having them even for a moment about Kuai Liang - any man, really - was too heavy, too suffocating to face Sub-Zero. So Hanzo avoided him for weeks.

And yet, he came back to Lin Kuei Temple. And again and again and again. Despite the burning shame, he sought out Kuai Liang, because only around him, the Netherrealm’s cursed fire cooled down enough to allow him to breathe.

So he danced, between disgrace and this weird feeling of happiness, of living again. Of seeking out the cryomancer and running away from horrific emotion he didn’t know how to get rid off, how to tame.

(Hanzo loved Harumi with all his heart. How could he love - desire - anyone else? And a man whose brother he unjustly killed?)

Kuai Liang decided to not discuss Scorpion’s emotional swings until Hanzo figured it out for himself what he truly wanted. There was no point to get involved into some sentimental drama if there was no hope for sensible agreement.

The Lin Kuei always desired a new generation of warriors, so sex wasn’t any taboo. Some warriors sought comfort in the arms of strange women and men, some between each other. Sex wasn’t forbidden but the emotions were. To feel loyalty or worse, love, to a fellow warrior instead of trusting the masters was a crime.

Kuai Liang did not feel any sudden pang of love toward Hanzo, nor any desire for physical contact. Romanticism never was part of any cryomancer’s nature. He missed his brother and Smoke, but year after year the pain of loss dulled enough to leave him with nothingness. Kuai Liang knew only this: somehow Scorpion became the only source of warmth that kept his heart from freezing completely.

Kuai Liang didn’t have a proper name for what twirled in his soul - a friendship or a love, how one could tell those apart? He wished his older brother or Smoke was there to tell him it was alright to like - care for - Hanzo, but both were dead and twisted into monsters. It was just him and his fragile, scarred heart to judge what was right and what was not. And hope Bi-Han would forgive him the weakness.

They find the balance that keeps both safe, warming the frozen heart and cooling down the neverending flame of anger. For a decade or so, it worked well.

But then Hanzo killed Quan Chi and ruined the chance to free revenants from sorcerer’s curse. The Champions of Earthrealm never liked Scorpion to begin with, now he was persona non grata. Rightly so. Imprisoned, he awaited their judgment. Scorpion could easily escape but chose not to - he was ready to face the consequences yet there was no court nor punishment. The Grandmaster of Lin Kuei came for him and made it clear to all representatives of the united governments and army that he will with Hanzo at his side, over their dead bodies if need be.

Twenty years was not enough time to forget what they together were capable of in fight. How dangerous and experienced murderers they were. No one dared to stop them when they left military base together.

Kuai Liang did not rely on words to show his feelings. Deeds always spoke more than any pretty speech. He was disappointed yet he still came for Hanzo. He saw Scorpion’s arrogance, egoism, breaking point and still came and that only made Hanzo love him more. For the first time, he did not feel shame or guilt for loving - and being loved - by another man.

Hanzo Hasashi’s choice almost brought destruction to the world yet somehow, this tragedy made them inseparable for good. It wasn’t always easy - they argued, for fun and for real and there were still rare days when it was only wise to stay away from each other. Like the day of Bi-Han’s unjust death and the lost chance to bring Harumi and Satoshi to life. They were beyond the primal hate yet some instincts were too strong to risk destroying what they built for themselves over the years.

Somehow through the years they changed from Sub-Zero and Scorpion to Grandmasters of their respective clans and from those to just Kuai Liang and Hanzo.

Hanzo wasn’t used to being so casually called by name but he liked the change. It was Sub-Zero’s voice, he suspected, that made him feel so attracted. At the same time, he felt honored when Kuai Liang told his birth - forbidden - name. He knew it already, for years, but it was different to know and be told, allowed, to use it freely.

Hanzo’s turbulent relationship with other Champions got worse once his student, Takeda started dating Jaqueline Briggs. The Champions distrusted and disliked him and he didn’t feel any need to reconcile with them. Kuai Liang was disappointed in him for treating the girl coldly but everytime asked why he still bothered to deal with Shirai Ruy Grandmaster, the answer was one and the same - he is my equal. For Hanzo it was the most beautiful and terrifying declaration.

(At the same time, everytime Hanzo heard someone accusing Sub-Zero of being cold, heartless, untouched by trauma, the anger burned him wholly. Who were they to judge, to mock Kuai Liang’s pain that hid so well under polite words and calmness? He did not care what people said about him, but would not stand any mockery against those he respected - loved - so much.)

Then of course another immortal being decided to screw up everything and messed up timelines. The younger, brash and mad version of Scorpion wasn’t something that Hanzo and Kuai Liang actually wanted to see, nor the repeat of Cyber Lin Kuei. Then Hanzo died and woke up, again trapped in Netherrealm. So he ran at the first chance, thinking more about Kuai Liang than about his own fears of burning alive in hell forever. The sight of Sub-Zero in hell should have alarmed him - and it did, for a moment, scare Hanzo that the other man died too which was an unbearable thought. But Kuai Liang was alive and so, so determined to bring him back home. If that wasn’t the loudest, the most tangible declaration of love, what else could it be?

And so, like twenty years ago, they fight side to side, like one body and soul. And destroyed, killed, tore apart demons and hellspawn, everything and everyone that stood in their way to freedom, to safety of Earthrealm’s boundaries. First time in ages, they could unleash their anger at those who hurt them, enslaved, and used. It felt so good, so right to be a storm of vengeful fury that frightened even the mighty Netherrealm. They were alive and together and nothing, no gods, titans or destiny, could stop them.

Kuai Liang and Hanzo did not talk much about their last visit in Netherrealm. What happened there was their and only their moment to relish, incomprehensible for bystanders. It was weird though, to come back to live and face his younger, stubborn self. Kuai Liang did not like this Scorpion much and to be honest, Hanzo did not like this version of himself too. It was Scorpion from the darkest time in their past, when only mutual hate connected them. At the same time, there was something amusing to see himself so awkward and uneasy everytime when Kuai Liang and older Hanzo sat so closely, relaxed and calm, like it was the normalest thing to do. When they acted like halves of the same soul.

Kuai Liang never was keen to show any romantic gestures but sometimes he took Hanzo’s hand to emphasize clearly what they were. Hanzo was always surprised by Sub-Zero’s openness and filled with joy, whereas his younger self was confused as hell. Hanzo suspected he would soon need to talk and explain to his younger self what he and Kuai Liang were to each other. Why they needed each other so much and how loving someone else other than Harumi was not dishonor. After all, love wasn’t sin nor weakness.

[charliedawn]

Pennywise 1990 X Reader X Pennywise 2017 "The Joke's On You" part 1

Part 2: https://charliedawn.tumblr.com/post/648205835225415680/the-jokes-on-them-part-2

"Ssssooooo..Why clowns ?"

Both of them look at you with a frown of incomprehension on their faces..

" Because of the fear."

They answer at the same time. Funny, its the first time you see them act so..alike. You mean, of course, they are big scary child-eating monsters..But they never seemed to be agreeing on anything, so when you ask the question, their looks and answers are so similar that it makes you think of another question.

" Also..Are you like brothers or something ? Related ? Father and son, or that can't happen with your kind ? You just eat children and do not produce them ?"

Penny, the tall ginger clown only crouches like a frog while the other one only looks at him with disgust.

" Yeah..Right..As if I would ever be related to that one..Nah. We're just hunting together now..Normally, he would not wake up at the same time as me, so we wouldn't really meet. But the idiot messed up his schedule while overstaying in order to kill some dumb kids and he woke up the same time I did !"

He glares at Penny who doesn't seem concerned at all by the way the other one is describing the situation. Even though it's quite offensive..The older one continues and looks at me with a repulsive snare at the idea.

" We don't produce children. Although, we never tried. We are mostly made of pure fear materialized only by the decaying flesh of our victims..We're supposed to be impossible to kill and we don't even know when we were born nor where. But, I remember that the first time I saw a human, many centuries ago, people mostly called us "Wendigos".."

You open your eyes wide in surprise at the news.

"Wendigos ?! So, that means you were humans before ?!"

The young one snickers and his yellow eyes glare at me.

" Humans ?! Ah ! What a joke ! They cry, love, betray, they only crawl on an endless path until they become old, ugly and die. This is why we eat them..They are of no use..They are dancing on a ball of dirt that they squeezed so much that it has no more to give..And you know what is the most ironic ? Is that they prefer to blind themselves more than face the truth..There is no beauty or originality in humans..Doves fly, dogs bark, dears run and even dolphins are more intelligent than you..Now tell me, why would the world need you, when we have the exact same talents in every animal that comes with the letter D ? I didn't even have to go out of my favorite letter to find every good thing you've ever done in animals that are not destroying their own habitat. What makes you so special ? What makes you think that you deserve living when all you do is destroy and hide the truth ?!"

It is the most you have ever heard Penny speak and even Pennywise seems shocked by his sudden outburst. Penny is so close to you that you can see his anger reflecting in his eyes. You try to not let fear show but, it's hard. You gulp and look at the ground in shame. He was right..What did you bring that no other living being ever did ? Humans were parasites and he smirks before returning at his crouching position.

" That's what I thought."

He whispers and Pennywise smiles almost proudly before hitting him in the back a little too hard since Penny growls.

" Wow. Didn't know you had it in you ! In all honesty, I never even thought about why I eat humans..I mean, we both know that human and animal food taste the same..But, for some reason, I always hated humans..Never really knew why and never cared enough to ask !"

He answers with a grin.

You frown then gasp in horror which both of them seem to notice since they turn their heads towards you in frightening synchronization.

" Wait ! Does that mean..You chose to eat humans ?! That you can perfectly live without their meat and just eat like normal people?!"

Pennywise answers with a grin.

" Come on..You should have figured it out by now..We don't really care about what we're eating, as long as it has flesh and fear : which animals and humans both have in common. But, as he said before, why choose them over you ?"

He looks at you up and down before adding with a large grin.

" Now that I think about it, if it wasn't for your rare quality of blood, you would already be a past meal.."

You shiver and he bursts out laughing.

Yeah..You remember..The only thing that kept you alive was you blood type..O- was, from what you had understood, sweeter ? Like some kind of cake or candy..This is why they wanted to keep you alive.."Saving best for last" as they had said.

Ah ! How lucky am I ?! You think.

You sigh and turn the other way to face anything else but the two clowns. At that moment, your foot hits something. You look down at the ground and are surprised to see some pencils. You glance behind you, but the other two don't seem to care about you anymore..for now. You get the pencils and look around for a surface to try them on and when you've finally decided, you walk towards it. You stop and close your eyes to visualise what you want to draw..Then, inspiration hits you and it's like your hands are dancing on the hard surface. You're so concentrated that you don't even notice the two creatures stopping whatever they were doing to look at you with confusion written all over their faces. You continue and seconds, minutes, hours pass. The two clowns, curious of what you are doing, now stand next to you silently, as to not break your concentration. They just look at your drawing from each side of you, their eyes wide, surprised and unable to find words to describe it. You are breathless, exhausted, but don't want to stop. If it was the last thing you would do, then let it be beautiful..Even if the only living things that would ever see it would be two nightmarish clowns that didn't give two shits about art or expression of oneself. When you finish, you are surprised to find two gloved hands on you drawing..You look at each side of yourself and see the two clowns, weirdly still and their eyes glued to your work. For a moment, you almost laugh at their, surprisingly, childish faces. They look like your young Art and Crafts students that you teach, always awed by whatever you would do.

But, what makes you smile the most, is that the first reaction they had was to touch it with their hands, as if the drawing had called them in. You sometimes had students like that, that could only understand Art by touching it. This is why whenever you would bring one of your works, you told the kids to do the first thing that came to their mind with it (as long as it wasn't tearing it apart or painting on it of course) Everyone had different reactions. Some liked to look from a far, some liked a closer angle and, as you had witnessed, some preferred touching it..But, what surprises you next is your own reaction. You grab one of the pencils and trace the shadow of your own hand on your drawing, as a proof. Then, you gently take Penny's hand that looks almost frightened by your touch, but he lets you hold onto his hand and do the same thing that you just did with your own. He giggles slightly as the pencil lightly "tickles" him and, to your surprise, his claws get out. He wants to retract them, nearly in shame, but you make it clear that it doesn't bother you while tracing the contour of his claws as well. When you are finished with him, you turn towards the older one that had already taken his hand off with a snicker.

" If it is a trick to impress us, it will not work, your hocus-pocus will not stop us from eating you..Anyway, I'm sure you have a knife hidden somewhere and only wait for me to let my guard down to stab me in the back."

You only answer with a sad smile of silent resolve while reaching for his hand.

" No trick. No hocus-pocus. No knife. Only me, your hand and a way to make you remember that, for a minute, I managed to make you feel something else than anger, hate or hurt.."

He frowns, visibly hesitant, before finally giving in with a childish grumble.

You finally trace his fingers on your colorful drawing, mixing the color of the rainbow and the greyish color that composed the colors of their suits. And, at the middle, all those colors forming one gigantic tree, that tree being your own personal touch..A tree that, maybe, will learn Penny that, even though humans destroy, they also create and Pennywise that, even though he lost any hopes concerning humanity, the particularity of the humans, the thing that makes them truly special are their hope. Because, even if animals are better than you in every aspect, they do not hope..And they do not have the imagination to create any other outcomes than eat or be eaten. This is maybe why the two clowns seem much more appreciative of those creatures than the humans ? Because they are much easier to understand ? You smile proudly at your little discovery. Like this tree, humans are made of so many different colors that it is difficult to find a pattern..Both of them said that they hated Humanity, but if it is true then..

" I may have understood why you chose to be clowns.."

They turn towards you : Penny with a side smile and Pennywise with an arked eyebrow.

" Oh ? And why is that ? You're gonna tell us that it's because we liked making people laugh when we were "humans" ?!"

The older one says, putting humans between brackets mockingly while the other one is cackling behind him. You smile again and shake your head while they come down to a sitting position; one on his favorite worn out leather chair and the other one on the dirty floor. They both look up at you expectantly, as if they are expecting you to read them a bedtime story..

" Well..I don't think it is about the form in itself, it is more about the colors and the fact that it symbolizes things that you never had when you were "humans".."

You say between brackets as to imitate Pennywise that is looking at you with another one of his signature mocking smile.

" What are you talking about ?! I am funny ! The funniest in town if you ask me !"

He says proudly, while Penny only rolls his eyes at his comment.

You shake your head again with a smile and even answer with a little laugh.

" No. Not that. You feed only from fear..Correct ?"

They both nod in unison and then, you ask a question that they had never even asked themselves before.

" Why only fear ?"

They want to answer that it is obvious, that it is stupid to even ask. But they have to admit it at the end, they do not know themselves. After a while, you answer for them.

" You do not feed on fear. But on faith."

They frown and Pennywise asks, confused.

" What do you mean ?"

You try to find words to explain your thinking and finally sigh, as it is no easy task.

" You feed on the only thing that you do not have, and that humans are the only ones to possess..Our faith and beliefs. We believe that there are monsters under our beds, then you take their appearance. In fact, I don't even know if you can transform in anything else than scary things, can you ?"

They look at each other before looking back at you and Penny is the first one to answer you.

" We never tried..and what for even ?"

You smile and get up, dusting your knees.

" Humans are afraid, but what they fear the most is losing their most cherished things. Try with me. Try to guess my most cherished thing on Earth.."

The two clowns seem interested by the idea and you can feel them trying to find your most precious memories. They already know your biggest fear..And in all honesty, after having seen it so many times, you aren't that scared of insects anymore. Now, let's see if they are as powerful as they say they are..

Penny transforms into a puppy and you smile tenderly while extending your arms in order to take him in your arms. But then, another head appears, then another, then another..

He returns to his normal appearance, almost as out of breath as you were before.

" I..I can't..stay in this form very long."

You nod understandingly and then, turn towards the oldest that only shrugs at the odd reaction of the young one. Pennywise seems to look at you with a little bit more seriousness, his hand scratching his chin in silent observation. You know that he is trying to figure you out and is taking the dare to heart. And, suddenly, his smile widens and his eyes brighten as he has a sudden epiphany and you frown in worry. What did he see ? Suddenly, he gets up and slowly walks towards you with a weird crooked smile, looking more smug than usual.

" If I have learned something about your kind is that you have one thing that you always bring up.."

You frown in incomprehension, what does he mean ? Suddenly, Penny smiles creepily and you shiver, he must have understood some kind of hidden message because you sure as hell didn't get the memo ! You smile awkwardly, your pulse racing and cold sweat start to form on your skin. Whatever he has in mind..You sure as Hell didn't know what it is, and that scares you more than anything..Pennywise backs you up against the wall of your drawing and smirks.

" I..I think we played enough..I'm tired..We can maybe continue tomorrow..?"

You ask, your heartbeats quickening and both clowns looking at you with bright yellow eyes. However, suddenly, both of them shout at the same time.

" Money !"

" Food !"

You open your eyes wide at Pennywise that gets out some coins from his pocket and you then turn towards Penny that just shouted food like it was some kind of good answer at a test. Tears start building up at the corner of your eyes and you sigh in relief before biting your lips shut, trying to contain your laughter.

Penny frowns at your expression and says in a small, almost childish, voice.

" Wasn't the point of the game to say one of the things you cherish the most ? Don't you cherish food ? Why are you crying ? Did I win ?!"

Suddenly, you start laughing uncontrollably and Pennywise answers him in a really angry voice.

" No! You didn't, big dummy! The game was transform, not yelling the answer at the top of you lungs like an idiot!"

Penny frowns and crosses his arms while pouting. But you answer through each giggle.

" You're wrong! Both of you!"

They look at you with wide eyes before growling.

" Then, what is the answer ?! "

Pennywise yells, frustrated and you answer.

" Love ! We value love ! Family, friends.."

Penny frowns and scoffs.

" Well, you're funny ! How do you transform into something you don't even know ?!"

You gasp, this is why he couldn't stay in the form of a puppy ! He didn't know how they truly acted towards affection ! You could have almost felt sorry for them if it didn't mean alerting their fear senses for food..But, you could try to find a way to get them to learn more about the true meaning of love. 

Pennywise lets you go and sighs in defeat while turning towards Penny.

" Boy ! You don't have to transform into love ! You just had to take the appearance of something she wanted to love, dumbass ! Like I don't know, a human she know ?!"

You suddenly open your arms wide and they both look at you with widened eyes.

" What the heck are you doing ?"

Pennywise asks with a scowl and Penny only frowns, his eyes diverting on strange angles. You try not to think about the fact that you're going to try to hug two interdimensional demons and just wrap your arms around them. At first, you really thought one of them was going to shred you to pieces, but they become as still as statues.

" This is what humans call a hug. It's super effective and it is the first thing in affection."

Penny is still as a rock, and you even ask yourself if he is even breathing..Before remembering that he surely doesn't even have a heart. Pennywise is the first one to move and gets you off harshly. His eyes are of a wild red color and he looks in pain. He clutches his heart and growls animalistically at you. He then runs towards the exit and glances at you one last time.

" I am hungry. I'm going hunting..Penny, keep an eye on her ! If she even moves a muscle, eat her."

Penny seems to get back from his shock and only nods quietly.

When Pennywise is gone, your focus comes back on Penny that, you had noticed, had taken more distance between himself and you after your attempt at affection. As if he was..scared ? You try to approach him, talk or even apologize, but he only growls warningly at you and shows you his really sharp teethes..making you reconsider.

You tried to make them look at humanity from a different perspective, like at your drawing, but looks like nothing could be done..You'd die here. Anyway, the joke's on you since you were the one who thought you could change them..Silly you. Monsters will always remain monsters..Hope ? Who are you kidding ?! You lost that the moment you ended up in that damned sewer ! You start crying and, for some reason, your sobs catch the attention of Penny. He looks at you, then at his pile of toys, then back at you. He then begins climbing it and that makes you wonder what he is doing ? Is he leaving you ? Eat a rotten piece of child ? You have no time to wonder more as he quickly gets back on the ground and, with measured steps, approaches you with the same wariness as a wild animal. He then throws you something and gets back into his corner with a piece of a child's leg in his other hand.

He starts chomping on it and you look at what he threw at you..A music box ? You look at him quizzically and, after swallowing, he answers your silent question.

" Don't read anything into it. Your tears make me uncomfortable, so I got you something to keep you from doing that..If I eat you now, Pennywise would be angry at me for not sharing, and I have had enough of his loud voice for one day. Now, make this thing work. I want to listen to it, it has a nice sound and you have nothing else to do.."

You stay still for a moment before smiling softly at him.

" Sure..Thanks.."

You start playing the little music box and are surprised to see that it is the moonlight sonata of Beethoven..A beautiful music that invades the whole sewer with its melody echoing on the walls. You smile widely, at least something to remind you of the outside world.

Outside, Pennywise has his mind set on finding his next meal, but, suddenly stops in the forest and, weirdly enough, hears the song..Then, the pang in his chest that he felt before comes back and he can suddenly hear the words that an idiotic turtle called Maturin once told him before dying..

" Just because you bury something, that doesn’t mean it stops existing, Robert Gray. You can hide your heart, but someone will one day dig far enough to find it.."

Robert Gray..It had been such a long time that he had heard this name. At the time, he had only laughed mockingly at the old senile turtle..But now..Even Bob had felt it. No..Not Bob..Penny. They had chosen to never speak of those disgusting human names again. But then, she had showed up..They could eat her, never talk about it again, continue hunting children and living until the end of the world..She was human..They both knew that, she would grow old..tired..cumbersome and then die. But then, something else that the bothersome turtle had said comes back in his mind. One time, Pennywise had dared ask why the turtle loved humanity so much ? And he had answered something strange that Pennywise had not expected.

" Humanity has only scratched the surface of its real potential. Someday, you will understand why Humanity is so important, Robert.."

" My name is Pennywise ! The destroyer ! The eater of Worlds ! I have no sympathy for humans ! Whoever they are or whatever they do !"

He kept telling himself that, trying to convince himself but then..Why can't he believe his own words ? What was bothering him ?! Why did he feel this way after only talking for a few days to a simple human ?! Or..was it the tree ? The tree she had drawn ? Yes, there should have been some kind of trick behind it ?! She had tricked them as he had firstly assumed ! But then, why did he feel so out of control ? As if he was wrong ? Did the words of the turtle, for once, really made sense ? He closes his eyes and sighs before punching a tree and making it fall..No ! He wouldn't allow it ! He wouldn't allow the old turtle to make a fool out of him even after death ! He was going to kill her ! And that was a promise ! He was not going to let her question everything anymore ! He would shut her up ! No more idiotic questions: no more opportunities to manipulate his feelings ! Yes ! That would be it ! The idea of going hunting out of his head, he walks back to the sewer with a determined smirk. Yeah..We'll see who'll be the fool at the end..Maturin..

[twisted-imagines]

I really loved your headcannons for sfw and nsfw headcannons for savanaclaw!! I had to stop reading it a couple times bc things got steamy ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°). May I request a scenario of octavinelle with MC and and the guys taking a bath together, it can be both sfw and nsfw (*^ω^*)

Woohoo! Right, that's what I was counting on😋 Thank you very much! I hope I caught your intention the right way because I read it like a bath together will all the boys at the same time 😏 You shouldn't have been worried, because there's also a hc ask, but thank you anyway~ So here it is, the smuttiest scenario I've ever written and headcanons for each character separately. Those are mostly sfw, maybe not as fluffy as you wanted, but I tried;

Please remember to use protection, leave your comments and enjoy yourself💗

Bath time with Octavinelle trio 🐙🐬🦈

Deep breathe in and breathe out. Your heartbeat was slowly returning to its usual pace. Finally, the hunt was over, Bean's Day a total success, mostly. Maybe it would have been even better if the competitive atmosphere didn't get to you in the middle of it and rendered you a useless, anxious mess. You were glad Leech twins calmed you down then and took care of you for the end of the event. Perhaps those types of games weren't meant for you.

Resting in the pleasant shadow of the forest's margin while waiting for Azul, you could see how hard they have worked. The way Jade was frowning and sighing heavily from time to time with Floyd just lying near him on the ground whining, not on top of his game anymore. When the white-haired man finally separated from the crowd you got up to wave in hopes of him noticing you. He spotted you quite fast and strode into your direction.

"Good job today, all of you. You gave the monster team quite a challenge, isn't that right, guys?"

The Octavinelle dorm leader's speech was flawless as usual, not betraying the bitterness from his earlier encounters and the adrenaline still present in his system. It was obvious, the facade he was putting on. You learned to see past it, after spending so much time with the boys. To you, their inner selves were much more interesting. You couldn't help but smile to yourself. The year promised to be the most vivid you've had yet if they continued to be the constant presence in your everyday life, those boys.

"Oh, aren't you spacing out, [Name]?"

"Right, right~ Pay attention to meee~"

Voices from both of your sides belonged to none other than the two brothers. You snapped back to reality. Floyd was now hanging off of your right arm, a quite usual occurrence you had to note, and his twin was closely observing your face. A slightly annoyed sight escaped Azul. All the running around was finally taking its toll on him, he looked weary and tired. It seemed even talking was too much for him at the moment, something which was not like him at all.

"The main event is over, but the closing ceremony will be conducted in two hours. We have just enough time to wash up, change, and rest for a bit. We're going to the dorm right now, you're coming with us, aren't you?"

It didn't feel like a question or invitation if anything more like a concealed order, but you nodded anyway. Spending the time in their company was always bringing up your mood and did they love to see you smile happily like that.

"Yay! Bath with koebi-chan! So fun~"

Hm? What was that again? When you looked at Floyd he was already was ahead of you walking with Azul, and even Jade turned away from you when you tried to ask what was going on. Was there anything you were missing?

At the Octavinelle dormitory, you were led to a spacious room, one you had never visited before.

"It was previously used by the residents as one of the dorm's conveniences. It didn't suit us, so for doing a complete renovation of this place, only the dorm leader can now allow to use it."

"And of course Azul doesn't let anybody here, except for us, hehe~"

You listened to Azul's explanation with the occasional remarks from Floyd about how that enormous parlor with a hot tub of the size of the pool was now completely off the limits for regular Octavinelle students. The interior made you think that you entered some underwater cave, it gave off an otherworldly aura. It was a simply wonderful resort. You could only look around and once again realize just how cunning and inventive those boys could be. You felt a warm presence on your shoulder, only to find Jade standing close to you with a usual charming smile playing on his lips.

"I shall show you to the changing room. There's also a shower, but don't take long. After all the main attraction is right here."

The adjacent room wasn't as big, but it had enough place for the four you. The setting minimalistic, the only furniture was a sofa and hangers with few dressers. You could see the shower on your right. Jade's gentle grip remained on you for a fleeting moment you were observing the room before he moved away. While you were contemplating your disposition, Floyd was already casually ditching his sports clothes. You gaped at the sight unfolding.

"Hm? Is something wrong, my dear? If you have some problems, I'll be happy to assist you."

Azul's voice had the most genuine concern in it but you knew better than that. "It's all preplanned", - was reading in his eyes. Wrong? Of course, nothing was wrong in how he languidly unfastened the belts on his uniform, in the sinful grace with which he was doing it. His azure orbs were unmoving, hypnotizing you with their gaze.

"No need... I was just thinking about how fitting those clothes actually are."

Trying to escape from the whirlpool the man was trying to take you in, your eyes darted in the opposite direction, accidentally falling on Jade's rear, still clad in those skintight pants. The merman's cheeks turned pink, not missing your action, slightly misjudging it even. Daring not to make eye contact, you swiftly occupied yourself with the task of undressing.

You could finally let out a sigh of relief, having fully submerged yourself into the hot water of the pool, generosity of Azul, who prepared it. You closed your eyes and tried to enjoy the calming aroma, the steam curling, and caressing your face, but the unyielding ogling of pairs of eyes was unnerving. You were not escaping out of this, you understood.

You could feel him ripple through the water, his hands enveloping your waist. It was the sight of Floyd looking up at you with a placid smile that welcomed you. He was resting on your knees, drops of water cascading down his face. He was still. For now.

"So?~ Pretty sick, land's "jacuzzi", won'tcha say?"

His effervescent voice echoed in the room, disturbing the quiet noise of popping bubbles. You stretched your hand to place in on his face only for it to be immediately trapped in his grasp. His token toothy smile slowly returned to his face. The temperature was rising. More and more closer Floyd was moving to you until two strong hands finally trapped you between his body and pool's side. Red against your skin, his tongue traced a way from your neck to jaw. Your breathing was now much more rugged than before.

"Tasty little koebi-chan~ You have no right to look so delicious-"

A bite followed. Floyd had successfully learned all your most sensitive spots and played them smartly even now. You could no longer keep your moans to yourself. The sweet noise spurred into action two other occupants of the room, who too longed for some attention.

"How greedy of you to steal [Name] all to yourself, brother. I too want a taste."

"You guys are not the only ones in the room. How annoying..."

In your peripheral vision, you could see them move closer until you felt your arm and leg being seized on each side. You were rendered immobile, each boy molding your body into the desired pose.

"Tsch~You two can get lost, for all I care."

Saying that in low voice, almost dropping down to a growl, Floyd was relentless in his task of forcing moans out of you, your already heated body unable to resist the pleasure he was giving you. You whined when his hand dropped down to your core, aching for more stimulation. Teasing and gliding, tension fluctuating, it was driving you crazy. When he decided that it wasn't enough for him anymore, Floyd dragged you out and hoisted on the cold surface outside of the pool. The difference in temperatures and his moist fingers plunging into your hole made you wail on top of your lungs. Your body was burning up and shivering from cold at the same time, wringing in his firm grip was just spurring you further into an igneous frenzy. Your vision blurry with water dripping down your face, or were those tears of pleasure, you were no longer the master to your body. The man before you controlled your every breath, every moan, his own form partly morphing to merman's.

White bliss overtook your mind when he sharply thrust into you. It wasn't gentle, at all, but it was precisely what you wanted, what you accustomed to, and welcomed with your very own thrusts back. Floyd's fast tenacious jerks were working you into an even more nonsensical state, the weight of his body on top of yours was superseding all your thoughts with flaming hot want. The lack of free air in the steamy room was affecting you, making you light-headed. The man rocking into you with immense strength was now your only leverage in the hazy world you were residing in at that moment. Continuing to bite and mark you up, his movements became even more erratic hinting at how close your lover was. You felt it building, the imminent release, when it finally crashed down upon you. Your last scream Floyd too claimed as his own, capturing your lips in his in a messy kiss, continuing to languidly trust up into you, riding out your orgasms.

While you were regaining your consciousness, a cacophony of hisses and screams, clearly somebody bickering, was the only thing you could hear besides the low buzz in your head. They stopped abruptly, a moment of calmness took place. You could register a shadow looming over you. A warm, somewhat slippery hand caressed your hot cheek. You couldn't help but lean more into a comforting touch.

"Barbarian-! My dear, are you okay? He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"Just thoroughly fucked~♡"

The harsh smack ringed through the room, most likely not reaching its destination. Azul's attention returned to you, the man carefully cradled you to himself, when you felt some smooth appendages slithering around your body. You reasoned, that just like the eel merman, cecaelia had also accidentally sprouted some of his octopus-like features. While Azul most certainly still stood on his two legs before you, a few tentacles, deep purple and supple, coiled around you gently, but firmly. He won't be releasing you just like that, will he?

"I'm fine Azul, don't worry."

""... I'm ready to be fucked again, go for it~" Ahaha- Auch!"

Another smack and Floyd's yelp now following it. Serves him well, mocking you like that. You drew the octopus merman closer to you and kissed softly in a reassuring gesture.

"Everybody did a good job today, only fair to have some recreational moment together. Come here."

Azul's blush only deepened from your bold invitation. He was being seduced and he had no objections to that. How jealous he had been, observing how his friend was selfishly claiming you. He could now be the one to touch and explore your soft, heated body. The thought of it made him immensely happy. The dorm leader didn't get to spend some time with you today, given you were on the opposite teams, so right at that moment, he wanted nothing more than to have you close to him, sighing languorously.

When you finally regained control over your limbs, you made the man release you so you could sit on him instead. The ell's rough loving still panged in your rear duly, but Azul soft moans and the sight of his sweet red cheeks aroused you too hard to ignore your cravings. Strong tentacles once again twisted around you, the young man was drawing you closer still, skin to skin contact was putting him to a state akin to trance, the need to have more of you, of your scent, your taste, your love overwhelmed him. You placed open-mouthed kisses down his neck and jugular, moving lower with each kiss and hickey until you reached the soft flesh of his chest. Azul was practically melting under you, pleasure clouding his mind. It was so long you made love to him, he missed the tender moments so much and here you finally were, on his lap, teasing his hardened nipples, eliciting more sweet noises out of him.

A loud sob broke out of him when you descended down on his hard cock. Swiftly encompassing your legs in a vice-like grip, his tentacles vehemently squeezing you like ivy. You could feel his suckers sticking to you, sure to leave numerous marks for you to discover later. The faster you started to move, the more vocal Azul became, his pleasured noises reverberating in the room. Desperate for more, he started to thrust up into you from his position bellow, but too shallow from being completely bewildered by the tightness of your hole. While you were desperately chasing your high, relishing in Azul's sexy expressions, eagerly kissing them away, you felt two hands reach out for your chest from behind. Jade was there flushed and needy, but the man made no other moves except for lightly twisting your nipple, aiding your second orgasm for that day, while his other hand was busy with his jerking himself off. It took just a few more thrusts for both you and Azul to reach your climax, with each other's names on your lips. The hot liquid that stained both your walls and back, was the evidence of the two men's release. Satisfied, but completely worn out by your lovers, you slowly drifted away to a dark bottomless pit of unconsciousness.

When you woke up you found yourself on the same couch you saw in the changing room, this realization coming to you a few moments later that the memories of your previous activities.

"Oh, you're finally awake. How do feel? Does it hurt especially bad somewhere?"

Jade's questions nearly missed you as their addressee, for you were slowly coming back to your senses, which also meant facing the excruciating consequences of your supposed relaxation time.

"I can't feel my legs at all. Was I out for long?"

"Not that long. I had just enough time to carry you there and run for a few things, like a transformation potion, because those bumpkins got so excited they turned to their original form."

"I genuinely don't know how that happened. [Name], I'm deeply sorry."

Azul's remorseful voice drew your attention to him and Floyd standing near the door, in their human forms, already dressed in their uniforms. Jade was wiping your body with wet cloth in the meantime, carefully inspecting your body for marks and other "love confessions".

"You have nothing to feel sorry about, I enjoyed it very much. But it seems I won't go anywhere with you today anymore."

"Indeed, doesn't seem like [Name] will be able to visit the closing ceremony. Don't worry I'll stay here with you."

Jade addressed Azul and you in turns, gentle smile was playing on his lips. Reassuring you that you will be in caring hands the man lovingly pecked your cheek.

"Heeeeh~ You want just want some alone time with koebi-chan, don'tcha, Jade?“

Floyd who was silent before neared his brother with a mischievous grin.

"Not quite right, I surely exercise more control of myself than to prey on defenseless and fatigued [Name] like that. Not to mention, I already got my share earlier today. Motivational supplies were just the best."

Jade retorted with a wicked smile of his own, showing his razor-sharp teeth in this rare instance. His twin could only blink in confusion, not ready for such a twist.

"So you were ahead of us this whole time, Jade? It's also quite unexpected from you, my dear [Name], but I'm not in the position to complain. Please rest up and restore your power, we'll go and come back."

Azul came close to you and placed a soft kiss on your forehead.

"Love you very much."

He added in a quiet voice before he left the room to prepare for the last event of the day. Before Floyd could follow him out, he ran up to you to briskly kiss you on the lips and say his own goodbye:

"Koebi-chan is always so fun to play with, it's too hard to stop sometimes. Be a good little one and relax. Don't get lonely, I'll come soon, 'kay?~"

Bathing headcanons(SFW/slightly NSFW)

Azul Ashengrotto 🐙

• Very diligent about his bathing and grooming routine, Azul takes shower at least once a day. To be a successful businessman one needs to take care of himself and his looks and the dorm leader doesn't slack off on it. Not to mention, he loves water and misses the ocean and how freely he could move in it. The land's shower is just a small gateway to dull his nostalgia.

• His personal care products mostly smell of some fruit or flower. It's the type of smell that makes you want to just inhale it over and over, maybe just nibble on his skin a bit, flustering poor octopi.

• Maybe sweet smells don't exactly tie in with the image of the powerful, all-mighty magician he works hard to uphold, but practice shows different results. He smells pleasant, relaxing, like somebody who you would gladly entrust your unique magic or valuable possession. How can a guy with such a sincere smile and the air of the flower field in spring around him be threatening? Azul may have lost all of his contracts, but he steadily grows his collection anew, more determined than ever.

• It takes him a lifetime to confess that he wants to shower with you, much faster is just to invite him yourself. You can sense just how eager he is, but the thought of you seeing him naked, and vice versa makes him too shy. Just grab him and take with you, he won't protest much. He helps you to wash your back and hair, loving every second of it. And when you rub him back and massage his body, any and every insecure thought just evaporates, leaving only raw and vulnerable Azul starved for tender touches and appreciative words. When you stay with him, Azul always subtly suggests having a shower together, blushing profusely each and every time. He doesn't even think about doing anything sexual, just washing each other is already intimate enough practice for him.

• He took a habit to always rub and massage your back, be it in the bath or shower, he too finds enjoyment, especially when he hears you sigh in approval or relax into him. Azul would love to receive the same gentle treatment but to his head. With the amount of mental work he does daily he's not a stranger to migraines anymore. But somehow, when when you rub and massage his scalp the annoying pain goes away. He jokingly complains that you've never told him you could use a magic like that, but he's grateful nonetheless.

• Baths are a whole event for him. He's the type to place aroma candles everywhere, throw in a beautiful bath bomb and bring a glass of his preferred drink. And you, of course, his dear lover. Now everything is set for the perfect evening with you, his most favorite person, by his side.

•❗ No action in water unless it's a big enough place for you to safely attempt anything in there. And definitely not the shower, not in a lifetime. He's not strong enough to support you, and he's still adjusting to walking on legs. And it's much more exciting to tease him until he practically begs you to take him right away, only to make him wait for when you're out of dangerous grounds of the shower.

Jade Leech 🐬

• Not as disciplined as his dorm's leader, Jade still makes sure to take a shower once every few days, he has to look presentable and smart as a vice dorm leader himself.

• He smells like the sea breath, very fresh and subtle, not enough to make him stand out, but special enough to understand that this guy is not an ordinary one.

• it's somewhat of his fantasy to take a shower with you. You and water? The perfect combination. It would be a one morning when you stayed at his room, that Jade would tell you, blushing, that he was going to shower and wouldn't mind if you joined him. He would go ahead, not really hoping that you will follow him until he feels a kiss on his shoulder and hands enveloping. Didn't take him too long to understand who just decided to join him, Jade smiling happily at that.

• He wants to wash you, take care of your every body part. If you insist that you can do it yourself or shy away from him he'll tease you and still continue to do his thing. He pampers you to the fullest, just about everything is taken care of. He loves to feel your skin, to see how water streams down your body. If you two are in a rush, Jade won't relent, but he'll be grateful if you wash him in return.

• Baths are also nice in Jade's mind, but he'll take one exclusively if he is exhausted or is promised to have you with him in it. It'll take some bending and working around with it, this man is too tall for most baths. He'll casually hug you while you two relax and enjoy each other's company.

•❗He's pretty open to bathtub sex, Jade thinks that your wet, flushed body is one of the most erotic sights he's ever seen. There he was, thinking you couldn't get even hotter, but he can't keep his hands off of you now, please take responsibility. Still not safe to fool around in the shower, but at least you tried. It wasn't half bad, but Jade confessed later that it was too stressing - he's not willing to risk your health like that anymore.

Floyd Leech 🦈

• He's like a small child when it comes to bathing. It's too bothersome, he doesn't stink, what's the problem. It's a damn war, when Jade tries to stick him in a shower or a bathtub, because a certain furious octopus, hard bend on self-grooming, ordered to have Floyd showered one way or another. The catch is, as soon as he's in water, he's the calmest angel ever. He'll spend there as much time as his human body allows him. Generally, it's twice a week, but he goes to shower willingly after each PE class, he hates the stench of sweat even more.

• He doesn't smell like anything, at best you can smell a candy he ate just recently. He despises strong smells. If he's forced to shower with such shower gel or shampoo he'll be furious and snappy the whole time until it wears off. If he can smell it, it's bad and makes his skin crawl, annoying him to no end. He feels like biting himself, and he doesn't like it. On you, however, he prefers tasty, yummy smells, since he can take a bite no problem.

• The one who accidentally buys a juice-like bottle of some gel and gets a poisoning. "But it looked so edible~", he's banned by Jade and Azul now from any sections of the store, where there can be any chemicals in "misleading" covers.

• Actually baths are his favorite! Cue him clinging to you and just freeze there. He's enjoying it so much. At best you just sit there in his embrace, until the water becomes too cold for his liking, but other times he reverts back to his merman appearance and now he's all over you and you can't breathe properly. He's not oblivious thought, when he deems that he's teased you enough he'll release you. Your reactions are just the best, he can't get enough of them.

• One time he slipped into your shower and just grabbed a handful of your tight and thought it was the funniest thing ever, while you nearly went into cardiac arrest when somebody in all-boys dorm touched you out of nowhere. But who else could have it been, if not your capricious boyfriend. Now, Floyd is suddenly all about going to shower each day, of course dragging you with him. He doesn't even shower, he just stands under the water and squeezes you, ultimately not giving you the chance to clean neither you nor him. It takes colossal efforts, to make him scrub his body, but he still doesn't leave your side.

• ❗By far the most dangerous to have shower sex with, but also the most exciting. Does it stop you? Mostly. Him? Never. He always looks forward to when you inevitably get frisky. Floyd will edge you till the point of crying, have you begging for him to fuck you. He also has enough strength to pick you up and ram into you, or he'll just turn you around and press himself behind setting a fast pace right away.