#and the sidekick is being an ass and totally dismissive of it

[elibeeline]

This weird time travel show is super funky. The main character now has DID, with widely different headmates, and it's a super interesting watch because even tho this is from the 90's its not seen as a bad thing?

[wisteria-cherry]

forty days and forty nights (day eight!) (part one!)

(wow this is long. there’s a part two too😳😳)

(read them all here!)

the next time those happy little bells rang at 4:56, bakugo came, but so did someone else. it was another man, dressed more casually than bakugo, and a few inches shorter, maybe two or three. he exuded an air of bright happiness, somewhat like a ray of sunshine in human form.

he had hair like bakugo’s, wild and sticking out in many places. however, it seemed more purposeful; you could see the gel that kept his hair that way. he had red eyes, but they were much softer than bakugo’s, and weren’t stuck in a constant state of glaring. he was smiling, looking curiously around the store. he had a snaggletooth.

“you brought a friend, bakugo?” you smile as the two approach the counter.

“he’s a dumbass.” bakugo replied bluntly.

“i’m kirishima.” the red-haired man laughed. “so you’re the barista i’ve heard about?”

“you’ve heard of me?” you raise an eyebrow.

“yup, bakugo’s told me all about you.” kirishima chuckled.

“did not.” bakugo snapped. “i said she’s the annoying-ass extra who makes my goddamn coffee.”

“you said more than that.” kirishima countered. bakugo scowled.

“shut the fuck up, shitty hair.”

“your hair’s just like mine, y’know.” kirishima raised an eyebrow.

“can i get you guys any drinks? medium black coffee for bakugo, i assume?” you smile, stifling your own laughter.

“yeah.” bakugo grunted.

“i’ll have a coffee, too, but with cream and sugar, please.” kirishima said politely.

“of course.” you hum, ringing them up. “coming right up.” you give them their total— they pay separately— and bakugo walks to his seat. kirishima follows. it’s clear from the way they interact that kirishima’s known him for awhile. yet, you can’t shake the feeling that you’ve seen him before.

“so, are you a pro hero too?” you ask kirishima as you give them their coffees. bakugo sips his as kirishima answers.

“yup. red riot. i’m number 5 on the hero rankings right now.” kirishima smiled. that explained it. you’d seen him in interviews with bakugo.

“ah, i see. i don’t follow heroes much, so i’m sorry i didn’t recognize you.” you apologize. kirishima waves it off.

“no worries. bakugo already told me about that.”

“he did?”

“yeah!” kirishima grinned. “he said that—“

“shut your fucking mouth.” bakugo’s eye twitched as his hands sparked.

“alright, man.” kirishima held his hands up in surrender.

“no explosions in the store.” you chide, half kidding but also half worrying for the general well-being of your precious workplace and praying it doesn’t go up in flames.

“yeah, yeah, i know.” bakugo rolled his eyes. “i’m not that damn reckless.”

“if you say so.” you hum teasingly.

“fuck you.” bakugo spat.

“refill, kirishima?” you change the subject. “on the house.”

“oh! yeah, sure.” kirishima smiled, passing his empty mug to you, which you then took and proceeded to refill. “are you sure, though? i’m totally down to pay for it.”

“it’s your first time here, don’t worry about it.” you wave a hand dismissively.

“thanks!” kirishima beamed.

“no problem.” you hummed. “bakugo? do you need a refill?”

“no.” bakugo took another sip.

“you’re quiet today.” you remark. “how was work?”

“shit.” bakugo replied bluntly.

“the usual shit or especially shitty?” you hum.

“the usual.” bakugo clicked his tongue. “shitty sidekicks and pathetic villains.”

“i see.” you hum. “kirishima? how was work for you?”

“i saved a lot of people, so i’d consider it pretty good.” kirishima beamed.

“that’s fantastic.” you smile back at him.

“yeah. the coffee’s great, by the way.” kirishima said.

“thank you.” that kirishima. he was so different from bakugo. he was incredibly sweet and polite; definitely someone who attracts people, kind of like a magnet. you’d love to be friends with him and bakugo— though, technically, you thought of bakugo as a sort-of friend already, although you weren’t sure what his stance on it was. you resolved to make an effort to befriend these men.

“so, do you have an agency, too?” you ask curiously. “i understand bakugo has one of his own.” bakugo’s lips twitched into a smug smirk, his agency clearly a source of pride for him.

“yup.” kirishima grinned. “we just got a new building, actually. we’re renovating it right now.”

“that’s so cool!” you exclaim. “where is it?”

“a couple blocks from bakugo’s, actually.” kirishima glanced around. “y’know, i’m surprised you don’t get more business, given how close this place is to bakugo’s agency.”

“there’s a bigger one that’s right next to it,” you explain. “so people usually go there instead.”

“right, i forgot about that.” kirishima chuckled good-naturedly. “but you’ve got bakugo now, huh?”

“shut it, shitty hair.” bakugo glared at kirishima.

“and you, if you like the coffee enough.” you joke. kirishima laughed.

“i wish i could. but i’m usually on patrol when bakugo comes in. i took today off, though, because mina— pinky— is having a party tonight as her place.” kirishima explained. his face lit up as he got an idea. “hey, you should come!” bakugo looked up from his coffee, startled.

“me?” you blink, taken aback by the sudden invitation. “oh, that’s okay, i wouldn’t want to intrude..”

“she said ‘invite anyone and everyone.’” kirishima pulled out his phone, showing you the texts between him and who you assumed was mina. it did indeed say “invite anyone and everyone, ei. people u saved. people on the street. sweet old ladies. waiters at restaurants. everyone.”

“are you sure?” you ask, still hesitant.

“yeah!” kirishima smiled. “mina’s wanted to meet you anyway.”

“i feel famous now.” you chuckle. kirishima laughed with you as bakugo glared at kirishima furiously.

“who the fuck did you tell?!” he demanded. kirishima only smiled.

“just the squad.”

“quit calling it the squad.”

“that’s what the group chat’s called, man. the bakusquad.”

“the- the bakusquad?” you sputter out, nearly choking on your laughter.

“our friends,” kirishima explained. “it’s okay, though. mina would’ve found out anyway, bakugo knows that. so, are you in?” bakugo looked pissed, but not in the way that he’d take action over it.

“only if you’re sure i won’t be intruding.” you sigh with a smile.

“positive.”

“what time is it? and where? and how do i dress for it?” you ramble, to which kirishima chuckled.

“it’s at 8,” kirishima began. “and you can dress however—“

“gimme your phone.” bakugo grunted, holding his hand out unexpectedly. you blink.

“huh?”

“hand it over.” bakugo snapped. “so i can put my number in your phone to send you the damn address.”

“woah, man, i thought you weren’t g-“ bakugo interrupted kirishima.

“shut up.” the blond snapped as you pulled your phone out of your apron, unlocked it, opened the messenger app, and handed it to bakugo as per his request. bakugo grumbled as he typed his number in. his contact name was GREAT EXPLOSION MURDER GOD DYNAMIGHT. all caps. you stifled a snicker as bakugo sent you the address from his own phone.

“thanks.” you smile as kirishima watched the interaction, seemingly amused by something.

“whatever.”

“we can pick you up if you want.” kirishima offered.

“oh, that would be great,” you reply, thankful that getting lost wouldn’t be on the agenda for tonight.

“alright. where do you live?” kirishima asked, listening closely as you told him. “okay, so that’s only ten minutes from mina’s. we’ll get you at 7:45ish, sound good?”

“sounds good.”

“woah, man, i thought you weren’t g-“

“shut up.”

<- previous next->

(feel free to comment + leave ur thoughts :)

tags: @k0z3me

[thefanfictionartist]

First Name Basis

Pairing: Katsuki Bakugou X Y/N

Summary: After becoming friends w/ benefits with Y/N, Bakugou finds himself thinking about her more and more. The problem is they agreed that they couldn’t catch feelings for one another. If Y/N finds out, he’s totally screwed.

Word Count: 2.8k

Rated M for Mature; intended for 18+ audiences.

Part One

A/N: Requests at the moment are open. Please feel free to message me with your requests!

~            ~            ~            ~            ~

Maybe the first sign was that he found himself infuriated when you called him Bakugou.

It felt.. impersonal, as though the two of you didn’t have some kind of sexual favor arrangement. As though you hadn’t touched every inch of one another behind closed doors. Like you weren’t spending hours of alone time with each other for the past few weeks. “Bakugou, do you have a pencil I could borrow?” You were whispering in a nearly silent classroom as everyone worked on an essay for finals, but he winced as though you had caught him off guard by screaming at him. At first, he wasn’t going to say anything. One of his spare pencils already extended out to your grabbing hand. His brow furrowed with a small pout etched into his frown, and his thoughts made his grip on the pencil linger. With a small tug, you noticed the seeming reluctance he had to give you his pencil. “I’ll give it back to you after class. Rela-” “Call me Katsuki.” He cut you off, finally retracting his hand after his statement. For a moment you’re too surprised to continue your classwork, the request coming out of the blue. You weren’t sure how to respond so you just nodded. For the rest of the class, you struggled to finish your essay, wondering if you should’ve responded properly or not. By the time lunch came around, you had concluded that even if you wanted to, you were too choked up with surprise to call him Katsuki at that moment. Plus, you hadn’t called him by his first name before. In fact, you were pretty sure the only time you heard anyone call him by his first name was in the first year of UA when Aizawa bothered with attendance, and the few times you saw his mom with him in public. A few other classmates had nicknames for him, but none ever used his first name. And as far as you knew, he hadn’t requested for them to.                                                           - - - - -

You sat down at lunch, a few hours after Bakugou’s sudden request, waiting for the rest of the squad to join you. Unsurprisingly, he was sitting next to you moments later, just like he was every lunch, with a bento box that was definitely packed by his mom. You could tell because of the notes she left. ‘Don’t be a brat!’ was written today on a sticky note that rested on top of his food. A small heart was drawn in the corner, causing your lips to curl with a smile. “Aww, Katsuki, your mom’s always so sweet!” You meant it. The fact that she always took the time to write out a special note for his lunch showed how much love she had for her only child. It made you a little jealous, with the lunch you had prepared on your own last night in front of you. Although, it wasn’t your parents fault when they had such busy work schedules. A scowl paints itself on his lips, even though Bakugou felt like smiling and laughing with a small spark of joy. 

“Shut up!” He yelled curtly. While he was embarrassed at the fact that his old hag had managed to slip another note into his bento, it was hard to focus on that when there was a more important fact that happened. You actually said his name. His first name.

His heart felt like exploding and he couldn’t thank Kaminari enough for coming to sit at the table to distract you after you giggled at his small outburst. It would probably be unfavorable for you to notice the effect you had on him. After all, he knew the rules of your arrangement. He couldn’t fall in love with you and you couldn’t fall in love with him. Otherwise, the late night stress relief sessions would come to an end. And you’d probably never talk to him again. That’s what scared him more than anything. Nothing was worth giving up the precious time he got to spend with you. Bakugou covers his mouth with his palm and leans his elbow on the table, inwardly cringing at his own thoughts. God, what was wrong with him? This shit was beyond sappy and he didn’t do sappy. At least that was what he believed at first. So he chose to attempt ignoring the extremely distracting thoughts he had about his feelings for the moment. And it kinda worked…

                                                        - - - - -

For a while, he was able to push aside his personal feelings as he found himself focusing on integrating into the world of being a pro hero. Luckily, Fat Gum kept him busy with missions he could do solo. Occasionally, he worked with Kirishima since they had what Fat Gum called “Unattested Camaraderie”, meaning they had more trust in each other than any duo he’d seen; And that status of friendship with Bakugou and Kirishima wasn’t going to change any time soon. 

Since you and him left UA, you didn’t see each other as often. After about two months of only getting to see you once a week, Bakugou was uneasy. Perhaps a tad bit on edge. Somehow, you had managed to creep back into his mind, and no matter what he tried, it was impossible not to miss you.

A harsh sigh escapes him as he settles into the break room on the sixth floor of Fat Gum’s Agency. “Whoa Bakubro, you okay?” Kirishima, who was across the room getting himself water, looked at his friend with a deep concern. Even though over the years he had definitely mellowed out a bit, Bakugou was always such a ball of energy, explosive or otherwise; so seeing him look so exhausted was unusual for Kiri. He almost looked defeated, with the way his shoulders slouched and how his hands held his head over his lap. Bakugou doesn’t even glance his way. “ ‘M fine, Kiri.” He waves his right hand dismissively. “Just tired.” He seems to punctuate his sentence by laying back on the couch, eyes closed with supposed drowsiness. Kirishima gives him a skeptical look, but seems to take his word for it. “Alright.” The redhead takes a deep drink of water from a paper cup. “Well, if you’re up to it later tonight, Kaminari invited everyone to go to this new club downtown. It should be fun.” He can see the protest bubbling in Bakugou’s chest before he adds, “Y/N is gonna be there.” From his seat on the couch, Bakugou opens his eyes to glare blunt red daggers in Kirishima’s direction. He can see the sly look his friend gives him, and sighs again, combing calloused fingers through his spiky hair, which has become tangled and dirty from a long day of hero work. “Fine.” The blonde speaks through gritted teeth. Curse Kiri and his damn stalking. Why did he always have to be so involved in Bakugou’s personal life? Of course, Kiri wasn’t intentionally stalking. You just get to know people and their private lives a lot better when you’re roommates with them. “Be ready by 6:30. Kaminari said to be there at 7.” “I’ll be ready whenever I damn feel like being ready, Shitty Hair.” Bakugou grumbled before getting up to finally leave the agency for the day.

                                                                    - - - - -

Bakugou was ready to leave at 6:00 and anxiously tapped his foot until a neon sign reading ‘Boulevard 3’ hung just above Kirishima’s crimson sports car. In which case, he was forced to stop tapping his foot as he got out of the vehicle and entered the club. Unsurprisingly, he and his redheaded friend were let in immediately by the bouncer; past bunches of people who were packed in a line that would probably never make it inside. That was just one of the perks of being a pro hero. As Bakugou walks in, he can see the many other pros and sidekicks who have been let in for opening night. 

The music thumped in a way that made him feel like a second heartbeat, and the air was already humid from fog machines placed below the DJs platform. Rather than joining in with the sultrous dancing, Bakugou found his way to the bar.

He thought it would be much easier to spot you from here. 

And he was right.

There you were, on the edge of the dance floor. A skin tight black dress clinging to your curves perfectly as you danced.

Bakugou had no idea how long he was watching you for, but he couldn’t help it. You looked so carefree and happy. Like someone who had nothing to worry about except how much fun you had with your friends. 

At first, you danced with Mina. Spinning and waltzing around as silent giggles spilled from your mouth. The longer the night went on, the more people seemed to join you on the dance floor. And eventually you found yourself between Mina Ashido and Denki Kaminari, a sheen of sweat layering your body as everyone swayed to the music. 

Your hands gently held Mina’s hips, and every once in a while you would lean to put your lips to her pink neck as you told her something; and she would laugh in response, pressing against you as the music pumped through her veins. Behind you, Denki grinded against the plush feeling of your ass as his hands wandered to whatever places of your body he could touch. You didn’t mind, given the setting, plus the fact that you knew him well enough to know he would back off if you wanted him to. 

But in the moment, you were enjoying how it felt to dance between two of your friends. You were thriving off of it because the music made you feel electric and alive. 

And Bakugou hated it. 

He hated watching you dance with Dunce Face and Raccoon Eyes. He hated the way Kaminari’s hands groped so greedily at your body as he shamelessly ground himself against you. He hated how closely you were bringing Mina to you. And most of all, he hated the fact that he wasn’t dancing with you. 

In a jealous flash, Bakugou finds himself pulling you by the wrist out of the club and into a much more private alleyway.

You look at him with anger in a way he had never seen you before. 

“What the hell! What’s wrong with you?!” You yell at him and he almost flinches at your words. “You can’t just pull me away to fuck when I’m having fun with friends!”

Bakugou looks at the ground, contemplating why he had done that without a plan and, meaning to apologize, he responds, “Just friends, huh?” His normally loud voice comes out in a mumble. “Dunce Face seemed to have a little more than ‘just friends’ on his mind.”

For a moment, you feel like slapping him. 

“Are you kidding me?” You settle for just glaring at him as you wait for an actual explanation. After a few seconds, your expression softens. Why does he look so.. Sad?

“... I’m sorry.” The apology coming from his mouth makes your jaw drop.

“Wh-”

“I was jealous.” Bakugou finally looks up at you to see that your fury has been replaced with confusion. “Don’t fucking make me repeat that. You heard me, alright?” His red eyes find their way back to the ground again.

God, he messed up. He messed up bad. 

But at this point if he didn’t confess, he was gonna explode.

“I think..” He pauses and winces before saying what he had to. “I think I’m in love with you, Y/N.” He expects you to punch him and tell him ‘it’s over’, that you would never speak to him again. Instead, you stand and stare at him, an unreadable expression on your face. So he continues, ready to outline the terms of your agreement for himself. 

“I know, I know. That means what we’ve had is over.. My dumbass went and fell in-”

You cut him off by standing in front of him, your eyes on his as you utter the words, “Kiss me, Katsuki.”

It takes a second for his brain to recircuit and process your words. Before you know it, his lips are on yours, fervently kissing you with a passion you haven’t felt from him. It makes you melt into his hands as they guide themselves around your hips and waist to push you against a concrete wall. 

His knee finds its way in between your legs so that his well muscled thigh can rub against you.

He pulls away from your lips and kisses roughly along your jawline, nibbling gently until he gets to that one sweet spot on your neck that makes you moan so angelically for him.

“Mm, Katsuki..” You moan his name breathlessly as he abuses your neck with his teeth, leaving marks that would no doubt take days to disappear. You can’t help but grind against his thigh for relief that your core so desperately needs. 

Your moans echo softly off the walls of the alleyway the two of you occupy, but neither of you could care less about the setting.

Not when all either of you wants is the carnal desire coming from the other. 

One of your hands snakes down to rub Bakugou’s caged erection, eliciting a sinful groan from his lips. “Fuck-” Breathing heavily against you, his shuddering breaths cause goosebumps to crawl across your skin. 

Your fingers rush to undo his pants so that your hand can reach more efficiently into his boxers. 

As your bare hand touches his cock, he bucks his leg against you, giving delicious pressure to your clit and making you pause to enjoy the feeling. 

“I need you, Y/N.” He punctuates his sentence with a soft kiss to the junction between your neck and collarbone. Agreeing with him, you nod, unbuttoning his dress shirt faster than you ever thought you could, just so you can touch his skin. 

He slips your panties to your feet, letting one of your feet slip out before hoisting you up against the wall. 

Your dress rides up as you wrap your legs around his waist, settling your dripping pussy against the head of his cock with a small whimper. 

Wasting no time, Bakugou bucks into you, stretching you in that glorious way he always does. Except it feels much better to feel his cock without a condom smoothing the surface. You cry out, grasping his bare shoulders tightly as he finds a relentless pace for you. 

You moan his name, pulling him into a kiss while you’re sent into blissful pleasure. 

“I love you-.. too- Katsuki.” 

The confession makes his cock throb, the warm walls of your pussy enveloping him in a way that makes him curse. “Shit- I’m gonna cum.”

You nod the best you can, whimpering a small, “Me too.”

“Cum with me, baby.” He prompts, and moments later your walls flutter around him tightly while you moan in ecstacy. 

“Fuck!” 

Bakugou grunts, his cock twitching in your warm hole. You can feel a hot liquid fill you in spurts and can’t help the small whine of pleasure that leaves you as his cum covers your sensitive walls. 

Both of you still pant heavily when Bakugou places you on your shaky legs. He slips himself back into his pants and you just get done with adjusting your own clothing when you hear a loud “OH!”

Turning to the end of the alleyway with surprise, both you and Bakugou redden when you see Kirishima standing at the end. His sharp-toothed grin gives away that he knew exactly what had just gone down. You flatten your hair abashedly as Bakugou berates his roommate. 

“Oi! What the fuck, Shitty Hair!” 

He stomps to the redhead angrily, probably intending to push him back into the club, when Kirishima reaches into his pocket to grab something. 

Before Bakugou can reach him, he throws car keys at him. 

“Take my car, Bakubro. I’ll catch a ride home from Mina or something.” Bakugou grabs the keys, which fell unceremoniously to the floor, and when he looks up, Kirishima is already gone. 

“Damn Shitty Hair..” He grumbles as he walks to you, although he seems to fall back into a favorable mood with you closer to him. “Let’s get you home.”

You smile, unconsciously gnawing your bottom lip, which was already swollen from Bakugou’s own teeth. “I could always spend the night at your place..” Nonchalantly, you readjust the collar of his shirt before buttoning the bottom of it. 

Your eyes meet his and you lean in as he smiles in an uncharacteristically soft way. 

“It wouldn’t be bizarre for a girlfriend to spend the night with her boyfriend now would it?” For a moment, Bakugou just appreciates the fact that you called yourself his girlfriend. Then he appreciated the way you look after you’d been fucked. 

The way your cheeks flushed. The way the hickeys on your neck started to become purple. The swollen look of your lips after kissing so intensely.

But most of all, he appreciated the way your eyes seemed to light up when you looked at him now. It was strange that he never noticed before. 

“No. No, it wouldn’t be.” He answered before giving you a gentle kiss.

[maxwell-grant]

Vincenzo: The Gentleman Villain Reborn

Long before there were loudmouth buff guys in spandex, there was the gentleman villain.

There once was a time when the gentleman villain, whether a gentleman thief in the Raffles or Lupin mold, or murderous arch-criminals like Fu Manchu and Fantomas, organizations like Les Vampires, and even in-between figures like Rocambole and Judex, was the coolest thing in the pop culture block. The figures right around the corner of Baker Street, when Nick Carter and Sexton Blake and any billion old serial detectives weren’t quite cutting it. Their time was not to last long in the spotlight, as the pulp heroes consolidated domain in the 30s and then the superheroes took over, but every now and then, they return in various forms, never fully gone. But I’d dare say I’d never seen a gentleman villain story quite so bold, so modern, so dynamic and so gloriously over-the-top in pride over it’s existence, until I began watching Vincenzo.

Vincenzo is BADASS and I don’t use the term lightly. Not just the titular character, but the show itself. It’s currently a couple episodes short of the finale and you should stop everything you’re doing or watching and go watch Vincenzo. It’s been an utterly glorious ride from beginning to end with no shortage of great characters, terrific writing, great relationships and jaw-dropping moments as every episode succeeds in topping each other in WOW HOLY SHIT factor. It’s a shot of adrenaline and storytelling excellence to the eyeballs and you don’t have anything better to be doing right now than watching this.

I mentioned a while ago that Black was a show that, besides being also terrific in quality, captured my interest as a Shadow fan specifically because I saw in Black what I believe is the heart of The Shadow as a character: an embodiment of evil, motivated and created and warped by social catastrophe and strife, set loose to punish true evil in order to protect humanity. In that regard, if Black is where I find the heart of The Shadow, Vincenzo is where I find the spirit of what I like about The Shadow as a series: Cathartic urban fairytales where an extraordinary agent of change, armed with incredible cunning, sleight-of-hand and combat skills, rises above a dark background to command a folk brigade of ordinary people who reveal themselves to be extraordinary through their newfound purpose, to right the wrongs of society’s predators, by being better at their tactics than they are and turning their tools against them. 

I’m gonna spoil it a bit under the cut but please go watch it. I cannot praise this show enough and I’ll do my best to try.

Vincenzo centers around the titular character, Vincenzo Cassano, an Italian lawyer who works for the mafia as a consigliere, adopted by it’s Don at the age of eight. After the death of the Don and an attempted betrayal by his son, Vincenzo flees to Seoul and ends up taking residence at a ramshackle building called Geumga Plaza. Geumga Plaza is the hiding place of a gigantic stash of gold hidden by one of Vincenzo’s former clients, and he intends to retrieve it to rebuild his life somewhere else. Naturally, not only is the hidden room completely impenetrable, but the building is occupied. by residents who are being forced out of it by criminals working for the Babel corporation, which intends to take possession of the building. And thus, Vincenzo has to put his skills into working out progressively bigger problems, as his efforts to uncover the gold turn into a fight against Babel and it’s lawyers, as the problems take on bigger and bigger proportions. 

Vincenzo’s got a lot of what you’d expect from a k-drama at first glance. The leading man is a dashing young man, the leading lady is headstrong and stubborn, you see their romance coming a mile away and they take their damn time getting there, there’s emotional backstories that take a long time to be revealed, lots of wacky side characters and comedy interspersed with the darkest moments, a focus on corporate corruption, and so on. But it’s got an intrusion of elements brought by Vincenzo’s inclusion, such as mob drama, tonal and cultural imbalance, and the gentleman villain tropes that Vincenzo brings, as the catalyst of change whose antics backflip through action hero, romantic hero, super hero and super villain, cunning puppetmaster and gun-toting warrior alike, and start to have an effect on the world around him. His allies become stronger, more determined and effective, and the villains grow smarter and more horrid as they desperately try to avoid their own downfalls.

On paper, Vincenzo is almost a textbook example of how to craft a villain protagonist. He’s a mysterious foreigner with a hidden past and incredible skills who shows up uninvited in “our” world, who starts terrorizing and manipulating people into doing his bidding. He’s got a hotheaded and foolish investigator chasing after his every move, and frequently employs misdirection and sleight-of-hand to fool the authorities. He commits crimes and employs underhanded methods in the service of stamping out people worse than himself. He never really makes any claim of being a hero and actively rejects the notion he’s fighting for justice, but instead states he’s doing it as a matter of principle. One of the characters early on even states he gives off the vibe of a movie villain, even Vincenzo himself tells Hong Cha-Young, the female lead, that he’s teaching her how to be a proper villain. In another series, Vincenzo would be the hypercompetent sidekick to the main villain, or secretly the main villain, the lone badass that the action hero would have a tough fight against before defeating and moving on. But Vincenzo does not allow himself to be dismissed so easily. 

On the first episode, when we’re introduced to him in Italy, he’s painted as the badass to end all badasses. But the minute he arrives in Seoul, he falls for a trick at the airport and is mugged by two cabbies, and has to walk around penniless and without dignity, shouting curses in Italian that nobody understands. He has to sleep in a broken down apartment, his “taking a steamy shower with classical music playing” fanservice scene keeps being interrupted because the shower doesn’t work, and a pigeon chattering outside his window keeps ruining his sleep. 

The tenants of the building are all introduced as varying levels of unsympathetic and useless, or downright creepy. The tailor screws up his favorite suit, the chef who claims to have studied in Italy is a total fraud, there’s tenants who scare us by passing as ghosts and zombies, and Hong Cha-Young is introduced as an unlikable stooge for Babel. Vincenzo is a villain protagonist who is forced out of his grand mafia epic film, where he conducts business around lavish manors while classical music plays, and stumbles onto a korean drama, a world that operates by different rules and where no one has any reason to take him seriously at first, and gradually finds out that the difference between both worlds is not as big as he’d imagined.

It’s only at the very end of the first episode, when the neighborhood gangsters show up to terrorize the tenants, that Vincenzo starts to kick ass again, and he has not stopped so far. In fact, not just him, ALL of the tenants have gradually started kicking ass with him. Hong Cha-Young severs all connections to Babel and proves to be, as his main partner in crime, just as cunning, twice as driven, and three times as batshit and kooky. The tailor who ruined his suit turns out to be an ex-gang member capable of fending off groups of thugs with only his scissors. The creepy piano girl reveals herself a hacking genius, the zombie impersonators become incredible actors, the failed wrestler and badass wannabe becomes his most active field agent along with his equally strong wife, the chef improves his cooking and lends his restaurant as a meeting center, all of the characters, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM gradually become incredible, competent, resourceful people, really no different than they were before, it just took a little courage and pushing. 

The headstrong and foolish agent pursuing Vincenzo becomes 100% smitten with him and quickly becomes one of his greatest allies. Even the neighborhood gangsters, after being left to die by Babel and forced to start anew, quickly become some of his most loyal allies, and gradually redeem themselves in the eyes of the tenants to the point they become friends. In departing from his old family, Vincenzo forms a new one, even if never by his intention. They even all get matching suits.

This incredibly potent, human core surrounding the antics of an extraordinary figure of action is part of what used to make the Agents of The Shadow such a special, meaningful and beloved part of the series, and something every adaptation since then has been 100% poorer for neglecting. But Vincenzo does it, and does it right. I could watch a billion adventures with these people and never get sick of them. 

Vincenzo is a slick, modern take on the gentleman villain that takes many of it’s oldest conventions and provides blueprints for making them work in modern times. His plans often take a performance art-edge as he employs tactics both old-fashioned and modern, like using social media to stage an event in front of the Plaza so the bulldozers set to demolish it won’t be able to pass, or copying files and passing them to his police contact while keeping the real ones when said police contact inevitably betrays him. The tenants put all of their skills to use, no matter how unusual or seemingly useless. Every episode lays the groundwork for a smashing finale where all of the threads come together and we bare witness to a grand tapestry of karmic retribution.

The villains themselves are no slouch, and also have that modern edge that gradually ramps up. They stage discreet assassinations involving gas leaks and watches meant to burst into flames. They stack the deck impossibly against all characters. They employ masked goons by the dozens, armies of lawyers to smudge any connections between themselves and their actions, and every sector of society in covering them, from journalists publishing pro-Babel propaganda to police commissioners. The assistant of the main villain does zumba classes amidst ordering assassinations, and is often likened to a snake and a witch with her "Crystal Ball” (the name she uses for ordering assassin contacts by the phone), complete with a cowardly, scheming assistant she bullies at every turn. The CEO of Babel has a dual nature not out of place in a Jekyll & Hyde/Dorian Grey kind of story. 

The main villain is often painted as a slasher villain backed by massive corporate power, murdering people with hockey equipments and even outright named “Jason” at one point, with a tense string theme song accompanying his deeds. The show hides the villain at plain sight by using one of the most familiar set-ups of romantic dramas and the tension never stops even after he’s revealed. 

Mobster films tend to paint an idealized version of it’s protagonists, not necessarily because of a genuine love or interest with mobsters (I mean, it really goes without saying that real life mobsters are obviously not admirable figures), but out of a sense of displaying a “this is what it could be” fantasy, a fantasy where the mafioso is a dark hero who will still ultimately do the right thing and stick up for the little guy, in a similar way to how superheroes often function as police officers except, y’know, actually dedicated to protecting people. 

Vincenzo does go to great lengths to address the imbalance of putting such a dark figure as it’s hero, through showing how the situation can only be addressed by the intrusion of a figure such as Vincenzo. There’s a scene where Vincenzo and Hong proceed to explain extremely succintly to their cop ally why the “bad apples” argument is horseshit.  One of the show’s characters, someone who’s spent his entire life being the best person he could, and dedicating himself 110% percent to fighting evil even at the expense of connecting with his own family, someone who absolutely should be the hero to take down Babel, admits shortly before dying that it wasn’t enough, that it was never going to be enough, and that what the situation calls for isn’t a hero, but a monster. That monster being Vincenzo, who is not only powerful and monstrous, but commands the loyalty of people high and low class alike, criminals and law enforcement agents, to fight Babel. In his words, “the ultimate monster”, something even the world’s biggest badass cannot defeat by himself. 

On most other set-ups, Vincenzo would be pretty unmistakably the villain. But here, when he’s set up against a starkly realistic depiction of how corporations actually function in our world, depicts that Vincenzo’s ability to clear his way through goons John Wick-style is nowhere near enough, and to that end, he’s gonna have to fight impossible battles using his brains and his allies. And in the end, he defeats them, time and time again, and proves that they were not that impossible after all. 

One can only hope he’s on to something.

Oh yeah and THE PIGEON BY HIS WINDOW ALSO KICKS ASS and I will not explain how, just watch the show, I can’t do it justice no matter how much I talk about it.

[ohmy7hearts]

Being an Amazon and Tim Drake’s significant other; pt. 2

A/N: my grammar is all over the place,, so just don’t mind that,,, on a more exciting note!! i’m planning to take A levels next year despite graduating with diploma in March so,,, idk how committed I would be to writing ((like i was in the beginning lololol))

prev

They have made it clear that whatever you did will not earn you any sort of favours from them. So you have decided to just avoid them entirely, using your enhanced abilities to sneak around the tower, like some kind of burglar - dashing off to your room when you hear the littlest sound of voices coming towards your direction, peeking out at the corridors before walking down them, not joining them when they go out for their outings or having their movie night

Honestly, Gar and Bart were the only ones who felt bad about leaving you out entirely. They tried suggesting subtly but it was always met with glares or just shut down before they could convince anyone

The two of them band together to try and make you be friendlier with the rest of the team to earn their trust back

However, no matter how much they’ve tried, your enhanced skills always leave you one step above

So they have to take things the hard way, they infiltrated your room

You were not happy to see the two - no matter how sheepish and sorry they look and how fast they try to talk into listening to them - and literally threw them out of the room

Tim was walking past to witness the whole thing. He gave an offhand remark about leaving people alone and respecting their personal space. Honestly, he just doesn’t want you hanging around with the rest of the team. He felt so vulnerable with you and he sucks at keeping his emotions in check. The last thing he needed was for you to even hint about his crush on Cassie - the team was too smart and pick it up straight away

There was a mission that forced you out of your room, some illegal drug smuggling by the coast. The plan was a simple get in, kick their ass and get out to call the police right on time. Hence, you were told to standby - to watch how the team works so you wouldn’t be confused about how to work with others in the near future

You merely shrugged and waited on the roof as told while the rest of the team entered to seize the operation

However, you see someone sneaking around the shadows and your gut was telling you to go down and help them. You don’t want to cause any more trouble with the team than you already did but you knew they needed help

And from the sounds of it, with the screaming and gears going off, they were ambushed. So, albeit reluctantly, you went in and saved their asses

Despite that, that wasn’t the team’s primary focus. Apparently, the assailant was provoking them and he - Slade was it? - knew where it hurts the most 

Conner was up and arms with Tim about his supposed crush on Cassie with the latter not helping in dissuading the situation despite being a team leader. The team themselves want to intervene but it was escalating badly

You rolled your eyes, going to help Bart with an unconscious beast boy. You three headed back to the aircraft without saying much despite you being able to see Bart opening his mouth and closing it again in hopes of finding the right words to break the ice between the two of you

You tended to Beast Boy’s wounds with Bart vibrating behind you, peering over your shoulder then zooming to and fro the small space whenever you requested for some medical ointments

The peace was broken when the rest of the team rolled in with looks of exasperation and exhaustion and Tim and Conner gone. Bart launched his questions, worry apparent in his voice and features but Cassie merely waved her hand to dismiss him

Starfire sat beside you, staring at a patched up Beast Boy, before muttering thanks to you. You looked at her from the corner of your eyes before nodding slightly

The moment you all touched down, Cyborg took Beast Boy in his arms, nudging you away when you were about to. Shrugging your shoulders, you retreated back to your room

Of course, that didn’t come easy as Bart tried to talk to you, chattering about endless subjects, following you till you both faced your bedroom door

You raised an eyebrow at him and for the first time you noticed the wrangling of his arms out of nervousness and the constant darting of eyes from corner to corner

“I just want you to know that you have a friend in me. I know it’s weird with how we almost died - but hey, we didn’t so that’s a win for us - and the team is falling apart - to which I find is totally ridiculous if you’re curious cause technically you can’t control your feelings for someone but I’m not saying that Red Robin is in the wrong but neither is he right but so is Conner but he’s always been emotional and there’s nothing wrong with that but, wait - what was I saying?”

You considered him, eyes scanning him from toe to the ends of his hair, putting him further on edge and a small part in you almost grin manically at that, before you hummed in acknowledgement and spinning into your room

Behind the closed door, you can hear him shouting about it’ll be nicer if you actually talk instead of just humming and nodding and going off tangent to which you smiled at before soaking yourself for a bath

After that day, you returned to your routine of avoiding everyone - despite Bart and Beast Boy knocking on your door every now and then with invitations; Bart being more annoying and persistent and threatening to vibrate through the walls - and stumbled upon Tim one late night when Bart was in the same room as you

Too engrossed in making a late-night snack, and half-listening to Bart’s one-sided conversation, you didn’t hear him creep around -  kudos to Batman for teaching his sidekicks to be discreet successfully

“You’re still here?” His biting tone was what greeted you and with a blank expression, you raised an eyebrow at him

Bart, ever the peaceful one, jumped to your defence while trying to deter Tim from spiralling further into his foul mood

You pick up your snacks, glancing back one last time before leaving, scoffing “At least I add value to the team and not just participating in petty arguments.”

Tim snarled about how he was wanted, unlike you with the Amazons and the team

Your jaw tensed, blood turning cold, eyes seeing red and were ready to maul at him but Bart literally intervene 

Somehow, that tick Tim the wrong way and him sneering about your boy toy and Bart being such an idiot, which was not surprising

Bewildered, he stood there with mouth agape not believing that the person in front of him was one of the people he always admired for his determination, levelheadedness and thoughtfulness

You rolled your eyes, mocking his emotional intelligence or lack thereof was the reason why he was so isolated from everyone despite how much he tried fitting in with people

Dragging a shell shocked Bart to the rooftop for an unplanned heart-to-heart

You didn't - or even bother to - see the hurt flitting briefly on Tim’s face

Discomfort was something rare when Bart was around but with how quiet he was, you started prattling about your life on Amazon without actually revealing much about your own history; you were not ready for that vulnerability

That somehow got his attention; with childlike wonder, he questioned you one after another and you patiently answered

You didn’t know how long you both stayed there and it was hard to keep track with how seamlessly the conversation flowed to his whereabouts and history and dreams but you knew when the sun bathed you two in sunlight, Bart was already dozing off while still murmuring about something

And for once in a long time, you were content

[trashfor-imagines]

If There’s Light There’s Hope | 5

Bakugou x Fem!Reader (BNHA)

Summary: U.A. High School was your dream. You wanted to save people. You never expected how wild your journey would be and you certainly never expected a hot headed boy to play as large of a role as he would. Warnings: Swearing. [1] | [2] | [3] | [4] | [5] | [6] | [7]

-

“I can’t believe you guys took down the Shie Hassaikai!” you awed, staring at your classmates. Pouting, you mumbled to yourself, “I wish they had asked Endeavor to join their task force.”

“You’d have kicked their asses,” Bakugou mumbled against your ear, breaking you out of your self woe.

Smiling you turned to him, sweetly pressing your face against his cheek for moment before anyone could notice. “I got permission to go tomorrow.”

Grabbing your hand, he pulled you away from the group and toward his dorm. As the elevator doors closed, he pulled you to him. “How’d you manage that?”

“Well, if only I was Todoroki, then Endeavor would think that I was truly the perfect intern,” you joked, making him grunt in disapproval. “Don’t be like that. Anyway, I only had to suck up to Endeavor a little bit and he took care of it. He was pretty pleased I wanted to learn from Todoroki.”

Seeing how your words made him fume made it hard for you to hide your smile. He absolutely hated when you talked about other boys. Quietly, you slipped your hand into his. 

Ding!

A squeal of laughter escaped you as he dragged you to his room quickly. You knew he was jealous that you’d been out doing your internship, but it didn’t stop him from being supportive and encouraging in private. Dating him was interesting; you’d wondered if it would make him softer, but he was still the same reactionary he always was in public. You looked forward to your private moments. You got to see the tenderness he was capable of; his shyness. 

Speaking of shyness, you’d been waiting for what seemed forever now. How long should it normally take for first kisses to happen when you’re dating? Every time you thought it would happen, he’d turn away. Every time you tried to initiate it, he dodged it with ease. It was frustrating to say the least.

Plopping down onto his bed, he pulled you down beside him, spooning you from behind, arms wrapped around you tightly. You buried your face into his pillow, breathing him in for a moment.

“Hey Katsuki... you nervous about tomorrow?” Your voice was gentle as you stared at a polaroid of the two of you he had taped to his bed post.

He scoffed, burying his face in your hair. “O’course not.”

“Remember, you’ve got to show your compassion,” you reminded gently running your fingers along his strong forearms. He grumbled in response. You firmly tapped his arm. “I’m serious! I read over your results. You’ve got to be more considerate and thoughtful. I know it’s hard, but think of me when you’re dealing with the people you’re supposed to help. Maybe you’ll be nicer.”

“Oh, you wish. Now go to sleep.”

The next morning, Bakugou woke you up early and the two of you got ready. Endeavor said you had to suit up as a hero since you were attending under his authority. You quickly made some breakfast sandwiches for Bakugou and Todoroki, which they were thankful for. “You can’t expect to concentrate on empty stomachs!” you had told them. Out front, you three were met with All Might and - surprisingly - Present Mic.

The trip didn’t take long at all and soon you were waiting patiently out front of the Hero Public Safety Commission to meet Endeavor, wishing the boys a quick “good luck.” You thought back to all of those days of seeing Bakugou - and Todoroki - walk into class covered in bandages from being banged up from training. At least it was almost done. After today, all they had to do was take the final exam.

Your eyes lit up as Endeavor arrived, straightening your posture and keeping your stoic and serious expression. You accidentally eavesdropped on one of the sidekicks at the agency mentioned in passing to another sidekick that Endeavor had noted that he appreciated your composure. Bowing to him respectfully, he hummed in approval as he walked past you and the two of you headed inside.

As you walked behind him through the halls, you were very conscious about the way you held yourself. Endeavor expected the people who worked for him to be confident, strong, and intelligent. Head held high, confident strides, and an aura of power. Turning the corner, you almost ran into Endeavor who’d stopped and turned around, staring down at you with his stern gaze.

“Sir?” you asked, unsure.

His arms were folded across his broad chest and he suddenly seemed taller than usual. “You need to relax. I don’t expect you to be able to learn anything from watching my son today if you’re struggling to be yourself,” he spoke plainly.

Stiffening for a moment, you reluctantly allowed your shoulders to fall lax, gazing at the Pro-Hero’s boots. “I’m sorry sir. It’s just that... it’s important to me that I accurately represent you and your agency’s image.”

There was a brief sigh as a large hand carefully rest on your head for a moment. “I wouldn’t have bid on you if I thought you’d shame me or my agency. You’re fine as you are. Now get it together.”

Looking up, you saw his expression was the same as it always was. It almost made you wonder if that moment even happened at all. Relaxing, you smiled confidently, giving him a bow. “Thank you sir. I will.”

Continuing through the halls, Endeavor would point out different departments, explaining their responsibilities in brief, sometimes even noting who in the department you should go to if you ever had something that needed to get immediately. Soon you came across a familiar skeletal like presence in the hall; All Might was with Present Mic. It was a brief exchange - with Present Mic disappearing for some coffee and dragging you along with him. Present Mic had a few questions for you, like what’s it like working for him, is he always so intense, did you feel safe? You answered his questions thoughtfully on your way to the rented sports facility, walking in with Endeavor and All Might. As the Pro-Heroes decided whether or not to sit a few rows back, you pointed at the front row, silently asking Endeavor for permission. He made a grunt of affirmation before you headed down to the front.

“Shoto! You should never have failed the initial exam in the first place! Show these weaklings you’re in a completely different league!” Endeavor yelled, making your hair stand up.

“Todoroki! Bakugou!” you called out, waving at them once you made it to the front row, a smile on your face. Todoroki waved back while Bakugou smirked in response. You sat on the edge of your seat, leaning forward to fold your arms on the balcony's ledge and resting your chin on top. This should be good.

Needless to say you weren’t totally surprised by what Gang Orca had prepared for the boys and kids from Shiketsu. You figured it would be a test of compassion, but to be honest, those little kids were terrifying. It made you want to pull your hair as you watched your friends struggle and couldn’t help them. Come on Katsuki, stop yelling at them. Understand their point of view.

Though you’d never admit it, you appreciated Present Mic’s outburst. It was tortuous sitting in silence, however, you would have preferred if your teacher hadn’t dragged you down to the training floor. Glancing up at Endeavor and All Might, you really wished you could hear the conversation between them.

You supposed the children finally had enough when an all out attack occurred. It was impressive. These kids had some really cool quirks and you felt your heart leap in your chest at the couple of close calls they had. You were definitely giving Bakugou an earful later. You felt a blush spread across your cheeks as he imitated Camie’s Glamouroki impression. Watching carefully, you smiled at what came together next. It was beautiful and part of you even wished you could run out and play with those kids. Your lips stretched into a smile as Bakugou approached one of the kids not participating and your heart warmed. He was still rough around the edges, even when he was being his softest, but that kindness inside him was still there.

Just before training ended, you quickly made your way back to where Endeavor was. When Gang Orca dismissed everyone, you headed outside with he Pro-Heroes and listened quietly as your teachers spoke with Shiketsu about creating a relationship between the two schools and setting up joint training exercises.

Your eyes lit up as you caught sight of Bakugou and the others. Part of you was a bit ticked off that he immediately managed to get into a confrontation so quickly with the Shiketsu student, so you turned your attention to Todoroki.

“Hey! You did great out there. I definitely learned a few things from you today,” you smiled. Feeling Endeavor approach behind you, you quickly excused yourself to give them a moment together, even though you could hear their entire exchange still. From listening to the Pro-Hero’s words to his son, you could tell that he was already on his way to changing; your gaze softened as you stared at the pavement.

As everyone bid their farewells, you politely bowed to Endeavor, thanking him for today. He nodded and crossed his arms, allowing himself a hint of a smile. “Remember what I said, (Y/N).”

Glancing up, you returned the smile as well. That was the first time he’d called you by your actual name. Waving goodbye to him, you quickly caught up to Bakugou, calmly giving him an earful of all the things he could have done better.

“You’re fine as you are.”

Soon enough, summer passed and it was autumn. You and Bakugou spent all your time together studying or being around each other. It was hard, but you made sure you had time for Hitoshi. You weren’t the type of person to abandon someone for somebody else. Hitoshi said he was understanding, but you got the feeling he wasn’t happy about your choice in romantic partners. That was easy to understand as their previous encounters definitely didn’t set them up for a lifelong friendship.

After working on special moves with Cementos in Gym Gamma, you showered in the school’s locker rooms before heading back to the dorm on your own. As the cool autumn breeze nipped at you, a slight shiver ran down your spine. It was definitely getting chilly; you’d really need to start wearing coats soon. A scarf wrapped around your head and you blushed, inhaling his scent.

“You need to make sure to dry your hair completely before going outside. You’ll get sick,” Bakugou spoke, hands in his pockets as he walked with you.

“Are you worried about me?” you teased, giving him a sly look.

“Shut up.”

“Okay.”

“I said shut up!”

[victor-criss]

@slinkhard 

(continued from:)

- “ apart from Mike, as you said - who seems oddly sexless. idk whether King maybe didn’t feel as comfortable with that aspect of Mike”

i never really noticed as a kid (mainly because i was so obsessed with bev and richie’s relationship, platonic and otherwise, that i greedily absorbed all those bits), but yeah, mike being literally the Only One to not show interest in her in that way, and then his adult life being such a blank slate in terms of personal relationships, really doesn’t sit right. agreed that king prob was proud enough of himself for not making him a total stereotype like his other poc characters that he just dusted his hands and covered up his typewriter for the night

-”instead she’s ripping off her blouse to soak his wounds and doing the ‘go get them champs, I’ll wait here’ bit”. 

oh my fucking god, yep. jesus @ pt 2 of the miniseries (cheesy as it could be) actually improving on this? this is also one of my biggest complaints about the stand (which is tied w IT for my fav king book)

- “ bevvy doesn’t get to be flawed, she has to be twice as ballsy as all the boys to validate her presence, and she’s never at a loss because it’s not about her pov, it’s about how she makes men feel. “ 

i’m going to get this engraved on a fucking plaque. thank you for so succinctly summing up what troubled me so much about movie bev aside from the kidnapping. this is also what people bring up when they try to excuse or dismiss the kidnapping and/or constant objectifying in the movie. “yeah, she loses her vital role in the final battle, but it only took her because she’s so tough!!!” i’m just.... lmfao. (i also won’t get into how the movie has the perfect opportunity to point out the shitty way that boys/men - ie henry - will lash out at girls/women for rejecting them because they felt they’re owed something, and instead, we get stan and eddie and RICHIE all being so shitty to bev due to those rumors. and instead of them ever apologizing, SHE is the one who has to make clear to bill her ~sexual innocence~ and lets him know that it’s okay, because he’s the only one she’s ever kissed! like, whew, guys, don’t worry about bev being the target of misogyny and sexual harassment from not just the bullies but also her “friends” - the real point is that she’s never kissed anyone but the boys who “deserve” her and is therefore not a “slut”! and also, male screenwriters using this as an opportunity to fulfill their own adolescent fantasies bill and ben, isn’t it awesome that you got to kiss the Cool Girl that everyone, including your tormentor, wants?)

- “of course, i always found bill the flattest in the book for similiar reasons - he does get flaws, but they never seem to impact him in any kind of realistic way”

bill was always my least favorite because of this (jaeden was precious in the movie, but og bill is still a hard no from me). some aspects of ben grated on me, too (prob bc he’s also a king self-insert) but he at least seems well-developed and flawed enough for me to overlook it. with book bill, it’s almost some my first fanfiction shit: “personality: he’s the leader and so cool and so tall and so good-looking and always knows what to do and is such a good writer and the prettiest girl in school is in love with him and all his friends wish they were him!!! flaws: has a stutter.” and yeah, the cheating shit (and excusing of it) drove me up the wall. so gross. 

- “it’s really not that weird in terms of sexual development; unlike an eleven year old girl having penetrative sex with six boys, but the latter is romanticised as this natural event; and the former as evidence of patrick’s corruption and henry’s mental instability.”

yepppppppppppppppp (i also find it very interesting that the faction of creepy grown-ass male fans who will so vehemently defend the sewer scene w their dying breath will also usually laugh at or recoil from the patrick/henry stuff. hmMMMM)

- adding to your list of queer-coded villains - i need to reread christine, because the homoeroticism in the movie is so in your face in a way that i don’t quite remember it being in the book. aside from the arnie/dennis stuff, one could also make the argument for buddy repperton being queer-coded. like movie dennis, he is almost obsessed with arnie and doesn’t show interest/enthusiasm for women (book dennis is So Very Into leigh, while movie dennis is prodded into asking her out and seems more jealous of her relationship with arnie than anything) - ie, when his sidekick suggests they invite an attractive woman to ride with them, his only response is a dismissive, “yeah, right.” 

- “because bevvy’s need for a man is acceptable as a happy ending in a way that eddie’s isn’t.”

yeppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp pt 2. yet another thing that the miniseries actually improved upon? yikes (eddie getting carried out by richie instead of left behind in the sewers + richie’s new “show business partner”)

-i’m excited to dive into those links, thank you for sharing w me!

[darkfire1220]

Viridescent Chapter Two: The Entrance Exam

Summary: As a child, Izuku decided it would be better if he were Quirkless than to have a power that scared everyone. Now a teenager and looking to enter U.A, he finds himself as the protege of All Might and a student of the best heroes in the nation- but there’s no running from a part of you, and he’s learning the hard way that you have to accept all of yourself to be a real hero.

"Whew…I made it…" Izuku stopped to catch his breath as he stared at the huge U.A buildings at the front of the campus.

It had been ten months since Izuku had agreed to become All Might's successor and in that time, he'd put his body through absolute hell. All Might had made him train like a maniac, pushing his body to its very limits and beyond. He'd explained that Izuku's body back then was too weak to inherit One for All right off the bat, so he had to build himself up to handle the extraordinary power.

He'd definitely bulked up a fair bit, although Izuku still looked like a skinny kid at first glance. The now fifteen year old's physique didn't compare to All Might's one bit, but that was fine for now. He had made it to the starting line and that was all that mattered.

Izuku quietly groaned. His sore muscles were aching from the strain he'd put them under this morning to finish clearing all that trash from the beach. Thinking back on it, he lifted one of his hands to cover his mouth.

"Eat this!" All Might had ordered with that big grin on his face as he held up one of his own blonde hairs to Izuku.

"Huh?" The boy just stared at him with a dumbfounded expression.

All Might laughed uproariously. "It doesn't matter what it is as long as you take in my DNA!"

"It's way too different from what I imagined!" Izuku yelped as All Might practically shoved the hair into his mouth.

"Enough of that, bottoms up kiddo!"

Despite Izuku's feeble protests, he did eat the hair. It was about as pleasant an experience as you could imagine it would be. The way it just dragged down his throat was just…gross.

"Good, now don't throw that up," All Might chuckled.

"I don't feel any different, though…"

"Of course not, how do you think your stomach works? It'll take a little time for you to digest the hair, but you'll probably feel something by the time the exam starts."

Izuku shuddered and went to go grab the shirt he'd set aside earlier. "Got it…I gotta get home and take a shower and eat before the exam in a few hours…"

All Might turned his gaze towards the ocean, the view now completely void of any obstruction. "We turned you into a vessel that can house One for All, but it was made in a hurry. You didn't even get to take it on a test run. Prepare yourself for the repercussions that it will have on your body."

Izuku glanced over his shoulder at the hero. "What do you mean?"

"You'll see," All Might replied. "In any case, focus on using One for All today. With all the time we spent building up your body to house it, we didn't get to actually work on your original Quirk at all. Ideally, that's what I'd recommend you use for this exam."

"I'm not sure if I can use it in front of people yet…" Izuku mumbled nervously.

"I know, so like I said, focus on using One for All today," All Might pat the boy's shoulder with one of his huge hands. "We'll get you comfortable with your Quirk now that you've got One for All as well. It'll just take time. Focus on the exam for now, young man."

"Yes, sir."

"Huh? Deku?"

Izuku jumped, torn from his thoughts by the familiar voice. He turned and spotted Katsuki walking towards him. "Oh, Katsuki. Hey!"

Katsuki looked a little baffled in an irritated sort of way. "What are you doing here? I thought you were gonna take the Support Course test."

"Oh, well…" Izuku scratched the back of his head as the other teen reached him. "I-I decided to try for the Hero Course."

"You serious?" Katsuki tilted his head. "Dude, you haven't used your Quirk since like the second grade. Do you even remember how?"

"I-I think it'll be okay!" They were walking towards the entrance together now. "I just…I want to try at least."

"Don't tell me you're still scared of people freaking out about it?" Katsuki scoffed in annoyance. "You can't pussy out just because everyone else is terrified of your badass Quirk. It still ain't as awesome as mine, though."

Izuku sweat-dropped. I'm pretty sure the whole reason he ended up being friends with me is because he wanted to prove that he was better than everyone who was scared of my Quirk…

"What, y'all can't handle a little green fire? What a bunch of pussies! Go drown yourselves to death, then!"

He smiled slightly at the memory. Katsuki was abrasive and frankly a total ass to pretty much everyone, (including Izuku to a certain extent) but he was a bit more friendly around Izuku. Part of that was because they ended up in a video game club together at middle school and were the best players there. Heck, they'd even won a video game tournament held between all the schools in the region. He was kind of like Katsuki's sidekick in a way, so the other teen was slightly more tolerant and less abrasive towards him. Just slightly.

"You're getting into U.A, right?" Katsuki demanded, giving him a sideways glare.

Izuku nodded. "Even if I don't pass the Hero Examination Test, I'll take the Support Class Test. I can definitely get into that one."

"No shit. You've got a fuckin' library in that goddamn head of yours," Katsuki rapped his knuckles against the timid boy's forehead. "And you take way too many notes. Just get in, got it? It'll piss me off if you fail."

"I got it," Izuku promised.

Aaaaand now he was tripping on his shoelaces.

Or I'll just die, he thought as he waited for the inevitable impact.

Except he didn't hit the ground and just remained suspended in midair. Katsuku gave him a weird look as Izuku yelped and squirmed in the air, but didn't fall.

"Are you all right?"

The boys looked up to find a teenage girl standing there with her hand on Izuku's backpack. She had shoulder-length brown hair, big brown eyes, and rosy red cheeks. Carefully, she helped to right Izuku so he was back on his feet before she clapped her hands together and smiled. "Sorry I used my Quirk without asking, but I figured it would've been bad luck if you tripped, y'know? Did nerves get to you? I'm kinda nervous too. Good luck!"

Before either Izuku or Katsuki could say a word, she was walking off. Katsuki just stared after her with a face like he couldn't decide whether to be annoyed or not. "The fuck?"

A huge smile spread over Izuku's face and his eyes practically sparkled. "I just talked to a girl!"

"You didn't say a damn thing, you dumbass!" Katsuki snapped at him. "And wipe that weird look off your face! It's creepy as fuck!"

Once they were in the auditorium, the lights hit the stage and they were greeted by a Pro Hero named Present Mic. The man had a wild haircut, spiffy glasses, and a big speaker fixture wrapped around his neck. He also apparently had never heard the phrase "keep it down" because he was being obnoxiously loud.

"Welcome everyone to my live show!" He shouted into the mic and jabbed his fingers out to either side of him at the crowd. "Everybody say HEY!"

He put a hand to his ear, but all he got was silence.

"Tough crowd!" Mic laughed. "Whatever! I'm gonna give you the run-down on how this exam is gonna go! ARE YOU READY?!"

More silence was his answer, though Izuku was muttering to himself out of habit. "Holy crap, it's really him! I listen to his talk show on the radio every week! The lecturers at U.A really are all Pro Heroes!"

"Shut up," Katsuki growled beside him.

"Pay attention, listeners!" Mic shouted. "We'll be seeing if you got skills to pay the bills in a ten minute practice run at our replica-city district! You can take whatever equipment you want, just gather at your designated meeting area after my presentation, ya dig?!"

Katsuki looked from the card he had for his test to the one Izuku had, noting that they were in different districts. "It's set up so that we can't work together with people we know, huh?"

"That makes sense," Izuku muttered. "It'd be too unfair if some people had others helping them out to stock up on points."

"That's fine, though," Katsuki dismissed. "If you got stuck in my exam, I'd end up taking all the points for myself, anyways."

Izuku wasn't at all insulted by his friend's greed for points. That was kind of the objective here, after all.

Mic was talking again. "There'll be loads of faux-villains spread all over the battlefields and each one will be rated as a One, Two, or Three pointer! Your job is to use your Quirk to take out as many of them as you can and rack up a high score! Also, you can't attack other competitors directly! That's nasty anti-hero stuff and it's against the rules, ya dig?!"

"Excuse me!"

All eyes were suddenly drawn to a student in the stands- a young man wearing glasses who bore a very stern expression on his face. "On the handout, there are clearly four types of villains listed! If this is an error, then it's a huge embarrassment for a top-tier national academy of U.A's caliber! What is the meaning of this?"

"Also, you!" The other teen suddenly twisted to glare at Izuku, who jumped in surprise and fright. "Quit muttering to yourself! We're trying to pay attention! If you think U.A is just for fun, then leave this place at once!"

Izuku practically melted into his seat from embarrassment, covering up his face as most of the other students started to chuckle at him, but he was saved from complete humiliation by Katsuki. The teen snarled and stood up, placing his foot on the railing as he yelled at the guy who had called Izuku out. "The hell did you say?! I'll kick your ass!"

The other boy recoiled from Katsuki's rage as he swept his glare over the rest of the kids in the room who were still laughing. He held up one hand threateningly and let a few small explosions pop off in his palm. "Anyone else wanna talk shit?! Shut up and mind your own business, extras!"

Most of the kids did as he said, though a few looked ready to pick a fight with Katsuki. Present Mic broke it up before things could get ugly. "Woohoo! Save that aggression for the test, kiddos! I can't say I don't like it though!"

"Thanks, Katsuki," Izuku barely managed to get out as he peeked between the gaps of his fingers.

Katsuki sat down and crossed his arms with a huff, still glaring in annoyance at the kid who had started the whole thing. "Nobody gets to mess with you but me."

Mic pointed at the teen with the glasses. "You make a good point young man, so let me explain! The fourth type of villain is called the Zero Pointer! It's a big gimmick that goes wild in tight places, ya dig? If I were you, I'd do my best to avoid that sucker!"

"I see! Forgive my interruption!" The teen made a huge bow and sat back down.

"Welp, that's enough from me!" Mic went on. "I'll leave you with a quote that my academy prides itself on! Go beyond! Plus Ultra! Now get out there and have a great time suffering this trial!"

Holy crap, it's huge!

Izuku gaped at the massive duplicate city laid out before them. Jeez, the place could've been its own town! He knew that U.A was top of the line and was notorious for going to extremes to train heroes, but this was more than he'd expected.

Glancing around at some of the other students, Izuku noticed that some of them had equipment to match their individual Quirks. He kind of wished he had something like that. Not that it matters. I don't think I can use my flames here and I've never used One for All before…I'm not sure what kind of equipment would work best with it.

His eyes suddenly found a familiar figure- the girl who had kept him from falling when they first arrived. Oh, that girl from before! Maybe I should go say hello…I need to thank her for earlier, anyways!

"You, stop right there."

Izuku went stiff as a board at the sound of that awfully familiar voice- uptight and stern. Oh great.

"That girl is trying to concentrate. Don't go over there and interrupt her," the glasses-wearing teen who had called him out walked over and placed a firm hand on his shoulder. There was a warning look in his eyes. "Who are you, anyways? Are you here to obstruct us during the exam?"

He jumped. "N-no! O-of course n-not!"

Several of the other kids started laughing as they watched, commenting on his jumpiness and the nerves Izuku was obviously dealing with. He hung his head in embarrassment. They think they're lucky to have me as an opponent…

"START!"

Everyone stopped and turned towards Present Mic, who was standing on an observation tower. They all looked confused, but the Pro laughed and yelled again. "What are you waiting for?! There ain't a countdown in a real battle, you greenhorns! Get those legs moving!"

"Huh?" Izuku blinked, then he realized that everyone else was already running into the district. "Oh, crap!"

He blitzed after them, desperate to catch up with the rest of the pack. It's fine! I fell behind a little, but it's fine! I've got All Might's Quirk now…I can do this, I can do this, I can do this!

A building to his side suddenly exploded, making him skid to a stop. Izuku's eyes widened as a robot emerged and fixed its single eye on him. "One point!"

"Target locked on. Kill!"

The robot lunged at Izuku, who froze in place. Shit! How do I use One for All?! I still don't feel any different!

It was too fast and close for him to dodge, so he glanced around rapidly. No one was in sight, so maybe…

He ducked under the robot's swing and grabbed the bot by its thin wire neck, then let his own Quirk flare up. Instantly, he was wreathed in green flames and the heat caused the robot's sensitive circuits to overload and fail. The steel creature collapsed, neck sizzling from the heat.

Izuku immediately stopped the flames and looked around frantically. Good, no one saw me. Maybe if I sneak up on more of them on my own, I can take a them out until One for All starts working. It should be working soon, right?!

"SIX MINUTES AND TWO SECONDS LEFT!"

Mic's shout pushed him to run off again. He had only gotten one point in four minutes?! He needed more points fast!

He found an intersection that was crawling with robots, but they were all being taken out by a mass of students. He saw the girl from earlier touch several of them so that they floated up, then with a clap of her hands, they fell and were destroyed. She set her hands on her knees, breathing heavily before she moved on. "That's twenty eight points!"

Twenty eight?!

Izuku jumped as the teen with the glasses came out of nowhere and destroyed another robot's head with a huge kick. "That's forty five points!"

Forty five?!

He started to panic. They never told us how many villains there were! If I don't get a move on, all of them might be taken and I'll fail!

He was about to run off to try and find more isolated villains like before, but before he could do anything, the ground began to shake. Izuku flinched and his jaw fell open in terror as a massive robot appeared further down the street, destroying a building in the process. It had a big ZERO on its forehead.

Isn't that way too much?!

He fell to the ground, cowering at the sight of the behemoth robot as it made its way towards them. The other students were already scrambling to get out of its way.

Izuku felt like he was on the verge of a panic attack. No! I only have one point! I gotta run, but I gotta get points! Why can't I feel One for All yet?! Where is it?! All the work I did with All Might will be wasted if I can't use it!

"Ow!"

He froze and looked over his shoulder when he heard the cry of pain. Izuku realized that the girl who had helped him before had collapsed and was trapped under some rubble. She looked like she was gonna be sick and couldn't move even with the Zero Pointer coming at them.

She would be crushed.

He was going for the robot before he even realized what he was doing.

Izuku crouched as he charged, feeling a rush of power surge through his body. He jumped up, surging into the air like a rocket towards the Zero Pointer. His fist clenched as he forced that power through his arm, tearing his sleeve with the raw force it gave off.

When you use One for All, squeeze your ass super tight and yell this at the top of your lungs!

"Smaaaaaash!"

Izuku drove his fist into the Zero Pointer, unleashing One for All's devastating force and pulverizing the robot as though it were made of styrofoam. The steel behemoth was lifted off the ground and hurled back with a massive crash, utterly destroyed by the impact.

He hovered in the air for a moment, shocked by the degree of damage he'd done, but like all things under gravity's influence, he started to fall.

"Whoa, shit!" Izuku yelped, flailing to regain his balance. Crap, I gotta calm down! This is All Might's power, so I should be able to land alright now…

He was suddenly made aware of his right arm and both legs flopping around at it very unnatural angles. Izuku had time to blink at his ruined limbs before pain like nothing he'd ever felt before sent lightning through his nerves.

He screamed as he fell, clutching his destroyed arm with his left hand. Tears flew from his eyes and he struggled not to vomit.

I'm an idiot! This is All Might's power! I just barely got to the point that I can keep it in my body without it killing me! I went way overboard with it!

Izuku glared at the ground through blurry eyes, trying to gauge this distance. The only way he was surviving this fall was if he used One for All with his left arm. His own Quirk wasn't gonna help him here at all.

But if he used One for All again, it would destroy his left arm and he wouldn't be able to move at all. With just one point to his name, Izuku wouldn't be able to pass the exam.

He was just twenty feet off the ground when he decided his life was worth more than the exam and curled back his fist to set One for All loose again. But just as he was about to let it rip, a hand slapped his cheek and gravity ceased to effect him.

Izuku floated slowly to the ground, glancing to the side as he realized the girl who had been trapped had floated up on a piece of debris to save him. As they hovered just over the ground, the now nauseous-looking placed her fingertips against each other and groaned. "…release!"

They hit the ground at a safe distance, at which point the girl began to vomit and Izuku struggled to maintain his composure through the terrible pain in his broken limbs. "Th-thanks…!"

He started to crawl with his left arm, looking around desperately for a robot to attack even in his injured state. "I gotta get…more points…One won't…cut it…"

"TIME'S UP!"

Present Mic's voice rang through his eardrums and once he realized what the Pro had said, despair settled into Izuku's stomach. He let his head fall to the ground and gave up to the darkness taking over his vision, knowing that all his effort had been utterly wasted.

Several of the other examinees walked over, but kept a wary distance from him. They couldn't believe the devastation he'd caused with just one punch. Destroying a robot of the Zero Pointer's size with only one blow was crazy.

"Sheesh, what the hell was that?"

"He sent that huge thing flying with just one shot…"

"But he was so timid before the test started. How the heck does a guy with a Quirk like that end up being such a scaredy cat?"

The teen with the glasses was watching from further away as the school nurse, Recovery Girl, came up to take care of the injured boy. He was frowning deeply. They're all missing the point. He jumped in to save that girl. Even though he was lacking in points, he acted to protect her from that huge robot. If this hadn't been an exam…of course, I would have done the same thing!…wait a minute. Could…could that have been a part of the test?

He watched as Recovery Girl used her Quirk to heal Izuku's broken body, thinking hard about the exam. An epiphany struck him as he considered all the factors and realized what he was missing. I see! If the test is designed like that, then this kid…

A week later and Izuku was still a ball of nerves trying to get over the pit in his stomach. He'd recovered from his broken limbs, but his failure at the exam still hurt. Even at dinner, he stared at the fish on his plate for so long that his mother started to freak out a little. He ate a little, but he just didn't have much of an appetite.

As he sat on the couch that evening, curling a dumbbell in one hand half-consciously. Day after day, he had replayed the test in his head.

If I had to guess, I think I did pretty well on the written exam, Izuku thought to himself. But with just a single point on the practical exam, that grade won't matter at all. Even All Might hasn't gotten in touch with me since then…he's probably embarrassed by how badly I screwed up after spending so much of his time to train me. God, I should just give One for All back to him…can I do that?

"…The results from your test should be in today or tomorrow, right?" Izuku's mother, Inko, tried to start a conversation with him. She was as nervous as he was.

"I guess," he mumbled.

"Even if you don't pass, I still think it's amazing that you tried! A lot of people wouldn't have had the courage to do that, you know?"

"Yeah," Izuku sighed. He hadn't told his mother about All Might. He'd promised the man, after all, not to say a word about his true identity to anyone.

Mom probably thinks I tried to take the exam with my Quirk and flunked because I can't use it. She's not totally wrong, either…

He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to get some of the stress out of his body with a few deep breaths. "I'll just take the Support Course exam next week…"

"I-I-I-Izuku!"

He jumped and spun around as Inko came running into the living room from the front door, holding a single envelope in her hands. The pit in Izuku's stomach turned into a terrible black hole as he saw the U.A stamp on it.

"It's here!" Inko exclaimed, nervousness all over her face. Her son looked absolutely despondent.

Izuku took the envelope and retreated into his room, placing it on his desk. He could hear Inko pacing back and forth outside the door and it did absolutely nothing to help his own nerves. He spent a good fifteen minutes just staring at the envelope before he grabbed it harshly and ripped the thing open. Instead of a letter, a small metal disk clattered onto the desk.

"I AM HERE AS A PROJECTION!"

He yelped as a video of All Might was projected onto the wall behind his desk from the metal disk. Izuku glanced back and forth from the disk to the projection in confusion for a few seconds. "Wh-what the- All Might?! Wait- this-this is from U.A, right? Huh?"

"Sorry kiddo! I had a lot of work to do so I couldn't get in touch with you!" The projection of All Might took a bow. "But it's all good! We'll be seeing more of each other since I'll be starting a teaching job at U.A!"

He looked like he was about to say something else that would drop further bombshells on Izuku's already strained brain, but the hero was distracted by someone out of frame. "What? Speed it up? I've gotta tell him a few things though…it's gonna push everything else back? How many more of these do I have to do again? Jeez, alright I got it!"

All Might cleared his throat and said the words that made every cell in Izuku's body feel like it weighed a ton. "You passed the written exam with flying colors, but you only got a single point on the practical. So of course, you didn't pass…if that were all!"

Izuku blinked in confusion. All Might gestured to a video screen behind him. "Observe, young man!"

A video began to play and Izuku realized that the girl who appeared in it was actually the one who had saved him from falling to death. She looked a little nervous as she approached Present Mic, whom she had called to get his attention. "Excuse me…I'm sorry to bother you, but there was a boy in my exam with curly hair and lots of freckles, um…he's kind of plain looking, you know?"

She was talking about him, Izuku realized. "Would it be possible to share some of my points with him? I heard him say that he'd only gotten a single point or something, so I guess he was struggling to pass…But he got really hurt and probably lost points trying to save me from that villain! Could you please at least give him the points he lost because of me?"

He swallowed hard. "She didn't have to do that for me…I…"

All Might paused the video and grinned at the screen. "What kind of Hero Course would it be if we turned down people who did the right thing? This ain't some second-rate school you tested for! The exam was not based solely on villain points!"

The video began playing again. Present Mic lifted a hand to pat the girl on the head, grinning in amusement. "No worries, lil' missy. You can't share points, but you won't have to."

All Might stepped in front of the screen as the video ended. "Laying your life on the line for other people is a huge part of being a hero. We had a special panel of judges looking for just that thing! You only got one villain point, but you scored big on the rescue points, kid! You got a grand total of sixty one points! And your friend who tried to help you out? Ochako Uraraka scored forty five points!"

He had to be dreaming. There was no way. No freaking way.

All Might's grin got a little softer. "You passed, kid."

The lump in his throat made it impossible for him to say anything. Izuku covered his face with one hand as tremors wracked his body. All Might held a hand out to him on the screen. "Come, young man. This is your hero academia!"

A/N: Yay, chapter two. I know I said I’d update weekly, but feedback has been going rather slow for the first chapter on this site, so I figured I’d throw the second one in now to spice things up a bit. Anyhow, hope you enjoy!