#i don’t think it’s a coincidence that the majority of my closest friends are light mode users

[inkluvs]

tbh the friendship between a dark mode user and a light mode user

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

What would happen if you were sent back and ended up in the orphanage with Tom Riddle—and say you also had magic?

Oh boy.

Well, there's a lot to question here. Judging by the... spirit of this ask, I presume I'm... pretty much reincarnated. I'm in the orphanage, I'm much younger than I am now and a child, I'm pre-Hogwarts age, and I retain my current knowledge.

For the purpose of this ask I suppose I also retain my current mental faculties. Despite being in the body of an eight-year-old, I'm not The Carnivorous Muffin at eight.

Welp, there's a lot to consider here.

First, I probably don't realize I'm in Harry Potter for quite some time and instead assume I've been reincarnated to some parallel universe. It's the 1930's, I'm in England in the depression, WWI has occurred and the vast majority of major historical events I know about seem to have happened in the right order, and this Earth is eerily similar to the Earth I left behind.

Strange that I appear to remember everything of my past life with my adult mental abilities, but alright universe, I guess that's how we're going to play this.

What I do know is that I'm dirt poor, presumably still a woman which does not bode well for my career prospects, and if I want any prospects in life period I'm going to have to fight tooth and nail for it. It'd be great if I got adopted to help with this, and might be nice to have people in my life who love me, but there's a lot of orphans in the world and a lot of orphans who are much less weird than I am.

The orphanage is the orphanage and not great, Mrs. Cole is overworked, the orphanage is chronically understaffed, and the kids are running wild beating the shit out of each other.

Being a girl, I probably don't have to worry about getting the shit kicked out of me quite as much, but I still probably try to keep my head down and don't aggravate the particularly beefy looking orphans.

Yes, there's some very angry gremlin named Tom Riddle around who will shove you down the stairs in retribution, but that's just a weird coincidence. And then supernatural shit starts happening. Billy's rabbit hangs itself, people get injuries when Tom is nowhere near them, and I start wondering if this is really the Tom Riddle.

I'm in Wool's Orphanage, my matron is Mrs. Cole, Tom Riddle is running around lighting things on fire. It's possible, though it could all be a strange coincidence.

Now, how things go from here depends on how controlled my own magic is. Since accidental magic typically does manifest at least once or twice, it probably does manifest for me for.. something. If Tom Riddle's there to witness it then...

Well, I imagine he's very offended. Here he was, special, different, better than everyone else, and then some girl in the orphanage (who dares to get very good grades on her assignments in school) has it too.

And I just stand there, smiling, going "Tee hee".

He probably confronts me to prove that he's better at it than I am, and he probably is unless the universe hates both him and me, but having someone else with the Shining around probably prompts him to take me as his protégé (in part so he can show off and in part because he's genuinely excited to be able to share this super cool talent).

I am now apprentice to eight-year-old Tom Riddle. Whoop de doo.

Well, I don't remember this part of Harry Potter, so now I'm probably confused as to where I am again. Regardless, I try to advise Tom on how to tone it down and not, say, traumatize Amy and Dennis for life and antagonize all the other orphans forever. He probably doesn't take me seriously. What do I know, I can't even light that patch of grass on fire?

Hanging around Tom Riddle gets me a reputation to, given the difference in genders, probably a fairly nasty one at that. When Dumbledore arrives he's undoubtedly told hot gossip about how eleven-year-old Tom and I have had sex in a ritual to summon Satan. Dumbledore takes this seriously.

Dumbledore probably meets us both at the same time and it's a disaster. I tried my best to prep Tom without revealing I'm a prophet, Tom first doesn't believe there might not be others, then doesn't believe they would be antagonist/anything but amazed by how awesome he is.

Well, Dumbledore lights his wardrobe on fire while I sit there. Dying inside. Dumbledore probably also does something to me too, to teach me some kind of lesson about something.

I imagine he temporarily disfigures me/makes me appear very ugly, then sticks a mirror to the wall, that way I realize that looks aren’t everything/being a whore is wrong. Tom, still traumatized over the wardrobe, is no help and my magic’s probably not controlled enough to do a thing about it.

I spend a day looking like a pig, Tom and I are given just enough money to buy new wands and second hand/barely functioning everything else and given the world’s worst directions to Diagon Alley. Thanks, Albus.

Well, months pass, we get our wands, Tom gets excited for Hogwarts and I... start seriously considering the future. WWII is coming, the Blitz is coming, Tom and I live in east London and must be able to evacuate during the bombing of London (which went on well past the Blitz to the end of the war). I also start considering my future in the wizarding world. Do I now actually have career prospects?

Probably not because I’m muggle born and a woman. My best bet is doing very well in useful subjects and finding employment with the goblins, I can’t imagine they have the same hang ups as the wizarding world.

Tom wants to go to Slytherin, of course, I tell him this is a bad idea. “Gee Tom,” I say, “Not sure how I know this but I have this feeling that Slytherin is filled with people who loathe our very existence and will shank us. Why don’t we pick Ravenclaw or Gryffindor instead?”

No one shanks Tom Riddle! Tom says. Tom is still eleven and while he admits that sometimes I may, in retrospect, have been right about certain things that doesn’t mean he wants to go to the house known for hard work. That’s code word for everyone there being a moron and having no other redeeming features than tenacity. As for the other two, Ravenclaws sound like smug, elitist, nerds and Gryffindors like dumb jocks.

Better to be known for ambition, cunning, and actually being competent.

Well, there’s no talking him out of this one, and goddamn it we’re all each other has.

I’m the closest thing Tom Riddle has ever had to a friend in all these years and in the orphanage the only one who could hold a decent conversation with him. And while it’s not my moral obligation to keep Tom from becoming a domestic terrorist, and there’s no guarantee I even can, dumping him for one of the other houses and drifting apart won’t help.

Not to mention that, after all these years, I’m undoubtedly lonely, I’m in this foreign land, and he’s now the closest thing to a friend I have.

Looks like I’m going to Slytherin, YOOOOOLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOO! I shout as a battle cry as tears run down my face. I may have to convince the hat to put me in Slytherin, but like all human beings I am a mixture of many qualities. I’m not cunning in the least, mind games exhaust me unutterably, but I’m full of ambition. 

This confirms every bad opinion Dumbledore had regarding me and Tom.

For the next several months, Tom probably beats the shit out of dormmates who steal his things/harass him. He beats up mine too because feminism (TM) means that he should treat all people equally when guilty of the same crime. I... am not sure I can win that fight so I just resign myself to having to adopt some of Tom’s tactics to make sure I’m not shoved in lockers, have tampons thrown at me, or pig’s blood dumped on me at the prom.

Once again, everyone thinks Tom Riddle and I are dating. I don’t even know if they’re wrong at this point.

Well, being in class with eleven year olds who seem to have had little to no prior education, Tom and I are undoubtedly blazing through class. I imagine I’m bored out of my mind (the Hogwarts curriculum sounds unbelievably boring) and Tom is... well, probably devouring the library but probably also bored. I decide to try and see if I can find some real history texts on this world (there are probably none, the wizarding world seems to only have two historians and both... have a different approach to history than current modern thought as I know it) and discover what magic even is. That shit is fascinating: wingardium leviosa is not.

Dumbledore likely gives neither me nor Tom points in class, I think the house cup is stupid, so I really don’t care. I have no interest in playing quidditch, neither does Tom, so that doesn’t happen.

The second world war starts up, Tom, me, and the muggle borns are the only ones who give a flying fuck. I work harder on figuring out how to get lodging during the Blitz/the bombing of London. Unfortunately, Mrs. Cole hates me too for being the Bride of Satan, so that’s a no go. Third year, 1939, I probably write her in earnest anyway telling her to PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, send Tom and I instructions for the summer/where the orphans are staying/how they’ve been dispersed to the countryside. As a back up plan, I try desperately to shmooze shopkeepers in Hogsmeade during every Hogsmeade weekend to get myself and Tom part time jobs and lodging over the summer. As a back up back up plan, I spend my time badgering Tom to become very good at survivalist wandless magic and if the Lord has pity on me gain some ability in it myself.

Hopefully, either Mrs. Cole or one of the Hogsmeade shop owners take pity on us. If not, then Tom and I are going extreme camping. Given Mrs. Cole (and the brain damage brought on by Dumbledore erasing memories left and right) and the likelihood of Hogsmeade shop owners just not getting it, Tom and I probably go extreme camping.

(Tom, meanwhile, asks Dippet and Dumbledore if we can stay in Hogwarts over the summer. He’s told no exceptions. London’s being bombed, you say? No exceptions. Toodles. Tom is never the same.)

Me, Tom Riddle, a tent we made ourselves, several rabbits we had to catch and skin ourselves, and the pitiful fire that we can keep going through pure will alone because if we try to use real people spells then we’ll get arrested. It has the benefit of making Tom feel very manly and impressive, catching his own food, but both of us are well aware that this sucks.

But hey, we aren’t dead.

Well, I’m sure Tom doesn’t appreciate that and this is where I imagine he seriously starts talking about violent revolution. I imagine much of my time is spent discussing the merits of not violently overthrowing our ant overlords. I imagine a thirteen-year-old Tom isn’t impressed by my pacifism, but he’s not married to Voldemort yet (probably).

Then I imagine the horcrux thing comes up and... Well, I will argue hard against it. Humans die, it is a truth of the universe, and simply something we have to accept. Horcruxes are not a measure against that, they can be destroyed, given infinite time they will be, and the sacrifice they require is too high: human life as well as the very essence of who you are.

What is a soul? I’m not sure, we never really learn in HP canon, but whatever it is, it is in some way the essence of yourself. If you take half of it and throw it somewhere else, you will cease to be you, someone or something else is walking around in your body while the other half of you exists in endless agony.

If you must chase immortality, create a philosopher’s stone (as I darkly wonder why it was that couldn’t be replicated and what Flamel had to do to make it in the first place). On second thought, maybe we should search for the Holy Grail.

Whether I can talk Tom out of this or not is... unclear. I’m going to say that I can, in part because I imagine he’ll want to show the chamber off to me, tell me when he realizes he’s Heir of Slytherin, and in doing so I can prevent the basilisk incident from occurring. Without that, there’s no dead Myrtle, which means no first victim. That summer, when he goes to the Gaunts, I’ll go with him and convince him that it’s not worth it. He can just turn around and leave these people alone, I hopefully can talk him down. Which means no second victim.

I start writing Flamel to see if Tom or I can get an apprenticeship (Dumbledore probably beats us to the chase and poisons him against us, but it’s worth a shot).

Then, should all go well, I can convince Tom to find employment with the goblins rather than shady antique dealers on the bad side of town. Hopefully, I can convince him to never become Voldemort, and instead we travel the world together looking for the origins of magic or something.

Dumbledore goes around taking people’s memories of us in preparation for when Tom becomes a dark lord and I his lady of the night darkness.

TL;DR Apparently my life would become an SI/Tom Riddle fic. So, thanks anon.

[songmingisthighs]

[15.08] badboy!seonghwa × reader

⇀ had you known that's why he confessed, would you have accepted him ? Or smack his annoyingly perfect face with your laptop ?

⇁ part 1 / 2

⇁ prologue part 1 / 2 / 3

Things had gone great between you and Seonghwa. You and he would often meet at your dorm or at the diner at least three times a week.

You'd ask him why you both never hung at his dorm but his answer was that he doesn't want the boys to disturb your 'quality time'.

Normally you'd question answers like that, but the way he looks at you and holds your hand made you forget why you even wanna ask that in the first place.

But like all things, everything dissipates with time.

Nearing the end of the semester, group projects lessen and solo assignments accumulate which put a strain between your and Seonghwa's hangout time. You've tried convincing him that you both can hang out whilst doing your solo assignments but you remembered how his eyes trailed after a girl as you spoke at one of your last hangouts at the diner.

Seems like he's lost interest in you too.

Which, it sure hurts, but you both were never official and neither had verbally confirmed to the other about their feelings. It sucks.

But you power through.

You pretend that his silence during class's group discussion didn't affect you, you pretend that when he immediately pack up his stuff to leave the class and only throwing you a polite smile didn't make your heart wrench, you pretend that him ghosting you didn't make you feel both embarrassed and angry at the same time.

You're light and breezy.

Heck, you're so light and breezy, you still go to that diner every Friday all alone. And it's not because you had hoped to see one particular man.

Even though you did.

When he was on a date with some girl who's obviously very pretty.

On the booth you both had 'claimed' as 'your booth' without ever verbally saying it.

"Hi, excuse me," a voice broke your train of thoughts.

You look up from your book to see a really handsome man standing in front of you with a smile on his face. He looks very handsome, definitely mixed-race, and he has this chill aura on him that is honestly refreshing to you.

"Sorry to bother you, but can I sit here?" He asked. You look around to see that there are a lot of other places left in the library where he could've sat.

Sensing your apprehension, the man raised both of his hands, "I'm not a creep or a weirdo, I'm just very particular about where I work,"

He's got a point. So you just nodded, "sure, it's not my table or anything anyways, you could've just taken a seat without asking my permission," he shrugged as he put his things across you, "I mean sure, but you seemed like you don't wanna be bothered and this particular spot has the best walking distance to anywhere at all and plus the secret charging port? Genius," he said, grinning proudly.

You raised your eyebrows at him, "you seem to know your way around the table, mister..." you trailed off to which he immediately caught on, "Hansol, Choi Hansol, but my friends calls me Vernon," he held his hand out for you to shake, "(Y/N), (Y/N) (Y/L/N), and why Vernon?" "My english name, I'm half American,"

And with that, you got yourself a new friend.

Vernon is a computer science major, and the other thing major about him is his nerdiness. And his hotness. Which is a ridiculous combination.

Ever since that day in the library, you both somehow find the other popping up everywhere. Just a day after your first meeting in the library, he came into the café you part-timed at. He came in to order 13 drinks and several pastries, shocking you at first but then he told you he lives in a frat house with 12 other guys and that he's not a caffeine addict.

Then you both bonded over the many sessions in the library which eventually venture out to sitting together during lunch, and then suddenly you both started meeting outside campus.

And this did not go unnoticed by Seonghwa.

"Hey, Seonghwa, how well do you know (Y/N)?" Hongjoong asked, breaking Seonghwa's glare on you and Vernon from all the way across the cafeteria.

Seonghwa raised an eyebrow at him, "(Y/N) from my statistics class?" As if he hadn't considered you as something more at some point, "I'd say well enough as a groupmate, why?" He asked back.

Hongjoong nodded towards you and Vernon with his chin, "Vernon there saw you both working together and he wants to make sure he won't be stepping on anyone's toes when he's making a move on her,"

At that moment, Seonghwa almost choked on his fries. Too surprised with the fact that you've possibly moved on from him so quickly.

It's only been a month and a half since you both stopped hanging out outside of obligation.

Hearing that made his blood boil and he's pretty sure it's not jealousy. Most likely territorialism. HE took interest in you first waaaaay before Vernon did.

The smile and laugh you give Vernon was supposed to be for him. He used to make you laugh so hard at any stupid pun he concocted in his head. No matter how stupid it is nor how much it doesn't make any sense.

To be completely honest, he didn't know why he pulled away from you in the first place. He had been so comfortable with you, never once had he ever let his guard down and just be carefree, not even with his closest friends.

He needs to get you back to him.

No matter what.

So he made his move the next time you both had statistics again.

Unlucky for him though, the professor decided to not have any group discussion that day which threw Seonghwa's plan out the window. But thankfully he still remembered your schedule, you don't have any class after statistics which means you'd be grabbing a simple lunch before your part-time job starts until 8 pm.

So he waited patiently for the bell to ring.

Legs bouncing in anticipation as his eyes flit towards the clock every five minutes.

When the professor finally dismissed the class (10 minutes later than he's supposed to, as per usual), he immediately put all his belongings back in his bag and ran after you. Somehow you've mastered the art of cleaning up quickly over the month and a half without him.

"(Y/N)! Wait!" Seonghwa called.

You stopped in your tracks and turn your head to see Seonghwa jogging towards you with that stupid, charming smile on his face.

Damn his good looks.

"Yeah? Is there something wrong?" you asked him when he caught up to you. He raised an eyebrow at you, confused as to why you'd think there'd be anything wrong.

"Ah!" you suddenly exclaimed, "Is this about my part of the presentation? Don't worry, I'm close to finishing it, I should be able to compile it in the PPT tonight by... 9.30-ish? I have to finish my shift at the café," you explained.

He chuckled at you, deep voice that you oh so missed ringing in your ears, "wha- no, (Y/N), I'm not here to talk about our project, I just wanna... talk with you," he said, tilting his head to the side slightly. It somehow made him look both hot and cute at the same time. Which doesn't make sense.

Now it was your turn to raise an eyebrow at him while crossing your arms, "why? No offence, Seonghwa, but you've kinda been blowing me off for the past month and a half now, what makes you think I'd have anything to talk with you about?"

Those words coming out of your mouth shocked him. It's not like he didn't expect some apprehension from you, but hostility? Boy, you must've been really affected by his shitty doings.

"I-I- no, (Y/N), I haven't been blowing you off," bullshit, even he knows that, "I've just been really-" "really... what? Absent? Ghosty? Hot and cold? Whatever it is, Seonghwa, you don't owe me any explanation," you tried your best to not roll your eyes at him because honestly, how dare he blew you off and now acting like he didn't whilst hoping you don't notice what he has been doing.

What did he take you for? One of his brainless bimbos?

Surprised at your words, Seonghwa was left stunned. You waited for a solid 10 seconds for him to say something. Anything.

Literally, how hard is it to say sorry?

Realizing he wouldn't realize what he's supposed to do, you just shook your head at him, "I'll finish inputting and editing my part by tonight, I'll see you in class next week, Seonghwa," you said before walking away.

You would've thought that he'd take the hint and go back to ignoring you.

But now, of course not. He's stubborn and he plays by his own rules. It's an understatement to say that you were shocked when you saw him entering the café nearing the end of your shift.

Despite the shock of seeing him, you pretended like nothing's wrong and do what you're supposed to do to any other customer as per usual.

Heck, you'd give yourself a pat on the back, head, and butt for being so calm whilst handling Seonghwa. You managed to keep that "strictly professional" smile on your face as you take his orders, you didn't fumble when he made small talks as you typed in his orders into the computer (like really, who the heck said "good thing tonight's not cloudly, love the moonlight," ??), and you didn't flinch when your hands accidently touch as you hand him his strawberry frappucino.

Yes, the badboy strictly and secretly drink sweet, fruity drinks.

You'd thought that his presence was merely a coincidence. As he waited in his table, you had assumed that he's waiting for some girl (who isn't you, sadly) so all you wanna do is run out of there as soon as you can.

"Hey, Jaemin," you called your co-worker who's in the middle of sipping his 6 shot americano at 8 pm, "I'm gonna head out, okay? Think you can hold the fort until Yena's here? She said she has to turn in an assignment, that's why she's late,"

Jaemin just rolled his eyes at you, "(Y/N), I'm drinking coffee that's powerful enough to paralyze a horse, I can definitely handle the slow Wednesday night crowd," he said sarcastically to which you laugh.

After getting your things from your locker in the back room, you proceed to go out through the front door.

Unbeknownst to you, Seonghwa had followed behind.

You were only several steps away from the café when suddenly Seonghwa caught up to you and grab your hand.

Knowing that it's quite late and it's dark, Seonghwa should've known better. You honestly only feel slightly bad for punching his chest.

Slightly.

Like 2%.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Seonghwa you scared the devil out of me!" You exclaimed after realizing that it was just him, pulling your hand away from his grip. He coughed, trying to ease oxygen back to his lungs after you had brutally knocked them out.

"Guess I deserved that," he coughed out, but he was smirking as if he's amused by your attack, "sorry, I was just- I need to talk to you," he said, looking at you pleadingly.

"Well, it doesn't seem like that for the past month and a half, Seonghwa, you seemed just about done with me," you said while crossing your arms, your expression showing nothing but disdain at him. He seems to feel remorse after seeing how you looked at him. Never once did you showed any negativity nor hostility to him during the time you both spent together.

Seonghwa didn't really know what made him pull away from you. All he was sure of is that he felt something so strongly about you to the point that it scared him so much. He never felt the need to be with someone as much as when he was with you. He found himself thinking about you when you're both not together, he found himself only focusing on you and nothing else when you both are together, and he found his vulnerabilities open for you to access.

It scared him to hell and back when he realizes that there is a possibility of him wanting something more from you.

With you.

The man before you sighed, "I... Have no excuse for how I acted recently but believe me when I said that I regret pulling myself away from you because I'm scared, you're too good to and for someone like me, you deserve the best and I wanna be the best for you," he stepped closer to take both your hands in his, his eyes were genuine which rendered you incapable of being too mad at him, "I wish I could rewind the time and take back what I did, I never should have pulled away from you, I should have just told you the truth," he said.

For a second, he forgot about his image and he just let whatever he was feeling out, he wanted to make sure that you understand how he truly feels.

Both of you stood in silence, just staring at each other as he rubs his thumb on the back of your hand. With the way you're staring at him now, he was sure that your initial resolve had completely melted.

But suddenly from his peripheral vision, he saw Vernon coming out of a bookstore across the road and was looking around.

Remembering what prompted him to get closer to you again, he pulled you in close into his arms, a hand to your cheek and lips just centimetres away from his.

"So? Would you please give me another chance to show you how much you mean to me? Not as just some guy from your statistics class," his words made you chuckle and roll your eyes, "but as your boyfriend," he said before he could stop himself.

Your eyes widened, "m-me? With y-you? Boyfriend and girlfriend?" you choked out, not believing your ears in the first place. You wanted to make sure that he's not kidding, making a joke or making a fool out of you.

Instead of answering, however, he simply leaned in and places his lips softly on yours. The kiss was sweet, it conveyed how much he wants and misses you. For some reason it made you feel comforted, he feels like home and his arms makes you feel safe.

So then and there, you kiss him back as a form of an answer to him.

When you both finally pull away, you both could see dumb smiles decorating the other's face, proof of happiness over what just happen.

Remembering that you're in the middle of the road and there are people around you, you pulled away from his arms first but reached to tangle your hand in his.

"Come on, I believe I owed my groupmate my part of the presentation," you started as you walk, pulling him with you.

But as you walk, you turn your head at him to throw a flirty smirk, "boyfriend" you said, making him grin so wide, it could rival a Cheshire cat.

Maybe you and he isn't a bad idea at all.

All you can do now is hope that he won't break you.

[tessisawriter]

Invisible String, Part 1 (Colton Parayko)

Request: Can you write an imagine where the reader is John Krasinski’s [niece] but she’s dating Colton Parayko and like she has to breaks the news and John acts mad or something and scares them but then he says he’s joking and he’s fine with it? Thanks

***NOTE***: I changed some details in the last scene b/c I moved the timeline up from October 7 to September 14.

A/N: I’m back! The protagonist is an OC but I decided to call her Y/N instead of giving her an actual name b/c John Krasinski has nieces and/or nephews irl. I already planned the entire plot but idk whether the series will be 2 or 3 parts—I’ll post an update when I know more. This series takes place from March 2018 to June 2019 and is loosely based on Taylor Swift’s “Invisible String.” Here is the playlist.

Warnings: Six swear words, rough breakup, alcohol, loneliness & homesickness

Word Count: 3.4k

March 21, 2018

You were impervious to the mix of pitying and derisive glances from passersby as you sat on the curb. You knew you looked like a cliché, crying in front of a restaurant because your boyfriend broke up with you on your 22nd birthday, but you didn’t care. One question gnawed at you: how had six words upended your seemingly perfect day and relationship?

Your brain was buzzing with activity, wondering if Max had given you any clues that something was amiss. This morning, you woke up in his Cambridge apartment to him singing “Happy Birthday” while kneeling at the side of the bed. As soon as Max finished singing, he kissed you before grabbing his backpack and hurrying out of the room. That didn’t mean anything, though: Max was one of the only seniors to have the misfortune of taking all morning classes because his major was Theater, Dance, and Media. He was also (as usual) running late.

The rest of the day unfolded like any other Wednesday as you followed your schedule of lounging in bed, studying for an hour, going to the sandwich shop across the street for lunch, and heading to campus at 1PM for your classes. Afterwards, you went back to the apartment to find Max waiting there, already dressed for dinner. You quickly showered, curled your long (Y/HC) hair, and changed into a dark green dress and black booties before taking his hand and going to an Italian restaurant in Boston’s North End.

There were no warning signs at dinner, either. In fact, everything was perfect until you were waiting for the check and Max said with a detached look in his eyes, “I think we should break up.”

You didn’t want to relive what happened next, but the images of you acting like Elle Woods when Warner broke up with her in Legally Blonde popped into your head unbidden. You closed your eyes in humiliation and shame as you remembered Max, the man you dated for three years, abandoning you at the table and fleeing the restaurant. The other customers stared at you, some sympathetic, others scandalized, and the rest in pure shock.

You snapped out of the flashback when you felt a large hand rest on your shoulder. You whipped your head around to find a young man with blonde hair and black rimmed glasses squatting next to you on the curb.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

The panic faded as you took in the man’s features. He was definitely in his 20s, probably a few years older than you, and his blue eyes were filled with concern. Something about that concern, though, made you snap.

“Do I look like I’m okay? I mean, come on, look at me!” you demanded while pointing at your face, which you (correctly) assumed had giant black streaks of mascara on it.

You fully expected the man to walk away and leave you be, but he sat down on the curb instead and said, “My bad, that was a stupid question. I’ve got some tissues if you want them?”

That made your attitude soften. He was only trying to help, so you nodded and he handed you a pack of tissues from his pocket. You smiled at him, took the tissues, and wiped your eyes and face. As soon as you were satisfied that they were clean, you broke the silence. “Thank you…?”

“Colton, and it’s no problem. What’s your name?”

“Y/N.” You held out your hand for him to shake, which he did. After a pause, you asked: “Why did you stop? Surely you have somewhere better to be tonight.”

He chuckled, and the sound of it made your heart flutter. “I was just heading back to my hotel when I saw you, and I figured I’d stop and make sure you get home safe. That is, assuming you live here?”

“Yeah, I live in Cambridge.” As soon as the words left your mouth, you realized they were no longer true, so you amended your statement. “Well, I lived in Cambridge until about 15 minutes ago when my now ex-boyfriend dumped me. On my fucking birthday.”

“Shit, that sucks. I’m really sorry.” He paused before adding, “I’m assuming he isn’t here.”

“Nope. He hightailed it out of the restaurant as soon as he got his credit card back.”

Colton shook his head. “What a jackass.”

“I know, right? I wasted three whole years with someone who not only broke up with me in a very public setting on my birthday, but also couldn’t be bothered to ask where I would go! He probably assumed I’d go to my parents’ house, but still.”

“Your parents live here?” Colton asked as he fished his phone out of his pocket and unlocked it.

“Yeah, right by Boston Common, why?”

“I’ll get an Uber and drop you off before going back to the hotel.”

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that,” you protested while going through your bag for your phone. “We just met! I’ll pay.”

“Nonsense. You’ve been through a lot tonight. Let me take care of it.”

You stared into Colton’s eyes and realized he wasn’t going to back down. It took everything in you to suppress your pride, thank him, and provide the address. Colton typed it into his phone, waited for a moment, and said, “The closest one is around the block.”

“That’s good.” Your burst of energy dissipated as quickly as it came, and you fell silent. From the corner of your eye, you saw Colton open his mouth as if to say something before the headlights of a car momentarily blinded you.

“That’s the Uber.” Colton stood up and offered his hand, and you took it. You couldn’t help but notice how well they fit together as he pulled you up and off the curb, but after regaining your balance, something else grabbed your attention: his height.

“Gee, how tall are you? No one’s ever made me feel like a dwarf before,” you joked as he led you to the car, your hands still intertwined.

He chuckled and opened the door for you. You let go of his hand and slid into the car. After Colton slid in next to you and shut the door, he replied, “I’m 6’6” and no one’s ever made me feel like I’m not a giant before. You’re what, 5’10”?”

“6 feet, actually,” you corrected him. “So, where are you from, Colton?”

“St. Albert; it’s just outside Edmonton in Canada, but I’ve been in the States for a while. I went to the University of Alaska in Fairbanks before moving to, uh, St. Louis.”

You noticed Colton’s hesitancy and the fact that he lowered his voice when saying “St. Louis,” and you were about to ask why when you thought better of it. You were protective of your privacy, too, especially whenever people commented about how funny it was that you shared the same last name as John Krasinski. It wasn’t a coincidence—he was your uncle, and the two of you were extremely close—but you went along with it and never corrected them because it wasn’t their business. So, you let it go. “And what brings you to Boston?”

“Work,” he said before changing the subject. “What do you do? Are you still in school or—”

“I’m a senior at Harvard,” you cut him off. You generally didn’t drop the “H-bomb,” as you and your friends called it, with people you didn’t know well, but this was a special case. Colton just confirmed he was hiding something, and after looking at him in better lighting, his face seemed familiar, which weirded you out. You had to get back on equal footing, and the H-bomb almost always unsettled people.

“Wow, you must be really smart,” Colton said, seeming impressed but unphased. You couldn’t help yourself from raising an eyebrow as he asked, “What’s your major?”

“Government. What was yours?”

“Business administration.”

“Ah.” You fell silent again, this time on purpose, as you racked your brain for where you might have crossed paths with Colton. He wasn’t from Boston, not even close, but you couldn’t shake the feeling that you’d seen him before, and recently.

Colton didn’t let you ruminate for long before reviving the conversation. “What do you want to do when you graduate?”

“I’ll be a lawyer one day, but I have to be a paralegal first. I’m looking for jobs right now.”

Before Colton could reply, the car came to a stop. You looked out the window and saw your parents’ townhouse and your childhood home.Your time in the car had flown by, a sensation you rarely, if ever, experienced. And there was something between you and Colton, a connection you couldn’t quite describe, that made you want to spend more time with him. But your time was up. “This is me. It was nice to meet you, Colton, and thanks again for the ride—I really appreciate it.”

“It’s no problem,” he replied. “I’m glad I found you.”

You were overwhelmed by an intense desire to ask for his number. If only he lived in Boston or somewhere in the Northeast. But he lived in St. Louis, so you moved to open the door, only to feel Colton’s hand wrap around yours and hear him say: “Y/N?”

“Yeah?” You turned around and locked eyes with him. It was like being in a trance, and your heartbeat thundered in your ears.

It felt like years, but it was more like a few moments before Colton let go of your hand. “Good luck with the search. I’m sure you’ll find a good job.”

You wanted to let out a sigh of disappointment, but you just said, “Thanks,” and smiled at him before getting out of the car.

***************

The smell of bacon finally lured you out of your bed at noon the next day.

It had been a rough night. The reality of the breakup hit you like a ton of bricks when you rang the doorbell and all but collapsed in your mom’s arms when she answered the door. She brought you over to the couch, where your dad was waiting anxiously. As soon as you sat down, you grabbed your mom and cried for an hour straight as she held you and stroked your hair. You knew Max wasn’t worth your tears, but it had more to do with you. Despite his major, he wasn’t that good of an actor, and yet, he fooled you into thinking he could be your person. You took immense pride in your instincts, but they failed you with Max. How could you have possibly fallen in love with such a heartless person? More terrifying, would you have ended up marrying him a few years down the road if he hadn’t broken up with you?

You didn’t know the answer to either question, so you stopped crying and began venting about how the breakup went down. Your dad almost hit the ceiling after hearing that Max left you at the restaurant, and you had to talk him out of driving to Cambridge to “give that little shit a piece of my mind!” That wasn’t to say you weren’t thinking about revenge, but your dad potentially getting arrested was not helpful. After that, you started crying again, only this time out of frustration, and didn’t stop until you practically passed out on the couch. The last thing you remembered was your parents guiding you up the stairs to your bed.

Thankfully, you had no classes on Thursdays, so you were able to sleep in and be, if nothing else, well-rested. Your stomach rumbled when you smelled the bacon, so you got out of bed and made your way down the stairs to the kitchen, where your parents were sitting at the table and watching the television.

“Ugh, why are you watching the news?” you said as a way of greeting while making a beeline for the bacon.

“Good morning to you, too, sweetheart,” your dad replied. “I’m waiting for the sports report. I missed the game last night and Uncle John wouldn’t tell me the score. He said he’s sorry about, I quote, ‘the scumbag’ and he’ll call you tonight.”

“God, I miss him. And you,” you addressed your mom as you shoveled a load of bacon onto your plate, “are the best.”

“See, honey? I knew bacon would cheer her up,” she said to your dad.

“I didn’t doubt it. Y/N, we have to figure out a time to get your stuff from that piece of shit’s apartment. I’m not letting you go by yourself, but do you want to let him know ahead of time or just show up?”

“Who did the B’s play?” you sat down at the table and changed the subject immediately. You didn’t care about sports, but your dad and Uncle John were major Bruins fans and the mere mention of Max gave you a headache.

“The Blues.”

“Where do they play again?” you asked as you ate your bacon. It had to be a team from the Western Conference, but the only teams you knew there were the Canucks and Blackhawks because they were on your dad’s shit list.

“St. Louis.”

You almost choked on your food. “What?”

“St. Louis, sweetie. You know, the Gateway Arch—”

“Yeah, I know, Mom,” you recovered. “That’s the team Jenna likes, right, Dad?”

“Yes. Shh, here it is!” He didn’t need to tell you twice; you doubted Colton was a professional hockey player, but your curiosity won out as you intently watched the television.

The score flashed on the screen—an OT loss for the Bruins—and your dad groaned. “Ugh, I’ve got to turn this garbage off.”

And suddenly, a few Blues players, including one that looked awfully similar to Colton (albeit without glasses), flashed onto the screen. You didn’t get a good enough look at him to be sure, though, because your dad changed the channel. You let out a noise of frustration.

“What’s wrong, sweetie?” your mom asked, and your dad looked like he had the same question when he turned away from the television.

“I’ll text the scumbag and tell him I’m coming this afternoon, if that’s okay with you, Dad,” you said. “I want to get it over with and besides, I need my laptop and textbooks.”

“That’s perfect, sweetheart. The office doesn’t need me today, anyway.”

“Okay, I’ll be right back; my phone’s upstairs,” you called out behind you as you raced back up the stairs. You did not want to text Max, but it was better than telling your dad that the man he praised for making sure you got home last night was potentially part of the team responsible for his beloved Bruins’ loss.

You locked your bedroom door and grabbed your phone to pull up Google and the St. Louis Blues roster. Part of you thought there was no way a professional hockey player actually cared enough to bring you home, but the Blues being in town and one of its members resembling Colton were too many coincidences for your liking. You tapped your foot impatiently as the phone loaded the roster, and you scrolled through the list until you found a name of interest.

“C. Parayko, 55, R, 6’6’’…”

It cut off after that, so you scrolled sideways to see the other information. It left you without a shadow of doubt, but you clicked on the name anyway to view a picture. Colton’s headshot and full first name stared back at you as if they were looking into your soul.

It really was him. You had to have seen him on the little television at the sandwich shop’s register yesterday.

But what did this information mean for you, really, besides discovering his identity? It was nice to know his full name because it confirmed that he was a real person instead of a delusion your reeling mind made up, but it didn’t change one important fact: you lived in Boston and he lived in St. Louis. Barring a radical change in one of your lives, which you didn’t see happening, that was the reality of the situation. It was time to stop dreaming and confront your immediate future.

You pulled up Max’s number and began composing the text which, after several drafts, read: “I’ll be at the apartment today from 3 to 5. My dad’s coming with me, so make yourself scarce. I want my shit back.”

***************

6 months later: September 14, 2018

You were miserable only two weeks after relocating to St. Louis.

It was funny how one phone call could completely change someone’s life. In your case, said phone call involved an extremely attractive job offer with a clear path for advancement within one year. The offers you had received from legal firms in Boston, New York, D.C., and Philadelphia were underwhelming, to say the least, and you were only a week away from graduation. You had already endured a lot of change this year, so why not one more?

After nearly giving your parents a heart attack but ultimately receiving their blessing, you accepted the offer and moved to St. Louis on September 1st. Uncle John had been especially supportive, enlisting Jenna (known by the rest of the world as Pam from The Office) to fly out from L.A. and show you around the city last week. She made sure you knew the ins and outs of the city, which you really appreciated. You also loved your job. You were doing important work every day, and your boss was already hinting at giving you the promotion you wanted. 

So, why were you unhappy? It was your social life, or rather, lack of one. You didn’t know anyone in St. Louis, and while your coworkers weren’t mean, they didn’t make you feel welcome, either.

That seemed to have changed earlier today when two of your desk neighbors who were around your age, Harper and Ellie, invited you out for drinks after work. You couldn’t have been happier. You went home after work, did your hair and makeup, put on your favorite royal blue mini dress, and met them at the dive bar you recommended. You were so excited on the way over that you could barely sit still; maybe you’d make friends with these girls and finally feel like you fit in in this city.

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Harper and Ellie abandoned you within less than five minutes after two guys came over and asked them to dance. You were now sitting at the bar alone, nursing a cocktail and despairing over your situation.

It was times like these when you thought about Colton. It had been six months since you’d met him in Boston, and you didn’t want to risk looking like a lunatic by slipping into his DMs on Instagram, but you were getting desperate. It was bad enough that being from the Northeast made you stick out like a sore thumb, but the loneliness was eating you alive, and the combination made you feel unmoored. Maybe a familiar and friendly face could change that.

As if God had answered your prayers, you heard a commotion near the entrance. You swiveled your stool in that direction and saw a group of tall, good-looking men in their 20s entering the bar. The tallest one had blonde hair and black rimmed glasses.

It was Colton.

Your brain screamed at you to look away and approach him after he settled in, but you couldn’t take your eyes off of him as he laughed at something one of his friends said. It was as if he felt your stare because he suddenly looked in your direction and appeared to gasp.

It was only then that you turned away and faced the bar, drinking the rest of your cocktail in a few gulps. You were so embarrassed; he probably thought you were a stalker or something. You were about to flag down the bartender for another drink when you felt that familiar large hand rest on your shoulder.

You turned your head and found Colton staring at you, his blue eyes full of incredulity and…happiness?

“Y/N. It’s really you,” he breathed.

[animemangasoul]

My Spot

Summery: 5 times Anakin was possessive of Obi-Wan & the 1 time Obi-Wan was just a (little bit) possessive of him too.

[Or where Anakin's possessiveness might just end up saving the galaxy]

Chapter: 1/6 - Initiate

Here's the thing.

Anakin wasn't a possessive person. He really wasn't. Contrary to what others might say about him, Anakin saw himself as quite the reasonable Jedi when it came to his relationship with the people closest to him. Was he overprotective at times? Sure. Was he a tad aggressive towards those that meant them harm? Most definitely. But possessive? No.

No way.

Anakin was not possessive.

He wasn't.

He just didn't like to share and that definitely wasn't the same thing.

Especially since what he didn't like to share was his force-given position in his chosen people's lives. And why should he ever have to give those spots up, to anyone?

Anakin Skywalker wasn't possessive because he knew where he belonged and as long as no one trespassed into that zone, he was fine. More than fine. Perfect even.

That's why…… this little Twi'lek girl, hell bent on impressing his former Master was….. Well, getting on his kriffing nerves.

Because his place in Padme's life was secure. Because his place in Ahsoka's life was untouchable. And for a time, his place in Obi-Wan's life had felt just about the same, but now……

Now he wasn't so sure anymore, and that made Anakin burn with a sense of jealousy that nearly consumed him. Frustration, anger, fear.

Deep breath. In, out.

He released his emotions into the force.

The Twi'lek girl spun in place, training saber coming down with a thud.

Anakin frowned.

Padme was his angel. The love of his life, his significant other. No one could ever take his spot in her life because he was her husband and they were in love. So while he felt tinge of annoyance whenever she directed her attention to Senators and political figures; smiling brightly, laughing that bell like shimmer of laugh…. While he did feel the tiniest bit of frustration that he wasn't able to keep her attention fully to himself, he understood.

Because Padme was his angel and he was her Knight. And nothing and no one could ever replace him in her life. So he never had to fight for his spot when it came to her.

Just like he didn't have to fight for his spot as Ahsoka's Master.

His Padawan was his Padawan and unless he died, no one else would ever be her Master. No one else would ever be her guide, her protector, her teacher and furious as the Order would be if they knew about it, her older brother. No one would replace him in Snips life because their relationship was unique. Just like his with Padme. He was Ahsoka's Master and she was his Padawan. That would never change unless he let it. And Anakin wasn't about to get himself killed off anytime soon, so he was safe there too.

That only left one person.

Obi-Wan Kenobi.

His Master, well, former Master.

And wasn't that his entire problem.

He hadn't even thought much of it after his Knighting. After all, him and Obi-Wan were still stuck together majority of the time. Being The Team and all that. Which essentially meant that Anakin had never really outgrown his Master no matter how much he liked to throw his Knighthood in his former Master's face whenever he disagreed with him. But it didn't matter how much he disagreed with Obi-Wan, because Obi-Wan was his Master and he was his Master's Padawan. That was their dynamic. That was their relationship. That was Anakin's spot in Obi-Wan's life. It belonged to him……Or it used to.

Not anymore.

And yes, logic dictated that Obi-Wan had every right to take on a new Padawan. Hell, Anakin already had his own; his brilliant Snips, so of course it would only be a matter of time before Obi-Wan got a new one. A brand new, shiny-eyed Padawan. A little youngling to follow him around, nod at everything he said. Hero worshiping him no matter what he did.

It was a logical next step for Obi-Wan…… and yet……

That was Anakin's spot!

He was Padme's husband, Ahsoka's Master and Obi-Wan's Padawan.

That's how it was. That's how it was supposed to be, forever. The biggest portion of their hearts belonged to him. Those titles were his. They've always been.

Padme's husband, Ahsoka's Master and Obi-Wan's Padawan.

Always.

But there his former Master was, silently observing a tiny Twi'lek going through the basic katas of Soresu with such elegance and precision it made him smile; fingers coming up to tug at his beard. "Remarkable," Obi-Wan muttered. "Not many select Soresu as their foundation."

Anakin stiffened. "Well," he said forcing himself to relax and clap his Master cheerfully on the back. "Ever since you climbed your way to fame and glory tons of younglings have taken up Soresu, Master. She isn't the first nor the last I can assure you!"

'She isn't special,' he wanted to hiss instead. 'Everyone knows you prefer Soresu. Of course she would use it to impress you. She knows you're watching!'

But he doesn't. It sounds too bitter and cruel. And Anakin didn't want to come off as defensive or well, judgmental. He just…..

The thought of Obi-Wan patting that Twi'lek child on the head like he used to do to him after a well done mission, the thought of him giving her one of his proud little smiles or comforting her after a horrible nightmare….. The thought of Obi-Wan calling her, Padawan and sharing tea with her…… It made Anakin's stomach coil in disgust.

Why was Obi-Wan even watching these younglings practice? They had so many other relevant things to do, together. Didn't he know Anakin was stressed and needed to talk to him about battle strategies and ship inventory?

"That may be true," his friend finally said, breaking him out of his momentary brooding; and kriffin hell Anakin was becoming more and more like Obi-Wan wasn't he. "But Soresu doesn't come naturally to many. Children rarely have the patient for it," a knowing smirk. "No matter how much they wish to emulate me." Here he winked at Anakin; who did his best to send him a friendly grin back even though his mind was screaming to grab Obi-Wan and get the kriff away from this potential Padawan. "Mie'ilyuda is filled with much potential. Someone ought to nurture that talent," his Master finished.

Anakin swallowed thickly. "How old is she?"

The other man shrugged, eyes still focused like lasers on the child; and oh how Anakin wished to cover his eyes. 'Don't look,' he wanted to say. 'Don't think about it. You're mine mine mine mine.'

"She recently turned twelve."

"Oh," Anakin said, shifting his boots just enough so he could brush his shoulder against Obi-Wan, the light pressure he got back; as his Master leaned into him, making a ghost of a smile slip past his blanket mask of fake interest. "Then she still has time."

"True," Obi-Wan muttered, "It's unfortunate that we will likely be assigned off planet by the end of the week however. I would have liked to observe her more." And there was that something in his voice…..

And yeah, no. Anakin couldn't let him think about this any longer. "Snips wants to learn Jar'Kai," he blurted out. Wincing when Obi-Wan's eyebrows lifted in that silent surprise of his.

"Oh?"

'Well, might as well go all in,' he thought. 'And besides,' Anakin mused to himself. 'Half baked as it was. This little idea slowly taking root in his head wasn't half bad.'

Anakin had always been one to think on his feet anyways. "Yeah," he continued. "She has shown keen interest in it and I thought maybe you could give her some pointers?"

If Obi-Wan could look any more surprised, he probably would. But as quickly as the flicker of pleasure flashed through his eyes for being asked, it was gone instantly. Hidden once more behind a mask of polite curiosity. "I knew Ahsoka wished to learn Jar'Kai," he said slowly. "But I was under the impression you wished to teach her yourself, no?"

Anakin shrugged trying to come across as anything but suspicious. 'Yes,' he thought. 'Yes I wanted to. But this is an emergency and you're better at Jar'Kai then me anyways.'

What was a little time lost with his Padawan to prevent a leach from usurping him as Obi-Wan's one and only apprentice?

"Not really," he said instead. "Last time I tried it….." waving his prosthetic hand helplessly, he smiled ruefully at his former Master." Besides, it's always good to get the basics right before you advance to more complex forms and there aren't any Masters better than you at teaching, Obi-Wan."

Obi-Wan's eyes lit up at that and Anakin warmed from the inside out at the delighted expression his former Master was quickly trying to smooth away. 'Mie'ilyuda could never,' he thought smugly.

"Well then," the other man tugged at his beard, a certain level of shyness making him look almost vulnerable. "It would be my pleasure dear one."

Anakin beamed down at him, arm coming up to throw around his former Master's shoulder and quickly leading him away from the accursed practice room.

True to his word, Obi-Wan devoted his full time in training Ahsoka, with helpful inputs from Anakin here and there, and it was nice, Anakin thought. Watching his former Master gently adjust Ahsoka's grip on her saber and nodding approvingly when she got the moves right. It was really nice.

And if between the war efforts and training Snips, Obi-Wan was too occupied to pay Mie'ilyuda any mind. If by the time they heard back from the Temple, six months had already passed. If Obi-Wan's inquiry about her resulted in them being informed that the little Twi'lek girl had already found a Master, well, that was all a big bowl of coincidence now wasn't it?

"She didn't age out," he thus said in a reassuring, comforting tone to his quiet Master, hand supportively resting on his shoulder.

Obi-Wan's nodded.

"Yes, I am happy for her."

But there was no denying his former Master was disappointed he missed out on choosing her himself. A little tinge of guilt bubbled up and coiled its way around Anakin's heart, but he quickly shoved the feelings deep into the depth of his mind and told himself it was for the best. For now….

"I think I need to brush up on my defense," he said, a playful grin curling at the corner of his mouth. "Mind helping me practice?"

The surprise tendril of fondness that curled around him briefly managed to drown out the shame clawing at Anakin's throat. '

'I have to protect what’s mine.'

"Are you asking me for Soresu lessons, Anakin?"

"What if I am?"

Now the smile dancing on Obi-Wan's lips was unmistakable. "I would be honored dear one."

And as they found themselves back in the training room aboard The Negotiator. As Anakin clumsily took up his Soresu stance, biting back a pleased smile when his former Master 'Always my Master' corrected it carefully, Anakin knew he would never let anyone take his spot in Obi-Wan's heart.

It was his.

Obi-Wan Kenobi was his Master and Anakin was his Padawan.

Forever and always.

The End

I’m currently suffering through a writing block for my [You Are Wanted Obi-Wan Kenobi] fic, so here have some possessively creepy Anakin.

Chapter: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

[suzyundertale]

Non-binary characters in Undertale and Deltarune

A lot of people don’t notice this, but there are several major characters in Undertale that are referred to exclusively with they/them pronouns. In this post, I’ll go over them, and I’ll explain why so many non-binary people identify with them.

Napstablook and Monster Kid

Both Napstablook and Monster Kid are referred to only with they/them pronouns. This suggests that they are non-binary.

Of course, even with characters being exclusively referred to with they/them, there will be people who say it’s intentionally “ambiguous”, or an oversight, or what have you.

Fortunately, we have definitive evidence this isn’t the case.

In the first printing of the official Undertale art book, featuring commentary from Toby Fox himself, these two characters were mistakenly referred to with he/him pronouns.

However, when this was pointed out to Toby, he told me that it was a typo and it would be fixed in the next run - which it promptly was.

This serves as confirmation that referring to these two with he/him pronouns is incorrect, and they/them are the correct pronouns.

Frisk

Frisk is the protagonist and player character of Undertale. It’s worth noting that, for the majority of Undertale, you’re definitely supposed to think that Frisk is a player self-insert character, a blank slate for you to project yourself onto. You’re tricked into thinking you name them, and they have an ambiguous skin color and gender.

However, in the True Pacifist ending, it’s revealed that they have their own name: Frisk.

This reveal also serves as a reveal that Frisk isn’t you, or an in-game representation of you. They’re their own person. They’re a character that exists within this universe. It’s always been just them. Not you or anyone else.

I mean, why would a character who’s meant to be “you” have their own name? Toby never calls Frisk “Frisk” in merchandise or interviews, simply calling them “The Human”, because their name is a major spoiler for the True Pacifist ending. It’s quite easy to only call them “The Human”, he has no trouble doing it now, so if they’re meant to be “you”, there’s no reason to give them a name at all.

In the True Pacifist ending, after Asriel returns everyone’s SOULs, everyone magically learns Frisk’s name (except Napstablook, who closed their blinds upon seeing the flash of light.) Suddenly, everyone knows who Frisk is.

And… all of their friends still use they/them pronouns for them.

If they’re clearly meant to be not you, then surely it would be easier for Toby to hammer in that point by suddenly having everyone refer to Frisk with different pronouns. But he doesn’t, because Frisk isn’t a girl or a boy. Because the monsters were never wrong to use they/them for Frisk. Those were always their pronouns, and they still are.

Chara

Chara is the character we name at the beginning of Undertale. However, this doesn’t mean that they literally are you.

Chara has their own backstory - they had a family, they had likes and dislikes. They’re not meant to be an in-game representation of the player. If they were, there’s about a million better ways Toby could have done that. Like, you know, not giving them a clearly defined backstory and personality. Why would someone who’s supposed to be “the player” be so… different from so many people? A lot of people don’t like chocolate or flowers or knives. Actually, I’d guess that most people don’t like all of those things at once. But Chara does.

In any case, Chara is referred to exclusively with they/them or, occasionally, it/its pronouns. Their own brother, Asriel - their best friend and undoubtedly the person they were closest to -  uses only they/them pronouns when speaking of them.

Kris

From the very beginning of Deltarune, it’s made very clear that Kris is NOT a self-insert of any kind, even more clear than Frisk and Chara. Whether you believe the red SOUL is literally the player or not, Kris is clearly their own person fighting against someone for control of their body. They have their own clearly defined personality, likes and dislikes, etc. I really don’t think there’s any way to reasonably argue that Kris is meant to be a representation of the player. You don’t get to choose anything about them. Their personality, their likes and dislikes, their hobbies, their past, all of that is set in stone.

So why, then, would their gender be up to player interpretation? Why would that be the one single thing we get to decide about Kris? It, quite simply, does not make any sense.

Seam

Seam is a lot less obvious than the other ones - but if you play through Deltarune, you might notice something about all the dialogue where people refer to Seam.

Seam is never referred to with any pronouns. The way it’s written seems very deliberate, in my opinion, so I don’t think that this is a coincidence. 

In the real world, some non-binary people elect to use no pronouns, as well, and ask to be only referred to by name. Seam may be representation for this. Honestly, I think it’s really great of Toby to include a character that doesn’t use pronouns. All the other non-binary characters in Undertale and Deltarune use they/them, but that’s not always the case for real non-binary people. In real life, non-binary people can use all sorts of pronouns, or no pronouns at all.

At first it may seem confusing or difficult to not use any pronouns to refer to someone. But if you reread this section, you’ll notice I’ve never used any third-person pronouns. It took a bit of thinking, but it’s actually quite easy once you get used to it!

--

Kris, Frisk, and Chara are never explicitly stated to be non-binary. That’s true. Some people make the argument that because it’s never explicitly stated, it can’t be canon. That is not true at all. To demonstrate this, I will use an example from Undertale.

Take Alphys. From the Mettaton Quiz Show segment of Undertale, we can learn that Alphys has a crush on both Undyne, a woman, and Asgore, a man. Therefore, Alphys is canonically bisexual. Alphys herself never states that she is bisexual. No one else ever says that Alphys is bisexual. In fact, the word “bisexual” is never used once in Undertale at all. But Alphys being bisexual is still canon.

Therefore, it’s possible for Kris, Frisk, and Chara to be canonically non-binary without it ever being outright stated.

But why? Wouldn’t it be easier for Toby to explicitly state it? Sure, maybe it would be easier to write - but that doesn’t mean it’s better writing. Finding a way to somehow mention a character’s gender would most likely come across as forced and unnatural. After all, most people don’t openly discuss their gender or sexuality in everyday situations.

So, Kris doesn’t need to explicitly say “I’m non-binary and use they/them pronouns” to be a character who is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns. They just… are. The same goes, of course, for Frisk and Chara.

They’re only ever referred to with they/them pronouns by close friends and family, and we’re given no reason to believe they’re anything other than non-binary. There’s absolutely no reason to use any pronouns other than they/them for these characters.

If you meet someone in real life, and notice that everyone around you is only using they/them pronouns for that person… well, it’s pretty safe to assume that person is non-binary. Even if you never hear anyone say “This Person Is Non-binary”, you don’t have an excuse to start calling them a he or a she. It’s the same with the kids.

The fact is that Frisk and Kris are no different than other video game protagonists. No one tries to argue that Ninten or Ness or Lucas are girls. No one tries to argue that Samus is a boy. It’s only when the protagonist is non-binary that people try to argue otherwise.

Why?

Some people may ask, well, why is this important? Why can’t I just headcanon them as whatever I want? They’re not even real!

Well, you see, non-binary characters are really rare in fiction. Especially as a protagonist, and especially a human protagonist. When you see a non-binary or genderless character in fiction, it’s usually going to be something non-human, like an alien, or otherwise non-sentient, like a robot. This happens a lot, and it dehumanizes actual non-binary people. Even worse, transgender characters in fiction in general are often treated like jokes, or something to make fun of. Like they’re not even a person.

So, to a non-binary person, to see a non-binary protagonist who’s a human being, like them, is.. very important. It’s something you might not understand if you’ve grown up seeing people like yourself on TV or in games or books all the time. It brings comfort to non-binary people to see someone like themself in such a popular video game. It gives them reassurance that “yes, we do exist”, as many people in the real world deny the existence of non-binary people. In both Undertale and Deltarune, no one makes a big deal of Frisk or Chara or Kris being non-binary. No one ever challenges it. No one ever misgenders them. And that’s incredibly comforting for so many non-binary people. For once, for once, they can be immersed in a world where people like them are unanimously accepted, and treated with respect.

That’s why so many non-binary people feel hurt when they see people in fandom misgendering the kids, as well. It’s a denial of their identities, it’s a denial that non-binary people exist in the Undertale and Deltarune universes. Even though it’s just a fictional character, it can still impact your view of actual non-binary people - if you can’t even respect a fictional character’s pronouns, what does that say about how you treat real people?

In addition, a lot of trans and non-binary people in the Undertale fandom are harassed over this. When they try to defend Kris, Frisk, and Chara’s pronouns, people will inevitably throw hate at them. People who identify with these characters are met with mockery and hostility. Unfortunately, there are transphobic people in the Undertale fandom. Misgendering the kids validates those people. It tells those people, “even if someone uses only they/them pronouns, it’s okay to call them a he or a she.” It tells them, “you’re right to think these people are unreasonable. you’re right to think these people don’t exist.” And that’s wrong. That’s not true at all.

[gaylorswiftvibes]

I am caffeinated and quarantined and ready to lay out all of my thoughts as to why Taylor has yet to come out, the obstacles that will have to be addressed before she comes out, and therefore create a timeline as to when she will come out and what that will look like. I don’t know about all of you, but I find myself constantly questioning why this is all happening. Why has Taylor not come out yet? Why does she purposefully leave so many clues if she doesn't want to come out yet? Does she enjoy making us feel insane like the sick masochist that she is? Why has it felt like she’s about to come out several times but then she backtracks? What’s complicating this process? How long will we have to wait? Over the years, Taylor has enjoyed watching other people attempt to piece together the story about her love life and understand who and what she writes about. However, when she comes out I do think she will want to set the record straight (ha) in as many ways as possible without damaging her reputation or the reputation of anyone with whom she has had any sort of relationship. However, before she can come out, she will need to be in an optimal situation with her masters, the best timing possible for maximum impact and best optics, and Karlie's reputation/life to not be destroyed in the process. 

This MANIFESTO of a blog post does presume several things. 

Taylor Swift and Karlie Kloss are both either bi or gay and both desire to come out publicly at some point.

They had a relationship.

They are likely still together. If not, they are still friends who care about the wellbeing of the other person and they are also in communication about koincidences. 

If they are together, they purposefully made their relationship private to protect both of them (mainly Karlie) and have more control over their public narratives after kissgate and significant public speculation that their "friendship" was something more. 

Karlie's relationship with JK is fake. Their marriage is not legal and there is likely a contract that provides prescriptive guidance for how she publicly portrays and discusses their relationship. This contract was likely made to provide Karlie with career opportunities and to provide JK with a beard- I do not believe that it is directly financial but it could be as well. 

It’s clear that Taylor first started wanting to come out after she had already reached incredible success. It is unclear how this timeline occurred. Was she already out to herself and her family before her career even began? Did she originally intend to remain publicly closeted for her entire career? Did she go through a period of denial about her sexuality? I think the closest thing to answers we have to questions like these are clues within her music. I do believe her motifs of blue, darkness, shade, and secrecy mainly lead back to being closeted while her motifs of gold, sun, daylight, and public affection reference being out and proud. Interpret what you will from her writing and the timeline of her albums. To me, this does point to Taylor originally wanting to remain intensely closeted (hence beards and their massive publicity and the potential for some of those relationships to have been “real”, although this is a conversation for another day), later on wanting to remain quite secretive about her relationships with women, and most recently yearning to not be secretive any longer. It seems like her music points to wanting to come out- so why hasn’t it happened yet?

She knows that coming out is going to generate attention and sales. It would make the most sense that she wants to own her masters at the same time that she comes out. This is a major factor of why we're still waiting and will likely be waiting until the rerecordings come out or she makes a deal to get ownership of the masters. The clues along the way are a way to maintain some level of authenticity, to create buzz, and to create The Story that will undoubtedly one day be highly scrutinized and publicized. I do believe that The Story (as I will be referring to it) has been in the works for quite some time and that Taylor does plan to shed light on it at the time that she comes out. The Story will include as much truth as possible about her relationships. After Miss Americana came out and Lana Wilson insinuated that there is more of her story to tell, I do think it is possible that she will release another documentary alongside her coming out. However, this is pure speculation and an extremely biased view as I personally believe that would be very sexy and cool of her.

Part of this marketing scheme does come off as distasteful, but I do think it's less about her wanting more money and more about her wanting SB to not profit off of this or have any control or say in the message that she wants to communicate. Ultimately, a large piece of this unknown timeline will be revealed before or in November 2020. If they haven't made a deal for Taylor’s ownership by then, I assume she will publicly reveal if she is rerecording and potentially begin to promote her rerecordings. Worth noting, it is my belief that if there is follow through with the rerecordings that they will be copycat records intended to sound as identical as possible. I am hopeful for the "original" versions to come to light one day (I want her midnights and she never loved me deserve premium recordings), but I don't think it would make much financial sense to release these instead of the copycats (we can hope for alongside, but it doesn't seem too likely). At the end of the day, the masters situation will resolve one way or another by the rerecording date.

We should also generally be aware of timing. Taylor is going to want to create maximum distance between her and any direct negativity before she comes out along with any other major events (pandemics, elections, big news stories, etc.). This is definitely the point I will harp on the least, but something to keep in mind if something happens that harms her public image down the line (please god not again). I’ve considered that she may want to keep her coming out to “use” when she starts to get less popular or when society stops “tolerating her being successful”, but I don’t think that will happen anytime soon. I do believe that it will coincide with an album release just because that would be sickening.

This is not to say that once the optimal situation for her masters is obtained, Taylor has no other reason to not come out. It doesn't matter whether she and Karlie are currently still together, The Story includes Karlie in an undeniable way since it is clear that they were in a relationship for a few years at the minimum. I really don't think Taylor would want to come out without being able to address their relationship. However, the narrative would completely depend on if they are still together or not. If they are no longer together, that may be more incentive to consider a possibility of her coming out without addressing Karlie. Since I personally believe they are still together, I will be addressing the potential narratives for Karlie from that perspective. 

One option to consider beforehand is the storyline that Karlie and Taylor were close friends but never together. They each have their own relationships that eventually end for unrelated reasons (meaning eventual JK divorce and oatmilk disappearance), then they rekindle their "friendship" and "start" a relationship around the time that Taylor comes out. I don't like this idea because it, in essence, defeats the purpose of The Story. If this is the time to come clean, be vulnerable, be honest, this is a significant lie to keep. And at the end of the day, the truth is in Taylor's discography. The albums point to a secret relationship, not just pining for a friend or whatever that storyline is.

The way I see it, once The Story is laid out, the two major narrative avenues are decided by claiming whether the Karlie JK relationship was real or not. If the choice is made to support its legitimacy, they could spin this relationship in a number of ways.

They could choose to portray it as on again off again. This would leave a partial timeline open for a relationship with Taylor. They could cite infinite believable reasons for the JK relationship being this way (K*shner/Tr*mp family issues, distance issues, typical relationship issues, etc.). This narrative allows Karlie to not be portrayed as a cheater, JK to not be portrayed as a horrible person that would put a vulnerable 19-year-old at the start of her career in a long-term bearding contract, allows JK’s sexuality to not be questioned, and allows their relationship’s authenticity to go unquestioned. I do think this is the most likely narrative if it is chosen to portray Karlie and JK’s relationship as legitimate even after it ends. After all, Karlie has already stated publicly that they have “been through a lot together” and that “it hasn’t been easy” and they met it 2012 when it was “a different world” (WWHL, January 2020). They could also take the tangential route that they were not exclusive at the beginning of their relationship, but I am not sure when it was definitively publicly confirmed that they were together; although it is confirmed that they met in 2012, they could emphasize that they were friends at first or not exclusive. They were interacting with each other online on a routine basis by 2013. This included them liking each other’s posts, posting pictures of one another, posting the same picture, or posting in the same location (many of these have been proven to be latergrams and don’t seem like natural relationship posting, but that’s beside the point). In June 2015, Karlie posted a photo of them together with a caption wishing him a happy birthday and thanking him for “three years of love and laughs”. However, there was still speculation in the comments at the time over whether they were a couple or close friends. Their engagement was announced in 2018, so there is potential to create a storyline in which JK and Karlie were just friends since 2012, Taylor and Karlie dated, then JK and Karlie dated and married, JK and Karlie divorced, and then Taylor and Karlie got back together. I don’t think this is likely but I think it is worth considering since in hindsight the announcement of their relationship seems to have been kept purposefully vague, specifically when it comes to timeline. Maybe that was intended to keep their maximum options open when considering their likely eventual separation narrative.

They could choose to portray Karlie as someone who cheated on her relationship with JK with Taylor. I do not think this is a likely option as it would damage Karlie’s reputation, although they could attempt to make a sympathetic appeal. Karlie has been "with" JK since she was 19, and I don't think they would purposefully promote the narrative that she cheated on the man that she later married. As I am racking my brain for all possible options, I suppose they could make an appeal that they had an open or polyamorous relationship, but that would be low-key insane considering their largely girl-next-door personas. But hey, you cannot say that I am not thorough and thinking outside the bun.

They could choose the narrative that their relationship was partially authentic and partially inauthentic. They could use the storyline that they “fell out of love” (ha) but chose to remain close friends and not go public with their break up. This is highly unlikely because their “marriage” occurred after her and Taylor were so publicly close. There is also no clear motive for doing this other than bearding so it does call into question JK’s sexuality.

They could also choose to reveal the JK Karlie relationship as fake. However, this would put JK in a difficult position and it’s almost unimaginable that he would be okay with it. I think there is an extremely unlikely possibility that he would want to publicly come out and create some sort of best-friends-mutually-bearding-without-any-contract-narrative. 

So, what are the other options? Well, she could tell (what I believe to be) the truth. She signed a contract in order to boost her modeling career, her marriage wasn't legally legitimate, and they never had an actual relationship. It certainly makes her choices and The Story make sense, but it would have endless ramifications. We have no way of knowing what the contract terms look like. It makes JK look like a terrible person, it puts his sexuality into question, and it makes Karlie look inauthentic (even though she has done a great job of mostly separating him from her public persona). I would genuinely not want to make an enemy out of a Kushner for fear of the safety of myself and my loved ones. It's a scary thing to make an enemy of someone who has so much power that they are virtually above the law. However, if there's anything we learned from the sale of the masters or the call, it's that publicity and public perception changes the options that are on the table. If Karlie and Taylor come out with the full (what I believe to be) truth, the world might see them in the way that most of us see them. Karlie was young, and was taken advantage of, and trapped into something she did not want. They were both struggling with and deciding if/how/when to come out publicly. Taylor was dealing with intense public scrutiny and the sale of her masters. They had no options to be honest about their relationship publicly. This option makes everything known, including their fear of the revenge JK and others might take against them, financially or otherwise. This results in anything they do in revenge receiving public backlash. If we're being honest here, this is my favorite narrative option purely because it's not a narrative; it's the truth. At the end of the day, we all love Taylor and her music and therefore want to know her and understand her on a deeper level. We all want the BRILLIANCE of her closeted writing to be properly admired for what it is. I think we all also want Taylor to feel loved and understood for who she truly is and what she's truly been through. Part of this is going to happen through being as honest as possible.

There is also the issue of oatmilk. Since she has literally never confirmed that they are actually dating (other than the sarcastic “she asked my boyfriend”, and the NME kiss (?)), she could take the route that they were always just friends. From this, should could take credit for the purposeful bearding, say that she just let it happen and let the media interpret their friendship that way and it didn’t bother her, or blame the media for spreading misinformation (which would be annoying because she clearly encouraged it). She could also break them up and legitimize their relationship, but that obviously takes away from the authenticity of her music and story. Either way, I feel like getting rid of oatmilk will be the easiest part of this process.

IN CONCLUSION, there are still many important issues to consider when we wonder why Taylor hasn’t come out yet and we shouldn’t use our impatience as reasoning to say that she is not gay. I believe that all of these issues would have to align or resolve in some way before she comes out. With any luck, it will be with TS8. However, the major wild card to consider is Karlie’s relationship with JK. We truly have no idea what this contract looks like, especially after the predicted end date last year was acknowledged by Karlie (instagram freedom post, seven long years tweet) and then still continued. We can hope that the public separation has been outlined in her renewal or that she would be safe in an exposé process, but nothing is certain. Ultimately, we all want the both of them to be happy and feel loved and appreciated for who they truly are, and to have control over the narrative they want.

Fuckin hell this is way too long but feel free to DM me with any questions because I clearly have too much time on my hands!! Peace and blessings

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

Fawley Family - History, Head-canons, and other stuff

I’ve been delaying this post for far too long, so let’s talk about the Fawleys. This will not be canon to Remembrance, (Though I might mention spoilers from the fic, so be warned.) as I’m working on a Ravenclaw AU for Luca (Spelled “Luka” in this timeline.)  that is as of yet going to remain unfinished because I want to know the full story of HPHM before I finish it - Mainly concerning Rakepick and R.

Politics 

So, The Fawleys are part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. I’m inclined to think they don’t really care about their status in the Pureblood Directory, even though it’s an inherently racist document. As opposed to the Malfoys, who pride themselves on their inclusion, and the Weasleys, who can’t stand that they were put in. The Fawleys have never properly declared for one side of history or another. They never supported the Death Eaters, but they also didn’t join the Order of the Phoenix. They’ve never been hostile or dismissive to muggles, but they also mingle with the more racist pure-blood families. They keep their options open, and as a result, most people tend to enjoy their company, but don’t fully trust them. It helped that they were usually sorted into Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff, and were therefore able to keep out of the school-age rivalry between the Lions and the Snakes.

Reputation

Of course, The Fawleys aren’t entirely popular either. People tend to avoid them in general, particularly if they’re superstitious and believe in things like the Grimm. This is because, for countless generations, The Fawley Family has been...well, there’s no simpler way to put it, than horribly unlucky. Misfortune seems to follow them wherever they go. It doesn’t usually affect those close to them too directly, although it can. Fawleys are known for madness, as a great number of them go off the deep end over time, even if there were no warnings signs. Far too many have committed suicide. The history of this family is a trail of blood and tears. People have noticed over time, and rumors grew that the family is cursed...and they actually are not wrong. A curse does indeed live in the blood of the Fawleys, and is unfortunately passed down genetically. It doesn’t strictly cause bad luck or anything, but the rumors are still true. 

Lineage

Being one of the oldest pure-blood families in the U.K, they can trace their heritage back hundreds of years. The oldest notes about the family tree suggest that the children of Merlin and Morgan Le Fay, were in fact the Fawley’s original ancestors. There is no way to verify this, of course, and unlike some of the more pompous Wizarding families, they see no need to parade it or make any claims. If it’s true, great. If not, whatever. (In my head, this rumor is definitely true, but it doesn’t change much about them either way. It’s just fun to think about.) On the other hand, it seems to be fact that many generations of the Fawleys were hunters who lived in the woodland and caught their food, sometimes doing odd jobs for hire - this is where the name Fawley (roughly translating to “fowl”) comes from. 

Signature

Several pure-blood families have some kind of motto or sigil. The Malfoys and the Blacks both have a crest, and the Fawleys do too. You might be expecting a bird, but this is not the case. During the War of the Roses, the Yorkshire muggles received some unexpected help from mysterious advisors, who became infamous for their abilities to control people and arrange the deaths of enemy soldiers before they even set foot in battle. Many were grateful for the aid, others voiced doubt, fearing and mistrusting the advisors. They seemed to vanish after the wars ended, having earned the nickname, “The Black Roses.” Sometimes derisively, sometimes approvingly, depending upon who was asked. Within the Wizarding community, however, the Fawleys never hid that they and some of their closest friends had been the Black Roses. It became their symbol.

Darkness 

As stated, the Fawleys have never been Anti-Muggle, not have they favored blood supremacy. But whether or not they stand against the Dark Arts tends to vary between the generations - the Black Roses definitely used dark magic in their efforts, for example. Rarely do any of them go full-out and cross to the dark side. Most of them favor unicorn wands. Rarely do any of them turn completely evil. But a wizard who can employ both light and dark magic is a versatile one, which is advantageous in multiple ways, particularly when it comes to exploring magic itself. What is consistent across centuries of the family is that they like to experiment, they push the study of magic to it’s limits. Some of them became spell inventors. Others travel all over the world in pursuit of greater powers and secrets. More than once, a Fawley has gone off the grid and simply disappeared, never to be heard from again. 

Friendships

The Sacred Twenty-Eight is composed of the core families that often inter-marry, either due to coincidence or to intentionally keep the blood pure. In the Fawleys case, it was the former. There was no rule about avoiding marriages to Half-bloods and Muggles, and sometimes these would even happen - but the number of premature deaths that occurred in this family unfortunately cut off any branches that might have formed. Most consistently, the Fawleys seemed to associate with the Burkes, the Greengrass’s, and especially the Blacks. They had a consistent, ongoing friendship and occasional rivalry with the Black family. They would explore the boundaries of magic together. Sometimes they would be mortal enemies, at others they would protect each other. Many Fawley-Black marriages occurred, and present day, Tonks is distantly related to Luka and Gail. 

Abilities 

The Fawleys have frequently become Healers and either worked at St. Mungos or started smaller practices and apothecaries of their own. Some say this tendency to heal is born of the anguish the family regularly faces. After all, many say the kindest people are those who have suffered the most. Others say that learning these skills became a necessity with how many tragedies there were. But regardless, they usually have talent in the Healing Arts. Typically a Fawley will be gifted in either Charms, Potions, Herbology, or some combination of the three. They are also natural fliers, despite having little interest in Quidditch itself, most of them know their way around a broom. On an unrelated note, I like to imagine the Fawleys, ever-neutral, generally keep themselves out of Quidditch culture, but would be fans of the Montrose Magpies. Finally, we know from canon that MC and Jacob are Legilimens’, so I’d say natural talent toward this magic runs in the family.

Home 

In the Remembrance timeline, the Fawleys live in a small cottage off the coast of a place called Dulcimer Beach, always cloudy and with black sands. However, I like to imagine that at least one branch of the Fawley family grew up in Godric’s Hollow, perhaps just outside the cemetery. I don’t know, there’s something about growing up literally next to a graveyard, that kinda suits them in my opinion. Plus. the whole idea of them being nearby when James and Lily died, even if they weren’t at all connected to it. Not sure where I’ll put the twins in the AU, I might have each of them in one of these two places. All I know is, they have a garden with a bed of black roses, that have magical properties and are used in their potion making. 

The Curse

If the Fawleys have one fatal flaw, that is consistent across the vast majority of them...it’s curiosity. This is why they’re usually in Ravenclaw. It’s why Jacob went after the vaults.They don’t thirst for knowledge but when presented with the idea of a secret they don’t know...they want to know it. This family has done terrible things over the years in their journey to learn the darkest secrets imaginable. They don’t crave power, they just want to see how powerful they can actually become. While they often use that power for good...it always comes with a price. The Curse...was their own doing. Despite spreading rumors that it was the Fault of the Blacks, the Fawleys placed the curse in their blood on themselves, centuries ago. Present day, the current inheritors of the curse don’t even know this to be true. 

Heirlooms 

Just one. A set of thick, fur-lined robes that are white and lined with black, as well as having a black rose emblazoned on the side, usually concealed when the robes are bundled up. Supposedly, these belonged to one of the “Black Roses” but there’s no way to know if that’s true. They could have been made years later, as a simple reference. But Luka’s father Arik had them, and his father before him. Other than that...I suppose there is the Wizard’s Chess set that they have? But it’s only a couple of generations old. 

The Cabal

I’ll get straight to the point. No matter what R winds up being, no matter who they are or what they want, my personal theory or head-canon is that MC’s family has been connected to them, or at least to the Cursed Vaults, for longer than we initially thought. That Jacob and MC being sought out by them was no accident or coincidence. I believe the Fawleys are deeply involved with the Cabal, and have been all along, perhaps going back many generations. Perhaps Dumbledore or the Aurors already know this, and simply keep it from MC. This could also play in to how they never sided with the Death Eaters or The Order - they already had a faction they had pledged loyalty to. 

Miscellaneous 

I’ve always pictured them as Iranian, at least for the past several generations. I also think having twins is not unusual for them, since it seems to happen more consistently in certain families. However, still-born babies and miscarriages, not to mention infertility, are all the more common. As for family traits, I see the Fawleys typically having large dark brown eyes, thicker, longer hair, and smaller, button-like noses. Luka is lactose intolerant, Gail is dyslexic. As I alluded to, they love Wizard’s Chess and probably don’t like Gobstones very much. They generally don’t believe in superstitions and many will claim the Fawley Curse is a hoax, even if they know this not to be true. I also have always imagined them as being Jewish, and if I ever write a reboot fanfic of the Ravenclaw AU, I’d like to incorporate that into the story more. 

Damn if you actually read all of my nonsense you deserve a cookie ☺️ If there are any questions about the Fawleys or head-canons for your own OC's family, please share them!

[battlestar-royco]

Let’s settle this once and for all: are the Illyrians MOC?

So, in writing the answer to this ask, I FINALLY put two and two together on something: another reason why SJ/M’s constant use of “golden-brown” to describe the I/llyrians doesn’t sit right is because that’s literally the only indication that they are MOC. Looking at fan art, it’s clear that some artists are going for a non-white skin tone. If so, then why don’t they look like MOC? Why is there so much contention and confusion around whether or not these men are white? I have been subconsciously baffled by this phenomenon for years, since AC0MAF came out in 2016. I don’t know why this took me so long to conclude, because people have been essentially saying the same thing about POC in SJ/M’s books since AC0MAF dropped, but here is the reason: in both the books and the art, their complexion is the only thing that indicates they are MOC. There’s a lot, as they say, to unpack here. This is gonna get long (seriously, RIP to your thumbs. I promise it’s half photos). Snip.

The Golden-Brown Suitcase

So. We have descriptions such as these (all emphasis mine; special thanks to @longsightmyth​ for pulling many quotes and citations!)...

1. about C/assian and A/zriel: “Like their High Lord, the males---warriors---were dark-haired, tan-skinned. But unlike Rhys, their eyes were hazel...”  (AC0MAF, pg. 140 B&N ebook).

2. “Cassian surveyed Rhys from head to foot, his shoulder-length black hair shifting with the movement” (140).

3. about A/zriel: “But the second male, the more classically beautiful of the two... Even the light shied from the elegant planes of his face” (140).

4. “I could have sworn Rhys’s golden-brown skin paled” (AC0WAR, pg. 223 Kindle edition).

5. “Color bloomed high on Azriel’s golden-brown cheeks” (254).

6. “I tried to catch Cassian’s gaze, but he was monitoring them closely, his golden-brown skin unnaturally pale” (280).

7. “But Nesta’s pale fingers gently probed his golden-brown skin” (514).

... spawning fan art en masse like this:

art courtesy: x x x

What’s wrong with this (these) picture(s)? They are white men with the complexions of MOC. The fandom (and thus artists) have nothing but “golden-brown” (a term that is notably introduced in AC0WAR, one installment after the I/llyrians first appear) to go on, so they default to imagining the I/llyrians as tanned Henry Cavill, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Viggo Mortensen types. You could simply lighten the value of the above artworks (but please DO NOT do this) and have white men. THIS is why, despite the golden-brown descriptor and the Darker-Than-Fayre skin tones in the fandom art, there is so much debate and confusion around whether or not the I/llyrians are MOC. Golden-brown skin with straight black hair, straight noses, and round light eyes do not a man of color make. Why not? Because “golden-brown” is a very nebulous term that can apply to countless skin tones and ethnicities. Some examples (... your THUMBS I’m so sorry slafajklsk):

^ Indian,

^ Mexican,

^ Guatemalan,

^ Hawaiian,

^ Afro-Caribbean,

^ and Filipino. For starters.

Now, why is it that upon first glance, you can tell that all the men in these photos are not white? Because race is constructed such that we can immediately identify it, whether subconsciously or consciously. We’re socially conditioned to recognize this in other people and immediately ascribe our own perception of their race and ethnicity onto them. Not only can you tell they are not white, but you also have a ballpark idea of where in the world they are from. Note the wide variance in thickness and texture of hair (head, facial, and body); the cool and warm undertones that change by the person; the wide, ridged, and/or downturned noses; eye shape, body type etc. So why can’t we put a finger on what the I/llyrians are supposed to look like as MOC? Why do so many people perceive them as white? Because SJ/M has no target ethnicity for the I/llyrians, meaning that they have no clarifying features to imply one specific ethnic background in the text or fan art. All we know for sure about the I/llyrians is that they are dark-haired, darker complected than the A/rcheron sisters, and they pale and blush. Vagueness regarding race always causes fandom to default to white, thus the general “tan white dudes” interpretation of the I/llyrians.

The Illyrian Suitcase

We’ve now come across another suitcase within this entire I/llyrian Ethnicity Moving Truck of stuff we need to unpack: the smidge of evidence that the I/llyrians are inspired by somewhere in the MENA region. Given the harem pants and henna-reminiscent tattoos that appear in the Nite Court, plus the mosques and clothing that appear in fandom edits and art, general “MENA” may be the closest approximation to I/llyrian ethnicity. However, the problems snowball from here.

1. The MENA label is far too general to treat as one single race/ethnicity. General fandom perception/depiction of I/llyrians does not nearly encompass the multitude of appearances someone could have if they are from the MENA region. Harem pants and henna are used in multiple countries, so it is impossible to pin down a non-monolithic appearance with just the Nite Court attire and “golden-brown” description.

2. The Nite Court and the I/llyrians are two separate entities. Not all V/elaris residents are I/llyrian, not all Nite courtiers are I/llyrian, and not even all Inner Circle members are I/llyrian. Therefore, we cannot conflate the Nite clothing and tattoos with I/llyrian culture.

3. This leads me to my next point: we still have white and non-I/llyrian characters wearing harem pants and tattoos. Fayre, M0r, and A/mren’s attire is not culturally meaningful to the Nite Court. It also clashes with sweaters and leggings, dresses made of chiffon, bell sleeves, and Elie Saab-reminiscent designs (ie Starfall, Court of Nightmares). Thus, the attire loses all internal consistency and meaning beyond the mood SJ/M wishes to set for a given scene, making the implication that their outerwear is meant to be sexy or aesthetic rather than culturally significant.

4. The I/llyrians as a race of POC meaninglessly perpetuate stereotypes. Granted, sexism exists in high fae society (ie Fayre being paraded as “Rice’s whore” in the CoN, M/or being treated as a commodity and broodmare, the lack of High Ladies), so the misogyny and violence against women are not unique to I/llyrians. We also get more than one I/llyrian main character, so they are not a complete monolith. But there are still issues. One, the I/llyrians are oppressed by the high fae. It is well documented that the high fae are the dominant race and look down upon lesser fae. This dichotomy has yet to be unpacked by SJ/M. Two, I/llyrian women are oppressed by I/llyrian men (wing-cutting, commodification, gender roles, etc). There are absolutely zero fleshed out I/llyrian women, so the only information we have about their experience and existence is through Fayre’s eyes and Rice’s word. This framing is white feminist at best, white savior-y at worst. Three, we only know I/llyrians who have assimilated into high fae culture. Rice, the High Lord, is half high fae and half I/llyrian. Only he and his friends, I/llyrians who have been “elevated” from bastard/oppressed I/llyrian status, know better than the other more “savage” I/llyrians. Coincidence? I think not.

The Lucien Suitcase

All this gets even more confusing when you consider the fact that SJ/M uses “golden-brown” as a blanket non-white coding tool. In the T0G series, at LEAST the following characters are described as golden-brown: S/artaq (T0D, pg. 345 Kindle edition), Nesrin (K0A, 180), and Irene (403). In AC0WAR, at LEAST the following are described as golden-brown: the I/llyrians, Vassa (685), and L/ucien (183, 302, 456). Our best approximation is that S/artaq and Nesrin are South Asian given their southern continent origin, Irene is part-black given her E/yllwe father, Vassa is... golden brown, and L/ucien is part black and part white. The term is used so frequently that it is meaningless as an indicator for race. We’ve again found the golden-brown suitcase, which in SJ/M’s novels encases allll the aforementioned ethnicities and more. Again, this causes very anglicized and/or inconsistent looks to pop up in fan art:

x

x

x

Conclusion

it seems that the I/llyrians are MOC, based on the fact that they and other POC are frequently described as “golden-brown.” That said, the golden-brown descriptor is not enough. The I/llyrians do not serve their purpose as representative characters because they are not easily identifiable to their target demographic, nor are they a positive representation. In a social context where we are so trained to recognize these things, explicit media representation is much preferred, if not necessary. It is the reader’s prerogative---namely, non-white readers’ prerogative---to interpret these characters how they wish. We’d be unpacking a whole other house if we were to go into the meaning behind L/ucien as a black man, Irene as a black woman, Nesrin as South Asian, etc, and that is for another day. Thanks so much for reading all this way if you got this far. I know I’m extra, sorry. The creative writing/women’s and gender studies major jumped out lmao. My inbox is always open if you want to parse that out or if you have any further questions!

[darkestwolfx]

Tumblr Ask #2

Here we go! This is the completed ask that I have been meaning to post for ages.

So, I am currently absolutely shattered (and still running on coffee with all my posts uploading on scheduled times without me), but it’s proving to be completely worth while. Due to the lack of pollutants and people at the moment, we’ve already seen a slight improvement in conditions for Arctic Wolves - hooray! But guess who gets to be stuck here typing it all up? Yeah, right now I wish I was the one in Greenland, even though Monday I definitely remember saying the opposite. So yeah, At the moment, I’m spending a lot of time writing like an academic, so, please, please, please feel free to throw as many fun tasks into my ask/message box as you like!

Anyhow, anonymous asked for stars, and didn’t specify a single one, so I’m assuming you wanted the whole block? That is what I’ve done anyhow. Enjoy learning more about me!

Stars: Experiences;

Sun: Have you ever had alcohol? I’ve had champagne. A friend bought me the bottle for my 21st which also coincided with the completion of my dissertation. Other than that, I don’t drink alcohol. I’ve never really taken to it. I was always the person driving as well, or looking out for everyone else which didn’t bother me so… yeah. I’m not a drinker really.

Sirius: Have you ever failed a class? Yes. I am not claiming to be perfect! I failed art at year 9 level (I still say that was because it is subjective not objective) so in the UK that technically doesn’t go on any records. On paper I have failed chemistry (just) and German. I still maintain that I had a really poor teacher (they used google translate in lessons), because I learnt Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic and Greek without any issues. I’m still working on French – I know enough, I’m just not really fluent with it.

Rigel: Have you ever gone on a rollercoaster? Yes, and they terrify the life out of me! Believe it or not, I’m not keen on planes, for all I’ve traveled and rollercoasters reminded me of the same feeling. Theme parks all in all just aren’t really me. My best friend loves them, and she loves taking me to them because I become the ‘hold my stuff and sit on that bench to wait for me’ person. It’s a good deal for me, because she pays for the outing. Chips and treats all day for one day, it’s good, better than the rollercoasters.

Deneb: Have you ever been out of your home country?  Yes, yes, and yes. How long do you have? I’ve probably been out of the UK enough times already for my lifetime! At the moment I’m not planning any more journeys, but some of my past ones haven’t been expressly planned. Best to do these things whilst you’re young though right? My Grandma never traveled much and always gave me that as a piece of advice and I have definitely listened. Also, because some of them were work based trips, I got to claim expenses! Although, actually that isn’t as fun as it sounds… Anyhow, I have been to Brazil, technically Peru and Colombia though most of that was within the Amazon Rainforest, and Venezuela. I’ve also technically stepped foot in Chile and Argentina, but not long enough (in my opinion) to really say I’ve been there, just on a stopover journey. I’ve been to New York, once. That is my limit of America – really need to get there a bit more. I’ve never been to Asia. I’ve been to quite a lot of Europe; Spain, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Prague (seriously beautiful place, go there people), Norway, to the south of the North Pole (a little village, I can’t remember the name of, but they call it the home of Santa, and it’s the closest you can get to the North Pole before you lose civilisation), and Greenland – totally recommend, lovely, lovely place – not to mention the Arctic Wolves! Seriously though, if the get the chance, travel whilst you can.

Arcturus: Have you cried out of something other than sadness? Goodness yes. I’ve cried sometimes without even really knowing why I’m crying! I’ve come to the conclusion that we’re best to let things happen if they need to. Our bodies know more than we do at times I believe.

Betelgeuse: What’s something you can never forget about?  There’s a bit of a list here really as I’ve had the chance to see some absolutely amazing things. I would say the Northern Lights are definitely up there. Another would be toucans out in the Amazon. The people there have taken to raising a bunch of them to help them keep adapting. They’ll sit on your shoulder and eat berries out of your hand, it’s so amazing. I’ve got a photo as well, so it’s impossible to forget about it really.

Aldebaran: What’s something you care desperately about? Probably the obvious one by now, but the planet and its wildlife, after all, it’s my long-term career. Other than that, my eyesight – so that I can continue to see the wonders of the world, document and research them.

Canopus: Have you ever broken a bone? Yes. I broke my ankle when I was eighteen, and I broke my hand whilst I was in the Rainforest. Long story, very long story and the locals found it absolutely hilarious. All I’m going to say is that the children were teaching me a new game… that is all I am saying! That full story is staying in the Amazon, thank you very much!

Bellatrix: Have you ever been forced to lie/keep a secret? No actually. Not forced to. I’ve been pulled into the little games of ‘keep this secret from so and so’, but never actually anything serious.

Alphard: Have you ever lost a friend? Yes, sadly. Jamie. Great guy. He committed suicide (which might now make more sense as to why I’m always picking out mental health references, especially towards men) whilst I was in the Rainforest last year. My friends kindly took me to the funeral via Skype – not the most formal of ways to attend a funeral, but I have a feeling Jamie would have really liked that. Still, and I know I couldn’t have changed anything, but it was the one part of my trip that made me wish I was home. Although, it was another part of my trip which made me love the community I was staying with even more. They were great and really lovely people. Before I left for the Rainforest, a lot of people were warning me about all the reports of worst case scenario events which they’d heard about, but actually being there, I found little founded truth in some of them. The majority of people I met were genuinely lovely (and they threw me a really nice birthday party as well).

Anyhow, that answer went a little off topic, so let’s move onto the last one.

Vega: What’s something you’ve done that you wish you hadn’t? Oohh… tricky one. Um… I mean I’m sure there is something, it’s just taking me a lot of time to think of something, and so I am resorting to typing whilst I think to see if something comes to me… um… No. I’ve got nothing coming to me. You know what, if anything does, I will update this post.

[darkzeruda1214]

The Destiny Trio as Pokemon Trainers??

Oh… whoa,

Sorry. That was one of the most random questions I’ve ever gotten. But at the same time really interesting. I do like Pokemon, I grew up watching the show when I was younger. And still a fan of the show and games today.

Now I won’t deny that your question left me thinking. What kind of Pokemon would the Kingdom Hearts characters would have. I’m not 100 percent sure what Pokemon team the characters would have. But I’ll give it my best shot

Now I will have to modify your question and might split it into three parts (for the three trios) if I ever get back to going on it. Not sure if I’d be able to write it for organization XIII (Or the Disney characters... I’m sorry, but Disney and FF characters will have to strictly stay out of this one). 

I don’t think all the KH character would all get a full team, but I’ll try to think more into it.

However, I do believe that they would all get at least 3 Pokemon with them. (But again I do have a hypothetical team for all the trios) But for now I will only focus on the Destiny Trio and a brief explanation as to why I gave these Pokemon to them alone.

I did make a couple of ground rules before I started, one being, that neither of the characters would share the same Pokemon, regardless if one is evolved and the other is still in the first stage or so.

So let’s say I gave Sora a Gardevoir and Riku a Gallade. Since they are both from the same Pokemon line, regardless of different evolutions and are of different genders, they would counteract with each other (and while it would make sense, make the challenge way too easy). So I would cancel that.  

Also, like I said I gave myself a challenge, so there are no starters. And absolutely. No. Legendaries.

*But since region starters are a primary Pokemon that every trainer has to get at first, I decided to add a “hypothetical case” if I were to give them a starter. (And as an added bonus, each starter has to be a different type, so if I give character B a fire type, character A and C must be EITHER water or grass). Just an extra challenge for me.

Also, one Eeveelution since Eevee has the ability to change it’s type when it evolves. And I think everyone has a special type of personality that would fit them well with a certain element.

Also I’m strictly sticking with Gens 1-7, since Pokemon Sword and Shield hasn’t been released when I wrote this.

With that said were we go with the Destiny!

...

Sora

Starting with the one and only protagonist in the majority of the titles, I think it’s only natural I only start with our little cinnamon bun. His type of Pokemon team was a little tricky to come up with considering his easy going personality. But I think I managed to get a stable kind of team. I don’t think realistically he would be very balanced out in types, but since I based the type of Pokemon they get from personality his a little balanced here.

So the main three Pokemon he could possibly have would be:

Eevee

Klefki

Litleo

Okay. Okay. I know I said Eevee was a hypothetical case for everyone, but I’m gonna have the bend the rule slightly once because of the reason behind it. Now as far as why I gave him these three is simple. As for Eevee’s case, since the beginning of the game Sora has been rather classified as this “normal boy.” As stated by Xehanort, mentioned in KH1 and even by Nomura himself. He was just a normal boy so people would be able to relate to him.

So Naturally Eevee stuck with me (not because his hair and Eevee look pretty similar in a sense) but also because Eevee is known as the evolution Pokemon. And as you all know, Eevee can evolve into any Pokemon type (currently only 9 types at the moment when I wrote this analysis). And Sora has shown time and time again to shape his own destiny by his own hand and choices. Despite being that “dull, ordinary boy.” So to me Eevee was the best option.

Again, I know I wasn’t going to add Eevee other than a Hypothetical Pokemon, but I think Sora earned the spot to be the exception because of what kind of character he’s portrayed as.

Now as for Klefki, the answer is obvious. Sora’s the first character to show that he has a Keyblade when the games first came to existence. And while Klefki isn’t exactly one of the most strongest Pokemon it is a good support Pokemon. And to me that really “speaks Sora” because of “his friends are his power” and how much he supports his own friends.

So maybe not a powerhouse, it still speak reflects Sora’s character.

Litleo has a few reasons why he’s on Sora’s team, and namely because of a certain Pride Lands exploration. But also just in general because I’ve always seen Sora having fire as favorite magic spell. So naturally fire would be a good Pokemon type for him. (Also it doesn’t help that in monster’s inc he’s a cat-based monster and the Simba summon is fire based, so...)

Now as for the rest of his team in this hypothetical case scenario:

Lucario (He’s a fighting steal type, which also reflects on Sora’s character and Keyblade)

Pidgeot (His name means sky in Japanese, it would be criminal for not for me to give him a flying type. But also I think Sora would like to have a Pokemon to fly once in a while and I think Pidgeot fit’s the glove)

Lapras (A certain Atlantica incident inspired this one. But also Lapras is shown to be large enough to carry it’s trainer across water. And in a sense that would also be Sora since he doesn’t have trouble to carry extra weight to help his friends) Also Lapras is adorable and so is Sora.

(The starter I think he would more likely get would be Charizard) (And he already has normal Eevee, so…)  

…

Riku

This one was a bit of challenge for me to figure out, but in the end I managed to get something in. I’m not 100 percent happy with this team, so if you might think that there are other Pokemon who fits him better, I understand why, but this is what I got.

The main three he would call upon the most would be:  

Zoroark

Lycanroc (dusk form)

Aegislash

These three Pokemon spoke a small little story to me when I put them in that specific order.

Zoroark was the first Pokemon that came to mind when I thought about Riku’s team. The majority of the time we see Riku’s he’s struggling or is using darkness to help him win his fights or get an advantage. So there’s no way I wouldn’t give him a dark type I think Zoroark made the most sense. Not because it’s solely a dark type, but also because it’s an illusion fox.

And while not cannon to the game (at least to my knowledge) the anime has shown that Zoroark has the ability to transform into people. And to other Pokemon. And that’s what happened to Riku, whether he wanted to or not, when he used the powers of darkness Riku turned into Ansem seeker of Darkness. And to me that spoke a nice Pokemon for Riku to have on his team.  

Now as for Lycanroc (more specifically dusk form), Riku also came off to me as this “lone wolf” kind of character. And yeah sure there is Mightyena, and let’s not forget Lycanroc’s midnight form. I felt that while Riku did have darkness, it’s not too much to the point his entire team would be all dark types. And so we get to dusk form, for one the reason I gave him Lycanroc is because it’s a rock type which coincides with his name. Because Riku means land.

And while I do like the midday form, since it looks more a like a wolf, the Midnight form suited his style more. But at the same time, I didn’t want his team to solely reliant at the night. And so we have his dusk form. And Dusk Lycanroc speaks a lot of Riku’s transition from the darkness to the light. Because he chose neither light nor dark. But the road to dawn. Which to me felt like a mixture of both. (Heck his Keyblade is called “Way to Dawn” which has a combination of both light and darkness) And closest we got to in between was Dusk form. So I think it worked the best.

(Also Riku spent a good amount of time in Twilight Town, so…)

When it came to Aegislash, I will admit that it could be either one of the evolutions. But knowing Riku he would want to max out his entire team to reflect his strength. So the conclusion why I came to Aegislash is to continue the story, when he first started out as darkness, he soon came to the light but was still influenced by his past. So when he finally overcame that he started to fight against it and for what is right. And to me, I think the best way to demonstrate that was Aegislash because it’s a sword. And normally when I think of a fighter of good, I normally (stereotypically) think of a knight in shining armor. And the Pokemon that fit the category the best was Aegislash. And to me it finishes the story of Riku’s arc in Kingdom Hearts (or in this case, in the AU Pokemon)  

For the rest of his team, well might not be the best choice I figured it could be like this:

Gyarados (Gyarados is a Pokemon of both intimidation and hard work, in order to get Gyarados, either you have to beat it, or struggle to evolve a Magikarp. And Riku fit’s that bill pretty good IMO. Also Riku can be intimating if he wanted to).

Garchomp (This is mostly because I feel like Riku would have a dragon type, I know Salamence might be a choice. But I think Garchomp eased into the role mostly because of it’s design as well as being a ground type, again fitting to Riku’s name)

Sawk (Okay… I’m not going to lie, I’m not 100 percent sure about Sawk. There are other Pokemon that fit’s the fighter type better. And since Riku is a fighter, I wanted to give Riku a fighting type. In the end I just chose Sawk because of it’s color design, because Riku wear predominantly blue in KH3)

(The starter I think he would most likely get is Greninja) (Eevee would no doubt be Umbreon)

…

Kairi

Kairi was sorta like Riku, a little difficult to decide, as many of the Pokemon I thought would be nice also seemed… too redundant. I tried to limit the amount of Fairy types since that’s the closest we’ll get to a light type in Pokemon. But since Kairi is a princess of Heart naturally she would have more light compared to others.  (I wouldn’t be surprised if she had an all out Fairy team, but again I needed to give her something a little more realistic).  

So in the end I thought her main three would be:

Floette

Milotic

Meowstic  

The reason I didn’t go for Florges is mainly because I think Kairi would care little to evolve her Pokemon for power. I can see her be a bit of a strategist and Floette could provide a good amount of advantages. Also biggest reason I gave Floette, because one: Fairy type. And two, it’s a flower which goes pretty well with her Keyblade.

Milotic was sorta an easy pick because of Kairi’s name meaning ocean. And Milotic is a really pretty Pokemon. I can easily imagine Kairi wanting to join showcases or Pokemon Contests. And just in general it could also represent Kairi and the sign of strength. Despite not looking much, she can grow into something much more than just something simple and dull. (Though… it’s debatable after what happened in kh3... But that’s not the point right now!)    

As for Meowstic, it doesn’t really matter what gender Kairi would get, because I sincerely doubt she would care about that. But I think the female version would be more likely on her team, knowing how it’s typically girls with girls sort of deal. But beyond that, the reason I gave her Meowsitc has to be because it’s a psychic type. For as much as I can tell Kairi has been surrounded in and has magic, and the closest we’ll get to a magic type is psychic type. And while I know there are other Psychics that fill the role. I think Meowstic isn’t too much of a bad choice. That and it’s a cat, and there is a theory that Kairi is a chirithy just like Riku is a dream eater for Sora. So, I use that to help choose her Pokemon.

I think Kairi would definitely have the least amount of Pokemon compared to everyone else. But hypothetically for a full team, I thought this would work:

Ninetales (Alola version) (during my gameplay I noticed that Kairi used a lot of ice spells, so I figured that might be her favorite element in magic. That and Ninetales is really pretty in design and I figured it would be a nice addition on Kairi’s team).

Emolga (The biggest reason? Emolga is freaken adorable, and I know Kairi would have other cute Pokemon, that and it doesn’t evolve, which… sorta fit’s Kairi… but also I think Kairi would be interesting to see Kairi have an electric type that isn‘t Pikachu) that and I think someone else would more likely have Pikachu on their team 

Arcanine (I’m sorry, but no one can tell me otherwise that Kairi would not have a fire type. Despite her nature she has shown to be feisty and can get riled up. And honestly I wanted to give Kairi a Pokemon that does look pretty strong since the rest of her team has an appearance of fragility ~even though the Pokemon themselves aren’t~ I wanted to give her something that would show her fighting spirit too)

(The starter I think she would most likely get is Chikorita, unlike the others I don‘t think she would evolves hers. At least not beyond Bayleef, I feel like Chikorita would be comfortable being in it‘s first stage).

*The other starter that I feel would suit her as well is Fennekin. But her Keyblade is mostly flowers so I felt the grass type held a little more influence in what starter she would get

(I’d be an idiot to not give her a Sylveon)

...

And that’s pretty much it, I actually had a lot of fun writing this, and honestly I think I might do the others to. Also, please consider that this was done for fun and not meant to be taken seriously. I understand that others will have different views and opinions. And that’s totally fine, I see no harm in it at all. In fact I’m really curious,

What Pokemon teams do you think these character would have? I’d love to see what you all have in mind

That’s all for now, thanks for reading

[relaxedreptile]

Lucid

A/N: Believe it or not, this ended up way shorter than I wanted it to, I cut myself short. I’m curious to hear your guys’ thoughts, how do you feel about me writing (much) longer one-shots?

Sweet dreams.

Sleep paralysis was a nasty thing.

You couldn’t move, you felt like you were suffocating and the worst part of it all was the fact that you couldn’t snap out of it.

You had seen jokes and scary stories about other people’s similar experiences on the internet but you hadn’t had anything of your own to add until recently. You had tried “cures” you found on the internet to stop them and when that didn’t work you did your best to try and “control” what was going on. Wiggling your toes, scrunching your forehead, every muscle movement you could manage felt like an accomplishment.

You had gone to bed earlier than usual, the lack of sleep finally catching up to you. Your eyes had popped open of their accord after what couldn’t have been more than a half hour, but weren’t met with the usual view of your closet doors.

You went to turn your head out of instinct and were caught off guard by how your body listened to you without restraint. Not only could you wiggle your toes but you could bend your legs, lick your lips and sit up completely in your bed, the only familiar thing about this situation.

You sat up, kicking off your covers in the process, squinting in the dark to pick out any other details.

After a little bit of adjusting, your eyes picked up on a lump about five feet away from you on a bed of its own. 

You grabbed a pillow off of your bed in defense and considered your options.

This could go one of three ways.

You could walk over to the second bed and be killed by a demon with octopus legs and black vines spouting out of its mouth.

You could shout at it and possibly scare away the beautiful celebrity who was going to sing you back to sleep.

You could poke it, throw something at it, or nudge it with your toe and hope that whatever it was, is nice.

What’s the worst that could happen? It was just a dream.

You tossed your pillow and held your breath as it made contact with the lump.

A sigh of relief left your lips as a human groan left the lump’s.

“Jeongin…We don’t have anything today… let me sleep,” the lump whined.

You wanted to get its attention but weren’t really interested in throwing another pillow so you settled on responding with, “I’m not Jeongin.”

The figure visibly froze under their sheets and you watched as they rolled over to their left side to face you.

Even in the darkness your eyes picked up on the shock of black hair peaking out from underneath the covers, you admired its contrast between the crisp, white sheets.

You sat up in your bed and tried to look the least threatening as possible, you knew how freaked out you were when you woke up in this place alone, you didn’t want to be an asshole and stare at your counterpart as they woke up, even if this was just a dream.

“Are you going to kill me?”

Your chin pushed back into your neck slightly and your eyebrows tried to meet in the middle, if whoever this person was would actually look at you, they would probably laugh at your confused face.

“Why would I do that?”

It probably wasn’t the answer they wanted but you didn’t really get why you would kill someone in your own dream, especially when you felt more conscious than you ever had.

This almost felt real.

The person pulled their protective blanket down so that their head peaked out from the top.

They had a gentle face. Squishy cheeks, big eyes, soft but distinct features.

“Uh, hi there.”

The fear didn’t leave the dark eyes a few feet away from you.

After you told them your name, a bit of interest joined the fear in their eyes and obviously took over in their brain judging by the way they sat up in their bed to match you but kept one of the blankets wrapped around their shoulders.

The build made you think whoever this was was a boy close to your own age. Straight shoulders, a present Adam’s apple, and the boxers he must’ve forgotten that he wore to bed were kind of a giveaway and it matched the deeper, sleep-ridden voice you were presented with earlier.

“Hey,” he whispered before clearing his throat and continuing with, “I’m Jisung.”

Your feet didn’t touch the ground with the way you were positioned on the bed and you watched as they swung back and forth.

“So, why are you in my dream?”

Your head snapped up.

“Your dream?” You asked.

“Yeah, my dream,” he clarified. “I’ve never seen you before, are you another trainee or something?”

“Trainee? What the hell is a trainee?”

Jisung cocked his head to the side, reminding you of a puppy, beginning to explain to you what he was talking about, mentioning that he was actually a trainee himself.

When you told him you weren’t really a big K-Pop fan and didn’t really know anything outside of the major stuff that was popular in your country, he barely believed you.

“How can you speak Korean and not listen to K-Pop! That’s such a wa-”

“What? I’m not speaking Korean, you’re speaking English!”

“I am?” Jisung touched his mouth with the tips of his fingers in thought. “But I haven’t practiced my English since I moved back here.”

Now that the language difference was brought up to you, you couldn’t help but notice how the words you were hearing didn’t match the words that Jisung was saying, it was almost like watching an English dub of a show you’ve already watched. You know that what you’re hearing isn’t what he’s actually saying.

“Oh my god.” Jisung crouched in a ball, bringing his head closer to his knees as he clutched the sides.

“Are you alright?” You reached over to touch his shoulder and were pleased when he didn’t tense up or flinch away.

“Yeah it just… feels like my head is splitting in two. Just now I could hear you talking to me, but I could also hear…”

“Jeongin, trying to wake you up?”

“Yeah,” he laughed in disbelief, giving you a peek at his cute, uneven front teeth.

“Alright, well, dream over I guess,” Jisung declared as he climbed back into bed.

“It was nice meeting you, Y/N.”

In a blink of an eye, he was gone, but the bed remained.

You caught sight of a soft, red light in your peripheral vision. Turning your head, you saw two digital clocks, side-by-side sitting on a nightstand between the two beds. You could’ve sworn they weren’t there before.

The one closest to Jisung’s bed was telling you that it was a few minutes past nine in the morning, while your clock was telling you that it was a few minutes past nine at night.

“Even the clocks here are weird.”

You laid back, rolled onto your side, and fell asleep.

Your sleep was absolutely dreamless for a whole week. 

Exams had been especially hard on you this semester so now that it was Friday night and you made sure you kept your schedule for tomorrow morning open, you got into bed before eight-thirty and fell asleep within seconds. 

“You’re back!”

You snapped up in your bed, alarmed by the voice that seemed to be coming from right above you. 

Jisung snapped his head backwards just in time to avoid a collision. A part of him wondered whether or not he would wake up with a bruise if the two of you had knocked heads. 

“You again?”

Jisung pouted. 

“You don’t sound too happy to see me.”

Remembering your experience one week ago, you turned your head to the right and rubbed your eyes until they could focus on the two alarm clocks in front of the two you. Sure enough, the only difference between the two digital displays was that one had an AM and the other had a PM in the corner. 

Jisung followed your gaze, still kneeling on the ground in front of your legs dangling off the side of the bed. 

“Were they there last time? I didn’t even notice them.”

You smiled before nudging his shoulder, hinting for him to move closer to his own bed to make room for your own body. The two of you sat side-by-side in front of the nightstand, your head resting on your right arm. 

“If my hunch is correct, I think that one clock represents time where I live and the other is for you.”

Jisung’s lips parted. 

“You live in Korea don’t you? I practically live on the opposite side of the world.”

“No wonder I haven’t seen you in a week. We’ve been on a strict training schedule with the reality show and everything, I haven’t slept past nine since last Saturday.”

“Do you think it’s a coincidence that I haven’t gone to bed before like, midnight since last Friday night?”

Jisung laughed in disbelief, putting his head in his hands to control the noise. 

“Wait, what reality show?”

He pulled himself together before looking at you, his features slightly more visible thanks to the dim light of the alarm clocks. 

“I told you about me being a trainee, right? Well, my friend Chan was given the opportunity by JYP, that’s our management company, to kind of organize his own group. I was one of the members he chose.”

Jisung looked down at his knees, smiling to himself. You could tell that being recognized by whoever this Chan guy is was a big deal to the boy. 

“We were chosen to debut but I guess they wanted a little more publicity out of the whole thing, so they’re making this show and threatening... threatening eliminations.”

His smile disappeared. 

“We’ve only aired the first episode but... promise you won’t tell anyone if I spoil it?” 

How could you say no to that uneven smile?

“You can trust me.”

His smile was back. 

“We already showed JYP our first mission, we had to write a song. We’ve been working so hard for so long for that damn thing. We all had to learn the song, right? Singing, rapping, dancing, but Chan, Changbin, he’s another member, and I wrote it. Lyrics and music and all. We got some pretty bad feedback but... we also got a break before our next mission, so here I am sleeping in.”

Jisung looked up at you when you remained silent. 

“I... I’m sorry you have so much on your shoulders. I’m guessing writing songs is kind of, your thing?”

He nodded. 

You learned what 3RACHA was and heard stories about his trainee days. He told you about his studying in Malaysia and the academy he was at before he went to JYP. He refused to show you anything live no matter how much you asked, blaming it on him being sick of performing after the straining mission. 

You didn’t push. 

“Well, I’ve got seven more minutes before Jeongin comes in screaming, why don’t you tell me about your own week?”

You didn’t really know to start and you could feel your head start to ache just at the thought of reliving the past week, but you also felt Jisung reach his hand to the nightstand, grab yours, and squeeze. 

You tried to be as concise as possible, guessing that your school-life wouldn’t sound as interesting as his musical one, but Jisung seemed to be hanging onto every word that came out of your mouth. 

He looked like he was about to say something (probably generic words of encouragement, if you’re being honest) before he basically folded himself in half, obviously in pain.

You understood what was happening immediately and jumped up to help him back into bed.

The two of you said your goodnights as he slung the covers over his shoulders.

“Say hi to Jeongin for me.”

You saw him smile right as he disappeared.

After remembering and looking up his show the next morning you couldn’t believe you could actually see him, living and breathing and exuding pure talent. You weren’t sure what to think, having this boy show up in your mind while you sleep and then having proof that he was in fact real.

You chose not to think too hard about it. You thought if you did, it would all go away.

Without admitting it, both you and Jisung put in an effort to go to bed early and sleep in (respectively) once the two of you figured out how this whole thing worked.

So far, no one in your house seemed suspicious about you retiring for the night so early and Jisung didn’t really mind the slight annoyance it caused for his other members, he was always ready before any of them without fail anyways.

You were there for him through the whole show, holding him as he cried for Minho and Felix. You held his hand and listened to him rant about writer’s block, the lack of sleep everyone was getting, and how worried he was for Chan sometimes.

Jisung wiped the salty tears off your cheeks when you recounted the fights going on in your household. He whispered words of encouragement in your ear, assuring you that yes, you’ll pass that test and no, you’re not overthinking.

You were there for his debut, setting an alarm so that you could watch the music video right when it was uploaded. You made sure to go to bed early that night to see him, congratulate him, but he never showed up.

He was there sure, but he wasn’t conscious in this dream like you were. He was dead-asleep, you supposed preparing for the comeback got to him. You visibly deflated and went back to sleep, disappointed.

The next time you saw him was midway through their first week of promotions and this time it was you who was leaning above his bed, waiting for him to wake up. You threw your arms around him and pushed him back into bed at the worst possible angle for Jisung, but he didn’t complain. He wrapped the arm that wasn’t being squished between your body and the bed around your shoulders and buried his face in your shoulder.

You obsessed over the new album, raving about how amazing everyone sounded and how well the music video was put together.

He thanked you of course, but insisted that the two of you talk “Y/N” and not “Jisung.” 

“It’s been too long since I’ve seen you,” he said, “did you end up getting a grade on that essay?”

He cheered just as loudly for you when you told him you got an “A” on it.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about the fandom name beforehand!”

“I’m sorry! I already spoiled the comeback and rapped my whole verse for you, I needed to keep something a secret.”

You crossed your arms and huffed dramatically, turning your head to the side so you weren’t facing Jisung anymore.

“Oh come on, don’t be like that. You couldn’t possibly stay mad at this face-”

Tackling Jisung effectively shut him up after his bad pun, a look of absolute fear on his face as he saw you on top of him before starting to laugh at how awkward you obviously felt, knees on either side of his waist and hands restraining his own.

You smiled at his reaction, visibly relaxing.

“You’re right, I can’t.”

“Jisung?”

His fingers that were previously playing with your hair stopped their movements, moving to touch your shoulder and pull you closer into his body as he hummed in reply.

“Are we ever going to meet in real life?”

Jisung was lying on his back on your bed while you used his chest as a pillow, taking note of how his heart sped up once you asked your question.

“I know that this feels so real-”

“It is real.”

“I know that, it’s just not-”

“The same.”

“Jisung, can you let me finish?”

He kissed the top of your head and mumbled an apology.

“I don’t even get to see you more than an hour of the day really and I’m so grateful for the fact that I get to talk to you at all despite the circumstances.”

You sat up on the bed to face him.

“I want to be able to talk about you to my friends and family without them thinking I’m insane, I want to be able to sleep whenever the fuck I want to, knowing I’ll see you anyways. I want to be able to bring you food in the studio when you’re working late and most of all I just want to be with you.”

You could feel your eyes start to water so you shut them tight, knowing that if you blinked the tears away you would see Jisung’s eyes doing the same.

“I don’t know how or why the universe is letting us be here like this, but I do know that this isn’t how we’re meant to be. It’s enough, sure, but-”

“It could be a lot more.”

You buried your face in his chest once more, wondering if the tears seeping into the fabric of his shirt would still be there when he woke up.

“I’m so sorry, baby, for making you wait this long.”

You just cried harder.

You knew that this wasn’t only on Jisung. It wasn’t really your fault either. It’s not like you could text him without begging your parents for an international plan with no plausible reason for it and things like talking on Instagram or Twitter were just too damn dangerous. You guessed you shouldn’t be so selfish about this whole situation but now that the two of you have gotten a taste of the other, it was getting hard to ignore the fact that your soulmate was just out of reach.

“I can’t believe I had to fall in love with someone halfway across the world.”

“Do you regret it?” He was terrified of your answer. 

“God, no. Please never think that I would.”

Jisung rubbed up and down your arm.

“Come here, sit next to me.”

You both shifted so that your backs were leaning against the headboard, intertwined hands between your thighs under the bedsheets.

“Realistically speaking, I guess you would have to come to Korea, huh?”

You nodded against his shoulder.

“Jisung, I… You know I’ve been looking at colleges, right?”

“Of course, last you told me you sent in an application for that university all the way in-”

“What if I studied in Korea?”

You felt him squeeze your hand out of impulse.

“Korea?”

“I have one more year in high school. That means one year to learn the language, save some money, prepare my applications. It’s not like any place here stuck out to me, maybe I’ll find a school I absolutely love and-”

“Y/N, I can’t ask that of you. I can’t make you move here just to see me when my schedule allows it, it’s not fair to you. I know this situation isn’t ideal either and that I’m just being selfish but I don’t want you to have to date someone who can’t give you their full attention.”

“You act like I have no life outside of you!” You hit his shoulder as playfully as possible, trying to come across as less angry. “I’ll also have schoolwork and a job, I’ll probably still be studying the language to be honest, but I could still text your or call you when time allowed.”

The two of you were looking at each other now, squeezing each other’s hands to keep from crying again.

“It wouldn’t be weird for either of us to say we met someone, even if we couldn’t say who or how and I know I would have to keep us a secret because of your job but I would much rather have a secret boyfriend than a secret fake-dream-world companion or whatever the fuck this is.”

Jisung probably would’ve laughed if you weren’t being so serious right now. He saw your point, he agreed with you, he knew being in the same country (at the very least) would be better for the both of you and the relationship you were trying to build.

But the dating ban still applied to him, Stray Kids was more active now than ever, and if the two of you fell apart with you stuck in a foreign country all alone, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself.

Then again, he knew the two of you were strong enough to deal with long distance and limited time together. I mean, shit, look at what the two of you have been living through already.

“If worst comes to worst, and please don’t hate me for saying this, college is only four years, right?”

“What do you mean?”

He looked away, ashamed of what he was about to say.

“If… if you couldn’t deal with me or our relationship anymore, you could always go home after you graduated.”

Jisung looked back into your eyes, pleading for you to understand what he was trying to do.

You smiled to reassure him that yes, you knew he was just giving himself a reason to agree to this. He needed a logical reason to let you uproot your entire life for him without feeling too guilty. The both of you knew that neither of you could stop loving the other and that neither of you would regret it, either. Four years was a long time, sure, but it would never be enough for the two of you. 

You leaned in to peck his lips, once again greeted with his slightly uneven smile.

“What do you say, babe,” he kissed your cheek before continuing, “can you deal with me for four years?”

“As long as you can deal with ten more months of dream-Y/N before then.”

His smile grew.

“I bet you’re even more beautiful in person.”

[kookiesjhope]

Our Song II (kth)

Pairings: Kim Taehyung/Reader

Genre/au: songwriter!au, college!au, y/n has lil bit of anger issues, cutie tae, cheeky tae, songwriter!taehyung, professor!yoongi, bandmate!jin and bandmate!jungkook, roommate!jimin and roommate!jungkook, some namjin, also some sope.

Tags: fluff, angst, e2l ig

Words: 2.8K

a/n: i wrote this years ago on wattpad and thought about ‘re-touching’ it in a different way and changing the characters ig haha. idk if i should continue it tho

Summary: You were a music major college student and part of an infamous local band. You were running late to a class when someone bumps into you and knocks all your stuff down. Little did you know that that encounter would change your life forever.

“There you are!” Jungkook screams as I come out of Jimin’s bedroom, making me jump.

“Shit, Kookie, you scared me!” I hit him on the shoulder and he pretends to be hurt.

“So... you and Jimin, huh?” He wiggles his eyebrows up and down. “I mean, I kinda knew this was going to happen sooner or later.”

“Shut up. There’s nothing happening. You know he’s like my brother.” I walk towards the bathroom and he follows me.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever... So how did you and Kim Taehyung meet?”

I stop and turn around to face him. Jungkook bumps into me since he’s looking at something in his phone. “Why do you ask?”

“Well... he started following us on twitter and sent us a song request.” He looks up from his phone, his hair falling on his eyes. I have to admit, Jungkook is a very good-looking guy and I love his weird red hair. He usually dyes it natural colors, but recently he’s been feeling... rebellious. If it weren’t for him being part of the band, I would totally consider going out with him, but that’s out of the table since he’s one of my closest friends. I got to admit that when he dyed his hair red, it made me see him in a completely different light.

“Yeah, so?” I cross my arms and arch my eyebrow.

“He’s asking for a song called 4 o’clock.” I freeze at the mention of the song, my song. There’s no way I’m going to sing that song in front of a bunch of people, it’s to sentimental.

“I don’t know what he’s talking about.” Jungkook leans on the door frame.

“You’re such a bad liar, y/n.” He chuckles and moves closer to me. My gaze falling on his light smirk. “You know the song, don’t you?” He’s so close to me that I can smell the orange juice he probably had for breakfast. I cross my arms and sigh heavily.

“Alright... I know the damn song, but we’re not playing it.” I say as I slightly stand on my tip toes so my face could be at the same level as his.

He huffs and licks his lips. “You’re kinda hot when you’re in a crappy mood.” He shakes his head and arches one of his eyebrows as if taunting me.

“Leave me alone, Kook.” I storm out of the bathroom and go straight to my room. I close the door with a loud thud and rest my head against it. I sigh and shake my head. Why would that dumbass suggest my song? Does he get a pleasure knowing that this was gonna make me panic?

++++

“Y/n, can I come in?” I hear Jimin’s soft voice on my door. I don’t answer, but he enters the room anyway. He sits on the edge of my bed facing me. He looks at me worriedly. I sit in front of him and he grabs my hands.

“I’m alright.” I shrug.

“Y/n, c’mon, I can tell when something is wrong with you.” He crosses his arms and flares his nose, clearly mad at me that I’m not telling him something.

“It’s nothing, Jimin. Stop worrying... please.” I look down at my hands, avoiding his stare.

He moves closer to me and puts his hand under my chin tilting my head up so I have to look him in the eye. “I could never stop worrying about you, y/n...” He sighs and drops his hand. He ruffles his hair and licks his plump lips. “What are you not telling me?”

“Just drop it, Jimin. I swear, I’m fine, see.” I force a smile and he narrows his eyes.

“Well, let’s see, first you tell me you don’t like this Taehyung guy, but you say you don’t know why. Then last night, you have a nightmare and end up in my bed all scared, which hasn’t happened in a long ass time, but what a coincidence that Taehyung kept staring at you all night long and you were obviously pissed about it and yeah, I did notice, I’m not a moron, y/n! Then Kookie tells me you were pissed this morning when he told you about the song Taehyung requested.” He rubs his chin and ruffles his hair again. Jimin stands up and faces the door. He turns around sharply. “What the fuck did he do to you?”

“Who said it had anything to do with him?!”

“I’m not an idiot, y/n.” He glares at me. I gulp and stare back at him thinking of what to say. I sigh and turn my gaze to my hands.

“It’s his eyes...” I say softly.

“His eyes?” Jimin furrows his eyebrows, probably thinking this is stupid.

“I don’t know, Jimin!” I look up at him. “This is why I didn’t want to tell you. You’re probably thinking this is stupid.” He shakes his head and looks down at his feet. “There’s something about his eyes, I swear, they just make me feel some kind of way. It scares me...” I stand up and step closer to Jimin. He breathes and looks up to the ceiling. I step closer to him, carefully. He raises his head and nods slightly. He takes my hands in his and rubs them with his thumbs. He’s quiet for a few minutes, looking down at our hands. I know he doesn’t like talking about these things with me. He pulls me into his arms and caresses my hair. Jimin is not that tall nor big, but I always feel safe and protected with him.

“Don’t worry about this guy, y/n. He seemed fine to me, you’re probably being paranoid.” He steps away from me, still looking down.

“Yeah, I guess.” I shrug and he smiles. He nods as if contemplating whether to say something to me or keep it to himself. Jimin’s a cutie, no doubt about it, with his soft gaze and his black hair and that sweet smile of his. He caresses my arm, still nodding to himself, and he turns around to leave the room. Leaving me in complete confusion.

++++

The rest of the weekend went by fast. On Sunday we spent half the day in one of the practice halls trying new songs for the band. It turned out we had quite a few requests, apparently we are more popular than we thought. It’s now Monday and I’m headed to Professor Min’s class. Even though he’s strict, I really love his class and he’s actually one of my favorite professors. He’s a really cool guy despite all the rumors that go around, saying he’s cold.

I enter the room which is still more than half empty and sit on my usual spot in the front row. I take out my notebook and put my headphones on to listen to some music. I open my notebook and start writing down some ideas for songs. I’m so involved with this that I hadn’t even noticed that someone had sat on the seat next to mine. I feel a tap on my shoulder and I turn my head; I’m so startled that I even drop my pen. I bend down to get it, but he beats me to it.

“Thanks.” I turn my music off and take my earphones out.

“You’re welcome.” He smiles so big that his eyes nearly disappear. He actually looks really cute. I smile to myself and shake my head.

“What are you doing here?”

“Mm, I take this class.” He looks me in the eye and I immediately gulp hard. Something inside tells me to look away but then I remember what Jimin said and try to hold his intense stare, but fail miserably.

“You do?” He nods. “But I’ve never seen you here before.” I point out.

“That’s because I always sit down there.” Taehyung points to the last row. “And you’re always here in the front plugged in your own little world.” He smirks and touches both his ears, referring to my earphones. So, he’s been watching me all this time, then? That’s kind of creepy. And what’s with that thing on his head, I mean it’s not really a bandana like the one’s Seokjin wears. But I got to say it makes him look good. I look down at my notebook and nod.

“What made you move up front?”

“I want to have a better view.” He smirks. I shift on my seat uncomfortably and look at my watch, where the hell is Professor Min? I hear Taehyung lightly chuckle to himself.

Half way through class, Taehyung leans closer and places a piece of paper on my notebook. I look at him and he mouths ‘open it’ and winks. I roll my eyes at him and open it.

Doesn’t Yoongi look just like a soft cat? He looks tough but don’t believe him, he a softy ;)

I shake my head and cover my mouth with my hand to try to hold my laughter, but it’s too late.

“Miss Y/L/N.” Professor Min looks at me and I bite my lower lip, fuck. He walks a little closer. “Do you care to share what’s so funny?”

I can feel my cheeks starting to turn pink from embarrassment. I was to punch Taehyung so bad right now. I hear Taehyung clear his throat beside me.

“It was my fault, sir.” His voice sounds even deeper than usual. I turn my head towards him and open my mouth but he shakes his head at me. Professor Min looks at him and sighs.

“Well, save your jokes for later Kim.”

I’m so pissed at Taehyung for embarrassing me. I make an effort not to even look at him. He leans closer again and drops another piece of paper. I huff and open it.

Sorry about that :) You have a nice laugh though.

I tear our a piece of paper and write back.

Stop passing stupid notes. We’re not in high school :)

I pass it to him and I hear him mutter “party pooper”. I ignore Taehyung for the rest of the class although I can feel his constant stares.

++++

The apartment seems awfully quiet, in fact, I haven’t seen Jimin nor Jungkook all day today.

“Hey y/n. What’s up?“ I turn around to see Jungkook standing in front of the refrigerator with a big smile on his face. His hair is wet and some of his red strands fall over his eyes. He’s wearing just a pair of grey sweatpants, no shirt. He looks so attractive, it’s hard not to stare.

I shrug and turn back to face the counter. I hear Jungkook open and close one of the cupboards. “Are you gonna’ do that guitar gig that The Red Room offered you?” He puts two glasses on the counter. I nod and turn the grill on. “Did you tell Jimin?” He pours orange juice in both glasses.

I turn sharply to face him. “Haven’t yet...why?”

“Well, he was so worried about it yesterday.“ Jungkook sits on the counter. “You should tell him.”

“I know.” I turn around to check on my grilled cheese. Jungkook quickly grabs one of the sandwiches and I hop on the counter next to him.

“You’re not going to quit the band, are you?” He looks at me with a worried expression. A strand of red hair falling into his forehead. I brush that strand out of his face and shake my head.

“Why would I even do that?” I whisper, furrowing my brows.

“I don’t know.” He looks down at his lap and shrugs. “I know you love the guitar and with us you don’t get to play it that much. And now this dude is offering you to play it. Maybe you’ll like it more with him.”

“Kook, I’m not gonna’ quit the band because of one stupid guitar gig, trust me.” I grab his chin so he’s looking at me when I say this. It’s true, with the band I don’t get to play the guitar as much, but I love what we do and I love the way I feel when I’m with them on stage. We’ve been playing together since high school so it feels like we’re a family. I huff and drop my hand from his face, turning my gaze to my lap. I can feel Jungkook’s stare on me while he eats his sandwich. Maybe this is what’s bothering Jimin also.

++++

I walk into class early and head for my usual spot in the front row. The room is almost empty and I’m glad because I probably look like shit. I sit down and pull out my headphones and select a random playlist. I’m deeply involved listening to the music when I feel someone sit next to me. I open my eyes and slowly turn my head to the side. A pair of green eyes meet mine and I’m relieved in part, I don’t think I’m in the mood to deal with intense stares from those brown eyes right now. I turn my gaze back to my notebook and all of a sudden I see a paper airplane fly by and land on the floor about a foot away from my seat. I turn around and back to the direction it came from. I see Taehyung sitting on the last row wearing his big ass bandana and a dorky smile. I roll my eyes at him and get up to pick up the paper. I unfold it and read what’s inside.

Hello, you beautiful thing :)

A chuckles escapes my lips as I glace up to where he’s sitting. His smile grows even wider as I shake my head smiling back before I go back to my seat. I find it kind of cute that he’s quoting a Jason Mraz song. I got to admit, he’s such a dork.

I turn around and head towards the room’s exit. I look up and my eyes meet Taehyung’s. I avoid his gaze and keep walking.

“Made you smile didn’t it?” I hear his deep voice behind me as I walk.

“I guess...” I shrug.

“That’s all that matters.” He start walking next to me. I tilt my head to the side and can’t help but admire his side profile, almost like a Greek God, too perfect almost, almost.

He walks a little faster and moves in front of me, turning around to face me so he’s walking backwards now.

“Have coffee with me.” He looks at me so intense that it makes me stop dead in my tracks. Time stops and my breathe quickens. I can hear my own heartbeat pick up its pace and my mouth slightly open at the sight. I forget where I am for a moment as his stare changes to confused.

“Oh, you probably don’t like coffee... Maybe tea then?” He asks in a sweet tone.

“Sorry, I can’t, Taehyung. I have another class now.” I snap back to reality and shake my head. I continue to walk past him.

“I’ll walk you to class then?” I chuckle and look down at my feet. I turn to look at him and he’s looking at me confused again. He reminds me of a lost child and for once his stare doesn’t bother me at all.

“Come on, I’m going to be late.” I grab his wrist and start walking faster. The smile on his face is so big that it reaches his eyes. 

We walk in an awkward silence while he carries my jacket. I glance at him once in a while and he looks down at his feet and smiles to himself, almost giggling. I roll my eyes and look ahead. I shrug and look up at Taehyung. I smile just as we approach my classroom. I stop walking and stand in front of him. “Well, this is my stop.” He smiles looking straight into my eyes as he hands me my jacket. Something about him seems so sweet and tender that I find myself smiling back without taking my eyes away from his. I gulp and stare at my feet. Why is my heart beating so fast?

“Yeah, well, I’ll see you around.” I turn around but he grabs my wrist and I feel him come closer to my ear. He moves my hair behind my ear and I can hear him lick his lips. The hairs at the back of my neck stand up as my chest rises.

“The offer still stands,” he whispers so low that it gives me goosebumps. I turn around, confused. I tilt my head up to look at him, his smirk getting bigger. He looks down at his feet and puts his hands in his pockets. “You know, for the coffee or tea... which ever you like is fine for me.” His eyes look up quickly to me and then to his previous state.

“Oh... ok.” I turn around and start walking inside the classroom. I can tell he’s still standing there watching me. I’m not entirely sure of what to think of him. The hairs at the back of my neck still sensitive from the touch of his breath.

[goldinkmaknae]

Attached

Chapters✿ 1, 2

Plot ✿ After the deaths of those closest to y/n, the betrayal of her greatest friends and the sudden changes in her life, she is lead to believing that staying alone is what’s best for her. It isn’t until She transfers schools that life seems to change, maybe for the better.

Word Count ✿ 

Genre ✿ Highschool!Au, angst, Jhope x reader, fluff, semi-sad

             ✿ CHAPTER 2✿ Once is a coincidence, Twice is fate✿  "It turns out that half your essential papers are missing Y/n..." The principal scratched his head scanning the loose sheets.

He settled the reports down and squinted at me. "Look, I was raised with your uncle so I can just ask him to fax me the others, I estimate that would be easiest for both of us at this moment."

"Agreed." I gave a gentle smile, nevertheless upset over the strange experience I had outside the school.

"If I ever run into those brats again I vow to beat the living hell out of em'." I reflected, my mind racing with revenge.

"Are you okay Y/n? You look to be deep in thought." The principal chuckled.

"Oh I'm fine sir!" I reassured rubbing my thighs to erase the tension from my palms, "I suspect I'll start school tomorrow?"

"Bright and early!"He paused, "We're so glad to have an expert artist like you in our school."He beamed in astonishment.

I nodded in reply.

"Since you didn't listen to me before, I said that the school uniform should already be at your house, if it's then please go to this address." He set a dry cleaners card in front of me and stood up, "I hope you enjoy your stay here at Seoul School of The Arts."

Glaring at my now formed scratches, I stopped at the convenience store not very far away from the apartment my uncle had prepared for me.

I glared at my cracked phone, the glass just urging to fall off my screen. I held it like a delicate jewel, watching its reflecting lights dance in the sun.

"If only I never ran into those dimwits..." I leaned over the table staring at the bowl of ramen I made in a sloppy attempt to cheer myself up.

"If only I wasn't an artist..." I whispered glancing at the new bandages on my hand that looked like a blanket. As if the palms of my hands were in a deep sleep.

Still fuming with the anger I had, I banged on the store's table earning a few ambiguous stares from the others around me.

And as if the day couldn't get any worse, the school uniform wasn't in the house my uncle found for me.

As I searched my pockets for the business card, I received a horn honk outside the door.

I gripped the card and glared at it, " Sunshine Dry Cleaning huh?" I breathed.

I exited the house motioning for the driver to unpack my things from the bed of the truck. "I'll be back soon sir, please take your time unpacking, I'm in no rush."

He acknowledged and unzipped the cables holding my items together.

"At least I didn't lose important items... " I moaned while I strode down the quiet pathway.

I watched as the customers arrived and departed the dry cleaners, their faces held mixtures of delight and satisfaction. Whoever was working behind that counter seemed to make sure everyone left with a smile.

As I shuffled closer to the entrance I noticed a certain person I had ran into only hours before. It was the boy who seemed to brighten any room he was in.

"It seems I did lose something important to me..." I viewed the sign once more still trying to confirm I was in the right place " It seems I have lost all self-respect for myself." I trudged into the building just wishing this encounter would go smoother than the first time.

He had turned away from the counter for only a few seconds, "Hi welcome to Sunshine Dry Cleaning, how can I help--"

When he turned around it was clear to see that he wasn't expecting me.

"You look like you just saw a ghost." I teased, my eyes forming a slight slant as I chuckled.

"I just didn't expect to see you again so soon..." He held the back of his neck before putting his hands on the counter, " How can I help you?"

"I'm here to pick up a school uniform." I sighed, slightly bothered by the fact he worked here. Glancing at my surroundings, I found myself reading my cracked screen trying to make out what my uncle had messaged me, "It's under a Dr.Kim, I think... It's a school uniform."

As if things had suddenly clicked, he stared at me from over the counter, " You're the new student everyone had been talking about!"

Slightly confused, my eyebrows tensed together. " What are you talking about?"

" You're like a superhero to us!" He gripped my hands in an attempt to hide how happy he was to finally meet the so-called hero.

Pushing his hands off mine I backed away from the counter slightly, " What do you mean I'm a hero?"

"You're the Ambidextrous artist!" he shrieked.

"I'm not an artist anymore." I rumbled, " Please just give me my uniform."

He focused on me as if trying to decode what he had said that made me annoyed.

Instead of figuring it out he simply remained quiet, his eyes taking in the bandages that covered my hands.

"I'm sorry about what my friends did to you earlier today, they don't know how to handle their excitement when schools over." he giggled scanning my card, " I hope they didn't do any major damages."

"It's not like a few scratches will hurt me..." I spoke, my voice barely above a whisper.

In the end, I was the only customer who left without a smile on their face.

[quilloftheclouds]

11/11/11 (... x7???)

You guys really love this tag game, huh? XD Tagged by @madammuffins, @bigmoodword, @shadeshadow234, @writeouswriter, @bookenders, @kaisha-writes, and @penzag.

Rules: Answer 11 (77 in this case??) questions, tag 11 people, write 11 new questions.

Taggin’ taggin’ @scottishhellhound​ @i-rove-rock-n-roll​ @capricious-writes​ @writerlyclaire​ @bookenders​ @kidsarentallwrite​ @inexorableblob​ @vieliwrites​​ @abalonetea​ @runningonrain​ @candy687​

Oof. It’s my own fault for letting these gather dust for so long. QUICKFIRE QUESTION ROUND. (And super duper long post below the cut.)

Okay first up I’m gonna post up my 11 questions for tagged people to complete up here so y’all don’t have to scroll all the way through my nonsense:

1. Put yourself in your wip(s). Are you dead? Why or why not? 2. What is your favourite kind of scene to write? 3. What genre is your favourite to write in? 4. What genre do you want to/wish you could write in? 5. Which of your ocs outfits would you consider wearing yourself? 6. What’s the worst thing you’ve done to your ocs (out of context if spoilers)? 7. What’s the nicest thing you’ve done to your ocs? 8. Does your writing style have any characteristic traits? What are they? 9. What are three things you think you’re good at in writing? (NO SKIPPING OF THIS QUESTION ALLOWED) 10. Do you listen to music/white noise while writing? What kind? 11. Come up with joke titles for your wips. What are they?

And now let’s get started!

Do you title your chapters, why/why not? Do they pertain to what happens in the chapter or are they random? I do! I may actually post them all up at some point, I had a lot of fun coming up with them, and I find them clever? A lot of them are puns, it’s great. All except the first and last chapter are titled with one word, related to the ocean or ships, alluding and symbolizing something that happens in that chapter. I made it a sort of word search, too, since every chapter title appears somewhere important in that chapter! As for why? I think it adds to the reading experience, especially with the way I employ them!

Do your main characters seem to have common traits or characteristics? Uhhhh, uh? Huh. Lemme see. I tried to be pretty creative and use a lot of variance in my characters, but sometimes they just... end up that way, whether I want them to or not. Dione and Phoenix are both tall? Both Phoenix and Colin can be pretty friendly and have the same sort of attitude towards certain things. Other than that, I’m not sure!

Why do you think this is? Honestly, it’s likely more coincidence than anything. Also because Phoenix and Colin both work on a ship’s crew, and they have to work well with other people because of that.

Do you borrow real life people or parts of real life people to insert into your novels? Why/why not? Yes. From me especially. Probably subconsciously from other people. It happens! But also, relatability. Accuracy.

Do you stick to a word count in your novels/chapters? Why? Used to, don’t now. It can really add to the tension if a chapter is very short. It can hold the reader in suspense if it’s very long!

What do you want your book to say to those who read it? What do you think your book says about you? Uh. I mean. I’m a simple writer who just likes sharing my worlds with the world, yunno? Maybe when I get further into writing it, I’ll realize what. (But I hope it shows I’m an interesting person that cares about representation and sharing exciting stories??? Mebe?)

If your WIP gets published and goes far would you sign over your rights for a movie adaptation, even if it means it gets butchered like the Eragon (or similar) series did? Ohhh gosh. Yeah no. I’d wait until I was sure it wouldn’t be. I’m not in this for the money or fame, I’m here for the enjoyment of it and the helping others through sharing stories with people they can relate to. Especially those that don’t have much to relate to already.

What is your favorite kind of character chemistry to write? Sexual tension, anger, resentment, jealousy? What about it do you like so much? I really like softness. Someone trying to cheer someone up, nice caring-ness and encouragement through humour and inside jokes. Gives me warm feelings. Oh. That sounds a lot like Colin.

Which settings are your favorites? Chill cafe, Gorey battle field? Why? I like natureeee. A lot. IRL and in writing. I especially enjoy fascinating, eccentric and magical seeming places even if they’re not magical! Think the Giant’s Causeway in Ireland, or the Ice Caves of Baffin Island. That sort of thing.

What element represents your main character and why? HAH SPOILERS. Elements play a major part of OSS, my friend. How about I just put the elements, and you decide who’s who. Earth, Fire, Storm, Forest.

If you could pick an AU for your WIP (alternate universe) for a fan work, what au would you choose and why would you choose it? AKJHKDJSH I’VE ALREADY PLANNED OUT MY OWN AUs, MY FRIEND. My fave at the moment is magical modern spies. Because a lot of my characters are immortal and I love to imagine what they would be like in modern times! ...Oh wait, that’s not what au means. -u-

1. Who was your first OC? Of One Siren’s Soul’s cast, Celestine! Overall, that I can remember... a German scientist/mechanical engineer named Suin Omera. Ah, so many memories. 2. What was the first story you ever wrote? That I can remember... a little short story for school about a girl who lost her dad and discovered he had been secretly living in the arctic for a long time so she goes to try and find him? I don’t remember much about it. ^^’ 3. What book (or other piece of media) has most inspired you? AH. Most??? Literally the unpublished books of my two closest friends. @waterfallwritings​, I’m looking at you. >u> 4. How do you fight writer’s block? Badly. 5. What is your favorite genre to write in and why? Fantasy and sci-fi! Or a mix. You can find a more full answer here. 6. How would you describe your writing style? Uhhhh, I have a very action-y writing style? Unless the sort of mood requires, I don’t tend to use a lot of description and I more often focus on action and dialogue and character thoughts/narrative. It’s fitting to what I write, I suppose, because it’s an action packed pirate adventure, with a lot of focus on character. 7. In general, do you think you’d get along with your protagonists? Phoenix and Colin are nice. Dione maybe after a long while, since we both like literature and plants. Celestine... no one ever gets along with Celestine. 8. What do you love most about your WIPs? Oh. I uh. Wow. I only have one right now, but I like characters and their interactions and their thoughts on each other. But mostly I just love how far I’ve come already. That the wip even exists. ^^’ 9. What is your favorite character trope? Ah. Not good with tropes... I reblogged something on this a while ago, but that scene where someone spends forever taking out a comically massive amount of weapons from unexpected places on their person? That’s fun. 10. What is your least favorite character trope? Mmmm hmm. Hm. Mostly ones that discriminate or are based on negative stereotypes. Some of them can be done well, but not... many. 11. What’s an upcoming scene you’re excited to write? Someone’s gettin’ STABBED.

What was your first character like? See in an earlier question ^^^

What’s your most recent character like? Oh, this is neat. Who’s my most recent character? Uhhhh, um. I think it’s actually... I don’t have a name for them yet, but it’s a young siren that appears in book two that helps our main cast on their adventure!

Out of all of your characters, who’s the least human in appearance? Hehe. HEH. Oohhhh, this would definitely be Light. You don’t know who that is yet.

Who’s your worst character, and what would you do upon meeting them? Worst? The Scientist. Punch to the face.

If you could meet any of your characters, who would you choose? Uh. It’d be really cool to meet Forest! You don’t know who that is yet, either. ^^

Two of your characters from different WIPs meet! How do they get along? I don’t currently have another wip, but from my prospective wip at the moment, meeting... Celestine. Surprisingly it wouldn’t be the worst, because both would just start nerding out about each other’s technology.

Which out of your OCs just wants to live life out peacefully? George is so done with this trash.

Which one of your OCs is most definitely not living their life out peacefully? I want to say George again for the jokes, but the worst off at the moment is probably Dione. Sorry, Dione!

Is there any songs that make you think specifically of any of your characters? Ohhhh yeah. I’ll likely be making a full post for that at some point, and that’s also on each characters part of the wip page, but to save time, have this.

Which one of your OCs actually had a pretty good childhood? Dione had a relatively normal childhood, for the pretty-near equivalent of a princess. That is, of course, until she turned 24.

Who would have a fistfight with god out of spite? This actually happens. This ACTUALLY HAPPENS IN MY WIP. It’s Celestine.

1. What’s the weirdest thing you were ever inspired by for one of your WIPs?

Hmmmm, I mean tardigrades are pretty weird, right? Also awesome. They’re one of the most resilient known animals, able to survive both some of the highest AND the lowest temperatures known to have ever been survived by an organism? Awesome.

2. Do any of your OCs have famous face claims? If so, who are they?

Colin’s face claim is Booboo Stewart! He’s pretty famous?

3. What’s your favourite season and why?

Autumn. Pretty colours, perfect temperatures with a small jacket/sweater, and you get to experience the whole range of seasons from early Fall to late!

4. Do you have any superstitions?

Despite being a very logically, scientifically minded person... I am a Maritimer, and superstitions are huge. Never ever say before you go fishing that you’re definitely going to catch something. You’ll be skunked.

5. Rural, suburbs, city, in which do you live and which do you most often write about?

I guess I most write about rural, since... wait, what does the open ocean count as?? Anyways, I live in the suburbs.

6. What’s your favourite book series?

I dunno ‘bout favourites, but I like The Edge Chronicles by Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell.

7. Is there a book/series that ever left you intensely disappointed? (Or one that left you pleasantly surprised?)

Uh... I mean, The Hunger Games was actually really good, but I was disappointed by the public’s focus on the love triangle?

8. What’s one of the weirdest/funniest out of context lines from your WIPs?

“Don’t tell me the boatswain has got ‘imself into the rum store again.”

9. A movie/show that made you cry? (Unless you’re dead inside)

AHHAH I AM DEAD INSIDE AND TRULY A FICTIONAL SOCIOPATH. But, I think Simon Birch is one I can recall getting misty eyed from.

10. What movies or books or shows do you think are criminally underrated?

Uuhhhhhh Treasure Planet is one? I’m not good at this one. OH. You wanna know some shows I loved way too much from my childhood? Hot Wheels: Battle Force Five, and Storm Hawks. I was a terrible nerd.

11. Which fictional character would you like to steal borrow from any world for a crossover with your own WIP?

Ehheee, honestly, I could work with anything, pretty much. But the magic system colliding with the Avatar from The Last Airbender? Ehehehe, that would be hilarious.

Do you own and fun socks? What are they? My best friend love fun socks, and for my birthday she got me some: I have two pairs, a black pair with colourful gardening tools on them, and one with little labelled garden herbs on them. They’re adorable and I love them. ^u^

How many notebooks do you have? What do they look like? How full are they? HAH. SO MANY. Most are sketchbooks, but out of notebooks, I have... three? One’s for schoolwork, one’s full of old writing, and one is for OSS notes.

Grab the book nearest you. Turn to page 70 (or 16 if it’s a tiny book). What is the 8th line on that page? How do you feel about it? Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson: I haven’t actually had the opportunity to start reading it yet, but here: “She’d never seen him at work, never experienced him as the type of person who could tend to another’s needs.” Considering I have no idea what’s going on... I have no idea?

Have you read any short stories? What’s your favorite? I’m not much of a short story reader, but there was a really cool one from a sci-fi compilation (that I can’t remember the name of). It was about time travelling and how it had already been invented, but because no one could ever go back in time, they could only go forward, no one had realized. It was kind of sad, now that I think of it, since the MCs ended up trying to travel back to their time when warned against it and they end up alone in the far future. Whoops.

Have you ever tried knitting? Do you still knit? What about other crafty things? What do you make? I tried it when I was back at home, but at the moment I don’t have the materials! As for crafts, I’m trying to get into bookbinding, card making... other sort of paper crafts. ^^

Of the books in your living space right now, which has the coolest cover? I’m sad now because I basically have no physical books here... aw. Um, The Cloud Collector’s Handbook by Gavin Pretor-Pinney is really pretty. Pastels and colourful skies and clouds are my favourite~

Do you know any camp songs? What did you used to sing in school, or at recess? Oh stars. I’m a Cub Scout Leader, my friend. OF COURSE I know camp songs. What did I used to sing in school? What’s the one with the “That’s the way, uh huh, uh huh/I like it, uh huh, uh huh” with the special clapping? That one. What’s that?

What’s your favorite fairy tale? How would you twist it? Well technically OSS includes some twists from The Little Mermaid, so does that count?

Are there any cool local events where you live? Ah, well daily we have the highest tides in the world. That’s pretty cool, huh?

What’s your favorite sea creature? Sea snakes. They’re deadly and pretty.

Do you like turtles? Why? Yes! YES! Turtles are adorable. Don’t put your finger near a Snapping Turtle’s mouth though.

1. If you could meet one author for lunch, who would it be?

Ooh, I’m bad about this. Say time travelling is an option: Roald Dahl. That would be amazing.

2. What are your thoughts on visual stories? (apps like Choices: Stories You Play, Episode, etc.)

Ah, I don’t really have much experience with them at all, so I can’t really say anything!

3. What was the first book to make you cry?

Have I ever cried at a book? Uhhhh... I may not have. Whoops.

4. Do you ever base your characters on people you know?

I mean, subconsciously probably? But I don’t typically think about other people when creating characters.

5. Name the worst book you’ve ever read, and tell me why it was bad.

Iiiii did not like Divergent. Sorry, that’s just a personal opinion. I guess it was too... dependent on a system that didn’t really make sense to me? I dunno, mate.

6. Do you have a trademark writing ‘quirk’?

I like short sentences in action-y scenes. Maybe that? I also really like using way too many em dashes and double line breaks to emphasize something.

7. Do you have any (un)helpful pets? (I couldn’t resist asking this one. Also, if the answer is yes, please send me photos.)

I don’t have any pets! I have planties though. Cute lil’ succulents.

8. What advice would you give to a person who is new to writing?

There are going to be times when you’re not happy with your writing! But any writing is helpful, because no matter what you write, you’re improving your skills to be better the next time. Plus, a first draft can be edited later! You can’t edit what’s not there~

9. Tell me your ideal writing environment.

My family partly owns a lake cabin out in the woods which we go to every summer. It’s so peaceful to sit in the hammock chair on the porch and write to the gentle lapping waves on the beach, the birdsong, and the swish of the tree branches around me. On a day with a perfect not-too-hot warm temperature, it’s very nice.

10. Sad endings: realistic, or unnecessary?

It depends how it’s executed! I prefer bittersweet ending to sad ones, since those tend to give me the most effective emotions. Certainly I tend to seek out happier endings instead, though!

11. You’ve decided to write under a pseudonym. What is it?

Ooh. Oohhhh, well. I’m actually thinking of changing my name legally. So that’s a thing. For a pseudonym, I think I would love to go with... hm. Gale Silver. Because I love puns and that hits on two major nature aspects I’m a nerd for.

what’s your favorite movie from your childhood? has this movie had an impact on your writing at all? have any movies had an impact on your writing? Hands down How To Train Your Dragon. I am a nerd who loves dragons and the music and scenery is gorgeous. Also just... so many of its themes snuck into my wip and I didn’t even realize until just recently. Whoops.

do you struggle to write for any ocs? why? are any of your ocs really easy to write for? Io is a little hard for me to write sometimes just because she’s so darn cold. Just. Apathetic towards everything, and super formal, yet at the same time very curt and to the point. I’m used to writing either a “formal” through super flowery language or a “cold” through Celestine’s mean snark, not just... Io.

do you have any big milestones coming up for your wip? (or blog? or work? or whatever?) I’M LESS THAN 2,000 WORDS AWAY FROM 50,000 IN MY FIRST DRAFT. YEAH MATE

what are your favorite writing resources for face claims, picking first names/surnames, etc? (feel free to just pick one resource to share but you’re welcome to share as many as you’d like!) Oh! I’m still pretty new to finding face claims and what not, but naming wise Wikipedia can cover all your bases sometimes. As I’m writing a historical fantasy, to find names that fit the time period, I’ll sometimes use this site.

if your ocs had a name for their group of friends, what would it be? (for example, most of y’all have noticed by now that the friend group for b’tzelem elohim is nicknamed “shalomies”) Okay but I still have such a love for that name. XD I call my group simply The Crew! Since, you know. They’re in a pirate crew by the end of the book. (My creativity knows no bounds.)

on a similar note, would they have a groupchat? (if your world doesn’t have technology, pretend it does!) Modern times, yeah prolly. Dione and Celestine would just have it muted except for emergencies, and Phoenix and Colin would just constantly be sharing memes and terrible puns.

how many languages can you speak, if any? how many can your characters speak, if any? I speak English and (Acadian) French! Trying to learn ASL at the moment. As for my characters? Hoo, boy. Without spoilers, Celestine is multilingual with four languages, Colin is almost trilingual, Dione is trilingual, and Phoenix... I think Phoenix can only speak English. Yeah that may seem like overkill, but in context it makes sense. ^^’

how much time do you spend planning/researching before starting your wip? Fun story about that! For one of my first serious wips, Soul Tied, I first came up with the ideas perhaps... six years ago? And I have yet to write a single thing. ^^’ For OSS, the story took maybe a month to completely plan out and outline, though I still do a lot of research and planning ahead as I write the first draft, too!

do you have a preferred area to write? (ie your bedroom, the coffee shop, the library, your kitchen, etc.) My desk in my bedroom!

what’s your favorite writing snack or drink? Ohh, I don’t eat while I write ‘cause I’m actually incapable of focusing on something while I eat, but I normally really like having apple spice tea or some other kind of herbal tea!

lastly, what should you be doing right now instead of this tag game? (ps: stop procrastinating even though, as i type this, i’m currently procrastinating) HAH. STUDYING FOR MY CHEMISTRY MIDTERM. IT’S FINE. NO.

Well that was long!

[bolddeducktionneverfails]

Launchpad’s Association with Della Duck: More Possible Hints?

Part 1 | Part 2| Continued from Part 3

Alrighty! Time to bring up some more interesting points that might be worth paying attention to:

Back in May, Disney released a ton of content to promote DT's Disney Channel relaunch. Some of this content was a series of online shorts called Webby Reacts and it featured Webby looking at clips of other Disney Channel media. In some of the shorts, she would name drop her friends and make comparisons to what was going on while others presented interesting situations:

While watching a clip from Raven's Home, Webby claimed that one of the characters was being possessed by an evil shape-shifter.

The Descendants 2 clip featured the “What's My Name?” music video which highlighted a group of singing and dancing pirates.

Webby speculated that someone's parent was cursed in her Descendants 3 teaser reaction.

When a clip from Stuck in The Middle showed a family member leaving, she got really upset and hugged HDL tightly.

All of these sound very familiar…

Mᴀɢɪᴄᴀ ɪs ᴀ sʜᴀᴘᴇ-sʜɪғᴛᴇʀ ᴡʜᴏ ᴘᴏssᴇssᴇᴅ Lᴇɴᴀ, Dᴏɴ Kᴀʀɴᴀɢᴇ ʜᴀs ᴀ ʙᴀɴᴅ ᴏғ sɪɴɢɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ ᴅᴀɴᴄɪɴɢ ᴘɪʀᴀᴛᴇs, Sᴄʀᴏᴏɢᴇ's ᴘᴀʀᴇɴᴛs ᴀʀᴇ ᴄᴜʀsᴇᴅ ᴀɴᴅ Tʜᴇ Dᴜᴄᴋ Fᴀᴍɪʟʏ ᴀʟᴍᴏsᴛ ᴍᴏᴠᴇs ᴀᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ Cᴀᴘᴇ Sᴜᴢᴇᴛᴛᴇ...

...Were these shorts foreshadowing future plot points? It sure looks like it! They match up a little too well.

In the same short that featured Stuck in The Middle, Dewey comments that “TV is awesome!” and when “Day of The Only Child!” aired, we found out that he's been developing his own TV show pilot! In a reaction to Disney's Zombies movie, Webby accidentally breaks the camera and wonders if Scrooge will believe Louie did it instead. Maybe this is a bit of a stretch, but in “Only Child”, Louie did end up breaking a ton of things on purpose. (“The Depths of Cousin Fethry” seems to prove that Louie often gets blamed for things even if he's not responsible. He is labeled as the “evil triplet” after all.) Another thing that this short could be getting at is “The Living Mummies of Toth-Ra!” since mummies and zombies are practically the same.

There's an Andi Mack clip where Webby compared the awkwardness of a romantic relationship to herself. Maybe this one might be a stretch as well, but the closest thing I could think of this foreshadowing was “The Golden Lagoon of White Agony Plains!” where it also shows an awkward relationship between Scrooge and Goldie.

So, what does this information have to do with the main point of my theory? Well...the first short to be released from Webby Reacts featured another clip from Andi Mack where someone who was seen as an older sibling, revealed themselves the main character's parent. Webby name-dropped Launchpad as she made a comparison to him and the parent. She notes that both of them are characters that have made “a lot of mistakes”. (While not mentioned in the short, both of these characters are also world-travelers.) Towards the end of the short, Webby begins to wonder who the main character’s father is and goes off to make a mystery board dedicated to the subject.

I can’t think of an episode that matches this...it could just be foreshadowing an ongoing idea or it might have been trying to make a loose connection to Della; she’s a world traveling parent who hasn't made the best decisions, but we don’t discover her being anything other than herself. She wasn't previously thought to be someone else. Even if this short was referring to Della, Launchpad and a father is mentioned alongside her...

All the shorts seem to be hinting towards Season 1 episodes, but what if this one is hinting beyond that? A couple of fans have noted that Webby has yet to add Launchpad to any of her mystery boards. Could this be part of the reason why they didn't really interact until “Shadow War”? Because Webby would start making theories about him and reveal something important?

In “Beware of The B.U.D.D.Y System!” we find out that Launchpad just got his driver's license. It shouldn't be surprising due to the way he was driving in “Woo-oo!”, but still...Launchpad applied to be a chauffeur...while being unlicensed? And Scrooge hired him? Wha?? Was this the only position Scrooge had available? (Was it due to Duckworth’s death? In the older series, Duckworth doubled as both Scrooge’s butler and chauffeur.) This sounds a little like Launchpad could have been desperate to work for Scrooge...why did he take the position he wasn't quite suited for, just to start talking about aviation on his first day? Yes, that's his passion, but for someone who keeps up with the newspaper and makes scrapbooks out of them , he should have already known Scrooge didn't have an opening for a new pilot and should have known that his chances would be extremely low if Scrooge is retired. I think LP could have been one of the first employees Scrooge has hired in ten years. I also have a feeling that LP has been trying to work for Scrooge for a while and waited for any position to open up just so he could reach him…the way he responded after Scrooge warned him about every dent coming out of his salary could indicate that money isn't his main objective.

In the beginning of “Beware of The B.U.D.D.Y System!”, we were presented with Launchpad's living area for the first time. There were a number of interesting things to take in about the setting, like how he has a burrito poster hanging up and how he keeps his eating utensils in socks. But what interested me the most was more towards the second level of the room: He has white Christmas lights on the banister leading up to where he sleeps; in a hammock. And the ceiling above his hammock has plastic glow-in-the-dark moons and stars. So...every night, he's suspended in the air with little lights around him? I'm sensing a strong outer-space vibe from this...

Before Della's situation was explained, there have been multiple instances of stars and moons inside and outside of the show and might be hinting towards something that relates to Della in some way. Another example of this imagery being used is on the cover of Launchpad's joke book. The star stickers are on Dewey and Webby's side. They not only jump-started the mystery surrounding Della, they also resemble her personality the most.

Tʜᴇ sʜᴏᴛs ᴏғ Wᴇʙʙʏ's ʀᴏᴏᴍ ᴀʀᴇ ғʀᴏᴍ "Wᴏᴏ-ᴏᴏ!" ᴀɴᴅ "Dᴀʏᴛʀɪᴘ ᴏғ Dᴏᴏᴍ!"

Dᴇʟʟᴀ's ʀᴏᴏᴍ ᴄᴏᴍᴇs ғʀᴏᴍ "Tʜᴇ Gʀᴇᴀᴛ Dɪᴍᴇ Cʜᴀsᴇ!"

Tʜᴇ ᴅʀᴜɪᴅ sᴛᴏɴᴇ ɪs ғʀᴏᴍ "Tʜᴇ Mɪssɪɴɢ Lɪɴᴋs ᴏғ Mᴏᴏʀsʜɪʀᴇ!"

Dᴏɴᴀʟᴅ's ʜᴏᴜsᴇʙᴏᴀᴛ, Wᴇʙʙʏ's ʙᴀᴛʜʀᴏᴏᴍ, Lᴇɴᴀ's Hɪᴅᴇᴏᴜᴛ ᴀʀᴇ ғʀᴏᴍ "Jᴀᴡ$!"

Tʜᴇ Dᴇᴡᴇʏ Dᴇᴡ-Nɪᴛᴇ ʙᴀᴄᴋᴅʀᴏᴘ ɪs ғʀᴏᴍ "Dᴀʏ ᴏғ Tʜᴇ Oɴʟʏ Cʜɪʟᴅ!"

Dᴀʀᴋᴡɪɴɢ ɪs ғʀᴏᴍ "Bᴇᴡᴀʀᴇ ᴏғ Tʜᴇ B.U.D.D.Y Sʏsᴛᴇᴍ!"

Back in May when DT began it’s relaunch on the Disney Channel, I noticed that “The Spear of Selene!” was set to premiere the same month as Mother's Day and wondered if the episode was possibly being used as a tie-in. Could it have been pushed up for this reason? One of the reasons? Maybe this happened because it had a very anticipated plot? According to the production order, “McManor” should have aired first, but it aired at the end of May instead. Even though it didn't premiere directly on Mother's Day, it did air again before it.

(Sidenote: I also noticed that “Selene”s premiere landed on Russi Taylor's birthday. She's the original voice actress for Huey, Dewey, Louie and Webby. I wondered if this was subtly hinting at Russi playing Della. Heh, totally wrong about that, but I’m glad Russi still ended up on the show as Young Donald in “Last Christmas!”. And I’m so glad we get to hear Della speak now! Paget Brewster does a wonderful job with playing her.)

(Sᴏᴜʀᴄᴇ)

A similar thing happened in the following month: After “McManor”, there was a short hiatus in the beginning of June. Then the show returned with “Jaw$!” premiering a day before Father's Day. I find it extremely interesting that Disney decided to premiere an episode where Launchpad is very concerned about Dewey...scolds him in a parental manner...and scoops all three of the boys up to hug them...a day before Father's Day...In order of production, “Day of The Only Child!” was supposed to be aired before “Jaw$!”. 

Iɴ ᴛʜᴇ ғɪʀsᴛ sᴄᴇɴᴇ, Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ sᴀʏs "Dᴇᴡᴇʏ! Dᴏɴ'ᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ɢᴇᴛ ᴇᴀᴛᴇɴ ʙʏ ᴀ ᴍᴀɢɪᴄᴀʟ ᴍᴏɴᴇʏ ʙɪɴ sʜᴀʀᴋ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ! Yᴏᴜ ʜᴇᴀʀ ᴍᴇ ʙᴏʏ?!"

Iɴ ᴛʜᴇ sᴇᴄᴏɴᴅ sᴄᴇɴᴇ, ʜᴇ ᴘɪᴄᴋs ᴜᴘ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴛᴡᴏ ʙᴏʏs ᴀs Sᴄʀᴏᴏɢᴇ ᴡᴀʟᴋs ᴛᴏᴡᴀʀᴅs ᴛʜᴇᴍ.

Could Disney have moved it up to make it a tie-in? Would they go that far to hint that Launchpad could be the father? It seems like they may have done something this subtle before:

“Woo-oo!” premiered on August 12th, which just so happens to be Middle Child Day. Did...did Disney premiere the show on this day to hint towards Dewey getting the focus in Season 1?!

And then a year later, "The Most Dangerous Game...Night!", the first episode in a Louie-focused season, premiered on National Sloth Day (10/20), "The Ballad of Duke Baloney" premiered on National Sandwich Day (11/3), and "Storkules in Duckburg!" premiered a day before Mickey Mouse's birthday.  Storkules' voice actor, Chris Diamantopoulos, plays Mickey in the MM Shorts! Usually, networks push holiday themed episodes up to tie-in with major holidays, but every episode of S2 we've seen so far has been aired in production order...How much of this is a coincidence and how much of this was planned?

Something else I noticed about "The Spear of Selene!" is that it aired on May 4th, also known as Star Wars Day. In the episode, we find out the spear isn't an artifact, but something else. Did this episode premiere that day to hint that the SOS was a spacecraft?

Also back in May, when the Radio Disney Music Awards took place, Disney released a music video collaboration with Marshmello using one of his songs, “Fly”.  In the video, Scrooge, Donald and the kids are out having a space adventure and Marshmello helps them out along the way. I enjoyed the video a lot, but the whole time, I was wondering: Where’s Launchpad? Why is Donald shown driving the ship instead of the go-to pilot of the group? The ship even ends up crash landing on a planet, but they didn't want to use Launchpad? That’s his thing, why was he excluded? Could including him have been too revealing? Now that we know the Spear was a spacecraft and that Della is alive on the moon, the whole music video was alluding to a future plot point involving the family going off to save her. (Unless she ends up rebuilding the Spear in time.) If Launchpad had a relationship with Della, he’s going to want to be part of the mission. It’s very likely that he was left out because it would have closely resembled what would eventually happen and to also keep too many people from making a connection between LP and Della’s situation.

The Sunchaser, the red seaplane the family travels around in, belongs to Scrooge, but it is named after the first plane LP ever built in the original series. And fans have noted that the biplane Della rides in Scrooge’s “Last Crash” flashback resembles the Joyrider from the original series; another plane Launchpad has created. (In addition to this, he’s also created the Thunderquack in Darkwing Duck.)

Tᴏᴘ, Lᴇғᴛ ᴛᴏ Rɪɢʜᴛ: Tʜᴇ ᴏʀɪɢɪɴᴀʟ Sᴜɴᴄʜᴀsᴇʀ ᴀs ɪᴛ ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀᴇᴅ ɪɴ “Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ’s Fɪʀsᴛ Cʀᴀsʜ" ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ DT 2017 ᴠᴇʀsɪᴏɴ.

Bᴏᴛᴛᴏᴍ, Lᴇғᴛ ᴛᴏ Rɪɢʜᴛ: Tʜᴇ Jᴏʏʀɪᴅᴇʀ ᴀs ɪᴛ ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇᴘɪsᴏᴅᴇ "Tᴏᴘ Dᴜᴄᴋ" ᴀɴᴅ Dᴇʟʟᴀ's ʙɪᴘʟᴀɴᴇ ғʀᴏᴍ "Lᴀsᴛ Cʀᴀsʜ ᴏғ Tʜᴇ Sᴜɴᴄʜᴀsᴇʀ!"

“Last Crash“ revealed that Della is not only a mechanic and a pilot, but she designs blueprints for vehicles as well.  Are these concepts simply being recycled and reworked? Or could there be a deeper meaning behind this?

When the promo for “Storkules In Duckburg!” was released, I wondered if some plot elements from "The Golden Fleecing" would be recycled, like making a reference to how one of the harpies fell in love with Launchpad. But when the episode premiered, he (technically) didn't show up until the end. Which is completely understandable, because if this version of LP had an encounter with harpies during one of his past adventures, they certainly traumatized him, so why would he want to be involved when they’re flying around? I also had a feeling he wouldn't really be in this episode since Storkules was going to be the focus and we didn't get to see them interact in “Selene”. Storkules might know about LP through Della or LP might know about Storkules through her, so maybe they’re being kept away not to reveal much. (I’m also theorizing that Stork is being used to indirectly give us information about Launchpad. Something about their similarities and avoidance give off that vibe...Maybe I’ll save that subject for another time). While there weren't any “Golden Fleecing” elements in the plot for me to look into, something else did capture my attention: Donald’s wall of family photos was updated! Most of them consisted of Donald and the boys doing various things when the were younger, but one particular photo looked very out of place...this one featured an adult duck who did not resemble Donald at all. He was more human-shaped with messy, white hair, a dark teal scarf, a brown jacket and tan pants, sitting on the ground giving a thumbs up to the camera. I quickly thought “Is this the father of the triplets?” Before I could drop my theory, I took notice of the strange green object behind the character. I was puzzled...it looked a lot like a cactus. As soon as I came to that conclusion, another came up: “Is that a PLANE? A crashed plane?! And he’s giving a thumbs up?! IS THAT LAUNCHPAD?!” I mean, why would they have yet another male pilot on the show, sporting brown and teal, who also has the tendency to break things? Isn't that cutting a little too close?

Bᴏᴛᴛᴏᴍ, ʟᴇғᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀɪɢʜᴛ: Lᴏᴜɪᴇ's ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀᴄᴛ ᴘʜᴏᴛᴏ ᴏғ Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ ғʀᴏᴍ "Tʜᴇ Mᴏsᴛ Dᴀɴɢᴇʀᴏᴜs Gᴀᴍᴇ...Nɪɢʜᴛ!" ᴀɴᴅ ᴘʀᴏᴅᴜᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ᴀʀᴛ ғʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏʀɪɢɪɴᴀʟ sᴇʀɪᴇs.

Iғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʜᴏᴛᴏ ɪsɴ'ᴛ Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ, ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴡʜᴏ ɪs ʜᴇ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴡʜʏ ɪs ʜᴇ sᴛᴇᴀʟɪɴɢ ʜɪs ᴛʜᴜɴᴅᴇʀ?

But if this character is intended to be Launchpad, why is his hair white? Perhaps his likeness is being obscured to make us skeptical. Giving him hair red and making his chin more prominent would give too much away. (Donald and the boys aren't exactly on model either; Donald’s sailor hat is different and HDL’s eggs...were not that small...) Or maybe his hair is like that to imply that LP’s not a natural redhead?! (Gasp!) There’s official material where ‘87’s Launchpad is given white hair either by coloring error or it was once considered for him to look like this. Maybe the show-runners took this odd occurrence into consideration.

Tᴏᴘ, Lᴇғᴛ ᴛᴏ Rɪɢʜᴛ: Bɪʀᴅɪᴇ sʜᴏᴡɪɴɢ Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ's ʙᴀʙʏ ᴘʜᴏᴛᴏ ғʀᴏᴍ "Tᴏᴘ Dᴜᴄᴋ" ᴀɴᴅ ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴏғ ᴀ Dɪsɴᴇʏ Aᴅᴠᴇɴᴛᴜʀᴇs ᴍᴀɢᴀᴢɪɴᴇ ᴄᴏᴠᴇʀ.

Bᴏᴛᴛᴏᴍ, Lᴇғᴛ: Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ ᴀs ʜᴇ ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ Vɪʟʟᴀ Dᴏɴᴀʟᴅᴏ Hᴏᴍᴇ Sʜᴏᴘ ᴘᴀɪɴᴛɪɴɢ ᴀᴛ Tᴏᴋʏᴏ DɪsɴᴇʏSᴇᴀ. Dᴇʟʟᴀ ɪs ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇᴅ ɴᴇxᴛ ᴛᴏ ʜɪᴍ ᴡɪᴛʜ ʜᴇʀ sᴏɴs ɪɴ ғʀᴏɴᴛ. Gʏʀᴏ ɪs ᴀʟsᴏ ᴘʟᴀᴄᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇɪʀ ʀᴏᴡ ᴀɴᴅ ɪs ᴀʟsᴏ ᴘᴏʀᴛʀᴀʏᴇᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴡʜɪᴛᴇ ʜᴀɪʀ...ғᴏʀ sᴏᴍᴇ ʀᴇᴀsᴏɴ...ᴡʜʏ ᴡᴀs Gᴏsᴀʟʏɴ ɪɴᴄʟᴜᴅᴇᴅ ᴡɪᴛʜᴏᴜᴛ Dʀᴀᴋᴇ?

Bᴏᴛᴛᴏᴍ, Rɪɢʜᴛ: A ᴄʟᴏsᴇ- ᴏғ Lᴀᴜɴᴄʜᴘᴀᴅ ғʀᴏᴍ Tʜᴇ Gʀᴇᴀᴛ Lᴏsᴛ Tʀᴇᴀsᴜʀᴇ Hᴜɴᴛ ʙᴏᴏᴋ 

So...why is there a lone photo of Launchpad surrounded by pictures of Donald raising the boys? And why does it disappear from the wall later on in the episode like we weren't supposed to see it? Scrooge, Mrs. B and Webby aren't featured anywhere on this wall and Donald still doesn't interact with Launchpad, so what is this all about? Could Donald know or suspect that LP is the father? Or is this meant to be meta foreshadowing for us fans to catch onto?

Tᴏᴘ: Tʜᴇ ғᴀᴍɪʟʏ ᴘʜᴏᴛᴏ ᴡᴀʟʟ ɪɴ "Tʜᴇ Sʜᴀᴅᴏᴡ Wᴀʀ!"

Mɪᴅᴅʟᴇ: Tʜᴇ ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴠᴇʀsɪᴏɴ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴀʟʟ ᴛᴏᴡᴀʀᴅs ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇɢɪɴɴɪɴɢ ᴏғ "Sᴛᴏʀᴋᴜʟᴇs ɪɴ Dᴜᴄᴋʙᴜʀɢ!"

Bᴏᴛᴛᴏᴍ: Tʜᴇ ᴡᴀʟʟ ʀᴇᴠᴇʀᴛɪɴɢ ʙᴀᴄᴋ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴀʏ ɪᴛ ʟᴏᴏᴋᴇᴅ ɪɴ "Sʜᴀᴅᴏᴡ Wᴀʀ"

Before Duckworth's reveal, he was hinted at a few times where his likeness was obscured: The ghost chasing the kids in Mrs. Beakley's short , the photograph of a floating orb of light on Webby's board and of course, the ram-headed spirit Black Arts Beagle summoned in “McManor”. Even though these depictions didn't look exactly like him, they all gave us a basic idea. The same could be happening for Launchpad.

Fᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴏɴɢᴇsᴛ ᴛɪᴍᴇ, I ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ Dᴜᴄᴋᴡᴏʀᴛʜ ᴡᴀs ʜɪᴅᴅᴇɴ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴍɪᴄ ᴘᴀɴᴇʟs ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴘᴇɴɪɴɢ...ᴡᴇʟʟ ᴘʟᴀʏᴇᴅ, DT Cʀᴇᴡ.

When IGN released the SDCC trailer for the last four episodes of Season 1, everyone quickly took notice about how huge HDL’s eggs were in the family photo. We were in such disbelief, that we began to think perspective had come into play and simply made them seem that big. But when “Last Crash” premiered, this proved to have little effect. So...why did Della lay such humongous eggs?! Is this the standard size for ducks in this universe? Or was this meant to be an indicator that the father was on a higher level of anthropomorphization than Della was? (oh gosh, that word is long)

I sᴛɪʟʟ ᴄᴀɴ’ᴛ ʙᴇʟɪᴇᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇsᴇ ɪᴍᴀɢᴇs ...ʜᴏᴡ....ᴡ ʜ ʏ 

The scene in “The Secret(s) of Castle McDuck!”, where Scrooge got Launchpad to dress-up as Donald in order to fool his parents, was hilarious. I immediately thought of how LP was created to replace fill the void Donald left behind in the old show and I think that’s what the joke was based on. I also found it interesting that he kept getting Donald’s story of moving into the mansion, mixed up with his own. Later on, I began to wonder if this scene was partially meant to be foreshadowing; that Donald will later feel like his role is being threatened by Launchpad. LP already sorta replaced Donald when it came to joining Scrooge on adventures and if Launchpad does end up being HDL’s father, and even when Della comes back, Donald could very well feel like his role as a parental figure is being endangered...at first.

Thinking back on "Beware of the B.U.D.D.Y System!" made me realize that there seems to be a trend going on where LP and the boys mimic each other:

With Huey, it seems like their thing is matching. In the pilot episode, Launchpad was interested in wearing one of Huey’s matching family road trip shirts. And later on, they were shown wearing matching outfits and expressions in "Moorshire". They’re also involved in The Junior Woodchucks, so their scout uniforms go together as well. In “Day of The Only Child!”, LP drags Huey over to the Beagle Boys by the handkerchief and Huey drags him back by the sleeve in a similar manner. (Heh, LP seemed very surprised that Huey was able to do this, especially after not being able to move the tree log before this scene.)

With Dewey, I think he and LP are going to continue to mimic each other's actions. This was noticeable in "B.U.D.D.Y" where they had the same reaction to Gyro's model train and during the scene where Mark is demonstrating the self-driving car to a crowd. They’re the only ones who use the “Buh?” sound of confusion; Dewey says it again in “The Secret of Castle McDuck!” when Huey asks him about rubbing a pencil on the back of the riddle they found and Launchpad says it again in “Shadow War” when Gyro explains what his Barksian Modulator is. “The World's Longest Deathtrap!” highlighted how like minded they are. Dewey was quick to throw the phone instead of using it for help like Launchpad was quick to drop the rope without tying it to something first.

With Louie, I think their thing might be lying. LP helped Webby and Louie lie to Mrs. B in the pilot by pretending to be Uncle Hampus. While not with Louie, he did lie to Dewey about his side-quest being "tourist stuff" (and there's still the possibility that LP could be faking his general behavior to an extent.) LP sorta lied about how he went off to see Oceanika in “Depths” too, maybe not entirely, but he minimized the details. Something else worth noting is how Launchpad and Louie were mimicking each other’s actions towards the end of “Death Trap”

To be fair, all of this might just be a fun little gag. Fenton and Dewey mirrored some of each other’s actions in “B.U.D.D.Y”, and LP mirrored Webby in “Shadow War”, but at the same time, Fenton hasn't done it as much as Launchpad and perhaps he was so in-sync with Webby because she’s similar to Della. We need to see how much of this trend is carried on into Season 2 and if it’s mainly Launchpad who is involved for this to seriously count.

That's it for this post, but I'm not done just yet...the next part of this theory update will be focused on how odd Launchpad acted in the last two episodes of Season 1. I originally wanted to integrate those observations somewhere in here, but I think they're more worthy of having their own post.

Are you up for even more reading? Continue here.