#and a lot of the big guys are about equal in strength by nature of being a similar size and body type

[semisolidmind]

this is kinda a weird question, but if you were to put all of your ocs in a boxing ring and have them duke it out (no special powers, just pure strength/strategy) who do you think would win?

...i think id have to put them in weight classes, like wrestling.

otherwise there'd be some real big dudes punting the small dudes into the sun.

(this makes me think about a fighting game featuring all the monsters I've made throughout my tenure here)

[a-twistedheartslonging]

Could you tell us about grumpy cat Leona in the nonhuman au?

Rubs hands together.

The big grumpy meow-meow that doesn't meow.

Has toe beans and the fur on his body is the same color as his ears and tail.

Ruggie was a little worried at first about you two getting together cuz of possible extra work or you replacing him for stuff, meaning less money to earn but, nah. You keep Leona from overworking him and actually help Ruggie with a lot of things. He is pleased.

It doesn't happen often, but he may roar in his sleep, and this is a real lion roar. He can sleep through it but you and everyone else in the dorm sure as hell can’t. He gets pissy if you wake him up to stop or go to sleep somewhere else. He will also lick you in his sleep.

It doesn't matter how small you are, he will straight up lay on you and smother you when he feels like it.

He won't tell you but man he loves your praise. So, keep praising his looks, strength, and intelligence. You are probably the only thing that makes him want to put the effort into showing off. It becomes mandatory for you to come to his Spelldrive matches, please, do it for the good of the school.

He’s actually really good about not nicking you with his claws.

Loves to bite, nibble, and scrape his fangs against your skin.

When he first brings you home the first thing his brother blurts out is “Why are they small?” His wife of course scolds him and tells him “You can't just ask humans why they're small!”

Scents you as soon as you are out of the shower, he will also stare right at the person you're talking to as he rubs his chin against the top of your head, scenting you in public.

You will groom his main for him.

He refuses to call your petting...well petting. He keeps calling it grooming. He will be demanding that you do it though. Kind of like those cats that yell and head bonk you until you do it, except he will straight up lay his whole body on you if you try ignoring it. I hope you like being smothered by big meaty lion-man tits.

Leona has lots of good traits but let's all remember that, in canon, Leona in plain terms: is an arrogant and domineering man who’s as prideful as he is lazy. He tends not to waste his energy on those he deems inferior to him and is only willing to cooperate with others if it benefits him in some way. In the same vein, he puts little to no effort into activities that don’t interest him, like when it comes to his studies.

Now don’t get me wrong, he's also the type to see it as unfair and demeaning to treat others differently based on their inherent status, and wants to compete with others on a level playing field. Still, we've seen he isn’t above using underhanded tactics to ensure success. The guy is willing to do whatever it takes to prove himself as a worthy leader, the dominant lion, even if it means playing dirty.

Also stated on the wiki “Leona has stated he is intimidated by the women of the Sunset Savanna because they are much physically stronger and more strong-willed than the men, including himself. Ruggie corroborates this statement. This follows the biology of many savanna animals, such as lions and hyenas, wherein the females are hunters and typically dominant in nature.” and “It's only at Night Raven College, where he's treated as an equal, that Leona attempts to seek the dominion he cannot achieve back home.” 

Now add the extra dominance stuff that goes on with regular lions and add THAT onto a now even more beast-like Leona with his personality and with him actively looking to achieve that dominance plus you being a weak magicless human in a world of big strong beasts. You are not gonna be the one leading this relationship, even if you identify as a girl, cuz you are not a Sunset Savanna one.

Of course, Leona respects you though, he wouldn't have taken you as his mate if he didn't but…he’s a dick.

Now, your role? He expects certain to go like in the wild. You and him are your own pride with Ruggie and Jack being unofficial members. You know how Ruggie brings him food? That’s your task now. “Male lions defend the pride’s territory while females do most of the hunting.” Doesn't matter if you're a dude and…Ha, no he doesn't expect you to actually hunt. But he’s gonna want you to bring him food. (he gives you the money for it and then some, get yourself something nice) Expect his head on your lap, a pleased grin on his face as you hand-feed him.

If you tell him he went too far he’ll back off but…really likes comparing you to him, but in ways that show that he’s bigger and stronger. Teases you about being a weak little herbivore and how easy it would be to eat you.

His tongue has a bit of a rough texture but not nearly as rough as a regular lion's so you don't have to worry about the meat being scraped from your bones by it when he intensely grooms you.

(Talking about his junk and lion mating facts below)

Another thing he shares with his animal counterpart is penile spines, also known as barbs, luckily for you, lion beastmen evolved enough to wear they aren't the painful kind and are more like small nubs. Though they do have a similar reaction of stimulation ovulation and form a “genital lock”, basically it has a cat version of a knot. So, quickies aren't gonna be as quick and you will be subjected to mandatory after-sex cuddles.

As for the whole “going into heat” thing, female lions are only receptive to mating for a brief period, usually lasting three to four days, and they will go at it every 20-30 minutes for as long as the heat lasts. Humans don't go into heat, but the cooch havers do ovulate, which beastmen can in fact smell and will take this as you going into heat and he, unless told no, will react accordingly. Though…even with how he is it would be funny if it’s one of the times instincts kick in cuz…the thing is female lions can be pretty damn aggressive about it so imagine it’s the first time and he’s just laying there expectantly and looking annoyed, wondering why you haven't hopped on top of him and ravaged him yet.

Though another thing with lions is males will mount another male to excerpt dominance so imagine talking too much shit and you end up getting pinned down and humped by a pissed-off Leona.

[hunterssm00n]

NSFW ! Thomas Hewitt hc’s

A little bit dangerous / but baby, that’s how I want it

*cw include mention of cnc and mention of slight gore* MDNI - 18+

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

• big boy, big hands, big fat ddddd - i don’t make the rules *shrugs*

• his fingers are like sausages on his hands, and are bigger and thicker than pretty much everyone else’s he comes across. i’ve always noticed how big and meaty his hands are, and the thought that they could crush someone’s skull just as easily as they could hold a kitten is just… unnnf

• his hands are quite large, warm, and super calloused from his day to day life. i hc that since his family is elderly he ends up doing a lot for them, and that includes housework, maybe some repairs, and definitely anything to do with getting food on the table. rough, weathered hands that can be gentle is one of the sexiest things ever.

• despite his sheer size and strength, tommy is an incredibly gentle lover. he’s a very sweet and considerate partner.

• after some practice and allowing his confidence to grow, those big hands know exactly what they’re doing- and a man with big hands that knows how to use them? *swoons*

• he’s a switch; can be a top or a bottom. loves being ridden but also loves being in control

• did not know pretty much anything about sex growing up, uncle charlie tried to explain it to him but you can imagine how well that went. this may have resulted in thomas having some unnatural fears when it comes to intimacy, but thankfully he's a quick study and is open to positive influence when there are good feelings associated.

• this can mean that this sweet boy can be talked into doing pretty much anything. as long as he understands there's nothing to be afraid of, and that if he doesn't like something he can always stop/indicate that he wants to stop.

• for example, he would only be open to cnc if he understands that it's a game - i really don't think he would be able to violate someone that way (which might sound weird considering he chainsaws people in half and then cuts off their faces and wears them...) as long as he knows it's for fun i feel like he would be open to anything

• sooo considerate afterwards - a total sweetheart who absolutely jumps at the chance to do aftercare

• he is always hot - figuratively and literally. i hc that his big boy body is like a furnace. this means the ultimate snuggle time in the winter, and just in general.

• he’s long and thick down there, lawd have mercy. like, almost doesn’t fit all the way he’s so big. and his balls are large and heavy, full of hot seed, and they swing back and forth when he thrusts, creating the perfect titillating sensation.

• when he cums… dear god. it’s like the hoover dam breaking open. he definitely needs lots of towels to clean up afterwards - or just straight up jumping in the bath/shower to rinse off

• his favorite positions are missionary and being ridden - the best of both worlds

• and he absolutely loves sex in the shower/bath. he is super touch starved, especially in the romantic sense, so that level of intimacy completely blows his mind.

• he adores being praised; being told what a good boy he is, how good what he's doing feels. he likes to know when he's doing something right - it is a huge confidence boost for this shy guy

• he actually isn't as quiet during sex as one may think. not that he says anything, but the noises he makes instead are equally as good. low groans, pitiful moans when something feels too good, and even growling when he cums. thomas is just so animalistic in nature, and much like when he's chasing after someone with his chainsaw, sometimes the beast just needs to be unleashed.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

hunterssm00n © All rights reserved by me. I do not allow this work to be used or adapted in any way without my permission.

AN: I do not own the Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise or any of its characters. I also do not own the song ‘Into You’ by Ariana Grande.

[seahagart]

What are Drifa's first opinions of the companions before she gets to know them?

Lae'zel: First companion she would meet, immediately understands she's very brave and 'knows what she's doing', respects. As time goes on, I think Drífa's indifference towards her comments/insults would wane, she would ignore it/not understand what she's saying, or would just think she's making a comment like 'you have an ugly large nose' and drifa is like 'you have no nose, see drífa have eyes', then would probably get tired of it, poking the bear, but remain stoic which i think would bother lae'zel more than getting a reaction lolol. Lae'zel hates Drífa... or does she.... :)

Shadowheart: Second companion, small elf girl, anytime shadowheart is like 'i don't wanna talk about it' drífa's like 'aight' and leaves, which is why shadowheart likes her now. Drífa is concerned, a small elf all alone. Feels shes quite small and fragile to be into the things shes talking about, but whatever. literally has no idea who shar is so is like 'cool goddess, i respect your faith' because drifa also follows a rather fierce goddess. Drifa prefers to listen over talking, so they get along well. shadowheart is desperately trying to smash rn

Gale: Pulled this weirdo out of a rock, a malnourished human, appears sickly. Drífa is confused by most of what he says, but he is rather poetic so she enjoys the 'nonsense' he talks about. Now she has 3 main landers to take care of. Gale talks way too much, but it is entertaining to her. She does not like that he believes he could compete with a goddess.... the gods are gods for a reason, to think you could understand their meaning, or be equal to one is conceited to her. She understands it's because of 'love', but she is weary. Gale is trying to smash now in my play through.

Astarion: weird little malnourished elf man. He also talks to much. Drífa has two talkative dramatic tiny boys and two ladies that hate each other so she's kinda remembering why she lived in isolation for 35 years. Astarion she probably views like a cat, like seeks attention when he wants it, eats what he wants, believes he's the best one here. She is not afraid of him being a vampire because she simply would never let an elf fell her, that would be a true dishonor. he's mildly offended. She doesn't tolerate his dislike of children, but typically doesn't really care what he does.

Wyll: Another little guy with sad eyes. Another human. Drifa likes him, he's polite, seems to know what he's doing, seems 'the most normal' plus has seen his share of battle (like lae'zel) so she's glad to have him along. Obviously when things go down she's like 'wow... yet another guy with baggage with a blue lady...' side eying gale. She likes his stories, listens intently to his deeds of good and protecting the sword coast, overall likes him but is still like 'here is another small human- oops small devil for my collection'

Karlach: Finally someone who looks like they're a warrior. Likes her, feels like she doesn't need to protect/take care of, which is good so she can focus her energies on the softies of the party. Drífa would like Karlach, she's a bit blunt and a bit more energetic than Drífa is used to, but probably likes that. Karlach's dancing, lust for life, and fire would be highly approved. I think Drífa wouldn't really get why she's sad about not being touched

Halsin: another gd ELF, but this ones big and can turn into a bear so thats ok. I think they'd have a lot in common but Drífa views him more as a tree hugger. She appreciates nature, so i think they could get along well.... though she finds him confusing... she doesn't feel like she needs to worry about him, and he's pretty forward and upfront so it works out well.

There are all first impressions. Drífa was raised to take care of herself and herself only, keep to her own, and that strength = power, because her lifestyle is very physically demanding. Being big and strong is important, being fat and strong is more important to survive frozen winters etc. She is a loner suddenly surrounded by people for the first time in her life, and is doing her best to keep them alive because obviously they need her help and this is a mission given to her by her goddess, why else would she have sent the ship to take her, to bring her to these people...

[alicefromwhichplanet]

Alice’s Ship Guide: Blitzbee

Good day. The Blitzbee Week 2024 has just concluded. I had a lot of fun attending it. However, after seeing some of the interpretations of this ship, I find them quite different from how I understand this ship. At the same time, many of my friends who share my interest don’t ship Blitzbee, which probably has something to do with the popular interpretations of them. So I would like to share my views on this ship, and see if I could inspire some new thoughts on them. Should be fun.

*most of the following analysis is based on tfa, but not limited to it. I like shipping two generally consistent characters in different universes, as a way of training my imagination with slightly different dynamics.

1） They are two childishly reckless young adults. There is an age gap but not very big/important.

Most of the ships I like are “mutuals”: they are equal in strength and mental status. They understand each other better than others.

In tfa, we see many “corresponding” characters in the two camps, for example, Lugnut and Bulkhead are both “the bulky one with destructive power” on both teams. Blitzwing and Bumblebee form a “corresponding pair” as they both play the role of “the funny talkative guy in the team”. They are both young and reckless, having an immature side of them compared to other teammates.

Examples are:

Examples are: Blitzwing (in particular his “random” alter) made a free fall into autobots to have fun messing with them , forgetting about the task Megatron repeatedly told him to do first. Likewise, Bumblebee acts recklessly on many tasks/occasions as well (for example, challenging “Colossus” on a tv show).

The two have an amazing interaction in the episode “Velocity” when they chased/raced with each other, which clearly shows their similarity in personality. Many have noticed the childishness of Bumblebee but failed to see that in Blitzwing as well.

As for the claims of Bumblebee being “underage”, you have to admit autobots are using child soldier in their army to prove that (which is not likely). Bumblebee attended military school in preparation for the elite guards, which should only take adult/ almost adult students, long before he joined Optimus’s team of engineers. The team doesn’t treat him as a child. And seeing from Blitzwing’s personality, he is not so far from Bumblebee’s age. The two are like 20 and 25 year olds mentally.

Also I want to mention that the age of transformers should not be the counted the same way like humans, because they are alien robots who don’t die easily unless they are killed in a military conflict. There is little chance they will perish for old age (all the parts are replaceable), so they can actually live for a very long time if no fatal accident happened. In this case it should be natural for adult bots with an age difference to date, for there is no obvious physical deterioration as age increases. In this case similarity in mental age/ state of maturity is more important than actual years of living. This makes Blitzbee a couple with similar ages rather than a couple with huge age difference.

2） “Growing up together” is the most interesting theme in their relationship.

As I have said, Blitzwing and Bumblebee are both reckless, immature young bots, I would like to see them growing into more responsible and stable ones through learning to take care of each other.

Blitzwing has the mental issue that causes mood swings. He also might have experienced more trauma of war and abuse compared to Bumblebee (the famous triple-changer adaptation being the major one in my fan fiction ideas). After he developed a secret relationship with Bumblebee he would become more stable and his trauma will be healed to some extent by Bumblebee’s powerful, devoted love.

This leads to my major take that Bumblebee should eventually play the role of a “caregiver/protector” in this relationship, speaking of mentality. He should learn to be the one that “fixes” Blitzwing with love and trust. I love to see Bumblebee grow up and learn to be the responsible one that takes care of his lover, rather than staying in the shell of childishness forever and letting traumatized Blitzwing do all the dirty work. Growing up together is an amazing part of this ship and I would love to see more of this in their dynamics.

3） Megatron and the Decepticons are not their enemy.

This is also a major issue I’m having with the majority of Blitzbee fandom. I’d like to propose that since we’re depicting a cross-fractional relationship, it is an excellent chance for us to explore the autobot/decepticon dichotomy in a more meaningful way. Both camps attracted numerous followers and lasted long in the civil war. It is neither reasonable nor meaningful if Megatron’s reign is sorely established on threatening, violence and jungle rules. The decepticons should have fraternity/comradeship inside their camp if autobots do. Decepticons love and respect their battle mates as well, and Megatron as a much trusted leader does show care towards his decepticon soldiers (no need to say that tfa Megatron has shown amazing tolerance and a cool mood in all three seasons). Dehumanizing decepticons to create obstacles for blitzbee is the cheapest and most shallow way of interpreting them either as a couple or as two individuals. Blitzwing as a decepticon soldier has his beliefs and loyalty to his camp too. It is sad that many blitzbee writers simply dismiss Blitzwing’s choice of being a decepticon as being threatened or forced into it, which is just unreasonable since Blitzwing is one of the most trusted subordinates of Megatron. There is a way of exploring both Bumblebee and Blitzwing’s struggles of dating an enemy and their guilt of betraying their camp they willingly joined. This makes the ship more in-depth and lively, only that it requires the shipper to have enough knowledge of politics and an unbiased attitude towards the decepticons.

4） They don’t follow traditional heterosexual roles. They are a homosexual couple (basically, gay. I can also accept genderbending both of them women).

This actually applies to every couple I ship. I don’t like the traditional depiction of romance that requires two individuals to either play by the “feminine script” or “masculine script”. I think this kind of view is rooted in unreasonable expectations/ gender stereotypes of patriarchal society, and is harmful and outdated. I don’t want to assign Blitzwing and Bumblebee fixed roles as “top” or “bottom” as well. Everything should be dynamic in their relationship.

5） If they become mature enough to handle children, Blitzwing is the carrier.

This conclusion comes from 4), and also simply because of the fact that in tfa, decepticons are larger than autobots, this naturally makes the possible cross-fractional kid a “middle size between autobots and decepticons”. This means the kid should be bigger than usual autobot kid (if spark-sexual reproduction is possible) and it would be dangerous for autobots to carry a half decepticon child. If such rule exists, there should already been natural selection working on Cybertron to let the decepticons carry the child if pregnancy happens. Also, as I mentioned in 4), I don’t want to assign traditional gender roles to Bumblebee and Blitzwing, so when it comes to carrying, it is actually the same as other things they should do as a couple: it is alright for the fittest one in a relationship to do it. If the child is big, Blitzwing be the carrier. It’s natural and smooth.

6） (nsfw) Size kink? They have so many more kinks! They actually enjoy non-penetrative sex and spark sex.

This is also based on my take of dismissing traditional gender stereotypes. Penetrative sex is not the only way to get pleasure. Since there is a size difference, it should be uncomfortable/ unpractical for Blitzwing and Bumblebee to carry it out often (If you think they have a size kink, I’ll have to say that kinks shouldn’t be the main reason they get together as a couple, or the relationship would become unhealthy with objectifying the other for sexual pleasure. And it’s certainly not the kind of serious relationship that involves love and respect that I’m trying to write about.).

For one thing, they are very playful childish individuals, besides, sexual reproduction is still not in the codes of Cybertronians, it is actually a perfect chance to break the stereotypes of sexual pleasure solely achieved in penetration. I would like to imagine Blitzbee having all kinds of kinks that may entertain both of them trying all kinds of tricks. Penetration is just a bit too old-fashioned for them. Spark sex, as a more daring method free from any trouble of size, should also be a good choice for them.

7） If there are humanformers, I would like to see Bumblebee being Latino/from Latin America, and Blitzwing being German.

This is my personal interpretation of their human forms based on their accents and designs in canon, and some of the interpretations in fandom. Their personalities fit pretty well for people coming from these two regions, and Blitzwing in particular. There are simply too many German implications in Blitzwing (his accent, his helmet and look, icy) that I just can’t imagine Blitzwing’s human form being anything else.

If you like my interpretation and would like to try this ship, I’ll recommend you my blitzbee fan fictions (ideas). Though they’re limited in number, they’re all consistent to my interpretation above.

Tfa:

Old World, New World

Tfp:

One More Light

Bayverse (Bumblebee movie):

(And the just finished Blitzbee Week 2024 piece)

The Phantom of the Opera

More works are under construction. And if you want to hear out my headcanons just search for #blitzbee in this blog. Thanks for reading!

[mightymizora]

What drew Glim and Manva to their love interests? Was there an instant connection between them, or was it more of a gradual build-up? What's their favorite things about their respective LIs?

Bonus question: Is there anything about their romances that went differently in your canon than it did in-game?

Hey Sunny! Thanks for another damn great question!

With Glim, there was a definite friends-to-lovers connection with Gale. I think she immediately liked him, but didn't necessarily see him romantically at the start. Just a nice guy, and so easy to talk to! Wow, he really can talk, and he's so charming! She does realise she's falling for him a liiittle sooner than he realises the same - I like the interpretation that he's as surprised as she is when she imagines the kiss during the weave connection (which I guess is a slight deviation from canon since he did kind of set up that "date".) But she convinces herself that it's one sided for a long, long time, even as Gale is trying to expressly admit the opposite - she's genuinely quite taken aback when he tells her he loves her.

Her favourite thing is impossible, she loves so much about him! But I think his curiosity is up there. She loves how he is a problem solver, is so quick and probing and so full of passion for the world. She finds an equal in him, and it is all she could have wished for.

The slight deviation, though really it's just a heightening of canon, is that they almost break up and have some REALLY rough arguments in act 3. Between the crown, the ironhand gnomes, and the death of her mother, there are some big emotions flying about.

For Manva... well, I think she meets people where they are. Gortash definitely pursued her for a long time, like years, before she finally kissed him. Lae'zel, Astarion, and Minthara all propositioned her (for very different reasons across the board.) The only person she didn't respond to was Ketheric, which was much more of an experiment for her in "what would happen if?"

There's LOTS of changes to canon, lol. For one Durgetash really isn't canon (sorry guys) and I definitely HC that she snuck back to see him at least once between the coronation and the end of the game. And obviously Ketheric happens way before the game, and is again, a fun flavour. Astarion is pretty much exactly as it is in game; he propositions her because he is scared for his safety, and they stop when they start to become actual friends. Also though the game doesn't allow it, Manva is with Lae'zel and Minthara, at least for a little while. Things peter out with Lae'zel, but at that point her and Minthara also grow closer, which is different from the game!

I'd say her favourite thing about Gortash... is difficult, because I don't know how much she really likes him. They're extremely co-dependent, which is a bit of a different thing, really. I think she likes his mind a lot, likes when they can be quiet and just... be together, which never lasts. She loves Lae'zel's spirit and power and assured nature, and when she starts to change and doubt herself, that causes a rift between them. She loves Minthara's strength of character, and also that she has such faith in her, which she needs desperately. And Ketheric isn't love, but she (wrongly) sees him as being very kind to her... poor thing.

[xherry7816]

i wasnt gonna post this bc i think i sound like wn idiot but then i remember that literally doesnt matter.

no sad skecth of a ninja today for i bringforth FIGHTING HEADCANONS.

in no way am i versed in knowledge about fightimg so im just gonna try and explain as best as i can.

JAY - i hc that JAY is one of the lightest members in the team, he doesnt have a lot of muscle so to counter that id imageine he'd fight in a way that he can use his whole body weight rather than a punch or a kick. i think hed be quite fluid in his motion, lots of flips and cool dodging maneuvers over his opponents to be able to bring his weight down upon them. so yeah in a simpler way id say dodging around and then countering is kinda his stuff, he moves around a lot basically. hes the kinda guy to use his power and physically strength as equally as possible and sometimes boosts phys strength with his elemental.

KAI - at the start KAI can kinda be described as lacking in aspects from the other three bc he didnt get to train together as longer so id imagine he goes for a very defeat as fast as possible approach. lots of strong powerful movements because he knows once an enemy finds a weakness he'll have a hard time. of couse once hes trained and all that jazz i think hed still go along with the same approach since hes been doing it for so long but i picture more flashy, confident movements hes definitely more into the risky moves as long as it gets the jobs done and makes him look cool. he'd be a fan of big movements which would show off his flames.

ZANE - most likely the type to act once he knows enough about his enemy, his moves are calculated and concise and hes most likely never to make a move unless necessary. hes the type of person to study an art closely so he fights in set forms but is adaptable and is most likely versed in several different forms. i think weapons/elements would depend on the sort of enemy theyre fighting, element against element and weapon against weapon unless its a difficult fight.

NYA - though being the last ninja, because of his perfectionist nature i think she would kinda grind until she perfected a fighting style that best fit him. much like her element her movements are fluid and confident, i think he'd kinda have like attack combos constantly berating an enemy with powerful attacks with little openings for retaliation. she likes to think ahead in terms of element use and thinks how his current moves would benefit the fight going forward intsead of swinging some water and hoping for the best.

LLOYD - probably the most elemental oriented out of them all due to the nature of his element being ljkr the best one and stuff. hes the type to use larger scale attacks or multi attacks to hit multiple enemies at once rather than focusing on one and maybe hitting a few others if theyre in the way. hes not confident in the defense and thus focuses more on his powerful offense making sure he always has the upperhand. with a weapon hes a bit more wary and calculating of his opponent and much like KAI (who i hc taught him the sword) tries to take them down asap.

COLE - i kinda think COLE would have an accidentally flashy fightstyle. like i think hes very elementally oriented but in a way that he channels earth through his weapons and body, he does large earth punches and throws literal mountains of rock. his moves are strong and steady and probably most fond of using his hands over anything else. rather than specifically aiming for one i think hes more to hit many at once to help speed up the process of taking them down if that makes sense.

the quality of these was bad at JAY and then just keeped getting worse as i went down LOL

hope those made sense and were idk cool or smth ???

EXCITED 4 UNITED WHOO !! (still hasnt watched CRYSTALLIZED help !l

[thattimdrakeguy]

Hey, I've been lurking on your posts, definetly agree with a lot of your takes, but one thing that always bother me is your depiction of Tim Drake's skills. Like, making him out to be really weak and downplaying his strengths. That's not saying he's this super awesome dude who can do anything. He was described as not as natural at combat stuff as Dick and Jason, but he worked hard to overcome that and became someone that stands as an equal to them. He wasn't the weakest Robin, he was equal to them because he put in the work. That's what makes him relatable. The talk of forever weak Tim, like Damian saying he could never lose to Tim, and Tim agreeing and using trickery to take the win, it stinks of genetic superiority. Considering Post-Crisis, where he was depicted as pretty buff actually. He was about as big at 13 as Jaso was when he died at 15. It was only after flashpoint that you see talk like this. And I agree, that sometimes fandom exaggerates his intelligence, but his Robin and Red-Robin runs show that he is pretty equal to Bruce and Dick as a detective, that in Gotham he is second only to Barbara in computer work. It's not that Tim's weaker and less skilled than everyone, and it's not that he's so much smarter than everyone either. I'd take 15 year old Tim and put him equal to 15 year old Dick and Jason. I'd put Red Robin as close to an equal to Nightwing, and equal to Red Hood. People do forget he's also won against Red Hood in canon, as well as lost. They've fought a couple of times. So yeah, I don't vibe with Tim being considered the weakest Gotham vigilante, and with 14 year old Damian being considered top 3, with Cass and Bruce. I'd buy it when he's older. Sorry for being long-winded, I was kinda venting. I'd love to hear your opinion. No hate either way, reply to this or not, it's your choice.

That was very difficult to read. So I'm gonna briefly write, what I think is a summarized version of it, and I'll answer what I gathered out of it, and if I'm wrong, I want you to send me another ask so I can answer this right.

"Why do you make out Tim to be really weak? Art depicts something different from what you said. Comics have said he's better in this and that."

Basically, the answer is, the art style in the 90s made everyone really big and buff, look at the Marvel cartoons at the time, most action figures, and it even went for most comics. BUT, the way Tim was written, and shown in his brief time before the 80s and that bit of time when that fad ended shown Tim wasn't meant to look like a steroid abuser.

Tim was constantly talked about as being skinny, and small. Well, skinny in what he seemed like when he had civilian clothes anyways. He was lean.

So, yeah, what he looked like a lot didn't match up.

In the 90s and I'm sure other eras, and art styles. You gotta learn to accept the sensibilities at the time, and not let it trick you into thinking something the intention wasn't.

Also 13-year-old Tim definitely isn't meant to be seen as the same size as 15-year-old Jason.

Here's how they're depicted by the same artist in the same story:

While Jim Aparo does have a same face problem, there's a lot of panels where Tim looks entirely generic, and does make Tim more buff in the costume compare to civilian clothes, which is an inconsistency. Not counting how his sizing of Tim is off compared to how George Perez, the guy to draw the proper first appearance of Tim as we know him. He still makes sure Tim is seen as softer, smaller, and far 'cuter' compared to how he depicts Jason on a regular enough bases, that you can tell what Tim is actually meant to look like, when he's trying harder.

(Ignore the Robin in the upper left corner, that is Dick not Jason.)

Jim Aparo was also the artist for most of Jason's Robin run on Batman (The Jason we know, not the Dick Grayson copy.) Which includes Death of the Family, where he's still depicted as being larger than Tim.

While Jim has a clear love for the ever large, imposing Batman. Jason is still taller than Tim, and has quite the mature look to him.

While a bit inconsistent. Jason is just under Bruce's shoulder. While Tim is basically at Bruce's belly button. And Jason is consistently buff while in costume and not. There was even a panel (that I don't have now, but I did once. I have a large Jason post you may be able to find) that showed Jason working out with bar bells. The intention clearly being that he's meant to be a more of a brawler compared to Dick, and later Tim.

So within the art, and the writing, no, Tim is meant to be quite small, and Jason is meant to be quite large. Jason just wasn't allowed to make Batman seem less imposing when around him, as it'd look silly. Certainly in that ridiculous original Robin costume.

Also I just don't care for Red Robin. I think it just wrote in stuff that felt more like sudden changes to validate a sudden decision, more than it did depict Tim in a new chapter of his existence. Therefore I don't like it, nor do I care for what it says.

Chris Yost is more often than not a great writer.

Red Robin to me, is not one of those comics where he is a great writer.

Lot of great ideas, but more executions I don't think work than anything else.

I don't think all comics are equal.

Canon is very weak even when they tried to maintain it.

So for my sake I go purely off of what I interpret to be the intention, and only care for stories that I personally think do a good job at continuing, and developing narratives that feel in-line with the intention.

Because a writer can write what ever they want as long as the editors, and publisher, and who ever else allows it to be released.

If I were to treat every comic as equal these character's personalities and skills would be so inconsistent you'd have to be a world class mental gymnast champion to bother finding reason for it.

I don't personally bother with it, because why would I? If I don't think a story is well written, then I simply don't think it's well written. I don't get anything out of forcing myself to think I like something I don't.

Also I never said Tim is very weak. I don't think he should be very weak. And if I have said something like that, I likely meant it within a context.

I just like it when writers remember that his way of winning fights, is his wits, not his brawn.

You can be talented, and a winner, without being great at everything. Tim isn't relatable when he's great at everything. Do most people practice so much they become great at everything? No, because that isn't realistic. Not that Batman characters are realistic. It tends to go against Tim's point is all, in my eyes at least.

Tim somehow becoming Dick's equal within 3 and a half years, when Dick has been at it for a decade or more, is insanely hard to believe. Especially when Dick is a natural talent, and Tim is not.

If everyone is depicted as talented in the same exact ways, that is extremely boring to me. So I don't care for it.

Why bring up a character being this, this, and that, to never use it? That's pretty lazy, boring writing to me. So when a writer acknowledges how Tim is supposed to win fights, and actually puts the effort into depicting that, I give it praise, because I think it deserves it.

Also, within the specific example you gave: Damian is a genetically altered super warrior, trained from birth, with (I don't know if this is canon anymore, or was ever much of a thing past one story) enhancements grafted into him.

It's way more interesting to me, to have Damian be able to best Tim at normal combat, 'cause of their immensely different upbringings. Rather than simply saying "Tim is older, so he should win". That's not very clever, or fun to think about.

Although proper power scaling in comics is nonsense as well, in my personal opinion, because really, who ever wins is up to the writer. Any writer can have a character can find a way to beat another character. What makes it well-written or not, is if the writer goes through the effort to make it believable within what's established.

Which is why I liked Zdarsky writing Tim to use his wits to best someone who has far more experience and natural talent in one on one combat. It let's Tim beat someone, he probably shouldn't be able to, in a way that's interesting, and true to character.

However you are entirely free to enjoy buff, Red Robin, as talented as the rest of them Tim. I'm not meaning this as anything in the form of disrespect, or anything like that. You're entirely free to enjoy whatever you want.

All I'm saying is, I don't buy it, and I don't think it SHOULD be how Tim is depicted, because it makes him a lot more generic and typical, when I think he's a lot more interesting when writers follow the intentions of him.

I'm not asking for him to be identical to how he is before he even properly starts being Robin.

I ask for consistency, and writing that cares about maintaining what was the charm, and likability, and uniqueness of a character, even through out their developments, so they don't become lost, or lose their identity, a fate that can infect a lot of characters that get writers without those sensibilities.

'Cause a LOT of stuff is considered canon that doesn't match.

And I'm not one of those people that tries to act like "Oh you can't ignore that just because you don't like it' because everyone does. I've never seen someone say that, and not have some complaint about it. I'm a man of honesty, even in times of disagreements.

All respect to you, though.

I'm mainly hoping this doesn't read like a strongly worded letter. When really I'm casually saying all of this. I'm just insanely Autistic and long winded in my own right.

[bellaklak]

topic two: girlhood (week 2)

boyhood

more manhood

very subjective for men

when it comes to masculinity, it’s more open

more impacted by subjectivity

womanhood = collective, manhood = individual

Interesting distinction- girlhood vs womanhood and boyhood vs manhood

sean’s experience

discouraged from soccer because it wasn’t a masculine enough sport

called various derogatory terms at 10 years old when he quit football (fairy, pussy, etc)

people only praise you if you’re successful at something that people care about

sean feels like he’s “winning” the individual competition but he recognizes that his friends/brother feel like they’re losing and that it makes everyone feel bad about their achievements

girls have inherent value in society (maybe bc vessel for childbirth?) but men have to earn/prove themselves to other men

this may come from a feeling that women need to be “protected” or that women are not seen as equals

what is stopping safe spaces from being effective?

femininity and masculinity origins

how impactful is biology to mental health → nature vs nurture?

greyson’s experience

dad’s favorite amongst three sisters (from their perspective)

sisters think that he had different opportunities

always a competitive element during middle/high school

allie broke up with football player, he wanted to beat up greyson even tho she broke up with him

wanting to do well in sports

if u didn’t, it felt like falling short

were interests skewed because of masculinity??

predator makes fun of brutish men

dad worked a lot, stay at home mom

with mom a lot, but liked outdoorsy stuff with dad

joaquin’s experience and open discussion with sean/greyson

what makes someone a man?

based on dad

don’t be dickhead to women

someone who helps others even if it’s hard (self-sacrificial)

provide??

healthcare workers, firefighters, etc

men who show emotions too much become losers

“being okay with things” “complacency” “it is what it is”

man up → mom says to fight bullies

if there’s no solution, it’s not worth it

physical: strength, facial hair, dick size

individual competition

self improvement

fat acceptance pisses a lot of guys off

it’s okay to be weak, not okay to stay weak

women don’t have this view as often

“you’re not even trying”

be better, male rivalry

have a goal

if not, it’s fine but won’t necessarily think you’re masculine

women (studs) can also be masculine

societal idea of hierarchy (group leader)

leaving your life

guy will just leave

joaquin wants to say something but that’s not the norm

end of friendship = expression of emotions

confrontation is scary as a guy

“it’s not that deep”

if they do make a big scene, it’s because you really care

looked down on to vent ur frustrations in a physical manner

women have big drama when leaving

airing out grievances usually at the end of a friendship

doesn’t know if this is true at all

straight guys leaning into queerness to get alt chicks

feel like little problems are a burden to parents

Observe in Action (try searching youtube)

iron claw and video essay

https://youtu.be/cjkL1JQXMEY?si=Q2rGf30bvZ_Gkxo9

emphasis on goals = worth

not given space to process feelings

aversion to “feminine” traits like having feelings

paternal abuse normalized

Make a Thing

[eijiro-kirishima-0810]

Kirishima's Personality

❤️Eijiro is a boisterous and outgoing guy with a fondness for manliness, often using the terms "manly" and "unmanly" to describe things and people he does or doesn't like, respectively. Those who showcase a noble, brave, or determined attitude tend to emotionally move him to tears, quickly earning his complete admiration, respect, and friendship. Similarly, he will call out traits that are the opposite of that, such as cowardice and dirty play. Eijiro himself is determined and selfless, bravely putting the safety of others before himself. He is also a big fan of Crimson Riot, a retro hero from whom he takes inspiration, including personal values and his hero name.❤️

❤️Eijiro is very honest and kind-hearted, having a straightforward way of thinking and following a specific code of chivalry that motivates him to live without regret. Thanks to his respectful and encouraging attitude, he's easily capable of making friends with most people he encounters, particularly those that show as much passion and resolve as he does. Loyal and dedicated to his friends, Eijiro is willing to break laws and rules to help or save them, becoming regretful if he cannot come to their aid. Eijiro has a strong sense of responsibility, sometimes being very hard on himself for any adverse outcomes that befall him or his friends. As such, he's always thinking about further improving his abilities and strengths to not feel weak or burdensome to others.❤️

❤️Eijiro has stated more than once that he does not think very highly of his own Hardening Quirk, thinking it lacks the flashiness usually found in the Pro Hero scene. He will get downright offended if he sees someone with a similar Quirk.❤️

❤️ Eijiro is worried about not having a good enough Quirk for hero work that his skills could not compare to other hero prospects. A lot of this self-doubt seems to have come from an incident in Junior High when Eijiro saw Mina Ashido stop an underclassman from being bullied and save some students from a threatening figure.❤️

❤️Eijiro's friends pointed out that Mina will quickly become a Hero due to her outgoing personality and athletic nature. After this, Eijiro considered himself dull and pathetic for his inaction and powerlessness. However, thanks to an old, recorded interview featuring his idol, Eijiro gained the perspective he needed to regain his composure and overcome most insecurities. From that point on, Eijiro started working, studying, and training diligently.❤️

❤️Eijiro decided to reinvent himself after being accepted into U.A. High, adopting a tough, confident, fiery persona that he considers ideal for the hero he wants to be. Although Eijiro may not be as hot-blooded and competitive as Katsuki Bakugo,  he does not shy away from comparing himself to him, with Izuku stating that the two have managed to develop a relationship between equals. As a result, Eijiro is notably one of the few people that Katsuki holds in higher esteem.❤️

[asseater3k]

Master Chief Madness day 1

(may not actually include master chief)

these are going to be different than MGM for formatting reasons and cause I'm more familiar with halo from a game play and unfortunately a lore stand point specifically reach. while I've spent time with most of these games I've only ever beaten or played to campaign of two of them they were mostly games I'd play at a friend's place. Reach is our starting point though so lets break it down by mission

1: Noble Actual/winter contingency

reach occupies an interesting spot as both a prequel and a finale of sorts being the final game by the original developer bungie as such an opening mission presents some challenges. The key of this mission is it's pacing while it starts quiet and grounded going to inspect a relay outpost that's been damaged, that damage believed to be cause by human rebels, but the game knows you wont be surprised by covenant and doesn't really try to make it a twist instead using tension brought on by the player knowing that funny aliens will show up and builds quietly to a fun set piece where you encounter your first enemies after a quiet trek. This then gently escalates into larger battles and tougher opposition. Pacing and escalation are some of reach's key strengths narratively and they are on display at a small scale here in the first mission. Another strength is its efficient character work reach is not a long campaign and you don't spend an equal amount of time with all the members of noble team, your super solider squad of eventual besties, but the game uses the time you do spend with them to communicate their character to you very well. These are especially deep or complex characters but they are endearing and most importantly feel complete. The way the start of as not to fond of noble 6 but warm up to you as the game goes on. They rely a lot on traditional solider show arch types and sort of play with them a bit Kat the techy member of noble team and its second in command but instead being a dweeb ass she has this very headstrong confidence to her that I really enjoy, Jorge is heavy weapons guy and the only spartan II on your team ( spartans are halos super solider fellows, spartan II’s are probably what you’re thinking about when you picture halo man theyre more hand crafted than mass produced using cool unethical methods to boot they’re also fucking huge, guys like master chief are spartan II’s the noble team is mostly spartan III’s which are less super soldiers and more ex soldiers they aren’t like 8 feet tall and not as busted and are usually sourced from adult soldiers instead of kidnapping children and replacing them with colones that die in three ish years) hes also a big old softy not necessarily unusual for the archetype but interesting in universe as most spartan II’s as a result of being super duper brainwashed are not very dialed in emotionally so Jorge’s sentimentality stands out, Carter the squads leader is mostly just soldier man but has a fun gentleness to him, Jun is the sniper but is interesting in that he doesn’t seem to take much seriously not in a goofy way but an irreverent way, Emile is just a walking Xbox live live avatar hes the least deep as his whole deal is just the 2011 gamer ideal of cool guy.

2: Oni sword base

the second mission consists of defending an office of naval intelligence (ONI) base from a covenant assault this is a very fun and varied mission starting with you and Kat fighting through a tight firefight on the facility’s doorstep before moving on to a fun vehicle section outisde. Halos vehicle controls are strange on pc the slower Turing speed on console gives the camera based Turning a smooth and natural feel that isn’t necessarily present on PC it could be my mouse sensitivity or the fact that I’m coming of playing forza but it tends to feel goofy. After activating defenses and a communication station you and Kat head back to the main facility which is under siege from a covenant corvette you have to make your way to the roof through the inside of the base while dealing with covenant forces when you reach the top you have to blow up a bunch of banshees with rockets and the corvette gets orbitally struck . This mission is quite possibly halo at its mechanical best a well paced run through different systems and environments like all great halo moments it allows for a beautiful flow in the gameplay an open fire fight melts into a great vehicle section and point defense segments which then loops back into the same firefight area that itself transistion into some classic corridor shooting action finished of with a nice action set piece at the end at the end of the mission Jorge congratulates her and then you meet with ONI scientist Dr. Katherine Halsey who’s is pretty important. See ONI and Halsey are actually responsible for the the Spartan program Halsey being the director and master mind with ONI the overseer and providing resources such as the cloned replacement kids for the recently kidnapped super soldiers to be. Halsey is also, an asshole, shitting on noble team through out the meeting with a brief pause to say hello to Jorge who as a sparten II she has more of a connection with although she gives out about his customizations to his armor pretty quickly after though. Halsey mentions that one of the dead scientist from the first mission had found a “latchkey” discovery something that could turn the tide of the human covenant war. This mission is also notable for being the final time in the game you end the mission on a full feel good W.

3. Nightfall

Not much to say about this mission a standard sniper based nighttime trek with jun hes fun but other than that the mission is kind of uninteresting to me and is probably my least favorite mission in the game its not bad or anything its just kind of walking in a straight line towards combat encounters the set up is that you’re running a recon op for Kat to figure out the strength of the covenant forces which your more or less do finding a whole bunch of the lil fockers and plant a bomb on a little radar jammer. It’s mostly a set up for the next mission which is very and we’ll talk about tomorrow

See Ya! Thanks for reading

[thankskenpenders]

IDW Sonic: Imposter Syndrome and #50

It’s finally here! IDW Sonic #50! I waited to talk about the Imposter Syndrome miniseries until after #50 dropped, and it turns out #50 has, uh... well, it’s made a big splash. I’m not sure I’ve seen this many people talking about (and/or arguing over) a single issue of Sonic in a long time.

As expected, in this post I’ll be talking about Surge, Kit, and Starline, but #50 has also given us a ton to chew on regarding Sonic and Eggman, Belle, and the overarching themes of the entire IDW series.

Let’s start out with the miniseries!

IMPOSTER SYNDROME

Surge rules

Can I just say that up front? That’s my main takeaway. Surge fucking rules

She was popular from the very second the first images of her dropped because Evan and Mauro came up with an extremely sick design, and the actual story does not disappoint. She borrows liberally from delinquent rival anime tropes (except, you know, she’s a girl, so it’s instantly even better), but that’s such a natural and fun addition to the Sonic cast that she instantly grabs you

And boy, if the writing and the strength of the design weren’t already enough, Thomas Rothlisberger’s art throughout the arc sure does. I’ve seen a lot of comparisons to Rise of the TMNT, which I can see. But Surge just makes so many good faces, constantly, and everything she does is cool. She’s angry teenage rebellion personified and she’s instantly become one of my favorite characters in the entire franchise, period. (Tangle and Whisper are also up there, so it’s safe to say the IDW comics have an extremely good track record when it comes to comic-original characters.)

Like seriously just look at her faces and tell me she isn’t the best

Kit, AKA “Aw Little Guy!!! Oh He's A Little Bit Fucked Up Actually”

There were always hints that Kit had a sinister side to him - he is a villain, after all - but Surge stole the show at the start of the miniseries. This left Kit mostly as her meager sidekick struggling to please both her and Starline. In this way, he’s a dark reflection of Tails. Where Tails has become more independent over time, becoming more of an equal to Sonic, Kit exists entirely to support Surge. Starline made him this way, because this is how Starline perceives Sonic and Tails’ relationship. Starline doesn’t really understand people despite thinking he does, and this is what ultimately damns all of them

Naturally, this has left Kit kind of fucked up. Over the course of the arc, it becomes clear that he’s probably the scarier of the two. Surge might be stronger, but like Sonic, she wears her emotions and her intentions on her sleeve. But Kit? Kit suppresses his violent urges, until they build to a point where he can’t anymore

(these panels from #50 but still)

Holy shit, Starline???

I touched on Starline’s very meta plan earlier. I would have honestly been happy if Ian and co. had just added these cool new rivals for Sonic and Tails and let them duke it out, because they are, in fact, cool as hell. But the actual plot of the arc is more intriguing than that

Starline has always been a very meta character, with his main trait as a character basically being that he can zoom out and notice patterns in the franchise that other characters either can’t or won’t. He’s the guy who watches a movie and says how he would make smarter decisions than the characters the whole time. Early on, he did this with Eggman. He tried to “fix” Eggman’s methods so that he could finally succeed in beating Sonic and taking over the world, but this didn’t work out, and Eggman kicked him to the curb. He then decided that he would simply go solo and take over the world for Eggman. He finally reveals his true plan for doing so here: create his own “heroes” who can replace Sonic and Tails, the main heroes who always stand in the way of “progress” (Eggman taking over the world). In theory, this will allow Starline to control the hero/villain dynamic from both sides, ending the cycle of Eggman trying to “change the world” and Sonic stopping him

And of course, Starline calls this cycle he intends to break...

“The Sonic Cycle.”

I love you Ian

It quickly becomes apparently, though, that Starline’s plan here is, uh. Extremely fucked up! Wow! Early on it’s revealed that Starline has repeatedly been “rebooting” Surge and Kit. Any time the cracks start to show in their conditioning and they question their life stories, Starline’s orders, or their innate desires to defeat Sonic and Tails, Starline edits their memories. They do start to put two and two together, though, and eventually they learn the truth: they’re just two random kids Starline kidnapped and experimented on. They don’t remember their actual pasts, and Starline didn’t bother to keep track of who they originally were because he doesn’t care. They’ve been modified with cyborg endoskeletons and even have some of the Metal Virus in them, making them nigh-unkillable. Which Starline tested by... well, killing them repeatedly to make sure they always bounced back.

This is... so much darker than I would have ever expected? But in a fantastic way. It makes Starline SO absolutely despicable, and it gives Surge and Kit this pathos that makes you want to root for them, even as they set out to go rogue and burn the whole world down. Surge is very much set up as her own antihero in the buildup to her showdown with Sonic, which is a choice that I think leads to some fascinating character juxtaposition when it finally happens in issue #50.

Really, my only complaint about the miniseries was that the marketing made it seem like Sonic and Tails would be dealing with these two sooner, when in reality this is all the setup. The extremely hype wrestling promos for the climactic Wrestlemania that is Sonic #50. (My other complaint, I suppose, is that IDW is still having multiple artists trade off in a single story, which can be a bit jarring. But that’s a publisher-wide issue.)

But MAN. When we finally do get that big showdown? It does not disappoint.

SONIC #50

As with Imposter Syndrome, I went in expecting Sonic and Tails to fight Surge and Kit. And we absolutely got that with this extra-long issue penciled by Adam Bryce Thomas. Adam’s always been an A-lister on the IDW series, especially when it comes to bombastic shounen manga-inspired battles, but this issue might just be his best Sonic work yet

But like I said at the start, the issue is more than just some cool fights.

Sonic vs. Surge

Surge’s entire life, or at least what little of her life she can remember thanks to Starline, has been building up to this moment. Whoever she was before is gone, replaced with one purpose. She’s been impatiently awaiting the day she's finally allowed to fight Sonic to the death. We’ve followed her through Starline’s inhumane training, the audience being equally antsy after months of buildup. At long last, she confronts him. She delivers an impassioned speech about what she stands for, how she curses the world that discarded her, how she’s going to tear Sonic and anyone else who stands in her way a new one...

And Sonic... doesn’t really give that much of a shit.

They do fight, of course. Boy, do they ever. But Sonic has never met this girl before and has no animosity towards her. He’s also done this too many times and would like to skip to the part where they’re friends, or at least frenemies. And this is just... tragic for Surge. For her, this is the most important day in her life. But for Sonic, it’s Tuesday. For Surge, this is a duel to the death. But Sonic, ever the unflappably positive shounen protagonist, is just having fun fighting someone who keeps him on his toes. He refuses to validate her on her terms.

(There are also a lot of interesting parallels with Tails’ simultaneous fight with Kit, where the kindhearted Tails is trying to be extremely nice and defuse the situation when he realizes that Kit is just some poor, fucked up kid. But instead of going on my own tangent I’ll link this very good TikTok analyzing Sonic’s social skills and the interesting ways his blunt, brash attitude can clash with the fact that he does genuinely care a lot.)

I even feel like Adam’s art is playing up the idea that Sonic’s attitude continues to make him the villain for Surge. His speech about his ideals places him above Surge, with a smug expression on his face and sunbeams shining down over him. Adam’s own (extremely sick) variant cover is framed very similarly, showing us the smug and above-it-all Sonic from Surge’s perspective.

Why does Surge think Sonic is so holier-than-thou? And why does she still care about fighting him if she just wants to defy Starline’s brainwashing? Well, she directly calls out his belief in the power of second chances, blaming Sonic for her very existence. Which ties back into what’s become one of the main recurring themes of the IDW series.

Sonic’s Characterization

As Ian’s explained, Sonic’s characterization in the IDW series has been informed by a number of factors. For one, more compassionate heroes are just landing better with audiences these days, including in shounen manga. Your Dekus, your Tanjiros, etc. But beyond that, Sega explicitly forbids Sonic and friends from proactively seeking out Eggman. Sonic is never looking for a fight. Eggman simply causes trouble, Sonic shows up to stop him, and he returns to being a free-spirited roamer.

Really, Sonic’s attitude in the current comics isn’t much different from how he acts in the games. Ian just decided to draw more attention to this behavior, and turn it into an explicit character trait that impacts the story.

I don’t really know what games people have been playing where Sonic DOESN’T act like this? Sure, there are a few games where a villain dies. There are always going to be counterexamples in a series as inconsistent as this. But look at how many characters Sonic has given second chances, and how lightly Sonic often takes threats to the world. Shadow was trying to blow up the damn planet and Sonic was still just having fun racing him on the ARK. Chaos destroyed a whole major metropolitan city and Sonic is like “hold on, Chaos is just hurt, we need to break this cycle of violence.” He’s ended up working with Eggman plenty of times to stop a greater threat. Even when this doesn’t happen, Eggman tends to just fly away at the end. Sonic never hunts him down. Again, Sega forbids him from doing this. It’s not in his character. The IDW comics just explore why.

At the same time, bad faith criticisms of Sonic’s willingness to give villains second chances tend to ignore the very important second part of this mantra, which this issue has Sonic spell out explicitly. Yes, he believes in giving people personal freedom. But the second they use that freedom to hurt people, Sonic is going to beat their asses again. He doesn’t have qualms about using violence in that way. He is, by no definition of the word, a pacifist. Sonic understands that Surge is traumatized, and tries to give her the chance to back down. She refuses, so he kicks her ass, because she’s a threat. Sonic sort of took mercy on the Zeti, in that he didn’t fucking execute them or whatever... but they also got banished back to the Lost Hex where they can’t hurt anyone. Tails disarmed Metal Sonic before they let him go. Sonic let Eggman go only because he had amnesia and Mr. Tinker was, by all accounts, a literal different person. The second he came back? Sonic gladly went right back to blowing his shit up. He is not out here handwringing about Eggman Empire property damage, he’s destroying his bases and smashing his mechs again.

Sonic also isn’t just any regular guy, and can’t always be judged as such. He’s a larger-than-life hero. He’s the embodiment of freedom, of endless adventure, of the power of friendship, of other idealized... well, ideals. This is the very core of his character. He’s the unshakably positive hero who never blinks in the face of danger, who the other, more realistically fallible characters can lean on. He’s a force of nature. He’s not perfect, and he doesn’t always handle things the right way, and other characters will bring up valid counterpoints to his way of life. Like other shounen heroes like Goku or Luffy, he might be a hero due to his actions, but he’s not concerned about being the world’s savior or its god. He doesn’t want to dictate how people live their lives. He leaves decisions about how to run society to other, smarter people, like the Restoration. He just wants to be free to go on adventures and to help his friends when they’re in need. His theme song spells out his whole deal, clear as day: It doesn’t matter who’s wrong and who’s right. He’s just living by his own feelings, and he won’t give in, won’t compromise. He only has a steadfast heart of gold.

Surge can’t stand this, though. The two just can’t see eye to eye. And so she zaps Sonic when he takes a time out in their fight to help her out of a chasm, getting the last laugh and seemingly falling to her doom. “That’s the real problem with giving people a choice,” Sonic solemnly says. “You can’t stop them from making the wrong ones.”

The Bigger Problem

Beyond any fandom bickering over how Sonic should or shouldn’t be characterized, though, this is part of a larger problem that I’ve seen way too frequently in recent years. Adults are engaging with genre fiction for children, and then getting upset when the child protagonists fail to model what they perceive as proper behavior for adults. Particularly, adults are seeing child protagonists learn to solve conflicts nonviolently, or even merely refusing to kill a villain, and interpreting this media as a political playbook for adults telling them that punching Nazis is bad.

That’s not to say that children’s media is never political, of course, or that you can never judge it through a political lens. (Back in the Archie days the direct political allegories were NOT subtle.) But just because some cartoon villains are obvious stand-ins for fascists doesn’t mean that every cartoon with a world-conquering villain is trying to tell you, an adult, how you should deal with fascists, or murderers, or whatever bad faith comparison critics on YouTube and Twitter want to make this time.

This will hopefully be insultingly obvious to most people reading this, but fiction isn’t always literally about the thing it’s depicting, or the closest real world equivalent. In genre fiction, and especially genre fiction for kids, reality is heightened. A fight for the fate of the city or the world or the universe isn’t necessarily about world-scale threats in real life like fascism, or even about real world violent conflicts in general. It’s often more about the emotions than what’s literally happening on screen. In a musical, when the emotions get too strong for words, they break out into song. In an action cartoon, when the emotions get too strong between conflicting characters, they fight. The fantastical violence is just the medium through which the story is conveyed. They trade blows and express their feelings.

Similarly, when the child hero in a series for children saves the day by hugging the right person, or when a villain is redeemed, or when Naruto espouses the power of friendship and uses Talk no Jutsu for the hundredth time, that isn’t telling you, a 30-year-old, that you can go out right now and save America by giving Mitch McConnell a hug. The morals of these stories aren’t necessarily supposed to apply to world-scale conflicts because children are not responsible for saving the world in real life. Instead, the lessons apply more to conflicts that children do deal with. Disputes with friends, or family members, or teachers. Things like that. It’s telling kids that hey, maybe you’ve been mean to people, maybe you’ve acted wrong, but you can learn from your mistakes and do better. That is what lessons about trying to resolve conflicts peacefully, talking about your feelings, empathizing with others, and giving people second chances are supposed to be about. They (usually) aren’t intended as political playbooks for adults telling you not to punch a Nazi, because the people telling these stories are probably hoping that adults aren’t modeling their political behavior after Cartoon Network and Shonen Jump.

But while I generally enjoy this compassionate take on the Sonic series, there is one part of the issue that felt weaker when it comes to the heroes showing compassion towards the villains.

Belle and Metal

If there’s one character from the games that I think Ian has always struggled with more than others, it’s probably Metal Sonic. Of course, not every writer is going to gel with every character, especially on a licensed series where you’re working with someone else’s cast. (Lord knows if I was to write a Sonic series I would play favorites lmao.) And Ian’s definitely put out some great Metal Sonic stories. But he’s also prone to boiling the character down to a simple killer robot for Sonic and co. to repeatedly defeat without any interiority.

Belle has also been a contentious character throughout this season. I’ll reiterate that I think Belle is great, and the big emotional beats with her have been strong. I would say the mixed response to Belle is primarily a matter of pacing, more than anything else. As Evan explained over on her blog, Belle's backstory was originally just going to be a short one-off. When the 2021 Annual was replaced with the Classic Sonic special, Belle’s story got turned into the main overarching subplot connecting the stories of the third season. I do like a lot of the storytelling this allowed for. The buildup to the reveals in the Test Run arc, and her ensuing tearful breakdown; her questioning of her very nature as a Badnik; her heroic moments in Trial by Fire where she’s finally able to prove herself. It’s good stuff! Character arcs like this are why original characters are added to the comics in the first place. But I can also see how the slow and somewhat repetitive rollout of information and emotional beats is a bit much over a year and a half of comics, and it was a little odd to have her stick around as the only consistent main character for every single arc of the season as soon as we met her. But I still enjoyed her arc this season as a whole.

No, where I start to be more mixed on the direction of Belle as a character is this issue. Previously, Belle had made it her mission to try and save as many Badniks as she could. I understand her motivation, and I do think this has potential to be a fun premise. Badniks are EXTREMELY underutilized in the tie-in fiction, and anyone in this corner of the fandom who’s following artists like Hydro knows how fun it is to have Badnik characters around.

But the problem is, of course... if we start to recognize the Badniks that Sonic destroys casually as people, doesn’t that make it wrong for him to destroy them?

I guess it depends on the context, and how it’s executed in the future. Like, Motobud was fine because that’s not just A Motobug, but one that was specifically reprogrammed by Mr. Tinker to be friendly. But what’s Belle’s endgame here? Where is the line drawn between robots that need to be saved and simple obstacles for Sonic to pop in action sequences?

To me, we start to see the cracks in issue #50 with Belle’s attempts to save Metal Sonic. Metal is certainly no stranger to redemption arcs and characters trying to see the good in him - the OVA basically defined him as a character. But still. It’s admirable for Belle to see a robot who’s hurt and want to help, but the sympathy shown for Metal is laying it on a bit thick for me given Ian’s usual characterization of him as a missile with legs. Sonic already let him go once early in the series, but that was specifically because he thought Eggman was gonna remain Mr. Tinker forever at the time, and he and Tails also made sure not to restore his full fighting abilities. (”We’re compassionate, not stupid.”) But in this very different context, with a very different character, it’s just... eh, it didn’t sell me on this as a wise use of Belle’s compassion. If she wants to help the “abandoned” Eggman bots, Metal is very much not one of those. He just happened to have been hurt by Surge when they found him.

Not the end of the world, but it’s the weak part of what’s otherwise an amazing issue, and I worry that Belle showing complete and total sympathy towards every Eggman robot may get old fast. But, like I said, it will depend entirely on the execution. Maybe she’ll only single out the oddballs like herself and Motobud. It may not even be a huge element of the story moving forward, since I know Evan’s outright said Belle would be taking more of a backseat now that her initial arc is completed. (It also seems like Eggman wants to take advantage of the fact that she interfaced with Metal, so her kindness here may backfire...)

If anything, though, I do like the little awkward family reunion where Belle is telling Eggman that she’s done hoping he’ll go back to being Mr. Tinker and is gonna go live her own life and Metal is just kind of standing there because he won’t attack another Eggman creation.

Anyway! I can’t believe I haven’t mentioned the giant robot fight

Starline’s Final Comeuppance

Sonic’s ideals, as explained in his fight with Surge, are also directly contrasted with Starline as he fights Eggman. Sonic stands for personal freedom, for better or worse, but Starline stands for total control, even more so than Eggman. He tries to manipulate people and the very story he exists in to steer everyone in the totalitarian direction he thinks is best. Anything outside of his narrative doesn’t matter. Even as Eggman is fighting him in a giant mech, he’s still under the impression that his actions are justified, that Eggman will be okay with being a pawn in his scheme so long as they get their happy ending ruling the world.

Instead, he loses a sick-ass mech fight, he’s humiliated worse than ever before, and then he dies!

I actually didn’t read it as a death at first because being crushed by rubble is such an easy “death” to write around, and it’s, you know, a comic book. Nobody stays dead in comic books. (We already know Surge survives this issue, regardless of how it looked.) But Ian did, indeed, intend for this to be Starline’s death. He also admits that that’s not entirely up to him since he’s not the only person making story decisions, so I won’t be surprised if he comes back in a year or two. Regardless, as much as I like the character, this is probably the most fitting death Starline possibly could have had. He thought he could outsmart Eggman, and the very nature of the series he’s in. Some readers, too, have accused Ian of writing Eggman as too much of a bumbling oaf in the IDW comics, especially with Starline always pointing out his mistakes. Even the marketing for this arc seems to have played into this, asking if Eggman would “bumble his way to a victory”

All this for the ultimate slam dunk in this issue where Ian definitively reminds us that, even if he can never beat Sonic... no one else can definitively beat Eggman, either.

Because Eggman fucking rules

I said at the top that Starline is damned because he doesn’t understand people as well as he thinks he does. He creates Surge and Kit as dark and deeply broken reflections of Sonic and Tails because he so fundamentally misunderstands how their dynamic works. He thinks he understands Eggman, too, but he doesn’t. He may consider himself Eggman’s #1 fan, but he’s a toxic fanboy with faulty criticisms. He’s CinemaSins. He focuses on the details and the logic, he nitpicks, and he thinks he could do everything better if given the opportunity. He thinks he understands the nature of the series he’s in, but he fails to see the big pictures, the heart. He doesn’t understand why Sonic is really the hero beyond his strength and bravado. He doesn’t understand why Tails is a hero beyond his ability to support Sonic. And he doesn’t understand why, despite his many mistakes, Eggman will always endure as the true big bad of this world. And this leads to his downfall at the hands of his idol

I could say more about this issue and the ones that lead to it! I have obviously already said way too much. I’m gonna cut it off here!

Even with all the hype to live up to, this was an extremely satisfying issue of Sonic. One of the best in a long, long time. This one’s gonna stick with people. I have my quibbles, but it really has it all. Action, humor, drama, heart, stunning artwork, and a whole lot of character work to think about. Can’t really ask for more, can I?

[luimagines]

Chain Love Language Headcanons

Masterlist

Self explanatory people!

This time I’ll dive a bit into what love languages the chain will be most inclined to exhibit to their loved ones.

First ones are the ones I personally headcanon and the second are the second result of taking this quiz in their stead.

Let’s go down the list!

Hyrule

I’ve talked about this already, multiple times actually, but oh well.

His biggest way to show his love for others is through Physical Touch.

Whether it’s a hand on the shoulder or an arm around you or hugs or hand holding- you name it- he’ll do it.

The next biggest thing would probably be Quality Time.

He doesn’t have a lot of friends and he has low enough confidence to almost expect to be brushed aside and forgotten- sometimes he tries to let it happen on purpose. 

So take the time to listen to him and include him on things and be close to him.

He appreciates it when someone takes the time to pay attention to him and wants to do something with him even if it’s as simple as checking out an old cave or what shined in the distance.

Be his travel buddy, yeah?

Twilight

Twilights would be Acts of Service.

He likes to feel helpful and useful and knows that there’s a lot that he’s capable of doing so he might as well be the one to do it.

He doesn’t want the people he cares about to work too hard or struggle so he offers his assistance whenever he can. (Watch for this, he can be prone to double book himself and take on more than he can chew).

The next biggest thing would probably be Quality Time.

It’s special for him when he can be with someone he cares about and do something or nothing and just exist next to each other.

He like to listen to people when they talk about things and when they listen to him in return just because they want to- even if neither of you know or care about wat the other person is talking about.

Or even if you get to do something together, anything.

Fishing, horse back riding, strolling through Kakariko Village, hiking- just spend time with him.

Four

Four’s love language would be Acts of Service as well.

He’s a man who always has to have his hands moving. He’s always doing something- he always has to be productive- he has to always be making something.

So he’s quick to put himself to work so that the people he cares about don’t have much to worry about. His brain works too fast for him to keep up with some stuff and he naturally shoulders a lot of work anyway. And if someone helps him out with a project he was struggling with of with the chores around the house that he wasn’t to attend to?

Well he’s bound to repay you tenfold.

He doesn’t make the rules just abides by them.

The next biggest thing would probably be Gift Giving/Receiving.

If this boy receives gifts of any kind he’s going to treasure them forever.

It’s going to go on display (if it can).

and since he’s always on the move with his projects, he’s going to constantly be making things for his friends and loved ones. Small things, big things, things they need to work with or repairing their tools and so on- or just getting them new ones all together- you name it.

Legend

Legend’s love language I think would fit best under Quality Time.

He doesn’t have a lot of friends, he doesn’t have a lot of family.

His whole life has been making connections and losing them either through circumstance or through the passage of time- his life has been nothing but goodbyes.

He cherishes the moments he gets to spend with the people he cares about.

Please spend time with him.

His second would probably be Words of Affirmation.

Similarly with the first one, he’s used to being on a deadline, a set amount of time he can spend with a person and he’s tired of getting to the end and looking back and wishing he could have said something different and or told them something else.

He’s quiet when he tells others that he cares about them- he’s got a large pride that keep him from screaming from the rooftops, but he appreciates it when he’s told that people care about him.

He gets in his head that he’s not good enough, that people don’t care and he’s going to be on his own time and time again.

Please tell him you love him and care about him.

He doesn’t have any one to tell him that they’re proud of him.

If he says that he cares about you, he means it.

Wild

Wild’s love language would probably be Words of Affirmation.

A lot of people write him as being the quietest of the group but hear me out.

He still communicates and he’s loves so much, and he’s not going to be silenced anymore in what he thinks either through sign or his voice.

He’ll tell others he loves then, cares about them, that he’d do anything for them and he’d tell them often.

It means more to him if others tell him something of equal of greater value.

He didn’t get to hear a lot of praise and acceptance growing up and even less so when he joined the guard. It was always things he was expected to do and he had to do it without complaint.

Let him know you care.

His second love language would probably be Quality Time.

He’s spent a lot of time on his adventure alone.

And he wants to share the so much of the world he got to experience with the people he cares about. 

He’s lost a lot of people close to him as well and he doesn’t want to take anyone else’s time on earth for granted. It once seemed like they would be around him forever, but now?

He wants to do everything and see everything and he wants to show you as well.

Even if it’s a simply as horseback riding together or just chilling out as it rains- or he goes to catch frogs in the river, he just wants to spend time with the people he cares about, he happens to have a lot of it now so he wants to put it to good use.

Time

Time’s love language would be Receiving/Giving Gifts.

He didn’t get a lot of things for himself as a child and the things that were given to him were of high importance.

It was ingrained in him to cherish and protect the things given to him with his life if need be. He’s more appreciative of the little things though when people give him a small gift that reminded them of him.

Smaller gifts over one large is more his speed.

He doesn’t need much to be happy but he likes giving things to others as a way of showing his love and hoping that they’ll cherish them as much as he cherishes the things he receives.

His second love language would probably be Acts of Service.

He’s always felt the need to be useful and there’s little that he can do.

Besides his time and energy is another way to give someone a gift right?

Even if it’s not the physical sense where he would have close to nothing to actually give you, he might as well give his strength and body and power to those he loves, to protect them, to make sure they’re safe and warm and never needing anything- so that they’re never without.

Don’t let him over work himself because he will.

Warrior

Warrior’s love language would be Act of Service.

He has a weird relationship with it though.

Because it’s always with underlying feeling of still not being enough- there’s more for him to do, everyone is relying on him and he can’t fail his loved ones so he has to give it his all in everything.

He doesn’t even realize he’s doing it more than have the time so you’re going to have to tell him to calm down. He just everyone he loves to be safe and happy and healthy and it ends up running him ragged half the time.

That being said, his second love language is Words of Affirmation.

Because he’s working so hard for the people he loves, he would rather hear that they’re proud of him and that they love him. 

He’s quick to sprout pet names and sweet nothings to his lover and he wants them to know that he cares about them so this guy doesn’t shut up about his love ever.

He’d leave a note for them to find their work place to let them know that he cares about them.

And he tells them daily. 

He’s quick to tell people how much he appreciates them and how important they are to him.

He knows it keeps people going and he never wants to see his loved ones give up.

Wind

Wind’s love language would be Physical Touch.

He’s always hugging someone or holding onto their arms or their hands, it’s just how he like to be close to people.

His sister tends to grab onto his hand at random intervals so he’s used to it and even grows into doing it to other people.

It’s how he shows that he feels safe with people and how he wants to keep those he cares about within reach in case he ever needs to protect them.

His second love language would be Quality Time.

There’s not a whole of people out on the sea and he’s spend a good portion of his adventures traveling alone and even then, it’s just him, his grandma and his sister.

With everyone going out to do their own thing, it’s hard to find someone who will take the time to do things with him so he appreciate any and every bit of attention he can get from other people.

Sky

Sky’s love language would be Receiving/Giving Gifts.

People on Skyloft are not shy about showing affection for one another.

Handholding and hugs and just telling people you’re important to them are all common place.

It’s not a big deal.

But Sky like to go the extra step beyond to give the people he cares about a small token of his love, so that even when he’s not around to say it, or show it, it’s a little reminder that he cares about them.

And yes, this implies he’d little love notes around for his love to find just because he wants to.

His second love language would be Quality Time.

He just likes being around people and it’s the time when he can tell and show people that he care about them.

It’s the time where he can say he cares and hug the people he cares about- they don’t even have to be doing anything- for all they could be doing is going flying together as the sun sets- he lives for the little moments.

Definitely the kind of guy to be up in the kitchen at 3 am, slow dancing with his lover as they take a break from making cookies.

[kpopfanfictrash]

Raise the Barre (Ch. 8)

Author: kpopfanfictrash

Pairing: Jimin / Reader

Rating: 18+ (Eventual Smut)

Genre: Enemies to Lovers / Dance Academy!AU

Warnings: underage drinking, angst, hoseok’s bare abs

Word Count: 10,705

Summary: You and Park Jimin have been rivals for as long as you’ve known one another; ever since he tripped you in the front row of your first dance convention. When you graduate from high school and enter Russet Ballet Academy, you tell yourself you’re leaving all past quarrels behind. The main problem with this though, is that your past seems determined not to leave you alone.

Worse still, the obstacles you face while out in the real world might prove more challenging than anything your enemy has to offer.  

“Okay, even you have to admit this is too soon.” Finn stared, appalled at the chalkboard. “It’s not even Halloween!”

Laughing a little, you looped your arm around his to drag him towards the back. Plopping down in a chair, you placed your order number in the center of the table. Seating himself across the table from you, Finn began to undo his coat.

“Come on.” He grinned, brown hair flopping when he leaned forward. “Admit it – this is too early for holiday drinks.”

“Okay, maybe it’s a little early,” you acquiesced. “But Halloween is tomorrow! They probably just put up the holiday drinks so they don’t have to do it on Sunday.”

“Laziness!” he cried, jabbing a finger in the air.

Shaking your head, you smiled when Namjoon, the barista, placed a pumpkin soy latte before you.

“Thanks!” you said, pulling this towards you.

“No problem,” he said, flashing his dimples before he turned to leave.

Taking a long, slow sip of your drink, you groaned. “Oh my god. This is it. This is heaven.”

Finn laughed. “Is that seriously your first pumpkin drink of the season?” Sadly, he shook his head. “I remember our senior year, you dragged me out of bed at 7:00 AM on a Saturday just to get the first pumpkin drink of the year.”

“I know,” you sighed. “But I’ve needed the extra caffeine jolt each morning. Sweet drinks just don’t cut it anymore.”

“Ah, the first step in addiction.” Finn nodded sagely.

Smiling, you settled back in your seat as he took the first sip of his black coffee. It had been two weeks since your fight at the club and since then, Finn had been on his best behavior. For about a week, things between you had been awkward but slowly, your relationship was returning to normal.

Seated in the corner of your favorite coffee shop, you drank from your cup and glanced around the room. This was what you’d pictured when you imagined you and Finn living in the city together. Coffee dates, going on new adventures and continuing your relationship where it had left off.

Of course, this morning was only possible because Miss Britt’s ballet class had been cancelled. A contemporary master class had been scheduled for the afternoon, but your day before then was free – something you’d immediately taken advantage of by calling Finn. It was becoming easier to fit each other into your schedules, more like second nature, but things were still tense whenever things didn’t line up.

None of this was eased by the burgeoning whatever-it-was you’d shoved to the back of your mind regarding Jimin. Since the day of Mr. Vlad’s ballet class, you’d managed to keep your emotions in check, but were constantly on the lookout for dangerous situations. You and Jimin were professionals, obviously, but you were also only human. It was reasonable to have subconscious wants and desires, but these weren’t important unless you chose to act upon them.

You didn’t tell Finn about it because honestly, there was nothing to tell. Okay, so you’d felt an errant spark one day during a lift. Big deal. Finn had been your boyfriend for over two years – it would take more than that to threaten your relationship. A relationship which, frankly, had been getting stronger as of late. Telling him something as inconsequential as a spark you had with Jimin would only take you further down the wrong path.

“Are you sure you’re okay with us doing separate things tomorrow?” Finn interrupted your thoughts. His brow furrowed. “It is Halloween, after all.”

“Ah, yes.” You nodded. “Halloween, the internationally known couple’s holiday.”

He laughed. “Okay, point made – but still.”

“It’s fine,” you assured him. This was something you’d already been over. “It just makes sense like this! Your friends are going to that off-campus party and I promised Noelle I’d go to this club thing with her.”

“Right, of course.” Finn grinned. “I’m bummed I’ll miss seeing you as the Powerpuff girls, though. Who’s going to be the third one, again?”

“Well, I’m Blossom – obviously.”

“Of course.” He nodded. “Miss Responsibility.”

A twinge of annoyance went through you, but you pushed it aside. You didn’t think you were always the responsible one but admittedly, you’d been more on edge than usual lately.

“Anyways,” you continued with a roll of your eyes. “I’m Blossom, Noelle is Buttercup and Irene is going as Bubbles. It’ll be fun! Aside from the whole club part, of course.”

“It does sound fun,” Finn admitted, a tad mournful. “Meanwhile, I’ve been roped into the classic college bro costume of Ghostbusters.”

“Oh, come on! That is classic! You’ll be super cute in your… suit? Cargo pants? What do Ghostbusters wear again?”

“Knowing Ben, something tragic from Party City. Pray for me.”

“I’ll light candles.”

Finn grinned, sipping his coffee again and your conversation slipped naturally to other topics.

Halloween fell on a Saturday this year, which meant every college campus was gearing up for some epic parties. Noelle had managed to snag tickets to a club fancy enough to require an RSVP. Apparently, said brother she missed was a DJ and could get tickets to a lot of things if Noelle bothered to ask.

A bunch of people from Russet were going, which made you excited. There hadn’t been many parties with your classmates so far this semester. Despite technically being in college, your classmates were all under the same intense pressure, only made worse by constant early morning ballet.

This week though, even your teachers seemed to have decided you needed a break. Aside from the master class you had this afternoon, there were zero Russet classes until Monday morning. The break in schedule meant you could actually go out – and drink – if you so decided. You and Noelle were planning on attending a ballet class tomorrow, but your entire day after would be free.

You’d originally planned on seeing Finn during the day, but then he’d been invited to a Halloween darty (day party) starting at noon. Despite not seeing Finn on Halloween, you weren’t feeling stressed. It was only one holiday and not even a couple’s one, as you’d said.

After coffee, you kissed Finn goodbye and headed to class at Danley Hall. The atmosphere was different as soon as you entered the classroom – all of the students were buzzing, excited by the prospect of the weekend ahead. The excitement only grew when coupled with the fact that today’s class was contemporary.

For nearly two months, your training had been mostly ballet. This was the foundation of all western dance, and where most dance students were expected to start. Finally though, you were being given a chance to show off. Today’s teacher, Luna Jordan, was a well-known contemporary choreographer across the globe.

You’d done a master class with her once back in high school and honestly couldn’t wait to learn from her again. She wasn’t alone, though, you noticed as you walked in – an unfamiliar, dark-haired guy stood beside her, stretching lithely before the room’s mirror.

“Holy shit,” Noelle whispered as she came to a stop. “That’s Jeon Jungkook.”

Startled, you looked twice and saw she was right. You hadn’t recognized him without his bevy of followers, but Jeon Jungkook was known in the dance world. A child prodigy, he’d been on America’s Got Talent at age eleven and finished in second place. Following this, his family had moved to LA and he’d been in high demand for movies, music videos and performances ever since.

You remembered hearing he worked with Luna Jordan, but the thought hadn’t crossed your mind before now that he might be here.

Noelle cocked her head to one side. “He’s hot.”

“Noelle,” you hissed, trying to shush her.

“What!” A devious grin spread across her face. “Am I supposed to be blind, as well as mute?”

“Well, no, but –”

“Alright, everyone!” Miss Luna clapped her hands together. “I know everyone is excited for the weekend, but we unfortunately have an hour and a half together before then. Everyone spread out for warm-ups!”

A few people laughed, spreading out on the floor as class began. Noelle wriggled her eyebrows, pulling you towards the front in order to get the best spot. Hiding a smile, you ducked your head and settled beside her into a stretch.

Noelle was nearly as excited as you were for the opportunity to dance contemporary. Most of your classmates knew this to be your forte – you caught glances from the corner of your eye while you warmed up, trying not to let their attention get to your head.

Jimin was also near the front, although on the opposite side. You suspected your class was equally excited to see him perform – as talented as Jimin was at ballet, there was a reason you hadn’t thought he’d be at Russet this fall. Jimin’s strength in jazz and contemporary was unparalleled. You would’ve thought he’d gone to LA to become a dancer like Jungkook.

Speaking of whom – Jungkook really was attractive; that much couldn’t be denied. He had dark, wavy hair pulled into a bun and cheekbones sharp enough to cut glass. When he glanced up from his stretch, his gaze somehow found yours and he smiled.

Eyes widening, you stared until you caught sight of Jimin behind him. Glancing between the two of you, Jimin’s expression soured before he looked away. Lips parting, you felt the sudden urge to say something, but there was too much distance between you.

“You ready?” Miss Luna called, an upbeat pop song blasting from the stereo. “Let’s go!”

She launched into isolations, leaving the rest of the class to follow. Warm-ups passed quickly and before you knew it, you were gathered at center to learn the combination. Miss Luna’s style was right up your alley. The steps came easily and, once you’d learned the whole chorus, she left you alone to practice.

You were helping Ari with a difficult move when you caught sight of Sabrina as you turned. She’d positioned herself near the back, which had to be a first. Usually, Sabrina was front and center to allow for maximum receipt of teacher praise.

The decision to stand near the back could’ve been strategy – sometimes, dancers did that at conventions. Conventions were giant weekends of competition with teachers from all over the globe who taught master classes to hundreds of dancers in hotel ballrooms and convention centers. Space at the front tended to be limited, so some stayed at the back, where there was more room to dance and be seen. You had a greater likelihood to capture the teacher’s attention when you had the room to do incredible leaps.

Sabrina’s decision didn’t seem strategic, though. While you watched, Sabrina stumbled transitioning from one move to the next. A brief twinge of pity went through you.

It was easy enough to spot ballerinas dancing anything but ballet. Although ballet was the root of modern westernized dance, it could be hard to translate into other styles. Ballet was more rigid than contemporary, jazz or hip-hop. In ballet, each position was defined, individual style was limited, and dancers were expected to all look the same. Standing out in the corps de ballet was equally frowned upon as missing an entrance.

Not that ballet wasn’t important to all dance styles, mind you. Even hip-hop dancers took ballet to improve their balance, core strength and general understanding of the body. There was an element of individuality in other dance styles, though, which lacked in ballet. Contemporary and hip-hop dancers were expected to have relentless technique all while creating their own, unique flair.

Just looking at Sabrina you could clearly see the holes. She was trying so hard to emulate the moves of Miss Luna, she was kind of missing the point. When Miss Luna did a certain flick of the wrist, it wasn’t a defined part of the choreography, but rather an individual choice.

Without thinking, you took a step forward – only to stop. Sabrina wouldn’t want your help; she’d already made that abundantly clear. Besides, you knew her friend Katie to be a contemporary dancer. She could help Sabrina and yet, when you looked, you saw Katie practicing near the front with Jungkook.

Jungkook obviously knew the steps, since this was probably the tenth time he’d learned the combination. Dance teachers often did that – selected a dancer to attend classes with them, traveling to different cities to demonstrate the combination and help when they weren’t free.

Before you could decide whether to help Sabrina, Miss Luna clapped her hands again.

“Let’s do groups!” she declared. “I’ll count you off into groups of four, and each group will showcase. Sound good?”

It wasn’t really a question so much as an announcement. The rest of the class nodded, waiting while Miss Luna counted you off. You ended up in the same group as Irene, Paulo and a few others. Jimin and Noelle were in the group two, while Sabrina was in the group after theirs.

Jogging off to the side, you waited while the first group took center. You were part of group four, which meant you’d be amongst the last to dance on the floor. When the music began, you closed your eyes and began to mark the combination. You tried not to focus on what anyone else was doing, but this became difficult once Noelle’s group stepped up.

Noelle had trained in jazz and contemporary, although she’d stopped in high school to focus mainly on ballet. Still, her artistry shone in her movement. She could definitely stand to loosen up a bit but was still one of the best in the bunch. You found yourself smiling when she landed a turn, silently cheering her on from the side.

While you were watching, Jimin cut across your vision.

Dropping to the ground, he rolled and arched as his forehead brushed wood. His quality of movement was breathtaking and for a moment, you felt like you were back in high school.

Suddenly returned to those dimmed auditoriums, you watched Jimin take the stage like an otherworldly being. His body seemed to move before your mind could comprehend. Barely did he finish one move before he was starting another, the steps flowing endlessly together like unhindered water. Although you knew the combination and knew how you would dance it, watching Jimin perform was a different experience entirely.

Ballet required dancers to stay on the beat but in contemporary, they were expected to lag. Extensions were all the more breathtaking when they clung to the last second, seeming as though the dancer might not make it before they caught up. Jimin was an expert in this, knowing exactly when to hang precariously over the edge and when to pull back.

Watching him dance, that pesky, strange something bloomed in your chest again.

Squashing this quickly, you looked away and resumed marking the combo. The end of the song was improvisation though and, unable to stop yourself, you found your attention drifting to Jimin again. He was ridiculously beautiful – you nearly didn’t hear when Miss Luna called for them to stop. As she turned off the music, she applauded the group while they walked from the floor.

Breathing heavily, Noelle came to a stop alongside you and – somewhat guiltily, since you hadn’t been watching – you gave her a high-five.

“That was awesome!” you said with a grin. “You definitely stood out in the group.”

Noelle snort-laughed. “Not with Jimin up there, but that’s okay. This is his specialty – and yours,” she added with a wink. “I’m psyched for group four.”

“Ah,” you groaned, rubbing your neck. “Too much pressure.”

Noelle laughed, shaking her head as group three took the floor. Both of you fell silent to watch, your curious gaze finding Sabrina in the back. Sabrina looked almost nervous; an emotion which seemed out of place on her features. It made her look almost human.

As soon as the music began, you stifled a wince. Sabrina stood out from the group, and not in a good way. She had the combination down but moved with a woodenness you would’ve expected from someone half her age. It was enough for you to glance at Miss Luna, wondering if she had noticed.

“Wow,” Noelle whispered, looking almost gleeful. “Sabrina is terrible.”

“Noelle!” you whisper-laughed.

“What? After everything she’s done? After everything she’s said?” Noelle’s gaze narrowed. “Sabrina deserves this.”

Despite privately agreeing, you couldn’t help but feel bad as Sabrina continued. Not wanting to watch any longer, you turned towards the front and resumed marking the combo. As soon as Miss Luna cut the music and polite clapping ensued, you turned back around.

It was time for group four. A shaky, sick feeling entered your stomach as you walked to center. So many eyes were on you, but it had been so long since you danced contemporary. You couldn’t help but wonder if you were as good as people seemed to imagine. Surrounded by so many dancers at Russet, surely your own talent would pale in comparison.

As soon as the music began though, everything faded. Insecurities slipping away, a lightness entered your chest as, eyes falling shut, you slowly inhaled.

Taking a step forward, you opened your eyes and began.

To you, dance had several phases. The first was learning, where you memorized each step and put them in order. The second was understanding, where your muscle memory began to take over and the combination felt smoother. The final phase, performance, was when you thought not of the steps, and were free to just dance.

This was your favorite phrase. In this phase, your mind separated from your body, leaving you only with sweat and emotion. Dance was the only art form composed solely of the body. An odd combination of physical strength and artistic beauty, it was both a testament to human capability and human emotion.

Losing yourself in the music, you ebbed and flowed through the combination until the choreography ended and improvisation began. Finally, you let go and held nothing back. Raw, unbridled passion poured out as you lost sight of yourself, so consumed by the movement.

When the song finally finished and you came to a stop, you were panting for breath. Glancing up, the first person you saw was Jimin.

He stood off to one side, leaning casually against the rungs of the barre, but his expression was anything but. Focused on you, his gaze had turned dark in a way which made you catch your breath.

Miss Luna clapped both hands once again, returning your attention to her. Blinking, Jimin shook his head and in your peripheral, you saw him straighten.

“Very good!” Miss Luna scanned the group. “I know our time is nearly at and end, but why don’t we have a few students come out and demonstrate?”

Again, this was fairly common in master classes. After learning the combination, teachers would often single out students to perform as examples. It wasn’t always the students with the best technique who got chosen. Oftentimes, it was as much for passion and performance quality.

Taking a step forward, Miss Luna began to call out names. You were one of the first – setting your water down, you jogged back to center. Jimin was the next person called, then Noelle, much to your excitement. Jungkook was also instructed to join on the floor.

Turning the lights halfway down, Miss Luna pressed play and let you improvise until the combination began. Jungkook started dancing and honestly, he was beautiful, but you couldn’t linger on him for long. 

Catching sight of Jimin again, you were once more transported to earlier times. This wasn’t the first time you’d been called out together. Oftentimes, this had happened at conventions but back then, your mind had been too clouded to see him for who he was.

You’d always wanted to beat him in high school, but now, you were consumed by the oddest desire to see him do well.

Glancing up, Jimin caught your gaze and he smiled – but then, the combination began.

By the time you were finished, you could hardly catch your breath but somehow, you felt the most alive you’d been in ages. Back in your own element, surrounded by some of the most amazing dancers in the world – this was what you’d imagined when you came to Russet.

People around the room clapped, some of them begrudgingly. You got the impression many of your classmates weren’t used to not being chosen. As you walked from the floor, you saw surprisingly, Sabrina wasn’t amongst them.

Instead, Sabrina simply looked tired – as though she’d tried her best and it hadn’t been enough. You knew that look. You sympathized with that look.

The look lingered in the back of your mind while you packed up your things and listened to Noelle discuss Halloween tomorrow. When she mentioned Ari had decided to visit her family this weekend, an idea began to form in your mind.

“Wait,” you interrupted, looking up. “Ari can’t come tomorrow?”

Noelle shook her head. “Her brother just turned eighteen, so her whole family is having a party or something.”

“So… her ticket is free, then?”

“Yes…” Noelle paused. “Why? Y/N, what are you planning?”

“Okay. Hear me out,” you said as you shrugged on your coat. It was cold enough now for the coat to be necessary.

Noelle sighed, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “Alright, I’m listening.”

Glancing away, you saw Sabrina packing her things on the other side of the room. Before you could talk yourself out of it, you returned to Noelle.

“What if we invited Sabrina?”

Noelle snorted. “Pass.”

“Noelle,” you laughed, reaching out for her arm. “Come on! Do you really think she’s doing anything for Halloween?”

“Probably not. And that’s her own fault.”

“Maybe,” you said, glancing at Sabrina once more. “But how could it hurt? We have an extra ticket, there’ll be tons of people tomorrow night. She’ll probably say no – at least this way, you can claim a write-off on your way into heaven!”

Noelle upper lip twitched. “Oh, is that how write-offs work?”

“Well, I can only assume.”

Finally, she laughed. “Ugh, fine. You can invite her – but only because it’s Halloween, and Halloween is a time for peace. And slutty costumes.”

“Thanks, babe,” you said, squeezing her waist in a one-armed hug.

Sighing exaggeratedly, Noelle waved aside your thanks. Hiking your bag higher, you began to make your way across the room. As you closed in on Sabrina, you began to rethink your choice. It had been nearly a month since anything bad had happened between you but still, you found yourself feeling wary. As tough as you pretended to be, rejection hurt you just as much as the next person.

Still, dancing with Jimin had been a reminder of just how bitter your relationship used to be. If that relationship could change, you had to imagine things with Sabrina could, too.

Coming to a stop at her bag, you waited for her to look up. When she finally did, her brow wrinkled in confusion.

“What?” Sabrina asked, sounding defensive. “What do you want, Y/N?”

You couldn’t really blame her for her suspicion. Had your situations been reversed, you would’ve been equally distrustful. It was likely Sabrina thought you were coming over to gloat, or say something to do with class today. Another twinge of pity went through you as Sabrina zipped her bag shut to stand.

“I just wanted to know what you were doing tomorrow,” you said, trying to smile. “Noelle has an extra ticket to a Halloween party, and we thought you might like to come.”

Sabrina stared. “What?”

“Tomorrow is Halloween,” you said, a bit slower. “You know – when we were kids, it was all about costumes and candy. Now, it’s about costumes and booze?”

Sabrina failed to crack a smile. “And you want… me to come to this party?”

Something about the way she said this made you sad, as though she genuinely thought this might be a joke. As though at any moment, someone might jump out and yell SIKE.

“Yeah,” you said, softening a little. “Look – it’s not a big deal if you can’t make it. A bunch of our class is going though, so we thought of you.”

Sabrina hesitated, then glanced at the door. “Okay,” she said, looking back. “Okay, yeah. I’ll come.”

Stifling your surprise, you nodded. “Great. I’ll text you where to meet us tomorrow before the club. Wear a costume,” you added before walking away. “Noelle said it’s required.”

“Alright,” Sabrina said, so quiet you almost missed it.

Walking away, you were nearly at the door when Jungkook popped up before you. Flashing a smile, he fixed a loose strand of hair away from his face. Feet fumbling to a stop, you could only stare.

“Y/N, right?” he said, sounding shy.

Unable to find the words, you blinked in response. The way Jungkook danced had been so confident, you’d only assumed this to be his off-floor persona, as well. Hearing him sound shy was unexpected. 

Also – you hadn’t expected him to know your name.

“I… yeah, that’s me.” Shaking your head, you smiled. “Jungkook, right?”

“Yeah.” He nodded. “I just wanted to say I’m such a big fan of your dancing. It was great to take class with you today.”

Without meaning to, a laugh escaped your lips. Jungkook stared at you, baffled until you quickly waved him off.

“Oh, no – no! Sorry,” you said. “I’m not laughing at you! I’m just laughing at the ridiculousness of you saying you’re a fan of me.”

Some of Jungkook’s wariness disappeared, and a small smile played across his lips.

“Well, I am.” His grin widened. “I used to assist on the convention circuit, too and I remember you being called out all the time. You and Jimin,” he added, glancing across the room.

You looked, too and saw Jimin still packing his things. His back was stiff, pointedly not looking in your direction. Lingering on him a moment, you returned to Jungkook.

“Still,” you said with a laugh. “It’s a bit of a stretch to say we took class together when you’re the teacher’s assistant.”

“True.” Jungkook paused. “Well, next time you’re in LA, let’s fix that. Let me know if you’re ever in town and we can take a class together.”

Despite yourself, your brows raised. It was harmless, but Jungkook was definitely flirting with you. He was attractive, sure and seemed nice, but he lived in LA and you had a boyfriend. You should probably leave before things had the chance to go any further. The last thing you needed was another complication. Adjusting your bag, you gave Jungkook a small smile.

“Sounds like a plan,” you said before turning away.

Jungkook chuckled from behind. “Bye, Y/N.”

As you joined Noelle at the door, she stared over your shoulder.

“What?” you said, coming to a stop.

Noelle’s gaze moved to yours in disbelief. “How?” she demanded as you exited class. “How do you have all these men just… tripping over themselves for you?”

Heat rising to your face, you shook your head. “That’s – I,” you sputtered. “You’re being ridiculous!”

“Am I?” Noelle grinned. “First Jimin, now Jungkook… and all this while having a boyfriend.” 

“I… you... Jimin is not tripping over himself for me!”

Both her brows shot way, way up. “Is that the only part of the sentence you took objection to?”

“Shut up,” you groaned and shoved her in the side.

Noelle laughed but nodded. “Alright, fine! I’ll stop. Did Sabrina say she’ll come?”

“She did.”

“Great. I still don’t like her,” Noelle said, pushing open the door. “But I guess you’re right, I have an extra ticket. It’s nice to be nice.”

You laughed, pulling your coat tighter as you walked outside. “You’re a saint.”

While you walked, your phone dinged and pulling this from your pocket, you saw a notification on Instagram. Jeon_Jungkook97 has followed you.

Shaking your head, you returned this to your jacket as you continued. While it was nice of Jungkook to compliment your dancing, his approval didn’t mean as much as certain other peoples had. This realization stuck in your mind, making you wonder about Noelle’s teasing jibe.

She had said Jimin flirted with you, but that wasn’t true – was it? You would have known if Jimin were flirting. It was hard to pick out though, since Jimin was friendly with everyone. That was just who he was; as he’d said earlier, he liked to be liked. A note of uncertainty entered your thoughts though, recalling the ballet class with your chest pressed to his. Shoving this away, you forced yourself to focus on the upcoming weekend.

Halloween was a night for fun, for letting loose and enjoying yourself with your friends. You refused to let the night be spoiled by any lingering feelings – either from you, or towards you.

The next night was perfect Halloween weather.

Chilly, but not cold enough to risk snow falling. There were several Halloweens from childhood you could recall trick-or-treating with a winter coat flung over your costume because the temperature had dropped below freezing.

You, Noelle and Irene showed up to Paulo’s house around 8:00 PM, shivering a little while you stood on his doorstep. Paulo was one of the few freshmen who lived off-campus, having known several upperclassmen before he came to Russet. The brownstone he lived in was cute, with window boxes you imagined hosted flowers in the summer.

Tugging your pink and black minidress down, you adjusted your bow as Paulo opened the door.

Blinking, he took in your costumes. “The Powerpuff girls!” He cheered, raising an arm overhead. “Try not to take down any of the villains upstairs, yeah?”

“No promises,” said Irene, flicking hair over her shoulder.

Entering the house, you heard thumping bass from an apartment upstairs. Paulo lived on the third floor and as you climbed the steps, the music grew louder. It took Paulo two tries to shove open the door – “warped wood,” he explained – but once you were inside, you saw familiar faces.

“The Powerpuff girls!” Jasmine cried, jumping up from the couch. “Finally! Thank god – can you take down Eamon? He came here dressed as a potato, or something.”

“It’s an avocado!” Eamon shouted from the kitchen. He was dressed in a round, green costume with a halo overhead. “I’m ‘holy guacamole’ – get it?” he said, pointing at the halo.

Jasmine stared at him a moment. “That’s terrible. Worse than mine,” she said with a wave down her body. “I’ve been Princess Jasmine for the past five Halloweens. It’s easy to remember and I already have the outfit.”

Laughing, you shrugged off your coat and added this to a pile on the couch. “It’s a classic,” you agreed as you turned.

Noelle had managed to procure at least twenty tickets to the party tonight, so a lot of your freshman Russet class was in attendance. Including Sabrina, who stood in the corner, talking to Louis over cups of red punch. She looked up when you entered, pausing before she gave a small wave. Surprised by the gesture, you did the same.

“No.” Noelle groaned, coming to a stop alongside you. When you looked, you saw she’d already removed her coat. “Tell me Sabrina didn’t come to this party dressed as a ballerina.”

“We did invite her at the last minute,” you laughed. “Hard to find a good Halloween costume in a day.”

“Hey,” Noelle argued. “There’s no we here. You were the one who invited her, and you’ll be the one to accept the consequences should your social experiment fail.”

“Done,” you agreed. “Speaking of social experiments though, I’m ready to get drunk tonight. Where’s the alcohol?”

“Kitchen!” Irene called, brushing past. “Or – that’s where Brian disappeared to when we entered, so I can only assume.”

Telling Noelle you’d be back with drinks, you wound through the room towards where Irene had pointed. The kitchen was tiny, on par with most city apartments. There was only room enough for one or two people, so you were lucky it was deserted when you entered.

Surveying the counter, you found the usual party staples. A bowl of red punch, a bunch of beer and various liquor bottles with chasers. Skipping over the communal punch bowl, you reached for a bottle of diet coke and coconut rum.

“Oh,” a voice said as they entered the kitchen. “Sorry – I didn’t know you were in here.”

Glancing up, you saw Jimin and froze.

He’d dyed his hair black – that was the first thing you noticed. Jimin’s hair was no longer blonde, but completely dark. His outfit confused you at first – a frilly, white blouse with slicked-back hair and dark trousers – until you saw his bright red contacts and the dribble of blood at his mouth.

“A vampire,” you said, finally recovering your voice. Scanning his body, you frowned. “Where are the teeth, though?”

Jimin blinked, his gaze jerking up from your waist.

“Huh?” he said, sounding a bit strangled.

Cheeks heating a little – your dress was pretty short – you repeated yourself. “The teeth,” you said, pointing at your own lips. “Don’t vampires have fangs?”

“Oh, right.” Jimin dug around in his pocket – fuck, were his trousers tight – to produce twin fangs. “I took them off when I got here. They’re really hard to talk in.”

“Go on then, Park,” you said with a grin. “Put them in.”

“One second.” Twisting to face the wall, Jimin popped them in his mouth. Turning around, he bared his teeth. “Sexy?”

With the teeth in though, the word came out more like shex-shie and you burst into laughter. “So sexy,” you agreed, reaching past him for a cup.

Jimin stiffened when your arm brushed his front. Unbidden, you thought about what Noelle had said – Jimin had been flirting with you. Pulling away, you resumed making your drinks and tried not to look in his direction.

Even so, you remained aware of his presence. Jimin inched his way behind you, reaching for the whiskey on the other side. His arm brushed your elbow as he went, right knee nudging yours in an intimate gesture.

Glancing up from the counter, you accidentally caught his gaze. Despite your earlier joking, he did look sexy. Devastatingly so. Even the blood-red contacts weren’t enough to deter the shiver which ran down your spine.

Shaking yourself free from your trance, you grabbed both cups and pulled back. 

“So, what’re you drinking?” you asked. 

You decided it was best to steer the conversation away from how sexy Park Jimin was or was not.

Seemingly oblivious to your inner turmoil, Jimin poured whiskey into his cup. “Whiskey and coke. Can you pass me that bottle?”

“Sure,” you said, leaping at the chance to prevent him from walking past you again. “Here you go.”

Pushing this forward, you watched Jimin pour both drinks all the way to the brim. He paused near the end, staring into the depths before he looked up. He seemed to be warring with something, debating whether or not to speak whatever was on his mind.

“So…” He paused. “Do you know Jungkook, or something?”

You blinked. “Jungkook…?”

“You know, Miss Luna’s assistant. Jeon Jungkook.”

“Oh! Jungkook. No, I don’t really know him.”

“You were talking to him at the end of class, though?”

Hearing the curiosity in his voice, both your brows raised. “And?”

“And nothing,” Jimin said, sounding uncomfortable. “I just… I didn’t know you knew him, that’s all.”

“I mean, I don’t.” You paused. “But even if I did, what does it matter?”

“It doesn’t.” His cheeks began to redden. “It’s just – ah, never mind. We don’t have that great a history, that’s all. He’s kind of the reason I’m at Russet this year.”

You stared at Jimin a moment. “Wow, what a tragedy,” you said, stifling a laugh. “To have been forced to attend one of the most prestigious dance institutions in the world.”

His upper lip twitched. “It’s not that. I was deciding between attending Russet and accepting a job offer out west. I was asked to join this pop star on tour… anyways, Jungkook’s never liked me much. It’s a long story.” Jimin’s brow furrowed. “My offer was rescinded at the last minute. The artist never said why, but I always got the feeling he had something to do with it.”

You stared at Jimin a moment, unsure how to respond. Jungkook hadn’t seemed like that kind of person, but you supposed you’d only talked to him for a few minutes. If that was true, what happened to Jimin sucked and yet, the next words from your mouth nearly had you face-palming.

“And here I thought I was your biggest rival, Park,” you said.

Jimin’s eyes widened. “Are you… jealous, Y/N?”

He sounded almost pleased by the notion, which sent a different kind of shiver down your spine.

“Not at all,” you said quickly, turning back to your drinks.

Jimin made a soft tsk-ing sound, as though he didn’t believe you.

“That sucks,” you continued, determined to change the subject. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”

“Yeah. Maybe it was all for the best, though. Things happen for a reason, right?”

Looking up, you caught Jimin’s stare. He didn’t look immediately away and you got the oddest sensation he meant more than what he said. Hastily, you pushed this feeling aside, clutching your drinks as you entered the main room. Jimin followed close behind, two cups in his hands.

“When did you get here?” you asked. “Been here long?”

Jimin shook his head. “Nah. Hoseok and I got here like, ten minutes ago. He should be around here somewhere, he –”

“Y/N!”

You looked up just in time to see Hoseok, Jimin’s roommate, barreling towards you.

“It’s been so long!” Crushing you to his chest, Hoseok wrapped you in a hug. “Hope Jimin isn’t boring you to death,” he stage-whispered before he pulled away.

“Just for that.” Jimin arched a brow. “Both these drinks are for me.”

“No – wait, wait. I’m sorry!” Hoseok pouted. “Hand over the drink, Park. It’s been the longest fucking week.”

Jimin grinned and relented, handing Hoseok his cup as you laughed. Hoseok was a newer friend, but he was close to Jimin, so he’d gradually bled into your latest gatherings. Despite not being on the ballet track, most of the dancers at Russet knew of him. Hoseok had that way about him.

Glancing down at your outfit, Hoseok held up a finger. “Let me guess – Blossom,” he said, turning to scan the room. “Which means… aha! Irene is Bubbles and Noelle is Buttercup. Makes sense.”

“And you are…” Pausing, you squinted at his outfit. “Someone at the spa?”

“Sure.” Hoseok shrugged. “Honestly, I just wanted to wear a bathrobe.”

Said bathrobe was paired with only boxers, the front of the robe open to display his toned abs. The costume didn’t surprise you, based on past interactions with Hoseok.

Casually, he twirled the robe tie in a circle. “Impressive, no?” Hoseok glanced away. “Whoa, wait – they have beer pong? See you all later!”

Hurrying off, he left you alone with Jimin. Shaking your head, you glanced in his direction and saw Jimin down his whole drink. Arching a brow, you were about to ask why when Irene called your names from across the room.

“Y/N!” She waved her hands. “Jimin! Get over here, you two – we need more for flip cup!”

You found yourself pulled in this direction despite your insistence you didn’t do well under pressure. Jimin ended up at the other end of the table and you lost sight of him when you started to play, paired with Jasmine for a partner.

By the end of the first round, you discovered you weren’t as horrible a player as you’d imagined. Then someone suggested mixed drinks for the second round, and things became fuzzier. There were more people present than just current students of Russet. One of Paulo’s roommates knew Seokjin, so you saw him in the room, along with Sana.

You chatted with both over the course of the evening, in addition to a guy who’d recently debuted on Broadway, Kim Taehyung. Apparently, there was already buzz around him for a Tony. Taehyung was nice, but it was sometime during this conversation you realized how tipsy you were. Apparently, not drinking for several months and then going ham made for very low tolerance.

Collapsing onto the couch, you joined Irene and Brian’s conversation. In the corner of your eye, you caught sight of Noelle – a terrible flip cup player, she’d roped Hoseok into giving her private lessons, but these seemed to be going terribly. Or perhaps very well, given how much the two of them were laughing.

You completely forgot about Jimin until you spotted him across the room talking to Sabrina. Seeing them together, you straightened. Both seemed fairly comfortable, which struck you as odd. Since that morning in Jimin’s dorm, you hadn’t really seen them hang out together.

Despite this, Jimin was laughing at something Sabrina had said. Tearing your gaze away, you forced yourself to focus on the conversation at hand. It didn’t matter who Jimin spoke to, or even who he decided to go home with tonight. He was your dance partner and friend, nothing more and besides – you had a boyfriend.

Blinking, you reached into your clutch and pulled out your phone. To your disappointment, you’d gotten no texts from Finn since this morning. You assumed he was still at his party but didn’t know for sure. Shooting him a text, hey, you waited for a response and when you got none, returned your phone to your purse.

Across the room, you heard Noelle yell your name. “Y/N!” She cupped her mouth with both hands. “We need another person for flip cup!”

Laughing, you pushed yourself from the couch and were immediately roped into your fourth game of the night. The night blurred again after that, turning into a pleasant hum of conversation and booze. At some point, Ubers were called to bring you to the club. As you rushed downstairs, you realized you forgot your coat as soon as you stepped outside.

Shivering violently, you rubbed your arms and cursed yourself for poor foresight.

“Y/N?” Jimin came to a stop alongside you. “Hey, where’s your coat?”

“Inside,” you said through chattering teeth. “I-it’s fine, though. I’m fine!”

Jimin gave you a look. “Where’s Paulo?” he said, glancing around. “I’ll grab him, we can get your coat before we go –”

“The Uber’s already here, though,” you argued, grabbing his sleeve to drag him towards the curb. “I’ll be fine from here to the club!”

Jimin sighed but gave in, following when you rushed to the grey SUV. Irene had claimed the front seat, so you and Jimin pulled open the middle door – Noelle and Hoseok were crowding behind you, so you and Jimin ended up together in the backseat.

Collapsed in a heap, you giggled as Jimin tried to squish himself in a corner. “Sorry,” he said, trying – and failing – to keep his knees separate.

“Jimin.” You snorted. “Are we going to go through this again? Your hands have been in way more inappropriate places than that this semester.”

Jimin’s lips parted, shocked, but you were already hoisting yourself over the middle seat. Draping your arms next to Noelle, you begged her to play your favorite song on the radio. Had you been more sober, you might’ve recognized your position to be precarious – perched on the edge of your seat, your ass hovered inches away from Jimin’s face.

Plopping back down, you glanced sideways at Jimin and found him frozen. Suddenly, you realized the visual he’d had.

“Um, so what happened to the teeth?” you blurted, determined to change the subject.

Jimin blinked and managed to meet your gaze. “Casualty of flip cup,” he said. “One of them fell out during the game and I couldn’t find where it rolled.”

“Well, that’s okay. You can just be one of those vampires who blend in with normal humans. You know, the kind whose fangs only come out when they want to bite someone.”

“That’s true.” Jimin arched a brow. “Lucky for you, I’m not hungry.”

“Lucky for me? Lucky for you,” you retorted. “My blood is about half alcohol right now. If you drank my blood, you’d be a very silly vampire.”

The idea of a silly vampire made you laugh – even more so when you pictured said vampire as Jimin. He seemed much too coherent for your liking right now.

“A silly vampire, huh?” Jimin looked on, amused. “Damn, Y/N – when was the last time you went out? Your tolerance is shit.”

“I know,” you sighed. “I haven’t drunk much this semester. Too much dance, too little time. I think the last time I went out was –”

“We’re here!” squealed Noelle, throwing open the door.

A blast of cold air hit you and you shivered, wishing you’d worn your coat. Jimin’s gaze remained steady on yours.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he said lowly. “I can give you, uh…”

“Your shirt?” you said dryly, lifting a brow as you brushed past. “Then you’d be shirtless, Park. Let’s think this through.”

Jimin chuckled before he followed suit, although you cursed as soon as you left the car. He was correct. It was freezing, even with your alcohol-induced blanket.

“Come on!” you yelped, following Noelle towards the entrance.

Bypassing the line, Noelle walked straight towards the bouncer and showed him her phone. He nodded and waved her past, counting your friend group who followed. Not everyone from Paulo’s place had gone to the club, but enough for you to make quite the entrance.

“Y/N!” Noelle doubled back to link arms with you. “Come on – this way! That guy’s going to show us to our table.”

“Table?” you asked her, wide-eyed.

Tables in a club on Halloween night were ridiculously expensive, but it seemed Noelle had downplayed her brother’s connections. Your group was led right to the front of the upper balcony, getting a coveted spot overlooking the dance floor below.

This was undeniably the coolest club you’d been in. Not that you’d been in many, mind you, but this one had to take the cake. A half-circle of tables took up the top floor, with twin staircases descending to the main room below. Most of the lower floor was for dancing, although you saw additional tables pushed to the sides. Fluorescent bars and dance platforms were dotted throughout and above all was the DJ booth, blasting the latest songs.

“Whoa,” you breathed.

Noelle grinned, squeezing your arm to pull you into the booth. As soon as you settled in, Jasmine leapt up and clapped her hands.

“I want to be in one of those!” she said, pointing to a glowing cage at the center of the dance floor.

“Oo, me too!” Irene leapt up to join her.

“Me, three!” said Paulo, clambering out of the booth.

“Awesome.” Irene beamed and glanced your way. “What about you, Y/N? You in?”

The idea was tempting for a moment, but then Finn flashed through your mind. You highly doubted he’d be on board with you gyrating for a room full of strangers without him. Somewhat dejectedly, you plopped back on the bench.

“That’s okay,” you sighed. “I think I’m going to stay here for a while. I’ll join you later!”

Irene frowned but nodded, following the rest when they left for the stairs. About half the group went, clearing out the table while you stared at the dance floor.

Jimin slid into the bench alongside you. “You don’t want to dance?”

Startled, you glanced in his direction. While you watched, Jimin began to undo his cuffs, casually rolling the sleeves of his shirt. His hair, which had been slicked back at the start of the night, was starting to fall. Several dark strands hung over his forehead, although this only seemed to make the look more appealing.

“No,” you said, crossing your legs. “I just… don’t really feel like it.”

“Is this the whole hating clubs thing again?”

“Kind of.” You laughed. “I don’t know. Club dancing isn’t like normal dancing, you know?”

“It is when you’re at the club with all dancers,” Jimin pointed out, nodding towards the floor.

Following his gaze, you saw Jasmine dancing full-out in a lit-up cage. She wasn’t so much gyrating as she was creating choreography on the fly. The mere mortals around her looked on in awe. Fighting a smile, you returned to Jimin.

“Okay, that does look like fun,” you admitted. “The last time I was at a club was with Finn.”

Jimin blinked. “Sorry – what?”

“In the cab,” you said, leaning closer in order to be heard. “You asked me when I last went out. It was that night… um, the night you came and picked me up.”

Jimin stared at you a moment, as though contemplating something important. Abruptly, he stood and held out a hand. You blinked at this like he’d offered a football.

“What are you doing?” you said, glancing up.

“Taking you down to the dance floor.” Jimin retracted said hand. “Come on, Y/N! You don’t have to give out dry lap dances, or whatever.”

“Hey!” In disbelief, your mouth fell open. “You said you’d forget all about that!”

His smile turned impish. “Seriously, we can just do the sprinkler, or something. It’ll be fun!”

“The sprinkler?” Starting to laugh, you stood. “Was that really the first move you thought of?”

“Nah. My go-to move is the criss-cross, but I figured this was more your speed.”

Snorting, you shoved him in the arm before following Jimin to the dance floor. It didn’t take you long to spot your other friends, clustered near the front and around the DJ booth.

“Y/N!” Noelle cheered, breaking off from the pack. “You made it!”

She nearly spilled her drink while she danced, catching herself just in time as she spun around. You grinned, entering the circle with Jimin by your side. He did, in fact, pull out the criss-cross – Hoseok joined in and soon, there was a Fortnite dance battle between them. You truly haven’t lived until you’ve seen a TikTok dance-off between two semi-professional dancers.

This ended with both declaring mutual defeat, and Hoseok disappearing to buy the next round. Noelle shimmied her way over to Jasmine, accepting the hand given to stand on the platform.

You laughed at their ridiculous dance moves, choosing instead to stay on the ground. The crowd around you had thinned since you’d joined. Eamon disappeared a few minutes later, saying something about needing a drink upstairs. Before long, Irene had joined Jasmine and Noelle on the platform, leaving you alone with Jimin on the floor.

Under other circumstances, you might have felt uncomfortable, but Jimin was so good at putting you at ease. Determined to keep you in the present, he came up with more and more complicated dance moves which had you snorting with laughter.

On a particularly flamboyant spin, Jimin accidentally smacked the drink from someone’s grasp. Blue vodka splattered everywhere, drenching its owner – a burly man in leather who snarled in frustration.

Looking up, he met your gaze and his eyes narrowed.

“Shit. Run!” you blurted out.

Grabbing Jimin by the arm, you dragged him into the crowd.

“No, wait – let me apologize!” Jimin tried to twist around. “I can pay for his drink! I can –”

Once there was suitable distance between you and the guy, you came to a stop. Laughing so hard you nearly fell over, you turned sideways to face him.

Bodies pressed against you from every side but rather than feel claustrophobic, all you could think about was Jimin before you. His hair had become thoroughly mussed during the night and you fought the sudden desire to smooth it down.

Although your breath came hard, the club around you seemed to slow. The music somehow had narrowed to pinpricks, a heady thump of bass while everything dulled.

What you should’ve done was taken a step back – but you didn’t.

Instead, your gaze drifted across his face. Jimin stared back, something intense to his gaze you couldn’t quite name. Breath caught in your throat, his eyes dropped to your lips.

Before you could react, someone bumped into you from behind, sending you careening forward. Jimin caught you easily, one arm around your waist and your chest pressed to his. You could feel every hard line of his body, his thigh wedged between your legs while you grasped at his arms. Heart thudding traitorously against your ribcage, you tried to ignore the emotions which followed.

It was impossible. 

The song playing was slower, sexier than the one which had inspired the dance-off. Without meaning to, your weight subtly shifted. This caused your hips to move against his as Jimin quietly sucked in a breath. The effect this had on him was instantaneous. His grip on you tightened, gaze heady with desire and something more. Before you could second-guess what you were doing, you moved your hips again – this time, on purpose.

Jimin’s eyes darkened. Without looking away, his grip on you tightened as he slowly dragged you up his thigh. Suddenly breathless, your hands gripped him tighter while your eyes fluttered shut. The heat of his body on yours, the faint smell of cologne and sweat, the tension in his limbs and the knowledge of what he could do to you – it all left your head spinning.

“Y/N,” Jimin murmured, low in your ear.

You weren’t used to him saying your name like that.

You were used to him saying your name in every other way, but not that. Sharp with dancer’s critique, brusque with instruction, light with teasing – but not like something heavy was lodged in his throat. Maybe his heart.

Panicked, your eyes flew open.

What were you doing? This wasn’t some random stranger and this sure as hell wasn’t your boyfriend. This was Jimin. Stumbling backwards, you broke from his hold. Jimin seemed equally stunned, staring at you on the dance floor.

“I have to go,” you blurted and whirled around.

Shoving into the crowd, you heard Jimin emit a soft groan. Despite this, he didn’t immediately pursue, for which you were grateful. Stumbling through strangers, strobe lights flashed brightly overhead. You squeezed between someone dressed as a go-go and another person dressed as a werewolf. Skidding to a stop on the edge of the floor, you scanned the room and saw no one from Russet.

When you glanced over your shoulder, you saw Jimin now followed. Panicking again, you began to move. Beside one of the bars, you spotted a hallway labeled restrooms. Heading in this direction, you quickly disappeared inside the door marked women.

Once inside, you locked yourself in a stall, lowered the lid and sat down. Head in hands, you slowly exhaled. You were a coward; that much was clear. Jimin was probably out there looking for you right now, but you’d rather hide in a bathroom than face him.

The fluorescent lighting overhead was too bright – it made you feel overexposed. After a long moment, you fished around in your purse and pulled out your phone. Flipping to your thread with Finn, you saw he’d sent no response since your text. Complete and utter silence.

Heart cracking a little, you slid this in your bag and stared at the door. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. When you imagined you and Finn at college, you’d always pictured you together, attending the same parties and sharing the same adventures. Tonight though, had proven to be anything but that. Finn hadn’t once glanced at his phone judging by the unread mark next to your text.

Dimly, you wondered why you weren’t more upset about this. It should bother you that Finn hadn’t called or even texted throughout the day. Sure, he was out with friends, but so were you and you’d reached out – as soon as you thought this, your heart sank.

You weren’t sure you could call Jimin a friend after what had just happened.

Sure, you’d only danced, and it had only been for a second but still, guilt bloomed behind your ribcage. The idea of Finn doing the same thing with anyone else made your heart twist. You wouldn’t feel that way if what you’d done wasn’t wrong.

Groaning out loud, you lowered your head to your hands. After several minutes, you felt calm enough to stand and pretend-flush the toilet. As you exited the stall, you walked to the sink and began washing your hands. Staring at yourself in the mirror, a million things ran through your mind.

Clearly, the situation with Jimin was worse than you’d thought. The spark you’d felt kept returning, no matter how much you tried to ignore it. Maybe the only solution was to find a new partner. The very idea made your heart sink, but you couldn’t deny things had gotten out of hand.

Before you could seriously consider the option, the door to the bathroom flung open and banged against the wall. Sabrina stormed in, wiping both eyes with the heel of her hand. You froze, staring at her in the mirror but she didn’t seem to notice your presence.

When she finally lowered her hands and took a deep breath, she saw you and froze.

For a moment, you both only stared at each other and then – you coughed. Awkwardly, you began to dry your hands.

“Are you okay?” you asked, tentative.

Sabrina stiffened. “I’m fine,” she muttered, walking to the sink.

You watched her wash her hands, struggling and failing to control her expression. Sabrina’s hair was a mess and you stared, wondering where she’d been. You hadn’t seen her since you’d entered the club, but had assumed she’d stayed on the second floor.

“Are you sure?” you pressed, remembering your night at the other club. “You know, you can –”

“Will you… just stop.” Sabrina closed her eyes. “Will you … stop pretending like we’re friends, or something?”

Struck with disbelief, you could only stare. “I… are you serious?”

“Yes.”

“Wow.” You shook your head. “Just wow.”

Her lips tightened and finally, she whirled around. “What?” Sabrina demanded. “What is it?”

The look in her eyes was familiar. Her frustrated, angry look was mirrored in your expression, but you found you didn’t care. Sabrina was clearly going through something, but her rudeness to you was the final straw. Tired from Finn, Jimin and the constant pressure you were both under, something about Sabrina’s words made you break.

“Why are you always such a… such a bitch,” you blurted, hurling the word like a knife. “What did I ever do to you? Why do you always act like you hate me so much?”

Sabrina’s upper lip curled. “Why do you always think this is about you, Y/N? Maybe I just wanted one second of peace and instead, here you are. Like always.”

“Here I am, in the public restroom of a club we’re all at?”

“No. Here you are in my life,” she snapped, pushing herself from the sink. “People won’t talk to me? It’s because you’ve run your mouth about things you think I’ve done. I’m falling in the class ranks? It’s because you’re after my spot. Jimin doesn’t want to be my partner? It’s because of his feelings for you. I’m sick of turning around and always seeing you there!”

“Okay, but none of those things – I, Jimin doesn’t have feelings for me,” you sputtered.

Sabrina gave you a look. “Oh, please, Y/N.” Her laughter was harsh. “Why else would he turn me down?”

“Um, maybe because he’s a decent human being? Unlike yourself.”

“Great, yeah.” Sabrina glared. “Make me the bad guy again.”

“I’m not the one doing that,” you huffed. “You are. You want to blame me because no one wants to be your friend? Maybe try reaching out first. Maybe don’t talk shit about people behind their backs. And I’m improving because I’m taking extra lessons. No thanks to you, of course.”

“Don’t try and make me feel bad because I didn’t have time to give you lessons.”

“I’m not trying to make you feel bad. I’m trying to explain why I’m improving and you’re not.”

Sabrina bristled. “Are you saying I don’t work hard, too?”

“No.” Mirthless, you laughed. “I know you work hard – maybe even as hard as I do. But you know what the big difference is between you and me?” you said, drawing yourself to your full height.

Sabrina’s eyes glimmered while she stared you down. Still, she retained her aloofness when she said, “What? What’s the big secret?”

“You think everyone’s out to get you,” you said, stepping closer. “You think not asking for help makes you stronger, but it’s the exact opposite. At least I’ve improved since the start of the year. What have you done?”

Not waiting for an answer, you pushed past Sabrina and walked out the door.

Shoving it wide, you entered the hallway. Dance music flooded your senses and you winced, remembering where you were and what you’d been doing. Luckily, Jimin was nowhere in sight. He must not have seen where you’d disappeared to.

Shoulders slumping, you pulled out your phone and dialed a number. Walking to the front, you concentrated on breathing while you waited for them to pick up. Coming to a stop beside coat check, you didn’t leave the club – a lesson you’d learned the hard way.

Noelle answered on the third ring. “Babe?” she yelled, barely audible over the din. “What’s going on? Where are you?”

“Are you…” Closing your eyes, you paused. “Can we leave?”

Noelle paused, then muffled her phone with one hand. “Irene!” you heard her yell. “You good to get a ride home for these people? Okay, cool. Bye!” Her phone became un-muffled. “Where are you, babe?”

After explaining your location, you hung up and hugged yourself with both arms. Noelle burst into view a few moments later, scanning the crowd like a mom on a mission. When she saw you, she rushed over – and you promptly burst into tears.

“Oh, no!” Pulling you into a hug, Noelle began to rub your back. “No, no, babe! Don’t cry! What’s going on? Do I need to kick someone’s ass?”

Hearing Jimin’s words said by Noelle only made you cry harder. Wisely sensing this to be a problem not easily solved, Noelle continued rubbing your back while walking towards the exit.

The two of you went outside and, as luck would have it, saw a group of people arriving at the club. Noelle snagged their taxi, helping you in the backseat and giving the driver your address. As you settled against her, your head on her shoulder, Noelle kept rubbing your arm and waited for the tears to stop.

You weren’t really sure why you were crying.

Of course, Sabrina was terrible, as was the situation with Jimin, but it was more than that. Dancing with Jimin hadn’t caused problems in your relationship with Finn. There had been problems in your relationship Finn and so, feelings had crept in which led you to dance with Jimin.

More than that though, you couldn’t help but notice Noelle had come to your aid much faster than Finn ever had. Even Jimin had dropped everything when you asked, and he was someone you’d once called your enemy. Noelle had been having fun, but she’d cut her night short because you were upset. This knowledge crushed you and for the very first time, you realized your relationship with Finn might be unfixable.

Curled up on the backseat, you let yourself cry a bit more. You could be calm and rational in the morning, you decided but for now, you just felt defeated.

When you finally climbed into bed at your dorm at night, you looked at your phone and saw Finn still hadn’t texted.

Author’s Note: Thank you for reading! 😊 New chapters of Raise the Barre are posted weekly; dates are listed on the series Master List. Requests for updates will be deleted.

RAISE THE BARRE MASTERLIST 

© kpopfanfictrash, 2020. Do not copy or repost without permission.

[i-am-literally-deranged]

This is an exceptionally bold take, but I actually think that Hitorigate is both natural and necessary. The natural response to finishing Hatoful Boyfriend is to immediately break into factions over the morality of Hitori, and also to heavily question if he's homophobic or not. I feel like you could reroll the universe as many times as you like and Hitorigate was just an inevitability. It'll happen every single time, just slightly differently. A massive flame war where people accuse Hitori of being a bigot is just, like, a natural result of the text. He's super divisive, and evokes a lot of emotion in people. Well written characters tend to do that.

He can generate these incredible powerful positive reactions, people who passionately love him and are willing to die on the hill of fighting for his honour. But he can also be read in some very nasty ways, and he handles some very sensitive subjects very very poorly. There is textual evidence to read Hitori as a violent bigot if you want to see him that way. All the bullet holes are already on the wall, you just have to draw targets around them, if that's what you want to see, and inevitably there will be people who read his character this way. People naturally have a lot of very strong feelings about suicide and homophobia, those are super sensitive topics. So when you mix the people who read Hitori as a terrible person in with the people who love him dearly, it's like throwing water on a grease fire. Big emotions tend to do that. And well written characters tend to generate some very big emotions, and Hitori is very well written, and very very gray.

If Hatoful were ever to suddenly gain a larger following, I'm absolutely confident that Hitorigate would happen all over again. This kind of really passionate and volatile fandom infighting is a natural reaction to the guy. Anything that generates as strong and as varied reactions as Hitori does is going to generate war of equal strength and variety. And I kind of think that's a good thing. Not that wild fandom infighting is a good thing, but that this is a credit to Hato Moa's writing and the quality of the game. It's such a powerful emotional experience, and it makes people feel so strongly, and that's a GOOD thing. And it's also a good thing that people engage so heavily with it, and that people are critical of Hitori. I am a big fan of his. But you HAVE to be critical of his actions, and question why he did the things he did. He's a complex, morally gray character. If everyone responded the same way to him, he wouldn't be as beautiful complex as he is. His moral complexity is part of what there is to love about him. And naturally, there are people who will conclude that he's a horrible irredeemable monster. And that's great! It means that people are genuinely examining him, and thinking critically about his actions and him as a person.

Even if the fandom were somehow perfect, and made up of only perfect people, we would still eventually wind up at a massive schism over Hitori. And it's because we are flawed people that a huge schism can become a terrible and bloody war. I think that Hitorigate, or a similar massive fandom meltdown is actually inevitable and a natural reaction to Hatoful Boyfriend, and in fact is actually indicative of some pretty good things, even if the actual incident itself was not a good thing. Thanks for coming to my TED talk

[thespoonisvictory]

*warning for dream critical, and pointless rambling about point systems and the nature off mcc. I am not an expert, nor do I think dream should be sent any hate, or that he even really deserves actual criticism for it*

sooo dream posted this on his reddit, as I’m sure you’ve heard. here are my thoughts, because I have a lot to say.

first of all, the fact that dream doesn’t list any pvp games as his strengths is laughable. he’s undeniably a god at both sb and sg, and yet these aren’t strengths for him? he really thinks he’s better at hitw than skybattle? but obviously, if he lists those, he can’t say the point system is against him. but anyway. the tournament isn’t making him play worse, he’s playing worse, and pinning it on the tournament in general is silly.

I don’t think he’s trying to say that mcc is like rigged against him, nor is this particularly hateful, but it comes across as very entitled and oblivious to the reason why mcc exists, which I’ll get into.

Sands of Time: this is a great idea! until you... actually think about it. vaults in particular don’t work, because how can you argue that splitting vaults is more fair when usually one person finds the key and one person finds the vault itself. what about people who spend more time on puzzles or combat to unlock other areas instead of getting coins? what about sand that other people have collected that shouldn’t ‘belong’ to the sand keeper? do they deserve points for that? it’s messy at best, and keeping the points grouped and then split is the simplest and most effective way to keep it fair.

but beyond that, sot is a team game. you’re meant to work with your teammates to most effectively explore the vault, and although individual performance matters, team communication and strategy is much more important, and it’s reflected in the scores.

Parkour Tag: I’m going to trust dream’s word on this one, as many other people such as op have corroborated it. points should be fixed to better reflect the hunter’s skills.

HITW: uhhh, you get a big bonus because you survived the hardest walls my guy. it’s like getting win points for sg, you get it because you were the best, and because you effectively beat the game. also, I hate to say it but if you’re never getting to the end in hitw then you’re not that good lmao

Parkour Warrior: I don’t think he’s blaming mcc for this, or even saying it should be brought back, but like, pw was removed for a reason. the over-practicing done by some competitors forced the difficulty to be raised so far above the average person that parkour was now a miserable experience for 80% of competitors and their viewers. people weren’t having fun, and it wasn’t an engaging game if you weren’t great at it, so it got knocked. it was for the good of the tournament and the players, not to hurt dream’s ego.

TGTTOS: now this is where it gets batshit. ok, first of all, dream suggests that it’s almost impossible to use teamwork, something disproved by watching literally any perspective where teammates guide each other through the map, give tips, and shout out which directions to go. hell, group bridging has proved very effective. then, he suggests that the team bonus is bad because it gives more points to good teams... and this is a bad thing.

the team bonus is such a wonderful implement because it encourages teams where everyone contributes equally. unlike stuff like hitw, where one good player can carry a team to 1st, tgttos team bonuses mean that the strongest overall team usually wins, not the one with the strongest individual player. which is good! because this is a team tournament!

Overall: besides the impracticality of resorting the entire points system to cater to his ‘strengths’, the issue with this mindset. mcc isn’t about individual points, it’s about how you do as a team. the top two players don’t face off in dodgebolt, afterall. having shared points and team benefit encourages that the winning team is one where every player contributes and works together, instead of a few players individually being skilled. but this isn’t that for dream, and I think that’s blatantly clear. I understand that he wants to show his skill, but mcc is a tournament started by scott as a way to play with his friends for fun. It’s about meeting new people and networking and sometimes making money for charity, not a try-hard competition.

and if he wants to take it competitively, that’s fine, but other people try as well, and yet no one else is complaining.

techno didn’t complain when they changed game rules like five times to nerf him, he just adapted.

players who perform roles like woolplacer in bb don’t complain about the loss of points, they just do their job.

the hermits, especially grian, certainly haven’t played this season, despite having two of their strongest games removed from circulation (bingo and rocket spleef).

other than parkour warrior complaints raised as a community, I can’t think of anyone else that has demanded a change in points to better suit them. It comes off as incredibly egotistical to believe that can tell mcc how their tournament should be run, and that it should cater to the small percentage of people who want to take it that competitively. above all, it comes off as naive to what mcc is actually about, even if he didn’t intend for this to sound as off as it did to me. 

tldr: dream pls calm down and stop trying to make a for fun tournament your place to show off, it’s for fun.