#i am extremely sorry that kids have to grow up with this shit

[ellieslittleslutt]

Two Clicks Away

streamer!ellie x streamer!reader

cw: fluff??? idk tbh but mainly js ellie being a loser

When ellie first started out on twitch she didnt have much followers nor viewers. she would sit at her shitty setup playing mainly resident evil 4 and fortnite. she would mainly just be talking to herself cursing out little kids when they killed her. ellie quickly grew over time getting over 500k followers and she had girls practically going FERAL over her “dominate me- WOAH THERE”

during her 500k special stream, she was going through the videos all her viewers sent her some were… questionable. she was sent a video of you. it was a clip from one of your streams basically just you yapping, a viewer in the chat asked you about your opinion on ellie “ thoughts on ellie williams? yeah she’s great! i really enjoy her minecraft and animal crossing streams, it’s so funny watching her rage over tom nook” you were laughing and the clip was basically you fangirling over her you face read and stumbling over your words.

ellies face was RED. she was blushing so much and she trying to hold back her nervous giggles, the truth is that she has had a massive crush on you ever since you started growing enjoying all your streams watching them all too nervous tp talk in the chat. what she didn't know is that you watched al her streams too.

the clip of Ellie getting all flustered on stream was going around on instagram, twitter, tumblr, reddit, anywhere she had a fans on really. it soon caught your attention and you saw how nervous she got at the clip so you decided to dm her on insta

bugwbitess: hey :)

what ellie didn't know is that you have such a huge crush on her keeping a folder of edits of ellie on you tik tok. ellie was doing a stream of shitty roblox horror games and she was scared out of her mind but wouldn’t let her viewers know. she saw the notification ‘bugbitess sent you a message.’ she was taking a break when you sent her the message “hack… fuck.. cough… oh shit.. wheeze..”

after the brief moment of panicking she soon mustered up the courage to reply and tried to seem like she didnt just almost choke because a cute girl was in her dms.

dinodestroyer: heyyy

‘fuck was that too many y’s?’ she mumbled to herself almost shaking holding her phone. “sorry about that chat i’m back” she says with an awkward chuckle and going back to the game.

the second you saw her message your face heated up red. you had no idea how much she was panicking and she had no idea how much you were too. “why the fuck are there so many y’s?” you say a loud with a slight giggle. you thought it was cute like she was nervous or something.

bugbitess: by any chance would you be interested in a colab? ik it’s a long shot but it’ll be fun :)

you thought it was probably very straight forward and soon but fuck it you like her and you’re pretty sure she likes you.

🦖

ellie didn’t reply for a while, first off because she wanted to finish her stream, secondly because she wanted to seem like she wasn’t waiting desperately by the phone (looking back at that she realizes that was probably a dick move). when she did reply it was 2 am so she was surprised to see you awake.

dinodestroyer: yeah ofc i would love that! when were you thinking of?

bugbitess: minecraft sound good?

dinodestroyer: sounds great i’ll call you on disc tomorrow 8 pm :)

bugbitess: see you then!

the truth is that ellie really hated minecraft. like seriously rage quits it too much for a healthy amount.. but since it was a cute girl asking her she of course had to say yes.

the next day when you guys started up the stream the chat was so confused “okay so bugbites is here and we’re playing minecraft today which i’m extremely good at” ellie says proudly and you just laugh “sure you are” you say starting up the game.

“dude what the fuck is thi- AGHH!” ellie screeched her voice cracking, you were saving her from a zombie spawner trying your best not to fold over laughing.

after a few hours of playing together ellie finally rage quit because she suffocated in gravel, “you shouldn’t be able to drown in gravel that’s just stupid!” she complained. “calm down it’s video game logic” you giggle .you guys end the stream but stay on call a little longer just to talk. “ellie?” you ask while she was drawing doing her own thing “yeah?”

“would you like to go out with me?”

an: erm so this is my first time writing an actual one shot so please be nice. I LOVE HER SM OMG OMG KMG

[lizardtakesflight]

The "Humans are Space Orcs" trope has always scratched a real good itch in my brain. I have something I want to write for it, but I'm really shit at coming up with a plot, so I keep just doing little drabbles like this:

"You know, I don’t like that they call you that.”

Thirtytwo’s ears perked up and swiveled towards Alex, who had been sitting in the corner of the room and watching nem type away at their console. The Terran had seemed content to spend this work cycle just monitoring Thirtytwo in neir duties, and if ne hadn’t been used to this by now, it probably would have been more than a little anxiety-inducing to be stared at by a predator species for so long. With those eerie, front-facing eyes, it was always pretty clear where he was staring. 

Alex had been silent until now, just moments after Thirtytwo ended a call with one of the overseers.

“That they call me what?” 

The Terran scowled, and Thirtytwo had repress the urge to shrink down against neir seat at the show of disapproval. “Drudge.”

Thirtytwo’s spines raised slightly in confusion, and ne turned in neir chair to fully face Alex. “That is… what I am, though.”

Alex huffed through his nose. “Yeah, but that’s not– you’re an individual, not just some faceless member of…” He seemed uncomfortable with stating the rest aloud. “You know.”

“The serving caste.” It didn’t bother Thirtytwo at all to be referred to by such; it was just a descriptive of what ne had been born to do. It wasn’t quite clear to nem why this subject seemed to agitate Alex so much any time it came up.

“Yeah, that.” The words sounded flat and unhappy through Thirtytwo’s translator. “They won’t even let you have a real name.”

Now ne was really confused. “My designation is Vega-Bluelight-Drudge-32nd-Born-of-24th-Generation.”

“That’s not a name, that’s just saying what you are!"

Alex’s agitation was beginning to affect neir mood as well, triggering an extremely strong flight urge, and ne couldn’t help snapping back at him.  “You aren’t making any sense! They’re the same thing!”

“Okay, okay, sorry. Look." He scrubbed a hand through the short, yellowish fur on the top of his head. "My name is Alex, right?”

Thirtytwo's ears flicked. "Alexander Marcus Sullivan Sol.” That had been on the crew briefing that was sent out before Alex had come on board for the first time. Pronouncing it was a little bit difficult, because neir translator didn't pick up those sounds as translatable words. It always seemed odd to Thirtytwo that the Terran's name was just… gibberish.

“Right. Now, do all those words say what I am?”

Thirtytwo’s spines were beginning to soften out of their defense posture. “Sol means… you’re from the Sol system…”

“And the rest?”

“I don’t know.” They seemed to be nonsense words, but ne didn’t want to offend Alex by saying so. “They don’t translate.”

“Where I come from, names aren’t just… a label, so you can be sorted or ordered around. Names are a way to differentiate you from everyone else. They’re a word or combination of words that very specifically mean you.”

"So they're… descriptive words." 

"Sort of. They can be. Most Terrans are named by their parents, or whomever raised them. Sometimes it's a traditional family name, or maybe the name of someone else they want to honor. Or sometimes, they pick it hoping that the kid will grow up to have the qualities of their name."

"So… what does your name mean?"

Alex paused for a moment, then shook his head. "Actually, hold on a minute." He picked up the datapad he'd brought in with him earlier and started tapping away. Probably accessing one of those databases only the higher castes had access to. "Alex is short for Alexander, meaning 'defender of men'," he read aloud.

"So… a warrior? That sounds like a caste assignment."

Alex shrugged. "That's just a coincidence. My dad was an agricultural laborer, Mom ran the transport for the company Dad worked for, and Tati stayed home and watched the kids. I was the only one that took military service, the others chose to work with Dad."

"And Marcus?"

"Eh…" Alex scrolled on his pad, was quiet a moment, then shifted a little in his seat. "It relates to an ancient god of war."

Thirtytwo gave him an unimpressed look. "You're not proving your point, here."

[sehtoast]

How are you able to like Homelander and not condone his actions at the same time, without feeling crappy? This sounds accusing but I’m asking bc I’m struggling with it. I know ppl who do the same with characters, but I’ve had an unwelcome fixation on him come out of nowhere and I feel sick and guilty bc I feel like everyone will think I’m some kind of freak or something. I’m very much anti-sa and other gross stuff esp as a victim but I still feel like I’m being hypocritical or something. I’m sorry for the weird message but I feel like I’m losing my mind

The short answer is that he’s fictional.  Think of… I dunno, an antagonist in media of a different form (let’s go with anime).  I was a naruto kid growing up, so let’s use Orochimaru for an example.  My guy was on some fuck shit through the entire show. Snatching bodies, murkin’ Hokages, wild experiments, all that shit with Sasuke, and so on.  People still liked him regardless because he was a cool character despite the bad things he’s done.  Some people may have even found him relatable in certain ways.  I feel like it’s the same concept here.

You don’t have to feel bad about enjoying fictional characters, no matter how awful they may be.  At the end of the day, they’re fictional and their actions have harmed nobody in real life.  Their actions may mirror that which does harm real people, but they themselves have not dealt real harm to real people.  Enjoying them does not mean you condone their actions.

I’m also extremely anti-SA, and am a victim of it myself, but I still find a lot of love and appreciation for Homelander’s character– but this isn’t hypocritical.  My love for him doesn’t come from the fact he has perpetrated that act, nor should it come from that.  I love him as a character with the bottom line that he is… extremely complex.  

I’ve said it for years now, but I think Homelander is a compelling tale of the dangers of commodifying the human soul.  He is an example of how awful someone can turn out if you deprive them of humanity with the goal of creating a product.  People are not products, we are not a means to an end, and we certainly should never be treated that way. He was, and this is how he turned out.  He’s a take on the cyclical nature of trauma in a lot of really interesting ways as well.

I find him relatable from a standpoint of my own traumas and being transgender.  Episode four of s4 revealed that I have a jarring amount of trauma that mirrors his own to some capacity.  I’ve always suspected these things, and I’ve had headcanons since the first season, and having them confirmed reminded me just how much I’ve latched onto this character because of it.  Homelander experienced some degree of sexual abuse in the labs– and I wager there may have been worse than simply being called ‘squirt.’ Homelander was subjected to physical torture and locked in a room where his mind slowly fractured, all while being conditioned to never seek escape otherwise he’d be too devastated from disappointing the scientists or losing their ‘love.’ 

I have experienced SA, I was locked in my room with nothing as punishment (my 'bad room'), had very little privacy and next to no access to boundaries as a kid, I was put through physical pain very often by a sibling (my furnace), I was reared and conditioned to have a fear of disappointing others so severe it made my blood pressure drop into the danger zone a couple times as a kid– and still has similar effects as an adult.  I’d literally pass out, have panic/anxiety attacks, vomit, etc.  I also know what it’s like, as a trans man, to have been raised and reared for a life that was designed for me, but was not me.  I was lucky enough to find my way to the person I needed to be; Homelander has not and likely will not ever be able to do so.  In all of the aforementioned, I have a lot of empathy and compassion for him that combines with my fascination with his complexity.  There were a lot of things in my life that should have pushed me down the road to be an awful person, much like the things in his life did. But I had a handful of people to guide me toward better things.  He didn’t.

But I see myself in there nonetheless. Homelander was the first time I ever saw so much of my own trauma on display in a single character.  I’d love to hug the man and tell him he’s enough, show him the humanity he was and continues to be denied, and so on.  When I realized that means that I would, in turn, do that for myself if I only viewed myself through a lens that wasn’t my own, my life changed.  This character changed my life.  I know I thirst-post about him a lot, but my love for Homie runs a lot deeper than just finding him attractive, you feel?

A fictional character doesn’t have to be one of moral high ground or superiority for it to be okay for you to enjoy them.  You can enjoy characters who commit horrible acts. This does not make you someone who condones horrible acts.  I was initially pretty embarrassed to admit I like Homelander as much as I do, but I slowly realized that it does not make me a bad person and it should never be used as a gauge to find out how ‘moral’ someone is or not.  People like Hannibal Lecter, people like Thomas Hewitt, Joffrey, Albert Wesker, Cletus Kasady– any number of fictional characters who have an ugly record or have done horrific things.  We do not assume someone is evil because they like Hannibal, nor should we do the same for people who like Homelander.

At the end of the day, do what makes you happy. If exploring Homie is something you would have fun with, do it! Engage in media, learn tales of caution and tragedy– stories make us human.  You are not inhuman for enjoying Homelander and his tale.  In fact, I would argue you are very human because of it.

[eisforeidolon]

I am sorry but I just need to vent about misha being an absolute creep. I am so goddamn tired of him constantly trying to insert himself into jensen and danneel's relationship saying danneel is his girlfriend or in the recent purgatory 8 con, his wife. It's so disrespectful towards their marriage, kids and family. I understand it may be a joke but there's a limit and misha always seems to cross that. It's like he's in love with the idea of having a threesome with the ackles. He always has something or the else to say about danneel sexually which is honestly creepy to me. And I've noticed how that makes jensen so uncomfortable, like dude that's his wife back off. He has done this soo many times over the years. Ughhh I strongly dislike him, idk how the others stand him after he makes such crass jokes. And the fans who ship the 3 together are soo toxic and delulu like which sane couple would want to include such a problematic person like misha into their relationship and make it an unhealthy environment for their children to grow up in. I'm sorry for the vent, I'm just very disgusted by him😶

No apologies necessary, because I agree, it's just so fucking weird.

We know the the Ackles primarily (if not exclusively) only hang out together with Misha around work-related events. On the one side, while Danneel has made some vague noises about being a fan of Misha/Castiel, and Jensen does talk about him as a friend? Most of Jensen's comments about him are dunking on him for being awkward, for saying shit he can't back up, and just generally ribbing him for the weird shit he gets himself into and what a strange guy he is. Then on the other side you have Misha frequently making these very sexual and/or suggestive quote unquote jokes about both of them. Like, I'd still think it was odd if they were all publicly sharing that kind of sexualized banter back and forth on a regular basis, but they aren't. It's always Misha starting it and often Misha doing it alone, metaphorically behind their backs. Which is a huge part of what makes it so creepy, because it makes him come off more like some weird invasive fan failing at boundaries who they have to publicly be nice to because ~*SPN fambily*~ rather than it being an understandable friendship that genuinely exists between them.

Which is bad enough, but you can't separate his behavior from the context of the fandom he's pointedly doing it for. The loud majority of people still buying his crap (ops/autos/merch) and potentially following any future projects he might have? Are hellers/cockles shippers. Who only really care about him in terms of fantasizing about him and Jensen together (and pointedly include Danneel to contrast themselves against the wife haters in the extreme J2 tinhatter camp). Which takes the whole thing from just awkward creepy into a very calculated, opportunistic user kind of creepy.

I'm not sure there's anyone or anything Misha wouldn't "joke" about being intimate with if he thought he could make a buck off it. He's shown over and over he has no integrity and blatantly lacks respect for other people if throwing them under the bus (or talking about them as a sex object) will play well with his audience.

[azulas-daddy-kink]

Sorry if it's been asked, but thoughts on Kiyi (and Ursa)?

My thoughts on Ursa are... complicated.

Kiyi though, I simply like to pretend she doesn't exist. She's just a stupid character, Yang's little Mary Sue OC who is there purely to serve his bizarre Anti-Azula agenda. She has no reason to exist, other than to tell the audience he thinks Azula is a terrible daughter and little sister who isn't worth her mother and brother's time, and should just be replaced. The fact that she ALSO calls Zuko "Zuzu" is particularly egregious... it's actually disgusting.

Now back to Ursa, where it gets dicey is that show Ursa and comics Ursa essentially aren't even the same character, and unfortunately the comics version is a lot more fleshed out. If I'm being honest, she has basically zero redeeming qualities, and not only that, Yang tried way too hard to make her the "one true victim TM".... and failed spectacularly. She just comes off petty, spiteful, selfish, and even kind of stupid.

Yes, it was selfish of her to FUCKING FORGET HER OWN KIDS.

Yes, it was petty, spiteful, and stupid of her to write that incriminating letter which states that Zuko is not Ozai's son. Stupid in the sense that it can be (and was) later used to threaten Zuko's position and discredit any claim he may have to the throne. Petty and spiteful in the sense that this was done purely to hurt Ozai's feelings BY HER OWN ADMISSION. Girl, what???? What the actual fuck were you thinking?!

Though, I do concede that Ursa was in a difficult situation, and is a victim of Ozai's abuse (possibly even a victim of marital rape as well). And this applies to both the comics and the OG cartoon - yes, anybody with half a brain can infer that Ozai treated his wife like shit, just as he treats everyone else around him like shit. So even if we disregard the comics, I am comfortable calling Ursa a victim of domestic abuse....

HOWEVER

...this DOES NOT excuse her abuse (yes, I said it!) of Azula, nor her blatant favoritism of Zuko. Favoring one child over another is emotional abuse. Neglect is emotional abuse. Emotional abuse is indeed "real" abuse. This is not an opinion, it is a fact.

"Ozai abused Ursa" and "Ursa abused Azula" are two extremely true statements that can and should coexist.

All of this being said, I am also comfortable calling Ursa a less than ideal (even bad) mother. Bottom line, if your kid grows up thinking you don't love them, you fucked up somewhere.

[thr-333]

In other news- because tbh this other au holds more meaning in my heart (just cuz of how I relate to Donnie the most out of all of the aus), I genuinely am craving for angst with hurt/comfort for Leo Jr au.

sooo time for THOUGHTS I really am longing for moments with Leo Jr and Donnie, because...hnk- Donnie actually receiving comfort, care, patient understanding and acceptance instead of being told to suck it up or being ridiculed/treated like a ticking time bomb???? Means the world to me????? Idk- I guess my soul just aches for this version of Donnie who didn't get that safe space Leonardo's Donnie did. (i get the au is mainly Leo-centric, but for some reason this version of Don-tron ya created has somehow wormed his way into my heart and he is truly my favorite iteration in terms of aus???)

When I tell you that I felt my heart break over the silly comic where Leonardo says that Leo Jr and Casey Jr are twins, solely due to what that implies to the overall story. In a sense, Leo Jr gets to have variations of the life he would have if he hadn't been kidnapped (by all technicalities Leo Jr IS a victim of kidnapping no matter how wholesome it turned out to be). He gets to know the joys of having a twin, of being able to goof around and laugh, being understood/accepted, being able to make friends and be a kid! Meanwhile...Donnie (the one who was MEANT to have Leo as his twin) didn't get any of that. It hit hard that, even if it wasn't intentional by any means, Don was "easily replaced." (which idk if it's intentional or not, but that seems to be a reoccurring theme for the spiny softshell in this au). He'll never really have that close knit bond, not know what it's like, even if Leo Jr and him do grow close during their teenage years. Because in this reality, the "Disaster Twins" exist, Donnie's just not apart of it. Which is just another way that shows how much of a stranger the kid is to everyone who is supposed to be his family; his father, two brothers, and even the one who was at one point meant to be his twin.

That thought is sorta what led me down the rabbit hole of Leo Jr AU! Don brainrot. The kid's reality is one of neglect, extreme isolation, fear and...probably a deep well of self-hatred, loneliness, non existent self-worth, etc. (we saw how he struggled with in Rise Canon, so i can only imagine it is so much worse in this au). I can only imagine that this also impacts his ninpo and mystics later on, which probably is going to make his self-esteem take a nosedive.

Ngl if Leonardo's twin (who I'm gonna call Tello) is actually watching over his past self, it makes me wonder what he's thinking. His pov would be intriguing consider he'd be witnessing how much pain his twin's actions caused. Idk- I just- when I look at everything from this particular au, it makes me hope that Donnie is allowed to feel his big feelings without people trying to rush him. He should be allowed to be terrified, hurt, angry, etc towards Splinter and Leonardo. Neither of them deserve his forgiveness, because shit- both of them fucked up big time. They both caused complex trauma...and like- really need to face consequences. (apart of me sorta hopes Donnie DOESN'T forgive them) dakjsfsadfas sorry for rambling, not sure if any of that made sense, but I just- I have so many feelings about Donnie in the Leo Jr au, and really want to see more of him!

The sewers were a gross place to live if you asked Junior but Splinter refused to move to the hidden city. Luckily he had his portals meaning he could step into the already cleaned portion they called a home.

“Leo!” Mikey was the first to notice him. Dropping the plates on the table he was setting them vaulting over it, “You came!”

“It’s still Junior,” He reminded for the umpteenth time, “And yeah I said I would,”

Mikey collided into him for a hug. Junior gave a small wave to Raph- or Red, probably Red as the snapper wasn’t meeting his eyes while trying to hide his scowl. Splinter was setting the table in Mikeys stead, making wayyy too much eye contact as he kept staring at Junior. He was placing the plates down carelessly. The one in front of Donnie was placed down with a crack, only Junior caught his flinch.

“Great, he’s here, I saw him,” Donnie pushed away from the table in a frenzied movement, “Can I please leave now,”

“Purple your brother is here, that is more important than some computer,” Splinter snapped. No one took note of the way both Donnie and Junior cringed. 

“Nah he’s just tryna get out of showing me his lab since he promised last time,” Junior stepped forward and away from Mikey.

“I did no such thing,” Donnie scowled at him as Junior came around to his side,

“No use backing out now Dee,” Junior grinned, shuffling towards Donnie so the softshell backed away. Kind of like herding a very liable to bite sheep, “I’m expecting the grand tour, don't wait up everyone! “

But dinner…” Junior pretended he didn’t hear Mikey as he walked Donnie towards his room office lab space.

It was empty, with sections obviously organized out to put things there but with not enough actual stuff to do it. Donnie held himself like a tightly drawn string as they walked in. Not looking at Junior as the red slider circled around to the other's bed.

“What did you want to see?” Donnie asked tiredly as Junior came up behind him, “Most of my stuff is at the old place, or the other old place, or-”

Donnie was cut off by the blanket being draped over his head like a tablecloth.

“Nothing much,” Junior shrugged stepping away as Donnie went very still under the blanket, “Just had to get out of there, think I might sit quietly against a wall for the next half hour, not say anything, not do anything, you know how it is,”

Junior slid down the wall. He would have to go back eventually, or the others would break down the door and pull them both back to dinner. He estimated he had about thirty six minutes before that happened and that he could convince them to leave Donnie be. He’d say he asked if the softshell could make something for him. Something big so Donnie would have an excuse to disappear for the next week or so. They tended not to bother the other turtle as much if they thought he was doing stuff for the yokai.

The blanket shuffled, bunching up on the ground as Donnie sat near him. Only just within arms reach. He was covered head to toe, curled up and completely silent. Junior occupied himself trying to come up with a believable project. Maybe a new mask? That way he could wear his old one and the others would never know, it’s not like Splinter ever let them follow Junior to the battle nexus.

The blanket shifted but Donnie didn’t emerge. A hand poked out the bottom, listing up the cloth and bunching it up while still keeping the soft shell hidden. Junior reached his hand out halfway. Donnie couldn't see it but paused when his searching hand brushed up against it. Junior kept still, waiting, not minding one way or the other.

Donnie held his fingers, squeezing lightly. Junior squeezed back, not taking Donnie’s whole hand but meeting him where he was. It was pleasant, it was quiet. The noise from the others blocked off. A little bubble away from everything where they could just be. 

Junior thought growing up in the sewers may have not been all bad… if he got to do it with Donnie.

[mintacle]

Also regarding fanon Tim it is really pity that a lot of fans and even writers regard Tim as a mini-Bruce when i feel he should be opposite especially when it comes to their social circle. Like Tim is fascinating to me because he looked at the dark and gloom and isolation of both Gotham and Bruce and went, "It deserves to be saved. I will save it and i'll do it without it destroying me" (he failed but he tried, god did he try).

If Bruce Wayne is a mask for Batman then Robin is a mask for Tim Drake.

If Bruce is actively isolating himself then Tim is actively seeking people out (even if it sometimes means slight stalking and casual breaking and entering, which, Tim, buddy).

When his parents died Bruce buried the child he was and dedicated his life to make sure something like this would never happen to anyone else and when Jason he almost went and broke his one rule. When everyone in Tim's life was dead or dying he tried to held onto every little thing that could bring that normalcy back from before everything went to shit, whether it be cloning, trying to find Bruce, or even lazarus pit.

It is why Tim becoming batman always ends horribly, not because Tim is secretly a deranged guy but because becoming batman means affectively killing what makes him Tim Drake. It is also why i think the best ending for him would be retirement, the boy who chose to take up the robin mantle grows up to be the man who chose to give up the mantle (naturally this would take a lot of development since i feel Tim is rather addicted to it but also i think it would be good. I also feel he would still do hero work on side but as a consultant or support)

(I alse feel isolation is a major struggle for both of them. However Bruce embraces it, becomes a part of it, while Tim rejects it, loses to it. A Lonely Place of Dying indeed)

(i am so sorry i feel like i have more generalized both the characters and could be wrong about them since i am still newer to the comics but these are my thoughts from what i have seen so far)

Nah, anon, you're valid. I'm not crazy into Tim and haven't read anything with him yet (though @benbamboozled has convinced me to read Young Justice 98), from what I know of the canon version of Tim, he is very critical of Batman, which you kind of have to be if your goal is to help them (as opposed to enabling someone)

Here we have Tim on Bruce's approach to paranoia and work colleagues:

which will for me always be core part of Tim's characterization. He's very far from the boy who will blindly follow Bruce to get his approval. I think of all the Robins Tim might be the least interested in Bruce's approval. (Modern era Dick is weirdly open about wanting Bruce's approval which I don't like. Nightwing is for me ideally in extreme denial about his and Bruce's interdependance.)

Tim is far too aware of Batman's problems to want to become him. This is the kid that became Robin at Batman's lowest low. He didn't become the sidekick/ward/son of a vigilante who was larger than life, he became the support of a broken down man. It makes sense to have Dick and Jason involuntarily idolize the man, because the Batman they knew was amazing, but the Batman Tim knew? That was a spiralling man.

Which might also be why it bothers so many people that Tim isn't allowed to grow out of the Robin mantle, it feels extremely natural for him to be getting over his original mantle and connection to Batman.

[grumfield]

hi!. first of all, i'm absolutely obsessed with your blog, thank you for posting, i've never felt so validated reading someone's posts before. i'm currently falling deeply into the star wars abyss and i was wondering if you could recommend any books you personally liked (the angstier the better)? i'm a complete fandom newbie, so far I've only seen movies and clone wars season one, but id love to hear your opinion on what I should read next. if it's not a weird request. sorry if it is! have a nice day.

WAAAAH thank you so much!!! So glad you’re here and I’m SO HAPPY to recommend books to you because I was exactly in your position only a few months ago!

Okay. So the consensus within the fandom, especially if you’re an Obikin enjoyer (not sure if you are, but if you’re following me I suspect you at least find their platonic dynamic compelling), is that if you’re going to read one book it’s the Revenge of the Sith novelization by Matt Stover, and I agree with this. I’m not someone who was ever interested in reading movie novelizations but this book single handedly changed my mind. It’s exceptionally well written and just has this pervasive sense of growing doom that’s super unsettling while also giving a lot of emotional dimension to all of the characters in ways that film really isn’t able to. There’s a lot of interesting choices that are made—Anakin’s fall feels explicitly like Palpatine is taking advantage of an oncoming mental health episode and pushing him to snap, Anakin’s perception of the Obi-Wan/Padmé affair is tied more to anxieties about the two people he loves most not wanting him around than infidelity…there’s a lot of scenes that are in the book that aren’t in the movie that really just hit like a gut punch.

It’s absolutely great for angst, it’s written in such a unique way and literally the last scene gave me full body chills when I first read it. Horrible, beautiful, highly recommend it. Also uses second person narration in ways that are very clever.

(Also, it like…portrays Obi-Wan as like. A repressed gay monk in love with his oblivious straight friend and it’s incredible)

Now for my more personal recommendations for after you read that, if you want more!

I am a massive Rogue Planet and Jedi Quest enjoyer. They are honestly the cornerstones of my characterizations for these characters. Despite being a singular book and a middle grade series respectively, I group them in the same category for their absolutely incredibly compelling way it portrays the foundation of Anakin and Obi-Wan’s relationship—specifically how absolutely fucked it is in ways that aren’t super clear in the movies. They take place after the Phantom Menace and before AOTC, so cover Anakin’s time as Obi-Wan’s padawan.

Rogue Planet by Greg Bear follows Obi-Wan and Anakin on a mission when Anakin is 12 and there’s no way I can describe it other than it reading kind of like…what if the Virgin Mary was a permissive boymom who sucked at her job and the kid she’s raising has a 50/50 chance at being Jesus or Satan. Obi-Wan in this reads like the most 15 year old 28 year old ever, is still reeling from the death of Qui-Gon and has entered the motherhood phase of “my child is perfect and special and can do no wrong ever ever ever”. He’s extremely permissive and has hinged an unsettling amount of his hopes on Anakin’s role as the Chosen One because of his own personal issues. So when Anakin does shit like…oh I don’t know…accidentally explodes a man’s head with his mind…does things he isn’t supposed to Obi-Wan is like. Don’t Worry You Did Nothing Wrong I Will Ignore It.

And then hot on the tails of this is the Jedi Quest series by Jude Watson which follows their relationship after that on various missions as Anakin grow up. The series kind of focuses on the systemic ways in which Anakin leading up to AOTC was let down and what eventually drives his decisions later. Do not be fooled by it being a series for 12 year olds, it’s absolutely apeshit and additionally my favorite place for informing my perspective of their dynamic. Obi-Wan has gone from being boymom to being more emotionally distant as he tries to make Anakin be an “ideal jedi”. Jude Watson’s entire thesis is that like, Obi-Wan is not father brother or friend to Anakin, he is a Jedi, and does not have the tools to be anything else so his and Anakin needs and wants more. There’s this insane line at the end of book one where Anakin says like “Obi-Wan would come to love him. He would make him do so” which just acts as the through line for the entire series. the push and pull between someone who wants more and someone who consistently holds back creates this very unhealthy master-disciple dynamic that drives me insane. (I have kind of an uncharitable perspective of Obi-Wan because of this but it’s actually what made me love him even more, I prefer Jude Watson’s portrayal of him to almost any other author)

Anyways that’s my long drawn out first 3 recommendations to you lol! If you like them (or if you don’t!) feel free to come back and I’d be happy to chat with you more <33

[candyskiez]

I'm not done steven universe almost there but oh my god. they're addressing how traumatizing typical protagonist conflicts would be. they're addressing how traumatizing it'd be to almost die so regularly. and to see your friends die in front of you. and to lose control of your body. they're showing the messy aspects of trauma. they're not making him be a soft uwu baby. he's being angry and overwhelmed and too controlling because he gets so overwhelmed by the trauma. he's having the ugly messy side of his trauma shown and explored. they're showing typical protagonist struggles and then go "oh nope that's actually extremely traumatizing!"

they used the word trauma. they actually used the word trauma. they addressed how fucked it is steven never got to grow up with many kids his age. they're addressing how much it's hell to feel like you're gonna die constantly. they're addressing how awful it is to be made to be the therapist kid. they're addressing how being the therapist kid shapes you as a person. holy shit.

they're actually addressing his issues. they're addressing his issues!! oh my god!!

(not done, have three episodes left nobody spoil. I am in the homestretch gang I'm sorry I just couldn't NOT share my thoughts rn)

[ichigos]

What are some of your favorite episodes of the 2002 anime?

GOOD QUESTION!!! Immaculate even...

There truly are so many good episodes of Tokyo Mew Mew. I'll share some of my favorites under the cut. (Mew Mew Power mention in here too because I won't ever shut up about the English dub).

These will be in order of episode numbers! *cracks knuckles*

I feel that I am not the best with explaining ~why~ I am a fan of something and think my vocabulary is lacking (that is what I get for not reading huh 😔) -- so I'll mainly post screenshots and go: *point* "I like that!" or just type whatever thoughts come to mind when I think about the episodes.

Episode 10 and 11

Grouped together because these go hand-in-hand. These are the episodes where the girls find the final member of their team, Zakuro Fujiwara. She has no intention of joining them in episode 10 (lone wolf ™) but does swing around and joins the girls in episode 11.

Sorry to Mint but the animation when she has her soul crushed is amazing.

Mew Mew Power is especially funny for this scene because the 4Kids dub made Renee (aka Zakuro) say: "I don't need you guys, you're all freaks!" GIRL! What do you mean? You're one too. 🤨

Episode 12

THE TREE EPISODE!!!! Kishigo battle angst.

Aoyama also has so many "standing man emoji" moments in this series and they make me chuckle. The part of the episode where he sees Ichigo as a Mew Mew for the first time (and it's so early on in the series too!!) will never not be a "🧍🏻‍♂️" moment to me.

Episode 18 and 19

Pretty much every two part episode is one of my favorites. These two are no exception. Blue Knight vs Kisshu fight scene.

Episode 21

Mint goes rogue. We see Zakuro do this throughout the series but to see another Mew do the same is all the more refreshing. This is also the closest thing I'll ever get to an "evil" mew mew (a magical girl trope I think about often, and one I wish happened in TMM..) so I like the episodes where they go against (or away I guess) from the rest of the team for that reason.

Episode 25 and 26

Tokyo Tower! Poison moth!! Someone save us!!!

Not only because of the animation but just in general... episode 25 has one of my MOST favorite scenes in the entire series. There is this part where Kisshu is laughing in Ichigos face after the Blue Knight makes his exit. Kisshu is basically like 'ya'll are so cooked!' and it gets extremely quiet when Ichigo says "I won't let you" for the first time and all we hear is the rain in the background.

Ichigo is always standing up for herself in TMM (a quality that I lack in real life, lol) and I think that is why I appreciate/look up to her character so much.

Goose bumps whenever I watch this scene (yes in MMP too).

Episode 35

Soft side of Zakuro. Episode 35 was great for chill Zak moments. She saw herself a lot in this kid.

Everyone and their dog talks about when Zakuro punches Kisshu in the face. I remember watching this part a lot when I was younger and it's definitely a great moment for sure. I love Kisshu but I do like when he gets his shit rocked too.

It's cringe to get your face punched in by a wolfgirl. =/

Episode 37 and 38

Christmas episodes!! + This part specifically.

The whole alien vs human talks in these episodes. 👍👍

Ichigo was filled with so much emotion during this part. Go girl!!

Episode 39

Emo Kishigo angst truthers ™, this episode was made specifically for us. The way this one had an absolute CLUTCH on me. I have watched it an ungodly amount of times.

Dude needs medical attention immediately but he is bleeding out on the rooftops brooding instead, nice.

I love poking fun at Kisshu but the rooftop scene is actually so sad to me. AND.. YA'LL.. THE OST DURING THIS PART?! HELLO!! (x) This track is on repeat in my brain and it never stops.

(I also really like that screencap of Pie going "Tokyo Mew Mew, Die!")

Episode 40

Pudding was my favorite mew growing up so episode 40 makes it as apart of one of my favorites for sure.

I appreciate all of the girls, and while Pudding is not my favorite character from the series today, she is literally the connection between how I met some of good online (and now also irl) friends, LOL.

*points to this video a friend made for me 16 years ago*

Episode 42 and 43

Who let him strike that bisexual pose in the church anyways?

(ALSO ^^^)

Episode 45

If you are a Kishigo truther then I do not need to explain this one. Again, I watched this one an ungodly amount of times. Unhinged.

(Because tonight will be the night that I will fall for yoooou🎶)

Episode 48

More unhinged Kisshu. He has a really insane good laugh in this episode.

Episode 49

BOY HOWDY do I love Pie in this episode. Kisshu talks about not relying on//betraying Deep Blue (basically their Jesus in the series) and Pie CANNOT BELIEVE WHAT HE IS HEARING. He is a loyal to DB and he is pissed about it.

After all they've been through together on their planet and earth.... this conversation ends so cold with Pie going "The next time we meet, we might be enemies..." and when Tart leaves with Kisshu, even he is conflicted.

Episode 50, 51 and 52

Just grouping the last 3 together. We are introduced to the Big Cheese (Deep Blue) in these final episodes.

(The father, the son and the holy spirit respectively.)

Episode 51 has some of the best animation.

(Me during this part and screaming PIE SMILED AT LETTUCE!!!!!!11!!)

I am running out of brain power and the limit of screencaps that I can add to a post so I will end this here tonight.

Watch Tokyo Mew Mew 2002.

[astroprompts]

✧ — 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐎𝐃𝐒 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒 [ 𝐏𝐓 𝐈𝐈 ]

“I'm knocking off work early to pick up some groceries. Wanna come?”

“You are such a shithead, you know that?”

“A lot of times, people do the things they do because they can't do anything else.”

“I am seriously going to punch your goddamn lights out.”

“You know nothing about my life.”

“I wish I knew all the constellations like you did.”

“I don't know how much I've told you, but I didn't have the best childhood.”

“When someone does all that stuff to you, it can make you do some bad things to yourself.”

“I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do.”

“You're an extremely good and smart person, [name].”

“I hate to be the one to break it to you, but you spend a lot of adulthood being vaguely stressed.”

“Maybe I'm just the most recent failure in the line of failures that is our family.”

“Alright well, guilt thoroughly tripped.”

“I forget that we live in separate realities.”

“That's vague. And disconcerting.”

“That all sounded a lot more badass in my head.”

“I'm sorry, but what expertise have you brought to this thus far?”

“We'll be here all night if your dumb ass is in charge.”

“I didn't choose to be born into this society.”

“You know, and I probably don't have to say this, but just because something happened in the past doesn't mean it's going to happen again.”

“I'm not saying there's a ghost, but old stuff that just got torn up seems like ghost central.”

“Dude, we're gonna get tasered or something.”

“I am blaming you if this goes bad.”

“Don't to go sleep angry. You'll have bad dreams.”

“Who's the best vermin? You are!”

“I do not trust you with any part of this process.”

“This isn't fun. This blows.”

“I'm going to break something.”

“My mouth tastes like broken dreams.”

“I have to grow up a bit. You have to let me change.”

“Remember the time I almost burned down the school?”

“Well, tonight was a complete bust.”

“This thing is gonna really freak some kids out.”

“I've had these horrible nightmares that feel really real, and I think something really bad is going to happen.”

“Things are like, monumentally screwed right now, and no one in power gives a shit. Or they're actively making it worse out of spite or profit.”

“I hate everything right now.”

“I sure hope nobody saw that.”

“Weird!? That was not weird! That was a crime!”

“I dunno, stress does weird things to people.”

“Listen, I don't believe in ghosts. But I believe in you.”

“Sorry. That sounded funnier in my head.”

“I can't come up with any explanations that aren't nuts.”

“I could use like five naps. Five good naps in one nap bucket.”

“You making, like, three dinners at once?”

“Good dinner makes everyone feel better!”

“Don't ever get seriously injured again, okay?”

“Before I knew it... I was on top of him, smashing his face in with the bat.”

“Something broke. In my head. In my life.”

“Why the hell are you out here by yourself?”

“Even if this was somehow all in your head, which it isn't, I would still back you. To the actual God's honest end.”

“Alright, lets go die or something. But hopefully not.”

“I know this won't save me in the end. But I don't need it to save me forever... I just need it to save me now.”

“I don't even believe in hell and I hope all they go straight there.”

“I think you get taught that you have a lot more control of the world than you do.”

“Sometimes you need someone to be the thing you don't have.. Even if it's something you're supposed to already have.”

“I don't want us to just be part of some horrible story.”

“I want to like, grow giant and pick you all up and carry you someplace safe.”

“Not gonna sugarcoat it, I hate my job.”

“In my experience, the big things don't teach you anything. But they make you something.”

“There is not one person on God's earth who doesn't love tacos.”

“Thanks for saving me last night. Like, repeatedly. ”

[legobatman08]

listen the fuck up, i think (HOPE) all of yall are antifa on here, but for WHATEVER REASON, the only time y'all care about fascism is when it happens in countries you know a lot about. I'm tired of the only political shit discussed being America or some fucking western European country.

there's a very prominent neo-nazi party in georgia (WHICH MY CLASSMATE IS A PART OF????), with extreme conservative and puritan views. see the armbands and the flag in the back? that's the georgian neo-nazi symbol. don't ask me why the faces are blurred, my source for this is the nazi classmate himself, and he blurred it.

brief summary of how this sorry excuse of an organization formed: they broke into a nightclub because "DANCING IS SINFUL", destroyed the club obviously, beat up everyone who was there (girls, guys, university students, bartenders, EVERYONE). where was the police, you may ask? one of them was drunk and JOINED these shitheads, the rest showed up hours later for "unrelated reasons" and pretended none of it happened. you'll see that cops doing jack shit will become a reoccurring theme in this post. this all branches from the extreme upholding of "orthodox christian values" - they're doing all this in "God's name", AND THE CHURCH SUPPORTS IT. obviously, fascism in Georgia existed even before these fucking cunts, but they're growing stronger and recruiting more people these days.

SO, WHAT PROMPTED ME TO MAKE THIS POST? these days, they've gotten more physically aggressive. here are some examples:

they asked a random guy in the streets about his opinion on fascism, when he said he doesn't like it (FUCKING OBVIOUSLY), they beat him up (the police did JACK SHIT and pretended that the part security cameras glitched out WHEN THE NAZIS LITERALLY FILMED A VIDEO OF THEM DOING IT)

they killed a dog and kept beating it after death, and they beat up cats in the street (they filmed these as a video too)

they beat up the leader of a governmental organization Girchi, which is the most progressive party we have right now (with anti-governmental, anti-russian, and antifa anarchistic ideologies)

the Girchi leader was supposed to hold a lecture about politics for kids and uni students at a summer camp thing, and the nazis ATTACKED THE CAMPSITE AND THREW STONES AT PEOPLE.

update on the first one: an armed man in civilian clothes entered his HOSPITAL ROOM, some women tried to stop him, TURNS OUT HE WAS A COP, AND NOW THE POLICE IS PRESSING CHARGES FOR "ATTACKING A POLICE OFFICER"??????

1 - They didn't know he was a cop, 2 - they didn't even attack him just tried to stop him from going to the kid's bed because he was a threat, 3 - HOW THE FUCK ELSE WOULD YOU REACT IF A STRANGER WITH A GUN ENTERED YOUR KID'S HOSPITAL ROOM AND TRIED TO GO NEAR HIM?????

anyways, this shit is scary. the nazi party is recruiting minors, like my classmate, so that if they ever get arrested, the minors will have to be released because OBVIOUSLY nobody's gonna HAVE A 14 YEAR OLD ROT IN PRISON. even if they were all adults, as i mentioned, the police don't care, because they're doing this in the name of Christianity. they're posting xenophobic, homophobic, conservative and very christian nazi bullshit so that they can make people believe that they want what's best for people, BECAUSE THEY KNOW THAT THE MAJORITY OF GEORGIA SHARES THOSE IDEOLOGIES. their name is literally "Geo National Unity" TO MAKE IT SEEM LIKE THEY'RE DOING THIS TO "HELP" US. EVEN IF THEIR IDEAS WERE MORALLY CORRECT, WHY THE FUCK AREN'T THEY BEHIND BARS FOR WHAT THEY'RE DOING??

i know I'm not the most coherent source of information, i know this just looks like a stupid rant, but this information isn't accessible in English, which means NOBODY OTHER THAN US GEORGIANS KNOWS WHATS GOING ON. the later this shit stops, the more fascists there'll be in Georgia, because no one wants to put a stop to this. cops are fucking pigs, as always.

I AM SO FUCKING SICK OF THIS. I'M TIRED OF SEEING SWASTIKA GRAFFITI ON WALLS AND SCHOOL DESKS. I'M SICK OF FEELING THREATENED JUST BECAUSE I'M OPENLY ANTI-NAZI AND SOMEWHAT OPENLY QUEER. I'M SICK OF RELIGION BEING AN EXCUSE FOR THESE FUCKING DEGENERATES. NOBODYS DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT. I'm sorry for getting fucking emotional on a post that's supposed to be informational, but SOMEONE had to fucking say it. progressive people in non-western countries are in fucking hell, because nobody acknowledges any problems in places that doesn't concern them. anyways please fucking reblog this, for awareness and for help and what-fucking-ever. thank you for reading.

[lucius-morningstar]

You're what?!

Lucius finds out he's an uncle, first panic then asking for help. ----- Lucius: Please tell me I didn't hear that. Husk: Kind of feels like you want to tune it out. Lucius: Well how else am I suppose to react. Babies don't belong in hell! Angel: *Snorts* Looks like you're shit outta luck then. Uncle Luc- Lucius: Shut up! Just shut up!, Maybe I was hearing things. Husk: We heard it, so sorry to burst your bubbl- Lucius: Yes but you two are either drunk or high so I can't take your word for anything. Angel: Wow.. Low blow Lucius. Lucius: You like low blows. Angel: Only when I do em. Husk: *Sighs* Look, face facts she's pregnant. Better get over it now. Lucius: Ugh.. Angel: Why are you so bummed about this. Lucius: Its just a lot okay, I don't want Charlie to overwhelmed. She's already dealing with quite a bit right now. Pregnancy on top of all that. Angel: Honestly out of the two of them I think Charlie is the best choice.. Picture Vaggie being pregnant. Lucius: No, Thank you. Husk: We can either make the best of this or you can continue to panic and overthink i-.. And he's gone. Angel: Wonder where he's going. Husk: Two options. Either to Charlie or their dad but both I find extremely unlikely. Angel: Who else would he go too then? ----- Carmilla: Why are you here. Lucius: Well, as surprising as this might sound you're the only mother figure I know whose good to her kids in Hell. Carmilla: Gee thanks. Lucius: That sounds bad but just listen for a minute. The only mothers I know who live in hell either went on a "Hiatus" or outright hate their kids. You not only have a good relationship with your daughters but love them unconditionally. Carmilla: That doesn't tell me why you're here. Lucius: Can you swear on your daughter's lives you won't say anything. Carmilla: ..Don't make me kill you. Lucius: Charming but I'm serious, this cannot get out. Please. I have literally no one else to go too. Carmilla: Fine I won't say anything, now what. Lucius: My sister is pregnant and I have no idea how to handle this. Carmilla: ..Are you the father- Lucius: Fuck no, why would you even ask that. Carmilla: Cause most uncles don't freak out over their sister being pregnant. Lucius: Well in case you forgot this is literal hell. A baby has no place in hell. So I need a motherly perspective from someone who gives a shit about her child. Carmilla: You think Charlie won't, you think Vaggie won't-.. How did they e- Lucius: My guess is magic I didn't ask for details. And it's not that I don't think Charlie won't be a great mom, I think she'll be great at it, I'm more concerned on what to look out for or you know stress mothers go through and how I can help her a bit. Carmilla: You realize it's been quite sometime since I had a baby. Lucius: I can tell. Carmilla: I'm going to ignore that for your sake but if you're actually intending to want to help your sister, maybe take on more of her work load. Less stress the better and maybe try to make an effort to get along with her partner. Lucius: Ugh.. Carmilla: Oh grow up she's not that bad. Lucius: You've only met her once. Carmilla: She's been coming by more often honestly if you'd been around maybe you'd know that. Lucius: If you didn't threaten to shoot or maim me every time I come to see your daughter then maybe I would. Carmilla: The fact you know why I threaten you should tell you more then enough. Lucius: I wouldn't hurt her- Carmilla: You already did but that's neither here nor there, if you want to be of use and be helpful then start by acting nicer to her partner and helping out more around the hotel. See where it goes from there. Lucius: Wait what do you mean I already did. Carmilla: Sorry that's not part of our discussion and I've got a meeting to attend too so either leave or I will make you. Lucius: ..Fine. Thank you for your help Carmilla. Carmilla: You're welcome. Lucius: I never wanted to hurt her, I hope you know that Carmilla: Then prove it. Words mean very little to me. Lucius: *nods* Alright I like a challenge. See ya Mila! Carmilla: Do not!-.. And he's gone.

[deusluxuria]

Nothing just some excerpts of Abdul yelling at everybody from an unfinished fanfiction I've had in Evernote for like 3-4 years

( Spoilers: JJBA Part 3 / Stardust Crusaders )

[Before they meet Iggy]

[Also I changed Abdul's first name to "Mashaal" instead of Mohammed because it's more unigender and he's Intersex.]

"I wouldn't shake him up if I were you. You wouldn't be able to beat him," I said.

I already saw the flicker in Jean's eyes that he had instantly taken my words extremely personally. "What did you say!?"

Not this again. At least that time, he didn't jab a finger at me close enough to make me flinch. "That's not what I meant. I can't say I would be able to beat him, either. Nor any of us, at least not solo."

"Don't decide for me what I can't do!"

Noriaki cut in, "Hey, can we please stop fighting??"

That gave me pause for a moment. Noriaki was a kid. It shouldn't have been his responsibility to keep the peace. It wasn't fair.

"Yes... I'm sorry," I apologized to Noriaki. Not for Jean, but for everything he'd had to go through. What all of us had been through.

"Would you back off!?" Jean snapped at Noriaki. "This has nothing to do with you!"

Okay. That was it. He had crossed a line.

I glared straight into Jean's eyes. I lowered my voice, but tightened it. "Don't. You ever. Speak to him, or to Jotaro, like that."

I was ready to walk away.

But Jean exploded.

"You have to have control over everyone, don't you! Acting like you know what's best, but you don't know shit!"

I froze.

There he was again, assuming I was so naïve and unburdened.

Jotaro, Noriaki, and Joseph were right there to hear everything. But I didn't care anymore.

"You don't know me, Jean! You don't know my family, you don't know what I am, what I've been through, what this world does to people like me; you don't know this place, you don't know my country! You've made it so painfully obvious since Hong Kong that all of this has been the first time you've ever taken a step outside your own turf! You don't know what's happened to me, and that I have plenty reason not to give second chances!! So quit being so fucking presumptuous already if you want us to succeed in what we actually came here to do."

___

[Abdul and Joseph are talking in Abdul's hotel room. Abdul POV.]

"You and Suzy haven't been talking a lot?"

"...Well, if I can be honest with you... I started seeing someone."

"...You..." I felt the ire in my face hiding behind a stony expression. "...started seeing someone."

"...Yes. As in, I've been--"

"Don't--" I held up my hand in protest and squeezed my eyes shut. "I know what the hell you meant, Joseph, don't be a patronizing asshole."

"Wow. Okay."

"...Not someone here in Egypt, is it...?"

"No. In Tokyo."

I could've screamed. "In Tokyo...!? While you were visiting your daughter and your grandson thirty days ago!? While you and I were going out for drinks nearly every night, and I was sleeping in the guest room right next to yours!? You had to betray Suzy and see this person so badly that you snuck around in the middle of all that!?"

"Oh, come on! All the way on the other side of the world, Suzy would never--"

"The point is not in the shame of being caught! It's that you did it in the first place!!"

"Haven't you ever cheated?"

"Oh! Like I would have the privilege to!? To take more than what I need!? Do you have any idea how hard I have to work to keep what I have? And yet, you, people like you, just take, and take, and it's never enough. You're ruining your family. That boy out there, seventeen years old, being forced to grow up too soon to save your daughter -- and you destroy it all, and then talk about yourself cheating like it's some trite adolescent rendezvous. So excuse me if I find it so unforgivable that you're betraying Suzy and seem not to even have the decency to feel any guilt about it."

"...Mashaal..."

"I know you've always looked down on me," I couldn't stop there. "Not because I'm younger, but because you think I'm weak. All after I trusted you enough to tell you what had happened to me. You know everything about me, Joseph. You should know very well that I am anything but weak!"

"But I do know--!"

"Don't lie to me! Oh, I'm sick of you, and everyone like you, making a sport out of playing with my head and pushing me to the edge to evade any accountability."

He made a motion to comfort me with his hands on my shoulders, and I shook with rage.

"Don't touch me!" I snapped at him.

He retracted his hands. "...I'm sorry."

I finally noticed my eyes were damp. I was done. "Get out."

(...) [ < i put this stupid elipse thing here when i can't decide how to join two passages lol ]

Joseph joined me outside in the darkness. I looked up at him but said nothing.

"...Hey..." he said, timidly.

"Hey," I said, then looked back down at the dirt.

"May I sit...?" he walked towards me.

"I don't know. Are you going to apologize to me?" I said firmly.

He cleared his throat. "Yes... actually... That's why I'm out here..."

I got to my feet and faced him stiffly. "Then do it properly."

Nervously, he knitted his eyebrows together for a moment. And then, he relaxed with a sigh, turning slightly to face me as he briefly glanced down at his feet.

I waited.

He looked me in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Mashaal... For looking down on you. For speaking to you with such disregard. For not listening to you."

I stared, and held out my hand.

He firmly shook mine. And then I pulled him into a tight hug.

Joseph warmly closed his arms around me. And then he said again, in a much quieter voice, "I'm sorry."

I reveled in the silence for a while.

And after we let go of each other, I demanded, "Now go get your shit together."

[fg083nrt]

What ships from Naruto do you like, except Kakuhida? I'm asking out of curiosity :)

Also your art makes me want to eat tables!!! RAAH!!!!! (/pos)

This is a surprisingly loaded question because I have so many and some of them span for almost 20 years now.

Also, as usual, disclaimer, since I've seen all the ship wars and holywars, THESE ARE ALL PERSONAL OPINION. PERSONAL OPINION ONLY.

(endless yapping below the cut)

In the past:

My first ship when I was 12 was Pain/Konan, and I think that was the first smut I've ever read like period. I was a big cheerleader of Hinata and Naruto/Hinata because I liked that Hinata just minded her business and stayed in her lane while everyone else was going thru shit (Team 8 had the best work-life balance, I think, they just clocked in and clocked out, no shenanigans). Obviously, Temari/Shikamaru and I loved Neiji/Tenten. I think as a kid these were like really fun dynamics. Once the anime reached the Akatsuki I was all over the Akatsuki LMAO.

But now, as a grown adult, I am almost 99% just KKHD, and Akatsuki ships are like the default absolute truth to me, but recently, I've been obsessed with more Naruto Yuri.

Love Ino/Sakura for that double-income spy who owns a secret flower shop/doctor dynamic; it's just nice. Like I am a firm believer that they could have solved their differences by scissoring or something. Also like, I think their backstory is like an insane missed opportunity (but what's written cannot be unwritten, so whatever) because these pages made me feel like I was reading some kind of josei backstory. Like, go ahead and read these pretending this is not from Naruto, and tell me where do u think this could be from.

Like "pussy from a girl who treats you like a small stupid animal (good until psychic damage hits)"

Like, I would be like, this is either a shoujo manga, or the next page is older Sakura crying in the kitchen with a photo of Ino or something, and then by the end of the story, they, like fuck in the field or something while Sakura is like "I can't believe my toxic female friend from school has 4 fingers up my pussy!", but this could just be projecting, but I still like the ship. On a serious note, Sakura being a crybaby who was picked on would have been a fun opportunity to play with her character and create more empathy for Naruto within her, but her role was more like tying the two characters together, which worked well, but lots of people were salty, but it pushed people to support her character more so it evens out.

Tsunade/Shizune is like my next super fave, especially after rewatching the Tsunade arc. Tsunade's character is just so well done when it comes to how people cope with grief by doing destructive things, I loved it; Kishimoto is fantastic at mature story beats like this weaved between magical ninja fights. But yeah I loved their dynamic like Shizune is essentially her attendant/pet girl/assistant who is extremely loyal to her, but also nagging in a way and also Shizune is just very animated and kinda dorky while Tsunade is a calm mommy- sorry a mature rich woman of status who needs to be taken care of (nearly blacked out writing this). Their back and forth is just chef kiss, too. Honestly, I think that's my favourite Naruto arc; the first part of Naruto is great when it comes to mundane details that I now have more appreciation for.

Their auntie banter!

GODDDDD THAT WAS SO LIKE IT HURTS SEEING OTHERS LIVING THE LIFE YOU DREAM OF

And obviously still love Temari/Shikamaru! I loved that Shikamaru was always very tsundere and going on about how much he hates girls, but deep down is actually like, "Me when a bad bitch tells me to do anything." it's a satisfying way to play with his "character flaw". Seeing him go soft on Temari was like a mini character arc within his already happening character arc during Sasuke's pursuit, like we saw him grow up twice, great stuff!

The entire chapter 235 is just an amazing growth for Shikamaru in elevating the like "men/women" way of thinking to like "what makes a person who they are" way of thinking I really love that. The character is also a great reminder for those afraid of failing btw.

Kakashi/Iruka is my fave, 50% from a historical standpoint; the fact that you can find Kakairu fanfic on Geocities from 2001, and I have some doujins in my collection that are more than 20 years old now is fascinating to me. Love how incredibly loyal the Japanese fans are to Iruka; these guys were holding onto hope for so many years till the Pain arc and then, boom, Studio Pierrot's final Naruto arc!!! It's just incredible fandom history. I love that kinda stuff, love the ship itself too, it's very homey to me, some of the legendary fic they had was fantastic, like entire book's length, incredibly loyal fans.

[arcplaysgames]

I still fucking love his candor. The functional god of the world calls you up like "Hello there, did I keep you waiting? Sorry."

The level of calm he has here is truly amazing. I am curious if it's a resignation to things, that either he will succeed or not and he's at peace with that, or if there will finally be a crack in his genteel facade in the final battle.

BUT WE AIN'T THERE YET. FIRST, THIS.

THE FACT HE JUST. Calls up, asks to stop by the cafe to pick up his calling card, it's just CHEF'S KISS

Maruki settles in with some coffee and gives the same old spiel he always gives, because really he's been negotiating with the same hand every time.

Akechi is sour apple tart about it all, bless him. Reverie and Maruki can have a civil conversation about the future of reality, but Akechi is sucking lemons and making no effort to hide that. Love Mask Off Akechi with my whole chest.

But also like. MAN. Y'ALL. I had to get up and get some fucking TEA at this point because I was like oh my god they're gonna do it i knew it i dreamed of it.

I CANNOT BELIEVE THEY WENT THERE

I cannot BELIEVE it.

Reverie got NOTHING out of this fucking new reality, fucking nothing at all, while all of his friends were handed their perfect idyllic lives.

No, the one thing Reverie gets is Akechi.

I cannot believe they actually went there. Holy shit. That's one I didn't expect to call because it's Gay.

Literally nothing changes about his tone or face or posture, but he's lying. Like that moment allllllllllllllll the way back at the buffet when his college buddy mentioned Rumi and nothing changed in Maruki's face but I felt it, how the weight of the moment had just flipped on its axis.

He's lying because this is a hostage situation. He's just too polite to call it one.

I love the motion of Reverie flicking the calling card across the table at Maruki, the casualness of it. Everyone in the room knows the game.

Maruki says the deal is this. He'll go and prepare to meet them in his Palace. If they show up, there will be a fight. If they don't show up, he will take that as them accepting the new reality.

And he leaves. Akechi asks to speak to Reverie alone.

Honest to god, I feel like the canon resolution if you choose to stay in this reality is Akechi leaves and self-terminates. His intense disgust with being anyone's pawn ever again is drenching every word he says.

These two truly are the apex of "Your soul resembles mine (derogatory)" and it's both thrilling and crushing. Also, jfc, Maruki pointing out there isn't ill will or hatred between them. That's honestly so much to unpack.

How much of Akechi being This Degree of a fucking bitch for the last MONTH was genuine and how much was a purposeful attempt to keep anyone from growing attached to him when he's on borrowed time.

To be clear: I still think mask off Akechi is genuinely a huge bitch, but he's pushed his unpleasantness to some pretty incredible extremes....

But also he's avoid doing it other times. He's unerringly civil with Haru and Futaba, for instance. And there's like two moments he makes especially off-color jokes about violence and then admits he's kidding and softens the blow.

I just wonder what might've been different if he didn't know there was a bullet with his name on it already en route and the fate of reality itself depended on him taking it in the chest and preventing anyone from getting in the way.

Final persona pop of the game, I think.

Well, I've definitely seen worse.

Anyway, cannot believe the plot of this campaign is literally "the self-made god of this world offers you a life with the mean boy of your dreams" but here we are.