#female!Adrien

[stormiclown]

Marion Dupain-Cheng: Ice Cold

This is a Genderbent AU because there is not enough of creative stuff about Male Marinette. So we know the umbrella scene where Adrien basically pulls his “sad boy” card to make Marinette feel bad for him? Realistically, she shouldn’t have fallen in love with him just like that. I think she should have been wary of him because of his association with Chloe or outright hate him after he scolded her for being happy that Chloe was leaving. Or in ’Bubbler’ when all he cared about was having a party and not that adults we’re literally being launched into the sky. Or in ‘Despair Bear’ after a day of forced niceties he laughed when Chloe insulted Mylene’s macaroons. Long story short, Marinette shouldn’t have tolerated Adrien for as long as she did much less have a crush on him. If she did, it should’ve been obliterated by now. (This is a Drabble)

When Adrianne apologizes and hands Marion her umbrella, he takes it and thanks her but doesn’t smile at her because something wasn’t adding up. He walks away through the rain, thinking about what Adrianne told him of her lack of human interaction.

“At least she has a shred of human decency, for now,” Marion says to himself. He made a mental note to carefully analyze Adrianne‘s interactions with her classmates more closely. She just rubbed him the wrong way.

Marion knows she’s famous and despite her claims against it, being a model requires a lot of human interaction with fellow models, make artists, stylists, and managers as well as lessons about the social world and sexual harassment. No matter how much Adrianne declares she’s sheltered. He knows the truth.

He comes to two conclusions.

Either Adrianne was lying to their faces in order to make friends or she doesn’t want friends and just people who seek her out and like her with having to do anything.

Whichever one it was they both involved lying and manipulation. After dealing with Chloe’s bullying and Bustier’s gaslighting for so many years, Marion can spot a liar a mile away.

That’s when decides not to interact with or speak with Adrianne unless it was absolutely necessary.

After all, Marion Dupain-Cheng couldn’t stand liars or hypocrites. Right Tikki? (Tikki: You sure do)

And that’s what he does. He doesn’t speak to Adrianne unless, you know, someone’s in danger or dying which doesn’t happen very often.

It was Alya and Nino who noticed first. Alya, because she had seen the way Marion behave around Adrianne, even scowling at her at some point. Nino, because Adrianne had come to him once asking if Marion hated her.

So naturally, they spoke to their fashion designing best friend.

Alya: Hey Marion, is there a reason you act strangely around Adrianne?

Marion: I don’t act strangely around Ardrianne. I don’t even speak to her if I can avoid it.

Nino: That’s the thing dude. You avoid her and treat her like the plague. Do you have something against her?

Marion could see the underlying message in his oldest friend‘s eyes. He knew Nino was a nice guy and wanted everyone to get along, but this issue went deeper.

Alya: Is this about the gum incident? I thought she apologized for that.

Marion: Yeah, she did. After she told me that she doesn’t have any experience with people.

Nino: Poor dudette.

Marion: She‘s a model. She has obviously interacted its other people before. What she told me doesn’t make any sense.

Alya: Look, Marion. We can assume that Mr. Agreste is really controlling so she has trouble making friends. Can you please at least try for us?

After hearing about Adrianne’s over bearing father, Marion reluctantly extended an olive branch to the blonde girl, much to Chloe‘s ire.

Soon Adrianne’s birthday rolls around, Marion still makes her a scarf. He wasn’t a monster. He has no difficulty in handing it over to her, though Chloe shoves him out of the way and smothers Adrianne with hugs and a ‘Happy Birthday, Adrikins’.

When the Bubbler strikes, and Marion arrives to the “party” as Red Beetle, he sees everyone being forced to dance with forlorn expressions on their face as if they’d like to be anywhere else. Not that the hero could blame them.

Imagine his surprise to see Adrianne not only the sole aware person but also enjoying the party despite adults being launched into the sky. (Well plagg was the one to encourage it but she still shouldn’t have listened)

He promptly snapped that olive branch over his knee.

[anna-scribbles]

what a shame, i can see it all now that we’re through

- firearm by lizzy mcalpine

(chapter 5 of call it even is making me feel bonkers insane. thank u @sha-nwa)

[frickingnerd]

the princess and her white knight

pairing: chat blanc/adrien agreste x fem!reader

summary: after your boyfriend gets akumatized, you try to hide from him. but cats are good at catching their prey...

tags: angst with a happy ending, akumatized!adrien/chat noir, cat blanc breaking free from the akuma, hugging, hurt/comfort

"what's wrong, princess? why are you running away from me~?"

chat blanc's voice echoed through an empty paris. there was nobody left but the two of you. just like he wanted it. he had you all for himself. but the one behind the mask wasn't the one you had fallen in love with. this wasn't your chat anymore! 

"you're hurting my feelings, you know…?"

chat sighed, looking around the empty streets of paris for you. you had managed to slip away from him and hide. but his voice came closer and closer. and you knew you couldn't hide forever… 

"gotcha~!"

suddenly, you were pressed against the nearest wall, as chat surprised you out of nowhere. though it shouldn't be a surprise that the cat was good at catching his prey…

"there you are, princess… why were you running away from me?"

chat slightly raised you up from the ground, your feet hanging in the air, as he kept you pinned against the wall. 

"you're… not him!" you huffed, struggling to push off the akumatized version of the one you loved. "you're not my chat–!!"

a sinister laugh escaped from his lips. 

"i'm all yours, princess~ why can't you see that? who cares who i am? chat noir, chat blanc… it's all the same!" 

you glared at him, but your attempts to escape only seemed to amuse chat blanc. until you just gave up…

"adrien…" you whispered softly, the name alone getting chat blanc to flinch. "i love you… i know you're still in there… please, stop this…" 

without a warning, chat blanc backed away from you, causing you to stumble back onto your feet as they met the ground again. 

"g-get away from me…"

your head shot up and when you looked into his eyes, you knew this wasn't chat blanc talking. 

"adrien…!"

"please… get away from me… i can't… hold back… i'll hurt you…"

every word leaving his lips seemed to be a struggle. it was like adrien was fighting against himself, deep inside. or rather, like he was fighting the akuma. 

"i'm not going anywhere…"

adrien's eyes widened in horror as you wrapped your arms around him tight.

"you can do this… you can reject the akuma, adrien…!"

your boyfriend was sobbing, his arms helplessly hanging at his side. he didn't have the strength to hug you back, the battle he was fighting on the inside taking all that he had. until finally, he let out an ear-piercing scream and collapsed into your arms, the akuma from his bell flying off into the sky… 

you held on close to adrien. the world around you didn't change. there was no ladybug to purify the akuma anymore. it was just you and him. and it would always just stay you and him. but at least you now had your adrien back. at least you'd now have each other...

[life-imitates-art-far-more]

Adrien Moreau (1843-1906) "The Courtship"

[cosmicanakin]

𝐓𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄 | prologue.

adult content | minors do not interact.

𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆. james kelly x female reader.

𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒. returning home to new orlean's help your mother with funeral arrangements and grieve the loss of your sister, lauren. you find solace in your niece and nephew - her kids.

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆(𝐒). angst┆death of a loved one┆grief┆emotional distress.

kari's corner ⟢ ݁⋆ this is basically an introduction for the series! but don't worry james will make his appearance very soon <3

the sky was overcast and dreary as you looked out the window of the plane, matching how heavily your heart felt in your chest. you had gotten the frantic call from your mom just a day ago, unintelligible sobs coming through the speaker as you struggled to make out what she was trying to say. once you had managed to calm her down enough, the words still rang in your head — your older sister lauren was dead.

shot down in the middle of the street on her way to work, a senseless act of violence that had ripped another loved one from your life. you and lauren had always been close growing up, her taking on more of a motherly role for you after your dad passed when you were young. the news had devastated you, a raw ache settling deep in your bones that only growing distance from new orleans could numb. but now you were returning, having to face the painful reality you had tried to escape for so long.

the cab pulled up outside the familiar green house you had spent your childhood in. everything looked the same yet felt wholly foreign now. you paid the driver and got out, dragging your suitcase behind you as you walked slowly up the weathered wooden steps of the porch. you could hear noise from inside — no doubt your mom was surrounded by friends and family offering their condolences. steeling yourself, you rang the bell and waited.

the door swung open to reveal your mom, her usual brightness dimmed by tired eyes puffy from tears. "oh honey," she breathed, pulling you into a tight embrace. you hugged her back just as fiercely, both of you finding solace in the comfort of family. after a few moments, she pulled away, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. "come in, sweetie. everyone's been expecting you."

you nodded, following her inside. the living room was filled with more people than you could count, all turning to offer you sad smiles or hugs as you made your way through. your mom led you to the kitchen, putting on a pot of coffee. "i'm just so glad you're here. it helps to have you for lauren's children."

at the mention of them, a fresh wave of grief crashed over you. aiden and lily, your beloved nephew and niece, who had just lost their mother in the worst way. "how are they doing?" you asked gently.

your mom sighed. "as well as can be expected i suppose. aiden tries to be strong for lily but i know he's hurting inside. they're upstairs if you want to go see them."

you nodded, giving her shoulder a squeeze before heading to the steps. you climbed slowly, dreading the pain you knew seeing them would bring but needing to be there all the same. stopping outside lauren's childhood bedroom, now occupied by her kids, you took a steadying breath before knocking lightly.

"come in!" came aiden's voice.

you opened the door to find them sitting side by side on the bed, coloring books and crayons scattered around. lily's eyes lit up when she saw you. "auntie!"

you managed a small smile for her sake, coming over to sit on lily's side and pulling them both into a hug. "i'm so sorry i couldn't be here sooner."

aiden just nodded, ever the serious eight year old. but lily clung to you, always the more openly affectionate of the two. "mommy's in heaven with grandpa now, right?"

a lump formed in your throat at her innocent question. "yeah sweetheart, she is. and i know she'd want you both to know how much she loves you."

you talked with them for a while, trying your best to comfort the grieving children as they grieved the mother they would never see growing up. eventually, though their growing tiredness became evident, and you put them both to bed with soft kisses to their foreheads before retreating back downstairs.

the crowd had dispersed some by then, leaving your mom washing dishes in the kitchen. you moved to help her dry. "how are the kids holding up, really?" she asked cautiously.

you sighed. "well they're alright? i guess. aiden seems to be shouldering a lot though, trying not to show how sad he truly is. and lily... she just misses her mommy." your voice broke on the last words.

your mom pulled you into her side, rubbing your back comfortingly. "they have you now though. and i know your sister would be grateful to have you here for them."

you nodded mutely, not trusting yourself to speak. the weight of responsibility for lauren's kids now rested heavily on your shoulders. you couldn't imagine their pain at such a tender age, having the stability and love of their mother ripped away. but you were determined to be there for them, to honor your sister's memory by helping to raise them the best you could.

the following week, preparations blurred by in a haze of funeral arrangements and grieving relatives. you focused your energy on aiden and lily, keeping them entertained and trying to give them as much normalcy as possible through the sadness. the service was a sombre affair, tears falling freely as lauren's casket was lowered into the ground beside your father's plot.

after, you helped your mom host the gathering back at the house. old friends regaled stories of lauren through watery smiles, no doubt wondering how someone so full of life could be taken so prematurely. as the crowd dispersed in the evening, a heavy tiredness settled over you. all you wanted was rest to escape the grief for a while.

"why don't you go on and get some sleep, hon. i've got things handled down here," your mom insisted, ever perceptive of your drained state.

you gave her a grateful hug. "thanks, mom. i love you." you head upstairs and collapse onto the bed with a tired sigh. the soft mattress enveloped you in comfort, lulling your mind towards sleep.

just then there was a soft knock on your bedroom door. "come in," you called quietly.

the door opened to reveal your niece lily, clutching her favorite stuffed animal tightly. her eyes were filled with tears as she looked up at you. "i had a bad dream, auntie. can i be with you?"

you gave her a gentle smile and opened your arms. "of course sweet girl. come here."

lily hurried over and climbed into bed next to you. you wrapped her in your embrace, rubbing her back soothingly until her tears subsided. "it's okay, you're safe now. i'll be right here all night to keep the bad dreams away."

eventually, her trembling slowed as exhaustion overtook her small body once more. you placed a soft kiss to her forehead, watching as she drifted into peaceful slumber curled up against your side. finding comfort in caring for lauren's children helped dull some of the aches in your own heart. for now, sleep was what you both needed most. and so with lily's quiet breaths filling the silence, you closed your eyes and surrendered to rest at last.

𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒 — comment or send an ask to be put on the taglist.

﹙ @starlitblair @emotionallybruisedx @anakin-pilled @spcncershasting @freezerbride95 ◞ ⟡ ݁.﹒ ﹚

[mari-monsta]

It honestly really baffles me when people say adrien is a boring or simple character, I don’t understand where that comes from at all. Because I think the main reason he’s so compelling are his complexities, but in the same vein those complexities I think make him someone very easy to relate to. Like it’s fine if he’s not likable or relatable to everyone but saying he’s not complex is really just ???? To me. Just looking at how DIFFERENTLY he acts around different people and situations is so fascinating to me. Of course everyone takes different personas and highlights different aspects of their personality around different people but adrien is the king of doing it around the same people to the extent of which having his two personalities be the same is laughable to those who know him personally in his everyday life.

But it’s not out of no where, seeing his home life and the kind of person he’s made out to be by his situation it’s not hard at all to understand that he’s a person who is immensely self conscious. He’s constantly gauging others perception of him and whether or not he is “safe”. What’s more fascinating is the entirely different way this comes out in chat noir. Because adriens personality as chat noir is also deliberate to a certain extent but it’s deliberate in the way that that’s how he wants others to see him. He wants to see self assured and larger than life because in his everyday life he feels small and self conscious. The fact that this dichotomy is so easy to follow in his character but creates such a black and white image in his two personalities is so interesting!

Another thing I find completely fascinating about him are his high empathy and how that actually fucks him up more often than not. He’s acutely aware of how other people might be feeling and can easily sympathize. At the same time though he has a hard time understanding certain social cues and situations and seems very out of his element. I don’t think these things conflict at all. Adrien is someone who easily puts himself in other peoples shoes and can imagine and have sympathy for their situation, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to pick up on the social complexities of every interaction every time. Emotions aren’t the same as communication and when it comes to the later adrien works best with simple and straight forward interactions.

In the same vein because of his aforementioned situations he’s also a character who has a lot of repressed anger and frustration that has been building up for a very long time. In his everyday life, he feels powerless, small, and insignificant. He doesn’t have faith that anyone would listen to his thoughts and feelings and actually take them into account, because by all of his experiences no one really has. This creates a defense mechanism where he shuts himself out before he even gets to the point of sharing how he really feels. We see this really easily in his relationship with Nino. He loves Nino DEARLY, but there is something that we have seen in him constantly putting up walls emotionally. He won’t tell him when he doesn’t find something funny, he won’t tell him if he’s unhappy to do something even when it greatly affects his life because he is at his core afraid Nino will not validate those emotions.

As a result, all the frustration he’s built up from feeling powerless in his everyday life we see just. Randomly bursting out of him in inopportune moments as chat noir. It’s not that adrien is such a violent or angry person normally. But he’s so used to repressing and modulating his emotions regularly that when he feels somewhat safe to express any frustration ALL of the anger he feels constantly bubbling under the surface all of the time just suddenly rushes out, like a dam holding back hundreds of gallons of water. This happens repeatedly, and then as soon as he’s realized he’s let himself get out of control he immediately feels immense guilt and he stops the dam up even tighter. This is obviously not a healthy feedback loop but it’s fucking FASCINATING!!!!

A common thing that I feel like I see fans often misinterpret about his character in my own opinion is just how PRIVATE of a person adrien is. Adrien loves sharing his love and appreciation for those around him because he knows how it feels not to know, not to be sure of that affection. But in the same token, Adrien rarely if ever actually shares his real feelings with those he’s close to. He doesn’t like people prying into his life or his feelings and he is very private about most things. We don’t see him talking about what he likes, we don’t see him sharing with his friends his anger or frustration. And in the end Adrien is the one character who has kept his secrets most closely held to his vest. This is all despite being so grandiose and loud mouthed as chat noir. Even as chat noir, adrien rarely is entirely open about things going on in his life.

To me Adrien as a character isn’t interesting or compelling because he is shy or cute or sweet, but because there are a number of different facets to his personality that I can easily see reasons for and understand where his feelings come from. He IS sweet, but not without misplaced anger, not without repression, not without mistakes and messy emotions. Not without pain that we can both easily see the roots of but also have a wide spread variety of consequences from. We see how his formative experiences affect every aspect of his life even in ways he audience wouldn’t necessarily expect, but make complete sense. That’s so fun and interesting to me!!!! Let characters be messy but try their best anyways!!! Let characters hurt each other and try to put the pieces back together one shard at a time. People have complicated emotions that come out in ways we can’t always foresee or help, people make mistakes because of that. But despite everything adrien is a character who cares deeply for those around him and tries to do right by them despite all the rest of it, and despite sometimes not really knowing how.

It’s things like that that keep miraculous being an extremely engaging and compelling story to me. Most of the general things about adriens character are also things that I find interesting about marinettes as well! Of course the intricacies of her character are completely different, but the general hows and whys and complex motivations for her actions while maintaining the best of intentions are what make them both so interesting to me. So this is just a little love letter to adriens character because I wanted to talk about that and why I find him so engaging!

[frickingnerd]

adrien with a younger sister

pairing: adrien agreste x fem!reader

tags: wholesome fluff, platonic, protective brother!adrien (from chloe & lila), gabriel is a bad father, best friends & siblings

gabriel wanted a boy and a girl as children, so each of them had their own purpose and could model different clothes for him

meanwhile, emelie wanted a boy and a girl, to have a complete family – a mother, a father, a daughter and a son! 

adrien was born first, while you were born around two years later, making adrien your older brother

adrien and you were best friends as children, though that also had to do with the fact that you only had each other as friends

occasionally, you spent time with chloe, felix and other kids of rich parents, but you always got along best with each other! 

adrien was always a protective older brother, making sure nobody made fun of you and made sure you were included in all activities! 

when you two grew older, you got to see chloe, felix and co. less and less, making you two grow even closer

you two trusted each other with all of your secrets and were always there to support each other

some days, adrien had to model for gabriel, while you got to sneak out of the house to go shopping

other days, you had to model for your father, while adrien snuck out of the house and watched movies in the nearby cinema! 

adrien would always tell you about the movies afterwards, while you always brought him snacks and such along from your shopping trips! 

when the two of you were finally allowed to go to school, adrien grew more protective of you

he always made sure you were invited too, when marinette, alya and nino asked him to hang out after school

and if someone like chloe or lila invited him – and only him – he always declined, since he didn't want to befriend people who didn't like his little sister! 

[elosva]

"you just got to learn to go with the flow bugaboo" Chat noir- er- Chatte Noire said

"how can you possibly be ok with this?" the newly masculine ladybug said as she swatted another attack away with her Yo-Yo

"why would i not be? this is awesome!" the akuma of the day had a power that let her swap the sex of anyone she touched. most people she had hit found the experience deeply unpleasant, but Chat- er Chatte seemed to be having a blast

She was laughing and joking, as light hearted as ever "you cant tell me you've never wanted to be a guy before! everyone wants to try being the opposite sex. ya know she really isn't causing too much trouble all things considered, would it reeeally be that bad to leave her for like, an hour or two"

ladybug made a mental note to talk to her partner about her feelings towards her gender... after they dealt with this akuma

[ilikekidsshows]

When did Astruc say Adrien was lame for being feminine? I thought he welcomed the gender nonconforming headcanon? Or writing a lame character that Marinette being exceptional would like? I thought he was canonically popular with girls (and boys haha). Are there tweets I missed?

Oh, no, this isn't based on tweets. This is based on things in the show.

If you pay attention, a lot of characters criticize Adrien for being passive, not standing up for himself and being too emotional. I'm a media analyst, so I'm pretty good at spotting patterns in shows, and Adrien being criticized for his feminine attributes is a pattern, alright.

First we get these comments from Gabriel, but, we assume we're meant to disagree because Gabriel is abusive and the main villain, but then other characters get in on it.

Félix, during his arc from villain to hero, repeatedly criticizes Adrien for all of these things, and isn't exactly refuted by anyone. Félix is morally gray at this point, though, so a lot of people take whatever he says with a grain of salt. However, it should also be noted that Félix, after his debut, is the writers' pet who always succeeds in whatever he does, so we can't be too sure that the writers disagree with whatever he says.

Then come the actual characters no one can refute we're supposed to agree with. Kagami criticizes Adrien for not standing up to Gabriel and Félix more. A heroic character, who has repeatedly given valuable advice to our leads, is saying this, so we're inclined to agree. When Adrien agrees with her, the show is telling us that this (Kagami accusing Adrien of being too passive) was good advice.

What really solidifies this is Adrien himself being made to say it. That stuff in Kuro Neko about how he's too emotional and too sensitive. That's Adrien saying the parts of him that are girl-coded are wrong because they cause Ladybug trouble. And Ladybug treats this as fact. She doesn't say she agrees, but she does instantly soften towards him and accept him back into the team after he says it, implying her agreement with the statements.

Astruc doesn't need to say anything. He's the most unsubtle creator I've seen and the show speaks for him.

But, if it's direct quotes you want, the writers' commentary tells us that the reason Adrien isn't in the finale is because he's the 'princess' in their fairytale, they call him the "princess sleeping in her tower". So they're replicating sexist story tropes about "sleeping princesses" with no agency in their stories but just reversing the genders. Sounds like adrien's girl-coding specifically being the excuse the writers use to diminish his role to me!

[daintylilfawn]

wdym Adrien Brody showed up looking this good at the Venice Film Festival???

(the worst thing is that I live at like 2h away from there 😭😭😭😭)

[fritzundco]

Adrien Thevenot (French, 1889-1922)

The surprised bather (Baigneuse surprise)

[thelaughtercafe]

Lightened Darkness

Tea Type: Subtly Sweet Tea (Fluff with a bit of Hurt & Comfort)

Potential Triggers: Brief mentions of being scared of the dark in this fic, magic used for tickling

Pairing: Alucard x F!Reader

Length: 2k+

Summary: You've learned how to cope with your fear alone, but your new Vampiric friend won't let you suffer alone any longer.

Alucard couldn’t help his fondness whenever he heard you laugh. It warmed his heart to hear it despite the darkness your traveling together entailed. There were rarely moments of light allowed in given the job you all took on, but he supposed if any ought to make him feel it, it seemed fitting it would be the girl given the Dreamer moniker in the legend.

There was a naivete to you, that was both endearing and oftentimes frustrating, but he saw passion too. The spats you’d get into with Belmont were proof of that; so insistent were you on the fact that Dracula could be stopped without lethality.

He had, for the first and likely last time, sided with Trevor on the matter verbally, but your eyes pierced him knowingly and he knew you were aware he wanted you to be right.

But where had words gotten him last time? That along with your true title, one considerably less kind than your current made him frown.

He forced such thoughts from his mind and changed his direction.

It was still incredibly early in your journey; and yet he found peace here of all places, within the Belmont library. A place that spoke to the hatred held to Vampires. It was easier when he wasn’t looking at the badges of death displayed like trophies in that damnable glass case.

At least he was warm, thanks to the candles and his large trench coat.

He noticed you from the corner of his gaze as he thumbed through a book, and could sense the blood rushing to your cheeks. You were shivering.

He didn’t turn as he called to you.

“Cold? Belm-mmngh!”

He found himself cut off as you rushed over to cover his mouth making him look down at you, but you were looking behind you conspiratorially.

“Shh! Over here!”

You whispered and then he allowed himself to be dragged to the back of the large library. As you realized you still had a hold on him you went red and released him, making a smirk quirk at the edges of his lips.

“I take it Belmont’s sleeping then?”

You shook your head.

“Actually…he’s wide awake. But he and Sepha were ah…you can’t tell them I told you but they were cuddling. I didn’t want to interrupt.”

You were whispering again and Alucard laughed openly at your conspiratory tone, eyes twinkling.

“Oh, is that all? I had a feeling they were growing closer but I never expected them to move quite so fast.”

You trembled again and he abruptly strode forward, tugging you easily into his grip and sinking to the ground, holding you against him. Your blood rose to your ears as you squealed and he snickered again.

Ah, you really were so easily flustered.

“You are cold. If Belmont and Sepha are sleeping; you should as well.”

“It’s not coldness, actually.”

Your voice had risen a little, but it was still quiet, this time out of vulnerability. He could gather as much from your tone.

“Oh? Then why do you shake so?”

“I’m…scared. Of the dark.”

His eyes widened and his heart clenched as you turned your head and looked up at him, smiling weakly.

“You learn quickly in this world. Darkness means death. Fear. Pain. Every time I close my eyes, the darkness there frightens me most of all. ”

His eyes turned determined and as you went to look away and rise to your feet, his hand tightened around your waist and his eyes glowed in the dimly lit corner.

“Not me. I thrive in this darkness. It is my home just as the light is for you. I shall keep you safe. None know it better than I. I will ensure it is no different than the day for you, no matter how long it takes. You have my word.”

“A-Alucard-”

A sinister-looking smirk spread across his lips then and you quickly found him pinning your arms over your head with one hand before it was stuck there with shadow.

“Darkness can be used for amusements, I’ll have you know. Perhaps ‘tis better if I show you.”

He looked…downright ethereal. Shadows danced around his hands and fingertips like an eager pet and you squirmed, no fear just…anticipation and shyness under his domineering gaze.

“What are you going to-ahh!”

You jerked as with a flick of his index and middle finger, the shadows darted underneath your shirt. You weren’t sure what you expected them to feel like; but this certainly wasn’t it.

They tickled.

Like feathers against your skin, but worse as they tingled with magic, ensuring the sensation lasted even after the magic moved.

“Adri-nhahaha!”

You snorted as the Dhampir growled low in his throat and leaned down to nuzzle into your neck, nibbling playfully with his fangs.

Most would surely be terrified at the thought of a Vampire having fangs near their neck, half or no but you were more concerned with keeping yourself quiet.

“You’re asking for it now. My name is Alucard. No need to act up to make me be mean; I’m more than happy to oblige.”

You bit your lip hard as you tried to deny him your laughter but he didn’t like that, allowing his fingers to join the fray as he scribbled at your ribs.

“Alucard plhehehehease! This truly isn’t necessary! I’m not scared anymore I swehehehear!”

He smiled in amusement, cooing as his fingers traced idle shapes into your exposed midsection, the shadows along your skin easily having risen the fabric. They slowed too, now skating around your neck like a cat and playing between your fingers as they had Alucard. Even that tickled enough to make you giggle but it was quieter.

“Are you sure? Your heart beating a mile a minute and all the blood in your face and ears tells me otherwise~I hope you didn’t lie to me, my dear. I’d have to punish you and I can be quite…ruthless when I wish it.”

His voice was teasing but you were speaking before you could think better of it.

“No please!! I just like it that’s ahahahall!”

No sooner had the words left your lips did, even more, blood rush to your head and you hid it as best you could in your upraised arm, absolutely mortified.

Though you couldn’t see it, Alucard looked confused at your embarrassment before a fond if mocking smile came to his lips, calling his shadows back a moment as he grew serious. They circled around him, but he was unaffected at their touch.

“Love, look at me a moment, won’t you?”

You resolutely shook your head, too ashamed to even think of such a thing and heard him sigh dramatically.

“Very well then.”

You jumped in place as his fingers danced along your neck, squealing as you quickly turned your head, accidentally trapping his hand.

When you didn’t release it, he smirked a bit.

“Better. May I have my hand back?”

“Y-You’re just gonna…d-do that again.”

You grumbled in embarrassment and his smirk widened a little.

“Mm. Like this you mean?”

His tone was innocent but you gasped as his fingers moved slightly against your neck, rushing to release him as you giggled.

“Good girl.”

Your heart leapt at the nickname and he couldn’t help the quiet laugh of his own as he heard it. He gently made you look at him, fingers holding you still so you’d maintain eye contact.

“Darling, you’ve nothing to be ashamed of. It’s adorable that such an innocent pastime brings you pleasure and joy. Your submissive nature, I confess, brings out more dominant parts of me as well.”

He saw the hesitant confusion in your eyes and knew what had you bewildered. He leaned down to hum into your ear, paying no mind as you squeaked and giggled again from the feeling of his breath and lips tickling you.

“Vampires can smell arousal. I am no different. Yours is particularly sweet to me and I confess I crave its scent more often than I care to admit.”

“Alucard. If you make me blush any darker I think I’m gonna spontaneously combust.”

Your whine made the dhampir throw his head back in open mirth and you couldn’t resist raising your head to witness the one-of-a-kind sight, warmth filling your heart just as much as your cheeks.

He was most beautiful this way you decided. Not conventionally; hair in his eyes, holding his sides as if to hold himself together, but it was a life he deserved. Something was taken from him just as much as the other Human victims in the wake of Dracula’s revenge and Lisa’s death.

“Come now, we are both adults! I find it endearing, I promise. Your secret is safe with me, I won’t let Trevor or Sepha-”

“Little late for that, I’m afraid.”

You groaned in embarrassment as you peeked behind Alucard to see Trevor smirking in amusement.

Alucard hissed, a protective glint in his eyes.

“Watch yourself, Belmont.”

The hunter sighed, rolling his eyes as he shook the hand holding the flask in his hands.

“I just needed to refill my flask, alright? With water, before you get any ideas.”

His eyes softened as he shifted his gaze to you, where you hesitantly tried to maintain eye contact.

“He is right, you know. Nothing to be ashamed of. And as for the darkness-”

“Just how long were you listening?!”

You gaped at him, eyes wide and he snickered.

“I heard the beginning and the end, little else. I tried to take my time to let you have your little…moment. In any case; Alucard may be able to provide protection in the dark, but I shall offer it in the light. I know firsthand the fear the darkness brings which comes from one’s own mind and memories. If you have need of someone to talk to, I shall at the very least, listen. I’ve been told… I’m not the best at comforting words, but I can at least do that, and make you feel safer than you would if left in solitude.”

You nodded, a bit dumbstruck at his kindness. He’d always intimidated you a little with his bluntness and sharp tongue but this was sweet. It seems the night softened all of you.

“Thank you, Trevor. I’ll keep that in mind. Perhaps you’re better at comforting than you think.”

He smirked at that and turned to return to Sepha, pausing as Alucard spoke up.

“In return for your kindness, I’ll keep your moment of gentleness a secret as well, Belmont. Can’t have the whole town we’re going to know you’re going soft, yes?”

The quip was softer than usual as Trevor snickered.

“And I’ll do the same for you. The famed Sleeping Soldier, comforting the Dreamer in the dark. Heh. Sleep well, we leave early tomorrow.”

You sighed in relief as his footsteps faded, groaning as you pouted at Alucard.

“I cannot believe he heard me. He was being kind but he definitely overheard my laughter. Ugh. Next time you’ll have to gag me.”

“Oh? Next time hm?”

You rolled your eyes fondly as the shadows around your hands receded to Alucard, nuzzling against him affectionately before they faded entirely.

You brought your wrists down and giggled nervously as you shoved hair behind your ear.

“I mean only if you wanted to of course but if you don’t-”

A smirk tugged at your lips.

"-I mean maybe I could go to Trevor since he knows now.“

Alucard’s eyes darkened possessively at that as he hissed.

"You’re not humorous. Only I have earned such a privilege. Besides, he’s probably not half as skilled as I am.”

The pride in his voice made you smile as you pulled him to lean against the books with you and promptly snuggled into him. He adjusted after a moment of freezing, moving you away only to raise his large trench coat to cover you.

“I’m sure you’re right. Well, lucky for you I’m attracted to one Dhampir and one only.”

You yawned and felt him chuckle as he ran his fingers through your hair.

“Good thing I’m only attracted to one silly Human. Rest now. I’ll be here.”

He would never allow you to be made into a Martyr. Not while he and the shadow itself still breathed.

[familyagrestefanblog]

Clarification I definitely should have done ever since season 4 and the Ladynoir conflict started escalating, but hey, let's just get it out:

There are reasons why I'm harping down so badly on Miraculous' Girlboss feminism and defend Adrien as much as I do.

To get the feminist (in-universe) explaination out of the way first:

I would be lying if I said that I like the direction the show has taken Marinette's character and the story in general. But regarding her specifically I simply have to say that most of my problems with her are how she is written as Ladybug, Guardian, and especially leader & partner. Not in her civilian self. Hence why you won't find that alot on my blog, only when it contributes to the overarching double standards problem from s4 I take issue with.

I simply cant deny it, Ladybug is a kind of leader I just came to not be able to respect alot anymore in how she operates most things bc she doesn't really ever look passed how things look & stand for herself, and what SHE needs & wants. Marinette is a very low empathy person in the sense that she struggles putting herself in other people's positions, or remembers considering that at all.

But that's not the reason why I can't respect her as leader. I have ADD, that would be really hypocritical of me.

What leaves me unable to respect her as leader though (& honestly kinda even wanting Alya to take her position) is the fact that the show doesn't see much wrong with Maribug doing that.

They don't properly depict this as flawed leadership she actually NEEDS to grow out of by making up for her shortcomings by, for example, making other people her official co-leaders. Instead the show since s4 (& kinda s3) will proceed to put it's feminist foot down if Maribug isn't actually in the end 100% correct and "totally girlboss justified" in any given case - with CN & authorities specifically - no matter the context. Ergo she's barely ever truly improving her weakpoints in partnership skills for example & continues doing the same mistakes over n over.

like she genuinely would benefit from having Chat Noir as her co-leader too, not just Rena Rouge. But no. The neurodivergend low-empathy girl can't have a high-empathy boy co-leader bc apparently thats misogynistic now, huh ?

Again, I have ADD and I'm also a woman. In fact, I actually have alot in common with Maribug (hence why it hurt so much once s4 took her away from me), so forgive me when I still say: I am NOT going to lower my standards of my believe that neither of those aspects get to be an excuse on everyone else's expense regarding LEADERSHIP (which I do also am in the position of in my life).

And I repeat: LEADERSHIP. Not Marinette herself as a person necessarily & esp not her civilian life.

People always say that her critics wouldn't be so hard on her if she were a man, but I strongly disagree. In my experience, if Marinette were a boy people would actually draw a line nowadays and call out that Mariano is too stuck in his own head to be a good leader (& partner). And maybe even demand that he shouldn't be in that position anymore either at all or until he's in a better head space.

Bc with male characters people are actually drawing lines now in important factors when it comes to power & the accountability coming with it, bc in the end being in change means it ain't about you

Hence why e. g. Steve Rogers (Captain America) was then a fucking fugitive from the law when shit got real in the MCU. They had to do that bc of his leadership morality not being able to exist well within a corrupted & complex law system under fire and attack. My man's an amazing battle leader, but the MCU did VERY well leaving taking care of all kinds of social & political matters to Tony Stark. This kind of nuance ain't Steve's strength. Marinette & Steve are actually a EXTREMELY similar type of leader and it's interesting that I don't exactly vibe with him too much either in that regard, but like him as person the way I did Marinette. So for me it's definitely an issue with their type of leadership.

But the mainstream female leader characters are often still "too female" to get held to the same regular standards bc telling a female leader character in a complicated and not entirely beneficial situation & position 'yeah, it's sucks but you're not the center of the universe'' is now more often than not still "too mean/ sexist"

again, Steve was made an outlaw for a reason and you can bet if he had been a Stephanie people would have made all her struggles about sexism & called the 'outlaw leader' route after Civil War misogyny, merely bc "society doesnt respect women". This is whats happening with Maribug & it clashes with her leadership style.

Hence why there AREN'T ALOT of mainstream female leader characters. And if we get some, most of them are narratively defined by how powerful & in control they are for THEIR OWN BENEFIT and it being depicted as 100% right & just in general (like with Marinette) which goes against what a normal leader should be, so alot of people don't like them (ignoring the actual sexist people for a sec)

The first Wonder Woman movie for example was so well-received for a reason. They did it RIGHT (& may I please also recommend Wakanda Forever? Fuck, that movie was GOOD)

--

But yes, it's notably how Maribug treats Chat, who is supposed to be her partner and friend, that I take alot of issues with.

And yes, I would say the same if LB were male and CN female. Ladynoir is so rooted in toxic femininity that this "partnership" (or just the entire LS) the way it is could NOT exist today in gender bend. S4 and the s5 finale in particular are unthinkable in gender bend and they sold it as "justified female empowerment" & "unparalleled loving treatment" from Ladybug's side Chat Noir needed to learn to be GRATEFUL for.

All while, and I will never stop stressing this: the show has never stopped writing Marinette to treat Chat Noir as if he basically just spawns into existence once he puts on the mask. He's HALF a human being. Even once she falls in love with him in s5.

This is the fundamental and deep seeded problem of where my issues come from here. It never stands in question if Adrien views Marinette and Ladybug as full human beings, but the other way around that very much is the case. In whatever way it's depicted. Yes this is a line I draw, especially because of the whole Sentihuman thing.

I personally am alot more like Adrien regarding Friendship and partnership (or what his character initially started out). They are heavy & meaningful topics for me. So seeing Marinette being utilized to girlboss all that into the ground with Chat Noir, esp in s4, while she apparently barely ever even noticed anything wrong with how she treats him in the first place as she literally replaced him with Alya/ Rena in everything but name

cause buring him under a wall of secrets & lies meant she can still 100% benefit from his eternal devotion by letting him believe she's too alone to be a partner anymore AT ALL. (Kuro Neko onwards and then NEVER stopped letting him think she's just as alone as he is. NEVER. She's still doing it in s5 while leaving him 100% isolated which was then his demise in the s5 finale.)

and gives Alya the deluxe partnership entirely on his expense, while barely ever sparing him even the most basic thought in anything; & by "Risk" then literally having them switch status. Rena is her actual partner she fully treats that way and he's merely her favorite temp hero with no rights, which Rena was previously.

And the only reason why Chat was treated with something resembling to fairness or dignity again in season 5 (& finally wasn't a rag doll for her every little mood anymore...) was because Maribug plainly had no other choice and had her team & position of power taken away by force while Alya renounced for her own safety. And yet she's still treating him as half a human being even by the end of S5. AFTER her character development. He's Chat Noir and that's where his existence ends in her leadership & friendship. CN and Alya in s5 are literally 2 halves of ONE PARTNER.

All that was painful to watch to say the least. Bc it's imo honestly a disgrace to friendship and partnership. I can't put into words how ashamed I would be of myself if I treated someone the way Marinette treats Chat Noir (again, HALF A HUMAN BEING).

Much less a friend I claim to love dearly and don't want to loose (another thing the MCU did better regarding Steve's fall-out with Tony over Bucky... I should really make that comparison post why Steve works for me & Marinette doesnt)

Just the mere fact that Marinette in "Elation" even told Chat "It doesn't matter who's underneath your mask" is honestly outrageous.

Because thats simply what it is for me. If s4 & 5 Marinette were portrayed from a similar morality angle to Emonette in the Paris special I would have much less issues with her. Cause thats ironically an angle female characters barely get & is mostly used to redeem the broken bad boys with a hidden heart of gold™.

Double irony: s1-s3 actually DID put civilian Marinette often into that angle, hence why I really liked her, but then s4 suddenly said "well, her methods & actions really dont matter. She's wrong, but actually not really; ergo she should get rewarded in the end. Always. But with a few exceptions. Here n there she loses to claim otherwise. But actually the world just needs to learn how right & amazing she is."

She makes countless mistakes but often either doesn't really learn from them anymore or they just don't "count" bc that's 'what makes her quirky & loveable', so having any issues with her now means you hate women. And she's a very flawed leader but actually never did anything wrong. Ever. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

I will be VERY blunt now: The moment you put a female character into the leader role the FEMALE aspect is supposed to be of secondary importance. And a leader, by the nature of the position, ALWAYS has to be questioned morally wise in my opinion bc of the fatal blindspots that will automatically occur in every leadership.

And it happened here too: Chat Noir's treatment. But they demanded that her being the (female) leader means she's OWED to treat him badly & gets to keep him as blindspot on HIS expense bc she doesn't like thinking about him existing as civilian person.

A leader is ALWAYS somebody who is NOT going to sit well with everybody regarding their approach. That's a normal instinct, and in fact it would be highly dangerous if that wouldnt happen at all. So if I, or other people, don't respect her as one that simply means she has an opposition the way every leader has & is being held to normal standards a leader should be held to, regardless of gender.

Sorry if you think thats sexist, but in my opinion that's a YOU problem. I personally respect female leaders too much to not acknowledge them as anything else but the potential threats they are. The same way I do with male leaders.

You're leader first, woman second. If you can't handle that get out of the leadership position (yes, oc that also applies the other way around). Feminism was about making sure that women cant be excluded from e. g. position of power just bc we're female. The goal wasn't to have yet another group of people stomp their foots, now claiming that they are OWED power once they wanna have it to feel powerful. But that's what Marinette was used to teach an entire generation of children, especially girls.

The last thing you will EVER get me to do is accept that I should be holding women - specifically for equality, female empowerment and leadership - to LOWER (moral) standards as I would the men in her position.

Buddy, I am NOT gonna fucking do that. Just the thought is pissing me tf off, and has ever since s4, cause it directly plays into the misogynistic thinking of:

"Women can't be given power, status or even too much focus as human beings because they're too irrational and immature to be able to then lay proper priorities & take rightful accountability for their shit like a man in power could; and not just scream and cry while playing the oppressed victim card the moment things don't work out & they aren't being given the special female treatment to let them mostly off the hook consequences wise.

Leading to everyone around them, especially the MEN, having to step up, do the work & basically babysit the women like children - while still having to give her the credit as person in charge - turning the women more or less into toddlers wearing a queen's crown"

Which, by all means, Adrichat in every dynamic of the love square by season 5, Gabriel at the end of "Recreation" and even Luka & Félix (& "thankfully" Alya too since s4) had to do for Maribug in alot of ways.

Pick up all of her slack in several major areas & catering to her while simultaneously having to still give most of the credit to HER or else they would be "mean to the female lead" (it's also telling that Alya is treated the best here, & goodness dont get me started on Su-Han...).

And with that out of the way, a few more meta reasons:

1) I'm NOT watching a damn documentary. Marinette is NOT a 14 year old, she doesnt exist & isnt based on a real person or story. She's a fictional main character and narrative tool, so forgive me for approaching this differently than a real life case.

and 2) in everything I watch I automatically look out for the narrative's blind spots and victims of the writings' favorites. I take it this seriously because this is career related for me.

Hence why I have barely ever liked a main character and ironically Marinette/ Ladybug was once one of the few exceptions (alongside Korra from Legend of Korra and Blitz from Helluva Boss)

Look, when I for example watch Helluva Boss or a Yugioh show I will automatically pay extra attention to how the female characters are being treated bc they are obviously treated worse by the writing and much more neglected and scapegoated than the male characters.

Meanwhile when I watch Miraculous and She-Ra, I do the opposite and pay attention to how the male characters are treated bc now they have the gender-biase against them.

And when I for example watch Avatar the last Airbender or Legend of Korra [and She-Ra, that show is great], then I actually get to be mostly fucking happy for once in my life jfc

I'm not going to elaborate too much more on this because I already named by my main point in the beginning: Chat Noir's - not even Adrien's, I mean CHAT NOIR - sometimes honestly awful treatment being the biggest moral and narrative blind spot of the entire show, and honestly where most of Maribug's problems then are also rooted in. Hence why I started focusing so much on Chat Noir since season 4. I look at the overall narrative and circumstances and look for the blind spots that needs to be solved to get to the core of the problem of this whole mess, to get effective results.

And that was and even by the end remained the fact that Adrichat is treated so badly, scapegoated in every possible way in the name of "feminism" and kicked out of the story where HE is at the core of most everything going on, just so the show can force Maribug into everything, make things about her that have no business being about her

Just so she can then be made to constandly turn around and scream, cry and stress about problems - and go about them in the least effective way - that wouldnt be there in the first place if she wasnt the main character of a story that isnt hers.

Mate, I dont know what to tell you here, but the fact that we are following Marinette Dupain-Cheng ,who has nothing to do with anything besides being the cool action girl, is and will always remain of the of core problems of this show. I WISHED that wasnt the case. But for the love of everything, Kagami would have made so much more sense as the female lead, but no.

Anyway, I will leave it at that now cause I already elaborate much further than I initially wanted to, I just wanted to finally have all this stated.

This Blog is not a full representation of how I lay priorities in (feminist) media in general, my view adjusts to the piece of media I'm watching.

And unfortunately, ever since season 4 Miraculous turned into a full blown extreme case and has only gotten better somewhat recently. So I will continue doing what I always do: focus on the fucking VICTIM whose bad treatment pulls down the whole show's quality, and here that's plain obviously Adrien Agreste/ Chat Noir.

And with all due respect: Die mad about it.

[rxttenfish]

Asking because I’m extremely curious about this, how did MonProm’s writing get different over time? I remember you saying that the lore and characters feel different, and that it's missing sincere character interactions, too. I know almost nothing about the lore and I’ve only seen a few people mention the characters, so I’d be interested in a rundown of what aspects you think got worse in the series

I wouldn’t mind a very long response since I’m not that active in the fandom, I need to catch up on what happened

sorry for taking so long to answer this! i kinda waffled on it for a long bit, mainly because i started doubting myself again, and whether or not this was me simply overreacting or being tinted by nostalgia or simply being extremely picky and choosy in what i like (the last of which is true, i seldom get into fandoms at all for this reason and stay away from most popular media, but i wasn't sure if it applied here). i've posted about it already, but i'm in the middle of a psychotic episode where i can't feel a lot of pleasure to begin with + most things i do experience ending up solidly in the "very bad" category, so as you can imagine, i really didn't want to mislead and check that i was actually in objective reality.

as it is, this is also when a lot more screenshots started to be posted in the monster prom tag, and that helped me bridge the gap back into returning to the games themselves and feel like i was making a more accurate judgement. if you're one of those people who have been posting screenshots, i sincerely thank you, and i appreciated seeing you in the tag greatly.

for those not in the know — i've been in the monster prom fandom since it first released, prior to even the first additional ending to be added (the "Punch the sun" ending, and i recall the minor fandom drama that happened at that time due to it). my impression of monster prom is very much influenced by this, as what got me into the first game was the fact that the characters genuinely seemed to care for each other and were friends with each other (not merely tolerating each other's presences nor dressing it up, they sincerely thought of each other as friends and were open about that fact), on top of the wide variety of small details and statements that, if taken at face value, could create compounding complexity in the lives of each and every character and had wider implications for their lives.

no, they were not necessarily explored nor even necessarily "real", with so many conflicting events and statements, but i liked this too, because it meant a wider flexibility in what you could imagine, helping to create a more tailored experience for everyone who thought about these characters. this was what i liked about the early fandom too. what was baseline "canon" was so vague and minimal that you could have wildly different interpretations of the same characters' histories and relationships with each other. you would have radically different perspectives on what the world itself looked like, what it was like, that there wasn't really any wrong answers so long as their personalities remained the same. this is where you got the old headcanon of polly and liam being childhood friends who knew each other as humans, or that the world of monster prom was post-apocalypse where humanity itself had gone extinct or only existed in tiny pockets, or my personal headcanon that both monster and human society existed right next to each other and had minimal crossover for petty cultural reasons. this was also prior zoe-as-ro, and there were wildly different interpretations of zoe's personality, with most going for a far more disquieting creepy-cute than the deep nerd we got.

this is why you get stuff like the timeloop theory, where everyone is repeating the same weeks leading up to prom over and over, and are perhaps vaguely aware of it but broadly unconcerned. this is also why it felt like the joke that, the characters were still in high school but were all fully legal adults with most in their 20's, best landed, because it was absurd and strange and didn't quite make sense, but the world itself was inherently absurd and semi-malleable to begin with. realistically, i felt like everyone understood it was making fun of the trope of having adults play teenagers in american sitcoms and wildly casting outside the age range, but for more in-universe explanations it wasn't any different from the way that you would have a large, dramatic ending in which everything changed, but then you'd restart and everyone would be right back at the beginning with nothing different, or even having conflicting events in the same run. it was a dream-logic that fit with the tropes and, thus, diagetically made sense.

to be clear, i don't mind canon having a set, well, canon on which it refers back to itself. i don't mind expanding that or including more things which are set in stone. but there was a perceivable shift in how the games handled this over time, becoming a lot more... bitter, it felt, towards all of these different branching ideas and concepts that, yeah, the people making them knew wouldn't necessarily be "canon" because "canon" already liked to contradict itself so much. most people weren't even sold on any one idea, and there was a much greater sense of enjoying and appreciating all the varying ideas people would come up with even if you personally didn't share them. making the characters be out of character was the real crime, because then it didn't diagetically make sense in the same way, didn't wholly fit.

(again, this is not to say fanon didn't happen and characters weren't smoothed down into a simplified personality that fit these varying fan-interpretations instead of the game itself. certainly damien love/lust was just as bad as it had ever been, and everyone loved to mangle his character into a more stereotypical "bad boy with a heart of hold" all the time. but it certainly felt less set-in-stone about it than it does now, with any deviation from the norm being considered strange and odd and even broadly shunned from the wider fandom.)

all of this is setup for establishing what the writing, lore, and characters felt like in the earlier days. the characters were the strongest part, with their relationships to each other being equally as important. the lore played it fast and loose and was far less interested in setting anything in concrete because that wasn't the important part. the lore wasn't the important part, which was what made it all the more intoxicating to think about, all the more fun to play with.

montrip is easily the biggest offender when it comes to setting everything in all-or-nothing terms and demanding absolutism from the world. broadly i blame the hitchhiker conversations for the worst of it, but i think ultimately the way they handled the entire premise of the game is where this problem stems from. it's not really an exploration in the same sense that you might explore the first game, discovering different perspectives and different people with different relationships to each other. it's an exploration in the sense of a sequel that over-explains the monster, that takes the most boring option out of all those that were possible and floating around and settles on something that was blatant, obvious, typically rejected not because of how novel it is but how trite and par for the course it is in the rest of the genre.

yeah, okay. humans know nothing about monsters and there's a "monster dimension" that exists separately from the human dimension. there's no crossover between the two of them. of course there's a big grand-scale fight between the eldritch powers that zoe used to be a part of, from which not only are slayers the main organization against them, but also the merkingdom has some horse in this race too. it's an urge to make things so universal in explaining them, in revealing connecting threads which unite everything that's ever happened in here, that makes the worldbuilding and lore immediately much more boring than it ever was before.

and it didn't have to be this way! nothing in the first game contradicts any of this too explicitly (see the above, the first game loves to contradict itself), and i would even be happy if this was basically canon but never stated or confirmed to be the big overarching everything going on underneath it all. i believe you should probably know these things about any world that you create and have them in the back of your mind. the difference is that you can know these things and keep them in mind, even focusing on things where its very relevant, and still not reveal them. this is why you have lore bibles, after all. every horror writer knows exactly how their monster works and the full underlying reason for everything that happens, but that doesn't mean the audience will see it or possess this same information too, and leaving it intentionally obscure will make far better stories.

which, this is bad enough, but it wouldn't be the breaking point for me if this was all there was.

but the worst thing of all has to be the slow decay of the very same characters that sold me on this world, this lore, this game in the first place. monster prom is nothing without the characters in it. it's a dating sim, it has nothing but characters to get you to play, and liking these characters are the entire reason anyone would pick up monster prom in the first place.

and the first game pulls this off extremely well. it's all in the tagline: be your worst self. they are, indeed, all terrible people. yes, even that character that you just thought of right now. they all have points in the game where they commit atrocities, where they kill or hurt people, where they do inexcusable things that could not be ignored in a more serious setting.

but that's the point. i think there's something very powerful in creating a character who not only do you love and love their personality and the way they interact with the world, but who also are inapologetically terrible, and to have the humor and the charisma be so good that you don't get bogged down in the "this is awful". likewise, it never feels the urge to really go out of its way to justify what's going on. this is not to say theres no discussion of if someone "deserved it", but usually there's still the sense that the joke is on them, that this is still an extreme reaction specifically for comedy and not necessarily something that can be justified. you can have damien set leonard on fire and have it feel earned, without prompting the needed reaction of what it's actually like to watch someone burn to death.

this is what sets the prank masterz ending apart from the rest of the game, and really establishes it as the first real "bad ending". because nothing that you do or happens in the prank masterz ending is any different from anything else that happens in any other run. you summon evil beings from other dimensions as a throwaway gag on how visiting one location raises your stats. you kill other people and damn them to terrible fates. you watch as body horror happens. the only difference is that, in the prank masterz ending, the laugh track doesn't play.

the rest of the game and the writing echoes this philosophy, this careful interplay of tropes that keeps everything tongue in cheek and yet sincere enough to make sure emotional beats still land when they're needed. the characters feel true to themselves and their own emotions, even when the world is extreme and excessive, when everything else runs on comedy logic.

this is also what i noticed failing first as time went on.

like i said, fanon has always existed and there's always been very specific ideas as to what characters are like in the same way fanon always flattens down characters into the same tropes over and over. scott is stupid and innocent and doesn't know what sex is. damien is violent and hot and too cool for anyone else. miranda is the idiot girl character. repeat over and over and over until you get sick of it.

but it's been an issue as time has crept on that canon has started to approach fanon and began to merge with it. now, scott is so innocent that he can't even curse. polly starts being mean to her friends and saying things that would be very hurtful to hear. the merkingdom isn't really super evil and fucked up, it's just miranda that's like that. they become simpler, easier to digest, streamlined for social media posts and mass-sharing. they become less and less subversions of existing tropes and moreso just another example of them, something else to add to the collection, not their own individual stories.

even further from this, what more complex traits they had are now stated and not shown. polly is stated to be smart and clever in a way that her party girl persona doesn't imply and to be sincerely rather down to earth with the people she cares about, but we seldom ever see this anymore unless its the game specifically trying to make a point about it, in which case it won't let her do anything that implies cleverness and moreso will just outline it in the narration. vera is stated to care for people in a very genuine and heartfelt way, but seldom will get a chance to do so, and every opportunity for her to do so to their faces is missed while she will just outright state it later. it does not feel consistent, it does not feel like any of these are intended reads of their actions. it feels like the devs have something they want to do but no idea on how to actually do so. and forget it if you want these traits to manifest in small ways that show up in unrelated moments and scenes.

the dialogue becomes harder and harder to tell between each speaker, if you are just looking at what's said and not at the pictures attached to it. the characters' distinct voices have been eroded away, so that they speak more and more like each other, relaying the same terms and ideas in the same words. perspective becomes a suggestion, instead of a must.

this is something that started back in monster camp too, as all of the endings in that game felt ultimately the same as every other ending. it's very hard to place or define the full reason why, why there feels like there's no emotional stakes nor investment, why everything feels moreso like selecting different coats of paint and trying to find all the different ending pictures rather than being interested in exploring the characters as characters.

stranger yet, the series that started with the tagline of "be your worst self" has experienced a kind of... softening, for lack of a better word? what i mentioned about being able to handle the balance between terrible people who do terrible things and the light tone of the game starts to change, as abruptly the same characters who were down with violent murder in the first game start to lose their nerve, acting more and more on more typical morality. it's one of those things that feels like it's starting to damage the tone, as abruptly it's not as absurd as it used to be, demands less suspension of disbelief which could buffer and support the rest of the setting on it. there's even a part in one of the endings in montrip which involves current-polly and current-scott looking back on their monprom selves and reacting in horror at how violent and careless their pranks are, in a way that fundamentally felt like it was undercutting and disparaging all the things that felt fun and made monprom what it was.

which is odd, really, because more and more i feel like the characters in these games like each other less and less. the friendships and genuine enjoyment of each others company that brought me to this game in the first place has gone. now they don't mention each other as much, don't care for each other's feelings and reactions as much, aren't as willing to support each other. they are more and more found on their own, relied on their own, seem to seek out contact and interaction with their own friends less and less. it feels like they're all separating out into their own worlds, but also feels like they wouldn't willingly want to interact with each other if they weren't already forced together by some other outside contrivance.

if anything, i'd compare it to every other dating sim out there, where you, the player, are the most important person in these characters' lives, and they only feel ambivalent or antagonistic towards every other character. which, again, is not why i picked up monster prom or why i liked it so much in the first place.

and it's because of this that it feels like the current state of the series has to focus on its increasingly weak worldbuilding and lore, trying to form a more serious foundation without character relationships being so tightly bound together, without the characters themselves being more developed and rich, without an aspect of absurd humor to rely on.

more and more i've noticed monprom has to rely on referencing other series to make itself funny and create humor, which, again, it's always done. it was just easier to ignore back then, if you didn't know what was being referenced, because there was always more going on in the exact same scene to bolster it and give context clues as to the setup and punchline at play. it feels like the current games are much more dependent on you knowing pop culture references in order to have any fun with it, and i'm someone who, again, is very picky in what i like or what i'll seek out. i'm not interested in a stream of references about other things that i would much rather be doing than playing through a game that feels like it hates that i like it at all, when i could, again, just be engaging with the thing that takes itself seriously and knows what it wants.

[themeetingplace]

some whispers i like

[rise-deepseamonster]

LMAO I SEARCHED FOR STALKER X STALKER ON AO3 dont judge me AND THE FIRST RESULT:

YEA NO KIDDING OH MY GOD