#engaged hero and villain

[promptspa]

Random prompt #89

"If we get out of here alive, I'm so calling off the wedding!" The hero shouted, trying to keep pace with their partner and failing miserably.

"Shut up and keep running!" Villain replied snappily, slowing down to move Hero against their side and encourage them to keep a steady pace. "And it's your fault you got engaged to a criminal with a very long list of people after them!"

[pacificwaternymph]

It's always the villains that unsettle the heroes. For once, I want to watch the heroes unsettle the villains.

I want them to be unnervingly calm after being captured, because they know what's coming and the villain doesn't.

I want the heroes to look right into the hidden cameras, and meet the villain's eyes through the screen, as though they're staring into their soul, right before the footage cuts out.

I want the heroes to deliver cryptically worded warnings and vague, disturbing threats. I want the villain to walk into their office and find the severed head of one of their trusted underlings.

I want the villain, so sure of themself and so confident that they are a true mastermind, to find themself facing off against a real mastermind. I want the heroes to be one step ahead.

[creativesplat]

a little doodle of my favourite fire emblem guys (modern au!)

[cellarspider]

Thanks to my rambling this weekend, I am overflowing with love for an MMO that hasn’t been in development since 2012, because goddamn the worldbuilding for the setting of City of Heroes and City of Villains was just superb.

Do you want an MMO that begins as a pastiche of superhero comics that lovingly, cheekily engages with its source material, building up a cohesive world where the fantastical stuff feels unexpectedly real and grounded in the society, more so than most of the comics it's inspired by? Do you want that, and then to watch it slowly, gently tip its backstory into existential, cosmic horror via genre critique?

I'm in no way kidding! More below the cut.

Well, part one of more, because there's a lot to unpack here.

A lot of new superhero continuities these days treats its central premise as an anomaly. For the most popular example, the MCU treats public knowledge of superheroes as something that started with Captain America in WWII. Before his exploits, the fantastical aspects of the setting were forgotten about and hidden from the world. The DCEU begins similarly with Wonder Woman in WWI, a member of a mythic society forgotten by time.

At first, Earth in City of Heroes seemed to go with a very similar premise, though it predates any of those movies: Superpowers were unknown to the general public until the early 1930s, when some people suddenly began gaining incredible new abilities, and mythical critters not seen since ancient times made themselves known.

But that’s just the basic sales pitch. As you dug into the setting and City of Villains expanded the lore, perspective shifted into something entertainingly stranger.

Everyone knew about Nemesis, the clockwork robot-making mastermind who'd terrorized Paragon City from the early 1930s, just when superheroes were first appearing on the scene. Turns out he was an immortal Prussian nobleman born who first went on an automaton-backed crime spree in 1820s, seemingly died when the British Navy bombarded his headquarters in Malta, then reappeared in the 1860s to supply the Confederate Army with mechanical cavalry until General Sherman shelled his mountaintop base on his march to North Carolina. Nobody was ever able to replicate what the did, and with his (apparent) death, he was no longer relevant after 1865. As of the 1930s, anyone who wasn’t a history buff had forgotten about him.

And sure, everyone knew there was an underground city of evil wizards, dead for long eons until they rose again to take human sacrifices from the surface world of Rhode Island (I’m still not over that). But actually, they were active in London during the Victorian mysticism craze, then moved their operations back to their homeland of subeterranean Rhode Island with the outbreak of World War I. They made the news across the continent. They got outlawed in multiple countries. They were a big deal, until the war took the attention off of them.

Hell, one of the people who fought all these weirdos was a random teenager who'd just... always been able to teleport and turn invisible, even prior to the '30s. He wasn't even a main character or anything! His parents knew, and tried to convince him to go get training. Teleportation training. Like y'do, with your socially awkward, teleporting kid.

This setting never actually had a mundane world that was unaware of the fantastical. The fantastical was normal. The arrival of superpowers in 1930 wasn’t a hard fork between history as we know it and theirs, or a reveal of some secret world that rational minds had long denied. It was just a dramatic escalation of what had already been happening, that everyone knew about. Armies of the 1800s had to develop anti-robot tactics. Alastair Crowley publicly dissed an actual wizard cult because they were dangerous competition. Parents worried over the mental health of their superpowered teens. That was normal.

The sheer numbers of fantastical events that started happening after 1930 were not normal. Or at least, not at first. People slowly adjusted over decades, as more and more young people grew up in a world that had always been that way.  

What nobody realized at that point was how the new normal bordered on a state of cosmic horror.

And that’s where the setting really starts interrogating its inspirations.

[langernameohnebedeutung]

Honestly, for me, one of the more ... uninspired and a little bit grating takes on problématique characters with sad backstories is: "well this other character experienced this and worse and they're not out there killing people!"

i mean, good for them, but I don't think we need a "best practice" approach to trauma

[ilynpilled]

Do you view jaime as a hero or a villain? I see a lot of people on my side of fandom say that he is only the latter

I think this is a silly thing that the fandom fixates on with this brand of grey character. Trying to lock them into just one box is the exact opposite of what George wants to achieve with them, especially a character like Jaime. They fit these labels at different points to different characters. Jaime is a deconstruction, reconstruction, interrogation (whatever other buzzword you need) of so many fantasy tropes: anti-hero, male character archetype of strong powerful brave knight in shining armor, mustache twirling villain, redemption and reformation etc. George loves interrogating what actions and motivations can make someone a “hero” or a “villain”, or a mix of both simultaneously, depending on the situation. He loves to create complex dilemmas with no easy solution. He loves depicting just how grueling and complicated change can be, all the internal and external barriers, and how restricted you can be by circumstances and how often one’s values can be compromised not just as a result of selfish desires or personal flaws but also deeply rooted systemic issues or loyalties or a desire to protect certain loved ones. The people that are obsessed with “he is just a villain because George offhand called him that in an interview along with Sandor and Theon” are being silly imo. He also repeatedly calls him a hero too:

[heroes-villains-side-blog]

Hate, Threat, Marry. Version 1.

Inspo: You can see that iconic tweet here, or here with something I had to say about it.

---

“I hate you.”

“If you hate me so much, why don't you marry me?”

“That's not...” they sighed, “who in their right mind would marry you?”

“Well, someone who is in love with me, for one.”

Hero scoffed.

“Or someone who cares about and loves me.”

Hero scoffed again.

“Or,” they shrugged, “I guess someone who really hates me having my powers.”

“… What was that last one?”

“Hmm? What was what?”

“You know what, what was that about your powers?”

“Well, I’m glad I have your attention for once. Would it kill you to ask me how my day has been? What my favorite color is?”

“Villain, I swear,” their grip on their collar tightened and Villain was pulled upward, just a smidge.

“Fine, Mx Bossy. If you must know. There's this ritual… jokingly called the 'Sifar Marriage'. You can only do it under the full moon once every 10 years. It kinda tethers the powered with someone else so that their powers are grounded, so they can live something of a normal life.”

“… So you won't have powers?”

“No. Or I won't as much. But only as long as the other person agrees to some conditions.”

“What conditions?”

“What, you got a test or something? I'm not your personal librarian.”

“Sure, sure. When's the next full moon?”

“Um, every month?”

“I mean the one that'll take your powers.”

“Wow, way to be subtle. It's in 3 years.”

“Interesting.”

“What?” Villain grinned. “You gonna marry me or something?” 

But Hero wasn’t listening anymore. They had just found out something that could put an end to something, and someone, that had been the bane of their existence for so long. 

And they just had to bide their time for three years. 

Three. Short. Years. 

Three more dreadful years and then they’d be free…

While Hero was smiling to themself, lost in thought, Villain wasn’t looking too good. 

Their mischievous grin had dropped to a nervous quiver, their eyes had gone wide and almost puppy-like. “You… are you gon- gonna marry me?”

“That would make my job so much easier. You not having powers,” Hero muttered to themself more than Villain, their gaze still not meeting theirs.

“Yeah, but, you- you'll have to- there are some conditions.”

That's when Hero turned, so suddenly that Villain’s words got stuck in their throat.

“Oh, sweetie,” they pouted, their dark eyes sparkling like the night sky. “I'll find out those conditions. And you better have found someone else to ‘marry’, stopped being a villain, or bloody died —”

“— in three years?”

“— in three. Short. Years,” their eyes narrowed, “Or you're going to be stuck. With me.”

“Do you mean- is that a- a- will you- do you promise?”

“Promise?” That got a confused, lopsided smile out of them. One without hate or malice, a stark contrast to the rest of their speech. “It’s not a promise. It’s a threat.”

“You're gon- gonna marry me?”

“Villain, why ever are you nervous already? You still have three years before I come chasing after you with a ring. If the conditions suit me, that is. Work smarter, not harder, darling. And I'm tired of working oh, so hard to stop you.” 

“It- it-” Villain couldn't believe what they were hearing, “It's called the 'Sifar Moon and Marriage' and- and- the rules —”

“ — Ha! Like I'd trust anything that comes out of your mouth. I'll do my own research, thank you very much. And you better hope you find someone else to ‘marry’ by then, because I will make good on my promise.”

And with that, Hero let go and vanished in a cloud of smoke.

---

Villain couldn't believe it.

Hero, their hero, was going to marry them?

Sure, it was technically a marriage of convenience… and a threat… and they hated Villain. 

But regardless! 

Marrying Hero? Marrying them… and having a life with them… it was a dream come true.

It sounded too good to be true, but Villain pushed that thought away.

Villain had always wanted a home, a normal life. But life just wouldn't let them.

But if Hero went with the Sifar Marriage, if Villain lost their powers because of it, then they'd have a chance at normal. For the first time in how long, they actually had hope for a better future.

And… they'd be with Hero. 

Hero.

The person who hated them with a passion. 

The person who they loved with all their heart.

Maybe, if they tried to show them how much they cared, how much they loved them… Hero could one day love them back?

Fin 💍

A/N:

I wanted to spite @raineandsky because they wrote something non-fluffy/non-goofy based on that tweet — can you believe it? The nerve!

I wrote them a stern letter about it like the good, responsible Tumblrina I am 😌

But then I had to write it myself :/

Took some time and brainpower for the prompt to make sense snippet-wise. But then I ended up with 2 or 3 versions of this but idk if I wrote them down so I guess I just gotta remember them from memory 🥲

Writing journey: I tried to talk about sparkling dark eyes and practice desc. But I'm just not feeling right rn. I did notice that my sentences begin with "Their" "He" "She" too much, so tried to fix that a bit. But I really just want to post it for some reason, so maybe part 2 or another version (if I ever write it) will have better desc.

Back to the masterpost ↩

[defectivehero]

ruined pride

“Heroes don’t save us people like us; you should know that by now,” the supervilain says, a strange look in their eyes that makes the rookie villain want to throw up. It almost looks like sympathy. They hate it. “We have to save ourselves.” 

“Sh-shut up,” they stutter, letting their head fall back to the pavement they’re sprawled on. They feel like they’re on fire, as if their skin is licked with flames that are dousing them over and over again. The rookie tries to take a breath in, but their throat feels like a garden of thorns and glass. Their chest burns with the effort. “I don't need your help.”

The supervillain doesn’t respond, but the look on their face is easy to read- exasperation, disbelief. The rookie desperately wants to prove them wrong, desperately wants to fly higher and burn brighter than they ever did.

“I was like you, once,” the supervillain murmurs, their gaze insistent and unrelenting. The rookie leans their head back for a moment, trying to find relief from the blurring colors and spinning vortexes that swallow their vision. “Headstrong, reckless. Naive.” 

The rookie remains stubbornly silent, despite the prickling feeling settling under their skin and the itching need to do something. The pavement beneath them is rough and uncompromising.  Time oozes on like a murky sludge, infinitely slow. 

“Do you really want to die here?” The supervillain squints at them. Of course not, the rookie wants to reply. The words stick to their tongue but refuse to fall from their lips. They try to convey their panic in their eyes, but the effort doesn’t quite work. They're forced to utter a truly unsavory arrangement of words. 

“Help me,” the rookie blurts out, their pain and exhaustion overriding their foolish pride. They don’t want to see the look on the other’s face as they say that, so they look up to the sky above. The clouds above them are deceptively fluffy and bright.  

“Up you go.” There’s a tug on their arm and the rookie lurches forward. Their legs nearly buckle under their weight, but a tight grip on their waist keeps them upright. The rookie throws an arm over the supervillain’s shoulder. Their head is still spinning, and the arm around their waist tightens. Even so, there’s an indescribable feeling of lightness coursing through them. Perhaps depending on someone else isn't so bad. 

©2022, @defectivehero All Rights Reserved. 

I love breaking down villains and forcing them to push their pride aside. I just love villains, especially the complexities of the relationships between them. It’s a concept that isn’t quite expanded upon often. I LOVE IT!1!!

I've had this in my drafts forever... namely cause I thought I wanted to write more... but I'm just gonna give in and post this as is. ah well. 

TAG LIST: @lateuplight @wit-is-wisdom @greengableswriting @whump-me-all-night-long @noawhite @rekhyt-of-arcadia @the-blind-one-speaks @sufferfictionalcharacters @basically-psyduck @alexkolax @subval01

click here if you’d like to be on the tag list!

[gothamcityneedsme]

There is something deeply flawed and just wrong with s4 of the harley quinn show and im like. Trying to make a concise point about it but its really difficult to not make this a 20 min rant

[knowlesian]

rewatched us as part of my jordan peele spree and not only do i stand by my “that movie was Good, Actually, a cinemasins approach to critique caused people to miss the point” i will double down and say that us is his least subtle movie and a lot of people in the states weren’t ready for a narrative that posited they are, in fact, more aligned with The Proverbial Bad Guys than not

[krumsprompts]

prompt # 123

“We lost him too-!”

“NOT LIKE I DID! HE WAS MY EVERYTHING. JUST AS I WAS HIS!”

[prettyboykatsuki]

oh man. so we're finally getting an expansion of the quirk prejudice? i think the full chapter needs to be released before i go in depth but i will say on a personal level im pretty happy to see it.

i will also say, i don't think hori is really trying to make a real world narrative about discrimination through this. while bnha has always to some extent been about quirk discrimination - this type of specific story doesn't seem appropriate or in line with the direction of the manga. this chapter is meant to be a story device that specifically touches on in universe issues.

it's about story-building much in the same way shinso has a villainous quirk or deku being quirkless is. i think people expecting like.. an indepth depiction of real-world issues are a bit delulu in this sense (everyone on twt..)

but it's a part of the bnha universe that i've very personally wanted expanded upon so i think this chapter accomplishes that. mostly im excited that we're actual getting an entire few chapters dedicated to the issue and to the story and im very very excited to see shouji!!!!!!

it's a bit mind-boggling that so many people found these leaks boring? im always delighted by chapters that expand story-building elements and appearance-based quirk prejudice has been something that i've found very interesting since it's appeared in bits and pieces for so much of the story.

either way i thought the chapter was very engaging !!!!! and it made me excited in a meta way!!!

[inversionimpulse]

huh, an evil conspiracy that has realistic problems with operations and personnel.

[textualviolence]

oh so everyone is lying about the movie d.e.b.s. huh. Its not bad in a good way. its not camp. its just annoying.

[butchviking]

What do you mean by it says a lot that Megan is the interviewer?

shes the one who got out of the WBC right? & that kind of became part of her career, talking about that experience and talking about cults & the isolation and the extremism and shes spoken abt how it was the people who reached out to her and had conversations in good faith that changed things for her... its not a fully formed take but i think it's noteworthy i think its interesting

[aphel1on]

me early on in bnha: league of villains redemption arc aus! villains to heroes! characters learning the errors of their ways and coexisting peacefully!!

me after endeavor got a '''redemption arc''' and everyone just accepted it: The league of villains was right actually