#anyways. still think its so funny then that hes being reduced to being my boy toy as if im the one running this situation

[paralien]

Friend is asleep so they won't see me post anything nice abt them but, good friend + roommate keeps calling this guy I'm seeing my boy toy and it's, genuinely so funny i think it's hilarious that this guy im crazy abt keeps just getting reduced to just being my "boy toy" it's so funny

[viperbooty]

Back to talking about the Fantasy Fandom and the racism that tends to be part of it!

I genuinely think if Wyll were white he'd get way more attention and love. He'd have sparkle flower crown edits saying "My sweet cornball!!" "My boys got daddy issues!!". Also Warlock is a class beloved by many. And as someone who plays a warlock in bg3 having two of them fucking ROCKED, I always had spells at the ready. So really saying "buh! buh! two warlocks is just bad!" its really not, short rests and cantrips out the asshole really make it easy.

Anyway.

If Gale were black he would be fully ignored and people would, in masses, complain about how annoying he is, how useless he is, how he doesn't really fit in with the rest of the "way more interesting cast". How he's so unbearably straight because all he talks about is his ex.

Lemme keep on this though because if Shadowheart was a Black Person she would have been fucking Crucified for the way she talks about other races, other religions, and just in general the way you have to pull information out of her like pulling teeth. Also if she were a black woman she'd be reduced to "uncaring boss bitch who "dont need no man"" or "unbarable bitch who needs to be Killed"

Am I getting my point across enough?

Wyll was shafted by the game by having literally less content than the rest of the party. Wyll DOES have an interesting story. Wyll is also corny, he's funny, he's so sweet, and his conversations with Karlach are soooo great and yet it's all abandoned because he's generally viewed as "boring".

And by the way. You are allowed to like and dislike characters. But I see a lot of people side stepping the Fantasy Racism to say "but hes just boring thats why I dont like him". Like sure, if you gave Wyll an honest chance and still found him boring then that's your opinion and choice! HOWEVER!! We CANNOT ignore that he is being LEFT OUT of edits, of fan art, of character discussions. When I see posts that are the entire cast MINUS Wyll it tells me everything I need to know about you.

Also one last thing... I cannot imagine being Wyll's VA and seeing how many times you are being left out on purpose. How so few add your character to edits, or fan art. It has to be crushing to some extent, even if you expected it.

[mincedpeaches]

Transformers One post

Okay FIRST off I have to say. Sentinel Prime. He was everything. Blue and gold color scheme, with gorgeous gold WINGS. The most obvious villain in existence, but still kind of charms with his first overly friendly reaction to Megs and OP. The scene were he killed Alpha Trion: SERVING. Arachnid being his fag hag. I'm kind of obsessed.

Anyway. I just got back. Walked into the movie theater at 7pm in business casual since I came from work (after a quick detour to pick up dinner to sneak in). I say I want a ticket for Transformers. The teller goes "just one?" with a just barely perceptible bit of puzzlement. I say yup and proceed to have the entire theater to myself. Because no one is taking their kids to see Transformers One on a school night at 7:15pm. And I came alone. 👍

Of course I had fun. The humor I'd say was like 75/25 for me. I had some chuckles and laughs. For kid humor I thought it was really good.

Once again I kind of struggle to conceptualize what it would be like to be watching it as a fresh face though, and someone NOT well versed in transformers canon and lore. Like of course I (metaphorically) barked and clapped my hands like a seal when I saw Transformers I recognized but had no real lines. But a normal kid isn't really gonna care about that.

Anyway, again. It's late for me and I'm trying to get thoughts down now. What else. Let's try rapid fire all over the place.

Loved Elita's whole career woman thing and REALLY loved her "I'm better than you" bit because A) woman after my own heart and B) we love some unironic "girls rule boys drool" style feminism in this house. and I'm so serious.

I don't want to reduce Arachnid to just Sentinel's fag hag either because she also ruled. Her helicopter design looked siiick. The extra eyes on the front of her face and they way they moved independently was also sick. The way she was always yelling when she was stabbing guys was also kinda funny. (The way they used her eyes "seeing everything" to expose video of Sentinel, SOMEHOW, was actually kinda dumb. But don't worry about it.)

The way the trains and roads appeared in front of the train/driver looked really cool.

The scene where Optimus was dead and was floating into the heart of Cybertron, conversely, looked bad.

When it was first revealed in the movie promo content that Optimus was also going to be a miner alongside Megatron, while I wasn't as disappointed as the average tfp simp, I did think it was kinda of a bummer. That being said, it actually fucking RULED how Optimus was a miner. Ever since the introduction of oppressed bots into the tf canon, it was always this post. But in THIS canon Optimus is right there with Megs being oppressed and Optimus is the one that's fighting for social change, while Megatron is towing the line until he learns its all a lie. And once they learn its a lie, Optimus is still advocating for that change, and meanwhile Megatron is just really pissed off and down to get revenge and murder. I remember when I watched Siege and my conclusion was "hey guys, you can just do Autobots Good Deceptions Bad"! Well guess what. they DID that here, to great affect.

That being said..... it did make the megop slightly less tasty. 😔 Autobots Good Deceptions Bad generally requires a goofier, more G1 style favoring of megop. The scene were Megatron drops Optimus into the pit is very befitting of him being evil but if he's already willing to genuinely kill Optimus this early? It does not bode well for the homoeroticism.

Also what this movie loses in not having the Megatron be a liberator is how he gets followers. The Deceptions being the old high council is such a odd thing. Sure they'd want to get rid of Sentinel now, but it's odd to think of them with their whole "the strongest bot rules" thing (or whatever it was, I forget the exact line but you get the gist) but wouldn't they have been working for the other Primes before Sentinel? Who were ostensibly the good guys? Why would they all join up with Megs after getting rid of Sentinel, when Megs goals are seemingly going to shape up to be "just killin everyone". Where would the Council's bloodlust be coming from? Maybe its a political party thing, the Prime Left vs the Council Right lol. Or maybe I missed something. Also side note is funny how Starscream had them all languishing in cowardice when I all I could think the same thoughts I had when a very similar thing happened in IDW's Spotlight Megatron, which was: "come on, it can't all be Starscream's fault. the other guys like Soundwave are competent right. why aren't guys like Soundwave doing shit."

Also may I say. HUGE ups to the timescale in this movie. It's been "50 cycles" since the quint war and if Megs and Optimus were born after it then they're 50 "cycles" old at most. And I missed it but I think Alpha Trion says the war went on for "hundreds and hundreds" of cycles. Four millions year naps? We don't know her!

Bumblebee was the kid appeal guy of course, but it wasn't too grating to me. What I think also helped is alot of the slightly awkward-to-me humor was already in the trailers. So I was prepared for it.

Finally, when Megatron generates his canon. Oooo big sexy.

I enjoyed myself alot! Of course its for kids but that at least wasn't to it's detriment. And it made me want to go look up some toys so. A SUCCESS on the only front Hasbro really cares about, lol.

[thegeminisage]

ok, it's star trek update time. tonight we watched ds9's "playing god" and tng's "eye of the beholder."

playing god (ds9):

i'm trying. SO SO SO HARD to get into dax and it's just not working

out of the 3 dax episodes we've had so far this one included two of them have been mid and one of them was just slightly better than average mostly for the questions it prompted in my mind palace, not necessarily the questions asked by the episode itself

in s1 dax had basically no personality, but in s2 when she does have a personality it seems to be a different one every time. like in one episode she was very prissy and in others she's just one of the guys! and then at other times she reverts to this very buttoned up bordering on bland science officer from s1 again

and then every once in awhile she'll be like oh yeah i LOVE sex i LOVE being a super hot woman who everyone wants to FUCK!!! i can get whatever i want with my SEX APPEAL even though my hair is WEIRDLY SHAPED. and look i am so happy for her and she should literally get some but it borders on the kind of misogyny that starts genuinely annoying me. it is kind of like that anime trope where the teen boy gets put into a body with tits and he can't stop messing with them. its like. idk reducing her to a body, or reducing her to jadzia's body, which dax is taking for a ride to feel hot and fuckable?? it's very blurry what's jadzia and what's dax

WHICH is the most fascinating part of dax, which is where the trill ends and the symbiant or however you spell it begins, but we don't get into that quite as much as i'd like

anyway i guess a shifting personality is a natural result of living 7 lifetimes but it doesnt FEEL like thats why theyre doing it, it FEELS like they just cant seem to keep her consistent

that said. while i did not like this episode or this little guy dax was showing around i DID like the implication that curzon was actually a huge fucking asshole. i love that he can be loved by many people but was still an asshole. it's complex. and now one of the people he abused (?) or at least was an asshole to is now. his successor. IT'S COMPLEX!!! what are he and jadzia to each other...imagine meeting curzon dax and then just becoming him. that's wild. so, points for that! genuinely. it just feels like the trill thing is fascinating because of trills and not because of jadzia dax in particular. i'm gonna keep trying to like her. maybe once she starts banging worf things will be different

eye of the beholder (tng):

ohhhh i hated this one so much (suicide cw for this one lol)

firstly, i don't trust tng to handle the subject of suicide any more than i trust them to handle multiple personalities, but they tried to very special episode it anyway. all of them were so shocked at the very THOUGHT of it i guess because they eliminated all mental illness in tos?? but it was so funny in the rage-inducing way like "maybe he needed to think of the obstacles in his life as challenges to overcome!" come on.

also lmao picard like ive never had to report a suicide before...........girl you have literally told 2 people to kill themselves

and then they dropped the very special episode plot halfway through for this psychic mystery...

here's the thing. if everyone had been searching for a REASON someone who seemed to be perfectly happy would do this, and in the end the answer was just "nothing was going on, he was just hiding a lot of pain, even if we don't want to believe that" that would have been a STELLAR gutpunch. but there literally was foul play involved

AND NOT ONLY THAT! BUT THEY FAKED ME OUT WITH WORF E DEANNA

my ONLY consolation was that they were finally kissing and then later fucking but NO!!!! all a dream

i was already conflicted because deanna e worf means a temporary breakup from deanna e riker but i wanted it anyway and i was so happy when they gave it to me and then they KILLED IT? maybe the actors hated it because it fucking sucked

like, no wonder everybody let deanna walk around unsupervised when there was a high suicide danger. she was dreaming. no one in real life would ever allow this

i wish also that creepy men would stop coming to deanna's quarters to be creepy to her

final note: was told the creepy man was in spn. clocked him as alistair almost immediately. faceblind WHO

TOMORROW: ds9's "prophet and loss" and tng's "genesis" (dread).

[oracleofsecrets]

VIOLENCE AND BLOOD AND MAKING EVERYBODY MAD. 1, 19, and 25 >:)

SAE 0W-20. Oh oops. Wrote this in notes app so. Here, have my car’s motor oil flavor

Anyway I think I’ll do ace attorney bc that’s the one I’ve been Most aware of its fandom

1 — character everyone gets wrong

There are several,,, but the ones that peeve me the most are Maya and Franziska

Maya’s often flattened into memester burger queen comedic relief who dispenses Romantic advice to make nrmt happen. It’s such a waste when she’s got So much happening and is pretty damn smart

Similarly, Franziska is sidelined even More and is reduced to Angry Meanie and also a prop to encourage nrmt. I find that the average franziska portrayal is really one-note and is just like “Haha she says fool and whips people” which sucks bc again she has So much unexplored complexity in the games And in fandom that people wouldn’t hesitate to explore if she were a male character instead

And also these tend to combine into really boring franmaya just to make sunshine/grump happen. Or again, they’re off to the side or used only as a vehicle for nrmt development.

Or like… I’ve seen ppl think Maya was head over heels for Franziska from Day One like. No??? Wtf? I think Maya had More Important Things on her mind than like. “Ooh that person prosecuting me is kinda hot👀”

I can’t even elaborate Too much bc I’d be here all day but. Also criminally misportrayed is Phoenix. He is not uwu sunshine bleeding heart heart on his sleeve. And neither is Ryuunosuke.

Ok one more salt. Temenos OctopathTraveler2 wasn’t Madly In Love with Crick. Also he is Not as horny/flirty as many are portraying him as…. He outright said staves don’t need sheaths smh my head

19 — smth I’m mad/ashamed I actually kinda like

My lawyer says I don’t have to answer this question

(jk)

Idk if Shame/anger is the word for it. But I want to study kristoph under a microscope and also purposefully zoom in too far so that he gets crushed when the long magnifier breaks the slide glass

It’s more like… I don’t want to be associated w people who like genuinely think he was just misunderstood 🥺 uwuuu he was in WUV, he had a bad childhood. or the opposite, with ppl who go a lot darker in their interpretation bc that’s just not smth I want to think about

Cuz like. Obviously this guy fucking sucks and I hate him but also he’s sooooo pathetic that it’s funny

And also I think it’s interesting to think about like, what being friends (or “friends”) with someone like that for Seven Years does to Phoenix. Bc I lov putting that man through the wringer ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

25 — common fandom complaint sick of hearing

Any apologism and vehement defense of shitty male characters lol

Godot’s shitty condescending misogynistic remark at franziska wasn’t a mistranslation. He calls her a shrew/unruly woman, basically says “that’s enough princess, it’s adult time” (notably using “-Chan”, where Phoenix calls her Von Karma Kenji [“prosecutor von karma”]). This line was translated to “But you can go now, princess. It's time for the big boys to take the reins.” So like…. Where’s the misinterpretation 🤨

And also he says “I don’t like talkative women”. There might be more nuance there that google translate can’t capture but like. That’s Still a sexist thing to say.

Just admit ur horny for godot and don’t care about women

Mvk doesn’t have lead poisoning; he’s an emotionally abusive parent and shitty person. Like u don’t even have to squint at the games to come to that conclusion. Kin memories and brainless analysis won’t disprove that. Sometimes abusers can even do nice things or genuinely love someone, but that doesn’t mean they’re not abusive

Barok van Zieks doesn’t have a Redemption arc from his Constant Indefensible Racism. You clowns are just horny and have bad taste.

[ducknotinarow]

03/07 Michelangelo - All Symbol Headcanons please uwu

| Send me a symbol and I will write a headcanon about…  For multimuse blogs, please specify!

MIKEY!!!! I love Mikey ;3; he's such a good character. I lowkey nah no what I Highkey absolutely hate how much fandom can or rather will initialized Mikey. Or reduce him to the comic relief of the group. Mikey is such a good character. Yeah Mikey is funny, witty and even annoying but he is very empathic. He very often is the only one who can understand where one of his brothers is coming from such as being the most aware of the burdens Leo carries that well they sort of put on him. Unlike in 2012, Leo is an unofficial leader. Mikey knows because Leo dose take to that role placed on him though it give the rest of them freedom Leo can't really have. His skill often get over looked despite the fact Mikey is actually the most athletic of his brothers he just lacks focus it's often shown and stated if he did? He would be quite the force to deal with in a fight.

𝓕 : My muse’s handwriting. (Is it good, bad, difficult to decipher, do they prefer writing by hand or with the help of some form of machine, e.t.c.) 

Mikey is for sure the more creative one of his brothers and he dose show he thinks differently than any of them do often his plans come as a surprise to the rest because of this. Of course this creative trait is due to Mikey being a free spirit and artistic to a point. Mostly his hand writing is hard to read often you can at best only make out the first letting of ever word he wrote because his brain actually thinks faster than he can react at times. When he sits and focus on writing of course he wants to make it out to look fun and pretty uwu

✈ : My muse and  traveling. (If they do it frequently and why, if they never left their home town, e.t.c.)

"Man I've been to all sorts of places, buuuuuuut clearly it's how i traveled to the top and became the battle Nexus champion!"

Mikey travels a lot but it is not by choice believe you and me. But because of a lot of things him and his brothers happened to find themselves suddenly apart of a lot of weird things. I mean hes gone to the future and other worlds but I mean furthest? has to space right?

✿ : My muse and nature. (If they are an ‘outdoorsy type’, like the sound of bird’s singing, if they have never set foot in a forest, e.t.c.) 

"Ehhh I mean its nice I guess buuuut I rather be home with the ultimate tv view experience."

Yeah Mikey is for sure a home body this is a turtle that took to the modern convince of technology and has the hardest time dealing without it. It's not he dislikes the outdoors he can take to it pretty well when he has too of course and that's the wording that should be focus on here. Mikey really likes watching tv after all and tends to find anyway todo so even skipping on training to peep in on someones else tv. But He doesn't dislike nature he loves animals and plants in fact. Luckily he was born with a green thumb even.

Mikey kind of likes that something is reliant on him and that he can make something from his own hands. Helping a plant thrive because of his care is sort of rewarding. Considering Mikey is often always being made to feel like he always the one depending on others which he dose but hardly dose his brothers seem to see him as able to do the same back. So he sort of gets that from his interest in plants.

☼ : My muse’s first memory. (Where it was, who was with them, how this memory makes them feel, e.t.c.) 

"hmm first memory? uhh I guess when I got the first comic book that got me hooked? It was an issue of Spider-Man and boy was it a fun read!" Mikey was up on the surface on Halloween, it's been said that Splinter always took the boys up on the day since they could walk around without fear or worry at the time. They stuck to a more small rural area just to be cautious still. In this neighborhood there was a lot of smaller shops so as a community they ran a sort of trick-o-treat event where kids got their candy and such from the store owners. A cookbook show was on this block and often they gave out free comic books and this is how Mikey got a lot of his comic collection started. The first he got was of course a Spider-Man Comic. A wise cracking hero? Who often distracts his villains with his smart ass mouth? Yeah someone just may have been a tad influenced.

Mikey fell in love with comic books after this he loved the stories and the plots. He wanted to be a super hero so bad. Because in the comics the humans loved heros no matter what. From humans dressed in spandex, to Aliens that took home on earth hell even mutants or meta-humans were loved by humans. So why can't that be the same for him and his family?

Of course Mikey knows being a hero comes with being selfish too and in part keeping to the shadows is something him and his family may have to do forever with no single thanks given hell even acknowledgement. Sure maybe being a hero should drive from helping but sometimes Mikey can be self severing doesn't mean he also doesn't see he has the ability to help. He often swallow his fears to step up or gets involved when he really doesn't have to. Common traits from his favorite heros.

☙ : My muse’s favourite food. (Bonus: A memory, be it good or bad, associated with said food.)

"Uh hello? Pizza?" Of course it is Pizza Mikeys favorite food to him Pizza is the best human food to ever come to be because of what all you can do with Pizaa. You don't even need to stick to marinara sauce for the base like in the case of BBQ or Chicken Alfredo Pizzas. Mikey of course like the different styles thick crust, thin crust, even stuffed. Mikey being a true Pizza lover has also tried out from Chicago style to Colorado style but of course New York style is his go to favorite. He is a new yorker through and through and they are known for having good pizza.

Mikey even likes to push the limit on what toppings he eat on a pizza and often? nothings to far out there for Mikey this boy should be on fear factor honestly.

♬ : My muse and music. (What type of music they like listening to and in what context, what music they would never listen to, e.t.c.)

"hmm I like all kinds of music really? Rap, Techno, Surf, Jimmy Buffett."

As is Mikey he is flexible on many things even when it comes to his taste in music this applies to. Mikey just likes music with energy is what it comes down to in the end. Sure Rock music is one that could fit but it's not quite the sound he is looking for he wants a more bouncy sound when he listens to music.

Mikey may be a new yorker but likes be honest this boy would thrive of Cali's vibes and just oozes the setro type of a California person. From how he talks and carries himself not to mention his Cali accent is hard to miss. Surf just ties into all of this Mikey if he could would love to surf! is why he loves to skateboard so much and loves the half pipe Donnie made just for him. He wants so badly to catch the waves! Sometimes when he's skating in the Sewer tunnels and theirs some water on the ground he likes to imagine hes out on the ocean.

↺ : My muse and the past. (Do they live in the past and struggle to let go of past grievances, or move on more easily, is there anything in their past they want to forget, e.t.c.) 

"live in the past? Why do that and why worry about whats to look forward too? Nah all about the now and current vibes" This might sound like good advice but in truth Mikey actively tries to avoid the past and all the mistakes that follow. So you can say there is a lot he wants to forget he likes to cherry pick in a sense one could say. Winning the Battle Nexus? Of course he remembers that and hangs on to even seeing it as the real only achievement he has ever been able to make happen which has been an issue seeing as he rode the high of the win for a long time even to a point Splinter saw an issue with Mikey's egos due to the win.

Mikey also isn't the best about thinking about looking ahead it fills him with anxiety in truth because he just doesn't know. It's like he is being surround by mountains of work and all he can do is focus at those peaks and how high they reach. He has no clue where to start because its just all to much.

Going where he is now? it's easier he can sort of tell whats going to happen. Him and brothers will wake for breakfast. Hell annoy Raph as they make their way to the kitchen where Leo is likely already at. Don will follow soon lured by the smell of coffee that Raph got ready for them. Mikey will start on breakfast and then They will head to the dojo and train once clean up is over. Don will go back to his lab to work, Leo may do some one on one work with Splinter, Raph might stay home or sneak away up top. Maybe its junkyard day and they head out to look for stuff. It may be friday so Mikey will call up April and such to see who wants to join movie night. some things change here and there but over all it's the same and he take comfort in all of this.

Even when things changes routines are still there, Don and Raph move out and have kids but they come by and Mikey gets to play the babies. The whole family still gets together here and there it just easier to live in his current point. It often why his mistakes can catch up to him like his mistake of joining the foot clan. Donnie asked him about his future and it set him off. He struggles with who he is and what use he even has with his family looking to the past is littered with mistakes but to the future is uncertain and open ended answers.

☾ : My muse and sleep. (How much they sleep, how much they wish to sleep, if there is something that never fails to put them to sleep, e.t.c.) 

"Gotta get those z's every now and then, early to sleep early to rise or stay up late to get more time." Mikey is someone who goes to bed at a somewhat decent time it just kind of depends. he always likes to settle down with a movie or comic and tends to pass out when his eyes have tried out this isn't always the same time every night. Sometimes hes out early sometimes hes out late. He doesn't have much trouble sleeping unless there's a lot of noise like the times he had to share a room with Raph who snores loud. But to everyone one annoyance I feel no matter how tried Mikey is? He don't have an off switch he can always seem to just get a second wind and be well Mikey.

✧ : My muse and art. (If they have an artistic side or not and why, favourite artist if they have one, e.t.c.) 

"I love it! well I mean I like street art at least and painting my skateboards, so i got a few for that reason."

Mikey loves art but he's not versed in it's history type of art lovers. So he doesn't know the classics he knows him and his brothers were named after artist but he doesn't known much about them just that they were old artist guys in the past but will make reference to his name sake at times. Art isn't a big thing for him he's always colored with crayons as a kid and ate them of course. Like to give some character to things such as the decks of his boards and he has tried his hand at nail art. Something that improves over time if he has the right supplies that is of course.

❃ : My muse and social media. (If the muse is/would be on social media and why/why not, their general opinion on it, e.t.c.) 

"Course I use it, how I find out about comic releases and catch up on story lines."

Mikey was able to see the start of alot of more know Socials today. He had an account on friendster mostly for the games later on till it shut down. He had a myspace and loved to customize his profile with all sorts of widgets.Hasn't touched it in years! He went on to forums mostly and 4chan of course for comics so he could track down issues he was search for and there was always someone online who could offer help on how to get it. He's part of a few online friend circles from comics books to people who have seen glimpses of the turtles and talk about it online, he thinks it's funny and sometimes messes with them. He'll see them pick up common locations they spot them and will go there to just give them more to share. It's a harmless prank on his end and something he keeps to himself he don't need his brothers ruin his fun after all.

Mikey also has a twitter account mostly for comic related stuff but he likes to post pictures of the weird stuff in New York most people know weird creatures come around in the city since the Tricerton Invasion so it's harmless.

✉  : My muse and others. (If they social and outgoing or more introverted, and why. If they prefer communicating with others face to face or in written form, e.t.c.). 

"I love meeting new people! Those other turtle can be tots annoying sometimes ya know? Gotta shake it up."

Mikey is very social if he dosen't vibe with someone right off the bat there usually a good reason even monstrous creatures like Leatherhead or Quarry where Mikey understandable was scared of them when first meeting them. Was able to see the good in Leatherhead and try to befriend him and soon saw Quarry wasn't like the other mutants if annoyed by how much of a scardy cat they could be ironic considering himself. Or like with April where he was first to openly speak to her with out any hesitation. Mikeys pretty good about befriending anyone really shown when it comes to the superhero charaters in the show. Mikey was able to Befriend Sliver Sentry with ease even with them feeling he was getting in the way and even the more aloof Nobody. His friendly welcoming nature just seems to be a natural draw for a lot of people no mater the species.

Dosen't mean he gets along with everyone he meets but he can at least up to points stand some people a be a bit more tolerable. Takes a special someone to be annoying to mikey *cough* Casey *cough*

Mikey is just very very social and he craves interaction because of it. Which can get annoying for his older brothers who are all more independent and such. Mikey will often just go into a room with one of them and linger about of course not quietly he just needs to be around someone is all. Like when hell go into Don's lab and rant on about something stupid in his comics he knows they aren't listening or care much he just likes that Don will let him do it. He loves spending time with his brothers the most, so those Friday night movies are always his favorite.

When it comes to talking Mikeys prefers it be face to face. Likely due to him having a lot of empathy for others it just easier for him to gauge the other person's feelings. Written or text is hard for him to convey a tone from. Hearing their voice, seeing their face? He just feels the best way to communicate is face to face. This is also why he is willing to step back from Ariel when she got upset with him and wait for her to come to him. He wouldn't have that talk any other way with her. It's why he and Summer never had this blow up her Dad's made sure to make her feel she can express her thoughts after all and in a way she has taken one some traits from Mikey because of this. So they had their own talk she knows Mikey regrets what he did and knows how torn up over it he is as well. It why he dose the same with each of his brothers when serious things come up those one on one talks are just too important.

▶ : My muse and level of education. (If the muse has some form of education, what education they perhaps wish they had, e.t.c.). 

"uhhh I mean whatever Splinter teaches me I guess?"

And yet Mikey isn't even the worse of Splinters students. Mikey is for sure that kid who learns in a different way than most. He has the most raw talent out of his brothers and he knows the same things they do like Chi Gong breathing techniques when they went to space. But as show during the Ninja tribunal season Mikey is a active learner being told how to do something or reading it doesn't work he man retain the information like when he and Splinter were dealing with mr.touch and mr. Go he showed he could in fact use his mind when it came to a fight and come up with some good plans. He just has to apply it in ways he can understand.

◐ : My muse and animals. (If they like animals and treat them well, do not care for them at all, e.t.c.). 

"I love animals I don't know what I do with out Klunk and Klunk jr."

Mikey is a lover of cute animals one could say like cats and Chickens of course like Sonny and Cher ;3; Mikey is also a sucker for his pet cat Klunk who is for sure Mikey's furbaby. Klunk knows hes got a nice gig in the lair so never strays far from them and for sure has kept other rats away from getting into the lair since they got a cat around. He often lets his brothers pet him or sets him on thier laps because he knows animals are good for mental health. Which is why he is so attached Klunk became her emotional support animal after some time. And im sure as you can tell by a mention in his comment there is a second Klunk in his life.

Sadly even with the life of luxray Klunk lived with the turtle Klunk wasn't going to live forever. Based on color alone I would say Klunk is and orange Tabby and they can live for 20 years at the latest. Most only 10 to 16 years. Roughly well say it was 2004 when Mikey found Klunk whoe was just a kitten at the time so Klunk could live and be around a god long while. And as BTTS showed Klunk was still around then. But not in the 07 movie and based on how I sor tof timeline things here 03 -> 07 -> FF/BBTS (?) this would in a way make a gap with out a cat and just hit harder on Mikey being lonely. But Klunk was a alley cat in a sense and was free to roam as they got bigger. Met female cat and Im sure you can see where I leading to. Mikey soon finds a cat that looks just like Klunk and take them in as Klunk jr.

❒ : My muse and gifts. (If they are good/bad at finding gifts, good/bad at receiving gifts, good/bad at wrapping gifts, e.t.c.) 

"I mean I love getting them that for sure."

I feel Mikey is pretty decent at giving gifts hell recall something someone said they liked before and come across something similar like say April mentioned as a kid she loved a certain character and Mikey happens across something of that old character so he brings it to her. It was a passing comment but he tends to hang on to that information.

☘ : My muse’s relation with their family. (If they speak with each other and how much, if they are close or estranged, e.t.c.). 

"I love them really all there is to say on that, I know my brothers and I fight. I know they fight. I know we make mistakes but...I also know we always have each other and always will have each other." Mikey is the baby of his family through and through and sometimes it can be annoying since his brothers often look at him as younger. Sure over time they learn to see him on their own level. and even seems to earn their respect. Mikey dose look up to all of his brothers in different ways and for different reasons and in a way he sort of idolizes them.

Don kind of Spoils Mikey because he dose give into thier whims a lot and its kind of made Mikey feel Don can fix anything from whatever tech issue is going on to other problems as well like when Mikey is feeling Don it's Donnie he goes to. Mikey needs interaction so bad or he gets kind of down and Donnie is the less likely to be annoyed with him so he fixes Mikey in a sense.

Raph and Mikey can have a sort of love hate relationship. Mikey being the annoying little brother and Raph the disgruntle older one. Mikey dose know Raph cares about him and knows he will protect him and look out for him. Raph can mess with Mikey but anyone else tries? They are dead.

Leo Ive said it alot here but Leo is who Mikey is closest to. Leo is often the only one who dose have faith in Mikey's abilities and acknowledges his talents but often has to be stern and tell mikey to focus. Mikey loves heros and to him Leo is his own personal hero for those reasons alone and it's why he listens to Leo not to mention why he is so close to them.

Splinter He is dad and Mikey is good about listening to his Dad sometimes. Mikey dose sometimes feel he isn't always measuring up well compared to his brothers and must be failing his dad. But he feels close enough to express these worries to Splinter they have a very good relationship and Mikey spends hours talking to Splinter. They often crack jokes together honestly they might be an awful combo because of Splinters savage ways.

Casey is the one person in the world that can actually annoy Mikey and that is a thing to say XD However Mikey dose see Casey as another big brother of his sometimes his favorite outside Leo. Cause Casey will often listen to Mikey's complaints seriously unlike his brothers will. If he whines about not being able to find a comic Casey suggests a place that may just have it and offer to take him. Casey also tends to play along with Mikey's antics at times very much how an adult will be wowed by a younger kids statements to match their energy. But Casey pretty much a big kid himself it's why he can match Mikeys energy it seems. its why he trs to be there for Casey during the break up.

Yvonne is someone you might think wouldn't get along to well with mikey due to her serious nature but she is Mikeys gal pal. They like to trash talk over whine and watch chick flicks. They have girls night along with April and later the girls when they are teens. Von is also kind of the branch that helped Mikey more embrace his feminine side shes kind of like a safety net in a sense. Because she has a habit of needing to use example and such it helps mikey see that him feeling like he genderfuild is not werid and dosen't make him different its just another thing that make him Mikey. He was one of two who really wanted him to get together with Don but because it meant she would be his sister.

Summer/Ariel- Ill drive more into stuff on Summers answers but over all Mikey loves his nieces and used to take part in kidnapping them both when they were babies. Often the last option as babysitter but it was more like playdates. he might be thier uncle/aunt/auncle but it follows more th logic of im the older kid between them. Mikey always had very good friendships with the both of them. He's sort of like this break from adults because like what Casey did for him i feel he dose for his nieces offers them someone they can talk to in a way they can't other adults. It why he was shocked by Ariels turn on him he just felt everything was fine because as stated Mikey is someone who needs to talk to know whats going on but Ariel is too much like her own parents and it didn't help that everyone seemed to just mov eon from everything. So when she snapped at him sudeenly of course it hurt him a lot. He didn't know how much what he did would effect her nor was he ware how it affected Don. He loves her and of course wanted to fix it but because he loves her he gave her the space she seemed to need at the time. Dose make him wonder if they were as close as he thought they always were.

[yugiohz]

my chainsaw man review :) major spoilers be warned

Genre: I think it’s funny how, for the most part, csm makes it a point to repeatedly mock the hero archetype only for the story to have a VERY heroic ending with the city getting attacked by a Devil and Denji getting ready to fight it’s oddly satisfying .

World building: initially, I was left very dissatisfied with the world building: csm establishes several interesting elements, it never really bothers to expand on these, let alone explain its magic system but halfway through the story it becomes clear that csm is much less about the world/magic system/an abstract us vs them conflict and much more about how everything relates to Denji’s character, so in hindsight I don’t mind the lack of in-depth world-building because it’s a character-driven story, which I did not expect but enjoyed and even prefer tbh.

Which brings me to my next point

Characters: as I said, it’s a character-driven story and thus focuses heavily on Denji, which on one hand is great because he’s an intriguing protagonist but on the other, every other character falls very flat next to him, which I personally don’t mind since it’s easy to only focus on Denji but yeah I did notttt care about 90% of the cast. Power is a really fun character and Aki is cute but outside of the main trio I really did not care about who dies and who survives.

The one thing that lowered csm’s enjoyment factor significantly for me was the female characters’ writing; every non-Power csm can be reduced to one quirky characteristic and I could not care less about himeno (had to google her name) dying she’s so pathetic im sorryyyy but she needs to work on her issues and stop pining after boys that are significantly younger than her it was a bit repulsing rip.

Theme: I think csm’s strength definitely lies in its theme of consumption and how it reflects the diegetic power politics. Food/consumption metaphoric is rlly nice in general and csm implements it really well for a manga, it was easy to catch on quickly and anticipate more and the ending was very satisfying so all in all interesting theme, nice development and good closure. I know there’s also religious themes but I didn’t really notice those tbh but there’s videos on that I’m gonna watch maybe it’s gonna change my general opinion who knows,.

Anyway back to the theme of consumption, I really loved that oneeee, it’s straightforward but nice nonetheless. I really like how the food immediately reflects Denji’s (lack of) power and his vulnerability throughout the chapters: The manga opens with Denji being forced to eat a cigarette (non-edible // Denji is an abandoned child) to eating rotten food (a bit more edible // still alone) to eating basic food (edible but really odd combination (the sandwich)// lives with aki so he’s slowly socializing) to eating fancy food in a restaurant (big change // socializing, Denji has worth) to eating Makima (climax). It’s interesting how his triumph over her is different from manga like a*t (sorry) where it’s violent mid-fight consumption. Instead, he takes his time to prepare her as a meal which emphasizes his newly-gained agency through this deliberate performance, which is really important I think because throughout the manga, several adult women take advantage of his vulnerability and powerlessness so yeah the final cannibalistic act is nice because it reflects denji’s development and growth so well, albeit morbidly.

Narrative foils: Lastly I don’t want to get too much into the grooming, I think on one hand it’s definitely meant to emphasize Denji’s vulnerability so it has a right to exist in the story, on the other it quickly turns voyeuristic (and fetishistic) which I could only side-eye it is what it is. One thing I’ll say is that Makima wasn’t really a complex/interesting antagonist to me, she works well and is the perfect antagonist for this very specific protagonist (denji as a very limited focalising protagnoist vs Makima as an omniscient but closed antagonist) but outside of their antithetic dynamic, I think she’s boring but I also know the author did not have me in mind when he wrote csm so it’s whatever jskncd.

LASTLY csm has some reallyyyyyy really beautiful paneling and art I loved taking my time to stare at some pages I am sooo obsessed with the gun devil (?)’s attack and how the death count was displayed so neatly in front of the silent visual chaos, also the whole snowball scene was cinema!!!!

6.5/10 I think but im not sure im so bad with concrete ratings let’s say it was a ride.

[jadeofblades]

saigokumota for the character bingo :3

Sorryyy this took a while, but anyways prepare for Brain Rot

First things first, Shuichi. Oh my God this man,, he is my everything. I want him and I want to be him at the same time. It gets lowkey so annoying when ppl (mainly ppl who hate him) reduce him to just this emo waawaa boy who should've went instead of Kaede. Sure its sad to not have gotten a female protag but I think to throw away his growth (that wasn't Just from that) because of it,, sucks.

I put a /j for the ship thing because I think most shuichi ships are quite good.... minus Saiouma. God. Sorry to my followers/moots that like them but to put lightly I cannot stand that pairing it makes my ass itch.

Ignore my ugly stars </3 anyways, Kaito!! He is such a bright guy oh my goshhh, and you know me when I see a character with a color palette thats made up of my fave colors (in this case, purple) I go go nuts. He's a goofy funky man and the autism rays are Beaming from him, its unreal.

I need. People. To stop. Calling him dumb!!! I'm sick of it!! He may be loud, he may be impulsive, and he may not think things through a lot. But that does NOT make one stupid. He's still an astronaut (a damn good one at that, even if at times it doesn't always shine through when it should) and he is not a completely oblivious dude, sheesh. Also like,,,, could we stop with the whole homophobic comment thing? Yes we shouldn't just gloss over it but idk, to immediately jump to a character being So Horrible due to saying one thing like that is kinda shit.

Last, but certainly not least, GONTAAA. Fuck man he is so wonderful and nice and gorgeous looking I want to cry and die for him. It sucks so so bad he didn't get more moments to shine because I truly think he could've grown so well if he got to live even just a lil longer. Also like his story is so?? Tragic?? He may not show much sadness for being shunned by his rich family due to being raised and cared for by his forest family but Boy,

...... Sighhhhhh, can we stop babying this man so much, fandom? Gonta is a grown ass man who studies living creatures as his talent. HE KNOWS WHAT SEX IS!!! HE KNOWS HOW TO READ, AND WRITE, AND DRAW GOOD ASS DIAGRAMS OF BUGS!!! I am so tired of the fact that just because he talks a certain way or thinks a certain way (and is quite ND coded, cough) Gonta gets put down like he's a child when he Isn't. Biting and killing!

So yeah, it's funny how these three are kinda similar with how my opinions are laid out, but it's kinda cool how different they are despite so if that makes sense.

[jinmukangwrites]

@damianwayneweek 6 (6-18): Baby Damian | Family bonding | First crush

Warnings: none

Notes: Short, sweet, barely edited cuz it's 1am. Please enjoy some de-aged Damian and frazzled Dick. Yes I'm back on my Damian and Dick bullshit. I just love them so much.

-o-o-o-o-

Three days, according to Zatanna. The magic that hit Damian isn't permanent, and should wear off on its own within three days.

Dick already doesn't know what to do with himself. He was hardly prepared to take over and raise a ten year old, let alone a toddler.

But here he is, sitting in the manor living room watching as a small version of his already little brother toddles around on chubby baby legs. He can't be more than two. He can walk around on his own well enough—though Alfred did block off all of the stairs in the manor anyways—and every so often he'll point at something and say... Something that sounds like a demand.

Dick wasn't really ever good with understanding baby gibberish. It doesn't help that Damian seems to have reverted in memories as well... so the things he's demanding probably aren't in English as it's not his first language.

Damian wobbles up to Dick, holding out a toy train that Alfred dug out from the attic that used to belong to Bruce. Dick takes it and thanks him, but Damian pays him no mind and returns to his toys, babbling about something only he understands.

It's so weird seeing him like this. All small, chubby, soft, and bright eyed. Dick doesn't know everything Damian has gone through... growing up in the League... and as much as Dick dislikes Talia, he knows she was the best mom she could be to him. She's raised him to be a smart, strong young man, and taught him to be able to protect himself in his dangerous surroundings... and of course Dick has known Damian long enough to have gotten through his walls and see the wonderful boy underneath, but as he watches this toddler squeal as another toy train turns on and runs on its own...

He cannot help but mourn the child Damian could have been. Should have been if every child in the world had the privilege of growing up in a safe home and no worries besides homework.

He shakes his head. He cannot think like that. Whatever child Damian could have grown into if he hadn't been raised by the League is still in there. Just a bit harder to bring out. Dick can feel himself getting closer every day.

Damian notices him shaking his head and makes a curious ah sound. He walks over to Dick, lifting his arms, and Dick assumes he wants to be lifted. He smiles at the kid and grabs him under the armpits and lifts him into the air perhaps a bit quicker than what he was expecting. The kid screeches as Dick lifts him over head and let's go for just a moment to catch him and bring him back down to his face.

Damian scowls a familiar scowl and hits Dick on the nose with his stubby little fingers.

"Bah," he scolds, and a laugh bursts from Dick's throat.

Yup, Damian is still in there.

-o-o-o-o-

"I'm beginning to understand why B adopted all of us when we were already in elementary," Dick complains as baby Damian screams in his wooden high chair—yet another thing dug up from the attic that probably belonged to Bruce.

Alfred hands Dick a rag with a smirk. The thrown bowl of mac-and-cheese is all over Dick's shirt.

"Master Bruce always had a tenderness for infants," Alfred replies as he uses another rag to wipe off the still screaming and complaining Damian. "He always found joy in finding whatever excuse he could to hold and play with a baby. We used to go to a church when he was still a child himself, and there was a woman there without a husband who would always bring her infant. He would always offer to hold the child for her during the sessions to give her a break."

There's a twinkle in his eye when he looks over at Dick. "I imagine that if this had happened to you, or your other siblings, when he was still around, he would have loved every second of it. Food throwing, tantrums, and all."

Dick can't help but smile. He looks over at Damian who's now kicking his legs and waving his now clean hands in a fit. "Still, I wonder what's making him so mad."

"He might not like the taste," Alfred says, "or the texture. Perhaps some experimentation is due."

After some expiration and a lot of screaming through baby lungs that couldn't possibly hold that much air, they find that Damian really likes tomato soup, apple sauce, and broccoli.

-o-o-o-o-

"Master Dick," Alfred speaks up on the first evening while they were showing Damian Pooh's Heffalump Movie. Dick was relaxing and watching the movie, trying to remember if he's seen this one or not, while Damian was on the floor playing with an old kitten stuffed animal.

"Yeah?" Dick asks. He looks over at Alfred, only to see Alfred raise an eyebrow down at Damian. Dick follows his look, then his stomach drops when he finds that under the recently shopped for infant clothes, is a full looking diaper.

Dick looks back up at Alfred.

"Please, god, no."

Alfred drops a diaper, a bag of wipes, and a cloth into Dick's hands. "Good luck, sir."

-o-o-o-o-

Dick's about to lose his mind. He did everything Alfred told him to. He read a bedtime story—Where the Wild Things Are, as it was Dick's personal favorite as a child. He made sure his diaper was clean. He turned on some white noise. He even gave him Zitka. Yet, everything he did, Damian would scream and sob in his borrowed crib until Dick picked him up and started to sing the lullabies sung to him as a child. He sings the ones from his own native language, and even though there's no way Damian understands Romani, the kid calms down and reduces to exhausted little hiccups and almost seems to fall asleep with his little fingers curled in Dick's shirt.

And the second Dick puts him down, the crying rekindles.

Dick doesn't know what to do. Damian cries and cries until he's held and sung to, but Dick can't hold and sing to him all night. He paces Damian's room, bouncing the aforementioned kid-turned-infant in his arms, mumbling tunes to whatever lullaby decides to leave his lips.

Alfred told him he has permission to wake him up if he needed anything with Damian through the night, but Dick can't bring himself to. Alfred already works so hard during the day and night, keeping the manor in shape and making sure Dick doesn't get himself killed during patrol... He shouldn't have to be relied on to take care of a grumpy baby that won't go to sleep.

No, no Dick can handle this. Damian is calm when he's held and sung to, so that's what Dick will do. He walks to the cradle and pulls out Zitka, then goes to his own bedroom to sit on his bed and holds Damian close to his chest, singing and bouncing him gently.

Eventually, Damian goes completely still against his chest, snoring slightly, but Dick's too fearful to risk anything now. He stops singing though, resorting to simply holding Damian and trying to keep his own eyes open.

He fails, but he wakes up in the morning with Damian laying on his chest, still fast asleep and drooling all over his shirt.

Dick doesn't look a gift-horse in the mouth. He shifts into a better position, then allows them both to sleep in a little longer.

-o-o-o-o-

Alfred discovers the problem quickly when Dick tells him how hard it was to get Damian to sleep. Turns out, Damian's teething. By noon, Alfred had returned from the closest grocery store with a few tools to help with that. He puts a few water filled plastics into the fridge, then gives Damian one to chew on in the meantime. And chew on it, Damian does. He gets slobber everywhere, but at least he's no longer so upset, especially once a cold one is exchanged into his grubby little hands.

-o-o-o-o-

"That's absolutely adorable," Barbara says over the phone. Dick's just finished sending her a massive amount of pictures he's taken of Damian after taking him outside to play in the backyard with the dogs. He's sent her the pictures mostly because he needs people to see how cute Damian is while trying to tackle a dog twice the size of him... but also partly because he gets the feeling once Damian's back to his normal age, he will make sure all evidence of this is destroyed.

Barbara is someone Dick's sure can keep pictures hidden in a safe place... just in case Dick wants to see them again after lying to Damian he deleted them.

-o-o-o-o-

Dick's beginning to understand why people like babies. Like, they're cute, yes. The sounds they make are cute sometimes too. The things they find funny are usually very goofy and enjoyable to watch. Their laughs are contagious, and their babbles are enjoyable to try and decipher...

But nothing beats watching them sleep, curled up against your chest. Full trust in you that you'll keep them safe. It's nap time, and instead of trying to peel Damian off from him and put him in the crib, he's decided to just let the kid pass out in his arms and use the opportunity to take a nap himself.

Apparently it's bad to always let babies sleep with you, but Damian's not going to be this small forever. Might as well enjoy holding him like this in pure peace while he can.

-o-o-o-o-

It seems Zatanna was generous with her prediction, as he wakes up with his breath being knocked out of him. Damian, his rightful age and dressed in his full Robin uniform, scrambles off of Dick's chest. It's all knees and elbows, and Dick's left rubbing his ribs as Damian pats his body, as if making sure he's really a 10 year old boy and not an infant.

"Good to have you back," Dick grunts, rubbing his eyes and holding back a grin.

Damian whirls on him and points an accusing finger. "I don't remember what all happened," he hisses, "but you will delete any photos immediately."

Dick bursts into laughter, grabbing Damians pointed hand and tugging him into a proper hug. Damian squawks just a little, but relents when Dick squeezes him tighter than what he would to an infant. Yes. This feels right. Baby Damian was cute and cuddly, but he really missed the prickly attitude of this rascal.

"Okay," he says, releasing his charge. "I'll delete the photos, after we tell Alfred you're back and you've changed out of the suit."

Damian huffs and nods. "That was horrible."

"I don't know, I thought it was fun," Dick teases. Damian glares at him and Dick grins back.

Yeah, he missed his kid.

[awritingtree]

The Complications of Friendship and Love

James Potter x reader, very little Sirius Black x reader, James Potter x Lily Evans

@wand3ringr0s3‘s 1.9k follower writing challenge: Angst prompt 5. “I never thought something could hurt this bad.” The prompt has been bolded :)

Summary: Being best friend’s with your ex is complex. But adding your best friend dating your ex? Things got a whole lot more complicated.

Words: 2.4k

Warnings: angst, low self-confidence talks, friendship betrayals, unrequited love, 1 swear word

A/N: jsdf I’m sorry this took so long love <3 I wrote half of it and then lost motivation and then got back to it after so long 😂 anyways I hope you all enjoy it xx

Next part: The Benefits of Friendship and Love

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

Y/N Y/L/N had believed that James Potter was her one true love; the person she was going to spend the rest of her life with. But there she sat in her Potions class watching her two best friends giggling and flirting with each other wondering where did she go wrong?

“Are you sure you want this?” he asked, not glancing at her.

“Of course I do, James,” Y/N replied, bewildered he would even think about asking her such a question.

“It’s just- I’ll be really busy you know. With quidditch, NEWTs coming up and being head boy, I won’t have a lot of time to give you,” James explained.

“I don’t care about that. As long as I’m with you, nothing else matters.”

James didn’t get a chance to say anything as Sirius just plopped down next to Y/N, throwing a hand over her shoulder. “What are you two talking about?”

“Nothing,” said James before launching into a conversation with Remus about prefect duties.

“Right, nothing,” sighed Y/N, picking at her food.

“Hey, can we talk?” Lily’s voice snapped Y/N out of her daydream. Her eyes connected with the grey eyes of Sirius Black before she turned around to face Lily with a smile, “Of course, Lils.”

“Can we go somewhere...” Lily looked around the courtyard, “a bit more private?” she finished.

Y/N nodded, stringing her bag around her shoulder as she followed Lily towards the Black Lake. It was a rare warm day at the beginning of October of their seventh year. The grounds were filled with students soaking up the remnants of the warm sun before a cold, harsh winter took over.

Lily led Y/N to a secluded area near the edge of the Black Lake. She stood there, rocking back and forth on her heels, wiping her hands on her uniform every few seconds. She took a deep breath, turning to face her best friend. Her forehead creased, her bottom lip pulled in between her teeth, nibbling down on it.

“Is everything alright?” asked Y/N softly, concerned at her best friend’s behaviour.

“Yes- well um no. I guess- I just need to tell you something. Promise me you’ll listen to the whole thing before speaking?”

Y/N nodded; her eyebrows furrowed in worry. What could Lily possibly have to say that’s gotten her so anxious?

“I want to start by saying I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done what I did, especially without talking to you first. James and I, we’ve been dating. Since a few weeks ago before the term started. We didn’t tell you because I knew it’d hurt you and none of us wanted that. We’ve broken up now. We talked a few days ago. I- we couldn’t carry on like that, not when we knew what we were doing would hurt our best friend. I knew you liked him, and I still said yes, and I shouldn’t have done that, especially after he hurt you so badly. I know you’re upset; we shouldn’t have hidden it from you in the first place, but we’re over now.”

Lily looked up suddenly, shocked to hear Y/N laugh. Not a hurt, mocking laugh but a genuine laugh as if she had heard something really funny.

“I know, Lily,” Y/N said giggling, “You all did an extremely bad job at hiding it.”

“Really? And you’re not upset?” Lily asked nervously.

“Of course not, silly. But I do think you’ve both gone mad. Absolute bonkers. How could you ever think I would stand in the way of my two best friends’ happiness?” Y/N asked with a small smile.

“I can’t. We can’t do that to you.”

“Rubbish! You’re not doing anything to me. Go, be with him. Be happy, both of you.”

A grin made its way onto the redhead’s face she jumped onto the Y/H/C, squeezing the life out of her.

“Thank you! Thank you so much. You’re the best,” Lily shouted as she ran back towards the castle. She turned her head to see her best friend with a small smile on her face, what she didn’t see were the tears gathering in her eyes and how her face fell once she was alone. What she failed to see was the sight of her best friend falling onto her knees, breaking down once again.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

Sirius, Remus and Peter found Y/N sitting against a tree, face resting on top of her knees drawn to her chest. They all grimaced at the sight of her blotchy face and red-rimmed eyes. She looked so broken.

“You knew, didn’t you?” she whispered, continuing to stare at the still lake before her.

Sirius, Remus and Peter stayed silent not knowing what to say. They did know from the beginning. James came back home shouting about it as soon as it happened. They were asked not to tell her and so they didn’t, a big mistake on their part they realized a little too late.

“Leave me alone” requested Y/N, her voice hoarse from crying.

“Y/N/N, we are-” started Remus.

“Please, just go,” she pleaded weakly. She had no energy left to do anything anymore. Her heart hurt too much. She’d wasted all her energy trying to be enough for a boy who wanted nothing to do with her; all for nothing.

“Alright. But we are sorry Y/N,” said Remus softly.

“We’re here if you need anything,” Peter went on.

Y/N didn’t reply. She made no acknowledgement that the words reached her ears. She continued to stare at the still water, a defeated look on her face. Remus and Peter turned to walk back to the castle. Sirius sighed and took a step towards Y/N, ignoring the pointed look Remus sent him. He leaned down to press a soft kiss against her head.

“We really are sorry, love,” he mumbled before following his best friends back to the castle.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

A few months passed by. The weather got colder; the wind got harsher. The leaves changed colours and fell. The green grass began to get covered with white snow. All through this, Lily and James got stronger. Every girl was envious of their relationship. The golden couple, they were known as throughout the school.

Meanwhile, Y/N continued to suffer on the sidelines, never showing anyone how badly she was hurting. She wore a bright smile, fake to anyone who really looked. Sirius, Remus and Peter noticed it, she had begun to pull away from all of them, spending all her time in the library when she could, sitting with other people during meals. Anytime they approached her she would cut the conversation short saying she had somewhere to be. The times where she did stick around them, she wasn't the talkative Y/N they knew and loved but a shell of her former self.

Y/N felt disgusted with herself for the hate and anger she had begun to feel towards her best friend. It was justified in her eyes, but she knew no one else would see it that way; she would be considered too dramatic, petty and honestly, a bitch. Due to this fear, Y/N kept quiet about how she felt about the situation. She couldn’t rant to Remus, Sirius, Peter, Marlene, Alice or Dorcas. The only person she could rant to, who would understand her completely or otherwise not judge her, was the sole cause of all her problems in the first place.

James Potter not only ripped her heart right out of her chest and stomped all over it but also left her alone with no one she could talk to, making her spiral into a whirl of self-hate and loneliness with nothing to keep her from drowning.

“What happened to not having enough time to be in a relationship?”, “Be more like Lily then maybe we’d like to hang out with you more”, “Look at Lily, she’s beautiful and she takes care of herself” were the only thoughts that swirled through Y/N’s head on repeat. Her self-worth was reduced to the size of a speck of dust, ready to be blown away into the open by the lightest of breaths. Sirius had noticed her change in mannerisms, clothes, tone of voice; almost everything and it made his heartache. He watched from afar as she continued to distance herself; not that anyone could blame her. But it appeared that her absence went unnoticed by everyone, except by him, Remus and Peter. Not even her best friend noted the lack of her presence; too involved in her new boyfriend and busy making new friends.

Y/N soon found comfort in her friends from Ravenclaw, particularly Dave. He understood how she felt; not completely but a bit was better than nothing. He was someone she could rant about James and Lily to without the fear of judgement. Dave and Lily had broken up a few months before she’d started dating James; turns out she had liked James throughout their relationship, using it as a backup since James was showing interest in her best friend at that time. But in the end, not even the friendship of Dave was enough to fill up the empty void inside her, the gaping hole that she believed only one person could close.

Y/N was broken, like a mirror shattered into a thousand pieces and the glue that could put her back together was only in one person’s possession.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

Y/N wanted to cry; she wanted to break things, thrash a whole room as she collapsed under the weight of her sobs. She wanted to scream into the void until her throat ached, her voice hoarse and raw. She wanted to shout at Lily for deceiving her; for pretending to care all these years. She wanted to yell at the universe, asking what she had done to deserve this. She wanted to punch James, break his nose for destroying her. Y/N Y/L/N had lost herself and she was nowhere to be found.

Y/N knew everyone would pick Lily if it came to it. Everyone always picked Lily; she was the much more favourable and lovable choice. It hadn't bothered Y/N much at first, she would gladly pick Lily first over herself too, but it started to get too much when people she was close to first - she’d introduced Lily to (such as the Marauders) - chose her. The last straw was drawn when James, the only person in the world Y/N had thought would never abandon her; tossed her aside like a second choice, opted for her. The person she revealed her deepest, darkest secrets to; whom she told things she’d never imagined telling another living, breathing soul had thrown her without a second thought, without any regret, onto the side of the road like rubbish without glancing back once to see the damage he’d caused. He’d promised he wouldn’t turn out like the rest. He’d promised to her.

Maybe it was all her fault. She gave her everything to him; her heart and soul, all her time, her first kiss, amongst other things whether she wanted to or not. There were days where she wondered whose fault it really was. Was it her? Was she not pretty enough? Lily Evans was beautiful; no one could deny it, you looked like a tiny twinkling star next to the glowing moon. Surprisingly the only person that comprehended what a first kiss and relationship meant to Y/N was Sirius Black, the notorious player of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He was the only one who’d not told her to get over it and instead held her hand through the period of time when she had needed someone to rely on.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

“Y/N! Wait! Y/N/N!” Y/N reluctantly slowed down, waiting for the person calling her name to catch up to her. She found herself in the company of Sirius, Remus, and Peter once a hand quickly grabbed her and pulled her to the side of the corridor.

“What do you want?” she asked impatiently. She just wanted to go back to her common room and sleep - an evening of peace - but the universe was against her, as usual.

Peter looked around nervously at the tone of her voice whilst Remus looked as if he’d been expecting this reaction.

Sirius raised an eyebrow in question, “Have somewhere to be, do you?”

“Yes actually.”

Sirius sighed before his mouth pulled into a wide cheerful smile choosing to be the bigger person, “Well we’re all sneaking out to Hogsmeade later if you wanted to join us.”

“No thank you. I’m busy,” Y/N said pushing her way from between them and walking away.

“How long are you going to keep this up!?” he yelled after her, irritated.

Y/N froze, anger bubbling through her blood and she turned on her heel slowly to face him.

“What?” she asked slowly, her teeth gritted, and her free hand clenched in a fist.

“Padfoot, don’t,” Remus muttered in warning, placing a hand on Sirius’ arm.

“No Moony,” Sirius said shrugging his hand off, “Someone needs to tell her that enough is enough.”

“Enough? Enough!?” Y/N laughed taking a step closer to Sirius with every sentence. “Enough was when my best friend decided to date my ex despite him breaking my heart not once, not twice but three times! Enough was when my best friend decided to date the boy who left me shattered behind my back! Enough was when my best friends knew about all this and chose to keep it from me!

“Enough was when all my friends left me stranded alone.”

The pain she’d locked up inside washed over her, her knees buckling beneath her. Sirius moved swiftly, gathering her in his arms before she hit rock bottom. Y/N clutched his shirt in her fists, soaking it as she sobbed against his chest.

“I never thought something could hurt this bad,” her voice broke, tugging Sirius’ heartstrings. Y/N’s heart ached; her chest physically hurting as it constricted her heart. The pain was too much to handle; the wound tearing open and blood smearing the ears of whom the sounds of her anguish fell upon.

Sirius had always known a time like this would come. A time when he’d sit there holding the love of his life in his arms as she sobbed into his chest over his best friend, for his brother. And there was nothing he could possibly do about it.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

If you enjoyed reading this fic, please like/comment/reblog! Your opinion/feedback is welcome, appreciated, and motivating :)

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[oriigirii]

LONG ASK BECAUSE I GOT BORED AND CARRIED AWAY ALSO BECAUSE IM KINDA SELF INDULGENT BUT WHATEVER

anyway i like to assume that the canon twisted wonderland world is different from the world where the fandom's ocs are. this is because it gives me more freedom to include several ocs into my brainrot, and the school isn't much of a "boys only" or "mostly boys" school. SO i get to cheat and simp for pretty women ocs and have female ocs for my own personal entertainment.

WHICH IS WHY.. i thought it'd be funny to categorize turbule's favorite people in each dorm, whether its an oc or not :)! the only problem is i dont remember anyone's names except like- four people, including charlie so bare(?) with me 😭

POST-CHERRY HERE HI- so idk if you'd notice but I ran out of ideas in the middle of it ahskhsnd 🥲👊

*an attempt to be organized

Heartslabyul - Deuce

Okay they probably have the same thought about eggs; that's why they're homies. The only difference is that Turbule is that Turbule's still oblivious to the truth while Deuce is well- traumatized??

Savanaclaw - RUGGIE- oh wait Charlie oops

Can't decide. Ruggie's only on Charlie-favoritism level because Turbule's easily impressed by his "skills in being sneaky." Well I think that's what you call it-

Charlie's just Turbule's big brother. It's like if you took the Canon!Aduece + Grim and Yuu relationship, reduced it to two(2) people, and made it a tiny less chaotic. Turbule drags Charlie into whatever seems like a "tall person" problem that they can't solve.

Octavinelle - Deeva is Top Tier (@/deeva-arud)

DEEVA IS SO PRETTY OMG!! Udi(?) did so well in making her design snakhdksd idk maybe it'd cause she has white hair- Absolutely solos the Octavinelle trio but that's just me.

WAIT THIS IS ABOUT TURBULE'S REASONS NOT MINE ANYWAY 🤡 This is hard trying not to be OOC uhm-

I imagine Deeva and Turbule's relationship to be a mutual "I don't get you but you're chill." The only thing that separates Deeva from other Octavinelle members is that she doesn't look at Turbule like she's about to do something bad, y'know?

Scarabia - uhm, uh- Jamil. Yeah

JAMIL'S SMART BRO- I like to think that Turbule's really desperate but their dorm mates won't answer them so she asks smart people. Jamil just has to be one of those people. He doesn't have to agree, just has to acknowledge that Turbule's asking the question :')!

Pomefiore - Rook??

Rook has a cool hat. That's it. Turbule's words, not mine.

Ignihyde - e v e r y o n e

Turbule loves her dorm! They're so cool with everything to their technology, rooms, uniforms- eh? Why are they all shying away from them..?

Anyway, Turbule still doesn't hesitate to ask her dorm members for anything. Whether that be for a quick game or if they have any spare Kool-Aid. Hey, it's an essential.

Diasomnia - Alina!! from (@/tedearaminta)

I'm not gonna lie- I don't know if Turbule would know anyone in Diasomnia to reach the favorites list.

Now that I think of it, Turbule probably walked up to Alina and asked if she could braid her hair- Like, it just slipped out kind of moment 🤡

I don't know if Alina actually let them, but that's a Minta(?) thing to decide not me.

Ramshackle(?) - HIKARI >:) (@/wingblade1357)

ANOTHER FELLOW FIRST YEAR HIGH FIVE!!

I personally think on the first day, some classes have ice breaker activities. Gross, I know, but that's probably how Turbule got close with Hikari.

Reading Hikari's bio-thing for reference, but her talent is lock picking. Knowing Turbule, they probably asked for her to teach them and didn't introduce her part of the activity-

Ahhhhh this is so cute 💕💕💕 Dw i love looking at these and now i have new artists to follow so thank you for that 😩 i feel you on the struggle to keep it true to the character though 😭 (also deevas design is 👏👏👏)

Anyways heres for Charlie cause this giraffe may be quiet but hes got his own favorites haha, i made sure to put a cut here cause im definitely gonna ramble a lot so bare with me 😭

-----

》 Heartslabyul

- Deuce

It should be clear by now that Charlie is a walking orphanage, he just adopts anyone on sight, you feel lonely? congrats youre his little sibling now, man has a lotta love to give with all his height and Deuce def screams little brother energy, i mean so does Ace, but Deuce is just too precious. Also they both livin that ex-deliquent life

(side note: i took 10 minutes to remember the word deliquent and i was ready to rip my hair out cause all i can remember is 'degenerate' and it sounded so harsh 😭)

--------

》 Savanaclaw

- Ruggie (platonically) | Leona (Romantically / Rivalry)

Of course, Ruggies an obvious one here, he is, afterall, a big brother himself, so they kinda vibe a lot, he also feels bad that stinky (/lh) Leona always makes him do the chores so he helps him out

Funny thing is that, Ruggie was originally suppose to be the love itnerest for Charlie T0T but im a sucker for enemies to lovers troupe so i just made Leona into his prince charming (Although i still HC that Ruggie has one sided feelings so i can suffer)

As for Leona, theyre childhood rivals, went to the same school and everything, and saw each other quite a bit due to his mom being a seamstress and actually making clothes for Leona's family from time to time!

-------

》 Octanivelle

- Jade

The chill type, the smart boi, the plant lover, so Charlie definitely vibes with him a lot, although hes still sure to be wary, afterall you can never fully trust those smiles of his,

-------

》 Pomefiore

- Epel

I actually dont know much about Epel aside from the fact that hes that type to look soft but can kill a guy yknow? He probably lends an ear to him a lot, and he along with Deuce probably hangs out during lunch from time to time!

-----

》 Scarabia

- Kalim

SUNSHINE. That is all.

Fr this man is the sweetest kid like cmon, who doesnt like Kalim 😭 (fr who? im ready to throw hands) But yeah Charlie probably first met him when he moved and was basically adopted by the extrovert, Jamil can trust Kalim to him cause Charlie will def protect this boy with his life

--------

》 Ignihyde

- TURBULE

His wittle sister now, sorry i dont make the rules either, but yes Charlie would be quite lost in video games if it werent for her, and i imagine that sometimes he wont even play, but he definitely would watch her play, she can ramble to him about everything thats going on and hed silently try to keep up but nod along anyways 😭

-------

》 Diasomnia

- MATILDA 💕💕 (oc by @twosided-twisted-fate ) [hi fren]

Im not to familiar with too many ocs unfortunately, but Matilda will probably be one of Charlies favorite people in school, just cause shes chill like that yknow? He may not be as close to her as Wendy (my other oc) but he still think shes cool, a fellow brawler also 🫂

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

》 Ramshackle

- BABY LILITH HUHU💕 (by @twosided-twisted-fate again!)

Shes his favorite, literally gives her everything just to make her smile, braids her hair and stuff, and always brings her to his house if he visits so she can play with Asha (his little sister), theyre great friends and Charlie wouldnt have it any other way

------

》 Lostaria (Fandorm based on peterpan)

- Wendy

Def a hyper gossiper, but Charlie thinks he cool, he does try to get him out of trouble more than hed like to admit, but theyre both kinda the same deep down, they both are trying to adopt as many siblings as possible

------

Bless you for finishing reading, i definitely wrote more than i expected im sorry 😭🫂

[kunikame]

rant & slight idolish7 spoilers warning !!!!!

i verbally cannot describe how much comfort i7 brings me, genuinely. no matter how many times i watch it i just dont get bored of it, instead i notice new details and see new meanings behind certain words, scenes and actions. i love the characters so much ... theyre just so ... so adorable and relatable, you cant avoid them growing on you. the songs too !!!! the songs and characters make me so so happy, i adore them !

sogo and his violent impulses 😭 its always the quiet and composed people i swear. him collapsing from stress is very relatable. i admire his reasoning for doing music, i wish i had the same resolve HAHAHA except i vant even bring myself to tinker with my piano anymore :,)

tamaki and his childishness. it might be annoying to some, and he is very hard to deal with for sogo, but i think its endearing. hes self aware about being a bit on the dumber side but still tries his best .. i just wanna give him a hug and headpats and i hope he and aya get to be together again soon :( let the siblings be happy fr ...

yamato and his sincere want for the others to be happy and successful. what started out as a revenge mission became genuine affection toward the other 6 and i think thats amazing. he just gradually took on the role of the older brother/tired dad without even realizing and now hes stuck with them doing his best to ensure their happiness because he genuinely loves them :(

nagi and his comedic relief and wise moments ! i think nagi is reduced to simply comedic relief by most as he is just a silly pretty boy 80% of the time but hes actually very smart and theres so much we still dont know about him !! i sure hope we get some insights to him soon. and haruki aswell !!! i need to know more abt their friendship and the songs and everything !!

iori and his cute traits. he may be the youngest but he acts like the most mature (after yamato and sogo ofc) and his sincere want to ensure the success of i7 is admirable if im being honest. i adore his less composed moments though! makes me realize even picture perfect people have their quirks :) i love his friendly banters with riku and how he likes cute things and stationary and how he takes care of riku and mitsuki and and i love iori a normal amount i promise

riku and his sincerity. whatever hes feeling, you can just tell. hes so easy to take care of and while he might be insecure, hes really what holds them all together. he just shines as their center and hes so precious and his energy just makes you all warm n fuzzy and his smile just radiates joy and . i wish i could keep him in my pockets and carry him around.

mitsuki and the way i relate to him. the insecurities and being swallowed by them, running away from my problems and being the 2nd choice or not even a choice at all, not feeling good enough and just being average at everything i do, always being outshined and everything. hes so effortlessly funny and precious and i love his energy and his pretty smile and the way hes just so .. sunshine. yknow? i kin him can you tell

i could talk about i7 for ages but this is tumblr and not a fic so nobody will read it anyway HAHAHA i feel like im writing a diary entry or something. i could go on and on about how happy this show makes me even if i cry because of those specific mezzo n mitsuki insecure arcs but im gonna keep it short for this post haha

sorry i nerded out on the tl! if you read this i hope i piqued your interest in i7 (if i didnt still thank you for reading!) and if you didnt i hopr you have a great day after scrolling /gen

maybe one day when someone asks me abt i7 irl ill go on a longer rant and my eyes will sparkle and ill wave my hands around animatedly while talking about the show but then ill realize im rambling and im probably annoying and theyre not really interested but theyll be looking at me and asking me why i stopped talking except that wont happen bc fics arent real and i genuinely am annoying to most people HAHAHAHA !!!!!!!!!!

[ibijau]

Futures past pt19 / on AO3

As music lessons resume, Lan Xichen has a suggestion for Nie Huaisang

Nie Huaisang cheerfully knocked on the door, ready for his first music lesson of the year, only to be met by a decidedly grumpy Lan Xichen. The other boy tried to smile at him, tried to make conversation as usual and to ask how much he’d practiced that week, but Nie Huaisang wasn’t fooled.

“So, what’s wrong?” he asked as he set up his guqin, a little proud to show off again that he had his own instrument now. “You look so dejected that I could mistake you for your brother.”

“Let’s not talk about Wangji right now,” Lan Xichen replied, his expression turning sour. 

Now he looked like his uncle, though Nie Huaisang was too polite to say as much. It was really strange to see him so upset, and a little worrying as well, but Lan Xichen did not give him the chance to ask any questions.

“I’ve been thinking a lot while you were gone,” Lan Xichen announced with a fake smile that wasn’t fooling anyone, “and I think your level is good enough to start teaching you something a little more advanced. Shufu has given me permission to give you an introduction to some techniques we use for musical cultivation, if that interests you.”

Nie Huaisang gasped at the news.

“Really? You mean, real musical cultivation?” he asked excitedly. “The real deal? Like… like battle songs? Healing songs? You think I’m good enough?”

His earlier bad mood quickly melting away, Lan Xichen smiled warmly and came to sit next to Nie Huaisang.

“I think you’re very skilled, yes,” he said, making Nie Huaisang flush at the praise, “though it’ll be a while until you can use musical techniques in a Night Hunt. But since we have this entire year before us, I thought you could try to learn Inquiry.”

“Really?”

To confirm it, Lan Xichen merely handed Nie Huaisang a musical score, one he appeared to have copied himself. Nie Huaisang took it with trembling hands, awed to be trusted in that manner.

“The song itself is not particularly complex,” Lan Xichen explained as Nie Huaisang looked over the score, “and it can be learned and used even by someone of ordinary cultivation level. The real difficulty, and what is going to take us a while, is the Qin language needed to understand the answers given by spirits.”

His eyes still on the sheet of music, Nie Huaisang just nodded. Then, realising what he’d just heard, he looked up and stared at Lan Xichen with wide, shocked eyes.

“Isn’t that a secret Lan technique?”

“I'm not sure about 'secret' but it is an exclusive technique,” Lan Xichen confirmed, his expression turning more serious. “That’s why I had to ask for shufu’s permission before I could offer to teach you. I won’t hide that he was reluctant,” he added with a strained smile. “But I told him that I fully trust you to respect our secrets.”

Hands clenched on the music sheet, Nie Huaisang hurriedly nodded again. He couldn’t think of a bigger honour done to him. He’d never have dared to ask to be taught any Lan secret techniques, but since it was offered he would do his best to be worthy of it, and to show proper respect and gratitude.

“I also told him that having a goal of your own seemed to help you in your studies last year,” Lan Xichen added, “and that this might help you do better in your exams by giving you better motivation.”

However pleased he was that Lan Xichen would trust him, and with something that important, the reminder of his failure to do well in class made Nie Huaisang grimace, and instantly reduced his enthusiasm. “Does it mean the music lessons will be dependent on the grades I get in regular classes?”

“It’s possible that shufu came to that conclusion,” Lan Xichen replied with a mischievous smile. “But I never actually said that, and your grades are of no concern to me. I just like teaching you”

“Xichen-gege, you’re so crafty!” Nie Huaisang laughed. “Who knew you were capable of that! You’re the best, you know? I like when you teach me, too. I’ll try to be as good a student as you are a teacher!”

“I’m pleased you’d think so well of me,” Lan Xichen said, his cheeks turning a little pink. “Now, let’s get to work. I think for today, we’re just going to focus on the song itself. Then next week, if you are comfortable enough playing it, I can show you how to infuse it with your spiritual energy to have the right effect, and we can start learning Qin language.”

It sounded like a great plan, and one Nie Huaisang wholeheartedly agreed to.

Just as Lan Xichen promised, the song itself was not particularly challenging, and short enough that Nie Huaisang had good hopes of quickly learning it by heart if he just put his mind to it. He’d try to be careful not to practice it around the other Nie disciples, since it was a Lan technique, but he’d still work hard on it, and… maybe that might turn Night Hunts into something interesting at last. It should certainly make Nie Mingjue happy if his brother finally became interested in those, even if he had to use another sect’s method for it. 

It opened a world of possibilities, and Nie Huaisang promised himself to practice hard to make this happen, so both his brother and Lan Xichen would be proud of him. Or at least, as hard as he was capable, especially with all that he had to do that year. 

That would come later. The lesson having reached its conclusion for the day, Lan Xichen served tea for both of them, and offered some candies to celebrate the start of a new year of learning. By then, Lan Xichen’s mood appeared to have improved a great deal, and Nie Huaisang decided it would be fine to start the first phase of his great plan. 

"So, Xichen-gege, what do you think of this year's students?" Nie Huaisang asked innocently while grabbing some candies.

Lan Xichen's expression turned sour for a brief moment, before he got himself back under control and smiled again. 

"They are an interesting lot, certainly," he said without enthusiasm. "Are you making friends this time?" 

After taking a quick sip of tea, Nie Huaisang nodded, grinning.

"Gege, you won't believe it, but even last year I made a friend!” he announced. “Apparently, Zixun thinks I'm really cool and told his cousin about me!"

It was still really funny to him, and judging by his surprised expression, Lan Xichen hadn’t expected that either.

"Then Jin Zixun has better tastes than I expected,” Lan Xichen said with some hesitation, “and I must reconsider my opinion of him." 

"Well, me too! But I am making friends this year too, and they're nicer about it than Zixun was. Have you met Wei Wuxian yet?" 

Stopping short of drinking some tea, Lan Xichen's smile wavered. He froze for a second, and put down his glass again.

"I have,” Lan Xichen said in a tone of voice that made it plain the encounter had brought him little joy. “Jiang Cheng… I mean, Jiang gongzi came to greet me on his second day here, and Wei gongzi was with him. I suppose he was polite enough with me."

Nie Huaisang laughed at seeing him struggle to find something nice to say.

"But he upset your uncle and you don't like that."

That was all the encouragement Lan Xichen needed to allow his expression to turn into anger, which Nie Huaisang found very funny.

"He was extremely rude to shufu,” Lan Xichen complained. “It’s very unfortunate that he should show so little respect to a teacher. He's also determined to pester poor Wangji, who isn't used to being treated like that!” He paused, taking a deep breath to compose himself, but didn’t manage to put on a smile again. “Huaisang, since you're his friend, do you think you might tell him to leave Wangji alone?"

All of Nie Huaisang’s amusement quickly dissipated at that demand and he frowned.

"Well that's a problem! You really dislike him that much?"

Lan Xichen fell silent for a moment. Nie Huaisang found it more worrying than if he’d answered right away. A little anger at a misbehaving student was one thing, but he’d talked enough with Lan Xichen to recognise those moments when he was trying hard to be fair to someone he didn’t particularly like. He used to make the same face when talking about Su She, back before he started warming up to him.

"He doesn't seem like a bad person,” Lan Xichen said at last, “and he hasn't done anything to me, so I cannot dislike him. I am just worried for Wangji, who isn’t very good at dealing with people." 

"That's really inconvenient,” Nie Huaisang sighed. “Xichen-gege, I was really hoping you'd help me help them to become friends! It would have been a lot of fun, the two of us scheming together…” he sighed again. “Oh, well. I'll see if I can get Jiang-xiong or Su-xiong instead. I don’t want to involve you in something you’d find upsetting."

"I think the fact you’d want such a thing is already upsetting me a little,” Lan Xichen replied. “Is it even possible for them to be friends? They are… very different."

Nie Huaisang gave that a moment of consideration before shrugging.

"I guess. But we're pretty different too, and we didn't start off so well either, and look at us now! If it worked for us, it can work for them! I’m sure they can become good friends like us!" 

A spot or pink appeared on Lan Xichen's cheeks, but his expression remained conflicted. 

"I think it's different. Their first meeting was a fight."

Nie Huaisang could only laugh.

"And I ran away from you when you tried to chat!” he pointed out, grabbing another candy which he pushed toward Lan Xichen. “Anyway, wouldn't it be good for Wangji to have friends? He's too serious. It's not healthy for a boy his age to be so serious. As his elders, we need to make sure he doesn't get lonely." 

"you're barely a year older than him," Lan Xichen remarked, fighting a smile as he took the candy. "I'm not sure you have much claim as an elder." 

One hand on his heart, Nie Huaisang faked an offended expression which made Lan Xichen chuckle.

"I am an elder!” he protested theatrically. “I am wiser in the way of the world, so it is my duty to guide these children. Wei Wuxian too!” he added, a touch more seriously. “I think he was impressed by Wangji, you know. Jiang-xiong says that it's unheard of for him to find someone he can't beat.” He paused, and considered that. “Jiang-xiong also says he kind of hopes that Wei-xiong gets his ass kicked very hard, so it teaches him humility. And Meng-xiong didn't say anything, but he did nod."

Lan Xichen grinned.

"I do get the sensation that people tend to be as irritated by him as they are endeared. And I suppose… Wangji too was impressed by Wei gongzi's skill. Mostly he said it was quite upsetting that such talent should belong to a person with such poor manners."

Nie Huaisang smiled at that most encouraging news.

"There! If Wangji is complimenting him, then they need to be friends!" he exclaimed, making Lan Xichen laugh hard enough that he felt the need to hide it behind his sleeve.

"That's hardly a compliment."

"Coming from Wangji, it is."

That got another laugh out of Lan Xichen, which he quickly got under control and attempted to replace by a more severe expression. It might have worked, if his eyes had not been shining with barely repressed mirth. 

"Wangji is not nearly as bad as you seem to think,” Lan Xichen said. “He's just very shy, and being distant is the way he deals with it. Not everyone can be as bold and determined to collect friends as you are, Huaisang." 

"I'm not sure how to take that." 

"Coming from any other Lan, it might be an insult,” Lan Xichen admitted. “Coming from me, and to you, it's probably a compliment." 

Nie Huaisang grinned, delighted to be teased like that. How had he ever thought that Lan Xichen was boring? Maybe his future self was right about him not being too bright. But then again, wasn't it easy to make that sort of judgement in hindsight? Lan Xichen was fun now, but it had taken time for his smiles to gain real warmth when they were together. It had been time well invested though, and realising that made him hopeful that this business between Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian might turn out fine. Maybe they too would get to have that sort of comfortable relationship someday.

More comfortable, even, since they were to fall in love someday. It was going to be so funny to see how Lan Wangji acted when he was in love.

After this, the two boys fell silent for a moment as they finished their tea. It was getting a little late, and Nie Huaisang knew that he would soon have to leave. It made him almost wish that Lan Qiren had already given them homework, so he’d have an excuse to stay a little longer by whining that he always worked better when he was with Lan Xichen. Or else, he might have offered to help copy some scroll or other for Lan Xichen’s great secret project. Anything at all so he wouldn’t have to go. After almost a whole winter apart, he just wanted to be in his friend’s company a little more, just a tiny bit more, even if he knew they were sure to have time together again the week after.

Then, just as Nie Huaisang was trying to accept that he couldn’t find a good excuse to stay, Lan Xichen spoke again.

"If we do help Wangji and Wei-gongzi become friends,” he said, “and that's still an 'if' on my part, the main issue will be to make them understand they both want to be friends. Wangji seems to think Wei-gongzi only exists to torment him, and despairs to see again his more positive qualities."

Excited both for the excuse to chat a little more and by the fact that Lan Xichen was falling to his side, Nie Huaisang nodded.

"Wei-xiong is convinced Wangji is giving him the cold shoulder in spite of his efforts to become friends,” he replied. “He’s not used to people not fawning over him, I fear. Xichen-gege, we're gonna have to work hard!" 

"It would take effort,” Lan Xichen agreed. “I can see you're very excited about this little project, but don't let it get in the way of your studies."

Nie Huaisang dismissed that worry with a hand gesture.

"Don't worry! I'll practice the guqin every day no matter what!"

That answer made Lan Xichen laugh.

"I meant your actual studies, Huaisang,” he corrected, trying to sound scolding but too obviously amused to be scary at all. “The lectures? With my uncle? You do remember that's why you're here in the first place?" 

Blushing a little at his blunder, Nie Huaisang shrugged.

"Oh, that. I'll deal with that,” he said with more confidence than he felt. “At worst, I'll just come again a third year. Wouldn't that be fun? We'd get even more time together!" 

"I'm not sure shufu would be thrilled,” Lan Xichen pointed out. “But I would certainly be happy to have you around as long as you want. And… of course, you'd get more time with Su She as well. Apparently you've even told your brother about him?"

If he hadn’t been in such good humour upon hearing that Lan Xichen enjoyed his company that much, Nie Huaisang might have noticed that the other boy’s expression became a little more pained when he mentioned Su She. But he was in too good a mood to be observant.

"Of course. It fell through last year because I didn't plan it enough in advance and my grades were bad,” he explained, “but this year, I absolutely want to invite Su-xiong home with me when I go back, even if I don't pass! I think we'll have a lot of fun, and da-ge can't ground me if I have a guest to entertain!"

Lan Xichen's smile turned strained again, nearly as much as when Nie Huaisang first arrived to see him. 

"How cunning of you. I'm sure you'll have great fun. I could try to steal your brother for a Night Hunt, so you and Su She can have some peace." 

It was a very generous offer, and Nie Huaisang gave it all the consideration it deserved.

"No, I think if you make it all the way to Qinghe, I'll want to keep you around too,” he announced. “Xichen-gege, even though you've come a few times, we weren’t friends back then so I've never really shown you my birds, right? And we could go painting all three of us… wait, Su-xiong isn't that fond of painting!” he remembered, hitting his forehead. “So it won’t do. Then… let's dump him with da-ge for a bit, so they can get all excited together about fighting and cultivation, and I'll steal you away! Oh there's this gorgeous little spot from where you can see the mountains at a wonderful angle… I've always wanted to show it to someone, and I think you're really someone who would know how to appreciate it. Will you go there with me next time you visit us, Xichen-gege?"

Lan Xichen tried to smile, his face a little pinker than usual.

"Wouldn't you rather take Su She, if you like it so much?"

Nie Huaisang considered that, too, before shaking his head.

"There are other places I can show him. That one, I really want to show you."

Looking definitely quite pink now, Lan Xichen smiled.

"Then I will gladly accompany you. If you like it so much, it must be very beautiful indeed, and I can’t wait to see it." 

"Xichen-gege is too kind,” Nie Huaisang replied, delighted by that new plan. “Really too kind. And in his great kindness, will he help me give Wangji a friend?" 

"You’re just as stubborn as your brother,” Lan Xichen accused, his good mood fully returned. “We'll see. I need to see a little more of this Wei Wuxian before I decide. But if I find him to be a good person, and if I am given reasons to think he’ll be good for Wangji, then yes, I will help." 

It wasn't unfair to worry about that, especially when Lan Xichen didn't have a messenger from the future to tell him that Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji were pretty much soulmates. Indeed, without that information, Nie Huaisang would never have guessed that Lan Wangji's cold anger might have hidden any other sort of tender feelings. That was why Nie Huaisang really needed Lan Xichen's help, he was the only person in the world who could understand his brother. 

Since he needed Lan Xichen's assistance so badly, Nie Huaisang wondered if he should maybe not ask Wei Wuxian to help him cheat in the next test. But he had already done his part of the deal in that regards, so it would be very upsetting to have copied all those boring texts for nothing. Besides, it would probably be fine. 

There was no way they'd be caught, right? 

[trvncyz]

Jujutsu Kaisen characters during Ramzan || random headcanons|| part 2

note: before i start, i would like to clear out that these are just some things which happen in my house and may differ from your culture. this is just how i would imagine the jjk characters to behave during ramzan. hope you enjoy! this is part 2 and is a continuation to this post. feel free to add more in the reblogs.

-5/10/2021

part 1- nobara, itadori, megumi, gojo

part 2- inumaki, panda, maki, yuta, nanami

Inumaki Toge

before i start writing about him , i want you to know that i've been obsessed with him recently. he's such a cute little baby!!!!!

toge, megumi, yuta, nanami and noritoshi are all similar during ramzan.

they're all really chill during ramzan, never willingly missing out on fasts.

now coming back to toge, he starts ramzan very excitedly and is really good for the month.

no pranks, no swearing even in onigiri ingredients.

he prays on time, 5 times a day.

he doesnt attend taraweeh though. just prays at home smh

onigiri for iftar. oh and, he helps his mom set out the table

now, i imagine toge as someone who would fast regularly for a few days but then fall sick from low blood pressure or something of that sort. (me)

he's forced to leave a few of his fasts so that his body can recover. i can imagine him being all pouty, arms crossed, not looking at anyone because he wasn't allowed to fast.

"no inumaki, i'm not going to wake you up for sehri. you won't be fasting tomorrow."

"OKAKA"

oh and sometimes if he uses his cursed speech too much his throat starts bleeding and that automatically causes his fast to b r e a k.

it takes him a while to register what's happening when awoken for sehri.

he and yuta bought a drone and they tried it for the first time on Eid. He vlogged the whole thing for his youtube channel.

2. Maki Zenin

very grumpy while fasting

the type to not talk to you while fasting because it will cause her mouth to dry up.

i dont know why but i imagine her someone who cooks the iftar for everyone. people who complain about the iftar being too less get boinked on the head itadori

she might come off as a cold heartless bitch but i think she can be quite caring and loving to people she cares for.

like in the evening when the iftar is done, she goes around making everyone drink enough water so that they dont get dehydrated. especially inumaki since he's a baby

if someone accidentally misses sehri, she doesn't let them fast the next day because they "might fall sick."

hates it when she herself falls sick or gets her period. her mood becomes tenfold worse.

she doesn't practice much while fasting because yeah... try fasting daily and then try to do anything, forget physical activities.

oh this isnt ramzan related but she takes off her glasses for wudhu, performs her namaz and forgets where she's kept them.

first to wake up on eid. she might not show it but she's excited alright?

she has the best eid outfit and i stand by that.

switches out her glasses for contacts for a day because nobara insisted.

nobara takes lots of her pictures on eid but maki doesnt let her post any

puts her differences aside and wishes mai "eid mubarak" but thats about it.

3. Yuta Okkotsu

the perfect boy squad

wakes everyone for sehri and is very patient with them. isnt he just awesome?

helps out in the kitchen though he might not be very good at it. its the thought that counts

recitation everyday!!

Often he finds himself humming songs (subconsciously) and then he's just "No, No, it's ramzan!!" and then shuts up.

"why do all artists release such good songs during ramzan. this is a hate activity."

has to try everything served for iftar. he'll eat a little of everything.

nanami tells him to eat more because he's more on the lean side and if he doesn't eat enough, he might fall sick like toge.

while fasting, he often gets tired but never shows it.

one day, he was a bit late for sehri. He got immensely nervous and drank too much water. that made him feel super uncomfortable and uneasy. bottomline, he threw up. homie missed a fast smh.

i can just imagine him taking out the seed of his dates before hand. its like a little game he plays with himself. how neatly can you take out the seed of the date without actually splitting it?

not ramzan related but he spends time with megumi just talking. i feel like he and megumi have a very cute brothers relationship and yuta is someone megumi trusts and respects a lot.

they dont want to backbitch but they sit together and complain about how annoying gojo is.

they go to taraweeh together.

he has a canon sister and like megumi, he cooks for her when she's not fasting

i can imagine him totally adorable on eid. his white kurta and a big wide smile SO ADORABLE

he had been saving money for a while to buy a drone. he finally had enough to buy it but toge decided to pitch in last minute and they bought one of a higher quality.

he sometimes makes halal jokes which are stupid but funny. (like these) (on a side note, YAQOOB IS SO CUTE!!!! HE GIVES OFF IMMACULATE YUTA VIBES)

yasha your favouritism is showing-

i need to shut up about him.

4. Nanami Kento

he's the dad abbu

he's very strict during ramzan. no music. no tv. nothing.

has a strict daily routine that he follows. it's not like he's going to sleep in to reduce the fasting pressure and all. if he normally started his day at 7, ramzan would be no different.

very diligently balances prayers and work. like he goes to work everyday but he still has enough to pray and stuff.

27 day taraweeh with megumi and yuta

always has a tasbeeh on him. (reminds me of my nani pls-)

eats the same thing for sehri everyday (this is basically canon so)

throws a mini tantrum when iftar is a bit different. like okay mr grumpy, you havent eaten or drank anything in the past like 16 hours. shut up and eat?

makes sure that gojo doesn't skip his fast. wakes him up drags him out of bed for sehri on time everyday.

one day gojo was chanting la haula wala quwwata and nanami just went "don't repeat it too many times, you'll disappear." [the way i said this to my father and he didnt even understand]

makes sure the kids eat enough during iftar. doesnt want anyone to get sick.

if one of the students fall sick, he makes sure they eat enough and takes their medicines on time. he's so caring i'm melting

he's the type pf person who eats a little bit, drinks some water, performs his maghrib namaz and then eats.

he has to keep gojo in check. confiscates his phone and blocks websites and stuff lol. he doesnt trust gojo and i dont either tbh

helps out in the kitchen!!!!!!

he wont you let you eat till you say grace. it's "ittedekimasu" in japanese right?

severe headaches and stiffness in ramzan but doesn't show it at all. let's nothing come in between him and his fasts.

takes pictures of his iftar everyday for a 30-day day challenge

doesn't get the hype for eid but buys himself an expensive gold sherwani anyways.

EIDI!!!!

gives everyone lots of eidi because he's well paid and wants the children to be happy.

5. Panda

he's a panda

he doesn't fast

he can cry tho

----

@krezin this is for you!

the way i belted this out with zero motivation. plus ramzan's almost over and i wanted to put this out before that. part 3 with the other adults/kyoto gang?

[joonkorre]

what canst thou give?

@drarrymicrofic prompt: caught

yall cant expect me to watch the witch (2015) and not go insane trying to fit a quote into my work. also, this is the first time i ever write something veering into the 15+ category. so. go easy on me lmao

AO3

“Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?”

Draco’s breath catches in his throat.

“But only if you want to, of course. No pressure at all.”

It’s sweet, that tone, as sweet and numbing as the saliva dripping down his nape. If Draco is someone else, an unfortunate bastard even more miserable than he is, he might have believed it.

“I don’t know,” he replies, the unnatural chill on the back of his bare neck too visceral a feeling. Too real. “I think having to choose between that and rotting in a back alley is at least a little bit pressuring.”

“Not too much, though?”

“Oh, no, never.”

“Good,” Edmund whispers. At this point, Draco wouldn’t be surprised if that’s not even his real name, “good.”

Draco stays quiet. With smooth jazz crooning through the walls of bars and eateries to complete the easygoing ambiance of a mid-autumn night in Muggle London, it seems to be the least likely time of the year to find oneself bargaining for their life. But here he is.

“Now,” Draco’s pulse jackrabbits so quickly he can hear it. A delighted chuckle leaks into the night. “Your answer, please.”

When he doesn’t give one, the canines on his exposed shoulder threaten to break the skin. Unexpectedly, they lift off.

“You might want to think it through a little faster, doll,” the large hand pinning Draco’s wrists against the brick wall clenches around them, then drifts down his chest. Lays flat on his quivering stomach, a persistent pressure against Draco’s thrifted bomber jacket. “We have an audience.”

Draco sucks in the stale air with a hiss. He’s pulled his date this far into the alley because he didn’t want curious onlookers as they snog. Bad fucking idea that was. Still, the thought of strangers witnessing this horrid moment fills him with dread. They can’t do anything to help anyway, only to humiliate him even more.

“What—”

“Don’t look,” Edmund nips his ear lobe, “unless you want further mortification. You mortals are ashamed of the strangest things, I can smell it on you.”

Heat rushes through his body. Draco blinks, dizzy with… with something. He doesn’t know whether he wants to rebel, turn his head, and meet the stranger’s gaze head-on, or just rest his forehead against the grimy bricks and find reluctant comfort in Edmund’s instructions.

“What do you,” Draco murmurs, sour notes of alcohol floating back into his nose, “what do you propose I do then? Just stand here and wait for them to get lost?”

“You can make it easy for yourself and say no,” Edmund says.

Those canines are back on the base of his neck. The arm that isn’t wrapped around his middle slithers across his chest, calloused palm an anchor on his shoulder blade. Draco wonders if this looks intimate, possessive—protective, even—to their observer, when he simply feels choked. A mouse gripped within the gentle loops of a snake’s body.

“You’d look like you’re swooning in my arms while I drink from your,” the tip of Edmund’s nose travels up the length of Draco’s neck, ending at where his baby hairs are matted with cold sweat, “gorgeous, delicious essence. And it’d only take a blink of an eye. Our little voyeur would never know.”

“Merlin, can’t I have a single good date?” Draco grits out. “Just fucking say blood.”

“Oh, but you’re no fun,” Edmund says. “Being poetic has its merits, I think. Makes life interesting.”

“Life will be even more interesting when I get to live it, actually.”

The hand on his shoulder takes its time trailing to his face, and when it does, it tilts his jaw to the side. Draco’s eyes automatically slide shut.

“Oh, you will. Once you get used to the ‘undead’ part of it, life will be a joy to live.”

His hands shift against the grimy bricks, one seeking familiarity and warmth as it grips his other wrist, grounding him.

“You must’ve realized by now how anxious I am to have you by me, by us. If I’m not, I’d just pick you up from a club, drink from you, leave you behind that dumpster over there, and you’d wake up feeling hungover with no memory of me,” Edmund goes on, his face close. If Draco tries, he reckons he can swallow down the intoxicating spice of cologne wafting against his cheek. “But I’m not doing that, now, am I?”

Perhaps it’s not even cologne, perhaps it’s all Edmund.

“You see, the blood of mortals is our life force, yes, but few of them ever smell and taste like anything more than diluted shite. Blood like yours, though, that’s rare. Power like yours. That raw, untapped, repressed power hiding under masks and marks. Given enough time, enough resources, it can be brought forth, and you can prosper.

“It’d be a shame if all of what you are made of withers into nothing, don’t you think?”

Draco thinks and thinks. It’s all one can do when they’re held so firmly, quite literally stuck between a rock and a hard place. A bead of sweat trickles down his temple. Edmund kisses it away with false reverence, dotting another kiss behind Draco’s ear. Draco would have jolted if he has any energy left in him.

He realizes it now. Ever since the day Edmund’s gaze lingered a second too long, it was over. There is no one left to remember him, and if he ‘makes it easy’ for himself and says no, nothing will change. Sooner or later, he’d die without a purpose, alone.

What if he eliminates dying from the equation altogether?

He realizes it now. There has never been any choice.

Only one foggy, crooked path forward.

“Yes.”

Draco’s eyes open with a heavy drag, allowing in but a sliver of light. In the misty blurriness, he sees a smirk. One stark-white canine pulls the bottom lip inward, pierces through papyrus skin.

Draco’s vision darkens as red lips touch his. His nose clogs up for a brief moment, overwhelmed by the onslaught of scents and tastes. With every languid swipe of a clever tongue, copper as bitter as Charon’s obol forces its way into his mouth. A sharp needle of pain pricks his bottom lip. Draco flinches, tries to take a step back but the hand on his jaw keeps him close. One long finger sneaks into his mouth, prying it apart.

Swallowing the harsh tang of iron down, a rich, foreign sweetness floods his senses. It’s the nectar of late-June peaches and lingonberry syrup swirled in chamomile, coating his palate with a luscious glaze. A low moan escapes as his muscles relax. If it’s not for the steady hand on his stomach, Draco’s knees would have hit the dirty ground already.

“There we go,” Edmund whispers. His hands guide Draco to lean against him, back to chest, sending intermittent shivers to rack through Draco’s body. It’s cold, so cold, but he can’t pull away, just lets Edmund takes whatever he wants to take. “Good boy.”

“Don’t call me that,” Draco gathers enough of his declining wit to argue. “Sounds like you’re calling a dog.”

“Ah, you’re cute. The Sisters will adore you.”

“Sisters...” Draco says, the furrow of his brow easily smoothened by another leisurely kiss.

“Sisters,” Edmund says. The hand on Draco’s jaw edges to his neck, thick fingers adding a slight squeeze to the vulnerable valley on either side of his Adam’s apple. Draco sighs into Edmund’s mouth. “Surely you don’t think there’s only one of us out there?”

Not very certain of what to say, Draco purses his lips instead. Edmund lets out an amused hum and indulges him, sucking on his bottom lip. It’s good, so good, until it becomes sickening, like raiding the entirety of Fortescue’s stockroom. Being a creature of the night is rapidly losing its novelty.

“Okay, enough, enough, thanks,” he says, tapping the muscular arm around him and turning away. Edmund only continues his little ministration below Draco’s jaw.

He doesn’t know how long his eyes have been closed, so he opens them once more. It’s like… it’s like he’s been floating on thick water and is only recently dragged into shore. Rubbing the creak out of his neck, Draco squints.

Past Edmund’s sturdy form and angular lines, out in the main street, the thin crowd of pedestrians pass by in chattering groups and pairs. Opposite to the alley, however, one lone figure stands just out of reach of the street lamp. The yellowish light merely suggests their existence as they lean against the restaurant Draco and Edmund exited from earlier. The bright tell-tale red of a cigarette butt is visible but other than that, no detail to be discerned. Looks like someone who’s just minding their own business.

“You must think yourself funny,” Draco says, arching his neck to accommodate the kisses peppering his skin, “using my own shame against me. I doubt people even remember there’s an alleyway here.”

“Don’t forget that when a being has lived for as long as I have, has accumulated this much power, nine times out of ten, he knows what he’s saying. I’m powerful enough to catch the scent of every mortal walking by, even know if they’re actually mortals or not. Our little voyeur? He’s still here. He’s watching. He’s waiting for you, doll.”

Edmund pauses, then:

“And whether he’s a mortal? That remains to be seen.”

Draco pushes away as far as Edmund’s firm grasp allows, which is only a few centimeters away. Whatever his blood did with Draco’s own, it snaps him awake with startling clarity just as swiftly as when it’s reduced him to a little more than a rag doll. Everything is so sharp it’s almost disgusting, like his eyeballs are gouged out, scrubbed clean, then shoved back in again. Draco locks his legs, willing himself not to stumble.

“That makes no goddamn sense,” he says.

“You don’t feel them now, but wait until they set in,” Edmund tries to tug him back, shrugging when he doesn’t obey. “Your abilities. We’ll go back to the House of Collective tonight and when you wake up tomorrow, you’ll know what I’m talking about.”

“I,” Draco says. “Please say that again. With actual information.”

“So demanding,” Edmund leans back and looks at Draco like he’s seeing him for the first time, a hint of humor in his serene demeanor. “The House of Collective is where the majority of us in Britain frequent and reside. The newly Turned are brought there to be with their brethren. Trying to deal with these new abilities alone is what makes them go Rogue and lands them on the front page. Think Jeannette McDermott, the poor woman.”

Jeannette McDermott drained and devoured 6 people in a single weekend. The Aurors got to her first before the news outlets. Being a shut-in and hating being perceived in general—Merlin knows how she got bitten in the first place—the only pictures ever taken of her as an adult was of her mangled body, torn by her own claws and twisted into stillness. It was a once-in-a-century scandal that paralyzed Wizarding Europe for 2 months straight.

Draco frowns. “I’ve always wondered. How did she—why wasn’t she brought back to the House, then?”

“That’s what irresponsible Turning looks like. If we want to Turn someone, it must be carefully considered and planned, for there must always be more prey than predators. Such is the law of nature,” Edmund says it like it’s a walk in the park rather than changing people’s entire lives. “Deacon Frangos was careless—amateur little weakling—and wanted something more thrilling than, say, going to clubs for gullible drunks.

“During the official trial at the House, he confessed that he spent days working through her wards and broke in. Never expected that McDermott was a fighter. She couldn’t get to her wand, but she did have a knife. She stabbed him 3 times as he was drinking from her. Their blood mixed, and Frangos ran off to lick his wounds before we found him. That was Friday.”

“Merlin and Morgana,” Draco breathes, “that quick?”

Edmund only looks at him, silent as he waits for Draco to weigh his decisions. Or lack thereof.

“What about, what about my apartment? My things?”

“You’ll only be at the House of Collective until we get you accustomed to your new life, then you can return home. Or,” Edmund tilts his head to the side, “you can stay. It’s akin to a commune, there’s space for all. It’s in the middle of the woods, too, hidden behind extensive wards and Charms, very private. Don’t you love your privacy?”

“What, do you live there?”

“Yes! Just so you know, I built my own dwelling. It’s stunning, if I do say so myself. Marble floors, 5 balconies. Just added a new pool last month. Plenty of space to… christen, unlike your studio apartment.”

Edmund lets a casual grin grace his face, all jokes. Draco curls his lips. It’s a mystery for the ages as to how he’s ever found this man charismatic.

“I’d rather the, um, the studio apartment. It does have its charms. Checkered bathroom tiles, and, hmm, a working oven. I might paint the fireplace next week, who knows?”

“Big plans, big plans,” Edmund nods solemnly. “However, you will need to pay a visit at least twice a month for resources and news within the community. There are tons; we even have a matchmaking service so you wouldn’t have to explain yourself to some bumbling mortal and worry about lifespans. Isn’t that so very neat? But, you already have me.”

Edmund shoots him a wink. If he’s not, well, Edmund, Draco might think it’s attractive.

“I think,” he starts. His neck is aching something fierce the longer he looks back, so he turns to face Edmund directly, “we need to have a talk about ending this entanglement.”

“My,” Edmund adjusts without trouble, interlacing his hands behind Draco’s waist, just above his bum. “Must you hurt me so? After all we’ve been through in the past three dates, you want to cast me aside?”

“Those three dates were nothing more than bouts of insanity. My apologies, I was in a moment of weakness and was somehow fooled by your… Merlin, I don’t even know. Basically, you were a passing fancy that I will rue ever having for the rest of my life.”

Edmund sighs and lowers his head until it’s nestled where Draco’s neck joins his shoulders.

“My 161st love has broken my heart. Oh, how can I recover from this pain?”

He lifts his head up, meeting Draco’s unimpressed gaze with a smirk. “Perhaps one last kiss will be the balm I need. Come on, just one more for closure.”

Draco gnaws his bottom lip and wets the still-throbbing cut on it. Then, he rolls his eyes, sliding them shut. No big deal.

“You’re so generous, Draco,” purrs a deep voice right at the corner of his mouth. Draco parts his lips, breathing in the hushed words. “Can’t say I won’t miss this. Your blood truly is a delicacy.”

“Hurry the fuck up.”

Sweet, sweet wine.

Draco sags against Edmund’s strong chest, head lolled to the side, panting. They have stopped before it got too much this time, yet Draco still teeters over the edge of insanity with every suckle of lips, every caress of tongue. Edmund has been gentle, large hands cupping Draco’s face like he’s a priceless treasure made of opals and emeralds, combing through the slightly wavy hair Draco has grown out. He has fixed Draco’s shirt as he plucked off every scrap of sense remaining in Draco’s head, has stroked the purple marks in bloom, and covered them with the bomber jacket.

As Draco clutched those broad shoulders and wrinkled the expensive fabric adorning them, he had half a mind to demand Edmund to be rougher, to stop trying to savor it. Stop making it something to go breathless over.

Toying with the shiny button on Edmund’s wool suit, he reminds himself that it was smart to end whatever they had between them. Otherwise, he can see himself becoming addicted, and such a problem has no place in his life.

“It’s getting late,” he says. The street outside is still bustling with people, bursting with sound. The person leaning against the wall opposite is lighting up a new cigarette.

“Oh, doll,” Edmund hugs him tight. “Darling. You’re right, it’s getting late. ”

They stand there for a few moments more nonetheless, clutching each other. Then Draco sees it. Sees him.

As if on cue, the person straightens from their position against the wall. They step forward, one foot after the other, slack and loose, into the buzzing light. Draco can’t observe intricate details from this far away—has to wait until tomorrow, apparently—but he still has eyes.

A pair of snickering women stroll by, and the street seems empty for a split second. It’s enough for Draco to see large, black boots (Dragonhide, the part of his brain that never forgets Mother’s fashion books notes) and dark, well-fitted pants stretching over thick thighs. Sleeves rolled to the elbow, exposing dark arms with a myriad of pink-white scars. White button-up, wrinkled and stained, tied by leather harnesses crisscrossing at the chest, like the wearer has forgone changing after work and instead hurried off to deal with an urgent task. An unusual outfit for urban London, but somehow, it works.

Left hand tucked in a pants pocket, the other tapping the fine ash from a cig into a puddle on the concrete. It lifts to hover in front of full, waiting lips. One sleepy bloke trudges by, a heavy bag slung over his shoulder. A hazy billow of smoke spills forth lazily as the bloke walks out of view, opaque clouds masking an expressionless face before disintegrating into the night.

“Doll.”

Draco glances back at Edmund, who is staring at his lips. His hands run tiny circles over the small of Draco’s back.

“We decided on one kiss.”

“I know,” Edmund’s thumb swipes over the cut, as soft as a brush dipping into paint. “There’s still blood.”

“Obviously,” Draco says with a slight snort, “you bit it. Like a brute.”

Edmund’s reply comes in the form of his thumb pressing against the cut as if wanting to both stopper the blood and squeeze it out. Draco assists by opening his mouth, slipping the finger into moist warmth. And for some godforsaken reason, his eyes travel back to the street beyond.

This time, both hands are in the pants pockets. The cigarette has stopped its light bouncing, now lying still between pillowy lips. Like before, the voyeur is a statue amidst a sea of movement.

Draco swirls his tongue against the pad of the thumb, tasting himself and gulping it down. It’s bitter and sour without Edmund’s blood to sweeten it up, but he keeps licking until all he can feel is the saltiness of skin, the clenched fistful of his jacket against his hip, and—

And green.

“It’s getting late,” Edmund whispers against his forehead, his lips a touch away from kissing his fringe.

Letting the finger fall from his mouth, Draco whispers back.

“Okay.”

The voyeur never stops looking. Draco knows because neither does he.

“We’re never doing this again.”

Draco’s eyes glide back to Edmund. “I never thought you’d be the one to say that.”

“Me, too. But I’m serious,” the man says, but doesn’t clean his finger. “From now on, we keep our hands to ourselves.”

“And mouths.”

“Yes, those especially.”

Draco huffs out a laugh, “Okay. Very well. I’m glad we’ve reached an agreement.”

Edmund shakes his head, then blinks. He looks up at Draco, mischief in his eyes.

“Alright, Draco, you’ve done enough for the night.”

“Pardon?” Draco says, sliding his arm into the crook of Edmund’s. “You Side-Along us.”

“Of course, and I meant. Merlin, you’ve done quite enough. Oh, goodness, that’s pungent.”

Edmund pats Draco’s hand on his forearm and leans toward his ear.

“Say goodbye to him.”

Draco’s fingers tighten around Edmund’s arm in warning. He doesn’t say ‘goodbye,’ but he does look to the street light opposite the alleyway. Before the Apparition wrenches all the thoughts out of his head, Draco vows not to think about the expression on that face.

[nikkoliferous]

Phase One: Thor

Since I was looking up my past live-blog of the novel and realising how annoying and repetitive reading through it all is because of my having structured it as a bunch of reblogs, I’ve decided to organize it all into one long-ass post instead. In case anyone else wants to read it in the future. Or in case I decide to re-read it. Because I’m hilarious. 😅

SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO

My Hilarious Yet Wrathful Overview Of Phase One: Thor, Redux

—

If your son who’s to become king requires a babysitter to not screw it all up and also the idea of him being king is stressful enough to put you into a coma, maybe, uh… reconsider doing that? Just a thought.

But you see here why Odin was so deadset on Thor becoming king, despite him being ill-suited for the role. It’s not about what’s best for Asgard; it’s about personal legacy. Thor is Odin’s mini me, and Loki is very much not. There are places within the text where Odin laments Thor “lacking his father’s wisdom” (he’s definitely inherited your humility, though, Odin!), but he hopes for Thor to grow into a “wise king” like himself. Whereas he holds no such illusions (lol, pun) that Loki will ever take after him.

now with tag commentary! #this scene is in the script and both novelizations #(though in reading this novel seems to just be a more complete version of the junior novel? #idk i'm confused because they're supposedly written by different authors but so far the text is identical) #and it drives me insane each time i read it

“Haha, I’m a warmongering piece of shit, isn’t it funny?”

I know, I know. I try to cut Asgard some slack for being such a militaristic culture because social changes happen slowly and when you live for thousands of years per generation, it makes sense that your views on things like war would be regressive. The text says Odin has ruled Asgard for tens of thousands of years (so much for taking Loki’s “give or take 5,000 years” line literally; sure, the Odinsleep would have extended Odin’s lifespan, but by that much? Idk).

Still, fuck Odin. Especially since he’ll eventually try to shame Loki for doing the same thing he’s fucking boasting about here. And on a much smaller scale too.

…is it, though?

I actually think Loki’s relationship with being the centre of attention is really interesting in its complexity and we don’t discuss it enough. I’ve said this before, but he strikes me as the sort of person who craves attention but also wouldn’t really know what to do with it if he had it. He craves it as a result of neglect, because he’s never been shown recognition or validation. This is why he seems to revel in it in Stuttgart, even in (or maybe especially in?) his brainwashed state. But he also frequently comes across as pretty introverted and has horrible self-esteem, so I think on another level, sustained, genuine attention would make him feel kind of uncomfortable. Loki seems to believe that in order to be loved or respected, he has to literally be Thor, though. And Thor has always been the centre of attention, so for Loki, attention is synonymous with respect.

I find Loki’s relationship with wanting attention especially fascinating because I too both crave and fear it. As a borderline, I need it. When no one is paying attention to me, I lose my sense of identity. I feel as though I literally cease to exist. It’s excruciatingly painful. And yet, I have no authentic sense of self; I’m just a chameleon, and the closer people get to me, the more likely it is they’ll see behind my mask. They’ll realise it’s all a show and that I’m actually no one. And then they’ll leave. I can’t help wondering if that’s how Loki feels sometimes too.

Wait, what? You mean goat. His horns are shaped like a goat’s. This is a ram: 

This is a goat:

This is Loki:

Do you see now? They’re like a goat. Not a ram. Not a cow. A GOAT.

This book was written before Ragnarok was a thing, so it may be unfair to connect the two, but it still seems worth noting that it was Thor who reduced Loki to being no more than a trickster to begin with. “You could be more,” my ass. Loki’s problem has never been that he was one-dimensional; it was always that the people in his life, including Thor, refused to see any other dimensions to him. Which makes those words particularly cruel—as if they aren’t cruel enough already, what with the physical torture and all. 

Always happy to have cause to point out that

Loki was on Thor clean-up duty their whole lives; he certainly was not trying to kill Thor.

People like to point to Loki’s attempted genocide of the Jötnar and attempted(-ish? lol) conquest of Earth as proof that he’s some kind of violent maniac. But in a little place I like to call reality, Loki was historically far less aggressive and bloodthirsty than his peers.

Question: why is one conqueror evil and the other is righteously entitled to ruling over the Nine Realms?

Asgardian exceptionalism FTW

I can’t even begin to imagine what would lead you to expect such a thing, Odin. 😂

Uh, ‘cause it is?? And also their planet is MELTING without it??

This is all only within the first two chapters, btw. Lmao

—

—

—

“Looking for answers,” my foot.

YOU WOULD THINK SO, WOULDN’T YOU??

#i mean unless you knew heimdall #he only commits treason on days that end in y

—

—

What’d I say? Thor clean-up dutyyyyy 

Just wanna remind everyone that this 

is why he’s smiling during this scene 

because it makes me laugh every time. 😂 

—

My heart breaks every time I remember that second excerpt because literally ALL OF IT happened to him when he survived falling through the wormhole. My poor boy. 😭

But also of note… Loki gets cold (and also does not like being cold). This interests me because 1) as many are aware, the prevalent headcanon that Loki has a low body temperature irritates me and 2) it possibly(?) lends weight to the theory that he may not be fully Jötun, whether by virtue of his birth or Odin’s spell.

Haha, look at this Feminist Icon™ trying to take credit for his female friend’s accomplishments! Truly inspiring. 

#for some reason the ragnarok lovers have somehow decided that thor is both a feminist and lesbian icon #whatever that means 🤷‍♀️ #and i'm still trying very hard to figure out why #is it literally just because he *says* he respects women or whatever in that dumb rambly conversation with valkyrie?

Ooh… you were so close to getting the point, Volstagg. So close. Take your tongue off Odin’s boot for just a couple minutes longer.

Also, the author just forgot the name of the Casket. How did this book get published? 😂

JUST LOOKING FOR ANSWERS, HUH?

Because fuck Loki, amirite? He, uh… he’s a prince too, you know.

Also… Fandral, you dweeb 😂

…am I reading too much into this, or did Odin just literally forget that Loki exists?

On the other hand, the author also seemed to forget Loki existed for most of this chapter, so who knows. 🤷‍♀️

lmao @ Jane immediately trying to convince herself she’s too rational to be attracted to a stranger 

Honestly, though, big mood. 

Just your periodic reminder that Thor’s sycophantic friends KNEW Loki was right and decided to throw him under the bus anyway. 

Just as I’ve always said: That was it. That was their ENTIRE rationale. That Loki *could* have done it, therefore he must have. Please tell me these people have nothing to do with Asgard’s justice system.

…lol, jk, Asgard has no justice system.

Ok, first of all, no.

Second: thank you, Fandral. You’re a self-absorbed cad, but also evidently Thor’s least stupid friend.

Thirdly, how…? First, it was, “Loki arranged all this because he’s jealous of Thor.” Now they’ve suddenly jumped all the way to, “All of Asgard is in danger.” What exactly does Sif think Loki is planning? He’s gonna, what… assassinate Odin and then sell Asgard to the Jötnar?

—

Please stop hurting me.

Just so there’s no confusion: this one sentence explains everything Loki did for the rest of the movie. It explains how a person who has been historically non-aggressive suddenly transforms into a warmonger. To prove himself a real Asgardian, like his brother and father and grandfather. 

—

…why did Odin fall into the Odinsleep in two completely different scenes in this book? I’m super confused.

Also, we really need to talk about how cruel it is of Marvel to keep forcing Loki to prove his loyalty again and again and again when he’s been doing so almost literally since we met him. And by “we need to talk about it”, I mean I need to tie Kevin Feige and co. to a chair and spend a minimum of five hours lecturing them on how poorly they understand their own fucking character.

Let’s just be clear here: they’re talking about Loki. They’re saying Loki, their LEGITIMATE king, is an enemy of Asgard, based on evidence so paper-thin it’s practically invisible. Just… please, let that sink in. Take a moment to appreciate how utterly fucked up that is. 

I’m sorry (not really), but Thor was so much funnier before Ragnarok.

This scene has always kind of bugged me. If Odin removed Thor’s powers, how come he can still control the weather? Confusing.

So what exactly was Thor’s plan anyway, before he realised he couldn’t lift Mjölnir? He was just gonna call on Heimdall to help him commit treason AGAIN, show up on Asgard against the expressed command of his king, and… Odin would just shrug and be like, “You got me, son! I guess I can’t keep you down. Welcome home!”?

…I mean, I guess that more or less is what happened in the end, but it’s hard to imagine it would have still gone down that way without all the stuff that happened with Loki. Idk.  

#look what i'm saying is... thor is not exactly a thinking person #no one on asgard is a thinking person #except loki but he's crazy now so he's also thinking somewhat poorly lol

Cool, Thor. Now imagine feeling that way for ONE THOUSAND YEARS and develop a little fucking empathy for your brother.

But you won’t.

You’ll brush off his feelings of worthlessness as “imagined slights”. 😒

Nice that somebody knows how the royal line of succession works, I guess… 

That sound you hear? Yeah, that’s just my heart breaking. NBD. 

First, they mislabelled it the Casket of Eternal Winters. Now it’s the Cask of Ancient Winters. Author must have been thirsty when they wrote this. Lol 

Look, not to nitpick, but this is not the recommended procedure when you see a storm that you don’t believe is of supernatural origin coming. I’m just saying. Lol 

Uh… ‘cause he is?? And your pals are committing treason AGAIN, Thor, so it technically is responding to a threat to Asgard. Just FYI.

Anyways, this is an important point that doesn’t get made often enough. People want to act like Loki illegally usurped the throne somehow, but even without the deleted scene that explicitly shows Frigga passing rulership to him (a scene which is, for some reason, entirely skipped over in this book, but whatever), understand this: Loki could not have controlled the Destroyer unless he was legitimately King of Asgard. The fact that he’s able to do so is irrefutable proof that his rulership is valid.

lmao you little shit

So… here’s my issue with this scene (and with Thor as a character): He always assumes that Loki’s acting out specifically to hurt him. That Loki’s entire life and thought process revolves around Thor. He does it in this scene, he does it in The Avengers… it’s just a chronic thing with Thor. Everything is viewed through the lens of Loki inexplicably hating him.

But that’s… just not accurate. Yes, Loki harbours a lot of jealousy towards Thor. But that’s not what’s happening in this scene. Loki is not trying to kill Thor here because he wants him dead; he’s doing it because Thor (and his friends) are getting in the way of Loki completing his ultimate goal. Loki tried to solve this problem non-violently, by lying about Odin being dead. It’s Thor’s friends who all but forced his hand by going behind his back and trying to bring Thor back to Asgard against Loki’s (and Odin’s!) direct orders.

For all the humility he’s learned in the past few days, this entire speech is still really all about Thor. About assuming that Loki’s doing this for personal reasons, because he holds a grudge against Thor for some unknown reason. This is implicit in his request to “take [my life] and end this.” It never even occurs to him that his friends are traitors to the Crown and Loki, as King of Asgard, is perhaps justified in pursuing them.

It also needs to be acknowledged that Thor’s apology here is hollow, even if it’s ultimately coming from his heart, because he has no idea what he’s apologising for. “Whatever I have done to wrong you” is not an apology. An apology addresses specific hurtful actions taken and commits to not repeating those mistakes in the future. Thor cannot commit to not repeating the hurtful things he’s done, because he doesn’t know what he’s done. Despite his best intentions, what Thor is doing here is actually kind of manipulative. He’s not addressing any substantive issue between the two of them; he’s just trying to talk Loki down. And it ultimately fails not because Loki doesn’t care or because he wants Thor dead, but because it doesn’t actually change anything.

Finally and only semi-relatedly, we should maybe at some point talk about the fact that Loki, who is stated to be a master tactician, has displayed a weird pattern of hardly ever being as lethal as he could be. He freezes Heimdall in place instead of killing him outright; he backhands Thor with the Destroyer instead of incinerating him; he, well… *gestures vaguely at almost the entirety of the first Avengers movie* Anytime the violence is even a little bit personal, he seems to hedge. Odd behaviour for somebody who’s supposedly super evil.

I’m sorry, I know I’ve pointed it out at least a hundred times before, but I just can’t encounter this scene in any form without taking a moment to appreciate how underrated and hilarious it is.

I also genuinely wonder how many Ragnarok stans who have accused me of having no sense of humour, have failed to laugh at moments like this one. Kinda feel like if you need to have the comedy spoonfed to you in the form of ass jokes, maybe you’re the one whose sense of humour is lacking. 🤷‍♀️

Let’s be super clear: this is not what happened. Loki did not betray Odin; he was betrayed by Odin. He did not open Asgard to its enemies; he attempted, misguidedly, to destroy Asgard’s enemies. And he most certainly did not commit suicide out of a sense of guilt.

I’m not saying Loki did nothing wrong, nor am I saying he feels no regret for the lives he has taken. What I’m saying is there’s no indication that he believes he betrayed Odin or Asgard in the process. Which makes perfect sense, because he didn’t. Everything he tried to do was for Odin and Asgard. It was misguided and horrible, yes, but it can hardly be classified as a betrayal.

The insurmountable burden on Loki is not that he did terrible things, but that no matter what he does or how hard he tries, Odin will never look at him with anything but contempt. Consider once more these passages from the very beginning of the book, at Thor’s coronation:

—

Consider that this book goes to great pains to point out that Odin favours Thor because Thor is a warrior like him. And yet even when Loki embraces that, even when he acts more war-like than ever before, Odin rejects him— just as he always has.

There is a reason why this moment is the last time Loki will ever call Odin his father. Because he realises once and for all that, no, nothing he tries will ever be good enough; no, Odin won’t ever look at him with pride. That is Loki’s burden. That is why he lets go.

The epilogue is really just two pages of making me want to vomit. 

There’s your party where Thor and a certain subset of the fandom insist that Loki was mourned. There’s barely an indication here that anyone even perceives his demise as a negative thing.

“[Sif] could see Frigga thought [Loki was dead] as well” also contradicts the tie-in comic for TDW, so I don’t know what the author is on about there. Unlike the majority of Marvel comics, the tie-in comics are canon to the MCU, so it’s a bizarre statement to make.

COULD YOU SMEAR THE DEAD* ABUSE VICTIM A LITTLE HARDER, PLEASE? Fucking hell.

No matter how many times I encounter this scene, in whatever format, I still fail to become desensitized to how disgusting it is. I realise there’s a good chance that whatever version of events Thor has been told was twisted at best; but how you can look at a man whose son has just committed suicide under any circumstances and say there will never be a better father than that guy, is utterly beyond my capacity to understand.

And Odin’s “you’ve already made me proud” line just feels like extra salt in the wound because, again, Loki let go because he realized Odin would never say those words to him. And yet they come so damn easily when it’s Thor.

Fuck this entire family so much. I think I hate them more than Loki does. Sometimes I wonder what he would think about that. How he would react to knowing that not only is he actually loved, but that he’s so loved that people are genuinely furious at the way he’s been mistreated. That there are people who regularly devolve into full-on rants because they just can’t contain how much anger they have towards the people who hurt him. I think he’d have a hard time wrapping his head around that concept, tbh.

Anyways, to end on a not-completely-depressing note, I’m still waiting for someone at Marvel to explain how Loki knew what Thor said in this scene after plummeting into a wormhole. ‘Cause he references this conversation as Fauxdin at the end of TDW. So like… ?? Did he steal Odin’s memories before he erased them? Because that would be… kind of neat, actually. And very clever. Not entirely ethical, of course, but it’s Odin, so fuck ethics.

WELP, THAT’S IT. Thanks for following along with my dumbassery, hope you enjoyed yourselves. Lol