#if anyone is weird about them i will cry and block

[daisieduckie]

hero

taking the wholesome sonic and tails wednesday trend for a spin in a classic/ origins cutscene style!! their bond is so sweet and they’re good bros

[harrysfolklore]

Can you please do an Instagram blurb with Isabelle Mathers?! 🤍

haters gonna hate - cl16

summary: charles’ new girlfriend gets tons of hate online because she’s a model. their answer? pissing them off even more

MASTERLIST | MY PATREON

liked by bellahadid, charles_leclerc and 1,278,544 others

yourinstagram my bf took this 🥵

view all 12,755 comments

ynfan1 SUCH A SLAYYYYYY

ynfan2 girlie when are you going to reveal who the bf is

dualipa MY WIFE 🤤 ♥︎ by author

anokyai Stunning girl ♥︎ by author

ynfan3 i would be absolutely insufferable if i had that face card

ynfan4 she has been soft launching this relationship for months now ughh i need to know who he is

↳ ynfan1 my guess is that it’s something reaaaallyyyyy really famous or like a billionaire lol

zendaya 😍😍 ♥︎ by author

charlesfan1 excuse me why did charles like this pic? 😭

↳ charlesfan2 idk but she needs to stay away we don’t want him near models

↳ charlesfan3 agreed

liked by yourinstagram, landonorris and 2,147,224 others

charles_leclerc Train, Rest, Eat, Repeat. 🤍

view all 22,462 comments

charlesfan1 OMFGGGGG

charlesfan2 im foaming at the mouth

scuderiaferrari 🙌🌊

charlesfan3 he can’t just post this and dip charles im salivating now

pierregasly can i come?

↳ charles_leclerc No

↳ charlesfan1 HEEELP 😭

charlesfan4 can you believe this man is single ?? like he’s looking like THAT and no one is jumping on his bones

↳ charlesfan2 i would gladly jump on his bones

yourinstagram 🤤🤤🤤 ♥︎ by author

↳ ynfan1 GIRL WE CAN ALL SEE YOU

↳ ynfan2 you have a boyfriend girlie control it

↳ charlesfan1 NO NO GO AWAY

↳ charlesfan2 ew can charles block her ?? we don’t need models seeking attention and thirsting over him

↳ charlesfan3 YIKESSSSS

liked by gigihadid, charles_leclerc and 1,307,466 others

yourinstagram life lately 🌺

view all 13,109 comments

ynfan1 that’s not a face card that’s a face ECONOMY

ynfan2 GIIIRRRRL WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN

bellahadid ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

troyesivan mother is mothering ♥︎ by author

ynfan3 JUST SHOW THE GUY’S FACE FFS

ynfan4 since when is she into f1 😭

ynfan5 THE PUPPY ADORABLE??

charlesfan1 why did charles like her post again why did she get a dog that looks like leo and why does she pretend to watch f1?? WEIRD

↳ charlesfan2 for me it looks like she wants to grab his attention (or the attention of anyone from the grid) typical model behavior 🤢

charlesfan3 guys not what to speak anything into existence bc her dating charles is literally the last thing i want but,, what if?

↳ charlesfan1 nah there’s no way

↳ charlesfan2 literally the last thing we need is charles dating a model just NO

ynfan6 why are motorsport fans so annoying and why are they crying in this comment section about a scenario they created in their heads 😭 ♥︎ by author

liked by yourinstagram, alex_albon and 1,487,012 others

charles_leclerc Miami, feeling at home already

view all 18,426 comments

charlesfan1 BABYYYY

charlesfan2 he should quit racing and just become a model

instagram blessing miami with his presence

charlesfan3 THE HAIR 😩

yourinstagram 😍😍 ♥︎ by author

↳ ynfan1 she’s begging to be dragged by his fans help

↳ charlesfan1 you again ?? annoying

↳ charlesfan2 CHARLES PLEASE BLOCK HER ALREADY

↳ charlesfan3 this is getting embarrassing like charles will never ever notice her and he even has a gf now

↳ charlesfan4 ATTENTION SEEKING BITCH

↳ ynfan2 i can’t wait for them to confirm that they’re dating so his fans can cry even more

liked by charles_leclerc, adrianalima and 1,544,937 others

yourinstagram miami here we go 🏁

view all 16,388 comments

ynfan1 SLAYYYY

ynfan2 SHES GOING TO THE F1 GP OMG

sabrinacarpenter google search how to be you ♥︎ by author

madisonbeer damn 😍😍😍 ♥︎ by author

charlesfan1 stay away !!! no one wants you near charles

charlesfan2 the second picture.. she’s making a fool of herself atp YIKES

charlesfan3 this is why i hate the miami gp influencers are all over the paddock trying to get to the drivers and ruin everything

↳ charlesfan1 and this girlie has been trying to get charles’ attention through her insta posts 💀

ynfan3 i love to see f1 fans cry

scuderiaferrari We can’t wait to see you 👏 ♥︎ by author

↳ charlesfan1 NO GUYS DONT ENCOURAGE THIS

charlesfan4 y’all i think it’s time to face the fact that she’s probably dating charles (which i absolutely hate)

↳ charlesfan2 nope i refuse. charles deserves better than a dumb model who just flexes her looks and seeks attention from the media

↳ ynfan1 girl wtf 😭 a model’s job is literally that and that’s okay, and yn doesn’t need to “seek attention” she’s an A list celebrity already

charlesfan4 CHARLES IS NOT GOING TO FCK YOU !!!

↳ yourbff oh boy do i have a story for you ♥︎ by author, charles_leclerc

↳ ynfan2 CLOCK THEM CLOCK THEM

↳ ynfan3 THIS IS SO MESSY ALSJAI

charles_leclerc I can’t wait 😍 ♥︎ by author

↳ charlesfan1 NO

↳ charlesfan2 CHARLES LOOK AT ME THIS ISNT YOU

↳ ynfan1 im once again showering in motorsport’s fans tears

↳ ynfan2 YALL LOOK EMBARRASSING RIGHT NOW

↳ charlesfan3 charles dating a model… literally worst case scenario

liked by charles_leclerc, kaiagerber and 1,876,503 others

yourinstagram ❤️ @charles_leclerc

view all 23,590 comments

ynfan1 SUCH A FLEXXX

ynfan2 she knows what she's doing i love her

francisca.cgomes 💕 ♥︎ by author

↳ ynfan1 the other WAGs love her charles fans are miserable right now

charlesfan1 GO THE HELL AWAY

charlesfan2 when i'm talentless and want fame so i have to pretend to care about f1

scuderiaferrari We love to see it 👏

↳ charlesfan1 wbk this is a pr strategy FREE CHARL

charlesfan3 the way no one likes her YIKES

↳ ynfan3 your fave driver does !! cry about it !!

iamrebeccad Best company 👯‍♂️ ♥︎ by author

charlesfan4 charles deserves so so so much better than you

charlesfan5 jesus some of you are sooo toxic it's embarrassing

charles_leclerc 😍😍😍 ♥︎ by author

↳ charlesfan1 NO

↳ charlesfan2 BLINK TWICE IF YOU NEED HELP

charles_leclerc Mon cœur ❤️ ♥︎ by author

↳ ynfan1 his fans can keep whining and bitching, she still wins

↳ charlesfan3 i refuse to believe this is real

liked by georgerussell63, yourinstagram and 1,987,548 others

charles_leclerc Feels good to be back home 🤍

view all 21,720 comments

charlesfan1 NO CHARLES WHY

charlesfan2 i didn’t need or want to see the second and third pic thank you

ynfan1 AHHH HE POSTED HER

arthur_leclerc ❤️

charlesfan3 how are we going to get rid of that bitch i’m so serious

↳ charlesfan1 i hope he cheats on her

charlesfan4 ugly, talentless, money hungry, attention seeker, i could go on @yourinstagram

charlesfan5 can we ignore the bitch and focus on adorable little leo

pierregasly Lovely to see you happy, mate. All the hate comments are just dumb ♥︎ by author, yourinstagram

↳ ynfan2 CLOCK THEM

↳ ynfan3 man his friends are pointing out how stupid his fans look aren’t they embarrased 💀

fracisca.cgomes YN defense squad is here 🫡 ♥︎ by author, yourinstagram, pierregasly

↳ lilymhe I’ve arrived ♥︎ by author, yourinstagram

↳ ynfan1 pretty girls love yn ugly bitches hate her

charlesfan6 why are you so harsh to yn???? it’s getting out of hand

↳ charlesfan1 because shes a model and all models are bitches

↳ ynfan1 are you for real??? just bc her career is modeling doesn’t mean that she’s a bad person or anything, this is such a 2013 mentality

↳ charlesfan2 she’s just not ideal for charles and she’s probably just leeching off his fame and money

↳ ynfan2 news flash: you don’t get to decide what’s ideal for him or not ♥︎ yourinstagram

leclerc_pascale Je vous aime tous les deux ❤️ @charles_leclerc @yourinstagram ♥︎ by author, yourinstagtam

↳ ynfan1 HIS MUMMA SUPPORTS HELP HIS FANS REALLY DO LOOK STUPID

↳ charlesfan1 ffs why can’t anybody see that this “relationship” is a mess

ynfan2 charles’ friends, his friends’ girlfriends and his family are in this comment section defending yn and saying that their relationship is adorable but his fans think that they know better than all of them and charles should break up with yn 😭 peak deluluness ♥︎ by author, yourinstagram

charlesfan7 we will never ever like you btw @yourinstagram

yourinstagram Wow this post really caused some commotion 😂 we’re those bitches, aren’t we baby? @charles_leclerc ♥︎ by author, pierregasly, francisca.cgomes, georgerussell63, lewishamilton, iamrebeccad

↳ ynfan1 HEEEEELPPP

↳ charlesfan1 this bitch and mean girl attitude is exactly why we don’t like her

↳ ynfan2 this is the first time she even reacts to the millions of hate comments yall send her !

↳ charles_leclerc We are 😘

↳ charlesfan6 CLOCK THE WEIRDOS CHARLES

charles_leclerc has added to their stories

TWEETS LIKED BY CHARLES

liked by charles_leclerc, arianagrande and 2,096,118 others

yourinstagram he’s so pretty when he goes down on me

view comments

charles_leclerc I love you ❤️

COMMENTS ON THIS POST HAVE BEEN LIMITED

[bluecrocss]

Yes. You are racist. (Buckle up, this is gonna be a long one)

So approximately half a year since the premier of the Disney+ Percy Jackson show, and almost two years since the announcement of the Trio's casting, I would like to take this moment to look back at the insane, racist and anti-black backlash that was launched at Leah Sava Jeffries and a few other cast members from the PJO fandom.

I'm not concerned with the trolls who are openly racist, who resorted to racist slurs and outright threats, everyone agrees that they "took it too far". I want to talk about the rest of you, the "I'm not racist, but.." people, the "What's wrong with wanting book accuracy?" people. Just to let you know, for the unasked question... yes, yes you are.

I've noticed the Percy Jackson fandom has been lording some weird superiority complex over a certain *unnamed* fandom that has fallen out of grace due to their recently outed bigot of an author. But honestly, y'all are not much different. The amount of vitriol and anti-blackness I have seen from this fandom (beyond just bullying a 12 year old girl), y'all don't have a leg to stand on.

Below is a breakdown of the most common arguments I have seen used to justify y'alls absolutely insane bigotry. I am going to explain why none of these justify the amount of anger and vitriol y'all have sent towards Leah, Rick or any of the cast.

I am not here to argue, and this is not a democracy. I am giving you a chance for some self-reflection and to understand that this pattern of violence directed towards POC actors (mostly black women) has never been justified in the name of "book accuracy"/"comic book accuracy"/"ending forced diversity" or whatever other excuses y'all try to make up.

If you still try to justify or argue further for any of these points, I will just block you. I am not coddling you through your racism. If anyone has seen any other dumb arguments floating around that I might've missed, feel free to sound off in the comments.

She's not book accurate:

Neither is Percy, Luke, Grover, Dionysus, Poseidon, and just about every other named character.

Rick already made it clear that physical features were not the priority with casting, rather it was actors that embodied the role. So why are the biggest complaints about Annabeth and Zeus? 🤔

What? You're gonna say everyone else got backlash too? I see you trying to obscure the main issue by playing dumb 😉

See my friend, yes, there were one or two comments about how Percy's hair should be black or how Luke is supposed to be blonde, but as soon as Leah was cast, none of those actors got any significant backlash. In fact, Walker and Charlie literally have an army of fan girls at their beck and call, calling them the perfect Percy and Luke, despite neither being "Book accurate". But then again, have we not observed the pattern of White boy of the month vs WOC to hate for the year? (Yes, I know Charlie isn't white. Further adds to the irony, doesn't it).

Why include character descriptions if you won't stay true to them, you cry? Well, my dear sweet moron, see, books and TV are two different mediums. Because in literature, you can't *Literally* SEE the characters, the author has to add descriptions to paint a picture in your mind, in TV... that's not an issue. So unless the character's appearance is necessary to the plot (like Luke's scar, or Nico being Italian) the show runners can actually focus on more important things.. Like ACTING and PERSONALITY.

2. It's just not how I imagined her:

News flash, babe! ANNABETH ISN'T REAL. None of these character are. They are concepts that originated from the brain of Mr. Rick Riordan. It doesn't matter how YOU imagined her. There are millions of people who read these books that imagined her several different ways. When the creator of the character watched Leah's audition and said, 'Yes! She embodies the character I created!", your imagined version of Annabeth ceased to matter. And guess what? The books still exist... they have not been burned. Your version of Annabeth has not disappeared. Go read the books.

3. Zeus can't be black/Gods have to be Greek/*Insert Character* can't be black:

Y'all did not read the books, I swear. You have to be fake fans looking to troll atp.

The gods move based off the center of western civilization. They change their forms/environment to reflect the culture they are occupying (they did it with Rome, now they're doing it with America). The gods change forms all the time. How we see them is not their true form as a mortal would disintegrate if they were to see their true form.

America is a cultural melting pot (specifically NY where Mount Olympus is now based). If the god's choose forms that reflect the current society they inhabit, they could literally be any race (keep in mind NYC is only 33% white).

All of this is literally SPELLED OUT in the Lightning Thief.

Furthermore, if you're going to push the ethnically Greek thing... Poseidon is British with a British accent and Hermes is Latino. The only ethnically Greek actor is Dionysus (who still doesn't look book accurate). Y'all are sounding like some white supremacists because do you forget that race is a social construct?

Before the advent of the transatlantic slave trade, I can promise you that the Greeks and the Anglo-Saxons did NOT view themselves as the same people. Why are y'all not taking issue with Poseidon's actor then?

Also, Percy Jackson has canonically had a slew of explicitly black demigods since the second book (including Harriet Tubman, which I have mixed feelings about 😭), so I genuinely have no idea where some of y'all are going with this point.

4. She was our smart blonde representation:

Don't pmo. I swear to God!

White, blonde women have NEVER been excluded from Hollywood. Representation is not something you lacked. The dumb blonde stereotype was a simple branch off of a larger misogynistic "dumb woman" stereotype. It has not truly been relevant since the mid 2000s outside of childish jokes.

This iteration of Percy Jackson will probably not go beyond the first 5 books, based off pacing and the age of the actors. So here's a fun game: 5 bucks to the first person who can find me a quote in the first 5 Percy Jackson books, where Annabeth laments her insecurities about being blonde (hint: there aren't any).

Also, her blonde hair does not hold her back at Camp because she is head of the Athena Cabin who are highly respected (and guess what?), ARE ALL BLONDE!

Her insecurities about her hair color are two or three lines at most in the later books, not this fundamental, core part of her character y'all all of a sudden wanna pretend it was. And guess what, as a non-blonde black girl, I was able to read those scenes of Annabeth feeling undervalued because of her looks and relate to her even if she didn't look like me at the time.

Why all of a sudden can y'all not do that with a black Annabeth? By every metric black girls are undervalued for their intelligence in academia more than white girls are, regardless of hair color. So your little representation of a woman undervalued by her looks would still hold. Do y'all dehumanize black women so much, that you are incapable of empathizing with show!Annabeth's plight in the way I could with Book!Annabeth simply because she doesn't look exactly like you?

Your issue isn't that she isn't blonde, it's that she is NOT WHITE.

Furthermore, Becky Riordan had tweeted previously (before the show was even cast) that Annabeth never needed to be blonde (probably recalling the BS y'all put Alexandra Daddario through), so even if they cast a white Annabeth, the blonde hair was never a guarantee. the author and producers all agree that it was not a significant part of her character. It's been a non-issue since day one.

Also, stop acting like smart blondes are rare in media... If you don't go watch some Legally blonde, Iron Man (Pepper Potts), Zack and Cody (Maddie), Liv and Maddie, FMAB (Winry), Captain Marvel, She-Ra, Buffy, The boys (starlight) etc. etc., and go sit down somewhere 🙄🙄🙄 (those were literally all things I've watched recently, off the top of my head, btw 💀)

5. It's not about race, but...:

Yes it is. It was always bout race. No other actors got as much hate as Leah. Her grandmother and other family members on IG had to mute their comments because they were getting so many threats.

Alexandra Daddario had to come to her defense on Twitter. Rick had to put out an official statement on his website. This girl has endured years of psychological torment for simply having the best audition. No one else is book accurate, no one else is ethnically Greek (except Jason Mantzoukas). Walker literally has British and German ancestry.

Why was she being called racial slurs on reddit and in youtube comments?

I know what you're gonna say, "I actually had problems with the entire cast", "I actually had a bigger issue with Walker's hair color", blah blah blah. Then why aren't you in Walker's comment sections? Why are you only making your displeasure known on posts defending/advocating for Leah? Why is she always your first example of 'wrong casting"?

Well, she "looks the most different"... Look up the term "scapegoating".

"Oh, I don't agree with the harassment. I just don't like the casting." Guess what? She's already been cast. They are not going to uncast her. What do you get out of still complaining about it.

All the vitriol you're stirring about her when you complain about her on Social media, it is directing people to send her hate, even if you're not writing it directly. It's is not enough to "not agree" with the racism, it is your duty to actively prevent it. And btw, these are young gen z actors, they are active on social media. They see the edits of themselves (even comment on it) and they most likely see these little "harmless" complaints you're posting. Are your upset feelings really worth contributing to the racist dogpile on this poor girl?

6. Why couldn't they atleast give her blonde braids?:

Why should they? Y'all wanted blonde because of the "dumb blonde" trope... that doesn't apply to POC.

A blonde black girl is gonna be viewed the same as a non-blonde black girl (or at worst, someone might decide she's "ratchet" or some shit for wearing colored hair). What difference would it make?

Why shouldn't Walker dye his hair, then?

7. Annabeth has Gray eyes:

Less than 3% of the global population has "gray eyes". Even if they cast a white actor, they would've needed contacts. Her being black is not the reason Annabeth's eyes aren't gray. Simply put, it is a plot element they removed, like the whole "names have power" element, or Ares having flames for eyes, or Dionysus using his powers to grow strawberries at Camp.

That's how adaptations work. Unnecessary plot elements are cut to save time and budget. This has nothing to do with her casting. They probably also didn't want to make child actors wear contacts (not a new practice).

8. Even if Rick chose her, he was wrong/Disney is forcing him to be okay with it:

Where do I start? Rick created the character. He can't be wrong. Do y'all have no self-awareness? Death of the author has no place here, because y'all are hung up on an aspect of the character that is not relevant to her arc or development.

Y'all's justification for wanting a "book accurate" Annabeth is that she was such an inspirational and important character growing up, and yet your behavior is so in conflict with the character you claim means so much to you. You're narrow minded, dismissive of bigotry and injustice, and disrespectful to the wishes of the creator of your favorite character; everything that Annabeth would never be. Y'all were never genuine fans of the books. You're bigots that needed an outlet for your rage.

Keep in mind, Rick has said countless times that PercaBeth directly mirrors his relationship with his wife. Y'all think he would have allowed them to cast someone who doesn't live up to the woman who has been by his side for decades? The mother of his children?

Regarding Disney forcing him, show me one piece of direct evidence that proves Disney in anyway pressured Rick to cast her. Cuz if you can't, that's baseless speculation. And if you have to resort to baseless speculation, maybe try to examine why it's so important to you to hold on to this belief.

9. So, I'm racist because I hate "race swapping"?:

To start, there is a difference between "race swapping" and "color blind casting". Often times, when y'all complain about the former, you're actually mad about the latter.

It would be "race swapping" if Rick and the team decided ahead of time that they wanted a black Annabeth and ONLY allowed black actors to audition. But the actual reality was that they accepted auditions from everyone (there were white actors and non-black poc that also auditioned for the role) and chose the best person who embodied the role. They didn't "make Annabeth black" and they didn't "make Zeus black", they cast black actors for those roles.

Y'all think you're being slick with your wording. Dismissing that is implying that they did not earn their roles fair and square. Which is racist. It's the equivalent of going up to a black college student and telling them they only got in because of affirmative action. You're dismissing the achievements of a person solely because of their racial background.

For all you people complaining about "unfairness" and "forced diversity", I would think hiring based on merit would appeal to you 🤔

71% of theatrical Hollywood leads were white in 2024 in comparison to 29% POC and you still think "black washing" is a thing? You still get this angry over a black person fairly earning a role because you think in a time where Hollywood only knows to do remakes and adaptations, that the majority of lead roles still *have* to be reserved for white actors?

Once again, white people have never been excluded from Hollywood for being white. Representation has never been something you lacked nor is it something you can lose. Your anger comes from seeing a black face where you think they don't belong. Because you feel you are owed a disproportion of representation in Hollywood.

10. Woke agenda/DEI/Forced Diversity:

If you are unironically using any of these terms in a negative light, it's already too late for me to reason with you. Look up the term "dog whistle". If you are sharing the same terminology with Elon Musk and his fanboys, maybe reevaluate some things.

POC are objectively underrepresented and have been historically excluded through actual laws and policies in Hollywood. There is no such thing as "forced diversity", you have bought in to a right wing conspiracy theory.

"Woke" is a term that was intentionally appropriated from the black community. It originally meant being aware of injustice and systematic threats to the community and is now being weaponized by bigots. Good job.

Diversity and inclusion is a good thing.

11. But POC deserve to have their own stories told:

We do. And we have been fighting for it for over a century now, and we've made great strides, no thanks to y'all.

No thanks to y'all gaslighting us about how little representation we get or that representation matters at all. No thanks to y'all pushing the idea that POC can't sell globally and obscuring POC actors in international promos. No thanks to y'all continuing to whitewash even to this day (Bullet train, the beguiled, gods of Egypt, atla, every portrayal of Jesus ever, etc.). No thanks to y'all calling every piece of media that has more than one black lead and more than one queer couple "woke". No thanks to y'all throwing a fit every time a black person in a fantasy setting isn't a slave.

Fact of the matter is, y'all never cared about POC "getting their own stories", you're only parroting our own words back to us now as a politically correct way of saying, "leave white roles alone" lmao

Well fun fact, actors of color getting opportunities to play lead roles and allowing poc to "tell their own stories" are not mutually exclusive. If y'all cared that much, instead of bullying a 12 year old actress, you could actually support up and coming independent POC writers, directors, and studios 😱

12. Studios need to stop "setting up" actors of color:

Do me a favor and google the term DARVO.

Your racism is not the fault of the studios for giving a POC actor a role that they earned. It is not up to the rest of society to tiptoe around racists to avoid their vitriol. It is our responsibility to hold them accountable and protect minorities from unwarranted hate. At most, you can say it's the responsibility of the studios to provide adequate support to POC actors who face this backlash.

At the end of the day, Hollywood only allows very few spots for POC actors (especially WOC), while simultaneously pushing a new white boy every month to put in everything. Putting minorities in these roles that are usually closed to them, usually opens the door to more actors of color than before.

Brandy being cast as Cinderella did a lot to push her into the mainstream (yes, she was already extremely famous in the black community atp), Halle Berry being the first, black, bond girl literally shot her to icon status, and even going as far back to what Anna Mae Wong did for Asian American actresses with her "femme fatale" roles.

At the end of the day, even with the backlash, *some* rep does more good for POC actors than *no* rep. The solution to racist backlash isn't to take away those opportunities, but rather to not be racist??? 🙄

Also, for everyone that claims that "POC race-swapping" is just as bad as "white-washing", despite white washing having a longer history and objectively causing more harm, note how the backlash to white washing never lasts as long as the harassment that POC get.

Like, no one brings up Scarlett Johansson's ghost in the shell role anymore, but you can best believe Candace Patton is still fending off racist trolls. As much as people hated the atla movie, people moved on quick from Nicola Peltz playing Katara since she was just a kid that accepted the role (re: daddy bought her the role), but y'all would not have any of that consideration for Leah Sava Jeffries.

But I digress...

13. What if we made Tiana white? Wakanda white? Hazel white...:

Ah, my favorite inane point. I was so excited to get here :)

See, I could start out by pointing out how "White washing" and casting a POC actor as a traditionally white character are not equivalent.

I could point out the history of hollywood ACTIVELY excluding POC actors and POC stories. I could point out how grossly over represented white people are in hollywood. I could point out that POC characters are so few in comparison that whitewashing them causes actual harm, where white people have never lacked rep.

I could point out how, because poc characters and stories are so often tokenized that their racial/cultural background is often directly tied to their character's identity, in opposition to a lot of white characters, since hollywood treats white as the "Default".

See, I could make all those points, but the thing is, the people who make this argument already know all that. They are trying to waste time by drawing me into a pointless circular argument that will sum up to "fair is fair", while ignoring all the context and nuance I previously provided.

So you know what? Forget it. Let me play your game.

I am actually fine with a white Tiana. Would it make sense, for her and her family to experience Jim Crow era racism, in the south while white? No. But we can look past it. Disney was never known for historical accuracy anyway 🤷🏿‍♀️

However, in exchange, the live action frozen will have a black Elsa and Anna, live action Rapunzel will be black, live action Merida will be black, we're re-filming Cinderella and Beauty and the beast to cast a black belle and Cindy, snow white will need to be recast as black, and we also get aurora whenever the live action sleeping beauty is announced. But then y'all can keep Tiana, deal?

You want a white T'Challa? Fine! (I'm partial to Ryan gosling), in the meantime, we'll be recasting Iron man, Captain America (Steve version), Bruce banner, Thor, Loki, hawk eye, black widow, ant man, captain marvel, Bucky, Peter Parker etc. All the avengers and their side characters, then y'all can have Sam Wilson, war machine and the whole of Wakanda (will it make sense that a sole, hidden, African nation is randomly made up of white people? Who cares? We get the avengers!).

You want white Hazel? You got her! I hope you have no problem with us taking Percy, Nico, Will, Poseidon, Jason, calypso, Rachel, Tyson, Silena, the stoll brothers, Sally Jackson, Hades, Hepheastus, ares, etc. But y'all can have Hazel and Beckendorf.

If we're gonna do this, let's commit all the way. Fair is fair, after all.

14. Leah isn't as "pretty" as Book Annabeth/Movie Annabeth:

I wish I could say this wasn't a genuine point I had read, but when all else fails, they will always go for a woman's appearance.

Now first of all, as a rule, I will never hold black women to white beauty standards. Our hair will never be long and silky enough, our nose will never be narrow enough, our skin will never be fair enough and our eyes will never be light enough (Might I recommend Toni Morrison, when you get the chance?). But Leah is unfairly gorgeous idc what any of you say, and you're not gonna have me use my defense of Leah as an opportunity to bash Alexandra either because she is also beautiful. These two queens slayed to the best of their abilities within this toxic ass fandom.

I find it funny, however, that so many of you harped on the "blonde" issue because you thought it was important that Annabeth be seen beyond just her looks, but quickly devolve to bashing an actress's looks when it comes to why she's not right for this role 🤔

I would also like to sincerely apologize that the 13 year old girl they cast in the show, wasn't as sexually attractive to you as the 24 year old woman they cast in the movie and sexualized through like 25% of her screen time (I'm actually not sorry. You're very weird if this is an actual point for you).

15. I don't agree with sending hate to the actor, but she's just not right for the role:

Once again, what are you doing by complaining about her casting on no other basis than her race?

The creator of the character said she embodied the role. She has already been cast, and Disney would be in a legal/production hell to recast her atp. Just because you're not directly leaving comments on her social media doesn't mean you're not part of the hate mob.

No matter how you look at it, your issues with her casting come from a very entitled and narrow-minded place. When you join in on these dialogues you are bolstering a sentiment that pushes more people to harass this teenage girl. When you leave these "harmless" complaints, on show content, fan posts or posts defending her, she's liable to read them because the cast regularly interact with fans online.

What do you have to say that is so important that it trumps protecting a young girl from the long-staying trauma of racism, of being told she doesn't deserve something she worked for because of how she was born?

16. I can't even criticize the show without being called racist:

Get. Over. Yourself.

Y'all are not the victim. Have fans of the show gotten protective of Leah and the young cast? Yes.

With good reason. This fandom is unbearably toxic.

Racism outweighs your need for a "perfect adaptation", sorry.

If you explain yourself properly and keep your critiques fair (like, even I don't think this was a perfect season, and will be sharing my thoughts shortly), no one is gonna call you racist.

You're preempting with that because in all honesty, you're probably planning to use your "critiques" of the show to pivot to one of the many points that I just outlined, and you want to pre-empt the criticism.

If a black Annabeth is the end all be all for you, just don't watch the show, no one's holding a gun to your head. Geez.

17. I'm Black/POC and I don't agree...:

Hey, Candace Owens... No one gives a shit.

First of all, for all the "I'm POC and I don't agree" people, you don't speak for us. Anti-blackness is rampant in just about every culture globally. You being not-white doesn't somehow make you less prone to hating black people.

But for the "I'm black and I don't agree" leftovers (assuming you're not just a 👩🏼‍💻 behind a keyboard). Black people are not a monolith. You're not obligated to think a certain way because you're black.

But consider why you're putting yourself up as a barrier to protect this hate mob. It's one thing to just state why you don't like Leah's casting, but to start off your spiel with "I'm actually black" as a way to weaponize the very identity politics you're critiquing... very strange. Not to mention, what are you defending?

The black community is coming together to defend one of our own, a kid who has been receiving death threats since she was 12, and this is when you feel the need to back the opposition?

I mean whatever... sometimes the house slaves would snitch to the master. There will always be some of y'all in the woodwork. It is what it is.

But when the exact ideology you defend is turned against you, when a Baltimore elected official is being accused of getting his job through "DEI", when conservatives are claiming that they wouldn't "trust a black pilot", don't decide that's where you'll finally draw your line in the sand.

All that being said, This is my Annabeth:

May every tongue that rose against Leah Sava Jeffries Shrivel and die in 2025 🙏🏿 My girl will keep winning ❤️

(video by @/waleahhasmyheart on TikTok)

[ghoul-bonez]

~I Love You, I Trust You, I See You~

(Ao’nung x Fem! Deaf! Sully! Reader)

Summary: When the Sullys moved to Awa’atlu Ao’nung thought they were weird, knew they were weird. He took a particular hatred towards the older Sully kids, Neteyam was the perfect little follower, Lo’ak was constantly in trouble, Kiri was always off in her own world, and you. Just you. You seemed to always ignore him and never talk, but what he didn’t know was it’s because you couldn’t hear him.

Word count: 4.4k

Author’s note: This is the longest oneshot I’ve written at 4.4k words and 9 1/2 google docs pages… Sign language will be normal font, and bold & italics will be spoken, although I try my best to show which is going on.

~Masterlist~

I Love You, I Trust You, I See You

When people thought of the Sully family many thought of your siblings. They thought of Lo’ak who was always a troublemaker, causing chaos everywhere he went. They thought of Kiri who seemed so in tune with her surroundings that she might as well be Eywa herself. They thought of Tuk who was the youngest, still enamored by everyday life. They thought of Neteyam, a strong leader who would someday take on the role of Olo’eyktan after your father.

They never thought of you.

You who always seemed to be in your own little world. You who never had any friends. You who never talked. You who always seemed so attentive to the world around you, yet had no desire to join it.

When you were born after your twin Neteyam, a spike of fear had run through everyone in the room when you began to cry, but no sound came out. They feared you may not be breathing right, you may need your airways cleared. They feared something was wrong, and that was true.

When your parents or siblings thought about your family, they thought about you. They thought about how funny you were, always cracking jokes when there was a chance. They thought about how kind you were, taking a moment to check on everyone daily. They thought about how different you were than most.

They thought about you. You who couldn’t hear.

You always seemed to be in your own world, and that drew many away from you, they didn’t want to be friends with someone who they didn’t think was paying attention to them, and to be fair you weren’t paying attention to people most of the time. You preferred to direct your attention to the world around you, always keeping an eye out as you couldn’t hear danger coming.

When you had been caught by Quaritch and his men you had panicked, more than everyone else at least. You didn’t know what was going on, you didn’t know what they were saying, your lip reading was not dependable, and definitely not in english.

When your siblings arms were bound you couldn’t keep yourself calm, now you had no way of communicating, they couldn’t translate for you. Tears streamed down your face, eyes closed as tight as possible to try to calm yourself by blocking out the outside world.

When you felt your captor’s grip on your release your eyes shot open, looking around at the damage around you, multiple avatars dead on the ground. Then you ran, you ran faster than ever before in the first direction you saw.

You ran and ran, eyes trained on everything around you, and when you ran into someone and they grabbed you again it was like a shock. You let out a scream, the first noise anyone had ever heard you make. A noise nobody was aware you could make.

You turned to dead weight in an attempt to get out of their grasp, panic coursing through you again as your eyes couldn’t come into focus. However, the person dropped to the ground with you, pulling your face towards them and holding it still as you tried to thrash. Then they blew air into your face, and you realized you were safe.

When you were younger you would throw temper tantrums, as children do, where you would close your eyes to refuse to listen to your parents. Not being able to see them meant no sign language, which meant no having to listen to them. However your father found one thing always worked, blowing air on your face. Your eyes would shoot open, highly offended with your mouth dropped open, before you would sign at him, “Your breath is gross.” in retaliation.

You had never been more relieved for your dad’s stupid way of getting you to listen. Your eyes finally came into focus and you calmed down seeing his face, but that calm quickly turned into crying, sobbing. You couldn’t help but let out all of the pent up emotion inside of you, but eventually you calmed down and were able to stand back up, staggering your way home with the rest of your family.

Some time later when your parents had been arguing in your family kelku you hadn’t been paying attention as your siblings were, all huddled against the wall. You had been lost in your own world once again, not wanting to know what was being said as you were still processing what had happened earlier. You didn’t need anything on top of that as you feared it would make your careful stack of emotions you had constructed come tumbling down.

They had come tumbling down though as your parents announced you were moving, leaving. Leaving everything you had ever known, your home, your grandmother, the forest you loved so much. You couldn’t help it as you cried again, being held by your mother this time.

However as you thought about it you weren’t that sad. You had always liked the water, everyone not having to hear underwater made you feel more included, more like you belonged, and you had heard the Metkayina used sign language. Maybe this would be a chance to make friends for the first time in your life. Maybe you would be able to talk to people for once, nobody at home taking the time to learn American Sign Language, as your father had called it, like your family had.

One thing you hadn't taken into account was that they used a different version of sign language, but that had become very apparent when you first jumped into the water with Tsireya, Ao’nung, and Rotxo. They used signs you had never seen before, ones you didn’t recognize. You couldn’t help but feel a little beaten down at dinner, staying quieter than usual, not signing as much.

Afterwards your dad had asked you to step outside, waving a hand towards you as he exited the marui.

He sat down on the pathway, and you knew he expected you to join him, so you did. You sat next to him with your feet dangling in the water, looking out towards the horizon, refusing to look at him so you didn't have to have a conversation.

That didn’t last long though as he poked you in the arm, causing you to look at him offended, mouth open and eyebrows raised. He took this as his chance to speak, “You okay, kid?” He signed.

You sighed deeply, fidgeting with your hands before signing, “I’m okay, dad.”

You could tell he didn’t believe you, lips pressed together in a thin line and eyebrows furrowed, “You’re less talkative. What’s wrong?” He signed, proving he didn’t think you were telling the truth.

A frown came to your face, feeling like it was permanently there after the past few days or so, but you continued, “I’m disappointed.”

He raised his eyebrows, surprise and confusion on his face, “About what?”

You looked away from his face, instead choosing to watch his hands, you didn’t want to see the pity on his face, “We don’t speak the same language. I can’t communicate. Everyone else can at least talk to each other.”

His face softened, but you didn’t see it, “It’ll be okay. You’re a fast learner, so you will learn their language quickly, then you can make friends. If anyone actually wants to be your friend.” He meant it playfully, and you saw him laugh, so jammed your elbow in his ribs.

Then the conversation was over, your mom poking her head out of the doorway and saying something to your dad. He just stood up and gave you a look like he was asking, “You good?” and you nodded, “Yes.” back in return.

After your father’s words of encouragement you decided to work harder, learn faster, determined to be able to communicate with the people around you, and a few weeks later you were excelling whereas your siblings were still struggling. They were caught up on the differences of Metkayina sign language versus ASL but you had grasped that there weren’t differences, or similarities, and you would just be learning from scratch.

Even though you were doing well at it, working your way towards being fluent, you were worried about talking to the people, mostly because of one person in particular, Ao’nung. It was as if Ao'nung was determined to ruin your siblings' lives, and yours, but you didn’t know that.

You had seen Ao’nung’s attempts to cause hell for your siblings, nagging at them, laughing at them, and even trying to start fights, with Lo’ak in particular. Him messing with your siblings made you frustrated, but you weren’t aware of the taunts meant to make you upset, and laughing that was meant to make you feel like a target coming towards you from a distance.

The bullying towards your siblings had become more and more frustrating and you had begun showing your anger at home, being rougher with things than usual, and not wanting to go outside of the shared family marui.

It had been peaceful while you and your mom had been working on dinner, but she noticed you seemed to be far off, handling the food with rougher hands, “Are you okay, (Y/n).” Neytiri signed as you placed another fish over the fire.

You rolled your eyes at her, upset she was even insinuating something was wrong. In reality there was, but you didn’t want to admit that, “Yes mama, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” She had asked back, concern on her face as she looked at you closely.

You signed, “Yes.” Trying to end the conversation, but you knew she would just keep pushing.

You saw your mom think for a moment, her face scrunching up in concentration, “Well I am not.”

You frowned more, once again feeling like it had always been there since you left the forest, “Not what?”

She was frowning too now, “I’m not sure you’re fine. I see you isolating yourself. Even from me and your father.” She grabbed your hands, squeezing them gently to show her love in a little way.

Tears welled in your eyes, frustrated tears, tears that came because with all the stress recently they were the only way your brain knew how to process, to cope.

You pulled your hands from hers to wipe at them, “I’m sorry.” was all you could say.

She wiped the tears falling down your face before saying, “Why?”

You sniffled, running your hands down your face before signing, “I see Lo’ak, Kiri, and Neteyam being picked on, and there is nothing I can do. I can’t stand up to the bullies. I can’t say anything.”

“Okay, well soon you will be able to say something. You are learning their sign language, yes? I’ve heard from your siblings you are out working them.” She smiled at you and you could really see how proud of you she was.

You couldn’t help but crack a little smile although tears still threatened to fall, “Yes, mama. I’m getting better, but I’m worried it will be too late though.”

“I’m sure you will do your best, my ‘ite.” She thought for a second, “Why don’t you go try to talk to these kids tomorrow?”

You sighed, you didn’t want to, but you knew your mom would nag you until you agreed, “Okay. Love you.”

She smiled lovingly at you, “Love you too.” before pulling you into a hug.

When tomorrow came you didn’t even want to leave your marui, but you found the strength to do so. You did some of the breathing exercises Tsireya had taught you to try to calm your nerves, and they worked for the most part, steadying you and clearing your head.

However as soon as you stepped outside your marui you regretted it, not wanting to do what you had promised to your mother, but you knew you had to eventually. Eventually, which meant you could fool around as long as you wanted beforehand, and so you decided to settle down for a quick nap on the beach.

When you laid down and closed your eyes you quickly and easily fell asleep. You were still tired from last night when you struggled to sleep from your anxious thoughts.

When the Sullys moved to Awa’atlu Ao’nung thought they were weird, knew they were weird. He took a particular hatred towards the older Sully kids, Neteyam was the perfect little follower, Lo’ak was constantly in trouble, Kiri was always off in her own world, and you. Just you. You seemed to always ignore him and never talk, but what he didn’t know was that it's because you couldn’t hear him.

Ao’nung tried to not let anything get to him, especially when it came to people he didn’t like, like the Sullys, but for some reason you, (Y/n) Sully, had peeved him more than anyone or anything else. He had grown tired of you ignoring him when he shouted or laughed at you, like you didn’t even notice he was there, tired of you flat out avoiding him sometimes as you scurried away when he tried to approach you.

Of course he knew why, he had the same intentions to bully you and make you feel unwanted in Awa’atlu as your siblings. Of course you didn’t want this so you spent most of your time avoiding him, but for some reason instead of him not caring about it, it made him want to get under your skin even more.

When the sun rose today he decided today was the day to act. Today he would confront you head on, face to face. He would make you notice him, and he would make you feel awful in the process. So he gathered his friends, his goons, and they set off to find you.

They first checked with Tsireya who was with the rest of your siblings, but you were nowhere to be found, they all insisted they hadn’t seen you. Then they combed the beach, going from one end to the other, and on the far end they found you peacefully asleep on the soft sand.

He couldn’t help but notice how cute you looked asleep and peaceful, but he quickly shook it off, shouting at you, “Wake up, freak!”

He was targeting your extra finger and the hair above your eyebrows, like he had your siblings because he knew that got to them, and hoped it would do the same to you.

When you didn’t stir he tried shouting again, assuming you were awake, but trying to act asleep to avoid him, “What is wrong with you? Do you not care or are you stupid avoiding me?”

His friends laughed at you when you still didn’t move, eyes not cracking open and your breathing staying the same, so he took the next step, trying something physical. He kicked sand up and over you and finally you stirred, sitting straight up and looking around for the source of the sand, and when you saw him your heart dropped, a lump forming in your throat.

“There we go, now you are paying attention.” He snickered.

You tried to read his lips, but he spoke too fast, and you just stayed silent. You cocked your head to the side, eyebrows drawn together in a look of confusion.

You hesitated for a second, but were about to sign something when he spoke again. “Do you not speak? A silent freak, interesting.” You still didn’t understand exactly what he was saying, but his friends all laughed at you, and although you couldn’t hear it it made you feel small.

“I’m sorry. I can not hear you.” You signed, using Metkayina sign language this time.

He scoffed, “I do not believe that. I think you just don’t want us to bother you, but here we are.” He laughed in your face.

“Please use your hands.” You tried to communicate, but they just wouldn’t listen to you.

“No.” He sneered, this you understood, one single word.

Your mouth dropped open, offense written all over it. You knew he was disrespectful, didn’t care about others feelings, but you would make him care, “I can not hear. I am deaf.”

He was about to retort against you again, but when he had been searching for you earlier that day Neteyam knew he meant trouble, so when he found you he stayed in the shadows, watching, but now Ao’nung had taken it too far.

He surged forwards, anger consuming him, “Step off bro. She can’t hear you.”

“Yeah that is what she just said.” He rolled his eyes, “I do not care though, it is better if she can not hear me. Means I can make fun of her without her knowing.” He signed the last part so you could understand.

You shrunk back, standing to hide behind Neteyam. You tugged on his arm, “It’s okay.” You signed.

“It’s not okay, (Y/n).” He rubbed a hand down his face, turning to Ao’nung, “You need to leave her alone.”

“Whatever.” Ao’nung scoffed before turning and walking away.

Now he knew why you seemed to ignore him, you just didn’t know he was talking to you. You were probably avoiding him because you didn’t know their sign language yet. He felt bad for some reason. He usually wouldn’t feel bad about his bullying but with you it felt different now knowing this.

He couldn’t show his feelings though, worried about his little group making fun of him, but he slowly started to back off of you, and your siblings some as well. Whenever one of his “friends” would ask why, he would reply something like “We can not make fun of a cripple.” and roll his eyes, still a jab at you, but less so.

At some point you became all that consumed his thoughts, on his mind at all times, and whenever he would see you with his sister, or your siblings, he would feel the need to insert himself into the conversation, but he always refrained. He wanted to talk to you, to apologize, but he feared judgment from his “friends” who are just as nasty as he was.

Eventually he couldn’t hold it in anymore, heading to your marui to ask to talk with you, in the way you would understand. When he knocked on the doorway of the family home Lo’ak was the first to notice him, glaring at him and nudging Neteyam in the side, directing his attention towards Ao’nung.

Neteyam stood before either of his parents even noticed the boy in the doorway, stalking over to him and dragging him down the pathway so they could talk, “What do you want?” He hissed out.

Ao’nung cleared his throat, but the words still came out small, nervous, “I came to apologize to (Y/n)...”

“No.” Was all Neteyam said before turning away and starting to walk back into the Sully family’s home.

Ao’nung grabbed his arm before he got too far away, “Please. Please let me talk to her.” He begged, something he didn’t like to do, but it was necessary.

Neteyam sighed, “Fine, but if you do anything I will chop your head off myself.” He threatened the boy, “I’ll go get her.”

It wasn’t long before you stepped out of the marui, a frown on your face and hands he could see shaking, “What do you want?” You signed, hands shaking with nerves.

“I came to say sorry.” He started off, “I’m sorry for bullying you, and your siblings. I promise I won’t do it any more.”

“And?” You asked, knowing there was more.

He looked nervous now, hands shaking as he signed, “I wanted to extend the offer of friendship.”

You looked shocked now, “You want to be friends with me?”

He nodded his head, smiling shyly, “Yes. Absolutely.”

You smiled this time, relieved he would be leaving your siblings alone, and excited to learn more about him, about what he was really like under the bad boy shell, “Okay, friend.”

He just nodded at you, “I have to go now. See you at lessons with Tsireya tomorrow?”

“Of course.” You responded.

When you entered the marui again everyone's eyes were on you, a light blush on your face, “I made a friend.” You smiled.

You could see your parents cheering and clapping for you, but your siblings' faces were unsure, you would have to reassure them later but for now you were all having a family night, playing games and handing out things you had made for each other with the new resources you were getting used to using. They were clunky and awkward, but you would get better, it reminded you of something, of someone.

As days passed into weeks you and Ao’nung had grown closer, him pretty much taking over your lessons, stealing you away from Tsireya who was sad to see you go, but happy for her brother for making a friend, a real friend, not one of his goons that tended to hover around him at all times. You had seemingly broken down his bad boy aesthetic and his goons had since left him, moving onto another leader to follow, still as nasty as ever.

You were grateful for him letting his walls down around you, allowing you to see him, and soon you did. You saw him as more than you ever had before. You couldn’t help but think about courting him, of trading little handmade gifts, and sharing little intimate moments of happiness throughout the day.

It seemed as if he wanted the same as he began bringing you gifts, starting as a little armband he made from you out of hard to find shells he had spent many hours trying to find, then it moved onto necklaces and bracelets. Each was more intricate than the last.

When this started you began to bring him things too, poorly made things because using dried seaweed and palm leaves were different from the materials of the jungle, but you managed. Even though they weren’t the best quality he proudly wore them, gladly accepting every gift you would give.

Everyone had noticed by now, the traded jewelry, the touches that lingered a little too long, and the longing looks when you weren’t together. What baffled people most however was not Ao’nung’s seemingly peaceful side coming out, but the fact that neither of you had officially come out and asked if you were courting.

You were courting, you both knew that, but Ao’nung wanted to put it into words, he wanted to make it official, but he felt the need to fix a couple things first, to get a couple blessings.

So he went to the person he thought would be easiest first, your mom. She had seen you two from afar and already had talked to you about it, encouraging you to pursue him and get what you wanted. She had said she was not Tsahík, but Eywa had shown her signs. So when Ao’nung asked she immediately gave him her blessing, knowing this was something not just he wanted, but something you wanted too.

Then he went to your dad. He was a fierce warrior who commanded respect, and Ao’nung tried his best to be respectful, carefully wording his proposal of courting his daughter. Of course Jake had been hesitant at first, but eventually he caved after Ao’nung had mentioned he already had Neytiri’s blessing.

Finally he went to Neteyam, your twin brother, your best friend since birth. Neteyam was adamantly against it, wanting nothing to do with Ao’nung, and wanting his sister to have nothing to do with him either. He was still on the edge of forgiving Ao’nung, swaying over a cliff where falling meant forgiving Ao’nung for his wrong doings, and when Ao’nung explained his love for you, his intentions to never hurt you and treat you with the respect you deserve Neteyam fell over the cliff, giving the Metkayina boy his blessing.

Once he had gotten their blessings he had invited you to the beach where he had first intentionally seeked you out. You were hesitant to go back there with him, but you gave in, trusting him wholeheartedly.

You love him. You trust him. You see him.

When you got there he pulled you to sit down with him, you both facing each other, and he signed, letting his heart out, letting his feelings show, “I am sorry for any times I have hurt you. I was an ass and a fool, and I wish I had never caused you upset or harm. I am sorry for bullying your siblings too, they did not deserve it, but I was scared by the new people and what they would bring. I now see I should have helped like my sister. I should have been making you feel at home here, not doing the opposite.”

“It’s okay. We’re past that.” You reassured him.

He nodded, continuing, “Now I see how special you are. I see how much you’ve changed me and my views on life. I am grateful for the person you have shaped me into. I am grateful I got the chance to make it up to you. I want to court you. Officially.”

You felt your heart swell, butterflies in your stomach, and you were sure it was showing on your face, “I would love that.”

You moved your hands carefully to cup his face, holding it there as you looked into his eyes, hoping he understood how grateful you were for him too, then you pulled him in, lips brushing against each other before they fully made contact. It was magical, unlike anything you had felt before, and you were happy it was him making you feel this way. So happy, so loved.

When you pulled apart he smiled widely at you, grabbing your hands and giving them a gentle but tight squeeze before using them to say, “I see you. I see you.”

You sign your thoughts from earlier, “I love you, I trust you, I see you.”

He doesn’t say anything else, just smiles, and pulls you back in for another kiss, and you feel at peace. You know he is yours, and you are his. You know he will never leave you, and you will never leave him. You know he loves you, and you love him. You know he sees you, and you see him.

Word Bank:

Olo’eyktan (Clan leader)

Kelku (Omatikaya homes)

Metkayina (Ocean Na’vi)

Marui (Metkayina homes)

‘Ite (Daughter)

Awa’atlu (Metkayina village)

Tsahík (Spiritual leader)

Eywa (Na’vi Goddess)

[herstuf]

Steve and Eddie form a very strange almost-friendship after the whole Vecna thing that is entirely reliant on the kids being little shits and then rolling their eyes at each other about it. They bond over finding ways to drive Dustin crazy, and the fact that Dustin thinks it’s so weird that they became actual friends even with all the Vecna stuff.

And then Eddie asks Steve if he wants to join DnD one day and Steve actually agrees and Dustin Loses His Shit.

He talks about it nonstop the entire week leading up to the session, hypes it up while simultaneously berating Steve for never agreeing before. Eddie and Steve continue to trade eye rolls over his head every time.

Then the session arrives and Steve is definitely confused. The character sheets are complicated, the multiple die confused him, and he doesn’t really understand the scene Eddie sets- but it’s okay because he’s got the spirit! He’s very enthusiastic and willing to listen to everyone’s advice and recommendations and it’s going very well until they get to Eddie’s big road block of the day.

There’s a giant Paladin blocking their path and it quickly becomes obvious that nobody, together or separate, can him fight and win. Eddie likes to do this sometimes, throw in a character they have to do something other than brute force their way around.

The kids start arguing of course, Mike and Lucas think they should pay him off- Dustin and Will tell them that’s stupid he’s a paladin he’s can’t be paid off. Gareth offhandedly says they should seduce him, and everyone laughs for a second before getting right back to arguing about what to do.

Steve asks if they can go around and is immediately shot down by six shouting voices, and he quickly retreats from the debate. Nobody’s seems to notice, except for Eddie of course, but he only keeps half an eye on him while also trying to focus on the debate. As much as he wants to coddle Steve a bit, he knows it’s better to let him get used to how the game usually goes than trying to go ways on him. Steve would t appreciate that anyways.

Gareth brings up seduction again and they contemplate for a few seconds before saying no, that none of them want to be the ones to do it, and besides they all know Eddie never lets the seduction tactic work when they can’t convince him. They keep arguing.

Nobody else was paying attention to Steve anymore, too caught up in the discussion, so Eddie is the only one that hears Steve quietly whisper, “I wouldn’t mind seducing him.”

Eddie chokes on air, Steve turns bright red, gaping at him in mortification, and everyone else is just like “what the fuck just happened.”

Meanwhile Steve is looking anywhere but at Eddie, Eddie is blinking wildly at him. Eventually, after a very awkward pause of silence, the debate slowly begins again, ignoring the two of them on Dustin’s recommendation that “they’re just being weird, ignore them, anyways-“

The argument keeps going and Eddie can tell it’s going nowhere so he turns to Steve and says “roll for persuasion.”

Cheeks still red Steve carefully takes the die Eddie points to, and lets them fall. They’re not quite enough but it’s not like Steve really understands that. He scoops the die up just in case anyone looks over. He doesn’t need to be accused of playing favourites, even if he totally is.

“A successful roll, well done Stevie. How are you going to seduce him?” Eddie asks, still in a quiet tone so the others don’t hear.

“I was thinking,” Steve says and swallows, “that maybe I’d ask him about his sword. I’d say something like “that’s a very handsome sword you have there, nearly as handsome as you are.”

Eddie kind of wants to laugh, kind of wants to cry, because Steve really hasn’t gotten the hang of voices, so he’s not acting like a character, and because that’s a terrible pickup line. And yet Eddie’s cheeks are heating up and he’s very quickly making some recalculations in his mind for the rest of this campaign.

“What do they call you?” He asks in the voice he used for the Paladin before.

“Sir Hair-ington, but if you want you could call me Stevie,” Steve says, and he’s looking in Eddie’s eyes and that is not the first name of his character, not even close. Eddie swallows thickly and blinks, pulling his gaze from Steve’s, who immediately shrinks back.

“Sir Hair-ington successfully seduces the Paladin, and he agrees to let you all pass,” Eddie shouts over the noise of the others, who are still arguing.

Everyone at the table goes dead silent and stares at him and Steve. Eddie can tell Dustin is about to Say Some Shit, so he glares hard at him until he looks away, mouth snapping closed.

“The Paladin asks if he might join you,” Eddie says to Steve, finally turning back to face him, and Steve turns even redder and nods. The rest of the group keeps staring at Eddie incredulously, but luckily no one says a word. The Paladin joins them and it takes all of two seconds for Eddie to decide to pay his cards out on the table. Just to make sure he’s being clear.

“Greetings travellers, thank you for allowing me to join you,” he says in something that is almost his normal voice, and definitely not the one he used before, “my name is Sir Edwin the Eighth, and I look forward to our many adventures together! Especially you, Sir Hair-ington.” And he adds in a wink for good measure.

Gareth sends him a deeply unimpressed look, but Eddie doesn’t even seem to see it because he’s too busy watching the way Steve’s eyes light up and his lips turn into a bashful but wide smile.

A week later when Dustin shows up at the trailer unannounced and walks in on the two of them making out the first words he says are, “I KNEW Sir Edwin the Eighth was supposed to be you!”

[upon-a-starry-night]

Number Neighbors Pt.24

Natasha Romanoff x Fem! Reader

Natasha Masterlist Series Masterlist

Word Count: 2.1k

Summary:  When you catch sight of the newest trend going around you know you’re all but bound to at least try it, it was harmless anyway. What could possibly stem from something so little?

----

You were more than Nat could have ever imagined. Her conversation with you had been on loop in her mind for the past few days. The sound of your laughter filled her with so much warmth it was overwhelming. The way you talked about her like she’d hung the moon in the sky made her want to cry. Nobody had ever talked about her like that. 

And the way you looked at her God- your eyes. She had a scary feeling she would do anything you asked of her if you kept looking at her like that.

She’d wanted to tell you then and there who she was so she could confess how she felt. But the prospect was terrifying and when your friend called it felt like the moment had come and gone. When she’d finally regained the confidence to tell you, her eyes drifted to your shoulder and it got her thinking about what your life would be like if you were with her.

You would be in danger if anyone ever found out about you. She’d never let it happen, no one would ever get close enough to hurt you but- could you forgive her for what she would do to them if they tried? Would you be mad at her for not telling you who she was sooner? You called her incredible. Even with all the red in her ledger you looked at her like a saint. You and your words were magnetic.

It was scary how much she missed your presence now that she’d met you. Suddenly she understood why Clint was always so eager to fly home.

Walking to the kitchen, she pulls out her phone as soon as it buzzes, expecting it to be you. Instead she’s met with the Avengers group chat.

        Idiots❤:

MetalHead(Tony):

As soon as I get back from this

press conference in Paris we’re having

a meeting

Old Ice Cube(Steve):

Again Stark?

Science Nerd(Bruce):

Is this about the new compound or

that Government thing?

MetalHead:

The government thingy

…

Actually both.

Spy-der (Nat):

Again? Tony, We’ve already talked about this…

Clinton:

You should drop it Stark.

I don’t want this to end in a fight.

Old Ice Cube:

Bucky and I are firmly against it.

Jacket Stealer(Wanda):

You already know what the 

Government thinks of me.

MetalHead:

We’ll talk when I get back.

Toodles!

Nat rolls her eyes but can’t help the uneasy feeling about the situation. Tony needed to stop pushing such a big decision on everyone before her family gets broken apart…again.

~~~~~~

That party was one of the best decisions of your entire life. You’d gained three new friends and an unforgettable conversation with your hero. It was safe to say the entire week after the party you were in good spirits and nobody could make that stop. Your cheeks hurt from how much you’d been smiling as of late.

You can tell Nat’s been wanting to call you all week but if you’re honest you get too flustered everytime you even think of her voice. And you have a weird feeling that nags at the back of your mind everytime you think of it, like your brain is screaming at you but you don’t know why.

Not to mention you’re not prepared for another rejection of a meet-up. Calling is one thing but meeting in person is… even you don’t know if you’re ready for that. What if you weren’t what she imagined? What if she didn’t feel the same way you did? What if she sees you waiting for her and turns around and blocks your number and you’ll never know why? 

You’d been on a sort of high after meeting Natasha Romanoff and you’re scared of ruining it. Although you’re sure Nat would never intentionally hurt you. Your own fears are stronger than your desires so you stick to texting her and Nat seems to be respecting that.

Today though, you think you might have gained the courage to finally accept her call if she asks. You'll just have to avoid the topic of meeting to spare any awkwardness or aching in your heart. Plopping down on your couch and opening up your phone, you resume your active conversation with Nat with a confident smile.

          Nat🔪: 

Y/n🍦:

I smacked directly into the pole Nat!

It was so embarrassing!

Nat🔪:

I hope you know I’m laughing

Y/n🍦:

I wouldn’t expect anything less.

Nat🔪:

It’s New York Y/n, I promise no one

cares that much

Y/n🍦:

Tell that to the group of teenagers

Filming across the street

Nat🔪:

Wait one second-

Y/n🍦:

What are you doing?

Nat🔪:

I’m trying to find that video 

Y/n🍦:

Don’t you fucking dare!

I’ll strangle you through the screen!

Nat🔪:

Or you could just strangle me in real life?

You nearly choke. Your body split between blushing because of the implication and freaking out at the proposition. 

Y/n🍦:

Haha. very funny

Nat🔪:

Y/n.

Let’s meet.

Your heart leaps to your throat and you choke on it. At least that’s what it feels like. She wanted to meet you. You get up from your couch and pour yourself a glass of water, taking note of the way your hand shakes as you drink. Why wasn’t this cooling the heat that felt like it was suffocating you? Surely your mind was playing tricks on you, she was seriously offering to meet? 

Y/n🍦:

Wait wait-

Don’t get my hopes up.

Are you joking?

Nat🔪:

I wouldn’t dream of it

Y/n🍦:

If this is a trick I’ll cry

Nat🔪:

I’d never forgive myself if 

I was the cause of your tears

After all this time you’d practically lost all hope that you’d ever meet Nat in person, the last thing you expected was for her to be the one to suggest it. You almost want to laugh. Leave it to Nat to constantly subvert your expectations. You wondered what changed her mind.

Y/n🍦: 

Okay.

Nat🔪:

Okay?

Y/n🍦:

Yes. Let’s do it.

When are you free?

Nat🔪:

I have a meeting on Thursday so

Friday?

Does that work for you?

Y/n🍦:

Friday, yep, yes I am free.

You leave out the fact that you would cancel all plans and call out sick to work if you had to.

Nat🔪: 

That cute Plant Cafe on 6th at 4pm work for you?

You had no idea what cafe she was talking about but you would figure it out. If you were laying in bed yo figured you’d be kicking your feet and giggling like a schoolgirl.

Y/n🍦:

Sounds Perfect.

This was really happening. You were going to meet.

~~~~~

The two of you text throughout the rest of the week like normal but there’s something different about it. The energy is charged with something, something that fills your stomach with a dizzying heat. You were going to meet Nat. You have to scroll up and reread the messages every few hours just to make sure you aren’t hallucinating. 

Even your coworker seems to have noticed the shift in your mood and she asked if it was because of your girlfriend you just grinned even wider and shook your head. You couldn’t hide your blushing however, and at lunch, you were forced to admit that you might have a ‘sort of date’ to which your friend squealed and invited herself over to help you plan an outfit.

It was Wednesday now which meant you were two days away from meeting Nat and you were bursting with anticipation. Your friend laughs at your antics as she pours you a glass of wine which you gladly accept. The two of you sat down on your couch, a cheesy romcom playing in the background as you chatted about what’s been happening in your lives these past few months.

You’re enjoying getting to know her and exchanging embarrassing stories when she stops to observe you, a genuine smile on her face

“What?” You ask, you’ve not known her long but she already looks at you like you’ve known each other for years.

She shakes her head “I’m just happy for you Y/n.” When you don’t speak she continues “ You’re the happiest I've ever seen you lately. At first, I thought it had something to do with that boy that picked you up sometimes but now I see it’s something else”

You blush, you didn’t know you’d been so transparent before about how mundane your life would feel but apparently you’d been detached enough for people to notice. For a while, you’d forgotten that life didn’t have to be perfect to be happy. You didn’t have to be doing big successful things to say that you were living a meaningful life. Your life was meaningful from the moment you were born. You don’t know why it took so long and so many people helping you to finally realize it but you were glad you were finally here. And you were grateful.

Grateful for your mother for never being disappointed in you, your therapist for not giving up on you, Nat for making you want to try new things, Leon for helping you go to more places, and now grateful to your coworker turned best friend for helping you meet new people (and your hero).

Now thanks to everyone you’ve met you could be grateful for yourself. God you did NoT need to cry right now but your face was already getting warm with emotion. 

“I have been happy. I’ve been so happy it’s crazy. I didn’t know if I was ever going to get myself back out there after-” You hiccup and your friend rubs your shoulder reassuringly, nodding in understanding. 

“I know I haven’t known you long but I’m proud of you, Y/n” Her words make the tears you were trying so hard to hold back burst out and she quickly pulls you into a hug, caressing your back. The two of you stay that way for a while, a million things being said in the silence. After a while you pull back and wipe your eyes, a wet laugh escaping. 

“Alright alright, enough of this. Let’s go pick my outfit for my date.” Your friend laughs with you and clinks her wine glass against yours, following you to your bedroom closet.

~~~~

Thursday rolls around and you’re torn between excitement and nerves. Your stomach rolls every time you think about tomorrow and every time the clock ticks by another hour. Your friend had helped you pick a cute but casual outfit and gave you a pep talk about how hot you were and how lucky Nat was to get to meet you. 

The thought of her has you texting her early that morning, eager to see if she’s as nervous as you.

       Nat🔪:

Y/n🍦:

Good luck with your meeting!

She doesn’t respond immediately and you figure she’s already in her meeting so you go about your morning getting ready for work and texting your mother to reassure her that you were, in fact, still alive since she checked in yesterday.

You make quick work of a small breakfast and you’re out of the door and on the subway before you know it. When there’s still no message from Nat you scroll idly through Instagram until you arrive at your stop.

Work is as it always is, it’s made a little less hard these days because of your friends' presence but before you know it your lunch break is rolling around, and when you open your phone between bites of food your brows furrow in confusion. Your little message bubble is still the last thing on the screen but right underneath it are four little gray letters ‘seen’.

If it were anyone else you wouldn’t have been worried, but Nat hadn’t left you on seen for months since the two of you became closer. And considering how important tomorrow was for you it put you more than a little on edge. 

You try to shake your head, maybe you were being irrational? She could be busy or just left her phone open somewhere. Not everything is as big of a deal as you make it out to be but… there’s anxiety forming in the pit of your stomach.

Your phone alarm goes off signaling the end of your lunch break and you go back to work with a new unease in your gut. You’d wait until the end of the day to really start worrying. Nat wouldn't bail on you, would she? Both of you wanted this…right? Have you been reading things wrong?

Your coworker notices your discomfort and asks if you're okay but you just shake your head with a smile. It could be nothing.

 It was probably nothing.

Please let it be nothing.

~~~~~

When you finally make it home after a long anxiety-filled day your heart leaps in hopeful anticipation when you see Nat’s name pop up on your home screen, only for it to sink to the bottom of your stomach when you read her only message

Nat🔪:

I’m sorry.

Pt.25

A/n: Pls don’t hate me- I promise this hurt me to write as much as it hurt you to read ~Starry

---Taglist--

@marvelwomen-simp @cd-4848 @wandanatlov3r @rebeltombraider @ctrlamira @fxckmiup @aliherreraaa @natsxwife @la-douler-ne-finite-jamais @romanoffsgal @moistblobfish @natashaswife4125 @elenimoris @how-to-disappearrr @screechcat @toouncreativeforausername @ordelixx @autorasexy @blacklightsposts @vmpnano @jono723 @sylencr @saraaahsstuff @autorasexy @gay4hotmilfs @tofu9162 @dyslexic-dreamer @graniairish @colettehope @kosmichs1 @nmhlver @natblidaclexa @skittlebum @dorabledewdroop @nothanksbye07 @mrsrushman

[a66-1]

HI OMG i just read all your stuff and theyre so GOOD AGHH!;!3)2):&;&??? and for any requests how about another docile!simon because hes SOO CUTE IM IN LOOVEE or a childhood!best friend 😮‍💨😮‍💨

crying and throwing up bc AHH

tysm omg..

it's giving I should do both of these

Childhood bestfriend!Simon (who's a docile soul) x Reader.

a/n: major fluff ❤️

what was a661 listening to? (Homesick by Noah Kahan, Sugar Sweet by Benson Boone, Young Blood by Noah Kahan, Like Real People Do by Hoizer)

Unedited and not proofread

Simon and you go way back, and I mean way back. You knew this boy since he learned how to tie his shoe. (Unsurprisingly you had to teach him because what the heck are you doing to the laces?)

You lived slightly south of Manchester, and only really saw Simon when your parents met up every month or so, but you and Simon were essentially locked at the hip when you two were around each other. Pinkies bound together as you walked around the pond, watching the swans swim in the water. His smile was always so.. Soft. Never a big, excited smile. One where you knew he was comfortable.

His older brother always scoffed at the two of you, opting to stick by his parents and yours as they sat on a bench, as they talked amongst themself. Simon Unhooked his pinkie from yours as he bent by a few rocks, looking through them.

"Hey, come 'ere." He gestured you over. You crouched next to him. He picked a few weed flowers, and plopped on the ground to tie the bottoms together. When he was done, he handed them to you.

"There! For you. They're really pretty." He smiled softly, as you took them. You laughed quietly, and hugged him.

"Thank you, Si." You said quietly, before pecking his cheek. You heard your mom yell at you to get your hands off eachother, as you two are only 8 and 10.

You two separate, and walk back over to your parents. Simon had a pink hue to his cheeks, but nothing he couldn't not excuse as sunburn.

Once you got in your rickety car back to your house, it's not like you knew you'd never see him again. You were packed and already on the plane 3 weeks later.

The absolute meltdown you had in the airport had your mom threatening to ductape your mouth shut, and you're pretty sure you cried all the way to America.

-

You lift your head, noticing your spot in line has moved up, again. You shift forward, a basket of food in your arms. You got your own places little over a year ago. Freedom feels.. Great, actually, nobody is on your ass and you can freely drive anywhere without a 'where tf are you??' text.

You get to the register, and give a polite nod and 'I'm good, and you?' Your accent still catches a few people off guard. Fucking hell, this state is absolute shit sometimes. Just because some people aren't the same as you, you don't gotta be weird about it-

It's not even like it's heavy, it's just slightly there. Growing up with the most British parents in a very not British town has got your accent all odd, but if anyone from Manchester heard you, they might be able to decipher you.

You take your bags and walk to your car, loading it. Just one more thing in the list... Ah, the pet shop. The place isn't far, so you lock your car and start your walk on the way there.

A few Military officers stand a block away, across the street. They don't look quite American, in all actuality, isn't that the flag from-

You abruptly run into someone. Fuck. God, why don't you keep your eyes open every once in a while? You take a step back, rubbing your nose. Crap, they had a hard fucking chest, because your nose feels half broken.

"My bad, I'm so sorry-" You glance up to notice an military officer. You stand straighter, noticing the Union Jack flag. The guy has gear on, and a.. Ghost mask? A bavaclava, I'm pretty sure, and some eye black.

"It's.." He squints, pausing, before continuing, "Fine. It's fine."

That's an accent if you've heard one. God, it's familiar as crap, you know you've heard it before. Which parents had that accent again? Sounds like.. Jack's parents were more west...

"You uh.. You from here?" He gruffly asks, "Can tell you got an accent."

You shake your head, "I was born in Manchester, moved when I was 8, give or take."

His eyes widen this time, before cursing. He turns to the group of men further down, and throws a hand signal. They nod, and continued a conversation they were having.

"Oh? I had a friand who uh.. Who.." He hesitated, but he slipped off his mask.

"Who did that too."

You stared doe eyed at him. "Simon?"

That blonde hair is impossible to forget. You choke on a laugh, before grabbing his face. His nose is definitely different, but it looks like shits been broken.

"Holy shit, it's you." He smiled. Fucking hell, his smile.

"Jesus! What're you doing here, I mean- I-I never thought we'd-" You cut yourself off with a laugh, before hugging him tightly, your hands curling into his hair. He swiftly hugged back, rocking you softly. Goddammit, he looks good.

Good, good.

"Oh lovie, you can't understand how happy I am, I remember how you left and.." He stares at you quietly, and frowned. "Never really made another friend like you again."

That made you frown, "Si, you should've made friends! I was just the example!" You throw in a smile, to show him your joking.

You both find yourself laughing together, your hands back on his cheek, his hands on your hips. And.. Some reason naturally, you drifted closer and.. Kissed. Neither of you hesitated, it was swift and you kept his head against yours, and you made sure the kiss was good.

He was good.

You both pulled away, a soft look shared among you too.

"Are we gonna brush past that, or.." He laughed, and hugged you again, swinging you around once. You yelped, and hit his shoulder.

"Put me down!!" You squealed, laughing.

Price glanced over to the two of you, Soap turning as well.

"Tha' there mus' be tha' Bonnie he mentions," Soap nods slightly, smiling for his friend.

"Sure is. I knew he'd take this mission cuz' o' her." Price chuckled softly.

You carded through his hair softly, looking in his eyes.

"I missed you, Si."

AHH THE IINSPO FOR THIS HAD ME SENT WRITING THIS.

Never seen something like this so I feel accomplished not having a clue how to keep going.

TYSM FOR THE SUPPORT!!

Request to get more fun stories like this!

Bye babes!

-a661

[dean-a-mean-tae]

Fragile | Stray Kids Extra Member AU

How Christopher and Nicholas became Chan and Nick.

WARNINGS: Nick smokes, predebut!Nick and predebut!Chan, Nick is a bit of a pushover. Talk about Nick's childhood.

@cafekitsune made the dividers | Nicholas Ross Master List

When they first met, the first thing Chan noticed was how quiet Nick was. He didn't like crowds, and his social skills were next to nothing. While some trainees were confident or nervous, Nicholas was just there.

They saw him as another kid with unkempt hair and anxiety. Chan saw Nicholas Ross, an Afro-Korean boy with hair more like his mother's than his father's. Or at least, that's what Nick told him.

But there were some things Nick couldn't tell Chan. Some things he didn't notice about himself, but Chan did, like how he treated everything with care and precision.

He thought outside the box. He gave everyone second chances while holding them at arm's length. He wasn't silent, he was quiet. If you listened closely, you could hear his mumbles. He could explain other people's emotions but was clueless about himself.

Chan remembers overhearing instructors talking about Nicholas.

"He has talent. He just can't put it forward."

"He's too stiff."

"He can't put emotion in his performance."

"Maybe if he had some friends, they could help him better."

Nicholas was a shadow, a silhouette. It's not by choice. Something is blocking the light from shining on him. It's leaving him as the outline of what he could be.

"Hey Nick," Chan called, waiting for Nicholas to turn to him. "Are we friends?"

"Have you earned my trust?" Nick asked. His voice was soft. Not weak, but soothing and quiet. Like him.

"I don't know," Chan said, shrugging his shoulders. He frowned when Nicholas shrugged back at him.

"There you go. You don't know if you earned my trust, so I don't know if we're friends."

"How will I know?" Chan asked.

"Trust is fragile. You'll know when you know," Nick answered, turning away to stretch.

Trust is fragile.

When you meet someone, you give them a slither of trust. How they treat you will break that trust or build it. It's easy to break trust but hard to mend it back. Fragile.

So Chan did what Nicholas did. He watched. For a whole week, Chan observed Nicholas. How he reacted, how he moved, his process, everything. It both amazed and hurt Chan what he saw.

Nick is cautious, not out of respect but out of fear. He doesn't look anyone in the eye, even those younger than him. He's there but not present. He laughs on cue and speaks only when spoken to. He never chases beyond familiarity: a puppet without a master.

But he's so gentle. Too gentle. They abuse it.

"It's not like he cares."

"It's one song. If he didn't want me to use it, he wouldn't have shown it to me."

He's in pain. Chan doesn't know where, but he knows Nick is hurting. Maybe it's physical. He trained too hard and sprained his ankle. Or, perhaps it's emotional. A cut too deep, even the best bandages and stitches can't fix it.

Hesitation was Nick's second nature, and Chan was ready to break it.

It was when he found Nick crying, curled up on the couch in one of the meeting rooms. That was when he'd earned his trust.

He didn't say anything. Chan sat next to Nicholas and held him. He let the younger cry. He let him cry until sobs became sniffles, and sniffles became shuddered breaths.

"Thanks, friend," Nick whispered, nuzzling Chan's neck. If he looked up, he would have seen Chan's face. A smile so big his eyes disappeared, and his dimples popped.

"You're welcome, peanut," Chan whispered as he played with the younger's curls.

Nick looked up at him with a weird expression, "Peanut?"

"It just slipped out," Chan huffed, laughing when Nicholas snorted.

Maybe that's why Nicholas felt safe enough to tell Chan. Chan is a safe space.

His safe space.

They were outside, Nicholas sitting with a cigarette hanging from his lips. Chan sat a little away from him, not liking the smell but not wanting to leave him. The pair was silent for a while, Nicholas taking another puff of his cigarette before speaking in English. "Wanna know why I'm so fucked up?"

"You're not fucked up, but sure," Chan answered, turning to face Nick.

"I think it's because of my parents," He whispered, smoke escaping his mouth and nostrils as he sighed. He waved his cigarette before stamping it on the ground as he chuckled dryly, "I'm surprised I was able to get away with this."

"What do you mean?" Chan whispered.

"They dictated everything, and they had access to everything. I wasn't allowed to do anything they thought didn't fit me," Nick explained, his voice rough from smoking.

"So, you didn't have a childhood..."Chan trailed off, leaning his chin on his knees.

It all makes sense: the lack of emotional understanding, fear of others and loud noises, and extreme caution. You can't build that experience if they force you to feel other's emotions.

"You don't know what to say when I ask you what you want," Chan continues. Though his eyes are on Nicholas, his mind is elsewhere.

It makes sense that he doesn't have a favorite anything. You can't find your own if you spend your whole life eating other people's favorites.

"I'm gonna help you find yourself," Chan said, his brows furrowed in determination.

Chan will take Nicholas out to different restaurants and write down his reactions. At the end of each outing, he'll ask Nick to rate the food and his experience.

Sometimes, Nick needs space, so he hides in Chan's studio. The pair will be doing separate things in the comfort of each other's presence.

Nicholas might be Chan's quietest kid. Occasionally, he's loud, but overall, he's reticent.

Even though Nicholas is taller than Chan, you can always find him hiding behind the oldest.

Whenever the group goes out, Chan randomly stops and spins in a circle, looking for Nicholas.

Most of the time, Nicholas is beside him, slightly behind him. His footsteps are quiet, and he never really says anything, so it's easy to lose him.

Whenever Nicholas feels intense emotions, his nose flares repeatedly and sometimes twitches. So, Chan will ask him to explain how he's feeling, and he'll call out different emotions based on the description.

The members think he resembles a rabbit when this happens.

Alas, their relationship isn't always sweet.

Nicholas has PTSD from growing up and is finally having the freedom of a "childhood."

Unfortunately, Nicholas will clam up if he feels he's stepped out of line. Immediately, he'll look away from everyone and make himself as small as possible.

Because he was yelled at his whole life, it's not hard for Nicholas to stay in the shadows.

Nicholas Ross Master List

©️DEANAMEANTAE2023

Tag list: @bada-lee-ily

[azrielslightintheshadows]

I would like something for Rhys again

I was thinking of something where maybe the reader, rhys, cass, and az were on a mission, and the reader was fighting in a really high place, but then she ends up falling? like what happened to Gwen Stacy in Spider-Man, but then Rhys arrives in time? (or not, it's up to you whether the ending will be sad or not)

(if it's a silly request or if you don't like it, you don't have to do it)

Between you and danger.

Rhysand x Reader

Masterlist

Warnings; angst, mentions of death and blood.

Ever since the king of Hybern was defeated weird Attor-like creatures appeared in Prythian, they killed anyone who came into their path and ate them, only leaving their bones behind. The high lords were panicking, sending their best warriors to hunt the beasts, most of them never returned and those who did were wounded so bad that the others had to kill them to end their agony.

Those creatures were approaching Velaris and Rhysand was losing his mind. He worried about his people, the reconstruction of the city was finally almost done, and another attack would break everyone’s spirit. Last night he decided that him, Azriel and Cassian would go on a mission together to find and end those things before they reached Velaris.

You begged him to let you go with them. You knew that your mate wanted to keep you safe, but you could fight, and those he wanted to protect were your people too.

“You know that I can help, Cassian has been training me for ages. I saved all your asses multiple times during the war.” You growled and Rhys pinched his nose.

“I know sweetheart, but we don’t know what these things are and what they can do, I don’t want to risk you getting hurt.” His voice was soft an indication that if you pushed him harder he would let you go with them, and that’s what you did.

You crawled on his lap and nuzzled his neck. “Come on baby, let me come with you. I want to defend our court like a proper High Lady.” You whispered.

With a sigh he said okay, and you jumped off him to prepare your leathers and weapons for tomorrow.

You were standing at the top of a mountain, your mate and his brothers were flying around to locate the beasts. You heard a hissing sound behind you and you grabbed your sword. They are here. You mentally told Rhysand and turned around to face them. Hideous winged figures, twice your size appeared, black holes where eyes should have been and silver fangs that could tear your skin in a blink. You gripped your sword harder and stared at them ready to attack.

Rhysand, Cassian and Azriel appeared behind them, and the bloodbath began.

You were covered in blood, your body ached as you swung your sword and beheaded another one. Your mate and his brothers had chased some of the beasts deeper into the woods, but they were still in your view. You glanced at them to make sure that your mate is okay and didn’t notice another one of these things flying towards you. You caught its movement barely in time to lift your sword and slash its neck. The beast fell on you with great force, and you tripped falling into the forest. A scream left your lips as you glanced at the hard ground rapidly moving closer and closer to you, you closed your eyes and blocked the bond not wanting Rhysand to feel your pain. You heard someone -your mate crying out your name, the scream so heartbreaking and loud that the mountain trembled, and strong arms grabbed you. Then you heard a loud crack and your body shook, pain filled your senses and you gasped for air.

“No no no” Cassian cried out. You opened your eyes and were met with the sight of the sky. With a groan you stood up and then you saw him…

Rhysand was laying beneath you his head on a rock and a pool of blood around it. He caught you but he was late, he didn’t have the time to manoeuvre both of you towards the sky, so he put his body between you and the ground.

“No” you screamed and grabbed his head “Baby… Rhysand please, open your eyes… stay with me” you cried.

His chest was barely rising and Azriel grabbed him, his shadows engulfing them both and they disappeared, Mor appeared a few minutes later and winnowed you and Cassian to the house of wind.

Azriel was standing in the dining room, his scarred palms rubbing his face, you had never seen him like that. “He is in his old room with Madja” he said. You nodded and ran to the room.

“How is he?” you asked Madja who was applying a cream on his head.

“He is going to be fine. Let him rest his body needs to heal” she replied and gathered her stuff.

“If you need anything send someone to get me” she said and left the room.

You didn’t bother to get the blood off, Rhysand was covered in it too, so you just laid next to him. You hugged his waist and laid your head on his chest, tears streamed down your face and sobs shook your body. You fell asleep like that and woke up when a big palm caressed your hair. You lifted your head and glanced at his beautiful face, his violet eyes were staring back at you and a bright smile decorated his face.

“How are you feeling?” you asked and caressed his jaw. He grabbed your hand and brought it to his lips. “I’m okay” he croaked and kissed your palm. “I though I lost you” you whispered and once again your eyes watered.

“That’s what you get when you scare me to death, consider us even” he smiled.

You scowled and he chuckled.

“I will always stand between you and danger sweetheart” he whispered and kissed your forehead “Now I think it’s time for a bath you stink” he continued and wrinkled his nose.

“You stink too” you made a gagging noise to tease him. “Then I think you should let me accompany you.”

And trust me when I say that you really enjoyed that bath ;)

Hope you like it! Requests are open.

[chasingfictions]

btw these are just some of the yellowjackets dynamics btw. To Me.

tainat are two cousins who are best friends they vanish every family holiday to go "take a walk" aka get fucking blazed down the block from their aunt's house

vanlottie are like okay. you are my master i am your disciple no you are my patient i am your nurse no you are my god and i made you a god no you are my salvation and i am begging you to stay there. bottom4service top.

taishauna are like okay youre wives but it's not romantic. youre life partners but it's not romantic. youre chosen soulmates but it's not romantic but it Is but you have never fucked and even if you did it wouldnt change anything . taishauna are like okay we are common law besties we are bound to each other by something deeper than anywhere else. taishauna said what if we were teh one healthy dynamic either of us is ever going to have with anyone. they said what if we were best friends forever. they said What If We Were Best Friends Forever.

shaunajackie is homoerotic girlbesties who kill each other what more has to be said than has already been said. theyre cathy and heathcliffe and theyre both girls and what if they kissed except they WONT and thats the POINT if they could kiss they wouldnt kill each other but they have to kill each other so.

lottienat are like . this is the most complex and profound relationship two people can have to each other is if one of them is charlotte isobel matthews and the other is natalie something italian scatorccio. if you ask me to describe it in words i cant. however i Can start crying and the crying will Hurt and that will explain it. they are the same person. im cradling them in my hands. they have known each other in every lifetime. they cant fucking stand each other and they are the only people each other can stand.

mistynat are like what if two very different kind of cats got fixated on each other by accident and now they will chase each other to the ends of the earth in increasing madcap schemes mistynat is tom and jerry . mistynat is like you know that bit at the end of pride and prejudice when everyones like. lizzie and darcy??? what????? that's mistynat to the rest of the yellowjackets . mistynat is a happy awful lab accident <3 and theyre kissing <3

shaunanat is like two siblings who are trying to kill each other and would kill for each other i'd say it in more words but i dont need it

shaunalottie is like. okay we're gonna be weird about each other forever in increasingly complex and disgusting ways yes it's gay but that's just part of it. we're dismembering each other but that's also just part of it. shaunalottie is like okay ill beat you nearly to death and youll be weird about my offspring in blood cult ways. those are real things that happened.

vannat are like oh ive known you since before i can remember what words even were .

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for believing my sibling is a cheater and a liar?

This situation is so fucking wild and I never thought anything like this would happen to me, but here we are. Background info: I (F late 20s) have 2 siblings (F early 20s and NB30s). Me and my younger sister Lee (fake name) live together and our oldest sibling Lane lives with their husband Bryan (fake names). They've been together for 8 years and married for 4, and they have a toddler son together.

4 days ago Lane came over to our house with their son and their bags and said Bryan had been cheating on them with a coworker and when they confronted him he threw them and their kid out on the street. Obviously we rallied around Lane. We let them move in, I offered to watch my nephew while they worked, and Lee started blasting Bryan for being a cheater on social media while I just blocked him.

Then yesterday Bryan came knocking on our door while Lane was at work and it was me and my sister's day off. We yelled at Bryan through the door that he was trespassing and we'd call the cops if he didn't leave. Bryan said he had proof that Lane had lied to us. That they were the ones who cheated and they left when he called them out on it.

We decided to go outside and hear him out rather than let him inside and he showed us a binder full of printed out call logs and text conversations that seemed to indicate Lane was indeed cheating with a coworker. He had the usual story you always hear. Lane was acting distant and was always on their phone, spending more time at work, coming home at odd hours, etc. So he checked their phone when they were in the shower and found the texts, so he started gathering evidence. He would wait until Lane was asleep to send pictures of their texts to his phone and set up cameras to catch Lane in the act. Sure enough it took less than 3 days before he caught Lane bringing their coworker over to have sex.

This is where, imo, it gets weird. To me the text messages and the assurance that Bryan had pictures and videos was enough. But my little sister Lee said she didn't believe him and wanted to see the videos. He said he didn't bring them with him and wouldn't show anyone if he did, because legally that would be considered revenge porn and he didn't want to do that to Lane, nor did he want those legal complications in the upcoming divorce. The only reason he was telling us was so we wouldn't hate him for something he didn't do, because he still had to be in our lives for his son's sake.

Lee kept insisting she wouldn't believe Lane would do something like that and wouldn't believe it until she saw their face during the act which sounded really fucking creepy to me and I told her so. Why the hell would she want to see our sibling having sex? Lee said it was suspicious that Bryan suddenly had all this evidence after Lane caught him cheating. I said a cheater would obviously lie to cover their tracks. Lee just yelled that I wasn't being loyal and since I was so protective of Bryan I was probably screwing him too, and she locked me out of the house.

Bryan apologized for the drama he caused and left, and I had to sit outside for 3 more hours until Lane got home and unlocked the door with their key (I had left mine inside and Lee wouldn't let me back in). I confronted Lane about what Bryan said but they just started crying that I believed their "manipulative ex" over them. I said Bryan had proof, they didn't, and they just kept sobbing. Lee called me an asshole and disloyal again.

I wanna be clear: I still wanna be there for my sibling no matter what. I won't kick them out or disown them or whatever even if they did cheat, I just don't wanna cut Bryan off completely if he didn't even do anything wrong. I tried telling Lane that, but it makes them just break into tears and beg me to believe them and Lee keeps saying I broke a sacred bond and family should always believe family, and it's making me start to doubt myself. AITA?

[applepixls]

my heart goes out to episode 3 secret life grian because I'm kind of living it right now (watch out peeps, low-key a vent incoming!)

in a stream after the big win scar says he's not sure if he could do it again, the whole being alone and having no friends thing and i kind of know what he means. as a real person its hard not having friends because you have no emotional support or people to connect with etc etc etc. in game it was hard not having friends cause he couldn't lean on anyone for resources and always had to leave home and manufacture interactions for content rather than being able to multitask and go caving with a friend (like the "i left my diamonds right here!" bit in last life with grian and mumbo. its just a mundane task but the interaction has become iconic)

but we're talking about grian now. just- the state of this man. i related a little bit too much to him in this episode. he made the diagonal staircase creature the episode before and said it looked like his brain; mush. but then in episode 3 ended up getting the task to follow his old buddy from the previous season around and just having joel go "ok lol lame. this is awkward. we're not really best friends, he's just following me around" (disclaimer: i know its just for the bit and they're good friends irl) and then to have joels new best bud (aka lizzie his irl wife-) go "HAH! you got no fri-endsss~!" (this lives rent free in my head lol) and tease him the following is a compilation of moments i related to having recently drifted from a close friend of several years :) - watching joel bond with the mounders from afar and having him just go "one second grian, we're bonding" when just one season ago they would bond and say who was boogeyman or not at the beginning of episodes - finally thinking he's got a friend because of his task, joel saying he'll "let [him] know" when he takes damage and how much and "oh, you don't want me to hang out with you?" "no but you can go hang out at the top of the helter skelter alone if you want". thinking he had a friend to turn out he didn't. (its then still socially okay and funny that he refused to leave joel alone because its all a bit for the episode) - "he's my pet" "i think we're friends. i think we're best friends" the thinking we're best friends not being mutual - "one moment, grian" as grian's trying to talk to him and joels just doing his task. its the being put off as a second priority over other friends (made me weirdly frustrated despite knowing its all made up silly improv-d conflict between grown adults who are actually friends) - "heard something about a group of friends, maybe I'm now a part of it?" its socially kind of weird to do this irl but the. knowing a bunch of people you know are a like Friend Group and wondering why you're not included - "not even this enderman wants to be my friend! im gonna cry" not that relevant just felt silly and relatable - "am i just here to clarify rules; you guys don't want to be friends?" serving a functional purpose to a group, no ones actually finding you just for you and to chat and be friends (I've gotten messages from friends just needing me to settle arguments between other friends) - (after chanting fail at mumbo) "its just me, this is why i don't have friends" the finding yourself cringe at every turn and thinking wow this is why no one likes me. yknow as im typing this im thinking "wow this is why i have no friends, isn't it? im on tumblr using it as a diary rather than making friends and speaking to them about my issues or finding a therapist to work through my insecurities." - throughout the episode just hating everything he created and wanting to destroy it - the stairs and even later the egg (not relevant to having friends. well kind of but not really. but loneliness can make you act crazy its just the art block and frustration and disappointment in yourself and your failure to have a vision and properly bring it into fruition) - "i definitely won't back down on this, I'm committing fully to the egg" i have a bad habit of running away from friendships when i get scared of any slew of things or just don't like them anymore, hence why i no longer have friends :) - the fact each time he finds something, anything, to pull him away from his whole being alone thing and distract him for any amount of time he goes and dives full in but the conversation always comes back to how he has no friends. - feeling like you'll never be capable of creating and committing to long lasting healthy relationships like everyone else seems to be, settling for short term slightly toxic (joel literally didn't want to be his friend) ones just to have someone to be around. smth smth, "we accept the love we think we deserve."

i'd originally rewatched scar's secret life and thought it would make me sad cause he spent the whole time being alone but scar never made much of a big deal of being lonely and just made comments like "that's not right. how did the guy with no friends win?" feeling like he didn't deserve the win which echoes pearl in double life saying "this wasn't supposed to happen. i wasn't supposed to have friends" like she was scared of making bonds after being rejected by both martyn and scott at the beginning and like she was actually crazy and surely deserved them both leaving and didn't deserve friends but that pattern is an entirely other thing to dig into

when i first watched secret life as it was coming out (October to December 2023) i thought i was on good terms with this friend or was at least deluded and distracted enough to think that. i haven't rewatched grian's perspective since realizing our friendship was all falling apart at the beginning of this year (mostly in march) and then running away from some other friends and becoming a weird little egg on my own. its funny how grians made up improv'd loneliness can echo real loneliness, isn't it?

im very happy he got adopted by cleo and etho the next episode.

[kudouusagi]

KSB 15-4 Spoilers

I'm working on translating the new chapter but here's some spoilers if you're interested while you wait.

Morinaga is still getting bugged by his mom, Souichi tells him to block them and Morinaga is surprised that Souichi would say that because he's big about family but Souichi says that families do that and he gets blocked by Tomoe all the time, like when he moved to Tokyo and Souichi was complaining about Kurokawa, but he hasn't recently. Souichi would block his father when he was being annoying when he was younger too. "I think that when you want distance from someone it's fine to just casually block them" and Morianga says "it's fine for your family since you're close but it would just cause more problems for me and then Souichi's like well maybe you should make it worse

Then he invites Morianga to go visit the grave with his family and Morianga questions if he should come but Souichi says they keep telling him to invite him every time anyway so his family wants to see him too so he should take the chance to see them when they're around.

Morinaga is happy but is thinking that his family isn't close at all and they're like strangers who are just related by blood.

Morianga then gets a call from his mom and he tries to ask what she wants and she says that since he just keeps saying he's busy over text so she thought she should call and Morianga's like "calling doesn't change that I'm busy!" and that it's weird for her to call now when he was going to school for 6 years and they didn't talk much then. She says that his dad is saying maybe now that he's got a job maybe he'll want to settle down and have a family and Morianga's like "I'm gay I've told you this" and she's like but you won't know unless you meet someone etc So he tells her he's not going to talk if they won't listen and hangs up on her.

Souichi tells him he should really tell them how he feels and use stronger words and cause a big fight and Morianga said he did when he lived with them but he's tired of it now. he thinks it would be easier to just cut ties with them since they won't understand and Souichi says maybe you should, since it takes a lot for a guy like you to want to cut ties with anyone and it annoys him having to listen to them too. and he says that since they're adults they don't really need parents anymore, and that if he needs help he has plenty of people around who can help like friends and him and his family

Morinaga starts crying and Souichi tells him not to cry and rubs his head

The end

[epickiya722]

Most Izuku takes are ridiculous (the stalker, pedo, SA) but the most annoying one has the be where fans bring in xx random character and want them to be the MC. So far I've seen these candidates for the mha protagonist role who would somehow make the show better (according to literally no one except their diehard stans):

Bakugo

Kirishima

Mirio

Monoma

Todoroki

All might

They also talk about how this character 'would have saved shigaraki unlike deku'.

The perfect visual of seeing terrible Izuku Midoriya takes. Like, what you mean pedo and SA?! HIM?! IZUKU MIDORIYA?! We're going to get back to that.

I'll be honest, if Midoriya wasn't the protagonist I would have stilled favored him a lot more than anyone else.

Bakugou, Mirio and Kirishima fit into the mold of the typical shonen protagonists from physical appearance to personality more than Midoriya does... which is why I'm glad they were not the protagonist.

I'm sorry but sometimes let's break that mold.

I adore those characters, but Izuku Midoriya is a wild card if I ever seen one.

He looks like a total sweetheart (and he is) and "plain", but he's more complex than people give him credit for and it sucks they're really just looking at him surface level.

Let's be real, none of those characters would have succeeded in saving Tomura and Tomura wasn't meant for it. He was written to be a tragic character. A villain who was written to be understood, not redeemed and none of those characters would have been able to do that.

And I know those people weren't fucking with Tomura like that for real. Just another way to say "Midoriya is a bad character". Those same people were probably the ones who wanted Tomura to die but can't say it because "I gotta look cool".

(I have happily unfollowed and blocked a lot of people over the past couple of months.)

It's even weird to say "All Might is a better candidate" when he and Midoriya are literally like the same person. We would have still gotten the same story, DID THEY NOT SEE THE PARALLELS WITH THESE TWO?!

If Midoriya and All Might switched ages and places, it would have probably still been the same story.

I really hate seeing "stalker" and Midoriya in the same sentence. Like, no, he isn't a stalker.

"But he knows about Bakugou---"

They lived in the same town and went to the same schools. It's not that Midoriya stalks (ew) Bakugou. He is literally just there. Of course, he knows about how Bakugou interacts with girls. It's called "happened to be in the same hallway and somehow even when he doesn't try to, Bakugou will make it as center of attention".

Can't use them being tiny kids as examples for Midoriya being a "stalker" because they were kids! Who calls a CHILD a stalker?

Midoriya and Bakugou grew distant!

It's so funny to me that people want to call Midoriya a "stalker" but never bring up the fact Bakugou always made it his business to know what is going on with Midoriya even in middle school. He had no reason to get up in his face about applying to UA, getting upset that Midoriya got a Quirk, several times we have seen him be nosy when Midoriya is having a conversation...

Jeez, the pedo and SA takes... where did that even come from?! Wait, let me guess, is it from the times that a girl would somehow be near him or touching him? Again, this is Izuku Midoriya we're talking about here. He doesn't even think of girls like that. He doesn't act like some fiend trying to harass girls.

And if anyone is looking at any scenes he has with the younger children and think "he's a pedo" they're the weird one. They can stay away from me.

Oh, the "he cries, he's annoying" thing is stupid. Toxic masculinity, that's what that is. Hypocritical even because if you really think Izuku Midoriya showing his emotions is "annoying" have that same energy for every character. Let's not act like Katsuki Bakugou wasn't crying in season one. If you saw that scene and didn't think "Ugh, annoying" but do for Midoriya, there is the damn door.

Come on, that's how I know that some of these are full of shit.

I say this without hesitation: some folks just want to hate on Midoriya because they just want to be a part of the crowd. They have these "takes" just to make themselves look "logic" even though it's just straight bullshit. It's not how they really feel, it's just shit they come up with to fit in.

Being a hater all the time, especially over one character, just seems boring to me.

They make up stuff to hate a character. That's how I know they really don't hate the character. Why make up reasons to hate a character? To follow the crowd? You're really letting people online influence you to be a hater? Like, really think about that. It's ridiculous.

Some people in this fandom are a headcanon and a half. They don't want to accept that Izuku Midoriya is the protagonist and was meant to be since the My Hero days and they don't want to accept the fact that he isn't that bad of a character. Probably have 20 different posters of him but have to "save face" and be a hater.

Again, I adore the other characters but it's gotten to the point I am highly annoyed by their fans. A lot or at least the loud minority act as if the characters are better than Midoriya. They're not. They're just as flawed and that's fine. But they're not all that special for folks to constantly hate, hate and hate.

Hell, because of Midoriya a lot of these characters wouldn't be characters. It's absurd to me to be a fan of any these characters (especially Bakugou, Todoroki and All Might) and be a hater of Midoriya.

[batmanego]

SO YOU'RE TIRED OF BATMAN: AN INTRODUCTORY GUIDE TO DC SUPERHEROES

one of the most common things i hear when trying to get people to read comics is that they're just not that into batman. which boggles my mind! not because i'm a huge batman fan -- which i am, but i can understand why people might not be interested in his comics -- but because it's insane to me that batman (or superman, or wonder woman, or any other dc superhero they've made a movie about) is people's default perception of dc superheroes.

there's a whole world out there! and if you're intimidated by the big superheroes, or uninterested in their stories, or even if you like them but you're looking for something different, this is the guide for you. without further ado, i present:

DC MINUS THE BIG THREE: A FIELD GUIDE FOR THE DISENCHANTED AND DISINTERESTED

DOOM PATROL (1987)

to nobody's surprise, doom patrol is first on my list of recommendations. it's a comic book about a group of disabled people who have been labeled freaks, weirdos, or otherwise undesirable by society, coming together to save a world that doesn't care about them because there has to be beauty in it somewhere.

good for: well, i'll let the introduction quote do the talking. “remember when all the other kids on the block had superman and batman as positive role modes? well, if you could only identify with a human brain in a metal body or a guy wrapped up in bandages, and if you grew up weird, welcome home. you’re among friends now.”

read doom patrol here. trigger warnings for: ableism, child sexual abuse, medical abuse, transphobia.

2. HELLBLAZER (1988) BUT ONLY THE FIRST 41 ISSUES OK?

hellblazer is a 300 issue long comic book, mostly comprised of dogshit stories by dogshit writers. i am recommending it because i genuinely think the first 41 issues are art. please do not do as i did and read all of hellblazer. you won't survive the experience. ok? ok.

hellblazer is a comic about aging punk magician/occultist john constantine trying desperately to sort out his life in late 80s london while constantly being beset by poor life choices, poverty, and also lots and lots and lots and lots of demons.

good for: punks, anarchists, fans of the occult, enemies of aleister crowley, anyone who has a personal vendetta against margaret thatcher.

read hellblazer here, BUT STOP READING AFTER THE FIRST 41 ISSUES OK? trigger warnings for: literally almost everything you can imagine, but specifically discussions of child sexual abuse are prominent in the original sins run. also, it was written by a white man in the 80s, so it suffers from "white man in the 80s" syndrome.

3. WILDCATS (1999)

"FERRIS", some of you comic book knowers cry, "WILDCATS IS WILDSTORM NOT DC". to that i say Shut the fuck up DC acquired the rights to the wildstorm universe it's close e-fucking-nough.

wildcats 1999 is about cole cash (a conman and ex-special ops man), hadrian 7 (an alien robot posing as a human named jack marlowe), and noir (a bisexual ex-arms dealer from france who talks in the third person) picking up the pieces of the OLD wildcats team after they all found out they were soldiers in a war that ended before most of them were born and nobody bothered to tell them, and trying to 1) run a company and 2) save the world.

good for: people who hate the military, tacky sci-fi fans, anyone who wishes guys would suck more, anyone interested in the horrors of war.

read wildcats 1999 here.

4. SLEEPER

"ferris i want to leave wildstorm" too fucking bad. we're talking about sleeper right now.

sleeper is about holden carver, an undercover agent in the world's largest underground crime organization/network, who gets stuck undercover when his handler (the only guy who knows he's undercover and not just a traitor) gets shot and put in a coma. it is about grappling with your own morality, losing faith in your ideals, and (like most wildstorm properties), how war is a pointless exercise in horror.

good for: fans of spy thrillers, evil women enjoyers, evil men enjoyers, anyone who has ever thought they could make someone worse, people who want bad things to happen to people in power.

read sleeper season 1 here, and then sleeper season 2 here. trigger warnings for pedophilia (the pedophile gets beat to death in issue 2), homophobia, and child abuse.

5. THE AUTHORITY (1999)

stop crying we're almost done with wildstorm. the authority is a comic book about 6 super-people (who are very loose parodies of the justice league) forming a self-described "anarchist cell" to operate against the wishes and outside the influence of earth's governments to defend the planet against extraterrestrial threats and handle human rights violations.

good for: political science fans, good sci-fi enjoyers, people who think batman and superman should have kissed instead of making a million movies, people in polyamorous six-ples.

read the authority here. trigger warning for "this writer probably shouldn't have written this asian nation like this", homophobia, sexual abuse.

6. SUICIDE SQUAD (1987)

hey, remember how i was talking about wildcats? imagine the same sort of themes of wildcats (the horrors of war, the effects of being in the military, american imperialism, what it means to be a hero or even a good person), and then apply them to the worst group of people you've ever had the displeasure of being in the same room as, and they all fucking hate each other. suicide squad is about a bunch of incarcerated villains being "recruited" (forced) into working hero-missions for the government, because nobody will miss them if they die.

good for: villain apologists, people who (in the immortal words of hack/slash) think "there just aren't enough big mean women in comics", and this guy:

[ID: a comment on read comics online by “the king of anime” reading, “I want to give this a try would it be worth it”. end ID.]

read suicide squad here. trigger warning for, again "white man in the 80s syndrome", along with... probably pretty much everything else imaginable (it's been a while since i read this!)

7. STARMAN (1994)

starman is a story told with the drama of a theater production about jack knight, a late-20s to early-30s punk antiques dealer who gets the mantle of starman (a well-known superhero from the golden age) thrust upon him suddenly. it is a story about legacy, family duties, identity, and most importantly about being kind of a loser who gets shot at all the fucking time.

good for: sci-fi fans who are too proud to admit they also like fantasy, rock opera listeners, family disappointments, single fathers.

read starman here. trigger warning for sexual assault.

8. ARKHAM CITY: THE ORDER OF THE WORLD (2021)

"ferris you said no batman" i did. i did not say no batman villains.

arkham city: the order of the world focuses on some of batman's lesser-known foes, and the fallout of arkham asylum collapsing. i can't really explain it more than that, but it is good and legitimately unnerving at times.

good for: horror fans, enemies of the psychiatric system, villain enjoyers, people who live in new york city.

read arkham city: the order of the world here.

9. THE SHADE (1997) and THE SHADE (2012)

hey, remember starman? want a series about the old immortal victorian man with an "ambiguous sexuality" from it? okay. the shade (1997) follows his origins: specifically, his long-standing beef with one specific family. the shade (2012) is a sort of cross-country whodunnit as the shade tries to track down who is trying (and failing) to murder him.

good for: bisexual enjoyers, dramatic theater kids, vampire fans, goths, people who would have fucked lord byron given the opportunity.

read the shade (1997) here, and the shade (2012) here.

10. METAL MEN (2007)

lastly (but not least), a comic featuring will magnus from doom patrol. metal men (2007) is... a complicated story. it's about robots? it's about being mentally ill. it's about a guy who is so divorced forever. it's about being a little loser guy. it's about time travel, and terrible relationships with your brother. it's hard to describe. but it's fun.

good for: bad sci-fi enjoyers, people who can understand the timeline of looper, robot fans, anyone who has ever been consumed by a desire to create.

read metal men (2007) here.

BONUS:

not included in this list because batman is there, i encourage everyone to have a look at the original justice league international series. it is a superhero comedy. it is silly and stupid and i love it.

OKAY, THAT'S ALL! THANKS FOR READING!

[4wkjun]

daddy sim | sjy

Chapter 01: is this code for gay? ➥ Contains: a little bit of humor, insinuations of homosexuality, mentions of alcohol, and swearing. ➥ Word count: 2.3k

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April 2nd, 2021 Friday

“Wonnie, do you like living with Yunjin?”, you asked sitting down next to your best friend. Chaewon pouted, confused.

“Yeah, why? Does she want to move out and hasn’t told me?”

“Nah”, you scoff. “It’s just a little unbearable to keep my flat right now. I thought maybe we could find a place for the three of us?”, you said, more of a question than a statement of your thoughts.

“Yeah, I think it’ll be fun”, she shrugged and smiled a bit. “Do you want me to talk to her or you’ll do it?”

“I can do it”, you smiled.

“Do what?”, Jay asked dropping his backpack in the chair in front of you.

“Good morning, Mr. Park”, Chaewon mocked.

“Sorry, Ms. Kim. Good morning to y’all!”, he said in a weird tone bowing. “Now, what you’re gonna do, y/n?”

You sighed, rolling your eyes.

“You’re such a gossipy guy, for Christ’s sake”, you chuckled. “I’mma ask Yunjin if I can move in with them.”

“Why would you do that?”, Jay chuckled back, sitting in front of you two.

“It’s getting a little hard to keep my bills around my flat”, you sighed. “I’d be nice to share everything.”

“I have a friend who needs to move out”, Jay said raising his eyebrows, as if he just remembered that. “He hates his dorm, maybe you could see something together.”

“He? As a man?”, you raised one of your eyebrows.

“Yeah, but he’s a good guy. He just really needs to get the fuck outta there and maybe you could be friends, huh?”

“What is your mom gonna think?”, Chaewon mocked again. You laughed, slapping the back of her neck.

“As if I could care more”, you rolled your eyes. “What’s his name?”

“Jake”, Jay responded. “I think you met last year, no? At my birthday party or something?”

You pouted, trying to picture anyone named Jake. You shook your head, not capable of thinking of anyone named that.

“I don’t think so”, you said. “But maybe I could talk to him. I really want to shove my flat keys up my landlord’s ass.”

Jay laughed, searching for his phone inside of his pocket.

“I’ll text him. He’s majoring in physics, I believe he’s already there”, Jay pointed to the window. The block next to yours was the exact sciences block. “What do you think about meeting him after class? Maybe during our break?”

“Sounds good”, you smiled.

“Ugh, just when I thought I was gonna live with my girlfriend”, Chaewon pouted with a fake crying expression. You laughed, hugging her side.

“Don’t worry, I’ll always be your lab partner.”

“You better be!”

“At least you have a partner”, Jay sighed dramatically while staring at the empty seat next to him. The duo-sitting dynamic is really helpful when you’re majoring in biomedicine since it’s always nice to have someone to double-check your work. (Un)luckily for Jay, his partner only showed up three times the last month. You couldn’t help but laugh.

“Hey”, Jay smiled looking behind you. You and Chaewon were sitting across Jay in the cafeteria, along with your journalism friends: Sunghoon and Yunjin. Sunghoon lifted his eyes next to Jay, smiling when he focused on the person behind you.

Oh. That’s Jake.

Now that you saw his face you remembered: he’s one of Jay’s best friends, even though he never hangs out with the rest of you during breaks and after class. You indeed met him at Jay’s party - and if you remember clearly, you developed a quick crush on him. He looked so hot at the party, his (longer at the time) hair falling over his pretty face, a kiss t-shirt and ripped jeans may sound boring, but he managed to make that look good.

However, now, he looked so cozy. Everything ran across your head way too fast and you almost scrunched your nose at the thought. Cozy? What are you thinking?

“Hi, bro”, the guy – Jake –, smiled before quickly hugging Jay. “My boy!”, he chuckled while walking towards Sunghoon. They weirdly shook their hands and you held a laugh. Boys.

“Take a seat”, Sunghoon said smiling.

“Wow”, Yunjin said. All of you looked at her. “I didn’t know Sunghoon could smile.”

You laughed while Jake sat between his two friends, in front of Chaewon.

“Didn’t you know Jake’s his true love?”, Jay mocked.

Oh, is that what he meant by a “good guy”? Is this code for gay?

“I didn’t, in fact”, Yunjin laughed. Sunghoon frowned, threatening to throw his bread in her head.

“So, why did you need me out of my comfort zone?”, Jake funnily asked Jay, raising his eyebrows quickly.

“Comfort zone? You mean the exact building? That looks like a madhouse”, Jay mocked. “My friend here”, he pointed at you “needs someone as desperate as she is to move out.”

You awkwardly smiled at Jake, not knowing what to say. You thought Jay would be a little less direct to the point.

“Hi”, you said in a weird tone. Your girlfriends laughed. “I’m y/n.”

“I remember you”, Jake smiled softly. “I hope you’re not doing this because Jay told you I’m miserable”, he laughed.

You scoffed, shaking your head.

“Nah, I’m desperate to move out.”

“Good, we could... talk and see if we get along?”, he asked a little shy.

“Sure!”

“Wow, the two of you are so easy going, what the fuck?”, Chaewon laughed.

You shrugged, chuckling a bit. “That’s called necessity, darling.”

March 7th, 2022 Monday

“Jake”, you called knocking on his bedroom door. “Get up, lazy-ass!”

“I’m coming”, he groaned behind the closed door. By his groggy voice, you knew he wasn’t getting up.

With a sigh, you softly pushed the door, staring at Jake through the dim room. His blinds were closed all the way and you had to admit: that bed must be really comfy. You walked towards him, trying to adjust your eyes to the lack of lights.

Jake was lying on his stomach – shirtless, even though it was just the beginning of spring –, his hair falling around his face and pillow. The air conditioner of his room was way too cold for your liking and you wondered why he slept in such a cold room with his blankets on.

“Get up, Jakey”, you said as softly as you could, running your hand across his soft hair. “First day of school, remember? Last year, just two more semesters and we’re done for good.”

“You and I?”, he mumbled.

“Yeah.”

“So you’re breaking up with me?”, he mumbled again, still not opening his eyes.

You laughed, still caressing his scalp.

“How could I break up with the best roomie I ever had?”, you responded, thinking of that whole situation as funny.

Jake lazily opened his eyes, pouting. You took your hand off his head, crossing your arms under your chest. He stretched his body on the bed, trying to get rid of his sleepy state. The movement made his blankets shift on top of him and you could see the hem of his boxers. That’s when you looked up to the ceiling and said:

“Get ready, I’ll cook us breakfast.”

“‘kay”, he moaned. Jake sat up in his bed just in time to watch you move your ass out of his room. He bit his lips at the sight of your pretty ass tightly hugged by the fabric of your jeans. “Not the right time to be a perv, Jake”, he groaned.

Forty minutes later, you and Jake were miserably sat at the bus stop right in front of your apartment building. It was a little late, but you still had plenty of time. Jake would say random shit all of the time, making you laugh while waiting. God, he could die just by looking at your smile.

“Your hair is so long right now”, he said softly.

“I know, right? I haven’t cut it in like... a year?”, you agreed, looking at the ends of your hair. If your eyes weren’t down, you’d see Jake’s eyes shining bright as stars while staring at you. “Do you think I should cut it? Maybe like... shoulder length?”

“I... I think you’re pretty anyway”, he shrugged. You chuckled.

“You’re adorable, Jakey.”

“You’re more adorable”, he mumbled to himself.

“Huh?”, you asked, not being able to hear him.

“Nah, I’m talking to myself”, he sighed. “Look, it’s our bus.”

You looked toward the direction he pointed, nodding. You got up with your backpack along with him. Your dear roommate.

April 23, 2022 Saturday

“I’m glad you came, bro”, Jay told Jake as they sat down next to him. Jake was sitting on the yard bench, looking at the pool. Jay’s house was filled to the brim with his friends - and he had a lot. Well, you can’t turn 25 every year, right? So he had to throw a big-ass party. Drinks, food, pool, loud music... how could you and Jake say no to that invite? Oh, and being best friends with Jay, obviously.

“I wouldn’t miss your birthday for the world, dude”, Jake chuckled. His eyes found you sitting on the edge of the pool, your hair dripping water down your waist and hips after a dive. He took a long sip of his beer, trying not to stare at your pretty breasts covered only by the thin material of your bikini.

Jay’s eyes followed Jake’s, only to laugh when he realized who he was staring at.

“Are you ever gonna confess?”, Jay asked. Jake’s head turned fast with his eyebrows furrowed.

“What?”

“Don’t play dumb, Sim Jaeyun”, Jay scolded playfully and Jake scrunched his nose at the sound of his full “real” name. “It’s been what? Almost a year?”

“That we moved in together?”

“Yeah.”

Jake hummed, looking at his cup half-empty. He felt embarrassed. What kind of guy likes to open his heart to his best buddy during a party? It was almost three p.m., he should be drinking beer out of a hose and having fun. But he couldn’t. Not while you were drinking and having fun. What if some weird guy tried to do something with you? Jake needed to be able to protect you.

“Really, dude. You should tell her.”

“Tell her what?”, Jake asked, looking at you again. You were laughing almost uncontrollably at something weird Yunjin said next to you. He held the urge to smile at your smile.

“Tell her you love her or something”, Jay shrugged. “She’s out there, maybe even looking for fish in the ocean. You could be with her right now. For almost a year.”

“She told you she’s looking for someone?”, Jake asked, staring at Jay again. Jay sighed while rolling his eyes.

“No, I’m just saying. You never know.”

Jake hummed again.

“Go on, talk to her.”

“She’s drunk.”

“Pretend you’re just as drunk. If something goes wrong, blame the alcohol and move on with your life.”

“That’s the shittiest advice you ever gave me”, Jake sighed while standing up.

“Then why are you getting up?”, Jay laughed.

“‘Cause I have no better idea”, he responded before walking away.

Jake carefully walked towards you, trying not to slip into the wet pool edge.

“Hey, y/n”, he called calmly. You looked at him with a smile, your damp hair moving across your shoulder and splashing a little bit of water on his legs.

“Hi, Jakey!”, you chanted. He chuckled.

“Can I talk to you?”, he asked. You nodded.

The silence felt loud.

“... Alone.”

“Oh!”, you said, laughing. “Sure, help me up.”

You turned around, your legs now out of the water. Jake’s feet were damp now since you caused a mini-tsunami with your feet. You reached your hands towards him and he gladly pulled you up.

“Bring her back!”, Chaewon yelled from the inside of the pool. Jake laughed and gave her a thumbs-up while carefully guiding you through the crowd of Jay’s friends.

The two of you found a spot to sit down next to the barbecue, a little far from the pool. It was still loud, but a lot less than next to the pool.

“What’s wrong, my beloved?”, you asked, softly smiling at him. You sat on one of the stools in front of the counter that separated the barbecue area from the eating area. Jake sat next to you, sighing deeply.

“How drunk are you?”

“Enough to have fun”, you winked at him. Jake laughed.

“Uh...”, he mumbled.

“What’s wrong?”, you repeated, still smiling. 

“I’m trying to find the right words”, Jake laughed under his breath. You nodded, weirdly patient for your tipsy-self.

“It’s just me. You can say whatever you want”, you shrugged.

Jake lowered his eyes, trying to avoid yours. The fact that your breasts were between your face and the floor was just a detail.

“I’m afraid this might ruin our friendship, y/n”, Jake mumbled.

“Not possible!”, you responded.

“Alright, close your eyes then”, he said. Without a word, you obeyed. Jake thought it would be easy to say he liked you a lot if you weren’t looking. However, it seemed a lot easier to do something else.

Jake leaned in and captured your lips with his. You were taken aback, so you suddenly opened your eyes and moved away from him.

“Jake...”, you started.

“Shit”, he groaned. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t do this, I was gonna tell you I-”

“Aren’t you gay?”, you asked, confused.

Jake stopped, completely shocked. He stared at your face, looking for signs of a joke.

“What?”

“I thought... You and Sunghoon... No?”, you said, tilting your head.

“Fuck, no!”, he responded, his eyes big now. “He’s my best friend. And that’s all! I’m straight, y/n, for fuck sake!”

You laughed out loud, just as surprised as him.

“Well... In that case...”, you shrugged.

Jake was about to ask what were you gonna do, but this time your lips met his.