#and could potentially span until the end of season two

[the-travelling-witch]

𝐅𝐈𝐋𝐄 𝐔𝐏𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐃: 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄

summary: in a world where androids have been established in everyday life, it should not come as a surprise to find one setting up shop next to you. shouto, however, seems to have a mind of his own, especially when he does things you are sure are not part of his programming. it begs the question, is there a line where programming ends and humanity starts?

pairing: android! shouto x florist! reader (gn) 

warnings: fluff/ slice of life; assault (not described in graphic detail), no beta readers (this isn’t the omegaverse)

a/n: i have returned!! this was originally meant to be my piece for @andypantsx3's pretty boy summer collab (go check it out!) tbh, i have so many hcs about these two now ♡

bnha masterlist

It was a rather pleasant morning, with the sun not scorching down on the few pedestrians out and about, as you walked to work. You wouldn’t say you were as susceptible to the hot season as others, nonetheless you were grateful it wasn’t sweltering quite yet. Still, you preferred the temperatures of the day over the incessant chill the night brought.

Leaving the shade of the automatically operated parasol spanning the pedestrian crossing, your gaze was automatically drawn to the forest green of your shop’s awning standing out against the city’s backdrop. With habitual ease, your mind started running through your tasks for the day until your attention was caught by movement around the storefront directly next to yours.

Ever since you had started your florist business, the building next to yours had been empty. Occasionally, potential tenants had come to inspect it, but nothing had ever become of those visits. Now it appeared as if someone had taken up shop there, if the minimalist sign out front was anything to go by.

Swiping your wrist over the scanner partially covered by the flower shelves displaying plants less susceptible to heat, the temperate air from inside welcomed you in and a voice command later ambient music floated through the humble room. There was still a bit of time before you’d be open for business, so you thought now would be as good a time as any to introduce yourself to the new face around.

After a bit of consideration, you picked up a small plant and selected a fitting pot for the little fellow before taking a breather and smoothing down your clothes. Then, with your welcoming gift in hand, you entered the shop, the layout of which mirrored yours. But instead of shelves with lush plant life, there wasn’t much to be found here at all, except for a few tools and spare parts strewn across what you thought to be the counter. Rustling could be heard from the room behind it. 

“Hello?” You tentatively called out, hands fidgeting with the ceramic between your palms as you watched dust particles floating through the streaks of morning sun falling through the shop front.

At your announcement, the noises stopped and someone appeared in the doorway. And the sight knocked all breath from your lungs. The man in front of you was gorgeous, probably the most beautiful man you had ever seen. Two striking, hetero chromic eyes, one steel-grey and the other blue like a lagoon, studied you from under white and crimson strands as he crossed his lean arms over his chest. His symmetrical and flawless features coupled with his build would have made it hard to believe he was real if he wasn’t standing right in front of you. The only thing that could possibly be considered a flaw was what looked like a burn scar over his left eye, but even that did nothing to hinder his beauty. Actually, it somehow seemed to enhance it.

“Can I help you?” Of course his voice was smooth and rich too, the kind you could listen to for hours. His gaze flickered over to the planter in your arm. “I am sorry but I cannot fix that.”

“Fix it?” You questioned, confusion apparent on your face as you tried to follow the conversation that had only just started.

“Yes. I am a mechanic, so it is reasonable to assume people would come in to have something repaired.” The cadence of his voice had not wavered at all, his neutral tone making it hard to decipher whether he was joking or dead serious. “Seeing as the item you are bringing in is made up of organic matter, I cannot fix it.”

“Oh uhm.. That’s not–” You cleared your throat, sorting your thoughts with a shake of your head. Better to start this interaction on fresh soil. “I didn’t come over to have something repaired, I just wanted to introduce myself since I run the florist shop directly next to yours. I’ve never had a neighbour in the few years since I’ve started, so I just wanted to say hi to the new face around. Sorry for just barging in.”

“Given that the door was unlocked, your action cannot be considered ‘barging in’, as having people come inside is within the expectations for owning a shop.” Again, you weren’t sure if he was pulling your leg or if he was just a very factual person, but you thought his matter fact attitude was charming in its own way. “You stated you were here to introduce yourself. To my knowledge this constitutes the exchange of names. My name is Shouto.”

You gave him your name in return, then stepped forward and planted the pot on a free space of the counter. Watching for his reaction, his blue eye caught the sun’s rays and almost seemed to illuminate as he looked at the planter. “I brought this as a house -or well, shop- warming gift. It’s a jade pothos and really easy to care for, since it very clearly indicates its needs–”

“It tolerates a wide variety of temperatures and does well in indirect sunlight, though the solid green leaves of the jade variety make it best suited for low light among the pothos species. The watering schedule depends on the climate, yet the roots should not be kept too wet since they are subject to root rot,” Shouto spoke clearly, finishing your explanation for you. “Did I get that right?”

“Yeah! Wow, I’m impressed! Maybe I should have brought you a more advanced plant after all,” you laughed, happy to leave your gift in capable hands. “If it turns out you have a green thumb on top of all that knowledge, I might have to ask you to start working in my shop.”

Shouto stared at you and blinked, then brought up his hands to inspect his thumbs. “My fingers all seem to be of a fair complexion, so I must decline. I will notify you if this condition changes.”

Seriously, this guy was going to kill you and you couldn’t suppress an amused snort. “Sure, please do. Though I have to say, it’s been a while since I saw a mechanic. Most of the work seems to be taken care of by repair droids.”

“Someone has to repair the repair droids,” he replied. With anyone else, you would have read it as a joke but his line delivery remained so neutral, you weren’t sure he intended it as one.

“Fair enough,” you chuckled, fingers idly tapping along the wooden desk. “Gotta admit, I just expected another android to take care of that…”

When you looked at him again, there was no missing it this time. His left iris flickered blue, exactly like the processing unit in an android would when evaluating new information.

Oh. 

“I see how it is,” you sighed, smiling defeatedly. “At least my reasoning was sound, if this is anything to go by.”

“I cannot read your expression right now,” Shouto admitted openly, slightly tilting his head. “Are you upset? Uncomfortable?”

“No, I’m not much of anything right now,” you said, trying to figure out your feelings for yourself. Of course, you felt a little dumb not noticing it sooner, but in your defence, you’d only ever seen escort droids this gorgeous next to celebrities at fancy events. You yourself had never been in the market for one, considering you were neither lonely enough nor attending events formal enough. Besides, you weren’t in the pay class to buy one anyway. So your interaction with androids was generally limited to repair and maintenance droids as well as the courier drones zooming all over the city. Besides seeing this kind of model apparently working independently was odd in and of itself. “In any case, this doesn’t change anything.”

“It does not?” He inquired, sounding almost… curious?

“You’re still my new neighbour, after all.” The corners of your lips lifted, a little more uncertain than before, and you drummed the tips of your fingers against the surface of the counter while getting ready to leave. “Anyhow, I shouldn’t bother you any longer, I’m sure you still have a lot of stuff to set up. If you ever want to get your plant there a friend, you know where to find me. Until then, don’t be a stranger, okay?”

“Being a stranger is impossible, since we have already exchanged personal information, such as our name and career path. According to social etiquette that makes us acquaintances.” Maybe you imagined it but it seemed as if there was a small smile tugging on his lips. “I have also compared your visit today with the definition of ‘bother’ and found no overlap.”

“Isn’t that a relief,” you mused before stepping into the morning sun again. “Good luck with the shop.”

Shouto watched as you waved at him through the dull glass of the storefront, the processing notification in the top right corner of his display still turning. Then his gaze fell on the green organism in front of him. It showed no signs of loneliness yet.

From then on out, Shouto and you were exactly as per his definition; acquaintances, nothing less but also nothing more. You made it a point to greet him when you ran into each other in the morning and he’d politely greet you back, as by the social norm, but the android never took the initiative in calling out to you. For some odd reason, this planted a seed of unease in your chest, which you couldn’t uproot but very well push aside. Shouto didn’t seem keen on sharing his identity with people, wearing long sleeves and gloves to hide any clues that might give him away and a very selfish part of you felt a guilty spark of pride for knowing better. It was wrong to feel satisfied by having knowledge someone wasn’t keen on sharing but feelings couldn’t be helped, could they?

Besides, what would you do once you overcame the  initial gap between you? Was that even a good idea? Well, you’d cross that bridge when you got there, you supposed.

This distanced dance around one another continued for a good while, until circumstance had other plans for you. One fateful morning, you swiped your hand over the censor to your shop, only to be hit by a swell of muggy air, every step inside making your clothes cling to your skin a little more. Notably, the usually faint but still audible whirring of your AC was absent and you groaned. Sure, the heat was unpleasant but ultimately not disastrous for you. The plants in your shop, however, would not take to it kindly for longer periods. 

Needless to say, you spent the entire morning dialling repair service numbers between attending to customers fanning themselves, but to no avail. With the way repair droids had seemingly popped out of the ground like daisies over the last decade or so, you were somewhat dumbfounded to hear nobody would be able to send someone to help fix your problem, even if your livelihood might depend on it. That was when your brain connected the right synapses to figure out a solution. 

After debating it for the rest of the morning, come your lunch break, you found yourself walking into a shop nearly identical to yours, just one door over. It wasn’t as empty as the first time you entered but you got the sense that Shouto wasn’t big on interior decoration past the most basic of furniture. You had timed your visit well though, apparent by the fact you were the only customer at the time. At the chime of the little bell over the door, there was rustling in the back, the clank of metal against something wooden, before a familiar figure appeared behind the counter.

“How may I help you?” Shouto asked neutrally, the statement rolling off his tongue like one of those retro voicemails people used to have way back when. Something akin to recognition crossed his face and you reminded yourself that those beautifully attentive eyes of his probably just compared you to a data bank of people he’d encountered before. “It is you.”

“I guess it is,” you awkwardly laughed at the blank statement. Your gaze shifted to your twiddling thumbs, flickered across the android’s face and then fell on a lush jade porthos sitting idly on the desk. “Uhm so, my AC broke some time tonight and I need it to maintain a prosperous environment for the plants but nowhere I called is free today. I wanted to ask if you could maybe take a look? I’ll pay you, of course.”

“Sure,” he agreed easily enough that it made you pause for a second. But before you could gather your thoughts, Shouto had already rounded the counter and joined you. “I am not specialised in air conditioning systems, but it should not pose a problem.”

And just like that you were showing him through your shop and to the back room, the mechanic completely unaffected by the sweltering heat stoked by the midday’s sun. If you hadn’t known he was an android, you would have had your suspicions the moment not a single bead of sweat rolled down his temple. Heterochromic eyes scanned your -admittedly not uptodate- technology before fixing on the AC unit nestled in between. 

Shouto examined the device briefly before doing something so interestingly peculiar, you were sure this was a part about him he didn’t show others all that often. In a stellar impression of a swiss army knife, the tip of his index finger gave way to a joint that was more screwdriver than anything else and he quickly unscrewed the cover to take a look at the wiring underneath. 

“It is only a minor issue,” Shouto said, effectively ripping you out of your daze. “I will be able to fix it without ordering any spare parts, which is good, since manufacturers have already stopped selling spare parts for this model.”

“Is this a subtle way of telling me to invest in a newer one?” You chuckled bashfully, well aware that the state of your electronics was probably laughable to an android as advanced as him. 

“I am merely stating the facts,” he replied. If it were another human, you would almost recognise his tone as teasing. But your straight-laced neighbour was most likely just running diagnostics on the optimal service life of your AC and booting up a cost-benefit analysis of buying a newer one. 

You watched him work with fascination, Shouto apparently completely undisturbed by your intrigued glances as his fingers worked over the wiring and circuits with mesmerising ease, speed and precision. Before you knew it, the AC sat back in its place fully assembled and contentedly whirring as it had been doing for years. With equal rapture your eyes were still following Shouto’s movement as he stood to his full height again, pulling his black gloves back over his hands. Tearing your gaze away from him, you brushed some plant soil off your clothes and cleared your throat. “So, how much is it going to be?”

“I will not be charging you for this,” Shouto said, shaking his head ever so slightly. “Please regard it as compensation for the plant you gave me.”

“The pothos was a gift, you know,” you chuckled, twisting your fingers together just to have them do something. Again you found it unexplainably difficult to keep eye contact with him and your gaze flitted about, trying to push away the realisation dawning on you. “The point of gifts is that you don’t owe people anything.”

Somewhen between watching Shouto work on your AC unit and trying to navigate this conversation, you had achieved a form of clarity on why you found it hard to keep him off your mind. The way your attention kept drawing back to him had nothing to do with him being the first humanoid android you’d met. It reminded you of the way your eyes always subconsciously locked onto the back of your crush’s head during classes a decades ago, in a way that was innocent and harmless. Unlike the feelings stigmatised by society which now tugged at your heartstrings. You could almost hear your parents scoffing at you for even considering having any sort of feelings for a pile of cold metal that just mimicked having human emotions.

“Then please regard this as a gift as well.” Dual toned eyes studied your face intently as he did last time as well and you convinced yourself that their beauty was helped by the fact that they were literally unreal. “And feel free to ask for my help again in the future. In comparison to human interactions, I find it easier to understand machines.”

“Well, that’s not surprising, is it?” And then you blurted out the worst thing you could have said. “It’s not like you’re familiar with real emotions that aren’t part of your coding.”

“Human emotions are largely caused by their brains releasing certain neurotransmitters upon receiving new information. You learn which situations are supposed to make you happy or should cause you stress as you grow up.” There was hardly any other description befitting of what you saw cast over his face other than pain and sadness. However, there was no surprise there, only muted resignation. Simply put, you could not attribute the cadence of his voice or the subtle shift in his expression to anything but genuine emotion. “I fail to see how that is so different from me being programmed to experience a response upon certain triggers being activated.”

Yeah, you immediately knew you fucked up. Not just by the heavy weight settling in your chest as you retraced the awfully insensitive phrasing you had tossed out mindlessly, but also by the way Shouto turned wordlessly and strode towards the front door. 

“Shouto, wait! I didn’t mean it like that–” You only heard the familiar ring of the door bell.

As the air in your shop slowly cleared of the oppressing air, your skin prickled more than it had in the heat standing there alone. And just like that, the shaky bridge between you went up in smoke.

For the next week, there was no response when you greeted Shouto in the morning and after that the greeting died on your tongue when you saw him. And it wasn’t like you could blame him for it either. You’d hurt him and it wasn’t your decision to make if he forgave you, no matter how much you wished to apologise earnestly. For now, all you could do was give him the space he needed and accept whatever conclusion he came to. It was the only fair thing for you to do.

Still, it was one of the things you were mulling over as you locked the shop one night. Some necessary organising had kept you longer than usual and you were considering your late dinner options with half a mind as you made your way home. The streetlights provided as much light as they could, but with the moon hidden behind a thick duvet of clouds, the streets were tinged a steely grey. Despite the bustling nightlife in other parts of the city, the roads here were nearly empty and desolate, the quiet only adding to the unnerving discomfort making the hair in the back of your neck raise. Shivering, you picked up the pace.

Some people claimed they had very accurate intuition, a sort of sixth sense for when things were about to go wrong. Perhaps you should count yourself among them, because you learnt there was a good reason why your gut feeling had you looking over your shoulder every other metre. You didn’t make it far on your way home until a strong hand yanked you off the pavement and into a dimly lit alleyway.

The next few minutes were a blur of your eyes frantically searching for a way out as your blood was pounding in your ears in time with your erratic heart beat. You didn’t even understand what the men in front of you wanted but you knew they were threatening you as you shrieked for them to let you go, trying to jerk your wrist from a grip made of iron. Your breathing became more and more laboured with panic and exertion, shutting your eyes and willing the images of what would happen to you out of your mind until– 

The resistance gave way and you nearly fell backwards from your struggle. Somehow you caught yourself amidst your stumbling but when you looked straight ahead, your mind didn’t quite catch up with your eyes. There was a flash of white and red, someone groaning in pain, the thud of bodies hitting the floor and then there was Shouto. He was calling your name as from underwater and you thought he was asking you if you could walk, to which you dazedly nodded.

A heavy arm wrapped around your middle but you found you didn’t feel caged this time, its weight rather comforting, as he led you down the familiar street. On autopilot, you opened the door of your shop and let him navigate you to a backroom. The secure familiarity of your surroundings managed to ease you  out of your brain and back into reality as you took in a shuddering breath.

You had known Shouto was there but, finally, you were actually aware of him in front of you, his clear eyes scanning you up and down. Maybe it was because you did not want to think about what had just happened or because seeing him in front of you reminded you of what you’d wanted to tell him for a while now, but the words left your mouth before you could completely think about them once again. “Shouto, I’m so sorry.”

“This situation is not your fault–”

“For what I said the last time we spoke, I mean,” you corrected yourself. As if willing your brain to form coherent sentences, you brought a hand up to rub at your temple. “I know I can’t take back what I told you but I want you to know that I didn’t mean to be offensive. Not that that makes it any better or in any way okay.”

When you dared to look back at Shouto for his reaction, you found that his gaze wasn’t quite meeting yours, his eyes instead focusing on something just shy of them. It took you a few seconds to realise that he was looking at the hand that had come up to rest next to your face, attention continuously following it as you brought it in front of your chest.

“You are hurt. I will download a first aid protocol,” he merely said, his tone unreadable to you. You couldn’t be sure if he was quite aware of his actions as he reached forward to take your hand into his. The synthetic skin of his fingers, however, was tinged with the coldness of the night air in a way you weren’t expecting and it made you flinch away from his hold. At this point you were certain you were the only person who continued to paint that pained expression on his fair features. “Sorry, I did not–”

“No, uhm it’s okay, you just startled me a little, that’s all,” you tried to reassure him, gingerly holding your arm out to him again. This time around, he carefully studied your face before he slid his smooth palm under your calloused one to lift your wrist level with his studious eyes. 

While the texture of his hand imitated human skin, there was unmistakably less give to it, proof of the fact that whatever was underneath was harder than bones. It didn’t frighten you in the slightest, not when it was Shouto. Only in contrast with his gentle hold did it register how much your wrist throbbed with residual pain from where the man had gripped you with so much excessive force.

“I was well aware that humans were fragile beings,” Shouto mumbled, seemingly more so to himself than to you, as a light flickered behind his left iris. “But it has never bothered me as much as it does right now. Why?”

The atmosphere in your shop had shifted so seamlessly you would hardly notice it if it wasn’t for the sudden urge to whisper in order not to shatter it. With your hand still in his, you asked the question that had been burning in your mind for a long time. “Shouto, who are you?”

It was obvious he wasn’t one of those crudely shaped repair or service droids, which had originally led you to believe he was an escort droid, especially considering just how handsome his striking features were. You’d thought the dual-toned hair and eyes were a feature meant to attract attention and allure people with their mesmerising appearance, but the discoloured skin around his left eye seemed to tell a different story.

The events of this night cast another layer of doubt over your rationalisation. Earlier, what startled you hadn’t been the material of his hand but how cool it was to the touch. Escort droids normally had some kind of component that imitated the warmth of human skin, so as to not break the immersion. Certainly, whatever Shouto’s purpose had been before moving into a neglected shop had not required him to pose as human on contact. It apparently had, however, required him to know fighting techniques as you remembered the scene in the alley. Now that the first wave of shock had worn off, you could picture clearly how he had knocked your attackers out swiftly. Another thing an escort droid's programming would not allow him to do.

Shouto sighed deeply despite technically not needing to, his eyes fluttering shut and hiding whatever emotion you could have seen in them. “You might not like what I would have to tell you if you ask that.”

“It’ll be fine as long as it's the truth, I promise.” Hoping to show him that you wouldn’t be going anywhere, you laced your fingers together, fingertips brushing against synthetic knuckles. “But I want to get to know you more, learn about your past and your experiences and your view on things. I want to know where the two of us are different and where we are alike”

“Are you saying you want to progress past being acquaintances?” By now Shouto was blinking at you again, his head tilted slightly sidewards in what you interpreted as curiosity.

“I’d like that very much,” you assured, giving him a tiny smile.

This time you could be certain that he mirrored your expression, making him look so peaceful and nearly innocent. It was a shame it could only last so long with the topic that had been broached. “Are you familiar with Todoroki Inc.?”, he asked.

“The weapons manufacturer?” You tilted your head too as you clarified. “Yeah I heard they supply most of the military’s gear.”

“Well for years their research has been focused on producing a new combat unit. An android that was more durable, more deadly and less human than normal soldiers,” Shouto explained. His hand twitched in yours as he continued. “I think there were… 3 prototypes before me, but I cannot be sure. All I know for certain is that I was their first fully realised model that was sent out for testing on various missions. I won’t go into detail on what that entailed but it was during one such mission that something went wrong.

“It might have been a grenade that hit me,” the fingers of his free hand tapped against the left side of his head, “and it damaged quite a lot of hardware. Because we were far from the main lab, they didn’t have a lot of choice in which spare parts to use, which is why not everything was restored to match, appearance-wise. It was more important that I’d be functional again.”

“Oh Shouto, I didn’t know, I’m so sorry,” you tried to convey your empathy, not sure how you could otherwise at this revelation. Gently, you raised your hand to his face, silently asking for permission, before brushing the crimson strands out of his face. Yes, the skin didn’t match colourwise, but whoever performed the graft definitely knew what they were doing, the transition as smooth as possible. “Did it hurt?”

“I don’t experience pain the same way you do, so I wouldn’t say it hurt. At the time I was more concerned about what would happen if we returned to the headquarters.” A beat of silence passed as you waited for Shouto to continue. “Did you know that manufacturers implant inhibitors into our bodies that stop us from learning new things on our own? It’s what stops most androids from deviating from their roles by making sure they don’t form new opinions, associations or what might be considered a personality.”

“I didn’t know that,” you admitted, somewhat ruefully.

“What matters right now is that mine was damaged during that incident, which I noticed when running my internal diagnosis programme. The researchers at the time seemed too busy with fixing the rest of my head to notice, but I knew that if I returned, a check would give me away and they would reset me.” Grasping your hand a little tighter, his eyes searched your face for something. “That night I made the decision to run away. I removed my tracker and threw it into a truck with android parts going to a junkyard, though I don’t know if they are still searching for me. Or ever were.”

For a moment you didn’t know what to say, trying to sort out your thoughts. You didn’t think anything you could possibly say would make any difference at all, but saying nothing wouldn’t be right either. Your hand was now cupping the side of his face, cradling where hues of alabaster met those of sandstone. “You had to go through so much.”

“I’m okay now. Sometimes I want nothing more than to delete my memory but I think it is important to remember this, so I can learn from it. Are you disappointed in me? Upset that this is who you wanted to get to know?” You vehemently shook your head and denied it as much verbally. “Then why are you looking at me as if you are the one who is hurting? Is your wrist getting worse?”

“No, it’s just… of course, I’d be upset that you had to endure so much pain. It’s just not fair,” you attempted to voice your feelings but ended up incoherently short. You squeezed his hand sympathetically and looked past him at some packages of plant soil lining your storage shelves. 

“But you look more upset than me. And I do not want you to feel that way,” Shouto coaxed you to look back at him and there was that tiny smile again that made your heart skip a beat. However, you also didn’t think it was very fair of you that you were now the one being consoled when he just opened up to you. “Still, I think you would call this emotion gratitude, that you care enough to feel for me and that you are staying despite what -or who- I am.”

“Well, I still wanted to apologise for what I said. Especially given everything I learnt about you now, it was a really mean thing to say,” you sighed, determined to get this across this time. “But at the end of the day, no matter your background, it wouldn’t be justifiable either way.”

“It normally would not have been as upsetting, since I was aware you most likely did not intend for it to be offensive. I’m also used to it,” Shouto said, taking your other hand as well, so both of your arms now rested between you. “But hearing you say that was different. My analysis yielded the result that there was a small chance you actually were not happy to be my neighbour and it made me hesitate. I didn’t understand why, so I avoided you. Normally I disregard such unlikely odds but why did I reference it so often this time?”

“Maybe you were scared of rejection for the first time,” you smiled, trying not to read too much into what that would mean for you. “In that case we’re more alike than you might notice. I also get scared when I want to befriend someone and I don’t know how they feel about it.”

“Then how do you know if someone feels the same as you?” 

“You can’t, that’s the thing. I find that talking about this stuff makes it easier than leaving people guessing,” you attempted to explain. “Even then you can’t say for sure that someone’s being completely honest with you, but at one point you have to trust people. I think that’s the scary part.”

Shouto’s left eye brightened a little before he nodded his head. “I see, thank you.” 

Then silence fell over the two of you like a soft blanket. In the warm light of your shop it was easy to forget why the two of you had been there in the first place as all that occupied your mind was the android in front of you. Your feelings were in complete disarray between everything that had happened, the past he had shared with you and the way he had looked at you. By now the flawless material under your palms was warm and inviting and not as bitter cold as when you’d first taken his hand. 

Right, you were still holding his hands. A little embarrassed you slowly detangled your fingers from his with a little cough. “Uhm anyway, I didn’t even thank you yet for saving me earlier, so uh thank you…”

“No need for gratitude. I’ve never used my programming to protect someone before,” he admitted. “It’s positive, I think. Also, the idea of you coming to harm is not one I want to entertain.”

You swallowed, unsure of what to answer in that situation. “I just want to clarify that I don’t always find myself in those kinds of situations. And working in a flower shop isn’t exactly what I’d call dangerous either, so you don’t have to worry about me.”

“And if I still were to?” His question hung in the air, heavy with something you did not want to interpret before he took a few steps out of your personal space and towards the front door. “You should head home. I read that humans need to sleep eight hours a day and given your usual schedule–”

The second he distanced himself from you, you shuddered, rooted in place as you stared out your window front into the darkness beyond. The streets looked as they always did but you were convinced you could see the shadows in the alleyways move and your heart started thumping against your chest at the thought of having to walk past them. Until now, because Shouto was there to shield you from anything that lay beyond the security of your little storage room, you had been able to block out the reality that you’d have to leave the shop and return to the silence of your flat, where the stairs creaked under the neighbours’ shoes and the wind rattled on your shutters. Now though–

You had moved before you had actually formed the concrete decision to. This time you were the one who wrapped your fingers around Shouto’s wrist. If he was startled he didn’t show it outside of turning to you with a concerned expression, asking what was wrong.

“Shouto, I don’t want to be alone tonight,” you started, voice low and not meeting his eyes. “Could you stay with me?”

“Stay… here? But–” Apparently he had deciphered something in your expression and body language because he cut himself off and closed the gap between you a little again. “If you want me to, I will. But wouldn’t you be more comfortable at home?”

“No, here’s good. I have spare clothes and blankets somewhere too.” Your hand lingered on his arm a few seconds longer as if to assure yourself he wouldn’t vanish into thin air, or worse, leave you, before rummaging through the storage for more comfortable clothes and said blankets. You offered Shouto your most oversized hoodie and sweatpants, well aware he didn’t actually need them but not wanting him to feel left out, and he took them without protest.

A few minutes later you were both sitting -more or less snuggly- shoulder to shoulder with your backs against a cabinet in the storage room, illuminated by fairy lights and smaller lamps strewn around the space, cushions softening the floor underneath you with blankets draped over your laps. The smell of fresh soil and flowers hung in the air, helping ground you further. You’d seen cosier sleepovers before but Shouto had seemed quite content as you rearranged everything, fiddling with the soft material of your sweater and pulling at the drawstrings until they were perfectly symmetrical.

For a few quiet moments you just sat like this and you could feel your heart rate coming back down to a normal pace. There was no rush to speak from either of you as you just existed next to one another. You knew your back would kill you tomorrow but at the moment you couldn’t care less as you couldn’t imagine being anywhere else, not even your home.

“Say,” you broke the silence as you followed your train of thought, “why did you choose to open a repair shop of all things?”

“I read online that most humans work something called a job,” Shouto offered and you instinctively smiled at the clumsiness that initially charmed you about him. When you asked why a mechanic specifically, as there must be a lot of areas someone like him would be good at, you felt him tilt his head again. “I took the quizzes.”

“The quizzes?” 

“Yes there are more than two billion search results for the term ‘job quiz’ on my default search engine. I took them all and cross-referenced the results. ‘Mechanic’ seemed to be the most compatible profession for me and after downloading sufficient information on the term, I had no objections.” Unlike the first time you met, you thought there was something else in the matter-of-fact tone of his voice, almost like he was puffing out his chest. “There were other jobs that were not recommended for me, like becoming a chef.”

“Oh really? I mean I guess you don’t need to cook for yourself but I thought you’d be able to access like every recipe out there,” you mused. Given his background you’d also imagine Shouto could chop vegetables at a pace that would put most chefs to shame. “So why did that land so far down the list?”

“Mainly because I do not have any taste buds.” 

If anyone else had given you that response, it wouldn’t have been nearly as funny as hearing Shouto say it as if it was the most obvious reason in the world, tone flat as a board. When you started laughing, he turned to you, mismatched eyes fixed on you in definite curiosity. “Do you think I am funny?”

“Well, you’re certainly good at making me laugh, if that counts for anything,” you breathed, wiping the corner of your eye with the blanket. Maybe the late hour was getting to you, after all.

“Hm, perhaps I should have become a comedian then,” Shouto thoughtfully contemplated, face earnest. “Though that was consistently ranked towards the bottom of the results.”

“Seriously, you’re killing me here,” you exhaled breathlessly. Immediately Shouto went rigid next to you and you felt him turn to face you.

“Do you have a medical condition I am unaware of?” His eyes raked over your form, no doubt checking for any signs of injuries or pain.

You held up your hand to stop him from spiralling. “You can relax, it’s just an expression.

“Anyhow, I’m glad you became a mechanic and that you chose that particular shop,” you admitted, getting over the last aftershocks of your laughter as Shouto settled down next to you again, though you could feel him glancing at you from the corner of his eyes. “Otherwise I wouldn’t have met you and we wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

“You are correct,” Shouto said after a few beads of silence and you could practically see a light bulb go off over -or rather inside- his head. “I made the right choice then. But if you did not become a florist we could not be in this shop, either. So why did you decide to? Did you also take the quizzes?”

“No, I didn’t take any quizzes,” you smiled, absentmindedly tracing over the curve of your knee under the blanket. “My parents had a small garden and many houseplants. Nothing fancy, really, but I always loved taking care of them. My interest in them picked back up when I got older and I learnt more about their importance for the environment. With how compromised it’s becoming I want to preserve at least a little bit of that greenery. May sound stupid, I know I’m not saving the world here, but it’s still important to me.”

“I do not think it is stupid,” Shouto said. “My scans show that the air inside here is significantly cleaner than outside, a result that can be attributed to plants’ process of photosynthesis. I have also detected an increased number of insects in the surrounding area, which speaks of a good exo-system.” 

“Well, I’m glad someone noticed,” you chuckled fondly. “But, on a smaller level, I guess I just want to make people happy. When someone comes in asking for a bouquet, it can have all sorts of reasons, some of which I never learn. Whatever it is though, I hope someone can smile while receiving a thoughtfully picked bouquet or welcoming a small plant into their home. Thinking of someone in such a small way could brighten someone’s day, that’s what I tell myself.”

“There seems to be a lot more to the act of gifting flowers than I previously registered,” Shouto hummed and you didn’t have to look at him to know that his little processing indicator was lighting up. “Personally, I have registered receiving the jade pothos as a positive experience, which lends credit to your observations. Why does the act of presenting each other with decaying organic material convey affection? Perhaps I can learn more about humanity when studying the ritual of giving flowers. Would you be receptive to telling me more about this topic?”

“Of course, I’ll tell you everything you want to know. Or what I know, at least,” you laughed at his eagerness. “Though you’re welcome to drop by the shop any time to see for yourself, you know. I could also teach you how to prune plants and care for them, all that stuff.”

“Really? You would disclose trade secrets to me?”

“It can hardly be considered trade secrets if I have to give that info away to every customer. Besides, you can look all of it up online anyway,” you laughed again. “I just think it would be a fun excuse to spend time together.”

“Why would you have to make an excuse to see me?” His inquisitive tone was truly adorable.

“Just another expression,” you tried to explain without setting him up for embarrassment in the future. “People mostly use it when they’re usually too busy to see their friends for example but they make time for them anyway. Something like that.”

“Then I will gladly take you up on your offer,” Shouto stated with a pleased smile. “... Did I use that correctly?”

“Yes, you did,” you giggled affectionately. “And your answer makes me glad too.”

The two of you settled back into a comfortable silence, though this time your eyelids felt worlds heavier than before and you poorly stifled a yawn. As quiet tranquillity overcame you, so did a peaceful slumber.

Shouto looked down when he felt a weight slump against his shoulder, finding you leaning against him. From your closed eyes and steady breathing he determined you must still be asleep and were resting against him unconsciously. He could not fathom his solid frame would make for a comfortable resting spot but perhaps the garment you lent him would soften it a little. The way your neck craned at the moment would probably lead to soreness tomorrow, at least according to what he read, so he wrapped his arm around your bundled up form, careful not to disturb the sleep you needed.

Ignoring the turning circle in the corner of his vision was easy by now. It had been going on like this for nearly the entire night, processing everything he took in like he was doing right now. Nobody had ever slept on him. Was this meant to trigger a positive response? Maybe he should ask you about it tomorrow, whether it was something people liked.  

To like something. It was a very human thing to say. Machines normally did not ‘like’ something. Or ‘disliked’ something, for that matter. There was instead a binary system of a positive or negative response. Something functioned or it did not. But emotions made everything more complex than that and Shouto wanted to understand them. Which is why he appreciated learning about things he ‘liked’.

He scanned the scene his visual unit perceived, committed all of it to memory more actively than usual. Then his gaze fell back down on you. Your chest was rising and falling as your lungs took in oxygen and released carbon monoxide. It was a process he had seen and studied on numerous occasions but it was like he came across it for the first time. If there was nothing different about it, why did he ‘feel’ like he could watch you like this forever? He had numerous questions, something he normally sought to answer as a priority, but tonight they were secondary interests. You leaning against him occupied most of his processing capacity, he did not need to run a diagnosis for that.

Quietly, Shouto updated his file on things he ‘liked’.

As the first rays of the sun filtered in through the store front, you woke with a groan and tried to get comfortable on your pillow again. Except that your pillow had a weird shape to it and instead of stretching across your mattress like a lazy cat, you were curled into an unusual shape and your back was screaming at you to do something about it. Blearily opening your eyes, you wiped the sleep and crust out of them only to find yourself staring at… the back of your shop counter?

Oh right, you had spent the night over at your shop. Which meant that your pillow…

“You’re awake,” Shouto stated from right beside you, apparently completely undisturbed by the fact you had been using his shoulder as your headrest for the last few hours. In fact, it seemed he had tried to accommodate you by wrapping his arm around you and keeping you upright. “How are you feeling?”

“Still tired,” you yawned, slowly rousing yourself from where you leant against him and he slowly retracted his arm now that you were conscious again. “And a little sore. Remind me not to sleep sitting on the floor again.”

“I will.” Clearly not needing any time to boot up or whatever an android would call waking up, Shouto rose to his feet easily and offered you his hand to help you stand. As you did, you stretched out your poor limbs, cracking a few joints in the process with a satisfied hum. Next to you, however, someone went rigid before two hands were on your shoulders. “Are you alright? Did you break a bone? Do you need to go to the hospital? 

“I knew humans were prone to breaking bones but does it really happen this easily? Though the noise I heard from targets before…” He mumbled the last part more to himself, before a hand on his chest cut him off.

“I’m fine, just cracking some joints. I assure you it’s perfectly normal and nothing to worry about,” you smiled, showing him that your arm and back were still completely functional. “Though I appreciate that you do.”

“Oh, I see,” Shouto quietly acquiesced and backed off again, not able to meet your eyes.

“Here, why don’t we get dressed and grab something to eat. I’m just about ready to kill for a coffee,” you proposed, tossing him his clothes as you caught his look of surprise. “Just an expression. I just really really want some caffeine right about now.”

You took a few minutes to straighten out your clothes and freshen up a little over the sink, thanking your past self for leaving a toiletry bag at the shop. When you reentered the front of the shop, you found Shouto bending forward to be eye-level with a small cactus, carefully prodding the prickly thing with a curious index finger. Joining him, you swept a red strand of his bangs back to its original side, so his hair was neatly parted down the middle again.

Soon, you found yourself in a small coffee shop down the road. While passing the particular alley gave you goosebumps, it didn’t accelerate your heartbeat as fast in the daylight and with Shouto next to you. If he noticed you walking closer to him, he made no mention of it.

Of course you had wondered if it was such a smart idea to put so much faith in someone you had met not that long ago. An android created for the sole purpose of military combat, no less. But then you remembered how he had cared for the plant you gave him, played with the drawstrings of his hoodie and let you use his shoulder as a headrest without any complaint and you just couldn’t find it in you to reject the goodness you saw in him, no matter what other people might have to say about it. Besides, what had you told him last night? That at one point you had to put your trust in someone if you wanted to connect with them? Well, you put your trust in Shouto.

The coffee shop you stopped by if you were running late was an adorably cosy one with lots of greenery for decoration. They even had an antique wooden door with a handle and all, which was so charming. Reaching it first, Shouto held it open for you with a tiny smile and you thanked him as the pleasant aroma of roasted coffee beans and baked goods filled your senses. 

There were a few people inside already, office workers in black suits, students typing away at their devices and parents on their way to drop their kids off. Shouto glanced around, no doubt scanning the area, as you typed your order into a flatscreen on the wall and held your wrist over the scanner to pay, then fixing his eyes on your order as if it was the most interesting thing here. 

When you got the coffee and toasted sandwich you had ordered, the two of you sat down at a table a little off from the other customers, though you doubted anyone would care much for your conversation. With a pleased hum, you bit into your food and savoured its taste as the coffee warmed you up from the inside, breathing some life back into you.

“You seem to like it,” Shouto commented, a little amused perhaps that something so simple could make you happy.

“I just really enjoy breakfast,” you told him between bites. “Don’t know why, I’ve just always been fond of it. I’d offer you some but, well.”

“Thank you, I appreciate the thought. Maybe they will invent olfactory and gustatory sensors in the future and then you can share with me.” Both of you smiled at the idea as the shop bustled around you, frequented in the morning hours. “There is something I have been thinking about since tonight.”

“Something tells me it’s breakfast-unrelated,” you mused, trying to lighten the gravity those words tended to bring. Not that you could guess what this was about with him. “Okay then, shoot.”

Shouto raised an eyebrow quizzically. “I will take that as a prompt to continue. Anyway, I have been thinking. We have established previously that we are no longer strangers, which would make us acquaintances. However, considering the matter of information shared between us yesterday, I am not sure if this still constitutes ‘knowing each other slightly’.”

“Shouto, are you asking if we are friends?” You clarified as you took your cup. 

“Yes.”

“I don’t think that’s something you can easily determine by going by definitions,” you argued. “Though, if you ask me, yeah. I’d consider us friends.”

“Really? That makes me… happy, I suppose,” Shouto said. Your new friend paused for a moment before clasping his hands together the way you did when not sure what to do with them. “Sorry, that can be interpreted wrong. I still have yet to grasp which emotions are appropriate to use in response to different situations. The definitions are vague and even adjacent emotions convey divergent subtext, it makes understanding them difficult. In any case, I am experiencing a positive response right now.”

“Don’t worry about it too much. Different people have different emotional reactions to the same event, that’s totally normal. Being happy or sad doesn’t mean the same to everyone, so you’re totally fine in defining what those mean to you specifically,” you reassured him as you finished your breakfast. “Though I guess if you haven’t grown up with the same perception of feelings that most humans are exposed to, that's still a pretty tall order. Just don’t pressure yourself and take your time.”

“Okay if you say so.” You could see he was still mulling it over but decided to let him figure things out on his own. 

With a glance towards the time you tapped the table before getting up. “Come on. As much as I’d love to chat the morning away with you, we do have businesses to run.”

The way back somehow felt worlds shorter this morning and in no time at all you stood in front of your respective shop entrances. After spending this much time with Shouto you had seemingly grown so accustomed to his presence that it felt weird to part ways now, even if you were only a few metres apart most of the day. You fiddled with your shirt collar looking for something to say.

“Well, thanks again for everything. The door’s always open for you, if you need anything,” was what you eventually settled on. Then you remembered something else. “Oh right, I ordered some new pots the other day that should come in soon. So if you have some free time on your hands the next few days I could show you how to repot plants, if you’re interested.”

“Thank you, I’d appreciate the opportunity to learn from you,” Shouto smiled. With that, the two of you parted ways but your thoughts still swirled around the guy one wall away from you. 

As promised, your new pots came in two days later and brought with them a now familiar presence. After unpacking them with the Shouto’s help, who handled even the biggest planters as if they weighed nothing, you grabbed a few smaller ones for demonstration. Despite never having repotted anything before, he got the hang of it pretty quickly after attentively listening to your instructions.

“Wow, you learn fast,” you praised as you watched him settle a monstera into a new pot. Leaning back against a cabinet, you studied the way his arms did not flex at all. Sure, his arms moved and bent like a human’s but there was an absence of muscle movement and you understood why he preferred to keep his body covered while working. A part of you felt flattered that he didn’t feel like having to hide from you. “Maybe I should hire you after all.”

Wiping plant soil off his hands with a towel, Shouto turned to inspect his palm. “Sorry but my thumbs still aren’t green.”

“You should consider reading up on some common proverbs and expressions,” you chuckled. Stepping closer to him, you wiped a stain of dirt off his otherwise pristine cheek. “Though you’re quite cute like this. Look, mine aren’t green either.”

“These expressions make no sense at all,” Shouto lamented and you laughed at him.

“If it consoles you, I don’t think most people know their origins either,” you reasoned, rolling in a bigger planter. “They just use them because they heard them in similar situations before. Help me with this?”

“So people employ a natural large language module for these expressions?” Together you heaved the larger plant carefully into its new home. Well, you were doing most of the heaving while Shouto was gracefully lifting. 

“I never thought about it like that but yeah I guess you could say that,” you exhaled as you straightened back out, wiping your forehead with the back of your hand. “Thanks a bunch. I managed to get through these so much faster because of you.”

“No need to thank me. I like helping you,” Shouto thought out loud, cocking his head to the right ever so slightly. “This might match the definition for ‘having fun’, though I will have to collect more data on this matter.”

“It sounds great for me though,” you remarked with a smile as you turned to cleaning around your storage room. 

Over the next few weeks, you saw Shouto much more frequently and hoped spending time with you could further his definition of fun. Most of the time you weren’t doing anything out of the ordinary, but even common occurrences allowed you to learn more about each other. Your android friend would point out something that was weird to him and you’d either have to stand there realising something you were doing all your life was rather ridiculous or you’d learn about a perspective you’d never considered before.

It had become a frequent occurrence for you to spend your breaks together, the fact that Shouto couldn’t actually eat lunch or share coffee with you, never a problem. Sometimes you would agree to hang out after closing time, doing everything from bowling to visiting museums, as you refreshed old memories while Shouto made new ones. He was also incredibly good at picking up on when you’d stay late, try as you might to avoid it, and waited for you, so he could walk you home. Needless to say, it made you feel a lot safer.

One afternoon, you spent your lunch break showing him how he could get stray cats to approach him after he rather sullenly confessed to you they weren’t too fond of him. You had him copy the way you crouched down and held your hand out while coaxing them towards you with little pspsps noises. And while the little tabby fur ball seemed a little taken aback by Shouto’s lack of warmth at first, it soon decided it wasn't an issue as lithe fingers scratched in just the right places. Shouto’s face as the tiny thing started pressing up against his palm while purring up a storm was as adorable as the cat by his feet. The emotional turmoil he seemed to be in when he had to get up while the tabby was soundly asleep in his lap had you stifling a laugh.

Other times he seemed to enjoy hanging around your shop, helping around here or there, even if you told him he really didn’t need to. You could tell he was interested in the reasons why people bought flowers, how they went about choosing them and how it affected their mood. Well, it wasn’t as if he was the only one doing the studying.

On more than one occasion you could hear customers gush about the handsome guy watering the plants with serious dedication or catch someone checking out more than just their purchase. You couldn’t deny that it was good for business but it planted a seed of irritation in your stomach that bloomed a little further with each hushed word and stolen glance. 

Then again, could you really blame them?

You knew Shouto was ridiculously attractive. Hell, you had eyes after all. And you’d be lying if the low, smooth timbre of his voice didn’t make something flutter in your chest, especially not when he looked at you with those beautiful heterochromic eyes. Even though enough time should have passed, you were still thinking about how his palm had warmed up in yours or how soft his hair had felt when you swept his bangs aside. 

“Are you alright?” Shouto was looking at you with concern, gaze switching between your eyes as if searching for any discomfort. Only then did you realise you had been sighing out loud.

“Yeah, I’m fine, it’s nothing,” you deflected, going back to rearranging the flower display in the centre of the shop. With the store empty except for the two of you, you could talk freely. “What’s up? I can tell there’s a question burning on the tip of your tongue.”

“So earlier a woman came in asking for a bouquet conveying different sentiments,” Shouto started as he took the flower arrangement you handed him. “I didn’t know you flowers could convey specific feelings without a card or conversation.”

“Well, in my personal opinion, flowers can convey a whole lot of things, though very subtly. From the context in which they’re given -gratitude, condolences, affection- to thoughtfully choosing someone’s favourite species or colour, it all means something,” you voiced your thoughts. “But aside from that, there’s also flower language, with every species and colours representing things like love, happiness, luck.”

“My data bank encompasses over 200 spoken languages and equally as many coding languages, however it doesn’t list any flower languages,” Shouto blinked slowly, iris flickering as he no doubt ran some kind of check. 

“I wouldn’t worry about it. Most people wouldn't pick up on it anyway and interpretations vary a lot,” you mused, patting his shoulder as you walked past him. “As someone who works in the industry, I think the act of giving someone flowers in the first place means more than any kind of attributed meaning. Though I can see why people would think it’s a fun thing to play around with.”

“I see, thanks for the insight.” 

Spending so much time with Shouto, who prioritised learning over everything had reawakened a spark of curiosity in yourself as well, you had noticed. In the past, you had often put off learning something new for when you had more free time, only for that moment to never come. But seeing how dedicated and unafraid he was to ask about whatever he didn’t understand, it was pretty admirable. His progress was amazing too. Sure, his intonation was still flatter than most people’s but his sentences had taken on a more natural structure over the course of only a few weeks of conversing. Gone were the days of inspected thumbs, sadly enough, however, his delivery of a joke was equally precious.

In spite of your established rhythm of hanging out, there came a week in which you rarely saw him. You understood of course that sometimes other matters took priority, but you reasoned that you were still allowed to be a little saddened by it. So, naturally, your eyes lit up when you returned from restocking your storage to find Shouto perusing the shelves of cut flowers. Given that it was near closing time, it was once again only you two and there was no need for pretences or professionalism. Which was exactly why you snuck up behind him before quickly gripping his shoulders.

“Boo!” You exclaimed with a giggle, only to find Shouto still completely calm as he looked over his shoulder. “Oh c’mon, it’s no fun if you don’t react at least a little.”

“Ah. My nonexistent heart,” Shouto replied flatly, still as serene as he brought a hand up to his chest. 

“Oh, shut up,” you grinned, giving him a little push against the chest that moved him exactly zero centimetres. Picking up a few fallen leaves from the displays, you continued tidying up for the day. “Anyway, how are you? It’s been a while. If you give me a few minutes, we could catch up over dinner, if you’re free, of course.”

“Actually, I’m here because of something else,” Shouto interjected and he fiddled with his hands ever so slightly. It made you halt in your steps immediately. You were well aware that he normally wasn’t the type to hesitate, so it had you immediately asking what was wrong. “I was wondering if you could help me bind a bouquet.”

“I- Yeah, sure,” you blinked, needing a second to recalibrate. Going back into work mode, you walked him through the usual process, asking what kind of flowers he had in mind, offering to help him choose. However, Shouto seemed to have a pretty clear vision of what he wanted and, to your surprise, picked all your favourite flowers, which you commented on with a chuckle. As you returned to the counter to actually bind the thing, you couldn’t help but finally ask what had been on your mind since his request. “So, what’s the occasion?”

“As you know, I’ve been gathering some data on why people gift flowers, and while birthdays and other celebrations are also popular, the custom of bouquets as part of courting rituals has prevailed until today,” Shouto explained and something about it made your nerves flare up like someone was strumming a guitar string. “While looking into the topic further, I’ve realised something about my own feelings.”

“Oh? Are you going to ask someone out?” You clarified as you wrapped the flowers in matching paper with practised motions. 

“Yes.” Your hand slipped while cutting the ribbon’s length as your heart lurched forward. 

Cursing yourself in equal measures for both, you regained your metaphorical footing and finished the bouquet, hoping your hands did not betray how shaken you felt inside as you handed the wrapped stems to him. “I’m happy for you. Oh and don’t even think about paying, just treat it as compensation for all the help you’ve recently been.”

At this point, lying to yourself wasn’t going to cut it anymore. Hearing Shouto was planning  to ask someone out shot a pang straight to your heart, and not the good, fun kind. Well, it wasn’t surprising someone else would pick up on how attentive Shouto could be, so you could only blame yourself for not shooting your shot when you could. Then again, you hadn’t even been sure he’d be receptive to your feelings and you didn’t want to risk the friendship you had built. At least you knew now why you hadn’t seen him as much lately.

You were snapped out of your derailing train of thought as the same bouquet you had just bound reappeared in your vision. Blinking at it in a stupor for a few seconds, your gaze wandered up to Shouto’s face. The sinking sun was shining its last rays through the store front, casting the room in gold and framing his head like a halo. Between his criminally good looks and the expectant eyes glimmering down at you, you forgot what you wanted to say for a second, your lips parting with no sound escaping them.

“Is something wrong with the bouquet?” You finally managed to ask, somewhat breathless as your heart hammered from the way he looked at you. As if it had taken admitting your feelings to yourself for your body to display the signs of your crush, whatever had taken root in your stomach was coming into full bloom at exactly that moment. 

“Not at all,” Shouto replied, before tilting his head, expression still as expectant while the flowers bridged the space between you. “Well, are you going to accept them? It’s  okay if you don’t.”

“Huh? Me?”

“Yes, you are the person I wish to court, after all,” he said, as if that had been clear from the beginning. Before your brain had fully caught up to the situation at hand, your fingers were already wrapping around the bouquet, brushing Shouto’s in the process.

“I didn’t think you meant me,” you stammered, all attempts of collecting yourself thrown to the wind and just accepting the fact you were unprepared. “In my defence, this is the first time someone gave me a bouquet that I made.”

“Well, you are the best florist I know and I wanted to give you the most beautiful bouquet.”

“So, that’s why you chose all my favourites,” you trailed off, feeling tears well up along your lower lash line, whether from joy or relief you couldn’t quite say.

“I made a note of it every time you mentioned them, as well as your favourite colours,” Shouto added and his thoughtfulness coaxed the first tear to quietly slip down your cheek, which he of course noticed before you could wipe it away. “Did I do something wrong? I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

“It’s not– I’m not sad, quite the opposite, really. I couldn’t be happier actually,” you quickly cleared up. “Let me state the obvious: I like you, Shouto.”

“That’s good, because I like you, too.” As always, he didn’t fail at making a smile tug at your lips. “I first noticed something was different when I started spending more time with you. The more I was around you, the more of my processing capacity was occupied by thoughts of you. Actually, even when I wasn’t around you. When the performance of my internal cooling system gradually rose, I ran more than one diagnosis only to find that everything was totally normal on the hardware side. 

“I started piecing everything together when I looked into dating customs in relation to flowers and then started learning about dating as a whole.” There was such softness to both his eyes and voice, it captivated you entirely. “When I read about how people feel when they like someone or when they’re falling in love, it made me realise that, when I’m talking to you, it’s like I’m running a completely different code for conversations. One that I use for nobody else and the responses of which all point to one conclusion. You’re special to me.”

There was so much you wanted to say as your cheeks heated from more than just the sun, but your thoughts all tangled together and you couldn’t get a hold of a coherent one. So instead you placed the bouquet you were still holding on the counter as you rounded it. Basically throwing yourself at him, Shouto still caught you easily as your arms looped around him in a tight embrace, which he gladly returned.  His frame was solid against you, allowing you to lean into him as much as you liked, while his hold on you spoke of such tenderness, it made you feel right at home.

“Being able to hold you like this, I’m sure I made the right choice,” Shouto continued before you could sort out your own piece. “I was hesitating again but then I remembered what a wise person once told me. It’s normal to be afraid of rejection and you can never say for certain what someone feels. But at some point you have to muster the courage and trust them.”

“That wise person would do well to take their own advice, if you ask me,” you snorted, turning your head so you could look at him from your position. “Because I know someone who was afraid of rejection and almost let something good pass them by because of it.”

“But it didn’t,” Shouto found one of your hands as he stepped just far enough away from you so he could properly take you in, his other hand gently cupping your jaw and tracing your cheekbone with his thumb almost reverently. “All that matters now is that you’re equally affected by me as I am by you.”

“I can assure you that you don’t have to worry about that.” Leaning in, you placed a lingering kiss on his cheek and linked your fingers with his. “Now, to answer my earlier question. Are you free for dinner right now?”

“For you? Always,” he smiled, returning the kiss to your temple, the synthetic material as soft as it always looked. “Maybe we could go to your place and watch that movie you were gushing to me about.”

“Taking me home on the first date? Scandalous,” you giggled. Winking at him you led him out of the shop. “But since it’s you I’ll allow it.”

“Technically, you are the one taking me home,” Shouto pointed out, the same tone of mischief tinting his voice as you grinned at each other. 

The sun set behind the buildings of the city as the two of you walked the streets hand in hand, discussing whatever came to mind, from what you should make for dinner tonight to your expectations for the movie and to the last album from your favourite band. Shouto listened to all of it with a smile and added his commentary here and there, all the while running warmer than an android of his model should. Then again, he supposed he liked how warm his left hand felt compared to the right one swinging freely by his side. 

In the corner of his vision, the small circle had finally stopped turning and was replaced with an equally unseeming, yet all the more important, notification. 

File Updated: Falling in Love

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[pacificwaternymph]

Aaaaand everyone give it up for WASTED POTENTIAL

Season finale spoilers under the cut

Okay. I'll be honest. The finale was... not what I was hoping for.

I tried so hard to remain optimistic. I truly believed they could pull it all together and everything was going to have a satisfying conclusion. But I guess that's my fault. I set my expectations too high.

Is this about Tech? Primarily, yes. Yes it was. I am so disappointed. And you can make fun of me all you want but I genuinely believed, with all my heart, that CX-2 was Tech.

BECAUSE WHY THE FUCK ELSE WAS THERE SO MUCH EMPHASIS ON HIM

There was so much to suggest that CX-2 was somebody we knew. We spent so much time on him, suffered through so many completely unnecessary, in hindsight, close up shots and random pieces of episodes that focus on him, only for him to get javelined through the middle in the span of half a second.

It feels like the writers were just making fun of the viewers, at this point. Haha, can you believe they actually thought?

Yes, we did think! Did you?

Tech's death was so... unconvincing. They didn't even try. Not only was his life "cut short" in the midst of his character development, said death was caused by falling, without any other kind of injury, while we watch him disappear into the clouds. And then we see no body and only have his broken goggles as "evidence" of his death. What the hell else were we supposed to assume?

That's not even bringing up that Tech gets maybe three mentions all throughout the entire season. The show never touches on how the death of one of their squadmates, people they have known since birth, affects the batch. Not once do they ever say out loud that Tech is dead until the fucking finale.

This isn't just me reading too closely between the lines. This is genuinely bad writing. It's loading chekhov's gun and then refusing to shoot it.

Even if CX-2 wasn't Tech, or even somebody we knew, the way he is treated suggests that he was supposed to be important. He was supposed to be be relevant. And now, he's neither!

Furthermore, where fuck was everybody? Where was Rex with the reinforcements to storm the base? Where was Wolffe deciding he didn't want anything to do with the Empire anymore? Where was Cody? Where was Phee in all of this?

Where was Cid? So we're just... not going to get any kind of closure for that? We spend two entire seasons with her, then she just betrays them and we never see her again? Even if they didn't redeem her, that feels like pretty damn bold move.

The Zillo beast does... barely anything. Really? It just breaks out and moves away from the biggest source of energy it will ever find after causing the slightest amount of property damage to two rooms, and storms off into the woods, and that's all we get? Seriously?

And then once we get to the time jump... Echo's gone. Again. Either still off with Rex, if he hasn't gone into hiding yet, or died off screen. Neither is a good nor satisfying ending for his character. But I guess shouldn't be surprised by that. When have the writers ever cared about Echo?

The biggest problem with the whole thing is that it didn't feel like a finale. It felt like a normal episode, just slightly longer. The Bad Batch returned to Pabu, because I guess there are no consequences from the Batch being discovered there before and the empire decided that they were just going to... leave it alone, and everything returns to the status quo. That's not what a finale does, Dave.

Maybe I'm being too harsh. There were parts that I enjoyed. I'm glad Hunter, Wrecker, and Crosshair got their happy endings. Seeing Omega all grown up really did something to my heart. But overall I am just so frustrated.

[tealvenetianmask]

Prediction post turned into a Stolitz ramble

There's this thing that Bryce said (timestamp here) at one of the panels about how Stolas will be forced to peal away layers to figure out who he is and what's important to him that makes me think there will be a major shift in his life before the end of season 2.

I think he's going to lose his house, his wealth, his status, and the job he was given without any choice when he was 10. Maybe he'll lose access to Octavia for a time (though of course, that IS important, and I hope their relationship will be even stronger later on). Maybe he'll be in hiding. Maybe- I hope- he'll do some book-keeping/lawyering for IMP, and I hope we'll see his relationship develop with Blitz in a more equitable situation. I've only been getting into this fandom for a couple of months, but during that time I've read some good posts on what that might look like.

Another note that I might turn into a longer post later- it bothers me when people say that Stolitz can't happen until they handle their issues separately and seem to think that this means it won't be until the end of the series and that they need to be "just friends" first. I think that there are some kind of misguided assumptions at the heart of this.

1. That people with significant mental illness/relationship issues can't do relationships. No. Damaged adults are in all kinds of relationships, and they span from toxic to helpful and healing. That's not to say that Stolitz can have a healthy relationship with their current level of communication. I think that for Blitz and Stolas, the character development they need in order to /start/ a relationship is honesty, openness, and a decision to try. Stolas seems ready for that, and I think that Blitz could be soon. I hope so.

2. That established relationships are boring and make for stagnant character development. If the writing is bad . . . Again, relationships are a part of life, not an end goal i.e. "happily ever after." People go through drama and disagree and question themselves in relationships. Good fiction does this too. Relationship does not equal all problems being solved. These guys have a lot of issues and a lot of enemies. There's plenty of potential plot and growth to be found for two more seasons.

[magog83]

Link to Radio Times article

Can't believe Capps and Co are still out here making me feel rage in the year of our lord 2023. Anyway, some extracts under the cut if you don't fancy clicking through...

(Also HOW has it been 15 years??? Can we get a Fandom Retrospective instead please??)

Bradley James was first choice to play Prince Arthur, having previously worked with Capps and Murphy on the 2008 BBC TV movie Dis/Connected. "He had all the qualities that we wanted in Arthur – Brad is a fantastic actor, but also he's brilliant at comedy, and we wanted a Jeeves and Wooster feel, where Arthur is 'a hero', but he's not really the hero, the hero is the underdog, Merlin.

Colin Morgan – a relative newcomer who'd memorably guest-starred in the Doctor Who episode Midnight – was hired to play Merlin, with Angel Coulby cast as Guinevere ("Gwen" to her friends) and Katie McGrath rounding out the regular cast as Morgana.

Matt Smith, two years prior to his Doctor Who debut, was also "hugely high up" the list of potential names to play the show's title character, while his future companion Karen Gillan was in the running to play Guinevere. "We met lots of actors – and lots of them are doing unbelievably well now," says Capps.

"Colin and Bradley had fantastic on-screen chemistry – they just lit the screen up with their fun and their humour and their brotherly love for each other, so that made us able to write really intense emotional stories between the two of them, as the characters got older and as the stakes of the story got higher in each season. Because they were so good, we could write much richer stories for them."

Fans latched on to the close bond between Merlin and Arthur, with some calling for the relationship to evolve and go down a romantic route – with the benefit of hindsight, knowing the strength of the reaction to the pairing, does Capps think the series should have explored that dynamic?

"No, I don't think so. It was a beautiful friendship and there was a huge amount of love with them, but I don't think you'd want to take that any further. I think there's something very beautiful about a really intense friendship between two people that is non-sexual – that to us was the beauty of it, this extraordinary friendship."

The series hinged on Arthur remaining oblivious to Merlin's magic – though other characters would learn the young wizard's secret across the span of the series, the now-King Arthur would not learn the truth about his friend until the very final episode and there was never any discussion about an earlier reveal.

"As soon as Arthur knows that Merlin has magic, we felt the format of the show was over," Capps explains. "Because the format of the show was that he had to hide it. It's the end of the story – or the end of this version of the story."

The show's final scenes see a surprise leap into the present day, with an immortal Merlin still waiting for the Once and Future King to rise again.

"We'd run out of legend, so you couldn't really take it any further," Capps says of the show's final arc. "It just kind of came to us – there was just something really lovely about... he's waiting for the next incarnation of Arthur, there's something sort of sadly beautiful about that."

There were, however, "quite advanced talks" about a series of Merlin movies, planned to be produced after the drama had wrapped but to feature stories set within the timeline of the television show. "But it all got a bit complicated and then, you know, with these things, they fall apart, but we did very seriously talk about it.

"The idea was to have a trilogy of movies, and the movies were going to happen in-between the series – that was the idea, in those kinds of timelines. It would have been really good fun to do them."

[discet]

I think the core was a good villain in concept, but felt underdeveloped. And yeah, I believe the main reason for Darcy’s existence is because the writers wanted Marcy out of the plot, and chose the cruelest way possible to do so(because fuck Marcy I guess)

Yeah no, the Core had a whole mess of potential! It was this creepy alien force lurking in the shadows behind the throne! It had the loyalty of a really compelling antagonist in Andrias! It's design for both its giant robot body and Darcy was really cool! 

The fandom content ever since season 2 and especially after the season 3a hiatus was top notch. A lot of it would have to be toned down to be used in canon, but they all explored really interesting themes and how they could impact Anne Marcy and Sasha.

And its all just sort of left on the table. [Salt below read at your own risk. ]

And it turns out that the compiled intelligence of the most brilliant minds of a dimension spanning empire has the motivations of just like, an everyday jackass. It wants an army so it can do conquests, cause I guess war is fun? No seeming end goal other than violence? 

It’s not for the Glory of Amphibia cause its leaving that whole planet to rot. It’s not to live in luxury cause it guts the palace of all its art and finery in favor of extremely utilitarian tech.

And war for the sake of war would make sense if it was just this totally alien unfeeling hivemind. But apparently it misses the taste of bakegoods enough that it made itself extremely vulnerable by hooking itself into a teenage girl.

Like, a pure evil villain isn’t by default a bad thing, but from a series that brought us such interesting, nuanced, and compelling antagonists like Andrias and Sasha, the core feels like an afterthought. A thing to pun as much of the blame on as possible and defeat. Its existance was not even known to the protagonists until literally just before the finale.

And it wasn’t even like a ‘Ah yes! It was me all along!’ It literally just let Andrias handle everything for a thousand years, then immediately shit the bed once it was back in charge. 

And yeah, the fact that it benches Marcy and just ends her entire character arc is extremely frustrating. Again, lots of cool struggling from the inside plotlines you can do if the possession and they are just not explored. Marcy gets super traumatized twice once through a literal stab in the back and then by what looks like a horrifying possession and then does nothing for the season. Gets to do some cool anime stuff in the final fight but ultimately is not allowed to get any kind of victory over Andrias, her possession, or the core itself. 

And at the end she is just normal. All of that horror and betrayal and Marcy just takes it in stride cause its the end of the show and we don’t got time for her to feel anything other than okay about everything. Anne got two episodes about her coming to terms with Hop Pop’s betrayal with the box, and several more episodes/subplots focused around her wrestling with coming to forgive Sasha. Marcy gets a tense little ‘bye Andrias.’ as she’s leaving and that’s it. Marcy was a device for other characters arcs and the plot first and her own character second. And BOY am I salty about it. 

Salty to the tune of about 350k words of fic. 

[deusvervewrites]

In regards to the whole "The HPSC should have been the Main Antagonist", I ended up being reminded of one of my favourite seasons of one of my favourite shows of all time: The fourth season of Justice League the Animated Series (or the second season of JL Unlimited, if you count like that.) Because they bascially did something like that and now I am wondering how a similar plotline in BNHA would have looked like.

So, (mild) Spoiler Warning for a twenty year old show, I guess?

The fourth season pretends to be about Lex Luthor and one of his classic 5D-galaxy-brain plans that nobody can figure out or understand, but the actual main antagonist for most of the season is actually Amanda Waller and the U.S. Government.

Wallers whole point is that the League is dangerous and out of control and that, to protect the World (read: America) the Government (read: her) needs to be able to counter/neutralize them. This leads to all kinds of plots from her side, including, but not limited to:

Blackmailing convicted Super Villains to become her off-the-record Black Ops Squad,

Cloning/Creating and indoctrinating your own Superhero Team, complete with limited Life-Span and potential Kill-Switches,

Trying to create/control Monsters, that the League previously fought,

and, my personal favourite, manipulating Heroes in the League to work against the League, often without them realizing whats going on until way later.

And all of this makes for a great story, and one of the main reasons is that Waller, despite being the antagonist, is not a Joker/Luthor/Darkseid pure evil enemy. She sounds reasonable when she makes her arguments AND she is smart about her actions. It takes the League ages to start to realize that there is a pattern with some of the past events and even longer to trace it back to her. The show essentiall becomes almost a Cold-War Spy-Thriller at points, because both sides are suspicious of the other and are making preparations "just-in-case", without wanting to be the first one to escalate.

Which is also another of the great points: The League (which at this point has been vastly expanded beyond the original seven) is not a united front in this! Some want to come down on Waller, hard, treat her like any other maniac; others want to talk, clear up what HAS to be a misunderstanding, and there a lots of positions in between all of that. Waller barely does anything apart from exist and it is enough to drive the Heroes apart and create schisms between them.

Two more things of note, then I will shut up, I promise!

Firstly, while Waller and her guys keep going on about how dangerous the League could be if they ever got brainwashed (which has happened in the past!), or if they decide that killing is actually ok, or that the last election wasn't legitimate and needs to be redone under their supervision, etc...; the subtext in all of this is NOT subtle at all: Wallers main problem with the League is that they are indipendent and not under any control. Not under HER control. And thats what she actually fears so much. The fact that they can make their own decisions instead of having to go through her. This is never said out loud, but it becomes very clear, very quickly.

Secondly, Wallers undelying philosophy in this whole arc is that a pre-emptive strike against a reasonably big potential threat, i.e. The League, is not only justifiable, but absolutely necessary AND the only way to handle problems in general. At which point I will remind you that this show came out in the early 2000s. 9/11 had just happened, the War on Terror was just gearing up and WMDs in Iraq were still considered a fact. And in the middle of all of that, an American Kids Show comes out with a very clear message against exactly that. They basically said, "any government that acts like this would be opposed by the greatest Heroes in the world." That is BOLD.

So, yeah, if any of you haven't watched Justice League, you totally should, not only is it great, what I described here is barely scratching the surface!

It is however a pretty great example of how I personally could imagine a proper HPSC-storyline being written in BNHA: A version of the HPSC that uses all kinds of unsavory means to achieve their goal of total control, but clever enough to do it from the shadows, while playing the Heroes that resist their philosophy against each other.

I am just gonna file that under "WiP that I will probably never have the time to actually write" for now...

I haven't actually gotten around to JL yet but as a massive BTAS fan it's definitely on the list, and all of this is exactly the kind of thing I'd love from MHA to do with the HPSC

[medea10]

My Review of My Hero Academia

Okay…okay…

It’s done. It’s taken me 10 whole years, but I finished Gintama. My long-running comedic/drama nightmare has come to an end until they decide to come out with another damn sequel. But for now, it is DONE. And now, I can finally sit down and make good on a promise I made with one of my best friends. I will now watch Hunter x Hunter.

Huh?

No. I said Hunter x Hunter.

Tough shit, loser. You’re watching this shit!

Sorry, Marcus.

Yeah, My Hero Academia has been around for a couple of years now. It’ll emerge every couple of years in the anime world and the manga has been a massive hit. Not as big as Demon Slayer, but then again, no one can be as awesome as Demon Slayer. I had my chance to pick this series up, but I picked Black Clover instead. I made my decision and I stand by it. But once I noticed this series had several films and over 100 episodes to its name, I thought it be best to save this anime for after finishing my long-numbered series. Once I was able to get through Gintama, we can set this up.

Quirks or super powers are in about 80% of humanity. These quirks can vary from being super flashy, awesomely strong…or it could be like the Crest Man.

I was going to make this joke one way or another.

(He’s living in his car)

Many of these people decide to become heroes, especially those with potential. Now what about those 20% of humans that don’t have a quirk? Can they one day become a hero even though they have no power to their name? I guess we’ll find out with a young lad named Izuku Midoriya (or Deku). He has no quirk, no chance of developing one in his later years, and yet still wants to attend an academy that’s specifically for those with quirks.

It wasn’t until he was given a chance by Japan’s #1 hero All Might who sees potential in the young Deku to pass down his powers to him. Due to an ugly fight a few years ago, All Might can only stay in hero form for 3 hours at the most a day. In the span of two episodes, Deku was able to go through 10 months of All Might’s training, inherit his power, and get accepted to UA, the academy for potential students with amazing quirks who want to become heroes. Let’s enter UA to meet all the special students and administration with amazing powers and see who’s going to be a smashing hero one day.

Do keep in mind that I’m only summing up the first couple of episodes from the first season here. Each season has much more going on as Deku and his classmates learn what it means to become a great hero.

BETWEEN THE SUB AND THE DUB: You know, the five years of me not picking this anime up, I would take a look at these characters and say to myself, “Yeah, you’re totally voiced by this person”. Look at All Might, if that guy isn’t voiced by Chris Sabat this world doesn’t make sense. Oh look, it really is Chris Sabat! Hey, it’s a main girl and loved by majority of fans. Gotta be voiced by Luci Christian! It’s like I’m fucking psychic! Sexy big girl, gotta be Jamie Marchi! Wow! Strait-laced megane boy! My lady-loins are on fire so that could only mean a role by J. Michael Tatum. Okay, let me give it a try in the Japanese.

Screaming…

Nobuhiko Okamoto! I only need the word “screaming”. I didn’t need to look at any character profiles to know this. Thank God Bakugo’s screaming didn’t get on my nerves the entire time. I sometimes have a problem with characters who scream so much that you just want to rip their mouths off their faces. Bakugo…he makes me laugh. He’s a tsundere with a short fuse, what’s not to like?!

As you can tell, I watched the majority of this series dubbed. The cast had a wide variety of seasoned veterans and modern favorite voice actors. Juli Erickson was also in the cast for a short time before retiring from voice acting. I’m glad I got to hear her one more time. There was another replacement in the dub. Alex Organ voiced Mr. Aizawa for the first season. After that however, Christopher Wehkamp took over and has remained since then. Scheduling conflicts, I suppose. I wasn’t even aware of the change until I read about it.

Oof. Both the sub and the dub have some great people behind these heroes and aspiring heroes. Let’s just say I give a gold star to everyone here. Even Tomokazu Seki was in this series as the spotted seal hero Selkie. Love it. Love everything about it! Here’s what you might recognize these folks from.

JAPANESE CAST: *Deku is played by Daiki Yamashita (known for Goh on Pokemon Journeys, Yushirou on Demon Slayer, Joro on Oresuki, Umino on Sailor Moon Crystal, and Shion on UtaPri)

*Bakugo is played by Nobuhiko Okamoto (known for Gladion on Pokemon SM, Accelerator on Railgun/Index, Rin on Blue Exorcist, Garfiel on Re:Zero, Usui on Maid-sama, Ryou on Food Wars, and Liebe on Black Clover)

*All Might is played by Kenta Miyake (known for Giovanni on Pokemon, Scar on FMA: Brotherhood, Avdol on Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Pt. 3, Cocytus on Overlord, Zodd on Berserk 2016, and Takaoka on Assassination Classroom)

*Uraraka is played by Ayane Sakura (known for Nero on Black Clover, Tomori on Charlotte, Gasper on High School DxD, Tsubaki on Your Lie in April, Haru on Nisekoi, and Shimotsuki on Psycho Pass)

*Todoroki is played by Yuki Kaji (known for Clemont on Pokemon XY, Eren on Attack on Titan, Koichi on Jojo’s Pt. 4, Finn on Black Butler, Issei on High School DxD, Kuga on Food Wars, and Kenma on Haikyuu)

*Aizawa is played by Junichi Suwabe (known for Greed on FMA, Yami on Black Clover, Victor on Yuri on Ice, Archer on Fate/Stay Night, Hayama on Food Wars, Undertaker on Black Butler, and Grimmjow on Bleach)

*Shigaraki is played by Kouki Uchiyama (known for Soul on Soul Eater, Rui on Demon Slayer, Yurio on Yuri on Ice, Benedict on Violet Evergarden, Ikuya on Free!, Yuuki on Shiki, and Ichijou on Nisekoi)

ENGLISH CAST: *Deku is played by Justin Briner (known for Shou on Fire Force, Luck on Black Clover, Yukito on Cardcaptor Sakura: CC, and Mitarai on Danganronpa 3)

*Bakugo is played by Clifford Chapin (known for Connie on Attack on Titan, Touya on Cardcaptor Sakura: CC, Cabba on DB Super, Langris on Black Clover, Kamui on Psycho Pass 2, and Hamazura on Railgun/Index)

*All Might is played by Chris Sabat (known for Armstrong on FMA, Vegeta & Piccolo on DBZ, Kurabara on Yu Yu Hakusho, Zoro on One Piece, Yami on Black Clover, Ayame on Fruits Basket, and Christophe on Yuri on Ice)

*Uraraka is played by Luci Christian (known for Wrath on FMA, Nagisa on Clannad, Yukari on Azumanga Daioh, Medusa on Soul Eater, Nami on One Piece, Huni on Ouran HSHC, and Alois on Black Butler)

*Todoroki is played by David Matranga (known for Tomoya on Clannad, Bertolt on Attack on Titan, Ookami on Wolf Children, Hinata on Angel Beats, Usui on Maid-sama, and Himura on ef – a tale of memories)

*Aizawa is played by Christopher Wehkamp (known for Ruijerd on Mushoku Tensei, Nyanko-Sensei on Natsume’s Book of Friends, Sylvester on Ascendance of a Bookworm, Hinawa on Fire Force, and Miles on Ace Attorney)

*Shigaraki is played by Eric Vale (known for Kimblee on FMA, Trunks on DBZ, Yuki on Fruits Basket, Sanji on One Piece, Tamaki on Deadman Wonderland, Kisumi on Free!, Arthur on Fire Force, and Nishiki on Tokyo Ghoul)

FAVORITE CHARACTER: I’ve gone through this over and over in my mind. There were a lot of characters I’ve grown to admire and ones I think are pretty nifty. I still can’t believe I was able to keep track of so many characters in this one series, but I think I did a pretty good job. Yes, I have a guilty pleasure for Bakugo. But that’s just it, he’s a guilty pleasure. I like him and am amused by him, but at the same time I can get annoyed with him. But if there was one character who I enjoyed the most out of all the characters that have appeared so far, it would be her.

Tsuyu Asui (a.k.a. Froppy; Tsu)

I love Tsu. She’s best girl. And that’s all there is to it!

DISLIKED CHARACTER: Ooh boy, you all knew I was going to discuss papa of the year over here! Long before I started this series, I was well aware of the existence of a shitty parent by the name of Endeavor. I thought if I sat through this long enough, I would switch my hatred from Endeavor to Overhaul. It didn’t happen. I’m still on this hate-train. Endeavor has had this unhealthy obsession and rivalry with All Might and wanting to surpass him. Thinking he could never reach that position of #1 hero, he stuck to the next generation by making it with another powerful quirk user and have babies.

He had a total of four kids. One of his son’s is presumed dead due to trying to impress his father (wait until season six for the truth). One of his son’s hates Endeavor for what he’s done to the family. His daughter tries her best to keep things together, but you can tell she’s feeling uber stressed. And (Shoto) Todoroki still has daddy issues. I guess you can chalk all of this up to these kids upbringing. Todoroki witnessed his father’s physical abuse first-hand as he was rough with trainings. Not only that, but the abuse of his own wife that led to her mental breakdown giving Todoroki his trademark scar. And somehow Todoroki’s eldest had the worst of it all. All he wanted was his daddy’s approval and was just left for dead. Again, season six has the answers there. Bottom line, Endeavor was a very bad father. But, he is trying.

You cannot expect your fully grown children to pretend that everything is okay now that you’re going to change and be father of the year. Natsuo was partially saved by his father and was unable to give him any satisfaction. And it seems like Todoroki is just using his father to further his quirk and can easily get into work study programs because of him. As for his wife, you know Rei may never forgive him for all that has happened to this family. That’s just my two cents on the matter. I think every one of the Todoroki’s might eventually forgive Endeavor…not the older two sons.

SHIPPING: Guys, seriously. There are more important things to discuss here than which characters should shack up. Japan has a severe problem with villains and these kids specifically signed up to be in an academy focused on serving the public as heroes.

I support Uraraka x Deku

And aside from a few dropped hints by Uraraka, I seriously find no other ship that could…

I also support Kirishima x Ashido

But aside from those two, this show is strictly about kids wanting to be heroes and let’s keep it that way.

Mineta x his hand tonight

Yeah, I had to add that silly ship.

ENDING TO SEASON ONE: It’s been well established since the beginning that All Might was one of the greatest heroes, if not THE greatest. A symbol of peace and justice! And now, he’s a teacher at UA. So, everyone pretty much wants a piece of him. During a field trip to a simulated area filled with terrains and weather patterns, Deku and his classmates were bombarded by villains. This is not a drill, these guys mean business and they also want All Might. While their teacher Mr. Aizawa was busy taking care of some of the bigger villains, the students were being separated so the enemies can learn about what quirks these kids have. Some of the more powerful classmates like Bakugo and Todoroki were able to get rid of their batch of baddies with little-to-no problem. Others, it was a little more challenging. Even Aizawa found himself in dire-straits. Meanwhile, where is All Might?

We all know about All Might’s injury. It’s just that everyone else isn’t aware of it and All Might goes to great lengths to keep it a secret. Rightly so! If it’s learned by the wrong people that All Might has at most 3 hours a day in hero form, villains will swarm the area to cause havoc. Thankfully, dude shows up in the knick of time before these bad guys could do damage to Deku and the rest. Unfortunately, All Might already saved the day in another area and is at his max of what he’s capable of handling. Now these villains don’t know the specifics of All Might’s power, but someone controlling them from the shadows dropped hints about All Might being weaker than in his heyday.

Bad guys Shigaraki, Nomu, and Kurogiri definitely put a dent in All Might, but All Might didn’t let up his bluff in front of the bad guys. But that steam coming from his body is not a good sign. And yeah, the only one who knows about All Might is Deku and Deku was worried about All Might dying on his feet or someone about to find out his big secret. Thankfully, Iida was able to escape and call for backup. The administration at UA came and they were able to put an end to the situation. It’s unknown how much extra damage was done to All Might and it seems like his time where he can spend in hero form has been cut drastically to only 90 minutes at the most. But for now, All Might and Deku can relax for a second knowing their actions saved a whole class of freshmen from being harmed or worse.

Now as for those bad guys like Shigaraki, who is filling his head with ideas that there might be something wrong with All Might? I guess that’s an answer to be filled in another season. Because now we’re about to head into a tournament arc!

Okay, good introduction to the students of UA. Get our feet wet with all the quirks the students have. Even though Deku isn’t a full zero to hero quite yet, he’s certainly one hell of a strategian when it comes to problem solving. And from here on out, the series gains more episodes. This season is the only one with 13 episodes. Every season from here on out will have 25. Just how many chapters are there for My Hero Academia?

SEASON TWO: One recap episode and one Anime Festa OVA later…

The entire school is about to hold their annual sports festival. This sports festival is a big freakin’ deal. Hell, it’s even a bigger deal than the Olympics! Okay, I wouldn’t go that far. The students have opportunities of being discovered by a hero agency and might even become a sidekick for a famous hero. Other opportunities also include having kids from the lower-level classes get nudged up to a higher-level class. After the events of season one, Deku and the kids of class 1-A were getting a lot of fame and news coverage as the students who took out the league of villains that infiltrated a highly secured building of UA. As for the sports festival, Bakugo took home the gold.

Pfft. Watching him bound and getting forced with the gold medal is truly a laughable moment.

This season, we learn about what’s driving these students to excel at UA. Uraraka wants to earn money to help her struggling family. Todoroki wants to escape the grasp of his legendary father, the #2 hero Endeavor. Iida tries following in his big brother’s footsteps in a bit of revenge after someone injured him. And Deku wants to make a name for himself as All Might’s power has weakened significantly. Again, Deku’s the only one who knows.

After the sports festival, the students end up as apprentices for either hero agencies or heroes themselves. This part of the story focuses on Deku learning to control his power and Iida finding the hero killer (Stain) who severely injured his older brother. Dealing with Stain was a very difficult task. Deku, along with Todoroki and Iida were all caught up in that fight. They beat the dude, but couldn’t get any credit due to bureaucratic issues with the police and certified heroes. As a repercussion, Iida ended up doing permanent damage to his hand and it might be the end of his career as a hero (unless the surgery is a miracle). They make this a big deal here, but I don’t recall hearing any more on that subject from season 3-6. Moving on!

The end of this season consists of Deku learning the truth about his power One For All and the originator All For One. This guy is still out there, he’s a dick, and guess what, he’s the head of that league of villains that was behind the attack at the end of season one. Other than that, it’s exam time for class 1-A. Let’s have them fight against the teachers! Aside from two teams failing, everyone did pretty well considering they were up against UA’s greatest. And this was to be especially difficult for Deku as he had to be partnered with Bakugo and fight against All Might.

The final episode consisted of Deku being cornered by Shigaraki. Yes, the guy behind the Nomus and the attack from season one’s finale. We finally see his face and we get a bit of foreshadowing of things to come from the League of Villains. The heinous group has recruited several new villains who we will see more of come season three. Speaking of…

SEASON THREE: It’s time for summer training camp. And for funsies, let’s add class 1-B too. These kids will be pushed to their limits to enhance their quirks. Because while everyone has improved in other departments, their quirk powers haven’t moved much since the beginning of the semester! Gee, wouldn’t it suck if a bunch of villains come in and ruin everything? The League of Villains has arrived with new powerful members including Dabi and Toga. Their target this time is Bakugo! Their attack on the UA students kinda broke a lot of morale with not just the students, but the faculty as well. The end result was that many of the students and the faculty watching over them wound up injured and Bakugo was kidnapped.

Saving face didn’t go as smoothly as anyone would hope. Deku got four of his classmates to defy orders to try and infiltrate the League of Villains to save Bakugo. At that very same time, several ranked heroes did their own rescue mission. It did not go well for either side! On the plus side, Deku and friends were able to save Bakugo without breaking the law by fighting crime without a license. But then All For One wrecked the whole place. He took out so many villains and heroes in his way. I think he might have killed one of them. Didn’t matter to him anyways because he was after All Might! This fight took everything from All Might.

All For One exposed All Might to the entire world his ugly secret. Not only that, but dropped an unfortunate fact bomb involving All Might’s sensei and Shigaraki. And to top it all off, injured him so bad that All Might will never fight crime again. After all of that, the students of class 1-A were highly requested by the school to live in the school dorms from now on. Most parents agreed to it, though Deku’s mother was the most worried. Long story short, he’s living in the dorms now. Not before seeing this poor woman cry again.

The next big arc after the fall of All Might was the provisional hero license exam. We meet a lot of brand-new soon-to-be heroes much like the students of UA from other schools across the land. The end result of that exam, everyone except two students from class 1-A got their provisional license. And surprisingly those two were Todoroki and Bakugo! Bakugo is so obvious that I don’t even need to waste the time explaining why he flunked. Todoroki on the other hand had someone from another school get under his skin with a comment likening him to his father Endeavor.

While Bakugo was angry about not passing his provisional license exam, something else has been grinding his gears and for some time at that. Bakugo’s anger hits fever pitch when he confronts Deku alone after the exam about his relationship with All Might. And throwing punches! Despite that thick layer of anger he puts up, Bakugo is a sad boy who loves his favorite hero All Might. He was of course jealous that Deku got to be his protégé but guilty because Bakugo thought it was because of him being kidnapped that caused All Might to lose his powers permanently. All Might reassured the boys of everything. And then the boys were on lockdown for breaking curfew to fight. In the meantime, the League of Villains is still at it despite All For One being in a maximum security prison. Toga infiltrated the hero provisional license exam by posing as another student. Shigaraki is growing more menacing. And then there’s Overhaul…ooh boy, I can’t wait to talk about this guy in the following season.

And class 1-A got to meet the top students of the third-year class (a.k.a. The Big Three). The strongest of the three (Mirio) wiped out the entire class by himself. Big difference between the power of the first years and this pant-less wonder!

Okay, this season had its ups and downs. But the ups were definitely worth it and we had a big payoff when it came to scenes involving All Might and All For One. Now let’s see what’s going on with that movie that came out around the same time.

TWO HEROES: We got a glimpse of what to expect with this movie in an episode during the third season. Meaning, they gave us a filler in the middle of a tournament arc and are introduced to a movie character for five seconds. Let me guess how this movie goes; this in no way connects to any villain currently in the series, there is no character growth, serves no purpose to the main plot, and the new character introduced is the bad guy.

Most of what I said was pretty true! Deku gets invited by All Might to go with him to a special island that is full of people who manufacture AI technology. Most of the class ends up there under some special circumstances and yes, it’s just the popular ones fans like most. All Might’s friend from his younger days David wanted to help All Might regain his strength (he just doesn’t know the true story of why he’s losing his strength). And David ends up in cahoots with terrorists that took a whole island hostage. And these terrorists are also connected to All For One. Okay, I was wrong, All For One is somehow connected (or at least mentioned by the leader of the terrorists).

SEASON FOUR: So, it’s not just Bakugo that caught onto Deku and All Might’s relationship. It leaked to the press! One reporter knows there’s a protégé out there. And thankfully he has the right mind to shut up about it! Onto the main stuff! Deku and the rest of class-A are about to go through work study programs. And the League of Villains are ready for their next move. But right now, we gotta watch out for a lone Mafioso causing mischief.

Deku winds up doing a work study with All Might’s previous side-kick Sir Nighteye. Several other characters like Kirishima, Tsu, and Uraraka also got a chance for a work study program. Deku unfortunately got a lot thrown at him in the drama department. He learned that Nighteye had a falling out with All Might due to the fatal injury All Might acquired and made worse once he decided to give Deku is One for All power.

Next, all of these students I mentioned, plus their mentors, and the three 3rd years are all caught up trying to take down a lone Mafioso and some of the League of Villains in order to save one little girl. Overhaul was trying to use this young girl (Eri) and her power in order to suppress and end hero powers permanently. Eri has a quirk that can rewind a person’s body. But due to her age, she’s unable to control it properly and that has caused a lot of mental damage to her. Overhaul is quite the disgusting little shit abusing this poor girl. Thank goodness after this long, hard-fought battle, the heroes were able to prevail and save Eri.

But at what cost?

Deku was able to survive with not so many injuries to his person. Some of the other heroes and classmates involved in the giant raid were not so lucky. Kirishima and Fat Gum sustained heavy injuries. Mirio’s power might have been altered permanently due to Overhaul and his gang having these serums that can erase quirks. And Eri (the girl they all saved) is forever haunted by the psychological horror she’s endured. But worst of all was Sir Nighteye. During the fight between the heroes and Overhaul, Nighteye literally got impaled and was at death’s door when All Might, Deku, and Mirio spoke to him. Up to this point, we really never saw death strike any of these characters. This was a heart tugger! Shit is getting real now for Deku. All I can say is…wait until season six. Meanwhile, Overhaul not only got his ass kicked by Deku, but was left powerless and crippled by Shigaraki.

The last half of season four revolved around UA putting together a culture festival. This is both a wise and stupid decision. Wise because these students deserve a little fun after everything the students of UA (especially class 1-A) have gone through. Stupid because UA has been a giant target for villains since All Might became a teacher. And if one little thing happens with a villain coming near the area, the festival is going to be called off. At that exact same time, a new villain emerges and wants to break into the festival. Of course, he does!

This guy is a tea-drinking gentleman with a side-kick I’m so not comfortable seeing together with him. I’m sorry, but this combination makes me feel a little ill inside and confused. Thankfully, Deku happened to be in the area and prevented the festival from getting shut down. Not only does he want to give his school this moment of peace, but because Eri is coming, he wants to make sure she has a great time. Thankfully, Deku was able to break through to this confused villain and he turns himself in with no more damage done. But most important for Deku, the festival went off perfectly. Class 1-A was commended for their performance on stage and Eri was able to smile and enjoy herself.

We end the season off with some severe changes. First of all, Eri is going to attend UA. She’s stable enough to stay out of the psych ward and is all healed up. Deku and Mirio must protect this girl’s smile! And then my question was answered. I thought to myself, will there be another #1 hero now that All Might is retired? Yep, there’s a new top 10 and a new #1 with Endeavor taking the top spot. Will the world see him as the new symbol of peace? Endeavor is put to the test when he and #2 hero Hawkes got attacked by an overpowered Nomu. This was a tough fight as Endeavor was tossed around a lot. Thankfully, he won. He went beyond, PLUS ULTRA!

Also, is anybody else thrown off by the Endeavor fanboy? It doesn’t help that he looks like Natsu from Fairy Tail, but did the English version REALLY have to get Haberkorn to play this guy too?

HEROES RISING: In the second movie, it almost looked like we were getting some action between the UA students and the League of Villlains. In actuality, the villains of this movie get into an alliance with Shigaraki. These new villains end up attacking a lone island that Deku and his classmates just happen to be on as part of hero work. The villains want this one kid on the island because of this special quirk he possesses. We get some pretty primo fight scenes where Deku and Bakugo are actually working together to beat the villains. I’m going to be legit and ask, did anyone fall for that shit about Deku giving his One For All power to Bakugo? Yeah, me neither. There are two seasons after this movie. No way in hell Deku is losing his power this early in the game.

SEASON FIVE: Endeavor’s fight with the superpowered Nomu came with a lot of baggage. His popularity as the new #1 hero is steadily rising. It’s just that people really saw him get his ass kicked pretty badly. And now, dude has a pretty gnarly scar on his face. Just like his son! I almost want to say something here, but…nah, bad taste. On top of that, Endeavor is now going to start acting like a real father instead of the bastard he’s been up to this point. Meanwhile, Deku has been getting visions during his sleep of the past One For All users and kinda using his power while sleeping. It got worse when his powers decided to go haywire during a class competition with class 1-B.

I will say this. The stuff with Deku and controlling the powers of One For All was the only interesting part of the first part of season 5. I checked out when there were many episodes dedicated to class 1-A and 1-B fighting each other. I know several class 1-B classmates showcase their quirks in a big way in the following season, I just wasn’t a fan of this arc of the story. In the second part, work studies seem to be back in effect. And now that Bakugo and Todoroki finally obtained their licenses, they can finally catch up to the rest of their classmates. Geez, you only now realize that we’re halfway into season five with 100 episodes in and these kids are still only first years. Deku ends up joining Todoroki and Bakugo to work study under the world’s #1 hero…the current one.

Okay Endeavor, let’s see if you can redeem yourself a little more. Actually, we only got a few episodes dedicated to Endeavor, his family, Deku, and Bakugo. There was an altercation between some rando villain and Endeavor’s son Natsuo. It happened, Natsuo’s safe, we moved on. Okay, now it’s time for My Hero Academia to turn into My Villain Academia. The League of Villains found themselves in severe trouble as another group of baddies ambush them. This was an ugly showdown as it pushed many of the league members to their breaking points. Himeko almost died and Shigaraki was pushed to remembering his own past.

Yeah, we got the typical backstory for a villain of Shigaraki’s caliber. Misunderstood child, abusive father, enabling family members to abusive father, accidentally murders the entire family, yep, it’s all here on the checklist. Several seasons prior to this moment, we learned that Shigaraki’s paternal grandmother was Nana Shimura. Yes, the same Nana Shimura who was All Might’s mentor and previous carrier to the One For All quirk. Well, Shigaraki’s father was really resentful about his mother because he felt as though he was abandoned by her. That birthed a hatred for heroes and he would get angry if his children mention heroes or wanting to be one. So, there’s that. Shigaraki wound up gaining a quirk and much like Eri in season 4, his quirk went haywire and it took out his entire family. After being a sudden orphan, no one came to Shigaraki’s aid. Not one single hero! All For One did however. He took the boy in, gave him hands of his family members, and gave him a new name and purpose in life.

Shigaraki, while almost broken to the point of no return, he took out Re-Destro and his gang of baddies. This led to an alliance. Shigaraki’s League of Villains and Re-Destro’s Meta Liberation Front have joined together under a new name, the Paranormal Liberation Front. We end the season with class 1-A showing off what they’ve learned from their work studies. Oh, and Hawkes is still infiltrating the newly formed league. Okay, I’m going to say it. This season was pretty lousy. Don’t get me wrong, I liked several moments in this season including Endeavor trying to atone for his sins, Deku’s new ability, and the My Villain Academia arc. But that class 1-A vs. class 1-B crap was for the birds.

There’s a third movie sometime after this. I really don’t feel like talking about it since I felt so disinterested with it. Blah, blah, Deku is wanted by the police, blah, blah, big fight, blah, blah, no one’s going to die here!

SEASON SIX: Hey, I caught up when it was airing!

Shit’s about to go down! There’s a heavier tone in this anime everywhere you look. Even in the eye-catches halfway through an episode. The professional heroes, teachers from U.A., class 1-A of U.A. and even a few other students are all part of this sting operation to take down the newly united villain squad, the Paranormal Liberation Front. Besides going after that group, some of this sting is to get this doctor who was behind the creation of the Nomus and is also shielding Shigaraki until he’s 100% and then some. Shigaraki was in rough shape near the end of the fifth season, so he's being constantly monitored. But during the sting, Shigaraki awakened.

The awakening of Shigaraki led to a domino effect of destruction everywhere. One of the giant villains couldn’t be controlled and ended up wrecking a lot of pro-heroes. Shigaraki’s decay power went berserk and took out the entire area. Deku, Todoroki, Bakugo, and Endeavor went toe-to-toe with Shigaraki and ended up putting a dent in him. Shigaraki is terrifying now, but because he wasn’t finished with the doctor’s experiment yet, his power isn’t what it could be. That’s when All For One took over Shigaraki’s body for his own…even though he’s in super jail. Yeah, I know that doesn’t make a lick of sense, but just roll with it because Shigaraki is going to be a puppet for a while. Moving on!

And now for the moment I’ve been anticipating! League of Villain alumni Dabi comes in to drop a bomb on the Todoroki family. After Shigaraki ended his rampage, Dabi came in to break the news to not just Endeavor and Todoroki, but to the entire world. He put out a video prior to the current chaos to announce that Endeavor, the #1 hero is his father and went into detail about what a horrible father he was. Dabi (or Touya Todoroki) was Endeavor’s eldest son who was thought to be dead. This broke Endeavor inside causing him to look upon both of his sons fighting. Yes, I’ve been looking forward to this story. The Todoroki family story intrigues me.

This giant fight that lasted several episodes (if not half of the season) is finally coming to an end without a happy ending. It’s much worse than anyone jumping into the anime without reading spoilers could have imagined. Many characters got messed up badly. Worse than in any other season. Deku winds up in a coma. Bakugo was impaled, but survived. Mr. Aizawa sliced off his own leg to prevent losing his quirk from one of those quirk deleters that got Mirio the other season. Midnight and several prominent ranked heroes are dead. On the antagonist side, Twice ends up dying by Hawkes after he admits to betraying the front. Many of the villains were arrested including the doctor, Re-Destro, Mr. Compress, and Machia. Himiko is on the loose. Shigaraki ended up torching several prisons releasing many convicts with powerful quirks on the public along with All For One. This leaves the public to wonder if they can ever trust heroes again. If it took all of these heroes to take down all of these villains and they still couldn’t complete the mission, what good are they?

That’s not my take, that’s just public opinion…except the public was a lot crueler when it came to the heroes.

AND NOW THE START OF THE FINAL ARC: With All For One taking over Shigaraki’s weakened state, he can get what he truly wants. The quirk, One For All. Shigaraki mentions it during the giant battle during this season and it catches the attention of Endeavor, Hawks, and even the angry media demanding answers about everything that has happened. Deku decided to make some pretty big decisions once he got out of his coma. Up to this point, Deku’s quirk was only known to All Might and later on Bakugo. Now, he decides to let the rest of his classmates know before he leaves U.A. Deku teams up with All Might, Endeavor, Hawks, and Jeanist to take down the rampant crime going on everywhere. Since season 5, Deku has been seeing past wielders of One For All and slowly unlocking their powers. A lot is riding on Deku with this ultimate power as he can’t pass the power down like All Might did. His life expectancy might be cut short. Kinda like Eren Yeager in Attack on Titan. And he’s getting prepped to take down Shigaraki with no regrets.

I make the Eren Yeager reference here because this is the part of the story that things take a harsher, somber-er tone compared to previous seasons. This includes the opening theme, ending themes, eye-catches, the preview, the background, the music, and Deku.

Endeavor also made a promise to his family that he will take down Dabi (Touya). But for now, we are focusing on Deku teaming up with the top 3 heroes and All Might to take down every kind of crime from small stuff, misplaced anger, and anything involving the escaped convicts from the several jail breaks. With all of the other One For All quirks unleashed, Deku is able to make use of every one of them with his mission. It came in handy when going up against a former hero and present-day convict Lady Nagant. She is one of the escaped convicts. While All For One told nearly all convicts to do as they please, he had other plans for some special ones. He used Nagant to try and take down Deku. But Deku got through to her near the end of their match and it looked like she was going to see life for more than what she was used to. Unfortunately, things have a funny way of working out when All For One is involved.

He planted explosives on Nagant. I’m pretty sure she’s a goner. This did not sit well with Deku. And neither did All For One’s taunt where he copied All Might’s infamous line, “now it’s your turn”. Rogue Deku is in quite the state. And now, let’s add his classmates to the mix. They’re going to bring him back to the academy by any means necessary. One Deku with 7 quirks vs. 19 classmates of his. With many flashbacks and a lot of push and pull, the class was able to subdue Deku and bring him back to U.A. which is currently being used as a refuge area. However, the people are not liking the idea of having Deku in the same place as them because Shigaraki’s looking for him and he has One For All. Thankfully, some kind words from Uraraka and a few supporters, the angry crowd came together to let Deku in.

All For One and Shigaraki’s big threat seems to be looming closer. It’s hard to nail down how long the heroes have. All Might wound up getting this information from the hero-killer Stain. Yeah, you remember him, right? The guy that wrecked Iida and his brother back in season two. I remember Stain always wanting to kill All Might. But seeing All Might the way he is now, either he doesn’t know it’s really him or refuses to believe that’s really All Might. Well, rest up class 1-A because season 7 is gonna be a doozy from what I’ve heard. At least it will be for Bakugo from what I’ve heard. Oh, and we meet America’s #1 hero for a sec, Star and Stripe (voiced by Romi Park).

Wowee-wow-wow-wow! I did not expect to like this series the way I did. I mean, I really do love My Hero Academia. I know I had the opportunity to watch this but chose to watch Black Clover instead. I don’t regret that decision; I just wish I got to watch this a lot sooner and maybe start on the manga. Now that doesn’t mean this entire series is flawless, far from it. There were some seasons that fell flat on its face. I think we all can get on the same page of which season was the one that is the flat can of soda out of this six-pack.

The answer is season five. It’s always going to be season five. No amount of My Villain Academia you throw at the audience is going to undo that. But I suppose that’s where that arc landed and call it bad timing. Long-running manga series have really awesome arcs and really slumpy arcs. Case and point, the anime Food Wars is a good example to bring up here. Their first 2 seasons were really good, but after that is when things started falling by the waist-side. When it comes to My Hero Academia, I had several hits of highs and lows watching. The field trip at the beginning season three, the culture festival at the end of season four, and the majority of season five were my lows. I only put that moment in season three up as, I have to be honest in this review. That arc actually got really good faster than I thought. The other two I mentioned just dragged on. Especially the class competition! I love watching class 1-A in action, but this was just so exhausting to sit through.

I think I’ve beat that dead horse enough. Let’s talk about the characters. I’ve always had the hardest time keeping up with the many characters an anime might have. Especially animes that are set in school and we focus on one particular class. Despite my love for the series Assassination Classroom, I could not remember every single person from that class. With My Hero Academia, I think I was able to recall every classmate. Just class 1-A though. Maybe it’s because of their quirks, some of their looks, or their quirky behavior. The same can be said about characters outside class 1-A like the professional heroes, the villains, the townspeople, Bakugo’s mother…yeah, you have to see the woman who gave birth to a feral, screaming grenade of loud noises.

I do have a legit question for manga readers. Do these kids finally become second years at U.A.? You don’t notice that these kids are in the same grade until it’s season five and you see a Christmas episode and you’re like, “Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me, they’re still in their first year”. Don’t answer that. I know they’re probably going to age soon. Okay, enough of my dumbassary here. If you have a lot of time on your hands, I give this a full recommendation. If you’re able to sit through 100+ episodes of this, yes definitely give it a watch. And also keep in mind that Studio Bones animates this and they’re the ones who did Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Mob Psycho 100, and Soul Eater. So, that’s a pretty big incentive.

I know I said some pretty rough things about several moments of this series. But here’s how I would break it down. Season one was a nice start as we get an introduction to Deku and what he’s going to go through to become a hero. Season two was wonderful with more of a build-up to the antagonists of the story. Plus, a tournament arc! Season three had a bit of a slow start, but once you get to Bakugo’s kidnapping and All Might vs. All For One, this season was a sure-fire hit. Season four starts great, but it hits a lull spot. Okay, I guess I can accept that as these kids do deserve some time off. Season five had some good moments with Deku learning a little more about the previous users of One For All and the My Villain Academia arc. Other than that, this season was nothing to write home about. Season six will rock you like a hurricane. It’s almost a little overwhelming in the first half with all of these heroes and villains going up against each other. But never a dull moment.

If you would like to watch My Hero Academia, several sites have the series streaming including FUNimation, Crunchyroll, and Hulu. It is also a staple on Adult Swim’s Toonami, so if it’s on, check it out.

Okay, now that I finished this long series, I think it’s high-time I watch Hunter x Hunter Urusei Yatsura! Huh? Okay, guess we’re doing something else instead.

[zombieekittens]

Hello! I’ve decided to compile an opinion based thread on the characters of Home. I tried to simplify it as much as I could so you’re not reading this for 80 hours. But, be warned.. It is kinda long lol. I may have also missed stuff, but feel free to leave a comment on how you feel about these guys!

First, I am going to start with Jahla.

Honestly, in the beginning Jahla wasn’t a bad character. She came across the island full of her kind and met up with her siblings. Even telling Rohgir off when she found out how full of BS he was. She is then joined by Thakir and they both get tossed off the island for questioning lord all mighty. As her story goes, she is seen killing an antelope that belonged to a Tribe and of course, this causes trouble for the pair. Flamegarde came and confronted them, not over the antelope.. But because they’re wolves. None of them even mentioned the animal they killed which got me thinking if that was even Flamegarde’s herd. Anyway, Jahla rightfully kills members in self defense and wouldn’t you know it, bounty hunters came and snatched them up. The funny part is it didn’t take long AT ALL for Jahla to get caught by them. They knew her crime and her special murderous nickname, Red Wolf. How the hell did the bounty hunters find her so fast and how did her nickname spread so fast in the span of what.. 2 days? Flamegarde must have a loud speaker or something. Of course the pair are taken to the capital where in no dramatic scene, it is revealed to Jahla that the matriarch is her grandmother. We are then blessed with a potential war plot between Origin Orion and all of Aedra that 400+ pages later after announcing this, never happens. Then suddenly, not only does Jahla get a slap on the wrist, but she gets a territory and her own Tribe! Of course Flamegarde ends the alliance with Solar Stag, rightfully so. But the part that bugs me is Lahmina is also a ground kisser for Jahla, because instead of questioning the matriarchs motives to give a murderer a Tribe, she practically tells Flamegarde to get lost and cry about it lmao. This would have been great potential for Kique to use for an evil matriarch, since as of now he is trying for an evil matriarchy plot. Jesus. Skipping the boring bits and getting into the juicy details, this is the part of Jahla that I hate. When she comes across Rome. It is obvious to any reader that Rome is a full on Gary Sue for Jahla. The dynamics and interactions between these two are honestly cringey as hell, but uh Jahla… YOU GOT A MAN??? The fact that she leads Rome on / flirts with him damn near the entire time she’s known him and fails to mention Rhov at all, is entirely ridiculous of her. Well great, now we’re encouraging cheaters in this comic. ( Rhov is no better. ) Finally at some point, she mentions her relationship to Rome and this is like months down the line. Literally the season changed by the time she finally mentioned, “Oh yeah btw I have a bf, lol.” And then the next time the pair are seen, conveniently Rhov pops up outta nowhere and they have a break up. WHAT TIMING. In conclusion, Jahla was okay until Rome was added in. Now it’s painful to watch her and Rome flirt every damn two seconds, but this is a huge pattern in this comic.

The next one is Roamer and Rogio.

Honestly, all I can really say is that Roamer and Rogio’s relationship absolutely disgusts me. Mainly because they can’t go two seconds without trying to screw each other, or touch tongues. They even crawled all over each other in front of a whole ass child, Akleja. I mean seriously, if you just quickly skim through the pages damn near every interaction they have is sexual. For the record ladies and gents, that is not how actual relationships go. This is more a high school lust relationship than anything. And with Roamer, why is it that he was so uncomfortable with Kargo’s touch, but just willingly threw himself at Rogio? He barely knew Rogio! I mean at least Kargo and Roamers relationship felt more real with no pressure. But I am glad that Kique moved Roamer along because Kargo deserves better lol. I honestly don’t need to say much about these two, cause everyone knows how much Rogio likes to play victim about Ranach even though he’s overpowered and had a consensual relationship with Ranach. There is also no scenes of Ranach abusing Rogio. But poor Rogioooo. There was even a scene where Rogio seemed quite content to be Ranach’s Baron and getting salty that he served under Ranach instead of serving beside him. Even stating “You made it seem like it was gonna be you and me.” That’s right everyone, Rogio had a choice with Ranach. So don’t buy that bound by mental chains crap lmfao. He is also useless when it comes to being in the Tribe later on. He’s switched ranks like three times and is just a horrible Baron under Ronja. Using the excuse of Ranach to not help the tribe in tough times. Get over it man, you literally threw Ranach around SEVERAL TIMES. You’re fine. Not to mention, he is a shitty partner to Roamer. Oh yeah let’s not communicate about things and give him the cold shoulder when he asks questions. But hey, we can interact when sex is involved. ( Rogio is literally perfect for Ranach. ) Roamer is also a serious emotional man child as the comic progresses. Especially recently, killing a dog in cold blood and being an extreme edge lord. These two are a complete joke to this comic. Roamer also mentions in the beginning of the comic that he knows how to fight, but I haven’t seen one scene where he fights correctly or is useful at all. Honestly, Since Roamer paired up with Rogio, I feel like he no longer contributes anything to the story, except for banging Rogio. That’s about it. My conclusion is… These two suck terribly and are just NSFW content for the comic at this point.

My next one is Kargo and Ferah.

Tbh nothing bad can be said about this good boy, Kargo. He freed sex slaves and is just a regional badass. Tho I’m quite pissed Kique brought him back to life to drag him thru the mud again. Or maybe he realized killing him was a fat mistake. But seriously, Kargo is the best. As for Ferah, I felt like she was Roamers boot licker because in the beginning she always talks about him in a good light, even tho she barely knows him. I mean hell, before she fell down that waterfall she tells him that she loves him. Man doesn’t even say it back, just watches her fall down the damn cliff lmfao. Of course for a while, Ferah was an okay character as well. Besides her licking Roamers feet every two seconds, tho I feel like she should have been more suspicious of him considering that they were fugitives at the time. And then came the part when she met Fjordor. Considering her living in a high strung environment all the time, where she needed to watch her back from the Meteors, she sure liked when Fjordor put that knife to her throat! Even saying she felt safe. Of course Kique is trying to push another unwanted ship onto us all. Then we get to see her cringey short crush with Fjordor, then along comes Kargo who supposedly ruined it for her. Dang Kargo, she was so close to getting laid, DAMN YOU. Fjordor then kicks Kargo out for killing the merchants. And of course she shadows Kargo and gets pissed about it, tho Kargo didn’t even ask her to come. Eventually they end up at the Meteors and this is where Kargo dies. At the funeral Ferah is asked if she wants to say something and she’s like NAH IM GOOD and runs away like a coward. Not even giving her lifelong friend a true goodbye. Eventually she ends up with Whispervale and it’s almost like she doesn’t know how to survive on her own without Kargo, total damsel in distress situation. But remember she was so pissed that she had to come with him after the merchant incident. Nah, she is just extremely dependent on Kargo. So she ends up staying with them and to nobodies surprise she dominates their trial even tho she has no damn clue how reindeer work. In conclusion, it’s great to see her branch off from Kargo, despite knowing that he’s alive and trying to find her individuality. But man, her development can suck sometimes.

Then we have Rhov.

Tbh, Rhov was just like Jahla, but to a more extreme case. It’s obvious Rhov and Jahla were done with each other when Feaf and Rome came along. But Rhov is kinda… An asshole? When he joined up with the guild, he lied about.. Everything. I mean sure, it could be excused for him trying to find his family and it has worked. But man, he sure does treat Feaf like shit lol. I feel like she has the look of disappointment every time they interact. She truly is Rhov’s door mat. I mean honestly, it surprised me when Feaf found out about Rhov’s lies. Because when Rhov first joined the guild, before interacting with Lahmina, Feaf was suss as hell about him. Then suddenly she became a yes man to Rhov, even after finding out about him lying. Again no consequences in this comic for Kiques favorites. It’s funny how everyone else has consequences to the main characters, but the main characters just sit on their throne, unscathed. She should have left his ass high and dry the moment she found out he was lying - because this confirms all of their suspicions!!! I mean she is losing EVERYTHING for Rhov! Her career, her friends, and a shit ton more. Meanwhile Rhov is just a happy parasite while Feaf basically carries him thru the story, scott free and no consequences, giving him everything he needs to survive. My conclusion is that Rhov is just a very subtle, manipulative ass lol.

Then we have the Yas Queen Ranach.

Ah, good ol Oreo dog. Kiques top favorite character, despite him being an absolute disgusting dog and in no way shape or form should be glorified. I mean Kique even shows the scene with Ulfr how low Ranach goes and yet, he is still favored by the community. To start I think it’s absolutely hilarious that Ranach never smelled Rogio inside the Meteor walls. Apparently his nose only works when it’s convenient for Kique, cause he smelled Kargo no problem! In the beginning of the comic, Ranach is obviously obsessed with Rogio, so much so he tries to kill him. I assume this is where Kique decided Ranach is abusing Rogio, cause really that’s all Rogio has against him. Of course Ranach is your average antagonist, but when he makes his way to South Spear is when I start to gripe about him. Of course, because Kique is so obsessed with drawing dogs yoinking each other, thats all Ranach basically does in South Spear. To apparently “fight off” his growing passion for Iberon who is Rogio’s brother. Which first off, how did Ranach even get a lick of suspicion that this dog could be Rogio’s brother. I don’t ever remember Rogio mentioning he had siblings. I mean sure, they look alike. But just.. how??? Anyway, like I have said previously, I thought Ranachs idea was to gain entry into South Spear so he could come back to Meteor with an army. NOPE IM WRONG. Suddenly Kique decides to kick the ball to the left and Ranach completely forgets about the Meteors. In recent pages, it is shown that Ranach grows hatred for the matriarch instead, basically abandoning his mission and wants to be a good guy to gather an army to take Solar Stag down…. Wha??? In no way did Ranach ever give a shit about what Solar Stag / matriarch does. It’s not like he sat on this idea his whole life and waited for an opportunity to present itself. And sorry bud, Ranach is not redeemable in my book. It’s funny that Kique tries to make Iberon sympathize with Ranach, tho he hated his guts not even a week ago. It was even more shocking when Iberon decided to sleep with Ranach. Though of course, Kique did that intentionally to give his fans some kind of sexual tension, building those two up. Smdh. Everyone in South Spears seems to know the history of the Meteor Tribe, they should be treating this guy like dog shit lol. I also don’t care if Ranach saves all of Aedra, that guy can go to hell. In conclusion, Ranch Oreo dog sucks big time.

Then we have Ronja.

Ronja is the definition of a clueless female. In the beginning, she decides to follow Ranach back to his Tribe, they only met a handful of times. But I believe it was to get back at Roamer, who she obviously had a crush on. Anyway, I figured she would have known stranger danger by now, but Kique needs an interesting story about her. The best part about her is when she takes over Meteor Tribe as her own. Sure, it’s great to see her use her powers in the Tribe to her advantage and give the females equal rights. But as the story progresses, it becomes clear she’s an unfit leader. She hardly ever comes up with an idea on her own, she never makes her own decisions, she practically relies on Roamer to do all the decision making when he joins the Tribe. She basically just waits for the next best thing one of her members suggests and goes with it lol. Even letting Fuss do all the work to kick Ulfr out. And the best part, in recent pages! Roamer completely went against Ronja’s wishes and kills that dog in cold blood. What does Ronja do? Nothing. That’s right, Roamer can break the rules all day long and gets no consequences. Talk about unfair favoritism. Ronja is literally a doormat, even Fraujar subtly thinks the same. Telling her that being nice all day long in Aedra is not going to work out. But I’m still appalled Roamer broke her rules and she’s like, “Ah, it’s alright he can do whatever he wants. But everyone else cannot.” Lol. Anyway, my conclusion with Ronja is that she is far to submissive and clueless to be a leader of a Tribe like Meteor Tribe lmao.

And lastly we have Keirr.

His story arch is the one that didn’t make the most sense to me. Cause early in the comic when he came across Aira, he was friendly and helpful towards her. Aira of course reciprocates this and tries to help him find his family. With this, they set off in search of them. Then suddenly, the first Tribe they stumbled upon Keirr was like, “You know what, fuck my family let’s live here.” What??? How do you go from I need to find my family to actually never mind, all in the same breath? That didn’t make sense to me at all, cause obviously at first Keirr was urgent on finding them. Then suddenly he isn’t? It’s been a while since I even saw him actually TRY and find his family. Then he gets a shiny new rank in Whispervale and decides to become an ass to Aira. Firstly she didn’t want to join Whispervale, she was under the impression they were gonna search for his family - so of course she’s like wtf? And Keirr is basically like “Ah, get over it.” Then came the Raun situation. It was obvious that Raun had a crush on Keirr, Keirr practically fed off of it. Then when he gets wind of where his family is, we get a dramatic scene of Keirr and Raun kissing. Later on, Raun is obviously asking Keirr what they are and Keirr is like that kiss meant nothing. AWAY WITH YOU! Wow, dickhead move. Also what even happened to Aira? Oh yeah, Keirr ditched her for better friends. In conclusion, Keirr was a big family guy and was alright in the beginning, now he’s just an airhead that you want to kick in the nuts.

So basically what I got from all this is that everything literally revolves around the main characters / Kiques favorites. They can lie, kill, cheat, manipulate and walk all over anyone they choose because there is no consequences for them. It would be nice to see someone take some responsibility for their actions, but we will never see that.

[spider-avenger22]

One thing that bothers me about Lois and Clark's relationships in 2013's Man of Steel is the insanely fast build-up in their relationship towards a couple.

Of course, we all know that Lois and Clark is the end goal, as is with every story these two are seen in mass public media. Every movie, every show, every comic, it's the same, and that's fine. I understand that.

What I don't understand is how Cavill's Clark and Adams' Lois can go from a reporter chasing a mysterious man to lovers in a movie that mostly takes place within the span of days. I can see a budding friendship beginning, but to a relationship? Even for a superhero movie, it seems a bit farfetched to me.

Maybe it’s because one of my favorite version's of their dynamic was in the show Lois and Clark: the New Adventures of Superman with Dean Cain and Terri Hatcher. The slow build-up, watching Clark as he pines after Lois, someone who grows to be his friend and work partner, is so thrilling and exciting, and the payoff doesn't begin until part way through season two. We watch their dynamic change and develop slowly, and we route for them, even when Lois pines after Superman. It's the classic love triangle between alteregos that the show (for the most part) handles real well.

We don't get that in Man of Steel. In fact, the thing I wish we had more of (that we do eventually see in BVS) is Clark's humanity. We get glimpses of it, but I wanted to see more of Clark, as someone who was raised with human parents and human morals and human ideals, to relate more to the people he chooses to protect. In Man of Steel, from almost the very beginning, Clark separates himself from those around him, and it's very obvious in Clark's motivations. Cavill did the best that he could with the material, but they misunderstood Clark as a character who is both Kryptonian by blood and human by nature. This Clark is a massive loner that doesn't relate to anyone around him, and I feel that is wrong to Clark. As Superman, yes, he is an alien, a hero, an icon for the people of Earth, someone otherworldly who chose to protect humanity, but at the end of the day, he's still Clark Joseph Kent, son of Martha and Jonathan Kent, born and raised in Smallville, Kansas. He is as human as those around him.

Man of Steel doesn't get that, and it shows.

Don't get me wrong, I love Henry Cavill's Clark Kent/Superman. He had so much potential, and he was wrongfully stripped of the role he so obviously enjoyed. I wish he could've had more opportunities to flesh out his character and really develop into a character I could whole-heartedly stand behind.

Amy Adams also did a great job as Lois. She's head-strong, stubborn, willing to do anything for her story, and I loved it. It’s a total shame we had to see her character be thrown into a relationship way too soon.

All-in-all, I wish they would've built up to a friendship first and fleshed out Clark’s humanity more than what they decided to do. Man of Steel had such a great cast, but some of those characters weren't handled properly, especially Clark.

[navree]

One of the most annoying things about HOTD is that they refuse to develop Helaena's character they have made her a dragon dreamer but stopped after that. They took her coronation+bond with dreamfyre+ her child maelor+ the smallfolk's love for her. I know that Helaena doesn't has that big role in F&B but i wish if they tried to give her depth since she will likely die at the end of season2 or the beginning of season3

Yeah, Helaena is annoyingly underdeveloped, which is really annoying whenever I'm making posts or answering questions about the Greens' interpersonal relationships and I have to contend with the fact that I can word vomit about Aegon and Aemond for paragraphs and paragraphs but there's significantly less information about Helaena that it just turns into headcanoning and speculation. They've developed her more than she was in the book, at least we have a broad stroke on some key elements of her personality, and the dragondreaming is genuinely an interesting addition that I quite love (even though they don't do much with it).

But yeah, it's definitely irritating that Helaena isn't getting a whole lot of characterization when compared to other people in her circle and when there's so much potential. It would be nice to see other elements of her, to see what her relationship with her brothers is actually like, and to definitely get more of the relationship she has with her children, which is so incredibly crucial considering Blood and Cheese. And it would have actually been good storytelling to show things like her bond with Dreamfyre (they should have really played more with the different types of bonds dragons and dragonriders can have, I have Thoughts™) in contrast to the relationship others have, and especially her with the smallfolk, to show why she's so incredibly well liked to the point of people rioting for her and what that says about her as a person, not to mention a good parallel to Alicent's through-line on being concerned for the people and a contrast to Rhaenyra's views that they don't matter, setting the seeds not just for Helaena's characterization but Rhaenyra's own fall.

It's another casualty of the show wanting to cover as much time as they did in such a short span of episodes, because if we'd had more than two episodes with adult Helaena or even just been allowed to spend more time with her as a kid, we could have delved into more of her. How she feels about her abilities and the fact that they seem to exclusively show her violence, her idiosyncrasies and how that factors into her familial relationships, why she and Otto are so close, her bond with her dragon and her children, the fact that she's coded as being on the autism spectrum in a world that is not kind to any kind of divergency, especially neurodivergency. There's a lot to play with here that they should have chosen to, and hopefully that they'll try to do in some capacity before she dies (though ideally less clumsily than they did with Luke).

But we can at least take heart in the fact that Helaena most likely ins't going to die until the end of season 3 or even the beginning of season 4, actually. She dies the same night as the storming of the Dragonpit, since that entire thing was started by a riot over news of her rather gruesome death, and Rhaenyra leaves for Dragonstone (and her own demise) very shortly afterwards, so it's really only going to happen towards the end of the show, considering Rhaenyra's protagonist status and they're not gonna kill her off unless we're really getting close to the end.

[boundlessthoughtsbyantonette]

Kiss Me Thrice The New York Ballet Theater Pas de Deux: Book One Written By: Ellie Mack

Three unexpected kisses.

Two ambitious dancers.

One chance at happily ever after.

Lindsay Ferg lives by a simple no dating, no distractions, just dance. It works—right up until an injury sidelines her partner and jeopardizes her career at New York Ballet Theater. Now she’s stuck dancing Romeo & Juliet opposite David Powers. He’s the company’s biggest male star, Lindsay’s second-biggest regret, and the definition of distraction.

David doesn’t want to dance this season—not because of his history with Lindsay, but because his life is falling apart. But when NYBT’s director confides that the financial future of the company is dependent on the success of Romeo & Juliet, David has no choice but to grab his tights and get to work.

In the studio, sparks fly, lines blur, and an explosive stage kiss leads to an unusual arrangement. During the day, they practice choreography, and at night they focus on harnessing the chemistry that’s threatening to derail the performance. The distraction starts to feel suspiciously like dating, and for the first time in Lindsay’s life, dancing isn’t enough—but one wrong step could close the curtain on NYBT forever.

As opening night approaches, Lindsay can’t help wondering if she and David are as doomed as the lovers they’re portraying, or if there’s a happily ever after waiting for them in the wings.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐.75, rounding up to 4 for Goodreads and Amazon

I may be a little biased since I automatically favor books that involve ballet as I am a ballerina myself. What more if it is a ballet romance, right?

So this book does not only involve the pros of being a professional ballerina, but it also deals with the hardship of being a dancer, being in a dance company, a dancer's struggle, and the politics (for lack of a better term) in the dance community.

I am not a professional ballerina so I cannot attest to the accuracy of being in a company, however, the dance terminology and the environment were very relatable on my end. The book started very slow and I had to push myself to continue reading. But then, Lindsay and David started having moments together and that was the game changer for me. What can I do? I'm a sucker for a prima ballerina and a male principal dancer romance.

Lindsay's OCD, David's family trauma, and both of their backstories made the characters more realistic. The romance between the two progressed slower for my liking but was very fitting for the story.

Also, there were pages that I had to fast-read, skim through, and sometimes skip (I am so sorry) because it became repetitive for my preference. My attention span was no longer on the story and a couple of times, I just wanted to know what and how things ended for David and Lindsay.

Overall, this book has a lot of potential. I am looking forward to the rest of the books in this series.

[saltpepperbeard]

Gentlebeard Tenderness Wishlist™ :

Stede playing with Ed’s hair in some way. Whether that’s just simple twirling, intricate braiding, or delicate washing, I want those salt and pepper touches.

The two of them waking up in bed together- preferably shirtless for additional implications, or tangled up together. Or both.

Along those lines, any sort of cuddling. Snuggling up on deck, embracing as they fall asleep, holding each other through bad moments, or spooning during lazy mornings.

Stede massaging Ed’s bad knee, whether it be idly during soft conversation, or the purposeful focus of a scene.

Any and all sorts of kisses. Kisses on the mouth of course, but give me forehead kisses, cheek kisses, tip of the nose kisses, hand kisses, wrist kisses, neck kisses...

And for kissing specifics, a kiss that Stede initiates, and a kiss they can take their time with. The former to complete the circle, and the latter for them to drown in both relief and love.

Them hugging in an organic way and not just a “I’ve stabbed you, you nut” way.

Having a soft and quiet moment together when they’re rebuilding their relationship. Maybe a stargaze on deck late at night, or a beautiful respite right at dawn. The conversations are vulnerable, the air is gentle, and the returning love is palpable in their stares.

One softly thumbing the other’s tears away, or kissing the tears away.

Terms of endearment. I feel like Ed would use “love/lover” on occasion, and I feel like Stede would be a bit more generous with his. But hearing his “dear, darling, my love, my dove, etc” a lot would still hit super hard.

Honestly any sort of portrayal of love between them, be it verbal, physical, or emotional. I just want so much love, happiness, security, and mutuality for the both of them.

[artdev]

I’m probably gonna get attacked for this lol

Tommy Character Analysis

From a sane yet angry child

The character of Tommyinnit is one of the worst characters on the entirety of the Dream SMP. Yes, the other characters have their flaws, and they have all done some very horrible things, but Tommy has continuously made bad decisions. These decisions have done nothing good for himself and have caused suffering for the other members of the SMP. In this essay I will provide reason to the fact character Tommy fucking sucks and every other character, yes including Dream, are so much better and have redeeming qualities to their characters. I will give a disclaimer: this is about THE CHARACTERS not the CONTENT CREATORS

Tommy’s First Days on the SMP

Tommy’s first day on the SMP was the last day of peace that server would ever see. From the get-go Tommy did nothing but cause nothing but problems for the original people on the server (Dream, George, Sapnap, Bad, Sam, Ponk, Callahan, and Alyssa) which resulted in a ban from not only from Dream, after refusing to obey under his exile he was put in, himself but also from George. The bans were lifted but everything spiraled from that point on. Tommy was the spark that started the disc war. This was a war that spanned over a series of months because Tommy would not stop killing Dream, so in return Dream confiscated tommy’s discs as a punishment, it was Dreams server, so he was not going to let Tommy go around causing problems without consequence.

Quick history

L ’Manburg

L’ Manburg started out as nothing but a drug caravan, started by Wilbur and tommy, would grow into a large country separated by large black walls keeping everyone out and let only a select few in. After a war Tommy did the only selfless thing, he would ever do in his whole time on the SMP. He gave up one of his discs for L’Manburg’s independence, after losing a dule with Dream. In all this tommy keeps up his thieving and antagonizing ways.

The election

The election was Wilbur’s attempt to regain power and respect within his country, there were multiple parties, POG 2020 (Wilbur and Tommy), SWAG 2020 (Quackity), Schlatt 2020 (JSchlatt). POG 2020 was the overall winner but was beat out by 1% by Schlatt and Quackity who had formed a coalition. With Schlatt as the president and Quackity as the Vise President the country is changed to Manburg, the walls are torn down, and Tommy and Wilbur have their citizenship is revoked and are banned from Manburg.

Pogtopia and Manburg v Pogtopia

Pogtopia was the ravine that served as a base for Tommy and Wilbur after the election. This is when techno (my fuckin beloved) had joined and sided with Tommy and Wilbur with the promise of chaos and war. With techno on their side, they start to build up and prepare for war. The war between Pogtopia (with the old residents of Manburg) and Manburg (pretty much everyone else on the server). The war ended with Schlatt having a heart attack in the remains of the destroyed drug van, Tubbo becoming president of Manburg, followed by Wilbur blowing up the country, with assistance from techno, and his grand death at the hands of his father.

Exile

Tommy was sent into his third exile by Tubbo after Tommy once again was causing problems for Tubbo and the new L ’Manburg. Tommy was sent thousand and thousands of blocks away from the greater SMP and he was not allowed to return unless he wanted to die. After spending months in exile with Dream coming by every day and taking Tommy’s things, and tommy almost taking his last canon life, tommy had escaped exile and went to the closest place he could go. Tommy set up a base under Technoblades retirement home and was soon discovered by Techno. Despite Tommy stealing Techno’s items and just being a annoying ass bitch, Techno let Tommy stay. With the help of techno tommy was able to sneak in and out of L’ Manburg.

Final L’ Manburg War

After a confrontation in the remains of a now destroyed community house, Tommy had sided with Tommy, another declaration of war, with Dream and techno going to blow up L’ Manburg. Tommy planed with the other members to gather resources to face off the most powerful people on the server. In the end L’ Manburg lost and was destroyed with nothing left but a sizable crater in its place.

The end of the disc war and drams imprisonment

The end of season two of the SMP was the end of the disc war, after tommy and Tubbo meet up with Dream at the top of a large mountain, where the three fought to get the discs. Dream eventually leads the two brits to a bunker where Dream had been collecting the attachments on the server, like Tommy’s cow henry, Ghostbur’s sheep Friend, and open slots for other pets and Skeppy. While Dream was going to kill Tubbo he was stopped when the entirety of the SMP, lead by Punz, came through the nether portal that led into Dream’s base. They surrounded Dream and caused him to surrender, and landed him in pandoras vault, a large prison built by Sam under Dreams request. Whist Dream has been in prison Tommy has visited a few times and has done nothing but was nothing but an annoying child to an already suffering man. During what was supposed to be Tommy’s last visit he ended up being locked in the cell with Dream due to a potential security breach in the prison, meaning tommy was stuck with Dream for what was only supposed to be a week. Tommy was stuck with Dream for more than a week, like was stated in the terms and conditions of the prison, this extended time alone with Dream was bad for the both of them and it led to tommy losing his last canon life. Tommy was revived by Dream three days later and was freed from the prison shortly after, now out and full of fresh trauma.

Present events

After being revived and released back into the world tommy swore that he would kill Dream. As of tommy’s most recent lore stream there was an attempt. Tommy armed with invisibility and fire res pots, under the cover of Ghostbur paying Dream a visit, snuck into the prison to kill Dream. When tommy finally go to Dream’s cell, he got to trigger happy and took out the axe to soon which ended in tommy being caught by Sam and left Ghostbur stranded with Dream on the other side of the lava. Now that Dream had Ghostbur he would be able to bring Wilbur back and that exactly was happened, Wilbur is now back and as crazed as ever with 13 and a half years of isolation on top of that.

Tommy and His Trauma

I will not ignore Tommy’s trauma, nor will I downplay what he’s been through, cause truly been through a lot. That being said his trauma should not be used as an excuse to blow off what he’s done, if one is going to do that you better danm well not go around and ignore others trauma. Tommy has been through some horrible things, his exile, Dream’s manipulation, being beat to death in prison then being revived, losing not only a brother figure but also a place he called home, as well as the manipulation from Wilbur, these things can really do some damage to a kid or an adult. Tommy though uses his trauma to excuse any wrong thing he does. There are characters on the SMP with similar trauma, Jack Manifold was the first character to come lose all his canon lives but he came back out of spite, both Tommy and Jack went through something similar. Jack, however, doesn’t use this trauma to make excuses for being a massive prick. Jack uses what he’s been through as motivation, while it’s one of his motivations to do something bad, but he doesn’t use it as a hindrance. Now let’s look at someone has experienced the same things as Tommy, Tubbo, Tubbo went through almost everything Tommy went through plus more. Tubbo was manipulated by Dream, saw his country get blown up TWICE, hell he had to mourn the death of his best friend on TWO SEPREATE OCCASIONS, he was killed by someone he thought he could be trusted, was manipulated as well as verbally abused by Schlatt when working in his cabinet. Tubbo has gone on to build his own little town, start a family, he had run a country pretty danm well and created NUKES. Tubbo doesn’t let what happened to him hold him back from doing great things or keep him stuck in his old ways, Tubbo was able to break from what he originally was, a side kick, and has done wonders.

Tommy and His Relationships

Keep in mind this is not about whether Tommy cares about people it’s about how he acts and how that affects others. Tommy cares people so I cannot shame him for that, but despite that he still causes problems for said people.

Tommy and Dream

Tommy and Dream have never gotten along, anyone with fuckin eyes can see that from a mile away, they are always at each other’s throats and always butting heads. Dream is normally pretty levelheaded, until Tommy comes around. When Tommy was trapped in the cell with dream that was bad from the start, but the extended time was even worse. Tommy has always been an aggressor towards Dream, during the war for L ’Manburg when Dream was meeting with Wilbur, Tommy lashed out at Dream and put the independence of this new nation on the line to try and fight Dream. Now on to more recent examples, Tommy’s death. When Tommy was trapped with Dream in the cell Dream was pretty stand offish, if anything he was excited at first, being stuck in a cell with no one to talk to is pretty fuckin lonely. That excitement was sure to be short lived. Tommy is quick to start antagonizing Dream, hitting him, hurling insults at him, and just being all around unpleasant, Tommy would also take things like Dream’s clock and books and throw them into the lava just to upset him. Tommy also killed the one thing in prison that Dream had, a cat that he named hope, another thing Tommy took away just to show “what happens to things you care about”. All these things would build up over time which lead to Dreams burst of anger and caused Tommy’s death.

Tommy and Technoblade

Time to get absolutely PISSED. Techno was never a person to Tommy, he was just the Blade, a weapon to be used till he was not needed. Ever since Techno first logged on Tommy though he had scary dog privileges, getting mad at techno for when he went and assisted Wilbur in the destruction of L ’Manburg when techno had made it clear he was not a fan of government. After Tommy had fled from his exile he went to hide under Techno’s home without Techno’s knowledge, before he was discovered by Techno, he would steal from him and use them in useless ways, such as decorating his hidey hole with gold blocks or how he stole Techno’s gapples and ate them when he didn’t need to, practically wasting them. Once he was found by Techno, Techno let Tommy live with him despite being a leach, he let tommy eat the gapples, and even assisted in getting tommy in and out of L ’Manburg, he even hid Tommy from dream and lied to one of the most powerful people on the server to keep tommy safe. Techno was very patient with Tommy and what does Tommy do? He goes around and goes back to Tubbo, the man who exiled him in the first place, actively backstabbing Techno, and when him and Dream team up and destroy L ’Manburg for the second time he has THE GULL to get mad and shame Techno for it, it’s fucking awful.

Tommy and Tubbo

Tommy and Tubbo are great friends, I can’t lie about that, but he still manages to make shitty decisions that affect him. When Tubbo was president of the New L ’Manburg Tommy started causing trouble, all starting when he (and Ranboo) burned down George’s house, forcing Tubbo to put his vice president under a probation. Even after being put under the probation, he still caused problems. Tommy made Tubbo choose between the safety and freedom for his country or his best friend staying, in the end it was tommy’s fault for being casted into exile, he just wouldn’t behave and follow the rules. He also constantly pushed Tubbo’s trauma to the side to put a spotlight on his own, making him the center of attention, ignoring someone who’s supposed to be his best friend. Now, I will say, he did do something good for Tubbo, during the final disc confrontation he gave Dream the disc’s they were fighting so hard for in return for Tubbo’s safety, I have to give credit when credit is due.

To The C!Tommy Apologists

I know people are going to come after me for this, to any Tommy apologists reading this, please just can it /nm. In canon tommy is about 20 something? You can’t keep using “Oh HeS a ChILd!’ CC!Tommy is a child. Yes, I understand he’s traumatized, so is every other character on the SMP, he isn’t special. Also, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD LEAVE US DREAM APOLOGISTS ALONE. All your arguments are so similar and you all thing dream, who is obviously mentally ill, deserves the everyday beating which is incredibly fucked up. Now I know not ALL Tommy apologists are like this but it is a lot of them, regardless of what dream did, he does not deserve to be rarely fed and he does not deserve the constant torture. Also please stop wit the whole ‘dream is obsessed with tommy’ shit, I can’t remember the tag for it at the time of writing this, but it is the creepiest thing I’ve seen and everyone portrays dream to be some yandere stalker and its just not poggers to be honest, and it comes off as very predatory which is ALSO not poggers. To any tommy apologists friends I know IRL this is not directed at you and just know I love y’all.

[oh-boy-me]

I found your speculation of Satan having a crush on mc from the get go verry interesting. I was wondering if you have any speculations around the other boys? Like in what order do you think the boys fell for mc? Any specific points in the story that you think are the "fall for mc" moments for them?

(HFSDHFSD LISTEN I’ve had this in my drafts for AGES and I’m so sorry I’m just now getting to actually posting it ;w; )

I’m MORE than happy to speculate on this!  For the brothers, at least, because I haven’t read up to the parts where the other characters show notable interest in you

Putting most of this under a cut for long post and spoilers, but the tl;dr (with some mysterious elements to catch your interest heheheh) is that I believe the brothers “fall for MC” in this order:

1. Satan 2. Mammon 3. (Lucifer) 4. (Levi) 3. Belphie 4. Beel 4. Levi 4. Lucifer 7. Asmo

That must look a little weird; I hope I’ve piqued your interest!

Now, what am I defining as falling for MC?  For consistency, we’re going to consider a brother falling for MC being the moment when they themself realize that they might have feelings for them.

#1 Demon: Satan Moment: As early as day 4

First up is Satan, who I’ve already explained here.  An argument can be made that Mammon catches feelings first, but assuming a real-time progression, Satan’s first text reaches MC on their fourth day in the Devildom.

#2 Demon: Mammon Moment: Lesson 4-1

Mammon is interesting, because with this analysis he’s one of only two brothers for which you can actually get a calendar date for their falling for MC.  You can do this because the first few lessons cover a very short span of time.

According to the fact that Lucifer says you don’t want to be late on your first day of school after giving you a hint about Goldie, MC makes a pact with Mammon on their second day in the Devildom. (You don’t go to school on day 1.)

Lucifer blocks MC from the attic on the night of day 3, and after that things get shaky again until you hit the TSL movie night with Beel and Mammon.

The reason the movie night is interesting is because Beel specifically states that midterms are coming up soon.  Based on the game’s Japanese origin, we’re going to assume that RAD also follows the same three-term system that Japanese schools do.  This places the TSL marathon at about a month into MC’s stay.

Anyway, we’re basing Mammon’s interest in you on pretty obvious factors:

We basically don’t see any of Mammon’s trademark tsundere nature until after these lessons.  Before this it’s not him being tsundere, he’s genuinely annoyed with you.

He left a toothbrush and charger in your room sometime between Lesson 3-10 and 4-4.

This famous line: 

He probably developed feelings sometime during the TSL marathon, but I think it was when you were in danger, and even though he kept saying he’d let you die his first instinct was to save you, that he understood what those feelings were.

#3.  Demon: (Lucifer) Moment: Lesson 12-19

Crossed out and in parentheses Lucifer is the first one where we start to go off of assumptions and headcanon rather than concrete in game evidence, but.  I’m sure your bigger question is “why is he crossed out AND in parentheses AND why does he show up again later.”

The moment I listed is the lesson where you and Lucifer have to fall in love to escape the “horror game” that Levi “trapped” you in.  He spends most of the time seeming like he isn’t interested and doing it out of necessity, but then he turns around and says these lines.

Assuming that was almost a confession, I wouldn’t be surprised if he decided right there, in that moment, that he was developing feelings.  Lucifer is very self aware, and very sure of himself, and it’s also not like him to suddenly change his mind about how he’s treating things.  If he was hiding his feelings the whole time, I don’t think he would have almost slipped at all.

Of course, right after this, you announce that you’ve met Belphegor, and his developing feelings are overshadowed by rage.

And of course, Lesson 12-19 never happened.

What?

Let me remind you of the timeline.  Barbatos explains in Lesson 16-19 that he has the power to choose any timeline as the sole reality, and he chose the timeline you traveled to.

When you jump back in time, you end up in the moment right after making a pact with Satan (Lesson 12-10).  This means that everything that happened between Lessons 12-10 and 15-17 was erased from history.

The timeline in Season One looks a little something like this, to simplify.

Admittedly, we don’t know how far into their conversation MC and Lucifer make it in the second timeline, but on Lucifer’s part I don’t think it changes much.

This timeline stuff is important because

#4 Demon: (Leviathan) Moment: Lesson 14-4

Ok, first, I have to say that I really hate the way MC and Levi make up in Lesson 14.  imo it has the potential to be really manipulative on both sides.  But that’s not the point of this post.

Levi does NOT have a crush on you before Belphie shows up out of nowhere.  In Lesson 14-4, he’s talking to himself, and distinctly complains about losing a friend, and how Henry is his only friend.

He’s also refusing to acknowledge your existence, and he’s talking to a fish, so there’s no reason for him to hide how he really feels in the moment.

Then, later on in the same chapter, this is Levi’s response to seeing MC hug Lucifer.

I’m assuming MC isn’t the one he’s jealous of.  But what’s interesting here is that, as far as I can remember, this is the first time Levi ever expresses jealousy about you in any sense, platonic or romantic.  You don’t really interact with Levi one on one between Lesson 14-4 and this moment, so 14-4 is the most likely catalyst for this change.

Levi does say “you’re my true friend” at the end of 14-4, but you are not a fish, and that doesn’t change the fact that he could have been like “oh wow MC didn’t abandon me they really like me oh no I really like them”

Also, by 16-A he canonically likes you.

But just like with the last one, this exchange never happened and Levi never fell for you.

#3 Demon: Belphie Moment: Between Lessons 18-15 and 18-19

Now Belphie is interesting, because I would argue that he was trying to fall in love with you for a while.  All that “making up for lost time” and seeming to spend every waking hour with you in lessons 17 and 18 to me point pretty heavily to the idea that he wants to feel the same way about you that his brothers do.  Whether it’s to feel more connected with them or from a genuine interest in you is unclear though.

But then he decides to give you a pact as a present, which is a pretty big deal.  Most pacts in the game are made before the demon has feelings for you, but aside from Belphie, Satan is the only one who brings it up himself.  And since like I said Satan pretty clearly liked you before making a pact, the same can probably be said of Belphie.

I should also mention that Belphie muses over giving you a pact in Lesson 18-A, which takes place before Lesson 17-7 at the latest.  But we have to remember that this is before you’ve helped him mend his relationships with his brothers, and therefore he barely knows you.  Satan also barely knew you, but Belphie has the added problem of mixing up you and Lilith.  You can make arguments for the others when they were uber nice to you in Lesson 16-19, but for Belphie there’s really no other possible reason than Lilith.

However, Lesson 18-15 is the one where Belphie says he’s going to move forward with his life and stop putting things on hold for Lilith.

So, chances are his attachment to you is pretty unhealthy at first, but I’m choosing the timeframe I did as the moment because in 18-19 he explicitly states that he isn’t confusing you with Lilith.

This would be the moment of confirmation that he likes you, not the idea of what you might represent.

#4 Demon: Leviathan, Beelzebub, Lucifer Moment: Sometime during the time skip

I don’t think we see these three fall for you on camera.  The time skip covers literal months, and I think they fall for you in somewhere in that long period of time.

I don’t think I need to tell you that Levi and Beel like you by the time Lesson 20 comes along, since they both confess to you.

Lucifer doesn’t explicitly confess, but if you choose to hug him, he says this

Which heavily implies that he wants to be the one most important to you.  Also, I don’t think he’d have made a pact at all otherwise.

#7 Demon: Asmodeus Moment: Lesson 19-17

For Asmo, I think we see the EXACT moment he realizes he’s in love with you.

First off, in Lesson 16-A he noticeably isn’t openly interested in you in any way other than superficially.  Granted, 16-A never happened, but it does confirm that he didn’t like you before then.

Then, in his part of Lesson 19, you go drinking with him.  Early in the night, he says this.

His answer to your prompt of romance suggests that he doesn’t understand the fact that he does like you like that, or at least that he’s in denial.

However, then you beat him at a drinking game, and the reality of you leaving him behind comes crashing down on him.

The drastic change makes me think that this is the very moment he understands his feelings.

--

And that’s it!  I hope this was an interesting read, and sorry again it took SO long.

[hamliet]

Chemical Weddings in RWBY

So once upon a time Hamliet said she’d write a meta about ships in RWBY, and then arrived months later without Starbucks. 

The central tenet of alchemy is solve et coagula: dissolve, and then coagulate. The process (RWBY appears to be following Ripley’s 12 Gates) repeats, rinses, and repeats again and again throughout the steps, “each time at a more refined level.” The point of a chemical wedding is to reconcile opposites, which is something I touched on in my pseudo-quick meta here. Lyndy Abraham, the author of A Dictionary of Alchemical Imagery, describes the chemical wedding as: 

a crucial operation in the creation of the philosopher’s stone. The alchemists were ultimately concerned with the union of substances, the reconciliation of opposites.

Basically, it unites opposites (fire and water, air and earth, sun and moon, passive and active,  etc., etc., etc.) and then the opposites start to take on each other’s qualities, creating the “Rebis,” or a person both male and female. 

The first chemical wedding is usually somewhat violent, primitive even, whereas the second one signifies the creation of the stone. However, characters can have more than two weddings, and chemical weddings do not inherently have to be romantic--Sam and Frodo aren’t, for example--but most often are, because it’s the most obvious way to show a union between separate people (the old adage “two become one” in marriage, for example). 

If we look at George Ripley’s 12 Gates, chemical weddings tend to be focused on in the fourth stage of conjunction (which I wrote about here) and in the ninth, fermentation (which is probably going to be in volume 10--maybe a little in volume 9, but traveling between worlds seems to be a hallmark of sublimation in fiction so I’m guessing we’re stuck there for the time being). But in a lengthy series spanning eight years and counting, there is going to be overlap. 

So let’s talk about chemical wedding imagery historically. It tends to involve dissolution (via water or fire--keep in mind metal was associated with fire in olden days, so stabbing with metal was considered liquid fire, or so it was believed to be by alchemists) and then coagulation (healing/coming together). 

Four of the five ships--two of whom are definitely happening, one of which I think is happening and one of which I think has a good chance--reference historical alchemical artwork and symbolism in key moments. (RWBY does reference alchemical artwork; see here and here.) So let’s dive in and examine potential chemical wedding allusions in RWBY:

Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie (Renora)

Let’s start with the most obvious couple: Ren and Nora. Their first chemical wedding occurs when they are children. In alchemical art, birds are often used to show the volatility/primitiveness of a first chemical wedding:

The raven is replicated in the Nevermore which forms a similarly threatening pose over Ren and Nora when he unlocks his semblance to protect her, thus honoring his father and mother’s legacies. 

You can even see earth (trees), water (river), fire, and air (the bird flying) in the scene as it pans out. After this, Ren and Nora become “Ren and Nora,” as Nora herself says in Volume 8. They’re inseparable, because they’re on their way to becoming one. However, unification doesn’t mean that they’re literally the same person; in stories like these, it’s more like they become better versions of themselves through growing towards each other and adopting each other’s traits (like Nora’s courage for Ren, and Ren’s caution for Nora). 

Their second, elevated chemical wedding is in the same place as their first, when in Volume 4 they return to the village and defeat the monster they were too young to defeat last time. This time, Nora is the one who protects Ren by telling him he could not sacrifice his life by pulling Ren back, in a reversal of his running to her in their first moment years ago. 

Like the first, there’s water involved--Ren and Nora hide next to a river, watching as the Knuckelvee advances on them. I talked previously how I thought this looked like a possible allusion to this alchemical image (look at the moon symbol on the head of the aggressor): 

The moon symbol actually shows up quite a bit in this scene, first when Nora and Ren discover the Nuckelvee is still alive in the cave: 

And then in the moment when they defeat it: 

While I am certain this is a chemical wedding, I’m not certain why the moon symbol is so prominent in this, though I do think it is possibly in reference to this image and how Nora and Ren are united now: 

Yang Xiao Long/Blake Belladonna (Bumbleby)

Firstly, the alchemy image is somewhat of a creepy image, right? In this, Mercurius has united the two principles by beheading them (amputation is a Thing in alchemy), leaving them to putrefy and then coagulate.

Like the Nuckelvee for Nora and Ren, Blake and Yang have a somewhat antagonistic Mercurius who unites them: Adam Taurus. He doesn’t cut off their heads, but he does seriously injure Blake and cuts off Yang’s arm in a scene that is romantically charged (you have Blake’s possessive ex telling her he’ll target someone she loves and specifically chooses Yang). 

While I have my issues with how Bumbleby is written, it’s hard to interpret that as anything other than him seeing Yang as a rival for Blake’s affection.

Their second chemical wedding also involves Adam. There’s no one direct image that seems to have inspired it, but it does take place in a place full of waterfalls (fountains and flowing water in general, like the ones in Nora and Ren’s village, are common elements of chemical weddings’ settings) and by the ocean (the “mercurial sea” is where the elements dissolve to make the Philosopher’s Stone, so it’s also a common hallmark for chemical weddings).

(To briefly address this: this is where my complaints about the writing pile in, because you can also make a damn strong case that Blake and Sun fighting on the ship to Menagerie is a chemical wedding, which it is, but I think it’s clear at this point that Bumbleby is endgame. Either both were written for a reason, like if they weren’t sure if they could do Bumbleby, or a narrative reason, in which case Black Sun should have been dealt with rather than hand-waved away, or they were just teasing, but baiting fans is never, ever good writing; it’s cheap. All that to say that while I think there’s a compelling case they were interested in pursuing Bumbleby from the start, Black Sun shippers have a right to feel tricked and not all criticism thereof is based in homophobia or a lack of narrative understanding, or even in a dislike of the ship.)

At the beginning of this scene, Adam makes it clear that this is a redo of their previous chemical wedding by reminding them of it: 

Blake stabs Adam with a silver weapon; Yang with red. We have earth, air (clouds), water, and weapons as a stand-in for fire.

It’s still somewhat of a violent wedding, which makes me wonder if Bumbleby will have a third (and Renora as well). But it also parallels Renora in this: returning to a pivotal scene where they were traumatized, but this time being able to overcome it because they’ve become more like each other. Blake is in many ways Yang’s trauma stretching far beyond Beacon (Blake runs away, as does Raven, Yang’s mother who abandoned her), and likewise Yang for Blake (she’s hotheaded and holds grudges, like Adam). But Blake and Yang have been working on becoming better versions of themselves. 

At the end of this scene, they even exchange quasi-wedding vows (since Blake’s promise is to not abandon Yang): 

And the artists drive home the point by drawing Blake’s hair far bushier than normal (more like Yang’s), and Yang’s far tamer than normal (like Blake’s). 

Jaune Arc/Weiss Schnee (White Knight)

Weiss and Jaune have had one chemical wedding thus far (possibly two but not sure) and I didn’t ship them at all until I saw this scene. Like Bumbleby and Renora, they have an antagonistic Mercurius: Cinder.  

(This one I’ll be arguing a little bit about why I think it’s set up for romance as well.)

In this scene, Cinder directly compares Weiss to Pyrrha in regards to how Jaune feels about them (and we know Jaune and Pyrrha were romantic--you can also argue Cinder was an antagonistic Mercurius uniting Pyrrha and Jaune). 

When Weiss screams, Cinder gets an idea and slides her gaze from Weiss to Jaune. 

And then reenacts this: 

As I also mentioned previously, Jaune then plays the role of the Prince to Weiss’s Snow White (which is an alchemical fairy tale). Like when Ren unlocks his aura to protect Nora, Jaune unlocks his to save Weiss. Weiss looks as if she is in a glass coffin that gets more and more golden, symbolic of refinement. 

It’s also probably an allusion to this image of a chemical wedding presided over by Saturn (Mercury in this scene, since he’s there) and Death (Ruby and Qrow, who are also present in the scene with Jaune and Weiss). (For more on this image, see here.)

Weiss and Jaune also have some oppositional imagery and arcs: Weiss starts Beacon with a deep family legacy and an inherited semblance, she chooses to go to Beacon on her own and is the favored child (at first). Jaune too has a family legacy of warriors, but instead of feeling empowered because of this, he is insecure and  literally cheats his way into the school. He doesn’t have a semblance until season 5. After this incident, Weiss and Jaune spend some time recreationally together (seeing a movie in vol 7); Jaune becomes more confident as a leader, and Weiss continues her arc in becoming more sympathetic to those from less privileged backgrounds.

Arguably, what happened at the end of volume 8 could be seen as having some symbolism of a chemical wedding for Weiss and Jaune too, but I don’t think it actually is one since they weren’t focused on as characters enough (if this was intended to be the start of one, we’ll get something next season, I’d imagine). The only reason I’m mentioning it is because it does function as an inverse of the previous one, which is the case for Renora and Bumbleby’s first and second weddings too. Cinder again almost kills Weiss (she falls in the exact same position as in vol 5), but Jaune saves Weiss when he screams after killing Penny. Instead of saving Weiss by healing, he kills. There’s also some distinctive red and white imagery. 

And then Winter arrives with a six-pointed star and birds before telling them to run together:

But again, I wouldn’t really call this one; it just has some imagery of one and fits a pattern, so I’m including it as a potential lead-in to an actual one in the void or later. 

Ruby Rose/Oscar Pine (Rosegarden)

Like with Weiss/Jaune, I’ll be arguing a little bit about why I think this one is likely to end up romantic, too (for example, Cinder most recently in volume 8 used Oscar to taunt Ruby in a callback to using Pyrrha and Weiss to taunt Jaune).

Also: oh look, finally a wedding that isn’t violent. They just... meet. Which is also normal for a chemical wedding but less dramatic.

Behold, the bird uniting the solar king and lunar queen: 

(Fun fact: unless CRWBY came up with ship names which I highly, highly doubt, this is pure coincidence, but it’s a funny one: the art series this image is taken from is called Rosarium Philosophorum--which literally means “rose garden philosophy.”)

Let’s look at the scene where Ruby and Oscar meet for the first time. What makes this a chemical wedding is in part how obvious their markings are and the overall imagery is in the scene.

They are united by Qrow (who in addition to being named after a bird can literally transform into a bird):

Oscar asks about Ruby specifically (yes, I know because Qrow’s her uncle, but the writing is telling us to focus on his relationship with her): 

And immediately notes/is in awe that she has silver eyes (i.e. the moon): 

Qrow seems to realize he’s done something momentous in a way that almost doesn’t entirely work within the frame of the narrative (but he is drunk, so). 

The scenery of this room is also telling. The table is literally an Emerald Table, the legendary foundation of alchemy itself. 

Once they sit and talk, behind Oscar are the elements of earth and water, which he represents, and also the moon, which while traditionally associated with earth and water, he does not (at least not as strongly as he’s associated with the sun/gold):

Similarly, behind Ruby we have the elements of fire and air (like, if you zoom in, they actually drew air), which she is marked as, and the sun, which again, she’s not as strongly associated with as she is with the moon:

In Splendor Solis, which CRWBY has referenced before, the Solar King does eventually end up grounded in the moon, and likewise the Lunar Queen in the sun:

Oscar and Ruby also do have oppositional arcs and roles: Ruby starts the series in the very first episode by being invited to Beacon two years early because of her leaping into action to stop Torchwick. She’s scolded for her recklessness, but immediately picked out as special because of her silver eyes. In contrast, Oscar is reluctant to leave his farm once Ozpin inhabits him; he refuses at first, and then once he does leave, is nervous and timid.

Anyways I wouldn’t be surprised if Qrow arrives in Vacuo with RWBYJ in tow and this time reunites Ruby with Oscar in an inverse. We’ll see. 

I do want to say that I also see potential for Emerald Sustrai/Mercury Black, in that they often act as one and share a theme song, but I haven’t seen any actual visual references to a chemical wedding for them... yet. 

[elminx]

Energy Update: September 2021

Happy September!

Numerologically, September is a 5 universal month [9 (September) + 5 (2021) = 14 = 1+4 = 5] in a 5 universal year. In numerology, the number 5 represents the pivotal moment in the middle of it all. It holds the vastness of all futures – both good and ill. 5 represents freedom and adventure. A 5 month is, in general, a time to tap in and go with the flow – it’s not a time to make your lists and check them twice; instead, it’s a time to think big and say “yes”. We’ve been sitting in 5 energy all year so this may feel like a bit of a homecoming for some or very nerve-wracking for others. This will have a lot to do with your own personality and comfortability with 5 energy.

Astrologically, the month of September is a mismatch for our 5 universal energy. We spend most of the month in Virgo season and may have to spend quite a bit of time putting in the work to catch up on things that we fell behind on during summer vacation. Whether it’s back to school or back to work, Virgo season always has a feeling of settling into your routines again or perhaps finding a new and more healthful routine.

The Setup

The Sun is in Virgo for most of the month, Mercury spends the entirety of the month in Libra, Venus finishes her stint in Libra and moves ahead into Scorpio, and Mars enters Libra at the midway point in the month. As our planets transit through Virgo, they are squaring off with the lunar nodes, trining retrograde Uranus in Taurus and Pluto in Capricorn, and opposing retrograde Neptune in Pisces. As they transit Libra, they are reactivating our Saturn-Uranus square through a trine to Saturn, trine to retrograde Jupiter, and opposing retrograde Chiron in Aries. Venus whose the head of our pack will be squaring off with Saturn and opposing Uranus once she enters Scorpio.

We are still under the effect of our Saturn in Aquarius square to Uranus in Taurus – this is our Unstoppable Force meets immovable object energy that is in effect throughout the rest of the year.

Additionally, we are deep into retrograde season with all of our outer and transpersonal planets in retrograde. Mercury will join these planets later this month for its third retrograde of the year in the sign of Libra.

For a sneak peek of October: Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, and Pluto all station direct from 10/6-10/18 – this is the Green Light you’ve been waiting for. Now we just need to get there.

The Nitty Gritty

September is filled with contradictory vibes and may feel like a roller coaster. One day you may feel invincible and full of the highest highs but it is worth keeping in mind all month that what goes up must come down. We are all subject to gravity – plan accordingly. In particular, the first and third weeks of the month look fairly rocky while the third and fourth weeks have promise and moments of sweetness. This is a month to tidy up – to work smarter rather than harder. To pair down your responsibilities and make sure you are maintaining healthy boundaries around work, play, and excess.

The 5 energy may give the impression that it’s go time but it’s really not. Not yet. We will have six planets and Chiron retrograde by the end of the month which is always an indication that our energy is best expressed in an inward fashion.

Two of our personal planets (Venus and Mars) change signs this month which will personalize the energy with some emphasis on the relationships in our lives. While Mars is in Libra, we may be called to balance out the relationship energy we share with our others in some way – early on Mars will make an opposition to our wounded healer Chiron in Aries – there is pain to go through to get to the other side. Venus in Scorpio can be harsh and unyielding but also deep and seductive. These two energies do not sit well together, Venus may try to control (especially with emotions – using toxic tactics like the silent treatment or double binds) while Mars just wants everybody to find peace and get along. The more space you can give your others, the better off you will be.

Relationships may be especially tense around the new moon in Virgo on 9/5-9/6 as Venus in Libra squares of with retrograde Pluto in Capricorn while Mars in Virgo makes a trine. This year is all about transformations – first, we need to transform internally, but then this transformation needs to ripple outward and into our realities. There may be some break-ups and breakdowns during this time – it is likely that some long-term partners (Capricorn rules marriage, let’s not forget) are starting to realize that their connection has run its course.

In a year when it feels like we need to hold onto everything (influenced by our long-term Saturn-Uranus square in the fixed signs), this may feel catastrophic. Uranus in Taurus has a big lesson for us now: nothing lasts forever and retrograde Pluto in Capricorn is reinforcing this lesson. Now is the time to release what you have outgrown. It will likely feel very uncomfortable this month to continue to wear your mostly shed skin. As you navigate this energy, make the choices that are best suited for who you would most like to be, and you alone.

Herein lies the secret to navigating this month and really the energy of all of 2021: give up the illusion that you can control or “help” other people, and instead work controlling and “helping” yourself. As Anne Lamott says “Help is just the sunny side of control.” We are being pushed by our Saturn-Uranus square towards an ever-deepening understanding of this lesson and, since Virgo is a sign concerned with service and helping others, this will be especially accentuated as our sun transits the sign of the virgin. The lesson may come due on 9/14 as our Sun in Virgo opposed retrograde Neptune in Pisces – this is a day to give up the illusion (Neptune in Pisces) that we can control (Sun in Virgo) our Others.

Especially right now, our Others may be on an internal journey that is impossible for us to reach or understand. We’ve all had to make hard decisions and recalculations since the beginning of 2020 – beware of following your Others to a place that feels uncomfortable to be AND most especially of demanding your Others follow you to a place that feels uncomfortable for them. Be especially aware of projection and the illusionary stories that you tell yourself – especially as we approach our full moon in Pisces on 9/20 that is conjunct Neptune retrograde. As we enter our month to finally get shit done in October, we want to do so with our eyes wide open. See things as they really are, not as you would like them to be.

The entirety of September and October will be overshadowed by our Mercury retrograde in Libra cycle. Mercury enters its shadow on 9/6, officially retrogrades 9/27, stations direct again on 10/28, and doesn’t exit its post-shadow until November. The standard Mercury retrograde things apply: get your car fixed before the retrograde (change your oil, too!), double-check your work, save often, and watch out for miscommunication and upsets involving technology and travel. Because Mercury Chthonia is transversing backward through the Venus-ruled sign of Libra, this is another indication that this time will be spent re-thinking, re-imagining, re-editing things that have to do within our most personal relationships.

Mercury Chthonia’s path spans from 10° to 25° of Libra which means that it will trine retrograde Jupiter, just barely miss an exact trine with retrograde Saturn, square retrograde Pluto, and opposed retrograde Chiron not once but thrice through its retrograde journey. This will likely be the densest retrograde cycle of the year but potentially the most rewarding. If the message seems murky and unclear, write out your experiences for review after Mercury stations direct – you may find that there were hints of your lesson that you were too “in it” to see.

The lower energy of Libra is prone to emotional entanglements and codependency so it’s likely we will be revisiting these themes in our own lives during this time. Watch out for where you are not allowing your Others to differentiate or be themselves. Watch out for where you are stifling yourself to please your Others as well. Chiron in Aries is always a lesson in putting on your own mask first BEFORE you step up help an/Other put their mask on. Again, see above about maintaining strong boundaries this month – do less but make what you do count for more.

Balance truly is the way through this month but it may be hard to find. Practice your very best self-care and make sure that when you say “yes” to things, you really mean it. This is a month that could easier run away from you if you’re checking out on yourself or trying to do all of the things with no hand on the brake petal. Breath and put one foot in front of the other – slow and steady will get you to the finish line. Once our planets station direct in October, we will be able to move faster.

Below, I’ve broken down the important daily aspects of the month. Please keep in mind that the days listed are just the days that these aspects go exact in EST – strong aspects can be felt anywhere from 2-7 days (or more!) in advance of their completion and for a number of days afterward. I have bolded the most important aspects.

The Aspects

9/2 – Mars in Virgo opposed Neptune retrograde in Pisces, Moon in Cancer square Venus in Libra – this could spell relationship troubles. Mars is off in daydream land while Venus is feeling triggered. Lie low and try not to put undue pressure on your Others during these transits.

9/3 – Mercury in Libra trine N. Node in Gemini – watch out for Ah-Ha moments and signs that show you a way forward on this day.

9/4 – Moon in Leo squares retrograde Uranus in Taurus – here we see one of our four monthly days where the moon reactivates our Saturn-Uranus square. Lie low. Stay aware. Caution.

9/5 – Mercury in Libra trine retrograde Saturn in Aquarius – the energy is volatile – expect breakdowns and breakthroughs especially involving communication about long term things

9/6 – New moon at 14° Virgo, Mercury enters their shadow, Venus in Libra trine Jupiter retrograde in Aquarius, Venus in Libra square Pluto retrograde in Capricorn, Mars in Virgo trine Pluto retrograde in Capricorn – Pluto’s influence on this new moon (through both Venus and Mars) is unmistakeable – something has got to transform. With both and Venus and Mars involved, it may be a change within your relationships. Remember to reach for balance (Venus in Libra) and compromise if it is available.

9/7 – Sun in Virgo trine retrograde Uranus in Taurus – expect (and embrace) the unexpected during this time. What you hold onto too tightly may break. Stay away from the illusion of control during this time.

9/8 – Moon conjunct Mercury in Libra, Moon in Libra trine retrograde Saturn in Aquarius, Moon and Mercury opposed retrograde Chiron in Aries – this is an air grand trine which means that we are supporting in learning something during this transit. This re-activates our Saturn-Uranus square and Chiron – the lesson is likely to be heavy. Avoid using your emotions as a copout to understanding.

9/10 – Venus enters Scorpio, Moon in Scorpio square retrograde Saturn in Aquarius – this is our first hint as to what it is going to feel like to revisit our Saturn-Uranus square during Scorpio season. Take note.

9/13 – Moon in Sagittarius square retrograde Neptune in Pisces – something may be revealed today and it may feel like a major setback. Pivot your attention and focus on things that you CAN change.

9/14 – Sun in Virgo opposed retrograde Neptune in Pisces, Mars enters Libra – a repeat on 9/13 – you may not have all of the information. All that glitters is not gold. Watch out for “helper” behavior that isn’t helpful and victim/savior complexes.

9/16 – Moon conjunct retrograde Saturn in Aquarius – this is another of our four lunar activation points to our Saturn-Uranus square. Make sure the weight of the responsibility you are carrying is actually yours.

9/17 – Sun in Virgo trine retrograde Pluto in Capricorn, Venus in Scorpio square Saturn retrograde in Aquarius – in a month that begs for transformation, this is one of our powerhouse days – level up. Change may be uncomfortable but it will be even more uncomfortable to stay in your too-tight skin. Watch out for the control through emotional manipulation because this again activates our Saturn-Uranus square and Uranus is not having any of that shit.

9/20 – Full moon at 28° Pisces, Moon conjunct retrograde Neptune, Mercury in Libra trine Jupiter retrograde in Aquarius, Mars in Libra trine N. Node in Gemini – where are you going? do you have a path forward? Things may seem foggy and immutable at this time. Watch out for your boundaries and projection. The Mercury-Jupiter trine repeats during Mercury retrograde on 10/3.

9/22 – The Sun enters Libra, Mercury in Libra square retrograde Pluto in Capricorn, Venus in Scorpio opposed retrograde Uranus in Taurus – Happy Autumnal Equinox! The seasons are shifting but there’s a metric fuckton of tension in the air. Tamper down the emotional volatility – not everything needs to be a struggle. Tap into the Libra ideal of peace and balance for all. The Mercury-Pluto square repeats during Mercury retrograde on 10/01.

9/24 – Moon conjunct retrograde Uranus in Taurus, Moon in Taurus opposed Venus in

Scorpio – there’s a lesson here in letting go of control. This reactivates our Saturn-Uranus square…again. Step away from the Venus in Scorpio impulse for revenge.

9/25 – Mars in Libra trine retrograde Saturn in Aquarius – this is a good day to put in the work.

9/26 – Moon in Gemini trine Sun and Mars in Libra and retrograde Saturn in Aquarius. – another air grand trine. Show up for your own life – what you focus on grows.

9/27 – Mercury retrograde at 25° Libra – go slow. check your work. save often. Mercury retrograde 3-4x every year since this is normal Astrological Weather but still important to pay attention to. In the sign of Libra, Mercury will likely help you to rebalance something about your relationships.

9/29 – Sun in Libra trine Saturn retrograde in Aquarius, Venus in Scorpio trine retrograde Neptune in Pisces – you may want to work but it’s likely that your head will be in the clouds. Watch out for emotional dysregulation. The Sun activates our Saturn-Uranus square so caution would be advised.

9/30 – Moon in Cancer square Mercury retrograde in Libra, Moon in Cancer opposed retrograde Pluto in Capricorn, Venus in Scorpio square retrograde Jupiter in Aquarius – go slow, emotions are high. Misunderstandings will have a lasting impact during this time.

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