#and i don't want to get triggered by any of that or if i see a Bad Take it will bring me right back there

[little-sheep-ghost]

Ok so I'd like to give my thoughts, and while my abuse was the overprotective type I do think this situation needs a different pov.

You have some kids, most are adults.

When you ask how they've been you get dismissive or annoyed response, ok that sucks but you push on.

One kid gets hurt, you get them medical attention and tell them, please be more careful, you get screamed at about how they're adults and they can look after themselves, wich you know but you were just trying to show that you care, this cycle continues every time they get hurt.

(This one is based off of a irl situation-pecifically at the start)

One kid wares one specific perfume, the perfume triggers you so you gently tell them, can you please not ware that one perfume, you can ware others just not that one please, the kid blows up at you and screams about how he's a adult and he can do as he pleases, wich hurts since you know he wares the other perfumes around you or friends and that he is choosing to where the one that triggers you.

One kid does not sleep, when you find that they've been awake for days you tell them to go to sleep, but they don't, so you take their coffee or energy drinks since this is not healthy and they need to sleep, but this happens one or more times a week, while you could handle this on its own they are not your only child and you just don't have the energy to deal with this.

One kid is yelling, saying they want to go to (friend)'s house, you know the friends parents really well, you know nothing bad will happen if they go, so since your so tired you say ok, you pack their bag and tell them to have fun as their friend and his parents pick up your kid.

As we can see from Bruce's pov nothing he does is abusive or neglectful, and since we see him telling them "I love you" that means he's probably being more open about his feelings and trying to stop any miscommunication.

And yes his kids could feel like he is being neglectful, they don't understand Bruce's situation fully and many are stuck in toxic cycles.

So

Bruce is not being neglectful he's just tried.

After the fourth night in a row where one of his kids directly disobeys his orders and gets hurt even more

Bruce is just done

Burnt out, drained, weary; whatever the fuck you want to call it at this point

He’s been working on himself a lot lately. And at this point in all his relationships, he understands that taking away their alter-ego and benching them will only backfire on him.

So he doesn’t do anything

He mentally throws his hands up in defeat and just… does whatever they wants to diffuse the situation

Dick is expecting another yelling match to commence the moment they get back to the cave. In fact, he went out tonight deliberately trying to get to this moment. He brought cough drops for the aftermath to soothe his throat from all the yelling. He knows it isn’t healthy, but he just needs to let out some steam

Instead of their usual routine, Bruce gets out of the Batmobile and doesn’t even look at Dick. You can’t say his posture is… relaxed… but it isn’t wound up tightly like it usually is when one of his children gets hurt

Bruce goes over to the Batcomputer and starts typing down what happened on patrol that night while Dick does his best not to put any pressure on his possibly broken leg

After a few minutes of silence, Bruce sighs and turns back to Duck with a raised eyebrow, his face passively blank

“What?”

Dick shifts and winces as his entire leg throbs painfully. “A-aren’t you gonna call Alfred?” Dick responded back petulantly, keeping his voice low in hopes Bruce wouldn’t hear him then get annoyed and finally show some emotion

“Your arm isn’t broken, is it? Use it.” Bruce said simply before turning back around and continuing to type.

Dick felt anger bubble up in his chest, but it felt stupid to try and start a fight when Bruce obviously wouldn’t engage.

Dick storms off in a huff, at least he tries. He makes it a few steps before deciding to sit down and call Alfred.

“Love you,” Bruce calls back to him without turning around, causing Dick to stick up both of his middle fingers in retaliation.

Or with Jason, he’ll pick his battles and accept whatever happens afterwards

Jason’s waiting for the other shoe to drop. Extremely reminiscent of when he first came to the Manor

He had shot someone on patrol. Could he have used his rubber bullets instead of his real ones? Yes. Did he lie to Bruce and say that he didn’t have real bullets in him? Also yes

But fuck Bruce and all the rules he has

Now it was completely silent as they rode home in the Batmobile.

Jason checked over his gun for the fourth time before carefully tucking it back in her holster.

“You’re seriously not gonna say anything, old man?” Jason griped. Usually, this would be the catalyst for a large-scale argument, but there was nothing. Not even an eye roll for Jason's old man comment.

“What’s the point? Not like you’ll listen anyway.” Bruce shrugged, ignoring Jason's angry scoff as he stopped the Batmobile. “Here, your safe house.”

Jason blinked at Bruce, looking at him incredulously. “Are you fucking serious? You’re dropping me off at my safe house? Not gonna allow me in the cave anymore?” Jason snarled, not even thinking to question how Bruce knew where his super secret safe house was.

“You said, and I quote, ‘never wanna set foot in this fuck ass cave another day of my undead life’.” Bruce raised an eyebrow, at least it sounded like he did. Hard to tell with the cowl.

“Fuck you!” Jason decidedly does not pout as he gets out of the car and starts storming up to his door.

Bruce rolls down the windows and shouts out a quick ‘love you’ before speeding off into the night.

He won't enable it, but he's not gonna go out of his way to stop them if he's tried once before

Tim’s sitting down at the Batcomputer, mulling over a case that Bruce said to drop several times or at least put a pause in it, cause it's taking its toll on the young detective

When Bruce walks downstairs, Tim’s expecting a confrontation since Bruce had told him to go to sleep at least four times already

But nope

When Bruce noticed Tim looking at him, he simply gave him a greeting grunt before shuffling through his own stack of papers

“I know you said to go to bed, but I’m almost done! I swear!” Tim pressed his back firmly against the swivel chair, waiting…

“Mhmm…” Bruce hummed, barely listening. “Sleep, don’t sleep. Whatever.” Bruce takes another sip of his tea before placing it beside Tim, grabbing a folder full of paper, and pressing a kiss to Tim’s forehead. “Have fun, love you.”

Damian’s angry at him for something perfectly normal to be angry about, whether it’s regular teen stuff or vigilante stuff? Agree with him

While he’s threatening to stay a week at Dick’s place or even the Kent farm, Bruce is packing a bag for him

He nods and hums along absentmindedly as Damian rants that he can’t stand being in the Manor. Nothing he hasn’t heard a million times before from his children and other non-children

“What are you doing?” Damian questioned, finally stopping his rant to actually pay attention to what his father’s doing

“You said you needed a break from me, right?” Bruce grinned, actually okay with the house being quiet for a few days. “You’ve been dying to hang out with Jon more, go on.”

Jon, who was listening in just like his father always is, was already floating outside with the biggest and brightest smile on his face

“Have fun, kiddos. Love you!” Bruce called out, ignoring Damian’s sputtering as he shut the manor door behind him

[moon-ttokki-x]

Helloo

I'm here to ask something like a little too sad? I really like those scenarios. Like members reaction to 9th member's attempt to suicide? But like one of them(Minho or Jeongin) accidentally come to bathroom and see her? It's a little sad but I like those ones. Maybe even add a relationship between her and Chan?

hi~ i love sad requests . . . the sad ones are some of my favourites too, and hopefully this will help someone feel better <3

butterfly - (ot8!skz x 9th member fem!reader)

pairing: ot8!skz (mainly lee know) x 9th member fem!reader

summary: butterflies; the symbols of hope, growth, and recovery.

genre: idol! au, 9th member!au, fem!reader, su*cide attempt, graphic descriptions of self-h@rm, mentions of blood, cvtting, bandages, depression, alienation, mentions of blades, razors, sharp items, mentions of eating and drinking, mentions of fainting, passing out, blood loss, lee know referred to as 'minho' in this fic, bf!chan, please proceed with caution, and remember that you're not alone <3

a/n: this hit a little close to my heart, so i'm hoping this might help some of you who are struggling . in no way am i romanticising any of the heavy and triggering topics in this fic, so please skip if you are uncomfortable . my dms are always open if you'd like to talk . be safe, my loves <3

skz masterlist

The world is grey.

Greyer than you remembered; you thought you'd been getting better. You thought you'd learnt to feel the sunshine warming your skin again, remembered the way you found your mouth curving into a smile randomly. Embraced that familiar feeling of a happy buoyant bubble in your stomach.

Apparently not.

You're not sure how you feel right now. Distracted, angry, dull? Nothing seems to light you up, not even the deepest rage or the best news. Everything simply hit your crumbling shield and absorbed. Like pouring water on a sheet.

The patch simply darkened and sunk, drying but becoming more saturated with sadness every single time. And it felt heavy, heavier than you ever thought it would feel.

You can't taste the food on your plate; the noise of the members laughing and bickering around you seems to fade into the background, the soundwaves passing through as if you were simply a ghost.

A numb ghost sitting at the dinner table with a fork in one heavy hand, rather than a valued member of Stray Kids having dinner with the rest of her group. The atmosphere of the familiar dorm is foreign, unusual.

Like a hotel room rather than your home.

You scrunch your hands and rub your fingertips over your thighs, feeling the raised tissue of old scars bump in smooth, small dunes under the pads of your fingers. You feel the denim of your jeans rustle with the movement, the fabric rough and once-comforting. Now it just feels itchy.

Jisung shouts right in your ear then as he argues with Changbin across the table, and you don't even flinch. It simply passes over your head. Even if you wanted to, you can't find it in yourself to be annoyed at him. At least he's happy.

Is this normal? Am I overreacting?

Surely it can't be fake if you feel like this. But-

Your eyes lift themselves slowly and land on Chan. Previously, you couldn't look at him without a blush tinging your cheeks and the familiar view of a red rose in your mind's eye. The memory of his confession was always one that made you giggle, sometimes at inappropriate times.

Like when JYP fell over on stage and you were laughing because you remembered Chan doing the same thing, falling, and the image of his lovely face accompanied by his cheesy pick-up lines and warm hands came to mind.

But you don't feel like smiling now. Not like you did then.

You're both in the settling-in stage of your relationship; as always Chan has proven to be the best partner anyone could ever ask for. He's never let you down, carried you through the tough times, held your hand and wiped your tears. He knows how you've been feeling, but after a while, out of worry, you began to keep it secret.

And you felt bad. You did. Really.

Because he deserves to know. Deserves to know so that he can help you, kiss it better like he always has. Because that's just how he is, and how he's always been.

But he also deserves to be kept in the dark. Deserves to be able to continue with his life, be a leader and a producer and everything else without worrying that one day your feelings will take over and you'll disappear.

Because right now, that seems like the best option. Surely things will be easier for him, for all of them, if you took yourself out of the equation.

What would it feel like, you think. To drown, to accidentally slip and fall, to walk into the road without looking, to feel the chair leave the soles of your feet, to cut too deep on accident, it would all be an accident, Chan, it was an accident, I'm okay, I promise you'll be okay, everything is okay, I promise-

The fork clatters out of your hand. Nobody notices, the din of the members covering it up. Chan is almost on his feet opposite you, giggling and laughing and trying and failing to quiet the group. He doesn't notice when you begin to stand, then hesitantly sit back down.

None of them do.

It's not a secret that sometimes you need to be alone; the guys understand that you need time to yourself every now and then, when your head gets too loud or the members yell too much. All you have to do is stand up and leave, and go and lie down, tell them that's what you need right now.

Of course, that isn't always the case. Sometimes you just want to be alone, and not because they're being too loud or rowdy. You want to be alone because being around these happy people puts you in a state of disconnect so brutal and numbing that you can't stand to look any of them in the eye.

That's not what's happening right now. A mad impulse rises, a dangerous little thought pops into your head, and begins to simmer in a rather sinister manner in the back of your mind.

You swallow thickly. Your throat is dry. The now-flat soda you were previously sipping did nothing to quell the dryness. Your windpipe feels scratchy and your stomach bubbles in apprehensiveness, but you ignore it and steel yourself.

You turn your head to the left, feeling your neck creak; you've been still for so long- and look at Minho. He's grinning past you, watching as Changbin almost flies at Jisung over the table, clearly unaware of the hollowness rooted in your stomach, no, your whole being.

In every fibre of you-

"Minho," you say, hardly a whisper. His gaze meets yours, and even though he's still smiling and his gaze is not intense, joy dimmed faintly as he takes in your ghostly pallor- you still feel yourself shrink under it. Like an underwatered flower in the hot, baking sun.

"Yes?" He says. You feel Chan turn his head slightly in your direction, and your heart lurches unpleasantly. He's listening in, clearly in concern, but it makes you irritated. Unreasonably so.

"I'm gonna go lie down," you say, not acknowledging Chan as he fully turns to face both you and Minho, the chaos in the background forgotten.

Minho's eyes meet Chan, and his eyes gaze back, asking a silent question.

Is she okay?

Minho nods faintly and smiles at you, placing a warm hand over yours. You fight the urge to wince at the contact; it feels wrong, and all you want to do is shake it off. You exhale slightly as he removes his hand.

"Sure," Minho says gently. "Go ahead. I know we're being noisy."

You nod and force a weak smile before pushing your chair back. No one looks at you, save Chan stealing a glance as you stand up, but it feels like getting up in front of a crowd. You almost throw up over the table.

Excusing yourself from the group, you turn and leave the room. You trail a hand along the wall of the corridor, your knees strangely aching as you take the stairs upwards. Guilt and a mad sort of happiness take over your being and you move faster, almost driven by the manic feeling. Your body feels foreign and alien, possessed almost.

Entering your room, you shut the door as carefully as you can, and swear. No lock. You forgot about that.

Well, there's the bathroom... But it's bright in there, and you won't be able to see what you're doing in the dark either.

You gaze thoughtfully around the room, your brain going faster than it has in weeks. Your LED lights are on; the ones Hyunjin gifted you for your birthday are set to a gentle purple glow, casting soft violet hues over the bed and shelves. His smiling face appears in your mind and you push it away before you can get distracted.

The bedroom will do.

You avoid looking in the mirror as you pass it by, opening the door to the bathroom and rummaging in the drawers, not bothering to turn the light on. You know this routine well enough.

You pull out a pack of tissues, crumpling it in your hand, and reach under the top of the drawer above it. You move your fingers side to side until they catch on a piece of metal, hidden under a strip of tape, and pull it out. The tape dangles and you carelessly push the drawer shut.

Reentering the bedroom, you sit down at the foot of the bed. Shimmying off your jeans, and then taking off your shirt too, you set them aside to avoid any stains. Not that it matters anymore. They'll find you here with the razor blade still in your hand. You tug at the strap of your bra, trying to relieve the sudden tension stuck between them.

You're really doing this.

Because it doesn't matter, right?

Right?

No, you shake your head firmly, tears building in your eyes, stubborn and despondent. This is for the best.

Your eyes scan your thighs. Looking for the unscarred skin, the parts of you that are still smooth, still clean, not too-far-gone, not rough around the edges, not crumbling, not breaking, not you-

It stings a little the first time. Your breathing becomes shallow as you watch the skin. Nothing wells up, and you can't see the first slicing impact of it, the lighting too low to be able to see anything much. Nothing happens, so you do it again.

And again. And again.

The mad impulse takes over.

You draw your hand in messy, deep, harsh lines across your thighs, quick and brutal, and when you look down, your fingertips are stained in blood. So is the blade, and both thighs are a mess. It aches, but it feels so, so good.

Like greeting an old friend, like embracing someone you thought you'd seen left behind. It burns and the wetness of tacky blood sliding down your legs feels... nice, almost. Familiar, definitely.

Your breathing becomes even more shallow, coming in quick, short gasps, your eyes scanning the skin, moving to your arms, drawing long, deep slashes, welling with blood, spilling like the tears in your eyes, tacky and slippery and iron-smelling, black under the light.

The air smells like blood. It's cloying and you breathe yourself in, gruesome in the best way.

Your hands are sticky and drying with the faint sheen and splotches of scarlet, and when your eyes meet your wrist, you pause.

Just for a second.

And then you raise your hand, the blade sticky and red, smeared and slippery between your shaking fingers. A salute, the colour of finality staining your fingertips, wet, raw, real.

You smile as the tears slip down, soaking your cheeks. Squeezing your eyes shut, taking a last breath, and bring your hand down.

Down...

You feel the deep bite of the blade, hear the slight scrape of it, push it deeper, and rip sideways. As hard as you can.

Gritting your teeth, your eyes squeeze even tighter closed and you lift your hand and rip into the soft skin again and again, determined to draw every drop of blackened scarlet out of you, stain your body, stain the floor.

Then a rustle, a flash of light, a tackle to your curled figure.

You smell faded cologne and the world tips sharply sideways. The blade goes flying and your head hits the wall, dull, not enough to knock you out but enough to stun you.

You blink as a warm weight settles over you, emerging from a dazed stupor, frantic and shaking and gasping, and your eyes meet Minho's, welling with violet tears under the artificial light.

"No," he gasps, crying. A sob rips from his throat. "No, Y/n, why- Y/n, oh, fuck-"

You don't say anything, heart pounding, watching as Minho lifts a hand, stained in scarlet, shaking, distressed, cradling your arm. You think you're wearing a sleeve over your arm before you realise the sleeve is wet, and it's not a sleeve of fabric at all, rather a stream of wet, tacky blood.

Dark and deep. White peeks at the edges of the cut, stinging under the coolness of the movement of air around you.

You don't move, but Minho does. He pulls you upright, into his chest, gasping and gulping for air like he's the one bleeding out.

His scream for Chan chills your heart, chills you to the bone.

"Chan-hyung," he shouts, voice breaking, almost a scream. He screams it over and over again. He sounds like a child more than anything else.

You can't see anything, face buried in Minho's shirt, but you feel the back of your head being cradled, eyes drooping, and Minho's tears begin to drip onto your face as he leans over you, holding you like a precious item, fragile, breakable. He looks terrified, but you feel calm, strangely so.

He's shaking, and the sound of thumping footsteps and shouts of concern, not just one set of them, but multiple, thunder towards you, assaulting your ears like a shower of dull bullets.

Light floods the room, blank and yellow and foreign from a lamp in the corner, and Chan's hands are on you, and when you look across, Jeongin is on his knees at the doorway, wailing, Hyunjin and Seungmin at his sides, the rest of the members a horrified, terrified cluster of bodies behind them. You hear a thud and see Felix fall, then more shouting, someone rushing into the bathroom, noise and crying and gasps and-

"Y/n," Chan gasps, phone to his ear, shaking, tears slipping down his cheeks. You can't feel his warmth, or maybe his hands have gone cold. "Y/n, you'll be okay. Stay with us. You're gonna be fine, baby, I promise..."

You let yourself relax in Minho's shaking arms, stare up at the ceiling. His sobs sound nothing like him. Having never heard him cry, it's strange to finally hear his misery. It sounds soft, breakable, almost unreal. It makes you smile.

The world screens out to black.

Minho's prominent sobs fade into the background.

.

It still hurts. Sometimes.

But only sometimes. Like a bruise that you forget you have, it only stings when you push too hard, knock it against something.

The wound is healing. So are your thighs.

But it still hurts. Just like the memory.

You'd woken in a dazed stupor in the hospital, doctors and nurses and the members and the staffs' faces all blurring together in white flashes, smelling faintly of iron and disinfectant.

Two weeks later, you were back home. The cut wasn't actually that bad. Just bled a lot, made a mess. But not enough to...

Anyway.

The memory, the stinging pain of the event floats faintly around your head like a cloud, filled with rain but unsure whether to pour it all out. You still feel dazed, numb, but not as much as before. Guilty, definitely, but never more loved.

You wonder what would have happened if you'd actually followed through with it. Because deep down, you know that you didn't really want to die. Leave everyone behind, escape entirely, hand your pain over with shaking hands to those you knew. But part of you is still reeling, shaking, frantic inside, when you remember how you felt.

Upstairs, alone, numb.

While your members, unknowingly laughed and bickered on the level below. You wonder what went through their heads when they heard Minho's screaming, saw you almost lifeless, a half-dead, scarlet mess in his arms, saw Chan's shaking hands and the dull light of his phone as he called the ambulance. Felix fainting, the thud of his knees hitting the cold hardwood. Jeongin's devastated wailing.

You hear the sounds of it all, expressionless, barely-alive, but so, so real.

The thin tip of a pen slowly pulls you back to the surface. Makes your skin tingle on the inside of your arm, the sensitive skin around your wrist that you somehow managed to avoid in your distress. That vital vein.

You look down.

Minho's hair brushes against your cheek as you peek at your arm; you can feel the soft tip of the black pen in his hand poking lightly at the skin.

"What are you drawing?" You say softly.

He doesn't reply, too focused on the black lines flowing out of the pen. They're a little shaky, and he's careful not to touch the bandage wrapping your wrist, but you can tell he's clearly invested in leaving the drawings over your arm. You can't see what it is yet.

Chan comes over then, sitting down quietly on the couch next to you. He sets a cup of tea on the table, and you feel the familiar, warm weight of his head on your shoulder, nestling in the crook of your neck. You both watch a tendril of steam rise from the cup, curling and fading into the air in soft, white wisps. The scent of heated chamomile fills the room, and you smile as Chan inhales deeply.

His hand finds yours, resting on your knee, warm and dry and calloused. You feel the steady, solid weight of it over your own, his fingertips brushing your knuckles as he glances at your left forearm.

"Whatcha doing, Min?" He murmurs.

Minho responds with a hum, a little squeak that makes you smile. He sounds like one of his cats. He pulls back, capping the black pen with a smile of satisfaction.

"Do you like it?" He says, clearly proud of himself. Chan chuckles, leaning in to get a closer look at his drawing.

You smile back. It's small, but it's real, genuine. So is the slightly-smudged butterfly on the soft skin of your inner forearm.

"Yes," you say, touching it gently. "I do."

a/n: okay well now i'm sad . div by @webc00re

ttokki's taglist: @emilyywhyy @galaxy4489 @hyuneskkami @justsomekpopstuff @wavetohannie @strayingawayy @its-stayville-forever @sillyseob @wickedbutlovely @headfirstfortoro @lov3yv4mps @possum-playground @bear8585 @astraystayyh @m-325 @gnabnahcbby @mbioooo0000 @akindaflora @tsunderelino @hhwangsmoon @crazyforthatbangchandude @bluebellsringinghereandthere @ladylexis @tillaboo @geni-627 @jsngprk-vhs @stellasays45 @de-uns-tempos-pra-ca @luvvchn

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[manytoonepoet]

Hiya! I'm not the same anon who brought up the shipping thing with Aglaea and Cipher. But I was very interested in their perspective and your perspective while answering them as well. So I hope you don't mind that I add on a bit with my own thoughts (feel free to ignore if it gets too long haha)

Admittedly, sometimes I feel as if I might be a hater or just anti-ship, but recently I've been reflecting and realise that it's not the ships I'm against. It's that it feels like it's being forced onto me. Anon also mentioned shippers going into non-shippers' posts to "spread their agenda", and if you don't agree, you're a hater and you're blind to what's implied in the story.

I think this might be the fundamental problem. Why can we not live with notion that people have different understandings of the dynamics between characters? Why must something be "canon" because you believe there was evidence of it? Keyword being "believe", because nothing is canon unless Hoyo explicitly states it.

You mentioned that moment when Phainon said "it's a date" to Mydei and oh wow I got kinda peeved when a lot of people seemingly reduced it to evidence that their ship is canon. A date doesn't just have romantic connotations, it's a promise to meet again. And in this context, it's a tragic and bittersweet promise between two comrades made during a time when neither can live a truly peaceful life but probably wished they could (also on a similar note, Mydei telling Phainon "I wish you could come visit my library". Same thing.)

Really long rant, but it just feels like romantic connections seem to be prized above all other types of relationships. Why? I got no clue, but it just seems that way. God forbid people be friends and comrades and family without wanting to kiss. Anyway, just my thoughts, because it feels rare to see posts like this and I just wanted to share my perspective as well. Thank you for reading all that haha!

Hi, Anon! Oh, I most definitely agree. As for why? Well, from what I've personally seen, it's usually either self-projection or aesthetic pornography. Or both. Many of these people claim it's a plea for representation, but really, it's a demand for attention. If it were truly a plea for representation, then why reduce a character to a dynamic such as "a gay sub" or "a daddy dom" and more? If it were truly a plea for representation, then why reduce a character to their potential abilities in bed and the size of their genitalia? If it were truly a plea for representation, then why reduce a character to such a skin-deep degree that a series of forcibly pasted labels will be the only thing you can see? Is this how you truly want to be represented? In such a dirty and carnal way? I understand that there might be people who will be triggered by these questions, but these are questions I have to ask, and you should too. All of us should.

Going back to Phainon and Mydei, these two are one of the many examples of what will happen if we don't consider those questions above, and I must say, I couldn't be any happier than I already am now that I've seen someone who sees the moment when Phainon said "It's a date" as a farewell and a promise between comrades, not lovers. Because, you see, that phrase can and is used to mark another meeting between two or more people, and even if one would argue that the bond between them is beyond friendship, that doesn't mean that they're lovers as well. As I've initially said in this post, a platonic bond between Mydei and Phainon is possible and is experienced by real people. Romance is not the end-all be-all to every relationship, same-sex or otherwise.

Friendships. Romantic Relationships. Families. All of them are important in their own way, so to argue that this person's view of the two characters' relationship is wrong because there's no way the bond between them is platonic is simply fallacious. So there is no use in arguing because one, a person has the right to their own opinions, and two, until there are no official statements made, nothing is canon.

[yanderes-galore]

Hello! I'd like to request a romantic concept for Charlie from Hazbin Hotel if that's okay. Thank you! ^^

Sure! Some of these HCs cover things I already said... But I'll do what I can!

Yandere! Charlie Morningstar HCs

Pairing: Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Clingy behavior, Stalking, Overprotective/Possessive behavior, Delusional behavior, Isolation, Imprisonment, Violence, Dubious relationship.

Charlie is definitely a soft yandere.

Which is strange to think about considering this universe is in Hell.

Charlie is a surprisingly kind Hellborn, even more so with her obsession.

Charlie doesn't seem like a yandere who's aware that what she's doing might be bad.

To be fair... She's probably more tame than most violence-wise unless angry

Charlie's main behavior is just... overwhelmingly affectionate.

She's clingy, always wanting to be around the one she likes.

Which, at first, is really sweet.

Even when Charlie first meets you she acts like she's all sunshine and rainbows.

It's really difficult for you to tell if it's all artificial... or she's really just like that.

It seems... Almost out of character for a Hellborn to be so nice.

Especially if you're a Sinner she wants to redeem.

I'd imagine it's hard to see any red flags on her.

This only red flag would be her overly compassionate behavior.

That's only because it's Hell, too.

For the most part if you're a Sinner trying to be redeemed, you'd get along with Charlie.

She's nice, caring, and attentive towards you.

Admittedly it can be annoying if she fusses over you often... but for the most part it isn't bad.

I can both see Charlie struggling to lie and just finding excuses she can delude herself into believing.

She's a delusional yandere who simply wants to spend all of her time with her favorite person.

You're always willing to go along with her attempts to redeem you... You try to help her with ideas... You overall support her.

Which makes Hell's princess flattered and attached.

Charlie just sees all of her behavior as... excusable or normal.

She's clingy because she wants to be around you... Same goes with stalking, right?

She's just, y'know... Checking in?

She doesn't want to leave your side for even a second.

She's oblivious to any discomfort you do feel.

After all, how could any of what she does be bad?

She just wants to love you!

Despite her delusional behavior... I feel Charlie knows when to back off if you tell her.

If you need space... She'll 'give' it to you.

In reality she's just not clinging to you... Yet is still stalking you from afar.

She can't help it... She wants to see you all the time!

Even if you're just friends Charlie would feel like she's cuddling you at times.

When not working on ideas for the hotel, she hugs you all the time.

From behind, the side, the front... even on the couch.

She's a naturally clingy person.

Part of it is just due to her behavior... The other part may be insecurity.

While she wouldn't want to admit it... Charlie doesn't want you redeemed.

She knows you can be a good person... But she doesn't want to lose you.

A lot of her activities and behavior stems from her wanting to please you, to convince you to stay with her.

It's like she's trying to prove herself.

She's definitely one of the more tame and soft yandere out of most of the Hellverse cast...

Yet I can also see her being rather manipulative.

You just would never notice since to you...

She's simply sweet.

Honestly, Charlie doesn't seem like a yandere to force a relationship either.

She'd wait for you... Yet knowing how she acts, you may actually get together with her.

I definitely do see her as a yandere you could have a mostly normal relationship with if you ignore her... quirks.

I'd argue Charlie is more protective than possessive, yet she is a demon.

You don't normally see her demonic form unless she's worked up.

If she's jealous around you she usually tries to hide it, after all, you can have friends.

It's moments where she feels you're threatened that you see any form of violent thoughts in her eyes.

For example, anyone like The Vees or sometimes Alastor talking to you.

It's small flashes of her demonic form or a glint in her eyes.

It's mostly protective, at least that's what she says.

Yet if you were truly in danger, I can see Charlie using her demonic form to try and protect you if she feels she can't talk something out.

Normally she's fine talking things out, often trying to avoid conflict.

Yet sometimes she can't... Sometimes she needs to be dangerous.

Charlie doesn't like to scare you... but this is Hell so you're most likely unbothered if she murdered someone?

If not, maybe a little taken off guard since she... isn't normally like this?

Even if Charlie used her demon form to protect you, she tries to play it off.

It was just to protect you... She just lost her cool a bit... although she's still covered in blood.

Charlie seems like she would try to play off doing something bad for you... yet be on the verge of tears.

She just wants you to love her and never leave her.

For the most part... She gets that.

You can love her... That is until her obsession gets the best of her.

Soon she's lying to you, giving you activities for redemption.

In reality... She plans to lock you in the hotel.

She plans to keep you with her... To love you and never let you go.

When she does lock you away, she tries to act like nothing is wrong.

Each kiss, touch, and cuddle... It's like there isn't a chain around your leg.

Sometimes she apologizes... Sometimes she says it's for your own good...

She feeds you, pampers you... but never lets you go.

She just wants to love you forever and ever...

Is that so horrible for her to do?

[curioussubjects]

i think you're right about their motivations being different despite their similarities, but i don't think the difference is tied to self-preservation and self-worth. don't get me wrong, the self-preservation thing is absolutely what's behind santos's approach, but i'd argue the conflict is about how langdon and santos relate to authority.

i don't really see being competitive as the main drive for langdon, even if it's for self-worth reasons. for sure being a doctor (and a good one) is an important part of his sense of self, but that doesn't seem to be at play much with his issues with santos in terms of competition. and langdon doesn't act competitive with any of the other residents, either (unless i'm forgetting something) -- mel might've been competing with him for robby's attention, but it doesn't seem like he even noticed that beyond having to get through mel so he could present his case during rounds.

langdon's motivations, imo, are about respect for authority (in the expertise sense). the hierarchy of medical education serves as an easy shorthand for that. and it's not only about respect (much less ego, though of course there's always ego involved at least a little bc people are people), but about safety. the protocols of what residents can and cant do are there not only for teaching reasons but to keep people safe, especially patients. it's an ethical concern because messing up as a rookie doctor can lead to death. langdon sees santos's apparent disregard of that order as a danger.

and to your point: santos's mistrust of authority is rooted in the fear of being vulnerable to authority, but specifically authority as power structure -- one that is too easily abused and used to harm others. so of course she sees langdon's embrace of hierarchy as a danger. to herself. to others.

what neither langdon or santos know about each other is this: langdon doesn't abide blindly to hierarchy, and will defer to expertise when he sees it regardless of "rank," which we see him do with mel (and it's not a struggle for him as he listens to her and voices his appreciation with ease). santos deeply wants to help people, she has her own suite of special skills, and she does listen to authority when it comes from a place of collaboration. and ultimately, at heart, they want the same things: to learn, to be good doctors, to help people. they're just talking across each other and not listening.

something i wonder about a lot is how different their relationship would have been if santos had just presented the migraine case to langdon before doing the trigger point injection before doing it or if langdon had stopped for a second to explain why it's so important, especially for interns, to collaborate with more senior residents (and attendings) before doing a procedure (even if they're confident they know what they're doing).

i think a lot of the tension between langdon and santos comes from their motivations being different, even for behaviors that seem very similar on the surface. for example, they both want to be the best for all of the obvious reasons but, for langdon, i think it’s also because his self-worth is tied to his ability (“if i am not the best then i am less valuable to others and if i’m not valuable, why would anyone want me?”). for santos, though, it’s a self-preservation tactic in a lot of ways (“if i am not the best, i am showing weakness and am more vulnerable to being harmed again.”).

that kind of core difference makes it soooooo difficult for them to interact without triggering each other in an environment where langdon is the authority figure. like they get off on the wrong foot almost immediately because, in langdon’s mind, santos is constantly challenging his competence for no good reason and, in santos’ mind, langdon is trying to control her for no good reason. and it just continues to spiral from there lmao.

but i’m hopeful that we’ll see some growth in understanding between the two of them in s2 or s3 because i think they could learn a lot from one another once they’re able to get past the initial friction. fingers crossed!

[hersouul]

cant understand this post? check here for a guide to using xuer pronouns

⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀transplural tips !

xu am a part of a mixed - origin system, so these are only ideas xu have based off of xuer own experience being a part in it! they may not work for you, but hopefully they'll give you your own ideas!

this is a very generalized post. if you want tips for a specific -genic transition, send xie a request!

⠀ ⠀⠀to transition :

xu always like to say start small ! you dont need to rush your transition. xu know it hurts not being able to just be what you're supposed to be, but its more likely you'll give up on transitioning if you try to rush into it !

change your language — “ i went on a walk ” should become “ we went on a walk ”. it takes a conscious effort at first, but the more you ingrain it into your speech and typing style the more natural it becomes. always think about the fact that you are plural, that you're not alone—that in your body, theres more than one conscious. like xu said, it takes effort. its okay to fail, its okay to forget. just remind yourself as often as you can!

plan it out — write stuff down! it might seem stupid, but give it a try. you don't even need to decide on basic stuff, that can come naturally. get a notebook, and write down one word on each page. an object, an animal, an aesthetic, an emotion, a fashion style, or anything else. THAT is the beginning of an idea, of a person. you can expand based on what you want or whatever feels right, depending on the -genic you're transitioning to.

find a rhythm — this is easier said than done. whether you're going for a full transition or just looking for a way to relieve your dysphoria, this is a good way to do it! you don't need to be intense about it, use the notebooks or whatever equivalent you come up with. if one of the topics you wrote down was a fashion choice, go out and buy or make clothing of that type—or research its culture, and make a collage or playlist (see the next step). Anything that'll put you into a headspace for the other person you should be!

playlists — xu think they're actually really helpful for furthering how you should be. music can help you get into certain mindsets, and may even end up acting as front triggers for your parts! make them based on the information you wrote down, and play them while this part is fronting. make a few, play whichever feels right in the moment

first-person experience — ask your system friends or people who've successfully transitioned! this is a part of any transitional journey; figuring out how to transition safely and in a way that makes you comfortable. go ask your friends for tips, or just ask them about their plural experiences.

some other things to keep in mind as you explore your plurality :

𖹭 set up pluralkit, tupperbox, simply plural, or any other bots or apps that support plural people!

𖹭 make things or buy things with your parts in mind. “ [part] would love this.. ”

𖹭 roleplay as your parts, either via apps and bots or irl!

𖹭 think like your parts. react & respond in your head, it'll eventually come naturally.

𖹭 bah blogs on tumblr can be extremely helpful when trying to help your parts form, no matter what -genic you are! give them a try! (xuer headmate owns a blog you're absolutely free to submit to, @prestigousbah)

𖹭 endogenic / willogenic spaces are great places to look for tips if you don't know any other plurals.

remember! you wont be plural right away. transitioning doesn't happen overnight. you also dont need to fit the ”plural mold.” you should focus on you and your parts comfort above fitting in.

anything else xu might recommend is -genic specific, which sadly defeats the point of something more generalized! if you're looking for other tips, submit something more specific!

[liesineyes]

The amount of people I see saying Charlie has no right to be angry or upset at Babe because apparently, he also lied to Babe in the past, faked his death - while completely forgetting the different contexts of both the situations.

It is one thing to side with one character or to not understand nuance but the other to villainize one character while forgetting canon completely.

The amount of people who treat Charlie's lies and faking his death as simply unwanted, completely ignoring what would have happened to Babe if not for Charlie there, is simply - I don't know what to say.

It is like I watched a different show than them where they even like Way more than Charlie.

The fact that people refuse to understand something so simple - that you don't have to choose right or wrong. You can find both people wrong, or both people right at the same time as well is so weird to me.

Holding Babe accountable for his plan is not equal to hating him or accusing him for the sexual assault? Where did this idea come from just because in the past Charlie lied to him, faked his death, Babe can do whatever he wants and Charlie is just supposed to suck it up? I can't be the only one who thinks this take is problematic and biased as hell.

Would you not be angry if your boyfriend hid things from you, went after a guy who had repeatedly crossed boundaries (I want to emphasize how Babe knew Willy was romantically interested in him and kept harassing him and still went with his plan), removed his couple ring and presented himself as available? I think a normal person would be angry, and even a not normal, traumatised person will be angry too.

Regarding traumas, Babe has trauma, there's no doubt but do people forget Charlie is the product of the same house, lived under the same adoptive father? Tony may have different uses of them, but in the end, they were all there for something or the other thing. Not to forget, do people forget Charlie is getting experimented on regularly and we all know this drug is what causes his memory loss, so do you not think it also affects his emotions or whatever it is?

Tbh, I get angry too when people say things like 'Babe doesn't deserve Charlie' or 'Charlie deserves better' but again, people love to take sides rather than understand the nuance. Babe was wrong for making that plan without including Charlie and no matter how many lies Charlie fed him in season one, it doesn't erase the consequences of Babe's actions.

I find it rather funny that it is the first time Charlie got angry with Babe and everyone pulls up the 'hypocrite, you lied too, faked your death too, how dare you get angry at Babe' which is just.. lol.

Trauma is very valid, it can be the reason behind someone's actions, it can to some degree give the traumatic person a leverage because the other person is supposed to take their trauma in account but trauma, in no way can excuse or justify someone's actions.

If a traumatic person punches someone when triggered, it can be said they didn't mean it, they didn't want to punch, they just didn't realise it happened and the other person can say it is fine, I know you didn't mean it but does it erase the consequences of the punch? Does it heal the bruising the punch left? Or does it make the pain felt by that punch disappear?

But in the end, this is just my opinion. I would love to hear more, if anyone has any different opinion but I do want to make it clear, I don't hate either Babe or Charlie. For me they are both traumatic people and their relationship is far from being healthy. It has been toxic from day one (can you all forget Charlie was Babe's stalker and Babe let him fuck him? The X Hunter team made bets on Charlie's face for how many days he will last as Babe's fuck boy? All this is not normal.) and it is still toxic but what else do you expect in an Omegaverse racing bl with a breeding plot and human trafficking. It is to be expected I guess... 🤷🏼‍♀️

[moonstruckme]

hey so i have a question and it's about cooch maintenance so if that makes you uncomfy please feel free to scroll on by !

okay i've heard so many conflicting things about this online and i know a good majority of it is advertisement so i thought i'd see if anyone had personal experience to add! i've been trimming my bush for a few years now and it's really more practical than anything but it never looks actually nice after lol so i've been considering getting one of those trimmers? like honestly probably just the cheapest beard trimmer i can find (unless anyone has noticed genuine differences in quality?), but i'm wondering if anyone actually consistently uses these and finds them to work. a little something about me (we're all friends here, right?) is that i am a hairy gal, so it goes down to the insides of my thighs a bit, and also i have fairly protrusive inner labia. which is basically just to say that this thing would have to be getting into some crevices and not ripping my shit up in the process, does that sound viable? idk it seems maybe to good to be true, and i don't want to pull the trigger if it's just going to be a giant waste of money but this does potentially seem like the happy medium i've been wanting where like i never have to be bare but also it doesn't get terribly grown out. if anyone has any experience with these that would be amazingggg ty

[glitter-stained]

Are the people who keep complaining that jason got away with what he did completely unscathed actually okay? Like, did we read the same comics? There's extremely little I can think of that didn't happen to Jason as "punishment"

like why are the people who want him to be punished forever not happy he is already getting punished forever what else do you want

[homielander]

i'm sorry but hotd positing that all women are innately cautious and peaceful and compassionate while men are rash warmongers is not a feminist win! i could see the value in everyone being hesitant to go to war at the onset of the story because it intensifies the tragedy of this house tearing itself apart, but at this stage, rhaenyra has as much reason for bloodlust (if not more) as the men on the show. it's pretty heavily implied that the shock of her usurpation killed her daughter, aemond killed lucerys, and one of aegon's kingsguard snuck into her quarters with the intent to assassinate her. most importantly, she has felt entitled to the throne since she was named heir as a child. she should be incensed! rhaenyra's inaction in the season 1 finale due to a sudden aversion to violence was already stretching believability -- this is the same woman who expressed nothing beyond mild shock at vaemond's beheading, who plotted with daemon to have an innocent man killed to facilitate laenor's escape while declaring that the realm should fear her. to have rhaenyra insist on peace at this point in the story, when war is already well underway, is incredibly irrational.

this problem is not limited to rhaenyra. alicent ordered larys to kill mysaria's network of spies and any suspected traitors in the red keep, presumably without any due process, and neither of these decisions was depicted with the gravity they deserved for a character who was once horrified by any bloodshed. meanwhile, aegon had a few extra ratcatchers executed, and not only was the direction sufficiently ominous, but we also got a lengthy monologue from otto about how it would spell his doom. it is probably pointless to bring up rhaenys because she is written less like a believable human being and more like a mouthpiece for the writers to assert whatever political opinion they believe is correct in a given episode -- but she did very much kill dozens if not hundreds of smallfolk last season. she did do that and very clearly did not care. why is she an advocate against war? for both alicent and rhaenys, there is a strange dissonance where their actions are at odds with their attitudes about opposing large-scale war for the good of the realm. i'm not saying this dissonance cannot exist, but it should at least be acknowledged.

helaena raising concerns about the losses suffered by the smallfolk might have worked in isolation, but for it to accompany everything above is exhausting. can none of these women be allowed to feel for themselves?

[cobra-creampuff]

the fact that they made it illegal to make ads louder than programs on tv in 2010 but haven't updated it to apply the same regulation to streaming. who do i have to call.

[yanderes-galore]

Yandere fizzarolli and Ozzie sharing a overlord darling?

I had to tweak canon a bit I think so... Sorry if this isn't what you wanted but I think I got something good down :)

Yandere! Fizzarolli + Asmodeus with Overlord! Darling

Pairing: Platonic/Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Implied polygamy (If seen as romantic), Possessive/Protective behavior, Stalking, Mature themes (Adult entertainment, mentions of "toys".), Violence, Murder, Blood, Manipulation, Dubious companionship/relationship.

My biggest issue for this request is the fact Overlords are locked to the Pride Ring... and these two reside in the Lust Ring.

But here's my solution...

You'd need to be an Overlord similar to Valentino... Well, let me be more specific...

You deal in Lust.

Or at least, something involving adult entertainment.

This is the only way an Overlord can be connected to these two, at least that’s how I see it.

This may be against canon, but what if Overlords could make deals with Sins.

After all, Overlords can't go to certain rings to get materials.

They'd have to rely on someone from that Ring, right?

Unless they find a way to make it themselves.

So what if your job as an Overlord frequently deals with the Lust Ring.

After all, it's Hell... Demons tend to crave such a thing other than violence.

Maybe your business tends to sell 'things' from the Lust Ring.

I can see your connection with them starting business related.

You offer to sell products Fizzarolli and Ozzie make in Pride, taking a cut of the profits in return for giving them more customers.

After all, knowing humanity, people will be interested.

At first you don't typically meet with the men themselves.

You meet with an imp associate, one who has you purchase supplies to sell to give the Lust Ring its cut.

However, what if one day you're asked to participate in a business meeting with them?

They of course offer to do it in a private room of your shop to discuss the business partnership you have.

This would be when you'd meet Fizz and Ozzie in person and not through some other form of communication.

At first it's intimidating to meet the Sin of Lust.

Especially when he's technically your boss and business associate.

However, Fizz tends to keep the meeting lighthearted due to being a performer.

Overall your first meeting is intimidating... yet not difficult.

It's a decent business, you serve as advertising and a storefront in a new Ring while they get to stay in theirs.

It cuts down on work and brings in more business.

Business is important in Hell, after all.

Your first encounters with these two are definitely just meetings and correspondence through messages.

You're completely content with this, many Sinners come to your shop for authentic Lust commodities compared to Vee knockoffs.

However, imagine if these two get more attached to their little business partner than they should?

Occasionally the two come to meet you more often, discussing new products.

Most of the time it would just be Ozzie because he wants to keep Fizz out of trouble.

Although occasionally Fizz insists on coming along to see you and get out.

After all, the two usually just teleport into your shop after telling you to close.

Fizz is safe with you because the other Sinners get locked out during meetings.

Yet you usually always see Fizz with Ozzie there.

While mostly business, the two tend to slowly introduce more casual conversation.

How's the shop going?

Are the customers treating you well?

Any problems?

Any way they can help?

To you it definitely just seems business oriented.

Yet... In secret the two are definitely curious and concerned about you in Pride Ring.

They are aware that the Sinners up there get a bit... violent when not given what they want.

So at first I imagine they offer to give you bodyguards.

You're dealing with some pretty good quality stuff... You'd need security, right?

They'll send you some people they can trust... Purely out of concern for you the goods.

You take it, appreciating the concern.

In reality, I can definitely see them making those bodyguards spies to tell them what goes on with you.

It's a strange fascination for the couple... The two Hellborn are so obsessive about a Sinner.

I can see their obsession as platonic or romantic.

When platonic, they become like concerned friends or mentors.

They want to look after you, especially with Ozzie's protective tendencies.

Romantic... Well, they are demons of Lust...

Having a third could make things interesting even though they see themselves as their primary partner....

Sharing could only strengthen that bond, right?

It's just so difficult since you belong to Pride.

Regardless... The two know they can make it work.

You're a Sinner with an affinity for Lust... So you're partially theirs, right?

While you're unaware, the two have your guards report to them.

They listen eagerly to what you've had to deal with at your store.

Including those who have caused you issues.

Due to what you work with, you tend to have Sinners flirt, steal, or attack you.

Your two bosses... aren't particularly fond of that.

Imagine having a problematic customer and your guards come in to remove them.

You never see them after that thankfully... But you have no idea your bosses also helped.

Your guards would drag the customer to a secluded area to meet with Ozzie and Fizz.

The two are quite serious about you...

So what that demon ends up going through ends in blood splattering across the ground.

Don't worry, Sinners respawn....

Hellborn... don't.

So there will be a message gotten across somehow.

In terms of how they interact with you....

Ozzie is definitely the more serious and protective one.

He can come across as smothering with his concern due to what he's gone through with Fizz.

When Ozzie hears you dealing with problematic customers or even with the Vees...

He isn't happy.

Fizz tends to be the more lighthearted one in nature.

He's silly with you, often hiding the darker tendencies of their partnership with you.

He calms Ozzie down and gets you to trust the two more and more.

Fizz helps to make you not question much about what's between all of you.

They definitely aren't stalking you, they're just concerned... not overprotective.

They just care about you!

Is it so hard to see them as friends more than business associates?

Or maybe even something more... intimate?

The two definitely work together to make you fall for their manipulation.

In their eyes, since you work for them, you belong to them.

Sure, as a Sinner you're locked to Pride... But you're quite a popular Overlord.

The two wish they could take you back to Lust to be fully under their jurisdiction.

That way you can frequently see them.

Unfortunately, Hell doesn't work in such a way.

You're meant to stay in Pride for the rest of your afterlife... or until you're redeemed.

Which the two aren't too keen on.

For now, they'll just be more frequent with visits and try to convince you to trust them.

You know they care by now, right?

It's not concerning that they know more about you than you thought you told them.

They'll keep giving you products, security, and check in often.

Maybe even personal gifts if they know your interests (They will eventually.)

They'll try to be low key with their yandere tendencies... It's not like they can kidnap.

But they can observe... and they can gain your trust...

Murder is also never a concern in Hell, everyone does... So those who are too close to you are never concerned.

Overall, to you as an Overlord, the two just seem like business partners and companions... To them...

You belong to them no matter where you are... While they may be limited in what they can do, it doesn't change the fact you're theirs... They have OTHER ways to convince you of that than kidnapping.

[gremzon]

I might have OCD actually

[daz4i]

kinda unfortunate that i'm getting bad again. like what was all this for then -_-

[victorluvsalice]

AU Thursday: Valicer In The Dark -- Fun With Trauma

Hi all -- it's time to talk about my VITD trio again! Specifically, today we're discussing their Traumas! :D Now, "Trauma" in Blades In The Dark refers to a condition your scoundrel picks up when they max out their stress during the course of their adventure -- once they fill up all their stress boxes, they have some sort of mental break, can no longer participate in the rest of the current score, and develop a new specific personality quirk that will haunt them for the rest of the adventures. A character can develop four traumas before they have to be retired from life as a scoundrel (either literally retiring or being thrown into jail as a sacrifice to the Bluecoats). On the plus side, each new trauma is also a chance to earn extra XP -- if your character struggles with the side effects of a trauma during a score, you can mark a point or two of XP for it and level up your character a little bit faster. The book has eight potential traumas for scoundrels to pick up -- Cold, Haunted, Obsessed, Paranoid, Reckless, Soft, Unstable, and Vicious -- but as I've thought about my trio and where I want them to go (and what other systems in the book I'd like to use), I've come up with somewhat more bespoke traumas for them:

-->Alice: Our favorite Cutter actually starts with a trauma -- as I've mentioned before, I looked at the description for the Haunted trauma -- "You’re often lost in reverie, reliving past horrors, seeing things" (pg 14) -- and went "yeah, that pretty well covers her hallucinations of Wonderland." (It's the reason she also gets two starting abilities instead of just one -- trade-off!) As for her next potential trauma, I was initially considering Vicious -- "You seek out opportunities to hurt people, even for no good reason" -- but then decided that perhaps a slightly more logical one would be a tweaked form called Overprotective -- "You make sure everyone knows that what's yours is yours, to the point of violence." Alice is, of course, protective of Victor and Smiler even before she picks up this particular trauma, but afterward, she can get a little overenthusiastic about keeping danger away from them, simply because she doesn't want to lose the people she loves again. That house fire where her family died did a number on her head, after all! The pair probably have to rein her in sometimes to make sure she doesn't accidentally cause them more trouble trying to keep them safe. I don't have a specific scene in mind for what triggers it, but I know it would have to involve Victor and/or Smiler getting hurt and her just letting loose to protect them.

-->Victor: My initial ideas for a trauma for our lovely Whisper were Paranoid -- "You imagine danger everywhere; you can’t trust others" -- as the result of a particularly dangerous score that spooked him badly, or Obsessed -- "You’re enthralled by one thing: an activity, a person, an ideology" -- as the result of him getting a little too much into studying the dangerous magic of Duskwall...but then, while researching the Ritual special ability to figure out how to create new rituals for Victor to use, I found the sample ritual "Portal to the Depths" -- which involves singing an ancient song to open a portal up into the Void Sea, swamping anyone unlucky enough to be in front of it with its dark water filled with mysterious starlight and dragging them into the cold depths. The thing is, whenever someone uses this ritual, along with taking six stress, they must also tick a progress clock called "Seduced By The Leviathan's Song."

Cue me coming up with a scene where Victor, having filled up that progress clock, is with Alice and Smiler at The Docks (yes, this the name of a neighborhood in the city; it is self-explanatory) -- and ends up getting mind-controlled by the song of a nearby Leviathan into nearly walking off one of said docks to either drown or get devoured. Fortunately, this is after the trio have started playing with hypnosis in their private lives, and Smiler and Alice are able to stop him in his tracks by invoking their control over his mind -- but the experience leaves Victor with the custom trauma Phobia -- "You are terrified of a particular person, thing, or place and refuse to be near it." As you might imagine, Victor's terror revolves around the ocean, and he refuses to be anywhere near it if he can -- no more scores involving The Docks for this trio!

-->Smiler: Deciding on any trauma conditions for our cheerful combination Leech/Slide was a bit tricky for me at first -- not only is Smiler a naturally-cheery person who takes a lot of things that would stress out others in stride (see them very casually talking to ghosts in "Start At The Beginning...Sort Of"), they also of course end up in possession of the ability Functioning Vice, which allows them to adjust how much stress they clear when indulging their Vice and makes emptying out that track between scores a lot easier. I really wasn't sure which of the ones on offer would actually fit them --

And then. While reading through the "Changing The Game" section of the book, I stumbled across the "Forgotten Gods" section in "Advanced Abilities and Permissions." Which details what happens when your character opens their mind to a forgotten god -- including access to the ability Glorious Visage, which allows the character to hit everyone in the vicinity with an image of the god's form, costing them three stress and causing everyone around them to at least flee in fear or be paralyzed with dread. The more traumatized the character, the more harm they can do, up to killing a specific person by shattering their mind. I was like "Oooooo, wow, creepy but neat" --

And then I was like "Smiler's already been touched by their god..."

Cue the creation of the custom trauma Vessel -- "Your body is capable of hosting the will of a forgotten god -- and they know it." The way I see this working for Smiler is, the first time they overmax their stress, their god Mar-Mal sees this, is like "!!! Let me help!" and straight-up possesses their body for the rest of the score. Fortunately they do leave once the danger is passed -- helped by Victor and Alice going "It would make us VERY HAPPY if you gave us Smiler back" -- and Smiler recovers from the experience, but the door has been opened in their head, and it's not being shut anytime soon. The trauma automatically gives them access to the customized special ability Joyous Visage -- where Smiler can use Mar-Mal's power to stun people with happiness (it works a bit like the "Hysteria" power in VTMB's version of the Dementation discipline, with people getting completely incapacitated by laughter) -- but every time Smiler uses that power, a die must be rolled. On a six, they use the power safely and only take two stress; on a five through two, they use the power but Mar-Mal takes an interest in the proceedings, forcing them to take three stress; and on a one, Mar-Mal is like "time to take over again!" and possesses their body for the rest of the score. On the plus side, Mar-Mal automatically succeeds at everything they do while in control of Smiler's body (they are a fucking god, after all); on the minus side, when they leave, Smiler has to deal with Level 2 "Post-Possession Exhaustion" harm (because hosting the power of a god is no joke). Smiler has mixed feelings about this whole situation -- on the one hand, they're super excited that they can host the will of their god and not die, but on the other...they are a little scared that maybe, one day, Mar-Mal won't give their body back...

And there we have it -- three lovely traumas for my characters to suffer with! I don't know yet when they'll come into play during all the various stories I have planned, but they are there when I need them! I'm sure the trio are thrilled. XD

[choking-on-roses]

I am so used to being an afterthought in everyone's lives that if someone came along who put genuine effort into spending time with me, like truly just wanted to hang out with me and made time to do it, I would probably 1) break down sobbing and 2) immediately fall in love with them