#heck that's probably why he doesn't go out of his way to be an active part of the twins' Lives bc he knows they're Wanda's kids ultimately

[theminecraftbee]

The problem is, Bdubs can't stop thinking about it, and it's starting to drive him a little insane. "It", here, being the expression of terror on Joe's face, entirely caused by Bdubs, before he realized what was actually going on, and by unable to stop thinking about it, Bdubs means it's haunting him, but not even the scared kind of haunting. The haunting of--

Alright. Back up. So. Normal enough to be a little into the mild suffering of your fellow hermit. That's half the point of Decked Out. Some temporary murder, some ribbing, heck, there's even footage sometimes! And it's not as though, Bdubs thinks, that too many people think weirdly of Tango for watching. For making the game. Really, there's nothing wrong with it!

Nothing wrong with imagining, hey, what if Joe had actually been right to be frightened, and hey, wouldn't it have been nice if he'd actually had the heavy hooves and powerful jaw of the beast he was pretending to be, and could just--

Right. Anyway, Joe got a refund, and Bdubs, he was like, super helpful. The most helpful. A ravager lackey! Joe did die in the end, but it was to vex while Bdubs wasn't even looking! Wasn't his fault. The emotion Bdubs feels about that totally isn't disappointment, because that would be weird. That'd be...

Oh, who's he kidding here, huh? He wishes he'd actually been one of the ravagers. Why else would he be unable to stop thinking about it?

And now he's sitting outside of Decked Out, squinting at the thing. Distantly, he can hear the sound of the dungeon, active. Tango's probably somewhere in there, playing with wires and cackling at whoever running's misfortune, the lucky bastard. And there's--whichever stupid ravagers are in there right now. And they're stupid! Way too stupid to be real threats. Someone smarter, now that could take out Etho! Hah, imagine that! If Bdubs got to take down Etho, or Hypno, or...

Or...

"That stupid prank went messing with my head," mutters Bdubs. "Being a ravager is a stupid idea. This is stupid. I'm going to yell at Tango, for being stupid."

He shudders, for some reason, as he passes over the threshold of the dungeon. Something settles over him.

It won't leave his head.

It won't leave his head.

What if?

He still has the hat. If he uses the back way Tango showed him, it's not like anyone would know, right?

"And those are stupid ideas and how I get possessed," mutters Bdubs, but he doesn't move, and he doesn't stop thinking about it until Gem comes to mock him about being too scared to go in, and he has performative bravery to distract him instead.

(What if? What if? What if?)

[tantei-chan01]

I am very curious about the bounty hunters and their reactions to Branch. Like, aside from Hickory, they feel like a group of underappreciated side characters who should probably get more attention. Especially the KPop and Reggaeton trolls. What was even their deal in World Tour, anyways!? The competition was to catch Poppy. If they brought her and the Pop String to Barb, she'd spare their music and give them a small portion of territory.

So why the heck did they go after Branch!? You can even tell they knew he wasn't Poppy and that he wasn't with Poppy as well since one of the KPops (I think it was Bun Bun) actively name dropped him right before they grabbed him and grabbed him away. You can probably infer they thought if they captured Poppy's beastie he'd be able to lure Poppy out or they could get her location... except not five minutes before he was singing a sad love song about how he had to let Poppy go and how it's best for both of them if they weren't friends anymore even thought he loves her more than anything... while walking in the opposite direction. If they really wanted to find her all they needed to do was follow the direction he had come from.

And that doesn't explain the Reggaeton Trio. Why did they just show up wanting Branch!? They knew he wasn't the target. They knew there'd be no benefit to bringing him to Barb. Why try to get him??

And during the dance off why did both parties actively force Branch to dance with them!? They actively untied him and mad ehim play along, even showing Tresillo being outraged and angry when he saw Branch dancing with the KPops.

I have a lot of questions about that scene that only get more interesting when I consider mute Branch.

While Poppy might not be the greatest listener, she is a caring queen, so they'd probably use Branch as a bargaining chip.

They saw Branch a bigger threat and to gauge this, the reggaeton trolls and K-pop gang did the dance battle. They can test his reflexes, memory, and foresight this way. With how fast he picked up the very different dances, it was obvious that he's a troll to watch out for.

[bibibbon]

Miriko shift from "this dude" to "this thing" brings so many terrible implications. At best, she thinks Tomura is becoming a Nomu.

Speaking about Nomu, having their intelligence evolve was mistake since making them more human makes the heroes seem more murderous.

Like, the USJ Nomu had no intelligence or desires outside following orders, yet he was allowed live. However, Hood actively showed intelligence and desires, yet he was killed.

There also the fact Endeavor did the All Might pose after performing worse on either accountings of saving or winning.

I disagree having the nomu's overall intelligence evolve isnt a mistake. Instead it actually plays with the heroes heads and mortality. Will they still be able to kill something that doesn't look human but very much acts human? Is there really a difference between nomu's and humans? Heck you can even bring in the arguement of mutant discrimination and nomu's!!

I for one believe that the nomu's were severely underused in many ways. What does the public think of Nomu's? How were the people who had their family members turned into nomu feel? (This is explored a bit in fics but not really in canon) @thr0wnawayy has a post on the wasted potential of nomu's.

How about how Nomu's are made? How they're used? Or is them evolving to have more intelligence makes them more human? In a society where being human doesn't have a specific look is intelligence the thing that makes people human? Or is it another criteria?

With miriko it's interesting to see her physical switch go from "this dude" to "this thing" because it could very much show that maybe this is how hero society teaches and produces heroes. Heroes are supposed to do easy take downs relying on violence instead of ethically and properly working out a situation. The heroes whole win to save issue and their instinct to fight first talk later is exactly why the first war arc was so catastrophic and why there are so many deaths. Also miriko's attitudes show one way heroes may think of their opponents as non human effectively dehumanising them so they don't feel bad for inflicting harm on them and subconsciously convincing themselves that this is all for the greater good. "I mean killing a puppet who can't think for themselves or express pain is easier than killing a human someone who is the same as you right?" That's probably the thought process of many heroes and we see it with both miriko and hawks explicitly.

However, the whole dehumanisation of villains and enemies can also apply to other characters like Enji and maybe even ochako in the first war arc when it comes to her conversation with toga.

Enji cannonically has tried to kill koichi (a vigilante) in the manga and has expressed quite the aggressive behaviour towards villains and even objects so he really isn't a good person or hero either.

Nomu's and their increasing intelligence for example kurogiri says a lot and brings a lot of moral dilemmas which would be interesting to see how the series could of dealt with them and how it may even reveal some innate corruptness within hero society.

The hitting of the all might pose is something that three characters have all done aka enji, Izuku and shigaraki have all hit the all might pose yet in all of those scenarios it's had different meanings. Even with that the one meaning that they all share with that pose is one of victory (they all struck the pose after their supposed victories) but it all has a different meaning for example with enji his pose was supposed to show that he can live up to the title and that he can try and keep peace within society. The pose also showed the classic upholding of the status quo and hero societies original corrupted ideologies and ideals that enji will go ahead and uphold.

[cramathonn]

Thoughts on Jane and Seth as a couple? And fun headcanons about them if you have any?

Ohoho, heck YEAAAH

I love Jane x Seth, they're so cute

Teasing dom woman and dense af submissive and pure man who she can ABSOLUTELY suplex (he'd let her but not without a fight, would so consider it training)

But like, I had a thought before this one and it was just

"Tom and Jerry but make them humans and Jerry is trans and a dominatrix" – My brain about Jane x Seth

And headcanons about them? Hmm, I think Jane would have a hard time spending time with Seth due to her missions and all, but she would try to make time, absolutely.

Seth would SOOO try to get her to come to his family time weekends. I mean, that's his gf, she's family now so like, family weekends with parents AND hot gf? Sign him up!!!

Seth is also the shyest boyo in the planet. Don't het me wrong, he IS dense as fuck, but once he gets the hint? Oh, he's blushing, oh he's hiding behind his tail and turning around to Jane cannot see his face (she loves seeing him all flushed and shy, that's her recharger, your honor)

I also can see them having sparring dates and training dates. Seth is a very hardworking individual and constantly tries to improve his physical capabilities. Considering that Jane EASILY bested him in their first encounter, he'd obviously want to constantly spar with her like, PLEAAAASE TEACH HIM HOW TO BE NIMBLE ON HIS FEET HE IS BEGGING

NSFW headcanons ahead! So if you're a Minor, please stop here!

Jane if VERY naughty. Like, have you SEEN her trailers??? That woman is the incarnation of Aphrodite AND Dionysus combines (aka she's the incarnation of SEX). So like, she will absolutely go down on Seth. Also, T4T Jane x Seth anyone?

But like, since so many ppl see Jane and Seth as Tom and Jerry, may I offer you transfem Jane, the queen of tucking? Like, Seth had NOOO idea she was trans and when he found out he just found her like, 10x hotter.

Like, imagine your girlfriend, who you know is strong af and sooo fucking cunning, finally tells you she is trans and you just "Omfg my girlfrend is so fucking strong and determined and beautiful and she has such a huge di-"

Seth is a virgin, I'm sorry but that SHOULD be common knowledge between all in the fandom. Like, bro has NO game due to how dense and blunt he is. While Jane has THE game, like, even Belle said she had rizz for fuck's sake! That woman is bisexual hazard in a way that she CAUSES the hazard and is, most possibly, a lot of people's bi awakenings (I just know some poor straight woman is looking at her going like "Wtf, why is she so pretty holy shit I wanna date her" and having to stop and rethink their entire history with sexual and/or romantic attraction)

Either way, Seth is prideful but not in an arrogant way, so I'm having a hard time deciding if he would vehemently deny that he's a virgin or if he would just... Say it. NO WAIT, BETTER OUTCOME. Jane is making out with him and he's so nervous and he has a boner (or his pussy is wet, live your headcanons to the fullest!) and Jane teases him about it and he's so so anxious and nervous and shy and gosh she catches on that it's his first time so quickly and she asks him about it and I can just SEE his ears pressing against his head in shame and him slowly nodding without making eye contact....

Soft first time. Jane is SO caring with him for his first time. Ngl, they probably continue to go soft for the first couple of times before Seth is comfortable with experiencing... But I feel like he would be very vanilla even after experimenting (is also very traditional with the "sex is supposed to be romantic" thought and that almost fucks up his first time until Jane calmed him down through it and just... Told him it doesn't need to be romantic and it can just be a fun and enjoyable activity)

Either way, Jane is kinky af, she was a dominatrix once and you CANNOT take that away from me. She revels when Seth lets her go rough on him and she's like, the queen of aftercare, change my mind

Very healthy couple who respects each other's boundaries. She knows she has to be blunt and very literal with Seth so that he can get things and he kinda appreciates it, since it's not always that people understand his problem with getting social clues or context hints. He hated it at the beginning, thinking Jane was babying him, but he quickly understood that he wouldn't be able to understand her boundaries as well of she didn't do that, so he talked to her that day and thanked her PROFUSELY (they ended up cuddling in bed after that)

[littleether21]

Pavitir Prabhakar Regressor Headcanons! (100% SFW!)

OF COURSE HE REGRESSES WHY WOULDN'T HE

he does it for fun! Mostly voluntary but if he gets really excited he will slip

Probably a younger baby!! 3/4 years old at most

Gayatri is his main babysitter, he's very much fine with being on his own but she's really understanding and she thinks he's cute

However if Hobie is around Pav tends to gravitate towards him like a little magnet

Pav is constantly on the move when he's small! Speeds through activities onto the next thing super fast, fidgeting(more often than not with his yo yos), and generally moving around

Doesn't feel the need for little gear? He has a few chewy necklaces and he definitely has some plushies and action figures but he doesn't really feel like he needs more than that. Sometimes Hobie or Gayatri gift him little trinkets/coloring books/etc, but he rarely asks for things

Needs a nap time but will fight like heck to avoid it. Hobie had to call on Gayatri for help multiple times because she's better at putting Pav down for a nap than he is

Pav adores going to playgrounds and running around to get out his energy. More often than not the other kids at the playground end up playing with him, doing tag and hide and seek and playing pretend!

Every once in a while Pav will go way too fast at the playground and gets a little injured, but thankfully Gayatri and Hobie carry Band-Aids on them for this purpose(they have little cartoon dogs on them)

Very cute and well behaved boy, he just moves around a lot(there is a backpack leash they use for him)

If there ever are days when he's low on energy he likes when his hair is played with while he colors. Alternatively he likes playing with someone else's hair in general. He just finds it soothing

He plays hard and then when he goes to bed he sleeps even harder

[xecutivecucumber]

Executive Cucumber's Thoughts on The Bad Batch 03×12!

Spoilers under the cut

Let start out by saying holy heck that was the cool down episode I needed. My sister watched it before me and was able to tell me that Tech/CX-2 wasn't in it for a significant amount, so I was able to get past my disappointment and not be stressed out during the episode. Yes, I'm still on the 'Tech is CX-2 Bandwagon.' I do think they should have revealed him to the audience earlier, because I have to actively avoid Bad Batch social media (*cough*reddit*cough*) for my own mental health because of the negativity around the idea. It's really draining.

Anyway, on to the actual episode!

Today I realized that I might be triggered by Omega being trapped at Tantiss because of some past experiences. (And yes, if you've read my fics you know that I've done it to her too, but I have control over that and I think the problem is the lack of control I have)

Hi Tech! I love you! Please be un brainwashed soon!

I want to murder Hemlock. I don't know if I've ever hated a Star Wars villain like this before. It feels so personal.

It devastates me that they're going to take Omega's clothes away. Clothes that were given to her by people who love her. Ow.

Also you're playing a dangerous game, not keeping those binders on her, Hemlock.

'Is everything all right, Dr. Karr?' 'No, the Jango parent gene got awakened in me and that does not go away'

Why does Emerie think she HAS to do this?

I'm a little disappointed we didn't see Hunter find out about Omega. He's probably just in 'go' mode, honestly. Adrenaline and all that.

Crosshair is so proud of Omega oh my gosh.

PHEE MY QUEEEEEEEEEN

Oh my gosh Tech told Phee about Crosshair. That implies that had more time than we saw. That makes me so happy and sad.

Phee talks about Tech with such fondness. You can tell how much she cared about him. I feel like I'm watching a widow who's processed her grief but still talks about her husband because she loved him.

Also, looking at Phee, she doesn't really have any implied make up on. She's very natural. Good for her.

...Rampart looks kinda good with a beard.

Okay Tech would find the stunt Phee pulled extremely attractive.

This is the closest we've gotten to the original Batch we've gotten in a very long time. It feels good to see them go mission mode with Crosshair.

This is reminding me of Eriadu and I don't like it.

Crosshair asking Wrecker if he remembered whatever plan and then patiently waiting for him to remember lives rent free in my head he's so sweet.

WRECKER'S THEME IS BACK BABY

Also, Crosshair's theme is played in this really fun way?

Crosshair should be allowed to kick Rampart in the balls. As a treat.

Rampart you snake. Crosshair should have shot him in the leg instead of stunning him.

My sister pointed out that the juggernaut represents how the Batch is right now. You cannot stop them.

Man, it's nice to not to be as conflicted when the TK troopers die, as opposed to when clones were sent against them. Quick thought though, does Wolffe have all the remaining clones?

Man these guys get BRUTALIZED.

Them throwing around passed out Rampart is amazing and should continue to happen.

Okay Wrecker has his knife out HE IS READY TO TORTURE A MAN.

Frick you Rampart. He is the worst replacement for Omega.

Aww they probably didn't bring Batcher on the mission to protect her. (Plus she a half trained dog and it was a stealth mission)

And then the boys spent the next hour arguing over who has to call Echo and tell him.

Hemlock you FOULE you're giving Omega ALLIES. Also why are you telling her all this. She will use it against you.

Gall, I hate Hemlock.

Again, I really needed this cool down episode. Though I'm afraid the final three episodes are going to hurt. THIS IS MY FAVORITE SHOW WHY IS IT STRESSING ME OUT SO MUCH. ALSO WAITING A WEEK FOR EPISODES ALSO SUCKS. A LOT.

[nuctoria]

KB as Luigi's toxic ex.

Listen.

Me, @istadris and probably many others who have seen their post have headcanoned that King Boo is Luigi's bitter, toxic ex who is pissed off that he was dumped and wants him back. Last night I came up with a literal timeline of how everything went down from LM1 to LM3 and I want to talk about it.

Lm1: KB was just another villain trying to show superiority, didn't even think Luigi would show up to save his bro and didn't have any traps or plans to defend against him, didn't even think he had to, hence why only the boos and poltergeist were actively aggressive towards Luigi, as it was under KB's command since he didn't want him getting Mario back, who was the actual priced possession at the time. Heck, there weren't even any Toads to save from paintings which shows KB's main goal.

Aftermath: KB is defeated and is shocked that he was defeated by Luigi, the second, shadowed brother of the hero of the Mushroom Kingdom with only a damn vacuum and some tiny elemental spirits he found hidden in the mansion. He wants to be mad but he's more curious and intrigued instead. This then leads him to try and learn more about the green man, heck even getting into Mario Kart, Mario Party and other games like this to try and approach him after hearing that Bowser was invited to these events too (He couldn't get into Smash Bros cause then it'd be too many Mario characters).

Start and end of the relationship: Luigi and KB know each other more personally now and they it ends up with them dating. But, KB is still an egotistical king that wants more power and he finds the purple gem stone that he replaced the red one with and it makes him more insane and aggressive. Luigi is scared and has to break up with him, trying to do so as lightly as possible so KB isn't too hurt emotionally and they can still be friends. Take three guesses on how that went based on LM Dark Moon. KB is furious and in denial, not wanting to let go of Luigi, but when he doesn't succeed he's so enraged that he swears to get revenge for this and keep him forever.

LM Dark Moon: KB learns of the new, docile ghosts that stay calm thanks to the power of the floating crystal called the Dark Moon (which I honestly want to look more into) and shatters it to unleash chaos and gain control over them. By this point, he knew how Luigi was the only one who could actually take on ghosts and boos and that he was more closely associated with EGadd so he was certain that he'd be called to do the job. Also because he kidnapped his brother again. The toads were just there and why not trap them to make it more fun? Afterall, the Toads were proper assholes to Luigi in way too many games so he took this chance to punish them for it. I don't think KB created all these mansions, he just found them and used them as his arenas, letting the ghosts figure out the how each one operated and use it to their advantage, with the boos often keeping them in line to the king's goal at hand. Even so, it was obvious that KB was more focused on doing actual harm to Luigi, with the creatures he created thanks to his new gem, to controlling the ghosts and even cursing the broken pieces of the Dark Moon, to going as far as to open a portal and let so many ghosts in that it nearly lead to the dimension collapsing on itself! All of this in a single night! I also want to point out the part in the scene at Secret Mines, where the boos had the ghosts in those red crystals to make them more powerful, taunting them while they themselves looked scared and trying to free themselves before having all that power forced into them and driving them crazy? That probably gave Luigi PTSD since he went through something similar with a worse outcome. And to top it all off, when he had finally all the pieces and thought he could go back to the lab to prepare to get Mario with probably the help of the ghosts, KB sabotages the camera that pixelated Luigi and went him in a pocket dimension that no one would be able to reach them and he couldn't escape from on his own. Honestly, I loved how they didn't have KB move at all besides him floating and staring at Luigi like that the entire time he mocked him, it made him look way scarier, like the calm anger mixed with menace. KB probably tried to make a deal that he'd let Mario go if he came back to him and ruled the land with him but Luigi refused and the fight started, if he couldn't make Luigi come to him willingly then he'd look lovely in a painting above his throne.

LM3: KB. Has. Lost. It. He is royally pissed and more psychotic than ever. He has become more ruthless and desperate to make Luigi pay before he is captured, knowing he couldn't save anyone, especially his bro and the princess. He was truly lucky he found such a naive ghost to willingly and obediently do anything he asked for and made the hotel probably as luxurious as his own castle as a way to show Luigi that this was the luxury he could have had but won't be able to enjoy now that he controlled ever spec of it. He is set on punishing Luigi in the worse way possible, the bosses using terrifying methods to defeat him, all unique and terrifying. Have you seen the T-Rex one? All ghost bosses had some strategy but that boss fight was immediate with no strategy except brute force and desire to kill. And the hotel is filled with deadly traps, spiked walls that slowly close in on you, locked in a room with deadly gas, axes swinging from the ceiling to slice you, the ceiling being threatened to collapse on you in a slow and torturous way, the list can go on but you get the idea. Luigi is greater danger than he'd ever been and at this point, KB is set on having Luigi alive or dead as long as he's his. He is sick to double-death with him slipping away from him when none of this even needed to happen.

[aihoshiino]

An ONK question that's been on my mind a lot is that what does ch109 serves to the character of Kamiki. The chapter felt out of place to me when it came out, because it's a (supposed) murder and no at all tied to the entertainment industry. It's criminal activity with no nuance. Many read this as an implication that Kamiki has been killing people left right and center and Ai was one of his victims. But... Now I wonder if this is a retcon of some kind. Yura's death was mentioned once (1) after the chapter and I kept wondering how the heck is it possible for Kamiki, a pretty high profile guy in the industry, to be going around killing other high profile people without anyone noticing. It also doesn't feel like the current ONK plot is leaning towards "Kamiki is a psychopath murderer". Don't get me wrong, I like what we know about Kamiki now and how his past shaped him. It feels more in line with the theme of ONK. It's just hard for me to forget that a woman died on screen! I want to know your thoughts on how this might play out / tie into his character? Your character analysis are always on point & your HKAI posts helped me processed a lot of the 15YL plotline.

NGL at this point I really don't know what to make of it LOL. Back when I was first trying to figure out what was going on with Kamiki, I revisited that chapter and actually came away feeling pretty certain that he hadn't actually killed Yura and the presentation there was a red herring to make him seem more actively villainous to the reader and mislead us as to what his intentions were.

Part of this was because we had gotten the reveal of his victimisation at Airi's hands shortly before this chapter (just shy of 10 chapters before, iirc?) and that reveal combined with Akane's revolted horror in reaction to putting those pieces together had me pretty sure we were heading towards a place of Kamiki being portrayed as sympathetic and someone to emphasize with. Thus, it would be weirdly incongruous with that setup for him to also be a yandere serial killer who was wandering around sniping sparkly actresses.

The other (and tbh, probably more influential in hindsight) factor was that we don't actually see Kamiki killing her. The chapter being set up to make him so overtly suspicious while refusing to show him actually committing murder ironically made me less inclined to think he was responsible for Yura's death. The way I interact with murder mysteries and also just like, fiction in general is pretty much entirely filtered through the ways Umineko specifically and When They Cry as a whole warped my brain and the way 109 was presented read to me exactly like the sort of narrative trick R07 would have used to make a character look suspicious of something they didn't actually do.

Now though… I really dunno lol. Like you said, it feels out of place - not just in Kamiki's arc but in the story as a whole. My best guess is that Akasaka maybe did originally intend to write Kamiki as a serial killer targeting women who would surpass Ai but in the process of actually putting his arc to paper, he evolved into a different character for whom that kind of arc wouldn't make sense. Which I actually prefer! The Kamiki we get in the manga feels a lot more nuanced and human to me compared to the yandere Light Yagami serial killer mastermind people were making up in their heads. But it also means that Yura's death is this weird snarl that I don't think Akasaka knows how to reconcile.

Actually - literally as I was writing that I suddenly realised, this might be why Nino suddenly came out of nowhere and started being written like she was? Akasaka has said in the past that he's had OnK's ending in his head for a really long time and I can't help but wonder now if part of that ending involved the twins' father playing an antagonistic role that ultimately did not suit the character that he became. So the character's antagonistic traits and role in the endgame were grafted onto Nino because she happened to fit the bill.

[ckret2]

If someone wanted to join the death valley cult but wasn’t a woman what would happen? Would they be excluded or just treated awkwardly or something?

They probably wouldn't even know it exists.

The Death Valley cult doesn't exactly have a facebook page. They're living out in a lonely little compound in one of the most inhospitable landscapes in the United States. You get into the cult one of two ways:

1) you caught Bill's eye and he started haunting your dreams, talking you into adopting a new philosophy, teaching you the "truth" about the world that aligns with the worldview he wants you to have... and then, when he's decided you're brainwashed enough, he goes "you're enlightened enough; you ought to contact some of my other devotees here..."

or

2) you caught one of the cultist's eyes, and she decided to start actively recruiting you, maybe bringing in several other cultists to help keep you 24/7 surrounded by the cult's philosophy until you're cut off from your other family/friends.

Both involve someone already involved in the cult choosing you. And they choose ladies. Bill uses a lot of different tactics and philosophies to seduce people into his various cults, depending on what he thinks would work on them; the Death Valley cult is women that were brought in with some sort of bullshit along the lines of that "divine feminine" "women are inherently more pure and in tune with their instincts" stuff.

(This isn't an opinion Bill himself holds—he thinks human genders are arbitrary and stupid—but you don't start a cult by imposing your beliefs on aliens, you start a cult by exploiting THEIR beliefs and twisting them into knots until they resemble yours.)

If a dude did somehow know they exist—for example, the artists in the Bahamas know how to contact them—and for some reason traveled to Death Valley to knock on their door and say "I believe in Bill, I wanna join," they'd go "okay we'll contact Bill tonight and ask him where you should go." They know there are other pockets of people out there that worship Bill, most of which take males; clearly Death Valley was just this one guy's nearest point of contact through which he could find THOSE groups. He's not staying HERE, obviously. He's NOT staying here. That's final. Go back to your hotel.

If any sort of nonbinary person (or, heck, probably even binary trans person) knocked on their door they'd probably have a very serious discussion about whether this individual "counts" as a woman. And the next time they fall asleep Bill swoops into their dream like "buddy, pal, friend, amigo, why the hell do you wanna move in with a bunch of crazy broads who need to argue about whether you're female enough for them? Yikes, am I right? Get OUT of here. Listen, I'm in contact with this little group that meets in the basement of an art school in San Francisco and they're pioneering forms of genderfuckery two hundred years ahead of their time, I'll give you their address."

But, why would any of the above people show up at the Death Valley compound in the first place? If they're ready to move in with one of Bill's cults, then Bill's directing them to places they'll fit in. A person who doesn't feel at home in a cult is a person who's likely to run from that cult.

[diino8081]

frozen liberation au

THE BEGINNING

chapter 8

(chapter list)

content warnings for threats, blood mentioned and in the art, a little swearing

the snow rumbles in the wind as the group make it outside. zane stands by the door, looking out at the frosty expanse.

"took you guys long enough. it's freezing out here!"

kai raises an eyebrow. "you're a nindroid? the cold doesn't affect you?"

"that's the point." he grins. he's still pretty mad at kai after what he did to boreal. "where's our exit by the way? i hope we don't have to walk too far."

a few of the group members groan. cole walks up beside him. "zane, you're kind of a dick, you know that?"

zane smiles smugly. "courtesy of the ice emperor."

"sure buddy." cole continues past him and ahead of the group. "come on, we took the land bounty. it should be over here somewhere."

did cole just- ugh that's no fun.

he follows along, feet crunching under the snow with each step. his interface tells him that his internal temperature is lowering. it's odd but shouldn't be a problem.

"it's over there!" jay calls, pointing at somewhere to their left. he turns to find it parked off in the distance just barely hidden in the forest.

oh wow. it's so... small. and old. small and old. first master, did they really use that thing to get around? he sighs, trudging towards it.

zane notices behind him that every time he steps he leaves red in the snow. that's fun.

if he had the staff then he could probably use it as a pen. he'd need more blood though.

come to think of it, where is the staff? he looks around the group. ah, nya has it. it doesn't seem to be powered though.

he can see the two formlings as well. of course they're coming along. he wishes they would just- no! snap out of it. they're good. (apparently).

he approaches the vehicle, entering to the main cabin. but the minute he does, something locks around his wrists. he looks down to see them cuffed. "really?"

lloyd smiles. "just being cautious."

he sighs, moving to take a seat by the window. man, he can't wait til they get to ninjago. he wonders what they'll do with him. prison? back to the same old ninja work? maybe even expelled from the monastery to live a normal life.

wouldn't that be nice. he absentmindedly looks outside, seeing an army of trees staring back. the engine revs and they begin to reverse into the snow covered plains.

zane watches the palace grow smaller and smaller until it's just a speck in the horizon. guess that's his life of luxury over, he sighs.

he watches for a few more minutes but eventually decides to close his eyes.

when he opens them again he sees that they're just outside a village. he might've attacked this village before actually. heck, he definitely did. best to stay away from the windows, he decides.

he stands up and looks around, the rest of the team are outside. he sighs. but he has to stay inside. there's nothing inside! he's bored already. fsm this sucks.

maybe he could run a system diagnostic? he still needs to figure out what's causing the glitch. -- other than nya throwing him into a wall, of course.

yeah, that works. hopefully they don't take too long.

zane sits back down with a sigh, beginning the process.

things seem to be doing ok in terms of processing and memory. his energy levels look to be a little lower though.

he checks his power source.

that's... no.

no that can't be right.

the core isn't being actively powered. he's just running off leftover energy!

could it be something to do with his ice? what took his element away? the scroll? but it's been 60 years and nothing happened! why would it only start now?

could it be negative emotions? he lost them when... yeah. fsm he hates this.

he'll figure it out later.

he gives it about... 4 months at best til he's out of power for good.

his eyebrows furrow. he... can make it work. hopefully.

but what if he doesn't? what if he's dying? and for good this time?

his gears hitch.

he's going to fix it.

he has to.

zane looks down at the cuffs on his wrists. honestly he should try to get them off, they're kind of annoying.

he stands again and moves to search the bounty. there don't seem to be any good tools he can use to pick locks. not even a paper clip!

what kind of ninja even are they?! he looks at the metal bindings in disgust. are they even metal? they look like metal.

embedded in the sides of the cuffs however is a strip of dark, almost black material. he can see specks of yellow in there too.

oh you have got to be kidding me.

it's vengestone.

he sighs. well, that's another thing to add to the list. 3 things that could've stolen his powers away.

though, he lost his powers before being cuffed. did lloyd bring them with him? no. he would've used them if he did.

this is... confusing. to say the least.

he hears a shuffle by the door.

a young voice emanates from outside. "hey! look! look! asha's doing it!"

he turns to see a small child, about 10 by the looks of things, with long dark hair. they stand at the door grinning to something outside.

what does he do in this situation?! does he hide? if this child sees him then his cover is blown! but he can't just let them intrude!

the child turns to look at him. too late.

they screech a bit before gaining composure. "um. hello!"

"hi...?"

"who are you?"

"i'm..." shitshitshit "i'm popsicle!"

popsicle?! he mentally punches himself. of all things--!

"i'm asha!" they smile. "what are you doing in the metal house, mr popsicle?"

he panics.

"the ninja saved me from the big mean ice emperor! i'm just waiting for them to come back!"

nice save.

"the ice emperor!" asha scowls. "i don't like him. if i ever see him i'll throw 500 snowballs at his face!"

he tries to stifle a laugh but fails.

"500 of them? really?"

wow, this kid is out to get him. good thing he's popsicle right now, else he would be in deeeeep trouble.

"i could probably do 501." asha ponders.

he chuckles.

another voice whispers loudly from outside. "asha! your mother is coming! get out of there!"

"uh oh." asha perks up. "well, i've gotta go mr popsicle. it was nice talking to you!"

"asha! let's go!"

they pause. "wait! one more thing."

"hm?" zane questions.

asha seems to fumble with something around their neck before holding it out in front of them.

it's a necklace?

they walk up to zane and gesture for him to put his hand out. wait. really?

he hesitates. "are you sure?"

asha nods confidently. they don't seem to care about the cuffs.

"it means luck and good fortune." they smile.

he holds onto it.

"wow, i--" he feels his gears hitch. "thank you."

"it's no problem, mr popsicle."

asha walks quickly back to the door. turning to wave before disappearing forever.

what just happened?

he stands there, dumbfounded, before looking at the necklace in his hand.

it's got a silver chain that drapes into gold. an intricately carved sunflower displaying a yellow gemstone at it's center.

it feels special. he grimaces. first master does he even deserve this?

this child-- asha's kindness.

is he worthy?

he sits back down again, staring at the pendant in his hands. he frowns.

zane is tired.

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[hollowsart]

I was on the topic last night about Batman and him going out of his way to help some of his rogues and my big main thought about it is: Batman NEEDS to be compassionate. It's NECESSARY FOR HIS CHARACTER.

His villains? Very little in the compassion and thoughtfulness towards others, as well as the selflessness to put others first.

Batman being those things is SO GOOD. If you take those things away from him. He loses so much character and personality and FLAVOR.

(cutting here cuz this gets a bit long winded sdkjfhksd)

Batman cares for his rogues gallery and has hope for them to change and rehabilitate and find themselves a better and healthier new life. Some could even put their capabilities to use for good things.

Heck, a fair number of his rogues gallery have the potential and have been shown to have the potential for change and growth and becoming good people who can help make things better and become happy in a way that doesn't harm the people around them.

Batman does so much for his rogues and I sincerely wish DC would acknowledge this more in their more serious mainline comics for Batman and not treat these aspects as something exclusive solely for a younger audience.

This is why BTAS was so good cuz he actively helped and believed in his rogues to do better and become better. Being there for them and talking to them instead of constantly fighting them and hurting them further.

Riddler is a GREAT example and has been shown many times to be a great asset to the police force. He could become such an amazing detective of sorts. He has worked alongside Batman and others in solving mysteries and crimes and I LOVE that for him. Plus, with his history of the crime world he would be very well educated about how things work and who does what and where and when.

Another example but to a far lesser degree is Penguin. There's been a fair number of times he's helped Batman (willing or not is beside the point) with getting information about the seedy underbelly of Gotham as a whole. Penguin has a large reach and knows a great number of powerful people. He could easily use this to become such an amazing undercover asset to the law enforcement, including Batman.

Harley, I guess, can also become a chaotic good type of person is she really doesn't want to return to her old boring civilian life. The fact she's worked with Joker and even survived him for as long as she had can make many other villains be wary of her. They'd take her serious even if she does put on the "dumb blonde bimbo" facade. She's worked alongside Batman a few times, too.

Catwoman is in a somewhat similar position as Harley, except she never had a Joker for others to have some level of respect for her. But she IS sneaky and stealthy and has had connections with various villains. Her activity is more true neutral with a slight metronome effect of being lawful or chaotic. Being unpredictable, although she had her reasons and motivations for doing the things she does.

So, Batman's hope for them to change isn't without justification. There's probably others that I can name, but those are good enough for some examples.

[cinnamontails-ff]

Your writing is absolutely beautiful. ‘The Accountant’s Guide to Taking Down an Evil Vampire Lord’ reads so well. It’s one of my favorite fanfics of all time. I was wondering where you learned to write? Specifically if there are books or videos you could share that had a hand in teaching you. Your character development reads so effortlessly… heck, your story reads so effortlessly. I don’t struggle to stay with you while reading. Would you be willing to give a girl some tips?

First off, please know that your ask put the biggest, goofiest smile on my face ❤ When I first sat down to write "seriously" (i.e. with the intention for other people to see it), I read a number of writing craft books, but what stuck with me the most was "Save the Cat" by Jessica Brody and "Story Genius" by Lisa Cron. Both of them were immensely helpful in figuring out the overall structure of the type of story I like to read, as well as choosing a protagonist who would fit the narrative and actively drive it forward. I've been writing all my life, but it wasn't until I read "Save the Cat" that I ever made it past the 50% mark in a story, and I still return to it for guidance whenever I start a new project.

I also always recommend the Youtube channel of Brandon Sanderson. He's one of the most prolific fantasy authors of our time and whether or not you like his stories, his channel has so many incredible resources that are all free. Like a complete lecture series right here. Another storytelling Youtuber I really enjoy is Tim from "Hello Future Me".

Apart from that, I think the best advice is to read. Read things you like and read things you dislike and try to analyze what it is that does or doesn't work for you. Look at the way they set up a scene, how they progress their characters, and how they make dialogue flow. Take the things you know you love and try to put your own spin on them (My fic writing style is probably best described as "Terry Pratchett on a really horny day").

Don't forget that stories are subjective and that you can never make everyone happy. The goal is to find your niche and write for your audience. I have been asked why I don't make my OCs more conventionally attractive and / or emphasize their hotness. The answer is that there's plenty of stories like that out there - they're just not mine.

I would also like to stress that none of my fics are first drafts. My writing process is very iterative; I'll fast-draft stuff way before I even start posting a fic and then I work my through the draft later and edit as I go. So what you see is the result of a lot of effort and thought behind the scenes, not something I just churn out.

Thank you for reaching out with your love for the story and letting me ramble about my favorite thing! I hope this was somewhat helpful. Have a great day ❤

[dandylovesturtles]

i LOVE ur sideline au you’ve got going on rn

question 👀

would the mediocre comment rlly kinda stick with leo and would of end up effecting his healing process in a significant way?

thank you!

yeeeeaaaah unfortunately, that one is stuck in his head rent free. on one hand, he knows he shouldn't let what a villain said get to him. on the other hand... Draxum was just echoing the things Leo already thought about himself. all his brothers have a thing, and while he acts like being the faceman is his thing, you definitely get the idea that he just means this as another coat in the layers of irony he covers himself in.

Leo is very good at a lot of things, and he knows it - it's why he keeps winning the lair games. but he also knows there's a difference between being good at handstand hillbomb and being a good hero, and I don't think Leo feels like he's good at that particular thing, especially when it's clear Raph and Mikey are figuring out their mystic weapons faster than he is. and having the chance to get any better taken away from him doesn't help. he's not like Donnie who actively rejected it, after all.

Leo acts cocky to cover up the fact that he doesn't feel like his brothers need him the way he needs them.

so when Draxum said that, it struck right at the core of his already existing insecurities, and he's going to keep thinking about it during his recovery. because maybe Draxum was right, and maybe it's for the best that it happened to him and not one of his incredible and talented brothers. and heck, even if it was one of them, he's sure they'd be dealing with it a lot better than he is! they'd probably be all back to normal in no time

(what Leo misses is that his brothers think he is incredible and talented too, and they wouldn't be dealing with it any better, and they're all so proud of all the progress he makes and amazed at what he's able to do even with the obstacles facing him. because all three brothers are part of the Leo Fan Club but only when he isn't looking haha)

[cinturon-cadena]

DP x DC Smallville

Okay, I've been forming this theory for a while now, but this scene just cemented it:

The bottom of her boots? Fenton F??? There is no way you can't tell me those aren't Fenton-grade boots!

Hear me out. I have other evidence.

The principal in season 1 is a man of Asian decent named Kwan. Who else do we know named Kwan?

And to top it off, Smallville's Kwan has a son named Danny. Now obviously, his son isn't Fenton/Phantom, BUT assuming at least the class and maybe the entire town of Amity Park learns Danny's secret, it wouldn't be out of the ordinary that some of his classmates grow up and name a child after their town hero. Even if they never learn Danny's secret, Danny Fenton himself did lead the entire class against Ember and Youngblood, as well as exhibited other noble qualities, so it's not out of the question that at least one of his classmates had a child whom they named 'Danny'.

2. As discussed in this post, the whole 'Kryptonite-is-crystalized-Ectoplasm' theory. Now some of the more meticulous (me) might be wondering, 'if this theory holds up and Kryptonite-Ectoplasm is giving random people in Smallville super/ghost powers, then why didn't Amity Park have the same activity?' Why thank you, Skeptical Voice In My Head! I'll tell you why. First of all, Smallville has had 12 years-worth of exposure to the Kryptonite-Ectoplasm, that's why! During the course of Danny Phantom's runtime we only get to see ~1 year pass. 2 if we're being generous. In addition, despite having a literal portal to Hell the Infinite Realms open basically 24/7 in the town, along with near-daily/hourly ghost attacks, the citizens of Amity Park themselves do not seem to regularly come into contact with any form of Ectoplasm. Unlike in Smallville, where people are handling the stuff almost daily - hell, dozens of people just casually wear it as jewelry, and I guarantee more than 1 person has at least a meteorite rock or 2 in their home, as a keepsake. There is also a potential argument to be made about crystalized Ectoplasm-Kryptonite being more potent than the ambient radiation/gas/liquid stuff we see in Amity Park.

3. There is literally a canonical town near Smallville called Amityville. Enough said.

4. Which brings us to number 4. The Boots.

I propose that it is highly likely that Danny's class grew up through the events of Danny Phantom (sin Phantom Planet), and that Smallville takes place somewhere around ~25 years after the Portal opens. Kwan grew up to be a teacher, then principal, and named his son after Danny (whether he knew Danny's secret or not). Fenton Works continued on in some capacity, whether it's still the Dr's Fenton going at it or if Danny/Jazz inherited the family business, and at some point made a line of Fenton-grade combat boots. Heck, maybe Sam had a say in their design (it is the kind of thing she'd wear).

In addition, if this is ~25 years later, then Amity Park would be full of Liminals right now - probably keeping their nature on the down-low so the rest of the world doesn't know, or being held under a Team Phantom (Foley/Fenton/Technus) or GIW-mandated blackout. Either way, the general world knows Amity ParkVille exists, but not that Liminals live there (unlive?).

And because their exposure to Ectoplasm was much more gradual and they would have had enough cultural exposure to ghosts, they would adapt to their newfound Liminality powers much more effectively than the poor flash-exposured citizens of Smallville who end up insane because they can't handle the sudden influx of power they're granted. The citizens of Amity Park have the tech and know-how to deal with weird ectoplasm-induced ghost powers. They've seen and interacted with enough ghosts that the idea of Obsessions/Purposes/insert-headcanon-here isn't far-fetched and they'd know how to deal with it in a slightly more constructive way (or at least, be able to handle the ghostly aggression that Liminals seem to have, if Smallville is any indication).

SO, In Conclusion, Danny Phantom's Amity Park and Smallville are in the same universe, albeit DP is ~25 years ahead of Smallville's setting.

Just Saying.

[stellarcat52]

Just Dance 2024 Spoilers below

I noticed something in the story mode of 2024 concerning the timeline of the songs. I'm kind of hoping this is my brain focusing on small details that are just unimportant but I'm not sure.

A bit of explanation/Why am I worried about the timeline of this.

2023's story mode was clearly linear, right? Songs went in order, each one happening after the one before it. The transitions showed that very clearly. 2024 doesn't do that. In fact, it seems like You Should See me in a Crown is just finishing as Wanderlust reaches out to Brezziana and Mihaly at the end of their songs.

But that doesn't line up with Treasure. Not only is Night Swan actively interfering with Jack during the start of the song, but the scene behind Wanderlust (which should have been the same as what was shown to the other two just dancers) is the door in the background of You Should See me in a Crown, with parts of it lit up.

Not flashing.

At no point during the rest of the story mode is that door lit up but not flashing. It flashes during You Should See me in a Crown, it fades after the song is done, it's not lit up when the Dancers go to confront Night Swan.

On top of that, Night Swan and Sara are absent from the background, which I admit might have been a framing thing, or that they were behind Wanderlust. If that had been the only thing to catch my attention I would have ignored it. But it's not.

I really want to think I'm just overthinking this, but I can't think of a production-related reason the scene behind Wanderlust would be different during Treasure vs the other songs.

Which makes me think Wander didn't reach out to Jack at the same time as the other two.

So when the heck does Treasure take place?

Obviously before Swan Lake, which does seem to happen right after Wanderlust gets Brezziana and Mihaly, so before all that? But Canned Heat had Jack dancing with Wanderlust probably in real time because of what Night Swan does during the ending.

It doesn't make much sense for Night Swan to wait between getting Discoball and going to get Sara and give Wanderlust time to get the Just Dancers together. But looking at everything else it seems like the only timing that would make sense for Night Swan to have done this to be between Canned Heat and You Should See me in a Crown.

The background could be explained if Wanderlust had a stationary view of what was happening to Sara and Night Swan, and that can be explained by the fact that it wasn't Wanderlust's portal exactly that was showing him it at all. It had been taken over by Night Swan, hence the purple border and tint. Why would she show Wanderlust that scene? So he knew she had Sara, and so he'd come to save her. It was a trap.

But why do both of them go to Jack first?

Night Swan probably knew that Jack would be involved with the Just Dancers, so she wanted him out of the way. It is in a different manner than how she tries to deal with Brezziana and Mihaly. It’s either her trapping him with his reflection (like the narcissus myth, other people have made posts about the connection. Have some links: 1 2 3) or her trying to get him to come back to her by showing him what he could have if he was on her side.

As for Wanderlust, the only ideas coming to mind is trying to check if Jack is working with his mother again, or if he knew anything about her reappearance. Since before seeing Sara and Night Swan, Wanderlust wouldn’t have proof that Night Swan was corrupting his friends.

I have questions, I have some answers, and I am almost definitely overthinking something here. I have a history of doing so, so I would not be surprised. I also have a history of overthinking because I miss some huge obvious thing and only focus on the small things, so if I’ve done that again please tell me.

[tblsomedoodles]

As the floor fell form beneath him, Leo exchanged one last desperate look at the boy next to him before his feet fell beneath him and darkness consumed his vision. He felt someone grab at his shell, hear the disting sound of a zipping as Casey tried to stop their fall only for the hook not to find a grip and the two of them to collapse, rubble slamming in top of them. The past thing Leo saw before the rubble buries him was his own hand pushing the kid out of the way.

He drifted, lost in a swirling vortex of images as they flashed by his eyes too quickly to see and disembodied voices jumbled together, unclear in their context. It swirled and jumbled together. One image showed Mikey and Donnie being turned knto kraang, the sound of Leo telling Casey Jr to close the portal, the image of his brothers being blown from the top of the ship, the sound of him begging Raph to snap out of some sort of mind control. He saw Raph kill him... and then he saw the kraang beating him as they were both trapped, claiming he had ruined everything.

He isn't sure how long he'd slept, as he groaned. Coughing, he tried to stand, hissing at the aches and pain as he shoved a broken signpost off his shell.

"Casey!" He called out, worried as he fell over, hand going to his plastron. Leaning back, he tried again.

"Casey, you okay?"

Rubble moved as Casey shoved it off of him, groaning. Seeing the boy alive, Leo immediately activated his comm, trying to reach Donnie and Mikey. No answer. The sound of the dirt and rubble shifting told Leo the future kid was approaching as he took stock of his injuries.

"What the heck was that!?"

Judging by the tone, Leo doesn't thing itz the crazy kraang monster the kid his future self cared so much about was talking about.

"Some kind of freaky kraang monster..." he tried to divert the attention anyways, struggling to stand. It didn't work as Casey snapped back at him, asking just what he was trying to do and why he didn't listen.

"I... I was trying to get us into the building."

"Well that sure worked well, didn't it!" Casey grunted. It didn't work out well at all, Leo thought.

"How could it have gone so wrong..." he groaned out loud, flinching as Casey snapped back,

"YOU WEREN'T LISTENING TO YOUR TEAM!"

"I'm supposed to be the greatest ninja who ever lived... you said that-"

"I was wrong." Casey sighed, "You're arrogant! You're impulsive! And every decision you make could cost someone their life!!"

"That's not-" Leo gasped out before he could stop himself. He turned away, biting his thumb to keep himself from admitting the one thing he swore not to. He knew that it was risky, he knows his decisions will probably get everyone killed, he'll he knows this all too well. Things are just... they're going way too fast! Casey even said Raph hadn't been captured in the original timeline which means everyone is going so much worst, so much faster, and there's nothing Leo can do!! He turns away, not wanting Casey to see his face.

Casey follows, continuing his rant as he throws out the biggest bombshell,

"Do you want to know what REALLY happens to everyone int he future!?"

'They die, and it's all my fault!' Leo thought the same time Casey says the damning words,

"They die! Everyone DIES fighting the Kraang!"

Leo was staring, unsweing in front of him as the memories of countless dreams, countless visions washed over him. Thw horror that what he saw was true and real silencing him. Casey continued,

"The world needs Master Leonardo, and all we got is THIS guy!"

As if to prove his point, Casey tossed something down. A picture, the very same one that had started this whole mess. The one Leo had seen countless times in his dreams. If floated down, landing at his feet. He saw more than felt his hand reach down to pick it up, staring at the faces of his friends and family, back in a happier time. A time that likely won't even come to pass now because he screwed up so badly. He heard Casey stalk out, trying to dig himself out of the hole.

Leo didn't move, staring silently at tbe photo. He had failed, he knew from the very beginning he would. Time Travel his ass, he was a goddamn Doom Prophet who saw the Kraang destroying the world a hundred times in his dreams, why did he think that jsut because one kid had shown up that he'd be able to change things! That he could ever stop it! He should have just done what he'd been thinking of the moment he had the first dream and run off, Pops would have just put Raph back in charge and nobody would have to deal with hsi screw ups destroying the world!

It wouldn't have helped anyways.

Thinking back on it, he was out white awhile. He's surprised he didn't have a vision... or... did he...

OOh poor Leo! He is going through so much right then and it's so confusing! That poor kid needs a break!

Thank you! This was so cool! I loved it! : )