#and i like the fact that hero in the future would be like “yeah ive stabbed someone before”

[heromaker-if]

mild spoilers but this makes me laugh everytime

like WHAT THE HELL IS HERO DOING

[pumpkinrootbeer]

Not enough Avatar fans recognize how good of a bender Bolin is bcuz he's mostly busy being played as comic relief. But even just at the end of TLOK he's praised by his personal hero Toph Beifong and is one of 3 known lavabenders, has gone toe to toe and bended alongside Toph's talented daughters and displays similar feats.

And he's shown to practice bending seriously and improve between time jump, b/c have you noticed that he observed and mastered the Red Lotus lavabender's lava glaive trick and uses it to cut through platinum in Book 4? That and Toph said that she'd be willing to teach Bolin metalbending b/c she brags about being able to teach anyone metalbending (Toph's metalbending school comics reference yay) & in the TLOK comics Toph is shown to go out of her way to leave the swamp & head to Rep. City to hang out with her granddaughter and her future grandson-in-law, so I'm betting Bolin's been getting some tutoring in and officially become one of Toph's students.

TLDR I hope Bolin shows up in the new Avatar series and shows up how strong he is at old age, b/c half his canon appearances so far are him at 16 and he's underratedly really good.

no because Bolin is genuinely an unparalleled bender. he has sheer power on the level of avatars, see how catches an entire building dropped on a room full of earth benders before anyone else and then was the only one holding it up despite TOPH BEING IN THE ROOM? for one.

he also has the drive to be good at his bending that we don't really see with mako or even really korra in the show. sure, we see korra learn air bending but then she's just frustrated it's not coming naturally. with Bolin we see him struggle with his bending and still become the best. see how quickly he mastered an element with No One to teach him or him throwing himself at metal bending over and over. Which I'm honestly torn if I want him to learn it? On one hand, literally op earthbender which is amazing yes please. On the other, I kinda like that metal bending, something that is traditional earthbending techniques taken to the extreme, is what Bolin struggles with.

It's pretty heavily implied Bolin and Mako had no formal bending teacher and are completely self taught. In fact, the times we see Bolin do the most traditional earthbending moves are in season 4, which takes place after the 3 year jump. This is also when he's working for Kuvira and is probably the only time he did get formal training in earthbending, so it would make sense he would incorporate that more.

and ive talked about this before but, Bolin is the quickest earthbender in the entire show. he is incredibly talented in his craft and no one else in the entire show bends like he does. like, okay. This?

that move? that spin kick he's doing? That's a fire bending move.

he's doing a fire bending move with earth. kinda like iroh's move for redirecting lighting, bolin's entire bending style is this quote "when you take (wisdom) from only one place it becomes rigid and stale. understanding others, other nations, will help you become whole" Bolin is an earth bender who grew up learning to bend by watching fire bending. and that is a huge part of why Bolin is such a unique and talented fighter.

tbh I hope he never learns metal bending because the contrast between him and toph is nice. Toph is someone who excels at traditional earthbending, to the point of inventing a new type of sub-bending. whereas Bolin is so skilled at adapting and integrating different bending styles that he's able to master a volatile element that is eath that behaves like water with properties of fire at 17 with no teacher.

so yeah I agree 100% I would fucking love to see Bolin older because he would be a fucking powerhouse.

[clambuoyance]

Favorite Superboy villain (if you have one, if not then favorite sb comic) and a plotline you think had a lot of potential but should have been written better

idk about villain (maybe black zero or he's not technically a superboy villain but his fight with cyborg superman was cool.) buttttt in terms of potential i think a lot of sb comics are filled with half-baked ideas that never get to see full fruition :P

i think my favorite is hypertime probably because 1) i liked seeing all the diff kons (into the konverse....) esp robin!kon <3 and 2) seeing him confront Paul and Black Zero and grapple with the darker aspects of himself was neat. I liked seeing the powers Kon could possibly gain in the future and he's just so <333 in that arc. It's been a long while since ive read it tho so i could probably go into more depth if i reread 3) also around this time he's been feeling very down and so seeing yj ask about his whereabouts and mickey cannon being like "i didnt realize so many people cared about him" made me go aaaaaah and later kon asking clark if he came back to the right reality was so interesting to me. i think this arc presents a really neat struggle with belonging and knowing ur place in the universe and it was like yeah <3 he belongs in this reality he is so loved <3

i think my other favorite is him in the whole apokolips arc between his solo and yj. i liked seeing him and his conflict with tim finally reach its climax and him having to deal with the fallout and consequences it has on his friendships w all of yj really, however i was pretty disappointed to not actually see an apology scene between tim and kon even if i think the yj team reuniting chaotically was very in fashion for them

and the whole sins of youth arc in general was cool :0 it gave me the "All I got is who I am!" line so <3

Some other things i liked was the whole peter pan thing ofc --there was a couple issues where he gets trapped in a place and they try to do a lost boys thing but didnt commit (but i have a fic idea thats got one page written about this).

i kinda liked most of his arcs in general, from the beginning with him learning to be a hero in ROTS to him trying to make a name for himself and messing up a lot along the way but continuing to try anyways. but like i said, i think if these emotional arcs could go One step further or allowed to delve into some of the darkness of these arcs or didnt fall back onto tropes his solo would have been stronger.

for example, during the cadmus era of his life, i would have liked to see more exploration of the fact he's back in the place that made him and now have him working for them. or in the hawaii era, they could have gone into how he could have had friends his age at school but got thrown into a wack ass love triangle. in general, the hawaiian issues could have been treated with more respect as well. they also introduced silver sword, but it didn't go anywhere i feel like T-T

also for the kon in smallville plotline i think it would have been cooler to see kon struggle more to be a regular person but his rebel streak keeps taking over

sorry this was all over the place i literally could talk about it for hours which i dont have time for so i just kinda spouted random things <3

[mrs-galaxy-m]

Climbing emotions

Izuku has a quirk that jeopardizes his health

It's one where it can wake up with a cold or on the worst days he needs to stay inside the nurse's office for the night, needing to be watched if anything goes south and add a shit ton of pain to it on those bad days, luckily with really strong quirk suppressants and the fact technology was so advanced the quirk only did minimum damage to him

He had to sadly give up on his dream of being a hero, god knows what he might break from running but instead, he applied for the support class

And that's where the three met in UA, Bakugou and kirishima needed gear, and the moment a small green hair omega took their pieces of equipment from their hands with so much care they couldn't help but always go to the green-hair omega

The two fell in love with his giggles and mutters, with how no matter how much he concentrated he was still clumsy enough to mess up a bit

But it just made them fall in love with the omega much more, ignoring the fact izuku needed an IV and had to take his meds every so often, sometimes his body was too weak to walk but they had a blast as kirishima pushed the wheelchair as they caught a whiff of fresh air outside the school campus

They won't lie–they may have heavily practiced and trained to wear their gear much faster and although the omega would puff his cheeks out and whine at the alphas he happily fixed it like new

Then small meetings turned into lunch hangouts, into dorm sleepovers, into /courting/

Well, they never call it courting, just wanting to gift him constantly–

Then into love, but no mates and no pack, not yet..more like the alphas haven't discussed them having a crush on izuku even

It was their last year and Aizawa agreed for the alphas to let the omega stay in their dorm without heavy supervision from him

After all, you can't leave two teenage alphas with an omega alone but he has seen just how much they love izuku to just make it all go to waste for some horny pheromones.

The alphas barely smelled like themselves when izuku was visiting, that's how many patches and precautions they were taking 

The black hair also knew of izuku's troublesome quirk and made sure no idiots would cause too much of a ruckus which the omega chirped when he saw how thoughtful Aizawa was being earning a huff from the head alpha

Also, a top-of-the-class support student visited their dorm which meant no queue as they wanted their gear done so he had to be blocked by the others

The two alphas would've reeked of nervous pheromones if it wasn't for them being on top of their game as always

But you can't be on top with things like love, it was all izuku's decision in the end, if he wanted to be something more than an omega they courted in high school, plus, the three had great success for their future

The omega tilted his head at the alpha's nervousness, he couldn't smell anything (which annoyed him a bit) but the two were extremely careful

“Ah–fuck..” bakugo whispered as kirishima patted his back Izuku bit his lips

Was everything alright?

“Okay–so..mido-izuku” kirishima stuttered, forgetting they've known each other for more than enough that they don't call each other by their full-on last names but by their nicknames

“We–..alphas..you–uh..omega–” “Huh-”

Before izuku could ask bakugo smacked the back of Kirishima's head “Shitty hair! What the fuck was that?! Sounding like a fucking caveman!” the blond hissed “Ohh yeah because you can say it better!” “Yes I can!” bakugo spat “Do it!”

Kirishima huffed and bakugo froze

“Are..you guys okay?” izuku asked as he got his walking stick out and stood up at his own pace, knowing the omega liked doing things like these for himself from time to time, not that he minded having two alphas fawn over him, telling him how his books are sooo heavy and that he needed to be spoiled

But it was more of their alpha said wanting to spoil the omega than trying to babysit him

“Y-yeah!” “Always!” Both alphas say quickly say and izuku covers his mouth to hide his laugh

“You guys..what are you hiding? Is it another all might plush?!” the omega chips as he looks around trying to find any suspicious-looking package with his name on it

“Well..we won't hide it we do have gifts..” “Oh!” “But–they mean something more than courting–I mean gifting..” bakugo finishes for kirishima and before izuku could react the alphas got on their knees

“Please be our mate!” they say in unison as if they've planned this for a while

Izuku covered his mouth as he took a few steps back until he sat back in his wheelchair in shock “I–” izuku’s lips trembled, having to cover his mouth as he started coughing, the excitement getting the best of him 

But the alphas couldn't smell an ounce of regret but instead /super/ happy omega pheromones that even made their alphas huff and chuff, worried about the sudden fit of strained coughs

"I'm-I'm fine" izuku coughs out as he goes into his bag to take out a pill and water and drank it

“Is..is that a yes?” kirishima asks cheekily as both give him puppy eyes “I–of course! Yes!” izuku sobbed out as he hastily threw the items inside his bag and had his bandaged arms opened wide for the two alphas to hug him.

Which they instantly did–even pushed each other slightly to hug their omega with so much care

“My alpha is so happy right now” bakugo said with a muffle as he hugged izuku “M-mhm! I love you izu!” kirishima rubbed his cheek against izuku’s and the omega let out happy purrs

“Guys–”

“WOOHOO” the door slammed open by mina “How–” Bakugo couldn't even finish speaking as a few other classmates entered and cheered for them

It started with bakugo ordering them all to go back to their rooms but it ended with a big sleepover, no wonder Aizawa allowed them alone without a checkup since they technically can't do anything with 4 other students here

With the bags for everything, izuku would need in any complication at arm's length and their small pack huddling around him, scenting and purring, of course, the two alphas protectively stayed near the omega, nibbling on his cheek from time to time to hear his happy chirps

* *

“Izu?” The omega flinched as a rough hand caresses his pale face “Y-yes ei?” Izuku asks, eyebrows furrowing when the two alphas looked at him with concern

“What?” The green hair asked “Your..your answer” kirishima spoke softly “My..huh? Oh! Yeah, I would like some sweet potatoes–”

Bakugo chuckles as he moves one of the izukus curls out of his face “No baby, our question about ochako, do you want her to join our pack?”

TBC

Please follow me on twitter and bye! [Twitter]

[gamingstar26]

Duck AU Ideas and Stuff

just reposting some ideas and shit ive posted on amino. you can suggest ideas for my au if you want. its going to be long so here we go: 

Super Paper Ducktales Roles Help

I need help with some characters roles I haven’t decided on yet here are the ones:

Bowser for the adult heroes ver

Dimentio for the adult minions ver for now it’s Magica but idk if I’ll keep it.

Most of the important side characters

The characters can come from any Disney Duck media not just Ducktales.

(Note: Merlon and Nolrem are counterparts to each other. Same with Fracktail and Wracktail. Bonechill is basically Satan/Lucifer.

Jaydes is basically Hades and Grambi is basically God. Luvbi is the child to Jaydes and Grambi.)

Merlon

Nolrem

Luvbi

Jaydes

Grambi

King Croacus IV

Old Man Watchitt

Fracktail

Wracktail

Flint Cragley

Bonechill

0----------------------------------------------------

Myth AU Ideas Part 1

I’m mixing different canons together for this with dt17 being the base.

Some of The Coots and Ducks have creature forms but it’s a 50% chance overall. (It’s genetics in this case. While with the McDucks it’s a bit of genetics and curses) Here are some of them that have creature forms:

Coots: Elivira Coot (Grandma Duck), Casey Coot, Gus Goose, Don de Pato aka Don Dugo, Cuthbert Coot, etc

(fun fact while doing some looking into Don de Pato, also Don Dugo is his German name. he was originally from the McDucks, but in the LOT3C he was changed to be a Coot ancestor instead. Also the conquistador armor makes more sense now cause he’s actually from Spain. His creature form would most likely be something Spanish but idk yet and with the others idk what there creature forms would be. Also that maybe Panchito and José’s ancestors would also have a form, there’s will also be European for Jose’s ancestor Pascoal Papagaio it would be Portuguese not Brazilian because of the time period same with Panchito’s ancestor Gallus Maximus it would be Spanish not Mexican.)

Ducks: Pintail Duck, Eider Duck, Abner Whitewater Duck, HumperDink Duck, etc

people with creature forms have two different puberty’s the regular puberty and first few transformations. 

In Lena’s redemption arc in the au will be a bit different her creature form changes a bit kinda like the mlp changelings in season 6.

Goldie is a mix between a Sirin and Alicanto from Russian and Chilean myths with a bit of Siren. Alicanto is a gold associated mythical bird and Sirin is a bird woman hybrid.

Those who have creature forms are usually seen as a different group compared to those who don’t have one, you usually can’t tell someone has one unless you see them transform. There sometimes seen as a minority depending on the location.

There’s an really rare case where one person has more than one creature form, it’s usually for those with a personality disorders for example D.I.D. but can also happen without the personality disorders, but it’s extremely rare.

The Legend of Three Caballeros Versions of April, May, and June will be in this au as Daisy’s nieces along side the clones May and June from dt17 canon. Webby is not a clone of Scrooge in this au or any au/ new headcanons I make. but May and June are still clones of Webby. TLoTC April May and June all have creature forms I don’t know what they’ll be yet.

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

Myth AU Duck Family stuff

just to catalog which ones would have a true form and ones that don't, for future reference.

i had to look at a couple of duck family trees for this. and i thought my family tree is complicated. i would add more but this took so long to compile so yeah.

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

McDucks: All of McDucks have creature forms

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

Spouses/Parent/Lover that have one: Downy O' Drake, Daisy Duck, Goldie O' Gilt, Donna Duck, etc

Spouses/Parent/Lover that don't have one: Molly Mallard, Ludwig Von Drake, Goostave Gander, Lulubelle Loon, Luke Goose, Grstchen Grebe, Gertrude Gadwall, etc

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

Father of HDL: Unknown

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

Ducks:

Has a True Form: Pintail Bos’N Duck, Humperdink Dabney Duck, Eider Duck, Abner Whitewater Duck, Donald Fauntleroy Duck, Della Dumbella Thelma Duck, Huebert Huey Duck, Dewford Dewey Deuteronomy Dingus Duck, Llewellyn Louie Duck, April Duck, May Duck, June Duck, Clones May and June Duck, etc

Doesn't have one: Daphne Duck, Quackmore Duck, Fethery Duck, Gladstone Gander, Moby Duck, Dugan Duck, Dickie Duck, Clyde Shamrock Gander Duck, etc

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

Coots:

Has a True Form: Elivira Abigail Coot, Cuthbert Coot, Casey Coot, Don De Pato Dugo, Gus Goose, Kildare Coot, etc

Doesn't have one: Cornelius Coot, Clinton Coot, Fanny Coot, etc

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

Honorary Family:

Have True Form: Webbigail Webby Vanderquack, Bentina Beakley, Launchpad McQuack, Lena DeSpell/Saberwing/LeStrange, Gyro Gearloose, etc

Doesn't have one: Fenton Crackshell Cabrera, Violet Saberwing, Goslayn Mallard, Drake Mallard, Boyd, Panchito Romero Miguel Junipero Francisco Quintero González III, José Carioca, etc

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

All Duck AU’s and OC’s Ideas and shit

Super Paper Ducktales Ideas: im going to try not spoil anything from the game (even tho it’s 15 years old but still) cause I highly recommend you watch a let’s play or play it for yourself to understand what im trying to do. Plus it’s a amazing game.

Since Mimi is Webby (kid minion) and Della (adult minion) they both should have the “true” form like Mimi does In the original game (if you know you know) idk if I’ll stick with the spider aspect of the original or go for something different. The Thing aspect of the original will still be there, it has to be terrifying.

Some scenes change depending on the version of the au. Like for example the love simulator portion of chapter 3-4 will stay both versions with slight differences.

Im thinking Gladstone or Dapper Duck for Bowser in the adult hero version, but Im debating whether or not it’s a good idea.

Some events are completely changed or removed to make it fit more with the duckverse.

Angst potential everywhere. >:) Donald and Louie get tortured to hell and back (literally) just like Luigi does in the original game. (My favs getting lots of trauma is my fav thing to do cause I love em)

Some Super Paper Mario lore (and yes there is more for this, seriously look it up) will stay the same like pixels origins for example, while others will change to be more close to the duckverse like the origin of the prophecies. Etc.

——————————————______

Mythology AU:

I’m adding aspects of the legend of the three caballeros, cause I love that show and the mythology parts of the show fit perfectly with what my au is about in a way. And aspects of other duckverse canon.

The forms for Jose and Panchito’s ancestors are based on forms from Portugal and Spain or Rome, due to the most possible time period which is the 16th century, during that time Portugal and Spain conquered Brazil and Mexico. Theirs come from curses (this is the reason why Jose and Panchito don’t have creature forms because it never passed on to their families. Maybe some family members would have one but it’s rare.) not blood like Don de Pato, who passed it on to some members of the coot kin. Their forms are: El Coco, El Cuco, etc from Spanish and Portuguese folklore for Gallus Maximus (Panchito’s ancestor) and for Pascoal Papagaio (Jose’s ancestor) Besta-Fera a Portuguese centaur.

The Shellgoose family could have creature forms as well that comes from a curse from passed on through the generations. It could skip generations. (There’s also a the possibility that Gladstone could be part shellgoose as well which honestly is a really interesting theory)

Xandra has some knowledge on the possible origins of why the mythicals exist.

People who have creature/true forms are called mythicals

April, May, and June (not the clones) have creature forms, but there’s will be different from each other. But I’m still thinking of what it will be.

————-________——————-

Zelda AU:

Like the Super Paper Ducktales au some things will change others will be removed or added to fit with the duckverse.

The only ones I’ve thought of so far are the Twilight Princess and Ocarina of Time/Majora’s Mask eras. And some characters roles.

Lena is link in twilight princess era and can transform into a shadow wolf.

——————————————

UnderDuck AU:

Humans exist in this au just like in Undertale.

———————————————-

Lost Limbs AU:

Almost everything that happens in Ducktales 17 canon is the same in this au, except for Donald losing his limbs.

Donald feels very insecure about the fact that he lost his limbs. Unlike Della who is more confident about it.

———————————————

Vacuum:

Vacuum’s nickname is Vac or Victor

He’s really good at making crochets

———————————————________________

Xena:

Xena has committed murder before, but it was accidental, and sense then has become deathly afraid of losing control of herself again.

—————————__________

That’s all I have for now

[stxleslyds]

ive also stopped reading nightwing issues bc of all the same reasons uve posted lol.

u know those recommendation lists like "if you read book X, you might like Y" ? do u have any similar recommendations for fans of nightwing who are just tired of his recent runs? can be fanfic, old issues/ runs, other fandoms!

Hey there! How have you been doing?

It sucks that you have also stopped reading Nightwing, I think that the fact that many people have stopped investing their time in that run is very telling of both Tom Taylor’s writing and DC’s approach to Dick and Barbara as individual characters.

I hope better times (and comics) come our way!

As for recommendations, I have some in mind right now, I will list them down below!

Other Dick Grayson/Nightwing books I enjoy:

Future State: Nightwing

This book was pure bliss, two issues of competent Dick Grayson, leader of the resistance and the great comeback of his mechanic tendencies!

Outsiders vol.3

Dick is flawed, he is a shell of the person he used to be and is going through an immense rough time. This book shows us just how much the nickname “golden boy” doesn’t work for him at times. Dick is deep down still Dick but he also acts like a dick. Judd Winick makes him bearable thanks to the team by his side but most importantly thanks to Roy Harper who makes the perfect companion for Dick.

Nightwing vol.3 (New 52)

Alright, I know, New 52 was shit for the most part but I truly believe that Kyle Higgins did an amazing job with what he was given. His Dick/Nightwing was very sad and lonely but he was a beast, he was competent, an excellent fighter and extremely resilient when confronted with terrible upon terrible situations. To me this is a wonderful run if you pull it away from the whole New 52 narrative.

Batman: Gates of Gotham

They really popped off when DC gave us this beauty with Dick!Bats. The art and story are really worth anyone’s time. It is story heavy but it really gives us a look on what Dick was able to do as Batman even without his Robin. Detective heavy stuff.

Batman: Prelude to the Wedding: Nightwing vs. Hush

Now, this issue might have the advantage of Travis Moore’s ridiculously gorgeous art but the story is quite good too. We get a look at just how important Dick is, was and will be to Bruce and we also get some “unreliable narrator” vibes from Dick. If it was intended or not, I don’t know, but I can still appreciate it.

Nightwing: Old Friends, New Enemies.

Well, this one is on the list because it has the recompilation of “Cheshire’s Contact”. Those amazing issues in which Roy Harper trusts Dick only with getting his daughter back. Very enjoyable and a story that I would love to see made canon again.

Batman: Prodigal.

That’s a solid book, it is a good book to read if you want to see a bit of how Dick did in his first time as Batman and that time with Tim by his side. Not only are we offered Dick!Bats but we also get to see a more “domestic” side of him. Alfred left the Manor with Bruce so all the chores have to be done by Dick and it is always a good reminder for people who are convinced that Dick is a “human disaster” and cannot attend his own needs.

Nightwing vol.2 (#140 to #153)

Tomasi’s turn on that roller-coaster of a book was a good way to end it. He pushed Dick/Nightwing’s status up in every single way. Dick was a protector, leader, detective and so much more. His skillset and will to be (and become) better were always there. If you are looking for some BAMF Dick Grayson this is the place.

Other books that don’t have Dick Grayson:

Yeah, I can offer you some marvel… don’t know if that’s your cup of tea but check then out if you feel like it.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2020) #6

You could read the entire run (it is complete), it is honestly amazing. It is a team book so you won’t find many of the issues to be related to a single character. However, #6 offers an in depth look at Richard Rider (Nova). Richard is a leader, a team player and an excellent hero, but just like Dick he tends to put a lot over his shoulders and take the blame for things that maybe he shouldn’t. This issue is all about him and how he deals (or not) with his demons and everything else in his life.

Black Widow (2020)

This (ongoing) book is a masterpiece, Kelly Thompson is someone that sometimes misses me with her takes but ever since she took a hold of Nat, she has only made her more badass and interesting. This is an assassin heavy book, yes. But the villains and storytelling would really please some Nightwing readers. Dick and Nat don’t have much in common but I am sure that this book will be someone’s favourite either way.

Spider-Gwen/Ghost-Spider/Gwenom

This is me pushing Gwen Stacy as much as I can when I am given the chance. This book might not seem like it will match your average Nightwing connoisseur but there three separate books of Gwen’s life kinda give us the perspective of someone who might be like you and me and got powers. Gwen grows into the hero life and herself. The Spider-Gwen runs might be a bit too teenage heavy but it takes a turn once Ghost-Spider comes into place. Gwen is faced with more responsibilities, moving away from home (a whole ass different dimension) and then… Knull, 2021’s biggest Marvel Comics baddie. She is extremely fun and a bit too forward at times, it can certainly be a hit or miss but I would say that she is worth the try!

Dick Grayson Fics: I have to be sneaky; I will link here two asks in which I was asked about Jason Todd fics and I ended up recommending Dick fics that have Jason in them or “Dick and Jason are/were friends” because those fics make me weak and I just can’t help myself.

I will link the first one here! and the last one that I made here!

I hope you enjoy some (or all) these recommendations. I tried my best to remember some of my favourite Nightwing books, I got my notes back at home so I might be missing some. Maybe @hood-ex can help you out and rec amazing Dick/Nightwing books, she is my favourite Dick Grayson connoisseur!

Thank you for the ask, hope you have a lovely week!

[css1992]

Guilty Pleasure

[Porn AU]

Summary: Peter and Beck used to be a power couple in the porn industry, but after Beck dumps him, Peter is forced to start over. With no money, no family and nowhere to go, he doesn’t have much choice other than to keep doing porn, so he joins Just4Fans to get back on his feet and then one day he gets a very generous tip from someone under the username of YKWIM.

Warnings: 18+, explicit, references to past non-con/rape (not between main pairing, not explicit), daddy kink, Peter in lingerie, references to gaslighting and abusive relationship (not between main pairing, not explicit). The warnings are for the story as whole, not for this chapter specifically. I’ll add more in the future, if needed.

Read on AO3

Part I / Part II / Part III / Part IV / Part V / Part VI / Part VII / Part VIII / Part IX / Part X /  Part XI / Epilogue

-x-

“He can’t do this!” Ned slammed his hands down on the counter between them, as Peter took a swig of the cheap wine he bought with the last ten bucks he had in his wallet. “He isn’t even in all of the videos, at least half of the money is rightfully yours!” He kept going, stating the obvious, but Peter just sighed and shrugged.

“I’m not disagreeing with you, Ned, I’m just relaying what he told me: he’s not gonna give me anything. It’s his channel, his equipment, the money from the subscriptions goes straight to his bank account, so it’s his. It’s all his. His words, by the way.” He took another swig of wine straight from the bottle. He had been drinking from a small glass Ned offered him – he wasn’t a pirate – but it soon proved to be too small to quench his pain, so. Yeah. Pirate style it was.

“You have to sue his ass, Peter, he can’t get away with this,” MJ intervened. She was sitting next to him on a stool by the kitchen counter, so he turned to look at her with a deep frown on his face.

“Did you not hear me saying I just spent my last ten dollars on this bottle of wine? I have, like, twenty four cents left in my pocket. And that’s it. I can’t hire a lawyer, I can’t even feed myself right now!” He raised his voice a little, but quickly got himself back under control and apologized. His friends were not to blame for his predicament – they did try to warn him Beck was bad news, he didn’t want to listen. “And you know what? I don’t give a fuck. He can choke on all of it if he wants, the videos, the money, the subscribers, I don’t fucking care.” It wasn’t true, of course. Well, partially. He really didn’t care about the money, videos, subscribers, etc, but he cared about Beck. He would have given everything else up if it meant he could keep him.

Which was stupid of him, of course. But he certainly wasn’t winning any awards for being a great decision maker.

“It’s still not fair. I mean, I knew that guy was sleazy, but you’d think he’d have the decency to at least give you something, you know? You’ve been together for three years, he’s been making money off your ass for almost as long. How could he just fucking kick you out and not give you a single dime? After all the money you’ve made for him? It’s fucking sick, that guy is fucking psychopath if you ask me.” MJ’s face was turning red from anger, which made Peter smile a little. It felt good to know he was loved by someone, even if he hadn’t been the best friend to them for the past few years.

The thought made him close his eyes for a second, guilt creeping over him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d called either of them – maybe on Ned’s birthday, almost two months earlier. They used to be inseparable, the three of them; the three musketeers, as corny and lame as it sounded. For years, those two were the only family he knew, but when Beck came into his life, everything changed.

Stupid fucking Beck.

Peter used to think of him as his own personal super-hero – it did feel like he had come to save him, after all. They met when he was seventeen, he had been living in foster homes for almost seven years by then, after Ben and May passed away. At the time, he was with his fifth family, and there were so many children in that house, so many of them came and went, that their foster parents didn’t really keep tabs most of the time. It was easy to sneak out, and Peter did, often.

He met Beck on one of his night walks – and their first meeting should have raised all kinds of red flags, but for whatever reason, it didn’t. Beck slowed the car next to him, rolled down the window and asked how much Peter charged for a blowjob. Just like that. The teen gasped at first, but when he looked around for a moment, he realized he wasn’t in the most family friendly neighborhood. There were, in fact, some men and women around him who definitely looked like they were there for that, but Peter was in sweats, for crying out loud, and he definitely looked his age – or even younger than that.

His wide eyes must have given him away, because the older man quickly apologized and showed him a charming, white smile. He made up some excuse about mistaking him for someone else and the boy said it was ok. He was going to keep walking when Beck asked what his name was. Then how old he was. Then where he was going, where he ha come from.

Looking back, Peter knew he should have run. He should have left, because there was no excuse for an adult man like him to keep asking a teenager so many questions right after he basically offered him money to suck his dick. But that Peter, that 17-year-old boy, was still a bit too naive. To have such a handsome man showing interest in him – his kind, blue eyes smiling at him, warm and safe – was inebriating. He actually looked at him. And cared. At least Peter thought he did at the time. And he was so lonely back then, even that little bit of attention meant the world to him.

He should have run, but he stayed. Should have run, but got in his car. Should have run, but ended up giving him a clumsy hand job in the backseat, after just a few sweet promises whispered in his eager ears. Beck was so good with words, he could have convinced Peter to jump off a bridge that very same night if he wanted.  

They exchanged phone numbers. For weeks, they texted and called each other, until they could  meet again. By then, he was smitten. At twenty, he could see how innocent he had been, how trusting and open he was with a complete stranger. A 32 year-old stranger, at that. Ned and MJ, his only friends from school, warned him that it wasn’t okay. That it was weird for a man his age to be interested in a teenage boy, but Peter said they were wrong. He said he wasn’t just a regular kid, he had been through stuff they could only imagine. He was mature and experienced, and Beck could see that, which was why he liked him.

Looking back now, it was embarrassing how wrong he was. Beck was an illusionist. Sad thing was everyone could see the trapdoor but him.

“So what are you gonna do now?” MJ asked, fishing another bottle of wine from under the counter and placing it in front of Peter, who almost cried in gratitude.

“You mean besides crying myself to sleep for the next few months?” He wasn’t really joking. The only reason he wasn’t crying right at that moment was because he had spent almost three hours bawling his eyes out on a park bench close to their – well, Beck’s – apartment, hoping against hope that Beck would reconsider and come after him. When it became clear it wasn’t going to happen, he headed to the only place he knew he could find refuge – even if he didn’t deserve it.

“Yeah, besides that, obviously.” She opened the wine bottle and before he could take it and drink straight from it, she poured three glasses and Peter sighed, defeated.

“I have no idea.” He answered, only slightly surprised that he actually meant it. He had absolutely no clue what to do. For three years, he hadn’t had to worry about money – or anything, really. Beck took care of everything and he just assumed it would always be like that. That he would always have him by his side to take care of him.

He rubbed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

“Are you going to keep doing porn?” Ned asked, a worried expression on his face. Peter remembered he hated the idea when Beck first suggested it, as soon as he turned eighteen.

People are gonna lose it, Beck said. A pretty little twink and a hot daddy? We’re going to be a hit.

And they were. Their first videos blew up quickly, people were either disgusted by the thought of them together – because of the age gap – or completely enthralled. The haters helped them get more views, and Peter soon learned that there really was no such thing as bad publicity. Beck promoted their videos on twitter, where they accumulated thousands of followers. Peter remembered that, back then, many people sent him worried messages, saying he was too young, that Beck was a predator, that he was taking advantage of him.

In retrospect, they might have been right, after all.

He wasn’t too sure about doing porn when they first started, he knew once they released the first video, there was no going back, there was no way they could ever take it down – the internet was forever. Nothing was ever truly deleted. He wanted to be a dad someday, what if his children ever saw those videos in the future? What would have Ben and May thought? What about his parents?

None of this matters, honey, Beck assured him. These kids don’t even exist yet, don’t worry about them. And your relatives, well… They’re gone, sweetie. You can’t really disappoint them anymore.

So Peter did it. And he was terrified at first, he felt so exposed, people all over the world could see him in his most vulnerable moments, all of him, in every position Beck managed to put him in, in any outfit he thought the public might like, in any setting he thought might bring in more viewers, more subscribers, more money.

Soon, just the two of them weren’t enough. Their viewers wanted to see Peter with other people – other daddies –  and Beck saw another opportunity to increase his profit. Peter was strongly against the idea at first, it felt too much like prostitution, which was where he wanted to draw the line, but, again, Beck sweet-talked him into it.

It’s nothing like prostitution, honey, he said. I’ll be there the whole time, I’ll be the one filming and directing, I’ll be the one paying the other actors, all the profits are ours. How is that anything like prostitution? It’s just like what we’ve been doing so far.

So not only there were a bunch of videos of him and Beck out there in the world, there were also lots of videos of him with other men, some of whom were old enough to be his actual dad. There was even one video in particular that he was specially embarrassed by – and sadly enough, that was the most viewed one so far. It was fucking humiliating.

At some point, Peter should have realized it became all about money for Beck – and maybe it had been like that all along, he just hadn’t noticed before. Over the last few months of their relationship, they never had sex just for fun, just for the hell of it. There were always cameras, and lights, and roles to play. Beck never said he loved him anymore. Barely touched him. Barely kissed him. He should have seen it coming. He had been too blind, or just… Didn’t want to see what was happening right before his eyes. He ignored all the signs. The voice in the back of his head telling him something was off.

But anyway, porn. Could he still do it?

“I don’t know,” he answered, finally. He looked at his best friends and sighed with a shrug. “To be honest, it was never something I enjoyed, and I don’t know if I could ever do it without him somehow involved, you know? I did it with him because I felt… Safe? I don’t want to get involved in the actual porn industry, I’ve heard some pretty fucked up stories.” Peter had heard horror stories about other boys in the industry, and even though his own story was no fairy tale, there was nothing so bad that it couldn’t get worse.

“How about Just4Fans?” MJ asked and both Peter and Ned turned to look at her in shock. “What? You guys were pretty popular, right? You won awards and shit, so there must be at least a few hundred people out there who would pay money to see some dirty pictures of you, maybe some short videos. That way you won’t need to go into professional porn and you wouldn’t need a partner, but you could still make decent money. And fast.”

Well, it actually made sense. It wasn’t like there weren’t hundreds of videos of him being fucked raw all over the internet, anyway. A few dirty pictures couldn’t hurt. And besides, it didn’t need to be forever, just until he figured something out.

“That’s… actually not a bad idea,” he conceded, drinking the last of the wine in his glass. MJ sympathetically filled it up again and he mumbled his thanks.

“What do you think he will do now?” Ned asked carefully, and Peter shrugged for what felt like the hundredth time. There was so much he didn’t know.

“Probably keep shooting videos with his new boy-toy.” He managed to say it with a steady voice, but his eyes burned. He still couldn’t believe how… replaceable Beck thought he was.

When he noticed them interacting online a few months earlier, before the boy was even eighteen, Peter was alarmed, but when he confronted the older man about it, he said he was crazy and seeing things, picking up fights for no reason. He always twisted things in a way that, somehow, Peter was the one apologizing to him in the end.

Months later, just weeks after the kid turned eighteen, there he was – homeless, penniless and lost – meanwhile the other guy was probably getting comfortable in his bed. If Peter didn’t hate the kid, he would pity him. In a few years, he would probably meet the same fate.

“Do you think he would take the videos down if you asked?” Ned asked, and Peter scoffed.

“Yeah, right, those videos will still make him a lot of money monthly, he’d never delete them.” And Peter would have to live with the fact that he would always be just one google search away from complete humiliation and exposure. If he ever tried to get a serious job, those videos would stand in the way. If he ever managed to meet somebody decent and good, those videos would be a testament to what sort of person he was in the past. Fuck, some of them were really fucked up.

“So… Should we create fake twitter accounts to trash talk his short dick or what?” MJ was already grabbing her phone and Peter laughed halfheartedly, shaking his head.

“He’s not worth it. Karma will take care of him, I’m sure.” He drank the last of his wine and whimpered sadly. “So… Can I crash with you guys for a few days? I promise I’m not gonna overstay my welcome! I’ll be out of your hair as soon as the Just4Fans thing works out.”

“Of course you can, nerd, stay as long as you need. We’ve got your back, c’mon.” MJ got up from her stool and gestured for him to do the same. “Do you mind taking the couch?” She asked as she headed to her bedroom in the tiny apartment.

“Not at all,” he answered with a sigh of relief, then went to grab his suitcase by the door. Three years together and that was all he had to show for it. A single suitcase with a few changes of clothes, after being kicked out of the house on a cold February night. His eyes burned but he took a deep breath, blinking them rapidly to avoid the tears.  

“Then make yourself at home. Our casa es su casa.” MJ placed a pillow on the couch and handed him a thick, warm blanket.

“We’ll figure something out, okay?” Ned clasped him on the shoulder with a gentle smile on his face.

“Okay.” He sighed, feeling like a weight had been lifted off his crushed chest.

He waited for his friends to go into their respective rooms, waited to hear their quiet snores, before he allowed the tears to run freely down his face, replaying everything Beck said to him when he kicked him out.

Before he knew it, he was a sobbing a little, so he buried his face in the pillow to muffle the noise, as he tried to convince himself that things were going to be okay, that he was going to be okay. But at that moment, that was hard to believe.

[aerltarg]

Maybe this is a stupid question, buuuuut:

I just can't imagine a world that Rhaegar comes back from the Trident, wins the war and becomes king. No, I'm not a anti Rhaegar, matter of fact I like him very much, I'm just can imagine how would Lya, little Jon, this whole affair, would settle in the capital. The norm that fics (at least those I read) tend to follow is to make Rhaegar:

1. A douche, paranoid and destiny-obessed king.

2. Completely incompetent, aloof monarch, that deep down has a heart of gold, but can't really be understood.

I mean, isn't he supposed to be a scholar since he was a kid? What's are your thoughts about it?

oh, yeah, i can totally understand this! it's is the whole point in canon actually, "the wrong man came back from the trident". you would expect a hero win against his antagonist and have a happy ending w his lady love but it doesn't happen. instead the subversion happens to them with rhaegar being killed by robert who becomes obviously a shitty king and lyanna dying after him. they were never supposed to have happy ending, they were created as tragic and doomed and dead from the beginning for the whole plot to start, jon to have his parentage mystery and dany to take the passed baton as the last dragon, prophesied savoir and the heir who has to carry entire house on her back now.

as for the realistic rhaegar wins aus that's the difficult question. tbh we just don't know enough abt their situation, plans and wishes. you see, e.g. in agot we can be right in ned's head and see his motivations, what he was thinking abt, what he was planning, what he was hoping to do. but if his story was told the way rhaegar's was i bet he would have his own crowd of haters and ~intellectuals~ jumping out every two seconds w their "hot takes" how actually all hints abt what rlly happened (ned being a good man w his own sense of honour, justice and experiences affecting him and the deal w cersei's children) doesn't matter and he was an ambitious prick, planned to grasp the power by being joffrey's regent and make his daughter sansa queen. (you can actually insert there any bullshit and still don't reach the level of stupidity of such "hot takes" this fandom loves so much lmao). also he would be blamed to the hell and beyond for being too stupid and not foreseeing the future and actions of other ppl bc ofc after everything happened it's so easy to say what was so obvious to notice. also they would say that the deaths of his men and horrible fates of his kids are 100% his fault and even straight up say he killed them lmao. i can rant abt it for hours so yeah. this is a situation w too many unknown variables bc it depends too much on actions of too many characters we don't know enough abt. the only thing it's possible to tell for sure is the fact that there couldn't be any perfect solutions since things got too complicated at this point.

such fics as you've mentioned tho are just a part of this dumb fanon where rhaegar is "too prophecy obsessed"/"incapable of love"/shrodinger's rhaegar both smart and stupid at the same time/whatever/all of this combined lmfao. the man was notably intelligent from the early age as you've absolutely rightly mentioned, his guesses abt himself being tptwp have nothing to do w egocentrism as some parts of the fandom would want us all to believe unless he wouldn't be so reasonable abt it and later on, after so many years, wouldn't have changed his mind and thought his son could be tptwp.

and literally fuck all antis that think you shouldn't consider prophecies that hold real power in this fantasy world lol. you know, aegon the conqueror was said to be motivated (or at least partly) to unify westeros by the prophecy and still got the treatment of perfect/maximum close to perfect figure of a leader everyone should look up to from the narrative and grrm. prophecy obsessed much, huh? i don't even talk abt all these parallels between him and rhaegar grrm put there not for bitches to ignore them completely! and i will never get tired of reminding that dismissing prophecies is UNWISE for targaryens of all people. the house whose story is built on the dream of young daenys and her father aenar that listened to her despite common sense (or what local "anti magic"/"anti prophecies" clowns consider to be common sense). targs would be as dead as the rest of dragonlords if not for daenys the dreamer. who else in the world has as many reasons to take prophecies seriously as them?

yet antis out there act as if rhaegar is one dimensional weirdo whose every character trait is abt mf ~prophecy obsession~. like how can they miss one of the main points so badly?? the game of thrones distracts ppl from the real danger beyond the wall, yk, the one rhaegar was aware of and meant to deal with. there wouldn't be such a problem if he became king and had as many years of head start before ice zombies apocalypse as ignorant bobby b did. rhaegar had to die just for westeros to sink in shit and our main heroes to save everyone to make this story more epic LMAO

so yeah, too many ppl portray rhaegar as this one dimensional robotic creature without any knowledge of what feelings are idk even for what reason. it seems these ppl can't read for real bc rhaegar was not only intelligent af as well as dutiful ("it seems i must be a warrior" but "he loved his harp more than his lance") but also. ugh emotional?? my boy had constant emo sessions w brooding at ruins of summerhall, sleeping out there beneath the stars all alone and writing songs that made all women cry. does it sound as someone who "isn't capable of love" lol? folks act as if he was completely heartless from the day he was born (bc he didnt play w other kids ig??) but in reality their emotional range is less than the one of a spoon in comparison to rhaegar's lol. i'm not even gonna address the horrible attitude of demonizing him for his implied depression, vile clowns never listen to themselves when they talk abt targaryens and their "madness".

tldr; these fics are mostly lame af and suck at characterization if they're making rhaegar like that lol. anyway his character isn't abt being a good or a bad king, it's abt being a would-be-king for characters in books and readers in reality to sigh over his tragic aura and pretty aesthetic abt how it could've been. however, grrm clearly doesn't write rhaegar as evil or incapable as some parts of the fandom would want to try to persuade others. realistically speaking in the scenario where he wins there couldn't be any perfect decisions but it's a territory of speculations on thin air and lit nothing more since canon doesn't provide us with enough information to rlly theorize anything instead of building biased headcanons some ppl call "analysis".

but remember what barristan said about rhaegar while practically watching him all his life, from a literal baby to the man grown:

“I know little of Rhaegar. Only the tales Viserys told, and he was a little boy when our brother died. What was he truly like?”

The old man considered a moment. “Able. That above all. Determined, deliberate, dutiful, single-minded.” (ASOS, Daenerys I)

“Prince Rhaegar’s prowess was unquestioned, but he seldom entered the lists. He never loved the song of swords the way that Robert did, or Jaime Lannister. It was something he had to do, a task the world had set him. He did it well, for he did everything well. That was his nature. But he took no joy in it. Men said that he loved his harp much better than his lance.” (ASOS, Daenerys IV)

[butteraway]

when time runs out | ii

⋆ summary:  A young girl has fallen deeply ill with an unknown disease in her, so with all her free time spent in an empty hospital room, she spends it online playing video games. That's until she meets her cousins friends, one spiking her interest with his extremely vulgare language.

pairing: bakugou katsuki x reader

word count: 2.1k

warnings: small mentions of suicide (I’ll put a star ‘⋆’ on top and below the paragraph so you can skip over it if your uncomfortable, you won’t miss anything too important so dont worry!)

"Bro, honestly I still can't believe that you of all people made it into the elite, number one hero school in the country."

"Waahh, I'm telling you! I'm the real deal Y/N!"

"So, how's your summer been? School's gonna be starting soon, are you excited?" Denki could only smile and sigh as his character was finally killed off.

Said girl chuckled as she heard Denki's voice rise through her headphones as they continued killing zombies in front of them. She grimaced as a zombie attacked her from behind her character. Geez, I never get a break in this game.

"Well, to be honest, nothing big really happened besides me getting my acceptance letter from U.A. Just me training and hanging with the fam." He laid back in the comfort of his bed, headphones still on in order to hear his cousin.

"Aah, already training, hero boy? That's why you haven't been visiting me lately." Y/N pouted and crossed her arms as her TV screen turned black, returning her to the main page of the game.

"Man, we suck at this game!" Denki laughed out loud as he saw how long they lasted in the last round. Y/N smiled and let out a small giggle of her own as she placed down her controller.

"Yeah, how long have we had this game for? It still feels like it's our first time playing this." Denki cracked a smile, even though Y/N couldn't see him.

"Hey, sorry for not being able to come to the hospital. Getting ready for U.A. is no joke, haha." Denki rubbed the nape of his neck, eyebrows scrunching up with regret. 

"Nah nah, it's fine! I understand that you have things to do. You have big plans for the future." Y/N brushed a strand of her hair away from her face, looking down at the needles that were plunged into her arms. Her eyes were clouded with an emotion she often felt when talking with Denki. She always felt guilty whenever the feeling came around.

"Must be nice to be able to achieve your dreams." Jealousy. She hated the feeling she got every now and then, but you couldn't really blame her. She lost everything in only a couple of months. Silence passed between the two teenagers, Y/N finally realizing what she said.

"Uh s-sorry about that! I didn't mean to say that alou-" Y/N was cut off by Denki's soft voice.

"Y/N, it's... okay to feel like that. I don't understand what you have been going through, but I know that you shouldn't bring yourself down for something you can't control. You're such an amazing person and to be honest. . ." Denki paused as Y/N's eyes began to glaze over.

"I'm doing this for me and you. You always encouraged me to take any opportunity by, as you like to say, the neck. I-I wanna make you proud, y'know? I wanna make it feel like you're a part of this crazy world, even if you're not really here, walking with me through it all."

Y/N’s lips wobbled as she let out a watery laugh. She hunched over, small tears falling down her face. To someone else, this would've boosted their ego, but to Y/N, those words meant the world to her. No one had ever said that to her before. She felt like she had a purpose in this wretched life of hers. She sniffles were heard by Denki

"H-hey! It's okay, p-please don't cry!" Y/N heard shuffling coming from Denki as he reassured her to not cry.

"I mean it. I only wish you could be there though, it would be so much cooler!" Denki smiled, trying to lighten up the mood. Y/N's sniffles slowly quieted down as she let out a soft laugh that made his heart swell with joy. At least he can make her laugh.

"I'm s-sorry, but no one has ever told me t-that." Small hiccups came from the girl as she calmed down, taking deep breaths to slow her heart rate. Won't want doctors to come rushing in just to see her crying over something so small.

⋆

"I-I'm just really happy you said that." Denki's heart clenched at those words, his chin trembling every now and then. He knew that Y/N wasn't happy with where she was. She had even admitted that she had urges to rip out the needles and slowly lose her life from there. Denki spent the rest of that night talking to her after. To say he was concerned was an understatement. He was terrified when she told him.

⋆

"I think us being able to play games together is already enough!" They both laughed and talked for a couple of minutes before deciding to to hang up. 

"Y/N, I mean it when I say I want you to be happy, okay? I hope you feel better tomorrow. Buh-bye!" Y/N said her goodbye to Denki, hanging up and closing the laptop that sat on a movable table. 

Her smile slowly left her face, leaving her staring blankly at the pure white wall and mirror in front of her. When visitors were gone, her window would turn to a mirror so no one would disturb her. Y/N took a good look at herself and only sighed. Despite being as healthy as she could get, she looked a bit on the thin side, this complimenting her skin. Running a hand through her hair, she untangled the little knots that had formed there.

"Geez, what happened to you girl? You look like a zombie." Y/N looked at the zombie game and cringed.

"Literally."  Just then the door to her room opened and shut quickly, the air filter turning on when a female doctor entered. Y/N watched her carefully as she checked the IV that connected to her arm. The protective suit never made Y/N feel better about her condition.

"Are you alright, Ms. L/N?" The light, stern voice rang through her ears as she looked at the woman in front of her. Y/N gave the doctor a grin.

"Never been better."

It had been an hour since the doctors had turned the lights off, but Y/N didn't feel the slightest bit of exhaustion. She had been sitting in the pitch black room for the time being and was really debating on turning on the TV.

"Ahh, fudge it." Instinctively reaching out for the remote, she turned on the TV and winced as the bright light hit her.

Looking back to the screen, she chose the option of going online and waited for other players to join. While waiting, a new character popped up next to her and she could only smirk at their username. Tapping on her mic, she decided to make conversation with them to see if they also had a mic.

"Now, what to play. What to play..." Y/N had settled for playing OverWatch since she didn't feel like playing any story type games. No cliffhangers tonight, Y/N thought. As the game loaded, she laid back and began thinking about cheesecake. When was the last I ate strawberry cheesecake? Great, now I want some. Thinking about eating cheesecake made her excited about the next day.

"Well hello, dear ol' '​​​​​King Explosion Murder_1.' Nice name you got there." Y/N chuckled as she said the name out loud, seeing another player enter.

"Hello 'Tape Dispenser?' What's with the wack name?" The girl’s eyes crinkled as she smiled at their name, hearing the user chuckle through her headphones. '​​​​​​King Explosion Murder' still had yet to reply, but that didn't bother her. They're either using the bathroom or don't have a mic. 

"The name was inspired by my quirk. But what's up with '_DeathGirl_', huh? You good?"  Y/N could only laugh at what he said. She should really send him a friend request.

"I’m honestly great, a little tired, but great! I just gotta make up a name, y'know? But your quirk has to do with tape? I don't know if that's wicked or useless." The boy laughed while Y/N laughed as well, losing her grip on her controller. That was until a gruff voice interrupted their laughing session.

"Shut the fuck up, your annoying ass voices are giving me a damn headache." Finally, after being silent, 'King Explosion Murder_1' spoke up.

"Aah, so you do talk. I don't know why you didn't say anything sooner Mr. Explosion Murder." The other player could only sneer at what she said, hitting his desk with his fist. Another player had joined, Y/N only noticing.

"Ah, hello 'Sleep Deprived Controller!'" Said player made their character wave, making Y/N chuckle. While they had their interaction, 'King Explosion Murder' was shouting at her, now realizing that she wasn't paying attention to what he was saying.

"Hey! Listen to me when I'm fucking talking to you, emo bitch!" Y/N’s eyes widened, soon rolling her eyes, watching the game load as they were placed into a match. What's his damn problem?

"Hey man, no need to go calling people names now." 'Tape Dispenser' nervously chuckled as he heard the other player growl. Y/N sported a shocked face as she heard this. What is he, a dog??? 

"Outta this conversation, extra!" Tape dude could only deadpan at what he was just called. Who calls people extras?? I’m not an extra, in fact I think I’m- 'Sleep Deprived Controller' listened with an annoyed expression on their face, wishing they could shut their shouting teammate up. Damn, wish I actually had a mic.

The game began as all the players separated, going their own way to kill their enemies. Everyone was in the zone, getting items and yelping every now and then if they were attacked. The first to go down was 'Tape Dispenser', then 'Sleep Deprived Controller', leaving both Y/N and 'King Explosion Murder' left on their team. Y/N smirked at their winning team, only one player was left on the other team. Just as the game was going to end, the opposing player shot down 'Explosion Murder', killing him.

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUU-" His mic cut off, causing the two players with mics in a cackling mess. Y/N calmed down, remembering she was still playing, trying to hunt down the last player. Finally, after many curses by a certain player and cheering from another, she located her enemy. 

"You better fucking win this or I'll kill you." Knowing he didn't mean that last part, she only focused on the first part. You better win this. Those words echoed through her head as she stopped aiming for the player. She hated being told what to do.

"Ah, so you're one of those people." Not knowing what she meant, they only watched with wide eyes at what she did. Y/N jumped down next to the enemy, shooting them twice with her weakest gun, signaling them that she was there. Quickly, the other player shot her character down, killing her. They lost the game.

"THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR?! WE COULD'VE FUCKING WON!" Explosion Murder wasn't taking defeat easily like the other two were. Y/N could only give a grunt of disapproval towards the loud player.

"Ha, why did you just give up right there? You could've easily killed him." Tape Dispenser was just as confused as the other two players, slightly disappointed at the loss. Y/N sighed as she rubbed her forehead.

"Sorry not sorry, but this dude really thought he could get away with telling me what to do. I'll make my move when I'm ready, sorry to disappoint you guys." She sighed as she rubbed her neck, ready to hear the disapprovals of her teammate. But what she heard and saw made her smile.

"Nah, it's fine. It can get a tiny bit annoying with Murder yelling in your ear." Tape Dispenser reassured her, with Sleep Deprived's character giving her a thumbs up. Though, the annoyed sigh caught her attention back to him. Her eyebrow twitched. What is it now?

"I'm done with this fucking sappy shit scene. I'm out." Those were Murder's last words before he disconnected, leaving them in an awkward silence before Y/N stifled a giggle.

"I have a feeling that won't be the last time I'm seeing him." Tape Dispenser chuckled while Sleep Deprived's character shook their head, making Y/N softly laugh. After sending friend requests to both people, she bid them both fair well and left.

Y/N turned off her console and tv, putting the controllers on the table near her. She laid down in the comfort of her bed, thinking about her interactions with the people she met. She smiled, closing her eyes and drifting into a dreamless slumber with only one thought in mind. 

King Explosion Murder is such a weird name.

[animebw]

Honestly Brook is a little socially off. Unlike Sanji who's is kinda women-obssessed,Brook tends to mostly say it cause he has less social graces then Luffy and seems to use it to break the ice.

Now out of universe it's a stupid joke that should die, and to be fair Brook does lessen it in the future.

Re-reading One Piece along side you is a trip, especially when comparing your analysis to mine.

Ive come to realize I'm far more jaded when it comes to anime humor, so much so that I just except it as part of the medium. So much so I mostly just focus on the jokes that are more creative, and the other apsscts

You actively hold it to a higher standard while still treating the story as slightly separate from the comedy. You want the comedy to be better, not resorting to cheap jokes. This is also true for all the aspects of the anime/manga, whether it's the art or the pacing

I guess that's why your the Anime Binge Watcher. Still fun to compare and contrast how I enjoy the medium, verses how you do.

I definitely have higher-than-normal standards for anime, yeah. But that's only because I've seen just how damn amazing this medium can be at its best. Gintama, Sangatsu, Evangelion, FMAB, Angel Beats, Yorimoi, Literally Everything KyoAni Has Ever Done... when anime creatives put their all into making anime the best that it can be, nothing even comes close. These stories are proof that you don't need to fall back on cliche. You don't need to settle for the laziest possible jokes. You don't need to include the worst of anime in order to make something worthwhile. It's possible to make a masterpiece without a single pervert character, or groping gag, or anything else in that general ballpark.

And yes, even some of those shows I mentioned have moments like that, and I consider those flaws just as much as I consider them in One Piece. But no one thinks FMAB is the peak of anime because of that one accidental pervert scene in episode 46. Nobody holds up Gintama as GOAT because of the running gag where Gintoki accidentally gropes Tsukuyo. K-On is not considered a beloved masterpiece because of season 1's Sawako Dress-Up jokes. In fact, I can't think of any anime or manga that are beloved because of these elements, and not in spite of them (aside from ecchi, where the fanservice is the whole point anyway). Like, would My Hero Academia have been any less successful if Mineta never existed? Has his inclusion ever been anything but a barrier to more people checking out and falling in love with this show? If so, I haven't seen it.

Honestly, I think it's that lack of necessity that makes this such a big deal for me. If we woke up tomorrow and every joke of this nature was scrubbed off the face of the earth, anime would easily carry on without missing a beat. The only thing that would change is that maybe now, even more people would start enjoying this medium now that they no longer have to navigate a minefield to do so. So it matters to me whenever an otherwise good anime or manga hurts itself with this kind of laziness. All you're doing is making it more difficult for people to like your stuff, Oda! The funny skeleton would not suddenly stop being funny if he could no longer ask to see girls' panties! If anything, he'd just be funnier! You don't need this shit! You're better off without it! Think, Mark, Think!

...man, this rant got away from me, lol.

TL:DR, I get compartmentalizing this kind of comedy as "just part of the medium," and if that helps you enjoy the good stuff better, then more power to you. God knows, I wish I could do the same sometimes. But as long as anime keeps doing this stuff, I'll keep complaining about it, because I know this medium is capable of doing so much better.

[hitoshisbabygirl]

Author's Notes ♡: Hello hello! Here’s my POCuties collab piece for Valentine’s Day. Even though today sometimes makes me feel unloved please know everyone is deserving of love and even if you don’t have someone this year, you can have me! I love you and so do your favs okay? (✿◠‿◠) ~ bunny ❥

Warnings : none! Just very sweet (a bit of the reader feeling like a burden to tamaki so a touch of sadness here and there)

Word count : 2.1k

Paring(s) : Tamaki Amajiki x F! Reader (fem pronouns)

Enjoy ♡

———————————————————————

Forever // T. Amajiki

Being with Tamaki for a few years taught his lover a lot. She saw more sides of him than most, and it made her heart swell to see the usually quiet boy happy and determined when he accomplished something he was trying for or when he was down she knew just how to cheer him up.

As the day drew on she realised just how much she loved him and how much she wished for him to be home, to give him a big kiss as he came through the door, knowing that his day was long, plagued with paperwork and patrols. Hearing the door open she saw her tall boyfriend enter, hood over his eyes as he let out a sigh, stretching as he felt his body being encased by his girlfriend “Hello butterfly how was your day” His low voice spoke out as she gave him a bright smile “It was nice heaving the day off but i missed you Tama” she pouted as he gave her a chuckle, kissing her forehead “I missed you too, the office was a bore without my adorable secretary” Moving into their shared apartment Tamaki saw food already laid out in front of him “I ran you some bath water too” [ ] called out as she rounded the wall separating the kitchen and living room “Y-you didn't have to do that love im-” A finger silenced his pleas “Let me take care of you okay? You need your rest and i didnt want you to worry about anything coming home except relaxing and cuddling with me okay?” [ ] said as she stood on her tippy toes, kissing the top of his cheek “Tamaki Amajiki we have been doing this for years, won't you please let me love you without trying to outdo me ; you deserve it, you're a wonderful hero, you're my hero and eventually...you'll be our family hero..once we have one..” She trailed off as he stared at her, watching a sadden face appear over her features. Shaking it off as soon as it had appeared she gave him another smile “Its alright. There's no rush, i'm here for the long haul , me and you okay?” she said as she let his face go , heading to the couch “Now go go, hurry up before the food gets cold.” She teased as he gave her a soft look, coming over to kiss her cheek “Okay i wont argue butterfly”

These little things stuck with him, her caring ways, cooking for him, cleaning his office while hed be gone, even doing some of his paperwork while he was on parole. He loved her so much and enjoyed all of the little things here and there she did for him. He ddi the same, and each time made her cry, not out of being upset but for how caring he was to her. Bringing her roses, making sure she didnt have to cook if he could help it, spa days and doing more crafts and bonding with her whenever they could. But he realized while she helped him with so much he felt like he struggled. She struggled with her own issues too, similar to his. Sometimes she felt like she wasnt enough, she had her own anxieties and could get in a sup when she felt inadequate, unlovable and unwanted. But to him, to tamaki he loved everything about her, and she was one of the strongest people he knew. He felt motivated and glad to have her as the one he wished to marry , to have kids with, to start a family. But that also broke his heart when the topic came up she did usually didnt talk much about it, happily making plans but going back on them by saying ‘if i was a good mother’ She didnt want to dissapoint their future kids, didnt want to be a lacking mother or wife. As usual Tamaki came home, but htis time he went past the wonderful smelling food in the kitchen and to their bedroom, his cute girlfriend wrapped up in a blanket “How are you feeling butterfly?” He asked as she gave him a smile, reaching over to hug him “Im oaky! Just a bit overwhelmed is all, im sorry i passed out during the meeting..” She said as she gave him a hurt look before continuing “I shouldve tried harder to stay and present with you i-” Before she could finish he gave her a kiss, stopping her words “You needed rest. Im still surprised you got up to cook, did you at least take a nap love?” He asked as she shook her head , causing him to smile “Good. i love you butterfly and i woudnt change that for the world” he said as she smiled, giving him a hug “I’d hope so” She giggled as he pouted “Never doubt my love for you [ ], no matter what im gonna be here, i promise okay?” he said as she nuzzled the boy, kissing his nose “ And i for you Tamaki”

February came in , the happy couple had started up to take more time off to do more things and enjoy eachothers presence in the month of love. As the days went by Tamaki noticed [ ] was having odd days. From sleeping long hours of the day to just crying randomly, he knee something was wrong. Coming from the store he heard sobbing from their bathroom. Terrified , he tried to enter only feeling the door being locked “[ ] baby whats wrong? Can i come in?” with no response he nervously knocked again. “[ ] please...whats wrong” He pleaded as the door unclicked, showing his still beautiful but tear stained cheeked girl. “T-tama..” She cried as she just jumped into his arms, scaring the indigo haired boy “Baby are you okay?” he asked as she took in a breath before smiling sadly “Y-yeah i am..” She said as he picked her up, taking them into the living room. “I love you..and whatever is making you feel like this..if i can help let me okay?” Tamaki said as [ ] shook her head, placing it into his shoulder as they fell asleep.

Every day from her breakdown Tamaki came to her office with a rose, ate lunch with her and made sure she was hydrated and well. Once the week of valentines day came up, he had his plan set in motion. He had their schedules fixed, the week off for themselves as they did different things. A spa day the first day, a picnic the next, shopping at an expensive store for clothes. Then an art day where they drew (or tried to ) eachother and made art fro and about the other. Once the day of Valentines came however, it was different. It started with them taking a shower together, Tamaki cooking breakfast in bead for [ ] as they talked through the morning. Tamaki told her the outfits they ha gotten the days prior was for tonight which gave [ ] the jitters. She was excited for what her pro hero boyfriend had instore for them. Once they got to the restaurant all eys were on them. [ ]’s long black dress falttereed tamakis white suit and black bow tie. The two of them sat and started to eat, coversating with some fans who so happend to be around thwm. One was a small girl with wide hopeful eyes. She came to the couple with her mom in toe “Im so sorry to interrupt you two, my daughter wouldnt let mt husband and me rest until she came over to you guys” the wmoan laughed, causing bothe members to smile “Hello there how are you?” Tamaki asked the girl as she stepped from behind her mother “ H-hi my name is Shiemi a-and i really like you suneater!” The small girl said , causing [ ] , Tamaki and her mom to smile “Why thank you Shiemi, i hope im a good hero for you” Tamaki responded as the little girl shook her head “The best! Youre so cool. A-and your wife is pretty like mama! I like you dress miss suneater” The girl said , causing [ ] to stutter as she sipped her water “O-oh why thank you Shiemi but Im-” before she could continue she saw her boyfriend give the woman and her daughter a wide smile “She is, inst she?” He said as he turned to [ ] , moving from his chair “Tama what are you-” [ ] asked again as he leaned to the little girls ear , then to the mothers as they both gave him a smile, the woman happily shaking her head as her daughter followed the hero. Confused, [ ] watched as he picked the little girl up, putting her atop of the bar table “Hey everyone! Suneater has an announcement!” she yelled as most people turned around or to the table in the middle of the room, watching and smiling at the energetic child and pro hero “In fact I do, [ ] would you mind standing?” Tamaki asked as she gave him a wide eyed look, standing as he gave her a smile, extending and hand to her as she joined his side

“H-hey guys , as you know um..this si my lovely girlfriend and partner [ ]” He started as she gave everyone in the room a wary smile, her face feeling hot as he continued “ Ive known her for years, and weve been dating for some of those, she's seen me through thick and thin, helped me out in a pinch and made me feel like the strongest man alive, well next to almight…” he whispered as some of the people laughed, more paying them attention “And through all of this….i could think of a more beautiful and right person to spend the rest of my life with” And with the the young child handed the now kneeling man a ring as some whooped and hollered, others recording as both [ ] and the girls mother had tears in their eyes “[ ] [ ], the love of my life, my butterfly, i couldnt think of a more beautiful person inside and out to be with, will you give me the honor and make me the happiest man on this earth to be my wife?” He asked as the ring was revealed, diamond glistening as his own tear filled eyes looked to hers. Thinking her voice would fail her she shook her head yes, causing the room to yell as she had her ring put on her finger , jumping to hug her standing fiance as they hugged and cried, video of the engagement spreading as he thought to himself ‘I can now have my family, my endless love with you my dear butterfly’

As their wedding came , all of their friends and family came, including the new found friends of the young Shiemi and her parents. The ceremony went though flawlessly, Shiemi being their flower girl as the newlyweds ran down the easel , heading for their limo as they herded for the reception. The family spoke on how happy they were from their marriage, friends giving their comments on how they knew the couple would get married as the couple laughed at some stories and comments about their relationship. The night ended with so much love and joy for the new couple, startint their life together\

Two years went by before valentines day came again, three years to the day he had proposed arrived. Happily and ready to celebrate Tamaki woke up to his wife missing, hearing her fumble in the bathroom. Heading to the room he was shocked to she her in a disarray , eyes foggy as she met his “Tama...i have a surprised” She said as her teras fell down her face. Confused and still a bit tired , he gave her a look as she handed him a blue and while stick. The word pregnant snapped him awake as more tears started to fall, handing him two and three more all with the same small but powerful word “Im..gonna be a dad?” He asked as she smiled, shaking her head as she hugged the trembling girl “T-tama i'm gonna be a mom..what if i'm not good enough…” She sobbed as he cooed her, kissing her lips as his tears fell with hers “You're gonna be great Butterfly, i promise, you're gonna be so so great” He said as his heart swelled feeling her lips against his ‘This...This is forever , a love i wished for...and i couldn't have asked for more of a way to live my life...i love you butterfly’

[moonlightchild-otome]

Ikemen Vampire - Jean d’Arc Route Summary Chapter 10

here is the tenth chapter!

to clarify again, I’m not very good at japanese so if anything is wrong or weirdly translated everything is on me.

of course there is going to be some spoilers so do not read if you don’t wish to know jean’s story yet.

*also little bonus at the end about Jeanne d’Arc real story! of course you don’t have to read it to understand his route in the game but it’s very interesting :)*

The Count tells MC the history of the war between France and England, also known as the Hundred Years’ War...

【 Comte 】  Jean was a soldier who led the French army during the Hundred Years War.

Jean fights for his country, France and defeats the English army. Jean d’Arc, soon after the defeat of the enemy, becomes a true hero for his people.

However, such glory won’t last for Jean :( 'The most tragic end of the world's heroes', as they say.

In the course of the battle, Jean was captured as a prisoner of war by the enemy. The King didn’t want to help him for some reason. 😡

And of course... 🙄

【 Comte 】  Jean was convicted of heresy and it has been decided that he would be sentenced to fire.

After Jean's death, the king ordered a re-examination of his treason and found him to be innocent, and he went down as a hero of France.

The fact that Jean never knew went down as a hero after his death and this won’t change the fact that he died as an innocent. The protagonist is angry because it doesn't make any sense.

From the bottom of my stomach, I feel a mixture of anger and frustration.

Here, the MC asks the Count a question. “Why did he bring him back to life after such a death?”

There's something different about the Count returning the great men of the mansion and Jean.

The MC wonders if Jean really wanted the Count to bring him back to life. Before the Count can answer, Jean appears, interrupts him, takes the MC by the arm and leads her away.

【 Jean 】  One look at this man's face is enough. I don't like it. Let's go, woman. 

As soon as they arrived in the library, Jean seems to have calmed down a little lets go of the MC's arm.

The protagonist apologises for trying to find out about his past without his permission, but Jean says that's okay. Jean says it's okay, because his life has been written about in books anyway. However, he says that he doesn't want the Count to tell her about it.

【 Jean 】  ...It's not enough to say I hate it, it's too much.

Jean says that he is not a hero and that he is no different from the children's book he used to read, The Ugly Duckling.

it hurts me so much that this is the way he perceives himself when he deserves all the love in the world </3

Jean's gaze fell on the book 'The Ugly Duckling', which was still on the table.

That’s it for chapter 10!

here is some real background info about the real Jeanne d’Arc! She is such a brave and interesting historical figure. The epitome of a real badass, fearless and powerful woman.

so, the hundred years' war, if we summarize as much as possible is a series of armed conflicts that began in 1337. which opposes the kingdom of france and the kingdom of england.

in 1328 at the death of king charles iv, the question arises as to who will inherit the french crown.

one then has the choice between the cousin of the preceding king philippe de valois and edward iii the king of england who by his mother isabelle is also a descendant of the french throne.

you can imagine putting an english king on the french throne, wasn’t seen very well. 

edward not happy, which led to a succession crisis, which lead to the hundred years' war.

obviously this conflict, quickly overcomes a simple succession crisis.

it's a mess.

what you have to remember, is that the english are gradually invading part of the kingdom of france.

in 1415, after the battle of azincourt and the english victory, the english king henry v controls much of the north of the kingdom of france, including paris for that matter.

but it is far from being the only concern.

what you have to keep in mind is that the king of france at the time, charles vi, is reached at rather regular intervals of madness.

this obviously prevents him from administering the kingdom properly.

as a result, in parallel with the conflict with the english, a real civil war breaks out.

to find out who between his son the heir charles and his cousin the duke of burgundy will be able to take back the reins of the kingdom; the duke of burgundy is supported by the burgundians who will end up allying themselves with the english and the son of the king the heir charles is supported by the armagnacs.

but during this time, charles is betrayed by his own father who disinherits his son and after his death, gives the crown to the english.

i warned you that it was really messy.

and it is in this incredible mess that our jeanne arrives.

and where exactly does jeanne come from? from domremy.

she is also often called the virgin of orleans.

she is associated with the city of reims, but jeanne was originally born in domremy.

and where exactly is this place? domremy is this little town to the west of the city of the vosges department, on the banks of the meuse river.

isn't it pretty?

this is jeanne's birth house,

she would have been born around 1412. the building classified as a historical monument since 1840 includes in addition to a cellar, three large rooms originally used to house the whole family, her parents and four siblings.

according to jeanne's trial, it is here that she would have learned to sew or weave which were two occupations of the young girls of the time.

her father was a ploughman, so she often had to look after the animals.

and since she is very pious she spent a lot of time praying.

she went on pilgrimage at least once a week, for example in the notre dame de bermont chapel, about three kilometres (as the crow flies) from her birth house.

and jeanne d’arc, as you may have guessed, wasn't always called jeanne d’arc.

no, in history she has had different names and official nicknames.

there are of course the best known ones: the virgin of orleans, jeanne the virgin or even just the virgin and in the vicinity of domremy she was also called the jeannette de rommée, in connection with her mother's name. she has even signed several letters with the name jehanne.

and it's even more complicated if you're interested in her surname “d'arc”.

which was originally written darc, without the apostrophe. here again there have been many variations, and i'll mention a few of them: tarc, dars, darx and even d'ailly or daly according to the phonetic transcription of her name, with a lorraine accent. from there we move on to duly, then du lys.

when the king ennobled jeanne and her family, it is written on the deed, la dame du lys in reference to the royal coat of arms.

this is the magnificent bois-chenu basilica, which was built between 1880 and 1940 in honour of jeanne.

and for the record, this incredible basilica was sometimes considered to be the place where jeanne would have heard voices.

however if we refer to the trial, it is in her father's garden, near the house, that jeanne would have started hearing voices, celestial calls, coming from saint catherine of st. margaret's and the archangel saint michael.

the divine mission entrusted to her was very “simple”.

she was only commanded to be a cavalier, to cross a kingdom occupied by the english to go and find the future charles vii and convince him that she is the one sent from heaven.

to help him to take his place on the throne by her coronation in reims.

to show him how to liberate the kingdom of france, of the english presence.

it seems to be an easy enough mission for me. 😅 (nope)

so obviously you can imagine that the people didn't take her seriously right away. it took a few years before she managed to convince the world that she wasn't completely crazy.

- jeanne?

- yes?

- this is the voice.

- is someone talking to me?

- you are the chosen one, jeanne, join me.

- yes, i'm coming.

- i hope you like human barbecue. (ok i'll stop :/)

how is the legend of jeanne forged? how does one go from being a peasant girl eager to help, to jeanne of arc, heroine of the kingdom of france?

this is le centre d’interprétation (the interpretation centre), which is just behind jeanne of arc's birth house and retraces her youth and adventures.

her journey is incredible, at 17 years old, jeanne can't stand not doing anything anymore, she has been hearing voices urging her to act for four years now.

so she decides to return to the châtellenie de vaucouleurs, to meet captain robert de baudricourt, one of the king's faithful followers and after several vicissitudes, she manages to convince him. it wasn't easy, i remind you that her main point was that she hears voices. but yeah, he finally agrees to send her with an escort, join the heirn in chinon.

the journey is quite long and above all risky, we are talking about more than 500 kilometres and in this period of turmoil, the dangers were quite present especially if you look at the map, one realizes that the small expedition crosses areas not controlled by the enemy coalition.

fortunately, everything went well for jeanne, who arrives at her destination on march 1429 and gets an audience with the heir two days later. he was quite suspicious of this young woman at first, who claims to hear divine voices but according to the story she made a revelation to him that we don't know which eventually convinced him.

for the entourage of the suitor of the throne, it's not that simple and you can understand them, betting on jeanne is a little bit like a poker game. so they insist that she will be given a few interrogations, she is questioned about her life, about her morals and finally confidence is established, she is equipped with military equipment. she then undergoes mini combat trainings and here we go, her dream is about to come true, she joins a supply convoy in blois and on april 22nd, with more than 4000 men, she is headed for orléans.

the arrival of jeanne of arc changes many things.

her faith, her confidence in victory gives hope to the soldiers and to the inhabitants, who are filled with new energy. they manage to win in less than 10 days, 10 days and the english are obliged to give up their plan, which consisted of taking the city and then attacking the south of the loire.

jeanne who comes out of this battle with this image as a victorious, ultra badass woman and just earned her nickname... la pucelle d'orléans (the virgin of orleans).

thanks to her victory in orleans, jeanne thus becomes a kind of national heroine. she represents by her fame and her qualities, a not insignificant asset for the heir in his fight against the english and the burgundians.

but what makes a real difference is less her qualities as a war strategist and more her ability to charm and to galvanise the troops and the inhabitants along the way.

it's quite simple, before jeanne's arrival, the english had a reputation for never losing their invincibility.

and jeanne achieves the feat of restoring confidence in a possible victory.

it gives the impression to the troops that they are going to receive a kind of divine help and it changes everything in the soldiers' minds, all the more so because before her arrival there was a prophecy, who said that a virgin would help defeat the english so when jeanne arrives, everyone thought "it's ok, we're saved"!

jeanne persuades the future king to start a ride to reims who is in the middle of enemy territory, to be crowned.

jeanne thus succeeded in carrying out one of the following missions which were supposedly entrusted to her by the voices she hears; in other words, since she has succeeded, she is necessarily an envoy of god, and that for the mood of the troops, it makes a huge difference.

unfortunately after the time of victories comes the time of defeats.

after the coronation, the king and jeanne no longer really agree. she is convinced that her mission is to keep the english out of france.

the king, for his part, is longing for a little rest.

for example, he does not feel at all capable of taking back paris, while jeanne, a little bit stubborn, goes there anyway and suffers a failure.

on top of that she is wounded, she gets a crossbow arrow in her thigh, moreover, she breaks her sword which had for all victories...

it's a bad sign.

some people think that the virgin is abandoned by god. some time later jeanne went to compiègne, a city besieged by the burgundians and by some english contingents and once again it goes wrong, she is taken prisoner in may 1430, by the burgundians.

she tried to escape, but all her attempts failed and in november of the same year, she was sold to the english. jeanne is then taken to the castle of rouen, where members of the church judge her for heresy.

the trial was to say that charles vii was crowned thanks to a witch, she is also blamed for everything and anything, for dressing in men's clothing,

for deferring directly to god's judgement without going through the church, for hearing the voices of demons and not of saints.

jeanne really plays her life on each of her answers, in addition, she faces accusers totally committed to the english cause on her own when she was only 19 years old.

moreover, the witnesses are obviously not chosen at random, everyone who could speak up for jeanne is under pressure. everything is being done to ensure that she is condemned. finally, she ends up at the stake, on the market square, and we make sure there's nothing left of her body, to prevent it from being turned into holy relics.

and then after the end of the hundred years' war, i.e. almost 25 years later, the church reverses this first court decision. king charles vii wants to wash away the insult that was done to him through this trial and he pushes jeanne's family to ask for a review. pope calixtus iii agreed and jeanne was rehabilitated in 1456. the investigations carried out are more serious, many of jeanne's contemporaries jostle to plead in her favour and even people who had once spoken badly of her finally return to saying good things about her.

the first judgement is broken and the young woman's memory is rehabilitated.

an unusual little fact in the end - many people have not been able to admit that the story of the virgin ends up on a pyre. for them it was impossible, this story was too beautiful, this too extraordinary woman.

and it went far enough that people found stories of women, who a few years later claimed to be the real jeanne.

just imagine them saying stuff like "oh yeah, yeah it's me i didn't burn at all, my face has changed a little bit but it's me, i assure you, believe me, really".

a certain claude des armoises is said to have pretended to be her, in the metz region. after having acquired a certain renown, having been given gifts by former relatives of jeanne; she even went so far as to meet two of the virgin's brothers, who (hold on because it's completely insane) believed her.

they really believed it was their own sister who had died at the stake.

it's a crazy story!

well, we don't really know if they really believed it, or if one pretends to believe it for financial reasons for example.

in any case, this woman, who was talked about everywhere, is unmasked by the king himself, so that this fraud can be stopped.

in the end, i find this story quite unusual.

here are the friends!

i hope it wasn’t too long to read (it probably was) and that you have learned two, three little things on our dear jeanne d’arc. after all, she is one of the most famous women in history!

[haec-est-fides]

Sorry to jump into some Heroes of Olympus stuff when I’m trying to stay in my Trials of Apollo lane, but I said to myself that if I saw another post about Octavian that mentioned the pillow pet or the stuffed animals in general, I would snap.

Let’s clarify this once and for all:

It. Was. His. Job.

That’s it.

Of all the things to analyze about him or hold against him, this is the absolute lowest priority. The thing is, it keeps getting circulated (and therefore fixated on as a foundational part of his character lore) because haha funny joke. It’s an easy thing to bully him over when you remove its context (and associated dignity), and that’s exactly what the protagonists do.

Octavian: “You’re letting these intruders into the camp? Reyna, the security risks--”

Reyna: “We’re not taking them to the camp, Octavian. We’ll eat here, in the forum.”

Octavian: “Oh, much better. You want us to relax in the shadow of their warship.”

Reyna: “These are our guests. We will welcome them, and we will talk to them. As augur, you should burn an offering to thank the gods for bringing Jason back to us safely.”

Percy: “Good idea. Go burn your bears, Octavian.”

(The Mark of Athena Ch. II)

The main characters make the stuffed animals a joke so that they can ignore and downplay all of the very serious and relevant things Octavian says. (Which is some seriously bullshit behavior btw.)

As odd as it sounds, gutting stuffed animals is literally the defining role of Octavian’s job as camp augur. He divines the will of the gods / the future via “entrails”. (Sure, that should technically be called haruspicy rather than augury, but I digress.)

Octavian himself explains it to us when he mentions that the ancients used to use real animals, but that times have changed.

“Uh, hi,” Percy said. “Are you killing small animals?”

Octavian looked at the fuzzy thing in his hand and laughed. “No, no. Once upon a time, yes. We used to read the will of the gods by examining animal guts -- chickens, goats, that sort of thing. Nowadays, we use these.”

He tossed the fuzzy thing to Percy. It was a disemboweled teddy bear.

(The Son of Neptune Ch. IV)

A) This was a practical decision by Riordan to maintain an ancient Roman tradition and parallel Camp Half-Blood’s oracle while keeping animal sacrifice out of books for young readers.

B) Nowhere do we have any evidence that it was Octavian who made the choice to change the old tradition and use stuffed animals instead. We don’t know how long augurs have been gutting stuffed animals at Camp Jupiter. Besides, pinning that change on Octavian means that he stopped animal sacrifice, which uhhh seems like a good thing?

Further, I just saw a rather well-intentioned post about Octavian (shocker) that still mentions the stuffed animals as a sign of him potentially being psychotic. This is partly why I’m convinced that the whole issue has been circulating as a joke for too long and, worse, is just badly misinformed.

See, that post argued that Octavian believed he could tell the future by gutting stuffed animals. Key word: believed.

But the canon fact is that he could. Full stop.

Here’s how we’re introduced to him and his abilities:

Clouds swirled over the largest temple, a round pavilion with a ring of white columns supporting a domed roof. “I’m guessing that’s Zeus -- uh, I mean, Jupiter’s? That’s where we’re heading?”

“Yeah.” Hazel sounded edgy. “Octavian reads auguries there -- the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus.”

...

Above them, thunder rumbled. Red lightning lit up the hill.

“Octavian’s almost done,” Hazel said. “Let’s go.”

...

The kid at the altar raised his hands. More red lightning flashed in the sky, shaking the temple. Then he put his hands down, and the rumbling stopped. The clouds turned from gray to white and broke apart.

(The Son of Neptune Ch. IV)

As Percy says, pretty impressive -- especially if it’s somehow fake. How would he even fake that?! He couldn’t.

But, and here’s where our protagonists and their unreliable narration become the problem again, that scene is prefaced by what Hazel says on the way there:

“The camp augur we’re going to meet, Octavian, he’s a legacy, descendant of Apollo. He’s got the gift of prophecy, supposedly.”

“Supposedly?”

Hazel made a sour face. “You’ll see.”

(The Son of Neptune Ch. III)

We do not, in fact, at any point see anything that would warrant her “supposedly”. Hazel simply -- understandably -- hates and mistrusts Octavian because he’s blackmailing her.

The narrators routinely undercut Octavian over everything he does, because they’re biased. It’s no surprise that that mentality / perception had bled into the fandom, but we should be able to recognize that.

While lightning doesn’t happen every time Octavian does an augury, that doesn’t take away any of his credibility. (Personally, I think it would make sense for that to happen only at the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus.) The same goes for his trying over and over again, inability to foresee certain events, and multiple interpretations of auguries. Augury is supposed to work this way.

Another point that proves Octavian could tell the future is that his abilities falter after Python takes Delphi early in Blood of Olympus, just like Rachel’s.

Mike shifted his considerable bulk. “You sound certain. Has your gift of prophecy--”

...

Once Jacob had hobbled off, Octavian’s face clouded. “Mike, I told you not to speak of my, ah, problem. But to answer your question: no, there still seems to be some interference with Apollo’s usual gift to me.” He glanced resentfully at a pile of mutilated stuffed animals heaped in the corner of the porch. “I can’t see the future. Perhaps that false Oracle at Camp Half-Blood is working some sort of witchcraft.”

(The Blood of Olympus Ch. VI)

Octavian’s comment about Rachel implies that his abilities have only been faulty since the legion neared Camp Half-Blood. Ironically, Percy later blames Octavian for Delphi (and therefore Rachel’s abilities) no longer working. Their powers go out simultaneously because they come from the same source.

We also know that Octavian was blessed by Apollo.

“Apollo spoke to me clearly last year at Camp Jupiter! He personally blessed my endeavors.”

(The Blood of Olympus Ch. VI)

Even if that blessing had nothing to do with his prophetic ability, as it seems as if Octavian has been augur for more than a year, it’s significant in that it shows that Apollo recognized and respected Octavian as one of his descendants (before everything went wrong). Being one of the few people to have the power of prophecy would help gaining Apollo’s respect, imo.

TL;DR: The only reason anyone doubts Octavian’s abilities is because the main characters, who canonically hate him and who have made a game of bullying and ignoring him because they don’t like what he has to say, constantly demean and dismiss him.

I’m all for the various interpretations of Octavian that the fandom has made, don’t get me wrong, but I am so tired of the stuffed animals thing. Can we please put it to rest?

[desperateground]

since we're doing anti discourse i guess: the antis ive seen on their own blogs (as opposed to other blogs askboxes) seem more concerned with media that portrays pedophilia in a positive light, as that very much can influence people into thinking it isn't THAT bad. If portrayed as the bad thing it is, they dont mind. Personally, do you see a difference in something that goes "heres an adult in love with a child, how sweet" as opposed to "heres an adult in love with a child, isnt that fucked up?"

under a cut cause this got long

I would love to be on the internet where you are, because it sounds a lot more reasonable than the one I live on, where stuff like this just makes me go ???

the thing is that fiction actually does influence people’s perceptions of reality, and we ought to care about that! if a person grows up watching movies where cops break the rules but it’s OK because they’re the good guys; or where stalkerish and manipulative behavior counts as “grand romantic gestures” that obligate a woman to date a man; or where Black people are depicted as uneducated and violent, of course that is going to color their opinions of the world.

and there are a lot of really good conversations being had about issues like that, and we absolutely need to have those conversations about responsible media creation and consumption. this power can be used for good as well as for evil. many people cite shows like Will & Grace as helping turn the tide of public opinion against seeing “homosexuality” as deviant and instead seeing gay people as “normal” and “lovable” and “relatable.” superman was a beloved enough All-American Hero that a storyline where he fights the KKK is credited with helping turn the KKK from a mainstream fraternity into something seen as a fringe hate group.

so i would agree that a giant wave of media with positive depictions of pedophilia would be concerning. 

however, we do not currently live in a world where “here’s an adult in love with a child, how sweet” is a major issue in media narratives such that people are absorbing the attitude that pedophilia is fine, cool, and good.

in fact, pedophilia is such a hated subject that we have a whole political movement in my country based on people calling anyone they dislike a “pedophile” and accusing them of all sorts of depraved shit involving children. most people who have sexual inclinations toward children are fully aware that these desires are at odds with society and that they will become pariahs if these desires were known to others.

(In fact, this level of ostracization can put people at a higher risk of offending, because they feel hopeless, have nowhere to turn for support, and figure if they’re going to be a pariah anyway, they may as well do the one thing they can think of that feels good. Forcing conversations about this to go completely underground means that you end up with awful groups like nambla dominating the conversation and convincing lost, lonely, frightened people to hop on board with their dangerous attitudes. if the only people safe to talk to about this stuff are people who will excuse, justify, encourage, and promote offenses against children, it makes sense that people would end up in their grip. You can read more here and here.)

much of the “media” that these “antis” are up in arms about is fan created content intended for a small population. the people creating content that riles up antis generally recognize that this is not mainstream content and use things like tags and content warnings to set it aside from other content. the notion that certain tropes in fanworks are going to bring about a massive cultural shift is a bizarre slippery-slope argument, and i think people's energy would be better focused on problems that are actually currently existing rather than a potential future where a few tags on ao3 have become dominant themes in network television and blockbuster movies. 

another issue here is that when an “anti” uses the term “pedophilia,” it’s completely unclear what they are actually referring to. a reasonable person would assume that they mean “a sexual relationship between an adult and a child,” but the definitions of “adult,” “child,” and “sexual relationship” have gotten so blurry within this discourse that it’s impossible to determine what’s being discussed. i’ve seen people claim that any relationship is inherently “pedophilic” if the characters have any sort of age gap, if there is any sort of power imbalance, if they both belong to the same “found family,” or even if one looks younger in appearance.

so when someone says “fictional narratives that depict pedophilia in a positive light,” they may actually be referring to “fictional narratives that depict any relationship I don’t like,” which is such a vague and meaningless statement that it becomes completely useless.

finally, your actual question is whether I personally see a difference between stories where the narrative perspective seems to critique the relationship vs stories where the narrative perspective romanticizes the relationship. i think your question is...hard to answer, because there is just too much there.

first off, it’s not always easy to tell whether a story is “vilifying” vs “glamorizing” something. people watch movies like fight club and take away very different thematic messages about whether the protagonist is someone to admire and emulate. if we say that depictions of abuse are only “good” or “allowed” if the narrative clearly portrays the abuse as “fucked up,” then we’re going to have to establish a High Court of AP English Teachers to determine exactly what narrative devices are employed and how, and that’s just...not...workable.

also, some people like the “fucked up”-ness of these stories; if you’re trying to say that something is bad if people “enjoy it” or “get off” on it or “indulge” in the darkness of the content, then it doesn’t matter if the story itself is wagging its finger at the naughty, naughty reader. the taboo, the erotic, and the deviant are, and have always been, wrapped up in each other. you can depict something as “bad” and yet still “fun;” it becomes a useless distinction when talking about sexual content. 

do i personally see a difference, when it comes to my own enjoyment? yeah, absolutely. i stopped watching game of thrones not because it included rape, but because the way the cinematography, musical score, etc. made it clear that the show was expecting me to feel a certain way about those images, and i didn’t appreciate that. i also didn’t appreciate the directorial decision to give more dignity to a dog’s death by cutting to black than to violence against women. i would probably not enjoy a book or movie that’s just about how awesome and fun it is to hurt people; though i did like clockwork orange - i found the narrator abhorrent, but interesting.

but i think trying to split hairs about what does and doesn’t count as Problematic or Allowable Content, or trying to tell people that what they create and/or consume is Bad and they are Bad for doing it, because its inclusion of dark themes is Doing It Wrong - it’s not helpful. it’s impossible to develop a standard for what is “doing it wrong vs doing it right” that makes any sense, and even if you did, enforcing it through campaigns of hatred and social vilification is not going to be effective. 

[hollabackholmes]

THINGS IN ENDGAME (SPOILERS!!!)

-Jesus Christ that first scene with Clint punched me in the throat

-how aggressive nebula was playing games with tony

- The way nebula helped tony up into his seat :,)

- “only a little bit sadistic”

- the cinematography in the moment where Tony lays down and the galaxy is behind him my god

- “I lost the kid” STOP IT RIGHT NOW

- rocket?? Or Build a bear???

- did rdj lose weight for that first section of the film or am I just tripping?

-anyone else find it funny that thanos suddenly became a cook with a nice little home and garden????

- the rest of this list will definitely be all over the place because I can’t remember the order of things happening #soz

-I really liked how they included that LGBTQ+ relationship in that support group that Steve was in.

-Steve saying something really sweet (can’t remember the exact words but it was something along the lines of ‘you took the jump not knowing how far you’d fall’??? Or something??? Sorry I’m awful)

-Clint really does own my ass

-That scene where he was in Tokyo holy shit I would die for him

-“don’t give me hope” “I’m sorry I couldn’t give it to you sooner”

-Natasha crying after cutting a peanut butter sandwich is a MOOD

-NATASHA DOESNT GIVE UP STEVE OFCOURSE IT NEEDS TO BE DONE

- !!make that rat president 2020!!

-Scott is a cutie until you realise how much those past five years (hours for him) must’ve screwed with his mind.

-The way he searches the plaques 😥😥😥😥

- Time machine jokes

-Back to the future jokes

-Scott rushing to eat Nats sandwich

-CLINT LEANING AGAINST THE DOOR, FUCK ME WITH A RAKE

-HIS TATTOOS. I WANT THAT SHOT TO BE TATTOOED ON MY FACE

- Bruce the celeb

-“SAY GREEN! GREEN! Did you get that?” MY FUCKING GOD I LOVE HIM

-Scott feeling embarrassed that the kids don’t know who he is

- “look he’s even shaking his head” SCOTT

-I love this so much

-THOR🤯PLAYS🤯FORTNITE🤯

-ngl I’m Thor. I love beer. But shit...that belly.

-props to the prosthetics team for making that body suit look so realistic

-The way he walks into the avengers headquarters with his sunglasses on hahahaha

-HULK EATING BEN AND JERRIES IS ALSO A MOOD

-Scott being the test run for the whole time travelling stuff was such a good scene

-and then when Scott’s taco gets blown away:( but then Bruce gives him another one :,)

-“is he asleep?” “No, he’s dead” HAHA

-That scene with them all walking together big oof vibe

-Oh I forgot to say how amazing both Carols and Natasha’s hair is like damn ladies

-SEEING THE FIRST AVENGERS ASSEMBLE SEQUENCE OH MY GOD I SOBBED

-hulk being embarrassed

-hulk trying to get angry

-nebula and Rhodes watching Quill dance

-“this is the part where blades come out with skeletons on the end”

-nebula sacrificing her hand to get the stone :,) character development

-Thanos has a small dick for hurting nebula in both versions of her

-Felt weird seeing Gamora from before she became good??

-Bruce and the ancient one talking, I just really like that whole dynamic

-Tony as the security guard omfg

-LOKI BABY

-HAIL FUCKING HYDRA BABY

-STEVE VS STEVE BABYYYYY

-AMERICAS ASS BABYYYYYYYYY 😏😏😏

-Steve And tony going back in time again

-Tony and his dad. So sweet. Him talking about Morgan with him

-OH MY GODNI MISSED OUT A POINT ABOUT MORGAN

-SO BASICALLY IM IN LOVE WITH DAD!TONY AND I LOOOOVEEE YOUUUU 3000 IS THE CUTEST SHIT IVE EVER HEARD

-Steve seeing Peggy :((

-I’m here for the whole ‘Judging-Tony’s-Beard’ thing

-Clint and Natasha.... I don’t wanna talk about this yet :(

-Thor and his mums interaction. Cute. The whole thing about being a failure and feeling like you need to be more is super super relatable idk I just felt very much like Thor in that scene

-okay I’m ready to talk about Clint and Natasha now. So basically I think Natasha died a heroes death. She was so ready to sacrifice herself for the greater good. What made it fuckin hurt though was the fact that Clint was ready to die because he didn’t want to see Natasha go through that death. He wanted to protect her. He even says later on ‘it should have been me’. So I think Natasha would be proud, but Clints gonna have to live with the memory of seeing his best friend die without being able to do anything about it.

- That whole thing about making sure her death was worth it uGH

-also Thor’s denial.... yeah. Same here bud.

-Thor begging Tony to let him do this one good thing :( I was sad :( super sad yall

-genuinely thought Bruce was about to die when he put the glove on

-THANOS IS A GIANT TWAT

-HULK ROCKET AND RHODES ALL HELPING EACHOTHER OUT

-Scott being the real hero out here again

-the fight

-holy shit the fight

-StEVE BEING ABLE TO USE THORS HAMMER

-“I knew it!!!”

-That whole sequence of him using the shield and the hammer. My thighs were trembling bitch.

-THEN WHEN YOU HEAR SAM AND THEN THE YELLOW RING AND EVERYONE FUCKING ARRIVES

-PETER MY BABY BOY YOU DID SO GOOD SWOOPING IN THEN

-DOCTOR STRANGE U HOT STUFF

-PEPPER HOLY SHIT

-EVERYTHING HAPPENED SO FAST

-BUCKY

-THE WASP

-VALKYRIE

-EVERYONEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!

-OMG WANDA WAS SUCH A BADASS

-THE TRANSFER OF THE GLOVE WAS SO GOOD AND THE WAY PETERS INSTANT KILL THING HAPPENED UGH SO GOOD

-DOCTOR STRANGE CONTROLLING THAT WATER DAMNNN

-THE FUCKING HUG BETWEEN PETER AND TONY DESTROYED ME. I LEGIT SOBBED OUT LOUD.

-“Hey Peter Parker. You got something for me?”

-THE GIRLS LINING UP SENT CHILLS DOWN MY SPINE

-and now for the sad part my dudes

-doctor strange pointing one finger up. Tony knew. He just knew what he had to do.

-“I am iron man” YES YOU ARE.

-Peter sobbing “we won. Mr stark. We won. I’m sorry”

-Pepper coming to comfort Tony oh fuck i cried

-THE TAPE

-“I LOVE YOU 3000” IS WHAT IM GONNA GET TATTOOED ON ME OK

-“proof that Tony Stark has a heart” wow okay. Hit me deep then why don’t u

-the one shot of everyone at the funeral was so beautiful I loved it

-“your dad used to love cheeseburgers.... I’m gonna buy you all the cheeseburgers in the world” oh my god

-the goodbye between Steve and Bucky was perfect. I don’t care what you say. Bucky knew what was going to happen. And he allowed it because he knew Steve would be happy for a very long time.

-HOWEVER I felt like Bucky had so little screen time and the entire history between Steve and him felt so dead throughout the movie compared to how strong it has been over the past 11 years :(

-Sams panic because he thought he wouldn’t see Steve again :(

-Sam being given the shield :D

-Damn the CGI is so good in this film. Like Steve looked old but you could still see it was him. Which sounds dumb but so often, movies make it way too unrealistic to prove someone has aged. This did it just right.

-The ending scene wow. Beautiful.

-THE CREDITS WITH THE ORIGINALS AND THEIR SIGNATURES OOF!!!

-we all waited til the end of the credits just to be hit in the heart with the sound of Tony building his iron man suit.

-well thanks for going through this list :))

[miss-tc-nova]

A SOLDIER’s Memories - Cloud Strife x Fem!Reader Pt 11

Bit cliche, but I love it. 

Part 11: Acknowledgement

One Week Later…

               I failed; and now here I lie in the darkness, banished to the furthest corner of my mind while Sephiroth uses me. I’m a terrible excuse for a hero, unable to vanquish my greatest foe for a third time. Now the planet will perish, taking what I love most with it. I don’t know what I hate more, the fact that I couldn’t win or the fact that I couldn’t get over Cloud. I tried everything to keep him at arm’s length, not to let him get to me, but even in the end all I want is to see him one last time.

               The echo travels forever to reach me, but the tone is familiar. It sounds again, a little closer. “Stop!”

               You shouldn’t have come here… My thoughts are so heavy and bogged.

               “You are not his puppet!”

               Just let me die. I’m so tired of fighting.

               “You can’t give up now!” Flashes of Cloud’s face flicker in my mind. “Are you gonna let him win?!”

               There’s nothing I can do about it. I tried. I failed.

               “Are you gonna let some maniac with a god complex beat you again?!” I can see him, brandishing his sword, holding back mine. “Are gonna let him tear us apart again?!”

               Those words spark something. Cloud?

               I shove him back but he skids to a halt. My legs rush for him. He readies his sword, but a thrown khopesh ties it up and pulls it out of the way. The second is prepared to strike him down from above.

               “BECAUSE YOU OWE ME! NO EXCEPTIONS!”

               My arm swings forward; however, instead of cutting through the blonde, my hand flips the blade, sending it right through my stomach. His words gave me just enough of a shock to break through.

               “_____!”

               The pain is enough to bring my sanity back and also bring me down. Knees hitting the ground, I watch the tears drip into the dirt.

               “Look at me. Look at me!” Cloud’s hands against my face bring my gaze up. The look of worry in his eyes grips at my heart. “I thought you were gone.”

               “I’m sorry,” I cry.

               His forehead rests against mine. “I know. I know it wasn’t you. But you’re gonna be okay. I’m gonna end this and we’re gonna get you some help.” Carefully, the man lowers me to my side. “Just don’t go dying on me okay,” he warns, pulling the belts from his waist.

               “I don’t know if I can promise that.” My voice breaks.

               “You’re not going anywhere,” he growls. I wince as he tightens the first belt just below my weapon. The second goes just above, placing pressure on the injury without removing the protruding object. “Just hang in there. You’re gonna be fine.” His voice softens, tightening the vice in my chest. “You have to be.”

               “Cloud…”

               “No! We made a bet and you lost! You owe me one favor and you’re not allowed to die! No exceptions! Say it!” The man is determined with a hint of fear in his voice. “Say it!”

               I swallow the sob threatening to come up. “No exceptions.”

               His gaze softens, full of the love I’ve been missing for so long. “I’ll be back soon.”

               With that, Cloud stands and heads deeper into the Northern Cave. I break down crying. This is the end and I just lied to him. I want so badly to call him back, have him here in my last moments, but I can just watch him walk away from me for the last time.

               Why did it have to be now of all times? Why do you remember at the very end?

               Alone, in mourning, I slip away from the conscious world.

~~~~~

               “Hey, you’re slacking.”

               “Huh?” I’m blinded by the white world around me.

               “You’re slacking. Come on. You can’t be here when you’re supposed to be taking care of that legacy of mine.”

               A pair of boots stops in front of me. Following them up, I find a friend I haven’t seen in years and it breaks my heart.

               “Zack.” I take a step forward, throwing my arms around his neck. Laughing, he returns the gesture. “I miss you.”

               “I miss you too.”

               I lean back to get a better look at his face. “Wait…are you…”

               His weary smile is answer enough. “Yeah.”

               That single word is enough to break my composure. “I’m sorry.”

               Zack pulls me back in. “Hey, it’s not your fault. Besides, I’m not alone.”

               “What?”

               “I hope we don’t get any other visitors.” Her voice rings in my ears like an angel’s. Whirling around, I find the flower girl standing there with a serene smile on her face. I can’t help embracing her just as I had Zack.

               “No no no! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” I blather on.

               She giggles. “Why are you blaming yourself? Thanks to you, Cloud and the others could save the world.”

               My mind jolts. “Cloud…He’s going to be so upset when he finds me.”

               Zack folds his arms. “Well you did let him carry on with warped memories.”

               “Not that…” I let my gaze fall to the flowers around us. “I told him I’d hold on but I just couldn’t.”

               “But aren’t you still holding on?” My gaze snaps back to my friend. A grin lights up his face. “Wait, you thought just because you’re here that you’re dead?” He laughs like I’ve just told a punch line to some joke.

               I hesitate, my gaze zipping between the two. “But the both of you are…So I must be…”

               “Nope.” A hand ruffles my hair. “You’re just here for a visit. I told you you were slacking. That chocobo is worried sick down there waiting for you to wake up.”

               When I hesitate in responding, Aerith leans closer with her signature, sunshine smile. “Just open your eyes.” I dwell on her answer. “Go on. He’s waiting for you.”

               “Thank you,” I mumble watching the waving pair fade to darkness.

~~~~~

               I wake up feeling sore but somehow better. The weight in my chest, that’s been there for so long, is gone. The fact I’m alive, that the world still exists, and my future is brighter, it all brings tears to my eyes.

               This is a hospital room. I’ve got an IV and blood bag in my arm and a heart monitor disrupting my peaceful silence. I contemplate doing something, ultimately being too lazy to do so and instead rest a bit longer.

               A light knock wakes me. The door opens before I can answer, revealing a blonde that brings tears to my eyes. He looks exhausted. His blank expression holds as he sets a bag on an empty chair and sits in the one beside my bed; he must’ve been doing this for a while. The emptiness instantly replaced by shock when he realizes I’m watching him. I’m so overwhelmed with relief that I can’t even say anything, fearing my voice will fail. Back on his feet, he’s leaning over me, arms threatening to choke me with his face buried in my hair. I managed to hold on, but when I hear the man sniffling, I fall apart.

               “I don’t know how I ever could’ve forgotten you,” he murmurs, spurring my sobbing. Finally, he leans back to get a look at my face. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

               “You thought you were Zack and something about even looking at me freaked you out. I was afraid that if I reminded you, you might break.” Hands to my face, I try to slow the flow of tears. “Even if I reminded you there was no guarantee you’d accept it.”

               “You should’ve told me.”

               I mutter bitterly, “Why? So you’d have another reason to hate me?”

               A chilly hand slips around my face, guiding my gaze to meet his, and he’s very serious. “Because you never should’ve had to deal with that on your own. Even if you had to beat it into me, I would’ve believed you eventually.” Sighing, his hand retreats, instead sliding through his golden hair. “It made more sense than the nonsense I was telling everyone.”

               Cloud tells me about what happened and why he claimed to be Zack; of course Shinra would be behind the whole thing. At least it gives me some closure about what happened to him and Zack, but I have to wonder why I didn’t become a test subject too. I have to chalk it up to not being discovered by Hojo after the Mako carried me away.

               “So what’s everybody doing now?”

               “Going home.”

               “What does that mean for you?”

               He shrugs. “It means where ever you wanna go.”

               My mind freezes and I’m kind of pissed that the heart monitor betrays the slight pace change of my heart. Even though his blue eyes travel to the machine that’s quickly becoming an enemy, I try to ignore it. “Why?”

               His attention returns to me. “Because there are things we need to work out.” His hand takes mine and I curse that machine again. “Including what we’re going to do about us.”

               That’s an iffy subject I’ve been arguing with myself over for a long time now. “I don’t know.” He frowns. “We’re a far stretch from the people we used to be.”

               His thumb draws soothing circles against the back of my hand. “Even if we are different people, maybe we still fit together.”

               I emit a puff of laughter. “Your tragedies to compliment mine?”

               Cloud’s deep wondering lightens somewhat. “More like I’m pretty sure I’m still in love with you.” Fire surges up my spine, burning in my ears and bleeding across my face. I’m about to throw the heart monitor out the window. A soft chuckle escapes the blonde. Slightly aggressively, I reach into my gown, ripping the little patches off. “Hey hey! Be careful,” the blonde scolds through a grin. I stick my tongue out at him but he’s none deterred. “I forgot how cute you look when you blush.”

               And I forgot just how easy it was for him to make me blush.

               But maybe he was right; people grow and change, whether together or apart. He’s not the Cloud I fell in love with, but perhaps that doesn’t mean I can’t love who he is now. I was focused on what I lost and terrified of having it flaunted in front of me only to be torn away again; it probably would’ve haunted me for the rest of my life. But he remembers now, he can relate and understand; I don’t have to hide anything from him anymore. The conversations I thought we’d never have now seem far less frightening.

               “So is that no?”

               Feeling the lightest I’ve felt in a very long time, I let a pure, true smile take over. “Get me out of here and then we’ll talk about where we’re going next.��