#and the complex treatment of humanity and time and what it means to want to live and everything beautiful about that

[blossoms-and-petrichor]

Oh to be able to live multiple lifespans, watch society devolve and progress and yearn and destroy and create. To be able to have hundreds of careers, to dive deep into the expanses of every field of knowledge including the ones that don't even exist yet. To watch novels turn into classics, to watch artists who were sure they'd be forgotten be held in the memories of culture. To watch languages shift, vowels move like dapples of light across the ocean. To watch the peering eyes of telescopes and microscopes pierce further and further into our understanding of matter, of life, of time. To watch people lose hope and find it again. To watch people fight even when it is difficult and reach forward, stumbling to a better tomorrow. Oh to be able to see the full completeness of nature and humanity. But maybe it's because our lives are so short that each successive generation push forward in learning and growing.

[terrythemerry]

I just watched Wish (2023) and it made me realize something kind of sad about Disney’s treatment of villains.

So Disney has a long history of villainy from the OG Evil Queen who is willing to murder a girl just for being pretty to the misguided like Auto thinking he’s protecting humanity in Wall-E. They are mean, jealous, prideful, vain, and many relish in just being the worst of the worst. However every now and then we get a glimpse of more complexity. Zootopia’s Bellwether dealing with years of racism and mistreatment, Gantu trying to stop what he thinks is a monster in Lilo and Stitch, Up’s Muntz being a heroic explorer before paranoia consumed him, etc. The thing that makes me sad about these villains is that not one of them has ever had a chance at redemption or change in Disney’s eyes and nowhere is that sadder to me than their latest villain, King Magnifico.

(Spoilers below)

King Magnifico is the magical founder of a utopian society that accepts people of all races, religions, and backgrounds. Who created this wonderful place after what is heavily implied to be a violent invasion destroyed his homeland when he was but a child. This past trauma led him to study magic and become a powerful sorcerer so that nothing could hurt him or the people he cared about ever again. His magic is a protection that he extends to all who choose to live in the city. The city is vibrant with a colorful community full of artisans, musicians, and dancers. He takes no taxes from them, but does take their one true wish upon joining this society.

When given these wishes it is understood that he will ensure their safety and possibly grant them one day. Something important to note about the physical manifestations of the wishes is that they give off a warm and comforting aura as they represent some of the purest parts of a person’s soul. Magnifico has been surrounding himself with this magical comfort for a very very long time by himself and I don’t think it’s unfair to say he has become addicted to their presence. The wishes are giving him a magical comfort through the kind souls within them, a feeling he could’ve probably also gotten if he had spent more time with his people.

It doesn’t look like he ever really got the chance to commune with his people properly because somehow the society kicked off on his wish granting abilities. People had to give him their wishes if they wanted them granted and eventually the ones that he couldn’t grant in good conscience or out of fear started adding up so he began locking them away. Keeping them safe so no harm came to the people. The rare occasions that anyone else interacts with these wishes is during wish granting ceremonies that the people are borderline rabid for. With good reason, it is their souls they’re thirsting for after all even if they don’t really know it.

However, Magnifico clearly doesn’t see it that way. He sees it as he’s given these people a wonderful safe haven from the horrors of the outside world where they can be whoever they want to be, do what they want to do, make what they want to make, and still all they see in him is a tool to fastpass to something else they want even more than the peace he’s given them.

This is clearly shown early on, before any of his evil behavior starts to take root, in relation to his assistants. We get a expo dump after the first song telling us that Asha wants to become one of his assistant to increase the odds of her grandfather’s wish being granted as there is a correlation between past assistants and having wishes granted. Something important here is that there have clearly been many assistants, suggesting that it’s a revolving door position without really explaining why. Who would want to keep finding assistants over and over again, when really you should find someone who could do the job long term right? Well we get to find out the likely reason when Asha steps up for the role.

When Asha comes to interview for his assistant position he sees she is nervous, he tries to calm her down, and he even manages to relate to her through fond memories of her kindly father who he clearly knew. After seeing her true resolve to do good he decides to trust her with something few people in the entire kingdom get to see, the vault of wishes. To which Asha doesn’t even hesitate to ask, after politely being told not to prior, if he’ll grant her grandfather’s wish.

Magnifico is blatantly stricken by her request, sadly remarking that most people at least wait a few months before doing so a.k.a pretend to be interested in helping him rather than trying to use him to grant a wish. This is likely why the assistant job is a revolving door. Magnifico tries to find someone who he thinks will truly and selflessly fulfill the role only to discover time and again that people are just using it to get direct access to him to ask for a wish. Then he can’t trust their true intentions anymore and moves them along.

After Asha makes her request he does take the time to look at her grandfather’s wish but dismisses it as too dangerous because it is the vague desire to inspire the next generation. Clearly we as the audience know that her grandfather means to inspire them to do good, but we have to remember Magnifico has seen the worst of society. He has seen the darkest wishes and desires of mankind and survived them. He brushes Asha off telling her she’s too young to understand, which is honestly true. She’s lived her entire life cloistered in peace and comfort thanks to him and the rules he has made. She has never had to know war, strife, or hardship thanks to him, yet she doubts his decision without understanding the trauma that guides it. This is what I believe pushes Magnifico into his villain arc, something that I don’t think we’ve ever really witnessed in a Disney movie.

Usually a villain already is the villain by the time the film rolls around, even the twist villains. Lotso had already been deliberately sentencing other toys to torture. Prince Hans was already planning to murder his way to a throne. Evelyn was already plotting her revenge. Magnifico wasn’t though. He was the hero. He had saved his wife and a whole city’s worth of people from whatever drove them from the mainlands. He wasn’t physically abusing/mistreating people like Gaston even if he was vainly basking in their adoration.

When Asha pushes him on the wishes he pulls back from her, identifying her in his mind as a threat and treats her as one. He dismisses her and tells her that her family’s wishes will never be granted by him, but he will still keep them safe as he has been doing. Essentially meaning nothing will change for her from what it has been. You know a happy loving existence of complete acceptance and wholesome family life or as Asha interprets it, a fate worse than death.

His interaction with Asha triggers him, as she’s pushed at the flaws in his reasoning for holding onto the wishes. The flaws are true, but his mind is clouded by fear of a lack of control, likely stemming from the horrors he witnessed in his childhood when he had no control. He also likely has a bit of an addiction to the warm fuzzies that the wishes give on top of his fears. While he’s ruminating on that some massive wave of magic blows through the kingdom and messes with the thing he’s already stressed beyond reason about, the wishes.

Magnifico frantically searches for any answer, even considering a dangerous tome of forbidden magic that he knows is trouble before his wife manages to talk him down.

The fact that he could even be talked down rather than ignoring her outright shows that Magnifico does have good in him. He’s just reacting out of a genuine panic. His panic is only worsened by huge mob continuing to beg him for wishes in exchange for doing what should be the selfless act of defending their kingdom from what is essentially perceived as an attack. Not having any faith left in his people he turns back to the evil book to give him the key to stopping this perceived attack.

Just to be clear King Magnifico goes to the big bad evil book not to gain more power for funsies, but to try to find a way to stop a perceived threat. Everything he does from this point on, such as threatening his wife, can no longer be fairly tied to him, because as the movie repeatedly tells us he is under the EVIL book’s influence. His wife even looks through the same book to try and see if there is a way to break the sway she knows it has over him, but says she can’t because the EVIL book said no.

Yada yada yada and Magnifico is sealed inside a magic mirror and smugly told to rot in the dungeon by his previously loving wife.

Seriously?! What the heck?! This guy was the perfect candidate for rehabilitation. He wasn’t flawless, but he wasn’t a murderous psycho like most of the other Disney villains. Disney loves to preach kindness, acceptance, and good will with their heroes, but never does it allow the message of change.

I was shocked going back through the catalogue and slowly realizing none of their villains, regardless of how tragic their origins are, are ever truly allowed a second chance. The hero may offer it, but the baddy never is truly expected to change or reform. Which is honestly super messed up to me. People make mistakes. Some can be small/insignificant, but some are big and do hurt people sometimes. That doesn’t mean they can’t change for the better.

Now I’m not saying every villain is redeemable or good, it’s just a bit surprising that for all the messages of kindness and acceptance we haven’t really gotten forgiveness in 100 years. Seeing the “bad guy’s punishment” just deeply bothered me this time. Probably because so much of the bad that Magnifico does is clearly a trauma response and as a punishment for not acting appropriately to said response he gets sentenced to eternity is magical cell.

[thee-horny-thicky]

Loved the last ask you answerd, so I wanted to request "Upper moons (plus rengoku) With they're dynamic, like what type ofsub anddom dynamic do they follow, Service top, harsh dom, strict dom, soft dom, bratty sub,pillow princess sub ect

The Upper Moons’ *Plus Rengoku* Dom/Sub Dynamic

Just to be safe, I'll put a trigger warning here, as some of the scenarios for these headcanons have dubious consent.

Let’s get the outlier out of the way, Rengoku. He screams white knight dom. Loyalty is a value everyone in his life must have, and he will position himself as your protector, even if you can defend yourself. He’s the epitome of the knight in shining armor, ready to rush into battle and defend any damsel in distress. He will always act when something is wrong, even if it means putting himself in harm’s way.

He isn't the type of dom who will have a lot of sex. He prefers quality over quantity, and the most intimate experience is his favorite. However, if you're feeling particularly needy, he'll make an exception to satisfy your needs. He can’t have his princess be unhappy, after all.

Though he’s capable of meeting you halfway, Rengoku also values control, perhaps to a toxic degree. He likes taking charge and making decisions, even if he hides it well. This combined with his worry about your well-being can make him possessive and annoyingly domineering. He will want to be involved in every aspect of your life, even if he doesn’t need to know. The best you can hope for is a compromise that'd put his mind at ease, without your wish being denied.

  Do you want to do some shopping while he's out? Fine, but you're taking some Kakushi with you, and he's personally picking which ones.

However, his hardheadedness can lead to some friction. And when you aren't feeling so civil, an argument can be sparked. In that case, you're in trouble. No matter how valid your case is, expect a punishment.

Rengoku's punishments range from denying your requests to taking away privileges. He's a master of discipline and has many ways to make sure you'll learn your lessons. The princess treatment you've become accustomed to will cease, because how else would you ever learn? You can expect a spanking, withholding sex, or a night of chores, among other things. So be on your best behavior, or he'll make sure you regret it!

But despite his overbearingness, Rengoku is aware of your needs and desires and will make it his mission to fulfill them. He may be frustratingly stubborn, but you will be treated like royalty, never wanting anything, and always being protected.

Moving onto the Upper Moons.

Gyutaro just screams brat tamer. The years of abuse he’s endured resulted in him developing an inferiority complex, one that plagues him even into demonhood. Except as a demon, he could take what he wanted, and (almost) no human could stop him.

When it comes to women, he lives for bringing a bitch down a few pegs.

When you, a little haughty whore, started working at the brothel and dared to disrespect his sister, he jumped at the opportunity to teach you a lesson. He’ll shut your bratty mouth up with his dick, forcing his length down your throat until your nose is buried in his pubes. Only when he shoots his load will he let you go. But that doesn’t mean he’s done with you. No, you’ll be his plaything until he’s done something about that snotty attitude. He’ll take his time breaking you, and once he’s accomplished his goal, he’ll own you.

If he chooses to dispose of you, he’ll hunt for his next brat to tame. But if he chooses to keep you, the relationship will transfer into more of a master/slave dynamic. Your body, your will, everything about you would be his, and that’s how he likes it. He wants you to be dependent, for him to be the only thing you can rely on.

Soon, the sound of your teary begs become Gyutaro’s favorite sound, and he’ll go to great lengths to hear it.

He enjoys inflicting pain, though hurting you is a means to earn your submission when you get out of line, not his end goal. However, he can’t get enough of watching your face contort in the middle of his fun, be it a punishment, or forcing orgasms out of you. He will push you past your limits until you’re a whimpering, squirming mess. You won't be given relief until he decides you've earned it. Only when you’ve shown that you’re a good girl who learned her place will he let you come.

Once he's satisfied, the aftercare begins, and you will have everything you need. If you’ve been good, he’ll pepper your body with kisses as he tends to your wounds, showering you with praise. If you’ve been bad, you’ll be lucky to have him toss you a clean rag.

From time to time, he’ll also engage in primal play, particularly when he needs to work off some extra stress caused by Daki or Muzan.

Speaking of primal play…

Maybe it’s due to his inhumane appearance, but I immediately thought Primal Dom for Gyokko. Put bluntly, hunting gets him hard, especially when a pretty thing is his target. He loves the power rush it gives him, hunting you through the wilderness as he uses his powers to chase you. He knows you have no chance of getting away, and your panic makes the whole thing more delicious to him.

Once he catches you, he'll throw you down and truly begin his fun. He'll take his time devouring you, making a meal of your body. You're just a pretty little piece of meat to him, and he will savor every moment.

As his plaything, you’re subject to his whims. You won't come until he allows you to, and the pleasure he provides will always be just out of reach until you submit. You'll be forced to the edge and held there, unable to tip over until he decides.  He will tease, prod, and test you, then use his big hands to fill your holes. At the same time, he’s marking your flesh, making sure everyone knows you’re his.

Hantengu:  As I did last time, Hantengu’s main form, Zohakuten, and Urami will not be included. Instead, we’ll focus on his hot and grown manifested emotions.  

To the surprise of no one, Sekido is a sadist. He wants to see you break down in tears and cry out in pain, whilst begging him for pleasure. As he ‘plays’ with your poor body, he’ll deny your orgasms until you beg, (noticing a theme here?), then force you to earn it by whatever means necessary. If you’re bad, though, expect to be violently punished. Don't expect him to coddle you and whisper sweet nothing into your ears when it’s all said and done. At best, you'll get a kiss as he cleans you.

Based on the name alone, you’d think that the manifestation of Hantengu’s pleasure is a pleasure dom. But Karaku isn’t a straight top or bottom. Nope, he’s a switch! Sex is a game to him, one that’s about getting as much pleasure as possible. Thus, he’d switch it up depending on the mood he’s in. If he wants to watch you scream in pain, he'll be a harsh dom, and if he wants to hear your pretty moans, he'll be a soft dom. And if he just wants to feel good, he’ll become a power-bottom. If you want complete submission, you’ll have to take it by force, which he’ll also enjoy. And a little warning, if he's in the mood for a good fuck, expect him to drag you into bed, no matter where you are.

Our darling Aizetsu is the only true submissive of the line-up, as he’s a total bottom. His outlook on life is tinted by his sadness, and he views every negatively. Sex is no different, at least until you show him otherwise. When he discovers that intimacy is the key to bringing him joy, he’ll quickly become addicted to the act. He isn’t too fond of being the dominant party, but he'll make an exception if you ask nicely. But if it’s up to him, he’ll stick to subbing. He loves to be showered with praise and to have someone dedicated to pleasing him. A service top is a good fit for him, one that’s skilled in brat-taming. Because when he gets comfortable, Aizetsu can be a brat. Expect him to be demanding, and when denied, a sobbing temper tantrum may be possible. When that happens, a punishment is in order. Once he’s put back into his place, he’ll go back to being a good, needy boy.

Now, Urogi is the pleasure dom of the group. Similarly to Karaku, he views sex as a game to enjoy. But unlike his brother(?), it’s a game he must always be in control of.  You'll only orgasm when he deems it appropriate, and he’ll force out as many as he wants. He'll push you past your limits for his amusement, using you like a toy as he takes whatever he wants. And after all that fun, you'll receive your reward; the aftercare of a lifetime.

As a demon, it’s in Akaza’s nature to be in control. However, just because he’s topping, (and a demon), doesn’t mean that he’ll be cruel. Quite the opposite, as he’ll never do anything to hurt you. At least without you asking first. The reason Akaza enjoys topping is because that’s how he can best give his lover what they need. His pleasure comes from yours, so even if he shies away from something at first, he’ll do whatever it takes to make you come hard.

He likes to know exactly how to please his partner, and the best way to do that is by learning what you like. He’ll set aside time to discover your sensitive spots and kinks, only deeming his mission a success when you’ve had a few orgasms.

Once he knows what his lover needs, Akaza will use that knowledge to bring you bliss. He will worship your body, kissing and caressing you as his hands, tongue, and dick work their magic. The entire time, expect him to smother you with praise, whispering sweet nothings as he tells you how good you are for him.

Akaza will take his time cleaning and massaging you. He can be a bit intense during aftercare, smothering you with affection and being 110% sure you’re okay before allowing you some space.

 As a lover of women, he will engage in femdom, where he’ll switch from a service top to a service bottom. He’ll allow you to do whatever you please with him, because he only wants to please you. So basically, a dom-leaning switch.  

Speaking of switches….

The. Biggest. Switch! When you first entered a relationship with him, he’d be the dominant one most of the time, especially if you were human. No matter how sweet your cunt is, as a demon, he’s above you.

To no one’s surprise, when he’s in control, he’s a total sadist. He’ll spank, slap, choke, whip, claw, bite, etc., anything to inflict pain on you. He loves seeing you all bruised and bloodied, your eyes puffy and red from crying, your bottom lip trembling as you plead for mercy. It gets him painfully hard, driving him to get harsher and harsher during sex. And just as you’re on the verge of breaking, he’ll stop and start to coddle you, cooing sweet nothings and wiping your tears away as he cares for your wounds. You’re his favorite pet, after all, so he can’t destroy you completely.

However, if you resist his affection, prepare to be punished for your insolence.

Only when you become a demon will be start to give up some control, but you’ll have to take it by force. It’d excite Douma more than he’d want to admit when you break from your restraints and slam him down, your hands around his throat as you start to fuck him as roughly as he fucks you. Rather this means riding him or taking his ass, that’s for you to decide. He'd play a little game where he bottoms, acting like he doesn’t like it and that he’s above subbing, even though that’s when he cums the hardest. He’s a total brat, and he’d push you to the limit until you snap and fix that awful attitude of his.

When Muzan assigns him a pretty young thing to train, his cock will start to awaken. The thought of molding you excites Kokushibo, and his mind will quickly venture to the gutter. Just thinking about teaching you how to fuck nearly makes him feral, making him lose his signature stoicism.

Every day, he will work you to the bone, and when night comes, you will be rewarded for a job well done. He will worship your body, lavishing every inch with kisses, caresses, and bites. His mouth will explore your sensitive spots, his tongue eagerly diving into your warm, tight hole. His fingers will rub and stretch your entrance, making sure that you are well prepared to take him. Then, he will pound into your pussy, fucking you into the mattress. His pace will be relentless, and he will not stop until you have milked him dry.

When the deed is done, he will tend to your needs, making sure that your wounds are taken care of and that you are relaxed and content.

Don’t think he’s soft, though. He will make sure you know your place, and if you try to act out, he will punish you accordingly. He will not hesitate to spank you, choke you, whip you, whatever is necessary to correct your bad behavior. You will be put back in your place, and he will make sure that you know how to behave properly in the future.

His expectations will be high and rules numerous. He will not go easy on you, as he has no room for error. He’ll mold you into a slave to his whims, making sure you’ll bend to his every command. If you fail, don't expect to get off lightly. He won't stop until you're sobbing, with the lesson he’s seeking to teach drilled into your head.

This should go without saying. Muzan is a demon who craves control and expects respect. His sex life is no different, and when in relationships, there’s a 24/7 master/slave dynamic at play. He'll keep you on a tight leash—sometimes literally—and require you to ask permission for everything unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Wanna eat? Ask Muzan. Wanna bathe? Ask Muzan. Wanna sleep? Ask Muzan. Wanna go somewhere without him? How dare you ask that? You just earned a punishment.

In day-to-day life, you call him Lord Muzan. When he fucks you, he’ll expect you to call him Master. What he calls you depends on his mood, but he's very fond of referring to you as his ‘pet.’  And just as your title is dependent on the day, so does how he fucks you. He’ll always find a way to mark you, be it choking you until his fingerprints are visible, biting you, digging his nails into your skin, etc. Likewise, he’ll always restrain you, be it with rope, or just holding your wrists above your head.

If you’ve been particularly bothersome, he’ll spank you, then edge you until you’re begging and sobbing out apologies. If you’ve been a good girl, he’ll give you as many orgasms as you want.  

During aftercare—if he feels like providing it—he’s incredibly clinical about the whole thing and usually treats it as a chore that must be completed.

A/N: This one was longer than expected, but I hope you enjoyed it! I enjoyed writing this ask, and it spawned a few fic ideas 🤭

[bunny-yan]

Cyborg!Yandere x GN!Reader

Thank you @slutforconan for responding to my sleeping post!

TW: language, violence, discrimination, implies drunk intimate relations, sin menores

—

You weren’t prejudiced. 

Seriously, you weren’t. You’d had a number of experiences in life to teach you just how little differences there were between you and people who looked differently than you did. There were more cases of people who looked exactly like you and your lives were nothing alike. 

At the end of the day you understood that others had their own set of struggles to deal with and so you tried to keep an open mind. Especially when everything in you wanted to deny it. 

Sure, you hated kids but you had gained the right to look down on them after passing that insufferable age. Disliking the generation that came after you was a rite of passage that everyone would experience as far as you were concerned. And for all their wisdom was worth, older people could really grate on your nerves. You believed you should respect your elders, but when they used your inexperience of years on Earth to preach about how you were everything wrong with the world, you remained respectful by letting their “wisdom” go in one ear before traveling out of the other. 

We get it. You’ve been here a long time. 

So you were at odds with others. It was only natural considering how many varying opinions there were in the world. It didn’t mean you were prejudiced. If everyone got along, world peace would’ve long since been achieved and it hasn’t. 

Especially after the Cyborg Program had been approved. 

Imagine a world where machine and man became one.

It was as if bioengineers had reached into heaven to act as the goddess as more and more people became something akin to superhumans. 

Super strength, speed, power, intelligence, all achievable if you decided to enter the government’s special program. They’d replace your organs with technology, injecting nanobots into your bloodstream to slowly acclimate your system so it could handle the rapid upgrades it was receiving. They made it possible to leap over buildings, lift objects that weighed tons, run long distances in the blink of an eye, and calculate complex equations as fast as a computer could. 

It was the evolution of human beings. The beginning of a new era. 

A violent one. 

More people were against the new age of man than you expected. Protests outside of organizations that modified the human body or produced the technology used for it happened almost everyday. 

While some believed it to be a mockery against the goddess, others didn’t like the idea of androids “stealing” jobs meant for “humans.” An cyborg with super strength could replace twenty workers and that meant twenty workers would have to look for work elsewhere. Though one needed a permit that was difficult to acquire and special permission from the government to hire an android, it was a prominent fear nonetheless.

Things got heated to the point where you couldn’t walk outside with modifications on your body without being assaulted in some way. 

A nasty barrage of insults hurled from across the street, mixing in words like “robot” were common. It was considered a slur against androids as it implied they weren’t human, but to the unmodified they weren’t. 

Many debated what made a human being, be it a beating heart, the ability to feel and express emotion, or a soul, but an answer was never found and the flames were only fanned when cyborgs decided to retaliate after being subjected to unfair treatment. 

They were labeled violent, monsters that had an insatiable desire to kill the moment they got the chance. Despite the fact that human on human crime had a much higher rate than android on human violence could ever have, they passed the undefinable line as other. 

Tensions were high, but the dam was broken when a group of humans attacked an android that tried their best not to fight back for fear of hurting them, but the surge of malice exploded after the android’s arm was torn off and plastered to a modification center’s walls. 

Riots erupted across cities, cars and buildings became collateral in the battle of human versus android, a battle that wouldn’t have lasted long if the androids truly intended to kill the humans that persecuted them, but it didn’t last. 

The government deployed troops to stop the riots, declaring martial law and forcing citizens to stay in their homes until they could figure out a way to contain the escalating situation. 

Their solution, placing cyborgs as helpers in neighborhoods and intensifying the punishment for violence used against cyborgs. The goal was to create a delicate peace as people were consistently exposed to androids in a positive manner, really selling that “Cyborgs are human too!” mindset.

As dumb as it initially sounded, you couldn’t deny that it definitely worked. You could go outside without fear that you’d stumble upon an ongoing battle on your way to work. It was common sense to avoid the sounds of gun shots and screaming, but you’d had the misfortune of parking near conflicts once or twice. 

Now you could travel to your car in peace. It wasn’t uncomfortable being outside, but it did make you nervous when he would visit to see if you needed help with anything. 

He’d been introduced to the tenants on your floor as the cyborg that was apart of the integration program. 

You didn’t see how anyone could be at ease with that intense scowl he always wore. You saw it so often that you figured he’d greeted the doctor with that exact face at his birth. He was dark, broody, and you couldn’t help but admit handsome. It made you wonder if some of the androids had decided to get plastic surgery along with the other body modifications because it felt like a sin for someone to be as hot as he was. 

He was eye candy that you couldn’t help but stare at, but it made you nervous to do so when it was just the two of you alone together in your small apartment. 

Though you insisted that you didn’t really need anything, he went around fixing things as he pleased like a handyman. The squeaky door, the cracked tiles in the bathroom and kitchen, dusty furniture, dingy carpet, leaking roof, flickering lights. Your apartment sounded like something straight out of a horror movie, but you’d been busy with work and the landlord had been promising to see about your issues for the last couple of months so you wouldn’t be accepting any criticism. 

You’d thank him and he’d respond with a small nod. When making dinner, you’d ask if he wanted anything and he’d always respond that he was fine. 

After the first couple of weeks, you forced him to sit at the table with you. Not only did you feel extremely rude to eat while he stood like a weird loner in the corner of your apartment, it was awkward and you refused to leave things the way they were if this was going to be an ongoing relationship. 

It didn’t take much prodding. For all of his ominous brooding, he was a pretty agreeable guy. You’d begin to get excited whenever he’d come to visit you. His time would be spent watching a movie with you instead of cleaning or talking together as you taught him to cook some simple dishes. Apparently cyborgs didn’t need to eat often, but it was still an enjoyable experience if they kept their taste receptors, which he did. You found out in one of your conversations that he was a pretty avid drinker and after a night of questionable decisions and more drinks than you could remember, you woke up with him in your bed. 

Naked.

Initially you freaked out, feeling that this was going to ruin the relationship that you’d built by making it awkward whenever he came by, but if you were telling the truth, you remembered everything that happened. You’d come onto him and he allowed it to happen. 

It was truly an unforgettable experience. 

You couldn’t really think of a downside to allowing this to happen if you were both up for it. He was handsome, a great conversationalist when he wasn’t brooding, and you’d learned he was breathtaking in bed. 

Literally. 

He was your breathtakingly brooding cyborg boyfriend. Or, boyfriend rather since being an cyborg was a secondary characteristic of his identity that had no real impact on your relationship other than the whispers and side eyes the two of you would receive if you ever went out together on dates. 

Which, unfortunately, didn’t happen often. 

You asked him why he didn’t take you out more and he claimed it was because he could tell that you were uncomfortable with receiving so much negative attention. He didn’t want to be a stressor in your relationship and claimed he’d much prefer hanging out at your apartment. 

It was sweet. You couldn’t deny that he was being very thoughtful, but that excuse got old after a while. You tried to explain to him that you’d have to get used to it eventually. Unless the two of your broke up and you decided to date a regular guy, not that he wasn’t a regular guy just a modified guy and nothing was wrong with that, the attention you received wouldn’t change. 

His eyes got dark at the mention of you dating someone else, brooding as he seemed to think over your words. You thought that it was cute, but you were even happier because it seemed as if you got through to him. 

You were wrong. 

The insufferable bastard would follow you to your car, making you sit in the passenger seat as he drove you to work. Sweet, sure, until he’d only allow you to travel by car when he accompanied you. Not only did he not bother taking you out on dates, he also refused to let you accompany him to do simple things like shopping at the grocery store. He even confiscated your keys to make sure you couldn’t go anywhere on your own. If you wanted to be obstinate you could walk, but you weren’t stupid. You were aware of the possible dangers you faced in your neighborhood considering it wasn’t the safest place. 

You were beginning to get angry. To tell the truth, you were past the point of anger. You were seething with rage, but your lid only burst after he attempted to change the locks on your apartment door so you couldn’t go anywhere while he was assisting the other tenants. 

The two of you got into an argument that shook the thin walls. 

He claimed he was only trying to protect you and you yelled that he was going overboard. He’d crossed serious lines and you felt he was suffocating you in your own apartment. 

You tried to get him to see your side, but he was steadfast in his belief that he had done nothing wrong. You couldn’t remain calm. You were a ball of pure rage after he called you inconsiderate. All you saw was red as you yelled at him to get out. You told him that you didn’t want to see his face, that everything between the two of you was over. 

He’d stood there for a moment, shocked at your words, but he left nonetheless. 

You slammed the door behind him, locking it and shaking as you told yourself not to cry. It didn’t matter that you had ended your relationship. It wasn’t good for you. 

He was pig headed and controlling and you didn’t care that you would no longer be able to cuddle up to him during a bad movie that the two of you would make fun of. He wouldn’t hold you and softly proclaim his love or say sappy things that you didn’t imagine he was capable of. You’d no longer get to ask him about what it was like to be a modified human being and he would no longer tell you he was happy that he kept his touch sensors because he liked your warmth and the feel of you against his skin. 

You hated that it felt like your heart was trying to claw it’s way out of your chest. So you did what you normally did when you were faced with a pressing issue. You drowned yourself in blankets and fell asleep. 

You couldn’t tell how long it’d been, falling asleep rather quickly due to your overwhelming mixed emotions that your brain was exhausted from handling, but you’d woken up when you felt an arm wrap itself around your waist. 

You looked out into the dark in alarm, but your body eased instinctively when you heard his voice say that he missed you so much he couldn’t sleep as he pulled you into his embrace. 

You wanted to call him a liar. You knew he didn’t really need to sleep often. It was a part of his modifications. The nights you spent together, he held you as you slept, listening and waiting for your breathing to even out. He once told you that the sight of your sleeping face was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. 

You frowned, feeling unsure, but you closed your eyes as you leaned closer to him. You could argue with him in the morning. 

For now, you were just grateful that he was by your side. You didn’t want to admit it, but your bed felt empty without him. 

[anyon-else]

— icks w/ toji fushiguro, gojo satoru, geto suguru, & sukuna ryomen – main masterlist

TOJI FUSHIGURO | i bet ya'll can guess. it's the fucking worm.

you recognize that he needs the thing in order to fight, and that it is very useful in terms of combat, so you don't have the heart to tell him how much it freaks you out.

he legitimately treats it like a child. whenever you ask why he has to be so gentle with it, he tells you that he has to keep it in top condition so that it can store as many weapons as possible, but he feeds it. he gives it baths. he lets it sleep on a little dog bed that he bought at pet smart. you felt that maybe he was going a little bit overboard.

you've also caught him talking to it. it just really gives you the creeps.

he was so offended when you voiced your disgust with it. like, he held it up and told you that you made it feel bad, then demanded that you apologize.

"are you serious?"

toji just stared at you, one eyebrow raised as he held his worm out in front of him. it was staring at you with those beady eyes, and you couldn't help but crinkle your nose. no matter how many times toji bathed it, it still smelled.

"what's with the face?"

"i'm sorry! it's just so ugly..."

"it? seriously? he's a him."

"good lord, toji."

GOJO SATORU | he's always late. he makes it his whole personality.

he likes to make an entrance, which means that he has to enter every room alone. since many people show up early to events, and even arrives on time, showing up late is his only option.

while that's all fine and dandy for him, when you are each other's respective dates for events either at the school or at your workplace, it becomes your problem as well.

one time, he really wanted to impress his students at a party that he decided to put together at the school, so he made you wait outside so he could enter alone.

"no, you won't have to go in alone! i'll go, then i'll come back out and we'll go in together."

sometimes he shows up late to fights. if he knows who or what he's fighting, he'll make sure he knows if it's a special grade. if it is, he claims that lateness will make him look cooler and more intimidating. this has led to many problems and many stern lectures from nanami.

the one thing he doesn't show up late to is date night. he says that you already know how cool he is, so there's no need.

GETO SUGURU | when he eats curses.

on an objective level you understand. it's a necessary part of his technique, but the way that he decides to do it is so theatrical. you always have to turn away if he starts doing it in front of you, and then he gets all pouty.

you try to tell him that it's not because of him; it's just the idea of it that freaks you out, but he's not having it. you get the silent treatment for a little bit, and then the cycle repeats.

he starts doing it in front of you on purpose. like, he hoards those little curse balls, and then when you two have dinner, he'll be like "oh, i'm covered for tonight" and literally dumps like eight of them on his plate and gives you this smug little grin.

you try and act like it doesn't bother you, but then he sticks a fork in one and sticks his tongue out, making sure to accompany the movements with a loud "ahhh," followed by a satisfied "mmm" when he's swallowed it. this continues for all eight of the curses, and by the sixth one you've scarfed down your food and excused yourself from the table.

your last straw was when he asked you to feed them to him.

SUKUNA RYOMEN | his god complex.

lets start by saying that this man would never be in a relationship. not a healthy one, at least. but for fanfic's sake, let's go a bit ooc.

he slowly but surely becomes used to the healthier aspects of being in a relationship, but he's also still the king of curses. sometimes, when he's annoyed with you, he says things like "one thousand years ago, i'd have crushed you under my thumb for saying those things" and "i can't believe i'm being told to 'get over myself' by a measly human"

with anyone else, it would be extremely concerning. however, you were the one who chose an evil, immortal curse.

you still tell him off, though. it can be really annoying when he gets all high and mighty. because while he is, he doesn't have to act like it all the time.

this complex also means that he can become very possessive. unhealthily so. if any other person even looks in your direction, he's about three seconds from wiping them from existence. while he is very secure in his relationship, and knows that you would never leave him (he knows what he looks like), he also knows that he has the power to do whatever he wants, so killing a few people who give you sideways glances won't hurt anyone. well, mostly.

you try to get him to calm down, but after a while it seems hopeless to even try. again, you knew what you were getting into.

[quatregats]

There’s been a lot of (very excellent!) discussion recently about Brigid and Stephen and how much she’s loved, and I feel like that’s a very good segue into a topic which I’ve been musing over for a while: namely, Patrick O’Brian’s treatment of love in general. Because honestly I feel like one of the things that’s most captivated me about the Aubreyad in general is the sheer amount of love it contains, the vast majority of which is (canonically, at least) non-romantic, and I think that the further I get into the series, the more that strikes me.

Like honestly I cannot even begin to explain how incredibly good POB is at portraying loving relationships, whether they’re friendships, marriages, or parents and children (/surrogate parent and child, as the case may be). I’m actually genuinely not sure if I’ve ever read something like it. I think that a lot of media really struggles with platonic relationships, which is a question that probably deserves a 400-page thesis about it and that I’m not really qualified to answer, but the Aubreyad somehow manages to create relationships that are all so imbued with love that it genuinely does not matter whether or not the people in them are in love or not. While I’m certainly here for reading Stephen and Jack as a romantic relationship, there’s a certain point where I actually don’t care whether or not they’re friends or lovers, because the complexities of what they feel for each other and what they mean in each other’s lives is just as deep either way. And all the relationships in the book are like that: Bonden and the Surprises looking after Stephen, Jack with Mowett and Pullings, Stephen and Sophie, and on and on into infinity.

I think the thing that makes me the most insane about this is that these relationships all feel so unbelievably, viscerally real. The love that’s stored there is the same sort of love that I feel for the people in my own life, with all the inevitable disagreements and exasperation and imperfection that it comes with. I think it’s incredibly difficult to capture that exact feeling in writing, and yet somehow he’s managed to do it. There’s been so much talk about the way in which people in our day and age and media in general struggle to talk about friendship and platonic relationships as meaningful, and I’m not saying that just any writer could go out and weave a tapestry so complex as the Aubreyad does, but reading these books is like a balm for that. There’s something so reassuring in knowing that a romantic relationship is not the be-all-end-all for any of the characters in these books, no matter how you look at it. Each of them is surrounded by a web of people who are deeply implicated in their existence and who truly care what happens to them.

I think fiction, by its nature of needing to bring characters in to serve a role in a linear plot, doesn’t often leave room for love of this kind, and I don't want to be critical of that, because not all narratives can be like the one Patrick O'Brian's written (which is 100% okay—it should be that way, that's how narratives work!). But there’s something so healing about reading a story in which all of the characters are so deeply loved. It’s like a mirror; looking into it, you can see your own relationships, and by extension, just how loved you are, even if most of the time you don’t realize it. Humans are not lonely creatures, and no one captures that better than Patrick O’Brian.

[x-other-souled-x]

No. Nope.

Using language that systems may also use in a medical setting to describe their expereinces and go through treatment is not appropriation. Full stop.

There is no culture being exploited, unless you want to argue that the medical-industrial complex is a closed culture somehow.

Which I have definitely seen posts saying something dangerously close to this, and I urge you to not base your entire sense of self on the guys making money off of you. Even if they're helping, there's intentional siphoning of money from poor patients.

Secondly, language is a tool used to communicate. Words exist as "bodies" to a concept, and sometimes this concept is interpreted a little differently from person to person. There are a lot of words that mean several different things depending on the context. The most important thing is the setting which they're used in. A good ammount of medical terms are also words that are used by laymen in other contexts, meaning something different.

A system is a group of interrelated parts working together as a whole.

An Operating System (OS) is a system of code and software that tells the hardware what to do in order to make your computer run. There's agricultural systems, government systems, the solar system itself. Are these things appropriating the medical-industrial complex by existing as parts that make one whole thing work?

And before anyone splits hairs about this, I am not equating human life to computers or the government. These are examples of things that are literally defined AS SYSTEMS. The main takeaway you should be having here is that system is a broad term with many many applications outside of the medical-industrial complex. That one institution does not own the word nor the concept of being multiple parts (headmates/alters/whatever) working together.

The concept still exists and system still is a word outside of a medical context.

In other words, people would have eventually came to the conclusion of calling themselves systems regardless of if it was used in a medical context or not. It's not hard to put 2 and 2 together, to see parallels in concepts and expereinces and decide those words work just fine. Thank you for coming to my TEDtalk.

This is a post online, made by a trauma-formed system. I'm not going to have the time and foresight to cover every little nuance, and I don't care to be pedantic and pick apart small case instances. At the end of the day, this does not actually matter to how I live my life, how I get therapy, how we as a system have to work together. Endos using terms that are also used in a medical setting (but also used outside of medical settings) is not harmful to me in any way. And quite frankly, I think anti-endo witchunting has done more damage to us as a system trying to figure out how to navigate life than any endo friendly post has. I'm not arguing semantics, I'm going to go live my life and go outside and do my job and pay my bills like everyone else.

All this discourse around stealing terms and what you can and can't call yourself is so seriously unimportant in the grand scheme of things. You all sound so comfy and privileged to be worried about something so trivial as a word or three that is used in multiple contexts accross human language.

[andreal831]

TVDU and Morality

I've recently said, a few times, that the morality debates in the TVDU fandom are boring, and some people have gotten offended so I thought I would explain.

First, this idea of hypocrisy in the fandom is laughable. The amount of times I've been called a hypocrite because I've called out problematic behavior, while also liking a problematic character. The gut reaction for so many in this fandom when their favorite character is being criticized is to shift the conversation onto a completely different character and even to the commenter themselves. This is boring and even downright offensive at times. Every single character has been a hypocrite at times. It doesn't inherently mean someone is bad. It means they are "human" and life can make hypocrites of all of us at times. Also, just to clarify, I am not a hypocrite for merely liking a problematic character. I promise I have never nor will I ever commit the acts that I criticize these characters for, which would be the definition of hypocrisy. I have also never told anyone they can't like certain characters.

We have these complicated characters and none of them are "good" people because, guess what, people aren't just one or the other. Everyone has the capability to be "bad" or "good." Trying to put a character firmly on one side is a generalization and ignores so much nuance. Some of their actions may be completely bad or completely good, but typically even that is an oversimplification. Are there characters that seem to do more bad things or more good things, definitely. Are their some characters that cross certain, unnecessary lines, absolutely. Are we allowed to criticize and question every character, please do! That's literally what media literacy is about.

Every single one of these characters has had completely selfish moments (except maybe Bonnie) and every single one of them has had moments of selflessness. These acts don't inherently demonize a character or automatically redeem one. This is what it means to have interesting, complex debates about characters. Looking at the characters as a whole and having open discussions of what it means. We can still love the character and acknowledge the good and the bad of the character.

Another annoying point that is always brought up is, "they weren't born evil, they were made that way." Yes, we get it. No one is born evil. Whether it is mental illness or life events that shape a person, they still have to take responsibility for their own actions. Obviously certain mental illnesses didn't have treatments for a very long time, but that doesn't just allow people to be serial killers.

Every single character has dealt with trauma, and how you react says a lot about a person's character. Separating out characters to say well "x" didn't deserve it but when they became "x" they did. No one deserves good or bad things. I know I say it all the time, they deserved better, but when I do, I'm being facetious. I'm saying I wanted better for that character, better writing, better storylines, a better ending, etc. That phrasing implies that some people deserve better lives than others and I just morally don't agree. No one deserves trauma or abuse. That logic only furthers the cycle of abuse. Now, that being said, people are responsible for their own actions. Spend centuries creating enemies, and guess what, a lot of bad things are going to happen to you.

But the real debates I enjoy having, and have been fortunate to find so many people to engage in these debates, is the morality of the decisions in context of the characters. I like to apply similar logic from the Trolley Problem. If you don't know what that is, enjoy this tik tok I made of Cami teaching the Mikaelsons.

Essentially, many of the characters weight their options, like Jeremy killing Kol and thousands of vampires with it in order to find the cure. Kol is a thousand year old serial killer and is attempting to kill Jeremy, but again Kol is attempting to stop Silas from rising. Neither side is inherently right or wrong. There is a debate to be had.

In the majority of situations in the show there is a debate to be had. The only exceptions being any SA. I will never debate the morality of these actions. Even for immoral characters, there is a line to be drawn.

These debates get even more complex in TO because we move into a world where nearly every character has done absolutely horrendous things. It's okay to sit down and say, "This thing that x did was awful, but I can see their reasoning." It is not justifying their actions, but allowing the characters to be the complex morally corrupt characters that they all are.

[bigfan-fanfic]

Nurture (Male Reader x Thor)

Requested by @jayfeather965 for  Thor meets a shy human who has the power to talk to animals and control plants. He met him on a rescue mission from some hydra facility. Can you do a short fic on them forming a relationship as human begins to trust again and get over his trauma?

It had been decided that protective custody would be the best thing for you, and Thor had offered to bring you to Asgard.

SHIELD obviously hadn't liked that, but it wasn't up to them.

Hydra had determined that harkening back to the Auld Ways was the way forward, and their deep dives into mysticism and the occult had not only revealed the existence of Chaos magic, but also the natural magic of the world.

What better weapon than life itself?

What better equipped assassin than one who could take advantage of the most abundant form of complex life?

What better spy than one who can talk to animals?

However, Asgard is pretty much the perfect place for you to feel comfortable.

Magic is not just accepted and known here, but a way of life. Odin and Frigga are both highly accomplished mages, and their son Loki has learned from them both.

So, really, no one is shocked at your abilities, which is actually really helpful in you coming to accept them yourself. In fact, quite a few share similar abilities.

It's still hard to trust anyone, though.

Thor appoints himself your bodyguard and accompanies you wherever you would like to go.

He treats you cautiously, carefully. He never prods you to start talking, nor directs you to go anywhere unless it's for a reason that he explains, like dinner is starting, or there's a very nice secluded garden that you might like to check out.

Eventually, you start to open up to him. It's easy to talk when there's no pressure to it.

You don't talk about what you've been through. Not yet, although there has been a healer you've been obliged to speak with once a week to process what has happened to you.

With Thor you ask about his memories. His childhood, his thoughts. Simple things like his favorite color. You're still pretty shy, so these questions take great effort to ask, and Thor recognizes that.

He takes his time, pondering each question and giving an honest answer, full of introspection. Sometimes a joke.

Thor slowly becomes easy to talk to. He smiles more frequently, and starts to engage you, and now you don't flinch when he asks you something by surprise.

He too opens up, the more personal questions you ask him getting honest answers, sometimes pulling deep emotion from him.

You talk to him about your treatment, about your past. He holds you while you cry, and you take him in your arms when he does.

And one morning, he takes you to a garden you haven't seen yet, and you lean forward to kiss him.

He freezes. Gently stops you.

"I would be lying if I said I did not care for you. But it would be selfish of me to allow this without inquiring... my friendship, my care for you. It does not come with the expectation of anything else."

He blushes. "Though I would love the opportunity to court you, I will not hold it against you if you decide not to - what I'm trying to say is that... you have my respect, my friendship, and my protection, and you do not need to feel the need to repay me in this way. I just need to make sure you know this."

You nod. "I.. this is because I like you, Thor. I like being around you. I like seeing you every day. I like listening to you. Talking to you. I love you."

He smiles softly, eyes prickling with unshed tears. "This... it overjoys me. I fear that if we embrace, I shall never wish to let you go. I promise you now that I will do whatever I can to help you. Even if that means giving you space. Just command me, and it shall be done, my prince."

You blush. "I... I can't promise that I'll ever be fully okay. That I'll stop being afraid of everything. All I know is that I want to try. And I'll keep trying."

He's so close to you right now.

And somehow, when you move slowly, deliberately, your eyes open, to kiss him - it means all the more than rushing into it blindly and impulsively.

Your eyelids flutter shut as your lips meet his, and he's right.

You may never wish to let go.

[funhouse-mirror-barbie]

The Decay of Complex Characters and Character Development in Helluva Boss (Stolas and Octavia’s Relationship: Part 2 of 2)

Part 1 here

I felt I had to make separate part just for “Seeing Stars” because my other post was getting way too long, and I wanted to really focus on the treatment of Stolas and Octavia’s by the writers.

Please know that this is JUST my opinion and not a personal attack on HB’s writers or creators. I’m talking and venting a bit about my personal frustrations with the series regarding what I perceive as being MAJOR plot holes and inconsistencies in the show’s writing.

As of right now—and I do want to acknowledge this could change, but as of right now—it largely seems like any character development Stolas may have gone through after “Loo Loo Land” has been completely tossed out the window.

I personally believe that the writers of Helluva Boss think that they are writing Stolas to be more complex, but he has yet to have to actually be held accountable for his actions, and for breaking his promises to Octavia.

And the way the writers present him has really come to bother me. So I wanted to talk more about it, and about how Stolas cannot become a well-written, complex, and engaging character until the writers let him actually be imperfect and complex.

To talk about this more in depth, I gotta go over the second episode that features Octavia, Season 2, Episode 2 of Helluva Boss—“Seeing Stars”

(TLDR at the end)

To start, “Seeing Stars” is narratively very similar to “Loo Loo Land”. By “very similar” I mean that it’s almost the exact same plot, but frustratingly more clunky. Here is an extremely short summary:

The main crux of the conflict in “Seeing Stars” is that Stolas forgot about a promise he made to Octavia to go see a meteor shower, and ends up neglecting her.

Specifically, he forgets because he is too busy yelling at Stella over the phone due to their contentious divorce. Octavia feels let down by her father again, and runs away to the human realm to see the meteor shower on her own.

Stolas and I.M.P. panic and go after her. Eventually Loona finds her and gives her a speech that essentially boils down to: “everyone’s got hardships and problems but Dads ESPECIALLY have problems. Your Dad is trying really hard right now. So that should count for something right?”

And that comforts Octavia in the moment. Octavia and Stolas reunite, he asks her why she ran away, and she tells him she was trying to see the meteor shower he promised to take her to. Stolas is horrified that he’d forgotten, starts to apologize, but Octavia cuts him off and tells him “it’s okay”, forgiving him.

I rewatched “Seeing Stars” before making this post to make sure I hadn’t misremembered any crucial plot points.

I thought I remembered that, at the very end of the episode, Stolas apologized to Octavia for breaking his promise and then she told him it was okay.

It turns out I had misremembered things, because the writers literally kept Stolas from saying sorry.

This leads to the main criticism I have of Stolas as a character, especially from a writing standpoint. The narrative does not allow for Stolas to ever truly be in the wrong, or for anyone, including Stolas, to fully acknowledge that he is in the wrong.

And I know that it’s easy to go “BUT LOOK! Octavia says “I know, Dad”! She KNOWS that Stolas is sorry.

That’s fair, but for me personally, I think an EARNEST and verbal apology is needed here to show that Stolas has grown.

I’m very lucky in that I have a good relationship with my parents, but that doesn’t mean we never fought or they never said or did things that hurt me.

I distinctly remember a time when my Mom was apologizing to me for something she did, I said “it’s okay” and she immediately replied “No, it’s not okay. I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry, and I hope you can forgive me”.

That really changed my perspective on conflict. I think a lot of people, including myself until then, consider “it’s okay” to be a form of saying “I forgive you”. And I’m not trying to police like…basic language and substitute words. But I DO strongly believe in taking responsibility for when you hurt someone.

In all honesty, I think this scene actually could have worked for Stolas’ character development if he had actually acknowledged that, “No, it’s not. It’s not okay that I broke my promise to you. I’m sorry, and I hope you can forgive me, but if you can’t right now, I understand.”

THAT, to me, shows character development. That would’ve shown that Stolas is, at the very least, trying to make an actual effort to change for the sake of Octavia.

Instead, though, SHE apologizes Stolas for running away to try and see the meteor shower that HE promised to take her to. And the writers refuse to even let Stolas say he’s sorry.

Let Stolas say he’s sorry, writers! Let Stolas be in the wrong!!! I promise it won’t make people hate his character!

I mean, jfc, just look at the fandom around Hazbin’s Valentino. That guy could not be more evil if he tried and a lot of fans can’t seem to get enough of him.

My other issue with the treatment of Octavia in this episode, SPECIFICALLY the speech that Loona gives Octavia near the end.

Because. Oof. There’s a lot to unpack. Firstly:

Maybe it’s just me, but I find the way the writers have Loona frame this situation as being really really weird. To be clear, I don’t think it starts off too badly. Everyone DOES have issues, and that can affect the way they act and treat others and make mistakes.

That said, dads are not inherently more messed up or dealing with more difficulties than anyone else.

Dads have issues the same as any other person, but they don’t get special privileges or passes because they’re dads. They’re responsible for themselves like every other person with issues and difficulties, and they’re still responsible for themselves and their mistakes.

It’s especially frustrating because the writers are using Stolas’ “issues” as a crutch to excuse their bad behavior. This happens a lot with writers trying to excuse or justify their character’s actions. The “issues” can be anything from a difficult childhood, relationship troubles or divorce, a traumatic experience, etc. but these things should never be used as a way to excuse a character’s every mistake and flaw.

Effective writing will use a character’s history to explain the reasons a character acts or behaves a certain way, not excuse that behavior. This leads to characters that the audience can become more invested in, and can form different opinions or interpretations about.

A really great example of this is Bojack Horseman, whose terrible upbringing and abuse definitely garner audience sympathy, but the writers never use this to as a justification for the Bojack’s behaviors. Bojack continually makes really terrible choices that hurt the people he cares about the most, and while we as the audience still sympathize with him to an extent, we still get frustrated with Bojack, and be disappointed by him.

The audience finally gets some catharsis from this frustration when Bojack is called out by his best friend Todd for this, after he finally breaks any remaining trust in their friendship with the following quote:

“You can’t keep doing this! You can’t keep doing shitty things, and then feel bad about yourself like that makes it okay! You need to be better! [Bojack apologizes and then continues to make excuses] …BoJack, stop. You are all the things that are wrong with you. It's not the alcohol, or the drugs, or any of the shitty things that happened in your career, or when you were a kid—It's you. Alright? It's you. Fuck, man. What else is there to say?”

In my opinion, Helluva Boss’ writers seem to be determined to write the exact opposite of this sentiment.

The writers frame Loona’s speech to Octavia as a heartwarming moment—a moment where Loona helps Octavia realize that Stolas cares about her and is trying his best, so Octavia should cut him some slack.

This is, quite frankly, a BAFFLING scene because Loona’s behavior for the ENTIRE EPISODE is her assaulting and yelling at her dad. Like, she has given Blitzø absolutely NO slack before this moment, and then doesn’t give him any in the scene DIRECTLY after this, where she assaults him again while he’s in the middle of apologizing to her.

Not only is it odd to have Loona tell Octavia all of this and then not act on it herself, but the whole scene really reads as the writers trying to sweep Octavia’s very valid and real feelings of hurt over her father’s neglect under the rug.

And look. Trying to be better can be important. Trying to change and be better IS worthy of being acknowledged. But at a certain point, as Todd points out to Bojack, you have to actually be better.

In part 1, I talked about how the end of “Looloo Land” had set things up for Stolas to start being more conscientious of Octavia’s feelings and needs. He took the first step of making amends with her, of listening to her and her concerns and fears.

“Seeing Stars” was an episode that could have shown him being better. But instead. Well.

In her speech to Octavia Loona says this:

And to be fair, Loona didn’t know what hijinks Stolas and Blitzø were getting up to in the city. She probably did think Stolas was looking for her.

…Except…he kind of wasn’t…

During the search for Octavia, Blitzø gets mistaken for a famous Hollywood actor, and he and Stolas are essentially kidnapped to be in a sitcom. When this first happens, Stolas is anxious, clearly upset that there search has been further impeded:

He’s scared that Octavia could be in danger, or hurt. Stolas seemingly wants to find her as soon as possible.

Well. Once they get to the Hollywood sitcom shoot, the following scenes happen:

STOLAS WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING???? YOU JUST SAID THAT YOU DIDNT HAVE TIME FOR THIS ??? BLITZØ DIDNT EVEN WANT TO PERFORM, AND YOU MADE HIM! WHY?!?! YOU DONT OWE THESE PEOPLE ANYTHING? THE TV PRODUCER EVEN LEFT THE ROOM BEFORE THE SHOW STARTED, NO ONE WAS KEEPING YOU THERE!!!

WHY ARE YOU INVESTED IN THIS AND WORRIED ABOUT THE AUDIENCE NOT LAUGHING?!?! STOLAS YOU LITERALLY JUST SAID YOUR DAUGHTER COULD BE IN DANGER IN THE VAN, WHY ARE YOU SUDDENLY SO CONCERNED WITH MAKING BLITZØ ACT IN THIS SITCOM???? STOLAS YOU DONT KNOW WHERE YOUR FUCKING DAUGHTER IS?!?!?

I just…I’m sorry, I just think this episode is so so clunky and so poorly written. I think it may be one of the episodes with the least consistent character writing.

The scene continues, Stolas gets distracted by how attractive he finds Blitzø, and Blitzø acts in the sitcom for so long that even Stolas looks bored and out of it.

At this point in the story, he doesn’t know where his daughter is, if she’s hurt, or in danger, or even why she ran away in the first place. But instead of that taking the absolute top priority for him, he takes time to watch Blitzø make bad jokes in a wig for the whole afternoon.

Stolas isn’t even the one to get them out of the Hollywood studio, Blitzø is. Blitzø has a panic attack about the thought of Loona being taken from him during the sitcom shoot, and that’s what sparks them escaping.

The two escape the studio and meet up with Octavia and Loona, and the episode ends with Octavia apologizing for running away, and Stolas not having to apologize to her for his mistakes because Octavia already knows he’s sorry.

In Part 1, I talked about how at the end of “Loo Loo Land”, the writers set up the building blocks for Stolas’s character development in regards to his relationship with Octavia. S1 E2 of Helluva Boss ends with Stolas listening to his daughter, realizing his actions hurt her, and acting like he’s going to start putting her first.

“Seeing Stars” undoes all of that development. Which wasn’t even that much character development in the first place. Just the kicking off point for Stolas’ growth as a character.

Reviewing this episode made me realize that Stolas’ character development may have actually regressed. He doesn’t keep his promise to Octavia, he starts flirting with Blitzø when he should be looking for her, and wastes valuable time fucking around with Blitzø on a sitcom set.

And listen, I KNOW that Blitzø got Loona to look for Octavia right after he and Stolas got kidnapped by the tv producers. But after they get out of the Van, WHY does Stolas just continue to go along with it? He was so concerned and scared for Via before, wouldn’t he want to get back to looking for her as soon as possible?? And have as many people as possible working on finding her???

Blitzø doesn’t even want to go on the sitcom and for some reason Stolas makes him! The tv producer had left the room at that point too, and Stolas is a DEMON PRINCE, no one was keeping them there!

Stolas gives the reason for Blitzø needing to perform to be “so they can get back to looking for Via” but they can just do that without having to be in the sitcom?

I think the writers might have written dramatic irony into the story without meaning to? Loona tells Octavia that “[Stolas is] down there. Looking for you”, but we as the audience know that’s not true. Stolas wasn’t looking for his daughter. He was watching Blitzø star in a bad sitcom for 5 hours.

This becomes extra frustrating and gut-wrenching for me when I think about Octavia right before Loona’s speech about how “dads are special and have it extra extra bad and try extra extra hard and that’s super important, even if they fuck up and hurt you”

This scene is absolutely heartbreaking to me. This is a 17 year old girl who has been repeatedly let down by one of the people she looked up to and relied upon the most, who rightfully feels abandoned and like she no longer has a home.

Specifically the line “Why does he hate [my mum] more than he loves me?” hits extra hard.

I don’t know what it’s like to have divorced parents, but I can imagine that anyone who has may have had this exact thought. Octavia needs support more now than ever, and keeps getting let down by the adults around her, and it just breaks my heart to see this young vulnerable girl not really have anyone who acknowledges that what Stolas did was hurtful. That it wasn’t okay, and that she’s allowed to be upset about it.

The reason she exists in the story isn’t to be her own person and to have character development of her own. She exists just to be Stolas’ daughter, and to forgive him for his wrongdoings and make him seem like a “good” person because even though he has issues, he still loves her! That makes him a good dad!

And I don’t know how Octavia is broadly accepted in the HB fandom, but I’ve heard that she may not be liked very well, and I don’t understand how anyone could see this scene and think she’s annoying or terrible.

Honestly, I would NOT be as frustrated and disappointed by the writing in this episode, if the writers and the fandom at large didn’t treat this episode like it had a heartwarming and satisfying resolution. If the writers treated Stolas as a complex person who is able to make mistakes, and who still really needs to own up to his actions and take responsibility for his broken promises, I would probably like him a lot more as a complex and nuanced character.

But the way the writers frame Stolas as being in the right, or being the victim, or being fully justified in all his actions isn’t just bad writing. It’s boring. Stolas is a boring character because the writers do not allow him to be in the wrong, to be morally ambiguous or dark, or to be called out or held accountable for his mistakes.

The writers MAY somehow undo the damage they already did in “Seeing Stars”, but given the way that the writers, show creators, and fandom go out of their way to excuse any morally grey, questionable, or harmful decisions Stolas makes, I’m not going to hold my breath.

TLDR:

-Despite Octavia being hurt by Stolas again, the writers refuse to put him in any situation where he’s held accountable for his mistakes

-The writers use Stolas’ “issues” to excuse away his bad behavior. And specify that Octavia should cut Stolas some slack because he’s a dad and being a dad is extra hard I guess?

-the framing of the episode acts like Stolas did everything in his power to look for Octavia when he clearly didn’t (he was goofing off with Blitzø)

-Stolas is ultimately uninteresting and not engaging as a character because the writers go out of their way to excuse his behavior and mistakes even when he’s in the wrong.

-Stolas cannot be a complex character if he is always absolved of the consequences of his actions and is not allowed by the writers to be better (in my opinion)

Also sidebar—WHY DID HE NOT CALL OCTAVIA ON HER PHONE!?!

In the VERY first episode of HB Stolas is LITERALLY INTRODUCED TO US by calling Blitzø on his phone and watching Blitzø in the human world from hell, without the use of his Grimoire!! HE HAS THE POWER TO DO THAT!!!

I was like, maybe Octavia didn’t have her phone for a SECOND before remembering that LOONA FINDS OCTAVIA BY LOOKING AT THE PICTURES SHES POSTING TO SOCIAL MEDIA WITH HER PHONE.

Like Stolas do you not know ur own daughters phone number. AND YOURE GIVING BLITZØ A HARD TIME ABOUT NOT KNOWING MOXXIE’S?? Also when Blitzø is in danger you can pinpoint his exact location, travel to the human world without the grimoire terrify and reveal your existence to MULTIPLE humans with absolute disregard for being discovered, but when your OWN DAUGHTER is missing and you have NO idea why or if she’s in danger, suddenly you have time to run around LA for a day getting into shenanigans???? She’s your DAUGHTER. No wonder she doesn’t think you care about her because I sure as hell don’t after that episode. Lord.

[irithnova]

I want to uh make a post about Mongolia's relationship with his history and I guess some fandom depictions I'm uncomfortable with.

I think nations who have imperialist histories have some complex feelings around them because their entire existence, despite their immortality or perhaps God like status, is at the mercy of their people and rulers. Nations are human inventions, the identity of the nation is what it's people makes it. They didn't exactly ask to be born or to be representatives of an entire group of people - they just are. Nations are also subjects to their "bosses", like whoever is the Leader, King, Queen, Emperor, President is at the time. The extent to which nations support said ruler and how much autonomy they had under them vary from ruler to ruler, century to century. It's not always wise to conflate a nation with it's politics however it can become incredibly disingenuous and runs the risk of imperialism apologia when it's ignored entirely.

It would be silly to say my analysis of Mongolia's particular relationship with his imperialist history fully covers every nook and cranny of emotions nations have about their own imperialist histories, however by explaining Mongolia's relationship with his it allows for me to explain a few different ways I think nations may look back on imperialist pasts and also allows me to air out some grievances about Mongol Empire depictions.

First of all - I think nations operate on a different moral compass. A lot of things they do seem extremely weird to most humans - like casual and open relationships. So nation morality would be different. For example, if a nation backstabbed (or even literally stabbed) another nation 400 years ago which in turn caused a lot of destruction, depending on what has happened in those 400 years, there may not even be a grudge there. They might even be friends. And that friendship could easily be broken depending on what happens in the next 400 years. A nation who was public enemy #1 1000 years ago may be well liked in the modern day.

Me saying that nations follow a different moral code does not mean that I am trying to justify wrong doing. However as literal... Gods perhaps, of course things will be different. I think all nations are in a morally grey area, as they are primarily driven by self interest. That ensures their survival after all. I believe all nations have done right and wrong, on global scales and interpersonal scales. No one is exempt from this.

My uncomfortable feelings stem from when exceptions are made for certain nations in order to downplay their assholery because of a bias - while other nations get the same old assholery treatment. I think you see where I'm getting at. I believe it is stepping into dangerous territory when one nations asshole status or imperialist past and even present/relationship with its government is magnified to such an extent that it becomes an offensive and stereotypical depiction.

If we talk about the treatment of China for example - magnifying the crimes of the CCP to the extent where your China depiction becomes nothing more than a Sinophobic caricature. A large part of Sinophobia is the assumption that a majority or even all Chinese people are part of a CCP hivemind - any warmth or humanity stripped from them as they are painted as cold, calculating and scheming orientals, every action having some sinister intent.

This over conflation of nations with their government is often reserved for China compared to the likes of the US or Russia. Again - it is foolish to not associate the nation with its government at all or only in very small parts and can lead into tricky territory. However over conflating a nation with its government and unsavoury actions committed on the nations behalf - especially when this is done selectively, quickly becomes offensive and in many cases even racist, and shows a persons prejudices against certain groups of people.

This is where Mongolia comes in.

This racialisation of the Mongols being uniquely evil in their imperialism isn't exactly a new invention so it's not a surprise that this depiction of Mongolia being a uniquely bad or evil nation personification compared to everyone else, even to other nations who have also engaged in imperialism/nation's who's engagement in imperialist ventures are far more recent or are still actually ongoing is a theme that's prevalent in the fandom.

You could take rochu fics for example where Mongolia is portrayed as the boogeyman they bond over their hatred for even 800 years after the fact (I won't even touch upon how incredibly historically inaccurate these fics are because we'll be here all day but just know - it's bad) and Mongolia has a terrible marauding personality still. However despite more recent and even currently ongoing Russian and Chinese imperialist ventures (even historical imperialism that goes way back with China before Mongolia even existed), including Russian and Chinese imperialism that has affected and still affects Mongols in the current day they aren't depicted so disgracefully.

In fact if anything, in the 21st century, Mongolia is at the mercy of both Russia and China, but people love to pretend that that is not the current reality because they need a token one dimensional "savage" nation to contrast against the more "virtuous" or "moral" nations.

The idea that the Mongols were somehow unique in their imperialism means that in turn, everything about Mongolia and it's culture and history is seen as inherently barbarous, almost as if they predispositioned to acting "backwards."

To say that Mongolia is 100% regretful of everything or 100% regrets nothing are both rooted in the racist notion that the Mongols were uniquely bad in what the Mongol Empire did.

I'm going to be talking about Western Exceptionalism here and how it relates to my point about "over conflating a nation with its government and unsavoury actions committed on the nations behalf - especially when this is done selectively, quickly becomes offensive and in many cases even racist, and shows a persons prejudices against certain groups of people."

You might have heard of the phrase "Conquerer (if you're) from the West, barbarian (if you're from the East)." It's basically a quote which summarises Western exceptionalism. In the West, the likes of Napoleon, Alexander the Great and Charlemagne are depicted as great conquerors and shrewd military commanders. They are almost universally viewed with this lense of admiration despite the fact that these men also had pretty hefty death tolls under their belts and established Empires.

Furthermore, people are willing to be more nuanced or clinical or objective if they do choose to speak on America or England's imperialist past in historical hetalia posts and circles. Not only that, but especially with the US, his "rise to power" is often lionised. America is not painted as some sort of bloodthirsty savage even if someone has a more critical take on him, and his technological developments are often highlighted. Meanwhile Mongolia has often been portrayed as a mindless brute, his people a faceless horde, and whatever advancements that the Mongol Empire accomplished are downplayed or downright ignored in order to fit the "Mongol barbarian" narrative.

As touched upon previously, the depiction of Mongolia that he regrets nothing often results in extremely racist depictions. Of course he has regrets - literally every nation does.

As a whole do I think Mongolia regrets the Mongol Empire? No. But there are certainly aspects of it that he finds regrettable.

I personally think a majority of nations who have had imperialist histories don't 100% regret it or at least aren't prostrating themselves begging for forgiveness over it - so no he's not unique in that aspect at all.

We need to remember that without Chinggis Khaan/the formation of the Mongol Empire, there would be no "Mongolia" as we know it or "Mongolians" as we know them. They essentially would have been another obscure group recorded a few times in Chinese chronicles and given little attention. He is essentially their founding father .

When I say that as a whole that Mongolia does not regret the Mongol Empire, that does not mean that I think that when he remembers those days, he gets a huge fucking boner thinking about how many people died under the Empire and that's the source of his happiness when he looks back. Mongolia's pride and fondness of his past is less to do with the death toll (despite what offensive fandom depictions and racists would lead you to believe) and more to do with what he was able to achieve at the time - this is not dissimilar to how other nations with Imperialist histories remember it.

For example, in England, Winston Churchill is almost venerated for his leadership during World War 2. A majority of British people don't celebrate Churchill because he was a raging racist who purposefully starved 3.8 million people in Bengal to death (that's not me justifying the insane Churchill worship that they participate in though), but celebrate him because of - again, his leadership during World War 2. Similarly, Mongolia/Mongolians don't celebrate Chinggis Khaan because they think his kill count was epic - but because it was Chinggis Khaan who solidified the Mongol identity and brought Mongolia onto the world stage after years of obscurity and the risk of simply being absorbed into neighbouring groups and forgotten. Just like how the US celebrates his founding fathers , Mongolia celebrates his own.

Mongolians are said to be a proud people - especially of their history. I mean they have a huge Chinggis Khaan statue for a reason. While I don't think Mongolia is always living in the past, he definitely remembers those times fondly. To regret it and prostate himself begging for forgiveness over it would essentially be him regretting the fact he's alive. What he was able to achieve was undeniably impressive - from a relatively obscure group of people surrounded by much more powerful and threatening neighbours and at risk of being absorbed to forming a strong, consolidated identity and creating the largest Empire to ever exist (before the rise of the British empire much later on. Sorry Mongolia you're number 2 how).

Does he think about the death toll? At times, yes. But like all nations with imperialist histories or even all nations who have been in conflicts - while he acknowledges it, there is little emotional investment in it. He doesn't look back at it in bloodthirsty pleasure but he also doesn't break down in hysterics. Perhaps it's turning a blind eye, sure. But again. Nations operate on a different moral code. And maybe it's even self preservation to an extent. If all nations dwelled on the numbers who died under them, they'd surely go mad.

I remember seeing a pretty funny comment on the r/Mongolia subreddit and it essentially went:

Did they deserve it? No

But are we proud of it? Yes

I think Mongolia agrees that yeah a lot of those people who died under his empire didn't exactly "deserve" it, but views it as a sort of necessary evil. And I think we need to remember that nations are not humans so nation morality is not going to be identical to human morality. This "necessary evil" mindset is a view that I think a majority of nations have when remembering a majority of the conflicts they participated in.

For example, with the destruction of the Khwarazmian Empire, sure, Mongolia isn't going to sit there and say "those kids deserved it", but he will say that it was something of a necessary evil, because Muhammad II (the ruler) decided to decapitate his envoys for no good reason despite agreeing to a peace treaty/trade agreement with the Mongols shortly before this. He'd give similar explanations for other scenarios. None of the explanations include "I did it because I just needed to kill 100,000 more people to reach my kill count goals."

This is not the only explanation he'll give. There are also instances where he will admit that yeah that was unprovoked or that was kind of shitty and I think that he owns it. Not own it as in "I'm proud of it I loved killing them" nor as in "wow I'm so irredeemable please forgive me", but he's pretty frank about it happening and won't deny it if someone asks. This is a pretty common mindset I've seen with Mongolians, they're not exactly in denial of what bad things took place during the Mongol Empire but it doesn't make them any less proud of what was accomplished.

And of course he does have regrets/ looks back and find things regrettable - as all nations do. I do think he is sore about certain things. An example of something that he thinks is regrettable was the burning of the House of Wisdom during the siege of Baghdad in 1258. There were perhaps certain cities that he would have actually liked to preserve but regrettably they weren't kept in tact. He thinks that perhaps the number of casualties could have been lower had X or Y not happened.

An example of something that I think he wholeheartedly regrets (while not to do with his empire but also in the past) was the Zhungar genocide. This regret over what happened with the Zhungars/Oirats (another Mongolic people) is a common sentiment amongst Mongolians and is quite a sore topic when discussed. This is despite the fact that Mongolia and the Oirat confederations were constantly at each others throats.

Mongolia is not unique in how he views his empire or imperialist ventures. It's pretty typical of how most nations with imperialist pasts handle it if you ask me. "I don't regret it entirely, however there are things about it I certainly find regrettable or unsavoury.", "It was something of a necessary evil, me and another kingdom were fighting over a piece of land so of course people were killed in the process", "I wholeheartedly regret this and wish it never happened."

The mindset and emotions depends on the conflicts, what happened, they circumstances surrounding them, the aftermath. Maybe nations are unjustified or even hypocritical in being upset about one conflicts destruction while pretty much turning a blind eye to another - I think a lot of them are somewhat aware of this themselves. However nothing about nations really makes sense. Perhaps nations need not question their actions.

What I'm saying this: No I don't think Mongolia is particularly unique in the way he views his imperialist history and I'm kind of tired of Mongolia being portrayed as uniquely evil because of his empire 800 years ago whereas nations such as the US and Germany are viewed much more favourably and conflated far less with government decisions and atrocities despite them being far more recent. It just shows me the way in which you view Mongolians, and it's not pretty.

Anyways other thoughts: No Mongolia isn't constantly thinking about his empire and I don't think he's emo about it. It is a source of pride and well there are lots of tributes to Chinggis Khaan around Mongolia of course hahah but like... He's definitely in the here and now and isn't "stuck in the past" malding and smoking 100 cigarettes a day about how powerful he used to be I mean look at how much Mongolia politically is getting involved in the international scene. I do think he does get fed up at his government but that's not the same as being depressed or hopeless over it - I think he rarely ever feels downright hopeless because if his broke ass could become an empire I guess anything could happen, but perhaps downtrodden at times. He doesn't see much sense in wallowing in pain. Not that he hasn't done that but from an objective sense he thinks it's dumb and useless so refrains from doing so as much as possible. Unless something happens to him that's so bad he's just thrust into that state of mind or something which has admittedly happened a few times but he tries to get back up quickly I feel. Anyways yeah Mongolia 👍

[actual-changeling]

I got a question. It's a completely earnest question from someone genuinely confused about some of your metas.

If Crowley is under constant surveillance and threat of being dragged off to hell to be tortured at any moment if he steps out of line, how is the Arrangement meant to work? He and Aziraphale do still handle each other's jobs in the show, which would mean he has been doing good deeds for centuries. I don't understand how they could trade places on the regular, with Crowley even saying neither head office cares and nobody has to know about it, if he's always being watched. He also still gets commendations for stuff he hasn't done, like the Reign of Terror, but if they're spying on him shouldn't they know he didn't have anything to do with those things?

Sorry, I hope this isn't coming off as mean or anything! I'm just really confused about that aspect of your metas is all. I'm probably missing something you've spelled out already, no doubt. Hope you have a good one!

Hi!

I don't mind genuine questions, and I always have fun elaborating on my metas, you're fine!

Ironically enough, the answer to that question is that hell approaches most issues not with black/white but rather complex thinking—they see shades of grey, if you will.

In general, heaven and hell have very different relationships with earth and humanity, and that's reflected in their treatment fo Crowley and Aziraphale.

While hell has several different demons working on earth to "collect souls", handle everything with what seems to be a rather democratic system (like having different councils for different issues), and are more or less capable fo blending in with humans, heaven doesn't do, well, any of that.

We have never actually seen a single human soul in heaven, so there's a good chance there aren't any, but that's a different meta altogether.

Now, why does that matter? Because in theory, neither angels nor demons are opposed to working with each other, collaboration itself is never the issue. Michael has contacts in hell, which in turn have contacts in heaven, and it seems to be so common that she even asks Ligur if Aziraphale is working for them; she only does so since it's a probable explanation for his arrangement with Crowley.

Shax confirms that hell has been suspecting that they have an arrangement for almost a century, but has hell ever followed up on that? No.

You'd think after Furfur they would, but they didn't, because they do not care. If Furfur had brought them evidence, sure, they would have happily tortured Crowley for eternity, but as long as no one pushes the issue, nothing will happen. It's more of a "backstabbing is great and demonic tm so if you backstab someone we will reward you".

Both sides only spring into action once Crowley and Aziraphale start actively sabotaging their Armageddon plans. That is the part that bothers them, not an angel and a demon working together but the fact that they are breaking the rules and going against company policy, so to speak.

Working together is fine as long as a

a) you have some level of deniability, no matter how thin (because let's be real here, saying "on a grapevine that doesn't exist" is just for the looks, nothing else)

b) you don't break the rules and/or ruin heaven and hell's plans and

c) you do not disturb the celestial dials of good and evil.

As Crowley tells us several times, neither side really cares how a job gets done as long as it gets done. Heaven definitely does not give a fuck since they don't care about what Aziraphale is doing at all, and hell only wants to make sure someone does it, no matter if it's demons, angels, or humans.

The question is, why does hell keep such a close eye on Crowley if that's the case?

Because Crowley is kind. Crowley does good deeds and sabotages all kinds of celestial plans because he has his own moral compass that he's following—he breaks the rules and annoys the hell out of hell.

On top of that, demons get a certain enjoyment from punishing and that is how hell functions. Just like heaven neglects and separates angels from each other, hell makes sure that demons do not trust each other, that they do not get a chance to realize that hey, there's millions of us and only one Satan.

Once they understand that, what's stopping them from ripping the entire system apart? Most of them aren't happy down there, they hate it just as much as Muriel hates their job in heaven —they did not choose any of it.

God punished them for rebelling, so what do you do if you're smart? You make sure that the rebels do not rebel again.

So that's what they do, they punish people who break the rules and go against the system, but they do not care how the job gets done as long as it gets done.

I hope that cleared that up, feel free to ask if there's anything else 💚

[deathmetalunicorn1]

It’s really simple reader has really long hair and likes to do really complex hairstyles, gods and humans falling in love with them, I imagine reader does the ones with longhair hairstyles

-You were known for your extremely long hair, reaching your calves, but being so healthy at the same time, something Aphrodite, a close friend of yours, insisted on helping you with, providing you with all types of treatments and hair masks to keep your hair healthy.

-However, outside of your home, your hair was never down and just laying flat, if you went out you had your hair pulled up in very intricate hairstyles, long braids adored with jewelry, pulled into so many different sizes and shapes of braids, even going as far as weaving your hair into make almost like a sweater for your shoulders and arms.

-Taking care of your hair was hard work, you had to wash it in sections and brushing it alone took over a half hour, at the bare minimum, meaning you had some pretty strong arms.

-People all over Valhalla adored your hairstyles, even Aphrodite who was always enraptured on the beautiful and intricate designs.

-Your hard work and dedication to your art, your hair, has also gained attention of men, warriors, who are impressed and after getting to know you, they were quick to fall for you.

-With dating you however, because they also have long hair, came the power to play with their hair as well, which was so much fun! You loved doing other people’s hair!

-Thor- Could just sit for hours being pampered by you, the way you brush his hair, running your nails along his scalp, he will be putty in your hands almost instantly. He will let you play with his hair, pulling it into intricate braids and will smile after you take photos and show them, he normally isn’t looking at the photos, he’s looking at you, at the smile on your face and the sparkle in your eyes. You were more stunning than you could ever imagine.

-Odin- Doing his hair took little to no convincing, as he loved being pampered by you. He would never admit it out loud to anyone but you, but he took your advice on what hair treatment products to get and has been using them, making his hair healthy and shiny. He loves the time you put into his hair, being spoiled by you and if the designs aren’t too wild, he will wear them out and about. His beard on the other hand, other than brushing it, nothing happens to that, which you thought was rather cute.

-Buddha- Getting attention and getting beautified at the same time, Buddha is immediately down. He will lay his head in your lap, face down, letting you brush and braid his hair to your heart’s content. He doesn’t care if you put flowers or beads or ribbons in his hair, he will walk around with no self-consciousness present; quite the opposite, he’s like a peacock, “Yeah- see this? Y/N did it for me- just for me!” he’s such a gremlin but you can’t help but giggle. He relaxes by brushing your hair, as it finds it soothing.

-Kojiro- Constantly praises your work, circling you to check it out at every single angle he can, all smiles. When you asked to do his hair he immediately had his hair-tie out and a huge grin on his face, as he sees it as a form of quiet bonding. Ribbons, bows, hair clips, intricate braids, he will let you do anything you want, while going out with those is more of a no on his part, he will appreciate every moment you spend with him. The only time he will go out after you do his hair is if it’s something simple like a braid.

-Lu Bu- He took a bit more convincing than necessary, he was so confused, why on earth would you want to play with his hair? He enjoys seeing what you come up with for your own hair, sometimes it’s simple and other times he’s in sight awe, knowing that it has taken a long while. You didn’t push your luck when he finally agreed, just brushing out his hair for him, which he did have to admit felt pretty good and will at least allow you to braid his hair only. Sometimes he will wear it out, as it does stay out of the way, while other times he just has you fix his hair in his normal style, but he appreciates your help with it.

[yuikomorii]

i literally want to know your opinion on Ruki because this man is insufferable. he acts like he is mighty and intelligent but ayato is better than him. I will not forget what Ayato do the sacrificial brides because he also deserves a punishment but I know he will accept it ( we only need to see how he reacts to the revelation of all his mother’s bad treatments and how he forgave her quickly and when he said to KarlHeinz that he is going to beat him because of all the things he did to other people = yeah… Ayato thought about all victims of KarlHeinz in the final battle + when he said to Laito he can count on him even if he hates him + how is Ayato in LE …) which means Ayato is deep down humble and is full of regrets and guilt and wants the best for everyone

// Ruki is my second best boy, but the only times he's likeable are in his own routes and in Azusa's LE one; otherwise, he's a terrible person, and saying Ayato is better than Ruki is not an opinion, but a fact.

Nonetheless, it's perfectly reasonable to say that Ayato isn't your cup of tea because you prefer Ruki, who is a more complex character because he's so dual: cold-hearted in general but such a sweetheart in his routes (those are reasons why I love him too).

It was confirmed in an official short story that all Ayato did to the previous sacrificial brides was feed off them, which is understandable given that he needs blood to survive and humans are simply prey to vampires. I'd rather blame those who tortured the brides (I suspect Kanato and Laito) and, especially, the Church for sending them to a house full of demons.

Ayato and Ruki are basically in antithesis. Rejet describes Ayato as "the friendliest and most approachable DO-S," whereas Ruki is described as a fake person, in their first character sheet. Ayato is according to Laito a pure-hearted and upright person, therefore he is very prone to love unconditionally, not only his S/O but also his brothers or even Cordelia, whereas Ruki might be relatively smart and calculated but he is so obsessed with Karlheinz and his plan that he would betray his brothers without thinking twice.

The thing that bothers me the most about Ruki is not that he’s a snake in other routes, but that he never faces consequences. He can ruin someone’s life and nobody would confront him.

Take a look at Ayato’s LE route, when Yui found out Ruki’s and Reiji’s plan, Ruki was there smiling at her while he calmly said that he plotted her man’s downfall and he also added “I suppose now you hold a grudge against me” and Yui was like “Not at all, I do understand that you must have had a hard time accepting that Karlheinz-sama chose him”, which honestly was such a bad move. It feels like Ruki manipulated her to say something so stupid because I'm sure Yui would have called him out for his bad behavior, and it would have been far more Yui-like to say “I understand your motives and I get that you must have had a hard time accepting that Karlheinz-sama chose Ayato-kun, but your actions were still wrong and this could have been solved in another way.” Don’t just let that slide because jealousy will never be an excuse to drive someone to end it all.

Furthermore, is it just me, or does Ruki refuse to accept reality? Or maybe he's just unhealthily delusional.

Ruki regards himself as "someone who has always been afraid of getting his hands dirty"... Are you for real? I'm not even going to mention other routes, but he was a little devil as a child. He abused and humiliated his own servants, and he was likely the cause of a young girl drowning. Are you serious when you say you're afraid of being unfair and dishonest when you've done heartless things since you were a toddler??

He tries so hard to excuse Karl and even convinced himself and his brothers that he gave them a second chance to redeem himself from his atrocious acts, which is not true at all because he used them as mere pawns. I can’t deny that thanks to him all four of them met but at the same time someone should have given them a reality check in order to stop worshipping someone who doesn’t deserve it. “What that man did was incredibly devastating but every cloud has a silver lining because I was able to meet you guys” sounds way more normal than the actual “That man might have tried to redeem himself, that’s why he gave us our lives back” that was written in the route.

The fact that he quickly excused Karl's actions also makes him appear very uncompassionate. When he met his father, who had been turned into a ghoul, he told him that Karlheinz had killed a lot of people in order to turn them into ghouls, but Ruki dismissed that because Karl had given him and his brothers a second chance. He doesn't care about all the victims, or how many people suffered as a result of Karl's selfish actions; he's just glad HE got it better than them.

Going back to Ayato, his hatred towards him is unnecessary and makes Ruki look very puerile.

Even in MB, his job was to tempt Eve, not to degrade Adam. He dared to tell Ayato “That’s why nobody loves you” and got stabbed afterwards, so how dumb can you be to literally provoke a vampire way stronger than you are with something that triggers him?? Ruki knew exactly what he was doing, he was aware Ayato was insecure about not finding someone to love him and the fact he used his insecurities against him is pathetic.

I also don’t understand why he holds such a grudge against Ayato when he did nothing wrong to him. I understand that he might find him annoying since the feeling is mutual but a truly smart person would ignore such people rather than making matters worse. Ruki acts as if Ayato is the source of all his misfortune, even though he had no idea who Ruki was before MB, lol.

I'm sure if he apologized or at the very least, showed some —empathy—, fewer people would dislike him. Even Reiji, who’s an envious and proud individual, regretted what he did to Shu and Yuma at some point because he knew it was wrong but Ruki absolutely never felt any sort of guilt for what he told and did to Ayato, even though Ayato was visibly worried for him when he fainted in CL.

I know this fandom likes to portray Laito as the most cruel Diaboy, but I think Ruki takes the cake. It’s undeniable that Laito harmed many people, but unlike Ruki, he was actually shown remorseful about it. Sometimes I even wonder how would Ruki react to an antagonist as insufferable as he is in other routes. I seriously doubt he'd handle well getting a taste of his own medicine.

[ferninapot]

You know guys, I really don't like some fanon interpretations all that much when it comes to kokushibo in specific

ive noticed a lot of the time he's deemed possessive, which is cool and all but the way it's executed will either seem rapey, codependent, or straight up abusive in a "romantic he means well" way. And that's the case for most kny men and i've seen it especially with self inserts in mind, lmfao.

That's not to say that canon-divergent interpretations are invalid. My say isn't the end all be all and it would be straight up ignorant/arrogant to say otherwise, for I am 1. only an adult on paper, and 2. one of billions of people on this big oxygen rock bubble we call planet earth. So.. to whom this may concern, If I don't like it, I don't finish reading it. I'm only complaining because there is a very small amount of content that caters to my tastes on this platform and nothing else.

anyway I'm gonna get rambley now so idk brace yourselves.

When it comes to the topic of possessiveness, especially with Kokushibo, I don't see a lot of people look too deeply into the why. It's just the what, and then behaviors that I personally find confusing. There are a few reasons why the trait "possessive" could work based off of his upbringing at the cost of concerning undertones.

becoming used to or accustomed to humanity again (a lot of ships/x reader works start and end with cracking that shell or finding a catalyst, and so are out of character/canon by default if not handled with that aspect in mind) and not wanting that to be taken away

His inferiority complex stemming from his past with yoriichi, or his childhood being based in who is powerful and most likely to succeed and who isn't

A sense of control and wanting to control (see, wanting to control his fate by becoming a demon or his assertiveness in sustaining the hierarchy)

With this in mind, his behaviors would proooobably, give or take be quite different from stalking since all of these factors are a stretch on their own. Like a lot of other traits he has, this aspect would be multifaceted and multi-layered as well because different factors constitute different lessons to be learned, and therefore different reactions.

Let's start with this: A lot of people forget that Kokushibo didn't grow up around love. We misconstrue Yoriichi's relationship with their mother for Kokushibo going through the same, but it was quite the opposite.

Their father was solely focused on the rate of success and nothing else. If you weren't strong or weren't interested in fighting, you were neglected while your brother received proper training, food, education, and overall treatment. Yoriichi might have been able to better develop emotional intelligence and empathy because he grew up with his mother, who very apparently seemed to care for him a great deal if she gave him a good luck charm while he was thought to be deaf. Kokushibo was never taught this. He saw how his brother was treated and was instead given the message that love and favor was conditional—which is why he was able to make the choice so easily to leave his wife and children when he learned Yori became a demon slayer.

Now factor in him becoming a demon and easily killing thousands in his 400+ year lifespan, and his humanity and capacity for reflection is close to none.

To him, based off of his upbringing alone, hierarchy is order, and control is the path to it. Centuries of serving muzan only adds to that mindset. So it makes sense as to why, as upper 1, he would have the least humanity left—he wasn't looking for love, he was looking for greatness because there was favor to be found in greatness, and power as well. That's why him and Yoriichi butt heads. When yoriichi says fighting to him is pointless and he'd rather play games, Michikatsu finds games stupid because he most likely never had the time for them. Not to mention, having a power as great as his brothers and casting it to the side/deeming it pointless would've pissed him off because strength meant everything if there were rewards to come out of it. It's like seeing someone with extreme wealth go "actually money doesn't buy happiness."

So.. With that part of his psychology in mind, how does it affect his behaviors? I believe he would be "possessive" in a more unconventional way. The message to be received is that sufficient power breeds respect and order. So if we crack the shell of his callousness and allow him room for humanity (much like sanemi did when allowing him to see what a monster he became), what do we have? He won't instantly become healthy. he's been conditioned for centuries to have the mindset he does—what will one moment do to untangle that mess? He's internalized what he's been taught over and over again. No doubt that should be applied to his love life.

Essentially, I think it would take a long ass time for him to "learn" and develop but I've found many people arent willing to explore that side of him. so i will with an upcoming project I'll (for the time being) call "Virtue"

happy new year by the way.

[redrumrose]

A few Pavel questions!

How did Pavel get to be head of his hospital?

What's his favorite part of being a mad doctor?

What drew him to the field of medicine?

What are his goals?

Spooky boy facts haha:

-How did he get to be head of his hospital?

He pretty much just walked in and declared himself hospital head haha xDD (it's a little more complicated, but the quick tldr haha) Pavel lost his medical license almost as soon as he got it, right out of medical school. It was discovered he was using 'Mad Scientific Methods and Techniques' to treat his patients (which is strictly forbidden in the field of medicine). He would argue his case that he saved and cured every patient he had (using any means necessary… which could be good or bad pffft), but the medical board wouldn't hear it.

But that wouldn't stop him, he would leave to find a hospital were he could practice his medicine and he eventually found one. Hospital 11 was an old and under funded facility to begin with, despite being a pretty huge complex, in a rural and snowy mountain village. The old head of hospital was desperate enough to hire a new doctor, but it was the biggest mistake they ever made, and it was pretty easy for Pavel to take charge. No one contested because the other staff, doctors and nurses that remained were terrified of him (being a mad scientist/doctor). And if anyone did question him, they risked getting dragged down to the lower levels of the hospital, never to be seen again (no one knows what happens to people down there, and the old hospital head actually befell this fate 00;). The towns people don't dare go near the hospital and they try to warn desperate patients going there that the place is run by a mad doctor, but Pavel has a reputation (both good and bad) in the medical world. He WILL cure you, but that's the risk you take (you don't know WHAT he'll do for your treatment, will it be straight forward or will it be experimental 00).

-Favorite part of being a mad doctor?

Exploratory surgery or performing surgery on himself are probably one of his favorite things to do (he likes the challenge xD).

Keeping up and maintaining his nasty reputation in town is also pretty fun too.

-What drew him to the field of medicine?

Both medicine and his love of cats actually came from the same event.

When he was young, he unfortunately lost his favorite street cat to illness. He was devastated by it because he felt like he tried everything to help it get better. Ulyana took this as a learning experience for him though and she taught him how to bring the cat back to life with SCIENCE.

He was happy to have his cat back, but the whole thing left him with a lot of questions, especially about health, illness, death, and medicine in general. His mom encouraged him to learn and research. She gifted him a giant medical book, which he would read and reread many times. The rest is pretty much history (and just a little fun fact, out of all the brothers, he's the best at bringing things back to life).

-What are his goals?

He wants multiple pages of his works in the official medical books is definitely one. But it's hard when all his methods have some kind of mad science tied to it, which disqualifies a lot of his work, which pisses him off haha xD Man has literally brought patients back from the dead and has created things like a 3 headed human from scratch, but the medical boards don't count 'mad science' as an 'official' form of medicine in their world, in fact it's villainy xDD He swears they have a grudge against him as well pffft ("Only because I'm better then you FOOLS you don't wanna put me in the books, no I get it." - Pavel, 1956) Another goal of his is he wants to know everything there is to know about medicine, read every medical book, perform every procedure, discover everything there is to know about the human body, push known medicine to it's limits, toy with the borders between life and death (the usual haha). His own personal goal that isn't medicine is to save every cat off the street in his town/village :3