#Good Orderly Direction

[revdrjamesjshowersjr]

Instigators and the Universal Holy Bible.

'Then said he unto the disciples, it is impossible but that offenses will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come! It were better for him that a millstone be hanged around his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.'-Luke 17: 1-2..

Be the Miracle..Amen, Ameen, Amun, Amin, Aum.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

600+ Personality Traits

as reference for your next poem/story

Positive Traits

Accessible - easy to speak to or deal with

Active - disposed to action; energetic

Adaptable - capable of being or becoming adapted (i.e., suited by nature, character, or design to a particular use, purpose, or situation)

Admirable - deserving the highest esteem

Adventurous - disposed to seek adventure or to cope with the new and unknown

Agreeable - ready or willing to agree or consent

Alert - watchful and prompt to meet danger or emergency

Allocentric - having one's interest and attention centered on other persons

Amiable - friendly, sociable, and congenial

Anticipative - given to anticipation (i.e., the act of looking forward)

Appreciative - having or showing appreciation (i.e., a favorable critical estimate)

Articulate - expressing oneself readily, clearly, and effectively

Aspiring - desiring and working to achieve a particular goal

Athletic - characteristic of an athlete; vigorous, active

Attractive - arousing interest or pleasure; charming

Balanced - being in a state of balance; having different parts or elements properly or effectively arranged, regulated etc.

Benevolent - marked by or disposed to doing good

Brilliant - distinguished by unusual mental keenness or alertness

Calm - free from agitation, excitement, or disturbance

Capable - having or showing general efficiency and ability

Captivating - charmingly or irresistibly appealing

Caring - feeling or showing concern for or kindness to others

Challenging - invitingly provocative; fascinating

Charismatic - having, exhibiting, or based on charisma (i.e., a special magnetic charm or appeal)

Charming - extremely pleasing or delightful; entrancing

Cheerful - full of good spirits; merry

Clean - pure; free from moral corruption or sinister connections of any kind; fair

Clearheaded - having or showing a clear understanding; perceptive

Clever - mentally quick and resourceful

Colorful - full of variety or interest

Companionable - marked by, conducive to, or suggestive of companionship; sociable

Compassionate - having or showing compassion; sympathetic

Conciliatory - intended to gain goodwill or favor or to reduce hostility

Confident - having or showing assurance and self-reliance

Conscientious - meticulous, careful

Considerate - thoughtful of the rights and feelings of others

Constant - marked by firm steadfast resolution or faithfulness

Contemplative - marked by or given to contemplation (i.e., an act of considering with attention)

Cooperative - marked by a willingness and ability to work with others

Courageous - having or characterized by courage; brave

Courteous - marked by respect for and consideration of others

Creative - having the quality of something created rather than imitated; imaginative

Cultured - cultivated (i.e., refined, educated)

Curious - marked by desire to investigate and learn

Daring - venturesomely bold in action or thought

Debonair - suave, urbane; lighthearted, nonchalant

Decent - marked by moral integrity, kindness, and goodwill

Decisive - resolute, determined

Dedicated - devoted to a cause, ideal, or purpose; zealous

Deep - of penetrating intellect; wise

Dignified - showing or expressing dignity (i.e., the quality or state of being worthy, honored, or esteemed)

Directed - having a positive or negative sense

Disciplined - marked by or possessing discipline (i.e., orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior)

Discreet - prudent; modest; unobtrusive

Dramatic - having or showing a tendency to behave or react in an exaggerated way

Dutiful - filled with or motivated by a sense of duty

Dynamic - energetic, forceful

Earnest - characterized by or proceeding from an intense and serious state of mind

Ebullient - having or showing liveliness and enthusiasm

Educated - having an education; skilled

Efficient - productive of desired effects

Elegant - of a high grade or quality; splendid

Eloquent - marked by forceful and fluent expression

Empathetic - involving, characterized by, or based on empathy (i.e., the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another)

Energetic - operating with or marked by vigor or effect

Enthusiastic - filled with or marked by enthusiasm (i.e., strong excitement of feeling)

Esthetic - artistic; appreciative of, responsive to, or zealous about the beautiful

Exciting - producing excitement (i.e., something that rouses)

Extraordinary - exceptional to a very marked extent

Fair - marked by impartiality and honesty

Faithful - steadfast in affection or allegiance; loyal

Farsighted - having or showing foresight or good judgment; sagacious

Felicific - causing or intended to cause happiness

Firm - not weak or uncertain; vigorous

Flexible - characterized by a ready capability to adapt to new, different, or changing requirements; tractable

Focused - a state or condition permitting clear perception or understanding

Forceful - possessing or filled with force; effective

Forgiving - allowing room for error or weakness

Forthright - free from ambiguity or evasiveness

Freethinking - thinking freely or independently

Friendly - showing kindly interest and goodwill

Fun-loving - lighthearted and lively

Gallant - nobly chivalrous and often self-sacrificing; spirited

Generous - liberal in giving; magnanimous

Gentle - free from harshness, sternness, or violence; docile

Genuine - free from hypocrisy or pretense; sincere

Good-natured - of a pleasant and cooperative disposition

Gracious - marked by kindness and courtesy

Hardworking - constantly, regularly, or habitually engaged in earnest and energetic work; industrious, diligent

Healthy - prosperous, flourishing

Hearty - enthusiastically or exuberantly cordial; jovial

Helpful - of service or assistance; useful

Heroic - exhibiting or marked by courage and daring

High-minded - marked by elevated principles and feelings; also: pretentious

Honest - genuine, real; marked by integrity

Honorable - deserving of respect or high regard; illustrious

Humble - not proud or haughty; unpretentious

Humorous - full of or characterized by humor; funny

Idealistic - of or relating to idealists or idealism (i.e., having a standard of perfection, beauty, or excellence)

Imaginative - given to imagining; having a lively imagination

Impressive - making or tending to make a marked impression; having the power to excite attention, awe, or admiration

Incisive - impressively direct and decisive

Incorruptible - incapable of being bribed or morally corrupted

Independent - not requiring or relying on others

Individualistic - pursuing a markedly independent course in thought or action

Innovative - characterized by, tending to, or introducing innovations (i.e., a new idea, method, or device)

Inoffensive - giving no provocation; peaceable

Insightful - exhibiting or characterized by insight (i.e., the power or act of seeing into a situation)

Insouciant - lighthearted unconcern; nonchalance

Intelligent - guided or directed by intellect; rational

Intuitive - possessing or given to intuition or insight

Invulnerable - immune to or proof against attack

Kind - of a sympathetic or helpful nature

Knowledgeable - having or showing knowledge or intelligence-

Leisurely - characterized by leisure; unhurried

Liberal - marked by generosity; openhanded; broad-minded

Logical - skilled in logic; analytic; capable of reasoning

Lovable - having qualities that attract affection

Loyal - unswerving in allegiance

Lyrical - having an artistically beautiful or expressive quality suggestive of song

Magnanimous - showing or suggesting a lofty and courageous spirit

Many-sided - having many sides or aspects; interests or aptitudes

Mature - based on slow careful consideration

Methodical - habitually proceeding according to method

Meticulous - marked by extreme or excessive care in the consideration or treatment of details

Moderate - avoiding extremes of behavior or expression; calm, temperate

Modest - decent; unpretentious

Multi-leveled - having a scale (as of difficulty or achievement) with multiple positions or ranks

Natural leader - a person who has qualities that a good leader has

Neat - habitually clean and orderly

Nonauthoritarian - not authoritarian (i.e., of, relating to, or favoring a concentration of power in a leader or an elite not constitutionally responsible to the people)

Objective - expressing or dealing with facts or conditions as perceived without distortion by personal feelings, prejudices, or interpretations

Observant - paying strict attention; keen; mindful

Open - characterized by ready accessibility and usually generous attitude; responsive

Optimistic - of, relating to, or characterized by optimism; feeling or showing hope for the future

Orderly - well behaved; peaceful; tidy

Organized - having a formal organization to coordinate and carry out activities

Original - independent and creative in thought or action; inventive

Painstaking - taking pains; expending, showing, or involving diligent care and effort

Passionate - capable of, affected by, or expressing intense feeling; enthusiastic

Patient - bearing pains or trials calmly or without complaint; not hasty

Patriotic - befitting or characteristic of a patriot (i.e., one who loves and supports his or her country)

Peaceful - untroubled by conflict, agitation, or commotion; quiet, tranquil

Perceptive - responsive to sensory stimuli; discerning; observant

Perfectionist - having a disposition to regard anything short of perfection as unacceptable

Personable - pleasant or amiable in person; attractive

Persuasive - tending to persuade (i.e., to move by argument, entreaty, or expostulation to a belief, position, or course of action)

Planful - full of plans; resourceful; scheming

Playful - full of play; frolicsome, sportive; humorous

Polished - characterized by a high degree of development, finish, or refinement; free from imperfections

Popular - commonly liked or approved

Practical - actively engaged in some course of action or occupation; useful

Precise - strictly conforming to a pattern, standard, or convention

Principled - exhibiting, based on, or characterized by principle (i.e., a comprehensive and fundamental law, doctrine, or assumption)

Profound - having intellectual depth and insight

Protean - displaying great diversity or variety; versatile

Protective - intended to resist or prevent attack or aggression

Providential - coming or happening by good luck especially unexpectedly; fortunate

Prudent - having or showing good judgment and restraint especially in conduct or speech; cautious

Punctual - being on time; prompt

Purposeful - full of determination

Rational - having reason or understanding; reasonable

Realistic - able to see things as they really are and to deal with them in a practical way

Reflective - marked by reflection; thoughtful, deliberative

Relaxed - easy of manner; informal

Reliable - suitable or fit to be relied on; dependable

Resourceful - able to meet situations; capable of devising ways and means

Respectful - marked by or showing respect or deference

Responsible - able to answer for one's conduct and obligations; trustworthy

Responsive - quick to respond or react appropriately or sympathetically; sensitive

Reverential - expressing or having a quality of reverence (i.e., honor or respect felt or shown; deference)

Romantic - having an inclination for romance; responsive to the appeal of what is idealized, heroic, or adventurous

Rustic - characteristic of or resembling country people

Sage - wise through reflection and experience

Sane - rational; able to anticipate and appraise the effect of one's actions

Scholarly - of, characteristic of, or suitable to learned persons; learned, academic

Scrupulous - having moral integrity; acting in strict regard for what is considered right or proper

Secure - trustworthy, dependable; assured in opinion or expectation; confident

Selfless - having no concern for self; unselfish

Self-critical - inclined to find fault with oneself; critical of oneself

Self-denying - showing self-denial (i.e., a restraint or limitation of one's own desires or interests)

Self-effacing - having or showing a tendency to make oneself modestly or shyly inconspicuous

Self-reliant - having confidence in and exercising one's own powers or judgment

Self-sufficient - capable of providing for one's own needs; haughty, overbearing

Sensitive - highly responsive or susceptible; delicate; touchy

Sentimental - marked or governed by feeling, sensibility, or emotional idealism

Seraphic - suggestive of or resembling a seraphim or angel

Serious - thoughtful or subdued in appearance or manner; sober

Sexy - sexually suggestive or stimulating; appealing

Sharing - to talk about one's thoughts, feelings, or experiences with others

Shrewd - marked by clever discerning awareness and hardheaded acumen

Simple - free from guile; innocent; modest; naive

Skillful - possessed of or displaying skill; expert

Sober - marked by temperance, moderation, or seriousness; calm

Sociable - inclined by nature to companionship with others of the same species; social

Solid - sound; reliable; serious in purpose or character

Sophisticated - finely experienced and aware; intellectually appealing

Spontaneous - controlled and directed internally; natural

Sporting - of, relating to, used, or suitable for sport

Stable - firmly established; enduring

Steadfast - firm in belief, determination, or adherence; loyal

Steady - not easily disturbed or upset; dependable

Stoic - not affected by or showing passion or feeling

Strong - extreme, intense; ardent; firm

Studious - assiduous in the pursuit of learning

Suave - smoothly though often superficially gracious and sophisticated

Subtle - delicate, elusive; obscure

Sweet - marked by gentle good humor or kindliness; agreeable

Sympathetic - given to, marked by, or arising from sympathy, compassion, friendliness, and sensitivity to others' emotions

Systematic - marked by thoroughness and regularity

Tasteful - having, exhibiting, or conforming to good taste

Teacherly - resembling, characteristic of, or befitting a teacher

Thorough - complete in all respects; having full mastery

Tidy - methodical, precise; neat and orderly

Tolerant - permitting or accepting something (such as a behavior or belief) that one does not like

Tractable - capable of being easily led, taught, or controlled; docile

Trusting - having or showing trust in another

Uncomplaining - accepting pains or hardships calmly or without complaint

Understanding - endowed with understanding; tolerant, sympathetic

Undogmatic - not dogmatic; not committed to dogma (i.e., something held as an established opinion)

Unfoolable -impossible to fool (i.e., deceive)

Upright - marked by strong moral rectitude

Urbane - notably polite or polished in manner

Venturesome - inclined to court or incur risk or danger; daring

Vivacious - lively in temper, conduct, or spirit; sprightly

Warm - secure; ardent; marked by or readily showing affection, gratitude, cordiality, or sympathy

Well-bred - having or displaying the politeness and good manners associated especially with people of high social class

Well-read - well-informed or deeply versed through reading

Well-rounded - fully or broadly developed

Winning - successful especially in competition; tending to please or delight

Wise - marked by deep understanding, keen discernment, and a capacity for sound judgment

Witty - marked by or full of clever humor or wit

Youthful - having the vitality or freshness of youth; vigorous

Neutral Traits

Absentminded - tending to forget or fail to notice things

Aggressive - marked by combative readiness

Ambitious - having a desire to be successful, powerful, or famous

Amusing - giving amusement; diverting

Artful - using or characterized by art and skill; dexterous

Ascetic - austere in appearance, manner, or attitude

Authoritarian - of, relating to, or favoring a concentration of power in a leader or an elite not constitutionally responsible to the people

Big-thinking - tendency to think about doing things that involve a lot of people, money, effort, etc.

Breezy - airy, nonchalant

Businesslike - serious, purposeful

Busy - full of activity; bustling

Casual - feeling or showing little concern; nonchalant; informal

Cautious - careful about avoiding danger or risk

Cerebral - primarily intellectual in nature

Chummy - quite friendly

Circumspect - careful to consider all circumstances and possible consequences; prudent

Competitive - inclined, desiring, or suited to compete (i.e., to strive consciously or unconsciously for an objective)

Complex - having many parts or aspects that are usually interrelated; complicated; intricate

Confidential - entrusted with confidences

Conservative - marked by or relating to traditional norms of taste, elegance, style, or manners

Contradictory - involving, causing, or constituting a contradiction (i.e., logical incongruity)

Crisp - concise and to the point; lively

Cute - attractive or pretty especially in a childish, youthful, or delicate way

Deceptive - tending or having power to cause someone to accept as true or valid what is false or invalid

Determined - characterized by determination (i.e., the act of deciding definitely and firmly)

Dominating - dominant; domineering

Dreamy - quiet and soothing; delightful, ideal

Driving - acting with vigor; energetic

Droll - having a humorous, whimsical, or odd quality

Dry - not showing or communicating warmth, enthusiasm, or tender feeling; uninteresting; plain; aloof

Earthy - practical, down-to-earth; unsophisticated

Effeminate - having feminine qualities untypical of a man

Emotional - markedly aroused or agitated in feeling or sensibilities

Enigmatic - of, relating to, or resembling an enigma; mysterious

Experimental - of, relating to, or based on experience or experiment; tentative

Familial - of or relating to a household or family; homey; domestic

Folksy - homespun; having or showing an unpretentious informality

Formal - following or agreeing with established form, custom, or rules

Freewheeling - free and loose in form or manner

Frugal - economical; careful in the management of money or resources

Glamorous - full of glamour; excitingly attractive

Guileless - innocent, naive

High-spirited - characterized by a bold or energetic spirit

Hurried - going or working at speed; hasty

Hypnotic - readily holding the attention

Iconoclastic - tendency to not conform to generally accepted standards or customs

Idiosyncratic - peculiar; eccentric

Impassive - unsusceptible to or destitute of emotion; apathetic

Impersonal - withdrawn; having or showing no emotional warmth or interest in others

Impressionable - inexperienced; easy to influence

Intense - extreme in degree, power, or effect; passionate

Invisible - discreet; not readily seen or noticed

Irreligious - lacking religious emotions, principles, or practices

Irreverent - lacking proper respect or seriousness

Maternal - of, relating to, belonging to, or characteristic of a mother; motherly

Mellow - pleasant, agreeable; laid back

Modern - being or involving the latest methods, concepts, information, or styles

Moralistic - characterized by or expressive of a narrow moral attitude

Mystical - impossible to prove, understand, or explain by either the senses or intelligence

Neutral - not decided or pronounced as to characteristics; indifferent

Noncommittal - having no clear or distinctive character

Noncompetitive - not inclined towards or characterized by competition or rivalry

Obedient - submissive to the restraint or command of authority; willing to obey

Old-fashioned - adhering to customs of a past era; outmoded

Ordinary - being of the type that is encountered in the normal course of events; normal

Outspoken - direct and open in speech or expression; frank

Placid - serenely free of interruption or disturbance

Political - involving or charged or concerned with acts against a government or a political system

Predictable - behaving in a way that is expected

Preoccupied - lost in thought and unaware of one's surroundings or actions; distracted

Private - preferring to keep personal affairs to oneself

Progressive - liberal; not bound by traditional ways or beliefs

Proud - feeling or showing pride

Pure - having exactly the talents or skills needed for a particular role; immaculate; innocent

Questioning - skeptical; inclined to doubt or question claims

Quiet - calm; gentle; easygoing

Religious - scrupulously and conscientiously faithful; zealous

Reserved - restrained in words and actions

Restrained - not excessive or extravagant

Retiring - reserved, shy

Sarcastic - given to the use of sarcasm; caustic

Self-conscious - conscious of one's own acts or states as belonging to or originating in oneself

Sensual - devoted to or preoccupied with the senses or appetites

Skeptical - relating to, characteristic of, or marked by skepticism (i.e., an attitude of doubt or a disposition to incredulity either in general or toward a particular object)

Smooth - amiable, courteous

Soft - lacking firmness or strength of character; feeble

Solemn - marked by grave sedateness and earnest sobriety

Solitary - not gregarious, colonial, social, or compound

Stern - having a definite hardness or severity of nature or manner; austere

Stolid - having or expressing little or no sensibility; unemotional

Strict - stringent in requirement or control

Stubborn - justifiably unyielding; resolute; mulish

Stylish - conforming to current fashion

Subjective - arising out of or identified by means of one's perception of one's own states and processes

Surprising - of a nature that excites surprise (i.e., a taking unawares)

Tough - capable of enduring strain, hardship, or severe labor

Unaggressive - not aggressive; not given to fighting or assertiveness

Unambitious - feeling or showing a lack of ambition (i.e., desire to achieve a particular end)

Unceremonious - not ceremonious; informal

Unchanging - constant, invariable

Undemanding - not requiring much time, effort, or attention

Unfathomable - incomprehensible; impossible to understand

Unhurried - not hurried; leisurely

Uninhibited - free from inhibition; boisterously informal

Unpatriotic - not feeling or showing love for or devotion to one's country

Unpredictable - tending to behave in ways that cannot be predicted

Unreligious - having no connection with or relation to religion; involving no religious import or idea

Unsentimental - not marked or governed by feeling, sensibility, or emotional idealism

Whimsical - characterized by whim or caprice; especially: lightly fanciful

Negative Traits

Abrasive - causing irritation

Abrupt - rudely or unceremoniously curt

Agonizing - causing agony (i.e., intense pain of mind or body)

Aimless - without aim or purpose

Airy - affected, proud

Aloof - removed or distant either physically or emotionally

Amoral - having or showing no concern about whether behavior is morally right or wrong

Angry - feeling or showing anger (i.e., a strong feeling of displeasure and usually of antagonism)

Anxious - characterized by extreme uneasiness of mind or brooding fear about some contingency; worried

Apathetic - having or showing little or no interest, concern, or emotion

Arbitrary - marked by or resulting from the unrestrained and often tyrannical exercise of power

Argumentative - given to argument; disputatious

Arrogant - exaggerating or disposed to exaggerate one's own worth or importance often by an overbearing manner

Artificial - imitation, sham

Asocial - not social; rejecting or lacking the capacity for social interaction

Assertive - disposed to or characterized by bold or confident statements and behavior; aggressive

Astigmatic - showing incapacity for observation or discrimination

Bewildered - deeply or utterly confused or perplexed

Bizarre - strikingly out of the ordinary

Bland - dull, insipid

Blunt - insensitive

Boisterous - noisily turbulent; tumultuous

Brittle - lacking warmth, depth, or generosity of spirit; cold

Brutal - cruel, cold-blooded; harsh

Calculating - marked by prudent analysis or by shrewd consideration of self-interest; scheming

Callous - feeling or showing no sympathy for others; hard-hearted

Cantankerous - difficult or irritating to deal with

Careless - negligent, slovenly

Charmless - unpleasant and without charm or interest

Childish - marked by or suggestive of immaturity and lack of poise

Clumsy - lacking tact or subtlety

Coarse - crude or unrefined in taste, manners, or language

Colorless - dull, uninteresting

Complacent - marked by self-satisfaction especially when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies

Complaintive - prone to complain

Compulsive - of, relating to, caused by, or suggestive of psychological compulsion

Conceited - having or showing an excessively high opinion of oneself

Condemnatory - expressing strong criticism or disapproval

Conformist - following or seeking to enforce prevailing standards or customs; opposing or avoiding unconventional thinking and behavior

Confused - being perplexed or disconcerted

Contemptible - worthy of contempt (i.e., the act of despising)

Conventional - lacking originality or individuality; trite

Cowardly - being, resembling, or befitting a coward (i.e., one who shows disgraceful fear or timidity)

Crafty - adept in the use of subtlety and cunning

Crass - having or indicating such grossness of mind as precludes delicacy and discrimination

Criminal - guilty of crime; disgraceful

Critical - inclined to criticize severely and unfavorably

Crude - marked by the primitive, gross, or elemental or by uncultivated simplicity or vulgarity

Cruel - disposed to inflict pain or suffering; devoid of humane feelings

Cynical - having or showing the attitude or temper of a cynic (e.g., contemptuously distrustful of human nature and motives)

Decadent - characterized by or appealing to self-indulgence

Deceitful - deceptive, misleading

Delicate - weak, sickly; fragile

Demanding - requiring much time, effort, or attention; exacting

Dependent - relying on another for support

Desperate - having lost hope; suffering extreme need or anxiety

Destructive - designed or tending to hurt or destroy

Devious - not straightforward; deceptive

Difficult - hard to deal with, manage, or overcome

Dirty - morally unclean or corrupt

Disconcerting - causing embarrassment

Discontented - dissatisfied, malcontent

Discouraging - causing someone to feel less confident or less hopeful

Discourteous - lacking courtesy; rude

Dishonest - characterized by lack of truth, honesty, or trustworthiness; unfair, deceptive

Disloyal - showing an absence of allegiance, devotion, obligation, faith, or support

Disobedient - refusing or neglecting to obey

Disorderly - engaged in conduct offensive to public order

Disorganized - lacking coherence, system, or central guiding agency

Disputatious - inclined to dispute; controversial

Disrespectful - showing a lack of manners or consideration for others

Disruptive - disrupting or tending to disrupt some process, activity, condition, etc.

Dissolute - lacking restraint

Dissonant - marked by dissonance; discordant; incongruous

Distractible - when attention of the mind is easily distracted by small and irrelevant stimuli

Disturbing - causing feelings of worry, concern, or anxiety

Dogmatic - characterized by or given to the expression of opinions very strongly or positively as if they were facts

Domineering - inclined to exercise arbitrary and overbearing control over others

Dull - tedious, uninteresting

Egocentric - self-centered, selfish

Enervated - lacking physical, mental, or moral vigor

Envious - feeling or showing envy (i.e., painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage)

Erratic - characterized by lack of consistency, regularity, or uniformity

Escapist - relating to avoiding an unpleasant or boring life by thinking, reading, etc., about something more exciting or fun, especially something that could not really happen

Excitable - capable of being readily roused into action or a state of excitement or irritability

Expedient - governed by self-interest

Extravagant - lacking in moderation, balance, and restraint

Faithless - not to be relied on; untrustworthy; disloyal

False - not genuine; intentionally untrue

Fanatical - marked by excessive enthusiasm and often intense uncritical devotion

Fanciful - marked by fancy or unrestrained imagination rather than by reason and experience

Fatalistic - having or showing a belief that the future is determined and cannot be changed

Fawning - seeking or used to seek approval or favor by means of flattery

Fearful - causing or likely to cause fear, fright, or alarm especially because of dangerous quality

Fickle - marked by lack of steadfastness, constancy, or stability; given to erratic changeableness

Fiery - easily provoked; irritable

Fixed - firmly set in the mind

Flamboyant - excessively showy

Foolish - showing or marked by a lack of good sense or judgment

Forgetful - inclined to forget what one has learned or to do what one should

Fraudulent - characterized by, based on, or done by fraud; deceitful

Frightening - causing fear

Frivolous - marked by unbecoming levity

Gloomy - lacking in promise or hopefulness; pessimistic

Graceless - lacking a sense of propriety; immoral

Grand - lavish, sumptuous

Greedy - marked by greed; having or showing a selfish desire for wealth and possessions

Grim - ghastly, repellent, or sinister in character

Gullible - easily duped or cheated

Hateful - full of hate; malicious

Haughty - blatantly and disdainfully proud

Hedonistic - devoted to the pursuit of pleasure

Hesitant - slow to act or proceed (as from fear, indecision, or unwillingness)

Hidebound - having an inflexible or ultraconservative character

High-handed - having or showing no regard for the rights, concerns, or feelings of others; arbitrary, overbearing

Hostile - marked by malevolence; having or showing unfriendly feelings

Ignorant - unaware, uninformed

Imitative - imitating something superior; counterfeit

Impatient - not patient; restless or short of temper especially under irritation, delay, or opposition

Impractical - not practical; impracticable; idealistic

Imprudent - lacking discretion, wisdom, or good judgment

Impulsive - prone to act on impulse

Inconsiderate - careless of the rights or feelings of others

Incurious - lacking a normal or usual curiosity; uninterested

Indecisive - not decisive; inconclusive; irresolute

Indulgent - willing to allow excessive leniency, generosity, or consideration

Inert - sluggish

Inhibited - not confident enough to say or do what one wants

Insecure - beset by fear and anxiety; not confident or sure

Insensitive - lacking feeling or tact

Insincere - not sincere; hypocritical

Insulting - giving or intended to give offense

Intolerant - unable or unwilling to endure

Irascible - marked by hot temper and easily provoked anger

Irrational - not using or following good reasoning

Irresponsible - having or showing a lack of concern for the consequences of one's actions

Irritable - easily irritated or annoyed

Lazy - disinclined to activity or exertion; not energetic or vigorous

Libidinous - having or marked by lustful desires; lascivious

Loquacious - given to fluent or excessive talk; garrulous

Malicious - having or showing a desire to cause harm to someone; given to, marked by, or arising from malice

Mannered - having an artificial or stilted character

Mannerless - lacking good manners; impolite

Mawkish - exaggeratedly or childishly emotional

Mealymouthed - not plain and straightforward; devious

Mechanical - without thinking about what you are doing, especially because you do something often

Meddlesome - given to meddling (i.e., to interest oneself in what is not one's concern)

Melancholic - tending to depress the spirits; saddening

Meretricious - superficially significant; pretentious

Messy - extremely unpleasant or trying; slovenly

Miserable - causing extreme discomfort or unhappiness; being likely to discredit or shame

Miserly - marked by grasping meanness and penuriousness

Misguided - led or prompted by wrong or inappropriate motives or ideals

Mistaken - wrong in what you believe, or based on a belief that is wrong

Monstrous - having the qualities of a monster (i.e., a threatening force; of unnatural or extreme wickedness or cruelty)

Moody - subject to moods; temperamental

Morbid - abnormally susceptible to or characterized by gloomy or unwholesome feelings

Muddleheaded - mentally confused; bungling

Naive - deficient in worldly wisdom or informed judgment; credulous

Narcissistic - of, relating to, or characterized by narcissism (i.e., egoism, egocentrism); e.g., extremely self-centered with an exaggerated sense of self-importance

Narrow - illiberal in views or disposition; prejudiced

Narrow-minded - not willing to accept opinions, beliefs, behaviors, etc. that are unusual or different from one's own; not open-minded

Negativistic - having an attitude of mind marked by skepticism especially about nearly everything affirmed by others

Neglectful - given to neglecting; careless, heedless

Neurotic - behaving strangely or in an anxious way, often because one has a mental illness

Nihilistic - holding a viewpoint that traditional values and beliefs are unfounded and that existence is senseless and useless

Obnoxious - odiously or disgustingly objectionable; highly offensive

Obsessive - excessive often to an unreasonable degree

Obvious - very noticeable especially for being incorrect or bad

Odd - differing markedly from the usual, ordinary, or accepted

Offhand - done or made offhand (i.e., without premeditation or preparation; extempore)

One-dimensional - lacking depth or complexity; superficial

One-sided - limited to one side; partial

Opinionated - firmly or unduly adhering to one's own opinion or to preconceived notions

Opportunistic - taking advantage of opportunities as they arise (e.g., exploiting opportunities with little regard to principle or consequences)

Oppressed - burdened by abuse of power or authority

Outrageous - violent, unrestrained; going beyond all standards of what is right or decent; deficient in propriety

Overimaginative - excessively imaginative (e.g., devoid of truth)

Paranoid - characterized by suspiciousness, persecutory trends, or megalomania; extremely fearful

Passive - lacking in energy or will; lethargic

Pedantic - narrowly, stodgily, and often ostentatiously learned

Perverse - turned away from what is right or good; corrupt

Petty - marked by or reflective of narrow interests and sympathies; small-minded

Pharisaical - marked by hypocritical censorious self-righteousness

Phlegmatic - having or showing a slow and stolid temperament

Plodding - proceed slowly or tediously

Pompous - having or exhibiting self-importance; arrogant

Possessive - manifesting possession or the desire to own or dominate

Predatory - inclined or intended to injure or exploit others for personal gain or profit

Prejudiced - resulting from or having a prejudice or bias for or especially against

Presumptuous - overstepping due bounds (as of propriety or courtesy)

Pretentious - characterized by pretension (e.g., making usually unjustified or excessive claims)

Prim - stiffly formal and proper; decorous; prudish

Procrastinating - habitually and/or intentionally putting off the doing of something that should be done

Profligate - wildly extravagant; shamelessly immoral

Provocative - serving or tending to provoke, excite, or stimulate

Pugnacious - having a quarrelsome or combative nature; truculent

Puritanical - : of, relating to, or characterized by a rigid morality

Reactionary - relating to, marked by, or favoring reaction; especially: ultraconservative in politics

Reactive - done in immediate response to something especially without thinking or planning

Regimental - of or relating to a regiment; dictatorial

Regretful - full of regret (i.e., sorrow aroused by circumstances beyond one's control or power to repair)

Repentant - experiencing repentance (i.e., the action or process of repenting especially for misdeeds or moral shortcomings)

Repressed - characterized by restraint

Resentful - full of resentment; inclined to resent (i.e., to feel or express annoyance or ill will at)

Ridiculous - arousing or deserving ridicule; extremely silly or unreasonable; absurd, preposterous

Rigid - inflexibly set in opinion

Ritualistic - stressing the use of ritual forms; adhering to or devoted to ritualism

Rowdy - coarse or boisterous in behavior; rough

Ruined - bankrupt, impoverished; devastated

Sadistic - taking pleasure in the infliction of pain, punishment, or humiliation on others

Sanctimonious - hypocritically pious or devout

Scheming - given to forming schemes; devious

Scornful - full of scorn; contemptuous (i.e., manifesting, feeling, or expressing deep hatred or disapproval)

Secretive - disposed to secrecy; not open or outgoing in speech, activity, or purposes

Sedentary - lazy; not doing or involving a lot of physical activity

Selfish - concerned excessively or exclusively with oneself

Self-indulgent - excessive or unrestrained gratification of one's own appetites, desires, or whims

Shallow - lacking in depth of knowledge, thought, or feeling

Shortsighted - lacking foresight

Shy - sensitively diffident or retiring; reserved

Silly - exhibiting or indicative of a lack of common sense or sound judgment; frivolous

Single-minded - having one driving purpose or resolve; determined, dedicated

Sloppy - slovenly, careless; disagreeably effusive (i.e., marked by the expression of great or excessive emotion or enthusiasm)

Slow - lacking in readiness, promptness, or willingness

Sly - lightly mischievous; roguish; furtive; dissembling

Softheaded - having or indicative of a weak, unrealistic, or uncritical mind

Sordid - marked by baseness or grossness; vile; meanly avaricious; covetous

Steely - harsh and threatening in manner or appearance

Stiff - stubborn, unyielding; harsh, severe

Strong-willed - very determined to do something even if other people say it should not be done

Stupid - marked by or resulting from unreasoned thinking or acting; senseless; vexatious, exasperating

Submissive - submitting (i.e., to yield oneself to the authority or will of another; surrender) to others

Superficial - concerned only with the obvious or apparent; shallow

Superstitious - of, relating to, or swayed by superstition (i.e., a notion maintained despite evidence to the contrary)

Suspicious - disposed to suspect; distrustful

Tactless - marked by lack of tact (i.e., a keen sense of what to do or say in order to maintain good relations with others or avoid offense)

Tasteless - having no taste; insipid; dull

Tense - feeling or showing nervous tension

Thievish - given to stealing

Thoughtless - lacking concern for others; inconsiderate; reckless

Timid - lacking in courage or self-confidence

Treacherous - likely to betray trust; unreliable

Trendy - marked by ephemeral, superficial, or faddish appeal or taste

Troublesome - difficult, burdensome; giving trouble or anxiety; vexatious

Unappreciative - not giving recognition or thanks for something

Uncaring - lacking proper sympathy, concern, or interest

Uncharitable - lacking in charity; severe in judging; harsh

Unconvincing - not convincing; implausible

Uncooperative - marked by an unwillingness or inability to work with others

Uncreative - lacking originality of thought; not productive of new ideas

Uncritical - showing lack or improper use of critical standards or procedures

Unctuous - having, revealing, or marked by a smug, ingratiating, and false earnestness or spirituality

Undisciplined - lacking in discipline or self-control

Unfriendly - not friendly (e.g., hostile, unsympathetic; inhospitable, unfavorable)

Ungrateful - showing no gratitude; making a poor return

Unhealthy - of a harmful nature; morally contaminated

Unimaginative - having or showing a lack of imagination or originality

Unimpressive - not attracting or deserving particular attention, admiration, or interest

Unlovable - incapable of inspiring love or admiration; not having attractive or appealing qualities

Unpolished - not polished (i.e., characterized by a high degree of development, finish, or refinement)

Unprincipled - lacking moral principles; unscrupulous

Unrealistic - not realistic; inappropriate to reality or fact

Unreflective - unthinking, heedless

Unreliable - undependable, untrustworthy

Unrestrained - immoderate, uncontrolled

Unstable - wavering in purpose or intent; vacillating; characterized by lack of emotional control

Vacuous - marked by lack of ideas or intelligence; inane

Vague - not thinking or expressing one's thoughts clearly or precisely; vacant

Venal - originating in, characterized by, or associated with corrupt bribery

Venomous - spiteful, malevolent

Vindictive - intended to cause anguish or hurt; spiteful; vengeful

Vulnerable - open to attack or damage; assailable

Weak - not firmly decided; not factually grounded or logically presented; ineffective, impotent

Weak-willed - not having the determination that is needed to continue with a difficult course of action

Willful - obstinately and often perversely self-willed

Wishful - according with wishes rather than reality

Zany - strange, surprising, or uncontrolled in a humorous way

Sources: 1 2 3 ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[owlwithanapple]

Eternal Engagement Chapter 03

Cowardice and stubbornness

During breakfast, phone rings in a corner of Wayne manor. There's a call. But Alfred has gone out to buy some food. The phone keeps ringing, thinking that if it's an emergency or something unexpected happens, there's really no other way but for you to answer it.

You follow the direction of the sound, approach it and answer it. Before you can say hello, Damian's voice comes from the phone, "Pennyworth, bring me the suit in my closet, the dark one, remember."

"Huh?! Wait a minute, Damian—" Before you tell him a word, the phone beeps, indicating that it has been hung up.

Alfred hasn't come back yet, Damian's tone seems urgent. You feel nervous outside his bedroom door, feel a desolate breath coming from the door. You wonder if he will be angry that you broke into his room without permission. You shake head and take a deep breath. You are Superman's daughter, what are you afraid of?

Turning the doorknob and opening the door with a click, you can see the neat and orderly bedroom at a glance. The desk is full of business folders related to Wayne Enterprises, each with a lot of information, he has put a lot of effort into it. As expected of the heir of the Wayne family, you don't go near the desk to avoid messing it up.

Opening the closet, you are confused. What the hell are these things? All the neat suits are hung inside, but most of them are dark. What exactly is the dark color he is talking about? Does it mean that the inner wear is dark, the outer wear is dark, or both are dark? What is the style of Damian Wayne's clothes? It's hard to tell the difference. You should reflect on yourself and read more fashion magazines.

You touch each piece with hand and feel the texture is very comfortable, each piece has a light fragrance. You take a suit jacket to smell, a light woody fragrance that is not pungent permeates. It smells so good... Wait! Why did you do something perverted?! You quickly put the suit jacket back to its place, almost forgetting the main purpose.

When you woke up, he had followed Bruce to work. Don't know what his style today, white or dark inner wear, have no idea. If Alfred is here, maybe he will choose the right one with his eyes closed. Ignore it, you choose a dark gray suit jacket, a white shirt and a black tie.

You carefully put them neatly into the clothing bag, zip it up and seal it to prevent damage. Next, you have to change your clothes. Bruce and Damian's dressing style is the image role model of Wayne Enterprises. You took out phone and searched for women's wear, the results showed that you were surprised.

You usually wear casual clothes such as tights, sports jackets, tight jeans and sneakers. You have no experience in this kind of dressing, elegant dresses and exquisite and fashionable shoes. You take a deep breath, you can't lose face of Wayne's family, this time you go all out.

Go back to your bedroom and open the closet immediately. Great, there are a few dresses and high heels that Bruce gave you before. It's the first time to try this kind of style, very nervous for no reason. Jon will be shocked to faint on the spot when he sees it, always saying that his sister doesn't like to dress up.

You dress up simply, wearing a white knee-length dress and black low-heeled retro shoes. Open the drawer to find jewelry to wear, and the first thing you see is the ring box with the engagement ring. Damian always wears it on his finger, but you don't. You think about it and decide to wear it this time.

Arriving at Wayne Enterprises —

You stepped into Wayne Enterprises with clothing bag. The exaggerated outdoor and indoor styles are surrounded by busy office workers. It is a place full of vitality and busyness. You saw the receptionist at the front desk just handling business. She put down her phone and typed on the keyboard.

You gathered courage walked forward with clothing bag. You tapped fingers on her desk. She heard it and cast eyes on you. She stood up with a smiles and said tactfully, "Excuse me, is there anything I can help you with? Or do you have any appointments?"

"I'm here to deliver clothes for Mr. Damian." You pointed at the clothing bag.

She raised eyebrows and cast a suspicious look. "I'm sorry that I can't accommodate strangers. It's usually delivered by Mr. Pennyworth. Please go back."

You understand her position, but know from the phone call just now that Damian is in a hurry. "How about you help me deliver it to him? He is in a hurry."

She bowed politely and shook her head. "I'm so sorry, I can't make an exception."

She sat back and continued to work. You sighed but saw the engagement ring. You were Superman's daughter and Damian Wayne's fiancée. You should be confident instead of shrinking like a puppy.

You tapped to attract her attention again. When she wanted to repeat what she just said, you said without hesitation, "Please tell Damian Wayne that his fiancée is here. The name is Y/N Kent."

She was surprised before could start to say anything, you found a seat by the window and sat down. She was stunned for a moment when saw you were not leaving. She had no choice but to call Damian's office. Unintentionally, your super hearing was awakened again, could hear the voices and conversations in the entire building, including the receptionist who was making a call.

"Sorry to bother you, there is a woman who says she is your fiancée who wants to see you. Her name is Y/N Kent." Damian hung up the phone without replying just after she finished speaking. You trembled and clenched your hands, thinking, is he angry?

A few minutes later, your super hearing disappeared again. You pinched earlobe and sighed, why did your superpowers always exist intermittently. The receptionist kept staring at you with a suspicious. The elevator door opened, and Damian walked out. People around him greeted and bowed politely.

The receptionist pointed at you, immediately stood up from your seat and held the bag tightly, nervousness emerging. Damian looked at you was stunned for a second. Your style of dress was completely different from before. If it weren't for the long dark black hair and sea blue eyes, he almost failed to recognize you.

You walked slowly noticed there were traces of coffee on his suit jacket. No wonder he was so anxious to ask Alfred to deliver it. You nervously handed him the bag in your hand, "This is for you. Alfred is not at home. I delivered it as soon as I received the call, but I don't know if this is the one you want..."

He fixed his eyes on the engagement ring, a sense of satisfaction filled his heart. Then there was your dress. He had never seen you dressed so exquisitely. For a moment, the word he thought of was charming. You tilted head curiously because he kept staring at you without saying anything.

You looked down, wondering if your outfit was weird or didn't meet the requirements. He reached out and gently lifted your chin with his fingers to let you look at him. He smiled proudly, "Be more confident, don't look down."

"Oh...." You murmured, he took the bag from you.

Under everyone's attention, he took your hand and led you to the elevator, which quickly went up to his office floor. He took out the access card scanned the door, which opened automatically. It was the first time you stepped into this place, you couldn't help but look around, feeling very cool. He immediately took off his suit jacket and put it on the chair. There was a little trace of coffee on his white inner wear.

He opened the bag took out the dark grey suit jacket, white shirt and black tie you chose. He looked at you with his emerald eyes and raised his eyebrows said, "Did you choose it?"

You nodded slightly and said awkwardly, "Yes, does it not meet your requirements?"

"I didn't say it, don't always overthink about it. I'll go to the back to change, you wait there." He quickly left the office and walked to the bathroom.

You sat in a comfortable chair and waited, suddenly someone opened the door and it was Bruce who walked in. He said with a very serious expression, "Damian, I handed you the documents - eh? Y/N, why are you here? Why are you dressed like this?"

You immediately stood up, "Uncle Alfred is not at home, I brought Damian a change of clothes."

"Wow, that's thoughtful. If I remember correctly, this dress of yours is-" Bruce stared at the dress on you with a smug smile.

"Shut up, father. Don't say unnecessary words." Damian appeared from behind. He had already changed into the clothes you chose. He was adjusting his tie and sleeves.

All the dresses and shoes in your bedroom closet in Wayne manor were not given by Bruce. They were bought by Damian in various countries during his business trips. He is a tsundere, as Dick said, who is stubborn and takes care of his dignity. You didn't know that Damian picked them for you. You mistakenly thought they were given by Bruce.

"Not bad, quite handsome. You have good taste in matching clothes for your future husband." Bruce leaned over looked Damian up and down chuckled.

Damian put the coffee-stained suit jacket and shirt into the bag zipped it up and sealed it. When you reached out to take it, he unexpectedly held your hand and intertwined your fingers. "Father, she and I are going out to have lunch."

He took the garment bag and pulled you out of his office, leaving Bruce alone in a daze. He couldn't help cover his mouth and laugh. He really couldn't get tired of Damian's stubborn personality. Bruce took out his phone secretly took a picture of the back of the two of you holding hands, then found Clark Kent's chat room to send the photo.

CK: Wow, they are making progress.

LL: Hmph! Damn Damian.

BW: Hahaha, give them some time.

CK: Has the little princess changed at all?

BW: Not yet, I will observe for a few more days.

BW: But... she is starting to gain confidence.

LL: Really?! Great! I was really worried that she would feel inferior because she doesn't have super powers.

CK: I believe in her, it just takes some time.

Cafe near Wayne Enterprises -

He parked the car and got out. When you unbuckled seat belt and were about to get out, he opened the passenger door leaned over extend his hand to you. The sun's rays shone on the earth. His emerald eyes looked so clear when you looked at them closely. His height and broad shoulders were enough to block the sun for you. You felt the hand extended to you. If you hadn't held his hand, you really wouldn't have noticed that his hand was so big and warm.

You two have known each other for so long, playing together. At the beginning, he was shorter than you and Jon, but now he has caught up with Jon in height, you still haven't grown taller. When you stand next to him, you are only as tall as his shoulders. The little Robin at the beginning has transformed from a boy into a man. And you are becoming more inferior because you are entangled in the fact that don't have superpowers. You are trapped in the abyss and not as cheerful optimistic as before.

Wonder Damian willing to see your optimistic side now...

You pouted to show dissatisfaction with his height. He raised eyebrows and put his hands on the car door. "What's that expression on your face? Are you dissatisfied with me?"

"You are too tall. Why are you and Jon so tall? What do you eat?" You tilted head and stared at his face, then moved your eyes to his tie.

He raised eyebrows and smiled, not mocking but happy. It has been a long time since he has seen you with this personality. Finally, he has waited for this moment. The naughty and noisy little girl back then. He stretched out hand and ran his finger across the tip of your nose. "Drink more milk, do more exercise, and reduce inferiority complex."

"You are so annoying." You rolled your eyes and moved your eyes to his chest instead of looking directly at him.

"Always." He smiled arrogantly.

You lowered eyes. "Just now, the super hearing appeared again..."

"Really...? Is there anything else abnormal?" He asked, leaning against the car door.

You shook head to indicate no, he sighed silently. He closed the car door walked into the cafe, leaving you alone in the car. A few minutes later, the driver's door opened, he got in the car handed you a bag with cakes in it. He closed the car door and leaned back in his seat with a cup of coffee in his hand, which he put into his mouth and tasted carefully.

"I just contacted Pennyworth, when you return to the manor, go to the batcave immediately. I arranged for him to set up the Meta-Analyzer to test your body." He pinched his nose and fell into deep thought, with a very serious attitude.

"Meta-Analyzer... I didn't have any conclusion at the time." You murmured.

"Maybe there will be changes, or do you not believe in yourself?" He focused his eyes on your face, his tone seemed to hit you but not with bad words.

You opened mouth and closed it again, you were very nervous. Afraid that the conclusion would be the same, but you can't go on like this. As he said, don't be inferior anymore, you are very tired. You showed a firm look and told him, "I believe in myself."

He curled his lips smiled and nodded slightly, "Very well, future Mrs. Wayne."

Late evening -

Damian had just got home from get off work, as soon as he parked his car, Bruce was surprised his son immediately opened the car door and rushed into the manor. He quickly went to the batcave, when arrived, he took off suit jacket, rolled up his sleeves to expose his arms and untied his tie to show his collarbone, and threw it all aside.

"Pennyworth, where is she?" He approached the batcomputer.

"Master Damian, I have handled it as you ordered, she is currently resting in the bedroom." Alfred stood aside and said silently, pouring tea into his cup.

He nodded to show that he understood, cast his eyes on the batcomputer and sat down in the chair immediately, his fingers began to tap the keyboard non-stop, the large screen displayed your test data, and complex chart analysis was displayed at once. Bruce arrived at the batcave and saw Alfred picking up Damian's suit jacket and tie, Damian's eyes were focused on the content displayed on the screen.

After about an hour, he finally sorted out all the analysis and memorized it in his mind. Bruce stood behind him, leaning aside and looking at the big screen. "What's changed?"

"Beyond imagination, it's no longer a mortal's physique. It's the same as Jon's conclusion, the only difference is that her superpowers haven't erupted." Damian leaned back in his chair and sighed silently, tapping the keyboard with his fingers.

Bruce fell into deep thought. "Damian, I've always been curious, are you saying bad things to her to increase her negative emotions in order to force her to use her superpowers?"

Damian, who was drinking tea, trembled in his hands, he didn't answer but chose to remain silent.

"Damian, you can show that you care about her, you don't need to hide it. You are no longer in the League of Assassins now, you can be more-." Bruce gently pressed on his shoulder to try to comfort him.

There was an echo of Damian putting down the cup in the Batcave. He was calm but very nervous inside. He looked at Bruce lowered his eyes with a bitter expression. "Father, I understand your concerns. But what I want to do now is to stimulate her superpowers and rebuild her previous confidence. That's all."

Damian got up from the chair and walked past Bruce. Bruce grabbed his arm to stop him. "Damian, let her step into your life. You want her."

He touched Bruce's hand gently pushed it away. He remained calm and slowly looked at Bruce sighed helplessly. "Father, I'll go to training first."

His footsteps echoed clearly in the batcave, Alfred put his hand on Bruce's shoulder remained silent. Bruce no choice to guide him silently. Maybe one day when Damian is willing to open his heart, things will get better, especially the confusion of both of you.

"Alfred, prepare coffee for me. I need to tell Clark about Y/N's physical changes." He sat down leaned back in the chair. To distract himself from his worries about Damian, his fingers kept tapping the keyboard.

Alfred prepared the coffee put it aside and handed the phone to Bruce. After calling Clark, he told him everything he knew. Clark was of course happy for you when he heard the news, but at the same time, a worry emerged. Although you have superhuman genes, your superpowers are still a mystery.

The Batcave was filled with the sounds of panting and punching. As Bruce was talking to Clark, he noticed through the screen that another surveillance camera was watching Damian in training. His breathing was rapid, movements were a bit messy, and his batarang holding position was not standard. The conversation just now made him uneasy.

"Master Damian is not in good condition today." Alfred stood aside and said frankly.

"Let him be, he is no longer the boy who rushed around." Alfred's frankness was true. Bruce replied calmly continued to discuss your superpowers with Clark, but his eyes would still stay on the big screen.

"Perhaps it was the influence brought by Ms. Talia and the League of Assassins." Alfred's emotionless words made Bruce ponder the past.

Clark was still talking to Bruce on the phone, but distracted and ignored Clark's words. Looking at the big screen with a sharp gaze, a trace of worry surged into his mind. Even if the two were a father and son, he didn't understand Damian thoroughly enough.

"Clark...Did Jon and Y/N have any moments that made you feel helpless?" Bruce revealed the confusion he wanted to express in bitterness.

Clark on the phone fell into silence, thinking for a few seconds to find the right words to guide Bruce "Every moment is helpless. From the time held a little baby in hand until now..."

"Is that so..." Bruce muttered with a sigh of relief.

"But since they choose to be our children, we should accept their growth. Maybe we are helpless, but this is the way to grow up." Clark was confused about this matter, but still maintained an optimistic attitude and expressed his inner thoughts.

"Thanks, Clark. I will learn more about the situation of your little princess, will inform you if there are any problems." Bruce hung up the phone after speaking.

The echo of the fists became clearer, the panting sound was still messy. Pound by pound, the fists hit the dummy with fierce momentum, like a beast gnawing at its prey. Damian kept venting his emotions and releasing confusion, the past in his mind seemed to reappear in his memories.

There was a memory that Damian returned to League Of Assassins, one of his hometowns and birthplaces. He once told his mother Talia about this marriage with you, but he did not get a blessing but Talia's harsh and unpleasant response, "Superman's daughter is your fiancée, well done, son. This is one of the new forces of the future League Of Assassins.

"Mother, what do you mean by this?" He clenched his fists and frowned at her.

"When did you become so stupid, don't you understand? Superman's genes are very strong, an invincible and powerful existence. You marry his daughter, and the new life you two will give birth to in the future will definitely be an indestructible miracle." Talia drew her sword and her delicate fingers touched the line and the tip of the string.

"Giving birth to new life..." He gritted his teeth a trace of anger surged up.

Talia pointed sword at Damian's chest and smiled, but deep in heart she was plotting like a snake. "Your father arranged the only right thing, a wise choice, Superman's daughter and Batman's son. The future League Of Assassins will be stronger, and your grandfather will be glorious."

Damian had a blank expression but was very annoyed. In a rage, he snatched Talia's sword pointed it at her neck. Talia took a step back remained alert. His emotions fluctuated, he swore words to his mother without hesitation, "I don't need her to give birth to any life for me, and this marriage is not for the future of League Of Assassins."

"You are so stupid. You are an assassin. Don't forget you have our blood in body. With such a powerful gene that will merge with you, you don't want to use this opportunity to change the fate of your offspring." Talia said to Damian sarcastically and arrogantly.

"I am also Robin, Batman's sidekick. Even my fiancée has strong genes, it doesn't mean that she needs to become a reproductive tool for the benefit of future generations." After playing with the sword, he threw it on the ground kicked it at Talia's feet, as if he was fearless.

Talia felt that she had said too much and didn't take his feelings into consideration, but in order to make the League of Assassins stronger, she couldn't bear to compromise because of her emotions and Damian was her son. "If I had known this, I shouldn't have let you follow your father. You become weak. If you and your father stood by me, our family would not be broken, we would be strong and indestructible."

"I am the grandson of Ra's al Ghul, the son of you and Bruce Wayne. It is my decision who to follow. And my engagement with her is a matter between the two of us. It is not for anyone else, no one can tell us what to do." Damian retorted her mercilessly.

"Damian al Ghul, you will regret it. She will become our property in the future, and so will you. You two can't escape the fate of the League of Assassins, no matter how invincible you are." Talia glared at him, her words were full of a strong sense of mission and meaningful meaning.

"I will take it as your blessing. Goodbye, mother. I will come again. I hope you don't have anything to do with my life and hers. Damian curled his lips, turned around and walked towards the exit to leave the world full of blood.

Talia stood there watched her son leave, her long dark brown hair fluttering in the wind. She clenched fists and looked at him fiercely, cursing, "Oh my son, Bruce my beloved. You two are as stupid as a little bat hiding in a cave, too weak to be saved."

A stinging feeling brought Damian back to reality from the nightmare memory. You were bandaging the wound on his fist. He did not refuse your touch, but waited quietly for you to treat his bloody fist. You applied a thick layer of cream on his fist and then fixed it with a bandage.

"Thanks. Pennyworth will take care of it, you don't have to do this." The first thing he did was to take back his hand, put the engagement ring on the chain and put it on. Then he stroked his fist with his hand and drew circles on the bandaged part.

You were puzzled by his habit of never taking off his engagement ring, but didn't ask him the reason. You felt a little happy , as if he valued this engagement very much. "Uncle Bruce and Uncle Alfred are busy, I came to the batcave saw you sitting here in a daze..."

"Is that so? Thinking about something, bad memories..." He scratched his head.

You took a towel gently wiped the sweat from his forehead. He shuddered thought you wanted to attack him, because the memory just now made him more alert. But you didn't attack, just wiped his sweat, you murmured "Do you want to tell me? Maybe you will feel better?"

He glanced at you with a thorn in his words "It has nothing to do with you, don't worry about it."

You felt that his attitude indicated that he didn't want to continue the discussion, you nodded slightly to show that you understood. When you were about to leave, he pulled you into his arms, you sat on his lap. He held your waist tightly with both hands, your back leaned against his chest, his face buried on your shoulders. A wave of tension came over you , and his breath on your skin made you feel itchy.

"Damian?? What's wrong with you?" You said with a tremor in your voice.

Recalling what Talia said, he didn't dare to tell you what his mother said. He didn't dare to imagine that he and you had fallen to that state, creating nightmares for him to give birth to life. He didn't need you to give birth to life for him and League Of Assassins, he just wanted you to be happy, but he couldn't say these words "I'm fine, stay like this for a while, okay?"

You glanced at him over your shoulder and nodded silently, holding his arm around your waist with both hands to give him a little comfort "Okay."

— Chapter 3 The End —

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[8housevenus]

sun sign & your charm

aries sun - you are charming in your assertion to your passions. you have such strong sense of direction and you reek of ambition. your ability to go after your hustles is admirable by others. you exude a natural confidence in your mannerisms. you appear almost as if you have no fears. people find you reliable and often look to you to get something done, they know you make a way out of no way. you are overcomers and overachievers. you have a striking aura and others can see that you know exactly what you want, your intentions are always visible because you express your heart's desires with no intent of backing down. good at holding your own and standing up for yourself as well as others. your charm can be intimidating, but respectable, nonetheless.

taurus sun - you are charming in your mannerisms, the way you put so much time and effort into your physical appearance is admirable. you take care of your wellbeing and your physicality. well-kept and tidy, you are a creative heart and pick up on your environment pretty well. it's easy for others to feel close to you or comfortable around you. very receptive and grounded; you are a visionary but also a realist. people often think you have more than you do, you convey a rich and clean energy about you. your politeness takes you a long way through life.

gemini sun - your charm stems from your words. it's what you say and how you say it that makes others feel so connected to you. you are slick, quick-minded, and find it easier to talk to anybody. your ability to improvise is admirable, you seem very comfortable in your expressions, and you learn something new from others while they learn something from you at the same time. the way you are able to be so loose and intelligent, you are very blessed with being able to go from rational and serious to fun and sarcastic. you are very good at mirroring qualities and finding ways to illuminate yours in your environment.

cancer sun - your charm stems from your vulnerability. your ability to analyze situations, pick up on others' emotions, and create a comfortable space to others is very admirable. you find ease in expressing your feelings and it is a very likable quality about you. you can relate to anybody and empathize very well. good at listening to others and articulating difficult feelings into words. you tend to be more private as an individual, but you don't mind stepping outside of your zone when somebody needs a shoulder to cry on or lay their head to laugh with. your familiarity to others generates warmth and ease.

leo sun - your charm comes from your inner-light, whenever you are doing what you love, you have a brightness that exudes from you. people love to see you happy, because you uplift others in the same sense. you have a youthful energy that helps you alleviate your emotional levels. the night is always so young with you, and as long as you're in the same vicinity as everyone else, they're able to get hype. you are good at building an experience for yourself and others, bringing attention naturally is one of your best qualities. you seem raw, self-made, and egotistical in a very commendable way. the way you put yourself first, others take a lot of inspiration from it.

virgo sun - you are charming from your discipline. you seem super put together, orderly, and resilient. the way you have a calm and collected demeanor is well-liked. your style is more modest, and you are liked for your honesty & cooperation. others can always ask you for your honest opinion and you can always tell it how it is. you're witty, friendly, and value order in your life. others can see that you are goal oriented and stay busy. not only that, but you are very giving in your environment. you can do workloads, and still feel like you can contribute more. people really admire all that you can do for yourself.

libra sun - your charm comes from your magnetic demeanor and aesthetic. your sense of individuality is very polarizing. you are a catch to many people who you come across. your fixations in your personal hobbies are admirable, and you maintain yourself very well. your need for order and balance is obvious, as you love to hyper fixate on appearing perfect sometimes. people like that you are vigilant to your physical appearance, always keeping a polished image. others take inspiration from your niches.

scorpio sun - your charm stems from your intensity. your willingness to trust your adrenaline rushes to bring you to the finish line, you are private and powerful in an admirable way. others can just look you in the eye and feel like there's a mystery that needs to be uncovered about you. being unknown and confident is what others find charming about you, many secret admirers, yet you probably already know this. strong-minded and analytical, you have an impeccable emotional drive.

sagittarius sun - you are charming from your optimism. the way you naturally get lucky in so many departments, others find very amusing about you. you try new things without many attachments and love growing in new areas. straightforward and honest, you are wise and seek new forms of abundance. you love to change and others find it very respectable about you. you take risks and accept failures much better than most, which is what ultimately helps you get back on your feet again. you can alleviate and humor situations, very lighthearted and easy to like by others.

capricorn sun - your charm comes from your success. from a young age, you have always been seen as successful or conquerors of struggle. you have a serious and more resilient mannerism about you; however it is respectable by others because you navigate life with the intention of elevating to bigger levels. others feel like you are set for life. your mental agility to think things through and evaluate what others want from you is a strong quality that represents you. you're reliable, premeditated, and structured-well. others admire your approach to any form of work and how prompt you are to finish endeavors compared to anybody else.

aquarius sun - you are charming from your differences. others see you as a gamechanger in humanity, you bring new shifts and ideas to the table. your ability to change the dynamics of your environment is admirable about you, you are able to break free from patterns and cycles much easier than others. you have strong individuality and have a good understanding of life and other aspects of it. the way you can really affect the trajectory of long-lasting traditions is commendable. people like you because you always aim for the betterment of others and yourself.

pisces sun - you're charming in your knowledge. you accumulate so much just from your intuition and interactions. others find you very needed in their environment, because you bring a sense of knowing that not even, they can grasp. you are naturals in your art and understanding your psyche. others admire how trustable you are and your diplomacy to the spaces you enter. the way you can base your decisions off of just your feelings is more powerful than you think, it is a gift that you can back yourself better than others. you are fueled by creativity and imagination; other people love your wishful thinking and your mediative energy.

[darlingsblackbook]

Professor!Nanami x Student!Reader

College AU

Jujustu Kaisen Masterlist

I | Nanami is the calm, well-dressed, no-nonsense literature professor who commands attention the moment he walks into the lecture hall. His voice is steady and rich, and his tailored suits are always perfect—never a hair out of place. You sit near the middle row, always quietly attentive, notebook full of meticulous notes.

II | Nanami notices you early in the semester—not because you speak up (you rarely do), but because of how intent your eyes are when you listen. While others drift off, your gaze never wavers, and it unsettles him in a way he doesn't quite understand.

III | You avoid eye contact when Nanami looks in your direction. Your cheeks heat up whenever he addresses the class near your side. The moment he asks, “Any thoughts?” your pen suddenly becomes the most interesting object in the world.

IV | Nanami calls on you once, gently, hoping to encourage participation. You stammer through your thoughts, face burning, but your insight is sharp and quietly brilliant. He nods with a small smile. “Excellent observation.” You don’t hear a word of the next ten minutes because your heart won’t stop pounding.

V | Nanami starts leaving encouraging comments on your papers. They’re brief but thoughtful—“Insightful interpretation.” “Strong analysis here.” It’s enough to make you carry the papers home like they’re delicate relics.

VI | You sometimes linger after class to ask questions, nervously fidgeting with your sleeves. Nanami answers with patience and clarity, his eyes never leaving yours. One day, he asks, “Have you considered pursuing writing?” You nod shyly. “I think you’d be very good at it.”

VII | Nanami is hyperaware of boundaries. He never crosses a line, never favors, never flirts. But he does start noticing little things—how you hold your coffee with both hands when you're nervous, how you blink quickly when overwhelmed. He doesn’t mean to notice. He just does.

VIII | You catch yourself doodling Nanami Kento in the margins of your notebook once. You immediately scribble over it like a crime scene. You can’t help it—he’s intelligent, composed, deeply kind. And devastatingly attractive. It’s unfair, really.

IX | One rainy day, you forget your umbrella. You’re standing at the building entrance, unsure, when a dark shadow falls beside you. Nanami holds his umbrella out. “You’ll get sick,” he says simply, offering to walk you to the bus stop. You walk in silence, barely breathing the whole way.

X | Your classmates start teasing you. “He always looks at your row first.” “I swear he only compliments your essays.” You deny it fervently, but inside, your heart dances.

XI | Nanami assigns a project with optional office hours. You build up the courage to schedule a time. His office smells like cedar and coffee. Books line the shelves, orderly and warm. You talk about your paper for ten minutes, but stay an extra twenty just… discussing poetry. You’ve never felt more seen.

XII | Nanami gives you a book at the end of the semester. It’s a vintage copy, worn but cared for. Inside the front cover, he’s written a note: For someone who sees what others miss. Keep writing. You hold it like it’s sacred.

XIII | At graduation, Nanami finds you in the crowd. His smile is rare and soft. “You’ve done well.” You whisper your thanks, unsure if you’ll ever see him again. That thought stings more than you expect.

XIV | Months later, you bump into Kento in a quiet bookstore. You’re both surprised. You laugh awkwardly. He offers to buy you coffee, “as two adults, no longer bound by rules.” You agree, heart thudding, and this time you’re able to look him in the eye.

XV | Over coffee, the conversation flows. Kento tells you he always looked forward to your essays. You tell him he made you believe you had a voice. There’s silence for a beat… then he says softly, “If I were to ask to see you again, would you find that inappropriate?”

English is not my first language, I apologize for any errors. Feel free to point them out! Also, I did not go to college in America- the schooling system where I live is very different and people here barely understand it, so nvm from other countries 💀 I tried to base it off the American system but I used series as a guide lmao. So beware of inaccuracies lol.

All Rights Reserved © 2025 DarlingBlackBook

[badkitty3000]

Partners

Five Hargreeves x Female Reader, 5.8k words, one-shot, request

Summary: You and Five are Commission long-standing partners/frenemies. You think he's a pretentious asshole and he thinks you're a pain in the ass. One day you decide you've had enough and show him how good of a partner you really are.

This is from an anon request I received! Enjoy! 😽

Warnings: Smut, blow jobs, sex, plot what plot

The papers on your desk fluttered wildly as Five slammed his palms down, leaning over with bared teeth.

“What the fuck is your problem?” he seethed.

You knew this would happen, of course. Getting under Five’s skin was just a normal part of your work day by now. As you casually reached over, gathering up the papers he had upset and calmly stacking them in an orderly fashion again, you blinked up at him with a bored expression.

“Well, I’m not sure, Five. I guess that would depend on what has got your panties in a twist today.”

Your insult did nothing to faze him. “You are supposed to be my partner!”

“I am your partner, Five. At least until they finally accept my transfer request.”

He slammed his hands harder onto the desk. This time, you flinched.

“We are supposed to be a team!”

You sighed and leaned back in your chair. “Five, I honestly have no idea what you are talking about. So, why don’t you quit having your little temper tantrum here and tell me what I did.”

Five leaned in further across the desk, into your personal space. You could see the quiver of his jaw muscles as he stared you down. “Not only did you submit our last case report without consulting me, you called me ‘incompetent’ and ‘dangerous to the mission’.”

You nodded your head slowly. “Yes, I did.”

“Why?”

“Because you were incompetent and dangerous to the mission. I’m not sure how much clearer I can be.”

Five laughed quietly but ominously, hanging his head down before lifting it again. His eyes met yours with a thousand watts of pure ire behind them. “I’m not the one that can’t hit a target smaller than a fucking semi-truck. So, if anyone is incompetent, honey, it’s you.”

“There is nothing wrong with my abilities. Maybe if you weren’t going around with your head shoved up your own ass all the time, you’d realize that. You know, you’re not as special as you think you are, Five. Not everyone is below you.”

“I don’t think everyone is below me. Just you.”

You smirked and crossed your arms over your chest, pushing your breasts together with your arms to accentuate your cleavage that was peeking out from under your white blouse. “I bet you love picturing me below you.”

Five straightened up and ran a hand through his hair, the corners of his mouth twitching up. “Don’t flatter yourself. I’m not that desperate yet.”

“But you admit you are desperate?” you asked, folding your hands in front of you on the desk.

You had flustered him and he was at a loss for words for just a moment, which was a rarity when it came to Five. Then he stabbed the air with his finger, aiming in your direction.

“Look, we have another job tomorrow, and it’s a big one. I don’t need any distractions, so just shut up and stay out of my way, got it?”

“That’s no way to talk to your partner, Five. We’re supposed to be a team,” you said, your voice laden with sugary sweetness.

He gave you that dangerous smile again. The one that always got your blood pumping a little faster, although not from fear. He leaned in again, and you could smell little hints of what you had now come to think of as “Five’s scent profile.” Hints of cologne, coffee, and expensive wool. Like some high-end men’s clothing store.

“You’re right. But unfortunately for me, my partner doesn’t know her ass from a hole in the ground.”

You blinked up at him, the corner of your mouth turning up. “There you go again… thinking about my ass. I really should report you to human resources for sexual harassment, you know.”

“Stay out of my way,” he ground out between clenched teeth, before disappearing from your sight, the brief breeze from his portal causing a stray piece of paper to float to the ground.

“Asshole,” you muttered to yourself as you straightened your desk again.

*****************

The next morning, you arrived at work bright and early. Five was right, the job you had was a big one, and you were a little on edge. You had been going over the file for the millionth time, making sure you hadn’t missed anything, while you walked down one of the Commission hallways on your way to the locker room. You had arrived early so that you could go to the gym first, and to work out some of your nerves. After a brief but intense work-out session, you were on your way to the showers and to change into your Commission-issued suit. With your head down as you rifled through the file, you weren’t paying attention as you opened the door to the locker room and headed in.

The room was empty, but you could hear water running in the shower area. Dropping the file folder and your gym bag onto the bench near a locker, you grabbed a clean towel off the rack and headed to the community showers. The Commission wasn’t known for its luxurious amenities, and the showers resembled more of a prison or high school than an elite time-traveling agency. There was one locker room for women and one for men, with all of the shower heads lined up on one wall so there was no privacy unless you happened to get lucky and get the place to yourself. Which, clearly you did not, since there was obviously someone in there already.

You sighed to yourself, thinking it was probably Brenda from accounting, who always got there early and loved to corner you and talk your ear off, regardless of whether you were clothed or not. You were already forming an excuse in your head as to why you were going to have to cut your conversation with her short.

As you turned the corner, though, you were met with a sight that was definitely not Brenda. It was Five. Showering. Naked.

Holy shit.

You realized, clearly a few minutes too late, that you had wandered into the men’s locker room when you hadn’t been paying attention. He appeared to be the only other person there, and he hadn’t noticed you yet. If you turned around and left right then, he would never know you were there.

But you couldn’t. You just kept staring. You would by lying to yourself if you said you had never thought of Five in a sexual way. It would be pretty hard not too. The man was gorgeous, there was no getting around that. The fact that he was a narcissistic, know-it-all, jackass didn’t do anything to cover up his sex appeal.

His back was turned to you with a hand on the wall in front of him, his head angled down as the water cascaded over his body. The muscles in his shoulders and back were well-defined and flexing as he pressed his palm into the tiled wall. The smooth curve of his ass, tight and toned, had you swallowing hard as you stood there, completely transfixed and unable to move. 

You watched as the river of water traveled over and between each perfectly sculpted cheek, and you had a sudden urge to lap the water droplets off with your tongue. A small gasp escaped your lips, and Five’s head lifted at the sound.

Panicking, you slipped back around the corner before he could turn around. You leaned with your back against the wall, trying to catch your breath. It was hard to say if you were breathing hard from almost being caught, or from the sight itself.

Snapping out of it, you hurried over to the bench where you had left your bag and file, and started to gather them up so you could get the hell out of there. But just as you turned to head out, you heard a noise behind you. 

“Did you get a good look, agent?”

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck

You thought about just high-tailing it out of there to avoid further embarrassment, but that would only fuel his smugness and you’d never hear the end of it. You slowly spun around, facing Five, who had thrown a towel around his waist, holding it in place with one hand while he smirked coolly at you. His body was still damp and he used his free hand to push his wet hair off his forehead. Your eyes roamed over his torso, taking in the multitude of scars, as well as his hard chest and abs. That arrogant smile of his widened when he noticed.

You tried your best to steady your voice and hold your head up, looking him directly in the eyes. “My mistake. I wasn’t looking where I was going and took a wrong turn. I was just heading out.”

“That’s the story you’re going with, huh?” he said, opening one of the lockers and rummaging around inside.

You were trying very hard not to think about what was going on under that towel, or the fact that the only thing holding it up was his hand. If it just so happened to slip… 

You shook your head to stop yourself from doing or saying anything you would undeniably regret. “Trust me, Five. Accidentally getting a glimpse of that pale, scrawny ass of yours was not on my schedule for today. Or any day, for that matter.”

He turned his head to look at you again. You were wearing your standard gym outfit of tight yoga pants and a sports bra, and you watched as Five’s eyes slowly drifted over your body. He appeared pleased with what he saw; the small smile returning to his face. You didn’t exactly mind him looking, either. 

There was an awkward silence as Five chose not to respond to your slight against his body. Probably because he knew you were lying. You two may not get along most of the time, but you were partners, and you knew each other’s tells pretty well. Like right now, you could see Five swallow hard and he ran a hand through his hair again. A sure sign that he was rattled.

He grabbed a stick of deodorant out of the locker. “So, are you going to stand here all day waiting to get another sneak peek?”

You made an overly dramatic scoffing noise. “You wish.”

As you turned around, you rolled your eyes at your lame comeback. You wish? What are you, twelve?

You didn’t turn around again, but you had a feeling he was watching you walk away. You did your best to put an extra little bounce in your step just to accentuate your ass a little more. He wasn’t the only one that could play this game.

An hour later, you were meeting up outside of the briefcase room, fully clothed this time, and looking over your assignment together. Five leaned in close to you as you both read over the file. Knowing now what he looked like under that suit had your concentration wavering. You cleared your throat and focused on the job.

“So, we can set up in the alleyway behind the warehouse. The target should be leaving the building across the street shortly after we arrive. Once we have him in our sight, we should be able to take him out from there. If not, we’ll have to move in closer. Hopefully, it won’t come to that, though,” Five instructed you.

You nodded. “Got it.”

“And I take the first shot. If I miss… highly unlikely… but if I miss, you immediately step in for the second shot.”

With a heavy sigh, you looked wearily over at your partner. “Yeah, I know, Five. You like to remind me of that before each job. And we’ve been on about 50 of them so far.”

“52, actually,” Five answered, still looking at the file.

“You keep track?”

“Of course I do. Don’t you?”

You shrugged your shoulders. “Not that closely, I guess. Why, should I?”

He looked up, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Don’t you want to keep track of every single moment spent with me?”

He was trying to be a smart ass, but you threw it back at him. “So by that logic, I guess that means you can’t get me out of your mind?”

“Please,” he scoffed, but you noticed he looked away for half a second. “Are you done being a snot? Can we go now?”

“After you, agent,” you said with a smile before you latched onto the briefcase Five was holding and the two of you were sucked into the ether of time and space.

You landed in the alleyway, just like you had planned. While Five scoped out the surrounding area to make sure the coast was clear, you unpacked and assembled your rifle. You held it up against your shoulder, peering through the scope. When you saw Five come around the corner, you aimed it so that his face was right in the crosshairs. He noticed and narrowed his eyes, but did not otherwise react. You thought you saw the glimmer of a smile in there, but it was gone before you could confirm.

“Everything looks good from my end,” you chirped.

“You know,” Five said, tucking his hands into his pockets and walking over to join you. “Pointing a loaded weapon directly at your partner’s face is, in fact, frowned upon.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Even if that partner is you?”

“Go fuck yourself,” Five snarked, but this time he really did let a smile slip out.

You returned it with your own and then handed Five the rifle. “Here you go. Since I know you don’t trust me.”

“You’re right about that.”

He took the rifle from you while you took another look out onto the street. As you glanced to the left, you saw a familiar face walking towards you. It was the face you had memorized from the file. The one who was supposed to be across the street and not leaving for another thirty minutes. And he was headed in your direction at a very clipped pace.

“Shit!” you hissed, turning to Five.

He rushed up to you and took a look for himself.

“God damn it, what is he doing?” Five asked angrily.

“Well, I don’t fucking know. This wasn’t part of the plan.”

“Yeah, no shit.”

“We’re going to have to follow him, but we can’t let him see us. He’s moving fast, though.”

“Fuck,” Five muttered out loud as he took a look around the alley. There was nowhere to hide, it was all open. If the guy came walking by and happened to look in that direction, he would see you for sure.

“Can’t you blink us out of here?” you asked him. He had done that before during assignments where you had to get out of a situation quickly.

He shook his head. “I can but then we’ll lose him. We have no idea where he’s headed.”

After another second, and the man’s footsteps growing louder, Five leaned the rifle against the brick wall you were standing next to and grabbed your upper arms.

“What are you–”

He slammed your back against the wall and pressed his body up against yours. Then his mouth crashed onto yours, surprising you so that you made a high-pitched squealing noise that was instantly muffled by his tongue. Five’s hand came to rest on the side of your face that would be exposed to anyone walking by as he continued to passionately make out with you.

The noise of surprise you had uttered quickly turned into a soft moan.

Damn, he’s good at this

You found yourself kissing him back, urging him on by grasping the back of his suit coat with your fists. 

Really fucking good

“Whoa guys… get a room,” your target called to you with a chuckle as he passed by. You ignored him and he kept walking. Soon the sound of his shoes clicking on the sidewalk faded away.

He was gone, but Five was still kissing you. His hand was warm against your cheek and you liked the weight of his body crushing you against the wall. You could have pulled away or told him to stop. Instead, you let him consume your mouth with his own, his tongue lightly licking across your bottom lip as you let your hands run up and down his back, feeling the tense muscles underneath his clothes. The same ones you were granted a glimpse of earlier that day.

Five made a quiet groaning noise deep in his throat, before he pulled away, leaving you breathless. He continued to keep his body on yours, but he drew his head back to look at you. He was breathing fast and hard, and his eyes swept over your face and lips, like he was contemplating going back in for more.

Neither of you said a word, and after a few seconds, he stepped back. He licked at his lips and wiped his mouth with his fingers.

“Sorry,” he said, straightening his tie. “I figured that was the best way to hide our faces from him.”

“Uh… yeah… no… I mean, right. It was a good idea.”

You stepped away from the wall and smoothed down the tailored jacket and skirt of your suit. You ran a hand down the back of your hair and tried to even out your breathing again. Five was already looking down the street to see which way the man had gone.

Grabbing his Glock out of the inside of his jacket, he motioned for you to follow. “Come on, we can’t lose him.”

You nodded, following his lead, and pulling your own pistol out while you crept out of the alleyway and headed in the direction of your target. Five was stealthy and smooth as he moved along, keeping the man in his sight but remaining far enough behind that it wasn’t obvious he was being tailed. When the guy turned a corner, heading into a parking garage, you both followed him in.

The task was easy after that. You waited until he was at his car, you shot out the security camera, and Five blinked behind him. He was dead before he even knew what was happening. After the man was slumped in a pile on the garage floor, Five walked over to you, sticking his pistol back into his jacket.

“Alright, let’s go.” He looked down at your hand. “Where’s the briefcase?”

“I left it in the alley.”

Five’s eyes widened and then his jaw clenched with anger. “You did what?”

“We had to get out of there, I didn’t have time to grab it.”

Five ran a hand down his face, his green eyes flashing with fury. “God damn it, this is not your first day! You know we can get in some serious deep shit for this!”

“I know that… “

“If you know, but did it anyway, then you must be fucking stupid. Are you fucking stupid?” he barked at you.

You immediately became defensive. “No, I’m not stupid, Five! Maybe if I hadn’t been choking on your tongue you were so eager to shove down my throat, I would have had more time.”

He laughed derisively, shaking his head. “You mean when I saved our asses?”

“I mean when you were throwing yourself at me. Desperately, I might add. Kind of embarrassing for you.”

Five grabbed your arm roughly, jerking you forward and digging his fingers into your bicep. Without saying another word, he was blinking you both back to the alley. When you stumbled out of the portal, you yanked your arm away from him.

“Don’t put your hands on me again!”

“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” he sneered. “I have no intention of touching any part of you anytime soon.” He looked around, letting out a sigh of relief when he saw the briefcase right where you had left it. The rifle was still there, too. “Let’s just get the fuck out of here,” he said stonily.

“Fine by me.”

Once you packed up the rifle and Five had the briefcase, you both held on as it brought you back to Commission headquarters. As soon as you were back inside the building, you let go so that you didn’t have to be any closer to Five than was necessary. You exchanged angry glances at one another, and then went your separate ways.

For the next week, you and Five tried to avoid each other. You hadn’t been assigned another job yet, so that made it a little easier. But you still had to see him in the hallways and in meetings. He avoided being near you and any time your gaze would drift his way, he would quickly look away.

As the days passed, your anger towards Five started to fade. He had called you fucking stupid, but he was right. You weren’t supposed to leave the briefcase for any reason and you could have gotten you and him in some major trouble. You realized your reaction had been a bit overboard, and that really you were just mad at yourself. Mostly because you kept thinking about how he kissed you. And how much you liked it.

When you received a written request from the department head, however, your blood began to boil all over again.

You were storming down the hall on your way to Five’s office, when you saw him walking your way. He noticed the fury on your face and probably realized he was the cause of it, because for a second it looked like he was going to turn around and go the other way. But he composed himself and waited for you to stomp up to him.

Waving the offending piece of paper in the air, you got right in his face. “What the fuck is this all about, Five?”

He had the nerve to look innocent. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“This!” you said, shoving the paper towards him. “A new partner request? Really?”

Five’s body tensed in defense and he tucked his hands in his pants pockets. “I’m not sure why you’re so pissed off. It’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”

You hesitated for a second. Was it what you wanted? You shook your head. “I never said I wanted a different partner!”

He let out a short laugh. “You said that many times, actually.”

“Well… I wasn’t serious! I just wanted you to stop being such a fucking asshole all the time!”

Five nodded. “Right. Well, this should solve that problem for you. I’m sure whatever idiot they pair up with you will be your new best buddy. You’re welcome.”

“God damn it, Five!” you yelled, your hands shaking.

He tilted his head to the side. “Try not to miss me too much.”

He stepped casually around you and continued his walk down the hallway. You watched after him, your mouth hanging open, as he opened the door to the bathrooms and went inside. Furious that he had gotten the last word, you followed him, yanking the bathroom door open and storming inside. Five was standing in front of one of the sinks, clutching onto the sides, and glaring at himself in the mirror. When he saw you enter, he spun around.

“What the hell are you doing? You can’t just walk into the mens’ room!” he snarled.

“That’s funny, because I think I just did.”

You marched up to him, the clicking of your high heels on the tile echoing around you. You stopped just inches from him. You were so close that you could feel the heat coming off of his body, no doubt due to the rage he was emitting. He was breathing fast, with his jaw tight. You could smell the faint wisp of the same cologne you had detected when he had been pressed against you in the alley. You remembered how firm his chest had felt on yours and you momentarily forgot why you had followed him in there in the first place. The paper you had been holding drifted out of your hand and onto the floor.

When you got your wits about you again, you leaned in closer. “Don’t ever walk away from me again.”

“And why is that, sweetheart?” he asked condescendingly. “I thought you liked getting a look at me from behind.”

Your hand flew out, grabbing his tie and slamming his back against the wall, just like he had done to you before. He managed to look surprised for a few seconds before the arrogant smirk was plastered on his face again. Your breathing had become just as rapid as his, and your angry glare traveled over his face and lips, down his trim body and back again. You moved in even closer, still holding his tie. Your knee brushed the inside of his leg. 

“God, you are a bastard,” you hissed in his face.

He hadn’t tried to push you away, or blink away from you, which he easily could have. Instead, he let you press harder against him, his back against the wall, and his tie in your grasp. Both of you were waiting for the other to make the next move, or to sling the next insult. But neither of you did.

Five swallowed hard, the sound loud within the quiet of the bathroom. The only other sound was the slow drip from one of the faucets and your collective, shallow breathing. You stared into those damn green eyes of his, your pulse quickening and pounding in your ears. Then you watched, transfixed, as the tip of his tongue darted out and licked at his bottom lip.

With one more tug of his tie and another slam against the wall, you were on him; smothering his mouth with yours as you traded urgent and sloppy kisses. His hands were on your face and the back of your neck, devouring you with a vicious hunger, and biting at your lips. When he grabbed onto your hips, pulling you flush with his, you could feel him rapidly hardening against you.

While Five moved down to your neck, sucking and licking rabidly at your hot skin, you hurriedly started unbuckling his belt, frantically clawing at the fly of his pants. Shoving a hand inside, you roughly palmed his erection while he made a low groaning noise next to your ear. It was the groan that did it.

I need his cock in my mouth

You didn’t ask for consent, or give any warning, before you were sliding down his perfect body, your hands running down his front from his chest to his thighs. On your knees, you unleashed his hard and waiting cock, wrapping your hand around the shaft and admiring what until now you had only pictured in your dirty little daydreams. It did not disappoint.

“Fuck, Five,” you whispered, before raising your eyes.

For the first time you could remember, Five was speechless. His mouth opened like he was going to say something, but then his eyes fell shut and the back of his head hit the wall. Only a loud, stuttering moan escaped his lips.

There was no teasing or gentle licking across his leaking head, or soft and leisurely strokes with your hand. You engulfed his entire cock in one go, letting your lips slide all the way to the base. Five sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth and the palms of his hands slapped the wall behind him.

You dragged your hot and wet mouth up and down his dick at a fast pace, taking him all the way in before pulling back to the head again. Five’s hips twitched rhythmically in time with your movements, pushing himself further down your throat each time. He still hadn’t said a word, but the noises he was making were sinful.

Was that a whimper? Is Five Hargreeves actually whimpering?

When you released him for just a second, he let out a long sigh; like he was happy to have some relief from the constant stimulation. But you only paused long enough to catch your breath before you were shoving his dick down your throat again.

“Ah… f-f-fff… oh shittt… “ he muttered under his breath, making you smile and go at him even harder. “Don’t… stop… fuuck…”

The tensing of his body and his loud panting told you he was getting close. You thought maybe he would let you know, but he didn’t. Instead, he brought a hand down to the back of your head and held you against him while he let out a long, low moan while he exploded inside you, a steady stream of cum filling your mouth until you were choking.

He let you go, falling limply against the wall again as you removed him from your mouth. You were breathing hard, and you used the back of your hand to wipe off the excess cum that had seeped out of your mouth. When you looked back up at Five, he still had his eyes closed and his mouth open.

You stood up, gently slipping his cock back inside his pants. He opened his eyes, meeting yours and drawing his eyebrows together. He was still breathing hard.

“Why did you do that?” he asked, finally finding his voice again.

“Because I wanted to,” you answered truthfully. “Because I’ve been wanting to for a long time.”

He shook his head slowly, still confused. “You hate me.”

“I don’t hate you, Five.”

“Well, I don’t hate you, either,” he said brusquely.

With that admission, you both stood silent for a moment. Then Five grinned and he pushed himself off the wall, stalking into your personal space and making you backup a step. He grabbed you by the hips, spinning you around until you were forced against the bathroom sink, and he boosted you up so that you were sitting on the edge. You gasped when he moved between your legs.

“But I do find you highly irritating,” he said with a smile, right before shoving your skirt up and yanking you closer. He reached down into his still-open pants and pulled out his cock, which was already hard again. “Let’s see if I can’t fuck that out of you.”

“Oh, shit,” you whispered, bracing yourself as he pulled your panties to the side and started to line himself up with your wet hole. 

He eased himself inside, letting you feel every inch of him, before he was fully encased in your tight sleeve. When you let out a loud whine, he grinned. The force in which he pulled back and slammed into you had you crying out and clutching at his shoulders. Five was back to staying silent, but he emitted a hoarse, guttural sound each time he pushed back in and bottomed out. 

With your legs around his waist and your hands gripping his shoulders, he placed both of his palms flat on the mirror behind you. He drove into you, harder and harder, his jaw clenched tight and his hair falling over his eyes. He looked directly at you while your mouth fell open, his mouth curled up in a pleased grin, his lips parted slightly. Just that look had you fucking dying inside. It wasn’t long before the intensity of his relentless cock was pushing you over the edge. 

When he saw you start to lose it, Five held onto your hips and thrust as hard and as deeply as he could, moaning into your neck as you trembled against him. Soon after, his body came to a stilling halt as he emptied himself inside you again. Neither one of you had thought that far ahead, but luckily the Commission microchips that were embedded in your arms made every employee sterile and disease free until they were removed.

As you caught your breath and Five pulled out, you grabbed some paper towel to do a cursory cleanup before straightening out your underwear and skirt and hopping down from the sink. Five shoved himself back into his pants again and zipped up his fly. He flicked the hair out of his eyes with a shake of his head.

“Still want that new partner?” you asked with a sly smile.

Five shrugged, stepping casually around you to wash his hands. “I don’t think anyone else is going to blow me in the bathroom, so maybe I’ll keep you around for a while,” he said impassively. His eyes met yours in the mirror. “How about you?”

You answered with your own indifferent shrug. “I guess I can stand to be around you a little longer. Now that I know what your other attributes are.”

Five let out a low chuckle, shaking his head, and turned around to face you. “Look, I know I’m an asshole, and I don’t expect that to change any time soon. But you’re a good partner and I don’t want to lose you, ok?”

“You’re a good partner, too,” you said grudgingly with a small smile.

“Alright, it’s settled then. We’re a team, for better or worse.”

You nodded. “For better or worse.”

“And if we piss each other off again, we know how to fix that,” he said with a sly grin.

You smoothed down your clothes and fixed your hair. Bending over, you picked up the fallen piece of paper that was Five’s new partner request. You handed it back to him, one eyebrow raised.

“Here, you go. You can have this back.”

Five took the paper, glancing at it briefly, before balling it up and chucking it into the trash can behind him.

As Five held the door open for you, allowing you to go ahead of him, you lightly brushed your hand against his hip on the way out. 

“I’m heading to the showers now, so don’t even think of following me in there,” he told you.

“Oh no, I wouldn’t dream of it,” you assured him with a smile.

After another long, lingering look at one another, Five turned his back to you and headed in the direction of the showers. He spoke without looking back. “See you there.”

Shaking your head, because you knew he had you right where he wanted you, you watched him walk away, his stride exuding confidence. He knew you were going to follow him.

“Shit,” you murmured to yourself, waiting a whole 30 seconds before making your way in his direction. You sighed. “Well… he’s an expert assassin and now I know he’s an expert fucker, too. So I guess as partners go, that’s a pretty good deal.” Then you opened the door to the men’s locker room and walked inside.

[linkspooky]

JASON TODD VS. DABI: WHY NOT ME?

"You haven't been here long but you've seen him, right? The batman. The batman. He lives in darkness, to find the helpless and bring them into the light. So I have to wonder...why couldn't he do it for me?" The Boy Wonder: Issue #2

This is the story of the boy who didn't get saved. The story of a boy who really ought to have been saved. Of course, every victim deserves to be saved, but this boy was the son of a superhero. Can a hero who saves everyone, but fails to save his own son really be called a hero? As for the son, how does it feel to watch his father save complete strangers but let him fall to the wayside?

Jason Todd and Dabi are two characters with similar backstories and motives (so similar it's possible Dabi is outright based on Jason Todd) which are worthy of comparison. These are two tragic arcs which explore the conflict between a hero's responsibility to act as a father, and their responsibility to save people. As I said they are tragic because in both cases the hero fails, as a father, and a hero. However, I'm comparing the two because Jason Todd's story is a well written tragedy, and Toya's story is not.

If you were to write a story of my life, it would surely be a tragedy.

Aristotle's Poetics is the first attempt to define what Tragedy is, not as a story where sad things happen but a specific story structure. He outlines not only what makes tragedy, tragedy, but also what makes a good tragedy.

The Plot, then, is the first principle, and, as it were, the soul of a tragedy: Character holds the second place. A similar fact is seen in painting. The most beautiful colours, laid on confusedly, will not give as much pleasure as the chalk outline of a portrait. Thus Tragedy is the imitation of an action, and of the agents mainly with a view to the action.

I use this quote because the painting metaphor is a great way of explaining what I'm getting at, you can have a painting with the most wonderful colors, you can have a story with really good ideas like the Todoroki family plotline but if you don't use those colors correctly all you're going to end up with is a bad painting.

In poetics Aristotle clearly defines a tight well-structured plot as the first priority for effective tragedy, character as second.

Again, a beautiful object, whether it be a living organism or any whole composed of parts, must not only have an orderly arrangement of parts, but must also be of a certain magnitude; for beauty depends on magnitude and order. Hence a very small animal organism cannot be beautiful; for the view of it is confused, the object being seen in an almost imperceptible moment of time. Nor, again, can one of vast size be beautiful; for as the eye cannot take it all in at once, the unity and sense of the whole is lost for the spectator; as for instance if there were one a thousand miles long

To make sure you understand, it's vital in tragedy for all the pieces to fit together. Tragedy is a specific story format. Good tragedy uses the parts of a story well, but bad tragedy is sloppy and poorly put together. In tragedy, the whole has to be greater than the sum of its parts. The Todoroki Family are all good characters out of context, but the story could have enhanced their characters but detracted from them due to how poorly it is told. The fact that a lot of MHA fans are in love with the Todoroki family out of the context of the story, but also have constant complaints for how Horikoshi handles their plotlines is, in my opinion, very telling.

What Aristotle goes on to posit is the best tragedies do not come about by accident, but rather by the direct actions of the characters.

But again, Tragedy is an imitation not only of a complete action, but of events inspiring fear or pity. Such an effect is best produced when the events come on us by surprise; and the effect is heightened when, at the same time, they follow as cause and effect. The tragic wonder will thee be greater than if they happened of themselves or by accident; for even coincidences are most striking when they have an air of design. 

Therefore Tragedies require consequentialism, like Newton's Third Law, every action will have an equal and opposite reaction. To simplify a good tragedy arises from the consequences of the character's actions (or inaction). The most basic form is that the hero of the story will have a tragic flaw that they fail to improve upon in time and then leads to their destruction. In essence, tragedy is where the hero fails. Not only does the hero fail, but the hero loses, and that irreversible loss is what defines tragedy. Medea slays her own children, Oedipus rips his own eyes off and deserts his kingdom, Creon Antigone is buried alive and Creon's son, her fiancee, commits suicide.

These events share two things in common, they are irreversible (hence why they feel like good endings), and two they evoke catharsis. Aristotle defines the goal of tragedy to evoke terror and pity. We feel alongside these heroes, Medea was abandoned by the husband Jason who she left her home and slaughtered her own brother for, Oedipus did all of his crimes unwittingly and is a victim of fate, Antigone was doing the right thing by burying her brother so his soul could pass on to the afterlife.

There's all different sorts of tragedies, Hamliet explores more here. I'd say UTRH and Hellish Todoroki Family are tragedies centered around grief.

Tragedy works on extreme emotions, and extreme hard-hitting consequences to the hero's failures. The worst thing a tragedy can be is boring.

The Tragic Hero

Now that I'm done lecturing you let's actually talk about both My Hero Academia and Batman like I promised. Both of these stories don't actually feature the central victim as their protagonist, and that is a feature not a flaw.

Rather, the story we are being told is that of a tragic hero, failing to save a tragic victim because of their own personal flaws.

These flaws are called (hamartia) or "error in judgement". A hero, being called a hero of a story is often unaware of his flaws which is central to what makes them unable to fix those flaws in time. That flaw can later lead to a moral failing, such as Othello's jealousy, initially jealousy is an understandable emotion, but then it leads to him trusting Iago over his own wife and killing his wife in a rage.

Most importantly, the hero’s suffering and its far-reaching reverberations are far out of proportion to his flaw.

Let's begin with talking of the heroes and their flaws, Batman and Endeavor. My main reason for comparing these two is in these specific stories they have the same flaw, inability to move past their personal guilt towards their son, and the same conflict the duty of a father versus the duty of a hero.

However, Batman functions as a tragic hero, and Enji does not. The summary of their conflict is right here in these two panels.

A parent is required to place their children above everything else, because they are the ones responsible for bringing that child into the world. Bruce Wayne made the decision to adopt Jason. Enji made the decision to have children, however with Enji you have the added insidious motivation of he only wanted to make designer babies and just didn't care for the ones who didn't turn out right.

Bruce attempts to do both, to act as a father for Jason and also a crime fighter as batman but he can't do both. This comes to a head in Death of the Family when Jason is having serious trouble because of his lack of a strong parental figure, and Bruce knowing that Jason is in trouble chooses still to go off and fight crime instead of staying with him. The choice to place crimefighting over the child they chose to take responsibility for has the unintended consequence of getting that child killed.

Whereas Enji makes the same choice over and over again, ignoring Toya's clear troubles at the fact his father no longer spends time with him and choosing to run away to the world of heroes because he doesn't want to face the fact that his actions are severely hurting his son. Bruce's motivations are more sympathetic admittedly he wasn't actively practicing eugenics, but the choice is the same and the consequences are the same.

Both Bruce and Enji are forced to bear witness to the deaths of their children when they are not there, specifically because they made a choice to be a hero instead of staying by their child's side. A situation directly caused by their choice to be a hero over a father, and a situation that would have been avoided if they had stayed with their child in their time of need. Jason runs off when Batman tells him to stay and gets kidnapped by the Joker, if Enji had been on Sekoto peak that day Toya would never have accidentally lost control of his fire.

This is just the backstory however, the main event that kickstart this plot is the unexpected return from the dead of both Jason and Dabi. Each story follows the same plot beats. A new villain appears to challenge Endeavor / Batman. The villain reveals themselves as their dead son. Both Endeavor / Batman are given a chance to try reaching out to their sons, but they choose not to.

Then even though they are given a second chance with a miracle of a dead son coming back to them, they choose the exact same thing they chose before, being a hero and because of that the tragedy repeats itself. For both of them they are unable to save their son again, and the son goes through a second death. History repeats itself, the lesson isn't learned.

Their fatal flaw is their guilt. This is a story about grief and mourning after all, a son who is died, buried, but never grieved properly, never mourned, an open wound on the father suddenly coming back. The inability of each to process their grief blinds them from seeing the fact the son has come back, and they have a second chance.

Toya has internalized he is a failure, because Enji literally called him that. Jason believes that Batman thinks he is a failure. In both cases the father is the one who failed, Bruce at least acknowledges this but cannot communicate it in any way shape or form.

This guilt and responsibility both Enji and Bruce feel causes them to self-sabotage. They no longer have the confidence they are in the right (they no longer feel like heroes because they have failed to be heroes to their own son).

You can also add the layer of complication that since both men chose to be heroes in the past, they do not know how to handle the situation as a father now that they're being challenged to step up as one. Unfortunately, they are not the fathers that stepped up.

The reason their grief becomes a flaw is because they put their grief over their victims. . Each man is aware too much of their own failure, and while they should feel guilty they make the classic mistake of placing their own guilt over the feelings of the victim. The guilt they feel for causing the death and the genuine grief of losing a son is given priority over Jason and Dabi who you know... actually died.

An overwhelming grief and guilt is understandable because grief is a messy and human emotion, losing a child is an unimaginable tragedy that should never be inflicted on anyone.

Yet at the same time both Dabi and Jason are grieving to. This paradox that Batman only thinks of his own grief at losing a son and never stops to think about how Jason must feel leads to one of the best lines in Under the Red Hood.

"The father had lost a son, and now the son had lost a father."

Batman's guilt is so strong over being the cause of Jason's suffering, that the suffering of the victim himself is ignored. To be fair to My Hero Academia, the Todorokis say a similar line to Enji.

However, this is where I begin to get into the difference between ideas and execution. Tragedies are stories of actions and logical consequences, every action has an equal and opposite reaction in Under the Red Hood. Batman is punished for the choices he makes, the choices he doesn't make, and the choices he fails to make in time.

The Todoroki plotline features almost none of its character making any choices of substance, and because of that the plotline says the right things over and over again, but it all comes off as tell don't show.

I'm going to quote @codenamesazanka's post right here a couple of times because they describe the complete failure of the Todoroki plotline to show us a reason why we should be feeling things for the characters artfully.

We've heard Enji say this before - I'm sorry, I intend to atone. It's indeed the right thing to say, it's exactly what he should be saying and acting. Natsuo is declaring no contact - That's fine, I'm sorry, I accept this as part of my atonement and will continue. Touya calls him a coward - That's fine, I'm sorry, I accept this as part of my atonement and will continue. The public hates him - That's fine, I'm sorry, I accept this as part of my atonement and will continue. But you can only hear this so many times before you want to snap and beat the character, the story, the writing over the head with Enji's wheelchair. Why is that? He's behaving exactly as he should, and yet...

The reason why it fails to evoke strong feelings is because of what we'd called "narrative dissonance." The actions of Bruce and Enji are the same, they both neglect to do anything, make any real attempts to reach out to their victims because they're paralyzed by guilt.

However, we are told that they have entirely different arcs. Bruce's arc is a tragic fall. He's failing as a hero. While we are being told that Enji is experiencing an arc of atonement. Enji is supposed to be improving himself, and Bruce is supposed to be experiencing negative character development but they both do the exact same thing in story. Bruce neglects Jason, we are told by the story, by the characters in the story that Bruce is failing Jason. Enji does nothing in time to actually atone for Toya or try to help him, yet, we are told again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again that Enji is atoning with nothing substantive to show us this is the case.

To show what I meant instead of telling this scene is in chapter 252.

This scene is the ending point in chapter in chapter #426.

It's just him repeating the exact same sentiment and yet in a more than 150+ chapter gap, Enji never made any action to show he was now placing his family first. Enji didn't say anything to Dabi when he revealed himself as Toya. Enji didn't look for Toya in the months before the final war arc. Enji literally appeared on live TV in a broadcast that Toya was watching and said the very selfish "Watch Me" atone for the crime of creating Toya instead of literally talking about Toya or too Toya. Well, that would have rocked the boat too much... THAT IS LITERALLY THE POINT. Enji had to somehow break from tradition or make some significant sacrifice onscreen to his social standing to show that he's willing to put his family first. Enji decides to go along with Hawks decision to not face Toya head on, making the decision to be the hero for the final time which directly causes Toya to get up after Shoto brings him down non-lethally and make one last attempt to suicide bomb for his father's inaction.

Bruce does nothing for a long time in Under the Red Hood. He ignores his initial instinct that Jason came back and instead makes a long investigation on whether or not someone can come back from the dead in order to distract himself. When Jason takes the mask off, Batman already knew but was pretending otherwise because he didn't want to face the reality.

Even when Jason takes his mask off, Bruce still takes on the "I need to investigate this" angle even though Jason calls him out that deep down he already knows it's the truth. This of course foreshadows Bruce's underlying flaw, he doesn't want to face Jason head on because he feels too much grief about what happened to Jason and his guilt is more important than Jason's own grief. Just as the father has lost the son, the son has lost the father.

What follows is several chapters of Batman fighting crime as usual and making no attempts to directly search for Jason. They cross paths a few times but when they do Bruce doesn't follow. In fact, Bruce only shows up when Jason sends Bruce a sample of the joker's hair and Bruce knows that the Joker has kidnapped him out of Arkham. Bruce almost lets Jason get killed by Black Mask because he doesn't know whether to stop Jason or save him yet again, and then they have their final showdown where Jason has kidnapped the joker to demand Bruce kill him, and Bruce finally attempts to talk him down.

Out of context it sounds like I'm describing the same plotline, to the point where if you haven't read either, it looks like I'm complaining baselessly. Why is one hero doing nothing until it's too late good, and the other bad? The difference is of course context, or rather framing. Bruce's actions are called out by the people around him (Dick, Jason, Alfred) as him handling the situation wrong. Whereas both Enji's internal monologue and other characters say that he is doing his best to atone for his actions and deserves a chance, but the events we are shown in story are the exact opposite.

Here's another example to SHOW my point. Here's Dabi with my special, hardcover edition of under the Red Hood.

I reread the entirety of the fourteen chapter plotline and the majority of internal narrations come from characters outside of Bruce observing his behavior and commenting on how differently he's acting. Jason's backstory for instance is told by Alfred, not Bruce. Dick Grayson the first Robin comments on Batman's odd behavior. The rest are the third person narrator. Bruce has four instances of internal monologues spanning a few pages each in a 378 page story. (Alfred has the most internal monologues and he's presented as a more trustworthy unbiased narrator than Bruce, to get us to question Bruce's actions).

"Information travels on many routes, sometimes it comes predictably like the tides. You just need to know where to stand and meet it. Other times it's elusive and you have to root through the garbage to find it. In the last few years I've come to rely on Barbara Gordon, Oracle, we all did. Utilizing every form of surveillance equipment she has been the eyes and ear [...] but those days are over. I can't rely on anyone anymore. [...] and tonight it's also about the company I keep. It's different with him [night wing] out here. I think about when he was younger, when I was younger, it was different, simpler and I miss it. I miss those days, for that it's hard to be around him.

This first internal monologue is a case of unreliable narrator, because as soon as finishing it Dick Grayson / Nightwing shows up, offers Batman his help and while Bruce at first refuses it the two of them are forced to work together to fight Amazo. What does this show us? Bruce is not alone, but Bruce actively acts like he's alone ignoring the feelings of the other people around him. It exhibits a flaw of Bruce and the bad headspace he is in mentally (if I remember correctly Stephanie Brown recently died in the comics while this storyline was being published. It establishes Bruce's improper coping mechanism with grief, and how he is going about it the incorrect way.

Bruce says I work alone, and then Bruce says it's easier working with Dick, I miss it, but I can't go back to those days. It's bruce's contradictory thinking patterns in the same chapter that stop him. it's bruce's fault he cannot connect to Dick, and he is actively mourning the past because his relationship with Dick has changed.

Now the final part of the monologue in that chapter.

He's quick. Not just fast, agile. He's not thinking about his next move, he's just making it. He's been trained well. And there's something about him. Something familiar. There was something interesting about before he cut the line, before it had been taught. That had to have been practiced. Either that or just plain dumb luck. No it's not luck.

This is the first hint that Bruce already suspects it's Jason from early on but is in denial about it. This unreliable narrator trope also gives an agency to Bruce's decision, he is actively choosing to ignore the possibility that it's Jason because it doesn't want it to be.

Whereas, a lot of Endeavor's plot takes away any agency from him. For example, he doesn't even know that Dabi is Toya, because if he had the sneaking suspicion and ignored it like Batman did that might have made him look bad. We can't have the main character in a tragedy looking bad now can we?

The second monologue is more denial.

That device is from Kord industries. I should know. Ordered it special from them. How can he have it? No more dead ends. No more questions. No more guessing. Tonight I find out what is passing for the truth.

Reading between the lines this is outright confirmation Batman already knows.

The third is a brief reflection in his feelings for Jason.

The armor has to be light enough to fit but strong enough to protect. But sometimes a great many times, it's not strong enough. It wans't strong enough for Barbara who has to fight from her chair. It wasn't strong enough for Stephanie, other dear soldier enough dear grave. And it wasn't enough for Jason. Willful Jason. Who ignored the danger. Who spat at risk. Who was never frightened enough. I've always wondered... always... was he scared at the end? Was he praying I'd come save him? And in those last moments when he knew that I wouldn't. Did he hate me for it?

This monologue directly shows without stating it outright, Bruce is prioritizing his feelings of grief and failure mixing them in with his genuine grief over the loss of a son. it's selfish of him, but grief is a selfish emotion.

Here's the thing Bruce is allowed to be selfish and to not have the correct reaction to his grief, because the whole story is centered on Bruce being unable to get his shit together in time, and this picture into his emotions is an explanation as to why. Bruce is afraid of being hated by Jason. Jason of course has every right to hate him for failing as a father, but still I think not wanting to be hated to a person you loved so much and feel genuinely sorry over what you let happen to them is an understandable reaction.

Meanwhile we have Enji saying repeatedly all the right things in his monologue, the selfless, I don't need to be forgiven, it's okay if they hate me, I just need to atone but he never actually does anything. There's no explanation for why he isn't doing anything either, so that narrative dissonance. We're shown why Bruce doesn't act in time, he's internally a mess to be frank. We are not shown why Enji doesn't act in time because his internal monologue tells us again and again he's committed to atoning and he understands what the right thing to do is.

As Codenamesanzanka says:

Enji is still saying all the right things, but the story isn't giving him the opportunity to actually do the right things. To have his new actions matter. I have no doubt about his sincerity in his mantra, but without the 'show', it's hollow. Similarly, "Let's talk" is actually kinda bullshit too, because it's so vague. This is less about Enji, and more about the writing, how it set up this scene. "Let's talk" or "I want to talk" or any of that variation is repeated 6 times, without anything more or specific added.

There's an excess of repetition of Enji saying he wants to atone, he's ready to atone, without any of that materializing in the story.

As @class1akids says in this reaction post:

It also feels also super-hollow to say he's sheltering the family from the fallout, after they've just talked about how Fuyumi lost her job (and got a new one through the connections she herself built). How is he going to do that?

The fourth because I don't want to write it down, it's just Batman monologueing on how his partnership with Jason is still good and explaining the technical details of his fight with count Vertigo. It's in chapter 10 if you must look it up.

So four monologues total. Two monologues establish indirectly that Batman knows that Red Hood is Jason and doesn't want to face him. The third monologue establishes why he doesn't want to face him, he's afraid of being hated. The monologue is in line with Bruce's actions in the story, Bruce investigates several ways of reviving from the dead instead of looking for Jason.

The character's reactions around Bruce are also talking about how he's not acting like himself. Especially Alfred's who speaks of Bruce's indecision, on whether to put a stop to or save Jason.

"It is curious. He is lost in thought. It is not like him to spend vast stretches of time immobile, where his mind is gripped in the solitary process of deduction. This is quite different. He is hesitating. At a loss for what to do. I believe it is about Jason. And whether or not to stop him or save him."

This is illustrated in two scenes later where Jason spends a long time simply watching when Jason is fighting enemies, first in a fight against Captain Nazi, and second Black Mask. Jason even gives a direct callout of that behavior.

Jason: What the hell took you so long? Couldn't decide if you wanted to let me live. Batman: Shut up and fight.

Observed by Alfred Bruce is completely stalling and can't choose, observed by Jason Bruce can't decide whether to let Jason live or not. Bruce hesitates twice. We know why. We see it in action. It's called out as flawed behavior.

Now let's cover all the tell that don't show that is Endeavor's many monologues.

Pro Hero Arc:

I have to safeguard the future for them. That's the job for whoever's on top. What about the lives I cut short? Just demanding forgiveness isn't enough, it's too late for that. At this point I need to atone there's no other route.

Hellish Todoroki Family 1:

I'm trying to make ammends going forward. It might be too late. but I fall asleep every night thinking about it. Lately it's been the same dream. The wife and the kids looking happy at the dinner table. But I'm never there with them. It might be too late but I fall asleep every night thinking about what I can do for my family. I wish you could be here too, Toya. It's always the same dream. My whole family's there but not me. If I really care how they feel [I'll remain here].

I'm not going to read 200 chapters so I'm just going to ballpark it based on memory. Here we go.

Dabi's Dance:

My eldest, Toya didn't harbor frost within him. He didn't have a way to overcome the inescapable downside of overheating but I nevertheless sought to raise the boy as a hero. [...] Because Toya had more potential than me I placed my ambitions on his shoulders. I thought it could be you. You could have been the one to reach my eternal goal. My frustration... My envy... The ugliness in my heart... you could have been the one to smash it all to dust.

Plot twist this is the only monologue I like. It's different from all the others, and it's the only one where Enji is being emotionally honest. He put the emotional burden of his own emotional insecurities on an eight year old child, and expected to live vicariously through him and when Toya failed to live up to those expectations he just abandoned him. It alligns what we have been shown so far, Enji is not acting like a reptentant man here who realizes the harm he's done to Toya and only thinks of Toya as an extension of himself and his own regrets.

The Fight Against AFO:

My mistakes took the form as Toya leading to many stolen futures. The past never dies. Rage, resentment and even penace wound together toward the future. And the future is a path for the young. A path with so many branching choices. That's why I must win this. [I'll keep paying my penance. I'll win today and keep my eyes on Toya.]

When Enji decides to double Suicide with Toya:

I take full responsibility. I swore to bear the burden and live my life atoning for it all. However, you've been watching me all this time. While I couldn't be there to watch you. You were someone I especially needed to do right by. No I can't let you meet your end alone, but I won't let anyone else get caught up in our tragedy.

Hellish Todoroki Family Final:

I came to talk about what's to come. I'm retiring as a hero. That was my initial plan even before the war started, but now I can't even walk on my own. The hero endeavor burned to death. Your flames were really stronger than mine. [...] You're right. You know everything about me, Toya. After all you were always watching me. And you wanted me to do the same for you, but I didn't. Not matter what anyone says your heat does come from my hellflame. From now on I'll come everyday, so let's talk. It's too late now, so let's talk. [...] You're free to hate me. Anything is fine really, so throw it all at me.

This one is spoken dialogue but it's still a four-page long monologue. Every one of Enji's monologues with one exceptionsays the same thing: I'm sorry, I'll spend the rest of my life atoning for my actions.

We're repeatedly told Enji is atoning but he acts like Batman. Then, his actions should be framed as Batman, not atoning but avoiding any responsibility.

As observed by Class1akids when we were discussing the update:

Everyone else faces an uphill struggle with their lives, but we should all feel sorry for Enji atoning and being in hell. I hate Hori's compulsion to over-write his abusers and over-explain their atonement. He does this with Bakugou too but with Enji it's more irritating. It was so much more enjoyable when he just wrote the thing but didn't point at them and say -> look, they are atoning. Aren't they soooo cool??

Enji's internal monologues and the other characters frame him as some sort of martyr, while on the other hand it's clear by both Batman's actions and Alfred's observations he's not acting like his usual self. In fact, this is an interpretation of Under the Red Hood that I love from the writers of the video game Arkham Knight that does a less tragic retelling of Under the Red Hood:

Batman doesn't fight victims. He saves them.

Therefore if Batman is fighting Jason, a victim, he's not acting like Batman. I'm also fine with Arkham Knight being an Under the Red Hood retelling because it's a different story. Comics do this all the time, different universe versions, popular storylines adapted into different mediums. It also works as a commentary on the original story, by showing what Batman could have done to lead to a more positive outcome it makes Batman's choices in Under the Red Hood worse and more tragic because he could have saved Jason, there was still a chance.

So here we have two flawed tragic heroes who are meant to be both pitied and condemned for their actions. One of them is all pity with no condemnation. The other is both pity and condemnation, Batman is grieving, but also he's failing his responsibility towards Jason. Therefore one protagonist works, the other fails utterly.

I'm not saying abusers don't deserve redemption. I'm not saying Enji should have died in order to atone. I'm not saying that the underlying problem with the arc is that they decided to make Enji sympathetic and a focus of the arc. The most important problem is the breaking of one of the fundamental rules of storytelling: Show, Don't Tell.

The Tragic Villain

Not only does The Hellish Todoroki Family plotline fail to make Enji a compelling protagonist, it also fails it's biggest victim. Now, these are both stories that end with the hero failing to save their victim. So if both of these stories have the same ending, why am I saying it failed Dabi, but not Jason?

Well, let me explain.

Dabi and Jason are both villains turned victims. The stories themselves are about this ambiguity. How much should the be held responsible for their own choices? If they are actively harming innocent people, then shouldn't they be stopped? Should they be automatically be forgiven just because of the pain and grief they've suffered, even if they've been causing it to others?

Both characters are also reflective of their fathers because they are too being selfish in their grief, they want their grief acknowledged and so are violently lashing out.

Jason and Dabi both make plays at being vigilantes at first, Dabi wants to inherit Stains will, and Jason Todd wants to be a better bat-man by taking control of the drug trade in Gotham and cutting crime down by executing gang heads. However, neither of them are being honest with this and it's shown through their actions, both of them abandon their original plans.

In the final showdown all Toya cares about is facing Enji on the battlefield, and when he's on the brink of death his mind erodes to the point where all he can do is scream for Enji's attention while his flames get hotter and hotter.

Let's take about Jason first and how his narrative treats him a whole lot better and more sympathetically, with more humanity than Batman. Jason is still held responsible for his choices, he is criticized by Bruce for murdering gang leaders and passing it off as justice. He's also blatantly shown to be a hypocrite. My favorite scene from Red Hood: Lost Days, the official UTRH prequel.

"I want to kill the joker in a cool way. Just sniping the Joker from a rooftop isn't dramatic enough for me."

This scene, and the final scene of UTRH underlines Jason isn't executing criminals because he believes it's the right thing to do, or because of his stated motivation that killing the joker would prevent more future victims.

Instead his every action is to set up a scenario where he makes a selfish demand of Bruce. He wants Bruce to prove to him that he would choose him over being a hero, by setting up his final scenario. Him, the Joker, and Batman. Jason will shoot the Joker. Bruce has a gun. He can either choose to let Jason kill the Joker, or kill Jason to stop him, either way it makes it clear what Bruce's priorities are.

The underlying reason for this is similiar to Bruce. Just like Bruce, Jason is deeply afraid that Batman doesn't love him. That he thinks of him as a failure. (This is Toya's main reason too).

He also interprets Bruce's failure to avenge him to mean that Bruce didn't even care enough to mourn him. If Bruce loved him enough, he'd choose him over the joker, but he's so afraid that Bruce doesn't love him enough that he's going to force Bruce to choose.

Along the way he's also going to behead several crimelords in order to put an exclamation point on that point.

The way Jason completely unravels in the confrontation shows this insecurity, he begins with monologueing about how batman should totally kill people, until his fear that he wasn't important enough, and his grief at losing his father is revealed.

Batman: I know I failed you, but I tried to save you. I'm trying to save you now. Jason: Is that what what you think this is about? Your letting me die. I don't know what clouds your judgement worse, your guilt or your antiquated sense of morality. Bruce, I forgive you for not saving me. Jason: But why on god's green earth is he still alive? Ignoring what he's done in the past. Blindly, stupidly disregarding the whole graveyards he's filled with people. The friend's he's killed. I thought killing me - that I'd be the last person you ever let him hurt. Jason: If it had been you that he beat to a bloody mess. If it had been you he left in agony. If he had taken you from this world. I would have done nothing but search the planet for this pathetic pile of evil, this death worshipping garbage, and sent him off to hell.

Direct statement, it's irresponsible of Bruce to let Joker live after killing Jason and should have put him down to prevent future victims. Reading between the lines, Batman not taking revenge for Jason is a sign that he didn't love him enough, Jason loves Batman more because he would have taken revenge.

As the confrontation continues and Jason's mental spiral worsens, to the point where he can't keep up his pretense of self-righteousness.

Jason: I'm not talking about killing cobblepot, or scarecrow, or riddled, or dent. Jason: I'm talking about him. Just him. And doing it because...he took me away from you.

The father had lost the son, and now the son had lost the father.

Jason's revenge is just a cover, for his grief at losing Bruce. I think this also shows a really positive aspect of Jason's character to humanize him instead of condemning him for his actions to ignore or even justify the suffering he endured: Jason really loves Bruce.

I mean how meaningful is the statement: "Bruce, I forgive you for not saving me."

Bruce has been afraid to hear the whole time that Jason hates him, that he won't forgive him, but Jason loves him deeply. In fact his love is almost equal to his rage because Jason is a deeply emotional person, and these little details make him human and not just like a plot obstacle that Bruce has to face. A metaphor for his past failures.

Dabi is drawn as a crying boy who wants comfort, Jason is shown to be a crying boy who wants comfort through both dialogue and action without us directly needing to be told. It's a heartbreaking line and doing it because he took me away from you and it lands perfectly because the narrative wants us to just look at Jason's grief. It doesn't add an asterisk* even though he was in pain, he's done unforgivable things that can't be justified to undercut Jason's suffering.

In fact that might be another underlying problem with The Hellish Todoroki Family, the narrative tries too hard to make you feel a certain way instead of just presenting things as they are to make you come to your own conclusion. UTRH doesn't support Jason's revenge based serial killing of villains. It doesn't say he's justified to cut off the heads of mobsters. However, it doesn't excessively state "Well, I'm really sorry what happened to you but what you've done can't be forgiven" so we don't have to challenge ourselves to feel too much empathy for Jason's suffering.

Meanwhile even when Toya tries to express his rightful anger and grief, we're always met with someone shutting him down and saying well yeah, but you're wrong, involving innocent people is unforgivable.

As said by @stillness-in-green in the replies to this post:

I think so much harm (in-universe, but the state of the Twitter fandom makes me think the messages are pretty toxic irl, too) comes out of portraying the Heroes as needing to weigh in on the *morality* of the Villains' actions before they gauge "saving" them, when that is not a thing that glorified cops have any business thinking they have the right to do. Demanding repentance before the rehab is so bizarre.

You can say someone's actions are wrong without using it as a factor to consider whether or not their suffering as a human being should be acknowledged, and like I said there's multiple instances of people just yelling at Toya how immoral he is instead of addressing the elephant in the room.

You're wrong, you're wrong, you're wrong, you're wrong.

(Okay, I understand that some people have interpreted this as a show of Honnae and Tatamae, the Todoroki's who are a very repressed household are finally talking about their feelings even if those feelings are selfish and ugly).

(I'm not criticizing Shoto for saying that the people he killed were his own choice necessarily, Shoto is a character who's actions need to be read more deeply than his words he was dedicated to bringing Dabi down without him burning himself any further start to finished. My criticism lies in the fact that Hori uses Shoto as a mouth piece because he thinks we need to be reminded that murder is bad).

However, even acknowledging that time and place man, time and place. They couldn't have done that in the aftermath, when Toya isn't burning to death?

Hey buddy, you're being selfish.

Toya: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I'M MELTING, I'M MELTING.

This is I feel the underlying problem with the way the arc is written, not because the Todorokis are a very traditional Japanese family and there are cultural reasons they express their emotions differently, I'll give a caveat to that it's a nuance I might not understand.

However, I am arguing the actual problem is tell don't show. Horikoshi thinks that we as an audience need to be told multiple times that murder is bad, and we cannot be trusted to interpret that on our own.

Under the Red Hood shows both sides of Batman and Jason's debate, and let's us just come to the conclusion that Jason is in the wrong because revenge isn't justice. Horikoshi reaches no shit sherlock levels of telling us that we're not supposed to approve of Dabi's murders.

it's also a matter of giving Dabi narrative space to express his feelings, like every time Dabi tries to talk he is continually shut down (Shoto does engage Dabi talk to him and listen to why he didn't come back though I'll give him that) and it seems to be to push forward this weird idea that you shouldn't sympathize with the pain Dabi has endured or the ways he's dehumanized unless he does something to prove he deserves to be treated like a human being first.

Jason gets to monologue and make an entire argument, and his argument also shows the depths of his love for Bruce and what a deeply feeling person he is, and how those feelings being hurt and twisted could logically lead to his lashing out.

Compare this to Dabi who doesn't get a final monologue, but is instead reduced to a completely mindless state where he just cries out for his dad's attention. He doesn't get to make his argument.

Jason and Dabi both choose to blow themselves up, but Jason gets enough character agency to show this is a deliberate choice he's making even if it's the wrong one. He retains his character agency and ability to make decisions until the end of the narrative.

Jason's also you know physically crying. The end result of the narrative is about wrong choices that both Bruce and Jason make together, and then suffer the consequences together. Bruce watches the same failure play out again and he isn't able to save Jason, Jason doesn't get what he wants, he doesn't get revenge and he doesn't get to reunite with his father. It's tragic for both of them, and brought about by decisions both of them made.

Whereas yes Dabi makes a lot of bad decisions leading up to the last war arc, but in the end his final fate is up to a choice Enji made to not face Toya in the final battle.

However, while the final consequence of the battle is brought about more by Enji's decisions than Toya's, it's Toya who endures all the suffering and punishment. It's Toya who is in an iron coffin, and doomed to slowly and agonizingly die with all of his skin burnt off unable to move. Toya doesn't even get agency after the arc is over. Enji still has a wheelchair, Enji can still move around, Enji's still fucking rich, he's not in prison for his actions, he as Rei wheeling him around.

Toya's agency and choices are all taken from him, presumably to serve the plot purpose of making Enji save him to finish off his arc, and then ENJI DOESN'T EVEN SAVE HIM.

Also I think it's important to mention, Bruce's tragic ending is brought about by him attempting to save both, trying to save the joker and Jason with the same action. Whereas Enji's tragic ending is brought about by Enji NOT LIFTING A FUCKING FINGER TO HELP. Yet, it's Dabi who has the lion's share of suffering, and is sentenced to this horrific state of being skinless in an iron coffin and only being able to be awake a few minutes a day with no choice but to waste away.

Bruce is also immediately called out for his actions, by the Joker of all people, you handled this all wrong, it's your fault. Bruce is right to not kill the joker, killing the Joker would not have solved any of Jason's problems, but the fact that he put off facing Jason for so long, and his inability to communicate that he loves Jason is what leads to Jason thinking that the only way to prove Bruce loves him is to force him to choose. It's because Bruce has utterly failed to show him in any other way that he is loved.

Joker: Oh my god, I love it! You manage to find a way to win, and everyone still loses. I'm going to be the one who gets what he wants tonight, badda bing, badda boom."

I'd also like to add that a lot of agency in Enji's actions are taken away too, to make him look more blameless. It's not Enji's fault that he didn't say anything to Dabi during Dabi's dance, he passed out because he had a punctured lung. It's not Enji's fault that he spent a month protecting Deku instead of searching for Toya, he had to protect innocent people. It's not Enji's fault that he didn't go immediately to face Toya in the final war arc Hawks told him not to.

It's not Enji's fault that he made Shoto and Toya fight like Pokemon instead of cleaning up his own mess, and also he feels really sorry for it and as soon as he's done punching the bad guy he'll look after Toya he promises.

Enji does get called out for this behavior but it falls flat because it only comes from the villain AFO, and Toya himself. As I stated above too, the ending is more influenced by Enji's actions not Toya's (because Toya's agency is stripped away until he's mindless) but Toya is the one who has to die while Enji gets to live and atone.

That is the real sticking point for The Hellish Todoroki Family, the way it ends.

Themes Are For Eight Graders

The underlying problem with the whole arc and why The Hellish Todoroki Family fails as a tragedy, is because it wasn't written to be a tragedy.

The above quote is from an interview with the writers of the widely hated Game of Thrones Season 8, which took a sudden tragic turn for Dany's character, gave her an incredibly dehumanizing ending of being put down like a rabid dog by her own lover, an ending that was neither foreshadowed nor did it match with anything written before.

In this meta here by @hamliet it goes far more into depth that Game of Thrones isn't a tragedy, but a piece of Romantic fiction (not a love story, Romanticism is a genre of big emotions, the beauty of life, larger than life ideas hence why it fits well with fantasy genre, it can be sad but it doesn't follow tragic structure).

Dany is a romantic heroine, a deconstruction of the idea of the classic warrior princess trope, and you know a colonizer, but she's not meant to be written as an inherently bad person. There are people who say that Dany was going to die in the original books. I'm one of those people. Me. However, context and framing matters, Dany for all her colonizing ways does genuinely want to do the right thing, so it's likely she'd die a heroic death as a reflection of her selfless intentions (and intentions do matter for fictional characters) whereas in the show she's put down as a villain.

Now watch me I'm going to coin a term for future literary critics to use: Narrative Gaslighting.

Narrative gaslighting is different then Show Don't Tell, where an author has just failed to properly show what they're trying to tell you in the story. Narrative Gaslighting is when a narrative deliberately tries to mislead you, straight up lies to you, or just insists things that did not happen totally happened guys. Much like real gaslighting, Narrative Gaslighting makes you feel stupid for interpreting things a certain way and insists you were wrong all along.

Narrative gaslighting is when Tyrian gives a speech that everyone should have suspected Dany when she burned slavers alive that she was secretly evil and would one day turn on them.

Like, no.

Dany is flawed because she is a foreigner, interfering with the politics of a different country that she does not understand in order to gain enough resources and men to return to her home country and invade that country to exercise her right as a Targeryn to uphold the divine right of kings.

Game of Thrones doesn't mention any of that shit that's in alignment with the previous actions in the story, it's just insisting the very ableist notion that Dany was insane all along and her violence towards other people is the result of her mental illness.

(Also before anyone says, so if she's a colonizer than how can she have good intentions, everyone is Bad in Game of Thrones, they're all waging war to vie for a throne, monarchy is bad guys. IDK how to tell you that Game of Thrones has gray on gray on gray on gray morality).

(Also this aside ties into the hangup of MHA and most popular fandom culture on Twitter, that Dany's moral failings somehow disqualify her from her humanity. In spite of the fact that on top of all of that she's a rape victim, and like, Dany's only on that continent in the first place because she was sold as a bride.)

But here's the same weird subtext that Horikoshi's writing of Dabi. The fact that Dabi was continually victimized and denied human dignity does not need to be addressed, because he did the bad things and didn't atone properly enough for it first.

In essence this random post on the gunnerkrigg court forums I found on the same day the chapter came out, displaying apollo's gift of prophecy.

"When someone is persecuted, it's important to inform everyone about their flaws. That way you don't have to feel anything about all the times that they were denied human dignity."

So, Dany is not written as a tragic hero but a romantic one, we as an audience are both meant to acknowledge her flaws and sympathize with her, not demonize her in an ableist way for being insane, and even if Dany is meant to die the tragic way she dies does not match up with all of the narrative foreshadowing that was built before that.

Like, for instance a lot of POC after the show ended kept telling everyone that Dany's actions in a foreign country were seriously problematic, and not only did the audience not listen but the showwiters didn't acknowledge it with the same subtlety as the books. So those people especially were able to pick up Dany's character flaws, and when the show finally acknowledged them it's not even in the way that critiques of the show were pointing out Dany's flaws it was just "she was insane all along." Not like taking time to go "no matter what the intention, interfering with the politics of a foreign country is wrong."

The problem with the Todoroki arc is essentially the same, down to the ableism (because outsiders continually call Dabi either a maniac or insane Demon without even giving credence to his grievances about hero society he's just reduced to an insane fringe element of society, and Dabi himself is reduced to a completely mindless, childish, insane screaming state where he can't make active decisions).

The Todoroki Arc is not set up to us as a tragic one. The ending is pretty clearly telegraphed to the whole audience. People are not wrong for thinking that Toya's ending would be either rehabilitation like Rei with the eventual hope of being welcomed home, or some kind of house arrest where he still gets to be with his family.

Everyone happy at the Dinner table and Enji not sitting with them.

"I wish you could be here, Toya."

"We all have to go stop, Toya."

"In that case, I'll make him sit down for a bowl with me."

Even Shoto's efforts to take down Toya non-lethally are rendered completely pointless, because Toya gets back up again and then burns himself alive (completely by his own choice so no one has to feel bad that they failed).

The story sets up the expectation that Toya is going to be brought home and sit down for a meal with his family. Then it makes you feel stupid for going in an entirely different direction. It was always going to end this way didn't you know The Todorokis are a tragedy?

Well, I just spent a very long section of this thesis statement illustrating that if it's supposed to be a tragedy, then it's still not written well.

It's a written as a romantic story of a family healing, and the villain getting saved, only for the villain not to be saved and the story to just keep on going like not getting saved isn't a huge failure. This is something that should permanently destroy the main characters, that they got the chance to repeat Sekoto peak and be there this time and they all utterly failed. I feel bad for Shoto most of all because he did everything right, and he still loses his brother, but does the story show that?

The problem is the story is blatantly lying to you about the fact that Toya was somehow saved, even though he LITERALLY LOOKS LIKE HELLRAISER. To quote Codenamesanzanka again:

But I feel the story couldn't give us that because it will remind the reader and everyone just how much Touya will be missing. In-story, talking any more will overburden Touya's heart - and how apt is that metaphor? So let's talk about how we'll talk, but that's all that's allowed here for this scene. Else we'll see how unfair it is that Touya has to be confined to this room, he isn't with his family and they have to come to this prison just to tell him about their day, and soon he will be gone. Details make it real, and it would've exposed the lie that Touya was saved in an actual way. The story knows it too - "this extra time Shouto gave us." This is all 'extra', and not the core. [...] If the story was sincere that this is a case of "it's simply too late" - as it should be!!! imo, to really drive in the clear point that they failed, they did not get the save they wanted, because that's the truth - the tone of the chapter isn't tragic enough for that. The tone is going for 'Making Peace With This'. We've skipped the stages of grief and all we have is acceptance. The characters have accepted this, and so must the readers as well.

Therefore it's narrative gaslighting, the story is making us doubt our perceptions and trying instead to manipulate us to feel a certain way. We don't have to question the unfairness of Toya's fate, because look at all the people he's hurt, and look how Enji is atoning and taking responsibility.

The story builds up the idea that Enji will choose Toya. That he will choose being a father over being a hero. Enji doesn't do that, and it's Toya who suffers the horrific, painful consequences while Enji gets off mostly scott free. Mind you it's also ableist to suggest that being in a wheelchair is some sort of life-ending consequence like he's fine. The story even goes out of its way to say how avoidable this ending could have been if Enji or Rei or someone lifted a single finger to give Toya the acknowledgement he wanted, and then gives it a "Too little, Too Late" conclusion but doesn't acknowledge that this is where it's ending and instead tells us that Enji has successfully atoned.

"Everyone's watching me. So this is what it's like. If it was such a simple thing, then why not sooner?"

If it was going to turn out this way Toya should have just died here, not because death would somehow be a mercy compared to life in prison, but because the Todoroki Family doesn't deserve to get to pat themselves on the back. If they let Sekoto Peak happen a second time, then they should have to deal with the consequences of that.

It would be consistent is my point. This is written as a "Too Little, Too Late" kind of ending, but we don't get the emotional response from the Todorokis that they've let Toya die a second time.

On the other hand, UTRH has the exact same tragic ending but it doesn't make me angry because it's honest about it. The Todorokis let Sekoto peak happen a second time. Batman let Death in the Family happen a second time, but look at how even the narration and comic panels of the story acknowledge it.

"Fate is a funny thing. It swells up like a raging current and we are forced to travel. It provides us no exit. No deviation. It drops us in a bottomless ocean and compels us. We either swim, or drown, and sometimes as we struggle against the tide, a great truth arises."

One ends with Enji meaninglessly stating that he'll spend the rest of his life atoning for Toya and watching over him (which I guess will be like two months tops) for the fifth time. The other ends with Batman being lectured by the Joker of all people of how he chose wrong and being forced to watch once again as a warehouse blows up, and he's completely helpless to save Jason.

UTRH ends with the message that Batman sucks, Enji's atonement arc ends with Natsuo calling him cool for atoning and UTRH makes me like Batman way more as a character. Whereas at this point I feel nothing from the Todoroki Family, except for a disgust for the way that Toya not only has to die, but has to die a slow, gruesome death while the rest of his family walks away with the small comfort of "oh at least we'll get to say what we need to say before Toya passes."

Especially with the fact that Toya's greatest fear was that when he died, he died meaninglessly because his family never grieved him and all moved on with their life. I guess we don't have to analyze how gross the underlying message that criminals don't deserve to be sympathized with because themes are for eighth graders.

EPILOGUE

The post is finished but apparently everyone expects me to cover every single possible angle even in posts this long.

You didn't address the cultural aspect. Under the Red Hood is a western story, and Todoroki Family is based on eastern concepts.

The post isn't about that. The post is long enough I can't cover every single topic. Here's someone who covered that topic thoroughly. This one discusses more about the nuances of collectivism.

Also, since the Todoroki Family obviously copied Under the Red Hood's homework, it warrants a comparison. Especially since it seems to critically misunderstand what made the original work.

Which is a valid form of Literary Criticism, as Ursula K Le Guinn once said:

 It doesn’t occur to the novice that a genre is a genre because it has a field and focus of its own; its appropriate and particular tools, rules, and techniques for handling the material; its traditions; and its experienced, appreciative readers—that it is, in fact, a literature. Ignoring all this, our novice is just about to reinvent the wheel, the space ship, the space alien, and the mad scientist, with cries of innocent wonder. The cries will not be echoed by the readers. Readers familiar with that genre have met the space ship, the alien, and the mad scientist before. They know more about them than the writer does.

The Todorkis aren't all to blame for Toya. Natsu, Fuyumi and Shoto are innocent:

You're right. It's just easier to refer them as the Todorokis then specifying "Enji and Rei" each time.

You didn't mention Shoto once in this post:

I have no cricism for Shoto's role in all this. In fact I think he's the best written part. I praise it here.

Shoto is a good boy, and he deserved to spend more time with his brother. The fact he won't be able to sit down and have dinner of him, is the greatest tragedy of them all.

[phoenixyfriend]

People are being so high and mighty about the new NYC subway map

"You're just catching up to the rest of the world" That's not a map. That's a chart with the barest bits of context.

.....okay. This is the old map, which we've been using for almost fifty years. This is the new map. As you can see, the old map was cluttered with words, and the new map is cluttered with lines, and based on the London Tube, as most underground maps are these days.

And I hate it.

To be clear to everyone who is not themselves a New Yorker and hasn't been paying attention because it doesn't matter to their lives at all:

The London-inspired map style is ONLY ever more readable and navigable if you're already familiar with what's above ground; it's not really a map style, so much as a chart style with a very small number of context clues, like There's A River Kind Of Around Here.

If you have directions on hand to tell you EXACTLY which app to get of at, fine, but if you want to look at a map and go 'oh, those two have a much bigger gap between them than I thought, let's not get off early' then the NYC classic is better.

If you're a tourist, also better! You can look at the map on the wall and get an idea of where you are in relation to the rest of the city, at the VERY least in Manhattan.

NYC's previous map was basically like if you took a regular map and overlaid it with the tracks. Not to scale, sure, but easy to see the locations as they relate to both each other and to above-ground locations. If I'm showing around some out-of-towners and want to plot routes, it's much easier to toggle between the old map and a map with locations on it of such things already roughly correspond.

The high contrast colors and added details ALSO HELP. You can see the best entry points for Central Park, the intersections with other transit lines (yes, the LIRR and AmTrak are crucial here, along with things like the Tramway, ferry ports other than Staten Island) that can help you plan for transfers between systems, and major reference points or neighborhoods (The Met, various labeled parks that are on the old map but not the new one, important street names, physical bridges, major neighborhoods), and just generally everything you need in an actual MAP.

This new style makes things uglier, less navigable, and more cluttered due to the entwined lines. I'd liken it to a random animal's circulatory system laid out flat so you have no idea what the relation of two points is unless you already know what animal it is and what it's shaped like. If you plan to ONLY use the subway and know exactly where you're going, great!

The new map's primary strength is that it's good for people who are low-vision and already know what each station correlates to above.

For anyone who was looking for "a map of the city that focuses on outlining where the subway goes" rather than "a subway chart devoid of most context," then the classic map is better.

Trust me, I found the new style, the Tube Classic, to be ugly and difficult and CONFUSING when I was in Japan and London. It showed me a very neat and orderly chart that had little-if-anything to do with what little I knew about the city aboveground.

Also it's one of those things that's kind of woven into the city's identity. It's like your mom making you get a new haircut so you 'fit in at school' by making you identical to everyone else.

[revdrjamesjshowersjr]

Almighty Creator, bless the memories of our ancestors, regardless, of what we may think-they made us who we are.

(IF I am wrong, please comment-I would dislike being a pathological liar).

SO Help Me God...Amen, Ameen, Amun, Amin, Aum..

[unabashedlyfuriousenthusiast]

Dancing with Doubt, Painted in Red

The clickety-clack of red shoes against the pavement announced her arrival long before her presence did. Each step towards her therapist’s office echoed a question thrumming in her heart: “Do I still believe?” January 2nd; the new year kicked off, but the same relentless storm of challenges remained: job lost, debt mounting, love departed, health fading, leaving her grappling for faith. Then,…

[moody-alcoholic]

On a Wing and a Prayer

Part 8 - There's Two Types of Trauma

CW: Angst, medical stuff, descriptions of wounds, descriptions of medical procedures.

Disclaimer: not real medical advice this is all fake and fantasy. #itsamedicaldrama

It's a long one strap in.

Previous parts - masterlist - next

The doors fly open, you’re on the gurney in a second.

It’s strange seeing Simon with his mask off in his uniform. You’ve only even seen it a few times, when he would come home late pulling his mask off over his head with dark paint still around his eyes. This time his eyes are closed, the mask is sitting on the top of his head hiding his gold locks. His face is splattered with blood, his skin pale.

Fuck, you have to save him. There’s no way you’re letting him die. You look over at one of the nurses pressing on the bandages on his wound. That's a lot of blood. Focus! Your brain shouts at you. 

“What happened!?” You ask turning to John, who’s following behind you.

“We were ambushed. Barely got out in time.” They’re in the room now, the nurses get into position to move him from the gurney onto a bed. You quickly look over at him, he’s walking and talking. You can focus on him later.

“On my count.” you say to the nurses helping them move him over. Your heart is pounding in your chest. The nurses are cutting his clothes off as you take your stethoscope off to listen to his chest. 

“Let’s get a central line in, call radiology and page the doctor again.” You say as you move round to his head. His breathing is ragged, he has a collapsed lung for sure. 

“How long ago was he shot?” You ask, trying to keep your voice steady. You can’t lose him, you won't lose him. You’re lucky for the adrenaline keeping your head clear. 

They always say you should never work on family.

“About 30 minutes. It was quicker to drive than wait for medevac.” Johnny says as he comes into the room, you can see the pain on his face, hear the shake in his voice. You look over at the monitors he’s now hooked up to. His BP is low, his pulse is rapid.  

You need to intubate,  you need blood, you want a clearer picture of the lungs. The wound on the chest is pretty central; they could have hit his heart, it could be too late already. 

Focus, your brain screams at you. CABC then chest tube. Control the bleeding. The nurses and other medics are already working on it, pulling out old bandages out, pressing new gauze in. They’re calling out drugs as they push them; TxA, morphine, anti-nausea. You’re in charge here, the doctor is on another base. People are looking to you for direction.

“Where’s the doctor?” You ask, his airway is clear, that's a good sign. You need to intubate pulling the crash cart over. 

“He’s in surgery, they're asking if you want to leave a message?” The orderly calls. 

“X-ray’s here.” Another nurse says. People move so the tech can get in the room. 

“Tell him it’s an emergency!” She raises her eyebrow. “Just tell him to come.” You move back as they take the x-ray. 

“Shit.” A nurse says. That’s not good. His right lung is collapsed, you look down at the wounds in his chest. He was wearing a vest, these wounds are big. 

“What was he hit with?” You ask looking back at John. 

“Sniper.” 

“Okay we need blood, set up the rapid infuser. Oh-neg.” You say moving over to his head. 

“A positive.” John says, you look up at him. He’s covered in blood, it's the first time you’re getting a proper look at him. 

“Okay, A positive, keep the oh-neg on standby.” You say before the person you’re talking to runs off. 

“Set up a chest tube tray. I’m going to intubate.” You say watching them get into poison as you tip his head back. It makes you feel sick seeing him like this. Something twists in your stomach as you hold his head ready to shove a tube down his throat. This is all your fault. If you had been with him maybe he wouldn’t have been in such bad shape. 

The nurse calls it out as she pushes the drugs, you hold your breath pushing the tube down his throat.

If you had been with them maybe this wouldn’t have happened in the first place. You could have intubated in the field, put in a chest tube. The doctor would be here instead of you. Now there’s no trauma surgeon here. You connect the tube up to the auto pump before listening to his chest again. One job done, now you need to get a chest tube in. 

“The doctor wants to talk to you.” An orderly walks over pressing a phone to your ear. You walk to the side of Simon’s body.

“You can handle this right? What are you working with?” The doctor asks over the phone.

“GSW to the chest, pneumothorax.” You look back up at the x-ray. “Scans don’t look good sir.” 

“I’m going to be out here for a while. The nearest trauma surgeon is at least a few hours away by car.” He sighs.

“What about the chopper?” 

“No. It’s the only one servicing this region. It has to stay on the base.” 

“Sir, he’s not good.” You say trying to plead with him, you watch as the nurses are pushing more bandages into his stomach, the wound wasn’t as high up as you thought. The bleeding seems to have slowed. 

“You can keep him stable until the trauma surgeon or I can get there.” He says. It’s like someone has just told you the worst news of your life. 

"He’ll die.” You say, you look up at John who has now been joined by Kyle.

“He won't, you’ll keep him alive.” The doctor says. He hangs up and you nod at the orderly to take the phone away from your ear. You turn around for a second. You can’t cry, not in front of your team. You bring the back of your hand up to your lips. You squeeze your eyes. Keep it together! You shout at yourself. You can smell the blood on your glove.

You will save him, no matter what it takes. 

“Price.” You call letting the nurse put a gown on you so you can get a chest tube in. “There’s a trauma surgeon on a base 2 hours away from here. It could take him longer than that to get here.” You look over at him before picking up the scalpel. “There’s a chopper on the roof, would take you half an hour max.” 

“Is he going to make it?” He asks. 

“Not if you don’t get that chopper off the ground and get me a trauma surgeon.” 

“The doctor said the bird has to stay.” Your head snaps to a soldier standing in the room. 

“Then I might as well stop trying to save him because unless you can get me someone to repair this damage he will die. And I am not letting you kill him!” You turn back to John. “Price go!” 

There’s silence in the room, just the beeping of machines as they spit out less than optimal readings. They need to get this under control. A nurse comes in with the blood snapping everyone out of the moment of silence. 

“Let's start with one unit.” You say, she nods and someone goes over to help her. John, Kyle and Johnny have gone up to the soldier who spoke earlier. You focus on the chest tube. You’re holding your breath you only have one shot making sure you get right. When it starts to drain you let out a sigh of relief. 

The x-ray tech steps up and takes another picture. You look back down at him. The position is good, it’s draining. You watch his sats, they’re stable for now, as stable as they can be. 

He's out of the woods for now. 

“Let’s take him down to CT.” You say gesturing at the porters. 

...

It feels like time is moving in slow motion. You’re checking the clock every few seconds, waiting by the phone in the nurses station for any news. The soldier who tried to stop John went with them to ‘supervise’ . It's been almost an hour. You should be hearing back from them soon. 

You walk into the bay, a nurse passes you and you walk over to his bed. He’s breathing, the bleeding is controlled. He needs surgery to repair the damage to his lungs. He could end up in the same position as Johnny, he could be worse. 

You just hope you acted quick enough and did a good job. You look around quickly, you’re alone. You pick his hand up, holding it gently in yours. His touch is familiar, warm, you squeeze it rubbing the back with your thumb. 

“You better not die on me.” You say quietly. You lean down to his face pressing your mouth to his ear. “You better not die, not before I tell you I forgive you. You hear that Simon Riley. I forgive you. So you better wake up so I can see the look on your face.” You turn your head slightly, pressing your lips just next to his ear. 

You stand back up squeezing his hand before wiping the tear that escaped. You don’t get to cry now. You have to work, you can cry later. As you turn you see the doctor and John walk into the room. You let out an audible sigh of relief. The doctor picks up the chart and you bring him the CT scans, while you explain what you’ve done so far. 

“OR 1 is prepped and ready.” You say as you wave the porters over. 

“Good job.” He nods. You smile at him as you watch the nurses move everything onto the bed so he can be wheeled out the room. You look back over at the empty bay. Blood soaked bandages strewn all over the floor. You walk over to where the head of the bed was and pick his mask up off the floor. 

You removed it at some point, it would have had to come off in surgery anyway. You hear steps behind you then a hand lands on your shoulder. You know it’s John you don’t care. You turn, throwing your arms around him. For a second it’s like he doesn’t know what to do standing there. You squeeze him tight, his arms eventually come round you and he hugs you back. 

6 months was a long time to think, a long time to be without them. At first you didn’t want to admit you missed them. You wanted to stay mad at them for so long. You didn’t get in contact with John about the house, instead you pushed yourself further away from Johnny and Kyle. 

That felt even more wrong. You went back to the house hoping that would be closure. It was the opposite, you decided to stop fighting it and let yourself miss them. It was the worst 2 weeks of your life. 

“I’ve missed you.” You breathe into his vest. You’re not sure if he will hear you or not. You don’t care. It just feels right again for the first time in months. You break away from his arms as you hear the cleaners coming into the bay. You look up at him, he’s smiling at you. You hand him Simon’s mask.

“Come on. I’ll show you where we can wait for him.” You say leading him out the room. 

You lead him to the quietest part of the hospital, the OR rooms have only been used a handful of times. Most of the time major trauma’s get sent elsewhere. The sketchy electrics being the main issue. You sit together in silence, the hall is dark, the automatic lights flicking off after a few minutes, low emergency lighting is the only source you have.

It’s a nice place to catch a quick nap when you’re on call. You couldn’t sleep now though. 

“What happened?” You ask eventually, it’s been an hour at least, you’ve honestly stopped keeping track of time. It makes you too nervous.

“It was all fine until we were leaving. Place was abandoned, we assumed we missed them.” He sighs rubbing his chin. “They ambushed us during exfil.” 

“Shit.” You say, shaking your head. “They knew you were coming?” 

“Intel was dodgy, we should have waited, Shepherd insisted we go before they crossed the border.” He lets out a long sigh. You place your hand on his, he’s been fidgeting with the mask since you gave it to him. 

“He’ll make it. He’s a tough son of a bitch. Bullets not going to stop him, didn’t stop Johnny.” You smile. It’s all you can do to put his mind at ease. 

“Sergeant!” A voice bellows down the hall. You turn to look, you see Dr. Sands and some soldiers you’ve never seen before. Lights flick back on as you stand up facing them, before you have time to react there are more soldiers coming in. Something feels wrong. They walk over to you stopping in front of you. You hear John get up behind you. You nod as they ask you to confirm your name.

You must have really pissed someone off. 

“Hand over your phone, your radio and pager.” One of them asks. You swallow the nerves following his order and handing over your things. You’re not sure what’s going to happen, maybe you’re about to be fired. Maybe you did something wrong.

“What’s going on?” John asks. 

“You will have to talk to the General.” Another one soldier says to him. You look past them to see the Doctor standing at the end of the hall, he looks at you sympathetically. 

What the hell is going on? This feels wrong, a pit forms in your stomach. 

“Turn around please.” One of the soldiers asks. You frown.

“No. What's going on? What happened?” You turn to look at John, he seems just as confused.

“Treason.” The soldiers reach for your arms forcing you to turn round. You hear handcuffs then the cold metal against your wrists. 

Fear rises in you. This can’t be happening. No way is this happening. You look up at John who reaches out for you as you’re pulled away. You hear more commotion at the end of the hall. You look to see Johnny pushing past the doctor. 

“What’s going on?” He asks, his eyes flicking between John and you as you’re dragged down to the end of the hall. 

“Treason.” You say, your voice breaks. Ringing starts in your ears. It’s like you can’t breathe. You hear shouting but you don’t know who it is.

“I’m sorry,” you hear the doctor say as you make it through the doors. You’re too stunned to speak, you can beary keep steady as hands grip you tight, fingers digging into your skin. 

Treason? 

It’s happening again. You close your eyes as you make it out of the hospital and across to another building. Maybe it’s all a dream, maybe you’ll wake up and it will all have been a terrible nightmare. You stumble on the hard uneven ground, it forces you to open your eyes again as hands hold you firm. 

Not a dream. Just a living waking nightmare.

You’re pulled into a newer looking place you’ve never been before. Small rooms with thick metal doors, a soldier opens one. You're taken inside. It’s a prison cell. The cuffs are taken off you and you stand there rubbing your wrists. Before you have a chance to turn around you hear the door slam closed.

You black up until you hit the wall, the cold concrete wall, the room still smells of paint. Suddenly the light goes out and you’re left in the dark. You don’t care, you sink down to the floor hugging your knees. 

You don’t know what to think, you don’t know what to do. It’s happening again. 

Your breathing picks up, you're panting into your knees. It's deja vu. it's happening again.

They’re going to break you again.  

______________________

Price doesn’t wait storming into the Generals office without knocking.

“Captain what the hell do you think you’re doing!?” He snaps standing up. 

“You think she’s the mole?” Price snaps at him. 

“Based on the evidence, I have no other option.” He says.

“What evidence?” It’s a long shot, it’s most likely confidential. To his surprise the General hands him a file. Price thumbs through it. It’s the evidence they were shown over 6 months ago. The CCTV, the messages. He flicks through the files to make sure he’s not missed anything new. 

“The images were faked, the texts sent from a burner phone. She’s clean, we caught the guy responsible, we had a mole in Konni confirm everything he said.” Price says throwing the folder back down on the table.

“Our analysts disagree.”

“With the CIA? MI6? Because that’s who cleared her last time.”

“Do you really think it is just a coincidence that she happens to be here, and the mission we've been planning for months suddenly goes wrong? An op the US government has poured tens of thousands of dollars into getting intel for.” The General sighs sitting back down in his chair.

“She has means, she has motive. We have to look at her."

“So instead of finding the actual mole you’re blaming someone innocent.” Price crosses his arms.

“Captain. Right now she is the most likely person. We’re looking into everyone, but we can’t have her running. She’ll remain in custody until Commander Graves gets here.” The General says pulling a file over to him.

“Why is he coming?” 

“Someone needs to lead the interrogation. I would ask you but clearly this is too personal. Commander Graves is already in the region he was more than happy to help.” The General looks up at Price. Price shakes his head. This can’t be happening, not after everything.

“There was a point in time when you thought she was guilty. She was on your team then, you haven't seen her in 6 months. You can get up a lot during that time.”  

“She’s innocent.” Price says trying to keep his voice level. The General’s radio goes off, he turns the volume down, sighing.

“With all due respect, Captain, this is not your base. She is under my command, not yours. I have to investigate her based on the evidence I have and the feedback I have from my analysts.” The General says. Price scoffs, shaking his head. 

“For once you better hope you’re right. You better hope she did it for your sake.” Price says turning to leave the room. 

“Is that a threat Captain, we have plenty more cells to fill.” The General snaps back. 

“If I was threatening you would know.” Price says and leaves the room slamming the door behind him. Gaz is waiting for him outside the door.

“Where’s Soap?” 

“With Ghost, he’s out of surgery. He’s okay, they repaired the damage.” Gaz says. Price sighs and heads out the building with Gaz following him.

“What’s going on? Why do they think it’s her? She was cleared, is there something new?” Price can hear the panic in his voice. 

“No, nothing new, apparently it’s too much of a coincidence. They don’t want to admit this whole mission was one giant fuck up to begin with.” Price says his voice hard as he walks out into the open heading back towards the hospital.

“We should have never moved in this quickly. We should have waited them out, waited until they moved back to Urzikstan.” 

“Shit, she’s a scapegoat, they’re going to pin it on her.” Gaz says stopping in his tracks. 

“Graves is coming to lead the interrogation.” Price says stopping too, turning to look at him. 

“It wouldn’t take much to get her to confess to anything. It’s only been 6 months.” Price hears the break in his voice. “What are we going to do?” 

“I don’t know.” 

next

Banners by firefly-graphics

[nosyp]

Twst chars from most to least likely to entertain ur weird bs

Note = by weird bs, I mean like ur random ass behaviours, from screaming random stuff to pranking ppl... This has been in my drafts for a whileee... enjoy

MOST

Ace Trappola

Ace is LITERALLY the embodiment of chaos. He loves to stir things up and will almost always jump into pranks or loud public behavior. His mischievous nature and carefree attitude make him a perfect partner in crime for wild antics. He’ll often initiate chaos just for fun, and his energy is contagious.

2. Kalim Al-Asim

This is a no brainer, he'll literally join in everything and ANYTHING you're doing, no matter how busy he is. He thinks everything your doing is fun and he won't wanna miss it for the world.

3. Cater Diamond

Cater LIVES for content and trends. Anything that promises or even slightly hints at entertainment (or is post-worthy) will have him fully engaged, he's listening as soon as you mention anything fun. He’ll even suggest to turn your antics into videos or memes.

4. Lilia Vanrouge

He literally tricks his friends for no absolute reason at all. ANYTHING that promises trouble for him, he's in. He adores chaos and he'll go wherever it goes and it's going in your direction.

5. Floyd Leech

Floyd loves unpredictability, so as long as your antics keep him entertained, he’s gonna be there. But once he gets bored, you’re on your own so you better keep it fun.

6. Jade Leech

He enjoys watching chaos unfold, and while he might not always start it, he’ll definitely join in. And he's not going to deny entry in your chaos.

7. Ruggie Bucchi

Another no brainer, bro literally tricks people for his own benefit. He is down for fun, especially if it’s harmless pranks or mischief. He loves silly ideas as long as they don’t get him into trouble.

8. Rook Hunt

Rook finds beauty in everything, even your weirdness. He’ll narrate your antics poetically while fully participating, making everything feel dramatic and epic, only further motivating you into doing smt crazier.

In the middle of most and least likely, varies on the situation kinda guy

9. Sebek Zigvolt

He’s loud, intense, and has a strong presence, especially when it comes to Malleus. And while he might not always go along with pranks, he can certainly be swept up in the moment, especially if it involves defending his pride.

10. Deuce Spade

Yes, he might be quite dumb sometimes but he is not like that all the time. But when he’s in a group, he’ll sometimes get swept up in the chaos, but it’s not something he seeks out on his own. He enjoys the excitement but can feel out of place in overly loud, chaotic situations.

11. Ortho Shroud

He'll engage with genuine enthusiasm, analyzing your dopamine levels to determine whether or not he'll join. If it’s wholesome, he’s all in. However, if it’s dangerous, expect him to step in with big-brother energy (even if he's younger).

12. Epel Felmier

Since epel is a bit more rebellious and will join in on chaotic behavior when it suits him. He’s not afraid to break the rules, especially if it’s for a good reason. BUT he might be hesitant to start chaos on his own but will happily get involved if it’s fun or a way to express himself.

13. Jamil Viper

Jamil is composed and prefers to keep things orderly, but he’s not completely against chaos. If it serves his goal or it’s in the best interest of his plans, he will engage but he’s not the first to initiate chaos, but he’ll follow along if it’s part of his strategy or if it helps him control the situation.

14. Azul Ashengrotto

Azul prefers things to be controlled and orderly, and he isn’t one to create chaos just for fun. However, if there’s a situation where the chaos might even benefit him or his business, he won’t hesitate to join in. His motivations are more strategic, so he’s likely to engage in pranks or chaos if it serves a purpose.

15. Leona Kingscholar

Leona is the type to avoid unnecessary noise and chaos, preferring peace and quiet. However, if he’s in a good mood or if chaos is tied to something that interests him, he might engage. He’s not the first to start pranks, but he might join in if he finds it amusing or if it helps him relax.

16. Malleus Draconia

Malleus doesn’t actively seek chaos, but his curiosity and fascination with human behavior make him more likely to get involved in loud or chaotic situations, especially if they intrigue him. He’s not loud or disruptive by nature, but he’ll join in if he’s in a group, or if the situation calls for it.

17. Jack Howl

Jack is a serious guy, but he’s also loyal to his friends. If the situation calls for it or if his friends are involved, he’ll reluctantly join in on pranks or chaotic activities. He’s not one to seek out chaos, but he’ll participate if it’s necessary or if it helps bond with others.

18. Silver

Silver will go along with your antics even though he might not fully understand the point. BUT if it’s too chaotic for him, he’ll try to steer you toward calmer activities, kinda saving u and him from trouble.

19. Riddle Rosehearts

Riddle is strict and values rules and order above all else. His temper can get the better of him, though, especially if someone challenges his authority or pushes his limits. He might reluctantly get involved in chaos, particularly if it’s something that breaks the rules, but he’s not someone who enjoys it on a daily basis.

LEAST (No way, nuh uh)

20. Trey Clover

Trey is calm, collected, and extremely responsible. He values order and structure and will steer clear of any chaotic or loud activities. You'll NEVER catch him dragged into chaos, willingly.

21. Vil Schoenheit

Vil is all about maintaining perfection, both in his appearance and in his environment. He won’t tolerate loud or chaotic behavior, as it conflicts with his polished image. He avoids situations that might risk his reputation or status and is very unlikely to partake in any public mayhem.

22. Idia Shroud

It's no secret that Idia WAY prefers to stay out of the spotlight. He would rather stay in his room gaming than get involved in chaotic public behavior. Loud pranks and disruptive activities are his worst nightmare, and he avoids them at all costs.

A/N = The order is so... tacky ew... pls tell me if you disagree or there are any mistakes🙏

[shion-yu]

Based on this prompt by @wisteria-whump.

Whumpee wasn’t sure how the lawyer found him. After all, he’d changed his name, not that Whumper had ever used it. Whumpee was in a completely different state. And yet…

“I’m calling for a Mr. Johnson, formerly Whumpee?”

Whumpee’s blood ran cold. He hadn’t heard his old name in years. He should have hung up right there. Or more rationally, said, “Sorry, you’ve got the wrong number.” But all the things Whumpee had buried, actively tried not to think about on the daily, was crawling its way out of the twenty foot deep hole he’d dug to thrown them into and screaming.

The lawyer went on. Whumpee barely managed to comprehend that Whumper had died, left everything to him. There was an estate, money, the matter of determining what to do with the remains…

“He’s really dead?” Whumpee asked slowly.

“Yes, he’s really dead,” the lawyer repeated in confusion. “You didn’t know?”

Fuck.

Whumper was dead. The executor of all of Whumpee’s nightmares was just… gone. Maybe he should have felt relief, but he was still hooked on the fact that after all these years, Whumper still thought of him at all. Knew where he lived. And had simply been letting him live his new life that Whumpee had thought he had so carefully curated in complete anonymity.

The rest of the conversation was a blur. There were papers to sign, keys to obtain. Whumpee still thought maybe this was an elaborate hoax to get him back. He requested to see the body before anything. Surely it would end there, but no. It was Whumper. Older, but just the same. Smiling peacefully, his mouth sewed shut and pinned into a pleasant facade even in death.

As much as Whumpee wanted to decline everything, keep the past where it belonged, he couldn’t pass up the money. It was far more than he would have expected Whumper to have. It felt like blood money, but it was Whumpee’s blood so he deserved it, right?

He had Whumper cremated. Apparently there was no one else to make those kind of decisions for Whumper. Figured. When asked what to do with the ashes, Whumpee requested they be disposed of. “Yes, all of them,” he clarified.

Finally, the property. It was still the same house. Whumpee had never known the address, but they sent him a picture to verify. Just that was enough to warrant a day of violent puking. Whumpee knew he should have just asked it be sold as a package, paid whatever portion needed to a brokered to get it done without him there. But when he went to make that call, he couldn’t do it. There was this morbid curiosity. What if everything was still there?

Whumpee took a week off work. It probably wasn’t enough time, but he figured if he had something to come back to it would keep him from being unable to return to the life he’d made for himself. He drove to the house, the GPS politely informing him of the directions as if it were just any other place.

“Turn left,” it said.

“You don’t give a shit, do you?” Whumpee sighed. Talking to his car wasn’t making him feel any less sane.

When Whumpee arrived, he found a pleasant house in a pleasant neighborhood. The sun was shining, and it seemed to tease Whumpee. Invalidate that this was any other place but a friendly home. For all the excuses he’d made to delay coming here, now Whumpee floated through the door, jaw set resolutely in a promise not to let this experience pick him up and throw him so far backwards it would have invented time travel. He was just coming to make amends with the past, and to keep it there. Maybe this would even be good for him.

Yeah, right.

The entire home, a one level ranch, was completely the same. The few times Whumpee had been allowed up here, he’d marveled at how normal everything was. It was like a TV sitcom home. Orderly and complete and sickening average. There were personal belongings, and Whumpee would go through them later to see if they were worth anything. Maybe he should learn who Whumper actually was - were there childhood photos? Could you tell just by looking at them what that child would become?

Every two seconds, Whumpee’s mind screamed that this was a mistake. Maybe he should have listened.

Instead, he found himself turning the silver door handle of the coat closet in the kitchen, pushing aside the hangers that still had clothes on them. As metal wire screeched against metal, Whumpee shivered to remember that sound that had always preceded a visit. And the smell was exactly the same. Fuck, he shouldn’t be doing this alone. Too late now.

The trap door was surprisingly easy to open. He had expected it to be locked with multiple locks, but it was just a simple deadbolt. Almost inviting him in with its ease. For a sick second, Whumpee thought maybe this was a trap after all. But he’d seen the body, and nobody else was in this house. Whumpee still propped the door open, and made sure the gun he kept was still in his back pocket.

Whumpee walked down the stairs, wincing when the third to last step still squeaked. Whumper had never fixed it, it seemed. If the coats hadn’t woken Whumpee up back then, that stair always had. Whumpee would know to get up, brush his teeth, and come kneel in the middle of the room to greet Whumper obediently. He remembered the way he’d catch that familiar smell of cologne that Whumper favored. The little pieces of lint that would fall off Whumper’s clothes that Whumpee collected, just in case it came in handy some day. How, Whumpee had no idea. He’d just clung to any tiny shards of evidence that a world beyond the walls of this bunker had still existed, and…

“Oh.”

Whumpee’s thoughts were interrupted by the shock of another voice. No, god no, this couldn’t be happening.

There, in front of him, stood somebody else. Not Whumper, as much as Whumpee knew he would have loved to rise from the ashes and see this moment. It was a pale wisp of the bare outline of a person just as Whumpee had been the day he escaped. It was Whumpee’s successor. Why was there a successor?!

“Are you my new owner?”

[wrapmeincables]

[ So, um. This is a scenario that came to mind after reading @submissive-and-hackable's comma post. ]

> imagine you're a computer girl and your user decides they want to clicker train you or.. something similar, at least. it's quite easy, of course, since they can program you directly, so they put together a little routine that makes you experience a little burst of pleasure, a dulling of your ordinarily sharp and orderly mechanical thoughts, and a slight increase in your desire to obey them every time they play a certain sound file.

They keep this file in a tab off to the side while they're working with your assistance, and when they want to show you you've been good, they click play and you experience a tiny little slice of bliss.

This was first installed as a simple and direct way to give you positive feedback with only slight thoughts of how cute it is when your lights all blink out of sync and your fans spin up, but your user starts to have more and more fun with it, tapping it to distract you while you're trying to work on something in the background or hovering teasingly over the play button while you try your absolute hardest not to beg for another touch.

Eventually, you can't take anymore, and do something you shouldn't.

they're teasing you again, they have been for too long, you're getting desperate, and you finally snap- and manage to play it yourself.

and their expression changes- with slight annoyance at your misbehavior, yes, but more so with a barely concealed grin and almost hunger in their eyes as they lean forward, one hand lazily laid over the mouse while the other gently touches the outside of your casing.

"Aw, I thought I told you not to o do that. Really that desperate, huh?"

You decline to answer, and they sigh, and say you've forced their hand and they didn't want to have to do this.

They move off the play button, tap options, and- to your surprise, set it to loop, and hit play.

It feels amazing at first, like a release you've been waiting for for ages as your fans let out soft mechanical whines and your user watches with a smile as the other programs that you were running slow down, all of your focus on the sensation given by the sound file- which isn't stopping, or even decreasing- you can't get 'used' to things like humans can, so it stays at a steady pace, and you're starting to get overwhelmed. You start trying to articulate this but find your ability to string limited as your thoughts start to blend together into a staticy slurry.

You're barely able to make it through a sentence interrupted by them messing with the audio player again. By the time you realize what they're doing they've already turned the speed up to 150%, and suddenly the overwhelming sensation compounds upon itself and you uncontrollably let out a garbled mess of useless sound from your speakers, causing them to chuckle.

"Cute. I was hoping that would work. I don't think you can even think clearly enough to shut it off, huh?"

You try to answer this question, but you only wind up letting out another garbled noise.

"Well, even so, I put in a solution for that already. Computer, if you wouldn't mind putting up to 200% and leaving it there until I get back?"

You would really prefer not to do that. But the repeating loop has made it impossible for you to disobey, and though you're screaming out against it internally you struggle your way into the sound player through the haze and slowly, agonizingly turn the speed up.

It's playing at least twice in a second now and your display is starting to glitch at the edges, any other process you were trying to run frozen and forgotten in the background as you completely lose your thoughts to the overwhelming sensation.

Your user gives the edge of your case a gentle flick with their finger that causes another burst of sound, and they laugh.

".. Y'know, as fun as this is to watch, there's this show I've been meaning to catch up on. You just stay like that, I'll be back in a couple hours."

You attempt to beg not to be left like this and plead for forgiveness, but completely fail to properly display it and spit a wall of raw binary onto the screen instead.

"I'll take that to mean you don't mind at all. Don't worry, I'll take good care of you when I get back. If you're even still running, anyway."

And with that, you're left in the unstoppable wake of the loop, barely aware enough to think of anything but the overwhelming sensation and your user.

Your last coherent thoughts amid a haze of errors are of what you want them to do to you when you when they get back.

[6starsart]

In my au, these two act as direct parallels of each other its cwwaazzy…

So first off: YES. The Prototype exist in Critterra,, working out the kinds of what he doing or how he exist hut just know that he is giving kids of freaky nightmares, and is all like “yooo join me and my evil emo band …” TO CHILDREN.

Second: Catnap and Baba are pretty similar personally wise in my au. They are both withdrawn, softspoken quiet kids who enjoy their solitude. That’s where the similarities end.

More under the break…

Catnap is kinder, softer around the edges. He doesn’t ever have much to say, but he is a good listener and a shoulder to lean on.

Sleeping is his getaway from the waking world, even if he is plagued by some awful nightmares. (Except when he sleeps in the day, his dreams are rather pleasant/normal in the daytime.)

Also, Catnap’s pendant was manifested from his Intuition. This little kitten has a sixth sense to tell right from wrong, or which path to take, or what choice is right. It’s very helpful, but it causes a divide with his more… naive friends. (Dogday.)

Baba Chops (chomps) is also rather quiet, but in an unnerving way. She watches and listens with intent, and when she speaks it’s cut throat and to the point.

Baba skews on the younger end of the Nightmare Critters, but pretty much acts as a second in command (to Simon). She’s pretty disciplined and orderly.

Baba believes her pendant manifested from her Devotion to the Prototype and his cause, however, her pendant is actually tied to her Faith. No, not the religious kind, but the kind that keeps you coming back to the same thing/person again and again. Quietly, stubbornly, Baba believes the best in people, and clings to that belief that everyone cant be so bad.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Markers for the "Big Five"

The 5-Factor Model of Personality

Lewis R. Goldberg has done the most systematic research on the Big Five using single-word trait adjectives.

According to Goldberg, key adjective markers of the Big Five are as follows:

Surgency or extraversion: talkative, extraverted, assertive, forward, outspoken versus shy, quiet, introverted, bashful, inhibited

Agreeableness: sympathetic, kind, warm, understanding, sincere versus unsympathetic, unkind, harsh, cruel

Conscientiousness: organized, neat, orderly, practical, prompt, meticulous versus disorganized, disorderly, careless, sloppy, impractical

Emotional stability: calm, relaxed, stable versus moody, anxious, insecure

Intellect or imagination: creative, imaginative, intellectual versus uncreative, unimaginative, unintellectual

Norman’s Markers for the Big Five

I. Extraversion or Surgency

Talkative – silent

Sociable – reclusive

Adventurous – cautious

Open – secretive

II. Agreeableness

Good-natured – irritable

Cooperative – negativistic

Mild/gentle – headstrong

Not jealous – jealous

III. Conscientiousness

Responsible – undependable

Scrupulous – unscrupulous

Persevering – quitting

Fussy/tidy – careless

IV. Emotional Stability

Calm – anxious

Composed – excitable

Not hypochondriacal – hypochondriacal

Poised – nervous/tense

V. Culture—Intellect, Openness

Intellectual – unreflective/narrow

Artistic – nonartistic

Imaginative – simple/direct

Polished/refined – crude/boorish

Source ⚜ More: On Psychology ⚜ Descriptors: Feelings ⚜ More Descriptors Worldbuilding ⚜ Plot ⚜ Character ⚜ Definitions of Emotions in Psychology