#Tells me I'm really not missing much in terms of entertainment as I thought I was.

[galedekarios]

gale & his mother, morena dekarios

i thought it'd be nice to have a place to compile everything i could find about gale's mother, morena dekarios.

the first time you as the player get a vague mention about gale's parents is after saving mirkon, when gale brings up a story about his parents denying him a kitten when he was still a child:

Gale: One time my parents denied me akitten, so I summoned myself a tressym.

if you play a gale origin playthrough, you get a mention of her much earlier from tara, after she joins the camp.

this is a camp dialogue with its variants from act i:

Tara the Tressym: Well, if it isn't my favourite fellow himself. Player: How are things back in Waterdeep? Tara the Tressym: More or less the same - though news of some mad faction calling themselves 'Absolutists' is starting to trickle in. Tara the Tressym: I told your mother not to worry. That if they were anything to worry about, Baldur's Gate would handle things quick-sharp. Keep them from spreading their tendrils north. She still wants to know when she'll see you again, sir. I avoid giving any answers. But she misses you. Player: I miss her too. Tara the Tressym: I'll tell her. With my Cat Flap of Displacement, I can afford the occasional visit. I'd bring you along, if I could. Perhaps some day. - Player: I can't risk putting her in danger. Tara the Tressym: I know that, but she doesn't. She'd keel over if she knew just how you'd tried to manipulate the Weave. Or maybe she'd just say something like, 'My Gale always was one to make the impossible possible.' Oh, but she adores you. - Player: No more guilt trips, Tara. Please. Tara the Tressym: But then whatever will we talk about? Anyhow - I'm keeping my senses pricked for any sign of another item that might be of use to you. Hopefully something will turn up soon.

it's clear from the dialogue that gale's mother worries about him and loves him - adores him, really.

it also becomes clear that she doesn't know what happened to gale and that he nor tara has not told her.

another mention from act i, again from tara:

Tara the Tressym: Please tell me you've at least made inroads when it comes to finding someone to settle down with. Myself and Mrs Dekarios are starting to think you intend to die alone. Player: You've been visiting my mother? Tara the Tressym: Naturally. After you abandoned her, there was only me left to keep her company. She's very good company, though. Ah, the stories we've traded over toast and tea. You're a highly entertaining source of speculation. But speculation only goes so far! Tell me, Mr Dekarios - how have you been?

tara and morena are implied to have tea together regularly enough to trade stories about gale. tara is implied to be a sort of messenger between the two of them, likely after gale's isolation and subsequent abduction by the nautiloid, keeping morena informed, yet without revealing gale's secret and shame.

the devnotes also state that tara loves morena - high praise since other devnotes states that tara hates everyone except gale - and that she talks of her in an affectionate tone.

this is a dialogue in act ii after mystra has tasked gale to use the orb the moment he finds the heart of the absolute:

Tara the Tressym: Promise me, Gale. Promise me you'll find another way. Promise me you'll return home, when this is all over. Player: I can't make that promise, Tara. Tara the Tressym: You're going to kill me. And your mother. And then there'll be no one to mourn you when you've wasted yourself for no good reason at all.

i find it very interesting here in terms of other relationships that tara explicitly says that there will be no one to mourn gale except morena and her should he heed mystra's instructions and sacrifice himself. it speaks of the bond between tara, morena and gale - but also even more of gale's isolation and loneliness. we know from tara that she considers herself to be gale's only old friend and gale echoes as much. we also know that gale describes the dekarios family as the dekarios clan, that is "scattered" far and wide.

at the same time, the loud silence about gale's father becomes really apparent again. a while ago, i speculated about gale's father and i truly do still think that he abandoned morena and gale.

another snippet from an act ii convo, before gale reveals the details of elminster's letter to tara (or chosing to keep it to himself):

Tara the Tressym: I'm not one to pry. I'd rather make up all the juicy details myself over tea with your mother.

which again ties in with a similar line from act i, further cementing the fact that this is a regular thing between tara and morena.

still in act ii, tara says this if gale asks her if she'll still love him if he is a mindflayer:

Player: Will you love me when I'm a mind flayer? Tara the Tressym: Depends. Are mind flayers warm-blooded? If so, my prize napping spot on your lap won't be compromised. In which case, I suppose we could find an accord. And, of course, your mother would still think you a prince, no matter how many tentacles you had. And with a nautiloid, you may even manage to visit her more often.

again, gale's mother truly adores him. tara is utterly convinced she'd love him even if he'd turn into a mind flayer. at the same time, the dialogue again hammers home the fact that gale's been keeping his distance from his mother after he has acquired the orb.

the following lines are a compilation of some of tara's lines from act iii, all once again stating that she is a messenger between gale and morena, keeping morena informed about gale's well-being, while also looking after morena in gale's absence from waterdeep:

Tara the Tressym: You're almost at the end of this, Gale. You're nearly there. And not a moment too soon. Myself, I must away to Waterdeep. Your mother will be worried silly not to have heard from either of us - and now I can bring her the good news. When this is all over I'll be waiting for you, with a crackling fire and good book at the ready. Good luck, darling. - Tara the Tressym: I'm well past due to return to Waterdeep. I'm going to tell your mother that you'll be home soon. Don't make a liar of me, darling. - Tara the Tressym: I'll have to make up some good news for your dear mother, then. I'm going home, Gale. To look after Mrs Dekarios, and to remind you that there are people waiting for you in Waterdeep.

going back to companion gale, the next mention of gale's mother after saving mirkon, is from gale in an ambient with karlach:

Gale: I don't suppose you've any clue where we are in relation to Waterdeep? Karlach: From this distance between Elturel and Baldur's Gate, I'd say... a long way away.devnote Gale: Ah. That will make getting word to my mother rather tricky. No matter - what she doesn't know can't hurt her. Not at this distance, anyway.

it echoes the lines of dialogue that origin gale has, believing he endangers his mother with his condition and thus keeping his distance.

gale mentions his mother in an act iii dialogue after meeting tara on the rooftop of the open hand temple:

Gale: My tower in Waterdeep boasts an excellent kitchen and a wine cellar to rival Ondal himself. Not to mention a larder stocked with my homemade hundur sauce. Player: Hundur sauce? Gale: A Waterdhavian delicacy, spiced to leave exactly the right amount of heat lingering on the tongue, and served with that most sharp-toothed of aquarian residents, the quipper fish. I make it to my mother's recipe. It packs quite a wallop. As does she.

we know that gale's the designated camp cook from a conversation with wyll, and i think the conversation makes it fair to assume that gale's mother taught him how to cook.

still, maybe it's because i'm not a native english speaker and i might be missing some cultural context here, but the line "it packs quite a wallop. as does she." stuck out to me:

wallop. to hit something / someone hard.

this could mean that gale's seen her hit someone and packing quite a punch behind it. with what's been described of morena so far, i doubt it's because gale's ever been on the receiving end of that.

or perhaps it's less literal and more in relation to her seemingly larger than life personality that gale also hints at later, describing his mother as "intimitable" and "sometimes unavoidable". this description is from the following conversation that is currently sadly still bugged:

Player: So your last name is Dekarios? Gale: It is. Courtesy of my mother, the inimitable, dare I say it sometimes unavoidable, Morena Dekarios. It's been so long since I've used it. 'Gale Dekarios' cut a poor figure next to the wizard prowess of 'Gale of Waterdeep'. Player: Gale Dekarios... I think I like him more. Gale: You like to many things about me I'd have sooner discarded... Your generosity is quite wonderful. Gale Dekarios likes you too. Very, very much. Though let's keep his exitence between ourselves for now. - Player: Doesn't your matter mind? Gale: Oh, she's happy if I'm happy. Morena couldn't care one jot what I call myself. Tara's the real stickler for using it. Has done since I summoned her. I'd prefer you not follow her exmaple, if that's all the same to you. 'Gale' is more than sufficient. - Player: You're right. Just 'Gale is better. Gale: I agree. And on the plus side, if I get myself into any truly cataclystic straits during the remainder of our journey, my family name will go untarnished.

i love this banter so much and it makes me very sad that larian still hasn't fixed the issue of it not triggering. there's so much lore to explore here:

from gale dropping 'dekarios' in favour of 'of waterdeep', at first, to appear perhaps more grandiose, more suited to the ambitions he held when he was younger, to morena, apparently, not minding it, yet tara clinging to 'dekarios' (perhaps to keep gale's feet on solid ground as much as she could), to finally finding out that the reason that the gale we meet now is not using 'dekarios' still is because he doesn't wish to tarnish his family name should he indeed fall victim to the orb.

the last mention gale makes of his mother is during his act iii post final battle dialogue, in which he proposes to the player:

Gale: That being said, I wondered if you might consider accompanying me back to Waterdeep as a new member of the Dekarios clan? Player: Are you asking me to marry you? Gale: I suppose I am. Tara would be delighted. Not to mention my mother. But I'd be just as happy without such ceremony, so long as we're together.

this again mirrors what tara has been saying in her dialogue with an origin gale in act i: that morena and her were hoping he would find someone to find happiness with.

i think overall, even with only the very few bits and pieces we learn of morena, it's easy to tell that she truly loves and adores and cares her son, and that that love and care is clearly echoed back from gale to morena.

still, or perhaps more likely because of that love, gale keeps his secrets and his distance to morena because of the orb and the shame he feels he brought to his family.

it's all too easy to imagine that he wishes her to be proud of him and that he feels he has disappointed her and given her little reason to be proud of him in the same vein that he feels he has done with tara:

Gale: She'd [Tara] be most impressed by our efforts saving these tieflings. Proud, even. And I've given her little to be proud of recently.

anyhow, i hope i caught all mentions and that this was helpful to someone. 🖤

[yumedoca]

Are your opinions on UY characters that dont get the spotlight often, like nurse sakura, cherry, kotasu cat, benten or oyuki, ifntheres one i missed pls tell me i love hearing your analysis

Hai there, hope you're doing great!!

Sorry this is a bit late, I had some events to attend the past few days..! And thanks!! It makes me happy to hear that you like my rambling :)

As for my thoughts on the other characters, I love most of them actually!! I love love love Sakura!!! I especially love how well her character is structured: through design, through her backstory, through daily life and relations and even how well her name suits her lmao. I really like how she has a background where she was really sick as a child (till we meet her), and how her being a miko, nurse and counsellor (she has three fucking jobs and I love it) has her help others since she knows how it's like to have problems (physically or psychologically). Sakura counselling might be my favorite bit though, just seeing how she helps guide mostly the students is really nice and I wish it was appreciated more. And don't get me started on how she is the perfect straight man to the craziness of the others. She was part of the craziness at first (from her intro to her earliest nurse days, Ataru straight manned instead), but it seemed like RT thought Sakura straight manning was much better while Ataru was cemented as the funny man in their dynamic and it suits them so well. The sane Sakura having to deal with everyone's BS (esp Ataru's) is my favourite thing lol. I also really like her relationship with Tsubame, him being the dumb to her smarts.(The remake plays down Tsubame's idiocy btw and it disappoints me so so much) They're that one couple we all ship without knowing it lmao. The chapters which focus on them are really nice, esp that one with the ghost girl who interfered with them and Sakura got super jealous lmao, it we interesting side to see from her and it was really fun :)

Oh shit, I rambled so much about Sakura, I forgor this ask wasn't just about her, I'm so sorry lmao, she is in my top three UY gals for a reason XD

I think up next in UY blorboism to me (who aren't main characters) would be Asuka. Idk, I just love her, she is so cute and so silly. I think what put her in the blorbo category specifically were these panels: one where Asuka made her own armor from a military tank or something idk and she looked so cute while wearing it!!!! And the second is from the arc where Asuka goes to school and she wears a pair of broken glasses in the final panel of the arc which looks super funny and silly XD

Asides from that, I love her voices, both of them!! They sound so soft and sweet!! And her shtick is very entertaining and chaotic, I love all her chapters!!

I think up next in terms underrated characters I love would be Benten and Oyuki. They both have personalities which bounce off well on other characters and especially each other. They're like my #1 Yuri ship in the series, but even in a platonic sense, they're dynamic is really good!! I need to draw them more, lol.

That's it for characters who I feel are widely underrated.. this post would be even longer if I talk about everyone in detail so I'll just speedrun my thoughts on the ones you mentioned plus a few others...

Ran and Ryu are two characters who I feel are really popular which is why I didn't mention them above. Ran's bipolar nature is so good and funny while her growing understanding and reconciling with Lum slowly is really sweet. Ryu is one of those characters who I wish was treated better because I feel like she deserves everything she wanted but her stupid father comes in the way. Ryunosuke's character is one of those things I wished was done better. Give her all the sailor suits, bras, swimsuits, skirts, etc. she wants!!

Cherry is really funny, like in a way he's basically Ryunosuke's dad but done so much better. The amount of moments where I've wheezed laughing cause of him is way too many too count. I like Kotatsu neko, he's cute and it's funny how he's one of the strongest characters!! Ryoko is another one I like because of how insane she is lmao and Inaba is so so sweet!! Meanwhile, Rei is hilarious and his cow form is so silly XD

I also really like Rupa and Carla too, Idk, the way they're supposed to mirror AtaLum and their crazy dynamic captivates me.

And I guess I'll stop here! There are others, but this is already super long so I'll end it here!!

[thebunniesgrim]

It's almost embarrassing how much I like the episode lol

So, the new ep dropped yay! 

Over all I personally liked

it a few extremely minor nitpicks

but overall, I loved it  

If you wanna know my nitpicks, go ahead a read them but otherwise I'm gonna go on a tangent about fire in hell because I wanna :) 

does this count as criticism?

Fizzes new song wasn’t as good as thought would be, but I understand it’s improve but I think the joke would have landed better if it was actually extremely catchy like total ear worm of a song 

I don’t like that fizz and Bliztos relationship kinda resolved so fast (but I'm a hateful bitch who can't let go of things so hey maybe that’s just something wrong with me :/) 

Stolas was in the episode homeboy was hospitalized how are you just up and ready to function. Couldn’t be me honestly after that ruffing up, I would have needed 10 to 12 business years to recover lol  

I really don’t understand why Asmodeus was seen as the weakest sin especially since we haven’t seen the other yet. If it's because he canoodling with an imp, ok? But he’s still a sin also if I wanted to pick on any of the sins, we’ve seen so far it would be Bee just saying she’s dating a dog! Someone less than imps just saying!  

Crimson is fucking stupid threating a deadly sin (first Loona now him why are people just so causally threating or trying to fight the deadly sins? Are they the big bads or not? We have imps and hellhounds trying to fight them like that doesn’t matter)  

We didn’t see Asmodeus go crazy and like fully murder someone see a hint of his powers and frankly I'm a little upset about it lol like don’t tell me was worried about Fizz and didn’t want him hurt. homeboy you are a deadly sin you could turn Crimson and his Goons into paste in like 5 milliseconds like?  Like and you expect me to believe Ozzie is the top in this relationship? Please other than the size difference bottom Ozzie is definitely believable if he let Crim bitchify him like that just saying.

This is how I looked when Ozzie didn’t just murder them:

“Ozzie how can you be so stupid Ozzie?” (go watch Rigamarole)

Lol

Don’t get me wrong, I find Crimson and Striker very entertaining but like really? come on...

Anyhow fire! 

This episode very much answers my questions on fire in hell  

I didn’t want to vocalize this because I was worried it was an extremely dumb question  

I totally missed in Murder Family that blitzo says to Martha (#bring back Martha)  

“Yeah, your fire doesn't really work on us” yeah, your fire  

I always assumed the termed ‘hell fire’ was just a dramatic saying I didn’t think it was literal  

But even if it was literal, I didn’t think Hell Fire would work on Hell Borns, I thought it would be a sinners only things like if sinners are supposed to be in hell to be like confronted with sin and tortured why would the imps and such be affected by the fire you know? How are imps and such supposed to help torture the sinners if they are also affected by hell fire? And with now much stuff is on fire in the background in the show I always assumed it was for show when the backgrounds got too earthy like hey don’t worry, we’re still in hell  

So, I assumed that each ring has different fire (even though earth as also has colored fire but that’s not important) and if you were born from a certain ring that fire wouldn’t hurt you so if you were from the lust ring then lust fire wouldn’t hurt you. Still seems very inefficient if you move rings to go work in another but hey not my show.  

So, from what we can see lust has blue

greed has green

wrath has... orange?

And sloth as purple or light blue I think from the little sloth people’s candles I'm assuming.  

gluttony has... yellow? pink? i dont know i think this is the few eps without fire in it tbh i think...

So that being said blizto, frizz, and barbie are form greed because the fire in the flash back was green good to know  

It makes since in hindsight tbh with they’re entertainment background and bltzo working in LooLoo land I guess idk why you’d work somewhere with the robot version of the guy you thought you hated but hey whatever a gig is a gig I suppose. Also, that means LooLoo World is in the pride ring since Charlie took Vaggie to the LooLoo World unless Charlie can move Vaggie through the rings as like a princess of hell perk thing idk. Also dick move Stolas to take your kid to the discount amusement park (if I was Octavia, I'd be so petty about this just saying. I can't believe Stella let this happen) 

Idk why Blitzo didn’t mention that he was also from greed when IMP went to go see Moxxies dad but not important I guess  

(also, it was nice seeing Striker and Crimson in the new ep tbh) 

Also, in the roller-coaster in LooLoo land that Millie said she liked had fire on it and how come that didn’t hurt anyone? Also, the explosion at the end of LooLoo land the Blzito and the M&Ms were messed up but not really like you know Fizz levels of messed up granted we didn’t see how close Blitzo and M&Ms were to the explosion  

Side note 

Why were there explosives under the table to begin with at Fizz’s party? No wonder it looked like Blitzo tried to set him up like? That was planned idk someone had it out for him  

I understand the explosion is what messed up Fizz but like I feel like the extra damage from the fire shouldn't have caused that much damage also Fizz was facing the explosives he should have died just saying face and head blow off completely  

Also, how can the horses have fire mains if fire hurts them?

still cute tho :) 

[frozenmoonshine]

Things I LOVE about TR:

‌First of all, characters. And the fact that it is a fully character driven story. The way they are built, portrayed, designed even. The way they are all written to feel like real people, like they are all your own friends and acquaintances. I have no problem imagining Tōman members (founders and original members) as being just these kids from the block that hang out in the neighborhood. I have felt since they were introduced as if I've known them all personally. They have resonated with me so deeply, I cannot even put that into words. We're not even talking "kins" or simply relating to characters here. It's even deeper than that, they are basically real in my perception (and I guess I'm far from the only one).

‌I love how layered, and deep, and complex each one of them is. They have very real, very human feelings, thoughts, fears, flaws, traumas, motivations, dreams... Their relationships are genuine. Their bonds transfer to the readers. We feel them. Just as we feel FOR them.

‌Then, narration techniques. Yes, I know. Nothing is more frustrating than a bunch of unreliable narrators in the still ongoing story, and scattered clues that can't be pieced together 'cause the key pieces are always missing, and never seem to be what we think they are. BUT! That is precisely what keeps us on the edge of our seats, leaves us interested, intrigued, makes us want to "crack the code", to solve the mystery, to know what really happened, to get the whole picture. It makes us observe, analyse, speculate, come up with theories... It keeps us entertained way beyond just reading the chapters weekly. It leaves us wondering, it leaves us wanting more, and it always only teases, even when giving us some answers. They're never full, never really clear, and they always open up new questions and new possibilites. And again, bring us to think about the story and it's characters, way beyond what we're reading weekly. Almost as if the real stories are the ones going on in our heads. And if that's not amazing and impressive storytelling and entertainment skill on Wakui-sensei's end, IDK what is!

But there is indeed another thing about his storytelling that I absolutely love and deeply respect, and that is the fact that he manages to make this appeal equally to the audiences of all ages! Maybe even more so to the adults than kids and teens! And how he does that? By dressing the much deeper story in an edgy outfit, so to speak. Unless you're a surface reader, or too immature to understand what you're in fact reading, you do know that what TR is all about has NOTHING to do with biker gangs, delinquents, fights, crime, all that. Not even the time travel shennanigans! All that is just USED AS MEANS to tell a story about other stuff that really matters. But it's 'cool' on the surface, it's flashy, it's 'badass', it's larger-than-life, and as such bound to attract attention and readers. It's still technically a shōnen manga, so that much is understandable. But it's so much more than any of that!

Protagonist. Ok, this could maybe fall under the category "characters", but it's a different point I wanna make here. Takemichi is by no means among my favorite characters. In terms of direct likeability, he has none. He's annoying, stupid, indecisive, cowardly, a loser, the one that never learns. And that's precisely what makes him an outstanding choice of a personality/characterization for a protagonist! He's unique, he's different. He's not a "Luffy" who's super strong to begin with, and he's not even a "Naruto", who starts out weak but trains to become super strong. No. Takemichi is weak, and stays weak. He doesn't change. He doesn't grow. He struggles with his flaws, but doesn't win. He's still flawed. Very much so. Do we hate him for dragging everyone else down to hell with him? Absolutely. Is he inspiring in any way? Not at all. #not_my_hero Does he make the reader want to be in his place, or want to be like him? Hell no! But does all of that make him an excellent protagonist? Most certainly yes! Because a protagonist does NOT need to be cool, to be likeable, to be strong, to be a "hero" (in convential save-the-day way). Protagonist can be as flawed and human and hateable as any other character. Because that's what makes them feel real. Relatable. And that's what Takemichi is. We can all recognize at least some negative aspects of ourselves in Takemichi. And if HE, as horrible and full of flaws, and unchanging, as he is can have a whole damn awesome, badass story about himself (technically), we, readers, can learn to accept, if not love, the parts of ourselves we hate but cannot change.

[chaoticreivingu]

tell me your pip headcanons and/or clyde :3333

Why not both?

For Pip:

Sexuality Headcanon: Gay, no doubt about it. Idk where else to put this but an interesting tidbit is that in the 19th century left-handedness was a sign of homosexuality, and Pip uses his left hand as his dominant hand a lot in the show, so make of it what you will.

Gender Headcanon: Cis, never really thought about it tbh.

A ship I have with said character: Bip, my soon-to-be 9 year old OTP, aka Butters x Pip. I have a lot to say about this ship but I'll make it brief. This ship,while seemingly saccharine on the outside, is extremely bittersweet not only in a meta context(Butters indirectly killed him not only in a meta sense, but also in being the first one to draw attention to Tom Cruise in 200), but in-universe as well, in the sense that even if they get beat up,insulted or abused, they still have each other, but how long until Butters realizes he wouldn't be getting so much mistreatment if he wasn't dating Pip in the first place?How long until Pip lets Butters take his repressed anger out on him because "there's no other way", or maybe he'd let him do anything because he's that desperate for attention, any kind of it?There's just a lot of things you can do with it and you could nurture it into a good ending against all odds or a gritty grimdark ending. Also it'd be funny to see Butters' parents react to seeing him date a more passive version of him.

Besides Bip though,Cartip aka Cartman x Pip is just a very entertaining ship for me, purely because their scenes together have a lot of dom/sub tension to them and also for its comedic value.

A BROTP I have with said character: Pip and Dougie are a good pair and it'd be fun to see what interests they could have in common, but it's super weird that they didn't interact once in Two Guys Naked in a Hot Tub, though that's probably because Dougie's kind of a third wheel in that episode. Pip and Stan might be very unlikely and Stan wouldn't want it for the life of him but I can see it as a one-sided thing.

A NOTP I have with said character: I really don't have one I think?

A random headcanon: His parents were killed in a home invasion by a frenchman, which is why anything french related is a trigger and why he hates french people so much, to him they took away his one chance at having a decent life, though he doesn't remember that his own parents hated him too.Also it'd be super funny if he was a Barbra Streisand fan so yeah.

General Opinion over said character: Pip's tied with Butters(my opinion on him is pretty complicated though) and Dogpoo as my favorite characters, so there's a lot to unpack here. He's a repressed Victiorian orphan child put into an uninhibited 90s setting, someone whose purpose is to be really cringe and annoying,but on the other hand the cringiness is what makes the gimmick with him funny, how deep can the cringe go and how much will his abuse escalate, and what does he truly think about it?(tbh this entire gimmick with him would most likely culminate in death so that was pretty obvious in hindsight)At the same time there's a sense of pity or worriedness about him as well,and it's really nice when he actually has friends who like him back in Butters and Dougie. In terms of his death it's so inconsequential and blink and you'll miss it that I normally don't think about it much when analyzing him, but ig it's interesting to think about where he'd go after dying?(the obvious fanon answer would be Hell, but Heaven was recruiting more people in season 9, but also his death was unnatural so maybe Limbo?)

Now onto Clyde:

Sexuality Headcanon: I'd say Bi but knowing Clyde he'd label himself as Questioning or Heteroflexible for a very long time.

Gender Headcanon: I view him as cis though maybe he'd question his gender identity too?I could see that but can't pinpoint exactly what he'd question himself as, maybe agender idk.

A ship I have with said character: Cryde, I'm really a sucker for "doppleganger" ships so this one fits the bill, but also if you look deeper into it you'd see that amidst the superficial similarities they have a lot of differences too. Also I really just love the bro vibe they'd give even after they'd start dating, they seem like they'd just be super chill together and wouldn't have many worries about big arguments. I think both of them could also benefit from one another?Clyde would let his insecurities go after he sees that Craig has no problem with how he actually is, and Craig'd probably like being with someone who doesn't mind being mundane.

A BROTP I have with said character: Cryde again, for the bro energy that I mentioned above, but also Twyde, they can be conspiracy bros together and talk about how the government wants to control everyone, though Tweek would be on the more supernatural side(like the Underpants Gnomes) while Clyde would go for the more sci-fi side(he didn't believe in supernatural zombies existing but had no problems believing Covid and QAnon conspiracies).

A NOTP I have with said character: Nobody really, at this point idk if I have NOTPs anymore lol, but Tyde when used just for the "Pair the Spades" trope maybe?But that's just how I feel about people doing Pair the Spades in fics in general.

A random headcanon: Even though Clyde is a naturally emotional person, his mom's strictness over rules made him supress said emotions and indirectly made him ashamed of being emotional and not the Cool Popular Guy he wanted to be(that and probably toxic masculinity in general). Because of this, he idolizes Craig, especially his attitude and coolness, and he's his ideal on what the Cool Popular Guy should be, so even though he had his own brand of deadpan and snark before, he started to imitate Craig's mannerisms more in an effort to seem cooler.

General Opinion over said character: Even though he's kinda inconsistent in the show, Clyde's a pretty interesting character to talk about and analyse on, I like him a lot though my interpretation of him is probably more of an Outsider Artist's view on things. For me, he's someone who is more middle of the road academically and socially, not that smart but not that dumb either, and even though he can be easily misled into a fall from grace and said downfalls might cloud his judgement until someone knocks him out of it, he's normally not ill-intentioned. However, he often lets his insecurities and self consciousness get the best of him, so he's at his best when dealing with said issues(Lice Capades is definitely my favorite Clyde episode).

[kevinsreviewcatalogue]

Review: Scream VI (2023)

Scream VI (2023)

Rated R for strong bloody violence and language throughout, and brief drug use

Score: 3 out of 5

<Originally posted at https://kevinsreviewcatalogue.blogspot.com/2023/03/review-scream-vi-2023.html>

We've got a moderate Democrat in the White House, Y2K aesthetics are coming back into fashion, and everybody's hyped up for a new Scream sequel. Buckle up, folks, it's 1997 again. Scream VI (the number returning, this time as a Roman numeral) is a film that takes heavily after the second film in this franchise, the protagonists now in college and dealing with the legacy of the events of the fifth movie that preceded it. As far as Scream sequels go, it's pretty middle-of-the-road in a franchise that's always had a high bar for quality, ranking below the second and fifth films but ahead of the fourth. Outside its heavily advertised New York setting, it doesn't really do much new with the franchise, instead existing as a vehicle for fanservice in the form of both returning characters and references to the older movies, and there were a lot of moments when I thought it could've afforded to be a lot more daring, in terms of both killing off established characters and making full use of the fact that it's set in the Big Apple. That said, the Carpenter sisters have grown on me as the series' new protagonists, the kills and the buildup to them were highlights, and the moments where it did step outside its comfort zone, especially the opening sequence, sent me for a loop. Overall, it was a film that had a lot of missed opportunities and felt like the series was coasting in franchise mode, such that I'm not really comfortable giving it more than a 3 out of 5, but it was an entertaining, crowd-pleasing slasher that showed that the last movie wasn't a fluke -- Ghostface is back as a horror icon.

This film takes place a year after the events of the last one, with Tara Carpenter and the Meeks-Martin siblings Mindy and Chad having moved to New York City to attend Blackmore University, and Tara's older sister Sam following them and sharing an apartment with her sister. Tara is eager to move on from what happened to her in Woodsboro, but for Sam, it's not so easy, not only because she seemed to have enjoyed killing the last movie's killer but also because, since then, conspiracy theories have proliferated online accusing her of being the real Ghostface murderer and framing the people who were actually responsible. What's more, a new string of brutal murders by a killer wearing a Ghostface costume has struck New York, and the killer seems intent on connecting Sam to them, leaving her old driver's license at the scene of the first murder. Together, the "Core Four", as the four Woodsboro survivors call themselves, team up with a group of friends both new and returning -- Sam and Tara's roommate Quinn, Quinn's NYPD detective father Wayne Bailey, Sam's boyfriend Danny, Mindy's girlfriend Anika, Chad's roommate Ethan, the older Woodsboro survivor Kirby Reed from the fourth movie (now an FBI agent drawn in by her investigation of the opening victim), and Gale Weathers, who went back on her decision at the end of the last movie to not write another true crime book about what happened, much to Sam and Tara's fury -- to hunt down the new Ghostface, who, as it so often is in this series, may very well be somebody in their midst.

The opening scene, which starts with the requisite big-name star (in this case, Samara Weaving) getting brutally murdered, threw me for a loop and started the film on the right foot by immediately revealing Ghostface's identity (Jason, working with an accomplice named Greg) and motive (he thinks Sam is a murderer and that he's avenging "her" victims). This is an idea that I've always thought it would be neat for a Scream movie to explore, telling the story in a Hitchcockian fashion by following both the heroes and the villains with full knowledge of what both sides were up to, the tension coming not in trying to figure out the killer but in wondering if the heroes would figure out what's really going on before it's too late. It almost felt like a cheat to then have the real Ghostface step in and kill this impostor, especially since Tony Revolori's brief performance was a highlight in crafting an utterly cold-blooded sociopath who doesn't think his victims are human. This was, unfortunately, about as inventive as the movie got, and the fact that they backed off from that idea of making a Scream movie where we knew who Ghostface was right off the bat kind of foreshadowed that the rest of the movie would be quite derivative of the ones that came before it, the second film most of all. It's got Roger L. Jackson's Ghostface voice being creepy as ever, the requisite self-referential humor about horror movies courtesy of Mindy (in this case long-running franchises), and more, but in a lot of ways, the New York setting was really the only thing new about this movie.

Fortunately, when you're working with "a very simple formula!" like the Scream movies, themselves loving homages to '80s slasher tradition, it's the production values that really count, and this movie looked and felt amazing. There were a ton of great slasher moments and sequences, from a battle between Gale and Ghostface in her penthouse apartment to the scene in the bodega (heavily featured in the trailers) where Ghostface decides to finally grab a gun to a scene involving a ladder that is easily one of the most intense moments I've seen in not only the series but the slasher genre in general. Not only were there some killer chase sequences, the kills themselves were properly bloody, with stabbings, eviscerations, eye gougings, and knives getting shoved down victims' throats all depicted in graphic detail that earns this movie its R rating. If I had one real complaint about this movie on a technical level, it's that they could've made better use of the New York setting. Yes, seeing Ghostface kill people in alleyways, brownstones, bodegas, penthouses, and (of course) the New York City Subway was great fun, but if I were to really go all-in on sending up the gimmicky setting of Jason Takes Manhattan that was clearly on the filmmakers' mind, this time with an actual budget so that they don't have to spend two-thirds of the movie on a cruise ship, I would've gotten a bit more inventive. In the penthouse scene, use the location hundreds of feet up as a hazard for the protagonists to work around and Ghostface to exploit -- which would've made a great homage to a standout kill from the second film, while you're at it. I get the reference to the second film's climax of having the finale take place in an abandoned theater, but instead of a fairly generic location like that, have it at a Broadway theater during a show or a TV network (perhaps even the one Gale works for) during their nightly newscast, which would've had the added bonus of having the killer's plot blow up in their face by way of an inadvertent public confession.

The cast, both returning and new, was solid, especially the "Core Four" of the new generation of Woodsboro survivors. The MVPs were probably Mason Gooding and Melissa Barrera, the former getting a lot more to do as Chad than simply hang around in the background (especially with his romantic subplot with Jenna Ortega's Tara) and the latter having improved considerably since the last movie, growing into her role as Sam and finding a lot to work with in regards to her troubled relationship with her past and those around her. The film seemed to be setting up an arc for Sam not unlike what the fifth Friday the 13th movie set up for Tommy Jarvis, or the fourth Halloween movie set up for Jamie Lloyd, and unlike those series, I can see the next Scream movie actually following through on the darker directions they take her character rather than chickening out. Seeing Hayden Panettiere back as Kirby was also a treat, especially once the movie started throwing some curveballs with regards to her character. The killers, however, were a weak spot. While the film did do one new thing from a technical perspective, and I liked how the lead killer's identity was foreshadowed over the course of the movie, their motive was recycled from the second film, and only the lead killer really left much of an impression, their accomplice feeling like an afterthought who was there just because Ghostface in these movies always has somebody to do their dirty work. There were also plot holes as to how the investigative reporter Gale and the FBI agent Kirby would not have figured out who they were, and their connection to previous Ghostfaces, from act one. While the acting for the killers saved them, overall I felt that they were the second-worst Ghostface team in the entire film series, ahead of only the killer from the third movie and the hot garbage that the TV show served up. The character of Sam's boyfriend Danny also felt completely pointless, existing only to provide some hunky sex appeal and accompany the rest of the cast on their adventure without really having much of a character of his own. He felt like a waste, there only to pad the suspect list.

The Bottom Line

This was a flawed movie that felt like it was cranked out to cash in on the success of the last one, but the Radio Silence team knows how to get the job done, and overall, it's a solid, perfectly fine installment in a series that is, at this point, five-for-six in terms of quality. If you're a Scream fan, you don't need me to tell you to check it out, but even if you're not, it's still a worthwhile watch.

[parallelroutes-old]

Dream + Haru? ((OOC: C-curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back? Tehe pero? JK 3 is a good number so---- ye. Don't hate me))

[ update: i am finally done fixing it now!! ]

“I’m afraid of bugs," she had said.

He knows he's been considered a bug plenty of times by plenty of people before, just something that should be squashed and thrown away. That view of him was never important when he knew he was not a bug, and no one else's opinion mattered to him in the slightest.

"Afraid of being useless," she had also said.

Although he doesn't have any desire to consider her in terms of 'useful' vs. 'useless', the Byakuran of the past could have tried to kidnap her to use against Tsunayoshi-kun. He didn't. If he wanted to hold anyone hostage, it would've been Kyoko-chan, the darling of Vongola Tenth. Haru-chan never seemed important enough and didn't have the the same ties to them, so he never paid attention.

"And terrified of being forgotten."

There were alternate versions of Haru-chan, of course. Some of them stood up to him directly, and he hasn't really forgotten that. He didn't think much of it when his ultimate goal was the only thing he really thought about. It was interesting, but he had priorities at the time. He doesn't have priorities anymore.

But he knows her better now. He's paid attention this time. Haru-chan is one of the most vibrant people he's ever seen and he doesn't think he'd ever forget. Popular, pretty, entertaining, deeper than expected, kinder than anyone he—

"There's a lot I'm afraid of, but that's normal for everyone," she had told him.

She was right there watching when he'd nearly crushed Tsunayoshi-kun to death and pierced his heart with Shiroryuu's arrow form. She was there to see him lose his mind as both his wings and his life's only ambition were torn off. And yet, when they met here, she was just nervous and apprehensive. She was not afraid of him.

"Even you, I'm sure."

Does he have anything to be afraid of? If so, what?

He's been thinking about it while twirling that arrow in his hand. There are a few things, but he wouldn't consider them fears when they're already happening. They don't qualify as answers to the question.

He flicks his wrist, the arrow flying just like a dart toward a motionless figure in front of him and it will fall to its knees once pierced through the heart. He never sees its face and he prefers to keep it that way when he already knows what it represents. This dream ends the same way every time he sees it.

However, something off to the side moves. Before he can even blink, another figure jumps in front of the first just before the arrow's impact, and it's this figure that falls to its knees. The initial figure is frozen in place and doesn't make a sound as the first falls forward onto the ground.

It's not important, Byakuran tells himself, because this is just a dream. He can just force his mind in a different direction. Lucid dreaming can be very useful, as this is one of them he can usually avoid.

However, a scream so loud distracts him the moment he tries to pull up a different one. It's so loud he thinks he'll wake up, but he doesn't. He can't. All he can do is watch the figure as it—

The arrow still sticks out of its heart, but it's not dead. It's not even injured. It curls its hands into fists as its face and expression forms. It's not afraid, but it's not angry either… he doesn't know what that emotion is.

As soon as he sees tears rolling past its cheeks, he realizes what it is. Betrayal.

He already knows the sharp pain through his own chest isn't real. He's felt it plenty of times before, always shooting through his back and narrowly missing his lungs. It feels different this time, though, and he thinks he knows why—

It's been shot into his own heart.

A wet feeling drips onto his arm as he clutches his chest, but when he looks down, there's nothing at all. No blood. There's no sign of any other normal bodily fluids, and none of that would feel anything like this does.

He would never be able to switch dreams like this, even after he closes his eyes and curls up. It feels so strong that it's impossible to even think beyond how much it hurts. It doesn't matter that this now qualifies as a night terror. He still feels like—

Like—

Like…

…….

It's hard to tell what length of time passes between the pain taking over his subconsciousness and the moment he notices he can think again. Maybe it's been a long time, maybe not. It doesn't matter. What does matter is that the pain isn't overwhelming anymore. Right now, it's more like torture.

The warmth surrounding him now hurts even more that he's clinging so tight that the arrow presses into him as well. He doesn't want to let go. Even if he could, he wouldn't.

"… but that doesn’t mean the anxiety and the fears from then don’t exist. Be any less valid."

Every tear dripping past his eyelashes burns. Biting his lip doesn't distract him from the sensation, but that's normal when something this hot is pressed against human skin for too long.

"The person I was supposed to be and who I will be are different people."

It's humiliating hearing himself make such a pathetic snivel, but it's better than letting anything else drip off his face. He's already been scalded enough.

"Do you see yourself as the Byakuran we saw back then," she starts in a lively tone, as if nothing is wrong, "or do you understand you’re different from him?"

"I’m a totally different person, but… " He's trying not to sob, but it doesn't matter as his own voice doesn't come from his own lips. All he can do is quiver and hold on as tight as he can.

Still, if he remembers right, she agrees. "You are whatever Byakuran-san you are today, and he was whoever he was."

Even though he knows that, the sheer magnitude of all the horrific and terrible things the past Byakuran weighs down the Byakuran of today. It weighs heavy on everyone who was there for it, not just him, and it will never be any lighter. Crying like this is not something the past Byakuran would do, so what does that make him now, then… ?

It means he's…

He's…

……

— The pillow is soaked and his cheeks are wet when he wakes up. It takes him a moment to blink his eyes open, then reaches up to rub the remaining moisture onto his fingers. Nothing burns anymore. He curls one blanket around his shoulders and thinks… this doesn't feel so bad. It even feels… alright.

If he still feels the need to hear Haru-chan's voice, he'll just call her when it's not four in the morning. They can chat over the phone about something normal, something not related to those dreams. Nothing indicating he'd cried his eyes out, both in and out of sleep. Tears have no relevance to anything, unless he wants to use them as a 'secret ingredient' someday.

… Actually, that's disgusting, so maybe not.

Anyway—

[withleeknow]

the stars aligned for you being a june bangtan baby!! . ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ for me still with you reigns as his superior single ✨️ that specific jk/jin take two pre-chorus GOD the lyrics and harmonisations still give me butterflies 😭 (🥺💌 = https://we.tl/t-Mfc5dpyl4d)

[🍙's note-to-self: I'm so ready to indulge in your bangtan works] + no pressure at all with your semi-hiatus; when inspiration comes it'll come gracefully in time ♡ also the way you've updated me on your skz-WIPs like your own teaser schedule ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝

lmao how stacked is this multistan sandwich getting, no way you're also an aespa girlie 👀 ok svt lowkey give me a headache IN A GOOD WAY! ONLY BC! there's so many of them to be entertained by their chaos 😭 I'm mostly a dk (&dino) girl - that iconic heeseung effect lowkey happened with these two 😫 https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGeVP98fn/ I found this during my hs-rabbithole and I genuinely haven't been the same since

+ today's hyperfixation: cue “go little rockstar” https://vm.tiktok.com/ZGeVP7DxY/ he's radiating black cat energy (tmi: I'm the black cat in the golden retriever dynamic with my bsf which might explain why im extra fuzzy towards this man) 🖤

ONIGIRI HAVE YOU SEEN THIS AAAAAAA "per request from the artist" HE'S NOT EVEN HOME YET AND HE'S ALREADY MAKING ME CRY 😭 oh the envy that i have for the people who get to attend... how does it feel to be the first fans to see and HUG kim seokjin after he's been away for 18 months 😭

god i really do love still with you so much. jungoo absolutely kills it with his artistry and i hope we'll get to see him be more hands-on with his music when he gets back

ahh i actually only started listening to aespa very recently. up until a few months ago i thought they were 3rd gen idols lmao for some reason i always thought they debuted not long after red velvet 😭

i love dk !!!!!! wonwoo is probably at the top of my thirst list but dk is the most precious and endearing and funny 😭 i have never seen them in the same frame before akldakjfdsa that is certainly.......... something 😳 you're really influencing my heeseung brainrot here. i've been watching fatal trouble vids since you mentioned it the other day and i just- *eyes bulge out of head*

god he really is just so sharp from every angle.. biting my fist and whatnot.. i never thought i'd be into enha like that but here we are 😭 omg me too my friends tell me i'm a black cat !! you really are my other 🐈‍⬛ half 🥹

i had to save the best for last bc WHAT THE HELL IS THIS

i adore you to the moon and back, i truly think you're one of the best things that's ever happened to this blog and i'm so happy you stumbled across my little space here 😭 coming back to kpop after a decade really is an experience that not many can relate to but i'm really glad that i get to share that with you :((( tbh once upon a time i also couldn't see myself being a kpop stan past a certain age (twt stans think everyone over 20 is on the precipice of turning into dust lmao), but now being a kpop stan as an adult is so much more fun and fulfilling! getting into bangtan 2 years ago let me reconnect with my creativity and it's really helped me a lot, not just in terms of it being a comforting lil hobby but it made me realize what i wanna do for my career yk (i wanna be a graphic designer or at least work in media lol). and getting to buy merch with adult money! and meeting wonderful pocket friends that can turn into real life friendships! maybe i was meant to be obsessed with kim taehyung 2 years ago and that made me return to kpop bc otherwise i would be missing out on all of these joys 😭 this got so rambly lmao i'm sorry tldr i love you 🥹

[searchingformylostpan]

I cant do this amymore. The real one I've been trying to convince this whole time has never been you. Not even for a second. There is no convincing you and i know that all too well. I wasnt giving you what you expected from me and you backed me into a corner so i was sent to rehab the first time when i was so very close to going on my own. All i wanted was to be able to talk to you and not get the feeling that you thought you would catch aids just from being in the same room as me. To feel like a fucking human with the ability to make choices not the completely helpless lunatic you made me feel like and convinced my mother i was. One more conversation where you didnt patronize me and it could have been my choice. I know i was on drugs but guess what i was not nearly as deranged as you said. That was the gaslighting. It was re ams it did happen to me. Lets just go with the last year of it with sarah. You told me over and over that she didnt hate me, that she would never say those things to me, even when i had proof. AND THEN YOU THOUGHT I WOULD BE OK WITH SHARING YOU. THE ONLY PERSON IVE TRULY LOVED. THE ONE I WOULD COME BACK TO, THE ONE I KNEW I LOVED AT FIRST SIGHT HOW THE FUCK DID YOU THINK I WOULD BE OK WITH ANY OF THAT. Im not even that mad at her, she just wanted you too. I came back too soon. I said that all along and its true. I made us miss our chance, i destroyed our happily ever after because i was impatient wow whats new. You didnt get it when i said that to you. I came back too soon and hurt you yeah, but i hurt me more, i hurt someone who's relationship with you would have ended in the same explosion with or without me. I put myself through the worst mental torment of my life bc i was convinced i would loose you forever if i didnt. Answering your call in june and coming over was the mistake that killed us. That was the point that could have changed a lot. But instead now i have way more trauma than i started my addiction with that i won't even begin to let on about bc just the smallest passing thought still destroies me. My mom sent me a picture of a puzzle that was from either you or your mom and that just about sent me into a big loop in the middle of a meeting. Im sorry for how angry this sounds. Im really not mad, i just don't think you know even a fraction of the damage that was inflicted on me. Our love was something special. But as much as i hate to even entertain this thought...the longer im sober the more evident its becoming that i should have saved myself a whole fuck ton of heartache and tried to move on months ago rather than clinging onto memories. You still talk to the one who physically assaulted me- in never speaking to her again. And last year you tried to tell me i was the problem with me and sarah. I had no df respect and you saw that. My terms are as follows, (honestly idk why i even bother i know what i say will never change a gd thing, unless its drive you away further.)

1. You know how deeply i love you, and i know how you love me. But i hope you know how much everything has hurt me. Relationship and private counseling needs to begin immediately.

2. I'm only saying this because of how traumatic this was. Please do not say a word about a threesome until i say its ok. 2021 had some of the best moments but overall its been the worst year of my life. I need help to heal, and i want to be there for you.

3. I don't care how much she cares, i don't care one fucking bit about any of it i do not want to have to see or hear about sydney. Physical assault, based on her own ideas none of which were true and even my mom still talked to her about me after i explicitly told her to stop. Can't do it. At least not for the next 10-50 years. It's not her, it's the reminder that she was still better than me in your eyes, and always probably will bw unless she becomes an iv heroin addict. Yes my brain is a little fucked up that's what the counseling is for.

4. Stop treating me like I'm an apostate. You left me when I needed you most. I couldn't fight to keep you there because i was literally almost dead. I hadn't used the week leading up to the hospital and yeah, i wanted some when i got out because i needed something to numb the pain of the love of my life said goodbye to me while I'm in the hospital and to weak to be able to stop it. I have theories on why you did it, but good and bad, it got me to the lowest point ive ever been to. And I'm still there. I don't want to live. All this shit fucking hurts, it's exhausting...all the thoughts of all the bad shit i did to you on repeat. I just want it to end. But i have to accept that there will never be an end, unless i wait it out or take it in my own hands. I'm only not doing that for my mom. The only help i want from you in that department is just you... its always quieter around you because you actually make me feel loved.

So after all that,

Im assuming thatll leave us at goodbye. Would be nice to actually get a goodbye but really idk what im thinking I'm a fucking disaster writing this. A goodbye to you would honestly most likely kill me. Yay.

[metalgearsolidexclamationpoint]

Aloha ladies and theydies, I just picked up The Quarry for the exorbitant price of 71EUR because, as you can see from this blog, I loved Until Dawn and more broadly, the whole You and Your Ability at QTEs Drive the Story! genre. And I am exceptionally good at QTEs. :) Will quasi-live-blog until I get bored of doing so, tagged "the quarry spoilers" (and also fox plays).

I also watched the Righteous Gemstones and 2 seasons of Santa Clarita Diet this year, which means I am all in on Sklyer Gisondo and his adorable freckles. That said, the graphics seem worse than in Until Dawn? Emma (mouth) and the Tarot card reader (eyes) especially seem totally uncanny valley, which was not a feeling I got from anyone in UD. Yes, this can be used to make a character more unsettling, but I really don't think it was intentional.

Of course, while this is a cinematic experience and immersive entertainment etc etc, it is still a Game and therefore I still want to Win it, and since there aren't really explicit Win States, as seen by the trophy for everyone dying, what I want in this first playthrough, when I don't know the universe or the rules that govern it, is to get the Most. i.e. as much evidence, clues, tarot cards, alive people, and romantic hook-ups as I can. Can I get the Golden Path by intuition alone?

To that end, I have been exploring as exhaustively as I could, but when I got to the inter-act scenelet with the Old Lady, she implied I missed a tarot card. I assumed they took the place of the totems from UD, and further assumed that meant I would stumble upon the first one without really trying, which clearly I did not.

I lied to the cop about what we hit or didn't hit (although I couldn't tell from the cutscene that it was human-like -- I actually saved the video clip because an old woman's ghostly head floated in the backseat for a full five seconds during the crash and I wanted to re-watch that, and the "animal" still does not look human-like -- is it Silas the Dog Boy?).

The cop has some kind of scratch on his neck, which I thought I was slick by screenshotting (at the same time as he said Harbinger Hotel... ooh, spooky! Do they think kids these days don't know what harbinger means?) but then Skyler pointed it out so I guess I'm not that slick. But also, that's the kind of thing I wish the game would have enough faith in me to pick up on. I can't stand it when games (and all other narrative media) think their audience is stupid, and most "popcorn" entertainment does. I guess that goes back to naming shit "Harbinger Hotel" like it's not WATCH OUT FOR THIS SHIT 101.

The thing in the bunker also didn't look human to me. More than anything it looked like the enemies from UD, which are a white exploitation and cavalier bastardization of Native American culture and mythology. Part of me thinks it would be cool to have an explicit connection/reference to the UD-verse, a bigger part of me thinks that would be corny as hell, and the biggest part of me thinks SM should keep their hands off Native American myth, which is why, for example, I don't want to write out the name of those enemies.

Of course, in terms of explicit references to UD, someone sneaking up on you with a syringe of tranquilizer to the neck is pretty clear-cut!

And the pause screen UI is basically identical, though I saw it was missing personality traits and relationship values. The former was basically irrelevant, but the latter... well, they were irrelevant too, right? Like Ashley not opening the door for Chris was based on the butterfly decision, not their relationship. I think all it changed was the police station questioning during the credits. So I can't view relationship stats, but I am getting notifs saying "Nick is falling for Abi" or "Ryan is sick of your shit." Hmm.

So... is it possible to arrive at Hackett's Quarry, knock on the door, and get back in the car? I wanted to immediately start over and see, but that is not In The Spirit Of This Genre. But if so, how would you get the cool moonrise/"Fly me to the moon"/title card sequence??

Anyway, as you might have guessed, Laura opened the bunker, wandered around, thought it was unusual to name a dog Ian (??), dropped a heavily-bleeding Max down a flight of stairs while trying to rescue him, and got syringed by the cop. In UD, the perspective chars of the opening sequence died... but Skyler Gisondo is the biggest name in the cast, after David Arquette and Ted Raimi, whom I had actually never heard of but assumed was related to horror legend Sam (whose Evil Dead is mentioned in the first 20 minutes of gameplay) and indeed, is his brother. So I assume they didn't hire Skyler for 20 minutes of footage.

Also one of the trophies is “reunite Laura and Max” so obviously they come back. UI SPOILER!!

[delightfullygiddy]

If you wanted some additional context of that scene of the psychic gorilla attacking young Barrack Obama, basically the gorilla is working for an ancient time demon named Mallus, who sent him back in time to kill Obama to mess up the timeline in order weaken the prison that is holding Mallus. The gorilla's name is "Gorilla Grodd" & later in that very scene he says he is going to "Make America Grodd again." The show is completely aware of how stupid it and is unironically the best show on the CW.

You know what, that's par for the course.

[midgardianweasley]

The Royal Ball

The Royal Ball

Loki laufeyson x Fem!reader

Summary: There is an Asgard ball being hosted in the palace, Y/N is yet to find a date to accompany her. She’s disappointed when a certain God doesn’t ask her, however, what happens when he sees someone else getting a little too close for comfort throughout the night?

Warnings: lil bit angsty, self doubt, JEALOUS LOKI, fluffy ending

Word Count: 3.3k

Message/ask if you’d like to be added to the taglist!

Requests are open loves <3

Y/F/N - Your Friend’s Name

It was a beautiful autumn’s day, crisp brown leaves were falling off of the large trees in the courtyard and scattering the cobbled ground. Loki and I had been wandering around for some time now, discussing everything from the books we’ve been reading to the dreams that have come to us in our sleep.

“And then this huge ghost thing was chasing me around the halls! and if that wasn’t weird enough, you popped up-”

“Ah, seeing me in your dreams are we, darling?”  Loki chuckled, taking great pleasure at the fact that he had made an appearance in my subconscious, completely ignoring my distress at being chased by a supernatural being.

“Funny you should say that, right after seeing you, I woke up. The sight must’ve given me quite the scare.” I scoffed, a smile unable to stop itself from making its way onto my face, eyes meeting his, face etched with shock. With a hand to his chest, he spoke again in disbelief.

“You have truly offended me, love. I never knew you had this side to you.”

“What can I say? I’m a woman of many talents.” I winked, nudging his side slightly with my elbow.

“Really? Can you produce illusions?”

“No.”

“Look inside other people’s heads?”

“Well, no, but-”

“Turn yourself into a snake to scare your eight year old brother?”

“I still can’t believe you did that”

“My greatest achievement yet.” He smirked, the memory never failing to amuse him.

His stories always had me in awe of his capabilities, even if it was to give his brother a long-term fear, it was still an incredible talent. Whenever he tells me of his latest adventures or tricks, I always think of how well his title fits him. God of Mischief. Maybe that’s why I liked him much more than what a best friend should, not that I'd ever admit it. Not to him anyway.

We soon found ourselves standing next to one of the windows of the hallway, the crystal clear glass giving a beautiful view of the city of Asgard. From here, you could see the Queen’s gardens, full of flowers in all different colours and types, grass cut to perfection. You could see the families in the town, walking around the different buildings, children playing. It was lovely to watch, seeing everyone enjoy the seasonal weather and the light bounce off of the windows, it was ethereal.

“I never get tired of this.” I sighed, voice only slightly above a whisper

“Tired of what, love?”

“Just, this. This view, this kingdom, it’s incredible.” I looked up at Loki, trying to see if he was seeing the same beauty that I did. He was already looking at me when I met his eyes and upon seeing the way they sparkled, I assumed he did.

“Actually, speaking of the Kingdom, I have something to tell you. There’s-”

Abruptly stopping him from continuing his sentence, voices were heard from the other end of the hallway, though we couldn’t make out the words until they came closer. We gave each other a quick look of confusion before turning to see where the commotion was coming from, hearing the quick and heavy footsteps before being able to put names to the faces.

“Loki! Y/N!” A deep voice bellowed. Was that Thor making all of that noise?

Before I could process any more information, a blur of a pastel pink dress was in my face and hands were placed on my shoulders. I smiled down at the slightly out of breath figure using me as a support stand, it was Y/F/N.

“Wow, Y/F/N, you sound much different than when I spoke to you yesterday, did you drink something funny?” I chuckled, receiving a glare from my friend and a quiet laugh from the God beside me. Thor soon appeared next to Y/F/N, hands on his hips and head thrown back as he tried to compose himself.

“My God, Y/F/N, you run fast.” He pants.

“Care to tell us why you’re both running like madmen through the palace?” Loki speaks, one eyebrow raised in curiosity and what looked a little like concern.

“We..had to..tell you..there’s a ball..next week.” Y/F/N spoke, a bit more stable now, but still in between breaths.

I felt my eyes widen, a ball? I didn’t know Asgard held balls.

“Father is opening up the palace next week to neighbouring kingdoms, in hopes to be closer with them, open Asgard up to more trade opportunities, build relationships and whatnot.” Thor explained, emitting a loud sigh to come from Loki.

“I was just about to tell her, brother. Thank you for interrupting.” He rolled his eyes, half joking, half serious. I reached up and patted his shoulder gently, a small smile on my face.

“Maybe next time Lok” He nodded in response, I didn’t get a chance to comfort him much more before I was being pulled away by Y/F/N. With a small huff of surprise, I gave Loki a glance, silently apologising for our conversation being cut short, receiving a shake of his head in reply, affirming me to not worry about it.

“So.” she begins. “We need to find you a date and a dress. I’m thinking blue. I’m wearing purple so it’s probably best to avoid that one. Hmm. let’s see..oh! I know! we could- Y/N? You listening?” I snapped my head around, not missing the sly smile that was plastered all over my friend’s face.

“Y/F/N, don’t-”

“Loki! He has to be your date. You could wear green and match! If he’s even going to wear green, I'm sure I can get Thor to find out, I assume they’ll get ready together. And black accessories! I have so many ideas.” She clapped her hands, over-excited about the opportunity to plan this evening for us. Except for one minor detail.

“That sounds great, Y/F/N, it sounds wonderful, you’re just missing something.”

“Missing something? Oh, if you mean our hair then i’ve already-”

“No, not our hair. Loki hasn’t asked me, and I doubt he will.” I spoke, the second half coming out more as a whisper, my heart dropping a little at the thought. He’d never really expressed having those kinds of feelings for me and I'd always seen him be close with different girls around the palace, he’ll probably ask one of them.

“He might ask you, you never know what’s around the corner.”

“I guess so, we’ll have to wait and see.”

And that was the last we spoke of it before she went into full planner mode again, while I continued to ponder over all of the thoughts running through my head. I mean, he could ask me, right?

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

He didn’t.

After talking about it with Y/F/N, I had a glimmer of hope that maybe I was wrong, maybe I hadn’t noticed something that she had, that Loki would approach me and ask me to be his company for the evening.

I spent the next couple of days with him, hoping he would ask me, everytime a pause would appear in conversation, maybe he was finally going to do it. And everytime, a little bit of the hope I had, had fizzled out.

I’d even considered other reasons as to why he hadn’t asked, maybe the King didn’t want him and Thor to have dates so that they could mingle with members of the other kingdoms. Of course that theory had flown right out one of the Palace’s windows when Y/F/N told me that Thor was going to be her date. I was right then, he wasn’t wanting to go with me.

I guess I understood, I’m the best friend, we’d always been that. I think a part of me just thought that maybe he, like me, wanted something a little more. Clearly, I was mistaken.

Y/F/N and I had been getting ready for a while now, our hair was styled to perfection, our dresses were on and both of us were fully accessorized. We were looking at ourselves in the mirror, doing spins and curtseys and gushing over how good the other looked.

“You look amazing tonight, Y/N, really. Loki is missing out.”

“Thank you, and I'm sure his date is beautiful.” I spoke, fidgeting with the fabric of my dress, trying to avoid the subject and the twisting knot in my stomach at the thought of him with someone else all night. “You look incredible! You were right to pick purple, it’s definitely your colour.”

“Y/N’s right, you look gorgeous.” Thor declared, leaning against the doorway sporting a black suit and a dark purple tie, the perfect match with his date’s dress. I could feel my eyes light up when seeing how happy the simple, yet effective comment had made Y/F/N. Rushing over, she engulfed Thor in a hug before leaning up slightly and giving him a peck on the cheek.

“Ah and can’t forget, Y/N, you look stunning tonight.” He gestured to me, arm almost scanning me up and down.

“Stop, you’ll make me blush.” I laughed. “You both head off, I’ll catch up.”

“Are you sure? We don’t mind waiting?” Y/F/N questioned.

“Don’t be silly. You guys go on ahead, I'll meet you there.”

With a nod and a wave, they were off. They really did look like a perfect match tonight. I continued to look at myself in the mirror, fixing any stray hairs, flattening any kinks in my dress. Realistically, I was probably trying to prolong leaving for as long as I could. I was excited, but I was turning up on my own while everyone else had someone, it was a bit nerve-wracking. I still wanted to look my best though.

“Stop trying to convince yourself that you look good, you could literally blow an army of men away by looks alone.” A voice spoke, I spun to see who was speaking, the flash of green was enough to decipher who it was.

“You look lovely tonight, darling.” He grinned, the pet name had set off butterflies in my stomach.

“Thank you. As do you.”

“Well, I did put in an effort, nice to know it’s appreciated.” He joked, a breathy laugh left my lips, entertained by his words.

“Yes, well, I'm sure plenty of others will too.”

“The eyes will never leave me, I'm sure. Unless they’re on you, then I'd be surprised if I get even so much as a glimpse in my direction. Someone is a very lucky guy tonight, that’s for sure.”

“Why do you say that?” I asked, confused by his statement.

“Well, they get to be beside you all evening, it’s a beautiful view.” He winked.

It could’ve been you, I thought. I knew he was joking, however that didn’t stop the fire in me from igniting.

“I could say the same for you, someone is a very lucky girl.”

“I’ll be sure to let her know if she ever thinks otherwise.” Joking, again.

So he had asked someone. Albeit disappointed, I'm happy he’s happy. Though I still wish I was the girl in question, I couldn't stop him if he was interested in someone else. That wasn’t fair.

Giving him a brief nod and a tight lipped smile, I picked up the front of my dress a little bit and made my way out of the room and downstairs to the ball. I could still enjoy myself, the night is young, I've got this.

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

“It was crazy! And let me tell you, my dad was so angry with me. He didn’t let me serve Turkey again after that year.” Charlie, a guy that I had met an hour or so ago, finished his story of the Christmas horror he had, allowing me to relax for the first time that evening. Up until now, it had felt like all I’d seen was either happy couples, or stares from across the room. Usually the second and usually Loki. The same Loki who had a girl’s arm linked with his and was looking at him like he held the world in his grasp. I broke the gaze, finding it difficult to look at the pair for any longer, as I turned back to Charlie so he could have my attention again, a lazy smile was present as he took a sip of his wine.

“I don’t blame him, really, it sounds like you started a riot!” I exclaimed, sending us both into a full on belly laugh, thinking back to the story. This continued for another five or so minutes, laughter turning into a low chuckle, as if we were about to be told off for how loud we were being. Just as my hand had reached his arm to help hold me up, saving me from laughing myself into the ground, Loki and his date had made their way over.

“Enjoying ourselves, I hope?” He beamed, taking one look at me before giving his full attention to Charlie.

“Yes, yes we are, thank you. How about the two of you?”

“Ye-”

“It’s been fine, yeah, good. So, what’s your name then?” Loki interrupted, his date having no choice but to leave him to respond instead.

“I’m Charlie Fernsby.” He held his hand out, greeting Loki. A gesture that was very awkwardly not reciprocated as he let his hand fall back to his side before Loki spoke up again.

“Charlie..Charlie, now, isn’t that a girl’s name?”

“Loki!” I scolded, giving him an evil side glance, what was he doing?

“No, no it’s okay. Yeah, it can be used for girls too, but it's common for boys to have the name Charlie.” Polite as ever, he responded. A mischievous look made its way onto the God’s face. Oh no.

“So, I take it your parents wanted a girl?”

“I- I’m sorry?”

“I assume your parents wanted a girl, considering they’ve given you a girl’s name?” I rolled my eyes, this teasing was unnecessary.

“Charlie, let’s go and get a drink.” I tried to tug him away, only to be halted by another sentence leaving my best friend’s mouth.

“It was only a question, I'm sure he doesn’t mind answering, do you Carl?”

“Charlie.”

“That’s what I said.”

“You said-” I tried to interject, but he was quick to stop me

“I know what I said, Y/N, but I'm speaking to him. Let him answer the question.”

Loki’s date was long gone by now, she’d left to speak to another group of people, presumably another few couples, leaving us three to have this discussion, thing, whatever you would think to call it.

“I’m just saying, maybe they would’ve preferred a daughter, seeing as they’ve very obviously made that clear.” He beamed, expecting me to join in and agree with him, I don’t find this funny. At all.

“Can you excuse us, Charlie? Loki, A word.” I pointed to the door, giving him a look implying for him not to test me.

“I’m in trouble. Wish me luck Carlos.”

“Charlie.”

“I know, that’s what I said.”

I pushed him all the way out the door, into the hallway and round the corner so as not to disturb everyone else’s evening. When I’d made sure there was no one else around, I looked up at the Asgardian, my arms crossed, eyebrows furrowed, I wasn’t impressed anymore.

“So, are we out here for some hide or seek, or?”

“What the hell was that in there?!” I raised my voice slightly, his need to always make everything a joke wasn’t working this time. He had his night, his date, he didn’t need to come over and insult mine.

“What was what, darling? I was making conversation.”

“You were making fun of him.”

“No, I showed some concern about his parents choices, that’s all. Friendly advice if anything.” He looked a bit more frustrated with me now, as though he was stating the obvious and it was going over my head. I wasn’t having it this time.

“No, Loki. You weren’t and you know you weren’t. You had your date, she was fine, you were fine-”

“Well-”

“Let me finish. Everything was fine. Until you caught sight of me having a friendly conversation with another guy who wasn’t you. But guess what Lok, I’m allowed to do that! I’m an adult, I can speak with whoever I like!” My arms were all over the place now, my frustration was starting to show itself, it seems I had a bit pent up.

I saw his lips move, I heard something, but it was so quiet I couldn't make it out.

“Speak up, Loki. I can’t hear you.”

“I said, if you think he was just being friendly, you’re clearly out of your mind.”

Is he serious?

“Are you- Loki, you have no right to make a judgement on who and how and why I interact with other people. Not that it should matter to you anyway, you’ve spoken to other women before and I've never said a word or tried to stop you. Why does this matter so much?”

Silence.

“No, please, go on, tell me, enlighten me as to why this bothered you so much tonight, because trust me, I'm dying to know, truly.” I was shouting now, I just wanted answers for his behaviour, I didn’t think it would be this difficult.

His hands had made his way into his trouser pockets, eyes looking everywhere before settling on mine. He looked conflicted, I wanted to drop it when I saw his troubled gaze, but I couldn’t go back in there without an explanation.

“Ple-”

“I like you, okay? Is that what you wanted to hear, love? That I was so uncomfortable seeing some you get close with some guy that I had to embarrass him in front of you? Something I'm sure my father won’t be so impressed to hear, but there, you’ve got your confession.” His voice had gone much louder than mine, taking me by surprise, so much so that it took me a minute to process what he had said. He liked me?

He turned to leave, I assume because I hadn't said anything for a matter of minutes, but I gently grabbed his arm, tugging him back towards me. I looked up into his eyes again. I was so close that you could see the specs of different colours spotted in them, they were flawless. This view beats the Asgard view anyday.

“Why didn’t you mention this before?”

He shrugged, “I don’t know. Worried I guess. We’d never spoken of moving past friendship and I didn’t think you’d be interested.”

“I’m more than interested, Loki.” I grinned, my smile meeting my eyes, never leaving his.

“Not Chelsey?”

“For the love, it’s Ch-”

I couldn’t say his name, a certain pair of lips had stopped me from doing so. As they molded against mine, my hands went up to tangle themselves in his hair, his hands falling to my waist and pulling me closer, I didn’t even think that could be possible. We pulled away when we needed to catch a breath, foreheads falling against each other, smiles painted on both of our faces.

“I bet I'll be in your dreams again tonight.” He whispered.

“I bet I'll be in yours.”

“Always are, Darling. Always are.”

taglist: @horrorxweasley

[infinitefandomimagines]

How the hq boys react to you pulling an all-nighter

WARNINGS: none

-

CHARACTERS: kuroo tetsuro, bokuto koutarou, ushijima wakatoshi

Kuroo Tetsurou:

Kuroo had grown used to waking up with you pressed against his side in the early morning hours, each time pulling you closer and reveling in your warmth. It'd become something of a routine. He always woke up before you, eventually resorting to gently poking at your face when he grew impatient with the lack of attention.

However, this time as he reaches out, his fingers only grasp at cold and empty sheets. He lifts his head a little, peering through hazy eyes to search for your presence. When he realizes you weren't in your shared room, he lazily rolls out of bed to search for you. Maybe you'd woken up before him. It was rare that this happened, but when it did, you always made breakfast and had it waiting for the two of you when he woke.

After scouring the kitchen to no avail, he moves on to the living room of your small shared apartment. Sure enough, there you were, but why?

That's right! It hit him, you stayed up late to finish a lab report for one of your classes. However, when he went to bed he'd been under the impression that you'd eventually join him when you finished, not stay up the entire night. Yet there you were, still in the same position he'd left you in the night before. Hunched over a laptop, staring at the dim screen with dead eyes, attempting to comprehend the words on the screen. Snack wrappers and empty energy drink cans were scattered around your laptop along with a few loose pieces of paper and texts books. You looked absolutely exhausted, dark circles already forming just beneath your eyes.

It took you a while to even notice your boyfriend standing right in front of you, a concerned look painting his face. "Hmm? Oh, hi Tetsu . . . what time is it?"

"It's seven in the morning. Kitten, did you stay up all night?"

You nodded your head very slightly, rubbing the heel of your palms against your eyes, trying to the clear the cloudiness from your vision. "Had to finish my lab report."

He wants to scold you for sacrificing your health to finish the assignment that could have easily waited until today. But one more glance at your tired form tells him to bite his tongue for the time being. You were barely able able keep your eyes open, eyes closing ever now and then before snapping back open. Besides, it's not like he was one to talk, he'd done the same thing the week prior to finish a paper.

Looking back down at the empty food wrappers, an idea popped into his head. "Alright, Kitten," he spoke softly, extending both his hands out to you, palms up. "Let's go get you some proper breakfast, and when we get back you're going straight to bed."

Your movements were slow as you placed your hands into his, allowing him to pull you up from the couch. You wobbled a bit as you stood, but Kuroo was there to steady you.

Neither of you even bothered changing before Kuroo lead you to the front door and into his car, taking you to the small diner ten minutes from your apartment. He paid for your food, letting you get anything you wanted — except coffee, saying that you needed to sleep instead of trying to fight through the day on caffeine.

You ended up falling asleep in the car on the drive back to your apartment, exhaustion finally taking in over. Kuroo didn't have the heart to wake you up, so he ended up carrying you bridal style up a flight of stairs and into your shared apartment.

He gently sets you down in your bed, pulling the covers up to your chin. "Get some sleep, Kitten," he whispers, leaning down to press a feather light kiss to the space between your eyes.

Bokuto Koutarou

If you think Bokuto isn't right there with you all night, then you are terribly mistaken. He's not going to bed unless you're there as well, wrapped up in his arms. No matter how tired he grew, he absolutely refused to leave you alone all night while you caught up on school work.

"Baby. . ." he drawled out in a whiney voice, lips set in a pout. "How much longer?"

You let out a sigh, this was the tenth time in the past hour Bokuto had interrupted your studying with his complaints. Not even bothering to look up from your laptop, you spoke. "I told you Kou, I need to get this done. You don't have to stay with me, I'll come to bed once I'm finished."

All you got in response was a childish "No," and an even bigger pout. You playfully rolled your eyes at how stubborn he could be. Despite his determination, you figured his exhaustion would take over eventually and he'd have no other choice than to finally go to bed. So, you returned your attention back to your school work and left Bokuto to entertain himself.

A few minutes passed and from the corner of your eye you noticed Bokuto's head starting to slowly tilt downward, his chin falling to his chest. However, just as quickly as he began to drift off, he jolted himself back awake, his head snapping up and eyes blinking furiously. This continued for about half an hour before you finally interjected. You reached your hand out and placed it atop of his to gain his attention. The sudden contact caused him to perk up, eyes wide.

"Kou, I can tell how exhausted you are. It's okay, I'll be fine alone. Please go get some rest." You lightly grazed your thumb over his knuckles. You were starting to feel guilty that he was fighting off some much needed sleep just to be with you.

Of course, your pleas fell on deaf ears with him. Shaking his head, he once again refused to leave your side. With neither of you giving in to the other, you decided to seek out a sort of middle ground. A compromise that was mainly of Bokuto's invention. That's how you ended up in your current — and slightly strange — position.

Bokuto laid on his stomach with his head in your lap, muscular arms wrapped around your hips, holding you as close as possible. His head was cocked to the side so that so that he could snuggle his face into your stomach. You've got your laptop set up on his back at an angle that still allowed you to see it clearly. As odd as it seemed, Bokuto claimed he didn't mind, saying the heat from it felt nice on his back muscles. But you're pretty sure the main reason is that he just wants to be close to you, which you don't mind.

Every so often when you're not using your hands for typing notes, you'll reach down and play with his hair. He let's out a hum of appreciation each time your finger tips make contact with his scalp, scratching at the sweet spot just above his nape. With your fingers working their magic, you manage to lull him to sleep in just a few minutes.

The two end up staying like that the rest of the night, it was surprisingly comfortable. Although at some point, he almost knocks over the whole set-up when he stirs in his sleep.

Ushijima Wakatoshi

He's not all that surprised to find your side of the bed empty when he wakes up for his daily 6:00 a.m. run. You'd been working on a paper just before he'd gone off to bed, and by the looks of it you still had quite a bit left to get through. So he got ready for his run as usual, throwing on a pair of joggers and jacket before making his way to the living room where he knew you'd be.

What did surprise him however, was the fact that you were still awake when he found you; well, half awake. You were laid out on the couch, turned on your side to face your laptop, though Ushijima doubted you were doing much in terms of work at this point.

He really thought you would have fallen asleep by now, but obviously he'd underestimated your determination.

"Is it already six?" You mumbled, propping yourself up on your elbow upon seeing Ushijima staring down at you. "You know, you really shouldn't stay up all night like this. You'll mess up your sleep schedule."

"Mhm," You hummed out, not having enough energy to come up with a quip or argue your case for staying up. Ushijima's brows knit together with concern, you must really be tired if the most you can muster up is a dull "mhm." He didn't notice it at first, but now having a better look at you, he takes note of the dark circles under your eyes and slightly paler complexion.

"Would you like to go to bed?"

You nod, but don't budge, too tired to even make an effort. Sleeping on the couch wouldn't be so horrible would it? Just as your eyelids begin to flutter shut, a pair of strong arms slip themselves under your figure. With one arm supporting your back and the other placed strategically at the bend of your knees, Ushijima lifts you up, cradling you against his chest. You lazily wrap your arms around his neck, trying your best to help him support your weight — even though he'd proved many times over that picking you up was no struggle. Looks like you won't be sleeping on the couch after all.

"Did you at least finish your paper?" He asks, voice low and soft as he carries you to your shared bedroom. You nod again before letting your head fall against his shoulder. "Good, I'm proud of you."

A warm blush creeps it's way onto your cheeks at his compliment. You dig your face further into his chest in an attempt to hide it, but given the small chuckle that vibrates through his chest he'd already saw.

"Now get some sleep, you need it." The second he sets you down on your bed you're missing his warmth. Even as he tucks you in under the comforter you find yourself reaching out to him with grabby hands. "Stay with me Toshi?" He really wants to say yes.

"I'll be back in a hour after my run." He places a chaste kiss to your forehead in hopes that it'll be enough to satisfy your need for affection until he gets back. Of course, it's not, and he can't help the way his heart sinks when your arms fall to your side. The sigh that escapes your lips only adds to his guilt.

As much as you wanted him to stay, you were too tired to try and convince him. Instead, you just closed your eyes and turned to your side, accepting your fate.

There's a light shuffling followed by a sigh that you assume is just your boyfriend stretching before his run. But then the bed sinks behind you as the same pair of arms that carried you just a few minutes ago snake around your waist. Warmth consumes you as Ushijima pulls you into his bare chest, your back now pressed flush against him. His long legs naturally tangle together with yours, and he nuzzles his face into your hair, breathing in the scent of your shampoo.

"I thought you were going for your run?" You ask, not that you were exactly complaining about this change of plans.

"It can wait. Just get some rest, I'll still be here when you wake up."

"Mmm, thank you, Toshi."

-

A/N: I’m thinking about doing a part 2 to this with other characters so let me know who you want to see!

- 

TAGLIST: @chewymoustachio  

[charliedawn]

Imagine being in a hate love relationship with Peter Hale

Warning : attempt of rape

You were on Peter duty..Again. Since Peter Hale was the man that everybody feared, it had been decided that you would be the one keeping an eye on the overly fool-of-himself werewolf with the power of your mighty patience. Scott and Stiles stop in front of Derek's loft and he jogs out to meet you.

" Thanks Y/N. I owe you one !"

He says with a grateful smile and you smile back.

" Big time. But come on, you three go hunt whatever creature you have to hunt and I'll stay to take care of Mr Smarty-pants up there !"

You say enthusiastically and they all smile apologetically at you, knowing how the two of you were not exactly on friendly terms.

" Be careful, okay ? And tell him that if he touches you, I'll kick his ass !"

Stiles says confidently, which makes you laugh.

" Don't worry, Stiles. If there is any problem, I'll call you guys immediately and plus, I have a way to take care of moody children.."

You tell him with a mysterious smile and Stiles nods understandingly.

" I know..Just, stay safe."

And with that last warning, they are all out of here. As soon as they are out of your sight, your smile leaves your face and you sigh loudly before turning towards the building and whisper to yourself.

" Welp..Here we go.."

As soon as you enter, you smell something burning and see the stove on fire. You run towards it and take a glass from the cupboard to fill it with water in order to stop the fire. When you're done, you are panting because of the effort and look murderously at Peter that is sitting calmly on the couch, as if nothing had happened.

You glare at him while he doesn't even raise his eyes from his book.

" Let me guess..You couldn't smell the smoke ?"

You ask annoyed and only then does he look up at you with a small mischievous smile.

" Aren't you supposed to be the one keeping me out of harm's way ? You are here to keep me from doing anything stupid, not the other way around..I create chaos and you're here to stop me. Do your job and stop whining."

You grit your teeths in anger before sitting on the couch, as far away from Peter as possible. You can't believe the nerve of this man that was ready to burn the entire flat only to prove a point !

" I don't know why you're so eager to unnerve me. Does it entertain you ? Would it kill you to be nice and helpful from time to time ?"

You ask while taking a nearby book and starting reading yourself, not really interested in his answer that you knew would not be anything but upsetting.

" I'm the spark that lits your fire, sweetheart..Try to let go sometimes, you would actually enjoy it. Why don't you try to be less of a killjoy ?"

You raise an eyebrow at that before returning to your book and replying nonchalantly.

" Have you ever considered, even for only a moment, that I simply don't like you ?"

He fakes being offended by putting his hand above his heart and widening his eyes dramatically at you.

" Oh darling ! Me who thought that you were about to ask my hand in marriage ?! How disappointing ?!"

You snort.

" Hard pass."

He sighs in false disappointment before taking his coat and walking towards the exit.

" And where do you think you're going ?"

You ask with an eyebrow arked in curiosity.

" Out."

He answers simply before opening the door. You sigh before taking your coat and running after him.

" Didn't Derek warn you that I am allowed to use silver bullets if you disobey me ?"

He scoffs before shrugging, not bothering waiting for you.

" I'm going to get a beer, not kill a bunch of innocent virgins.."

He winks at you cheekily before stepping inside the bar that was the nearest to the apartment. You role your eyes at his comment before entering the bar after him.

You look around and are amazed to see that the place wasn't as bad as you had previously thought. It had good background music and not a lot of customers, besides a couple of drunk friends who were talking in whispers at their table. However, Peter isn't visible and you sigh again before walking towards the counter to ask the bartender if he had any idea of where your irresponsible dog had run off to. You sit down and attract the attention of the bartender by raising your hand. He walks towards you and leans in to listen to your order.

" A soda, please."

He arks an eyebrow at you, nearly amused, before turning around and getting out what you asked.

" Are you sure you don't want anything else ? Anything stronger ?"

He says while eyeing your bottle of soda warily, as if it was an insult to his establishment for you to order such a drink. You smile, tempted beyond reason, but then remember that you had a werewolf to find.

" Sorry. Can't. I'm on the job. By the way, have you seen a man ? Sarcastic. Arrogant. Energic. Tall. Very annoying. Awfully blond. Seen him anywhere ?"

He looks suspiciously at you before asking in a slightly worried and even threatening voice.

" You're a cop ?"

You can't help but laugh bitterly at the question before replying.

" You could say that. But I am only responsible of one criminal, and the only crime he committed is to not have messed up my night, yet.."

He smirks when he understands the irony in your tone and was about to answer when someone puts his hand on your shoulder. You turn around to see a very smug Peter with a huge grin.

" Oh ! Look at that ! The overly confident puppy is finally back ! What ? Got lost on the way ?"

You ask sarcastically and he only humphs in response before sitting next to you, the grin not leaving his face.

" Why ? Missed me ?"

You scoff before taking a sip of your drink.

" As much as a needle in my heel..But, if Derek was to find out that I've let you out of your cage, he would have my head.."

He wraps his arm around your shoulders and makes you spill your drink a little over yourself.

" Aww..You do care ! My cold heart warms at the thought of the packs brat worrying about me !"

You groan in annoyance before biting his hand off. He hisses in pain before retrieving his hand and massaging it while glaring at you from the corner of his eyes. Just at that moment, the bartender comes back to get Peter's order and eyes Peter suspiciously before looking back at you with an inquisitive glance, asking discreetly if you needed an escape. You could have laughed if it wasn't so sad. Peter was such a nuisance that people were now wondering if he was the one bothering you, when in fact it was the opposite. However Peter, that had not missed the silent conversation, growls when the bartender gives him a warning side glance. But, not intimidated the nearest, Peter smirks a toothy grin at the bartender before showing his bitten hand.

" Careful. The brat bites. I've seen what it is capable of, first hand..literally. Don't worry, if you should be worried about anyone around here, it's everyone else besides her."

He cautioned and the bartenders eyes widen at the mark that would certainly have left a scar if he was a normal human being while you snicker in your corner. The bartender quickly runs towards his other customers at the far end of the bar, leaving you two in your sudden awkward solitude.

" Well..Isn't he a gentleman ? Thinking you need saving from me. Not even considering that I could be the abused one in this relationship ? How rude !"

You try to stifle a laugh. Unfortunately, he hears you and smirks proudly at his small victory.

" I'm not the psychopath that tried to murder a bunch of teenagers just because I wanted to become the big bad alpha.."

You taunt while giving him an amused side glance. He groans in annoyance as you make him remember his past and he gulps down his whiskey, an attempt to make him forget faster.

" Aren't you a delight ?! Playing unfair by spreading out the touchy subjects like that..No wonder Stiles rejected you. You would have chomped his lips off !"

You glare at him as he talks about Stiles before replying harshly.

" Says the man whose only date was Scott's mom, and that was to trap him ! You're so terrible that nobody could stand being with you more than 5 minutes without hating you ! I would tell you to go to hell, but it would be unfair on Satan !"

He chuckles at that last part and you take your drink in order to take a sip and calm your nerves, but grimace at the awful taste. You had asked for a soda, but it tasted more like salt with water..He cackles at your expression before whispering mockingly in your ear with false concern.

" Oh ! What ? Ain't sweet enough for you, sweetheart ?"

You only raise a very distinctive finger at him, warning him that one more word from him would result in extreme pain and look around the room to distract yourself from his presence..and from the fact that you were his entitled babysitter. Your eyes wander and finally settle on the nice bartender that winks at you when you meet his gaze. You blush slightly before smiling back at him. He wasn't bad-looking and everything would be better than bantering with the overly sarcastic and confident werewolf that couldn't seem to leave you be. You were about to stand up and walk towards the cute bartender when suddenly, a hand raises to lay on your shoulder and pin you down to your seat. You were about to complain and even yell at Peter when you hear him growl from deep withing him while he shoots a dirty glare at the poor young man. You frown in incomprehension and grit your teeths in annoyance, thinking it was one of his attention seeking gesture. You then take his hand and force him to let go of you to walk towards the exit. Here you go again, you couldn't even enjoy your night without having to take care of the sulky werewolf. You soon hear his footsteps behind you and when he is about to grab your arm, you turn around abruptly and glare at him with such seriousness that it freezes him on the spot.

" How about you and your insanity stay the heck away from me ?! I'm so tired of your bullshit, Peter ! Why can't you just leave me alone ?!"

At your harsh words, Peter's gaze hardens and he retracts his hand to only smirk at you and tilt his head a little bit to the side, as if he didn't understand the question.

" Oh darling..I would love to ! But, you see, it seems that me and my insanity are often required to solve your friend's little problems !"

Suddenly, unnerved beyond belief and having had more than enough of him, you feel tears threatening to spill from your eyes and yell at him, so loud that it surprises the werewolf himself.

" Leave me alone ! Why am I the only one who always has to handle you?! Why do you always ask Derek for me to keep you, even though you don't even like me ?! If I'm such a bother, why not just get rid of me ?!"

He doesn't seem to be able to find an answer and you don't even let him reply. You start running until you reach a small and dark alley. When you're sure you are far enough for the werewolf not to hear you cry, you crouch down and start sobbing. When you've spilt all of your frustration and sadness out, you wipe your face with your sleeve and stand up to get back home. However, when you are about to leave the alley-way, you see someone else blocking the exit. You first think that it's Peter, but the more you approach the individual, the more you have to admit that it doesn't look like Peter. You try to walk past him, but he brusquely grabs your arm and throws you to the ground. You want to get your phone out of your purse, but the man stomps on your hand and you scream in pain. The man takes you by the jaw and forces you to look up at him. His disgusting breath hitting your face, smelling of alcool and his evil smirk making you want to puke even more.

" Aren't ya a sweat ass ? Tell me, what does a young lady like yourself doing here by herself in the middle of the night, hmm ?"

You want to scream for help again, but another individual behind you puts his hand against your mouth to muffle your screams and you feel the familiar shape of a knife against your throat. When you know that there is nothing else you can do, you close your eyes and try to stop the new tears from leaving your eyes..You didn't want to cry for those men, they didn't deserve your tears..

" Now..You're going to be a good girl and let us take care of you, okay ?"

The one posted behind you whispers in your ear and you clench your jaw, your last thought going to Peter. You had been awful to him, even though you knew he wasn't a bad person..You had let out your frustration on him and you were now regretting it bitterly. You should have sticked to your job and stay with him. If you had, maybe you wouldn't be in your current situation. Reality hits you hard when you feel one of the men starting to open your blouse. When you thought that that was it, that you were going to be raped in that dirty alley-way and probably killed, you hear the hurried footsteps of someone running towards your location. You want to scream again, but the knife is raised once again against your throat.

" One peep and nobody will even find your body.."

You whimper and nod in understanding. The footsteps stop and you hold your breath.

" Sweetheart ? Are you there ?"

You hear the familiar voice of Peter and feel relieved to know that he is near. However, the man whispers instructions in your ear and you can't help but nod in agreement, knowing that he wouldn't hesitate to slice your throat if you were to disobey.

" You're going to tell him to go away, that you don't want him to come any closer..I know what he is and the knife is made of silver and has been dipped in wolfsbane for a while..Don't play smart or you'll lose more than your life.."

He uncovers your mouth and you respond in a shaky voice.

" G..Go away, Peter..I don't want you near me ! I hate you !"

You bit to your inner cheek, wondering if he would insist or know that something is wrong. You know that even if he was to guess that something is wrong, you couldn't afford to lose him as well..However, you hear him take a step towards you and sniff the air. He suddenly growls animalistically and his eyes light up in the dark.

" I can smell the stench of two putrid little humans that shouldn't be touching what isn't theirs.."

You start panicking, knowing that he could die if he was to step any closer and yell in a last attempt to protect him.

" Don't, Peter ! They've got wolfsbane ! Run !"

One of the men muzzles you again, but Peter doesn't step back. He gets his claws out and snarls.

" Alright boys. Let's rumble."

The two men stand up and face Peter that doesn't seem scared. He doesn't keep his eyes off them while they circle him. The man with the knife tries to attack him first, but Peter grabs his arm and tears it off from the rest of his body. The man screams in agony, but Peter slashes his throat before turning towards the other man that is shaking with terror.

" What ?! You are brave enough to attack a defenseless woman, but not enough to fight a werewolf ?!"

He roars and the man suddenly gets out a gun that he points at Peter. Before he could react, the man shoots and the bullet goes through his abdomen. Peter falls on his knees and the man runs away, leaving you and him behind. You force yourself to get up and crouch down in front him to see that the wound is not closing itself.

" Wolfsbane bullet.."

He affirms what you already suspected and you have to take deep breathes in order not to panic. You know what to do, you had seen Derek do it a thousand time already. You need to cauterize the wound. You close your eyes and try to calm yourself before trying to carry him back home. When you finally enter the building after a few grunts and moans of pain from the both of you, you lay Peter down on the couch and look around for something hot enough to burn the poison. Suddenly, your eyes fall on a blowtorch and when Peter understands what you were thinking about, he looks pitifully up at you.

" I have a very bad tolerance to pain."

He warns you, a warning that sounds more like a desperate plea for you to reconsider your plan..But you know that you don't have much time and address him a silent apology with your eyes before taking the handle of your purse and make him bite down on it.

" This is gonna hurt. Bad. But, I'm going to try to be as fast as I can, okay ?"

His nostrils flare in fear for the pain to come, but he nods in agreement and you take a big shaky breath before using the blowtorch. As soon as the fire gets in contact with his skin, Peter visibly whitens, his eyes flash blue and you can see his claws digging in the soft material of the couch. You don't know what to do to attenuate the pain, so you do the first thing that comes to mind to distract him..You kiss him. His eyes widen perceptibly at your action, but he doesn't hesitate before burying his hands in your hair and reciprocating the kiss, even though the handle of your purse forms some kind of barrier between you and him. When you take a step back, he seems more relax and you glance down at his wound before switching off the blowtorch. You are relieved when you see the wound closing and smile widely at him. But, before you could truly process what was happening, Peter had gotten rid of your purse and had bounced on top of you to pin you to the floor and kiss you passionately again.

" Stiles doesn't deserve you..Nobody does..Nobody needs you like I do..Nobody can handle me the way you do..I don't want them to take you away from me..Stay with me..If you leave, I'll lose my fucking mind.."

He mutters between each breath he takes while kissing you and you blush vividly at his words. He looks up at you with his bright blue eyes and you can't help but smile up at him before kissing him back yourself and petting the top of his head appreciatively.

" You damn nut job, if you wanted me that bad, why didn't you tell me ? Instead of making me lose my mind.."

He grins before nuzzling your neck and wrapping his arms around your waist.

" Because I like when you get mad.."

You chuckle before returning his embrace.

" Bad pup.."

" Stiles lover"

You ark an eyebrow at the odd insult before replying teasing.

" Does that mean I won't be able to go back to his place and sleep on his couch ? Do I have to remind you that I live with him ?"

He tightens his hold on you and grumbles tiredly against your ribcage.

" Over my dead body. The only thing you will be allowed to sleep on from now on is me, got it ?"

You seem dumbfounded for a second and Peter picks on your uneasiness before laughing and looking up at you with a sly smile.

" Not what I meant, you pervert."

You blush a deep red and hit him on the back of the head playfully.

" Hey ! You're the one always insinuating things !"

He genuinely smiles at you before lowering his chin on your belly and tilting his head to look at you with fake innocence.

" I'm not the one who kissed me.."

You sigh, it was becoming a competition, like many things with him. You sit back up and make him fall at the same time.

" Yeah ?! Well, you were badly injured..and you reciprocated !"

You don't know why you wanted to defend yourself, you just know that you can't allow yourself to succomb for the man that had nearly killed all of your friends. Plus, you had just been attacked and were too weak to make any decisions. He seems to notice your worry and takes a step back immediately to get up and extend his hand towards you.

" I'm sorry. You helped me and I was being an idiot. You need to get some rest. Come on."

You look at his hand for a few seconds before slipping your hand in his. He yanks you upwards and proceeds to carry you back to your room where he lays you down on your bed. He leaves the room promptly afterwards, mumbling a small goodnight before walking out. When you're sure he is truly gone, you curl up into a ball and try to muffle your sobs. You couldn't sleep, every time you would close your eyes, their hands were there, touching you and making you feel as if you were weak..So weak..You whimper and cry as silently as you can until someone opens the door suddenly and blinding light surrounds the room. You turn around to see Peter standing there, his eyes glowing with such an intense color that it shocks you, you then notice the slight rise of his shoulders at each of his heavy breathing and finally, his lips curled and teeths grinding in rage.

" I should have killed them both..I should have never left you.."

You open your eyes wide at the realization, he had probably heard you and was reacting to your emotions. He approaches slowly and tenderly strokes your cheek, placing his forehead against yours.

" I'm so sorry, darling.."

You feel as if he's been crying too and step back. He seems to be hurt by your sudden distance, but you quickly indicate the spot next to you.

" Come on, I need a bed warmer."

His eyes light up like a happy puppy and he crawls next to you in order to cuddle you, making sure that you are comfortable every step of the way. You sigh in contempt before feeling sleep slowly taking over your tired body. Just before you fall asleep however, you mumble sleepily at Peter.

" You were right..I won't be able to sleep when you're not there anymore..You're too good of a bed warmer.."

You feel him chuckle behind you and smile as you realize that being best bud with Peter wouldn't be so bad..and maybe with time, a bit more.

The next day :

Derek finds the both of you on the sofa: you reading a book out loud, and Peter with his arms wrapped around you, listening attentively.

" So, I guess the babysitting went better than our stake out last night ?"

He asks, amused by your sudden friendliness towards each other. You look up at him with a small smile while Peter chuckles against your ear, the sound alone making you feel things you shouldn't be.

" Best of friends, aren't we, sweetheart ?"

Instead of answering his question, you try to change the subject.

" What happened to the stake out then ? I thought you were supposed to catch a couple of bounty hunters ?"

Derek shakes his head before shrugging his shoulders.

" I know, but when we got there, there was only one of them, and he was screaming that his friend had been murdered by another werewolf in town..I wonder if there are any others like us that we've not yet been in contact with ?"

At his explanation, you feel a lump forming in your throat, but when you were about to tell him what happened last night, Peter beats you to it.

" Funny, your description of the scene exactly matches what happened to me last night.."

Derek frowns before looking up at Peter with his jaw clenched.

" I thought I was pretty clear when I said stay put ?"

He glares at Peter, but then his eyes shift to you.

" And you, where were y..?"

But before he could finish his sentence, Peter cuts him again.

" Asleep. I waited for her to fall asleep before going out. Poor humans, can't manage a night without craving sleep.."

You look up at him with your mouth wide open, ready to deny everything he just said when you see him wink at you..He wasn't trying to make you look bad at your job, he was trying to save you the embarrassment. You close your mouth as fast as you had opened it and turn around towards Derek that was looking at you with an eyebrow raised, waiting for your confirmation. You nod and he sighs.

" Maybe it was a bad idea to leave you alone with him, you're still young and he's had plenty of experience when it comes to get what he wants..I'll ask Scott or Stiles next time."

You feel the lump in your throat slowly making its way to your stomach and your expression twists into one of pain and regret.

" No !"

To the surprise of everyone in the room, including yourself, you're the one who just shouted your disagreement. Derek frowns again before crossing his arms and waiting impatiently for an explanation while Peter only tightens his grip around you, a silent warning as to what you are about to say. You take a big breath before glancing up at Derek and saying in a calm and unfaltering voice.

" This is my job. I'm part of the pack. It's bad enough that I'm completely useless when it comes to working on the field, I can't let my only participation in all this go to someone else. I made a mistake, it won't happen again."

Derek seems to believe you, even though he shakes his head in hesitation.

" I don't know, Y/N..I was allowing this to continue since it seemed to work..But, Peter succeeded in complicating things, again."

He emphasizes on the last word while staring at Peter accusatively. Peter flashes an innocent grin at him before agreeing with you.

" I promise to behave from now on. Please, dad ? Can I please keep my plaything ? It gets lonely around here when you're all running around, chasing your own tails over and over.."

You elbow him as a warning, but Derek is already shooting daggers in his direction, on the verge of growling in annoyance. Fortunately, Derek succeeds in keeping his cool and only sighs in defeat before walking away.

" Fine. But, I warn you, one more mistake and I'll personally kick you out.."

" Can't do that, chief. It's my house !"

Peter answers with a big shit-eating grin, but Derek frowns at him before looking straight at you.

" I was talking to you, Y/N..I can't allow you to become a weakness, we've got already too many and Peter is the master of manipulation, dont fall for his tricks. It's a warning, let it be not a premonition."

And with those last words, he is gone. You both stay still for a moment until you decide to stand up and make yourself a cup of coffee. The words of Derek are swirling around in your mind and you glance at Peter when you think he's not looking..Were you really just another pawn in his mastermind plan to bring down the pack ? He seems to feel your stare and points it out.

" If I didn't know you the way I do, I'd say that you actually believe this idiot.."

" Why did you protect me ?"

You ask him abruptly, still not sure about what to make of last night's rescue. He seems to thinks about it for a while before answering you with such honesty that it surprises you.

" Because there was no reason for me to talk about it..Unlike what you all think of me, I'm not such a monster. I feel no satisfaction in a young girl's life being ruined by such macabre events. I care about you more than any of the other dumb teenagers of your group, even my own cousin. You're nice, kind, smart and you don't judge. You never told me that what I did was despicable or that I didn't deserve to live. You did what you had to do and tried the best you could to help. I agree that we have had our disagreements, but it was always playful and never really serious. Why would I ever want anything bad like this to happen to you when you're the only person who ever believed that I could become an ally ? Tell me, how many people do you think ever read to me or felt safe in my arms ? Not even my own family ever believed I could change..So, yes. I protected you, because you would have done the same thing for me. Your strength remains in your humanity, Y/N. Stiles may be the voice of reason, but you're the voice of mercy.."

You are awestruck by the words that seem to be tumbling out of his lips and surround you like the warmest of blankets. You would be happy to listen to him all day. You genuinely smile at him and, before you could stop yourself, you kiss him. He relaxes under your touch and wraps his arms around you to close the gap between the both of you. He finally breaks the kiss and laughs softly before adding.

" You also have very nice lips.."

You playfully punch his torso before laying down on top of him, finding the rhythm of his heartbeat oddly soothing.

" You're a jerk..But you're still a good person.."

You whisper while closing your eyes and you can hear him snicker above you.

" Congratulations, you just qualified me with two opposites. Jerk and good normally don't go together."

You don't answer, already snoring softly on his torso. He smiles sweetly at the sight before kissing the top of your head.

" Sweet dreams, darling.."

[thevindicativevordan]

On Kong Kenan/Super-Man

It should've been him. He should've been the Superman of 5G/Future State/right now not Jon, and he should be the one getting an HBO Max series not Val. Hell he should be getting a movie!

God this dude is literally the best legacy character Superman has ever gotten, wholly his own person with his own lore and status quo while still building on the idea of "Superman". I am so pissed at DC for essentially just dropping him after his ongoing ended, what the hell Lee? You keep trying to make the Wildstorm characters happen, I need you to get my man Yang another Kenan book.

Have to admit I was a bit nervous at first about whether or not Kenan would be a worthwhile character. Yang's New 52 Superman run had been a disappointment to me overall, with only the the arc where Superman has underground wrestling matches against forgotten gods really sticking with me. Now he was introducing a brand new Superman? Didn't feel like he had "earned" that yet. But from the first issue I was hooked on this new character.

Kenan was unlike any other member of the Superfamily. He wasn't kind or sweet, he was an asshole! He was a bully! He was fantastic! Right from the start Kenan was set up to undergo a very different kind of character journey than the other members of the Superfamily. Empathy, humility, respect for people weaker than himself, these are all traits most heroes wearing the S-shield already posses by the time they first don the crest, but not Kenan.

Like all bullies he was even a bit of a coward himself at first, trying to bail on the experiment meant to give him Superman's powers right as it begins. After "saving" Lixin (the kid he bullies and steals lunch from every day) from Blue Condor he demands all the money Lixin has on him as payment. He's not courageous or selfless either at the start, Kenan is as much of an opposite of Superman as you can get short of being Bizarro. Learning the appeal of these traits formed the basis for his growth over the course of his series.

Seeing Yang bring in a lot of recognizable "Superman" elements in the series, but with a twist, was also great. Kenan is the one who bullies "Luo Lixin" rather than the traditional Clark/Lex friendship of Pre-Crisis and Birthright. Initially Kenan develops a crush on intrepid reporter for Primetime Shanghai, Laney Lan, but she dismisses him as too young and Kenan eventually ends up pursuing Avery Ho (Flash) instead. Baxi the Bat-Man of China has a similar relationship with Kenan as the traditional Superman/Batman in terms of being vitriolic best buds, however Baxi is the one who has the most respect for authority while Kenan is the rebel. Kenan is a part of the "Justice League of China" which does not meet with the approval of the already established Chinese superheroes, the Great Ten. That contrasts nicely with the good relationship the Justice Society and Justice League have, as well as seeing Yang lampshade the "Chinese copy" trope and incorporate that into his storytelling.

One of the funniest differences is how Kenan chooses to immediately reveal his identity as Super-Man to the world by taking off the compliance visor he was forced to wear, contrasting with Clark's choice to hide his identity. He was so eager to impress people that he never gave any thought to the danger he could put himself or his family in by revealing his identity until it was too late, something Clark is well aware of and has taken great pains to keep his identity secret. Was a missed opportunity for DC to have Kenan comment on Clark copying him for once when he outed himself under Bendis.

But one of the most poignant differences between Clark and Kenan is the gulf in separation between their relationship with their parents. Clark has a loving relationship with Ma and Pa Kent, trying to live up to their lessons as best he can. In contrast Kenan's mom was believed to have died in an airplane crash when he was just a child, and he never really knew her. His father was distant from him after that and the two weren't really close despite Kenan's attempts to impress him. So Kenan lacks that strong connection while still clearly loving both of them.

Pa Kent's death is one of the most tragic examples of Clark's love for his parents, and I've always been a fan of takes where Clark promises his father to fight for the powerless on Pa's deathbed. Kenan gets a similar scene at the start of his career, his dad "dies" (after being exposed as Flying General Dragon, a pro-democracy "supervillain" from the Chinese authorities perspective) and wants Kenan to promise he'll fight for Truth, Justice, and Democracy. But because Kenan's dad never really bonded with him, Kenan doesn't know what those mean, and can only promise that he never wants to see people die, something his father takes comfort in at least. In classic comic book fashion it's revealed that Dr. Omen, Kenan's "boss" and the one who gave him his powers, saved Kenan's father, because she is Kenan's mother! Kenan's relationship with his parents forms a lot of the crux of his character arc, and seeing how Yang utilizes the classic Superman concept of family kept the storytelling exciting.

Yang's brilliant exploration of the concept of "Superman" through the prism of Chinese culture was a great way to differentiate Kenan as well.

I absolutely freaking love how he tied to the concept of Qi to the S-shield in particular. Connecting the shape of the shield with the way Kenan has acquired his powers along the path of the Bagua (eight trigrams used in Taoism that represent the fundamental principles of reality), with his octagon S-shield outline representing all eight principles together, was mindblowing! So was the idea of restricting Kenan's access to his powers unless he was actually acting in a Superman manner, that tied his character growth to his power growth in an entertaining manner. There were so many characters and concepts that meshed Chinese and DC lore together, like how Emperor Super-Man was Kenan's "Doomsday", they even recreated that iconic dual kill shot! The Chinese Wonder Woman Peng Deilan, being based on the Chinese Legend of the White Snake! There was even some Korean mythology referenced with the Aqua-Man member of the JLC "Dragonson".

Yang also managed to do a Superman Blue/Superman Red story with Super-Man Yin/Super-Man Yang!

Shameful that it took me a while to realize what Gene Yang was doing but once I caught on I was touched. You can tell how much Yang loved Superman and his mythology, and how he was excited to incorporate as much from Clark as he could, while still using it in a way that was solidly Kenan's. And not just Superman's mythology, but the history and lore of the entire DC Universe. I-Ching got to be brought in, fleshed out, and used as Kenan's mentor! The "Yellow Peril" villain from Detective Comics #1, the comic DC gets its name from was brought in and revamped as I-Ching's twin brother All-Yang! Hats off to Yang for taking a racist caricature and attempting to make him into something more.

This series was a beautiful attempt by Gene Yang to build a space for Asian heroes and villains where they could be more than stereotypes, Kenan himself being a defiant mold-breaker in every regard as the complete opposite of most Asian characters in Western media (a jock, a bully, loves his dad but not on great terms with him, a powerhouse as a hero, etc). So much thought and hard work was poured into this by Yang and his team of artist collaborators.

Especially the costumes, man Kenan had so many great looks. From his starting outfit (which is my favorite Superman variant not worn by Clark himself), to the one with the Yin/Yang shield he acquired later on, to his Super-Man Yin & Super-Man Yang outfits, Kenan looked damn cool. Part of me is bummed they didn't go with the Chinese character shield they toyed around with, but I loved how Yang used the "s-shield" as a plot point, so I'm not too broken up over it.

All that great work Yang did to build that space up has been more or less forgotten sadly. It was nice to see Kenan in the DC Asian Month Celebration issue. Avery is going to be in Justice Incarnate at least (unsurprising considering she was created by Williamson). So fucking bummed that Superman Family Adventures cartoon didn't happen, they were going to have Kenan and John Henry Irons in it! Would've been a dream come true for me to see Irons in animation again, and Kenan making the jump to outside media! Maybe that would've encouraged DC to let Yang keep writing New Super-Man, or at least encouraged them to use him elsewhere instead of allowing him fall into Limbo.

Unfortunately I'm not sure what the future holds for Kenan. Jon is being pushed as Clark's replacement in the comics, with DC keeping all the other contenders such as Kon benched. Calvin is leading the Justice Incarnate team likely due to the upcoming Coates reboot that will make Clark black. Val will probably get something once Taylor leaves Jon's book or once they officially announce the HBO Max show is happening. So where does that leave Kenan, my new favorite PoC legacy hero? Currently my only hope is that Yang is working on something for DC involving him. Yang left Batman/Superman, where I was hoping to see a Baxi/Kenan team up, to go work on "exciting other opportunities" per his Twitter. So fingers crossed that there's something in the works for Kenan!

One day I hope he gets his day in the sun again.

[chibinightowl]

For the trope mashup, 27 and 63. As for the ship either jaytim or jaytimroy (I haven't seen a lot of fics for this ship and I'm curious to see what your take would be. It's totally okay if you don't want to tho)

I'm not a huge fan of JayTimRoy. I know Roy better through preFlashpoint canon where he's best friends with Dick, so that colors my perception in terms of the ship.

Sick/injured fic and Everybody Knows/Mistaken for a couple.

It comes as no surprise that when Tim gets sick, he gets sick. Overwork and little sleep has given his already compromised immune system little to work with, so he falls hard.

In this case, literally.

It's only due to Jason riding his ass to go home and go to bed that Tim doesn't become street pizza. He swings in for the catch, Tim utterly limp in his arm. When he reaches the roof, he finds Tim is completely out cold.

"Dammit." Jason calls it in and Alfred answers the comm, telling Jason that Tim can't be brought to the manor because Damian has been exposed to strep at school.

So Jason hauls Tim back to his place because if he's stuck playing babysitter to a sick bird, he's going to be comfortable.

The thing is, he forgets to turn off the comm. So the family are treated to all of Jason's colorful commentary about Tim's state and being the only one to take care of his sick ass.

It provides much entertainment.

So of course, the next time Tim gets sick, Jason ends up taking care of him again. "Don't you look a sight, baby bird? Lean on me, I got ya."

The attitude is surprisingly different.

As is the next time, and the next. Tim gets sick way too often for this to be coincidence. Jason sounds almost... tender? Loving?

"Bet you a hundred bucks they're dating."

"You're on."

They're not dating.

But when Jason breaks his leg, he wakes up in the med bay of Tim's Nest, all splinted up with the bone set. "What are you doing?"

"Returning the favor."

"You really don't have to."

"I know. But I want to." There's a quiet earnestness in Tim's eyes that Jason can't miss, even under the fog of the pain meds.

So he allows Tim to take care of him. Jason stays the full eight weeks the cast is on. He's got books and clothes in Tim's apartment--he even had Tim go and rescue the little kitchen window herb garden he kept because he needs something living in his life.

"They're so dating."

"They haven't said anything yet."

"Do you think they'll actually tell us?"

Bruce, in his infinite wisdom, decides to observe Jason and Tim together. After a week, he comes to one conclusion.

They're dating.

So he tries to do the right thing and be supportive. That afternoon, he stops by and brings them ice cream in their respective favorite flavors.

"What's this for?"

"Congratulations."

"For what?"

Bruce tries not to grimace. Emotions are hard. "On overcoming your differences and finding happiness with each other."

Jason and Tim share a look. "...happiness... oh my god, he thinks we're dating."

Tim about falls over from laughing so hard while Jason just gapes.

Bruce is confused. "You're not dating?"

"No." "Nope."

Then Jason gives Tim and his everything an assessing eye, looking at him in a new light. He'd never thought about it before. Tim was just Tim. To his surprise, Tim was returning the look with one of his own.

"Wanna give it a try?"

"Why not?"

They look to Bruce. "Okay, we're dating now."