#but they disagree on damn near everything else

[rockybloo]

Like pretty much all of Glitter and Guilt's key players that ain't the Beloveds and the Flavor Four, I have been keeping the Jollies on the down low so they are a buncha surprises when I drop them into story. But their lore has gotten deeper and more fun for me to write.

I've decided that Cackle not only wants to beat the shit out of Bitterbat, but he also wants to claim Sweetheart as his best friend. The ultimate disrespect to the King of Monsters.

He couldn't care less about all that romance junk, all he cares about is having Sweetheart as his new battle buddy.

[dark-and-kawaii]

༺ 𝒜 𝒟𝑒𝓋𝒾𝓁 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝐿𝑜𝓋𝑒 ༻

You never expected a Devil to be your savior, never expected to be cherished by him…

PRT 2 (CLICK HERE) - Fluff - Soft Raphael - Past Talk About Abuse

Gazing outside his balcony, you watched as yet another red storm began to stir throughout Avernus. The wilted trees bend to the will of the fiery winds. The overcast clouding your view of the mountains, and with a deep sigh this dreary day has brought back memories you had thought you’d forgotten. A life full of pain and restrictions… But the devil took you away from it all, and gave you a new life with new meaning.

With a subtle startled expression as you felt your hand graze one of the small buttons on your wrist, you look down with a warm smile as you continue to run your hand along the soft cotton of Raphael’s opulent dress shirt. You nearly had forgotten that on days such as this you quite enjoy stealing his shirts. They always brought you such comfort and joy, who would’ve thought… A devil bringing you such comfort. It’s laughable really. Holding your arm to your lips you can smell the scent of cherries and sulfur, it relaxes your muscles and you can’t help but to thank him aloud to yourself, “Thank you, my devil.”

“For what, pray tell little mouse of mine?”

And just like a tiny mouse, squealing wasn’t the right word for the noise you had just made… But with a tiny cute noise, you hastily turned around on his silken bed to face the devil himself, Raphael… He was always so handsome no matter the form he took, right now though he appeared human. His milk chocolate eyes watching you with interest, his hand resting on his chin. Everything about him was so grandiose and each time you looked him in the eyes your heart would skip a beat.

The Devil wasn’t perfect, he had his flaws just as everyone else did… He also had his own ambitions to rule the 9 hells… But, for whatever reason, those flaws made him even more special to you. Yes, he was the son of Mephistopheles. Yes, he is technically one of the “bad” guys, but… unlike the last villain that had captured you… Raphael was soft with you, treated you as if you were some sort of delicate flower that would break apart if not careful. He had his souls he enjoyed to flail and torture, yet with you it was different… the devil had no need to put you through such horrors. He cherished and protected you like a dragon with its hoard of treasure.

“R-Raphael- I uh-… Thank you… For…”

Just his presence alone made you flustered, it couldn’t be helped.

“It would seem that the cat has caught this little mouse’s tongue.” A small laugh emanated from his chest, “How, precious.”

You grin at his response.

Damn near everyone would disagree with you, but in your eyes, Raphael wasn’t foul, not like Astarion was… This devil you came to know throughout your adventure didn’t hold you by a leash… Didn’t force you down whenever he pleased, or gauge your neck with his teeth to prove a point- Your flushed face reducing to a pale complexion as your hand cups where Astarion left his mark on you. A chill runs down your spine remembering when Astarion the Ascended chained you for days… All because you wanted to run out into the city for some fresh brioche and to say hello to Gale.

Raphael, a devil, son of Mephistopheles… Never chained you nor held you against your will. He let you run out into the real world… Let you do as you pleased. You knew he’d make Korilla follow after you. But it wasn’t due to lack of trust, it was plainly because he wanted to keep you safe and out of the Vampires grasps.

Like a falling feather, you gracefully glide off Raphael’s bed. His shirt on you flowed at the bottom thanks to it being far too big on you making this scene before him look like it was out of a book- and into his chest you fell. Your arms wrapping around him while your cheek pressed against his arm that crossed against his chest.

“What’s better than a devil you do know?” You looked up at him questioning.

“By all means please do enlighten me.” His hand never left his face and his other arm stayed crossed over his chest as you embrace him.

“A devil thats your savior…” -You looked away from him, staring back out the balcony-, “I don’t think you’d ever find a quote like that in a book, but I’m thankful for you, Raphael. Truly. Thank you.” You press your face into him, your lashes fluttering close.

Raphael would never tell you how he waited for your hope to whittled down to the very marrow of despair- how he waited for you to whimper his name between sobs while chained to the vampires personal bed. The Devil would also never admit how it pained him to see such a treasure being handled in such ways, yet he wanted you to call out to him. He’s still a devil after all… So he waited all that year, waited for you to call out his name for help, pleading to sign whatever it is he desired…

“You didn’t belong with such filth.”- you didn’t need to look up to know he was scrunching his face, you could hear it in his voice- “Fine beauty such as yourself belongs in a much more suitable home.” He finally moved his hand from his face to the top of your head. Petting you like some adored pet.

Raphael, from the moment he laid eyes on you, knew he'd make you apart of his plan forever someday. He just didn’t expect you to vanish all of a sudden… The damn vampire had ascended and taken you… All those years you were caged like some sort of animal. Nowhere to go, forced into things you wanted no part of… Living like a rat.

A rarity had shown its face as Raphael peered down at you, you didn’t see it and Raphael could only hope for once that Haarlep didn’t see the concern on his face.

Astarion still walks among the living, and Raphael can’t be everywhere…

[vampirevatican]

so let's talk...

they cloned tyrone (spoilers and all)

SUBLIMINAL MESSAGES

"it's in the water", "straighter is greater", "i got that ruckus", "got damn! fried chicken", "grape juice", the shot of an old american dream like poster, depicting a white man, til it pans out to the ghetto.

the movie hints to it's audience from the start that this? this shit runs deep. yeah everyone is carrying on like normal, so does the movie, and no one bats an eye until it's deliberately pointed out. for me it says a lot that i can only convey or remind folks with in the way fontaine treats junebug in the first half.

hood niggas don't wanna be hood niggas.

and that right there is exactly fontaine. not only to just the brother he lost, but extended to junebug, yo yo, charles, his momma. sure he a product of his environment but he ain't got much of a choice and that's depicted when he does everything he can to get to the bottom of what the fuck is going on up 'til he literally loses control.

EXISTENTIAL CRISIS

seeing another you. loosing complete autonomy while being conscious of it.

what slick and 'taine saw? enough to make any human question the fabric of their reality, if they're real, if their memories are really theirs, how much can they recall in those memories and if they are recalling everything. when slick saw fontaine again and when fontaine first faced his previous body. 'taine's drive was figuring out if he's really him. hell as he was grappling with the chaos that it brings in his mind, what does he say when he finally snaps out of it?

im me.

as humans our lives, decisions, etc. come from some peace of mind that we have autonomy. the fact that we can say and do as we please, even if it's within a boundary, is enough for us to feel some kind of calmness in the thought that we have power over ourselves. can't control the world around me, can't do big shit, but i can do this. the little things.

all i could think was, 'but what if there's another you.. an original you.' and when his autonomy was put into question, him backing off like that and accepting it is a form of nihilistic defeat. he can't do shit but what he's always done, and if that means he or anyone else he loves doesn't die? then it's something he deals with, until it's too much to bear.. until the cycle of everyday (that he now knows is a cycle) weighs heavy and the only thing to pull him out of it? junebug. the good memories of his brother.

THE CLONES AND TIME

i had this originally titled and future, but the point here is the original/old fontaine and his plan.

i feel that old fontaine made that deal not just because of ronnie, or the decayed blood he has to wipe up, i feel like that's part of the defeatist mindset he has. he decided the "can't beat em, join em" route was better. that assimilating to what white folks have wanted since fucking eugenics was better, even if it's not he reasons that joining is better than just dying out.

"assimilation is better than annihilation."

ofc, our fontaine, doesn't believe any of that bullshit. that the whole operation is fucked. old fontaine says that it's something they both know but i agree and disagree... they both know that's what white america wants. for old fontaine if that's enough to not have another incident like ronnie? good enough but our fontaine?? he's got junebug he's thinking about, other little kids in the here and now, the dreams that yo yo had and still has, everyone in the hood who wants out but just can't seem to get out.

CONTROL GROUPS

"tyrone... ain't that you?"

now i didn't grow up in the hood,or rather the projects, but i was near it. small knit group, everyone knows each other more or less.

the drug dealer, the pimp, the pastor, the kids, the aunties/grandmas/mamas/misses.

in the black community we all know someone like that or have heard of them, and the end of the movie shows this. it's more than just a call back and a chance to play a hit by miss badu.

these regulars? they're the control group the second in command was talking about. they're the ones that don't quite get the same treatment as the experimental group (i.e yo yo, biddy, junebug etc.) they're key players to making the ecosystem (experiment/operation) run smoothly. which is why the convo of fontaine deciding to go with slick and yo yo is integral to the ending and vice versa.

to break the cycle, the system? everyone's gotta rally together. country wide. (in movie context ofc)

[webslingingslasher]

please 24, 26 & 30 with a happy ending for our spider boy?

based off this prompt list

everytime I try to write happy it falls short, I only know pain and anguish. thank you friend, i hope you like it.

“It’s true.” 

Your words shake, your hands tremor, you have to remind yourself to breathe, one, two, three times. Peter was telling the truth, not that you would think he was a liar but maybe just confused on this one, lost in space, unaware of the surroundings. 

No, out of his mind. 

Peter was out of his damn mind. 

Sure, he did tell you, and it was unlike you to ignore or disagree or straight up deny his thoughts and opinions. Peter was beautiful, not just physically but in general, in his day to day life. Peter was quite literally the guy who would give you the shirt off his back, he’s done that with his jacket one too many times. Peter brought peace and serenity wherever he went, that's why he was so good at being Spider-Man, even the most shell shocked persons could settle in his eyesight, they didn’t need to know who was under the mask to know they were a good person. 

And you were you, sometimes aggressive or bitter. Sometimes underwhelming and cautious, sometimes hateful and full of spite, sometimes sad and alone, sometimes you were also joyous and calm, and bright, and cherished, and lovely, and beautiful, and just overall a wonderful human being. 

Those were Peter’s words, you don’t believe them for a second. 

 With all those reasons on board, you thought, no, believed, you believed that Peter was wrong. Deadset, terribly offtrack wrong. So wrong not even two lefts could make it right. 

I mean, how could Peter Parker, your best friend, be in love with you? 

“Please, say something.” 

He pleaded with everything in him, he just wanted you to say something back to him. It could be a terrified scream, a giddy squeal, an unsure attitude with a million questions. 

He would even accept a slap to the face, anything but the deafening silence you gave back to him. 

It was unbearable in the room, Peter suddenly felt hot and flushed, he craved the outside air. He watched as the trees shook outside in the wind, he felt slightly outraged, the trees didn’t know what they had.

 Peter didn’t want to say anything else, I mean what else is there to say? He came clean, he leant into his emotions and feelings and poured them all out on the table and just hoped you would cradle them in warm hands and promise they would be safe. But you instead recoiled your hands to your sides and looked disgusted that he would even say such things to you. 

Peter supposes it’s the way it happened, maybe that’s why you felt so torn apart. 

He was dating your friend, was, that’s the keyword. And, yeah, girl code or whatever but you and Peter were closer than you and she were, and you’ve known him longer, and when Peter ended it, not that it even really started, she didn’t seem all that shocked. Like she knew you and Peter were always end game. 

And yeah, maybe he shouldn’t have pushed himself too far and gotten a little too drunk and blurted them out in one go, but how could he hold all that in when you looked like that? Looked at him, like that. Blinking lightly at some guy near the pong table his heart thumped, he always had that voice that begged no one else would see you like he does, no one else would see how you always give more than you could think to take, they wouldn’t see how far you push yourself for your accomplishments, and not for anyone else either, the praise was nice but you did everything with the goal of making your own damn self proud. 

He just couldn’t take it, especially when you grabbed the stranger’s arm. So, he rushed up to you, pulled you by your hand and explained that he needed to talk to you about ‘something super, uberly important. Like, super important.’ 

And he dropped the news, you pulled away, refused to believe it, and instead left the party and the next day, Peter called, then texted, then texted, and texted again, and on the second call you picked up. 

“Wanna grab a coffee?” He paused into the line, he tried to make a joke, “Or a gin and tonic, maybe?” 

You laughed, “Sure, what about?” 

A pause. 

You thought this was Peter trying to meet up to backtrack, because there was no way he actually liked you, or loved you as he swore. It wasn’t possible, instead, he blurted out words he didn’t mean while drunk and was trying to make a point that yes, he loved you, but wasn’t in love with you.

 It was the only plausible action. 

Oppositely, Peter wanted to talk to you about it, because it is real for him. And you blew him off, you never said a word, just backed away shaking your head, he still wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. He expects it’s bad. He just wants to let you know he is a thousand percent serious. 

“You don’t think there’s anything we need to talk about?” Teasing tone, gut punching words. 

“I don’t know, do you think there is?” Ignore, ignore, ignore. 

“Yes, Y/N. I think there is.” Disappointment. 

“Okay, text me. I’ll see you there.” 

And he told you again, therefore, it was true. It had to be. 

He begged you to speak once more, you took several minutes. 

You finally responded, you shook your head solemnly, “No. No you don’t.” 

“I- What?” Did he look offended? He did. 

“You don’t love me like that, you just think you do.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“I don’t think you’re in love with me, I think you love me for sure but that’s what friends do.” 

He snorted, “No, trust me. I’m in love with you.” 

“No you don’t. Stop saying that.” 

Now he was getting offended, “Are you trying to mansplain my feelings to me right now? Like, as I am confessing here you’re actively trying to shove the words back in my mouth.” 

“I dunno, Peter. Think about this, think about us. Does it make sense for you to love me?” 

Confusion again, “Bro, what are you on? Think about what? I mean I’m lost here.” 

Fingers pointing back and forth, “This! Us! What’s happening, it doesn’t make sense.” 

Frustration is eating at Peter, “Okay, listen. And actually hear what I am saying, okay? I told you how I feel, pretty explicitly, several times now. If you don’t like me back, or believe it, or if you want to deny it forever that’s on you. But don’t you dare sit here and try to tell me I’m the crazy one.” 

“You are crazy though! Are you not getting that?” You pulled at the roots of your hair, he was about to cause you to have a mental breakdown. 

“How? How am I crazy? Please enlighten me.” Peter threw his back against his chair, how was an admittance of love turned into this? 

“Because I don’t deserve you, Peter!” 

It was said louder than you meant, the coffee shop quieted down for a moment before picking back up to normal. 

Peter looked perplexed, then upset, then point blank looked like he was about to cry. 

A slow head shake, disappointment, betrayal, disagreement. All three? 

“I’m sorry that you found out this way, it was unfair. It was a heavy load dropped on you, and that sucks on my end. But, I love you. I am so unnaturally in love with you I need my brain studied. And you can sit here in your own pretty little head and daydream that I’m too good for you, or I’ll get bored and leave, or I’m faking or unsure in what this is, but it won’t change. Nothing will change, if you don’t love me back that’s fine” A sharp inhale, it didn’t feel fine. 

“But I will spend the rest of my life trying to change that.” 

You bite your cheek, you watch the steam rise and curl from your cup, he was telling the truth. 

You nod slowly, releasing your cheek from your molars, “I’ll take you up on that challenge.” 

“I fell first, but I’m going to make you fall harder.” 

You laugh, “I’d love to see you try.” 

[wonhoscumrag]

Eren x Reader

Transfer Student Eren who transferred to your Uni from Germany for the semester but ended up staying and completing his entire degree in your uni,

Eren who started off as a business major and ended up in the same Children’s lit English class as you because it was an elective.

Eren who would constantly argue and bicker with you in class because you both had very different opinions on topics in class. 

The conversation had been going on for almost all of the class time now. You don't know what your professor was thinking by grouping you together with Jaeger. You damn near argued with each other in every other class. The professor put you in a group with Eren, Armin, and Sasha. He made the next class asynchronous to give you extra time to work. Armin figured that since the best place to work would be the class since nobody else was going to be there.

For the most part, everything was going well until Jaeger decided to open his stupid mouth. “I cannot believe that you think that Willy Wonka shouldn’t be held liable for what happened to those kids, you’re actually unbelievable Jaeger.” You spat out at him. "Ugh not again". You heard an exasperated voice behind you. It was Sasha groaning while placing her head down onto the desk. Eren raised his brow as he took small steps towards you. In all honesty, he didn’t really care that much about the topic of debate; he just really liked arguing with you. It did get him riled up and frustrated but it was entertaining. The principle wasn’t about being right, it was just about disagreeing with you. He took another step close to you and got right into your face. “He gave the kids clear instructions on what to do and they didn't follow them. They even signed it in writing and they still disobeyed. Why should he still have to take responsibility? Besides, it's not like anyone died. ” His thick accent made his words sound much more blunt than intended.

Before you could strike back Armin stepped in between the both of you. “Hey, come on guys, we still have to finish this assignment. We don’t even have to do Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, we can do a different story instead” He spoke softly and tried to separate the two of you hoping it would give you both time to cool your heads. “Business majors” you muttered under your breath as you both walked back to your seats. “Here goes Freud jr. trying to psychoanalyze me again” Eren spoke while rolling his eyes before he sat down. You gave him a hard glare and right before you were about to speak you glanced across the table and saw Armin's worried look. You sighed and tried to calm yourself down. Armin was right, we did have to work on the project. The due date wasn’t for a while but you were all swamped with work from other classes and this was the best time frame for the 4 of you to do the work and hopefully complete it early. You faced Armin and gave him a sweet smile “let's continue where we left off”. Armin breathed out a sigh of relief and opened his notebook.

A/N: Hope it was okay, this is my first time doing this and I'll probably add on to it whenever I get the time but I just wanted to put something out cause it was running through my mind. Also this was stemmed from a 2 minute conversation I had with my friend.

[rogue205]

Unpopular Opinion Rant

I’m still in my Teen Wolf phase and re-watching the show. 

Holy. Hell. I can’t stand Scott. I hate how much of a hypocritical, seeing in straight black and white with no grey, thinks-he’s-got-the-moral-high-ground, self-serving, egotistical prick he really is. He constantly whines about being a werewolf but happily uses his new abilities to become better at lacrosse, increase his popularity, and basically betray Stiles’ friendship because he got better than him. Maybe it’s just me but I really don’t see anywhere in his attitude that warrants him being labeled a “True Alpha”.  I guess it’s all about “willpower and strength of character” but the show implies that one only achieves this level by being good and Scott is not as good and right as he thinks he is. 

Also what gets me a lot is the ending of both season one and season two. (3-6 don’t exist for me, especially the whole Jackson/Ethan thing. Seriously? Ethan? No. Why not Danny or anyone else?! I also hated the whole turning Jackson into a Kanima/Wolf hybrid. He is NOT a damn hybrid! Once he completed his transformation at the end of Season 2, he became a WEREWOLF!!!)

First, yes, I get that the writers wanted to depict Peter as a psychotic bad guy but maaaaaaaybe don’t have him go through a hugely traumatic event where he saw near his entire family burn to death, something he himself also barely survived. He also went feral because of broken pack bonds and the fact that his new Alpha just abandoned him to die. So all that, and the “morally superior good guys” decide the only way to stop him was to set him on fire. Again. Explain to me how that makes them better? Because they pretty much set a burn trauma survivor on fire again and didn’t care. 

Second, I hate Scott’s actions regarding Gerard Argent and the fact that he forced Derek to bite the bastard against his will. Sure, he had a plan but did he actually tell it to anybody? Hmmmm. It seems he does that a lot. Scott also didn’t seem to give a damn that Gerard had all but tortured Stiles, a person who was supposed to be his best friend but who cares about that as long as Scott gets what he wants and people do what he wants. That last part was never mentioned in the show anyway so I guess... 🤷‍♀️. 

I know Scott was also one of the few who wanted to save Jackson as opposed to killing him, but let us not forget Peter helped to save him too, even if it is unclear here whether he had an ulterior motive for it. (It’s really too bad that Colton Haynes left after this season because I am completely convinced that Jackson would have been revealed as Peter’s son given all the buildup thus far. But it’s very likely that the writers would have eventually reduced Jackson to a prop to hold up Scott as well eventually so maybe Colton actually did himself a favour.)

Back to Peter, I know many will disagree with me on this, but I like him. Peter is what one would call a “chaotic neutral” and Ian Bohen’s acting is just so incredible, he makes it very hard to hate this guy even when he’s being a snarky smartass. (Or is that he’s so good that he makes you hate the character like you’re supposed to? In that case, he failed with me). Yes, he killed his niece, but it’s also heavily implied that he wasn’t all there mentally during that part because of all the trauma, the psychological damage of being trapped in his body for six years, and the fact that Laura abandoned him, as mentioned before plus wasn’t Jennifer manipulating him? Do NOT even get me started on how unbelievable the whole “Peter willingly working with Kate” thing is. Seriously, if season one was any indication, he should’ve immediately tried to kill her again once he realized she was still alive. 

Another thing that irks me is Derek and the pack’s constant need to hold everything over Peter’s head when it was actually Derek who gave Kate everything she needed to wipe out his family. But Derek gets all the slack for that instead. I don’t hate Derek at all but come on! 

This leads me to my final point of the rant and that is the writers reducing the Hales to props to try and keep Scott credible as an Alpha and nothing more, even dismantling the Hale pack entirely at one point. Yes, Derek does it to save Cora but they officially wiped out a powerful, centuries old werewolf pack just like that. Only way I’ll get over this is if they eventually give the Hales a spin-off much like the Originals from the Vampire Diaries. I mean more young Peter? Hell yes!!!! Young Derek? Sure, I’m game! Actually showing Talia as a fleshed out character? 🙋‍♀️ Me!!! Also it may get me to like Laura as it would take her beyond this one-dimensional person that we know now. Who knows.

[morocosmos]

FFxivWrite2023 Day 2 - Bark

Masterlist Fandom: Final Fantasy XIV Characters/Pairings: Original Female Character(s), eventual OCxOC (F/F), Sanson Smyth, Guydelot Thildonnet, Sanson/Guydelot Rating: Teen & Up (may change) Additional Notes: Deipo is the younger sister of my WoL, Moro'a, and his only surviving family. You can read about how they were unhappily reunited here.

Only for it to swing wide open, causing Deipo to skitter backwards in alarm as in stepped none other than Guydelot, who paused mid-step to look at her in mild surprise. A smirk smoothed over his expression just as quickly. “I’d honestly expected Sanson to catch you first,” he said, grinning.

Deipo tensed as Guydelot approached, ready for a struggle, but the Elezen walked right past her, sinking into the chair that had been his destination all along. “I know what you’re thinking of, and I have to say there isn’t much point, what with the malms of forest to get lost in and the unpleasant beasties roaming about,” he warned her cheerily, leaning back on the chair so that it balanced on its back legs. His hands were behind his head and he showed no signs of distress over the fact that he’d caught her trying to escape.

Deipo contemplated toppling the chair over, and him with it. “Then? You send lances and bows after a prisoner of war?” she growled, taking a step towards Guydelot.

He shook his head. “No need,” he disagreed. “You could barely stand a day ago; I don’t see you getting far.”

She felt weaker than she would’ve liked, it was true, and she doubted she could evade even a handful of soldiers. But subduing just one would buy her time, and Deipo was still confident she could best him. Where he hardly seemed to care about his task, she wanted freedom.

Guydelot became more serious, and Deipo knew he was watching her carefully now. “Go on, then. I’m not stopping you.” He still made no move to apprehend her. Deipo hesitated, waiting for a trick. When none came, she turned and bolted, unwilling to find out if the man did have something up his sleeve.

Deipo ran, pushing past shocked villagers as she tore down the path. A healer shouted for her, and dogs barked as a stranger that neared their homes. All of which Deipo duly ignored. There was only one way in and out of the village, but as she followed the route she’d memorised, a flaring pain interrupted her thoughts.

She was slowing. Becoming tired, so, so quickly, her limbs like dead machinery. Why…? She’d barely made it past the last house. If she could at least make it past the gates, find somewhere to hide until they gave up searching for her…the world turned as she tripped on her own feet — of all the damn things — she tumbled into the dirt, jarring her body.

Everything spun, everything hurt. So much for confidence. She hadn’t the power to win her own freedom. 

Deipo felt rather than heard the villagers coming closer, wolves surrounding a felled deer. End it quickly, she found herself wishing, silently. She wasn’t in the Black Shroud, but in Garlemald, ten years young and lying much the same way on the ground. Soon to be punished for attempting desertion, made an example in front of the other conscripts. It’d been a miracle that she wasn’t shot.

Someone was leaning over her. “Told you,” a voice said, though there was no mockery. “Though I would’ve preferred not to. Sanson’s not going to like this…” Deipo felt herself being moved, carefully, so that she now lay on her side. It didn’t stop her head from spinning, but she could hear a little better.

Guydelot held a hand to his ear, and he was still speaking, albeit to someone else. Relaying the news to his captain, no doubt. “She’s fine, still conscious. Just took a bit of a fall.” A muffled voice replied in urgent tones. “Aye, aye.” His hand dropped to his side, and he turned to examine her.

“I’m taking you back,” he told Deipo, though he looked none too happy about the task. With a grunt, he lifted her up, carrying her over his shoulder. “A healer’s going to look you over, so don’t go making this any more difficult. Wouldn’t want to stay confined any longer than you have to, eh?”

[emblazons]

hi marie, its me again <3 the anon with byler doubt haha ... you made such great points! and tysm for such a thorough response.

I am SO CURIOUS how do you think they'll get Mike and Will together? I think that's the aspect that has me doubting the most because it feels so so MESSY and they can very easily mess it all up if they aren't careful.

Explaining Mike's internalized homophobia etc might be something too difficult to unpack in just one season, on top of everything else going on as well with the world literally ending. I also don't know what the point was of having Mike say he loved Eleven if it wasn't true, what do you think they were trying to achieve with that?

Do we truly think she'd be okay with breaking up with Mike? And if the answer is yes, how will that affect Mike and El's dynamic going forward, you think? Will they really not only break up milkvan, but leave elmike underdeveloped in favor of Byler?

I look at the Steve/Nancy/Jonathan love triangle and that has been a mess for seasons now and still no resolution, so I don't know how they'll do it for Mike and Will. I fear they'll go for the "easy route" (aka milkvan endgame) to focus on the supernatural and other characters more. Because if Byler is endgame I feel like they'd need to devote a great chunk of the season to them in order to explain wth is going on with Mike specifically + giving him closure with El.

I suppose something else that gives me doubt is how Mike and Will have been sidelined in these last few seasons to give more screentime/protagonism to other characters and dynamics, so I don't know if I can fully believe the Duffers care THAT much about romantic!Byler if that makes sense.

Hopefully this all doesn't sound overly pessimistic or something, I am genuinely curious about your thoughts in some of these more like looking for reassurance tbh! Especially after reading your response to my first ask <3 TYSM once again!!

hello again!

To be honest, you've got a lot of questions that require separate (and equally detailed) responses, but...let me see if I can briefly explain each, and maybe link to other analyses I've done that might help make sense of why I say.

note: some of these are just my frankest opinions unfiltered, but I do have analytical reasons for all of them. Your questions are also asking things it's taken several rewatches and a year to sort through so...apologies if you just get the simplest version of the idea delineated here haha. also, a cut, because this got really long.

1: How do you think they'll get Mike and Will together? Transparently? I'm not really all that into specifics, because expecting specific things means I'm going to fall into the trap of thinking I'm the one writing it when I'm not and then say The Duffers "lied" or "messed up" because I expected something they never put in there. That said—in terms of plain setup, they will need to address the painting because that was a critical plot point from damn near minute one of S4, and now it's become fully integrated with not only Will's feelings for Mike, but Mike's own sense of El's feelings for him.

Beyond that...I think El will need to be the one to initiate the "complete" breakup, because she's the one who wanted space in the first place, the one who is repeatedly having her romantic partner paralleled to parental and tragic figures, the one refuses to be vulnerable & who built lies into their relationship...and the one whose general arc centers around reclaiming autonomy and choice from the men in her life. I also think Mike will be the one to initiate the romantic aspect, if its not a bit mutual.

2: Mike's internalized homophobia etc might be something too difficult to unpack in just one season - I disagree. We managed to sort through introducing Will's romantic feelings and sense of his queerness in a single season just fine...and Mike has had queer-coding show up throughout every season if you know what you're looking for.

The fact that this boy already has a one way sign into his closet, has repeatedly yelled about "boys only" every season AND shows clear signs of male attraction already has most people (even the supposed 'GA') suspicious of his sexuality, and combined with his devotion to will + the wider context, there are plenty of ways to introduce the idea of him liking boys explicitly that don't require any intense delineation...unless you expect them to say "he's gay" out loud, which they didn't do when Robin came out, and still haven't done for Will either...despite everyone knowing damn well they're gay.

3: I also don't know what the point was of having Mike say he loved Eleven if it wasn't true - I think that most of the breakdowns I've done of parentified!mike make clear that the love he has for her is somewhat genuine...though its being written as misplaced familial love, because he spent so much time believing he needed "a girl" to assuage his insecurities.

While I absolutely lean toward a gay!Mike reading myself, it's still clear even without a label that Mike's love mirrors Hopper's more than it resembles any of the love given by potential romantic partners to other women across the show—and Mike, given that he was being told by Will that El needed him to say he loved her for her to win, did what he thought was necessary to help her.

I do not think his love for her is a lie—I simply think it isn't romantic, and has now been so conflated with something negative in El's mind that it wouldn't matter if he mean't it romantically anyway. That said: narratively, Mike had to say he loved El because unless the fullness of what was expected (an I love you) was accomplished, it would hang over the story and any relationship Byler might have. El needed to hear it...so she could reject it, which she did.

4: Do we truly think she'd be okay with breaking up with Mike? yes. I think El will be absolutely 300000% just fine being broken up with Mike lmao. She has Hopper back now (who she was mourning the loss of, and therefore looking to fill with Mike emotionally), on top of having Max's "there's more to life than stupid boys" at the fore of her mind saving her.

Mike is also paralleled to parental and abusive figures in El's mind, on top of the fact that she has been keeping him at an emotional distance for the entirety of S4. Given that she and Lucas will probably also get closer in the search for Max...I'm quite sure she's not going to take it as hard as people imagine, especially given the fact that we already know she was happiest in S3 when they were broken up.

I also don't have any expectation of ElMike being super close friends (beyond party bonds + civility) either, which...I mean if you are I apologize but. I don't see that happening in canon, so them being developed deeply as friends before the show ends is not important to me as a plot point, and doesn't really have any canonical backing considering their ongoing lack of platonic connection outside of the necessary + lack of common interest. That's even a note thematically in the show...which means its makes sense for them not to be that close by the end of the narrative.

5: Steve/Nancy/Jonathan love triangle and that has been a mess for seasons now and still no resolution, so I don't know how they'll do it for Mike and Will. Truth be told, that love triangle has a resolution—Nancy has chosen Jonathan, and continues to, even though she flirted with Steve when she felt lonely. Nancy's arc has always centered around choosing something different than her parents and has from S1—her brief flirtation with Steve aside, her loyalty to Jonathan hasn't changed, though they are absolutely not a perfect couple.

If anything, the end of S4 set up Jonathan and Steve learning to be friends less so than anything implying Nancy might choose Steve instead—Jonathan is finally in a narrative position to choose something for himself now which frees him up to be honest with Nancy, and even outside of that, Nancy is far more likely to end up with single than she is with Steve—which is the exact opposite of how they've set up Mike to be with Will rather than El over the course of the season.

6: I fear they'll go for the "easy route" (aka milkvan endgame) to focus on the supernatural and other characters more. I don't agree. The supernatual plot has always been well-integrated with the romantic elements in every couple across the board, from Mike's "first love lost" energy happening when El disappeared in S1, Lumax bonding in S2 in a fight with demodogs, Jancy's bonding across S2-3 happening in the lab seeing the gate, while Will was un-possessed, and while they fought the thing monster in the hospital....and Jopper in Russia fighting a demogorgon in S4.

The Duffers have never slacked in setting up their romances in conjunction with the supernatual plots, and there's no reason to think they're gonna start with Byler, especially given Will's mirroring of Vecna/Henry, the way the day his disappeared is the day the UD is frozen, and how he's the one who can sense him...while now having Mike glued to his side.

7: if Byler is endgame I feel like they'd need to devote a great chunk of the season to them in order to explain wth is going on with Mike specifically + giving him closure with El. The 5th season is going to bring all of the characters together again, and they've already said Will is central to that. I've written before about the reason why they had to sideline Will in their plot to make a narrative point, but regardless...like I said before, if you know how to read subtext, Mike being queer won't come as all that much of a surprise.

Note: I've done several (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) analyses on Mike and his arc, which might help.

Beyond that...again, I honestly don't think The Duffers care much to make ElMike besties like fanon seems to think they should be (they haven't done it with any of the other romantic couples they've broken up) so...closure can include civility and acceptance for them the way it did S2 Steve with Jancy, imo. What Mike needs most is to gain the courage to accept himself and realize he doesn't need a girl to assuage his insecurities—and him being casual friends with El the same way he is casually supportive canonically with Max makes more sense than trying to skirt over all the mess of their relationship for the sake of an attached fandom ☠️

—that was a lot to cover, but hopefully that cleared up my position on a lot of your questions? I would also encourage you to take a look at my ST commentary tag & analyses highlights list (soon to be updated again) and even my asks for more context, on top of maybe giving the show a rewatch in its entirety if you can.

Sidebar: I also encourage you to dig into my Duffer Brothers tag and commentary (see bottom of the page), because knowing who made the show is just as helpful as understanding the show itself.

Its really easy to get caught in other people's wants and headcanons for the show if you don't keep going back to it yourself, so—as lovingly as possible, I really do encourage you to just sit and watch it with the "byler knowledge" you have from users like me, your other fave analysts, and maybe some of the "old guard" like @kaypeace21, who was integral in my own development of opinions before I dug in for myself. If you're ever doubting, that's always your best bet.

That said: It's literally impossible to summarize a framework crossing nearly 37 hours of TV in a single ask (or even 20)...which is why I've got almost a year worth of posts about it (and have evolved my depth of understanding dramatically over time).

The same way you can't spark notes your way through a degree without missing a lot of context, even me saying this with evidence won't help a lot if you haven't dug into it yourself—and doubt will repeatedly creep in if you're trusting me over the show itself, even though the show is where I've pulled all this from lmao.

—this got really long, but....I hope it helped. And again, sorry if I seemed short anywhere lmao. This was a lot to cover. Still, as always, thanks for the ask!

[fallenasleepyetagain]

Flowers - Blue/Nightmare

Media: UTAU/UTMV

Genres: Past/Established character death, established relationship, grief/mourning, Nightmare is going Through It

Characters: King Nightmare, Blue (UTMV), Cross (UTMV), Lonan (OC), various npc characters

Pairings: Nightmare/Blue

CW/TW - Death, grief, idk LOL

Word Count: 1457

Ao3 Link

Blue was gorgeous.

A known fact, really.

Nightmare had yet to meet a person who disagreed with him.

Not like anyone would. Who would tell the King of Negativity that his beloved wasn't the most perfect man in the Multiverse?

Exactly, no one.

People flocked to him; he was beautiful, and sweet, and kind. He was so passionate about his interests and it was infectious. He wasn't perfect, but he was really damn close.

Nightmare didn't think that he would ever get over the fact that out of everyone in the multiverse, Blue had chosen him. Blue had wanted him.

The day their lips, their bodies, first connected was forever melded into his memory. It would never leave him be, and he would never want it too.

The kingdom, every resident: man, woman, and child, adored him as well. That made making him the crown prince a rather easy transition.

That was how the monarchy worked, had Nightmare married a woman (or even been remotely attracted to women), she would've become a princess, not the queen. Had Nightmare passed while Blue was prince, only then would he become a king.

That's how it worked. Nightmare had made the system himself.

"My king?"

Nightmare looked up from his desk, he was getting nowhere with his work. He needed to distract himself from the current event at hand. It was hard, and he needed any distraction he could get.

"Yes, Cross?"

"The welder's finished his work, sir. Would you like me to go get it?"

"No. I will retrieve it myself, thank you, Cross." Nightmare said, sitting up and stretching his back as he stood. He walked past Cross, hands neatly folded behind his back.

"Sir, I-"

"Don't." Nightmare held up a hand, stopping Cross in his tracks. "Please."

"Right. Of course."

The leaves on the trees shook on their branches as he exited the castle, crossing the courtyard before heading into town. Everything was quiet, as if the world has stood still.

It hadn't, though, and Nightmare knew that better than anyone.

Life would continue on, no matter what.

The town itself was also quiet, no sound of merchants or children playing. He wished it wasn't though. He needed things to be normal. To pretend to be normal.

His shoes tapped against the bricks, announcing his presence to his people.

Any other day, people would've cheered for him, adorned him with flowers, and whatever else they did to treat him like the royal he was. He never did care for it, but he found himself longing for it now more than ever.

The welder's shop was located near the center of town, a few buildings down from the uptown fountain. He wandered down the street, ignoring the occasional looks at him through someone's window.

"Ah, my king." The welder, an older gentleman by the name of Lonan, opened the door before Nightmare could even touch the handle. "Welcome in, please. Make yourself at home."

Nightmare gave him a kind, passing glance, before stepping into the shop, needing to duck his head down to avoid bumping into the door frame. His gaze followed Lonan as he trotted through his shop, fidgeting with his leather vest.

"Allow me to retrieve the crown. It was an honor being able to work for you, my king. Never have I worked with such a metal, it was such a privilege!"

Before Lonan could continue, Nightmare raised his hand, stopping him.

"Right! Of course, I shall get it for you now."

The soft patter of Lonan hobbling away grew quieter, and Nightmare was left with his thoughts once more. He never thought that it would happen so soon, he had prepared for it, of course. And yet he still couldn't believe it had happened.

"The crown, my lord."

The shiny box was opened, displaying a beautifully carved and elegant crown. It was more adjacent to a tiara, but it was utterly perfect for the man who wore it.

It was made with a fine, glimmering silver, and adorned with blue gems collected from all over the world. Nightmare picked them out specifically, meant to match his beloved's eyes. And they did their job perfectly, accenting those gorgeous, blue eyes, and yet never overshadowing them.

The crown looked good as new, thanks to Lonan's expert talent. It had broke, not utterly shattered, thank god, but the silver had been scratched and one of the gems had been cracked.

However, it looked as if nothing had happened. Even the sapphire looked good as new. How did he do that?

Nightmare took the box from Lonan, holding it close to his chest. "It's perfect, thank you."

"Anything for you, my king!"

"Your payment will be delivered by my guard. My apologies for not having it on me."

"Ah, do not apologize your majesty! It is no issue." Lonan opened the door for Nightmare, he stepped outside, leaning against it. His face fell for a moment, eyes glancing towards the brick road before slowly gazing back up at Nightmare. "My king, I...I am so-"

"Please. Do not. You've done more than enough for me."

"I...Of course, your highness."

Nightmare wasn't sure how much more he could take. He needed to get home. Now.

If one more person came up to him and tried to say anything, he might have an aneurism.

"My king, sir?"

Fuck.

A small girl with large brown eyes looked up at him, her black hair long and in a neat bun situated at the base of her neck. She had tan skin and many freckles dotting her body. She wore normal townsfolk garb: a dark colored skirt with a light shirt underneath, and a deep purple bodice on top.

Purple was a color found nearly everywhere in Nightmare's kingdom. It wasn't just for royalty, it was the color of the kingdom, not just him.

In her arms was a bouquet of small blue flowers, wrapped neatly in fabric and a ribbon bow.

Nightmare got down on one knee, making sure they were eye level with each other. He smiled softly at her, "Yes, my dear?"

"I got these for you." She said, as she handed him the flowers. Her voice stayed soft and monotone and she looked up at him as he stood up. "I'm sorry about your loss."

"...Thank you."

"He was a good man."

"Indeed. He was." Nightmare smiled because if he didn't, he worried that he might break.

The girl's mother pulled her away and he nodded at the family, a silent thanks. The walk back to the castle was agony, his eyes constantly darting down to the flowers in his hand.

Forget-me-not's.

A beautiful flower, small, blue.

Perfect.

"...My lord." Cross approached Nightmare when he entered the castle. "We have to, um, move him. Soon."

Cross couldn't finish his sentence, but he didn't have to.

To preserve the body.

"Understood. I will be a moment." Nightmare nodded, trying to keep his voice as monotone and calm as he could.

"Uh. Nice flowers?"

Nightmare couldn't help but smile. "Thank you, Cross."

The casket was open, completely unsealed, his body still open against the elements. He was nestled into white, silk cushions, with a soft outfit that wouldn't bother his sensory needs.

Not like it would matter, considering he was dead, but Nightmare wouldn't do anything but honor him in death.

Even in death, he smiled. Nightmare leaned against the casket, brushing his brown curls off of his cold forehead. His eyes, gorgeous eyes, were closed, his face pulled into a relaxed smile.

"You are so beautiful, my dear." Nightmare choked on his words as he kneeled beside the casket. His fingers played with Blue's curls, his breathing beginning to quiver.

With the small bouquet in his hands, he slowly began to pluck the flower from the rest of the plant, gently putting them in his hair.

The remains of the bouquet gently landed on the tiles beside the casket. All of the flowers had been plucked from their stems and placed in Blue's hair.

A stifled sob came from Nightmare as he stood up, hands clamped on the edge of the casket. The box containing Blue's crown had been placed on a nearby stand, and Nightmare pried it open, situating it on his forehead.

Gorgeous.

It didn't compare to Blue's, of course. And yet, it suited him perfectly.

"My king..." Cross said softly, approaching as silently as he could. "We...really need to move him. The casket."

Nightmare nodded, wordless as he stood up, rubbing his eyes with his fingers. He took a final look at his love, gently caressing his cheek.

"The next time we meet, my beloved, you'll be alive, and you'll never leave my side again."

[vidalinav]

Soft nezriel doing aftercare after sex 😩

I didn't do necessarily aftercare... it ended up being slightly off when I was writing comfort. But whatever. Do not care.

~

He hears what they say about her.

He’s the spymaster of course, he does. She’s vile to her sisters, to Cassian, to their peace and then some. She sticks her nose up in the air as if she’s better than they are. She’s cruel and vindictive. Spiteful with that rapturing roar. Teeth so sharp she'll bite.

Azriel finds that the cruelest thing out of Nesta's mouth is the way she whines and pleas. Her face flushes so sweetly, and after she gasps his name, she curls into his side. 

No part of her is malicious, but that cheeky grin is wicked. Something comical always crosses her thoughts and Nesta makes a joke that has him rolling his eyes and nipping at her lips. 

“No more of that,” she waves off at the swipe of his tongue. “We can’t possibly do that again.” 

Azriel is prone to disagree, but he kisses at her forehead instead. He half wishes to start mumbling praise, but he knows that will only elicit a scrunch of a nose. Nesta’s all too bashful when she’s not heady with lust, and so he only moves for a towel to clean them both off. 

Nesta stretches an arm towards him as he shifts out of bed and Azriel smiles down at the movement, lifting her hand up to his mouth. Her skin is soft against his lips, and he should have already memorized the feel of it. It shouldn't shock him so, but it does. The fact that he can touch her like this is shock to him every night. That she reaches for him, as if to say come back to bed.

Nesta frowns lightly at his burning gaze.

"It'll be morning soon," she says and in her voice there's an air of finality.

That's more cruel than anything else. The look on Nesta's face is resigned and he doesn't need mind reading abilities to know what she's thinking.

But why should they not seek comfort in each other's embrace? If two lonely people find each other, why would they not hold on tightly, desperately? It's the natural order of things. Don't the wicked need love to?

So Azriel reaches for Nesta, for her cheek that's much holier than him, and he holds her head in his palms like he's holding the world in his hands. Somehow, it's become more precious to be here. It's easier to breathe when she's near. Easier to be who he is. To smile. To laugh.

What an odd situation, he's found himself in. That he's always wanted someone that lights up a room, and the person who offers him the most comfort is a female who's found herself in the shadows. Who's perhaps lived there for as long as he has... always so alone.

Azriel's grateful for it, and perhaps that makes him vile. He's angry for her, and maybe that makes him say cruel things. But why do they have be lonely? Why do they have to keep punishing themselves?

"I love you," he says and he can't hold it in any longer.

Azriel doesn't care anymore. If everything about the two of them is to be wrong, if both of them are unforgivable, then... why are they trying so hard to be good?

But he feels good when he's with her. So damn happy, he doesn't ever want to leave.

Nesta's eyes widen at the words, and her lips part but she doesn't say a thing. That's okay, he thinks. He's already given her his whole heart, his time. Like a fool. There's nothing left of him to give her but his words. "I'll stay, if you let me."

"And if I don't?" Nesta meets his gaze head on, and it's equal part callous as it is unsure.

Azriel slips back under the covers, pulling her close to him. Just for a minute. A moment to remind her that it's him. That she can show him every part of herself that she doesn't like, say every word that's not easy to swallow. He can take it. He'll hold all of her.

"Then I'll hold you like this until the sun comes up." Like he usually does, as he contemplates every reason why he belongs in her arms. "I'll kiss every inch of your skin one more time." Enough to leave phantom ghosts on her skin. Better than bruises left from his bites. The bumps on her skin raise as if she can remember him completely. "I'll stay until you sleep, and then I'll leave like I was never here at all."

"And if I do?" Nesta's voice is soft. Trembling and tender. Her nose grazes against his and he pecks at her lips. It's a version of an I love you, he's learned long before he's ever said the words aloud.

I love you. I love you. I love you all along her skin.

"Then I'll cook you breakfast when we wake up." Azriel isn't being careful when he says the word we. He's being reckless and stupid, but he wants her to know... He wants them together. He wants to hold her without a deadline, without fear of it ending.

Nesta only scoffs, "you burn everything you touch."

"Then we'll order in." Or out, he thinks. But he's not so sure what that means for both of them, for the situation that hasn't righted itself quite yet.

But Azriel's always been the reckless one. "I can take you out of the city, and we can go somewhere else." Somewhere far.

So Nesta can see everything she's ever wanted. He'll give her everything she asks. She'll never have to wonder.

"You wanted to see the world," he offers quietly. "We could go. Leave today," he shrugs. "Return when we're ready."

Nesta sighs, as she pulls him closer, tucking her head on his bare chest. "You dream very big dreams." Nesta yawns lightly, closing her eyes. "No wonder you belong in this place."

I belong with you, he wants to say, but it seems... wrong, somehow. Untrue at least, since he doesn't in fact belong with Nesta. Someone else belongs with her. To her. "Is that so bad? To dream."

Azriel can feel her soft shrug.

"Not as long as you remember to wake up and... face the world for how it truly is."

That might have been an answer in itself, so Azriel squeezes at her palm and kisses at her forehead, resigned.

With her head on his chest and his hands combing through her hair, he'll wait till she sleeps. Then he'll slip out the door. Like she wants.

But Nesta hums softly, shifting in his arms and snuggling close. "I have some jam and bread in the cupboard. We'll have to settle for toast."

Azriel can't stop the giddy swell of his heart.

I love you, he offers with one last kiss.

[tiktowafel]

Hey love your headcanons! I was wondering if you have any for Tsuburaba?

yup i have many! i love this boy so much

the majority of the class 1b fandom seems to agree that this dude is a total memelord and i honestly can't look him in those googly eyes and disagree with that

he definitely spams the class group chat with memes, recreates vines with his friends, quotes them all the time, gets mildly upset every time someone doesn't understand a reference and acts like he has memorized every knowyourmeme article in existence

i think he's just class 1-b's main funny guy in general, always joking around, telling wacky stories, pulling pranks and just trying to make everyone laugh :)

speaking of pranks: he loves pulling them because his quirk is perfect for that purpose. he did the "putting walls of solid air in doorways and waiting for someone to bump into them" one so may times it's more annoying than funny at this point, but it's his favorite nonetheless. mainly because he really enjoys watching certain people (usually Awase or Kamakiri, the ones who swear the most) get ridiculously pissed over it lol

he also uses his quirk to make little glass figures. he's not much of an artist so they usually come out really wonky but everyone thinks theyre cute

lung capacity has a lot to do with physical endurance so i guess he does long distance running as a form of quirk training? i feel like hes a pretty sporty person in general considering ball sports are canonically one of his favorite things

as much as he likes his quirk, he has to admit that it can be pretty damn inconvenient sometimes. for example respiratory diseases make it go haywire and it's incredibly annoying because it activates every time he coughs or sneezes

(can you tell i love his quirk and think about it a lot?? because i love his quirk and think about it a lot)

his life motto is probably something like "the more stupid shit you do, the more funny stories you'll have to tell your friends later!" because he always gets himself in trouble in dumbest ways possible and then walks up to people like "hey wanna hear about my latest near death experience"

but he's an amazing storyteller, really. this man's got such a way with words that everyone likes listening to him

he'd actually make a pretty good teacher.... if he wasn't absolutely terrible at almost everything school related

english is his only really strong school subject (90% of his skills comes from watching yt videos and looking at memes in english). he's pretty bad at everything else because his memory sucks and he can't pay attention in class to save his life

Rin is usually the one who helps him with studying. this is the main reason why they're close because Rin has the soul of an old man and doesn't get Tsuburaba's sense of humor at all lmao

the people who definitely do get his sense of humor are Tokage and Fukidashi. they're the meme trio of class 1-b and they have a separate group chat that exists for shitposting purposes only

he's also really good friends with Kaibara and Awase, the other two common sense kings, plus Tetsutetsu and Kamakiri, buuut i'm too lazy to talk about it rn lol

Yanagi on the other hand really doesn't like him. she considers him an annoying pervert and treats him like a sworn rival. he likes messing with her in return despite not really understanding why she hates him so much. the rest of the class thinks their interactions are hilarious

i mean he's canonically pretty dirty minded, but he's no Mineta!

sure he laughs at dirty jokes and often catches himself staring at people but he usually keeps his... thoughts to himself

idk for some reasons he seems like the kind of guy who sleeps naked (obviously he wears a robe when walking around the dorms)

it's a very good way to keep Tetsutetsu out of his room because Tetsu's the kind of guy who likes storming into peoples rooms in the morning like "it's a beautiful day outside bro!! the birds are singing and the sun is shining, get out of bed and go eat a healthy breakfast!!!" and Tsuburaba needs his beauty sleep lmao

(well maybe he wouldn't need it if he didn't stay up till 3am watching meme compilations on youtube every night)

every common sense king knows how to play an instrument and Tsuburaba's no exception. he's an absolute master at playing the kazoo

and also at whistling

fuck canon. this man has freckles

since freckled people don't tan very well, he gets sunburns a lot. it's not his fault he likes going outside and just forgets his sunscreen sumetimes :(

everyone in his family is taller than him and he hates it

speaking of his family, he has two older siblings - a brother and a sister, and i actually have character designs for them and their parents too (i also made up families for a bunch of other students. maybe one day i'll get myself to draw them and write some headcanons?)

that's all for today! i wanted to make this a bit more serious but decided not to because... idk man i didn't feel like it

[mywingsareonwheels]

Some hopefully reassuring observations on fandom and human beings

1. Sometimes (more of the time than not) when two fans of something disagree sharply on their interpretation of a character or event in the story, neither of them is actually wrong. Especially if the source material is any good and thus complex and open to more than one way of looking at things. The more simplistic an interpretation the less astute and wise it’s likely to be, but that doesn’t mean that even someone who holds an opinion like that has missed everything important about it! When portrayals of a character in fanfic vary wildly that’s... actually probably a feature, rather than a bug. (Even if it is occasionally saddening to be halfway through a fic and suddenly realise that this excellent writer hates your favourite character/adore your least favourite! ;-) Such is life, doesn’t mean anyone’s doing anything wrong.)

2. It is totally reasonable to unfollow or even block an entirely lovely strange or near-stranger on tumblr/refrain from reading their fics because their interpretation of the story or a character is so different from yours that it’s just stressful to read their takes. But if it’s someone you already know and like, especially a real-life or close-online friend, it’s really *really* not worth falling out about that.

3. Relatedly: I think we all got so damn burned out by “you need to not just follow/like/befriend people you agree with about everything” being used to attempt to guilt us into listening to fascists, or otherwise put up with bigotry or constant microaggressions or generally get exhausted by nonsense. So let us all agree that instantly blocking bigots or others with views that we find dehumanising is a Really Damn Good Thing. BUT ALSO... over issues that aren’t that crucial, writing friends off due to any possible difference of opinion (fandom-related or otherwise) is a bit miserable. And absolutely awful as a pattern for activism, given that people of goodwill who may disagree with each other over some stuff working together is an absolutely necessary bit of activism.

4. When a fandom has a pattern of preference over characters, ships, and storylines that conforms to societal biases, a) that’s a bad thing and worth talking about, b) it *doesn’t mean that everyone in the fandom who has that preference is doing so because of those social biases*. Group tendencies do not generally predict the motivations of every individual within the group.

5. “It is an especially good thing when A happens” and “It is a bad thing when B happens” are not the same thing. (I most want to make the point that “queer actors playing queer characters is extra awesome” is true but so also is “sometimes het actors play queer characters beautifully and as long as they do their jobs well that’s totally okay”.)

6. It really is okay to ship characters because you fancy them rather than for any more supposedly exalted reason. (Which isn’t to say that other reasons to ship characters aren’t valid and interesting! But “I ship these two because they are/would be hot together” is a complete reason. If indeed any reason is needed.)

7. There is no moral dimension to what gender(s) you find attractive (if any).

8. There is no moral dimension to what gender(s) you are (if any).

9. Not everyone in fandom is a woman, let alone a cishet woman.

10. Actors and other artists are all human beings first and foremost, and should be treated accordingly. And being human beings, it should be trivially obvious that the theory that all of them are motivated by the desire for publicity and nothing else is absolute nonsense.

11. Being kind and generous with yourself and other people is a very very good thing.

[donald4spiderman]

GYM CRUSH

when tom needs a little saving during a gym-mishap, you’re more than happy to be his hero.

tom holland x fem!reader

tw: potentially dangerous accident involving gym equipment

masterlist

TOM, ATTEMPTING TO SHAKE OFF THE NEARING FATIGUE IN HIS CHEST, readies himself for another set of bench presses. He’s never done this much weight before—he knows he should have a spotter—but he doesn’t care. He catches a quick glimpse of you setting up a deadlift on the nearby rack, and figures it’s enough motivation to push through.

For the past three months, Tom has been a regular patron of the Gold’s Gym near his apartment. People recognize him often, but LA has (for the most part) desensitized its residents to celebrity. So, when he’s not filming, he’s there getting a lift in. Though, Tom admits that he’s not as much of a fan of the gym as he is of a certain someone that also frequents the establishment.

He doesn’t know your name, or anything else about you. He’s never talked to you; the only interaction between the two of you being passing smiles, mostly from what he believes to be common courtesy on your part. What Tom does know is that you lift often and a lot. Maybe that’s why he finds himself setting up to bench two plates, 225 pounds. For a relatively smaller guy like him, it’s a fuck-ton of weight. He’s barely surpassed 205, but here is he getting cocky, hoping to grasp your attention.

Tom sneaks one final glance in your direction. He inhales deeply, planting his feet firmly into the ground and craning his shoulder blades tightly into the bench. The lift off from the rack is easy—it’s only a few inches, but it’s easy nonetheless. For a second, Tom thinks he can do it.

But then the weight travels down and he loses control over the path of the bar. It slams down onto his chest plate, and he desperately tries to press it up it no avail. Tom doesn’t want to publicize his failure, but he’s unsure of how to bail from the lift. The weight feels heavier and heavier with each passing second.

Suddenly, a silhouette appears above him, hands gripping the bar and steadily lifting the weight up from his chest. Tom pushes with his remaining strength, and with the aid of his spontaneous hero, he re-racks the bar.

He takes a moment to lay on the bench, eyes closed and chest heaving. He’s never come that close to a “gym-fail” before; he prays that no one’s caught it on film. He hears a small snicker, and his eyes crack open slightly.

It’s you, his unnamed gym-crush, standing above him with your hair knotted up in a bun and your skin glistening. You saved him.

“Are you alright?” You ask, brows knit together, and voice laced with concern. You glance at the weights, “Damn, two plates? Somebody was feeling ambitious.” Tom’s cheeks blush out of embarrassment, but he catches your light tone and knows you aren’t making fun of him.

“Yeah,” he admits, as he sits up, head slightly dizzy. “I’ve never attempted something this bloody heavy.” He wipes the sweat off of his forehead with his vascular forearm and your eyes follow the movement.

“Well,” you smile, “next time, just ask for a spotter, okay?” You give him a pointed look that makes him scared to disagree.

Tom nods, “Of course. And, uh, thank you for saving me.”

“It was no trouble really.” You dismiss with a wave of your hand, but he can tell your flattered. “I’m (Y/N).”

“Tom.” He sticks out his hand and you shake it firmly. If you recognize him you don’t let it show, and he appreciates it. “You come her often” it’s a statement, not a question. “I always see you.”

“Mhm,” you reply, letting go of his hand. “Been coming here for a couple years now. It’s close to wear I live.”

“Oh, nice.” He doesn’t know what else to say.

There’s a natural lull in the conversation, after all what else are two strangers fit to talk about? Everything. Or, nothing, he supposes.

You nod your head finitely. “Alright. Be safe, Tom.” You begin to walk away, but Tom won’t let you get away so easily. Not this time.

“Wait!” He announces far too loudly. “I, uhm, this is weird but...you’ve kind of been... gosh, what’s the word for it...my gym-crush for a while now?” His voice inflects at the end of his sentence like a question. “And, I-I was wondering if I could get your number, or something like that. Y-yeah.”

You grin widely, nodding your head with contained excitement. “Yeah, you can have my number, Tom.” He hands you his phone and you type your contact in.

Even though he failed his lift, Tom sure feels like a winner.

let me know if you have any requests!

[detectiveaku]

I have varied opinions on c!techno. I think he's interesting because I don't see a lot of genuine good to them as well as being morally terrible. He's diehard loyal to a select few people. He'll kill his allies without a second apology. He has a strict set of morals. Said morals are almost more ruthless than killing as he pleases. He makes long speeches on other people's morality. He does not and will not attempt to understand situations more than he already does.

I really wish they had canonized the Antarctic Empire fully because I think he was already a hypocrite and I think him being a former imperialist who gave it up and now is a challenge seeking anarchist with no interest in the longterm effects of his actions and a dog-eat-dog worldview would be interesting

100% agree that the AE should have been canon, i generally use that as his backstory because i think it dovetails well with wilbur coming from newfoundland as this mutual moral corruption of their ideals that they had in smpearth to pogtopia.

of the two, dream and technoblade, only one of them managed to get tommy to turn against lmanburg for a time. like, for everyone's portrayal of dream as this mastermind manipulator, techno did what he could never do and convince tommy to go against lmanburg. and the way he did it by exploiting tommy's fears of being abandoned is genuinely sinister as hell. its not treated like that from his perspective but from tommy's, thats how it seems.

a similar thing can be said in pogtopia. its implied on several occasions (mostly from wilbur's pov, but again, techno from techno's perspective is damn near a different character) that technoblade was aware that wilbur was going to destroy lmanburg, knew that he likely was going to die in the explosion, and was either complicit or encouraging in this plan. which when you look at the cwilbur finale and how lmanburg represented his friendships (and really you don't have to go as far as the finale, its all throughout lmanburg's history), its again, very sinister.

with ranboo, i believe there was a scene where he literally backed him against a wall, after bonding over their shared social anxiety and willingness to succumb to peer pressure, to join the syndicate and go against snowchester, which i will remind you is the nation ran by ranboo's husband who technoblade executed. again, humorous from techno's perspective but from ranboo's hes terrifying.

so techno's supposed virtue of loyalty is something i find difficult to see. to me, hes not even particularly lawful and driven by ideology. hes driven by a similar thing wilbur and dream are, the desire to be seen as powerful. and under "anarchism" (what techno believes anarchism is about) techno would be the most powerful person, so thats the ideology he drifts towards. but its not like he cares about the wellbeing or freedom of the people around him as you would expect an anarchist to do. and for all of his loyalty the only person he is "loyal" to is himself, and he is willing to accept help from others if they are also loyal to him. and thats the loyalty you see, which is why he feels "betrayed" every time someone disagrees with him.

its not necessarily that hes a hypocrite so much that he is not driven by what he says he is driven by. his sole motivation above all else is to be seen as powerful. he doesnt like governments telling him what to do, so he destroys them. when a dictator calls on him to execute someone and he is faced with either leaving the stage and being called a coward, or displaying his strength by going through with the execution, he goes through with it. he apologizes only when he knows the person will help him if he does. once you realize this, you realize that everything that techno does is perfectly in line with it and there is no hypocrisy within his character other than ones you project onto him.

and thats why hes nearly as bad as cdream is to me. but its also why hes one of my favorite characters.

[russilton]

tbh i think it's an interesting point that max and lewis used to "be civil" and that max now may be regretting that there isn't any real respect between them anymore.

maybe what the anon was trying to get at was how it's baffling how max can seem like he is having these regrets and is trying to be friendly with lewis again (like after hungary) and then just snaps when they're on track and lewis appears in his line of sight?

because that is what seems to happen every single time, he just loses his shit. i'd like to laugh about it, but it's... so unsafe, actually, like someone else pointed out a couple of days ago.

but yeah, i'd also mostly have to disagree that max seems regretful. he might have his moments which is certainly interesting to consider, but max, this season, has continued to say so much offensive shit about lewis, no matter that mercedes was getting nowhere near red bull's pace. it's just a fact that max has a personal issue with him and it translates into his off track behaviour as well, though it is on track where and when he seems to be losing all sense of clarity. he has always been a dangerous driver with a let me through or we'll crash mentality and everyone on track knows that, i think ocon is the one who has spoken the most about it.

and i don't think he really wants lewis's respect anymore or if he does then he only does so in fleeting moments and would probably never admit it because he's that kind of person.

Yeah i don’t really have much to add to this. The thing about Max is how everything around him is just so… entitled. He demands respect on track but never returns it, he demands respect off the track but frequently embroils himself in this aloof “I’m just better” attitude. Everything he does is just so… hypocritical.

The call is coming from inside the damn house, man. Nobody respects you because you’ve done nothing to earn it.

[communistchilchuck]

Hi! So first, I love love love your tags on the Anarky panels I posted because you're absolutely right, the direction of the 99 comic was... A Choice tm. But second of all, I wanted to ask, because I was curious as to your thoughts on the initiatory violence thing: do you think Lonnie might consider the oppression/oppressive systems that he fights to be first blow, and so in punishing them, he is instead reacting? I just thought that could be a character motivation that might explain that line! No worries if you disagree; I'm just curious to hear what you think! Full respect to you and your blog, and I'm so glad someone else out there loves Lonnie! :D

first of all, i really, really appreciate it! anarky fans are very few and far between, and i get really excited when i find people talking and posting about him. he’s one of my top favorite DC characters and i only have one or two friends who share that sentiment, so i feel much the same way :)

you know, as someone who’s read a lot of anarky comics (including ones i really, really hate) and has put a sizable amount of thought towards him and his characterization, that never really crossed my mind when i considered why that line was put in despite past instances of lonnie initiating violence towards others (i mentioned johnny vomit, but there’s also him poisoning Bates, him shocking Pantalone in Robin 1993 Annual, him electrocuting a man to near-death in Green Arrow, etc. i ignore everything penned by tim seeley, because red hood vs anarky and robins was a messy mistake of a character assassination TO ME) it’s a really interesting thought and im glad you brought it up! that particular motivation seems like it could track for him really well and is something that can be found in actual anarchist schools of thought, so i definitely don’t disagree! most of those people were participating in the systems he targets, though i do think he does tend to get too into what he does sometimes and isnt always the best at being an anarchist. side effect of being an angry bleeding heart kid, but his heart IS in the right place.

i’ll be honest with you though - after my first couple reads of the 1999 solo and the 1997/8 miniseries, i tend to skim when i reread. it left a sour taste in my mouth because it’s when alan grant went full Randian Neo-Tech and decided to pivot lonnie in that direction, and the ways in which the character changes from a smart and cocky yet theatrical and emotion-driven little punk with ancom-adjacent views into an “I Read Atlas Shrugged Once” Rational faux-Intellectual make me a bit sad, so i think i have the habit of sweeping everything that i havent picked out for my analysis of the character aside (i’m especially interested in just how damn lonely and self-isolated he is… PLEASE get some friends!). i do acknowledge this is probably a result of him growing up, but i wish his views would’ve strengthened instead of getting… weird. what I do find noteworthy about this is that some of my favorite parts of him aren’t completely changed. he’s still very expressive and emotive and full of compassion for people, has a dry wit, and his moral compass remains pretty intact. he’s still a bit of a weirdo teenager. with everything that grant DID try to do with him however, i always chalked up inconsistencies to his constant upping of the ante (in part to editorial mandates, so the bizarre stuff isn’t entirely his fault. to a point he was doing his best with what was given him, but.) and the fact that grant himself stated that lonnies “evolving philosophy” was reflective of his own. lmao

sorry if this makes no sense and devolved into a rant or something, im out right now and got really eager when i saw this so i was like i have GOT to say something ASAP. here, have a him as thanks for reading ⬇️