#i love how complex each of them are

[cp3killer]

untitled: a lestappen fic (or a glimpse of it)

hello!

here you go, the first glimpse of the fic. This is still very rough around the edges and i’m not even sure wtf this is. Still I hope you enjoy it or at least gives some excitement to your day-or night.

Please let me know your thoughts, if it’s good, or bad or nothing at all! 

playlist for this fic

2014

Today marks the end of his most successful season as a driver. Somewhere in his mother house his trophies attest to this. 

There’s a horse in one of them- his Maranello trophy couldn't be more obnoxious even if their cars depended on it. Ferrari's horse is in the middle of it with a cheap glint. In the end it’s just an object with arbitrary literature about the winner being the champion. 

But the real success is a personal milestone he hopes will become the norm in the future. This season his anxiety is less obvious. He suspects his mother knows this too, even if he’s never told her about how all his accolades are defiled by the experiences behind them. However he does feel satisfaction at how proud his mother is showcasing his trophies. It’s borderline embarrassing how giddy it makes him feel, blushing in front of someone worthy of his discomfort.

Maranello in winter is nothing special- in any season really. But Rome has the Vatican, Pisa has a tower, David is the representation of courage that makes Florence proud. Maranello on the other hand, is mythical, a museum filled with sacrifice and history dripping in devilish red.

His dad is somewhere talking to a mechanic or engineer, maybe even a sponsor. He doesn't care. It’s been half an hour since the race finished and with the conference done, the season has officially ended. Maybe he’ll see his mother soon, he doesn't remember the last time he saw her. 

He calls Victoria most days, lately by the time they finish their calls his ears are ringing from how her voice escalates with the fluttering panic of her current crush. Max is protective of her, but the distance between them is a reminder of what pursuing his dream has cost the family, which keeps him quiet. 

“What about you? How are things with Nyck's sister?” She finishes applying nail polish on her toes before turning to the video call.

He rolls his eyes. That had ended a long time ago, getting lost somewhere in the couple of months that passed. Honestly he feels a bit guilty about how little effect the break up has on him. 

“You can say her name Victoria” She was watching a show when he called her that is still playing in the background, loud enough he has to make an effort to hear her. “Oh, I know” she almost gags in disgust at the idea. His answer is concealed with a sigh.

“Were done”

“Finally!” His screen is framing her nose by how close she holds the phone, joy overflowing her blue eyes “Jesus Max. You train your reflexes everyday but couldn't see her coming, could you?” She moves her hand in the air like it’s supposed to keep her rant going. For everytime Max has swallowed a sarcastic comment, she vomits every single one of her thoughts “Plus, I warned you that those weren't just rumors, she is a ho..” 

“Let’s not go there Vic, alright.” His hand flashes in front of him writing a period in the air. “I don’t have the energy for this” She huffs, her eyes are still talking- despite the pixelated image the shitty internet provides, he can guarantee it. 

“I just…” This is the part he hates the most. Her distress is a consequence of something that is out of his hands. He could do anything about it, but doesn't want to. No matter the overflowing reason as to why he should. 

Max goes left when he crosses the back of the garage. There’s a spot far enough he escapes to sometimes. It’s just him and a sea of green weeds. It’s cloudy- he can almost smell the earthy aroma that sets after it rains. 

There’s still a couple of weeks before fall, but the rain is here. Ironic how in the one season where the cool raindrops would be welcomed they forget the clouds can kiss the ground.

He’s not hiding by being in this particular part of the track. But it is true that you only stumble on it if you actively look for it- or get lost. 

Last night's phone call is the first thing that crosses his mind when he sits down. He told himself he wouldn't think about the conversation with Victoria until he gets home, he had won the championship a couple of races ago, this one wouldn't really make a difference.

But even still, he wanted a 100% win rate. Every victory is a win. Yet he’s still anxious, he knows this  will not be enough for his dad. The most this will do is get his dad to say ‘you’ll do better next year’ or at least take back saying ‘you’re not even worth being a bus driver’ he lets the remark swim in his mind like it’s training for the olympics.

“Oh” Not oh. Ughh. Charles is standing in front of him looking uncomfortable. He’s so exhausted he can’t be bothered to give him more than a glance. Charles misunderstands it as an invitation.

Charles sits close, maybe the fabricated privacy gives him courage. The secluded place gives Max comfort. He doesn't worry about closing his eyes and letting out a sigh. Truthfully that's all he can do to manage his nerves. The adrenaline should be out of his system by now not racing to reach his cheeks.

He closes his eyes and counts to ten. Charles is still there when he opens them, a bubble forms around them, the tension is building fast enough to threaten them with the impending explosion. Charles' demeanor is anxious. Even if he decided to keep Max company- voluntarily.

“Congratulations” Max shakes his head, brings his knees to his chest, wrapping his arms around it. “What do you want?” Please leave me alone. Charles keeps quiet, pondering. “Take a guess” the shift in his eyes challenges him. Max turns away in return.

“Max” maybe it’s his accent- or his emotions, but the name rolls out of him like a moan. He watches Charles swallow, captivated by the apple in his throat- small and fragile. Dropping like it’s been trying to defy gravity.

His blush is deep, the heat in his cheek lights something in his mind, a fuse having no right to be so strong, he trembles, Charles eyes control the tide of his shivers. If only he could affect him too. Have him show his true colors. Even if his eyes highlight every thought, the absolute control of every single micro movement on his face is enough to confuse him.

“Honestly, can we stop with this” he hasn't learned how to show his pain through anything else but anger. He doesn't want to let anyone see anything that his anger can’t conceal. The last time he opened the curtains to his shiny eyes, it burned him.

“I can’t come up with a single fucking reason why you’d want to talk to me” his voice breaks at the end. Great. He tries to regain his composure “Someone who just put your career to shame” The facade is hard to maintain.

“I’m not here as Leclerc, Max” Charles interrupts him quickly, his voice drips with desperation, like Max is missing the point.

“I'm..” Charles points towards himself as if Max could ever forget who he is. “I know who you are,” he answers impulsively. Stupidly. 

Charles lets out a tiny huff, a giggle, a ‘ha’ that takes some of the younger's indignation away. If only Charles knew what saying his name out loud would do to him. Would he laugh at me? A memory pops up and it’s enough to keep his grit in place. 

“I don’t doubt it” The younger brags condescendingly. He rolls his eyes. 

If Charles was the sun, he bathes Max in the most intense and violent sense of inferiority. This is another addition to the countless times Charles has obliterated any sense of control between them. There’s always a lingering feeling that he’s behind on something.

The latter is looking down at the space between them, a tight smile on his lips. He's sitting half turned to him, letting his face be closer than his lower half. Left hand tentatively close to his thigh.

The breeze is showering them like a sprinkler. The rain is getting stronger and Max is getting weaker.

Charles crushes their lips together, his hands protect Max's head like a helmet. Which definitely needs protection, the kiss feels like deliberately losing control over your car at the right speed so you can optimize the G forces that are about to impact you. You think you’re prepared for it. The chances of hitting a barrier are higher than winning a race. And still.

The constellation that bursts between them is the space between his longing and fears. Charles' lips which both bite and heal him are eager in their conquest. 

Max keeps still holding his breath. The memory of when the roles were reversed- it breaks him. Charles’ courage is a walk in the park compared to the sword Max prepared for a gun fight.

“Yeah, I.. that was” Whatever Charles wants to say stays in the space between them. But the rims of his eyes hums softly.

“A mistake” Prove me wrong. 

Charles' eyes squint in suspicion “Is that really how you feel?” Max swallows ”I don’t know about you, but when I do something twice it’s a decision Max” Charles looks so honest, it scares him.

Max can see himself, the way Charles eyes blink cautious and curious. How his body trembles so lightly he wouldn't have noticed if it weren't for his hands still holding him. The tremor actually comforts him, both of them are shaken by whatever is going on between them and having proof that he affects the younger feels delicious, it feels like victory.

“You’re only making a fool of yourself” Charles gasps. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t surround myself with fools Charles” The latter’s eyes blaze with fury, Max cheeks are on fire, between his blush, the dried sweat and Charles tight hold he couldn't be more present even if he searched from more things to ground him.

Charles is staring at his lips, there can’t be more than 3 centimeters between them, it’s so close yet not close enough, he swears Charles takes a breath to impulse himself forward, this time he’s ready. 

[crocodilenjoyer]

here’s the thing. about zolu. puts myhand on your shoulder Here’s the thing. luffy? aromantic. zero interest in romance. zoro? gay. very low interest in romance. has two braincells and they’re both devoted to thinking about swords. they are not dating. it is not romantic. it’s not sexual either because luffy, much like his views on romance, could not give less of a shit about sex. maybe if they both feel up to it at the same time, but that’s rare and when it does happen it’s more of a physicality and, to a lesser extent, affection thing than anything else. occasionally it’s a “hey wouldn’t it be weird/funny/fucked up if we [insert some david cronenberg-type shit]” thing and the other one goes “haha yeah do you wanna try.” but i digress.

however. HOWEVER. they Have A Thing. what that Thing entails is a mystery. luffy is both incredibly straightforward and frustratingly cryptic whenever he’s asked about it and zoro just kinda shrugs. they’re just luffyandzoro and zoroandluffy. the king and his lionheart. drift compatible. partners. captain and first mate. the sailor and the north star. sun and moon. they simply Are. what does that entail? well brother. they hang out

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

Road To Ruin

start of a postapocalyptic fantasy series set in an Asian-inspired desert world plagued by dangerous storms

follows a courier who transports romantic letters between a prince and princess, who helps the princess escape across the wastes towards the prince’s safe haven

but they’re pursued by bounty hunters, and accidentally uncover some ancient secrets. and also she’s in love with both of them

dinosaurs, magical motorbikes,

bi MC, start of polyam triad

[wickmitz]

I decided to start talking about Wick and Rocky's relationship because I like their dynamics too, I like seeing Wick scared of Rocky and Rocky being aggressive with him, which is unusual because Rocky is rarely aggressive with anyone, but of course Wick is an exception to rule

Also my mini opinion about their possible relationship, I think that if Rocky didn't have to fight for his place, then he and Wick could become friends, or at least tolerate each other a little, I also see some superficial similarities, their gentlemanly and romantic natures, and their common love for explosions (remembering the quarrymen chapter), but this is my assumption, I think that I don't understand the characters' personalities well, so I can be wrong in this assumption, something like that. So, what do you think about their relationship?

for starters, i cannot thank you enough for this ask! as i’ve said previously, i have many thoughts on these two, so it’s nice to finally be able to share some of them. although given the extent to which i think about them, i apologize in advance if this is sloppy and sort of everywhere … while i’ll try to structure things the best i can, i cannot promise i’ll succeed! but hopefully this is an enjoyable reply nonetheless.

one of my favorite things about rocky and wick’s relationship is absolutely how aggressive rocky is towards the aristocrat ; he is prone to glares and cruel jokes and borderline hissing whenever the man is within his line of sight, or can be brought to a wailing-fit over the mere mention of his name from miss m’s mouth. there is a childishness to it, but a very prominent threat as well in spite of rocky’s usual incompetence. so he goes out of his way to posture around wick, readily lying and adorning himself with the gangster drapes he so badly wants to wear, in the hopes that it intimidates … will even badmouth wick’s family and make fun of his name and rock related obsession to mitzi, and so on so forth! yet all of this is very reminiscent of schoolyard bullying rather than anything too severe, though we as the audience understand rather quickly that rocky would bash wick’s head in with a tire iron if he could. ( translation : if it wouldn’t earn the tears or hate of a certain beloved mitzi may ) and it’s all very intense despite the absence of actual violence! and i understand why many fans see this as unusual for rocky and believe that it’s only wick who makes him act so aggressively, but i’d argue it isn’t really wick at all that prompts such scary reactions from him … and that rocky is a deeply angry character who’s a.) been boiling quietly for a long, long time and b.) has turned wick into a punching bag of sorts for this inner world of resentment and hurt. basically, when he’s judging the well-to-do or poking fun, his eyes don’t look at wick and actually acknowledge him as sedgewick sable ; instead this is a being, something vague and metaphorical, who threatens to upseat rocky’s permanence in the lackadaisy and steal away his savior, and he’s had a hand in the violinist’s misfortune for a long time.

obviously, rocky doesn’t think wick robbed him of his family twice over and made him homeless, but he is channeling the fear and anguish of those events into his loathing for wick, if that makes sense? it’s easier that way -- to finally have an outlet for everything bleeding inside of you, to be able to bite and claw at something without feeling conflicted or having to take personal accountability for your own mistakes … which is something that i think rocky does struggle with to a degree. he is sort of a finger pointer! his pain has to be worth something, it has to be for someone else ; spending years homeless and losing his last bit of family was for freckle, and the scrambling of his literal brain was for mitzi, and that means he can’t ever be angry with them! well, except that he is, somewhat, but he buries it deep down instead of feeling it. with freckle there is a sense of strain between them -- an air of ‘you owe me’ from rocky to freckle as he uses freckle to appease miss m, and he constantly pokes fun at his cousin too. it’s lighter than his jabs at wick, but there’s a constant pestering, a reminder of how good freckle has it : how he’s got the mom and the house and the job and the girl most notably. i don’t think rocky is intending to come across as mean, and to his credit he hardly does! but it’s rather clear to me that some part of him, some hidden and deeply hurt part, is rather indignant about taking the fall for freckle all those years ago. which he can’t understand, because how could he? he made that choice, he decided to take accountability for something he didn’t do because he loves freckle and knows it’d be so easy to believe this family tragedy was roark’s fault ; the devilish child he was, all troublesome and too broken to properly fit anywhere. so there is a disconnect born here, where rocky can’t comprehend that he’d be angry at freckle, so instead these not so great feelings are placed elsewhere and silently boil over time. and with mitzi … i don’t think he’s angry at her per se, but there is a frustrated and desperate chorus of : why him and why not me, when i’m the one out here dying for you? which is certainly unpleasant. of course, rather than allowing those feelings to be more aimed at miss m, whom he feels unloved by, he ( again! ) represses these emotions and allows them to fester into his greatest fears and fantastical complexes. i think there is a lot of other miscellaneous anger he could have towards others too … perhaps some part of him is sore upon seeing ivy’s normal lifestyle, watching her go to university and knowing that’s been taken from him. or an ache felt when hearing stories from zib and the band and how they used to travel successfully, living as nomads, and rocky is all too reminded of his similar lifestyle and how he couldn’t make it work as effortlessly. people with immense trauma are more prone to irrational anger and jealousy, to viewing everything around them as unfair and believing it’s even more unjust that so many people get to live comfortably while they’ve suffered. a situation that gets more messy when you’re someone like rocky, a man who’s willingly made choices that have harmed himself and wants to continue on with his smiling, bumbling fool of an act. he does not want to be angry, does not want to see it within himself, i think, which leads to an accidental increase of it.

all of this is to reiterate that wick is a scapegoat for rocky and nothing more. it’s why he’s rather hypocritical whenever it concerns the man. for example, it was stated by tracy that he looks down upon wick for his excessive presence at the bar, yet he appears to enjoy hanging out with zib -- who drinks just as often! he makes fun of how all wick ever talks about is rocks, when he himself is prone to poetry rambles that people find irritating or boring, and etc etc. this is also just a human nature thing, to critique someone you heavily dislike and even going as far as to belittle things you love or do in your own day to day because you just hate them that bad! but given rocky’s willingness to befriend anyone, it more so reeks of a dehumanization element. wick is every obstacle in his way, every divine force that threatens to send him packing again, so he is equal parts unnerved by wick’s presence and angry about it. it is mostly a fear response we are seeing, an emotion that’s morphed into long held resentment and anger. so his actions are extremely defensive, with him trying to push wick far away and keep him and mitzi separate, like some sort of animal attempting to ward off a threat that’s come too close to their home. despite the loaded animosity there, this hate has hardly reached its peak … but it shall only grow more intense as things continue onward i’m afraid, since as it stands ( in the comic at least ) rocky is at an all time low … and is ten times more desperate. i’d honestly say wick has become so warped in his mind’s eye that he can only strive towards ‘winning’ over the other man, because that’s all he can see anymore. i think mitzi implying that wick willingly helped her out, the intense head injury, and rocky’s fragile emotional state is exactly what pushes him towards premeditated murder in look-see. i don’t know how people perceive that arc, but to me it’s very clear that rocky actively sought to see the deaths of wes and fish that night. going as far as to lament that he’d be, “very disappointed if ( he ) dreamed them,” and purposefully luring the marigold duo away to have freckle pick them off. while you could argue that this was a smart move, in a gangster sort of sense, there’s still no denying that rocky is oddly chipper about the whole thing and is now seeking death out ; whereas before his methods of vengeance were just, well, ruining people’s livelihood but ultimately leaving them alive. this isn’t to discredit the fact that rocky is going through something! he is in a very muddled and dark place, mentally and physically, but even tracy has said that the head injury hasn’t changed rocky’s personality -- it’s only brought things to the surface.

source : q&a with tracy .

which, yeah! makes sense! head trauma can cause a person to become a wreck emotionally ( think mood swings, irritability, etc ) but it doesn’t completely morph someone either. personality changes may occur, but it’s not like you’re being rewritten entirely, you know? and given tracy’s old statement, it’s clear that ‘personality changes’ aren’t a side effect he’s suffering from. something that adds to my beginning statement, which is that rocky is a deeply angry and troubled person, more so than fans give him any credit for.

however, to touch upon your mini opinion about these two, i actually wholeheartedly agree that rocky and wick could become friends if circumstances were different. they do in fact have many superficial similarities, but one of the more prominent things they deeply share is never really belonging in the groups they frequent. this is more overt with rocky’s character, yet wick faces it too in subtle ways. the well-to-do crowd, seen through the investors, find the gentleman to be lacking in about every place imaginable ; to them he is an obsessive freak who cares too deeply for meager rocks, something they constantly mock him for, while he’s also being noticeably set apart from the rest of them … he seems younger than the investors, more excitable, passionate, and a little less experienced, and doesn’t seem to care for money or reputation as much as them either. there is a constant rubbing between him and them, where what he enjoys is seen as wrong, such as his love for the lackadaisy and his choice in paramor, a grieving widow with extremely dangerous ties. we also know that wick doesn’t have many friends at all, with the only two he has being lacy and church ( church is listed as such on his character profile, in a sort of tongue-in-cheek way ), both of whom work for or with him. they are obliged to hang around, and while they care in varying ways, they are prone to judging him just as much. honestly, it’s not shocking that wick seeks refuge at his chosen speakeasy! but even there he is rather distant from everyone else. he doesn’t speak to zib ever in the comics, nor seems all too close with viktor, ivy, or horatio … it is merely mitzi he is close to, even if he knows of the other people who work there. and, once again, wick very obviously doesn’t fit in. he is not gangster material, could never be an atlas may replacement, much less someone who could get his paws dirty in such an active way. so he has his feet in two different worlds and doesn’t know how to fit into either of them, or which one he actually wants to fit into more. i think in many ways rocky could relate -- these are two very lonely people who wish to belong somewhere and be accepted by some group or another but go about it in all the wrong ways. wick, who is too hesitant to fully commit to what he wants and is worse off for it, and then rocky, who obsessively throws himself against what he wants until he breaks every bone in his body. they also have explosives to bond over, lol, and other miscellaneous things like their taste in women i suppose … but this potential bond adds to the tragedy of lackadaisy, where we see two people who on every level should get along but we’re burdened with the knowledge that it’s an impossibility anyway, because there’s no removing the circumstance of which they’re in.

though i like to believe that despite wick’s fear of rocky, he maintains a kindness towards him regardless. i think his worries about rocky are rather surface level … he doesn’t know the boy at all, really, and thus can’t make heads or tails of him, hence him believing the lie in balderdash. so when i’m feeling particularly self indulgent, i like imagining a world where they’re forced together and sort of ‘stuck’ together ; to which rocky finally breaks and exposes his wounds to wick, in every sense of the word, and wick finally gets him. the aggression, the possessiveness of mitzi … it is all fear and desperation and a profound sadness, things he’d sympathize with. if rocky was able to explain that he loathes wick because if he saves the lackadaisy then mitzi won’t need him anymore and that it’s not fair that wick gets to so easily fix things when rocky would give his soul for his home, for her, and how wick could render every sacrifice he’s already made for naught by smoothing things over with some greenbacks and he can’t lose this, he just can’t --! … which, well, wick is too kind of a man to be able to do anything except feel awful, even though it’s not his fault at all. here we have two people who could coexist! and they should, since rocky logically can’t do every speakeasy job ( band member, rumrunner, mitzi’s shadow, also the guy who gets the money for the hooch ) by himself, just like how wick can’t save the lackadaisy with only his cash and limited booze stash. it’d be a joint cooperation, a collaboration between them, both equally important in the grand scheme of crime’s every turning wheel … but rocky’s rage and fear won’t let him see that, and likely never will. still, in scenarios where everything ends up alright for the lackadaisy and the people involved in it ( which is not how canon will go, by the way ), i fancy wick and rocky getting better within their relationship. rocky will always be prickly and quick to upset around the other man sadly, but perhaps he could see wick in a softer kind of light. or at least understand vaguely enough that he isn’t out to get rocky, so to speak. and then maybe wick learns that pancakes soothe rocky’s ire and poorly makes them anytime he wishes to talk to the man, and other fun things like that! but you should have more confidence in your character analysis skills, because you were spot on ( at least in my eyes ) about them potentially getting along if things were different. it’s certainly a fun aspect to play around with, and is important to note when discussing their relationship so you can fully understand just how warped rocky’s perspective on things are. and how unstable and traumatized he is too, of course </3 sidenote, but i also hope that throughout everything i’ve said here, or anything i’ve said before on my blog, that my love for rocky and my own sympathy for him comes across well enough. while he’s deeply flawed and i have no qualms discussing said flaws in depth, i also don’t think of him as some insane freak who’s evil at his core or anything like that. honestly, i adore analyzing him so much as a character because of how far down his issues go! he’s very well written, i’ll say, as is wick and many of the other characters, but i digress.

once more, thank you for the ask! i’ll end this here because i fear if i don’t i’ll start going in circles, since their relationship is so vast and very important for rocky in a character sense. hopefully i shed some more light on it though! i love these two to bits and pieces and i wouldn’t be half as invested in lackadaisy if their dynamic wasn’t so monumental -- at least to me.

[bluegarners]

i guess the key, in my opinion, to writing a young dick grayson and bruce interaction is to make them gut-wrenchingly sincere. that's what gets me in fics, is the sincerity in their interactions, their every word. they have banter, and they have arguments, and they don't always say the right things to each other, but, to me, a well written dick and bruce interaction is one that is so tooth-rottingly sincere that it sticks out from all the chaos going around them. it is a beacon in the dark. they are each other's light, hope, and heart, wrapped up into one person. if they can't be sincere with each other, what is even the point?

[ficsinhistory]

Okay, can we talk about how Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy are the same person with different fonts? (And how does their conflit enrich the narrative?)

What makes them different is their circumstances. And the movie explores this very well.

Gwen doesn't have a mother and, therefore, the influence of greater emotional stability while Miles has (which makes his life much easier), remembering Rio, often counterbalances Jeff's tought love.

Her captain and father pursues her in cold blood, blaming Spiden-woman for the traumatic event (Peter's death) while Miles' father forgives her before any plea for repentance (Aaron's death). Gwen's New York hates her while Miles loves him. Miles' fear when talking about being a hero is Gwen's harsh reality, in which her father doesn't seem to love her, as pointed a friking gun at her head! Gwen is alone in her civilian life (with no friends or family present) while Miles has a community.

Miles and Gwen are alike, and that's what's most devastating. Because Gwen is just Miles with no support system.

And this is what makes them have different views on ATSV despite being "equal where it counts", fueling the conflict we saw. Gwen do a terrible thing hidding the fact that Miles' dad would die. But she also doesn't have a choice.

She isn't sincere and open and hopeful because she can't afford to be like that, and Miles would also do the same in her position if the roles were reversed, because what keeps Miles from losing himself is the support system he has. This help guide him for good ways.

Because Miles is capable of being as morally gray than Gwen was. How I know that?

Because Prowler! Miles exist.

The film shows the two as the foil, leading to that explosive finale. That after all, as Gwen messed up, lied, and try stop him, Miles finds himself stuck with a bitter version of him and that himself is who can stop him for saving his father . That Miles' lack of a support system and good circumstances (already illustrated in Gwen ) is taken to an extreme in his version of Earth-42.

I like to think that what this movie and the next one say is: you do things your way and you decide how your life is going to be, but your circumstances also affect it. They do not dictate, but affect. As it is in these dark hours that you hold on to what is right, or move to make things right.

Including I think this will be a big factor that will contribute to Miles for giving Gwen.

She made a mistake and owes a lot of apologies, yes. But wouldn't Miles do the same? Wouldn't he lie, mess things up in the name of keeping his life together minimally when he had no choice? Especially having a world where, when everything came crashing down, he effectively became an unrecognizable version of himself to protect what mattered to him?

And Gwen didn't try make amends? Giving up everything you know just to make things right? Change things? Assembling a team just to find and save him? Just like Miles always tries to do right and be the best version of him?

Gwen's arc, their fight the entire movie, and the final scene on Earth-42 all convey an important truth to Miles' own arc: how hard it is to be morally good and right all the time when everything around you is falling apart.

Because everyone is subject to circumstances. And then yes, you decide how you will act.

Miles Morales is just like Gwen Stacy and just as flawed, we just did't see how much yet.

[bokutoasavillain]

I fear this may be too controversial but i really don’t get the hate on junlian when so many people ship xuexiao? Like I know they’re not exactly the same but it’s fascinating to me how one fucked up ship is so popular while the other is so incredibly hated?? Like they both have incredibly complex relationships in canon and both have one character who felt wronged by the other and then went on to force them to do things that went against their morals while also being really close to them and outwardly caring for them. Do you get what I mean? Xue Yang and Jun Wu both did these things yet Xue Yang is loved for the complex and fascinating character that he is but Jun Wu is reduced to a stupid jerk and people hate him. Maybe it’s the difference between the fandoms but I don’t think that’s the only reason. Idk I’m not telling people who they can and cannot like but I do think the difference is weird

[fatmaclover]

mac being referred to as joyces boy. her boy. hes her boy. mac being the person to understand joyces writing the easiest. they belong to each other theyre each others lost halves if they were ever separated they would stop functioning. auawhhrhwuah

[somebluemelodies]

since we're probably finally gonna be seeing spiderbit back together in a couple days, here's my personal take on their reunion :> just to be safe: tw for talk/implications of suicidal thoughts (under the cut)

They stay there for God only knows how long, holding on as tight as they can, in fear of what could happen if they let go.

(It could all change in the blink of an eye. Heaven forbid.)

They’d started their embrace standing, but it was short-lived, the weight of everything crashing down on them as their legs gave out, water building behind their eyes.

For now, it’s finally over. For now, it’s finally just them. And that’s enough.

It’s Roier who finally moves first, lifting his head from Cellbit’s shoulder but not pulling back far enough to leave his husband’s arms. No, he’s not ready for that yet.

He holds Cellbit’s face in his hands, brows furrowed as he stares him down. “What the fuck happened?”

“I didn’t—” the investigator pauses, seeming to rethink his words— “I chose to stay there.”

(He can never lie to the spider-hybrid, in any capacity.)

Roier’s brows furrow even more, if possible. “¿Qué—? Hijo de puta, what were you thinking?”

Cellbit glances away from him, eyes flickering down. He looks… guilty. Conflicted. “I… I saw Richas die in front of me. At least, I thought I did. And honestly?” He swallowed. “I wanted it to be over after that. I didn’t care anymore. As long as you made it. And you did. That was the only thing that mattered to me.”

Roier purses his lips, chest heavy. He understands, in a morbid truth - he really does. He thinks of how he felt immediately after Bobby died and the days that followed. The hours spent in the damn pool, hoping, praying for a way out. Falling from the heights of his castle without a care. The pain that still plagues him.

(He understands better than anyone else.)

But it was Cellbit who started to make him feel alive again. Cellbit who made his world even just a little brighter, even with the storm clouds of his own past.

And he’ll be damned if he loses him, too.

(They’re together. For better or for worse.)

There’s a question on the tip of his tongue. Why didn’t you tell me you wanted to stay?

(He feels like, deep down, he already knows at least a small semblance of the investigator’s answer. And it makes him upset. For Cellbit.)

(Why does this happen to any of them?)

But Roier doesn’t even have to ask. He knows Cellbit knows, somehow, by the way his husband studies his expression.

(They’ve become eerily good at reading each other. That’s just how they work now. But he wouldn’t have it any other way.)

The thoughts come pouring out of Cellbit before he can really stop them; the same ones he’d relayed to Baghera. “I knew you would've stayed if I told you. And I didn't want you to do that. I didn’t want to take the chance of you around me when I was… like that. And this isn’t much better. I’m still—” he recoils, retracting his arms from Roier, who nearly grabs for his hands at the loss of contact. “You deserve better than this, guapito; you deserve to be free, not stuck there on that fucking island, stuck with me— you’d be happier without me.”

“¿Qué?”

(Roier feels like someone just submerged him under icy water.)

“I thought you’d be happier without me. I didn’t think you could be happy around me like this. I still don’t— I—”

Cellbit is interrupted by a sudden hand against the back of his neck, pulling him forward as lips crash against his, and he’s nearly overwhelmed by all the emotions behind it, intertwining with his own.

But he kisses back immediately, melting right into it; of course he does. He knows he can talk all he wants about not wanting Roier to be around, but what he wants and what he needs are two separate things.

They're breathless when they pull apart, and Roier's hands settle on Cellbit's shoulders. “You’re an idiot, Cellbo, you know that? So brilliant, yet so stupid sometimes."

He breathes in, out, catching his breath and trying to gather the right words. “I spent so long looking for you. Hours and hours, every single day, trying to find some sign of you. Anything.

Why? Because I was fucking miserable, man! I felt like shit without you! I missed you, I missed you so much.” His voice falters slightly.

“But—”

“Pinche pendejo—” Roier hisses under his breath— “I don’t care what you think I deserve. I want you. Always. We stick together, no? Not because we're stuck and we have to, but because we want to, no?"

Cellbit nods slowly after a moment, remaining quiet. "Exactamente." The spider-hybrid reaches up, cradling his husband's face in his hands and catching a stray tear with the pad of his thumb. "I will always help you, no exceptions. Remember? Always here, for anything you may need."

The investigator falls into his arms, muttering tearful apologies, and they're right back to clutching each other tightly, securely.

(They're both crying, now. The tears stream freely, knowing they can be. Together.)

(It's not okay right now, but maybe in time, it will be.)

"Desculpa—" Cellbit chokes out— "te amo..."

They hold on tighter still. Roier's voice is muffled slightly, but Cellbit can make out the words as clear as day as the piece he's been desperately missing for weeks slides back into place.

"You and I against the world, gatinho."

And so it'll be.

[hualianisms]

i love how fanghua are so danmei coded. fang duobing as the protective nianxia ml whose life was so monumentally changed and shaped by a shifu he met only once when he was younger but whose small act of kindness moved him so deeply that he spent most of his life trying to get stronger, working hard to finally be able to catch up to and be worthy of that glorious shifu that he so admired.

except he finally meets that shifu again years later as an adult and he's finally caught up to him but now their positions are reversed - li lianhua is now the sickly one, and fallen from grace; fdb is now the (physically) stronger one, the young hero, and he becomes friends with and falls for llh who he now no. longer wants to be the disciple of. instead, he now wants to protect and care for li lianhua like one protects and cares for a lover.

[scoliosisgoblin]

doodles and some lore. I'm tired.

[dracocheesecake]

...Do you think, in Besteel's last moments, he thought of Redimus? Did he think that he had failed, and his brother would be imprisoned forever because of him? Did he never know that his brother had been freed? Did Redimus never know what Besteel had been willing to do for him, and why he did what he did?

[hayaku14]

hello why is kaishin more popular than shinkai or what i mean is why bottom shinichi is like the most widely believed one? lol not really in the fandom just vaguely familiar with the anime from childhood it's just my mutuals likes this ship. i'd thought shinichi being the top would be more popular given his personality.

anon sorry for the late answer!!

imma be real honest with you, anon, i've loved the kidco dynamic since i was conan-sized but i only realized kaishin should be making out around 2021 so i don't know if i'm the best person to answer this question LOL BUT, i'll give you an answer!

tbh, i think for fandom shipping in general, the main character more often than not is the chosen bottom and whoever else is the other party is topping them. in japanese media especially, the ship names are mostly born from putting the kanji of their names together wherein the order of which indicates the seme and uke. since this happens early on, we kinda get stuck with that as the popular ship name whether you prefer the other way later on.

perhaps kaishin is more popular but not entirely by a lot compared to other ships where it's completely skewed to one side. i see a lot of shinkai too. ofc there are people who prefer one way over the other exclusively and that's completely fine!

personally, i think confining them into seme and uke or top and bottom does a great disservice to the kaishin dynamic because to me we should be looking at their sub-dom dynamic more and why they're actually peak switch sub and dom!!!!

that's fucking right kaishin is actually peak switch and i will die on this fucking hill!!!!!!!!!!

when you say shinichi would be the "obvious top," i'd like to assume in your heart you actually meant "the obvious dom" (LOL) but i think that could also apply to kaito.

i think the appeal of kaishin is the push and pull between them. the give and take. they're always trying to one-up each other. sometimes one pushes and the other gives way, sometimes it's the other way around.

i will be honest, perhaps switch pairings might just be my preference but I have never encountered a pairing that felt this completely equal in the switch department more than kaishin. like for other ships i'd sometimes be like, "yeah they switch but A is 70% more dom than B." But for kaishin I'm like, "oKAY THEY'RE 50/50 THEY'RE EQUALS THEY'RE PERFECT HALVES RAAAAAHHHH"

now how does this answer your question? well, i have no proof and im going off of vibes and like i said im no veteran in this ship fandom but, i think a lot of people do enjoy the other way around as you think it would've been. it's just that...it's something that can just be filed under the kaishin tag too. because it's basically the same sometimes. the only different thing is who's topping and bottoming. like sometimes i'm scrolling through twitter and i'd see art that's giving shinkai but it's tagged as kaishin and vice versa lol.

also personally i prefer calling them kaishin because i love the letter k and i associate the name shinkai more with makoto shinkai so every time i see people refer to kaishin as shinkai, my mind just conjures up an image of kaito, shinichi, and makoto shinkai together and i know that's fucking hilariously weird but it sometimes happens!!!! LMAO so even if i'm thinking about shinkai stuff, i still prefer using the name kaishin lol.

(but having the kaishin/shinkai distinction is definitely still useful especially for people who want to filter through one way or the other so fuck yeah to the ship name shinkai you're here to stay!!!)

anyway in conclusion, top shinichi is popular too dw lol, or maybe i should say bottom kaito is popular too lol i see yalls

also sorry that this answer is not only late but also a whole essay that doesn't even straightforwardly answer your question lol my bad anon

[dollypopup]

i think what rubs me the saddest way about the 'pen ghosts colin and makes him grovel for her forgiveness' narrative playing out on screen is that it would just be heartbreaking from Colin's perspective in such a pointed way, but i don't know if it could conclude with any real satisfaction when he's a fleshed out character

i look at colin and i see a lost, lonely person who is trying so hard to fit in and be loved and understand himself, trying to learn and come into his own, never really clicking with much of anyone in a meaningful way, not completely. how so much of charm is people pleasing, wanting to be wanted. how he told Pen that he was starting to really believe that she 'would never forsake' him, how he praised and admired her loyalty, her friendship, how he started to really open up to her. how he told her she inspired him. how grateful he was that she tried to keep him from heartache. how she was one of the few people who didn't talk down to him about discussing his travels, who would listen to him like he listened to her.

and how she will forsake him in that narrative, for one comment, for one action in all the entirety of their friendship. how she will show him, truly solidify, that what he thinks of himself when he's feeling particularly low, that he's empty inside, not worth taking seriously, just a charming mask of a person, that he's not even worth keeping around if he isn't always being as perfect as he can be, is true.

i think this narrative could absolutely be done well! or it could be light if it's played for the bit without delving into colin's character and really only focusing on penelope's. but i want to delve into his character. i crave his perspective, want to know more that shaped him into being who he is. and exploring that, looking into it, the more it feels like that narrative couldn't be played for laughs. it could be gut wrenching, poignant. but it would take time, would have to unfurl. because when someone does that to you, when they decide you aren't worth the effort, the time (for a returned letter, for an explanation or any familiarity, stripped even of a nickname) it's so hard to heal it all. even more so when you were so close.

how he'd always worry about saying anything wrong to her from then. how he'd always have it in the back of his head: is this the one she leaves me for? again? because what if she decides he isn't worth it? she decided once, why not a second time? and, worse: what if she's right to? what if he really never had anything of substance worth holding onto in the first place?

any narrative can be a good narrative, a satisfying romance, if it's written well, if it explores and deepens a character, a connection, if it opens a new facet or shines light onto old ones so they reflect new colors. but i want to know Colin, in it. i don't want it just to serve half a ship's story. i want him to have a perspective, to have a background.

no matter what direction it all goes, what's gonna be done, it should be done in a way that serves the betterment of both their stories

[eggtqrt]

the thing about the charming siblings is i want to make them tragic. you're perfect, I wish I was perfect. you're allowed to not be perfect. I resent you for being perfect. I hate you for being imperfect. I want to be a boy. I want to be a knight. I want to be you. I could be better than you. I wish your destiny was mine. I wish people loved me the way they love you. I wish she loved me the way she loves you. I hate you, I hate you, I hate you. I love you. I miss when we were friends. we never talk anymore. do you even care? you know nothing about me. you took my destiny. who am I? I'm supposed to be the responsible one. don't leave me. get away from me. when did you grow out of being a little kid? i miss home. the only place that feels like home is you. do you love her? do you love me? brother. sister. i was supposed to protect you. I'm sorry. I forgive you. nothing will ever be the same again.

it's about perfection and performance. it's about playing roles. everyone has their role to play. what if i want to be something else, something more. it's about femininity and masculinity. it's about not fitting in to either. is it about who you're supposed to be or who you want to be? I did it for you. I didn't ask for that. I'd burn the world for you. you never cared about me. I think of you always. there isn't room enough for all of us. i wish you'd never been born at all. I couldn't live without you.

[martyrbat]

detective comics #509

[ID: Bruce Wayne sleeping in his penthouse, his eyes squeezed shut as the narration reads, ‘Gordon's strained laugh sounds hollow, but it echos in the Batman's mind... and haunts his dreams...” Bruce awakens to a hand on his shoulder and before he can think, he's twisting it and holding it down. The panel expands, revealing the hand belongs to Alfred as he's almost toppling over! He cries out, “M-master Bruce—my arm!” as Bruce groggily realizes who it is. He lets go at once as Alfred moves to the end of the bed and holds his arm while stammering an apology, “S-sorry, s-sir... Sorry if I startled you.” Bruce looks at him with aghast as he cries out, “My god, Alfred—I almost broke your arm!” Alfred reasons, “You must have been having a nightmare, sir.” as Bruce sits up and puts his face in his hands. He weepily dismisses, “A nightmare—what kind of an excuse is that? Old friend... forgive me...” Alfred reassures, “Nothing to forgive, sir. Just bad nerves, sir.” END ID]