#and got defeated primarily because of him

[shybasementkid]

please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate. please don't make me elaborate.

[belovedenzo]

for the camera || lorenzo berkshire

summary; If you try and leave Lorenzo, he'll spread your videos all over Hogwarts. Then he'll remind you who gets to decide when you can leave. Revenge p*rn.

warnings; smut 18+! sharing someone's videos, cheating, very very toxic enzo, manipulating asf. he's in his super villain era

words; 2.5k

notes; I love to see that you guys have been enjoying my stories so here's another! enjoy :3 open for requests and moots!

 It’s never been a secret to anybody that Slytherin’s ‘sweet golden boy’ didn’t exactly live up to his clean and clear reputation. Maybe if it wasn’t for beloved, sweet amber eyes of his- he’d be held accountable for his actions. Lorenzo Berkshire is simply known for his charm- which he uses against everyone around him. Including you.

 You knew this- you genuinely knew this but caught feelings against your own better judgment. Now you’re in this sticky position- deciding on if you can handle his overly flirtatious personality. At least- that’s what he swears it’s due to- his nasty habit of ending up in the arms of other girls. You never took him as the loyal type anyways- although it still stung once it actually happened a few times. 

 Every weekend a party is thrown in the slytherin common room, primarily by Lorenzo and his friends. Last weekend was no exception, meaning every body would gather together and do substances that you could probably get in trouble for. These parties have always been like a hunting ground it seems to the boys, the one you’ve been sleeping with included. That didn’t seem to change when you started seeing him; and you’re honestly unsure why you had almost hoped it would. 

 Every time you have sat and watched from a far as Enzo whispers in the ears of other pretty girls in your year. He floods your mind with excuses every time you try and confront him-

 “It’s just the way I talk- we are just friends.”

 “Why are you acting like you can hear what I’m saying to them? I’m doing nothing wrong.”

 “You can’t accuse me just because you’re jealous.” 

  You always catch him grinning smugly after you give into his whining- knowing he got what he wanted. This time however, his hand was just a little too low for excuses and nothing he could say would have defended him here really. It was obvious he wanted this girl. You are now left to really decide if you want to continue seeing him; might as well get out while you still can, right? While it won’t hurt quite as bad. 

 After every class you find yourself trying to hide from him- trying to avoid the inevitable confrontation. The last time you had seen him wasn’t pretty and he knew you were at your breaking point with him. However, today was the day you ran into him, like he had also caught on to your avoidance and began too sought after you. He had quickly pulled you into a currently empty study room and that is now, how you ended up in this situation. 

 “What do you mean you’re done with me?” It may have not been easy to muster up this kind of courage but it had to be done and and by the expression on his face, he’s not taking it very well. “You can’t break up with me.” His voice is laced with irritation, maybe even some concern. The room is dimly lit, but through this you can still see his eyebrows knitted together into a scowl. While you expected him to be upset, definitely not not this upset.

 You sighed in deep, attempting to keep your composure- you have to stay strong. “I’m done Enz- you can’t convince me.” You held confidence in your tone and body language. “I’m tired of watching you flirt with other girls.” Your eyes attempted not to roll into the back of your head as you spoke. “I can’t date you.” You threw your hands up in defeat, watching as his expression contorts again. 

 Before you can move any farther away, merlin forbid near the door- he grabs your wrist with his long fingers. “Hey now- don’t be like that. You like me.” He gives you that look, the same look he gives you any time he wants another piece of you. This look always manages to weaken you and bring down the guards you hold up. 

 You look back at him with pleading eyes to not do this and just let you walk away. You do like him- but at what cost? How foolish can you act before it’s too foolish? But when his eyes don’t falter that tells you he won’t be giving you up easily. 

 He liked his little convenience. The one that would be there at the end of the day if he ever actually felt the human emotion of loneliness.  That’s the kind of blanket Lorenzo has always needed- reaches for, and he’s gotten used to you. He didn’t even let your lips part to speak a word before he was closing in the distance once again. “You can’t leave me, y/n. You don’t really want to leave me.” He lets out what sounds like almost an amused chuckle. 

 As usual- his reaction is to try and manipulate and coax you into what he wants. As usual… it’s working. He’s gentle at first, using his thumb to rub circles onto the bone of your wrist in his grasp. That is until you go to pull away and reject him once more that his grasp tightens. “Lorenzo, I-“

 An almost malicious like chuckle surfaces from his throat- your words coming to a stop once again as he pulls you in, psychically and theoretically. “You what baby?” He teases you as if your words mean nothing, because they don’t to him. His eyes suck you in while making you feel so small at the same time as he towers over you with his long, broad figure. “What’s the matter?” His words are filled with a faux pout of concern for your feelings. 

 Your eyes narrow, deciding that today is not the day you give into his intoxicating antics. You go to pull away this time, with more force than the last. His eyes never leave yours, watching your defiance take place like it’s simply a temper tantrum. 

 His grip hardens again, along with his eyes as he quickly stops your movements once again. “Stop.” This time he sounds serious, losing the sardonic tone. He is tired of playing these childish little game with you.

 A rock forms in your throat and stomach as he presses a red bruise into the skin of your wrist. His other hand flies to your hip- or attempts to. His hand comes in contact with the air as you tug your body away again, this time with all the strength that you have. 

 For a moment, you feel as though you had finally proven your point about leaving and gained your freedom from this confrontation. You had gotten yourself fully turned around and headed towards the door this time but to your dismay and shock, two hands grab your hips from behind, craning their fingers around your front. His big hands had your hips in a tight lock. 

 “Where do you think you’re going?” He pulls you in, your ass pressed against his front, nice and close- just the way he likes it. “We don’t have to argue.” He says soft against the back of your head, his tall frame hovering over the back of you. He leans down to be level with your neck, placing a soft kiss against the nape. 

 Barely a mewl is brave enough to escape your lips as your entire body tenses, his lips tickling the back of your neck. “Besides, you wouldn’t want those videos of us going anywhere would you?” Those videos.

 This makes your eyes widen, lips parting in shock. Lorenzo has always been known for being a persuasive little shit. So when he begged and begged for you to let him take a video with a camera from the muggle world, you just couldnt object. You should have known that would back fire. He has multiple intimate videos of him pounding into you at different angles. Worst of all; he has a few of your mouth wrapped around his cock as he gags the life out of you. The more your thoughts begin to race, your heart follows in dread.

 “I’ll find a way to make sure everybody watches those videos of you.” His breathe is warm on the shell of your ear. “They’ll all see how good of a slut you are for me.” As he speaks, he’s slowly inching you body forward to exactly where he wants you. 

 A squeal exerts from your chest and your knees buckle to the table in front of you, leaving you now bent over in front of him, his hands still gripping the sides of your hips. “But you’d like that wouldn’t you?” A gasp leaves your lips a second after his grip yanks your hips in the direction of his. 

 “N..No.” You manage to stutter. The idea of anyone seeing you like that brings tears to your eyes but he has you in a vulnerable spot and you can’t protest. Against your own will, you feel a pit form in your stomach and a burn between your legs. 

 “You wouldn’t?” He says softly, leaving a warm kiss to ease his cold words. “Then I don’t think you’ll be going anywhere.” You know Lorenzo well enough to know that he isn’t just yanking your chain for a reaction, his threats are sincere and he’d do it with a smile on his face. He leaves a few more gentle kisses around the nape of your neck before pulling away. 

 This sudden loss of contact made a soft sigh leave you, a chuckle coming from him at the sound. “Desperate.” Is all he says before pushing you onto the ground. You fell to the hard wood of the school floor with a thunk, earning another short chuckle from the boy above you. 

 Your eyes trail up to meet his that shown a darker cast than usual, making your nerves stand on end. You should get up and run, or better yet stand up for yourself but all you can do is watch an he now steps back closer. Apart of you likes the effect this attitude of his is having on you. 

 His eyes stay on yours as he unbuckles his belt. “Come here.” His voice has finally lost all of it’s fake charm and sweeteners.

  Maybe it was the bass of his voice but it commanded you so you crawled closer, finally closing the distance. You wondered to yourself if you look as pathetic as you feel. His eyes were bored into you from below him as a smirk crawls onto his lips. 

 He motions to his pants, letting you do the rest of the work. “Go on.” He doesn’t seem to have much patience and even if he does you don’t want to test it- not after his threats were made. “Show me how much you need me.” 

 What you do next would leave you deplorable. Your hands quickly make work of removing loosened belt, tugging his pants half way down his legs along the way. “Enzo… please don’t show anyone that-“ 

 With that, you remove the final layer and come face to face with his already hardened cock. “We’ll see- be good.” He demands- cutting you off by shoving his member down your throat which catches you off guard. A gasp tumbles from his lips as the warmth of your mouth covers the tip. “So, good.” The taste of precut floods your taste buds.

 You suck in your cheeks, doing your best to hollow out your mouth for his girth to fill. He makes another satisfied grunt before slamming the rest of himself down your throat with force. Usually you’d tell him to slow down and give you a moment before he chokes you to death, but the fear of disappointing him fills your mind. What if you don’t do an adequate job and he shows your friends, professors- or worse; his friends and professors. No body would ever look and respect you the same again. 

 He lets out a few sounds of praise, easing you into thinking you’re not doing a terrible job. He doesn’t let you do this for long however until he has you bent over that same table once again. Your mouth wasn’t good enough to teach the lesson he needed to teach.

 “You feel so good baby, maybe I don’t want anyone else to see you like this.” His words practically purr out of his throat as he positions himself behind you and slides in like it’s your pussy’s second nature to consume his cock. He pounds into you, leaving no time for you to adjust to his size. 

 Soft and seraphic moans of need and want  fill the atmosphere of the empty room around you, bouncing off the walls. He sure does have a way of always hitting your achiest, gummiest spots. “Enz…” His name falls between your lips- which just causes another grunt of satisfaction to come from behind you. 

 You crane your neck painfully to see a smirk forming on his cheeks. It’s just a second before his hand comes up and nearly slams your face back down into the table- but not hard enough to cause pain. He gives your hair a small tug as a yelp ties into your moans.  

 “It couldn’t hurt for me to record a few more, right baby?” The soft tone that leaves his lips is polarizing compared to his rouch touch. He was up to no good. You hear him press the record button after dragging out the small muggle camera from his back pocket, a sigh escaping your lips at the sound. A realization that he once again- had you.

 A depraved chuckle leaves him as he pounds into you at a now even faster rate. He was prepared to give the camera a real show. “Now say my name again- this time for the camera.” He reaches over your body and mercilessly yanks your hair once again, to show that pretty little fucked out face to the camera. 

 You chant his name like a prayer while he smiles to himself, watching the sight in front of him unfold. You weren’t ever going to try and leave him again and he’s made sure of that. If you do he’ll simply show everyone at Hogwarts- your newest sex tape. 

love, spell

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[buggachat]

Honestly I think my take on the "Chat Noir was not there in the final battle" comes down to the fact that I kind of just don't think a satisfying final battle between Chat Noir and Monarch was actually possible.

I read a lot of fic, for example, and I've read the scenario play out a lot of times in a ton of ways and I've never been fully convinced of it tbh (and not because they weren't great fic!!). It seems just completely traumatic for Adrien in a way that the scenario inherently cannot properly focus on, because it's all happening in the middle of an action scene and Adrien is too busy being Mid-Battle to properly have a cathartic breakdown about it all. I mean, Chat Blanc already showed us what would happen if he did have a breakdown mid-battle (and why wouldn't he?). And though it'd be fun to have a big triumphant moment of him defeating his abusive father, Adrien simply isn't a character who would find that scenario triumphant, or cathartic, or anything other than viscerally traumatic.

Also, I agree that it's unfair that Chat Noir was not present— like it was unfairly tilted in Ladybug's favor— but I don't think it'd be fair if he was present, either. Because Marinette is, in fact, the main character. The main character whose character arc is primarily focused on her finding her footing as a hero and discovering all the responsibilities that come with that power (as opposed to Adrien, whose character arc is moreso about freedom and identity). And let's face it, in a fight between Ladybug and Chat Noir and Monarch, nobody would be focused on Ladybug at all. It's not about her. It's not her fight. She'd just be there as moral support and an extra set of hands, which really doesn't work for her character arc at all and is completely unfair to her!

Basically, it would just be Chat Noir temporarily acting as the main character and having the worst time of his life in the most un-cathartic battle for him possible left completely traumatized with Ladybug in the background awkwardly trying to comfort him after the fact? And then the season ends? And then the next season presumably goes back to Ladybug being the main character? After a time-skip to the new school year? It's just an ending that I feel like is a lot better in theory than actually on paper. And you can probably make an argument for ways that it could be made to work, where it would enhance Ladybug's story in a meaningful way where she still feels like the main character, and would somehow be triumphant for Chat Noir despite it probably being the worst moment of his life, and somehow not make the rest of the series following feel like bonus content as opposed to a continuation of the story...... but, I dunno. I think it's a lot easier said than done.

The fact of the matter is, I've always been waaayyyy more interested in how the aftermath of Gabriel's defeat affects Adrien than the battle itself. Post-Hawkmoth defeat is one of my favorite types of fic for a reason, and it's because the aftermath can be so juicy, especially for Adrien as a character. I think whether or not Adrien is actually there in the battle itself has always been kind of irrelevant to me, because no matter how Gabriel is defeated, his defeat will have immense repercussions on Adrien's life going forward. And the way they did it, Marinette is now a part of it in a more active way, too. Which is good for her character!

( Also, if he was there to triumphantly defeat Gabriel, would that mean he would just.... watch his father die? of cataclysm? a-and.... nathalie would just.... die, too? so he'd have three dead parents after all that? who he watched all die (or, in emilie's case, saw her corpse)? or is this a scenario where MONARCH BEATS CHAT NOIR and still makes the wish? is that cathartic? for Adrien to lose to Gabriel? Frankly, I loved seeing Gimmi and The Wish, it's been teased for so long that I was expecting it, and I loved the fact that Nathalie got to live as her narrative reward for coming to her senses and trying to murder Gabriel with a crossbow. I like that we got to watch a full season of Gabriel painfully dying to a cataclysm— poetically inflicted on him by Adrien, but of Gabriel's own doing. I like that Nathalie has presumably adopted Adrien after having an arc of her trying to be a parent to him once she realized nobody else would, that's so much more interesting than any other alternative. I just don't see how all of these things, some of my favorite things that season 5 gave, can still all exist at once with Chat Noir present in the final battle in any way that's satisfying. )

[prettycottonmouthlamia]

I harp a lot on how I don't think the current episodic release structure for Arknights does it many favors in how it wants to tell its stories, and how it's story manifests for us, but there are some benefits to this type of long form structure, and it's moments that get better with hindsight. It's not impossible to do this in a more contained medium, as this is often a staple of the mystery genre of literature and film, but it is uncommonly employed in video games to great effect, with their contained stories often being played much more straight.

One of the benefits of releasing longer-form content is the ability to both make callbacks and to give additional details that change the meaning in earlier scenes. The most famous in Arknights, at least for me, is the scene in Wei's office in Chapter 2.

In it's original context, this is Wei Yenwu being aloof to the threat of Reunion, not even bothering to properly remember their leader's name. Once you learn though that Talulah is not just Reunion's leader but Wei Yenwu's niece, and suddenly the scene has new context. This is the scene I point to when I want to talk about how much of a slimeball Wei Yenwu is at this point in the story. This isn't him being aloof, this is Wei deliberately holding back information in order to manipulate for himself a better position. By not revealing his stakes, he wants to hold more power at the negotiation tables with Rhodes Island for Lungmen.

Of course he knows the name of the leader of Reunion, how could he not? How could he not remember letting Kaschey go and take her away, prioritizing Lungmen over the safety of his dead brother's daughter? But he's not going to show that to Rhodes Island, a bunch of strangers he intends to use in poor faith.

Now let's talk about a conversation in Chapter 10 you likely haven't thought about in quite some time!

That's right! We're here to talk about Nezzsalem's confrontation with Kal'tsit when she docks with Londinium. This is a really interesting scene that primarily serves initially to offer even more mystique to Kal'tsit and Theresa's assassination. After all, Kal'tsit and Nezzsalem knew each other, they even fought together at least once. The King of the Nachzehrer! He was there when Theresa was assassinated, and here he is now, inquiring about the death of the last pure Wendigo. None of this seems out of the question, but with some more time, it's possible to find this scene strange.

How did he know? Sure, the Nachzehrer thrives off of life and death, but they're more focused on war. The passing of lives to the Myriad Souls is the concern of the Banshees, not the Nachzehrer. Patriot is also not a Sarkaz hero, at least not directly, since he was a Patriot for Ursus, not Kazdel, and he was a supporter of Theresa at that. Given everything we know now, it's pretty unlikely that Patriot would have followed Theresis to Londinium. But it's still not completely out of the question. Babel reveals that the Military Council in its fledgling state knew about where he was.

This is a pretty small aside after Nezzsalem defeats Logos, but it managed to hit me like a brick, because the first thing I remembered was Nezzsalem confronting Kal'tsit about the death of Patriot. Patriot was not just a Wendigo to Nezzsalem, he was something of a son to him. Sure, he might not have been Nezzsalem's only student, but the Nachzehrer are not shown to be a particularly sentimental bunch pretty much ever, so the Sudaram going "Yeah. Your kid" is impactful here. Nezzsalem stands, having beaten Laqueramaline's son in combat, after Aefanyl had proven himself worthy of respect, as an old man thinking about his own son.

This reframes the conversation in Chapter 10. Nezzsalem knows Kal'tsit, it's implied he's known her for a very long time, and it's likely he's seen the different lives of Kal'tsit and likely knew of her involvement in the invasion of Kazdel a couple hundred years ago. So it's now also got that added element of the King of the Nachzehrer coming up to the landship and shaking Kal'tsit by the shoulders going "WHAT DID YOU DO". It provides new context for his anger. Kal'tsit was directly involved in the death of his foster son, just as she was directly involved previously in the destruction of Kazdel and one of the figures behind Babel.

It also adds some depth to Nezzsalem's acceptance. He died a warrior, maybe against one of the most fitting opponents upon all of Terra, and knowing that Patriot chose Kal'tsit quells that anger.

It's all neat. There's more that can be extrapolated from this, such as this providing something of an explanation for Patriot's military ability and potentially even his witchcraft, but those aren't as important or interesting to me. Chapter 14 is a story in a number of ways about the burden and threads of individuals who have lived an immensely long period of time, individuals who have found immortality in one way or another, and the ways that these lives ultimately intersect and weave with one another, and Patriot is another one of those patterns weaved through time.

[puffcap-factory]

Shared Dreams, Blossoming Hearts (Wriothesley x reader)

Wriothesley x fem!reader; fluff, pure fluff, heartwarming.

You were not satisfied with the results of the recent case you had been investigating, but Wriothesley seemed to have his own way to cheer you up. (Basically, it was how the two fall for each other)

Words: 3.3k

Notes:

Another Wriothesley fic because he hot >:-)

Okay, I did say I plan for a series but I don’t think I have the patience… Anyways, you can assume that this is the prequel to the other fic I made (the spicy one here) since I used the same setting for the reader. As always, enjoy!

((Update: a sequel of the story here))

•~•~•~•

You crouched, cradling one of the injured children in your arms, his small form trembling against you. 

How old was he? Five? Seven?

You couldn’t fathom how someone could use these innocent children as unknowing pawns in a smuggling ring for the geode, the case you had been investigating on these past few days.

Before you lay four treasure hoarders, all unconscious, subdued by the elemental power you channeled through your vision. A recon log mek was completely broken, no longer a threat.

Though you could intercept the last escaping group, a sense of incompetence washed over you as you realized you couldn't save the children unscathed. You had feared the worst.

"Y/n!" Wriothesley called out as he dashed towards you, Clorinde and her subordinates following closely behind.

He took a moment to glance at the unconscious bodies of the hoarders, understanding the fact that you had been the one defeating them. However, his attention quickly shifted back to you, observing for any injuries.

"Don't worry," he said in a low, soothing voice, his gaze filled with reassurance. "The healers are ready. You should head back first."

You let a moment sink in as you gently petted the boy's head, a soft, reassuring smile on your face. "Don't worry, these people will take care of you," you said soothingly, trying to comfort the hurting child.

Wriothesley watched you closely, a flicker of warmth crossing his features as he observed this caring side of you. It was a moment that revealed another layer of your character, one that he hadn't seen before.

You let the children got lifted by the healers as you stood up, ready to go back to the fortress. Wriothesley talked to Clorinde in the background before escorting you back.

•~•~•~•

As the direct delegate representing the Palais of Mermoria, you were tasked with reporting directly to Neuvillette for cases concerning the fortress. Over the past few months, you had worked closely with the Duke, primarily focusing on investigations related to the Fortress of Meropide.

Your professional relationship with him was marked by your efficiency, something that Wriothesley greatly appreciated. Calm and composed - as others in the fortress described.

However, the recent particular case you had been working on had proven to be quite tricky. It had been unfolding for several days, involving a group of smugglers with ties to the prison. Your investigation had led you going back and forth between the prison and the upper grounds, tirelessly pursuing leads. 

Sadly, your suspicions about the use of children as decoys had been true all along, adding a disturbing layer to the case. Upon learning that the other party had Wriothesley occupied, you rushed to the site. Time was ticking away as they planned to destroy the evidence for escape, which meant endangering the lives of the children involved.

Fortunately, the children were safe now, but the weight of the case bore heavily on your shoulders. One misstep and everything would have ended much, much worse… Anger and frustration simmered within you, directed towards the people responsible, the unfolding situation, and yourself, for not realizing the danger sooner or saving the children unscathed.

Children— they were innocent childrens. Why...

With a burst of elemental energy, you unleashed your vision against the dummy in the Pankration Ring. The crackling power of your magic lashed out, a physical manifestation of your frustration.

“Wow, that dummy won’t last long if you keep doing it like that.”

Turning your head, you saw Wriothesley casually walking towards you. You fell silent, observing him as he approached, his gaze softening as he scanned your features.

"Don't beat yourself up too much about it," he sighed, sensing your state of emotions. "In fact, I should be the one thanking you. If it weren't for you rescuing the children..." his voice trailed off, the unspoken gratitude hanging in the air.

You looked up at him, changing the topic as you did not want to imagine the worst. "How are the children doing?"

"They're doing well, thanks to Sigewinne's trustworthy potions," he chuckled, attempting to lighten the mood. "We can check on them later."

A smile tugged at your lips. "Good… that's great. I would love to."

Wriothesley's gaze softened further, a silent acknowledgment of your care for the children.

"…Hey, if there's someone to blame, it would be me. If I wasn't involved in the other group, this may not have happened, true?" he asked flatly.

You paused, considering his words. He had a point, but you never held him responsible.

"Huh, but..." you started, but Wriothesley continued. 

"C'mon, if you want to release some stress, spar with me instead," he said, his lips tugging into a playful smile.

"A spar with the Duke himself? That's... quite the challenge," you chuckled, reluctance in your voice.

You were keenly aware of Wriothesley's physical prowess, not to mention his mastery over his vision. You would never match him in a fight.

"Nonsense," Wriothesley replied with a wave of his hand. "I saw what you did to those treasure hoarders. Use your vision, it's alright. As the ring's rules say, anything goes."

He smiled at you, a hint of challenge in his expression. The prospect of sparring against the Duke of Meropide himself, the champion of the ring, was both daunting and intriguing.

After a moment of consideration, you decided it was indeed a chance to both cool down your mood and train yourself. "Alright, let's do it," you said with a determined nod.

"That's the spirit," Wriothesley's smile grew wider as he made his way to the ring, and you followed him from behind.

Wriothesley tossed his jacket to the side, revealing the well-toned muscles beneath his shirt. The sight of his physique was impressive, a testament to his strength and skill. Even without gauntlets, the icy aura of his vision emanated from him, a reminder of his formidable power.

"No need to hold yourself back, give it your all," he added, his voice firm but encouraging.

With a nod, you mentally prepared yourself for the spar. Without your preferred weapon, you knew controlling your vision fully would be challenging. It felt harder to control without channeling it into a medium—a skill some could master, but it required extensive practice. From what you could tell, Wriothesley was adept at it.

Despite this, you refused to back down. A silent determination fueled your resolve as you admitted to yourself that you did actually want to see Wriothesley in combat—though not necessarily directly against you.

You focused on conjuring your vision into an energy ball, hurling it towards Wriothesley. With a swift sidestep, he dodged the attack and closed the distance between you. Knowing physical combat wasn't your forte, you attempted to keep your attacks ranged.

A slight smirk crossed Wriothesley's face as he started charging at you, clearly understanding your fighting style by now. Despite the challenges of channeling your vision power without a medium, you managed to throw some decent attacks, although most were either dodged or shielded by him.

Your thoughts on strategy were abruptly interrupted as Wriothesley closed the gap, launching into a series of quick and seasoned strikes. Blocking and parrying his blows as best you could, you could feel the icy blasts accompanying his movements. It was clear he wasn't showing his full skill, but even so, his speed and precision were impressive.

Realizing that solely shielding his attacks wouldn't take you anywhere, you focused your vision on creating a small dagger made from your vision elemental energy. With this newfound weapon, you lunged towards him, catching him off guard. Wriothesley dodged backwards, a bit taken aback by your sudden change in tactics.

"Smart move, as expected from you," he complimented. You remained focused and determined, taking measured breaths as the spar continued.

The exchange went rather fiercely, each of you landing blows and dodging strikes in a display of skill and determination. Despite the odds, you managed to hold your ground.

The spar reached its end when the small blade of elemental energy was poised against Wriothesley's neck. He froze, a small smile playing on his lips, admitting defeat in the face of your skill and determination.

"Alright, alright," he conceded, raising his hands in surrender. "You win this one."

You were clearly on edge, your breathing rough and labored in contrast to Wriothesley, who seemed rather unfazed by the recent spar. "You were clearly holding back against me, I can see that," you remarked, a playful glint in your eyes as you breathed in. Despite the intensity of the match and the fact that he was not giving his all, you still felt a sense of confidence building within you.

Wriothesley sighed defeatedly, acknowledging your observation. "C'mon, you think I could bring myself to beat a pretty lady like yourself?" he responded casually, a playful smile on his face. "Unless you really, really, reallywant me to," he added with a chuckle. 

His sweet talk caught you off guard for a moment, but you couldn't help but laugh at his offer. "No thanks," you replied playfully, shaking your head, knowing that you might end up weeks in recovery if he actually did.

Wriothesley grinned at your response. “But, seriously, you’re strong. And clever. With some training I bet you would match the strongest fighter in Fontaine.”

You honestly felt a bit flattered by his words, knowing he was regarding you too highly, but a small mischievous smile appeared on your lips.

"You... or Clorinde?" you teasingly asked him, knowing full well the rivalry between the Duke and the Captain of the Guard. 

Wriothesley chuckled, a hint of mock offense in his tone. "Hey now, I'd like to think I could give Clorinde a run for her money," he replied with a smirk. "But who knows? Maybe we'll have to settle this in a friendly match someday."

You laughed at the idea, genuinely intrigued with the prospect.

Wriothesley smiled contently at your laughter, his eyes warm as he asked after a while, "Feeling better?"

For a second, you forgot that you were here to take out your anger as he asked that. The spar had indeed shifted your mind and mood away from your thoughts. It was a fun experience indeed.

"Yeah, surprisingly, I am," you admitted with a smile, feeling a sense of lightness after the intense spar. "Thanks for the spar, Wriothesley. It was unexpected, but I needed that."

"Of course, anytime," Wriothesley replied, his tone light. "Let's go to the infirmary for a second to make sure everything's good, okay?"

You nodded in agreement as you followed by his side to head to the infirmary, reflecting on his actions towards you. After a moment of silence, you felt compelled to speak up.

"You're a great leader, Wriothesley, no wonder people chose you," you complimented him sincerely. How he had somehow sensed your troubles, and tended to it.

He looked at you for a moment, a bit caught off guard at the sudden serious comment. He thought for a second, before he said with a low tone, “…A lot of people had supported me along the way, I wouldn’t be at this place if not for them.”

You smiled at him, knowing full well that he was trying to be humble. It was true that he had the support of others to become the Duke of Meropide, but it was also true that his own actions had brought him to this position. His proactivity to help others, his ability to gather trust, and his innate instinct to protect those in need were all qualities that made him the natural and respected leader he was today. 

“To be honest, I did feel some disappointment towards myself… But luckily, I got you on my back.” he added, as he managed a smile at you. 

Right. The disappointment did not wear him down. Instead, Wriothesley maintained himself to be the pillar of strength, like any leader would. You truly admired him for this. And how he had tended to you, setting aside his own thoughts… you felt like you were drawn to him. Wanting to support him fully. 

You were about to respond to Wriothesley when you two arrived at the infirmary, greeted by Sigewinne. She seemed to know what you two had been up to, and proceeded to check on you first, then Wriothesley.

"You're all fine! But you might experience some soreness tomorrow, y/n," Sigewinne exclaimed cheerfully.

"That's... for tomorrow's problem," you replied with a sheepish smile. "By the way, when are we going to visit the children?" you turned your head towards Wriothesley, who was casually leaning back against the metal wall.

"Anytime. Now, tomorrow…. There's no urgent task for today, so, I can accompany you if you want to go after this," Wriothesley said, his tone warm and reassuring.

"Oh, the children! They would love a visit from you, y/n. They have been asking a lot about that yesterday," Sigewinne added, giggling softly.

You smiled warmly at the thought of visiting the children. Despite what had happened two days prior, knowing that they were safe and on the path to recovery now brought a sense of relief to your heart. “Then… can we go now?” you said, turning your head towards Wriothesley as you felt a renewed sense of energy filling in. Wriothesley couldn’t help but smile fondly at you. 

•~•~•~•

Wriothesley and you arrived at a place near the Quarter Lyonnais, where the children had been attended to. He observed you closely, walking a bit behind since he knew he wouldn't be recognized by the children, and he knew his appearance could be rather… intimidating. A gentle smile played on his lips as some of the children caught sight of you and ran over, their faces lighting up with joy.

You knelt down to their level, your heart swelling with warmth as you greeted each child with a smile and a gentle pat on the head. One of the older kids, a shy girl, timidly approached and handed you a piece of paper. "Um... this is for you, lady. Thank you… for saving us," her words stumbled as she offered you a drawing. You thanked her warmly, receiving the unexpected present when another boy, whom you had cradled in your arms during the rescue, approached you from the side. He stared at you innocently with his big eyes and asked, his voice soft, "Lady, who is that scary-looking man over there?"

You followed the boy's gaze and looked up to where Wriothesley stood, his imposing figure softened by the warm smile on his face as he noticed your gaze. You couldn't help but chuckle at the boy's innocent question.

“Oh, this man… despite his looks,” you smiled at the boy as you held him gently, pausing for a second, “is one of the kindest and most admirable people I’ve ever met.” You explained as you turned to face Wriothesley, a tender smile on your lips. “Try talking to him, and you’ll see what I mean.”

Wriothesley felt a flutter in his chest as you referred to him, witnessing your interactions with the children. It was as if a delicate bud within him had suddenly bloomed into a flower, its petals unfurling to reveal feelings he had kept carefully tucked away. How long had he been keeping these sentiments? He didn’t know. But in that moment, none of it mattered to him anymore.

As warmth spread through him, he quickly composed himself, maintaining his cool exterior, and hiding any signs of his sudden flush as the boy approached him cautiously. Kneeling down to the boy’s level, Wriothesley smiled warmly.

“Hello there,” he greeted the boy with genuine kindness in his voice. “I’m Wriothesley. I’m glad to see you and your friends are doing well.”

“Mister… Rye-uhh…sslee…?” the boy tried to repeat his name. 

Wriothesley chuckled at the boy's attempt to pronounce his name correctly, patting his head gently. "That's right, you got it!" 

As Wriothesley engaged with the first child, another female child who had been nearby suddenly ran up to him, asking rather loudly, "Mister, is this lady your girlfriend?"

Wriothesley's eyes widened slightly in surprise at the unexpected question, and he glanced over at you with a faint blush coloring his cheeks, though he didn’t shy away from your gaze. You couldn't help but laugh at the innocence of the child's question, but you also found yourself curious about Wriothesley's reaction.

“Hmm, good question. Do you think I make a good couple with her?” Wriothesley asked playfully, turning the question back to the curious young girl.

“Umm, I don’t know! But she is very nice! And pretty!” the girl answered honestly and innocently, just like any children would. 

“Mhm, indeed. She is lovely, I’d rather say,” Wriothesley replied, still facing the girl, his voice low and tender. The young girl giggled in response and ran off to join the other children, just like that. He let a small laugh at the girl’s reaction before turning his head back to face you, smiling.

The unexpected compliment – and his sheer confidence – sent a blush creeping up your cheeks, catching you off guard. Around you, the children giggled and continued playing, unaware of the subtle shift in the air between you and Wriothesley. You managed to give Wriothesley a warm smile in reply, attempting to mask your own shyness. 

You finally spent the evening together with the children playing, also with Wriothesley, who they had instantly warmed up to. As you made your way to the aquabus station to head back with Wriothesley by your side, the atmosphere was filled with a comfortable silence, the echoes of children's laughter still lingering in your ears.

You both traveled casually, the gentle hum of the aquabus filling the air as it glided through the water. The evening sun cast a warm glow over the scenery passing by, creating a serene atmosphere around you.

“I haven’t had the chance to see this side of you until recently,” Wriothesley spoke softly, his gaze warm as he looked at you. “You truly have a way with the children, and it's really heartwarming to see how fond they are of you.”

A soft blush tinted your cheeks at his words, and you met his gaze with a shy smile. “Well,” you replied, “I suppose our duties have kept us occupied, so it's understandable if you hadn’t noticed this side of me before.”

Wriothesley nodded, a gentle smile playing on his lips. “True,” he agreed, “but it’s a pleasant surprise. It's clear that you genuinely care for their well-being, and it's truly admirable.”

“I guess – that makes the two of us,” you replied with a warm smile, feeling a flutter in your chest at his sincerity. You had also witnessed Wriothesley interacting with the children, and it was evident that he was a complete natural, despite his intimidating appearance at first look.

Wriothesley pondered for a moment, his expression thoughtful. Finally, after a moment, he asked you, his body a bit tense, “Say, are you interested in working a bit longer at the fortress?”

You paused, considering the offer. You knew your position at handling the cases in Fortress of Meropide was not going to last forever. But, your time at the Fortress of Meropide had been rewarding, and the thought of working alongside Wriothesley a bit longer was rather appealing. Perhaps… something was also blossoming within your heart.

 “Hmm... I can't see why not,” you replied with a warm smile.

A sense of relief washed over Wriothesley's features at your answer. He let out a sigh as he stretched his back. “Great. Then please remind me to send the letter of request to Neuvillette,” he said, grinning as his voice tinged with anticipation.

Curious, you asked, “And why would you go that far?”

“Because,” he began, his voice low but sure, “I would like to spend more time with you.”

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Miraculous vs The Power of Love

I've written several posts where I talked about Miraculous' poor use of the power of love trope and how that massively turned me off to canon. Three strikes and you're out! When this topic comes up I usually bring up Adrien and only Adrien. This has led to some anger at the fact that I didn't mention love failing anyone else as it absolutely has. I've also seen some anger over my desire for Adrien to defeat Gabriel's control and win the day since Adrien is a victim and that means that it's perfectly fine if he fails to beat his father's control no matter what the consequences of that failure are. After all, the failure isn't really on Adrien. It's on Gabriel. A sentiment I understand, but don't agree with since this is a writing blog. I'm discussing the message the writing is sending not which character gets the in-universe blame.

I'm not going to change how I discuss this topic since it is my honest opinion, but I can explain that opinion in depth to hopefully save us all from miscommunication! That's why I'm making this post! It addresses all of the above. I'll be linking to this whenever the topic comes up so that I can include some nuance without having to go into all of the detail I'm about to go into because - as you'll see - this is a long one which is why I don't go into this depth in other posts. It would just totally derail them. I'm also not going to go into the deconstruction aspect of things here because this is already really long, but I do have a post on that for even more nuance!

If you disagree with any of this, that's totally fine! I just ask that you keep the your counter arguments civil. Remember, we're talking about a badly written kids show that none of us have the power to change and the magical power of love isn't real so it doesn't actually matter if I'm right about this. Nor is Adrien going to thank you for coming to his aid. He doesn't exist and, as always, my issue is not him as a person. My issue is the way the narrative uses him as a storytelling tool.

What Is the Power of Love?

The power of love is a trope where either platonic or romantic love saves the hero from some type of conflict or upsetting situation. It's a rather broad trope that can be used in conflicts of any size, but even TV tropes acknowledges that it's primarily "applied in dire situations to make things better. In fact, in many Disney movies it's the solution to everything." That definition is how I approach the power of love.

To put it more bluntly, unless we're talking about a specific example, when I say "the power of love" I am thinking of a story's climax or, in the case of something like a multi-season show, one of the climaxes. More specifically, I'm thinking of the lyrics to one of my favorite cheesy pop songs:

There comes a time When you face the toughest of fights Searching for a sign Lost in the darkest of nights The wind blows so cold Standing alone Before the battle's begun But deep in your soul The future unfolds As bright as the rays of the sun You've got to believe In the power of love

If it's not the toughest of fights or the darkest of nights, then the power of love failing may disappoint me, but I don't consider it an unforgivable sin. In some cases, I'd even be disappointed if the power of love was brought in before the climax! The power of love is the ultimate cheesy move so it makes sense to save it for the last minute if using it earlier would lessen or even ruin that last minute epic save.

To show what I mean, let's talk about another trope that Miraculous has failed to use well, but that doesn't ruin the show for me. A trope that has led the show to do the exact thing we just discussed: ignore a small moment when love should have won to allow for a bigger win when all hope seems lost.

The Evil Clone Thing

[Image description: the Buzz and Woody meme with the words "Evil Clones. Evil Clones Everywhere"]

There have been an absurd number of episodes where the evil clone/evil twin trope came into play, but the three big ones are Ladybug, Optigami, and the season four final. In each of these episodes, we see a good character replaced by an identical evil version. We also see the good character's love interest fail to recognize that their crush/romantic partner has been replaced. That means that all three of these episodes see the power of romantic love failing. We also don't see a more platonic version of love show up to save the day.

The worst of these episode is the season four final where Marinette doesn't recognize that Felix has taken Adrien's place. That deception is how Gabriel steals the miraculous so it's obviously a pretty big deal and can be argued as a major fail for the power of love. I don't disagree. I think that Marinette's love should have let her see through the lies and dislike that the writers took this route to make her lose. However, I don't have this on my list of moments when the power of love needed to win for the story to work.

While Marinette failing to recognize Felix leads to her darkest hour, it does not happen in her darkest hour. Her darkest hour comes when she actually loses the miraculous which happens in a completely different scene from the one where she's deceived. It's also worth noting that Felix is not present in this moment of loss so there was no opportunity for the power of love to pull off a last minute win.

The loss of the miraculous leads to a scene where Ladybug is sitting alone in the rain, ready to give up all hope. And what happens next?

[Image description: Chat Noir standing in the rain, smiling, holding out his hand to Ladybug]

Chat Noir shows up to reignite Ladybug's will to fight via his love and support. She takes his hand, he draws her into a hug, and they stand together as one, ready to once again face their enemy:

Cat Noir: We're gonna get them back one by one…until the very last. And we'll make sure this never happens again. Ladybug: You...and me? Cat Noir: You, the best superhero there ever was... and me, your loyal partner.

A lot of people love this scene and it led to some major hype for season five which means that it's time to quote some more of that cheesy song that I brought up at the start:

Stand by my side There's nothing to hide Together we'll fight to the end Take hold of my hand And you'll understand What it truly means to be friends You've got to believe (you've got to believe) In the power of love

While I don't love the season four final, it is a B-tier execution of the thing I was talking about earlier. Canon let love fail in a small moment to increase tension and give Ladybug a "darkest night" moment. That darkest night moment then led to a semi-epic power-of-love comeback that understandably got a lot of fans super excited for season five because they assumed that it was going to be the season of Ladynoir. In other words, for a lot of fans, the power of love did its job in the season four final!

All of this is why I don't bring up Marinette when I talk about the power of love failing. It does fail her, but not in her darkest nights and toughest fights. Any time she's overwhelmed and ready to give up all hope, someone comes along to give her the will to fight on. That person is usually Chat Noir because he's her end game love interest so of course the writers use him! His "you and me against the world" moments may not be the most epic example of the power of love winning, but they are the power of love winning, so saying that the power of love fails Marinette feels like an overstatement of harm. She's never had a total loss.

The closest we get to Marinette truly losing is the season five final. That episode feels like an ultimate-level failure to many of us, on par with Ephemeral, but the writers clearly don't agree. For them, season five had a happy ending which makes critiquing that final fight tricky. I'll be arguing that Adrien lost hard in the next section, but I can't say the same for Marinette and this section is about her so let's focus on that for now.

No matter how much I hate the final, I can't look at the picture below this paragraph and argue that love failed Marinette because what did losing cost her? This isn't the season four final where she genuinely suffered. This is her getting everything she's ever wanted! The miraculous are back in her hands, she won the heart of the boy she loves, and no one is actively messing with her love life anymore. That's a pretty solid win even if she didn't win the actual fight.

[Image description: Adrien and Marinette at the end of the season five final, kissing in the spot that used to house Emilie's statue.]

This is further complicated by the fact that - as written - the season five final doesn't put Marinette in a position to use the power of love. She's never given a chance to save Adrien or even just talk to him. She doesn't know that's he's in trouble, locked up in a padded cell, suffering all alone! And Adrien's love can't rally her in her darkest moment when all hope seems lost because - for the first time ever in a season final - she never got one of those! She was a badass in the final fight! No pep talk or supportive teammates necessary! She would have had a total victory if the writers hasn't made her try to talk sense to the villain or sent her Adrien's ring just so Gabriel could make the wish, further adding to the problem of this show's absolutely vile messaging around love.

In other words, lack of love isn't why Marinette loses the final fight. She loses because the writers wanted love to empower Gabriel in his darkest moment, a move the writers have the audacity to call a mutual victory. (Gross. Abusive terrorist should not get power of love moments without a massive redemption arc first. It's yet another insult to the trope. Gabriel did not deserve peace while his son goes on to suffer.)

If you think about the episodes Ladybug and Optigami you'll notice a similar problem. The power of love failed to let Chat Noir and Alya recognize that their romantic interests had been replaced, but that failure didn't lead to their ultimate defeat. It didn't even lead the villains to a minor victory! Both episodes maintain the status quo.

This doesn't mean that I like those episodes. I would rewrite both of them to let love win because they're good examples of small moments where love can win without cheapening or ruining the season's big climax. I just don't view these episodes as times when the show needed to use the power of love if it wanted to honor its chosen genre. That requirement only applies when it's a darkest night or toughest fight.

Before we move on, please note that Ladybug was the power of Adrien's love failing, yet I never mention it when I'm complaining about the power of love failing. That's because I'm never purposefully listing every time Adrien's love failed and ignoring everyone else. I'm simply listing the moments when love needed to let the heroes win because we were in one of the show's darkest hours and that is the only time when I consider the power of love a true requirement. Love can fail in small moments to increase the tension, but if love fails at the moment when all hope seems lost, then why are we even here?

There are only three episodes that get that level of criticism from me and each one had a single character whose writing infuriated me: Adrien.

Adrien vs The Power of Love

There are three episodes where Gabriel's identity is revealed and the final fight goes down. Those episodes are Chat Blanc, Ephemeral, and the season five final. In each of these episodes, Adrien suffers on a scale that no other character has had to suffer:

In Chat Blanc he is akumatized and forced to use his cataclysm to kill both his father and the love of his life, dooming him to spend eternity alone in a dead word.

In Ephemeral he is akumatized and forced to use his powers to hand the love of his life over to his father, thereby allowing Gabriel to win and rewrite reality.

In the season five final, Adrien is left alone in a jail cell, tormented by nightmares while his father dies leaving Adrien an orphan. Adrien is then told some truly colossal lies about what actually happened, leading him to believe that Gabriel scarified himself to save Ladybug's life. Since Chat Noir's usual role in fights is protecting Ladybug, this is arguably the equivalent of Adrien being told that his failure to show up killed his father. I'm not even sure if that's the wrong message because Gabriel did die from a cataclysm and Adrien would understandably blame himself for that, too, so maybe this was a way to address that without going too dark for kids and why does that argument hold water? Wtf was this trash fire of a story line???

When you compare Adrien's treatment in these episodes to something like Marinette's treatment in season four final you can hopefully see why it feels like comparing a broken arm to a mortal blow. It's not that Marinette doesn't suffer. In terms of individual moments of suffering, Marinette beats out every other character! But while she may beat Adrien in breadth, he is the clear winner in terms of depth and the only one who never gets a true power of love moment.

Marinette's darkest nights and toughest fights ultimately work out so that she can go on to some new type of suffering, the old suffering fading away to nothing more than memory. Adrien's darkest nights and toughest fights lead to loss and suffering for which there is no cure other than rewinding time or rewriting reality. The season five final even has Adrien directly state that he's not worthy of Marinette's love:

Adrien: I'm not in my right mind. I'm too angry — at myself for falling short of Marinette's love, at my father for sending me here in London, at this stupid app and these rings that use my image... it makes me sick! This nightmare is giving me the horrible feeling that, if I transform, I'll get akumatized and destroy everything with my Cataclysm — Marinette, Ladybug... (Takes off the ring and hands it to Plagg.) Plagg: Surely Ladybug can help you. Adrien: If I ask her for help, I'd have to give her information that would jeopardize my secret identity... and I can't.

This is literally Adrien's last scene in the main story line. He doesn't show up again until the happily ever after epilogue where he and Marinette kiss. In other words, the show had Adrien directly state that he's unworthy of Marinette's love and then did nothing to counter that statement. I guess this poor unfortunate soul is just lucky that Marinette likes him enough to keep him around in spite of his many failings...

Writers, seriously, what the hell are you doing? This is the kind of dialogue that should lead into a power of love moment! How is thinking about Marinette leading Adrien to despair instead of strength? Why is Plagg just accepting this? Plagg is a magical being who was assigned to watch over Adrien. Shouldn't a character like that help Adrien rally in his darkest night? Where's Adrien's you and me against the world pep talk? That should go both ways!!! Have him break out, call Ladybug to tell her that he's not coming, only for her to rally him so he comes and at least fights outside in the city while she does her solo fight! Don't leave him alone to rot while almost every other character in the freaking show gets to fight!

It would be one thing if Adrien gave up because he was alone and scared, but Plagg is there and the writers directly bring up Marinette and love only to do nothing to show those as positive forces in Adrien's life!!! Instead, Marinette is the thing that keeps him from the fight because Adrien's nightmare is him getting akumatized and killing Marinette even though Adrien knows nothing about Chat Blanc.

[Image description: Adrien's nightmare where he's a blue haired version of Chat Blanc, holding Marinette's body in his arms having killed her with a cataclysm]

To be clear, in each of the three episodes I listed above, Adrien is undeniably a victim suffering at the hands of his main abuser. They're also some of the worst moments of abuse in the entire show. It would be perfectly reasonable for a real life person to give into despair if they were put into this situation, but real life people don't transform into magical cat boys who wield the raw power of Destruction. I was not looking for realism here. I was looking for hope and inspiration!

I wanted to see Adrien win! I wanted his love for Marinette and/or his friends to give him the strength to overpower his father's control because that's what the power of love is all about! When all hope seems lost, it's there to let the hero win because love is stronger than despair, hatred, fear, and magical remote controls! It is the bright light that blasts away the darkness in your darkest night! Unless your name is Adrien Agreste, then no love for you! Suffer, feather boy, suffer!

Example of what I wanted from canon

There are many ways to fix these three episodes so love wins, but to keep this simple let's focus on Chat Blanc and what the power of love winning might look like if we let canon play unchanged up until the moment where Adrien loses control of his powers:

Hawk Moth: Cat Blanc, I'm giving you the infinite power of destruction!! Together, you and I will seize Ladybug's Miraculous and awaken your mother!!! Obey!!! Cat Noir: (tries to fight back but fails) I'm sorry, Ladybug! (He succumbs his akumatization and transforms into Cat Blanc. Ladybug watches in horror at his transformation.) Hawk Moth: Seize her Miraculous, My Son!!! (Cat Blanc lifts his right arm to Ladybug, activating Mega Cataclysm.) Ladybug: No, Adrien! You have to resist!! (Cat Blanc whimpers as he changes his mind and points his arm to Hawk Moth.) Hawk Moth: How dare you!? Not me, Adrien!! Cat Blanc: (whimpering while looking to both of them) I... I don't know what to do!!!!!!

Instead of having the mega cataclysm go off here, we instead see this: Ladybug and Hawk Moth both realize that Chat Blanc is incapable of listening to either of them. Hawk Moth's reaction is to turn and run away, desperate to save himself. Ladybug's reaction is to run to her boyfriend's side, not caring about the danger. She wraps her arms around him, closes her eyes, and tells him that it's okay. That she's here and she loves him and she'll stay here and love him no matter what. It doesn't matter who his father is, it's still him and her against the world now and forever.

The more she talks, the weaker the mega cataclysm grows. By the time she makes her final vow, the mega cataclysm is little more than a flickering glow. A black clad hand touches both of her hair ties, disintegrating them, leaving her hair to fall free around her face since that was a thing in this episode. The minor wardrobe change makes her pull back and look at her boyfriend to see that he's back to Chat Noir, a purified akumas fluttering off in the distance. Chat Noir is crying, clearly distraught, but he's himself again because Marinette's presence allowed him to focus on her love over his father's poison. They won. Love won. Fear and abuse lost.

The couple embraces. Hawk Moth's big gambit failed and they now know his identity so the fight is almost over. Paris will soon be free.

From there you can have an epic battle with the temp holders where the butterfly and the peacock are recovered. Nino gets to punch Gabriel in the face a dozen times or so as a treat and Adrien gets to cuddle up with some treats, sitting the fight out since he's already done his part by surviving the reveal of his father's identity.

You could also have Gabriel just give up because he doesn't have any moves left and the full implications of what he did are smacking him in the face, sapping him of the will to fight. Anything that lets this asshole suffer is fine by me! Emilie's fate is up to you. I like to make her at least semi-decent and revive her to give Adrien a happier ending and Gabriel the horror of divorce papers, but that's just me.

Final Thoughts

As I said at the top, I'm going to continue to complain about the way that Adrien was written in these episodes. I don't consider his victim status a reasonable excuse for the way these episodes played out. If anything, his victim status is an even bigger black mark against the writing!

I come to family-oriented media for hope and happy endings! I want stories about victims being empowered! I want Gabriel's controlling nature to totally backfire on him and not in a mutually-assured-destruction way like we saw in Chat Blanc. I want Gabriel's choice to cost him everything and for him to suffer that loss for the rest of his life while Adrien gets endless love and support, allowing him to survive the reveal and go on to live a happy life. If that's not what you're selling, then I'm not buying thus me giving up on canon after the season five final. There's just no coming back from that kind of colossal writing failure.

I will try to remember to use the word "forced" when describing the problems (as in "forced to kill"), but that's the only thing I can change while still sharing my honest opinion since my main problem with these episodes isn't Gabriel's treatment of Adrien. While I don't like how far these episodes took Gabriel, you don't need to rewrite him to make the episodes work. It doesn't matter how far the writing takes Gabriel, he should never be able to successfully manipulate Adrien while threatening Adrien's supposed True Love.

As soon as Adrien knows that Marinette/Ladybug is in danger, it should be game over for Gabriel because love is supposed to be stronger than all of the awful things that Gabriel has done up to and including the sentimonster crap. In fact, the sentimonster crap just makes it even more important for Adrien to win! Gabriel should think he has victory in the bag because he views Adrien as a perfect doll, but love proves Gabriel wrong letting Adrien overpower his amok and win. The trope is called "love conquers all" not "love conquers the mildly inconvenient." The more dire the straits, the more important the win!

Unfortunately, that's not the message Miraculous is sending. By letting Adrien give into his father's control in the show's darkest hours, the message is that Gabriel's control is stronger than love. That Adrien will never be free. That he was Gabriel's perfect doll and you were silly if you ever expected him to be more than that. That's not a message that I'm that ever going to agree with and is yet another reason why I only bring up Adrien + these three episodes when I talk about the power of love failing.

You are never going to convince me that Adrien being allowed to give into despair was a good thing unless you pair that argument with some major changes to canon like love square not being together and/or Adrien not knowing that his actions would endanger Marinette. Even then you need to design that fix in a way that ultimately allows Adrien to win otherwise you are sending a terrible message to the audience. There should never be a scenario where the final battle ends the way canon had it end.

Gabriel is the show's big bad, Adrien is his main victim, and the theme of their relationship has been control. That means that, when it comes to the final fight with Gabriel, Adrien needs to be involved in a way that gives him agency. I'm not saying he needs to fight his father on his own or even at all! I'm okay with him sitting out the fight so long as you pair it with something big like Adrien being the one to learn Gabriel's identity or something more dramatic like my simple Chat Blanc fix.

However, Adrien sitting out only works if it's his own, freely-made choice. As soon as you pair it with something like magic nightmare dust you are once again sending the message that Gabriel's control is the strongest force in Adrien's life. I truly don't understand how anyone can embrace that message and call it good, especially when canon didn't ultimately do something positive with it like letting Adrien become stronger as time went on. He actually got weaker as the show went on!

Chat Blanc saw everyone lose because Adrien was able to at least try to fight back, denying his father total victory. Ephemeral saw none of that fighting spirit and Gabriel just outright won. Season five once again saw Gabriel win only, this time, the show didn't even let Adrien be part of the fight. What an uplifting character arc for Adrien! (That was sarcasm.) Play the episodes in reverse order and you might actually have something if you add a fourth one where he finally wins!

If you want to talk about more minor conflicts where the power of love should have won then I'm happy to do that! Canon has lots of options to pick from! But unless you specify that you want to talk about something minor, these three episodes are going to be my only examples of the power of love failing because they are the only times when love completely failed the character in question. Total loss, no silver lining, writers wtf are you doing?

Listing times when love failed Marinette or Alya in the same list as these three episodes just feels insulting to Adrien unless the context is something like a list ranking the failures from smallest to largest. I'll once again point out that I don't even list the other times when love failed Adrien because my issue isn't Adrien as a person. My issue is Adrien as a tool of the narrative and the asinine message that the Agreste arc sends to the young children this show is aimed at. I wouldn't even be okay with this in a show aimed at adults unless it was clearly marketed as a grimdark take on superheroes. Miraculous should not feel like a kiddiefied version of The Boys and yet here we are.

Why was Adrien granted magical powers and allowed to fight his controlling father for five seasons if Gabriel was just going to die without Adrien getting a decisive victory? Why focus season five on Gabriel controlling Adrien to such an extreme if Adrien was never going to be allowed to break free? Why make Adrien the main love interest and focus the entire show on romantic love if you don't have anything positive to say about romantic love? Why bother getting the love square together before every single final showdown in the freaking show if their relationship status was going to mean nothing? Where is my power of love always so strong?

(Btw, that song I kept quoting is from the original English dub soundtrack to Sailor Moon R - The Promise of the Rose. It plays as love and friendship save the planet Earth from an asteroid. The updated dub replaced the song with the original Japanese soundtrack and the comments are full of people complaining about the change because the song just takes this scene to the next level! I bring this up because Sailor Moon set many people's standards for the magical girl team show genre that Miraculous is clearly taking inspiration from, but failing to fully embrace. If you don't want love and friendship to be on par with nuclear weapons and asteroid attacks, then don't write a show about love and magic aimed at kids.)

[aeithalian]

Apollo and the demonization of power

I graduated and I'm back on my shit, y'all.

I saw this post by @apollosgiftofprophecy (hi Alder) about whether or not Apollo should have stayed mortal instead of regaining his godhood, and may I just say I 1000000% agree.

To summarize the post: if Apollo had chosen to stay mortal, his promise to Jason (to remember what it means to be mortal/human) wouldn't have meant nearly the same as if he'd gone back to Olympus. Regaining his godhood allowed him to chose to help people with his full ability and remember his humanity for however long it takes for him to fade.

And if I may add on: Apollo even talks about maybe choosing to stay mortal at some point in the latter half of the series, but eventually comes to the conclusion that to chose to stay mortal would be akin to running away from his problems. And he's right: if he chose to stay mortal, he wouldn't have to face Zeus again and he could shirk his responsibilities as an Olympian. So he decides against it (not that he really ever has the chance to chose). And I just love to take this as a great moment of character development and an insane amount of self-awareness for somebody who started their arc where he did.

But it also got me thinking. And, in short, I came to the conclusion that Apollo must be an idealist simply by the way he views power.

In this case, fiction reflects reality: villains want power. They want control. They want to squash rebellion. And that, typically, is an occurrence we typically only see with villains. Never with the heroes, who rarely want power outside of defeating their enemy. But here we have Apollo, who spends the entire series literally seeking power in his attempt to regain his godhood.

And that has morphed into something really interesting when it comes to representation of power in classical media. More often than not, power is demonized. It's seen as something inherently evil. If a character wants power for themselves, they're likewise seen as evil. Any one of your classical antagonists are going to, at some point in their stories, want power in any which way it presents itself. Voldemort of Harry Potter wanted to live forever. Sauron of Lord of the Rings wanted the Ring of Power. Palpatine of Star Wars wanted control of the galaxy. Zeus wants to rule the Olympians. The list goes on.

On the other hand, in stories where a protagonist seeks power to destroy their opponent, they eventually end up discarding their items of power because they don't want to be 'corrupted'. Harry Potter refused to use the Elder Wand. Frodo destroyed the Ring of Power. Luke Skywalker turned down the Dark Side. Even Percy Jackson declined godhood.

But Rick, in writing Apollo's character, takes an interesting approach and a fun subversion of this trope that I, for one, absolutely love. Previously, he'd written Percy to turn down godhood because he primarily wanted to maintain his humanity. To Percy, being a god and being human are two mutually exclusive concepts. They don't coexist. For Apollo, on the other hand, he accepts power out of a sense of duty, and vows to use it well in the spirit of his promise to Jason. There is no demonization of power. And to Apollo, humanity and godhood are not exclusive concepts. So what does that mean post-trials?

There are two perspectives at battle here. First is demonization: 'power is inherently evil'. But the idea that power corrupts is not necessarily a fact: in my opinion, power in and of itself isn't evil. Yes, it's dangerous, but it's more or less a blank slate. What you do with power, who you are when you have it, is what defines it. And that's a pretty nuanced take, and it comes with its ups and downs, requiring those powerful protagonists to be your most responsible, most dutiful, most kind characters who take up the mantle of power with the full understanding of what it means. Who's to say that you can't achieve power and use it well? So there's the other perspective: 'power is a blank slate'.

Let's look at power from a Zeus vs. Apollo perspective:

Zeus wants power (or at the very least, to maintain his power) as a way of controlling people, squashing rebellion, and maintaining order in the way he sees fit, without any sense of legitimate justice or care for others. It is Zeus' actions that make him evil, not his power.

Apollo, on the other hand, seeks power as a way of solving problems, creating solutions that benefit the greatest amount of people possible, and creating a lasting difference on others to change for the better, just as he did. More often than not, when he reminisces about having power in the series, it's more out of a place of 'this terrible thing wouldn't have happened if I were a god', or 'I could help better if I were a god'. Never once does he view power as a way of controlling or manipulating others. Power, to Apollo, is just the ability to love to the greatest extent possible (re: my meta on Apollo's fatal flaw).

But the interesting thing here is how Apollo views power in general, outside of his own. The idea of demonizing power doesn't even occur to him, despite the fact that he's been the subject of abuse for millennia. What's fascinating to me is the fact that Apollo, having been hurt so often by Zeus' power, doesn't ascribe that same generalization to his own person.

I find that very interesting: abuse does wacky shit to people's brains. By all means, that should have irrevocably changed Apollo's perspective on power as a whole, right? Not if you've learned to view power as something that is part of you, no.

I don't know how other gods besides Apollo view their own power, I actually think it's accurate to say that gods view power as something inherent to their nature. And, honestly, maybe it is. But that's besides the point.

Regardless of whether or not power is inherent to gods, Apollo, throughout his journey, realizes that it must go hand in hand with responsibility and humanity. Power is a privilege. That 'blank slate' perspective is one he learned in his trials, the knowledge that the power he has is something he shapes, and something he has no excuse for. If power is inherent, all of Apollo's wrongdoings are his own failings.

And that's even more interesting when you relate it to his relationship with Zeus. Apollo must likewise know that Zeus' wrongdoings are solely his fault, not a result of his power. It's a fascinating perspective of power coming from somebody who has none, who's been hurt by somebody who has so much. To maintain that optimistic view of power as non-corrosive when faced with your abuser is, I think, the glaring mark of an idealist.

So, what does this mean post-trials?

I think, along the same vein, there is a point where the idealist breaks. They have a glimpse of reality: all is not well. For Apollo, that's at the end of the series where he decides that Zeus is beyond all hope. Take this quote from the Tower of Nero:

Some fathers don't deserve [reconciliation]. Some aren't capable of it. I suppose I could have raged at him and called him bad names. We were alone. He probably expected it. Given his awkward self-consciousness at the moment, he might have even let me get away with it unpunished. But it would not have changed him. It would not have made anything different between us. You cannot change a tyrant by trying to out-ugly him.

More often than not, my favorite stories are the ones where the main character gains power, keeps it, and uses it for good. Aragorn accepted the crown of Gondor. Luke Skywalker chose to train a new order of Jedi. Apollo regained his godhood. And readers of any of my multichap fics know that I love to write this trope as well.

But, much like my mutuals and I have been yelling from the rooftops for LITERAL YEARS, Apollo's story is not over. And once the idealist has 'broken', like we see in the scene above, there's only one way it could go.

To see somebody mishandling their power in a way an idealist knows is corrupt is quite literally a recipe for revolution. Look me in the eye and tell me that the way ToA finished wasn't setting up a revolution. Do it, I dare you.

Regardless, it's safe to say that, at some point, somebody's going to take a look at Zeus and say "you know what? Anybody could do better." Just saying.

Anyways, vive la révolution.

[a masterlist of my other metas]

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Okay, here’s a thought. If the next Fantastic Four movie attempts to do the Namor-Sue-Reed love triangle, how would that even work? For convenience sake, let’s say the F4 ended up in the MCU after discovering multiversal travel. And when they land on MCU Earth, they encounter Namor.

It’s weird to imagine since Namor is very different from his comic counterpart. His focus is primarily on fighting the surface world/colonizers since he’s still scarred from how the Spanish treated his people. And the MCU’s version of his name is now supposed to be “El Niño sin Amor”, the boy without love. See the dilemma? You’re taking someone who’s supposed to be without love and putting him in a love triangle lol.

(Before I get any comments, I know they didn’t mean romantic love. I’m just saying, it’s kinda funny that the character without love is now in a storyline all about love)

So how would this work? Because right now, I’m just imagining Namor saying, “I hate all colonizers!” before he sees Susan Storm. He then says, “I hate all colonizers…but she’s alright with me!”

On a more serious note, if the writers are willing to dig deep and make this work, I can picture a storyline in which Namor and Sue are forced to spend time together. Maybe Sue is taken to Talokan because Johnny got captured by Namor’s people, so she’s there to negotiate his release. Namor then starts talking about how much he hates the surface world and so on and so forth. But through his interactions with Sue, he slowly starts to soften his perspective since he’s won over by Sue’s kindness and empathy. And, obviously, he thinks she’s gorgeous because she’s Vanessa Kirby. Basically…Beauty and the Beast (but Beast isn’t cursed).

And then, Namor being Namor, he demands that Sue leave Reed Richards and stay with him in Talokan. If not, something something I’ll defeat your husband in mortal combat for your hand in marriage blah blah blah. And then Reed’s gotta fight Namor, Sue makes it a point that she chose Reed, Namor is too stubborn to take the hint, and so on and so forth.

(Side note: I just realized that this would be a love triangle in which two Latino men are fighting over a white woman. Make of that what you will.)

[lacunammmm]

The Greatest Boy In The World: Izuku Midoirya

This was originally part of a discussion I was having with @mikeellee but it got huge so this became its own thing. When I call Izuku privileged, I meant from multiple levels.

We've got our viewpoint, where we see beyond what the narrative shows us: a bunch of fake friends, an abusive rival, shoddy mentors, a school that failed him constantly.

Then there's what the narrative tells us: 1-A as a family, Bakugo as his best friend, him liking Aizawa, Nighteye, All Might and so on, and apparently Izuku's issues being something he himself needed to work on and not something that an educational facility should have been able to help him fix.

But here's why I say it.

What does Izuku actually lose across the story? Every single situation meant to bring tension and danger turns out to not come to pass, or gets walked back right away.

His teacher is a hard ass who seems to have it out for him? Well, no, Aizawa cools off entirely and is just there to be a grumpy toothless dragon. His bark is far worse than his bite. He'll make constant threats but never act on any of them.

Izuku is fresh to using his quirk and his classmates are all ahead of him? No, Izuku actually does way better than the majority of these loser kids and only actually lost to Shoto because, 1, he decided to sacrifice his win to taunt Shoto into using fire, and 2, bad luck.

Izuku's arms are in serious danger and breaking them could ruin their use for good? Nothing ever becomes of this. He breaks both arms against Muscular, uses a primarily kick based fighting style, then goes ham against Shigaraki during the first war arc. They reveal that, no, actually, OFA adapted to his body and prevents him from getting hurt so badly anymore and it prevents permanent damage.

He then loses his arms in the most nonsensical way possible, via a dream sequence? Only to have Eri mutilate herself (how did she know she could do that, how did they know it would work, why was she allowed and helped by Ectoplasm to do this?) and walk it back right away. His arms are restored so he can punch Shigaraki apart with the embers of OFA.

Losing his arms was completely meaningless and was done entirely for shock value.

Izuku's habit of going plus ultra is dangerous and people warn him it'll end poorly? Actually, no. Every single time he's gone plus ultra, he's saved a life or it worked out for him in the end. He scarred up his arms fighting Shoto, just for this to lead to Shoto coming to his and Iida's rescue in Hosu. He fought Gentle and La Brava and got criticism for it, but that turned out to be one of the best decisions he ever made, because they came back to save EVERYONE in the final war arc. He risks his life to save Bakugo and gets yelled at by the pro heroes, and then All Might decides he's his new successor and tells him he's worthy. He kept poking at Kota who just wanted to be left alone? He's in a prime location to save this little boy's life.

The only negative outcome of his reckless habit of going plus ultra was him losing to Dictator, who is then near instantly defeated by his classmates who happened to show up just in time to save him.

When you compare this guy to other shonen mcs and just look at the end results, what did Izuku lose?

He lost his quirk, but according to Izuku, he never really was all that serious about being a hero and always wanted to be a teacher. Regardless of if he lost his quirk or not.

Oh, but then his friends gave him an ironman suit anyways so he can do hero work when he's not being a teacher.

He gets a pity shonen hetero relationship, as one does in this genre.

He's known as the greatest hero who inspired the entire world to be more kind.

He didn't lose a single friend. None of his mentors died, besides Nighteye who was killed in the same arc he was introduced in. And I guess Midnight?

He's also never lost a real fight. Besides school games and the fight with Bakugo, what Ls has this guy ever taken? He either beats his enemy, an ally comes to his rescue and wins, or the enemy flees.

Even the abysmal 8 year timeskip was another of the author's fakeouts. He makes you believe that Izuku gave up on his dream and is no longer a hero, that he's super sad he doesn't get to see them as often, then his friends arrive to give him a handout just as All Might did all those years ago. What was originally meant to be the final chapter ends with Midoriya leaping into action with all his friends.

The author uses negative events and dumps on this guy to make you feel sorry for him and to make him seem like an underdog. Even his backstory is just that: a Cinderella story to get you to like him.

The author just walked the ending back because of fan backlash.

So rather than being a guy who doesn't try and needed his friends to even be a hero again without a quirk, he's a guy who only wants to play hero on the weekends.

Compare this to other Shonen MCs. Naruto at least lost his mentor and had his friend Neji die. Luffy lost his brother and has also lost multiple people across his journey who helped him, Pedro being one of them. There's also Jujutsu Kaisen which is absolutely excessive with how much it torments Yuji, but boy does that guy suffer for his victories.

Does Izuku even actually have any personality flaws? His flaw is that he's too heroic and he's too self sacrificing. But that's like saying he's too awesome.

People just act like the muttering is creepy and he's a loser for being a hero nerd, but what actual impact does that have on anything in his life? He still gets the friends, the fame, and the girl.

At no point is he ever socially isolated once he gets to UA nor is he seen as one of the weird or lame kids or anything like that. He's the heart of the class. The only person who ever dislikes him are people the narrative specifically frames as antagonists or mentors whose respect he has to earn, and Bakugo.

Even his dark hero arc where he left his friends to go out and become a hero…completely fucks up the moral because many characters would be DEAD if he hadn't left school to go save people.

The giant lady? Dead via a hate crime. Yo Shindo, his girlfriend, and the civilians they were protecting? Dead at Muscular's hands. All of All For One's assassins he sent after Izuku? Would still be at large and in AFO's pocket for the final war arc.

The numerous villains Deku beat down in defense of citizens? Still rampaging. Still killing people.

His friends left the ivory tower of UA to bitch at Izuku for saving lives and isolating himself while the narrative ignores this very real fact.

Hell, Lady Nagant wouldn't have been redeemed if he didn't do that. A world where he stayed at UA is an objectively worse off universe.

You see what I mean? Even when he does wrong, it ends up right.

Has Izuku ever actually make a mistake or choice in this story that wasn't rewarded or shown later to be the right one?

No.

He's a paragon of morality and good who the narrative warps reality around to ensure his actions have no lasting consequences for anyone.

Think about it. Let's take a look at how he said he'd save Shigaraki and didn't. What consequences came of that? Nothing. Spinner got mad at him for a few seconds and then Izuku talks him down and the guy decides to write a book.

Did heroes take Izuku's example of killing being a way to save people and use that to justify killing villains who don't surrender? No.

Was Izuku's triumph used by bad actors who wanted to push an agenda that would oppress more people and eventually create more people like the League? No.

Is there some threat out there that could have been handled by the power of One For All but couldn't be because the quirk is gone? No.

The world is actually more peaceful than it's ever been! Meaning even if Izuku kept his power, he'd probably be out of a job soon. Allegedly.

Did the death of Shigaraki, leader of the PLF, trigger second and third waves of terrorism from his followers who escaped capture? Did society have to face the backlash of this and it complicated the efforts to rebuild? No, the MLA might as well not have even existed.

Nothing happens. Deku just sometimes thinks back to Shigaraki while he enjoys what he claims is his dream job.

So that's my reasoning. He's simultaneously privileged but also gets shit on. His life sucks, but it's also awesome. His actions are dangerous and reckless, but they save lives and always result in a positive outcome.

I'd actually argue that the author dumping on Izuku is meant to portray him as a false underdog so you don't notice his other qualities. And of course, because he doesn't like the guy, but we already know that.

[yanderes-galore]

Well, this is going to be my last request.

Fandom: Mortal Kombat

Character: Reptile/Syzoth (from MK 1)

Tupe of fic: Romantic concepts

So, for this one, darling is an ally to Liu Kang and joins the group, getting specially close to Reptile after they escape from Shang Tsung's lab and Syzoth discovers his family was killed.

I'd love to write Reptile! He was cool in MK1 :) I love him... and apparently the rest of the fandom does too 👀 He's just so sweet!

Let me know what you think! I need to do Shang Tsung soon :D

Yandere! Syzoth/Reptile Concept

(Mortal Kombat 1)

Pairing: Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Fear of loss, Clingy behavior, Stalking, Manipulation, Technically terato(?), Mentions of "mate", Biting, Violence, Possessive behavior, Delusional behavior, Brief mention of abduction, Dubious/Forced relationship.

You briefly met Syzoth when you and the rest of the group were captured.

To hear he was a slave to Shang Tsung saddened you, yet you currently could only focus on your own survival.

You don't get to properly meet Syzoth until after Baraka defeats him and you all flee.

You pitied him for being a slave... only to still lose his family in the end.

Syzoth just looked so... devastated afterwards.

While you were also aiding the group by watching over Kenshi until he could get a doctor, you wouldn't help but try to mend Syzoth's broken emotions.

This is what brings you two closer.

You find out that Syzoth isn't that bad of a man... or Zaterran.

His story is actually quite sad.

He left his race in order to find a better life... only to be sucked into something worse.

At first he's apologetic if he hurt you in the lab while also being distant.

Syzoth fears to be close with many due to all the shame he has faced and the fact he lost his family.

Despite this you appear to be... welcoming to him.

In fact... the group itself accepts him and finds him useful.

For that... he is happy.

Syzoth could be an intimidating yandere even if he is really kind with you.

His natural Zaterran form is strong, capable of crushing and jumping large distances.

He is also capable of invisibility, allowing him to spy and stalk.

Syzoth is much nicer than his other counterpart(s).

He genuinely wants to help his allies because he cares for them.

He sees them like they're new family.

Including you.

Syzoth most likely fell for you the moment you tried to help him.

Well, not entirely, but he certainly got attached.

You greeted him with open arms and accepted him into your band of warriors and for that... he feels he's loyal to you.

He understands he's free now, yet he feels like he must stick around you.

Syzoth would try to play bodyguard around you.

He primarily keeps his human form around you but also uses his Zaterran form to intimidate others.

This is a person HC but I feel Zaterrans are possessive towards those they see as a "mate".

Even when in human form he snarls and hisses at others.

He also appears to be way too clingy?

If Syzoth was close enough to you or managed to get you somewhere private... he'd probably bite and nip at you in an attempt to claim you as his.

He doesn't mean it to hurt you, he just wants to show you and others he takes a claim to you.

If you're comfortable with it Syzoth will appear in his natural form before you.

He's nervous at first because you're from Earthrealm, yet you reassure him it's fine.

Now picture this: Giant Zaterran cuddles.

When in private Syzoth shows his natural form more often, pushing his head into your lap and making guttural yet pleased noises.

Syzoth feels at peace with you.

You may not know his true feelings towards you until the clingy behavior, biting, and nuzzling manifest.

Perhaps you make the mistake of asking him... only for him to perk up and answer.

"Right... you're from Earthrealm. Do you not do "courting" in your realm?"

Syzoth is incredibly honest with you.

He thinks you feel the same for him so he has decided to show you he's capable.

Even when you try to tell him you may not be ready, that you just see him as a friend and ally, Syzoth ignores you.

"There's no need to worry, I promise I can be a good mate if you let me."

Even if you try to ignore Syzoth after that he simply follows loyally.

There's times you even feel like you're being watched due to Syzoth going invisible to follow.

Syzoth is incredibly overprotective, often swapping to his natural form to attack those he feels will take you away.

He's clingy as he's already lost his family.

With you... he has potential to have a new family.

Just a cute thought, Syzoth melts when you hold him or stroke under his chin.

He loves you so much.

Syzoth tries to show restraint but he may kidnap you to hide you from others.

He feels guilty but he just gets so... possessive at times.

Syzoth wants nothing more than to have you love him back.

He may even try to guilt you into it, mentioning his past to you and appearing upset.

Syzoth tries his best to care for you... bringing meat and showering you in affection.

His tail probably wags in his natural form if you praise him.

Once Shang Tsung is dealt with... Syzoth hopes to continue a future with you.

He apologizes if he seems so forceful...

He just feels he has to claim you as his before he loses you like he did his family.

"Oh, please don't ignore me, dear... am I going too fast? I'm sorry... I'll try to be patient. But... you must understand I've already claimed you as mine, yes?"

[kiwisandpearls]

the thing about the madoka magica wishes is that the girls did technically get exactly what they asked for, but it still led to their own tragedies.

Mami wished for another chance at life, and she got another chance at life. But for most of her second chance as life she was alone and died in part as a result of being so elated to know she wouldn’t be alone anymore.

kyoko wished for people to listen to her father. People did start to listen to her father, but when she told him that she was reason people were listening to him, he accused her of being a witch and killed himself and the rest of her family, leaving her alone and coping by convincing herself to only live selfishly.

sayaka wished for kyosuke’s arm to be healed, and his arm was healed. But she was never able to muster up the courage to confess to him, and ends up spiraling (not solely because of that) and realizing that in end she was a fool tricked by kyubey who couldn’t be the hero of justice that mami seemed to be.

homura wished to go back in time to be able to protect madoka, and she’s able to go back in time to protect her. But she’s never able to succeed in that. Due to the nature of her own wish madoka will always be more powerful and stronger than her, leading to homura inevitably needing to be saved and protected by madoka.

madoka, regardless of the timeline, seems to wish primarily to help someone else, whether it being helping amy the cat or help homura defeat Walpurgisnacht. She always wishes to help someone else, and she gets exactly she asks for. But in the end (partly because of Homura’s wish) she always faces a horrific fate, either dying shortly after defeating Walpurgisnacht, having to be mercy killed by the hand of her own friend, and becoming a witch whose powers rival walpurgisnacht herself.

I think as a whole that’s the most interesting thing about kyubey and the magical girls system as a whole, he’s vague and lies by omission (and just outright) but he will give the girls exactly what they ask for as long as they have enough karmic destiny. In a way it shows a key part of Kyubey, he doesn’t feel the need to twist anything about the girls’ because in his eyes no matter what they wish for they will fall into despair, and that’s enough for him.

And I think that displays a whole other layer to why Madoka’s final wish took him so off guard. Because with the way Madoka’s wish was worded, she could and would not be able to fall into despair. madoka literally says so herself that she won’t ever have to worry about falling into despair!

which is a bad thing for kyubey. It means this new system isn’t good if even one magical girl is self assured that she doesn’t have to worry about falling into despair and becoming witch. Which is why when he learns about the system in the last episode, he attempts to bring it back in rebellion.

[absolutely-esme]

Monster!Tim Coraline AU part 2

A while back, I posted an Idea I had For a Combination of a Coraline AU and a Meta!Tim AU. It's here assuming I made the link correctly.

Well, I had more thoughts on the matter, so I'm making another post.

First off, I want to expand/clarify on how Tim's powers work.

Tim fights (or otherwise challenges) various supernatural things and gains power from defeating them.  I touched on this before and mentioned that it was because it was symbolically similar hunting and eating prey.  I would like to talk a bit more about what this entails. 

Upon achieving victory, Tim takes a bit of power from the defeated opponent and incorporates it into himself.  Tim can gain abilities this way or just boost his own power level a bit.  He does not physically eat any part of his opponent.

The opponent is left a bit weaker, but does not lose abilities completely and is not permanently damaged.  They can get their power levels back up given some time.  Think of it like donating blood, they’ll be a little weak and woozy for a bit, but no lasting harm is done.  Now, I cannot stress enough that this is because of the choices Tim makes. 

Tim chooses to use his powers in the gentlest way available.  He chooses not to take more than they can safely part with.  He chooses not to simply consume them completely.  He chooses to pay careful attention to how much power his opponents can afford to part with and whether or not they are in a position to weather the recovery safely.  Tim grew up looking up to Batman and Robin.  He believes in harm reduction. 

That’s why the supernatural-leaning rogues fear him so much.  Their instincts are very aware that this is a predator that has simply decided not to kill them today.  He probably won’t next time either, but he could easily make a different decision at any time.  At least some of them are not entirely aware of their ties to the supernatural or why the third Robin inspires such primal existential fear.

The thing that drives Tim to keep doing these challenges is not primarily a desire for power (though some of the abilities he gains are useful), but rather because it makes the hunger more manageable for a bit.  It doesn’t stop it, but it takes the edge off for a little while.  Tim was incredibly suspicious of this at first.  He knows full well that his condition makes a point of being inconvenient and that it is easy to spiral out of control in a way that makes one dangerous to oneself or others.  He remembers how miserable the fallout of trying to eat to fullness was.  He made a careful study of the challenges and how they affected him.  He kept meticulous notes on his mental and physical state.  He also created and stuck to a very rigid schedule on how often he would allow himself to “hunt,” and made a point of not taking too much from his “prey.”

Tim starts off pretty close to a baseline human and gathers abilities over time.

When he is very young he gains improved stealth and the ability to sense secrets.  For a little while, that’s all he has, until he learns that there are other things in Gotham he can challenge.

 While he was still very young he collected the ability to make his fingernails razor-sharp, the ability to climb like a goat, some minor enhanced strength (just enough to somewhat offset the disadvantage of being so tiny), partial immunity to slipperiness caused by water (from the many rain/fog/whatever spirits to be found in a city as gloomy as Gotham), increased impact resistance (don’t know what that thing was, but Tim’s not sure if he actually beat it or if it was just so high above his level that it felt safe to feed him a scrap of its power purely out of curiosity over what he might do with it), and a bite like a beartrap.

Then the Beldam incident happened.  He got a lot from dealing with the Beldam because that wasn’t an ordinary challenge (by his way of doing things).  The Beldam was too powerful, too dangerous, too impossible to contain, too sneaky, too focused on targeting vulnerable victims who won’t be missed in time for any sign to be found.  Tim had to stop her for good right then and there because he only had one shot.  Even if he survived and escaped (which wasn’t especially likely if he held back at all) she would go right on killing children.  There was no way to put the Beldam in Arkham even just until the next breakout.  No way to track the Beldam.  No way of protecting other isolated, vulnerable children without lethal force.  So Tim killed the Beldam and consumed it entirely (he has to think of the Beldam as an it, he can’t afford to do otherwise). 

From defeating the Beldam, he gained a supernatural knack for fiber arts (especially spinning, weaving, and sewing), the ability to control things he makes with these skills to a certain degree, the ability to see through buttons he’s sewn on things, some slight shapeshifting, minor space-folding on the level of making his pockets a bit bigger on the inside, and illusory powers that allow him to make things seem a bit nicer/brighter/more pleasant.  He also gains a pretty huge general power boost that goes into enhancing his existing abilities.  He takes to spinning some very strong cord and keeping a few skeins on his person at all times because it’s useful for a number of things and makes a pretty good weapon, especially with his ability to manipulate it.

The shapeshifting isn’t much on it’s own, but it can combine with other abilities he’s taken on to let him make greater changes and take on forms that better support use of his powers.

After the Beldam incident, Tim’s power levels increase a good deal very quickly, allowing him to challenge and defeat stronger opponents and collect stronger abilities.  Tim continues wandering, continues fighting, continues gaining power. 

(Trauma?  What Trauma?  He’s fine.  It all turned out okay in the end.  The Beldam is dead.  The souls she trapped are free.  Tim totally doesn’t have complicated feelings about killing her.  It.  Tim is fine.  Tim totally doesn’t have nightmares about an evil Batman with buttons for eyes.  You would not believe how fine he is.)

He collects some extra senses that allow him to maintain greater awareness of his surroundings.  He gains the ability to produce and maintain a very small fire (like a candle flame on a tealight) at his fingertips.  He gets quicker reflexes from something he probably wouldn’t have been able to beat prior to killing the Beldam (he had to tank an uncomfortable number of hits in that fight).

He gains the ability to find and use what he decides to call shortcuts. They’re these odd little throughways tucked into out of the way places that he can pass through and go from one place to someplace a fair distance away.   One of them is an odd little opening in a wall between a dead-end alley and a rooftop on the other side of town.  The shortcuts don’t look odd or out of place.  He mostly recognizes them by vibes.  If he had been born with this ability rather than gaining it later in life he probably wouldn’t have realized that there was anything odd about the shortcuts or that no one else could see them.

…

Tim goes on doing his thing, pretending he wasn’t traumatized by the Beldam, and even managing to heal a little despite his somewhat unhealthy handling of it.

Then Robin dies, and Batman loses it.  Now Batman is self-destructing and looks like he’s going to take all of Gotham down with him, the Other Gotham Nightmares are back, and Robin is fucking dead. 

Tim is not okay.

Tim tries to get someone else, anyone else, to deal with the situation because a violent, out of control Batman is a pretty massive trigger for him.  No one else who seems like they might be able to do anything for Batman is willing to intervein.  Batman is getting worse.

It looks like Tim is going to have to be the one to do something about this.

…

When Tim eventually begins his training to be Robin, it is such a hassle learning how to fight without his powers.  Batman and Nightwing think he’s incredibly clumsy when he first starts his training and wonder just how the heck he managed to follow them undetected for so long.  Then the clumsiness clears up more quickly than they would have expected, and they are concerned that he might have had a concussion when he started training and they didn’t notice. 

It’s actually because he has to re-learn how to get around without using his powers in a way that Batman and Nightwing would notice, and he’s started to forget how to account for large bulky items that aren’t tucked away in a pocket dimension.  That said, he did do it all without powers in the beginning so he’s re-learning rather than learning something new for the first time.  Also, he figures out pretty quickly that he can use the stealth he got from secret hunters and the goat-like climbing ability he got from a Jersey Devil because neither Bruce nor Dick realizes just how unusual Dick’s childhood level of ability was.

While Tim is operating as the Bats’ emotional support child, he uses his illusion powers from the Beldam to look cute, comforting, healthy, and un-concerning.  When he’s not with the Bats, he drops the illusion and just goes about his business with his actual appearance.  When he has some shit to get done far enough outside of the Bats’ sphere of influence that he can be reasonably confident he can avoid them finding out about it, he turns into something out of a scary movie.

Guess who gave digital art a try? Here we have Emotional Support Tim, Regular Tim, and Cryptid Tim.

I hadn't originally planned for Cryptid Tim to be showing that much skin, but i had to spend a lot of time figuring out the anatomy before I could figure out how to dress him, and by the time I realized what I was doing, i'd put so much work into the shading on the ribcage that i didn't want to cover it completely. Tim won't actually dress like that in Cryptid form, I just worked really hard on the anatomy. I should do more art to figure out his actual Cryptid Garb.

I went the stretched out, spindly monster route for Tim's Cryptid form because his magic/condition is called "afflicted with gluttony." I know a lot of artists make monsters based on the concept of gluttony heavyset with lots of excess fat tissue, but I feel like it makes sense to have a gluttony monster look hungry, like no matter how much it's eaten it's nowhere near enough.

The gray-ish skin with darker gray hands was just because I thought it would look spooky, and redoing the hands once they were done felt like it would be a lot of work. Hands are hard. Especially with foreshortening.

[your-compadre-infinity]

This isn't anything serious, im just making a list of my favourite Sonadow AUs

BUT

what's most popular? Y'all get to vote!!

More Info below

Paramount Stars AU takes place within the Sonic Cinematic Universe. It is an Actors AU, so Sonic and Shadow are actors in Paramount Stars studios making the movies. They are both traumatised(tm) and transgender. Sonic met Shadow before the filming for Sonic 3 started and invited Shadow to join the movie. Over the two years of the movie production, Sonic and Shadow held feelings for each other before confessing on the night of the trailer release and becoming an official couple after the premier. Find out more at: @paramountstarsau

Sonic Rewritten AU takes place within the Modern Timeline, which are the games and IDW comics. It diverts from the canon after SA2, where Sonic and Shadow fell in love at first sight and was unofficially married by Dr. Eggman (they were out of options, okay?) during the Finalhazard fight. The rest of the timeline proceeds virtually unchanged, except for Sonic and Shadow being husbands (and more relationships beginning as well, because time actually passes here). However, the "canon" part of the timeline ends after the Metal Virus, and the rest of the AU largely follows the adventures of Sonic and Shadow's daughters, Hope and Light, and their friends (other fankids). More content avalible at: @sonicrewrittenau

Highschool Sweethearts AU is self-explanatory. Sonic and Shadow are high school students at Emerald Academy, in Emerald Town who became boyfriends. Shadow moved to Emerald Academy from Central City Westopolis district, due to being harrassed and discriminated against because he was trans, and met Sonic on basically his first day at his new school. They got off to a rocky start but eventually became a couple by the end of Year 10 and are still dating well into their senior years - 11 and 12. This AU is largely a coping mechanism for my school life (and it is also very Australian High School themed) and will continue into an University AU. There isn't much content for it but im happy to talk about it.

Heaven and Hell AU is an AU where Sonic is a High Seraph from Heaven (heir to the throne) and Shadow was a demon, whose powers were unlocked by Black Doom during Shadow Generations (also heir to the throne - of HELL >:3). It begins when Sonic, formerly named Caelus, leaves Heaven because he felt unwelcome and bored there and found himself on Earth, during the time of the Ancients (from Frontiers). He helped them build their colonies and civilizations on the Starfall Islands and became a being of worship for them, but was ultimately forced into hiding by the Ancients as they wanted to protect him from The End. Sonic remains on the planet and survives through the rise and fall of empires and into the modern world. He earned his name after defeating Eggman for the very first time and has since taken on the title of Hero of the World and Seraph of the People. Shadow's story still stays true to the canon, but he discovers his demon lineage. Sonic and Shadow, both being divine beings, worked together to live in secret and their relationship started there. Their designs are on my blog somewhere, you'll find them lmao.

Shattered AU, like mentioned, is a Sonic Prime AU where there are different Sonic and Shadows in the Shatter Spaces. In New Yoke; Sonic is Solo and Shadow is Android. In Boscage; Sonic is Paradise and Shadow is Hawthorn. In No-Place; Sonic is Goldheart and Shadow is Darkquill. Each of the Shattered Sonic and Shadows reflect a milestone in Sonic and Shadow's relationship; New Yoke = Enemies, Boscage = Friends/Rivals and No-Place = Romantic. More info about each of the Sonic and Shadows can be viewed on THIS google doc file.

One Week AU, like mentioned, is a King Shadow x Jester Sonic AU. It is a fanfic that is currently being written, where Shadow and Sonic fall in love in One Week (hehe). You'll be able to read it on AO3 once its out!

The Litter AU, or simply, The Litter, is a timeline where Shadow and Sonic have 8 daughters. Hope and Light from the Rewritten AU was reused for this. The daughters, from oldest to youngest, are: Hope, Light, Faith, Life, Lavender, Sunflower, Iris and Hyacinth. They came in twins. Reference sheets are currently being designed and can be viewed once I post them!

Overcast AU is a Sonic and Rain-World crossover AU, with a post-apocalyptic theme. The environment, world and lore is similar to Rain World, but instead of slugcats, we have feral mobians. Shadow is from the human cities, above the clouds, and Sonic is a hedgehog surviving on the rain ravaged surface. Shadow escaped and fell to the surface, where he was rescued by Sonic and they would go on to become mates. You can read the first instalments to this AU on AO3!!

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

What would have happened if dumbledore had somehow gotten the diary instead of ginny?

You know, interesting question, I don't know.

Depends on the context of how he got it.

While from what we hear of Dumbledore he hadn't settled on Horcrux as an explanation for Tom's apparent immortality yet, he was considering it as an option. Enough that he was easily able to conclude that Harry himself was one as early as Harry's second year.

So, with a diary labeled 'T. M. Riddle', it's possible he'd recognize what it is almost immediately. On the other hand, the Diary was an anomaly among the possible Horcruxes Dumbledore outlined to Harry. Dumbledore expected priceless treasures, things Tom coveted, and the Diary was brought up primarily because it was already a proven and destroyed Horcrux. But no other personal sentimental possessions of Tom Riddle are proposed as Horcruxes.

More, if the Diary recognizes that Dumbledore's the one writing to him, I don't think he'd take the chance he did with Ginny. Too likely that Dumbledore would realize this is not a normal enchantment and even worse that the enchantment is acting like Tom Riddle.

If Tom has any ability to know immediately who is writing in him, I imagine he shuts up fast. Even if he doesn't, I imagine the moment it's clear this is Dumbledore he stops talking.

Regardless, probably the Diary ends up on Dumbledore's bookcase in the office until further notice. Without the Chamber fiasco, Harry never defeats the basilisk and Dumbledore never gets access to basilisk venom or the tainted Sword of Gryffindor. While this isn't described as the only way to destroy a Horcrux, the others we see are incredibly dangerous (Fiend Fyre) or else are so inaccessible they weren't even options for Harry, Ron and Hermione (who ended up stuck with the locket for months before the sword finally made its appearance).

Dumbledore likely doesn't have the means to dispose of it, even if he knows what it is. So, on the shelf it goes until such a time it and other Horcruxes can be destroyed somehow.

If he doesn't recognize it, onto the shelf it goes, as this a possession of Tom Riddle's that must be collected and examined.

[byjovewhataspend]

alr so like what's ur headcannons on skeptic/tomoyasu like ships things he likes don't like I'm just curious lol

if i like a character ill ship him with almost everyone So tomoyasu/anyone-you-can-think-of-an-excuse-to-put-him-nearby

Faves: Deku -- they are very similiar people-- screaming obsessive stalkers that care very much about other people (in their own way) and are inspired to violence (in their own way) because of that. + i feel like the PLF would have a high likelihood to recognize and acknowledge how the lack of bodily autonomy granted in a hero-based society greatly harms quirkless people. i have a whole headcanon about young skeptic using his unusually overpowered quirk to protect kids that got bullied, which was PRIMARILY heteromorph/mutant types but probably also included like the 1or 2 quirkless kids in his school. i like to imagine a scenario either of 'they went to school together' or 'deku never got OFA and so ended up getting picked up by the Meta Liberaton Army (pre-LoV) and them either helping/sponsoring him to become the first quirkless hero (because it helps their narrative) OR a non-of-that-happened au where he graduates highschool and joins and quickly becomes skeps right-hand-arm, his confidant, his silly rabbit (They just both rant at eachother nonstop and neither ever gets tired of listening to the other even though it sounds liek arguing. they both stalk eachother to show affection)

(also like, dont kid yourself, if izuku hadnt been able to be a hero he wouldve turned to doling out justice on his own somehow. Viglante, sure, but also totally susceptible to a group that trains people in secret to defend themselves and others in an unfair system)

These below are set in FangusFungs au about a Swamp Creature skep. my first thought was 'deku would get involved in that'

Tokoyami-- i like to imagine a post-series situation where Pro Hero Tokoyami sees and recognizes Tomoyasu, who was previously a HIGHLY visible GOTH individual in the public eye that was outspoken about heteromorph rights. hard to imagine young tokoyami not admiring him, at least distantly, so meeting up with him again as an adult would change things a lot. i could see them getting together <3 it would be really cute

HANABATA: obviously. come one. goth dilf powercouple. theyve known eachother for ages and are fully on the same side. the smooth-talking trumpet with his charm and handsome face versus skeptic whos so angry about the coffee machine being on the fritz that hes popping a vein in his forehead. whats not to love here?

Shigaraki: come on... like obviously

(featured below, my PR MANAGER SKEP au. basically when the league defeated the MLA and became the PLF they decided to turn their substantial political power onto the idea of rehavilitating their image and making them figureheads! managed to get skeptic off for his crimes andturning people to their cause and to their side)

also Dabi, since they are (COUGH) basically the only ones to interact... but this is the only art i have for that

aaaand present mic! they look alike and both have loud self-aggrandizing annoying personalities, are both alt-fashion guys with long hair, and they both scream a lot. theyd either get along SO WELL or theyd hate eachother (i cant show you the art ive made for this, its all porn)

as far as my personal headcanons (the ones above notwithstanding... i think hes technically a mutant! but hes the TYPE of mutant where its minimal enough that in almost any room he will never be the MOST visibly mutated. he has spent his life Very Aware that the only reason he isnt discriminated against is because other people are discriminated against HARDER. that if every super-visibly mutated person on the world disappeared (like the CRC group wants) then the focus would go to people with tails, then people with animal ears, and then people like him. He has known he was just Lucky since he was 5 and he never forgot that, and thats why as a grown adult (in his.. what? 30s? 40s? i like him to be about 37-42 in canon but if you told me he was 26 id believe you) he would still have such strong opinions and focus specifically on people with visible mutations and the struggles they have

like.. whether the MLA/PLF went about their dreams for liberation the right way (no) you can't deny that they DID care! i also headcanon that if the whole LOV thing hadn't happened they never wouldve started this war, that they had a 60+ year plan they were only 15 years into tops that was focused on changing laws and changing the media narratives first and foremost. so in any 'the league didnt happen' au you can easily say they were working above-board (though personally i think they were all the types to still be murdering and making up blackmail stuff for political opponents AND/OR known mutant-haters)

[moonlightcanyon]

ASPD/PPD knife post 1

okay so how I want to do these: I'm gonna recap everything I plan on going over (partially so you don't have to go and rewatch it to remember, partially because it helps ME while typing), then analyze it in detail. I tend to analyze like knife canonically has the disorders because he... really might as well

the text in this one is being copied and pasted from discord since I've already got it typed up and it won't take too much time to edit. that said I was talking to a friend who didn't know the show at the time and you might notice this in a few spots

this one's primarily focusing on the dynamic between knife and trophy early s2. I ask that this doesn't get tagged as shipping since it squicks me out and I personally can't see it working anyway

@fansblogs @mr-payjay

ALRIGHT HERE WE GO

at one point in season 1, the rewards for contestants that got to move on was a dora doll. knife was one of them and he ended up getting pretty attached to it

I figure he did because. PPD. this is something he was given that has no capacity for harm. if he's got something personal that he needs to get off his chest he can say it to the doll, and then in the ASPD aspect he can hold onto it for comfort if he needs to or somethin, seeing as he doesn't have anyone who would give him physical comfort if he needed it

in s2 ep1, trophy wants to form an alliance between himself and knife, but knife declines pretty quickly (the jock/jerk thing). trophy presses and knife, evidently annoyed, punches him and takes him out of the challenge

towards the end of ep2, trophy goes to find knife and finds/overhears him talking to the dora doll, saying that the doll is his only true friend and nobody else understands him. trophy snaps a picture and goes to show everyone; knife begs him not to, saying he'll do anything

trophy tells him that if knife does everything he tells him to for the rest of the season, he won't show anyone the picture. and knife agrees bc as far as he can tell there's no getting out of it otherwise

ep 4 opens up with more of knife doing everything trophy says, even using fan as a literal fan. knife then abruptly says 'no' to trophy and to show everyone the stupid picture + he doesn't care

in ep3 we see trophy manipulating knife into doing exactly that; when knife considers not doing something, trophy either shows/mentions the picture to him and knife immediately cooperates. he gets his leg broken because of this

trophy pulls it out, knife goes 'wait!', trophy laughs and says he knew knife was chicken, and then knife says 'no, I just wanted to let you know that you have grape juice on your chin'

trophy then goes and shows everyone. we get a shot of several characters laughing, but it's very obvious not all of them are: baseball and apple look irritated and confused respectively

knife sighs in defeat. cut to baseball saying he honestly doesn't care

baseball goes on to talk about how everyone who got sent to idiotic island each had their own Thing to keep them occupied and knife's was the doll. he then mentions how paper didn't have something to keep him occupied and practically tried to kill everyone and asks if that's what trophy wants: for knife to do the same

trophy is like '????? you support this?????'

a few others agree with baseball and they all walk off, with trophy trying to get them to come back because he 100% believes knife is super lame for this

knife then comes up behind him and gives trophy a mini-lecture about how he must feel like a loser, because he knows he would, reminds trophy that he's a jock and knife is a jerk, and says that trophy never stood a chance against him from the start

cue unexpected moment where trophy tells him to go jump off a bridge

and fuckin- there is so much to break down here okay.

things that back up knife having ASPD and PPD:

trophy has a huge ego and sees himself as above others. a big thing with pwASPD is the disrespect of authority that we find stupid/unnecessary, and that can include people that act like they have authority when they really don't (I personally don't often get along with pwNPD for this exact reason). knife's first interaction with trophy is trophy insulting his capacity to break things with his 'pillow fists'; their second interaction is trophy trying to form an alliance with him, backhandedly calling him a 'sharp guy'. given that trophy made his personality clear right off the bat in both interactions I'm genuinely unsurprised that knife turned him down (and then punched him when he wouldn't back off); pwPPD often have a tendency to be hypervigilant because they're looking for threats to their safety. for me personally, I experience more of the ASPD side of things when interacting with someone I don't know well, and in this instance I can see knife essentially flipping from PPD's 'seeing hidden threats' to 'I don't care about you, actually, get lost.' as an aside, while I am a trophy NPD believer, I'm biased against him and thus won't really be getting into that as I'm likely to unintentionally paint him in a bad light

knife's choice of phrasing to the doll is interesting. he specifically says true friend and not friend, and given that at this point he doesn't really have any bonds with others, thus nobody gets him? entirely accurate- and yet that is an expression of vulnerability, something he's only letting himself express to the doll in a moment of safety. I'm still kind of sorting my PPD stuff out but in my experience, I have a lot of people/friends I can talk to about things, but only two or three that I feel comfortable talking to about Literally Everything and/or being more 'stream of thought' with them. I've spent A LOT of time around them, know how they react to things, and they have continually accepted me and been there even when I display odd or less than pleasant behavior- thus I view them as safe spaces/moments for when I need to be vulnerable. then with ASPD, you will see pwASPD express vulnerability, but it's often in half-lies? for example they might say they're upset and omit why, or give you a convincing reason for their being upset that isn't the real reason. unless either a situation needs to be maintained with genuine feelings or the pwASPD is that comfortable around you/a group, feelings are often expressed in those half-lies. I tend to have this response with basically anyone that falls outside of those two or three people I mentioned, and also with people I don't know very well.

so then to be caught in such a vulnerable moment by someone like trophy? Oh God. it's partially embarrassment, partially 'fuck did he hear me' (which, interestingly, trophy doesn't seem to have), and completely registering as a threat to his safety (PPD response). he absolutely doesn't want to agree to trophy's terms but being caught in a moment like that is considered one of the worst-case scenarios to a pwPPD, so he agrees because the other option is to be seen as weak. and that Cannot Happen.

the stuff in ep3 is… well, classic manipulation? but it's also knife firmly believing that his safety will be compromised if the others find out about the doll, plus what he said to it. this is another PPD response; he's backing up his worries with evidence to something that ultimately isn't the biggest problem ever

knife gets his leg broken when yang throws yin at him, causing him to fall off a bicycle. knife still completes his part of the challenge via dragging himself along the ground; he calls both his broken leg and trophy stupid before saying it's all stupid. when he finally reaches microphone, she's unintentionally loud as she asks what happened, and he gets even more upset with the whole situation because now his ears hurt, taking it out on her somewhat. she asks if he's sure he's okay; he says 'not to be rude' before realizing he DOES want to be rude, says as much, and then yells at microphone to go away and start her part of the challenge. this sequence of events likely caused a symptom flare for both disorders at the same time, and knife calling his leg/trophy/everything stupid is also where he shifts from the PPD perspective to the ASPD perspective. I don't know which disorder would cause this specific response (as I tend to experience both at the same time during a flare), but one of them at minimum makes it very likely to snap at people while having a symptom flare; both the trophy situation and the challenge going to shit is 100% enough to cause an intense flare-up and he absolutely can't keep masking in the moment, he needs to be left alone. in my experience I also simultaneously experience 'I don't want to interact with people' and 'everybody is a threat' during flare-ups; typically one response is stronger than the other, but for really nasty ones both are equally strong.

trophy comes up to him later in the episode and says he can't believe that his blackmailing has led to this. knife agrees and asks to be let off the hook, and trophy reveals that he wasn't concerned for knife at all, he was upset that knife made their team lose the challenge. trophy talks a bit more and knife is VISIBLY angry, and he insults trophy under his breath the second he's done talking (the captions say 'well good grief, bozo' but it sounds more like 'well, good for you, too'. can't figure out which is right or if it's something else entirely). trophy angrily says 'what?' and knife pretty much goes 'huh whuh'. and like… yeah. petty insults during a symptom flare aren't common (an intense one will most likely see the pwASPD/PPD using the harshest insults they can come up with based off what they know about the other person to get said other person to go away), but given that knife knows little about trophy's life he can't come up with anything that'll actually have some kick to it. this interaction also reinforces the switch into a more ASPD way of thinking; a more PPD-focused thought process would be something along the lines of 'I did all this/let myself get hurt for you and you don't even care? why? aren't I doing it right?'

ep4, trophy asks knife something and knife genuinely just replies with 'oh, shut up'. given that in ep3 he was starting to realize that the whole thing is stupid and especially given trophy's lack of care about his leg, he's definitely done some thinking and come to the conclusion that this entire thing isn't worth it. he's being taken advantage of and being treated poorly, he broke his leg, he had a very bad symptom flare- and all this over a doll and some words? sounds ridiculous and stupid when put that way. and like I said earlier: pwASPD do not like authority figures or rules that they deem stupid. a stupid situation caused by someone acting like they have authority also classifies. pwASPD are also way more likely to give a firm 'fuck you' type of response to people when they're fed up with something/someone, or someone implies they can't do something

trophy then asks for more ventilation and knife, annoyed but notably somewhat indifferent, pulls out fan and, well, starts fanning. fan asks to be put down and knife tosses fan up because JESUS CHRIST THERE'S JUST NO WINNING. trophy tells him to keep fanning; fan comes back down and knife starts up again. fan then says he's getting dizzy and that is the last straw for knife; he just drops him and gives a very firm 'no' to trophy. and fucking- ouughgh okay. pwASPD often disregard the rights of others, yes, but we still have a moral compass. if someone doesn't need to get involved then they shouldn't get involved, the end. knife disregarded fan initially but the second fan said he was getting dizzy, he realized the whole thing is causing him to hurt people that don't need to be involved (which also gets into not hurting people that don't 'need' to be hurt) and that's not going to fly, actually. it also appeals to the more sensitive side of PPD, which can be very in-tune with people and their feelings.

the grape juice thing? not just a funny moment. knife is scared to possibly have his safety compromised- PPD briefly taking over, in a way- but he chooses to commit, 'flipping back' to ASPD and covering up his fear by pointing out the juice on trophy. his expression switches back to nervous as trophy turns around to go show everyone the picture, but he doesn't say anything else. enough is enough yk.

in presenting the picture, trophy calls knife 'a girly, doll-obsessed freak'… and doesn't add anything about what knife said to the doll, hence my assumption that trophy didn't hear him. which is a huge win for knife because it registers as an 'oh thank god, this isn't as bad as it could be' type of situation and helps quiet down the PPD. he sighs in defeat, yes, but there's a lot of relief too, I'd imagine- it's not the end of the world, actually. he can recover from this.

baseball saying 'honestly, I don't care' once everyone finishes laughing is also huge for knife because the way pwASPD interpret 'I don't care' is different than how most people interpret it. the phrase is often taken with a negative connotation by the average person, whereas pwASPD (and some normal people) hear it and take it neutrally. it's like saying that you think a piece of food is alright- if it turned up on your plate again, you'd eat it, but you wouldn't go out of your way to seek it out. baseball likely meant 'I don't care' as in 'are you for real/is this seriously what you're occupying yourself with', but knife heard 'I don't care' as in 'this is a piece of information that doesn't mean anything, leave it/knife alone', which also helps quiet down the PPD

in response to trophy asking if baseball really supports that part of knife, baseball backs himself (and knife) up with the stuff I mentioned earlier about idiotic island. not only did this likely comfort knife (even more soothing the PPD), it also convinces the other characters 'actually, even though we laughed at him for it at first, that makes sense. I'd do the same thing in his situation.' baseball pretty much unintentionally got everyone off knife's back and now knife doesn't have to go through all the effort of doing it himself (ASPD. if someone can do something for you, and especially unintentionally: take the opportunity and let them)

knife's mini-lecture is both him putting trophy in his place and reassuring himself. as much as trophy WANTS to have authority, have some semblance of power, he doesn't- knife actually has some due to his reputation, and the others are aware of it. a common fantasy in pwPPD is being in a position of power where nobody can hurt them. while he says that trophy never stood a chance against him from the start, I don't think he fully believes it yet, but he's saying it because he needs to make sure trophy Knows not to mess with him again. I think this also counts as an 'eye for an eye' thing considering trophy's treated him like shit for a while; knife can be shitty right back, which thus makes them both even and helps manage both disorders at the same time. I didn't know this when I initially typed all this out but in pwPPD, there's a strong desire for revenge, which is something I experience all the time.

in response to being told to jump off a bridge, knife reacts with surprise. and it makes sense given that knife didn't retaliate against trophy physically or really do much of anything to him, and that's with this whole thing resulting in knife's leg getting broken. there's not a part of knife that knows how to react to that because it's just- not computing. 'you cause this whole situation, then tell me to do that? okay?? I guess??'

after the intro plays, at the elimination area, knife and suitcase are sitting next to each other when mephone announces they're safe. when suitcase says 'wow knife!', knife initially looks over with some annoyance expecting to be insulted (likely still in the ASPD way of thinking)- but suitcase follows up with 'congratulations!' and it's so genuine knife doesn't know how to react to it. he ends up going 'wow… thanks!' with this somewhat sheepish expression that really strongly implies he has rarely or possibly never been complimented so genuinely before.

trophy starts throwing a fit that he's been voted out and stomps on box; suitcase stands up and shouts 'you monster! you're just jealous because he's (referring to box, I believe, but could also be interpreted as referring to knife) still in the game!' trophy yells at her to shut up and she meekly goes 'okay' and sits back down before trophy's even done yelling. knife is still there and as this happens he's sitting there with this expression that, to me, is him zoning out- but he's still present enough to hear and process this interaction considering he responds to it.

like I just said: given how knife reacted to a genuine compliment, he's not used to that happening. this is his first interaction with suitcase and it's an incredibly positive one, and he can tell it's not fake (goes back to hypervigilance in PPD). so after trophy yells at suitcase, knife gets up almost immediately and says 'alright dude, that's it. no more mr. knife guy.' he is Done with trophy's shit and he's not letting it start up again (very ASPD, since he learned he can go up against trophy and come out on top), especially not towards someone who was truly kind to him a minute ago (very PPD, with the sensitive side to it)

a detail I didn't mention is that in ep1, when knife punches trophy away, he does it before trophy finishes talking. now, when a contestant is eliminated they go through the portal, yeah? trophy is standing nearby said portal as knife approaches him, and in response to what knife said trophy pretty much replies with 'bring it on, I've been waiting for this'- except he doesn't get to finish because knife kicks him through the portal before he can. he just doesn't fucking care about this guy anymore. pretty good way to send trophy off, I'd say

and finally, a funny detail that isn't really related to all this but I want to mention anyway:

in that first scene of ep4 with knife and trophy, knife's leg is fine. in the elimination scene, knife's broken leg is in a cast- but the cast is suddenly gone when he stands up, and he kicks trophy through the portal with that same leg. I know what the animators were going for but it's REALLY funny. especially when the cast doesn't come back for the rest of the episode

a'ight that's about it. peace :P