#he sees the bad in people very easily and digs at the chance to take advantage of it

[magicdyke]

its so fuckin interesting to me that dimple is the only character to make mob so mad that he almost breaks. he's the only thing that knows how to make mob upset to the point that he gets overwhelmed by it and totally makes sense for his character bc hes an evil spirit yadda yadda. i think that dimple is like the only thing that's ever seen mob at his angriest, so it makes sense that he was terrified of him

[bellsmess]

Whenever someone calls Charles Rowland straight, an angel dies.

What straight guy tells his best friend who just confessed to him that there's no one else – no one – he would go to Hell for. And that they have forever to figure out what that means. You don’t get his repressed bisexuality like I do!

Even modern bisexuals (I may or may not be speaking from personal experience) are oblivious to the fact they're bi because heteronormative roles are so engraved in our minds. When you're attracted to other genders, it's easy to miss a same-sex crush, only then to realise that oh, it wasn’t just admiration, it was attraction.

Charles, having grown up at the height of the AIDS crisis, with an abusive and probably homophobic father, killed by racist bullies? That would make anyone repress any gay feelings. Especially if you experience crushes on people with a different sex to you.

Charles sees Crystal and takes his chance. He's enamoured with this smart, strong-willed, pretty girl who can see him not only in a physical sense, but pays attention to him. He longs to be loved. Then he says the infamous "That sounds alot like you, doesn't it? Maybe that's why I like her so much" line. What an icon. And he compares himself and his best friend to the greatest love story of all time, Orpheus and Euridyce's.

When Edwin confesses to him, he doesn't rule out the possibility of returning these feelings. He knows they're already devoted to each other. They've already had 30 years of companionship and solving cases together.

"As long as I have my best mate and a case to solve, I'm good."

Being with Edwin is simple. They solve cases, help others, run away from Death. It's a simple existance. Charles gave up eternity to be with Edwin, because he was kind to him when he was dying. Charles finds him fun, wants to protect him, knows that Edwin is a kind and good person. One that Charles wants to be.

"Bad guys don't worry about being bad guys. And you, Charles Rowland, are the best person I know."

Crystal's role is very important in changing the dynamic between Edwin and Charles. Not only because Charles falls for her, but because she opens them up. She digs out their repressed feelings and trauma. Charles finally deals with his dad's abuse, his happy-go-lucky mask falls. She points it out to Edwin. Charles kept it up so well because Edwin didn't press it, but Crystal does. And Charles finally lets himself process what happened to him, and how that affects his relationships.

Charles never saw genuine love between his parents, and that affects how he views relationships. It impacts how he forms them, too. But he's a loverboy, he longs to be loved, he falls easily. Why wouldn’t he fall for someone who stuck to his side for 30 years?

Crystal and Monty's roles mirror each other – they help the boys figure out their feelings and desires. Crystal makes Edwin jealous that there's someone else Charles cares about in the same sense he cares for Edwin. The Cat King helps Edwin discover desire, Monty – genuine love. As Charles' and Crystal's relationship kickstarts (albeit ends as quickly) and Monty persues Edwin, he discovers the depth of his feelings.

"These complicated feelings that you have? They're for Charles."

I would love to see their wants explored more in the future season(s, hopefully multiple). Charles giving into desire with Desire of the Endless' guidance? Yes please.

I simply cannot believe that anyone would doubt Painland/Payneland endgame. They're everything to each other. They're a constant presence, reassurance, and love. Platonic, romantic, it doesn't matter. Their bond is so deep and genuine that immortal beings see it and leave them be, in the afterlife they chose for each other. Their love is so deep it transcends planes: from mortal plane to Hell, it leads Charles to Edwin. Charles is not Orpheus, when he turns around to hear Edwin out on the staircase from Hell, he manages to get him out. And they have literally forever for each other.

[sugashook]

wade goes "i need you" and he literally grabs logan and is very clear and consistent on it, like i need you, all the time. i think logan needs that clarity and certainty and forwardness..honesty, someone to push him and need him. someone with transparent emotions that will get him out of his head,

and wade needs someone to be there for him no matter what a stable rock. it's like logan's no longer a puzzle piece for war, he's extremely important in wades world, his other half at the moment perhaps (bark)

wolverines entire thing is that he can take great beatings and come back seemingly fine and unaffected its like a very strong closed off person, a fortress that protects his emotions. i think he feels good having people to protect.

but that's also a bad thing because being really strong and feeling like you can take all the bullets you took in your life and bounce them off while at the same time suffering in silence seemingly unaffected by what happened to you is harmful to your psyche. and seeming this way to others as well is even a bigger issue, especially with logan who has the base need to be with people and be there for others.

and for that he NEEDS someone to dig deeper and pierce through his perfect disposition he is NOT easily open and easy going like wade he needs someone to see him and give him a chance and fight for him! wade will make way for himself in someones life, logan will go deeper into himself.

others could see you perfectly "unscathed" all the time and if they don't understand you or try to understand you and how much you can be dealing with complex emotions inside, they will grow resentful,you'll be rejected and treated badly.

wade is very fragile on the other hand, sure he regenerates, but the scars of his trauma are visible and harsh on him, he knows it , everyone knows it.

that's why he's so repulsive to others, his life beat him so hard that he can't control himself with his emotions and it weirds people out, they don't understand it and they get mad,upset,etc.

even scared just by looking at him, you survived trauma, but it shows on you how it affected you and it makes ME uncomfortable, that's pretty scary, you're different and you don't fit in anywhere. they judge him in the opposite way that logan is judged. your overwhelming presence is unnerving to me.

thats why wade hides with his suit his entire face, and the blood. dont notice me,my wounds, and the wounds i give to others. while logans suit screams "notice me!! i'm not okay!! i want people to see me!"

when he regenerates, wades body generates bad body tissue from his skin to his core. and the scars of all that trauma add new trauma so he's constantly re-traumatizing himself and it layers on. he doesn't get stronger or bounce it off himself, bad things such as trauma are just bad they create more bad and he's made out of all the bad things that happened during his life sort of, so he needs a lot of external support.

cause he has no strength left! all the trauma and SLS (shitty life syndrome) is like up to his gills. but he is very joyful and positive despite the harshness of life.

he is a little positivity clown bouncing around in wolverines fortress of solitude.

wolverine can sort of take attacks from life and endure and wade can attack life more easily, he's a positive, up beat, go getter. he loves the world and sees hope in it when there's none. and when the world doesnt love him back ,it crushes him and he cant take it. he doesn't understand how anything he tries he gets hurt by. but he never stops trying :)

logan shuts himself off from the cruel world with his perfect skin and metal bones, but the world has shut off from him as well. wade keeps being hurt and open to the world just like his open wounds and scarred body. even though the world hurts him through his openness.

[co-mixed]

Daredevil by Chip Zdarsky Pt.1

It's not easy to sum up a run like this. Nah, it's actually pretty impossible. It's a long road with so much going on with so many faces, you have to record every single one of your thoughts. So I’m gonna go character by character, taking every arc and dissecting it. 

I have, in fact done it a while ago, right after I finished the run, but it took me some time to post it. And I wanted to make it feel more like a review but that didn't quite work out, so here it is, my essay or analysis of some of the character arcs in this run. Spoilers ahead too!

Zdarsky’s run finds Matt right after the short rehab series. And I have to talk about that a little: the truck that kicked Daredevil out of the game, poetically replaying his childhood accident, left him dealing with all the old injuries. In DD’s line of work, those tend to pile up. So the few issues were a short detour into Matt’s identity crisis as he was about to give up and had to seek help from his fellow Defenders. It was a very recovery-focused story with flashbacks and the fears that haunted him. For a man without fear, he sure has plenty of nightmare scenarios so questioning and reevaluating this status is a constant process for him. This idea circles philosophy but to me, it just reminds again and again of how much Matt Murdock depends on the way people see him. 

When Zdarsky’s run starts, Matt is already going out at night and throwing his clubs around. But he’s not exactly living his previous life anymore. Here, the status quo is fully restored after Waid’s detour and the brooding hero on the roofs in the rain is back. Well, almost back. He can’t fully heal his body or his mind so he ends up accidentally killing a man. And then Zdarsky finally pushes Daredevil into the trap that's been sprung for him ever since he killed Bullseye. At the time, I was a bit disappointed that Waid allowed Matt to walk away into a new life, never having to deal with emotional repercussions. It felt to me like he was repressing that event so hard, his entire personality had changed. While the run was good, it felt like a bizarrely loud cry for help. I felt like that was not Matt, at least not the ever-guilty martyr we all know. 

But now, here, he gets a chance to live through this hell. The beautiful part, in terms of narrative, is that Daredevil right away becomes erratic and paranoid: he goes digging through his enemy list, convinced that someone had set him up. And he fools you easily. Despite him being off his game I truly thought there was a Fisk handprint or just The Hand behind it. But you know what? No. It was just an accident. Probably caused by Matt's lack of trust in Daredevil or his not being at 100%. 

DD gets so bad, he actually ends up getting a talking to from none other than Spider-Man. Aside from the usual suspects that is. Which, think about it, all heroes have gone through trauma at one point. But compared to a spiraling Daredevil they still seem very together. Granted it's his book so the main drama has to come from him.

There’s a moment when he’s in a room with Jessica, Luke, and Danny, and he calls them all murderers, quickly correcting the ‘you’ to ‘we’. It’s like a new light in which he sees the whole superhero game: like he thought they were truly above the law because they made no mistakes. So yeah, after all these years he saw for the first time how flawed each one of them truly is. 

What he refuses to see is that they are all working through that, not dividing the world into the good and bad. Meanwhile, Matt has Daredevil on a pedestal as someone who must never allow the line to become blurry.  

Matt's disturbing as hell. And yeah, have to admit I like him more when everything is awful, simply because he always knows how to make things worse.

For a brief time, Matt hides the costume in his closet and works as a parole officer. But it turns out he is actually terrible at compartmentalizing and he's even worse at self-inflicted penance. 

I believe the culmination of his incompetence in life is an affair with a married woman. Married to a mob boss’s son. It's truly classic Matt Murdock at this point - got no one to cheat on, well, at least she does. He is Exupery’s drunkard and he's brilliant at that. He wakes up next to Mindy thinking about the terrible sin he’s committing. Gotta give her credit though, she gave him a piece of hell for making it about himself. 

And then his circle of violence as he calls it (courtesy of late Vanessa Fisk), pulls him back in again. 

He has doubts and fears about putting on the costume again and we'll, it's hard to blame him. But he still lives in Fisk’s city and the city is getting worse every day. 

When Matt came face to face with The Purple Man, he said that the thing he fears the most is hearing all the tragedy and doing nothing. Zdarsky just puts him in this reality and Matt's got no other choice than to put on the mask. Before he fully embraces it, he trains with Elektra. Did he break up with Mindy? No, of course not. He just ghosted her until she needed help. The good ol' Matt. 

But with Elektra, this time it's different (not really - she has her own plan as she always does.)  I have to admit, the more they get together the more I realize one thing - Matt really can't break up with women. They have to die, otherwise he’ll be hung up on them for years. Elektra is the love of his life no less than Karen was. She just came back from the dead, unlike Karen, and I’m pretty sure deep inside Matt thinks it's for him. Plus, she knows his identity which makes it so much easier. And she's deadly which makes her so less killable. 

But most importantly Matt’s obsessed with Elektra because she's from his past and he’s notoriously bad at moving on from his past (see Exupery's drunkard again). Here’s why I kind of root for them: I do like the adversary/lover connection they have and they exist in the same world. Can they make it work? I doubt it. 

Before I get too deep into more of Matt's disastrous relationships (and believe me you, there is more) I should refocus on the arc.

We got Matt running from the law while making adjustments so he could represent that same law. And he has an interesting new addition to the cast in the form of detective Cole North. I’m gonna talk about him later since he's one of the narrators in the run. But North is hell-bent on holding vigilantes accountable and Daredevil is his idée fixe just as he is for Fisk. 

Daredevil manages to sway North by saving his life as corrupted cops attempt to kill him and that leads to three interesting events.

One - his parolee learns that he is Daredevil. And his parolee is none other than the brother of the man he accidentally killed. 

Two - North starts seeing him as a protector rather than a criminal. But he still wants to hold him accountable. 

Three - it sets the tone for the rest of the run, showing the cracks and imperfections of the US criminal justice system.

Either way, that day Matt goes free. And when he puts on a costume again, he is convinced that now he's gonna act smart (because Elektra told him to gather information before leaping into action, duh. All that education and you couldn't figure it out on your own…) It's also a different costume and Matt even convinces everyone who’d listen and a couple people who won't, that he is now a new and improved hero who is not Daredevil at all. Yes, he actually believes it and I think it's still his desire to wash his hands off of everything connected to the accident. He thinks he sees things clearly now but it feels like he's never been more blind. Yet somehow, he will be. 

This repetitiveness becomes very noticeable when you read through run after run. It’s a very clear pattern that Matt goes through: every time something changes he makes the decision. This time… this time… this time… and it always comes back to the same conclusion. 

He immediately gets duped by Elektra into stealing money from the bad guys, of which she pocketed some. And then the bad guys rain Inferno upon Hell’s Kitchen. 

That's a fun little event during which another one of Matt's exes, Typhoid Mary, reappears: prior to that she's been therapied into a nice nun who's been helping Matt whenever he ended up in church. The first time I saw her I thought “Oh no, he's not gonna sleep with a nun…” but then, he already had. Uhm, anyway, the nice uplifting moment was the people of the neighborhood dressing up as Daredevil, turning him into a symbol. They'd been doing it for a while and some had been moderately successful too. But when the battle was won, one of them died in Matt's arms, so he turned himself in as Daredevil. 

Now that's the thing, that's where the main idea of this run starts really growing. And not because Daredevil goes to prison or refuses to fight for his freedom, but because of what's awaiting him there. It's not the superpowered villains, it's all the people he’s been sending there for years. It's such a simple thing - to take these “street level” bad guys, put them face to face with Daredevil, and tell their stories. 

Daredevil in jail is a stupid idea. Smart from the narrative point of view yet stupid for him as a person on many levels. First of all, he is doing it out of misguided loyalty to the law. He's still a lawyer after all. He's also religious but he kind of sorted that out for himself already. He says he wants to show everyone how even superheroes have to be held accountable if they step out of line. 

He wants to feel good about himself and again, a part of me thinks he wants to feel like he's better than the others: he loves that moral high ground, and whenever it shakes underneath his feet, everything around him falls apart. Mostly because he destroys it, but he doesn't focus on that. 

Cole, Kirsten (yeah, she's back too), and Foggy, they all tell him he's wrong. And they are absolutely correct too. He wants to be an example, sure, but he really needs people to see him the way they did before. It's not about his guilt, he's been forgiven in fact. 

The one big regret I have is that this run and this prison time didn't give him more therapy. Because the therapist calling him out on his usual BS was incredible. And she, along with another inmate reminded him that he's fooling himself and trying to fool others. All that makes more sense considering he still hides his identity, so whenever he chooses to leave, his crime and his time won't affect anything. None of that will ruin his life. 

The way the story leads to this social or rather political issue, it's very organic. It's something he’s been dealing with for years as both his personas: the revolving door between a police station and the streets, the poverty and desire for a better life that lead to crime, the mean streets. He's the perfect hero for this story and his flaws are most vivid here. He had both put people in jail and kept them out of it, he'd been a mayor, and he’d been accused and stood trial. But all of that he had been doing from his high horse.  

The truth in that story is grim and realistic - prison isn't helping reform anyone and only serves billionaires in their quest for more wealth. 

As Daredevil discovers that and makes a deal with the FBI, he gets released. And once again, he wants to go for that one big win. He always falls into that same trap, he always attempts to stand alone or with friends and win everything, save everyone at once. He’ll keep trying to, all the way to The Fist saga. 

But to get there, he needs to step over one considerable obstacle.

Wilson Fisk

Like I said, Daredevil and the rest live in Fisk’s city. He is still the mayor and he is going after all vigilantes and I mean all, including the Avengers. But that’s just a part of it. Fisk has an interesting story as he decides to move from the underworld politics to the real thing. He makes a decision, he retires the title of Kingpin of crime, but he forgets the one crucial part – he can’t retire his persona. He will go on to the next level with his hands still soaked in blood. And that’s something he shares with Matt: where Matt needs to be absolved, all Fisk needs is to just turn around and pretend he’s done nothing wrong.

The ironic detail is, he’s so used to doing his dirty work himself, he finds it impossible to fit in with polished high-class criminals. Politics seems like a natural next step for him but somehow the shadow games turn out to be more than he can chew. Thus the Big Bads of this run are Stromwyns - the richest people in New York. They pull the strings and even Fisk struggles with that idea. 

In all this, he has a few defining moments:

He wages war on superheroes, including mutants, which leads to X-Men Devil’s Reign

He goes to fight on the ground during Inferno (which was organized as you might have guessed or known already, by the Stromyns).

He kills Mike Murdock thinking he’s Matt Murdock. 

Oh, right I forgot to mention that Mike’s back. And he is seemingly real now, has his own arc, although still can’t escape the title of a spare Matt Murdock. 

Anyway, back to Fisk. Of course, when the time comes for reelection, Fisk wants not just to run but to guarantee his victory, which is not surprising at all. I mean take a criminal who gets a fraction of power, would they ever let go of it? In this regard, Fisk is your classic villain. And just like every other villain, he decides to cheat and use The Purple Man’s power to sway the voters. All of that leads to his ruin and retirement.

But not before he marries Typhoid Mary. Can’t call the ceremony lovely really because they both creep me out and I’d like them or at least Fisk to pay for his crimes. It’s not just the fact that he never does or it never sticks, it’s that later he’s received diplomatic immunity from Krakoa, and sure, he helped them during Fall of X and the drama with Orchis. But it’s still the same damn Kingpin. That hasn’t changed and he will return to make everybody’s life hell again. 

Why? He’s absolutely evil and we see that in a panel during Devil’s Reign. There’s no non-evil or non self-serving for him. 

Yeah, Fisk and Mary rowed off into the sunset but not before Fisk killed Mike. And really, that’s another opportunity missed by Matt. Could’ve played around scaring him in both his personas instead of going after him right away and revealing his existence. But I get it, he had other engagements including his actual engagement to a woman we all know all too well. 

I ran out of the images limit, so there is a Part Two.

[hotasfahrenheit]

something i've been thinking about a lot since watching the end of Love For Love's Sake is what and who exactly is real in the universe that Myungha is playing the game in.

what do we know about this world? firstly, it is presented to us and Myungha as being the world of the story that Myungha read, but focused on Yeowoon instead of the main characters from the manuscript who are a happy couple that ends up together. they don't enter the picture at all; we don't know what point in that theoretical timeline Myungha is inserted into, but this implies it's before Yeowoon meets them since they're just not there.

the next step from there tho is... is the manuscript that Myungha read even real? he remembers the mysterious sunbae being the one who gave it to him to read, but if the sunbae is some kind of god or angel of death, did Myungha actually read it after he died, as part of a test to figure out what to do with his soul?

really my ultimate question that this whole line of thought is digging at is if Yeowoon is also someone being given a chance at life and happiness again, and is as real as Myungha is (and if the other boys are thus real too). despite Myungha seeing the game interface that no one else sees and having the system errors affect his existence in the world, the interactions between other characters when Myungha is not there are too deep and too real to be just NPCs. they're experiencing life and making decisions like fully really people, and living it outside of Myungha's scope of knowledge and what he can see. we get multiple scenes of the characters interacting and doing things without Myungha, and not all of them connect directly back to him or things he's doing.

knowing that Myungha's grandmother already passed away fills in her existence easily- she could very well actually be Myungha's grandmother's soul actually brought into this world as well. clearly some people are not there because they're also dead- like his ex girlfriend appearing as the agent, or his mother appearing in the cafe- but they have much simpler functions in this world. but there's little things- Sangwon struggling with his relationship with his mother and talking about how his father used to hit him too, Kyunghoon having a boyfriend that is always far away and he can't see until some point in the future- that hint to me that they might be other lost souls that had bad or sad things happening in their lives too, that might have brought them early deaths as well.

was the story that Myungha read about Yeowoon a story about another real, sad, lonely person who made the same choice Myungha did? was the game not just a set up for Myungha to save himself and learn how to love himself and others but a way to save multiple souls?

one of the main pieces of support behind that idea for me is the fact that Yeowoon breaks through the haze after Myungha disappears and not only remembers Myungha but is able to take control of the game to bring him back. i agree with this great post from @wen-kexing-apologist that Myungha (and his depression) is the one controlling the game he's experiencing in general and causing the system errors, because that makes sense for the things Myungha sees. but the others don't see them, though they do see the physical effects on Myungha when things happen like him falling down the stairs when he's with Sangwon. they see Myungha reacting to screens only he can see, and they do notice that's he's interacting with them and clearly think it's odd even tho they don't really comment on it.

and in the most crucial moment, Yeowoon finds the pen and the notebook. Yeowoon pushes to remember Myungha, pushes to find him, pushes to figure out a way to get him back, and i cannot believe that he's just some kind of NPC in an actual game or a made up person in a constructed reality that Myungha gets to exist in as the only real human soul. he has drive, he makes autonomous decisions, he is cognizant and aware. he needs to learn about how to love and be loved like Myungha does; he needs to learn how to connect to others and not be alone and adrift. he has a reason to be placed in this world like Myungha does even if he's not the one in charge of it until the moment it matters most.

could this be an alternate reality where Myungha just hasn't died yet and that's how everyone is real and there? theoretically maybe, but the fact that he is experiencing everything as a 19 year old in the current time and not in 2012 means despite going from 29 to 19 means that this isn't just another parallel earth where he's taking over the existence of another Myungha. (plus where would that Myungha go??) also his grandmother being there and being fully a real person means that he hasn't just been placed back into the real world, since we know she's already passed away there as well. i don't have a solid theory yet for how their world exists, i just have ideas about how they're existing within it.

i feel like i'm hitting the point when i'm just gonna be talking in circles about this from here out, since i've been thinking about it in circles, so I'm gonna wrap this up and go think about it for the rest of forever.

tldr is that i think at least Yeowoon and the other boys are all real. they're all being given another chance, with Myungha as their ringleader. they need to learn from him as much as he needs to learn from taking care of them; they all learn that they're worthy of love and friendship in ways they hadn't known before.

they all get their second chance.

[shadedsecrets]

I realized today... that I can't wait to see where Amos Ellery ends up and I have more predictions about how that'd go.

Do I think he's going to be showing up frequently? Likely only as frequently as we check in on the rest of the Parents Squad, not often until thicker plot entanglement. Is he going to have important things to do and plot-impacting choices to make? Ooooh, most assuredly. And I am most eager to see which garden path he grouches down.

From my perspective... there are two options, and both of them are so very very fun.

This man has already been asked to and made some hard choices. He would not be a confidant of That Bird Goddess if he hadn't committed. The man knows his son has been dead for two months and that his body will never be found. And he isn't enthused about it, even grumbles a complaint, but that is as far as it gets. He reaffirms his loyalty. This is a man... that clings to the belief that seeing whatever this is through will be worth it in the end.

He has put his eggs in this basket and come hell of high water, he will defend those choices.

.....for now.

We don't currently know why Amos was upset about Irving not getting a body double that could at least be brought home. And I can think of a few reasons other than caring for his son that could fit that bill, but again, we don't know. With how hostile he got when our favorite Grandmother of Chaos implied he didn't, I do think he loves Irving, and expresses his affections... differently.

So we have a grumpy man currently working for the assumed Big Bad who seems like he may be loyal out of principle, fear, and honestly not believing there to be another option. He professes that he will do whatever it takes to see this through, even something like being implicit in the murders of his family and friends...

So what do we think is going to happen when news inevitably breaks of some Really Funky Seaghosts that look like those missing nobles? Yeah, the Phantomarine Crew are going to do their best to stay out of sight, but if a Pavel needs defending? Screw that, protect the baby! Let's face it, the boy with a stigmatized condition and a Godly Bounty on his head is going to be at risk of harm around people and in the wilds in equal measure. But what will the Parents do with this knowledge...

Personally... I hope Amos will be given chances at choosing something else, and he will double down the first couple times. He is a man of conviction. He does not read as someone who gets shaken easily, expression barely changing, voice rarely raised... Changing tracks just like that for likely only vague information would undercut all of that unless he was shown to take the time to VERY thoroughly research it on his own. I doubt he would be given the time to, however. No no... it's going to be the last time he has a choice that would be interesting.

It would be a choice that he cannot take back; most of the cards will be on the table and he will not be able to feign ignorance of the consequences. And he would have two options... Continue on this current course, or finally reach his limit and do ANYTHING else. Either he goes down as a man who finally tried to stand up to a Deity, or as someone who could not accept he had done the wrong thing.

What can I say? I am a sucker for these sorts of stories. An antagonist that just can't accept they did something wrong for a shitty reason is so cathartic to watch go down, just as good as someone finally taking a stand and responsibility for their actions and striving to dig back out of a very deep hole is.

Am I reading too far into a side character? Maybe! But he seems to be set up as the actual right hand of the Big Bad and is a protagonist's FATHER. He has some stuff to do here... And I see some veeeeeery fun flags.

[twistedappletree]

TYPE: One-shot (bite sized!)

JURISDICTION: It’s feelings realization, your honor.

PAIRING: Jin Ling/Lan Sizhui

SIDE CHARACTERS: Lan Jingyi, unnamed town girls

ELEMENTS: Town setting, canon universe, first kiss, Jin Ling POV, internal monologue, awkward juniors being awkward because feelings are confusing~

•

He doesn’t ask what’s wrong with himself because it’s obvious now—why he doesn’t know how to talk to girls, why it bothers him to see Lan Sizhui so natural at it, why it hurts so much to walk away from him.

Stupidly perfect, charming Lan Sizhui.

•

In which Jin Ling is bad at feelings, Lan Sizhui’s ‘people-pleasing’ is mistaken as flirting and both discover the magic of (young and awkward) communication.

{ AO3 }

🍁

Jin Ling doesn’t know how to talk to girls.

In fact, he’s better at scaring them away more than anything. Lan Jingyi doesn’t know how to talk to girls either, which makes Jin Ling feel better knowing there’s someone equally as hopeless as him—and let’s face it, it would be devastatingly embarrassing if Lan Jingyi out of all people were better at courting than him.

The thing is, no matter how much Lan Jingyi sucks at talking to girls, he still seems to enjoy it.

Jin Ling doesn’t.

And because of this, he feels like there’s something wrong with him beyond terrible social skills. That’s why, when he sees Lan Sizhui easily talking to girls as though it’s second nature, he experiences a crushing mix of jealousy and despair.

Jealousy because he’s better than Jin Ling at something? Maybe. Despair for the same reason? Possibly. But Jin Ling doesn’t even like talking to girls, or other people in general, so this reasoning doesn’t quite make sense.

They’re at the docks of a new town, going through the same routine as usual: a flock of girls their age oohs and ahhs at the young cultivators of the esteemed Lan clan, then swarms Lan Sizhui in particular—all batting eyelashes and playful smiles as they bombard him with questions.

And Lan Sizhui, a gentleman to a fault, humors them, laughs with them, matches their smiles in all the right ways at all the right times, making the group of pretty young girls swoon.

But it isn’t fair because Lan Sizhui’s smile could make anyone swoon, including Jin Ling—Wait, he thinks, What?!

Jin Ling glances at Lan Jingyi who definitely isn’t swooning and, instead, is dreamily staring at (and salivating over) the contents of a nearby food stall.

The fishermen are tending to their catches, the shopkeepers are peddling their wares, the children are chasing each other around the docks. No one is swooning over Lan Sizhui’s handsome smile except the girls… and Jin Ling.

He digs his nails into his hand to bring himself back to his senses. What the hell is wrong with me?

One of the girls makes Lan Sizhui laugh—a beautiful, carefree, genuine laugh—and Jin Ling’s heart drops.

Stupidly perfect, charming Lan Sizhui.

•

The three young cultivators stop at a tea house, still accompanied by the giggling group of girls who insist on showing them around.

They take their seats inside and Jin Ling scrunches his nose at the way the girls strategically position themselves on both sides of Lan Sizhui. Not even Lan Jingyi is given the chance to claim a seat next to his best friend.

Lan Sizhui graciously pours everyone tea while the girls argue about who gets to pour his. Lan Jingyi clings onto the conversation by telling unprompted jokes and Jin Ling tries to drown out the noise by lazily resting his cheek on his fist and staring at the wall.

Half an hour goes by in what seems like seconds and Jin Ling hasn’t spoken a word. No one seems to notice his silence or the very clear boredom and annoyance plastered on his face.

He suddenly stands up and smooths his hands over his robes. “I’m going for a walk.”

“Wait,” Lan Sizhui calls, his face swimming with something Jin Ling can’t quite place. Worry? Anxiety?

“I’ll go with you,” he says, trying to stand up but the girls suddenly whine and paw at his robes, tugging him back down to his seat.

Jin Ling rolls his eyes at the pathetic sight. “Don’t bother. I won’t be gone long anyway.”

Lan Sizhui frowns and Jin Ling doesn’t understand why. Surely, if Wei Wuxian were here, he’d be egging the Lan boy on, telling him how proud he is, how Lan Sizhui is such a heartbreaker (because my god, is he ever).

Without another word, Jin Ling reluctantly tears his gaze from Lan Sizhui, walks out of the tea house and into the street. His head pounds, his heart aches, the world drains of color.

He doesn’t ask what’s wrong with himself because it’s obvious now—why he doesn’t know how to talk to girls, why it bothers him to see Lan Sizhui so natural at it, why it hurts so much to walk away from him.

Stupidly perfect, charming Lan Sizhui.

•

Jin Ling sits on a crescent moon bridge in a spacious garden, idly dipping a cattail stalk into the pond below and watching as a colorful spectrum of koi fish nip at what they think is food.

The town’s bustle and noise is muffled enough that he can finally hear himself think. No one else is in the garden but him and he hopes it stays that way.

The problem is, he doesn’t know what to think about. He doesn’t know if thinking is even worth it.

All he knows is that he wants to be alone. He hates to be alone. He hates him. He wants him. He wants, he hates, he—

“Young Master Jin?”

The cattail falls into the pond and Jin Ling’s chest fills with light. He looks up at Lan Sizhui, at his starlight skin shaming the sun, at his soft, downturned lips parted with visible worry, at his raven hair dusting the top of his gentle amethyst eyes.

He hates him.

“May I sit?” Lan Sizhui asks, a sheepish smile on his face.

No, Jin Ling thinks as he looks back down at the pond and scoots over. Lan Sizhui sits next to him and curiously stares down at the koi fish.

“Where’s your entourage?” Jin Ling asks, trying to sound as disinterested as possible.

“Oh,” Lan Sizhui smiles, “I left them with Jingyi at the tea house.”

Jin Ling huffs, his bangs fluttering forward like a curtain. “I can’t tell if that’s a blessing or a curse.”

A soft chuckle escapes Lan Sizhui’s lips, low and sweet like chimes in the wind. Jin Ling draws his knees up to his chest and plants his chin between them, hugging his shins.

He wants him.

“They didn’t seem to mind,” Lan Sizhui assures, “And I was worried about you. I wanted to find you and apologize—“

Jin Ling snaps his head up and stares at him. “Huh? For what?”

“For neglecting you at the tea house,” Lan Sizhui frowns, regret flooding his voice. “I was trying to be polite to the girls, but…” He thinks for a moment then shakes his head. “That’s not an excuse to ignore my friends. I’m sorry.”

Jin Ling wants to keep being angry but his heart betrays him. Because Lan Sizhui is looking directly into his eyes, because his apology is earnest and true, because he’s genuinely afraid he hurt Jin Ling’s feelings.

And he did. He did.

So why can’t Jin Ling stay mad at him? He’s horrified by the words that seem to subconsciously spill out of his mouth. “It’s okay.”

But it’s not okay and they both know it. Lan Sizhui knows it by looking at Jin Ling, and Jin Ling knows it by the way Lan Sizhui makes him feel like his heart’s been thrown into a furnace full of fireworks.

He hates him.

“You talk to a lot of girls,” Jin Ling quietly mumbles, almost hoping Lan Sizhui won’t hear him. “Don’t you like any of them?”

Lan Sizhui’s a bit taken aback by the question but ponders it for a moment before replying, “It’s important to show others courtesy and respect. When someone talks to me, I acknowledge them because it’s the polite thing to do.”

“Lan sect rules?” Jin Ling teases.

Lan Sizhui laughs. “Human rules.”

Jin Ling suddenly wonders if maybe he’s not bad at talking to people. Maybe he’s just bad at being human.

“If you really want to know,” Lan Sizhui starts, “I can’t like someone in… that way if I’ve only just met them. I have to be friends with them first.”

Heat invades Jin Ling’s cheeks and he hugs his knees tighter while recalling Lan Sizhui’s words from earlier: ‘That’s not an excuse to ignore my friends.’

Could he mean…? Maybe…?

Jin Ling mentally curses at himself. Don’t be stupid. “Then… do you like any of your friends?”

You absolute idiot.

Lan Sizhui blushes and Jin Ling can’t look at him because if he looks at him, he’ll crack and say too much and ruin everything and—

“Yes,” Lan Sizhui answers.

He wants him.

“And… and I hope he likes me too.”

He.

The silence between them is deafening, terrifying, revealing. The type of silence words can’t fill but actions can.

It’s too much and Jin Ling caves. He’s looking at him now. Amber eyes burn in the violet reflection of Lan Sizhui’s intense, hopeful stare.

Stupidly…

Their fingers touch and a fire ignites.

Perfect…

Warm breath against skin, time slows down.

Charming…

Their lips meet and the world stops.

Lan Sizhui.

He loves him.

{ 🖤 }

[slashingdisneypasta]

Ohhhhhh I did send an ask about wolf characters, but now that you've decided that your F/O's are werewolves, I must send this one in now XD

How exactly do you see your F/O's as werewolves? Some I can easily see like Otis. But Cruella??? Oh the poor woman XD do you think they were born werewolves or bitten? Are they a specific type woth different attributes? How do you think their wolfy forms look like? I'm very intrigued

I have been thinking about this since you sent this in!! ^^

To preface: These werewolves struggle less with their full moon's the more that they have given in to their wolf side. The more they connect with the animal and leave humanity behind, the more of their actual minds (Their humanity, their thoughts) remain after they've transformed. ... and also yes. They all had ruts XD - but those stop around menopause time. Even for the men who do not get menopause. No pups are coming outta these oldies, so theirs no need.

🖕Otis B Driftwood🖕:

Otis is pretty much totally connected with his wolf side- by complete choice. Which means he's feral, he lacks basic personal hygiene and communication skills (His rants are almost incomprehensible and he often growls/grunts in responce to people.), he'll sniff you for signs of weakness/aggression/etc, he's aggressive, he'll lick his wounds, etc. He's still Otis, he's just very very wolf-like.

Otis is so stubborn and strong of mind, and is so connected with his wolf side, that if he doesn't want to shift- he fucking wont. He used to like it, though, the freedom; but as he grows older he wants to shift less and less (Its hard on the joints 😅) so he's becoming more human and disconnected from that canine side of him. Hence the bettering in his appearance and his seeming to become less feral in 3 From Hell.

... but that also, of course, means that his shifting is becoming a lot harder on him. It takes him by force now and then he's even more aggressive then ever when he's in the wolf form. He doesn't have as much clarity as before, either, because he's fighting it. So he knows he's pissed off, but the wolf doesn't know why. Just that it needs to dig its teeth, into something.

Otis is a born wolf (His parents were werewolves, and they left him behind when he was 14 cuz like- grown. Pup is all grown.) and he changed the rest of the Fireflies/Coltranes+Captain Spaulding.

🐊Jim Bickerman🐊:

Jim is not quite as connected with the wolf as Otis is (Or as Otis was, I should say). But he is better off then the others.

You can see it in his eyes when he sees something- or someone (Prey)- he likes. Or wants. You can hear it in his voice when someone pisses him off in the quiet growl rumbling in the back of his throat. You can feel it in how his body heat's a noticeable amount warmer then the average person.

His full moon is not as easy as Otis'; he doesn't have a chance to not shift and he doesn't have the clarity Otis used to have and it hurts- but Jim kind of looks forward to it. The week before the full moon he's stronger then ever (No more limp, no need for Viagra anymore, etc.), and he can see farther then he has in years, and he can hear what the rest of the town is saying about him, which is always interesting... (he knows exactly who he hopes he bites later).

Also, it used to be that he was glad that he (His personality, his thoughts his mind) disappeared for the night that he is the wolf as he was having a particularly bad time of it when he first turned. More on this next paragraph

Now, as much as I'd love the whole Bickerman clan to be werewolves- I also know that Jim is just the idiot to get himself bitten. So yeah, he was bitten. I'd say it happened around age 36-40. Probably when he was in a really bad spot in his life (No job, gambling debts, a tab at the bar the same height as him- double sided) which is why he took to the werewolf thing so considerably easily compared to some others- it actually improved his life. He was stronger, his head clearer, his vision better (Which made shooting a lot easier), and on a full moon he could eat all he wanted.

ALSO!! a thought I'm sure you've had- how do his lost limbs factor in to his wolf form? Does he still have the prosthetics? The answer is no he does not, he's a 3-legged one-eyed wolf. Its just lucky for him that his hand does not get factored into the change since technically the wolf doesn't have arms- he has legs.

(not sure about that last bit yet, I'm still thinking ^^)

📕Professor Callahan📕:

Alright!! So when I think about werewolf!callahan I get really excited XD He of course does not connect with his wolf side much (not even as much as Jim)- he of course has that predatory thing about him when it comes to pretty students, which is something, but its not enough to cause the full moon to take it easy on him. Ahhh, I just love the idea that this very sensible modern man has such a crazy dark secret (: That after the day of a full moon, after he's taught Harvard students law- he goes home and gets more irritated and more pissed off-

until he transforms into a goddamn wolf.

Before a full moon Callahan's personality and treatment of students and employees alike gets worse. He's even meaner (Nastier, more angry then ever before. And generally Cal's not an angry man. Just a dick), he'll make you look dumb just so he can yell at you for incompetency, his hair and clothes are just enough out of place that people notice and think he's just so stressed and frazzled.

But at the same time- he's even sharper then usual. He sees holes in arguments and contracts faster then anyone, and he can beat anyone in court. Its amazing, his mind is so clear and so focused, and you feel a chill when he walks into the room because his energy becomes so domineering. He's truly shark-like.

I think Cal was also bitten.

👠Cruella De Vil👠:

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh boy. Cruella actually FIGHTS the curse- which is what it is, for her. A curse. She REFUSES to BE a BLOODY COAT.

Poor her you say??? Poor Alonzo having to be around her the week of the full moon!!! 🤣 He is not coming out of it without blunt force head trauma, lemme tell you.

Okay so, I know Cruella is pretty wolf like already; she's aggressive and focused and almost animalistic- but thats just her. Her personality. That is not her giving in to the wolf at all, no. In fact she fights it so hard she almost becomes animal completely separately from the werewolf gene. She will fight the change until she bursts a blood vessel. She will scream and shriek and hold onto her 'humanity' (... hah) with everything. But of course there are things that happen to her because of the oncoming change.

Such as mood swings. Now, she already has those- I know. But these ones are far more severe. Yes, just imagine it. Its terrifying. She can go from all over the place to laser focused at the drop of a hat. Her appearance also becomes messier- her hair refuses to do anything but stick up in random directions (If you were a person who didn't know about her wolfieness you would almost believe that her hair has gotten... thicker, since yesterday. Which it has. Thicker and stronger), her eyes seem to shine brighter then usual, her nails become longer and sharper, she grows a few centre metres taller, etc. She also gets stronger, her throwing precision becomes more focused, and other stuff like that.

Cruella was DEFINITELY bitten. It is Karma (:

I hope this is all legible, I feel like its written crazy 😅 Well thank you so much for this ask!! This was a blast to think about XD

[blogquantumreality]

So I wanna talk about Orla Maguire (TBoMT)

I've been re-watching the series along with @ayalaatreides (thanks to Teleparty!) and I'd forgotten a lot of the Season 1 stuff so I was somewhat unprepared for the Shit Gets Absolutely Real in S01E06 ("The Test").

Spoilers ensue, so I'm putting the rest under a Read More:

What I love about this episode is it digs into the very real challenges Kyra will face as a Tri-ling in the magical world she's only just begun to navigate via Professor Maxwell's school in River City, and the series personifies those challenges in the form of Orla Maguire, an elf:

Melanie Zanetti (Orla's actress) just nailed the menacingly benevolent way she approaches Kyra.

She's all smiles, but you can just tell she's ready to stab Kyra in the back at the slightest opportunity, and boy, does she get that chance this episode!

And she grabs the Shadow Cloud, after which she espies Peter across a park and chooses to let it out there:

And right here, this is where she crosses the Moral Event Horizon.

She purposely moves the cloud near Peter.

I believe this was deliberate, because doing this sets Kyra up for two equally bad alternatives:

She takes her mind off the Shadow Cloud threat and will have to rush and save Peter, failing the test, or

She fails to save Peter and ends up letting the Cloud go on to do further damage before containing it.

Kyra, luckily, knocks Peter out of the way and distracts him while Imogen manages to vacuum the cloud up using a magical artifact.

But regardless of the outcome, thanks to Orla Kyra was doomed to fail this test anyway, and we see that the reason for this is due to deep-seated prejudices that still exist within the magical world of TBoMT:

These prejudices play out in the relative socioeconomic positions of the Maxwell School students:

Imogen's and Darra's parents are hinted to be quite wealthy, given Orla's remarks about generous donations to the Department of Magical Intervention (also, noteworthy is that they're all full-blooded elves).

Lily's (a full-blooded fairy) father Sean Reegan (also a fairy) is at this point hinted to be a high official in the DMI (we later find out he's the Director of the DMI - effectively the Minister for Magic).

Ruksy's family situation isn't elaborated on by this point. However, given that she is treated the same as Lily, we can conclude that Ruksy's family is probably the equivalent of magical middle class.

But Kyra is a Tri-ling in a world where any mixed-ancestry magical people are regarded with suspicion at best, and her father is a policeman - good at his job, but hardly a rising star destined for fame and fortune.

So this firmly puts Kyra at the bottom of the socioeconomic hierarchy, a situation which Professor Maxwell sympathizes with, being a half-ling himself. He also remarks (anviliciously, perhaps, but some things need to be said) that it means Kyra will have to work twice as hard to be considered as good as the other students.

To bring this back to Orla, it's impressive how well this episode uses her character as a vehicle to show the extent of discrimination Kyra will face, and how prejudice against her can easily lead to abuses of magical power in ways that could hurt Kyra or her friends.

I'm purposely avoiding spoilers for Orla's later character arc, but feel free to bring those up if you've already seen the entire series and want to discuss! :)

[hereforyourdispleasure]

🙈, 🍩, 🌏, ⚙️, 🪤 - Darian

📎, 💧, 💗 - Alir

☄️, ☁️, 🎭 - Mark

💡, 🔥, ✏️ - Adrian

🌌, 👑 - Celeste

Cut off because good lord, long post

Darian

Side of him he doesn't like to show?- Literally all the dodgy stuff he does. While he knows that a threatening reputation is useful, he just doesn't really like it. There are some cases, obviously with people that have/are likely to try to pull shit with him, where he's more than happy to be seen as a threat. Takes a bit of sadistic joy in it even. But, especially with his friends, he doesn't really want to be seen as serious, violent and threatening. Plus he thinks it's fun to threaten people then have them search him up to try and dig up dirt, only to find he keeps posting memes. He is/can easily be a threat and he knows it, he just doesn't like other people knowing it or taking him too seriously/not trusting him because of it

Favourite sweet treat?- Ridiculously elaborate ice cream. Give that guy candyfloss bubblegum marshmallow ice cream with pieces of meringue and honeycomb? He's fucking overjoyed

Will he give up the world for someone they love?- Depends on how many people he loves are still in the world. Most likely no, he'd see it as unfair to screw over so many people just for one. But if he was feeling particularly devoted that day, maybe

Thoughts on science and art?- He sees both as important. Science important for factual knowledge and progression towards understanding of the world around us, art for understanding internal processes and the ability to connect/communicate/co-operate with others

What will always lure him into danger?- Chances are he's aware of the danger, so it's whether or not he sees it as worth it. Loved ones? Yes absolutely, he literally jumps at, has a lovely conversation with and a coffee with said danger most of the time. Him running into danger for the chance of getting something he wants out of it? Wouldn't really happen. He'd just find 20 alternative methods, he could get what he wants anytime, why endanger himself for it. Has he done so in the past? 😶 Yes of course

Alir

A random fact- Actually has a good relationship with their family and stays in contact with them, visiting regularly

Random angst headcanon- They've gotten to the point where they just emotionally shut down if anything really bad happens. They've faced a lot of bad things and just usually just try to avoid the whole thing. As much as they try to talk things out, like they've suggested and advised Darian to do, it usually doesn't work well (both in the past and in their own current friend group). Darian and Mark know this, and try to either get them as far away from shit as possible, or make sure they constantly check in

What happens when they have a crush?- Yes, pretty noticeable. If they like someone, they want the person to know. Why not, if you're seeking a relationship, make it clear. They'd probably be just very themself- very bright and enthusiastic. Would definitely try to impress the person. Like with their radical dirtbiking skills B)

Mark

What do people assume about him, are they right?- I'd say the assumption about him is that he's just Darian's work partner, helps when asked to, doesn't really do anything besides that. But nope, he does play quite a few crucial roles, to the point that he was a higher up himself way before Darian. But that assumption about him is exactly what both Mark and Darian are aiming for

Soft headcanon- Talks about the machines he makes as if they're conscious brings. He's not mental I promise it's just that he takes a lot of pride in what he creates

Does he act differently around different people?- Sort of? In his career he's just serious, wants to get things done without making things complicated with social stuff. When he does have to be social, if its with people he needs to be on the good side of, he'll be smiley, making polite sarcastic jokes. To people he doesn't particularly need to please, he's fine with being his generally serious self along with making jokes and comments. It's slightly different between Alir and Darian. He doesn't really make comments/jests at Alir, that's just not what their friendship is. But with Darian? This man can and will meet Darian's sarcastic humour, meet his jokes with comments and jests of his own. He's comfortable with not being completely serious around him (unless the situation calls for it), while knowing that he and Darian both deeply care for each other. His family, though? He's just plain serious with them- short responses, blunt and to the point, would never try to make jokes with them

Adrian

Is he a planner?- When he needs to be. If there's a mission that has to go a specific way (he's working directly under Handler at this point so lets face it, everything has to be perfect) then he'll plan stuff out. It's more of a loose plan, in comparison to Darian's whole "I MUST MAKE 70 PLANS AND THEN 300 BACK UP PLANS". Just as long as he knows what he's doing and what the alternatives are, he's fine. He absolutely will just abandon all plans if he thinks it's necessary

Self destructive tendencies?- Ohohoho buddy. This man is purely self destructive tendencies. After losing the second of the two people that have actually been decent to you, the person you saw as your chance at some kind of normal life, in exactly the same way as the first time mind you? Yeah, not doing too good. Darian was willing to put his life on the line because he knew his death date so knew that he'd probably be fine, he easily endangers himself for the people around him. Adrian has basically nobody, the closest thing being Mark who he's only recently met, no guarantee of when he'll die, he just expects he's going to die as part of his job some day and doesn't care. Puts his life on the line just because he can. He'll do it over the smallest things, usually to prove a point, look threatening, or because of pride. In the non canon rp when he was daring Fable to shoot him, he was moreso shocked at his own reaction of avoiding the bullet. He basically just starts chatting up random people in timelines just to drop them soon after. Aftereffects of mixing grief with the sudden knowledge of the multiverse and that everything is meaningless 😔. He has a few others which I won't go into detail with because frankly I don't want to. He's just very self destructive, self loathing but at the same time is being given zero time to recover and is being encouraged towards a mini god complex while being prepared as an intercosmic sacrifice, while trying to get as much useful (blackmail) material about Commission and Handler as he can. So yeah, not a good time

Particular quote/lyric I associate with him- I honestly don't associate songs with him. There's obvious ones like Girl Anachronism by Dresden Dolls (Amanda Palmer yikes 😬), Noel's Lament from that roller coaster musical (💀 ik but it makes sense), because I associate them with his lack of self preservation and just lack of care. Then You're not welcome by Nathan Apollo specifically for this part:

But the last 2 lines can be applied to Darian in main reality at most ages. But I don't really associate much with him, especially not any more positive toned songs. I'm sure there are positive toned songs that can be linked to him but idk haven't found them yet

Celeste

Inspiration behind her- I haven't even watched Steven Universe, but Blue Diamond. Celeste is a creator being, to completely oppose Hyra, aka L'appel Du Vide. (Hyra hasn't really been mentioned in canon because Darian would never willingly talk about her. All you need to know is if Adrian is the lamb being led to slaughter, Hyra is the slaughterhouse. She's also the being that AvExp!Darian is basically an avatar for)

But back on track, Celeste is a creator. Creating realities, saving them. The whole lightning theme is a haha funny on my part because it's just "spark of creativity!". But yeah, Blue Diamond inspired, creativity, energy transferrals in the form of sparks

What does she want to be remembered as?- I don't really think Celeste cares how she's remembered. She's kind, yes, but you also have to remember what she is. She doesn't care about how she's known or if she's known at all. Fame isn't her thing

[shizuokadivision]

Sharp Heels and Painted Nails

(TW: Gore)

Reika couldn't help but feel annoyed. She was supposed to be spending her birthday with Kanon and Sakura after finishing up the final touches on her Valentine's Day gala. However, here she was in an abandoned warehouse after some thug decided to kidnap the wealthiest woman in Shizuoka and hold her for ransom for what he assumed was to be an easy payday. 

Reika knew she could've easily beaten this man. For fucks sake she had been one of the more dangerous fighters in an illegal fighting ring. However, the man made the decision to kidnap her in front of a crowd and no matter how much she wanted to crush the man Reika knew she had a reputation to uphold as a gentle socialite. So she had teared up and begged the man not to do this. Reika could only huff as he forced her into the back of his car driving both of them to an old warehouse.

“He didn't even bother tying me up. Does he really think I am that harmless? Well at the very least Kanon and Sakura would’ve heard the news by now.” Reika thought knowing that Kanon and Sakura would tear up the city to look for her. “Although they could hurry it up.” 

Brought back by the voice of the man, Reika narrowed her eyes as she noticed the man began to speak. Reika didn't particularly care what he was saying mostly drowning out what he was saying. Up until the man made a comment about Reika learning a thing or two from her whore of a mama.

"Come. Again." Reika's voice is calm and calculating. "I believe I heard you wrong." It isn't a question. It's a mercy. It's grace. She is offering the man a chance to save himself.

The man instead laughs. He twirls the gun in his hands and presses the barrel into Reika's temple.

"C'mon, now," he said as if they are friends. His free hand comes up to dig into Reika's hair. "Surely your mama taught you a trick or two?"

Reika's face retains its resting bitch appearance, even as her black-painted nails jump up to dig into the man's right eye socket. He immediately jumps back, the gun dropping as he races to cover his eye. He falls to his knees in his shock. Something bloody and almost round drops from Reika's hand. She turns, deadly, to face the cowering man.

"I know," Reika starts, her voice thick with rage, "that you did not insult my mother."

She takes a step forward, her heels clicking against the floor of the warehouse. The man does nothing to stop her, scared of the woman in a white dress now joined by bright red.

"Do you know what I do to people who insult my mother?" Reika asks conversationally, inching closer faster than the man can move away in his shock. "Yoko Miyano. She said my mother deserved what she got for being a good-for-nothing whore." It was Reika's turn to laugh, loud and haunting and filling up the whole warehouse.

"Miyano was a prominent member of high society."  Reika kicks the man. He grunts and goes down. "Now? She little more than a rotting corpse in the ground."  She stomps down on him, her heel going through his thigh. Reika smiled as she heard the man wail in pain. When she lifts her foot, the heel is dripping with his blood. 

"You see people bad mouthing my mother is the quickest way to end up on my bad side." She walks stopping only when she stands next to the man’s head keeping her incensed gaze on his bleeding body. "I let you in on a little secret. My bad side? Very few people live long after they get on it. And you, right now? Have risen your way to the very top.” Reika raises her leg and the last thing that the man ever sees before she stomps down is the red sole of Reika’s heel. 

When they had finally made it to Reika neither Kanon nor Sakura had expected her to be standing in the middle of a warehouse lighting a cigarette with the impaled skull of her kidnapper at her feet. 

“Today's been a lousy fucking day,” Reika snaps, quickly taking a hit of her cigarette. No one would blame her after the day she’s had, except that her entire right leg is coated in blood and brains and bits of the skull that she just stomped the shit out of with her high heel. The skull of the man that decided to kidnap her. 

“I was unaware that they made heels that strong.” Kanon thought raising an eyebrow at the scene. 

“This is going to be a pain to get the Shizuoka Police Department to ignore.” Sakura thought already feeling a headache.

It was an accident," Reika intones flatly, "Self-defense. I was frightened." She kept glaring at Kanon and Sakura, eyes narrowed into slits.

“Of course.”

“That’s a fucking lie but sure let's go with that.”

“Good,” Reika advised. “Now then let's go. I need a new outfit not covered in blood and  a shot of vodka.” Letting her cigarette fall to the floor Reika gave the corpse one last glare before turning and walking away leaving a trail of red behind her. The thought of a strong drink made her much better.

[datastate]

for the ask game - 3, 26, 27 :]

3 : which of the characters has your favorite design?

MAPLE!!! hands down. i love her very much. she was the first one who i actually saw in-game and my thought was 'cute...' - but! kanna is a close-second under that lens. i suppose my only issue w her design is how much more green there is, w little complementary color? :0 i really do enjoy designs that add in a bit more pink for her!! it adds enough variety to the palette to help her stand out. though i must admit, i'd still be biased toward maple because i really like dark reds/purples/blues contrasted with white :D

however, as for what it means for the characters, i also really do enjoy kai's! both his & reko's designs were what immediately drew me to them; i was immediately fascinated by how - despite being among colorful characters - their designs were primarily dark/with occasional red. i think for kai in particular, it does a nice job of showing how. simply he tends to 'live' & what he also asks others to focus upon: the gift the chidouins gave him. for as long as he lives, he has this to show for the chidouins' kindness of allowing him a life. everything else is meant to easily blend into darkness, &. it's difficult to describe, but i really enjoy fanart where this is. emphasized?! in the sense that the apron is what draws someone's eyes to it, but when you look just behind that, you can easily tell how. restrictive the uniform is by contrast. it's really cool to me.

26 : which YTTS pov are you most excited for and whose fondness event do you want to see with them?

i'm really excited for reko's!!! specifically - i really look forward to seeing her event with sara :'D (& alice of course, but. gestures. i'm very afraid. although there's very little you can do 'wrong' with that one as opposed to the other two povs' favored persons...)

i just. am truly fond of how reko tried to support sara before the room of lies switch happened; and afterward, how reko tried doing her best to also uphold the strength she saw sara strive for. it's less pronounced because we play as sara, but. i still appreciate the times that other adults, such as reko & q-taro & kai (which are other fondness events i'm really looking forward to), try to acknowledge/praise sara for her strength while also trying to reminder her that people will be here when she falls. they're so close to taking the responsibility from her, but for one reason or another, just... cannot. and don't wish to dismiss sara's ability (which is an insecurity sara does have, being one who must uphold responsibilities expected of her). q-taro steps up where he can, usually requesting keiji's help, and genuinely tried to comfort sara throughout ch2-1 - a lot of his attempts to help sara and make things right after shin's injustice was off-camera. and reko unfortunately wasn't given much time to really help out, what with the lingering disorientation from being captured. & of course, kai is. well. as soon as he no longer had that facade to keep up, he was dead as hell. SAD!

but i digress!!! i really enjoy reko's humor & easy-going personality, and i would love to see more of her dynamic with sara in a more casual setting; i think she'd do really well at encouraging sara and helping her come to terms with the fact that... even if her future isn't as 'set' as sara expects it to be, that's not anything necessarily bad. in a similar sense to kazumi, reko's also gone through a lot that she never expected she'd have to endure, but has come out a better person by the end of it. maybe kazumi's tale is more apt considering it had to deal with academic/future plans; but it's also very important for sara to remember that she does have the chance to really dig into hobbies and find joy in it... that, in a sense, it's important to have these things on the side that you enjoy and keep them out of a professional setting too. it'd be great to have work you love, of course! but reko had to fight to actually return to what she first loved about music at all, had to learn all over again what it meant to her, because of the expectations in the professional field. sara should have a hobby where she can let loose, people she can relax and be herself around, without having to keep those expectations... constantly using your show persona just makes it harder to connect with people. even if it's easier, it's worse for you in the long-run because... no one would get the chance to know you, what you love.

i just think it'd be really sweet for reko to show that balance of entertainment & professional future that sara wants. sara already has those sorts of reminders with jou, but it's still. very important to see it from someone who's gone through it and now knows what she's doing! jou's more someone who 'goes with the flow' and generally attends clubs to prepare for... well, anything. he wants to be a jack of all trades, in case anything he pursues falls through. it's very unstable and scary to live like that, even if he puts on his usual carefree front - cherishing the moment to moment. sara's mind doesn't often. work like that. and if she were to have more serious conversations about her future, i'm sure this would be very important to her and also bring her comfort for jou's future, too...

(& i know it's unrealistic, but... i'd really enjoy a q-taro and anzu fondness event. i'm writing one myself because i don't expect we'll ever be able to have those personal interactions with the dolls, or at least... not one that handles anzu's character well (considering the ministory forgot her introduction), but i do like thinking abt them as well :D)

(&& unrelated to the question but i'm SO sad we're not getting any further kai & mishima content. that's it. withering and dithering eternally now... it's okay i'll make more events in my brain.)

27 : whose miniepi do you want to see next?

nankidai please give me more kazumi lore please please please i've never asked before. how and why does he own an atelier. please tell me specifically what direction he was overly-ambitious in, and his crash fall and burning reaction to his own overestimation. i can already assume most of this but i honestly just want to see more of him i've NEVER asked before. pretty please.

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

ELEMENTAL Projections

So apparently ELEMENTAL is on track to flop-a-doo this coming June, huh?

Recent projections made by Box Office Pro have it opening at $28m minimum, $38m maximum. They note that the picture has the chance to have those usual Pixar summer legs and break the 2020s Disney theatrical animation bad streak at the box office, and make it to around $155m domestic, which would be a fantastic total for a post-outbreak original animated movie. COCO, back in early 2018, finished up with around $209m domestically. $200m is usually an easy threshold for Pixar. Only one picture in the 21st century that wasn't a sequel missed it, that was THE GOOD DINOSAUR, which still made over $120m domestically. ONWARD I do not count, because that was cut off one week in by the pandemic.

Box Office Pro has a history of lowballing animated movies on their opening weekends, though. They also had THE SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE pegged for a roughly $65-90m opening, when the thing cruised well past $140m+ for the three-day alone... I knew it would top $100m easily, and I'm no box office pro... I've only made predictions for fun for about a decade, many of which concerning animated movies, haha.

They also weirdly note that the picture, being a romantic comedy, will have a hard time appealing to young boys... Okay, are young boys the ones with the money buying tickets? You know, Walt Disney had once said in an interview with the BBC in 1959:

"Well, no, you have to appeal to the adult, or... Well, the adults have money, the children don't have any money."

Interestingly, Walt had kind of cracked it when it came to making movies by that point in time. As he saw it, anyways. He had theorized that appealing to "mom" was the way to go, the target to hit. Because mom takes dad and the kids, the whole family, to check out the movie... And mom tells her friends... So on, so forth... Maybe it's not young boys that Disney should be appealing to. Remember when they tried very hard to appeal to that demographic in the late 2000s? Making major changes in animation because of that? Nearly jettisoning fairy tale stories for good and messing with movie titles for fear of boys finding them to be too girly? (I still dislike "TANGLED" as a title, to be completely honest.) I guess the romances of classic Disney animated movies were a hard sell, huh? Because boys under the age of 13 might not like them?

I'm not trying to knock the good people at BOP, by the way. I frequently enjoy their podcast and analyses, but sometimes I think they can be a little off with animated movie, and because there's a lot of internet dogpiling on this one Pixar picture that no one except the film crew has even *seen* yet... I just wanted to weigh in.

As BOP noted, and many others have noted as well, ELEMENTAL has a big uphill battle to face in the form of the Disney+ problem. We all know what that is... A lot of people, especially those who are tight on money and have to narrow their moviegoing choices every calendar year, might've been conditioned to just wait for these family movies to come to Disney+. No need to spend $100 at the multiplex on tickets, snacks, and of course take a gamble on whether the experience in a theater will be good or not... It's right there, at home, in a few months, and we got all the snacks without having to spend a mortgage on!

I've stated on here many times before that I work at a movie theater, and a major chain movie theater at that. A Cinemark. Been there for almost 8 years, and I feel I get the first-hand idea of what audiences want to see as opposed to very-online "experts" on twitter and elsewhere.

And it seems like people are digging ELEMENTAL. "Ah cool, a water and fire people movie! Looks cute!" Most of my co-workers think it looks like it's worth watching. I've seen some customers walk up to the posters and say "Is this INSIDE OUT 2?" "Hah, looks like Sharkboy and Lava Girl."

A lot of people online are writing ELEMENTAL off as generic-looking, but that might be... In a weird sense, its secret weapon.

Familiarity sometimes works for movies, and sometimes it doesn't. LIGHTYEAR, I'd argue, had trouble having some kind of longevity at the box office because of how much it deviated from what people associate with TOY STORY and the titular character. Of course, if you're me, and you knew full well what that movie was going to be (read: an actual sci-fi space adventure where Buzz is actually a space ranger, not a toy), that wasn't much of an issue. Some just genuinely didn't like the execution of it. It rung more INTERSTELLAR and '70s sci-fi movies than anything, Buzz was a little more serious here, he wasn't his toy counterpart at all nor was he the fun cartoon hero in the 2000s TV series BUZZ LIGHTYEAR OF STAR COMMAND. I get that. I myself quite enjoyed the movie, but I can totally see it how it just wouldn't gel with most audiences.

TURNING RED, I feel, would've done okay at best at the box office, not because of its perceived quality (I loved the movie), but because of - again - most audiences being very careful with their money. I keep thinking it would've made around BAD GUYS/ENCANTO numbers, $90m domestic and around $200m worldwide. Not enough to cover the usual Pixar budget... Which is typically a gargantuan $150m+... I feel they, and Walt Disney Animation Studios for that matter, shouldn't spend so damn much on their movies... It puts an unnecessary strain on them, gives them a sometimes impossible task to achieve. It soooo ain't 2003 anymore, when any CG animated movie you dropped in front of an audience was 99.99% guaranteed to make a blockbuster amount of money...

ELEMENTAL also shares June with... ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, TRANSFORMERS LIVE-ACTION MOVIE #7, THE FLASH, RUBY GILLMAN *comma* TEENAGE KRAKEN, and INDIANA JONES 5... Wowee... And a good chunk of those movies weren't supposed to open in June 2023 in the first place, they all just ended up landing there. Pixar usually locks mid-June for a movie years in advance, and the movie could be anything, be it ELEMENTAL or TOY STORY 5. It just so happened to be ELEMENTAL... Maybe they should've moved it, just to be safe...

So, opening weekend could make or break it... But the legs will be the most important thing... And we don't know what those will be like... We have to know first and foremost, come opening day... Did audiences like it?

LIGHTYEAR got a not-so-hot A- CinemaScore, and had abysmal legs thereafter... STRANGE WORLD from WDAS was the rare family friendly animated movie release to score less than an A...

It's hard to gauge off of two animated sci-fi action movies, which have a history of... Not making blockbuster totals meant to cover ludicrously high budgets... Just ask TITAN A.E., ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE, and TREASURE PLANET. WALL-E was a sci-fi romance movie with cute robots, and that did very well. Also had that Pixar goodwill that was very strong back then. The name's not a guarantee anymore.

How do I think ELEMENTAL will do?

Animated movies that aren't sequels are usually kind of hard to track, and they seem like they'll do okay-ish at first... Until the week of release, the tracking shoots up... And word-of-mouth kicks in after opening day...

So, $28m for ELEMENTAL could very well be looking like $40m minimum within a week of its release... Opening at Cannes this coming week, if the picture is acclaimed, will look nice too. I don't see why it can't open below $40m, the only thing that could hurt it is just SPIDER-VERSE and LITTLE MERMAID being out, and families having to make tough choices. Adults w/o families will be the ones to get, if they're not as choosy. The romantic comedy angle might just make it a date movie.

Not the first time that happened... That's what Disney took total advantage of during the Disney Renaissance in the early '90s, pushing BEAUTY AND THE BEAST and ALADDIN as date movies for young adults... Oh, and it paid off nicely... A lot of people tend to overlook this, but... It's *adults* who make animated movies huge, too. Not just "kids dragging their parents" to the cinema. If that were the case, every kids' movie would be a FROZEN or MINIONS-sized blockbuster. No! Those movies make so much because a lot of adults like them, too, and there's stuff in them that appeals to adults. A novel concept, I know!

A movie like THE BAD GUYS didn't need to worry about that, being a much lower budget endeavor, ditto DC LEAGUE OF SUPER-PETS. Even Illumination's movies don't have to worry about that, either... But Disney Animation and Pixar? They gotta hook everybody if they want to make back the $150m+ they spend on each and every movie. LIGHTYEAR seemed to turn families away and had a hard time getting adults, STRANGE WORLD seemed to appeal to no one. ENCANTO dealt with Delta and Omicron, RAYA was still a bit too early to be a theatrical release. SOUL, LUCA, TURNING RED, all straight to Disney+ releases.

It's like each new Disney animated movie release is some kind of test... ELEMENTAL is next line, and WISH will follow... And do I think ELEMENTAL can get that adult appeal?

I think so. ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE already has it built in (projections are saying $85m minimum for the opening weekend, which sounds about right, could go even higher), but does anything else coming out in June other than INDIANA JONES have it? I think audiences are largely burnt out on the Autobots, THE FLASH comes on like some big NO WAY HOME-esque event for DC but I sense a real "who cares?" aura around it, plus superhero fatigue seems to have kicked in... That's about it? RUBY GILLMAN seems muted and quiet, it probably doesn't need to make a blockbuster gross... It's very possible ELEMENTAL is the most appealing June release to... Normal people.

Online, it looks like some crap generic Pixar movie... But normal people? Who aren't there for TRANSFORMERS 7 and a DC movie that happens to have Michael Keaton Batman in it? They might be digging it. For what it's worth, when I caught the trailer in theaters before GUARDIANS VOL. 3, I heard some of the adults in the crowd laugh at the funny bits.

It's kind of a wild card, but I have kind of a good feeling about this one. Maybe... Or, come late summer, I'll be eating crow on here. I'm sure Disney Co and Pixar don't want it to fail. Especially since the smarter of the two Bob CEOs came back, the very Bob who wants to focus much more on theatrical releases than sending massive-budget movies quickly to Disney+.

So, rough prediction. Around $40-45m on opening weekend, very solid legs, over 3.5x multiplier, $140m minimum domestically and double that overseas, $400m+ worldwide finish. We shall see...

[monstermaster13]

Don’t Be A Moron On The Internet.

Once there was a league of really horrible people known as the League of Idiots, these guys belonged to a website called Moron-Barn, a website ‘dedicated’ finding out lulcows and making them look like idiots when in actually they were the idiots, sometimes picking on people that didn’t deserve it in the slightest such as Mariana Hanks who they kept shaming and misgendering even though she had the right to use male pronouns because there was no rule that said she couldn’t use those pronouns.

The members consisted of PutridKid…an ex super-sidekick who was a grotesque subhumanoid with puke based powers, Baconator whose only power was turning into bacon that was extremely burned, Rock-Hard-Arby whose only abnormal trait was that he was cursed to have skin that constantly cracked like it was made of marble, and Skroat Sneeb…who had only had one power and that power was very much just being a walking sex joke. These guys very much hated Mariana for being different and picked on her for being interested in weird things, their biggest forum thread was nothing but old screencaps of her comments that they took out of context.

One night Mariana decided she had enough of being treated like well…you know, by them and decided she wanted to get revenge so she called on the powers of darkness, the darkness influenced her and turned her into a being that could punish them for their actions, she used her supposed real form to fool them, looking as gross and ugly as possible. After posting a screencap from last year, Skroat was about to find out just how wrong he was…’This post from a year ago is from a video that is a repost of a video that doesn’t exist any more but that doesn’t stop me from saying how I like that she admits to being crazy yet she gets offended at being mispronouned. Male is a sex.’

Skroat of course was ignorant and he didn’t think that it was right for a woman to use male pronouns, but because he had been taught to be a biggot by the others. ‘You’re a woman, yet you use male pronouns?’ ‘There is no law against that but there should be one against you.’ Mariana responded. ‘Well too bad, huh?’

That’s when he knew he screwed up, as Mariana’s eyes glowed a supernatural greenish glow and she transformed into her actual real form which was more attractive. ‘Gotcha. That short, dumpy hairy form of mine…yeah, that is a disguise to distract you from what i’m actually like.’ ‘So that ugly form is a disguise?’

She smirked as she looked over at him…’Since you like to misgender me and you think that digging up my past is cool, how would you like to see what it’s like to be female? Since you’re not going to do anything good with your current form how about I give you my ugly form?’ ‘What do you mean by that?’ before he had the chance to even react he heard a gurgling sound coming from his stomach which inflated and developed some hairs on it, as the hairs travelled up his arms which also broadened as his hands shrank in shape but also became a bit meatier as his fingernails lengthened.

The hairs also spread onto his legs which contorted into a more womanly pair as two round formations slowly blossomed on his chest which formed into bossoms that were at least more than two triple C cups, and he also gained some pimples on his back, as he gained some furo n his body as well.

He groaned as his rear plumped up, splitting his ratty jeans down in the middle and making them into shorts as his feet shrank and enlarged, he knew now that he messed up and he tried to take back his words, but now the words of ‘if she didn’t comment on it, she would have been forgotten very easily’ were echoing in his mind and making his mind react to this, now the male pronoun ‘he’ didn’t seem right to ‘her’. She groaned as her shoulders retracted in size and her neckline altered, her hair turning from its ratty auburn color to a dark brown and growing messier as she developed pimples on her face while her eyebrows thickened and her nose enlarged, her skin became softer and paler too.

She didn’t recognize herself anymore…as she found herself starting to think that she was Mariana and this was natural, ‘Skroat’ sounded like a name someone who was trying to be gross was using, ‘Mariana’ looked at herself for a bit as her features warped to look like the real Mariana’s ugly form. Her privates retracted but she didn’t need those anyway, sex was never an issue to her as her voice changed, and developed a British accent.

She looked a bit like a humanoid gorilla but she didn’t mind, she didn’t care for beauty, she was now Mariana and she was okay with that. Meanwhile the real Mariana turned to PutridKid who seemed to be hyperfixated on cows…’Oh you like cows, huh? Well then..how do you like this?’

Mariana clicked her fingers and as she did, PutridKid noticed that creme-ish fur was creeping up his arms which were bulking up, and then he felt a tingling sensation in his hands as his fingers hardened and fused together, resembling flexible hooves more than hands as his stomach enlarged, causing several of the buttons on his shirt to pop up and one of his jean buttons also popped off too as his legs enlarged.

“Am I turning into a cow?”

“Well actually not just any cow…a certain cartoon cow.”

He gulped as his privates retracted and he saw four nipples of sorts forming below his stomach which formed into teets, which formed into an udder which burst the front of his jeans open, exposing his new udder to everyone. His whole body slowly gained weight with each passing minute, making him heavier and heavier and making his clothing tighter and tighter, finally..with a rip his pants tore off, exposing his much rear and udder to everyone who was watching him and laughing.

But that wasn’t all through, he noticed his legs altering too as his socks ripped open to allow his feet to alter, becoming hooved feet to match his hands as a tail like that of a cow emerged from his rear. He panicked as two brown spots formed on his back. Two short yellow horns emerged out of the top of his head as his ears became bovine-like, his eyes widened as his face slowly pushed into a bovine muzzle…even though he was a cow, he could still talk and was intelligent, but his voice altered and changed…to sound like Charlie Addler doing a female voice, as he or rather ‘she’ at this point knew who she was becoming, she was becoming Cow from the Cartoon Network show Cow and Chicken.

PutridKid…or rather…just ‘Cow’ now cried out but she found it wasn’t so bad as she forgot all about being a part of Moron-Barn and just remembered being a lovable sister to ‘Chicken’ and a ‘fairy princess’. ‘I am sorry for what I did. I didn’t know.’ ‘It’s alright, you made a mistake and bet on the wrong side.’ Mariana turned towards Baconator, who seemed to be trying to demean her.

“Oh so you like trying to roast me, do you?”

“Uhhhh…I don’t know, yeah…I do.”

‘Well since you like roasting pigs so much, how about you actually become one?’ She concentrated her dark powers on him and she did, Baconator found himself bloating up as his skin turned a much pinker than normal tone, he looked at his chest and he reached out to touch it only to found two round formations slowly developing on them, blossoming out into what was commonly known as breasts.

He panicked as he looked at his hands which had softened, his whole body plumped up as his clothing contorted into a glamorous blue gown and a mink coat as his hips flared out, his back arched as his hips flared out and his feet slowly became two-toed trotters that could still fit in shoes, as his shoes became a pair of red sandals. He panicked even more as his privates retracted. But the panic began to subside when he heard the word ‘Piggy’ in his head, which made him think differently about this situation, or rather ‘Miss Piggy’ because he began to think he was this ‘Miss Piggy’ in question.

His neckline altered as his hair lengthened, turning from brown to blonde and growing down to his shoulders as his ears shifted to look like those of a pig, eyelashes blossomed around his eyes as eyeshadow was applied around them and his eyes in general turned blue, his nose enlarged and began to reshape itself…his face pushing into a cute sort of half porcine snout/muzzle as his voice feminized, inside his mind the name ‘Miss Piggy’ was echoing and now that’s when he realized, he wasn’t born a he…but a ‘she’, she was now Miss Piggy, then again she had always been Miss Piggy. Miss Piggy looked at the clothes in her ‘former self’s’ wardrobe and threw them out. ‘Ick, how passe and gouache. I can’t imagine anyone wearing these in public.’

When her transformation finished she felt much better and she apologized to Mariana..’That was terribly rude of me to judge you based on what you like. Please forgive moi.’ ‘No worries, I forgive you.’ Mariana hugged them and then used a spell to vanquish the forum thread all about her to the forum graveyard, where it was buried and then taken all the way up to forum thread heaven where it was allowed to rest in peace and move on.

“Thank you for understanding…”

‘And now there’s one more thing left…’ Mariana concentrated as she shifted in form once again, this time turning into Demi Moore and using a spell to erase her ugly form to make it so she never had that form. ‘This is much better. I hated that ugly form anyway, it was too short and I couldn’t show off how awesome I am in that form, too short and hairy for my liking. Now this is way sexier, this is my new natural form. But that doesn’t mean I cannot be male if I want to, oh no.’

And thus with that Mariana had finished what she had set out to do as the rest of the MoronBarn admins and members eventually found out what appeared to their ex-members and got transformed as well, rumor has it that some of them went into hiding afterwards after the site got found out and reported for being a den of harassment and everything-LGBTQIA-phobia, and another rumor has it that the head admin in charge of the site already had left this universe long before it started.

Like with all stories here comes a vital lesson, remember..if you ever try to dig up a dead forum thread by using screencaps that are of a post from a year ago and if you ever try to attack anyone for identifying as another gender or even another species, there will be hell to pay, anyone can use any pronoun, a man can use ‘she’ and a ‘woman’ can use he or even they, and there is no law that says that he or she can’t use pronouns that fit them.

[frogtanii]

iwaizumi was... overwhelmed, to say the least.

the past few days had been such a whirlwind of change that hajime could barely properly process, much less appropriately react to it all, so he behaved much like a zombie, saying yes when prompted, signing papers when told, and packing up what was his entire life for the past 11 months.

wow. iwaizumi collapsed on his bed as he scanned his now barren bedroom. he’d been here for almost a year and yet, all his belongings were in boxes within a couple of days.

hajime couldn’t keep the disbelieving chuckle from escaping his chest as he leaned back on his bed, dark brown eyes trained on the ceiling.

it felt like he’d spent such a large chunk of his life trapped in this house, under the foot of the woman who he thought he’d marry but in reality, he’d been in little leagues longer than he’d been in love.

iwaizumi scoffed and rolled his eyes. yeah, “in love”. it’d been about a week since his whole life started to unravel and he had hardly seen, let alone spoken to meiko throughout that entire time.

over text, she’d sworn up and down that she loved and cared about him but as she passed by him packing his things a few days ago, she’d barely spared him a second glance.

hajime wasn’t going to lie. it hurt. he’d opened his heart up to her, something he didn’t do easily, and she’d taken his trust and used it to twist him into her weapon.

he always believed he was stronger than this — he’d never forget his mother telling him so when he was younger. he had fallen and scraped his knee yet he refused to cry to keep from upsetting his mom. iwaizumi existed to live up to what his mother thought of him but here he was, completely enveloped in meiko’s shit, doing her dirty work and following her bidding like some mutt.

god, toorū was right. he really was her bitch.

“i could hear you thinking from down the hall, iwa-chan.” speak of the devil...

oikawa stood at his doorway, leaning against the frame with a posture that seemed relaxed at first glance but if you looked a little closer, you’d notice the tenseness in his shoulders and the tightness of his smile.

hajime quickly sat up on his bed before motioning for his old friend to enter. “uh, yeah,” he began, his voice cracking a little from disuse, “i have a lot to think about.”

the light haired brunette let out an understanding hum before wandering into the room, sharp observant eyes darting to look at all the empty walls. “looks like you’re all packed.”

“pretty much,” iwaizumi nodded before the room fell into an awkward silence, the two childhood friends completely avoiding one another’s eyes.

“look, i-“

“iwa-chan, i’m-“

they both paused for a moment before bursting into laughter, the sound carrying into the hall and throughout the house.

hajime wiped a few stray tears from his eyes, shaking his head at their awkwardness. “you first, shittykawa.”

toorū gasped in halfhearted mock offense before quickly sobering up, training iwaizumi with a completely serious look. “i’m sorry and before you go on some bullshit, self sacrificing rant, you’re not the only one to blame for what happened to our friendship.”

he sighed while making his way to iwaizumi’s bed, sitting down gently beside him. “i should’ve known better, okay? i shouldn’t have let my jealousy and insecurities get in between us but i guess i got swept up in the attention, yknow? meiko is actually charming when she wants to be.”

iwaizumi nodded in agreement, knowing all too well how compelling meiko could be. the room fell into a more comfortable silence as both boys escaped into their thoughts, questions about the future of their friendship flitting throughout their minds.

“oh!” oikawa was pulled out of his own head at hajime’s exclamation, his eyes moving to observe his friend dig through his pockets to procure a thick white envelope. “here. i’d like you to give this yn.”

all toorū could do was nod, his brain short circuiting at the sight of iwaizumi’s apparent kindness to the woman he tormented for so long. “uh, what’s in it?” he ventured to ask, his soft hands toying with the sealed envelope flap.

a soft chuckle came from across the bed. “don’t be so nosy toorū, just give it to her, yeah?” oikawa rolled his eyes but obliged, the bed creaking as he stood to his feet.

“so... this is it, huh?” it was like the reality of the situation was just now sinking in — they hadn’t been close in a while but iwaizumi was still his best friend and he wasn’t quite ready to let him go.

they’d been through so much together, practically growing up together and now, they’d only see each other on holidays, if even then, and then he’d never be invited to hajime’s wedding as his best man as they’d planned and he also wouldn’t be the coolest uncle/godfather of iwa’s children and—

“fuck no,” hajime scoffed with a bright grin on his face. “thought you were gonna annoy me til the end of time shittykawa. don’t tell me you’re quitting your job now.”

the hidden meaning behind iwaizumi’s words brought tears to oikawa’s eyes and before he could stop himself, he launched his body into iwa’s arms. hajime hesitated, his hands stuttering at toorū’s sides as though he’d forgotten how to hug but the feeling passed, his arms winding around his friend’s lithe waist.

“‘m gonna miss you hajime,” oikawa’s voice came out as a broken whimper, his arms tightening around his shoulders.

iwaizumi hummed instead of responding, too afraid of his voice cracking under the weight of his emotions. they stood there for a moment but the honk of the moving truck outside signaled the both of them of their limited time.

hurriedly, oikawa wiped the tears off his cheeks before waving awkwardly at iwaizumi as he left the room with a friendly, “don’t be a stranger.”

and then he was gone.

toorū finally allowed himself to collapse into sobs on his best friends empty bed, his palms pressing into his eyes as he sat there and just let himself feel.

apparently, he wasn’t crying very quietly because it took only a few moments for you to find him, your soft footsteps alerting him to your presence. oikawa scrambled to wipe away what he knew was an unattractive mixture of tears and snot as you got closer.

you were one of the last people he wanted to see him like this.

“hey,” you whispered, standing a few feet away from him. “um, i know this is probably a bad time but i just wanted to thank you for apologizing? back at the awards show?”

toorū sniffed as he looked up at you with confusion written on his face. “what? you shouldn’t thank me for apologizing. ‘s common courtesy.”

you laughed softly, nodding in agreement. “well, not always. so, thank you.” finished with your piece and not too keen on lingering where you weren’t wanted, you moved towards the door but were swiftly stopped before you got there.

“um, here. it’s from iwa-chan.” you gaped at the thick envelope oikawa was handing you before taking it and opening it, a low curse falling from your lips.

inside the package was a dense wad of cash, more money than you’d seen in months. accompanied with it was a letter, written in beautifully loopy handwriting.

you shut it quickly before oikawa could see, stuffing the envelope deep within your pocket where you could access it alone in the depths of your room.

“do you wanna come eat? last i heard, bokuto and tsumu were doing a cooking competition and i’m sure it’ll be fun to watch.” you were severely thrown off by the money and letter but you were determined to show toorū that you’d accepted his apology and were on your way to making amends.

he gave you a shy nod and trailed behind you to the kitchen, the loud sounds of fire and screaming coming from down the hall. you wanted to focus on the fun and merriment but the envelope was practically burning a hole in your pocket.

later that night, you finally got the chance to open the letter and read it, your former manager’s words bringing tears to your eyes.

dear yn,

i’m probably the last person you expected to hear from. you probably didn’t want to hear from me at all if i’m being honest and i don’t blame you. i know there is nothing i can say that could make up for what i’ve done to you but i’d like to try.

i’m sorry. those words don’t nearly express in and of themselves how truly remorseful i am but they needed to be said. there’s no excuse for how i treated you — not meiko, not my stress, absolutely nothing.

you deserved my common decency and respect and i didn’t give that to you. instead, i abused my position and made your life hell. i’ll never forgive myself for that.

uh, i bet you’re wondering what the money is? i promise i’m not trying to pay you off, it’s just all the money i’ve denied you since you moved here. i have a lot of wrongs to right and this is one of them.

sorry, i’m not very good with words but i just wanted you to know that i’m very sorry for everything that i’ve done. and i’m in no place to make demands or anything but i just wanted to ask if you’d keep an eye on oikawa for me.

he’s strong but he’s also vulnerable. he might be a pain in my ass but he’s my best friend and since i can’t keep him from drowning, i was wondering if you’d do that - not for me but for him.

anyways, this letter is shit but i suppose you get the gist. use the money for whatever you want and if you’re as unselfish as i’ve heard, you don’t owe me anything. you don’t owe me money, kindness, or forgiveness.

take care of yourself,

iwaizumi hajime

℗ poker face

so... this is it

series masterlist

(●’◡’●)ﾉ

an - soooo m back :D hopefully this is the last of my mini hiatuses!! this chapter sucked to write but i’m not mad at how it turned out?? pls let me know how i did skjdkd don’t forget to feed me <3333

taglist - if your name is in bold, i cannot tag you

@boosyboo9206 • @geektastic84 • @elianetsantana • @trashy-simp • @infinitebells • @6mattsun9 • @suhkusa • @katsulovee • @kotarosbabygirl • @fucktheworlddude • @insomniacwreck • @calumsfringe • @saltylettuce • @chai-blu • @al3x1ss • @hawksyoongi • @syndellwins • @jooleuuh • @loubells • @kissungjae • @liberhoe • @tetsurocore • @animeoverdosee • @duhsies • @saikishairclip • @afire24 • @premiyagi • @kit-kat428 • @doctorspencereid • @daphnxy • @kyomihann • @maer-333 • @sinoflust19 • @peteunderoos • @peachiikichu • @iidanotlida • @yongboxerrr • @kac-chowsballs • @tanakaslastbraincell • @memorableminds • @risjime • @starry-magicshop • @sugavwara • @smuttyanimeslut • @kiwibirbs-library • @haijkk • @airybnb • @crybabygumi • @iwaisa • @decaffinatedtealover • @notameera • @kawaii-angelanne • @rintarovibes • @urlocalsimp

the rest of the tags will be in the replies!!

[luminnara]

She Loves Me, She Loves My Knot | Pro Hero Alpha!Bakugou x Omega!Reader (nsfw, 18+)

hii!! i don’t see many people who write ABO for MHA so I’m glad i found you!!

Can we have a scenario where Bakugou’s omega is generally really tough and seems rather indifferent to everything — however she’s a little afraid of taking Katsuki’s knot for the first time and he tries his best to help her through that process? Sorry if it’s a little obscure but I love the idea of Bakugou being soft and caring but only for his spicy little omega.

Fem reader if you can but if you’d rather opt for gender neutral that’s fine too!! Please keep writing ABO, i love all your things! 🥺🤍

Um hi YES, I really love ABO stuff and I also wanted to see more, so I was like...welp, I guess it’s my time to rise and write my OWN haha! I went with a fem reader for this one, because I feel like that’s what I’m best at writing. If you want a gender neutral version too, let me know and I can post an alternate one!

send in a request here!

Warnings: nsfw, knotting, creampies, some breeding kink

Word count: 2,124

You were a spitfire, and that’s what he loved about you the most. His spicy, fiery little omega, who was better than every other omega to ever walk the earth. From the moment he met you, when he had nearly trampled you in the street in pursuit of an asshole villain and you had threatened to kick in the teeth of the number 4 pro hero, he knew you were something special. Nobody ever stood up to him like that, especially not when he was out on the job, but you? A little omega who smelled so sweet and looked so delicious? You weren’t afraid of him at all. 

He wasn’t embarrassed to admit that he had scented you immediately, his inner alpha getting possessive already. Bakugou didn’t smell any other alphas on you, and he didn’t want to. With his strong, terrifying scent clinging to you, he knew nobody else would try to make any moves, and as you stood there glaring at him, he had given you a smirk, told you to “call my agency sometime, babe,” and then taken off.

Of course, you didn’t call his agency. 

You showed up in person, marching right in and demanding to see him that very evening. Though at first you had seemed angry with him, you quickly told him (with a harsh glare and a snarl that he found absolutely adorable) that he was going to court you, and it was going to start now.

And who was he to deny such a straightforward, cute omega? The two of you were together by the end of the week. 

He almost found it hard to believe that you were an omega sometimes. You were so tough, so unbothered by the world. Whenever you were out and about and you caught an alpha leering at you, you were always quicker than Katsuki when it came to snapping at them to fuck off.

You weren’t the kind of omega who let anybody shove you around, and Bakugou loved that about you. It made him puff his chest up with pride, knowing that he had someone who wouldn’t take any shit. Your scent was strong and your will was even stronger, and he knew that when the time came, you would be the perfect, toughest, best mother to his pups.

You weren’t even mated yet, and he was absolutely sure that you were the one he wanted to spend his life with. You brought out something different in him, some kind of gentle, caring side that he never, ever let anyone else see. You were big and bad, yeah, but he was bigger and badder, and he was always going to protect you, no matter what.

“Babe, I’m home,” he called one night, trudging into your shared apartment. You had moved in together quickly, getting a place in one of the nicest parts of the city.

He heard you coming before he saw you, and before he even had his boots off, you were launching yourself at him. He caught you easily, grinning at the way you peppered his neck and jaw in kisses. It was probably the cutest, least tough thing you ever did, and god, did he love it.

“Miss me or Somethin’?” He teased, kicking his shoes off and carrying you to the bedroom.

“I had the day off and it was boring as shit,” you said bluntly. “I’ve been horny all day without you around to help...”

He paused, taking a whiff. “You’re not in heat. You just like me that much, omega?”

“Don’t be a dick.” You nipped at his jaw sharply and he recoiled.

Some alphas would never let their omega treat them like that, but Bakugou? Oh, he loved it.

He grinned, tossing you down onto the bed before you had a chance to take a chunk out of his face. “So needy...bet you spent all day touchin’ yourself, thinkin’ of me...”

“No I did not,” you huffed indignantly, looking up at him. “You think too highly of yourself.”

He laughed. Your arousal was hanging heavy in the air, betraying your words. The smell of it was like a drug, and as he inhaled, you could see Bakugou’s pupils dilate.

The sight turned you on even more, warmth pooling between your legs as your cheeks flushed. Scarlet eyes, calculating and predatory, pinned you down, holding you in place as your boyfriend grinned, exposing his big alpha fangs.

Fuck, he was hot.

“Sounds like you need to be reminded why I’m your alpha, baby.” He growled, crawling over you.

"Fuck, Katsuki,” you whined as he attacked your neck, biting at your scent glands and grinning at the way you squirmed.

He sucked your skin between his teeth, working at it, determined to leave covered in hickeys for the world to see. You didn’t have a mating mark yet, but oh, did he love making sure that everybody knew exactly whose omega you were.

You bit your lip at the dull pain, back arching up off the bed slightly. “K-Katsuki...”

“Hmm?” He looked up at you. “Look at you, so pretty and flustered for me already...what a good little omega...”

He knew exactly how to tease you. You spent all day sassing Katsuki, showing him how independent you were, but deep down, he knew you needed him just as much as he needed you. In the bedroom, he could make you absolutely melt with only a few words, and it was one of his favorite things to do.

“I can smell how much you want me,” he purred. “So desperate, so needy...”

His fingers slipped up under your shirt, pushing your clothing out of the way as his hands found your tits. He gave them a generous squeeze, grinning when you let out a loud gasp. He could play you like a fiddle, and he reveled in the sweet noises you made for him.

Your hands reached for him, tugging at his pants. He took the hint and stepped back, giving you a heated look that said “clothes off. Now.”

A few moments later, you were both naked, a tangled mess of sweaty limbs. Katsuki’s arms were wrapped around you, holding you close, your nails digging into his back. If he noticed the pain, he didn’t act like it, always allowing you to practically shred him to bits while he pounded into you. Secretly, he loved the marks you left, admiring his back in the mirror whenever he thought you weren’t watching.

You felt the head of his cock nudging at your pussy and moaned eagerly, burying your face in his neck.

“What do you want, baby?” He asked.

“Come on,” you whined.

“Tell me what you want,” he grinned, holding himself still.

“Katsuki!” You bucked your hips, trying to get closer to him.

He held you down. “Use your words.”

You dug your heels into his lower back in an effort to push him in, but he was too strong, resisting your attempts with a smug look on his face.

“I want your cock!” You finally relented, letting out a needy whine that you hoped would sway him.

“Good girl,” he growled, rolling his hips forward.

You shuddered at the feeling of him entering you. No matter how many times he fucked you, you would never be able to get over how big he was. It was part of the reason you hadn’t taken his knot yet, always asking him to pull out before it could swell. As he bottomed out inside of you, you were reminded of just how thick his cock was, and how much thicker that knot had to be.

As tantalizing as it was, it was also terrifying.

“Fuck,” he grunted, holding himself above you with a hand on either side of your head. “God damn, you feel so good...I’m not gonna last long at this rate, fuck...”

You were like putty in his hands when he talked like that. His voice was already so deep and rough, but his sex voice was godlike. You whimpered beneath him, tightening your legs around his waist as he pounded into you, clinging to him for dear life as his thrusts grew harder and harder.

“Katsuki,” you gasped, voice muffled by his neck.

“You like that?” He growled, slamming into you hard enough to scoot you up the bed slightly.

“Yes,” you moaned. “Yes, yes, please...more...”

He moved his head, tongue swiping up the side of your neck before he took your lips in a kiss. You whined and moaned into it, your skin heating up as you felt yourself unraveling, and when you finally did, you were seeing stars. He barely even had to try, and Bakugou gave you the best orgasms of your life.

Your walls squeezed around him as he rode it out, trying to milk his cock. It was good, it was delicious, it was too much for him to stand.

“L-let me knot you,” he moaned low in your ear.

You were coming down from your high, head feeling fuzzy. “Hm?”

“I wanna knot you,” he repeated, more impatient this time. “Please.”

You were beginning to snap back to attention again. “Katsuki...”

“What’s wrong?” He panted, trying to taunt you like usual. “You scared or somethin’?”

When you bit your lip, he slowed his pace, looking at you seriously.

“Really?” He asked.

You nodded hesitantly, cheeks burning with embarrassment.

“You’re afraid of my knot? ...why?”

“You’re just...really big...” you mumbled, looking away to avoid his eyes. “It’ll hurt...”

“Hey,” he said gently, rocking his hips against yours slowly now. “Look at me, babe.”

He took your chin in his hand, turning your head.

“I’m your alpha.” He said roughly. “And I’m gonna take care of you.”

The look in his eyes made your heart flutter. “But...”

“I wanna knot you.” He said again, dipping down to nip at your earlobe. “I wanna fill you up...”

A shiver flew up your spine, that familiar tingle returning to your groin. Fuck, just his voice could make you cum, practically...and honestly, you were aching for him to knot you. You wanted to feel full, to be as close to him as possible.

“Be gentle?” You asked.

“Of course, baby.” He kissed your jaw, his hand slipping down to hold the side of your neck as he quickened his pace again. After only a few moments, he growled, leaning back and pulling out, leaving you feeling painfully empty. “Roll over.”

You obeyed, turning onto your stomach. When you moved too slowly, Katsuki pulled you up by your hips until you were on your hands and knees, ass presented for him.

“Gorgeous,” he growled appreciatively, guiding his cock back into you and moaning when he sank in even deeper.

You moaned loudly, burying your face in the pillows as he began pounding into you again. Your thighs were already quivering, and when you felt his fingers rubbing at your clit, you immediately lost it.

“Fuck!” You cried out, clawing at the bed. “More, please, Katsuki—“

“Fuck, I’m gonna cum,” he moaned, teeth sinking into your shoulder as he pushed into you hard.

You felt his hips stutter before he held you against him in his vice grip, breaths ragged in your ear as he let out the loudest, most delicious, breathy moan you had ever heard. He pumped his seed into you, giving a few sharp thrusts as he emptied himself.

Then, you felt it.

“Easy, baby,” he said lazily, leaning against you as he tried to catch his breath.

His knot was swelling, stretching your pussy in a way you had never felt. You whimpered nervously, swallowing hard as you tried not to freak out. You were waiting for pain, but while it was beginning to feel impossibly tight, it...wasn’t terrible.

“That’s it,” your alpha crooned, smoothing a hand up your spine. “Fuck, you even take my knot so well...”

You started to relax as you calmed down, your body allowing his knot to grow to its full size. It was big, huge, even, but as Katsuki guided you to lay down on your side with him, you were beginning to feel smug. Yeah, you had the best alpha, and he had the best, biggest knot.

“How’s it feel?” He asked, pressing a kiss to your neck.

“Mm. Not bad.” You replied. The post sex haze was beginning to set in, and you were growing tired.

“Good girl.” He nuzzled against your scent glands, inhaling deeply. “Knew you could take it no problem.”

“I wasn’t even really worried.” You lied, trying to sound tough.

He snorted a laugh. “Yeah, right.”

You snuggled back against him. “I like it.”

“Yeah? Good. Because I am never going to stop knotting you now.”