#anyway. she admires his ability to be a bitch without saying anything at all somehow

[ezdotjpg]

obviously tp sets up a storyline where midna slowly starts to respect link through his deeds which I think is wonderful but I also love to envision that there’s a moment where she realizes under his very real country good boy goodness he’s got a little bit of an attitude. like there’s just a “oh so he’s a BITCH” moment. and that’s when they really bond. he can go toe to toe with her without folding

[mrs-hollandstan]

hello! could you do an angsty fic based on the song yes to heaven by lana del rey where reader is pining after peter but he just doesn’t realize please?

This is actually really cute and I kinda dreaded writing it at first haha

If you dance, I'll dance

Peter was your best friend. Since kindergarten. You were there always, and you, like Ned (and now MJ) knew his deepest secret. And even though he knew you like the back of his hand, he didn't know your deepest secret. 

Tonight was Prom. The biggest night of your life, or what was supposed to be and maybe it would be, but you knew that you hadn't been asked to Prom by anyone which meant going "alone" even though you had a group of friends you'd be with, but you knew that he had asked her and that was somehow worse than not having a date yourself. 

You'd watched him go for Liz, and you supported him, and you were glad when she went away. You thought he'd remain your little, single, best friend, but then his attraction shifted to MJ and it was like a punch through your heart. You had been heart-eyes for him for so long and he never noticed and you knew that even if he did, it would never come to fruition because he was your best friend. You were his and that was a big no no. You could dream though right. 

And if you don't, I'll dance anyway

You had a beautiful dress and pretty heels and your hair and makeup were done to the best of your cousin's ability. You knew that you weren't ugly (you weren't the prettiest in school but who wants that, they're bitches anyways) and you knew that at least a few pairs of eyes would be on you. Even if those weren't Peter's, it'd be okay. You could fill that void with… Flash Thompson or something. 

You found the group near the back, Peter and MJ facing each other as they danced together, but not touching, and Ned makes a noise, drawing your eyes to him. Betty leans against him, 

"Wow Y/N, you look…"

"Killer." Betty finishes for him, admiring you just as much as her on-again, off-again boyfriend had. Damn, everyone really had someone huh?

"Oh yeah, you look nice Y/N." Peter speaks up in that overly innocent voice of his, eyes never leaving your face before he diverts his attention back to MJ who doesn't even give you a glance. When had he ever not called you by a nickname? Was that something he started doing when she showed up, calling you by your formal first name? 

Give peace a chance

You fall into the routine. Distracting yourself with the less obsessed with each other couples and the singles in your group, dancing and mingling, sipping punch and snacking on crackers and chips and dip. It was nice. For once you didn't feel like you had to distract yourself from them. It was natural. Grooving along as a few slow songs replace the upbeat ones you were grooving to and joining the loners on the benches brought back that overwhelming dull feeling you had whenever you watched Peter with his girlfriend. The way he swayed, arms wrapped around her waist, forehead pressed to hers. What it's like to be Ned and Betty, unphased by the fact that your best friend is so helplessly in love with someone else while all you can do is suffer in silence being in love with them. You swallow back the tears and the lump in your throat at the thought of Peter marrying her, having kids with her, and you being alone forever. You have to look away. Downing a few more glasses of punch, Betty and Ned strike up a conversation, letting you forget about the searing jealousy within you. And it's back to the dancing soon enough. 

Peter and MJ are comfortable enough that her back presses to his chest and he wraps his arms around her and they sway, singing together. Her smile is bright and so is his and it kills you. 

Let the fear you have fall away

She turns to him, a faint squeak sounding along the polished floor since she's worn tennis shoes and his smile widens when she says something to him. 

You've been in love with Peter since Kindergarten, you're pretty sure. He's always been adorable and of course you've always tried to chalk it down to him just being like a brother to you, but it's so much more. You've never realized how much you really do love him. He's been by your side, he's helped you through personal and work related issues, he's confided in you when it came down to Spider-Man and the emotional toll it was taking on him. He leaned on you and you let him, and you held back the tears until he couldn't hurt you or comfort you. He was oblivious and you seemed fine with it but if he knew, you knew he'd hate himself and he'd beg for your forgiveness, but he surely would never make you what she is to him. Their relationship is too powerful and he doesn't like you like that. It would never happen. Maybe it's because he's never had to save you. You've never put yourself in harm's way. 

I've got my eye on you

As you watch, with his strong arms wrapped around her, he leans in the same way she does and they kiss, so softly you can practically see how in love they are. You've never seen them kiss and you could really have gone without it. 

You glance away but the heartbreak is already setting in. Your breaths are short, chest tight, eyes stinging as you fight the tears. 

What hurts the most is that you'll never be her for him. He has someone he loves while you obsess over him. You have no one now, and he has everything he's ever wanted. Sure, you're happy for him, but it still kills you. 

Turning, Betty reaches out to hold your wrist, eyebrows knitting together at the look on your face, 

"Hey, what's the matter?" You shake your head,

"N-nothing. I need… I need fresh air." 

"I'll go with-"

"No!" The outburst draws all kinds of eyes to you including MJ's and Peter's, his eyebrows knitting together. Betty jumps as if she's been stung and her eyes widen just a little, Peter straightening up as a tear slides down the side of your nose, "I just… I need to be alone." 

I've got my eye on you

You dart away from the group, your heels clicking along the polished wood floor until you're pushing into the halls. The music is muffled behind the closed doors, allowing you to drop down to the floor and sob. The cracking in your chest is so damn painful. It feels like any moment, your heart will disconnect itself and leave your body to avoid the pain. 

The tears splash off the floor and you'd hate to see how your makeup looks but you don't think you're going back in there. You can't will yourself to convince people you're fine. Especially not your group of friends. As you're picking yourself up from the floor, the doors behind you burst open and Peter emerges, reaching out for your arm. He doesn't realize it when you pull it out of his reach, 

"What happened? Are you hurt?" You shake your head, brushing your tears from under your eyes, 

"I'm fine." 

"You don't really expect me to believe that do you? You're crying at prom, in the middle of the hallway." He states like its the most obvious thing. You swallow, 

"I just need air." 

"Okay… I'll go with you." 

"No, I need to be alone." 

"I've known you my whole life and I know you hate being alone." If he thinks he knows you so well, why doesn't he realize he's the one causing you so much pain? 

"There's a lot I don't like Peter." 

"What do you mean? Y/N, what's going on with you?" He asks. 

Say yes to heaven

Turning to him, you stare into those cool brown eyes, eyes that have always calmed you and you can't help it. Your lip quivers, 

"You don't always have to understand what's going on with Peter. I can handle myself." 

"You know I believe you, but you don't have to hide it. You can tell me anything. I'm your best friend and I would kill for you." If only that were true. I mean… you'd never wish death on her but… it'd be easier. It'd lessen your panic. You shake your head, 

"It's fine Peter. Just… go back inside." You turn to start away from him but he has so much that tells him your every move. Not only, as a normal human, can he read you like an open book, but with this new superhuman power thing, he senses when something is wrong. His face shows it, 

"I'm not leaving you. Especially with all that… suicide, drunk driving crazy crap going on that surrounds prom. You're storming out of there for no reason, crying and I… you shouldn't be alone." 

"Peter-" 

"No, talk to me! I'm your best friend and I am not going to let you die and have to tell your parents, your family, our friends that I didn't do anything to protect you." He yells. He really thinks this is a call for help, and it is, but not that way. You scoff, wondering how boys are so oblivious, glancing at him as you lean against the handrail behind you.

Say yes to me

"You really wanna know?" You ask him softly. He nods, moving in closer, 

"Of course. I hate seeing you in so much pain." He tells you. Your smile is sinister because he's so damn stupid. Closing your eyes and rubbing a hand across your face, you sigh, 

"I like you." Is all you state at first. He frowns, eyes glancing down at the floor. He's confused because he likes you too but he would never think you like him that way unless it was directly stated, "I've liked you since we were kids. And yeah, I'm so, so, so happy for you for having a girlfriend that loves you and you love her, but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt for me. You'll never love me like that and that's fine but… I can't just watch you guys be in love. It fucking kills me." You explain to him. His mouth hangs open in shock and you cross your arms, 

"I can't pretend to be fine around you guys. You and Ned got girlfriends and all and yeah, maybe I could get a boyfriend and it would hurt less but you know I love your personality and I always have and I don't know that anyone will ever come close to that. So now I'm alone and I'm not going to take you from her to pity me so I don't really… have a best friend anymore. If I want to be around you I guess I can just come find you and be a third wheel." You tell him. 

Say yes to heaven

You watch his eyes change. He's panicking a little, 

"Are you saying… you don't wanna be friends anymore?" 

"It's not that we can't, it's that I… I don't know if I have it in me to put up this facade. I'm not telling you to give her up, I'm just saying… I think… now that we're about to split up for college… maybe it's time to start doing it now. I- it hurts too bad and I just… I can't." 

"Y/N, please don't do this. You've been my best friend for decades. Why can't we just… I mean… I can figure out how to split my time between the two of you." 

"No you can't. That's not fair to her and I'm not going to do that to you two. It's just better if I move on. I'll probably go to California for college anyways. It's for the best to separate ourselves now." You conclude. You don't know what will hurt worse, but after a while, you'll hurt less moving on without him. He takes another step forward, 

"Y/N, c'mon, you can't do this." 

"I won't ruin your life and I won't hurt myself because I have a selfish little crush on you I would've never acted on." You tell him. You stand and stare at each other before you stand and brush your tears from beneath your eyes, sighing,

"You're destined for greatness Peter Parker and it would've happened eventually. Now just gives me a reason to start." You tell him, voice shaky. His face softens, 

"I don't wanna lose you." He says, his voice just as shaky. You shrug, crossing your arms and preparing yourself to walk away from your best friend for the last time. You sigh, 

"I'm not going back in there. This is kinda… it. I have to go home."

"At least let me take you." 

Say yes to me

"No! You have a girlfriend in there and I'm not going to let you! Goddammit Peter, I have to get away from you, don't you get that? I can't be what I need to and it hurts too much. Just… fuck off." The look on his face is pure pain. He hates that you're abandoning him. And maybe you should be forced to settle as just his friend, but you can't. You can't sit back and watch them be happy together. The pain is unbearable. They're better off without you and your selfish jealousy. He's better off without you, 

"Y/N, don't do this. You're just as important as MJ, I can't go without talking to you. Please." You hold up a hand as he nears you again. You stare into each other's eyes, tears in both sets. You shake your head, 

"I'll never be more to you than her. Maybe when we were kids but… we're different now." 

"Y/N-" You shake your head again, swallowing the lump. You know he feels the same way you do. The pure dread of giving up your best friend because the love you feel for him is just too strong, "please." He whispers. It breaks your heart further as you meet his eyes again and sniffle, 

"Goodbye Peter." You say. And you turn your back, and walk away from your ex-best friend. And it stings. But hopefully it will keep your heart in your body staying away from him. God you hope so.

[casvist]

hello my lovely peaches , *puts my clown wig on bcs i’m shy* i’m back at it again, being a greedy bitch and bringing you my second  and super fake muse, yeva.  remember that part where the darkling’s fake ass pretended to be all nice and wholesome. well, yeva is faker than that. she probably has severe back pain from single handedly carrying all her lies on her back. anyway, i could slander her more but i will probably do that later. if you want to plot please LIKE this post or IM me/message me on discord and i’ll bring some clown shoes and ask for some plotting ( but in.... greedy )

PINTEREST  . PROFILE .    BIO (tba) .  VIKTORIYA.     discor*d     six of hoes🔪#7888

[ yeva zudina ], an [ twenty-eight ] year old grisha in the little palace. she is a [ tidemaker ] and are known in the little palace as the [ mountebank ]. they are known to be [ adaptable ] and [ devious ] and vaguely resemble [ davika hoorne ]. 

( okay my soc ass had to make her grow up in ketterdam i’m sorry )

- before yeva knew that she was a tidemaker, she was what one might call an “ordinary” girl in ketterdam. ( as far as anyone can be ordinary in ketterdam )

- as many people living there, she didn’t really have the best time of her life there. her father, well, he was just a name causing an uncomfortable silence whenever one would mutter it. her mother, she tried her best to survive in that hellhole. although, yeva knew how much her did for her, the only person she really could get close to was her step-sibling. ( a wc i’ll elaborate more on when i’m finally requesting that wc). though not bound by blood, they meant the world to yeva and little yeva felt as if she had to protect her from whatever was lurking in ketterdam’s (shady) alleyways.

- despite of her noble intentions, realistically she wasn’t strong. and how so? no one taught her how to protect herself and she was still a child. however, yeva didn’t want to wait around for nothing. instead, she decided to take matters into her own hands and looking back this idea was really stupid, but she wholeheartedly believed that messign with some other kids would be a brilliant way to improve her combat skills ( all my muses have to be stupid at some point i’m sorry, theyre all dumb)

- of course this plan failed terribly ( and instead she was the one getting her ass beaten  ).  luckily someone witnessed that (comedic) unfortunate scene and helped yeva out. and this somehow became the turning point of her life. yeva, completely awe-struck with the stranger, wanted to know more about him. truth to be told, he didn’t do much and his presence alone somehow scared the kids away ( poor kids almost got into a fight with a grown-ass man) but yeva didn’t really care. turned out he was a drüskelle (retired though (as much as one can), thus he didn’t really have to rely on any grisha “magic”, something yeva really admired.

- long story short, he not only became a mentor to yeva ( who successfully convinced him to show her some “cool” drüskelle tricks) but also a father-figure. yeva really trusted him and his beliefs also became hers. which we might say weren’t exactly grisha friendly. at first she didn’t get why he hated grisha so much, to her they didn’t seem too bad but as time passed his words left a mark.

- however, what actually made her end up despising grisha was a certain incident. as much as this day affected yeva, everything happened within a second. a short moment of exchanged laughter, cruelly disrupted by two grisha. tidemakers ( a cruel twist of irony ) . looking back at it now, yeva figured that these two grisha had a long and unresolved grudge against him ( which wasn’t too surprising with him being a drüskelle) and had their eye on him ever since. 

- to put it briefly, yeva was forced to witness the death of someone whom she considered a father to her. yet, fate couldn’t be more cruel on her and it was also the moment her abilities were triggered , and , of course, she turned out to be a grisha as well. make it worse. a tidemaker.

- skipping over all the formalities (bcs this is getting too long) and luck not really being on her side she was brought to the little palace. her mother wasn’t too surprised and knowing that yeva wouldn’t have a future here at ketterdam, she thought that ravka was far more appealing.

- yeva wasn’t happy of course. not only was she forced to be with the people who she despised she herself was one. at first, she refused to do anything at all, she didn’t mind if she were to be punished for her stuborness. no one knew why she was behaving this way, they just shrugged it off as her being a spoiled brat refusing to be useful. yeva, however, didn’t continue to be like this forever and what happened next surpirsed everyone. suddenly, she was eager to train and improved quickly. all they saw was a hardworking grisha but what they didn’t know was that yeva’s intentions weren’t noble. 

- instead of wasting her time at pitying and hating herself, she realized that she was at the perfect place to learn everything about her ‘enemies’. 

- basically, she has that grand plan of trying to destroy things from within, being the wolf in sheep’s clothing (cutting this short bcs this is getting long again). 

personality

- honestly, as i’ve mentioned before she’s fake. and not in that way where she’ll just pretend to smile and go on with her day, she really goes out her way in acting as if she was the sweetest and kindest girl out there. however, everthing she does serves some purpose. she helps you with some training ? she gives you some advice on a personal matter ? she compliments you on your smile ? lets say she doesn’t do it out of kindness. not when you’re a grisha. of course, she isn’t perfect at keeping this act up all the time.  and if one pays a little more attention to her actions, they can see her facade crumbling. still, where vika is all about being straight-forward and accidentally hurting one’s feeling without meaning it, yeva is all about sugar-coating when she needs to but also deliberately using one’s weakness against them.

traits ( adding some bcs i want to redeem her a little bit but i also don’t respect her so..) 

[+] adaptable, decisive, loyal , observant 

[-] ruthless, doesn’t think through consequences, blindly faithful, intrusive

headcanons

- tba ( but i just had to add that yeva prbly wouldn’t hesitate to push someone from the ship when they’d travel through the shadow fold.)

- every time she must do more than simply tolerating grisha, like saying that they’re great she probably loses one year of her life

- trying to keep her reputation yeva is known to give exceptionally good advice

- as much as she despises that “grisha magic” she believes in things like card reading, fortune telling and is quite faithful to the saints (regardless of being grisha or not)

connections

someone who sees through her (shit) facade and unlike everyone else who perceives yeva as that sweet angel, they find her suspicious and doesn’t trust her.

a grisha who is the complete opposite of what yeva think they are and might as well be someone yeva tolerates and might add that 0.1% of character development 

listen an unrequited love bcs i’m laughing at the idea that someone might fall for her super fake persona and the more time they spend with her they start to realize that it is just an act.

someone who turns for advice to yeva bcs of her reputation

*sneakily puts my step sibling connection here so if u r intreested hmu ;) but i’ll also request it later but rn i’m too lazy*

HONESTLY EVERYTHING i love angsty and dramatic shit, but i’m super open for other ideas bcs my two braincells need that wonderful input and inspo so gimme all the connections PLS !!! *types this in thirsty for all ur wonderful muses*

[babyybitchhh]

P, V, and/or X for Uzui? :3c

Oof. You really brought out the big guns on the first shot, anon, you trying to kill me??

Pregnancy = Honestly the only thing stopping this brick house from having all his wives AND you knocked up at any given point is the fact he has other shit to do. Like, a man has responsibilities and it always struck me as kind of odd that, considering how long he’s been married, there aren’t any kids in the equation. Because I know this man fucks and I know he fucks hard so it’s certainly not from a lack of trying. Some time ago I concluded this was a mutual decision that all involved parties agreed upon since that really isn’t the right environment to be raising children in and Uzui wouldn’t want his girls to be single mothers if he were to ever fall in battle. I assume, of course, that now with him being “retired” from the demon slayers, there’s a WHOLE lot of baby making going on behind the scenes. 😏

There’s the instinctive drive a man naturally has to further his lineage, yes, but even more than that he just ... has a deep, intrinsic appreciation for pregnant women. Just thinking about knocking you up makes him rock hard, sometimes at the drop of a dime. His imagination often runs wild while he’s fucking into you, fantasizing about letting go and filling you up over and over again until his potent spunk is just bubbling and oozing out of your pliant little hole. It only makes him snap his hips into you even harder, faster, and, eventually, when you’ve both agreed to take the plunge, he shoots a heavy load so deep into your body that there’s simply no way your uterus isn’t being flooded. Just one round would probably do the trick but Uzui wouldn’t stop there. He wants to make damn sure his seed takes root and what better way to do that then by folding your legs up in a mating press and going back in for round two. Then another. And another.

Look, what I’m saying is that even if you manage to scrape by on the edge of your teeth and avoid getting pregnant somehow, you’re still gonna be walking around with a bloated and distended belly when he’s through with you. That’s the Uzui Tengen satisfaction guarantee.

And he loves it. Oh, he loves everything about it. How your body softens and rounds out. The way your tits swell with milk and your nipples become puffy, perpetually stiff as if in a constant state of arousal. Your pregnancy glow is enough to make him want to keep you bred and busy for the foreseeable future. He just can’t keep his hands off you and any woman lucky enough to be carrying his child would be privileged to daily (sometimes hourly, if you’re looking particularly ripe that day) rub downs that serve the purpose of both massaging your sore muscles AND worshipping your body as it deserves to be worshipped.

Good luck getting this man to leave you alone for more than just a few minutes at a time while you’re pregnant because he will be stuck to you like glue. Partially because his hardwired need to protect those dearest to him cranks up to a solid 100 now that you’re carrying his baby and partially because he simply cannot get enough of your fast developing motherly figure. It gets him incredibly hot and bothered and, as if it were possible, you two seem to have even more sex now that you’re expecting. Go figure.

Voyeurism = okay look. I’m just gonna come right out and say it. As a former ninja, Uzui is well versed in the practice of voyeurism and if he ever tries to tell you that he never used his stealthy abilities to peep don’t believe him. That man is lying straight through his teeth.

Not because he’s a common pervert or anything like that. It’s just that he has a fine appreciation for all women and he would never turn down an opportunity to admire them, whether that be from afar or up close and personal. You’d never even know he was there unless he made a concerted effort to announce his presence which means he not only COULD spy on you in any number of stages of undress but also that he absolutely HAS.

His favorite place to watch you from is in the bath. There’s just something about your body all pink and flushed and wet that calls out to him and begs for his attention. You don’t know that though. Of course you don’t. A girl as sweet and sensual as you would never realize just how enticing she is during mundane moments like this. No, this is a facet of your sexuality that only he is privy to which means he is the only one allowed to partake.

So with worrying frequency, Uzui bides his time until you decide to take a bath by yourself and sneaks in without so much as a creak from the rafters. He could join you, of course, and lay his hands on your body as much as he wants instead of teasing himself like this but that would take half the fun out of it. The appeal is that you don’t know he’s watching so all of your facial expressions are candid. Every move your body makes is genuine without the concern that others are seeing your body in all it’s naked glory. And when you wash between your legs and your eyes take on a dreamy quality while you spend more time than necessary down there, he throbs so hard it makes his head spin. It is nothing short of a joy to watch you navigate your own body in such a natural, unhurried way and he could honestly stay just like that, hidden in the shadows and observing your routine, for hours.

The good news is that if you ever slip and fall in the bath, he’ll be right there checking on you in a matter of seconds.

Xtreme size difference = PHEW this one got me good. I’m a firm believer that, at the end of the day, Uzui is damn happy with his physique. If not because it’s so breathtaking and flamboyant, then because he has yet to meet a woman who doesn’t feel tiny and safe in his arms. You could be the baddest bitch around or stand at a solid 6’ and you’d still curl up against his pecs like a purring kitten the second he folded you up in his embrace. He’s just so big and burly, there is simply no way you can maintain your resolve when he’s towering over you and enveloping your much smaller body with his.

The best part just might be how easy it is for him to manhandle you which, please believe, he takes a great deal of pleasure in. Picking you up like you weigh nothing? Tossing you over his shoulder? Carrying you in one arm as if you were little more than a child?? Uzui lives for it. All of it. He often picks up his wives and carries them around at home (Suma occasionally gets hauled up into his arms out in public because her pride is not so easily bruised) but you’re different. When it comes to you, he’s already fairly handsy anyway but when you draw your cute little mouth into a pout or give him that look when you’re not happy about something, he just can’t stop himself from grabbing you. If he felt so inclined, Uzui wouldn’t hesitate to carry you around for an entire day and he’s just petty enough to do it if you contend the issue too much.

You know I can’t finish this up without commenting on how sex feels with this man. 😳 y’all have me mistaken if you thought I was gonna’ leave that up to the imagination so buckle up.

He’s hot. He’s heavy. It feels like he’s swallowing you up whenever he’s on top. Your ankles just barely meet behind his back but you can’t keep them locked when he reaches a certain intensity level. At first it’s no big deal when he’s just rolling his hips and shallowly thrusting into you, taking your tight needy cunt at a leisurely pace. The second he starts picking up speed though is when your legs start to rag doll in the air. They’re useless to you at that point and all you can do is cling to him while he carves out a space inside you. Doggy style is no better. He covers your back fully and completely, caging you in with his arms braced on the bed. The fact he does sort of have to bend down to your level, as it were, just to jackhammer your pussy until you’re uncontrollably squirting all over him does make you feel just a little bit powerful though. He’s so much bigger than you but he still bends to you rather than visa versa and that’s special.

All that being said Uzui’s favorite position is actually cowgirl/reverse cowgirl because he doesn’t feel like he’s squishing or suffocating you under the sheer mass of his muscles. He’s attained perfect control over his body so he never accidentally hurts you or anything, but he is able to actually sit back and relax like this. Plus, he just loves watching you impale yourself on his thick cock and whine as you bounce around on it. There is absolutely no greater pleasure that he could conceive.

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 034: “Sorry... I Overdid It”

Previously on BnHA: Deku was brainwashed by Shinsou and almost lost the match, but managed a comeback with the help of some weird mystical intervention from what appeared to be the previous users of One for All. Anyway, he broke his fingers and used the shock of that to snap himself out of it, then ran over and basically just tossed Shinsou out of the ring. It was all a lot more entertaining than my description makes it out to be.

Today on BnHA: Shinsou is revealed to be a nice guy who took a quirk that was all but tailor-made for nefarious purposes and was like, “eh but I kind of want to be a hero though.” Deku asks All Might about the mysterious One for All bullshit that went down in the previous chapter and asks if it’s important, and All Might says no. You know, like a liar. Todoroki’s dad picks a fight with his son in the hallway. This annoys Todoroki, so to blow off steam he goes out and casually freezes half the fucking stadium.

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’ve read up through chapter 70 now, so any ETAs will reflect that.)

damn what a cool cover though

my poor lukewarm son

looks like Shinsou is getting a Tragic Villain Flashback!

does it count as a Tragic Villain Flashback if you weren’t really a villain to begin with though

and honestly he might have shown enough here to still get placed in the hero course after this. but like, in class B’s hero course. class A is still tops, you’re not kicking any of them out. well, Mineta though

Shinsou’s old classmates all seem really nice. “you can brainwash people? how cool!” instead of “you can brainwash people? [slowly backs away and never speaks to you again]”

good kids. good, overly trusting kids

aww, he looks really sweet here actually

and he’s thinking that with his ability everyone half-expected him to become a criminal

like, I feel bad for thinking the same now lol. but you can’t blame people for being overly cautious though, what with this kid having an ability that could so easily be used to manipulate people and they’d be helpless to do anything against it

and here we are back in the present, and he’s lying on his back looking frustrated and Izuku’s standing over him triumphantly!

LMAO Kaminari

he sure did, Kaminari. he suuuuuure did

and now here’s another shot of Shinsou being what seems to be way more than just four inches taller than Deku

now Deku is flashing back to the dialogue from last chapter where Shinsou was saying that Deku was naturally blessed

and he’s asking Shinsou why he wants to be a hero

yes Deku! go jesus that son of a bitch! you’re in the big leagues now!

awwww I really like this response from Shinsou

so basically he didn’t decide that he wanted to be a hero, he just does

Deku is empathizing with him something fierce now, but he doesn’t know how to respond

just need to stop overthinking, Deku. that always seems to be your biggest problem with these things. when you’ve got those main character instincts, it’s okay to go with your gut

now the gen studies kids are giving Shinsou props and saying how great he was just to make it this far

Shinsou stop I already have three teenage sons, I can’t fucking afford this

everyone is talking about how great his quirk is. did they all understand what was going on? if that’s the case, honestly Izuku should be getting even more praise for managing to throw it off

I WONDER IF HIS MOM WAS WATCHING, INCIDENTALLY. IS SHE PROUD?? DOES SHE REALIZE YET THAT HER SON SOMEHOW HAS A QUIRK THAT HE’S NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE. OR ARE WE SAVING THAT REALIZATION FOR THE TODOROKI MATCH

whenever and however it happens, I can’t wait to see it, because I feel like there’s no way he’s making it out of this without her finally realizing. to hell with the oblivious parents tropes, she’s been supporting him all this time and she deserves to know. but more importantly, past a certain point it’s going to be impossible for her not to know. even All Might’s going to have to realize that eventually

(ETA: ugh so he apparently did tell her that he had a quirk now. but he lied about how he got it. I mean, it’s nice that she knows that much, though. but it’d be great if she could be more in the loop about just how important he is. even if it’d probably give her a heart attack lol)

anyway I got sidetracked by suddenly remembering that Deku’s mom exists

now Shinsou is giving a speech about how he’s not going to give up. just put this boy in class B already, U.A. just admit your entrance exam is broken

LMAO

LOL THIS SHOULDN’T BE SO FUNNY, BECAUSE SHINSOU IS GRINNING AT HIM RIGHT NOW AND SAYING IT’D BE EASY TO MESS EVERYTHING UP FOR HIM, WHICH IS PRETTY DISTURBING. BUT SOMEHOW IT IS FUNNY. HE THOUGHT HE WAS SAFE

anyway, thankfully Shinsou isn’t That Much of a Dick, and he just asks Deku to promise that he won’t lose pathetically

I’d call that a successful shounen jesusing, wouldn’t you? “SHINSOU HAS JOINED YOUR PARTY”

and now Deku’s in Recovery Girl’s office

“I couldn’t smile at all” loooooool. it’s true. actually he doesn’t really seem like a smiling hero type so far tbh. All Might keeps telling him to do it, but whenever Deku gets really fired up, he gets this crazy face thing going on instead. which is terrifying, mind you

All Might begrudgingly says he understands why Deku didn’t manage to smile, given all of the shit talking coming from Shinsou’s end

looks like Recovery Girl did heal Deku’s fingers. so what was all of that bullshit back in like chapter 7 about how he’d run out of stamina and die if she kept having to heal him? or was she just trying to put the fear of god into him so that he wouldn’t keep fucking himself up every two chapters. because if that’s the case I’d understand tbh

now RG is turning and like backhanding All Might because somehow all of this must be his fault lol

YES now Deku’s asking All Might about that FREAKING WEIRD THING that happened back there with OFA

“one of them had your hairstyle” fucking how did he pick that out? I went back and looked at it myself and couldn’t make out a damn thing

(ETA: it’s clearer in the anime, but if you’re trying to Where’s Waldo him from the manga panel good fucking luck)

but anyway he’s asking if it was the souls of the previous people with One for All

and the answer is obviously yes... right?

“what the? that sounds scary?” ARE YOU SERIOUS

okay he says he did see them once when he was young, and that it means Deku’s getting used to the quirk

apparently they’re “the traces of the quirk’s past bearers”, but they can’t directly interact with Deku or influence him or vice-versa. sorry Deku, I guess you don’t get to go into the Avatar State or chitchat with Vongola Primo today

also this apparently means that Deku did in fact overcome Shinsou’s brainwashing with his own strong will. ...like, okay, so part of me is proud of Deku, but on the other hand it should have been impossible! and also, what a weird freaking coincidence then!

unless All Might... is lying :’D

“yeah I’m still not really convinced.” me neither Deku. that was way too disturbing to just be a one time thing that never comes up ever again. and All Might really is being way too dismissive of it and telling him not to dwell on it at all

but why is he not telling Deku the truth though

now Deku is leaving

and All Might is having a private conversation with Recovery Girl

ooooohh

IS IT A BAD THING FOR YOU??! IS THAT WHY YOU DIDN’T WANT TO TELL DEKU??? HOLY SHIT I’M FUCKING TERRIFIED ALL OF A SUDDEN

NOOOO damn it we’re cutting to something else. fuck

it’s Shouto and his garbage dad

"you disgrace me, Shouto.” by what, coming in first place? not being a massive turd of a person at every conceivable opportunity?

of course not! the “disgrace” is that he didn’t use his left side

lol this is exactly what Shouto wanted, honestly. gets to win and piss off dad? fucking great

"remember, your duty is to surpass All Might.” hahaha. hey Endeavor, remember when I told you, “fuck you”? fuck you

-- ?!!!

um. what

Shouto do you have brothers whom I also need to take into protective custody

(ETA: in the anime the word Endeavor uses is “niisan”, so it’s an older brother(s). oh my god. is this like a GotG Vol. 2 thing where Endeavor just went out and did it with a bunch of different people until he finally got the right combination. jesus christ)

(ETA 2: so yeah he apparently has a lot of brothers and some sisters as well. and it’s pretty much exactly like GotG, except that Endeav didn’t actually murder all of his “failed attempts”, at least. so... that’s something? not really, though? like he’s still such an asshole omg?)

ALSO, WOULD IT KILL YOU TO JUST PICK A CHARACTER TO BE LIKE, SHOUTO. ARE YOU HIBARI? ZUKO? SANJI? WHO EVEN KNOWS

come to think of it, Endeavor doesn’t actually look all that different from Sanji’s dad

the rest of this conversation is just stuff we already knew, but damn Todoroki is looking fairly pretty here

in like, you know, a ~dark~ way

now Deku’s joining Iida and Ochako in the stands!

Todoroki’s fight is starting!

poor Sero is so fucking screwed

OOOHHH

SON OF A BITCH THIS KID DID NOT COME TO PLAY!!

HE’S STILL SCREWED BUT I SURE DO ADMIRE THAT FIGHTING SPIRIT

HE’S PULLING SHOUTO OFF HIS FEET?? HE ACTUALLY HAS A CHANCE IF HE COULD JUST GET HIM OUT OF THE RING BEFORE SHOUTO’S ICE POWERS TAKE EFFECT

UH OH

LOOOOOL SHIIIIIIT

I think this is the first time he’s made this face! I always enjoy seeing faves just snap for a sec and go totally fucking nuts

OHSHIII

is my boy Sero fucking dead now

even fucking Aizawa and Mic jesus christ

everyone’s like... just give him the championship belt now lol

THE ICE LITERALLY STOPPED LIKE SIX INCHES AWAY FROM DEKU’S FACE AND HE WAS IN THE STANDS

POOR SERO IS JUST WEAKLY MUTTERING, “THAT’S OVERKILL...” OH MY GOD

WELL I’D CALL THAT A WIN BY IMMOBILIZATION

LMAO EVEN MIDNIGHT IS HALF FUCKING FROZEN

“SERO CAN YOU MOVE?” “YOU’RE KIDDING RIGHT”

SERO, YOU TRIED AND THAT’S ALL ANYONE CAN ASK

EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS THAT HE NEVER HAD A CHANCE. I HOPE THEY DON’T HOLD THIS AGAINST HIM

awwww Shouto is apologizing and says he overdid it

he was just annoyed

literally can anyone possibly stop this child? [LOOKS AT DEKU]

MEANWHILE DEKU IS WATCHING TODOROKI CLOSELY AND OBSERVING THINGS THAT NO ONE ELSE IS NOTICING AND THINKING THINGS LIKE “SOMETHING ABOUT HIM SEEMS REALLY SAD”

EXACTLY HOW MANY RIVALS ARE YOU GOING TO FALL IN LOVE WITH, DEKU

THIS LOVELY CROWD IS RALLYING AROUND POOR SERO IN THE SAME WAY THAT PEOPLE APPLAUD ENCOURAGINGLY WHEN AN INJURED PLAYER MANAGES TO WALK OFF THE FIELD UNDER THEIR OWN POWER

TODOROKI MOTHERFUCKING SHOUTO MOVES ON TO THE SECOND FUCKING ROUND

BONUS:

why would you wear a jacket that’s so ridiculously small on you

here’s another one whose favorite thing is cats. you and Aizawa should get together and visit one of those cafes

I like that Horikoshi’s whole inspiration for the character was “give this guy a power that is Obviously Meant for Villains and then have him be determined to be a good guy”

honestly, it’s a good move. I hope and assume we’ll see more of him after this arc

[op-law]

One Piece x Reader {Join My Club} Ch 10

(F/s) - Favorite Soup

~~~~~~~~

(Y/n)'s Pov

"Hm, I like (F/s) but Law might not feel the same way... Actually, if he didn't like it then why is it in his house?" The man was still in the shower though I knew he wouldn't take long so I placed the can down before I began to look for his can opener. "Where the hell does he keep it?... Hm, not here... Not here either" It was strange it wasn't with the other utensils, but I didn't give up hope as I opened yet another drawer. "What are you looking for (Y/n)-ya?"

"Ah! I thought you were in the shower Law?" My heart was threatening to pop out of my chest right now though I found it odd that I never even heard the water turn off. "Try not to scream so loudly (Y/n)-ya someone might think you're in danger. Now, what is it that you're looking for?" It took me a few moments to find the words but eventually, I did start to reply. "Where's your can opener Law?" When the man didn't answer my question right away, I became a little annoyed, but I let it slide since he was sick.

"Earth to Law. Where is your can opener? I can't open this soup without one" As he leaned back against the countertop, I watched his eyes lock on the can but instead of being reasonable, he decided to tease me instead. "I don't own one (Y/n)-ya though maybe if you ask nicely, I'll open it for you" How in the world did Law expect that he was going to open the soup without one? "Oh, great and powerful Law! Please open this soup for me! I'd be forever grateful if you could do me the honor!"

"Room... There you go (Y/n)-ya. I take it you can manage to heat it up on your own?" As my eyes went wide, I noticed Law didn't even bother to stick around as he took a seat on the bed. "W-What was that weird blue circle?" I had never seen something quite like it before, but it had appeared soon after the man said that word. "Aren't you familiar with devil fruit users (Y/n)?" As I thought over what Law had said I was still confused since I didn't know what some fruit had to do with any of this. "A devil who?"

"Didn't your father ever show you his abilities?... Hm, come here (Y/n)-ya I'll tell you everything I know about the fruits" Wait did he just mention my father? I knew our relationship hadn't been the best over the last few years but was he really hiding something like this from me? "Room... Shambles. I don't like to be kept waiting (Y/n)-ya and you know that" This must have been another one of Law's powers though as my eyes shifted back to the kitchen counter I started to reply. "But I have to make you some soup so you can get better"

"The soup can wait until we're finished with this" Hmm, he's probably not going to take no for an answer, and I was curious about these powers anyway, so I'd allow him to speak. "Alright Law but why do I have to sit in your lap?" It wasn't an uncomfortable position, but I found it odd that he would want me to sit on top of him. "... All questions will be answered later (Y/n)-ya. Now let's begin with the basics..."

~~~~~~~~~

Hawkins' Pov

"Drake would you like your nails trimmed this morning?" My partner's claws needed to be trimmed a few times each week to keep them at an appropriate length, but I also knew he didn't care for sitting still for me that much. "Hm, didn't you cut them a few days ago Hawkins?" As the male admired his claws, I leaned farther back in the tub though offered a quick reply before I did. "Yes, but it's time for them to be trimmed once again. May I see them, Drake?"

As the man placed his arm into mine, I admired his claws although when Drake started to complain I shifted my attention to his face instead. He always would bite his lip when asking a request of me and it was too adorable to miss out on. "I don't want them cut today Hawkins. Can you wait until tomorrow night?" Since his claws did appear to be too long, I would give in to his request though something else needed to be done before classes. "Very well Drake although your hair to due for a wash this morning. Please select a shampoo and lean back for me"

"Oh, alright Ha-"

'Ding'

"Was that your phone Hawkins or mine?" It was strange that Drake had received a text so early in the morning, but I didn't think much about it as the man started to dry his hands off. "I believe it was your phone Drake" As my eyes shifted to the left, I watched him lean over the tub before unlocking the device and reading over the text. "Hm... (Y/n) wants to know if I have a devil fruit. What do I say, Hawkins?" Devil fruit users didn't often make themselves known to the public although with Drake I knew even telling me about his powers was something that took months.

I had become aware of his fruit early on but to keep my partner calm and collected I never brought it up until he wanted to inform me about them. "Do you wish for her to know about your fruit Drake?" My partner was damaged so I could understand the fear that rested behind why he hid his powers, but he behaved differently when (Y/n) was involved. It was a good change though I still had my doubts about whether that girl would negatively or positively affect him. "Not really... Hmm, actually I don't know. She's my friend and lying to her wouldn't end well but what happens if she judges me?"

Since Drake was detracted by his phone, I leaned over his shoulder to whisper a reply into his ear. He always tensed up, but it was just a lovely reaction indeed. "How is it that she became aware of your powers? I thought you hide them from the public" Not everyone was familiar with the fruits since most thought of us as monsters without souls although that was how the world worked. People feared what they did not understand. "D-Don't do that H-Hawkins! H-Hold on I'll ask her... Oh, Law apparently is telling her all about the fruits and mentioned us to her"

So, (Y/n) was just as oblivious of the fruits as most people in the city? That was interesting, to say the least since her father was a Logia user if I remembered correctly. It was possible that the girl was just never informed of devil fruits but somehow, I doubted it was that simple. "If (Y/n)'s with Law does that mean she spent the night at his house?" Those two had only met the other day and Trafalgar was not known for committing to one female but there was a connection between them. "... That would make sense but I'm not going to question her about it. My fingers are starting to get wrinkles can you wash my hair with this shampoo?"

"As you wish Drake. Lean back for me"

~~~~~~~~~~

Killer's Pov

I had been up for the past two hours now, but my partner was still sleeping, and judging on the time we were going to end up being late again. "Kidd?... Come on Kidd wake up we're going to be late for class" He wasn't a morning person by any stretch of the imagination though as his eyes popped open, I recognized that glare. It softened soon after when he noticed me sitting beside him but when the male started to speak, I felt my ears begin to ring. "I'm not fucking going!"

"That's not an option today Kidd" As my hands gripped the blanket, I threw it to the side before taking a hold of his hands so he couldn't make any attempt to receive it. "Give me back the blanket Killer! I'm not going to ask you twice!" Kidd might have sounded hateful and angry, but this was his normal behavior, so I was used to it. The male was mostly bark though if someone made him angry enough, he would occasionally bite. He wouldn't dare go against me so I could get away with giving him orders here and there. "No, there's a test this morning and you can't afford to miss it. I'll go prepare some breakfast but when I come back you better be up"

My parents had left for a business trip yesterday so we had the house to ourselves for a few days and if Kidd had his way, we would never leave the house during their time away. Unfortunately for him I actually cared about his education. He probably wouldn't use anything he learned but it would be a nice thing for him to have if he decided to further his career path. "Why in the hell are you so demanding this morning?"

"Go shower Kidd then put on the clothes I laid out for you" Once I had made sure Kidd was sitting up, I moved to leave the bed, but his hand stopped me. "You're lucky that I love you, Killer... About that picture... I'm handing it so don't worry" Yesterday was hell but I was slowly getting over what had happened at school. It wasn't Kidd's fault, and I couldn't hold this against him forever. "Is that where you went last night?" I had briefly woken up last night when Kidd left the house but remained quiet since I didn't want to upset him. "Yes and no. Law needed help with something"

I had nothing against the man but those two were together far too often for my liking. Kidd was loyal to me though there was a small part of me that couldn't push past thinking Kidd might one day cheat with someone else. "Law... you were with him?" As soon as he started to reply the gears in my head started to turn. "Yeah, the plan was to beat the hell out of the teacher that's been failing (Y/n) but he wasn't home. It turns out the bitch is some sort of stalker, and he had this wall with pictures of her. Creepy as fuck if you ask me"

That definitely sounded like something Kidd would do but I was almost glad the teacher wasn't home since bailing my partner out of jail wasn't something that was easy or cheap. Although as I replayed what the male had said I was left with only one question. "Wait who is (Y/n)?" I didn't recall him ever mentioning someone by that name but at the same time, I was a little curious who she was to Kidd. "Law's love interest or fuck buddy. Not really sure which but since she's nice I'm leaning more towards a love interest. You remember that girl he was walking with yesterday? That's her"

Now that Kidd mentioned it, I do remember seeing a girl wearing Law's sweater. It was strange but who was I to judge what the male chose to do with his free time. "Oh, I didn't think Law had time for a relationship" At least if Law turned out to be in a relationship, I could rest easy when those two hang out together. "Yeah, I didn't think so either, but he seems to really like this girl. Can't see the appeal though you should have since him last night. He's going to kill that man that's for sure. Hahaha"

~~~~~~~~~

Law's Pov

"Does that all make sense to you (Y/n)-ya?" The girl hadn't moved from my lap during my whole explanation but as she started to smile, I felt my cheeks get a small amount of blood rushing to them. "Nope not at all but that's okay I'll still be here for you no matter what... Where did you find your devil fruit Law?" I had left out the detail for a reason but if I was going to be around (Y/n) then I would need to be honest with her. "It was obtained by illegal means. How familiar are you with Diez Barrels?"

"The creepy ginger that lives across the street from me? Hmm, he does not like me very much. Why do you ask Law?" That was a little surprising but then again, she did mention that Drake was her neighbor. "I got my fruit from him although my brother was the one who stole it" It might have sounded like a was involved with the wrong crowd but if it bothered (Y/n) she didn't show it. "Why?... Wait I thought you were all by yourself who is this brother of yours?"

"Well, he's like foster brother and he wanted to cure my illness. This fruit is the only reason why I'm still alive" Her eyes did widen slightly though they quickly returned to normal as she offered me a hug which I never returned. "Oh, okay that makes sense. I would like to meet this brother of yours someday. He sounds kind" Cora-san did have his good moments although there was still that side of him that terrified even me. "He's one of a kind that one but I ha-"

'Knock' 'Knock' 'Knock'

"Law, open the door! Hurry up it's Doflamingo he's overdosing again!"

~~~~~~~~~

To Be Continued...

[shalebridge-cradle]

Crash, Bang

(Happy Holiday Season. Are you ready to s u f f e r ?)

Veronica doesn’t remember much. A crash. A bang. Black.

She wakes to a blurry red. Heather Chandler, standing over her. She’s not surprised, at this point – Heather had proven many times that even death won’t stop her from bitching. There’s something unfamiliar in her eyes, though, Veronica notes as she scrambles to her feet (and wonders how she got on the floor in the first place).

“Look at me,” Heather commands. Veronica pulls a face – she is looking at her. Examining her is looking. Jaw clenched, lips pursed, Veronica would think that it’s anger on Chandler’s face, if she hadn’t seen anger so many times to know it isn’t.

“Your diary. Get your diary.”

Heather steps to one side, giving Veronica room to move. From her position in her closet (there’s a metaphor there, but Veronica had never been one for acting things out), she looks over her ruined room.

“What happened?” Veronica asks. Heather looks like she’s about to answer, but decides against it at the last second.

“I’ll tell you later. Your diary is on your desk still. Turn to October 12th, and I’ll explain.”

Veronica wanders over to her desk, and she can feel Chandler’s eyes following her. The diary is open, today’s entry unfinished. She can’t remember why, and it’s really starting to bug her.

“October 12th,” Heather repeats, and Veronica rolls her eyes as she turns the pages. Slowly but surely, she winds the clock back to the middle of October. What happened that day that was so important, anyway…?

Oh.

That was the day of Kurt and Ram’s funeral.

That was the entry where she revealed JD had killed three people, and that the guilt was – is – eating away at her.

This is the entry Chandler wanted to see.

Why?

“Good,” Heather hums from behind her, “it’s important for the cops to see that.”

“Cops?” there’s a pang of dread, creeping up her throat like vines.

Heather sighs, and takes Veronica’s hand.

She shouldn’t be able to do that. Shit, she hasn’t been able to do that, all of her slaps and caresses passing through Veronica with the chill of a winter wind. The fact that Heather is touching her, and the fact that she doesn’t feel ice cold against Veronica’s skin means…

It hits her. Crash. Bang.

Dead.

Veronica sinks to the floor, drained, and Heather’s voice fades into the background.

  The Westerburg gym doesn’t end up exploding.

Everyone’s out of the football field, and the reality seemingly hasn’t set in for most of the students. The cops and the bomb squad have come and gone, and Heather snarks about how they actually did their job, this time.

“How are you so calm about this?” Veronica asks. Heather scoffs.

“Nothing I can do about it. Might as well make the most of it. Simple as that.”

Veronica scans the crowd, bereft of a witty response. She sees a few familiar faces – Peter Dawson animatedly talking to Dennis from the school newspaper. Courtney looking like she’s seen a ghost (and Veronica briefly wonders if she has).

The most important thing is that Martha is there, alive. Leaning over one side of the motorized wheelchair is Heather McNamara, egged on by Betty Finn (Veronica remembers this girl, she gives good answers in the lunchtime poll), and whatever McNamara’s saying is bringing a smile to Martha’s face. Maybe they’re bonding over their suicide attempts, Veronica muses, and she hates herself for thinking it. On the other side was the ghost of Ram Sweeney, looking oddly contemplative. Veronica wouldn’t have thought him capable.

Her focus returns to herself. She feels empty. Hollow. Maybe if everyone had blown up, maybe at least she’d be overwhelmed with anguish and anger and guilt instead of this suffocating nothing.

Seemingly in response to this, Heather gently takes her hand.

“Put it this way,” it’s almost a whisper, and yet Veronica can hear her clear as day over the ocean of voices, “there’s no expectations anymore. No obligations. Five million dollars and a world that’s ending. What do you want to do?”

I want to feel.

Veronica grabs Heather Chandler by the waist and pulls her in for a kiss.

Heather kisses back.

  Veronica attends her own funeral.

There’s an unexpectedly large turnout – the pews at the front were reserved for people who actually knew Veronica, instead of just immediate family members. There are distant relatives, classmates from years past, people from around town and at least two cameramen in the back row.

Heather is scowling.

“There’s at least seventy more people here than there were at my funeral,” she grumbles, and Veronica chuckles darkly.

Father Ripper gives his speech, and Veronica has to admire his ability to turn anyone into a martyr. He speaks of guilt and absolution in the eyes of God, and how Veronica’s dedication to recording everything led police to save hundreds of lives.

He says nothing about her being an accessory to murder. It hangs in the air like a bad stench.

When the coffin is brought to the cemetery and Veronica Sawyer is put in the ground, there’s a finality to it all that breaks her. She hugs herself, trying desperately to hold herself together, to keep all her memories and quirks and her identity from falling into the grave.

Heather tries to help her, but all Veronica can do is babble about how everything’s like a dream and she’s forgotten how to breathe and I’m dead I’m dead I’m dead plays over and over in her head.

“I know,” Heather murmurs, her voice like rain on a raging fire, “I know. I know.”

There’s no point in lying to Veronica, now.

  She visits her murderer in prison.

It’s like a thread, Veronica decides. Something tying them together, tugging at her when she thinks of him, but nothing so strong that she can’t ignore it.

Jason Dean gazes up at her from the floor of his solitary confinement cell with a look of awe, not fear.

“I was fixing it,” he tells her, and even he seems a little unconvinced at the statement, “Everyone gets along in heaven. You wouldn’t have to be stuck with Queen Bitch and her lackeys for eternity if everyone’s with you.”

“You killed me.” There’s an unnatural echo to Veronica’s voice. JD shies away, just slightly.

“I was winning you over with my petition, I know it. It was such a great plan. Still, I…” he pauses, and emotion reaches his eyes for what may be the first time, “I got a little, ah, heated, and my finger was on the trigger when I opened the door. A slip of the hand.”

There’s a distinct lack of apology in the statement.

Veronica leans over him. Studying him closely for a moment.

Then, without warning, she shoves her hand through his skull, and JD yells at what Veronica is sure is a very familiar sensation.

“You had a choice, Dean,” she growls, and there’s a flash of unbridled rage in JD’s eyes at the mention of that name, “You could have been more. More than just a copy of your dad with a messiah complex. But you’ve made your decision.”

Veronica pulls away, and gives JD, the lost, lonely boy once last glance.

“Now you’re left alone with your thoughts. I hope they eat you alive.”

Veronica vanishes, and the cell melts away before her eyes, replaced by the somber greys and greens of the Sherwood Cemetery.

Heather is waiting for her.

  Heather McNamara contacts her a few months later.

Veronica never really pictured the head cheerleader as an occult nut. Then again, there’s a lot of things people didn’t know about her, Veronica muses as McNamara, Martha and Betty set up the Ouija board. And candles. Like that will help the process, somehow.

The first question is from Martha.

“Why?”

Veronica feels the cold sting of regret as Chandler scoffs from the corner of the room. There’s a lot of things that word could mean – Why did you cover up the deaths of Heather, and Kurt, and Ram? Why did you stay with Jason Dean?

Why did you lie to me? Why were you so cruel?

It’s a good thing the answer is always the same. Veronica grabs the marker and moves it around the board.

A.F.R.A.I.D.

Weren’t they all?

  By turning the pages of her diary, and moving the wooden marker, Veronica deduces she can interact with some things, but not others.

She says as much to Heather. Chandler nods, understanding, and then that same something Veronica saw on the day she died creeps onto Heather’s face.

It comes out like a confession. “I tried to pull the pen out of your hands, when you were writing my suicide note. That did nothing, obviously. I tried talking to my parents, to Heather, to get someone to notice me, but the only person who heard was you.” Heather pauses. “Sorry. For what I said.”

“No big deal. I deserved it.” Veronica pushes on when Heather opens her mouth to interrupt, “What can you touch? Or, y’know, interact with? Anything?”

Heather thinks for a moment.

“Mirrors,” she says slowly, “All the ones in my house broke after my funeral, when I was yelling at my mom to listen. I think Heather Duke saw me once in the girls’ bathroom, too.”

Veronica nods, connecting the dots in her head.

  Veronica experimentally picks up Martha’s pen. Hypothesis confirmed. Objects connected to her in life.

She knows Martha won’t come up to her bedroom anytime soon – there’s too much animated discussion from downstairs, excited voices floating through Veronica’s ears as she writes. McNamara and Betty have come over for an evening of swashbuckling and true love. Veronica knows at least McNamara hasn’t seen The Princess Bride, since every accidental reference Veronica made flew straight over her head.

She has to make a conscious effort not to go downstairs and join them. It’s not her place anymore, she tells herself. Back to the task at hand.

She’s always been good with words. Even Chandler had grudgingly thanked her for the suicide note (god, that was fucked up), but Martha had been there for Veronica as long as she could remember. She deserved art.

Veronica writes in Martha’s history book. She says she’s sorry for everything she unwittingly put Martha through, for being self-centered and murderous and awful. She says she doesn’t know if life is different after high school, and that she never will, but for Martha’s sake she hopes that life outside Sherwood is better for her, and for her new friends. She tells Martha to keep them close, but to let Veronica go.

There’s a voice from behind her.

“Can you tell her that I’m sorry?” Ram Sweeney asks meekly. Veronica had almost forgotten about him. “I was shitty to her, and I get that now.”

“I’ll consider it.”

She does. Maybe it’ll give him closure, she rationalizes. Maybe then he and Kurt could move on. Maybe they can do all the things Ram’s father said he would.

Maybe she could move on, too.

 (She doesn’t.)

  It gets easier.

Veronica figures some things out. Heather makes a game of scaring the shit out of Country Club Courtney (“I’m trying to make her a better person. I’m scaring her straight.” Veronica doesn’t believe her, but plays along anyway.) Veronica spends most of her time reading books over Heather Duke’s shoulder or drawing on Ms. Fleming’s blackboard. Heather gives her a backhanded compliment on her artistic talent, and Veronica giggles as she wipes the pictures away.

Sometimes Heather holds her, or she holds Heather, because one or the other just remembered what it’s like to die. They keep each other grounded.

The Class of 1990 graduates, short five members. Then the Class of ’91, ’92, and so on. Fleming retires. Gowan resigns.

The world moves on around them, and they stay the same.

It never gets better. Just easier.

[sailtheplains]

Star Wars talk - Darth Snookie

Let’s discuss Star Wars.

 Okay, I will admit, the countdown on the Rebel transport was kinda cheezy and felt a little forced. But, I did like that Poe seemed to take a real lesson from it (though that brings up the question of why the General didn’t tell anyone her plan when Poe asked her to---that seemed kinda dumb).

 The introduction of Rose, I thought, was cool. Especially as a Vietnamese-American actress. I really admire their efforts to diversify Star Wars.  And I like that we didn’t end up in another seedy bar but in a casino—because we have to remember, the Star Wars universe is fucking huge. We’ve only seen a tiny sliver of it. So I actually didn’t really mind them taking their little side trip to….wherever the hell that was. To pick up the dude from The Usual Suspects, Benici Del Toro, who I thought was an interesting addition and I wonder if we’ll be seeing him again sometime. He’s a great actor. I feel like it would be a waste to throw away that character.

 BB8 returns as well to show us that he and R2D2 are the only fuckmothering Gryffindors up in here.

  But the two elements I really loved, was Mark Hamil back as an older, more jaded, Luke Skywalker. And the strange bond developing between Rey and Kylo.

 First, Luke Skywalker—because this was what almost got me into an argument with my roommate’s brother-in-law on Christmas day. They wanted Luke Skywalker to remain this legend, a myth. But he didn’t. Because Luke never thought of himself as a legend. He killed Darth Vader, yeah, but he didn’t want to. He didn’t relish it. It wasn’t satisfying to him. Vader was his father. And the Dark Side of the Force destroyed Anakin from the core.  

 Luke never thought of himself as this “great master”. He was barely trained when he first faced Vader. He was a terrified kid. That fight changed him. When we meet him in Return of the Jedi, he’s clearly grown but still has a tendency to not always plan ahead. Yoda then leaves him, just as Luke is coming to terms with how little he actually knows about the Jedi at all.

 Luke was not raised as a Jedi. And Luke correctly identifies it as a religion. Because that’s what it is. He makes a very good point to Rey, that the Force exists whether there are Jedi and Sith or not. All they did was give it a name. The Jedi became romanticized, deified—because its totally true. (Folks don’t like Luke Skywalker being a real human.)

 But Luke studied the Force and the way of the Jedi anyway, even after the fall of the Empire and presumably all through Leia’s reconstruction of the galactic government or whatever. He found out about the Jedi temples and the sacred texts—who knows how, really (Wookiepedia, presumably). He gathered what he could to teach those who came to him, including his own nephew, Ben Solo. But the only expertise he had was his own and whatever advice he may have picked up during his very short training sessions with Kenobi and Yoda. (It’s still a little odd to me that Luke and Leia never, like, got together to study the Force or something. She clearly can use it as well.)

 So he attempts to train these dozen or so kids, gets spooked by something he sees in his nephew and decides to go get a read on him.

 The Light Side of the Force took one look at Ben and was like, “Nope.”

 And Luke has a moment where it was instinctive for him to snuff out any Dark that he found, even if it was his own nephew.

 That was the turning point. Cue the awkward wake up where Ben, a scared young man, sees his uncle standing over him with a lightsaber and panics. And that was it—everything Luke has put together, dashed in a single night.

 Though, of course, Kylo does not explain what happened himself. He simply asks Rey if she knew, and if Luke told her. But he never actually states his interpretation of what happened—except for the bit about thinking his uncle was going to kill him. But he never claims to have killed the other apprentices. Kylo does the same thing about Rey’s parents, claiming to know who they are—and then asking her if she knows who they were. When she says “no one”, he goes with it. So it was hard to tell what exactly he did know about her and what was him probing for information. But more on this later.

 Of course, he could have killed his nephew and potentially saved his temple. But he would likely never forgive himself for killing another member of his own family just for the Force.

 That was the point. The Jedi had become so stagnant and sterile that, as Luke notes, at the height of their power—Sidious took over the fucking Senate and gave rise to Darth Vader and no one figured it out? Maybe the Jedi and the Sith had become too polarized. Maybe it wasn’t Good and Bad so much as simply Defend and Attack.

 Because Luke was not raised in the Jedi order, he was able to step back from it and look passed the façade of myth surrounding the Jedi and Sith. It’s no different from an Atheist getting into a religion and wanting to study it first. So Luke studies and finds some shady shit.

 So that, plus him nearly instinctively killing his nephew—and having all that go to shit—he retreats from using the Force. Because the Force is as much a blessing as a curse. 

Yeah, the Force is strong in his family: his father is dead, his mother is dead, his adoptive aunt and uncle are dead, Ben Kenobi is dead, Yoda is dead, his friends from back home are dead, he lost his hand, he lost his home, he never knew his sister, he had to kill his father, he nearly killed his own nephew. Was that a religion he really wanted to be part of?

 And Luke steps back to look at this religion and way of life and finds it full of holes and bullshit. And after his temple burns, nephew disappears and apprentices are slaughtered….he probably feels pretty fucking terrible. Because again, Luke wasn’t arrogant. He had a lot of doubt. He didn’t believe in himself very much. And he saw that as a terrible failure. Like he destroys everything he touches. Had he driven Ben Solo to the dark side or had Ben gone on his own? And if so, why? How? What had turned Anakin? Luke doesn’t really know. So he turns the blame inward.

 It’s actually a very human response. So he leaves Leia to politics and stops connecting to the Force—to get his shit figured out, likely. And after everything he suffered—maybe he just wanted somewhere quiet. He was never a statesman. That was Leia. Ben Kenobi went to be a hermit and maybe he unconsciously followed that example. Trauma will do that to people.

 So then this kid shows up with a lot of inherent power and we get a little montage of her following him around, which he grumpily tolerates. But bits of young Luke Skywalker still shine through—he was always a little bit of a smart-ass. More subtle than Han. It’s nice to see that again.  (Though when he realized Chewie is there with the Falcon and Han isn’t. I was like, “Oh!” ;_;)

 I thought it was a good touch to bring Yoda back and remind us that Luke was just a man. Always looking at the horizon. His mind was never on where he was and what he was doing. And that’s just who Luke was as a person. And he still is. Because he wasn’t a god. He wasn’t perfect. He wasn’t Jesus. He was just a farmer from a dirtball outer rim planet.

 And you realize how very young Luke still is compared to Yoda and how much he still doesn’t know and will never be able to know. He was a ‘master’, yes. But only because there was no one else. Compared to other species in the galaxy with the ability to use the Force—he might still be a young man. Just like Yoda addresses him as, “Young Skywalker”

 I thought it was actually really cool that instead of blindly following the Jedi Order, Luke steps back and examines it—contemplating whether to change it or just let it die out completely.

 And then he decides to come back to the Force to help them. I don’t see what all the Fankids are bitching about. It was some nice character work for Luke, because he has suffered a lot and he never really saw himself as anything special. (Also, I burst out laughing when he brushed his shoulder off. Luke Skywalker throws some bomb shade.)

 This brings me to Rey and Kylo Ren. So Snookie takes a page from Voldemort’s book and establishes a brain link between Rey and Kylo—presumably, without the latter’s knowledge—as Leader Snoke seems to indicate when taunting Rey about it. 

This leads to some interesting moments that feel….uncomfortable, weird, almost intimate. But at the same time, it’s intriguing to watch them attempt to communicate. She is the more ‘naïve’, I would guess and it’s not a big mystery to say that a young woman who is accustomed to a life of hardship would be made uncomfortable by Kylo without his shirt while also sharing a weird mindlink with him somehow.

 But at the same time…she’s trying to learn about him and knowing that he’s Han’s and Leia’s son—and she totally thinks those two are/were cool as shit—she’s determined to try, at least.

 Especially after Kylo brings her to Snookie. It was difficult to really tell if he had planned the entire thing or decided on a whim to kill Snook. So it’s hard to say what Kylo’s real goal is. This movie kind of displays what makes Kylo Ren so different from other Star Wars villains. Human Sith are almost always portrayed in the films as menacing, calculated and cold. Kylo is different. He’s the Zuko of this team.

 Luke said that Snook had gotten to Ben before he went to check on him at the temple. So how and when did Snook get in contact with Ben Solo originally? How old was Ben when Luke started his training?

 So now you have an unstable young man with a lot of inherent power and a lot of rage, frustration and self-hatred. There is just so much of it. Enough of it that Kylo somehow hid his intentions from Snookie. 

Kylo kind of gets a lot of shit because he is kind of awkward, almost. Socially, physically, emotionally. He’s so driven and passionate and intense about everything he seems to do. And now that he appears to be in control of the Order….now what will he do? He lets himself give in to the intensity and aggression of the Dark Side. Not unlike Zuko and his chaotic firebending. Only Ben doesn’t have an Uncle Iroh anymore.  

  So, overall, yeah—some bits dragged, the Resistance thing is kinda meh. How the Senate keeps getting fucked up is kinda crazy—yeah, some of that was pretty thin. But I like what they’re working on with the characters. It could end up being really interesting. And Poe finally meets Rey—which was kinda cute for a minute. I’d like to go see it again to keep examining the details.

[thecloserkin]

book review: Jennifer Fallon, Medalon (2000)

Genre: High Fantasy

Is it the main pairing: Yes

Is it canon: Yes

Is it explicit: No

Is it endgame: Alas no

Is it shippable: Yes

Here is what happens in Medalon: two siblings who have always been unusually close, who have just experienced a lengthy separation, are reunited. A war breaks out. They go on the run. They fall in love and initiate a physical relationship. If you think this sounds too good to be true, it is — it’s not endgame and while the story opens with a laser focus on our sibling pair, it’s eventually overwhelmed by other plot threads. But it’s worth reading anyway and I recommend, with reservations. I will now summarize the first 1/3 of the book and post a big SPOILERS linebreak before I hit major spoilers.

What I like about Medalon is the setup. I was unimpressed by how it developed and unsatisfied with how it was resolved (it's trilogy so hardly anything was resolved in this first book), but I would be lying if I said I was unaffected by the bind our adolescent protagonist finds herself in. R'shiel Tenragan has spent her whole life pummeled by her mother's ambition, steered into a political vocation for which she shows little inclination and less ability. On one level the story of Medalon is about how nepotism creeps into supposedly meritocratic technocracies. It's been less than a generation since the militantly atheistic Sisterhood of the Blade overthrew the polytheistic dynasty that preceded it, but that's precisely what her mother’s ambition threatens to turn the Sisterhood into: a dynasty, with R’Shiel to follow reluctantly in her mother’s footsteps. R'shiel has grown into a mutinous teenager whose isolation from other sources of emotional support and validation (friends or grandparents, for instance) is positively ghastly. The only person she might confide in, her older brother Tarja, is a soldier who has been banished to the southern border for the past four years as punishment for some as-yet-unspecified misdemeanor.

The story opens with the funeral of the First Sister - that is, the head of state - and the election of the next one. This means a major shakeup in the power structure. The very first thing R’Shiel does is corner Tarja’s commanding officer and beg him to recall Tarja from exile.

”Please, Lord Jenga. Bring Tarja home.”

That’s the last line of Chapter 1. In Chapter 2 we meet Tarja, who is well-liked by his men and respected by his enemies but he does not suffer fools gladly, and it comes as no surprise that he was banished for insubordination. In Chapter 3 we have R’Shiel and Tarja’s reunion. I’m not sure if they were writing each other but given the tech level I doubt Medalon boasts a reliable postal service. So R’Shiel shows up late at a reception for one of her mother’s lackeys and catches her breath because there he is, her big brother, in full dress uniform:

”Now if you will excuse me, my Lord, I see that my sister is anxious to welcome me home.”

DAMN STRAIGHT SHE IS. And he takes her arm and whisks her away so they can talk privately.

”You know, I almost didn’t recognize you. You’re all grown up.”

Last time Tarja saw R’Shiel she was fourteen. A lot happens to a girl between fourteen and eighteen. C u r v e s happen. The text doesn’t dwell on it but I guarantee you Tarja’s internal monologue is some variant of damn, my sister is hot playing on loop. There is a pretty big age gap between R’Shiel and Tarja (ten years) so he was a grown man by the time he left and she was still a girl but now they’re both adults and it could be awkward or stilted but instead they fall right back into their old rapport.

”I can’t believe you had the nerve to show up here tonight. Mother looks ready to burst something,” R’shiel laughed.

These two are united above all by their common enemy and oppressor, their mother. “I don’t think either of us has turned out quite what Joyhinia intended,” says Tarja. Their bond was forged by the anvil of Joyhinia’s parenting. At this point Tarja’s best friend Georj joins them in order to urge Tarja — who has been home less than 24 hours — to take up a gladiatorial challenge issued by an uppity young cadet.

Georg took R’shiel’s arm conspirationally. “Well, you might be too young to remember, but back in the good old days, before Tarja publicly called Trayla a fatous bitch, he was the undisputed champion of the Arena.”

”I remember,” she said, before turning to Tarja, wide-eyed. “Is that what you did? You called Trayla a fatuous bitch?”

Just imagine preteen R’shiel hero-worshipping her big brother, the actual undefeated champion of the training arena; sneaking out behind her mother’s back to watch him fight; squealing with delight every time he gives a big middle finger to authority.

”I said no, Georj!” snapped Tarja. “Cajoling R’Shiel isn’t going to change my mind either.”

Look if Georj, Tarja’s BFF, thinks the way to change Tarja’s mind is through R’Shiel by proxy, he probably has good reasons for thinking so. Like the fact that she is THE WAY TO TARJA’S HEART.

”No! I’m not afraid he’ll beat me. I’m afraid I’ll win, and then every half-witted, glory-seeking Cadet in the Citadel will want to take me on. I’ve done my time in the Arena, R’shiel. I’ve nothing to prove.”

So it ends up that Georg takes up the gauntlet that Tarja declines, and R’shiel is there to wish him luck before he enters the Arena. Actually she didn’t particularly want to go but her roommate bodily drags her along. Her roommate wants to be introduced to Tarja, you see. So does an entire clique of other girls they have somehow collected along the way. Because Tarja is a certified heartthrob.

Tarja looked up as she neared him, his smile of recognition fading to a frown as he looked at her. “Founders, R’shiel! You look awful.”

”It’s nice to see you too, Tarja.”

So Tarja ignores his flock of fawning admirers in favor of interrogating R’shiel about her health. Her roommate helpfully offers that R’shiel hasn’t been eating lately. Tarja is alarmed:

He took her arm and before she could protest steered her away from the other girls … Tarja spun her around to face him. “You don’t look awful, R’Shiel,” he said with concern, “You look like death. What’s wrong with you?”

”I don’t know, Tarja. I keep getting the worst headaches, and every time I smell meat I want to throw up.”

What Tarja doesn’t know is that R’shiel, at eighteen, alone among her peers has not gotten her period. Which is weird because (a) she’s not an Olympic figure skater on a starvation diet and (b) she has all the other outward signs of puberty. It’s always the first question that Joyhinia asks R’shiel during their weekly mother-daughter chats, “have your courses started yet.”

”Have you told Joyhinia?”

”She told me to see a physic,” R’shiel admitted.

”For once, I agree with her,” Tarja grumbled. “Why not go home, R’shiel? …” Then he smiled at her, and she understood why half the Probates in the Citadel wanted to be her best friend. “I’m sure Georj can redeem the honor of the captains without you cheering for him.”

R’shiel frowned. “He will beat Loclon, won’t he?”

”He’d better!”

”Can I see him before I go?”

”Of course,” Tarja said, taking her arm. “I’m sure if he’s planning to die tonight, the last thing he’d rather see is you, in preference to our ugly faces.”

Tarja and R’Shiel have been onscreen for about five minutes together and I count three instances of him taking her arm to draw her away and talk privately. But also, THAT SMILE. When he smiles at her R’shiel can totally see why all those other girls are ready to swoon when Tarja so much as glances in their direction. This is obviously a COMPLETELY NORMAL way to feel about your brother who is hands down your favorite person in the world. And then he basically tells her that he sees her as an object of desire, because how else are we supposed to interpret that comment about the last thing Georj wants to see before he dies? When men die in battle their last thoughts are of the woman they love, isn’t that the way it goes? R’shiel is crushing a little on Georj but that’s because he’s the closest thing she can get to Tarja. At this point they are interrupted by Georj’s opponent:

”Is this your sister, Captain Tenragan?”

Tarja did not appear too pleased that he had forced an introduction. “R’shiel, this is Lieutenant Loclan.”

”Lieutenant,” R’shiel said with barely a civil curtsy. Something about this handsome young man set her teeth on edge.

Tarja does not want that sonofabitch anywhere near his baby sister. And R’shiel doesn’t care how “handsome” Loclon is, she’s not interested (which would place her among the minority because we’re told Loclon is considered quite the catch). I could read about Tarja being overprotective all day. R’shiel changes her mind and decides to stay for the fight, which is a fucking BLOODBATH and Loclon that worm cuts Georj down and then Tarja goes running into the middle of the pit even though he’s not even one of Georj’s seconds. He scoops up the sword Georj dropped. This has got to be against the rules but nobody intervenes. Now we have a textbook case of battle-hardened veteran vs. fancy duelist. After Tarja makes mincemeat of Loclon, he contents himself with mutilating Loclon’s face and leaves him lying there in the sand screaming.

Another crippling cramp seized R’shiel, and she realized that it had nothing to do with seeing so much violence. So much blood. Something else was wrong … Another cramp, even worse than the last one, twisted her belly and she cried out. The sound must have cut through Tarja’s fury. He stopped and glanced back at her.

”I warned you to go home,” he told her.

R’shiel didn’t answer him. Couldn’t answer him. She held out her hand, as she felt a warm rush between her legs. She looked down and was surprised to find herself standing in a puddle of bright blood.

”Founders!” Tarja rushed toward her as she fell. He caught her and scooped her up into his arms. The last thing she remembered before falling into a swirl of blessed darkness was Tarja holding her. Running. Calling for help.

This passage is my favorite from the whole book. The fact that her cry of pain is the only thing that can pierce his haze of battle rage, and that he’s there for the very public, very painful onset of her menses to catch her when she faints — I mean he’s already covered in blood but he doesn’t give a shit that R’shiel’s going to bleed all over him before he gets her to a medic. When she wakes up it’s to a scolding from her mother, who says:

”I suppose I should be grateful it was Tarja who found you, although why he insisted on running through the Citadel, yelling like a fishwife, instead of dealing with the matter discreetly is beyond me.”

Because he panicked, that’s why. He was petrified that he might lose her; she is his everything. Tarja comes to her while she’s convalescing:

”Why does she hate you, Tarja?”

Tarja shrugged. “Who knows? For that matter, who cares?”

”I care.”

He took her hand in his. “I know you care, R’shiel. That’s because no matter how hard Joyhinia tries to mold you into another version of herself, there is part of you she can’t seem to corrupt. I hope she never succeeds.”

Like I said before, the depth of Tarja and R’Shiel’s bond owes much to the necessity of forming a united front against their bloodless reptile of a mother.

”Where do you get all this big brother nonsense from?” she demanded. “Every time you want to weasel out of explaining yourself, I get the same excuse.”

He smiled but refused to answer. “You take care of yourself, young lady. Big brother will be checking on you when he gets back.”

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

Tarja leaves for a tour of duty, in the course of which he discovers some pretty big honking skeletons in his mother’s closet, aka the fact that R’Shiel isn’t Joyhinia’s biological child. Joyhinia wanted a daughter for dynastic purposes and did what she had to do to acquire one of the right age; later she even torched an entire village to keep her secret. Tarja has the tale from one of the survivors:

”She called the child Rochelle, or something like that.”

”R’Shiel,” Tarja corrected softly, afraid that if he spoke too loudly, Bereth would not finish her tale.

He’s got a hostile witness on his hands and he knows he shouldn’t antagonize her but he can’t resist correcting her when she mangles his baby sister’s name. Sheesh Tarja, you just can’t help it can you? When it comes to R’Shiel your default setting is defend defend defend. This is him discussing his mother’s perfidy and his sister’s parentage with another soldier:

”I’ve seen your sister at the Citadel. She’s very pretty.”

”She is,” he agreed. “And apparently she’s not my sister.”

”At the risk of sounding trite, there’ll be a lot of officers at the Citadel quite pleased to learn that, sir.”

So we’ve established that R’Shiel is attractive and likable and if Tarja had been home the last few years he’d have been chasing off her admirers with sticks. This is literally how Tarja arranges a clandestine meeting with R’Shiel— he has another soldier ask her to dance, and pass the message along:

”Fear not, my designs on you are completely honorable.”

”Is that so?”

”Tarja wants to see you.”

”My brother is in the north.” She’d heard her shares of lines from dozens of Cadets and Officers, but nobody had ever tried using Tarja before.

WELL MAYBE THEY SHOULD HAVE, i’m sure she would have been off like a shot at the sound of his name. So the designated rendezvous with Tarja is …. the caverns under the amphitheater.

”You look a lot better than the last time we met,” he told her, taking her hand and leading her deeper into the caverns … In the distance, R’Shiel could hear the faint sounds of a couple giggling and urging each other to silence. They were not the only ones seeking privacy tonight.

Okay so Tarja and R’Shiel are meeting clandestinely on SRS BZNS but is it an accident they choose to do so in the same place that horny teenagers come to hook up??? I THINK NOT. This is when he breaks the news that Joyhinia’s not her biomom. At no point does either Tarja nor R’Shiel interpret this revelation as undermining their relationship, however—they are still each other’s family.

I need to zoom out slightly and explain you guys a few things about the larger geopolitical context. If you recall, the onset of R’Shiel’s womanly courses were accompanied by nausea, fainting, and a violent aversion to the smell of meat. This turns out to be because R’Shiel is the product of the union between a human and a demigod - who are all pacifists and vegetarians - which means she is the prophesied Demon Child, and she is finally coming into her power. At present nobody, least of all R’Shiel, has the faintest inkling of this; nobody except the priests of the monotheistic theocracy that borders Medalon to the north, whose holy mandate is to stamp out every other religion on the planet. A couple of priests with scary magical staffs are dispatched on a “diplomatic” mission to Medalon to neutralize R’Shiel. Their goals happen to coincide with Joyhinia’s, who sells R’Shiel to them like a sack of potatoes and in return secures their support to maneuver her own election as First Sister. This is a bridge too far for Tarja, who very publicly refuses to swear allegiance to his mother, renounces his officer’s commission, and storms out of the Citadel in a scene guaranteed to generate bad publicity for the new First Sister’s reign. At least he’s able to warn R’Shiel before she’s sold down the river. The two of them steal some horses and go on the lamb:

Her decision to run away appeared to be much easier than his. She was bound by no oaths, hampered by no thoughts of treason. But she was nursing a smoldering rage that manifested itself as stubbornness.

R’Shiel here has the exact same chaotic energy as Lucrezia Borgia in Season 1 of the Canal+ Borgias TV show, seething with long-suppressed “burn it all down” rage against the system. It’s a very destructive sort of teenage rage seeking a constructive outlet. There are quite a few shippy moments as soon as they go on the run:

For most of the winter they survived by R’Shiel’s wits or by Tarja’s hunting skills or by hiring themselves out for a few days at a time to farmers … She had surprised him at the first farm where they sought shelter, by introducing herself as his wife rather than his sister.

He had grown used to her sleeping next to him over the winter.

They act Fake Married to avoid detection!!! Ok so Tarja and R’Shiel accidentally start a bar brawl. It gets out of hand, soldiers kill civilians, and all of a sudden R’Shiel and Tarja have been recruited to lead The Resistance—which consists of a couple hundred unarmed, under-resourced pagans who resent the new administration’s crackdown on non-atheists. In effect, Tarja and R’Shiel are defending the smallfolk against tyrannical federal troops. Goes without saying that neither of them is a True Believer in the cause. Here is an outsider POV perspective:

When he first met them, Brak had thought Tarja and R’Shiel were close, but they fought more often than not these days. Tarja counseled caution, while R’Shiel advocated aggression.

R’Shiel is obviously out for blood. She’ll do anything to get back at Joyhinia—these pagan rebels are merely the instruments of her vengeance. Tarja, a professional soldier, is a little more circumspect:

”If I had a hundred years, I could not teach your heathen farmers how to fight like the Defenders.”

There is the added wrinkle of a very attractive young girl in their orbit whose obvious come-ons to Tarja render R’Shiel green with jealousy, even if she won’t admit that’s what she’s feeling (R’Shiel has yet to admit she wants Tarja for herself). The reasons Tarja’s attracted to Mandah are the same reasons he admires R’Shiel: Mandah too was a probate at the Citadel before she washed out; she’s educated and she has many of the same leadership qualities that R’Shiel possesses. Yet the Mandah issue is only one bone in Tarja and R’Shiel’s increasingly contentious relationship. They harbor fundamentally opposing visions for the embryonic rebellion: R’Shiel is basically indifferent to the body count so long as their tactics hurt Joyhinia, while Tarja is reluctant to launch a frontal assault that stands zero chance of success. Their tempers boil over into a heated argument and they’re literally about to come to blows when the Goddess of Love, Kalianah, shows up & intervenes:

The goddess waved her hand and Tarja, who Brak had feared was on the verge of slapping R’Shiel, suddenly grabbed her by the shoulders, pushed her against the wall and kissed her with bruising force. Although taken by surprise, R’Shiel did not appear to mind in the least.

Aaaaaand they kiss!! You’ll notice the goddess made Tarja fall in love with R’Shiel, not the other way around. That’s because R’Shiel has long been in love with him. It’s not, like, my ideal setup, as far as OTPs go, this whole love potion/magical geas thing? Like, Tom Riddle’s mom did it and that didn’t end well. Still, the underlying bond between these two is real and true, even if the romantic cast to it is new and not (on Tarja’s part) strictly voluntary. The goddess has her own reasons for acting (ie. she needs R���Shiel to fulfill a prophecy, and thinks the girl will be more tractable if somebody’s head over heels for her). R’Shiel runs away from the encounter, a swirl of emotions in her breast, lonelier and more confused than ever:

R’Shiel had been raised to believe that tears were a sign of weakness. She had not cried as a child … She never shed a tear when Joyhinia had her pony put down after she caught R’Shiel trying to run away rather than join the Novices when she she was twelve. She did not cry over anything, not even when Georj was killed. But as she fled Tarja in the darkness, tears she had bottled up for years burst forth, determined to undo her.

Look at that she never cries but kissing Tarja has opened the floodgates because what does it MEAN does he love her she thought he hated her what if he hates her she doesn’t have anyone else!!!

If you thought this was going to be a trilogy about R’Shiel and Tarja saving the world from a megalomaniacal demon then you have another think coming. It’s not. It’s about a much wider cast of characters (y’all are sleeping on the brotp of the century, Tarja Tenragan and Damin Wolfblade) and it’s a fun romp when it’s not boring the hell out of me (the 30% of the plot that involves the gods and their demigod descendants does absolutely nothing for me). I mentioned at the beginning of this review that Tarja/R’Shiel is not endgame. They end up with other people but like six books down the line the God of Death takes a number of R’Shiel’s nearest and dearest hostage in order to make her Do Something, and one of the people he nabs is Tarja’s wife. I just think it’s very telling that R’Shiel has never gotten along with Tarja’s wife, can’t stand her guts, and yet still feels the same obligation to rescue her as the other hostages. Because it’s Tarja’s wife. (Tarja being the Commander-in-Chief of the Medalonian army, the God of Death could not very well have taken him hostage without starting a war.) Maybe the relationship didn’t last; maybe they grew apart; maybe it wasn’t meant to be. But when I think of Tarja and R’Shiel I think of the girl who worships her older brother, who’s always remembering morsels of arcane knowledge he furnished her with, and the boy who’s forever holding his sister’s hand and scooping her up and carrying her and catching her as she falls.

[fluffybunnybadass]

The three TGP sisters, plus Melody (Pokeverse) and Alt-Melody. Maybe Douchebagel, too.

the prompt

Full Name:Gender and Sexuality:Pronouns:Ethnicity/Species:Birthplace and Birthdate:Guilty Pleasures:Phobias:What They Would Be Famous For:What They Would Get Arrested For:OC You Ship Them With:OC Most Likely To Murder Them:Favorite Movie/Book Genre:Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche:Talents and/or Powers:Why Someone Might Love Them:Why Someone Might Hate Them:How They Change:Why You Love Them:

Sarai Chiaki

Full Name: Sarai Lin ChiakiGender and Sexuality: Female and Demiro Pansexual. Or maybe bi, but I’m honestly not sure for her in particular.Pronouns: She/herEthnicity/Species: Human/technically half-celestial, JapaneseBirthplace and Birthdate: [sputtering noises for birthplace], I forget if I kept her berdei the same as mine considering how quickly she ran from being a self-insert like right away from point of creation. :TGuilty Pleasures: [HURR HURR] reading fluffy stuff on the occasion, thinking about dat romancePhobias: being hurt/betrayed, some heights??? I forget. I don’t think her fears came up much when I was using her. :T;What They Would Be Famous For: Last I checked, it’s underground poprock star [currently a Paramore cover band]What They Would Get Arrested For: Trespassing, tbh.OC You Ship Them With: no one atm?? i mean i’d probably ship her with her bandmates if I had to pick a ship, since her and Shroud are kind of not a thing anymore [actual reason: don’t talk to that mun anymore]OC Most Likely To Murder Them: idk Raven probably [of mine, uh. QB I guess, she’s the only one to actually commit murder out of like everyone]Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Action/comedyLeast Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: dramas/period dramasTalents and/or Powers: uhhh does being chronically depressed count uhhh she’s kinda good at her cover band gig. She’s the only one in her family that seems to be powerless, even though her parents are a celestial/angel and a powerful mage, she has 0 abilities. She secretly blames her older sisters for taking all of them, even if that isn’t the case anymore.Why Someone Might Love Them: She was the quirky LULZ RANDOM1!! teen, also is treated poorly by her narrative tbqh...Why Someone Might Hate Them: She’s chronically depressed as of late/has become hardened as a result, like even to the point of another OC known for being a bitch coming in and being like “dude. stop being a bitch. you’re a human it’s literally against your biological inclinations to isolate yourself and be vitriolic.”How They Change: already answered above, but they go from being the low-key depressed but presenting RANDUMS LULZ!!! teen and eventually become full-blown depression because wow she has nothing to offer the world and continues to lack reasons to believe opposite.Why You Love Them: I... made... her??? like I don’t even know. Also maybe because we vibe a lot on the whole “I’m nothing special, everyone else [in my family] has something special about them” aspects of bad brain thinking.

Hamano Chiaki

Full Name: Hamano [nee Chiaki]. I forget her husband’s last name lolwoops. [alternatively, wonder if the girls all just. keep their last name and it’s only a technicality. They’re all still referred to as the Chiaki sisters, after all]Gender and Sexuality: female and I don’t know!! hetero/guy-loving?Pronouns: she/herEthnicity/Species: Human/half-celestial, JapaneseBirthplace and Birthdate: [whirrrling noises] I forget her birthday i’m sure it’s on her lj/gaia.... apparently it’s 9/30? huh. I always thought she was a summer muse. ok then.Guilty Pleasures: TRASHY ROMANCE MOVIES/NOVELS, like they’re so bad but she loves all the cheesy romance stuff. and some of the trashy stuff too. Phobias: Not being able to help someone/her sisters, losing her sisters.What They Would Be Famous For: Clothes/designing/teaching design!What They Would Get Arrested For: nothing she is too good. [maybe if mind-reading is illegal]OC You Ship Them With: @whenocsareooc / @curseyoupikachu ’s  Mikhail. ..Kurogawa? or was that someone else’s last name lol.OC Most Likely To Murder Them: who would want to murder her. qb doesn’t count, she’s always dtmFavorite Movie/Book Genre: Romance/”chick flicks”Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: hypermasculine action festsTalents and/or Powers: Psychic. Telekinesis, telepathy, spirit sensing, etc etc.Why Someone Might Love Them: She’s super sweet and her love of romance stuff is p. admirable.Why Someone Might Hate Them: she’s “too girly” and “cheats by mindreading”How They Change: She was a romance tryhard and flirty with all the boys, she eventually calms down when she finally meets Mikhail [she’s always been faithful to whomever she was dating, but she rarely found someone she was attracted to like. all the time. or something.]. She also goes from being the quiet middle sheep between her older and younger sister, and more actively mediates and takes part in their lives, instead of doing whatever she felt would create the least amount of strife. She goes from being a little timid about getting in the middle of things, to stepping in when she sees/senses the need for it. Why You Love Them:  SHE’S LIKE MY BLACK SHEEP I ACCIDENTALLY NEVER DO ANYTHING WITH HER, BUT I STILL LOVE HER BECAUSE EVEN IF SHE’S LIKE ALL MY GIRLY TROPES ROLLED INTO A CHARACTER, I LOVE HOW UNABASHEDLY HAPPY SHE IS ABOUT BEING A GIRL??? LIKE. YOU GO GIRL. #INSPIRATION.

Sakamoto Chiaki

Full Name: Sakamoto Chiaki-HertzmorderGender and Sexuality: Female, greysexual? //SHRUGSPronouns: she/herEthnicity/Species: human/half-celestial, JapaneseBirthplace and Birthdate: we just don’t know but it’s probably in Japan, and I thought it was later in may but maybe I was thinking of ALL THE PEOPLE I KNOW WITH MARCH/MAY BDAYS anyways it’s 5/18 apparently Guilty Pleasures: don’t tell anyone but her husband but she rly likes the soft quiet moments where she actually gets to be vulnerable/not strong, SHE WILL NOT HESITATE TO PUNCH YOU IN THE FACE IF YOU FIND OUT., also i’m sure there’s something else but that was the only thing to come to mind lolPhobias: Losing, getting killed, being the reason for any harm/death to come to her sisters/familyWhat They Would Be Famous For: The Potion Seller who sells you their strongest potion. am i memeing this right. also for kicking your ass with magic without breaking a sweat What They Would Get Arrested For: setting people/places on fire.OC You Ship Them With: Viktor!! :DOC Most Likely To Murder Them: lol... I’m pretty sure my friend’s OC Raven still has dibs despite them pretty much being extended family/distant relate-mates [both tough, closed off women with happier little sisters and known for being powerful as well, getting worned down by a pair of dashingly handsome vampire brothers.], but it’s more like a case of “You don’t get to die until I say you do. Only *I* am allowed to take your life.” [also a bit of pun, seeing as Raven is her realm’s goddess of death. XD]Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Nonfiction books, mostly spell/information/learning booksLeast Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: any movies but mostly romance and action. and terribly written/”unrealistic” fantasy movies [no one is able to watch their random fantasy series around her because “THAT’S NOT HOW MAGIC WORKS WHAT THE FUCK”]Talents and/or Powers: magical AF. like. literally. High MP pool to cast those big powerful spells down a few times and blast your ass into the next 5 dimensions. Also can read tarot despite it not being a very magical thing. Why Someone Might Love Them: She’s a strong woman who don’t need no man, sarcastic af, she takes no shit.Why Someone Might Hate Them: OP af, closed off/distant even to her own siblings; kinda fucks up raising her kids/connecting with her daughter because of this.How They Change: She learns to open up more and become less imposing/threatening to her own children, especially when it shows much strain in her relationship with her own daughter. While the gap can never truly become completely filled, they have worked together on making a bridge, and as a result, she’s opened up to helping people more, whereas before it was a sort of “obligation” to the greater good. She was also mostly concerned with kicking her dad’s ass for his manipulation of his children and neglect, but while she’s nowhere near saying that she has familial love (or any kind of love for that matter) for her father, she no longer hates and despises him/just barely tolerates him.* Why You Love Them: see “reasons why someone might love them”

*bonus fact: he tries to give the Chiaki-Hertzmorder family branch gifts of goodwill, such as incredibly expensive pottery and vases and shit, and Sakamoto just lets her kids use them as target practice..... LOL. someone broke a vase? As long as it was from your grandfather it’s all good.

Melody (Pokeverse)

Full Name: Melody Ann Anson [nee Hikari]Gender and Sexuality: female, demiro (gr)ace. I think.Pronouns: she/herEthnicity/Species: Human, Kanto nativeBirthplace and Birthdate: Saffron City, 11/30/90Guilty Pleasures: buhhhhhhhhh [whirrling noise] going on adventures now that she’s a responsible adulting mom. how do u go on an adventure with two toddlers and a husband that’s a Champion and y’all are pseudo-celebs/recognizeable that is hard ok.Phobias: death, somehow doing something unforgivable, losing everything.What They Would Be Famous For: being the most accomplished trainer ever woops. [okay like. being a Champion and being married to an elite four member slash Champion? and winning a few cups/tournaments here and there? like how much MORE famous/footnote in history can you get]What They Would Get Arrested For: buhbuhbuh breaking and entering in order to free some pokemon that were being illegally kept/treated improperly lolOC You Ship Them With: no one :T [i feel like there ALMOST was one at some point. but I don’t think they were within this realm/history/limitation]OC Most Likely To Murder Them: no one within realm.Favorite Movie/Book Genre: adventure/fantasy books, action/comedies moviesLeast Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: poorly done Kiss of LifeTalents and/or Powers: she’s a really strong/awesome trainer? and she could have been a really Masterful Coordinator in her late teens/early twenties/current age if she had kept interest in them. [Unfortunately, becoming a Pokemon Master > Pokemon Coordinator]. Why Someone Might Love Them: idk she’s just p. neatWhy Someone Might Hate Them: [insert people screaming MARY SUE here despite that getting worked on]How They Change: She starts out as this kind of. Openly willful kid, with a very expressive way about what was right and well (so I guess.. that’s like. 8th grade syndrome or whatever?), but she eventually matures, and in her early twenties she’s just this. Much more calm/reserved/wise-seeming adult who seems to have their life together, though in reality she’s still just trying to figure it out, especially when the itch to adventure isn’t something you can’t just up and do anymore when you’ve got a husband, a home, children, essentially “Settled”. Why You Love Them: she my bae/first gal  

Alt-Melody

Full Name: [redacted]Gender and Sexuality: female-presenting [maybe agender] and i’m not sure if she’s just lesbian or pan.Pronouns: she/her/they/themEthnicity/Species: humanBirthplace and Birthdate: [redacted]Guilty Pleasures: watching her girlfriend/wife?? idk tbh it’s very hard when I never really got into their character much.Phobias: becoming weak, not being able to defend/protect her gf.What They Would Be Famous For: hacking i guess.What They Would Get Arrested For: hacking, lol. and illegal time/realm travelOC You Ship Them With: alt!kiraOC Most Likely To Murder Them: QB, maybe a handful of friend’s OCs.Favorite Movie/Book Genre: tech/instruciton manuals, information booksLeast Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: literally any of them.Talents and/or Powers: I... don’t remember terribly well? I’m not sure if she also has time/realm travel abilities or if she had a device for it. She is more warrior-trained than her alt/original.Why Someone Might Love Them: idk tough quiet person made of stone who loves her frilly gf and that dynamic between the two?Why Someone Might Hate Them: she’s p. plain for an alt.How They Change: idk she marries her gf //THROWS HANDS UP IN THE AIRWhy You Love Them: i don’t have the same affection for her like I did a lot of the other characters, but she did slap some sense into her alt [literally], so bonus points for that. *thumbs up*

Douchebagel

Full Name: idk but he’s referred to in-universe as Mafia Purge and in the past as an Alpha Purge.Gender and Sexuality: he i guess, aropan? i forget. either aropan or aroace.Pronouns: he/him/it/shitballEthnicity/Species: futuristic human thing being now made of timespace ether???Birthplace and Birthdate: one of the many alternate sc5 realms/timelines that was all mafia themed, and he was one of the few to be successful/killed his timeline’s UlalaGuilty Pleasures: everything he does is a guilty pleasure.Phobias: uh. i forget if spiders was a universal alt/purge phobia or not.What They Would Be Famous For: he is literally famous within that rpverse as being the Fallen, the ex-Alpha, for being a piece of shit, and when he and QB meet in timeline, for actually being one of the few people to give QB a run for her money.What They Would Get Arrested For: [LAUGH TRACK]OC You Ship Them With: crackships alpha and qb. separately. tho man now i wonder how the fuck a poly would work with them that would be interesting/hilarious AF.OC Most Likely To Murder Them: QB, Alpha, any of the other alt Purges... they all also HAVE killed him he’s just. beyond normal lifeline/timeline cycles when he originally ascended to Alpha status.Favorite Movie/Book Genre: Crime lol. Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche: Where the crimelords don’t win like where’s the realism in that.Talents and/or Powers: where do i begin? Spacetime manipulation for one, manipulation of people for another, being insanely uber powerful that only other beings who have ascended to a statehood of Alpha can even come close to harming him, making even QB hesitate. I forget what else but man he’s. he’s... someone you don’t wanna mess with, like actual demigod level here.Why Someone Might Love Them: he literally is scum the only thing he has going for him is being a source of drama and being someone QB would hatefully run from/avoid conflict with.Why Someone Might Hate Them: he is a piece of shit and tortures all his alts without remorse and is essentially the one who ruined alpha’s life, PLEASE GIVE ALPHA HIS HAPPINESS AND CHEERFUL NATURE BACK KTHXHow They Change: he gets more powerful, merges with a demon, comes back as an uber demon. is still unsuccessful.Why You Love Them: LOVE HATE MAN LOVE HATE CAN YOU SEE WHY DO I REALLY NEED TO SPELL IT OUT.