#it is simply me going Wow these two movies have a lot in common to the point where it's funny

[invisible-storyteller]

Why didn't Scott return to Beacon Hills?

(Okay, so I'm just putting my thoughts out there because they would plague my mind otherwise, and movie!Scott doesn't deserve to be spared that much thought. I did like Scott's character in the series - while acknowledging the dumb shit he pulled in canon -, but I absolutely do not like movie!Scott, and yes, I'm making that distinction because this movie feels like an AU more than anything.)

In the movie, it was established that Scott hadn't been back in Beacon Hills for a long time. It was also implied that he simply didn't keep in touch with a lot of his packmates: think about the awkwardness of meeting Malia for the first time after their break up (probably years ago and then they never talked again, ouch) or how he didn't seem to know that Lydia does not use her banshee scream anymore (which makes it pretty likely that he also does not know about Stydia's break up).

Then we have this conversation between Scott and Eli:

Scott: Wow, you got really big.

Eli: Yeah, it's probably because I was only 3 the last time you saw me.

If we accept that 2014 (when Eli was 3) was the last time Scott was in Beacon Hills, then it means that Scott hasn't contacted the pack in 12 years. This might not be correct, though, as the final scene in 6B was literally a flash forward to 2015 (if I remember correctly) when the pack was still together and fighting hunters as a united force. Or the writers are once again forgetting their own canon because I doubt that Derek - with a 4-year-old son at the time - would go off picking battles and getting himself in life-threatening situations while his son is waiting for him at home. Plus I can't imagine Scott being in contact with everyone but not visiting Eli. (Sidenote: Lydia seemed pretty surprised by Derek having a son. Like she didn't know before they met him in the preserve, which is weird in my opinion. Did no one tell her? Had she not visited Beacon Hills in years, too? This pack is so scattered, I swear.)

Anyway, something must have changed in 2014 or 2015 for Scott to choose to burn all bridges and sever all connections. And I think that something was Monroe.

Monroe was formally defeated at the end of 6B but the fight didn't end there. Scott and his pack probably fought hunters on and off, while trying to stay in university and live their own lives, chasing dreams and whatnot. And if there's one thing that has always kept Scott's pack together, then that's a common enemy.

I think 2014 or 2015 was the year when the pack finally put an end to the huge wave of hunters going against their code and managed to establish some kind of peace between the two communities. It didn't mean there were no more hunters, but things returned to "normal", aka the hunters sticking to their original beliefs (hopefully). And with the end of the war came the realization that the pack no longer had a common enemy to push everyone together.

Don't get me wrong, I do think a lot of them stayed in each other's lives. They are friends, after all, and not all ties will break just because some members decided to go MIA. But without the war and the constant proximity of his pack members, Scott's old fear of being unworthy and unimportant resurfaced once again. How do I know? Because Scott seems to have an alpha complex in the movie.

Hear me out! His side job consists of saving people from collapsing buildings, and he does this hero-rescue thing so often that people have an alias for him: the Alpha. When faced with the Nogitsune, he insists on the importance of his role (the Nogitsune can't win until Scott is off the board) and he even shouts "I'm still the alpha!" while revealing what he believes is the Nogitsune's endgame.

But would an actual alpha abandon his pack for 10+ years? I mean, he isn't involved with pack business anymore and he isn't even the one defeating the Nogitsune - that job gets passed onto Parrish and Derek. And yeah, Scott's eyes might be red still, but he's no alpha of anything. He has no pack to take care of and he certainly doesn't have a territory to defend. He still desperately clings to the title, though.

So here are my thoughts on what (must have) happened: After defeating Monroe, Scott realized that he couldn't give much to the pack anymore. They didn't need his leadership, his hope, his supervision or alpha roar or anything like that. Scott was... a friend. There is nothing wrong with being just that, per se, especially with how much emphasis Teen Wolf puts on friendships, so I'm sure the others would have still loved to have Scott in their lives, supernatural threat or not. But here's the thing: Scott has always wanted to be special. Admittedly, I think a lot of us do. But it's sad to see that Scott couldn't overcome this fear of being obsolete, of being mediocre. For 15 years, he couldn't realize that his worth went beyond his alpha status, meaning that he's the main character without any character development.

He probably did come back after the first year at uni and watched Derek be happy with his son and living a quiet suburban life, no longer relying on an alpha. Malia probably broke up with him or they just parted ways somewhat awkwardly, so that was one more person who didn't need him anymore. Lydia was working on her career, busy balancing school and a relationship while she was finally out there spreading her wings. Stiles was free, too, finding his true calling. And Beacon Hills was peaceful. Certainly didn't require an alpha's intervention.

So Scott decided to look for another place where he could still be useful, where people needed him. He began to rescue dogs and people alike because that's what he knew how to do, because that was what made him feel like an alpha again.

It's too bad he didn't realize that he was already important. That he could have helped so much by just being there for his pack, for his friends.

The bottom line is: I do not like movie!Scott, not because he's OOC but because the writers didn't bother to develop his character past his high school self (I'm sure Allison and he won't have problems with picking up where they left off). And if Scott abandoned his pack, then I think this was the reason behind it. His own insecurities.

[agentnico]

Asteroid City (2023) Review

Wow, even for Wes Anderson this is a stacked cast! Might as well just advertise this as Asteroid City - starring all of Hollywood!

Plot: World-changing events spectacularly disrupt the itinerary of a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention in an American desert town circa 1955.

Like or hate him, it is hard not to at the very least respect Wes Anderson and his directorial style, as he’s basically achieved his own genre at this point. You hear a movie described as ‘Wes Anderson-esque’ and you are guaranteed to expect beguiling symmetrical shots, bright vintage coloured flair, use of stop-motion animation and postmodern symbolism, all the while featuring a vast array of A-list actors appearing in either awkward or over-confident fast-talking caricatures. There’s an interesting article on Curzon detailing what a Wes Anderson style entails, and it is a very interesting read. You can find it on the following link: https://www.curzon.com/journal/unpacking-wes-anderson-s-cinematic-style/

So with Asteroid City you can already anticipate these Wes Andersonisms. The question is how strongly the style takes over the substance, and also if this is befit to Anderson’s stronger outings like Fantastic Mr Fox and The Grand Budapest Hotel, or does it lean more into the weaker aimless results of Isle of Dogs and The French Dispatch. Ironically those latter two films were the most recent of Anderson releases, so he could do with a hit now to reinstate his original success. Well, is it?

This may be the most Wes Anderson movie to ever Wes Anderson. It’s so Wes Anderson that you at the end feel like you have took a bath in the waters made out of Wes Anderson’s brain and are now overfilled with Wes Anderson syndrome. Went I walked out of the cinema, for a good minute or two everything around me looked over symmetrical, and colours popped. The latter effect I feel will also be a symptom when I watch the Barbie movie later this month, only then I’ll be seeing all pink. Look, visually this movie looks gorgeous, from the costumes to set pieces everything looks great, and Anderson evidently has a lot fun showcasing his visual craft. Speaking of the set, the Asteroid City itself is brought to life practically with Anderson and his production team literally building the set, and from the opening sequence the cinematography relishes in showing every little detail, every nook and cranny of this city, or more so town as for a city...well, it’s the tiniest city ever. Barely even a village. Nonetheless, it’s very well realised but at the same time this city manages to look very cartoony and unreal, however that’s not a detriment as this brings us smoothly to our next point...

Asteroid City makes the intriguing choice of providing a narrative meaning to Wes Anderson’s style. In most his movies like The Life Aquatic and The Darjeeling Limited we as an audience are simply thrown into the Wes Anderson landscape and simply made to accept his eye candy of a world. Nothing wrong with that, if ever a movie directed itself to the idea of escapism then it’d be a Wes Anderson flick. However Asteroid City goes a step beyond that by presenting this movie as if it were a stage performances, that is intercut with black-and-white segments of Bryan Cranston narrating how the writer (Edward Norton) is writing his final play, and how the actors bring it to life in the shape of Asteroid City. From the get-go Anderson underlines that Asteroid City is not a real place nor are its inhabitants or visitors, but that they are all performing a theatrical piece. A theatre stage and Anderson’s style do share a lot in common so this aspect worked really well and in fact this was one of the lesser pretentious elements of this film.

That being said, I also do think that in this case Anderson has gone more style over substance, as he was evidently so focused with creating a visual feast, that he somewhat forgot to have a decent story and have characters of any substance. Think of this as Anderson’s fine dining experience. The presentation is immaculate, the look of what’s on the plate is exquisite. But the portions are miniscule. You will receive a couple of delicious bites, but overall will be left unsatisfied and will most likely head to the nearby fast-food joint and grab a semi-decent burger and some fries to full up that stomach of yours. So with Asteroid City, there are a few delightfully splendid moments and ideas (for me personally an early sequence involving Matt Dillon’s repairman fixing up a car with this one tiny bolt was fittingly amusing), and for Anderson’s first venture into sci-fi territory the alien aspect was handled well enough, but overall I found myself heavily disengaged with the proceedings. It was a lot of ado about nothing, with moments happening just because, and one could argue that is simply the Anderson way, but it didn’t appeal to my personal tastes. Also most of the jokes didn’t land. The movie tries its hardest to be quirky light-hearted fun, but rarely did I even chuckle or smirk if that.

The cast - I mean, what a cast! Anybody who’s anybody is in this movie. Everyone fits really nicely into the caricatures Anderson gives them, however a lot of them are left with hardly anything to do, with the likes of Liev Schreiber, Tilda Swinton, Hong Chau and Willem Dafoe suffering most. I did enjoy Tom Hanks though as the more level-headed grounded of the lot, and Jason Schwartzman is continuing his solid summer streak after Across the Spider-Verse as a father who’s struggling to reveal to his children about their mother’s death, as well as supporting his son in the space program competition. Him and the son played by Jake Ryan make for a solid duo. Scarlett Johansson delivers Anderson’s line with style and eloquence bequest of his style, and Steve Carell is comically humorous as a motel owner who glimmers with positivity. Jeffrey Wright does a fun monologue, Adrien Brody provides frenetic quips as an auteur director (may or not be inspired by Anderson himself) and Jeff Goldblum cameos as an alien. All is well on the casting front, though if you’re looking forward to an ensemble piece where everyone gets their share, most appearances here are but fleeting cameos. 

If you are a fan of Wes Anderson you will find enjoyment in Asteroid City, however I myself prefer a little more substance and meaning in the films I watch, and also the comedy didn’t land nor did I care much for what was happening. As I said, presentation is of a fine-dining level, but I will now head to get a McDonalds to settle my hunger. 

Overall score: 5/10

[rosyfingereddawnn]

I don't need Ghost recs because I already listen to them, but I'm curious what your favorite songs are!! Feel free to explain why!! I'd love to know!!

ashley my darling!! <33 thank you so so much for the ask and for enabling me !!! it has been a task listening to anybody who is not ghost lately actually which……. idk how to feel about that. anyways i have a lot of favourites so this needs to be under the cut. also i am listening to ghost as i write this. sorry <3

spillways - this one. is so so so good and cathartic honestly??? it is so so catchy and the instrumentals make me insane <3 god the vocals/harmonies too???? also it’s just so good for the religious trauma i am screaming it constantly

cirice - sexy sexy sexy sexy need i go on. honestly the INTRO makes me freak out. the intro. and look. i have watched many a video of terzo singing this both acoustic and otherwise and oh god it’s become such a favourite. also religious trauma healed (a common theme here actually !!!)

watcher in the sky - BASS BASS BASS BASS BASS. oughhhhhhgggghggh and the solo near the end. where the two guitars join in together literally it makes me batshit just listening.

crucified - okay i know this one’s a cover but tbh (i’m biased) i like it better than the original??? the whisper-singing is Sooooo good thank you papa 2. honestly the instrumentals also just make me insane i feel like this is a good song for a horror movie somehow??? vampire core tbh. it’s just such a vibe all the way through.

darkness at the heart of my love - NO WORDS. ABSOLUTELY NONE. NO SYLLABLES ESCAPE FROM ME. god this one is an emotional rollercoaster it feels like a hug it feels like a slap in the face i can’t BELIEVE ghost’s ability to just. slay every fucking genre/subgenre. god it makes me ascend

monstrance clock - this one makes the list because i keep thinking of what it would be like live???? i think i would simply explode???? i mean let’s see sex appeal insane instrumentals vibey vocals thank you papa for my rights <3

kaisarion - VIBIEST SONG EVER GOD it is truly so amazing. it’s so upbeat and powerful it’s like i just drank 32 monster energy drinks. god the GUITAR is just inexplicably so good in this one. i can’t.

waiting for the night - cover #2 to make the list and it is so much better than the original sorry eat my ass depeche mode. god. god. peak breakdown song tbh. i mean the first parts a lil spooky and then your heart gets ripped out and then you shake ass !!!!!!! god.

from the pinnacle to the pit - AHHHHHHHGGGGGGHHHHHGHHHG. okay first of all the lyrics just feel like pop rocks in the ol head tube. okay. once again so varied and also like. the drums and guitars………. i’m fine. also terzo :((((((

see the light - ULTIMATE hate song. like i don’t think many of their songs make me as Cathartically angry as this one (except faith. but that’s another post) but it’s also so pretty at times??? like they’re so good at switching the narrative here. once again the Talent that this band has.

nocturnal me - SEXY. ALL AROUND SEXY. GUITARS SEXY BASS SEXY DRUMS SEXY VOCALS SEXY PAPA SEXY. UGGHHHGGHHGGH

deus in absentia - ASCENDING BRB. i don’t even have the words in my vocabulary to describe this one it’s just so good??? the lyrics are so so well-written and the images you get from it are soooo potent and interesting and then the instrumentals as always fuck hard.

bible - cover #3. SO SO SO SO FUCKING UNDERRATED I WILL NOT TOLERATE ANY BIBLE SLANDER. people say it’s too slow??? ARE YOU LISTENING?????? ARE YOU ASCENDING TOO????????????? tbh it kinda makes my religious trauma worse but also it heals it ???? because who WILL pray for babylon 😔 anyways wow just. sobbing crying yelling

he is - papa lullaby thank you <3 once again potent imagery beautiful lyrics (bisexual music video) it’s just so beautiful and lovely i want the soundwaves tattooed on my face.

griftwood - AHHHHHHH. OKAY. okay. first of all this song has like 3 distinct sections that are all interesting and genuinely very good and actually the last part with the choir????? whispering GOOD?????? also layered harmonies okay i’ll shut up. ughhhhgghhggh :((( so nice so lovely. also guitar. good song for guitar. yeah. i can’t say anything but nice things about griftwood <3

imperium - purely an instrumental song and it’s so unfair cause it gives me chills the second it comes on without fail. the climax of it ????? where the guitars pile on and it’s just ??????????? ugh. fuck

i believe - a slower song but still i um. am Fine about it and not obsessed at all. first of all tobias’ vocals in this song specifically i want to Chew and Eat and Munch. ugh i can’t even say enough about it it’s just so so lovely. very pretty <3 the way everything swells and just. OUGH

respite on the spitalfields - OKAY. OKAY THIS. THIS IS ONE OF (IF NOT) MY FAVOURITE SONGS POINT BLANK RIGHT NOW. first of all. distinct parts broken up by such a BANGING SOLO I NEED IT IN MY MOUTH N O W. it’s just……… i don’t even know what it makes me feel but i know i like it. GOOD good song for bass. oughhgghgg. harmonies throughout like. all of it are just so good. lyrics????? literally impeccable. “nothing ever lasts forever we will go softly into the night” gets me specifically for some reason idk. RIFF FROM IMPERIUM AT THE END ??????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! also the way it Grows into the choruses and the repeating verses. goooood :(( there’s plenty more to say but this is already too long goodnight <333

GOD IM SO SORRY THAT WAS EXCRUCIATINGLY LONG. and i wanted to add more but i didn’t want to keep torturing you still <3333 here’s a cookie and a cup of tea (🍪☕️) for anyone that actually made it to the end of this i should give you financial compensation but i’m broke <3 anyways i love ghost and i love you ashley 😌 truly you do not know how much it means to me that you even sent this ask 🥺

[mielgf]

I wanted to share my feelings about a certain someone. I can't tell them right now these things, so I wanted to put it out into the universe through a kind soul like you.

The first time I met this individual we'll call C, he was the most intriguing person I've ever met. At the time then we both got into other relationships and didn't pursue one another. We would see each other occasionally at school and then we graduated, never becoming more than acquaintances.

A few years later my last relationship began to crumple and I often caught myself thinking of C. Eventually I reached out to C and we became friends and realized we had a lot in common. My then relationship ended, and our friendship grew into something special.

One night as we were watching a movie while hanging out, I've now forgotten the name of, we slowly melted into one another on the couch. No words needed to be spoken to know we both felt the same way. Our strange relationship began to grow and as time went by I realized I couldn't stay away from him.

I think I fell in love with him all those years ago when I first saw him and never realized it because my feelings were clouded by others. Now that I get to hold him and kiss and just admire him, I understand it is bad. I am so in love with him. I wish to tell him, but since we just began to develop this odd relationship that isn't yet official I can't be too forward and so I write to you bc I feel I'll explode with all these feelings inside me.

In my last relationship when it ended I can only say I felt free and a relief. I know now I was with the wrong person, and not saying C is the right one. I simply feel I've known him forever and like we've been one this whole time. I think if he broke my heart I'd be utterly devastated even though it's only been a month and some change. And you might be reading this and thinking "wow, they're down bad", but it isn't so simple. He simply is him and I simply adore that.

I hope he'll feel the same way someday in terms of loving me. If not I'd be utterly crushed, but at least I had the divine opportunity to think of him as mine for a little bit.

I think that's all I wanted to say for now. I hope this wasn't an absurd thing to send, I just felt you'd be the right blog to send this to.

I hope you have a swell day, thank you for reading <3

ummm hi what the heck, this was such a surprise message but i'm so happy you felt like you could share this with me <3

this was so so sweet honestly and i'm not sure if you need support or advice or if you just wanted to get this out there to someone, but i will say this: fear is very common when you start caring for someone deeply (i was literally thinking about this tn because of a situation in my own life, this was divine timing when i came on here and seen this message). it is natural to fear that person hurting you or things not going the way you want them to, but until you can get to a point where you can vocalize how you're feeling, there are a million and one ways that you can show somebody you love them. through acts of kindness, through support, or through time spent together, so i wouldn't put too much pressure on yourself to "confess" your feelings if you don't feel ready yet. you can still bask in your love and show him that until the time is right for you <3

i truly feel like you often stumble back to people when the time is right. i hope that whatever type of relationship you desire from this comes to fruition when it is meant to. but again, sometimes it's also nice to just come to peace with where you are currently at and let things naturally flourish with time ✨

again thank you for sharing this with me and i am so happy you've found somebody that makes you happy. you definitely have me rooting for you two!!

lots of love, friend xx

[tooquirkytolose]

So I did in fact watch the musical when it came out and while I admit it deserves criticism and indeed is problematic, boiling it down to "kid uses another kids suicide to get popular" is leaving out a lot of key details about the musical (spoilers I guess)

- Evan himself suffers from anxiety and depression, his broken arm being heavily implied to be the result of a failed suicide attempt in the orchard not that long before the musical starts. The letters were something his therapist said he should start writing as part of his treatment. He didn't intend on anyone reading it, let alone have it be with Connor at the time of his death. (note: this is an explanation, not an excuse)

- He continues writing letters at first because people keep asking for more of them. The parents of Connor Murphey want some form of closure and think the letters give them that, while one of Evan's friends hops on it for an important cause. Even, still suffering from the anxiety and isn't used to the attention, rolls with it because he honestly didn't want to hurt anybody, especially a grieving family. After a while, he keeps up the charade because some of his own needs are being met in ways his single mom couldn't provide. (doesn't change the fact that what he's doing is wrong and doesn't excuse his actions)

- Despite how much attention he's getting, he still feels guilty about everything and struggles with whether to come clean or keep lying. Quite a few of the songs talk about this (including one they completely left out of the movie that honestly was vital to showing the nuance of the situation, "Good for You"). "Words Fail" probably sums it up the best, as he lays out his reasons why he did everything he did but agrees it's still no excuse for what he did.

- While he still gets off "scot free" by most people's standards, he still suffers consequences once he comes clean: He doesn't get the girl in the end and she wants almost nothing to do with him (rightfully so), he loses a full ride to college after being honest with Connor's parents and has to work to save up to go semester by semester, it's implied he no longer keeps in contact with most of the people he used to hang out with in high school. The charity project in Connor's name still goes on, but he has absolutely no say in it anymore.

The musical is hella flawed. With this I'm in 100% agreement of. And I do not blame anyone for disliking it and welcome criticism of it, as both a fan and someone who suffers from sever anxiety and depression. But boiling it down to just "kid uses another kids suicide to get popular" is a take that makes me shudder because that feels very disingenuine and ignores a lot of the good that this musical could be if the right people had been allowed to rework it.

it's almost like i wrote a funny HaHa post with the plot boiled down to one line instead of multi paragraph text on purpose

[mishkakagehishka]

You know it's very funny because reading the bit about the self aware au just brought out like the worst in me and I couldn't help but think (mostly due to the ritsu part, because boy don't you dare touch my dia) "oh yeah? Two can play that game you know. Touch my día and you're dead to me. What if I decide to never open the game again? What if I uninstall you? What if I forcefully break my phone and buy a new one that has nothing in common with the last one? You won't see me ever again, is that what you want? Don't test how far my spite, anger and disappointment can take me."

Because within the context of "you don't quite know what's going on, but there's something wrong" and especially if you do not realize they're self-aware, they're still just kinda.... A bunch of pixels? So if they bring you more pain than the joy they once did, why wouldn't you get rid of them? If you realize they are actually self-aware that night bring more problems though (moral conundrums y'know y'know)

Anyway I love the concept it's so fun to think about <3 I'm also blaming the worst parts of my thinking process currently on "I'm salty due to my lack of sleep and the blorbos are going to pay for it"

Under the cut for length! As always, yandere is not something I approve of or see as romantic, instead I see it as horror - and similarly see the yandere self-aware stuff as the cousin of the "i got a haunted game at a yard sale" creepypastas lolol

No but you're exactly right. Let's imagine, for a moment, that something like "the pixels become self-aware" actually happens - you might think off-handedly "oh, wow, like those sci-fi movies where the AI becomes conscious and destroys the world", but that's exactly it. You'll think "sci-fi", "movie", "world's end" and it's all very unrealistic. I don't think anybody's really immune to the "But it won't happen to me" mindset especially with something as far-fetched as that. So, even if you think about it, you'd likely just wave it off as a funny joke you came up with and instead go ahead believing you're experiencing a weird bug. Honestly, I've seen weirder playing enstars, and I've had bugs that seemingly nobody else has encountered, so I wouldn't even be fazed. Might e-mail support if it gets really bad (as in - if Ritsu yoinks my hard-earned dia), but I wouldn't be overly worried.

But spite is always a good trait to have in these cases. And literally - imagine you're saving up for a feature scout for the character you produce above all else (instead of an event, bc I think scouts being reliant on luck will often mean you'll end up spending a lot more than on events), let's say you managed to rack up enough for 100 pulls - not even halfway to the point where you'd get pity, but not an amount to sneeze at by any means either. Tomorrow the scout opens, and, if need be, you can still grind some stuff, an upcoming event, some songs you haven't S+ combo'd, and so on, but it won't give you a lot of dia. Maybe for another 10pull - maybe - but every little bit counts.

And then this bitch (lol) on your homescreen gets jealous. Maybe you've skipped his event scout because you wanted to make sure you had dia for this other idol, and he can't have that. So he just... erases your dia. Doesn't even spend it on anything, simply takes those hard-earned 3,500 dia and changes the code into a sweet little zero (this hurt to write). Emailing support wouldn't even help as it's not really a bug, and I imagine it'd be hard to prove you even had the dia in the first place and that it just disappeared. It wouldn't surprise me if someone would be discouraged enough to drop the game. Especially if you're f2p - it's no easy task grinding dia. But I don't think Ritsu would really know what his actions could have as consequence - he'd act out of emotion and on impulse, and wouldn't really realise the problem until suddenly the player is only getting the daily logins, then they log in once a week, then once a month, and then they stop playing. Support was no help, the event scout came and went, and the player, discouraged and disappointed, lost interest. Soon enough, the game is uninstalled, and Ritsu has an eternity in the void to think about how his unhealthy jealousy and impulsive actions brought him that loneliness.

Although if you then make the connection of "Hey, wait a minute, didn't Ritsu literally threaten me with this?" you're definitely better off just buying a new phone before installing enstars again. I imagine the self-awareness like a virus, it stays on your phone the same way game data sticks around if you reinstall a game, except they kinda leak into every crevice of your phone, able to connect to anything the phone connects to, so if you charge your phone on your pc, and then install enstars on the pc through an emulator, you get the "corrupted" enstars there, too.

And dhbdjdjd entirely understandable... i hope you'll be able to get some shut-eye later in the day <3 or at least a moment to sit down and chill!

[thestarsanctuary]

BNHA CHARACTERS SEEING YOU DRESSED UP FOR THE FIRST TIME

definitly a random post but whatever.

Gender Neutral reader. Let me know if there are any pronouns or indicators that aren’t that!

BAKUGOU -

Bakugo was waiting for you at the formal party that UA waa having for the end of the year and in all honesty, he wanted to leave. Bad.

It wasn’t you, it could never be you, but it was all these people, and the awful music and dancing, it was too much for him without you there, and he looked like an idiot because he was just standing there making him want to leave even more. But then you came.

And wow did everything that he hated on before become so irrelevant so fast. Record time honestly, but he couldn’t help it. Here you are in this gorgeous dress, and wait...makeup? Seriously? Score, Bakugou thought of this as an absolute score. He couldn’t even respond properly when you said hi but quickly covered it with annoyance.

“I’ve been waiting for 15 minutes why’d it take you so long? And why couldn’t I come get you so I wouldn’t have to wait in this disaster.” He spat, avoiding your eyes just slightly.

“Ah, sorry Katsuki! My hair wasn’t really cooperating so it took longer than I expected...but I’m here now!” You grinned, and he couldn’t even find it in him to argue more.

You just looked so good.

“Yeah yeah alright, lets go extra the others are waiting over there.”

“Why didn’t you go over there before I came then?”

“I didn’t want to go without you.” He didn’t want to go at all at this point, he just wanted to be with you and you only.

As you two reached most of class 1-A you could see everybody so dressed up, it was a bit of a spectrum honestly, all the girls were talking amongst each other but quickly stopped when they saw that you had come and you were bombarded with compliments.

“Ahh you look so good!”

“Where did you get that dress from?! God?!”

“Literally how do you look like this and you get with Bakugou?”

“HEY EXTRA SHUT YOUR TRAP.”

“truth is truth.”

Conviniently enough one song that you absolutely adored came on and interrupted the entertaining banter going on as you dragged Katsuki onto the dance floor. Although he didn’t really move at first he slowly began to try his best and attempt to dance. Only for you would he do something so ridiculous.

You two had been dancing for who knows how long, maybe 10-20 minutes but it felt like two the way you had been smiling so wide, and been so happy to be there. It made Katsuki feel so lucky to have somebody who enjoys him as much as he does them.

After Katsuki had said he got tired and left, he saw you had went to dance with the girls and you looked so confident and happy, it made him feel so infatuated with you. If anything. Obviously he liked you, he wouldn’t date you if he didn’t, but he had never seen you look this good and act like this, it was almost tol good to be true. But it quickly ended because he was getting a bit jealous of how close the others were.

“Hey extra, let’s go sit down before you whine and complain because your feet hurt.”

“How did you even know-

“Shut up and just come with me, they have drinks.” Quickly, off you two went.

The rest of the night was plenty calm, with the exception of Denki or Mineta being their usual selves and getting caught by Aizawa numerous times.

“Katuski~” you whispered, as he looked to you with a side glare.

“What do you want.”

“Nothin’ but just wanted to say thank you for coming tonight, I loved being with you.” You had NEVER seen him this red before. People actually could’ve thought he was dying by the aggressive tone of red.

“I- thank you. I love you.” He whispered back, a bit embarrassed to say it in his usual tone, he was okay saying these things to you because he knew you felt the same. And that’s all it is.

“I love you.” You smiled and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek as he held you hand, rubbing the back of your palm.

“....can we go to your house and watch movies or somethin’ this is incredibly annoying now. All these lights and this trashy music, your house is at least a little less trashier than this.” He said louder this time, and once you had stood up he immediately led you outside only to kiss you softly.

“I love you a lot. Don’t forget it.”

TODOROKI -

You and Todoroki had agreed to meet up at the zoo for your first date, as you adored animals and Todoroki...tolerated them.

Shoto arrived first, mostly because he was a good 5 minutes early. He liked to be on time, everytime. It showed that he cared, and it also gave him time to think about how he wanted to talk and approach you, because honestly, he had no clue what he was supposed to do. He quickly texted Midoriya (like he should have done before) to help him calm himself down but right after he sent the text he looked up and saw you walking towards him and.....you looked stunning.

“Hi! How long were you waiting for me?” You asked with a hint of playfulness.

“Um, not long, maybe 5 minutes, really nothing long.” He stumbled a bit with his words, and his cheeks were kind of red, but he still managed to make you feel shy. “I like your outfit, the skirt is really nice” he said, and you laughed and did a tiny spin.

“You think? I don’t wear skirts that often to be honest with you. I only really wear the one at school.” You said and he didn’t react but simply nodded.

“You should more often. I think you look pretty in them.” Yup, there it was, and now the roles have reversed.

“Okay okay, enough of that, let’s go!” You grabbed his hand and inside you went.

Todoroki had been walking around basically just listening to you talk the whole time, and when you didn’t speak it was a comfortable silence. You hadn’t released his hand either. Not that he minded, if anything he held it a bit tighter.

However, there was one thing Todoroki was constantly doing. Looking at you. There wasn’t even a hint of embarrassment. When you two left the zoo to go get lunch whenever you looked up he was looking at you. He seemed a bit more well....affectionate? Not that he was all over you with hugs and kisses, but he insisted on holding your hand, and when driving you back home he kept complimenting you. The whole time.

“I like your hair today, it looks really good.”

“I like your shoes, where did you get them from?”

“Those socks are cool, why are they so long?” At this point you weren’t sure if he was trying to create conversation or he was generally interested but either way it was so cute to you. He even asked to take photos with you, and offered to send them to you. As if he was just going to keep them for himself.

Once you had finally reached your house he thought you were going to simply leave but you invited him inside, and obviously he wasn’t going to decline, so he went inside.

You had made him and yourself some drinks and carried them back to the living room.

“So...is there a reason you’ve been all lovey-dovey on this date? Not that I mind, I’m just curious, is this your hidden persona?” You question, giving him an adorable grin.

“Ah...no- I, I thought you looked really pretty. And you still do, you always do, but I wanted to reassure you so I thought being more affectionate would help you know that I liked you.” He stated and he looked so serious but his cheeks were so red, it was probably the cutest thing you had seen and heard from Shoto yet. So you did what any sane person would do with Shoto Todoroki in front of them. You kissed him.

It was quick, nothing extensive and definitely nothing heated, but it was effective. Because now you had Todoroki wrapped around your finger. He just looked at you, mouth agape with shock, but he wouldn’t look away. Was he even blinking?

“Sho, would you like to stay over tonight? We can watch movies and y’know, just get to know each other more.”

“Yes. Yeah I- I would like that.” Whatever you had said Shoto would probably say yes to anyways. He swore it was you and the skirt.

It was simply just you.

MIDORIYA -

Midoriya is a simple guy. Whoever he likes is going to know. So when he found out you were going to ask him out to go to the formal on Friday from Mina, he was basically panicking. What is he supposed to do? Should he wait for you or keep on with his day? When are you confessing? Should he do it first? There were too many questions in his mind. He didn’t know what to do or how to respond when you actually asked him out either.

“So, did you want to go out with me?” You had asked after school, which definitely caught Midoriya off guard because you were not off school grounds and you were definitely not in private. You were literally still in the classroom for God’s sake he could see Uraraka shaking Iida from here.

“I- um, I’m not exactly sure why you’re going with me but yeah! That would be awesome!” He said, trying to play it cool. If he thought of you like a friend he could talk to you better but he couldn’t deny his obvious feelings for you.

“I think you’re cute, and I like you anyways so I’d rather go with you. How about you pick me up at 6 on Friday yeah?” Midoriya has officially died. Inside of his head but that’s basically the same thing as the literal meaning.

“Oh yeah! I can do that! I’ll uh, see you there!” You smiled at his immediate response and kissed his cheek before giving him a quick ‘great’ and walking off with your group of squealing girls and whining boys. (Denki really tried to make a bet that you would wuss out.)

Midoriya was definitely in over his head for this.

He was basically panicking because he wasn’t sure if you even liked him the way you said you did or if you were just pranking him. It was common for that to be a thing in UA, with so many people and their superior-complexes they were bound to use it to entertain themselves. But he pushed those thoughts away because he never wanted to think of you like that again. You were too cool and too nice to be that way. At least, that’s what he hoped.

As he arrived at your house he quickly sent you a text but you opened the door a few seconds after he had sent it. And oh...OH. You looked...amazing. Midoriya is definitely blushing by now, and this is exactly what he was hoping. He finally got you, the most attractive person he’d ever seen to look his way, and thank god he had because the way you were looking had him hoping nobody could outdo him.

You were wearing a suit. But it wasn’t like Midoriya’s suit, not a simple tuxedo, but it was with this sort of, silk top and the pants were long and fit. But instead of a blazer or something you had on this long sort of coat but you looked straight out of a magazine. Especially with the heels.

There was something electric happening in this car. Whether it was Midoriya and how much he was looking at you every two seconds, or the way everytime he did you were already looking at him. You made him feel a bit incompetent with the way confidence was radiating off you.

“You look good Izu. I like the tuxedo. Sorry if what I’m wearing wasn’t what you we’re hoping for.” You had said this calmly but you weren’t looking at him, as if you were scared of his response.

“Oh!! Thank you, I actually enjoy your outfit a lot more, you look really good! So good I don’t even know why you look so good jeez...sorry!! Rambling” he said before he got to into it. He had finally pulled up to the school.

“It’s fine. Your rambling is very cute~” you said, giving him a grin. He blushed a tiny bit and took the initiative of grabbing your hand and you had strolled inside.

As you had walked up to your friend group you were surrounded by your fellow friends as they complimented you almost excessively.

“Okay okay thank you guys. Please let me get back to my date huh?” You said smoothly and the cheering began all over again, so you quickly grabbed Midoriya and left to the drink bar.

“You do look really good today though, the compliments were, very well deserved.” Izuku said as he got you both punch.

“Well I could say the same about you. Along with a bit more.” You teased as he laughed.

The night was ecstatic. You and Midoriya had danced the whole time, and there was almost no time when the two of you weren’t together, and that was only because you had promised Mina a dance as a joke and she took it very seriously. The only other time was you yelling at Bakugou for saying Izuku’s suit was ugly. You didn’t even say anything bad you just said,

“IF HIS IS UGLY THEN YOURS IS ACTUALLY HIDEOUS, SO WHAT NOW.” And apparently yelling isnt exactly accepted so you and Bakugou both had to get a tiny scolding from Aizawa but he was so bored of how stupid the conversation was and let you both go with a warning instead. So you two stayed away from each other but glares were definitely shared.

As quickly as the night began it was over. And you were back in Midoriya’s car. Except this time you were kissing. A lot.

“You looked so good today~ it was hard to not kiss you on the spot.” You mumbled on his lips.

“Same here, everybody was looking at you and I felt...kind of jealous actually.” He whispered blushing.

“Well if it’s any comfort I could only look at you. You do know that I like you right?”

“Yeah yeah I know!” Why did he sound so excited?!

“So do you like me then? I never exactly got an answer.” You said leaning back into your seat. He however, basically jumped in the car and hit his head.

“Ow! Yes yes I really do like you, I thought you could tell and that’s why you asked me?” He said and you giggled.

“Well I mean I could tell but I asked you because I liked you first. That should’ve been more obvious.” You had said with another laugh as he also laughed.

“Yeah yeah that makes a lot more since huh? Well then...are we dating then? Or do there need to be y’know dates because I understand that we should probably get to know each other more but- another kiss planted right on his lips.

“I’d like that a lot Midoriya. You really don’t have to question yourself this much, I do genuinely like you.”

“I-I know! I genuinely like you too, a lot.”

“Well then stop worrying and just kiss me again.”

Who would’ve known this is how his night would go? Well...he was not complaining. Now he had to all to himself. What a win!

El FIN

to be honest i have no clue what this is pls, but where it says heels in Midoriya’s section that can be any shoe i just find heels powerful beings.

Alright hope y’all enjoy this mess lol

-SS

[supercorpkid]

Aftermath.

Supercorp, Kara Danvers x Daughter!Reader, Lena Luthor x Daughter!Reader.

Word count: 2290.

It’s been an entire week since Lena’s been home. You want to pretend that you’re fine about it, but this is insane. It’s insane, right? You had a really crazy and terrible experience involving none other than Lex freaking Luthor (who’s currently still chilling in his prison cell, probably planning other insane things), and your moms are fighting over Rao knows what.

You’ve been sad all week. And guilty. There’s no amount of ‘this isn’t your fault’ that makes this feeling go away. You just wish you could remember what happened, or at least that you could do something about it. You feel like you’re stuck inside a storm. Waiting for things to just get better already, but everyday you wake up, the sky is grey and your family is broken apart.

You hate how Kara says ‘Lena’, with guilt and pain in her voice. You hate how her eyes are constantly filled with tears. You hate when she says stuff like ‘let’s do things we never got to do’, and eats ice-cream at midnight while watching sad movies, unable to pretend she is unaffected by the whole thing. She should at least fake it, shouldn’t she?

You hate how Lena simply refuses to ask about Kara, even though you can see it in her face that she’s dying to know. You hate that she’s throwing herself into work in a non-healthy way. You hate when she pretends she’s not at all hurt and she just tries to be nonchalant about the fact that she’s not home. She should at least show you that she cares, shouldn’t she?

But the thing that you hate the most is the fact the none of them tell you anything other than that it’s not your fault. You just don’t know what started it all, how bad is it, and how long this is going to last. One thing you know for sure is that this can’t last forever. You can’t handle it.

“Hey.” Maya shakes her hand in front of your face, trying to get you to focus on her. “You cool? You’ve been acting kinda weird all week…” She nuzzles her nose in the crook of your neck, breathing deep. “And I miss your pretty smile.”

“Sorry. Just, um, things are weird at home.” But you still bring her closer hooking one arm around her back.

“I knew this day was coming.” Jamie says, sitting in front of you, on your lunch table. “It was too many ‘almost’. I knew one day you would catch your moms having sex.”

“I wish.” You whisper and they both furrow their brows at you. “I mean, I don’t. Definitely don’t want to see that, but it’s better than where they are right now.”

“They’re fighting? Wanna make them a romantic dinner again?” Jamie asks with a smile and you roll your eyes thinking about the last time you got involved. Things did not end up well.

“They are not.” You sigh. “They had a fight I know nothing about.” You raise one eyebrow at Jamie, who quickly put things together. “Then, Lena never came back home, and she’s staying in a hotel, so-”

“Holy fuck, babe.” Maya straightens up right away to look at you. “That’s messed up. I’m so sorry.”

“They’ll be fine.” Jamie dismisses both of you with her hand. “Honestly, your moms are so in love with each other. And besides, haven’t they gone through, like, way worse stuff in their relationship and totally got over it?”

“I guess.” You shrug, still not convinced. She’s right, they have. But you were never in the middle. “But I can’t shake the feeling that it was my fault.”

“You can’t make two people fight and don’t remember.” Maya says trying to ease your mind, unaware that in your life that’s actually more common than she would think.

“It’ll be fine.” Jamie ends the subject, so none of you spill important information and you try to distract yourself.

You fail.

“Hey, do you want to work on your robotics project today?” Maya asks and you furrow your brows. Wow, you didn’t even remember you had that going on in your life. “It could help you take your mind off… You know.”

Moms fighting and maybe never getting back together? Yeah, you don’t think so.

“Um… Maybe next week.” You shrug. “There’s still time.”

“Well, then maybe we could go to my house and play video game.” Jamie suggests looking at Maya, who shakes her head agreeing. “You can show Maya that game you made.”

“Sounds fun, but I’m really not in the mood.” You sigh and look at them staring at each other, trying to come up with something else. You give them a little smile. “Really guys, I’m fine. I just want to go home and chill with Kara a little. I feel like she needs me.”

“Ok, babe.” Maya kisses your cheek lightly and whispers. “I’m here. You can talk to me if you want, or not talk. I’m still here, ok?”

“Thanks babe.” You smile at her, and then at Jamie on the other side.

“Whatever it’s best for you, little Danvers.” Jamie adds.

Nothing is best for you right now. Except Kara and Lena’s happiness.

And they are definitely not happy. There’s no amount of ‘let’s fly around the house’, ‘let’s build something together in your lab’, from any of them that can fake that. And so if they’re not happy, you are in the same situation.

“You have to clean your bedroom.” Kara says when she opens the door, at night, and you look up from your books. “An alien could be hiding under that absurd amount of clothes in the corner, and you would never know.”

“Let it have a home.” You shrug.

“No, no ‘let it’. Baby.” Kara comes close and holds your hands. “I know you miss your mom, but there’s no reason why we will just stop doing stuff we normally do because of that.”

Tell that to all the showers you’ve been skipping since she was gone. Tell that to the meals you have been skipping all week. Tell that to your sad face.

“So, your bedroom is tidy and clean?” You raise an eyebrow and she lets out a chuckle.

“I love you. Did you know that?” She kisses your hand and smiles. “I’m so glad you exist.”

“You’ve been saying that a lot lately. Maybe you miss saying that to someone else?” You raise one eyebrow at her, and she gives you an extremely sad smile.

“Same eyebrows move.” She winks at you and you know she’s talking about Lena and how this is literally her move. “Come on, let’s eat something. And you can clean your room before bed.”

“How do you feel having to tell me to clean my room?” You ask, following her to the kitchen and she laughs.

“Like a mother.” She smiles harder at that, and you roll your eyes. She’s such a dork.

Kara goes through the cabinets and fridge to find out that if you two were in an apocalyptic situation, you wouldn’t survive a day with the food in your house. She promises she’ll go grocery shopping the next day (which you only half believe), and you both decide to go with instant noodles.

“So, um, mom texted and she asked me if I wanted to go spend the night at the hotel with her.” You tell Kara while she looks at the boiling water with puzzling eyes. “I don’t want to leave you alone, but I kind of feel sad that she’s all alone there too, and like-”

“You should go.” Kara cuts you off, still interested in the pot in front of her. “Do we put it on now?”

“Are you seriously asking me how to make instant noodles?” You smile, rolling your eyes playfully. “Scootch.” You bump your hips on hers, and take control. “So, you’re going to be fine here alone?”

“Of course!” Kara smiles and you look at her to see how real she’s being. You look for any signs of her sadness being too much. You look for watery eyes, pouts, anything. “It’s one night. I’m not a toddler, I can go one night alone.”

“Well…” you think about making fun of her, but you bite your tongue. “I just want to make sure you won’t go ‘sad burrito’ on the couch.”

“I won’t go ‘sad burrito’.” She promises. “I might wrap myself and blankets to watch TV, but I promise not to be sad about it.”

“Maybe you should go to aunt Alex’s house.” You say, and Kara holds your face between her hands, squeezing it gently.

“I’ll be fine. Go see Lena. You know that if she asked for it, she really needs you.” Kara kisses your forehead. “Go give her some love.”

“You can come too…” You raise your eyebrows a few times, but stop when you see Kara’s sad expression. “Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow, sunflower.”

“See you tomorrow, little one.” Kara smiles. You hesitate, looking behind you a few times, but Kara shoos you with her hands, so you fly off to Lena’s hotel.

Talk about weird! Lena living in a hotel room it’s the definition of ‘something is wrong with the world’.

“That’s, um, nice.” You say, when you go inside the room and Lena chuckles, wrapping her arms around you, and kissing the top of your head.

“It’s temporary. I didn’t have time to look for a real place.” She gives you a smile, and strokes your cheek gently while fully analyzing you. “Have you lost weight?”

“Unlikely.” It’s your answer, but it’s a lie. You probably did lose some weight, since Kara simply forgets to eat, and she’s surviving on ice-cream and whatever is left in the fridge for a week. And you just don’t want to bother her with the fact that you need to eat, because you’re a freaking alien and you eat like one.

It doesn’t matter what you say anyway, because Lena knows the truth, so she is definitely ignoring you and calling for room service. She orders so much food, you have to tell her to stop. You! Of all people!

“So-” She lets out, like a breath, while sitting on the couch next to you, and wrapping her arms around your shoulders. “How are you?”

“Scared.” You fall further into her comfort, and breathe in her familiar smell. Home and flowers. “I don’t want our lives to be like this from now on. I-I know it’s my fault-”

“Not your fault.” She interrupts you. But it doesn’t matter, because you don’t believe her.

“Tell me how I can make things better. Tell me how I can fix this.” You ask, and Lena tights the hug kissing your head a couple of times.

“My baby.” She sounds like she’s about to cry, and you’re already too far gone. Tears streaming down your face non-stop. “Stop taking everything upon your hands. This problem is not yours to fix. And you have done nothing wrong to have to make things better.”

“I think you’re forgetting that I burned my training center to the ground?” You look back at her, and she cleans your tears. And then hers.

“That wasn’t you. You know that damn well.” Lena says with a serious expression. “Lex was responsible for all of that. And now you’re back, and you have nothing to worry about, ok?”

“But mom, if Lex knows he can use me, won’t he try that again? And maybe be more successful this time?”

“Remember when I believed your thoughts blocker was a mind wiper?” She asks, making you agree with your head. “Turns out, it could be a mind wiper with a few changes. So, I did them, and now he doesn’t even remember you.” She smiles softly. “You’re safe now. He won’t do that again. And if he ever tries anything, your momma and I will stop him, ok?”

“How did he know about me in the first place?”

“Lillian. But she won’t talk about you with him ever again.”

“Did you make her forget about me too?” You ask, almost sad about it. You don’t want Lillian to forget about you. You like seeing her eventually, and she’s being so nice lately.

“No, baby. She wouldn’t do anything that could harm you.” Lena says with a smile, putting your hair behind your ears, and you furrow your eyebrows at her. “Lillian has done a lot of terrible things, but none of them it’s destroying the family name. And you, babygirl, might be a kryptonian, but you’re also a Luthor.”

“So, you trust her?”

“Well, she has proven herself in the last few days, so… With you? Yes.” That makes you smile a little, and when you hear a knock on the door and you see food on the other side of it, that makes you smile even more.

Staying with Lena one night is not enough. You can see it on her face that she needs more than that. But when you fly back home in the morning to get ready for school, and you find Kara sleeping on the couch, all wrapped up in blankets definitely looking like a ‘sad burrito’, you know she can’t be alone either.

You wish you could divide yourself in two and be with them all the time. You wish they would just talk. And you wish you could turn back time and undo whatever mess you made while you were mind controlled. But you can’t do either. So, you just hope that what you can do for now is enough. And you pray to Rao this storm ends sooner than later.

[aeondeug]

So while I was reading GtN and HtN I occasionally stopped to be like “Wow, it’s great how these can be just so gay!” And like. That is really great. Super great. I love that about them. But I also remember at least once stopping and going “Wow, it’s great that there’s no homophobia here!” And like at the time I just kind of nodded along to myself. Around when I just finished GtN, I remember being very fond of the bit after the book with like the guy explaining like. The deal with necro/cav relationships in The Media and throughout history and how actually none of these things have ever been romance. This is just a pure relationship, unaffected by naughty things like ROMANCE. WHY DOES EVERYTHING NEED TO BE ROMANCE?! shouts the author of this paper. And I laughed at this. Because it reminded me a lot of people who do this shit with queer love. They do it with history and just go “Why does Sappho have to be gay, why can’t she just have passionate feelings for her BFFs”. Which is mindbogglingly stupid to me and anyone who has so much as LOOKED at some of the poem fragments. But like people do say that shit. And they do this a lot over like queer anything in fiction unless it like punches you in the face with rainbows immediately. “Why do Bubblegum and Marceline have to be gay? They’re just friends!” is a take that I legitimately saw on the day of the finale. And not just once. I saw it a few times. And I’ve seen that happen over so many ships in so many things, whether or not the ships end up canon. “Why does it have to be gay?” and the specific sort of outrage over it I’ve seen in essay length posts is just common, and that sort of outrage reads very similar to the argument that dude made about necro/cav relationships. It reads like that and close enough so that I made a joke about it even. I didn’t think too, too much on this at first though because I mean. We have Abigail and Magnus. They’re right there. A man and a woman, a husband and a wife. So like I was able to simultaneously go “omg it’s just like those why can’t they just be friends WHY DOES IT NEED TO BE GAY people” and also “wow it’s nice that there are spooky negative queer experiences of SADNESS here”. Which has got me thinking. Ok. So we have that essay. Now what else do we have in the books? I suppose could point at the entirety of Gideon and Harrow’s just furious refusal to admit that they might actually be in love with one another. Even though it appears to be obvious to literally everyone else in the galaxy. And is obvious to the readers. Hell, Gideon even has a moment of feeling like she needs to tell Harrow something the day before she dies. Something which is heavily romance coded, I don’t know the word for it. But like a “Wow I feel a need to tell them something and it’ll be my last shot” before a death just kind of always reads “It was an ‘I love you’. They needed to say it and didn’t get a chance”. So we’ve got that and, specifically, we’ve got their outrage at the suggestions. Gideon stresses that she’s JUST Harrow’s cav. And she’s very fucking insistent on that. Part of the why is that she knows Harrow is in love with a fucking dead girl in a casket but like. It just hits a certain way. There’s also Harrow’s just repeated disgust she expresses towards the concept of necro/cav relationships. She needs to explain away to herself that like, well, Abigail and Magnus were ALREADY married before he was named her cavalier primary so maybe that makes it fine. And even then she’s not like super duper comfy with the idea. A taboo has been broken, Harrow feels, and she needs to get really rules lawery to find any comfort with that. Other small things that feel of note to me here are the nature of the ways we know that these two are gay outside of like. Their weird thing for one another. With Gideon we’re introduced to it basically immediately with her joke about titty mags. Harrow specifically makes a comment at some point that some of the magazines Gideon gets are very gross, yes. Her interest in women is explicitly made sexual from the get go, and the idea that The Gays are just weird sex fiends and there is no love there is a frequent one. With Harrow meanwhile we know because she says she’s in love with the girl in the Locked Tomb. Who is very much dead. A thing that is fucky enough that like there is an entire song and dance about “GIDEON THE FIRST IS MAKING OUT WITH A CORPSE??????” and how Harrow is a hypocrite for being so offended by that all. Also the girl is behind the door. She is something that isn’t supposed to be seen or known about or, heaven forbid, woken up. That is all the ultimate taboo and Harrow not only fucking broke that but she looked at the girl and went “Wow I’m in love” on the spot. So we have this collection of things that could be read as some sort of metaphor for like...The taboo nature of queer love. “Why can’t they just be friends?” and issues of purity and the lack thereof. And we have characters who are very clearly in love but who can’t just admit that because they think there’s something fucking wrong with that. Gideon’s JUST her cav and Harrow is also in love with a dead chick. We also have Magnus and Abigail around who are just like. Happily married and fine with things regarding their whole necro/cav aesthetic. Ianthe doesn’t seem to give a shit that Gideon’s into Harrow at all. There’s a fondness for necro/cav relationships enough that there’s an entire romance genre centered on them and like characters in the cast are fond of those, some of them. Things appear to be Fine, at least as far as their friends are concerned. Maybe the asshole writing the essay that kicked this pondering off would have an issue and a stuffy old grandma would pitch a fit. But like their friends don’t have a problem with necro/cav shit. But we still very much have Gideon and Harrow being “Well no. We’re just a necromancer and their cavalier. GOD.” Now part of what got me thinking about this is that I recently decided to start watching Bly Manor. Because fuck it we haven’t yet. And specifically part of why is I remember seeing an analysis of it done by Rowan Ellis which had this bit where like the argument that “Bly Manor proves you can do queer stories without homophobia being a part of it!” is brought up and like...Ellis is like “Ok but we very much do just lock a queer woman in a literal closet while she screams to be let out”. And lo and behold in the first episode we very much do just lock a queer woman in a literal closet while she screams to be let out. In an episode showing that she’s like just unable to go back home for...some reason. And that she has some sort of difficulty with her relationship with her mother. No, the show is not having the character literally go “Wow I sure am in the closet and I kind of fucking hate that woe is me I am so gay”. But figuratively? It’s all over the place in that first episode. I’m not sure about the others because I haven’t watched them, but it is there in the very first one. And that’s something horror does very well. It takes things that are scary and uncomfortable and bundles them up in shades of metaphor. It hides them from  you by showing you the thing cleverly disguised. Maybe you do not notice it the first time through perhaps. Maybe you felt that a certain thing like the closet scene resonated very hard with you and you’re not sure why. But you perhaps don’t consciously go “Aha! It is the horror of being closeted!” Upon looking back on it or back through it though you might notice it. And be like “Oh that was there. Holy fuck.” Now maybe you’re also someone who isn’t like. Comfortable. With straightforward depictions of specifically queer suffering. Maybe it’s just too scary. But with this show hiding it in a metaphor you got to sit through that. You got to be brave enough to sit through a very, very scary thing. And afterwords you go to think about it. This is the power of metaphor and it’s something horror has been very, very good at doing for ages. Maybe racism or homophobia or whatever else is too nerve wracking for you to look at face on in media, but maybe you can watch a movie or a show where the horror of those things are very much there but cloaked in metaphor. And so maybe we are getting that with Gideon and Harrow’s weird issues around how “taboo” their feelings are. Two people who are just unwilling to believe that it might be that thing, in part because that thing is “taboo”. Except instead of the taboo being literally “They’re lesbians, Harold,” it’s instead cloaked in a comforting metaphor of necro/cav relationships and some dude who is really fucking offended at people’s space ao3 fanfictions about his historical favs. Which is important because every fucking scrap of anything one gets is an argument. It can’t just be that they’re in love. It’s that you must PROVE it and some asshole with a degree or just a bone to pick is going to come by and be like “WHY CAN’T THEY JUST BE A NECRO AND A CAV” about it all. And like I’m someone who’s known they’re into other women for a long while now. At least half my life. We have conquered that hurdle. But we haven’t entirely unpacked all the weird little societal bullshit that is still in there. Hiding. Lurking. And that societal bullshit specifically frames that sort of love as something gross and taboo and “Why Can’t They Just Be Friends?”. With that last thing hurting a lot. I’ve constantly run across people going “Why can’t they just be friends?” or going “They just have a sisterly relationship!” about things I shipped. Even when those things involved shit like the characters kissing on screen or mentioning that they’ve been dating in a sequel series. I can’t simply like my ships. I can’t simply see myself in romance. Because my sort of love is so taboo that it is, in itself, a debate. Maybe being shown the thing cleverly disguised as another thing might help me unpack that. At the very least it helps me look at it. When it’s something that hurts a lot to this day.

[bored-mumma]

Tom Hiddleston - Fluff Alphabet

MASTERLIST

Loki version

A = Attractive. What do they find attractive about the other?

So many things he’s not sure he could ever choose. Your eyes, your hips, your thighs.. oh my God he loves your thighs. 

B = Baby. Do they want a family? Why/Why not?

He’s not 100% sure. The thought of raising a family with you is something he finds himself day dreaming about often - and in each scenario there were always multiple little ones running around. However, with his job taking up so much of his time and the thought of the children being raised in the public eyes makes him doubt it slightly. It would have to be a serious conversation between you two.

C = Cuddle. How do they cuddle?

Any way, shape or form. As long as you two are wrapped around each other some way, he’s happy. (Although he does sometimes prefer to be a little spoon - not that he would admit it easily.)

D = Dates. What are dates with them like? 

No date with Tom is ever the same. Every time he thinks of some  different way to sweep you off your feet. Last week he took you for a romantic candle lit dinner followed by an evening at the theatre. This week he packed you both a picnic and you had lunch at the beach. Next week, who knows. As long as you both have all of each others attention. 

E = Everything. You are my ____ (e.g. my life, my world…)

“You are my world. The love of my life.” 

F = Feelings. When did they know they were falling in love?

Around three months into your relationship, Tom had stayed over at your place overnight. When he awoke early the next morning and looked over at you, still sound asleep, he just smiled. Happy and content, he realised he wanted to wake up like this every morning. With you tucked up on his side.

G = Gentle. Are they gentle? If so, how?

He’s not really gentle. He knows you’re tough and won’t break if he grabs your waist tightly when he gives you those late night kisses. But if you’ve had a rough day and just want to be held, Tom will be gentle and help sooth your mind.

H = Holding Hands. How do they like to hold hands?

I = Impression. First impression/s?

You met through your mutual friend, Chris Evans. Chris had spoke about you so much to Tom (He knew you two would be a great couple) that when he had finally introduced you both, Tom felt like he already knew you. Except you exceeded everything he thought. You were funnier, smarter, pretier, more full of life. Tom’s first impression was simply “Wow”.

J- Joker. Are they into pulling pranks? 

On you, sometimes. But you two LOVE to play pranks on your friends.

K = Kiss. How do they kiss?

It depends on the mood. Most common is a quick peck thanks to both of your busy schedules, though when you both finally have time off, he makes up for it. He’ll either have his hands on your cheeks or your waist and kiss you like it’s the last time. 

L = Love. Who says ‘I love you’ first?

You did! It was when you cancelled your date with him last minute thanks to period cramps and he turned up to yours not long after with your favourite take away, bottles of your favourite drinks and a heat pack. It could have been your hormones playing with you, but you nearly cried at the gesture and the words “I love you so much!” just fell out of your mouth.

M = Memory. What’s their favourite memory together?

Your first weekend away together. A little cabin next to a lake, just the two of you. The weather wasn’t that great so you spend the days cuddling on the sofa, playing board games, in bed or simply having long conversations with each other. He loved every second of it and even has a photo next to his bed of you two there. 

N = Nickel. Do they spoil? Do they buy the person they love everything?

You are extremely spoilt by him! Anything you could ever want, he would make sure you would get. It would even get to the point where you would hide that you wanted that stunning necklace because it was pricey and you didn't want Tom to go spending so much on you. (Even though he would happily spend every penny on you)

O = Orange. What colour reminds them of their other half?

Red. When you first met, you were wearing a red top. First date, you were wearing a red dress and on the second date, you were wearing red lipstick. He even brought himself a red suit so he could match you in your red dresses.

P = Petnames. What petnames do they use?

“Love.” Mostly but occasionally “Darling.” or “Sweet.”

Q = Quaint. What is their favourite non-modern thing?

Shakespeare. He owns multiple books filled with his poetry and plays and will often randomly recite some for you to express himself.

R = Rainy Day

Board games! He adores to just chill out with you and play some games. Have a laugh together and just take some time away from screens.

S = Sad. How do they cheer themselves/others up?

To cheer you up, he’ll sit back and listen to whatever it is you have to say. Then he’ll simply ask you if there’s something he can do. If you’re not sure he’ll run you a bath, make you some snacks and just let you feel how you feel. If you want anything from him, he’ll do it.

T = Talking. What do they like to talk about?

Movies, Shakespeare, his family, your family, what happened at work. He’s also a huge gossip - not that he would admit that to anyone but you.

U = Unencumbered. What helps them relax?

Lying on the sofa with your head rested on his shoulder, Bobby (his dog) lying across your laps, the room dimly lit with lamps and a movie on TV. He never feels more relaxed than then.

V = Vaunt. What do they like to show off? What are they proud of?

His acting. Tom will often practice his scripts with you and would show off a lot at how he could do it. Especially if its Loki.

W = Wedding. When, how, where do they propose?

You adore his family and they adore you. So he decided to propose at one of his family's dinners. Between the main meal and dessert, Tom tapped his glass to gather everyone's attention and began to make a speech about how much he adored you before getting down on one knee to propose. You, of course, said yes. Although not many could hear it thanks to his mother and sisters almost screeching with happiness.

X = Xylophone. What’s their song?

Cha cha slide. Let me explain.

You and Tom are a goofy couple. Always having fun together. And you’re both competitive. Whenever you’re at a party or a wedding and this song comes on, you both jump on the dance floor to out do the other. 

Y = You. You are the ___ to my ___ (e.g. the cookies to my milk, the macaroni to my cheese)

“You’re the Monica to my Chandler.”

Z = Zebra. If they wanted a pet, what would they get?

Tom already had Bobby when he met you. Neither of you really wanted any more pets, Bobby already was enough for you.

[genesisrose74]

Christmas With the Karasuno Boys (HC’s)!!

Part 2: Kageyama, Hinata, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, Kinoshita, & Narita

Part 1 (Daichi, Suga, Asahi, Nishinoya, Tanaka, & Ennoshita) here!

A/n: Tumblr said my word count was too much so I’m splitting this bad boi up into two parts :p Enjoy!!

*****

Kageyama

This boy has a secret soft side for Christmas istg

He HATES showing it to other people on his team and shit

But holy bejeezus he is mesmerized by the holiday in every way possible

Lights, sweets, snow, just like,,, the general magic of December is the most awe-inspiring thing to him

Since he is still a sporty and pretty active mofo, you decided to fuel that on your holiday-themed date as Kags had noted that he’d never gone sledding before

Your jaw was on the FLOOR when he first told you because he would 10000% enjoy the hell out of it

And so you dragged him out to this popular sledding hill that you frequented as a child and taught him what to do

Not gonna lie, he was kind of nervous

“Well you’re experienced at it. I don’t wanna mess up”

🥺🥺🥺 bubby

“You won’t, Tobio! I can already tell you’re gonna be a sledding pro”

Feels a little better after that, but he asks you to help him out for his first run down the hill

He sits behind you with his arms secured snugly around your waist and his head nestled on top of your shoulder

Which would probably seem really funny to passerby because this boy is tol and intimidating in most other situations

As soon as the sled started down, Kags tightened his grip and made this cute little yelp of surprise

But you were laughing insanely hard at the combination of going really fast downhill whilst also having your boyfriend cling to you for dear life

And then when the sled stopped safely at the bottom he started to chuckle

FULL ON, GENUINE SOUND OF ENJOYMENT

That shit is rare

Y’all stayed at that hill for half the day because it was so fun

You got him a new, very high quality athletic roller for Christmas because his old one was just not cutting it anymore

And you also gave him this really cute bracelet with a volleyball, his jersey number, and a little strawberry milk set of charms attached to it

It matched this really pretty and subtle chain he’d bought for your birthday

His blueberry eyes got all wide with affection dfjdskfjsdk—

Got super blushy and couldn’t get a handle on his speech for a fat minute

He thinks you’re the coolest person ever no I do not take criticism

Geez you’re both adorable together, ideal “stoic boy becomes warmer during the holidays around his love” movie plot and I love it

Hinata

He is all in on Christmas. Not a chance this boy doesn’t get excited as hell

Will openly go into holiday mode as soon as November is over

Was secretly already listening to his Christmas playlist before then

He is one of the sweetest gift givers, that is FACTUAL

If you want something really badly, he will take notice and get it as your present immediately

He’ll also gift you an extra thing that’s handmade 🥺

Like some pastries that his mom helped him make, or a specially made basket of soaps with your favorite scents in it

It’s absolutely adorable and you cherish those ones especially

Is happy if you simply get him something; mans doesn’t care what it is

New practice volleyball? A brand new sweatshirt? Elated either way

You had seen an advertisement for a friendly match between Japan and Poland’s men’s volleyball teams, so you waited online on the ticket sales website until the minute it opened

Spoiler alert: you got some banger seats 😌✨

Shoyo may or may not have tackled you when he read the ticket details, letting out his excited giggle (you know the one)

“I can’t believe you got these, angel! You’re coming with me, right? You’ve gotta! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Gives you sweet little kisses between each individual ‘thank you’

“Of course I’ll go with you, Sho! I’m really glad you like it!”

He will give you the brightest smile of all time — that shit makes Christmas lights pale in comparison

“Have I told you how much I love you?”

RIGHT BACK AT YOU BBY

Hold his hands to warm up together when temperatures drop pls :)))

It’s become a weekly December tradition to watch a Christmas movie with Natsu at the Hinata household

She’ll sit in your lap while the three of you are cuddled under a blanket together, and Shoyo will lace his fingers with yours all discreetly

In conclusion, I am a sucker for holiday Hinata 🥺🥺🥺

Tsukishima

His room is decorated to the very minimum simply because his mom and brother had insisted on him being festive

You know those holiday instrumentals that are really calming and jazzy and stuff? Yeah, that’s the only Christmas music he will tolerate in his house

While he’s still got his usual icy demeanor, this blond bitch does get slightly less snippy with the Karasuno boys

Is always on the nose with getting you the exact thing you wanted for a present

Like,,, TO THE SMALLEST DETAIL

You don’t even have to bring that shit up beforehand, he just KNOWS

“Tsukki, how did you—?”

“It’s pretty obvious, with the way that one ad kept showing up on your phone.”

b r u h

How does he pay such good attention without even letting on??

As for his own present, you’ll usually get him two: one gag gift and one more serious gift

His dino plush collection size is partly due to the former’s contributions this time of year

Yes the dinos have names

You exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve with all the team (you made him go) and he saved your more serious one for last

It was a scarf that you’d gotten custom made, which had a Spotify code knitted into the fabric

Scanning the code opened the app to a playlist you’d created especially for him

He got pretty quiet when figuring it out and scrolling through the playlist

Would let out a certified Tsukki Nose Exhale™ when he came across certain songs

The more subdued reaction was expected because it’s Tsukishima

His little chuckles and warmer eyes were enough of a giveaway to tell you he very much enjoyed your gift

But on the walk home, he took the scarf and wrapped it around you both, and then brought his arm around your waist

“Thank you.”

You deadass almost combusted because it was so unexpected??

“You’re welcome. Merry Christmas, Kei”

Way to respond calm and collected 😌👍

But on the inside your body was in freak out mode

He wears the scarf all the time jdfsklfjdsk

Yamaguchi

Take the most tooth rotting fluff you could imagine

And then double that and put a fucking cherry on top

That’s the equivalent of what Christmas is like with Yama Yama

Y’all are like kids in a candy store — literally

For your Christmas dates it’s all about sweets and shared giggles, so frequent trips to the candy and baking isles of the grocery store is a must

Making gingerbread houses, peppermint tasting (mostly trying those different and wild ass candy cane flavors), you name it and it’s there

Stomach aches? I don’t know her

Yeah you do but they go away with enough butterfly kisses 🥰

Tadashi is exceptionally good at decorating gingerbread houses for whatever reason

He put a poll on his instagram between yours and his final products and he won by a landslide

It’s not like yours was necessarily bad, more like he’s just an icing master

You also might have eaten too many gumdrops which left your rooftop lacking in ✨spice✨

But it’s okay because Tadashi donated some of his leftovers to you

He’s such a sweetheart uwu

Please for the love of everything get him something heartfelt as his present

You know those long distance bracelets for couples?

Basically if your s/o taps the icon on the bracelet it’ll send a little vibration to the other person’s as a notice that you’re thinking about them

This boy seeks constant reassurance, and you love to give him his deserved love and validation, so it was the perfect present

It takes a second for him to figure out what it is, but after reading the directions and testing it out, the most adorable smile erupted on his face

And then since you already had yours on, he tapped the little icon again with a giggle

“Hey there”

It becomes common habit to tap it at least once every couple hours

GOD HE IS SO CUTE

He is just so soft this time of year, give him all the love and he will return it tenfold ☺️

Kinoshita

This boy is absolutely an awkward cutie and an avid romantic

Give him the cliches and he will eat em up, no doubt

It naturally gets more apparent around the holidays

He’ll take you on pretty winter walks, give you lots of little gifts (while blushing a hell of a lot), and is just a professional at stumbling upon some mistletoe

Wow wonder how it got there, Hisashi

He’s quite a bit more confident when simply alone with you than in a crowded space

And that definitely shows when he takes you out on a secluded sleigh ride around town

Yeah you heard me

A fuckin’ sleigh ride

Horses and blankets and everything

Don’t even ask how he managed to pull it off, because he loves watching the cogs turn in your head and simply will not give you a straight answer

Of course there’s the nice driver guy who’s there, but in the back alone Kinoshita’s confidence goes 📈📈

Lots of flirting, tons of skimmed touches and shared giggles throughout the ride

I legitimately simp really hard for him

Anyways it was a gorgeous ride through town and super fun

On Christmas Eve you both exchange gifts together and tbh whatever you got him will leave him happy and flustered regardless

But when he opens the wrapping paper to find an entire set of vintage VHS tapes, he’s stunned

He owns a VHS (actually canon!) and honestly loves it to death, and the fact that you’d get him tapes of pretty high quality for his collection meant a lot

Gosh he’s so underrated but a definite sweetheart, give him all the holiday love

Narita

Another underrated bby 🥺

He’s so chill and is pretty open to anything during the holidays, so long as he gets to spend ample time with you, his friends, and his family

Definitely more of an indoor person despite being accepting of most situations

Hence why you thought a cute little indoor winter picnic would be right up his alley

Which it absolutely was 😌✨ nice work

You’d made plans while in secret communications with his family members about the whole thing

He’d been pretty stressed lately with trying to handle his schoolwork, while also helping out others with theirs

Despite being a wonderful tutor, it was clearly becoming a bit overwhelming as he tried to grapple with so much at once

So when he came home one day to find a pristine house with you settled on a blanket in his living room, he was quite surprised

There’s a cheese plate, soda cans in a cute ice box, sandwiches, snacks, a presparked fireplace — you and his family went all out

Really adorable I cannot lie

“I thought you said you were going gift shopping today?”

“I might have maybe lied :P”

So he gives the sweetest little smile and sits across from you

Y’all stay there and talk for hours

After finally getting through everything previously laid out on the blanket spread, you slid him a little rectangular box that he looked at curiously

“Already? I haven’t wrapped yours yet!”

“Mine can wait a bit! Just open yours”

And so he does, and you watch with a face-splitting grin as he looks down in awe

You got tickets to see his favorite rock band in concert while they were on tour

He sprung onto you and pulled you into the tightest hug ever

“Holy shit you’re the best I love you so much how do you get even more loveable every day—!?!l”

It’s a jumble of words but you’re able to put it together and it makes you giggle

He deadass sprints upstairs to go get your gift and make sure that you feel as equally appreciated as he does

In simple words: wholesome holiday sweetness 🥰

[magnificent-nerd]

Why Naqib in The Boys sucked

Image description: fictional character Naqib in Amazon Prime’s show The Boys.

(Is the fire in the background an excuse to use racist Yellow Filter to show how exotic he is? Hmm.)

I first posted this on my blog in Dec 2020, and since nothing in superhero media has changed for the better at this time (September 5th, 2021), I’m going to keep talking about it.

Because nobody else does. So, without further ado:

WHY NAQIB SUCKS.

I was a big fan of The Boys season 1; I love superheroes, I love deconstructing a genre. Sure, it has its problems, but overall I enjoyed season 1 and thought the show had potential.

(That’ll learn me for being hopeful!)

When season 1 ended with this big build up of mostly nameless brown and background characters as Muslim terrorists (deep sigh) we the audience are left thinking this one Muslim character (Naqib) whose superpower is to blow himself up repeatedly (insert another long deep sigh here) is going to be The Big Bad of season 2.

I had my misgivings about that direction. Firstly, as you can see from the image of Naqib, he is highly exoticised and is walking around bare chested with Arabic writing on his chest. He looks more like a generic western media depiction of a genie than he does a supervillain. 

And yet he's the first prominent Muslim character in superhero media I've seen in YEARS.

-

(See my post about MENA and Muslim character good guys, including Joe played by Marwan Kenzari in The Old Guard, which is technically a comic book movie but it’s not what I’d call ‘caped and costumed’ superheroes so it’s more... superhero adjacent.)

I follow superhero content closely and as far as I'm aware the last time we saw any named Muslim characters in superhero movies WITH SPEAKING LINES was:

Instance 1) Iron Man 1 back in 2008 with The Ten Rings in Afghanistan, showing multiple Muslim characters as baddies/terrorists, but only two of them as a named character and with any meaningful lines to say. And despite one of them, Yinsen (actor Shaun Toub), being a good guy he still dies! Which is common in western media for Muslim and MENA characters.

Note: Fellow Iron Man 1 castmate, actor Sayed Badreya, makes an important point in this GQ article: "I die in Iron Man, I die in Executive Decision. I get shot by everyone. George Clooney kills me in Three Kings. Arnold blows me up in True Lies…" (x)

Instance 2) A more recent instalment in Batman V. Superman in 2016, with some unnamed 'General' character and mercenaries/terrorists in Nairomi, Africa, referred to only as "the desert" throughout the movie. All reference to the General's actual name are available in an extended/deleted scene only, so a very poor and vague depiction in the final cut.

Instance 3) The generic and badly written ‘bad guys’ in Wonder Woman 1984 (2020 movie), which was honestly such a racist depiction of Arabs and Muslims that many critics pointed out we hadn’t seen a depiction this terrible since 1994′s True Lies. (At least most critics were in agreement that WW84 movie was generally terrible, so there’s that.)

And that's it, those are the only major instances showing any Muslim actors or characters in a caped and costumed superhero movie. 

Some other fleeting glimpses of Muslims onscreen:

Glimpse 1) I spotted a girl wearing a hijab among the nameless and unspeaking background characters of Peter Parker's class in Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019). A first for Marvel movies, apparently.

Glimpse 2) Disney Plus show Falcon and Winter Soldier (2021) had two nameless Muslim characters walk by in a scene that’s supposed to be Tunisia (using Yellow Filter), and ‘thank’ the present American Air Force (eye-roll).

Glimpse 3) Netflix show Jupiter’s Legacy (2021) had a nameless Muslim sailor conversing with one of the main characters in a scene, with meaningful dialogue about racism. (WOW. Really good.) Bonus: no yellow filter. It’s a pity he’s a nameless background character because this brief instance is the least problematic MENA rep I’ve seen in ages, but it is very brief.

I just wrote about Glimpses 2 and 3, and how the Netflix show outdid Disney when it comes to these nameless walk-on Muslim characters.

This is pretty pathetic overall, these small crumbs, especially compared to better rep and probably the only instance of legit MENA superheroes in a ‘costumes and capes’ style superhero show, the Tarazi siblings on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.

-

Anyway, now I’ve listed what crumbs are available across the live action superhero genre, back to The Boys.

I was intrigued about how season 2 would handle Naqib and any characters relating to him, and what storyline they'd use. 

Was I excited at the possibility of seeing Muslim supers onscreen? Damn straight I was. Did I mind that they were baddies? Well, yes and no. When you only ever get crumbs or no crumbs at all, you tend to get excited over one stale old crumb.

After the build up for season 2, I eagerly sat down to watch the first episode, only to have the first five minutes of episode 1 Trigon him.

Note: who's Trigon, you ask? Well if you didn't watch the DCEU's Titans show, Trigon was The Big Bad who was hyped up throughout season 1, introduced in the season 1 cliff-hanger episode as this big 'oh shit!' moment for the cast of heroes, only for him to fizzle out like a wet fart in the first episode of season 2 while the show pivots wildly in another direction. 

Exactly what happened to Naqib in the first five minutes of The Boys season 2.

Erm, so, Naqib. Farewell, I guess? As a character you briefly appeared in 2 episodes, portrayed by a different actor in each (Krishan Dutt, and Samer Salem). It seems the writers used you as a plot device when they needed a cheap cliff-hanger for a direction that ultimately went nowhere.

Am I disappointed? Yeah, I am. Overall I thought season 2 of The Boys was weaker than season 1, but I'm not here to talk about the whole season: I want to talk about Naqib and this missed opportunity.

The Boys and its showrunners sell the show as being a satire of recent and well known superhero content, of all the big movies and TV shows. There's been a lot of patting themselves on the back for calling out overused tropes in superhero media (and sometimes they've done this satire well: see the LGBT marketing scene with Queen Maeve in season 2), but my issue with the show on their Muslim rep, or should I say lack thereof, is if your show has even less Muslim character rep than the content you're trying to parody, how is this a win for satire?

Naqib and that whole angle came across as a lazy, half-assed swing from the writer's room. Sure, perhaps a lot of the non-Muslim and non-MENA audience won't even notice, as we've been ignored by western media or made into nameless, generic, vacuous baddies for decades now. Non-Muslims and non-MENA just accept that we're always the baddies for no particular reason at all (which feeds into Islamophobia, by the way) and The Boys' writers could say they are simply satirising the tropes already present in media...

But, and this is a big but, the media that The Boys is satirising has already made a step toward better inclusion and representation: Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan), Marvel comics' first Muslim superhero, is entering the MCU as a lead character in her own Disney Plus show, debuting in 2022. 

Ms. Marvel/Kamala Khan is also cited to appear in upcoming Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels (2022), which will be a major movie.

The MCU has also cast a Muslim actor (Mahershala Ali) as the lead in a reboot of Blade. That's going to be big news when it starts filming.

So to the showrunners on The Boys, I say this: now you've done this small angle of 'all Muslim characters are terrorists, yuckity-yuck!' like we've seen in major superhero movies thus far, and you've brushed that aside in favor of focusing on other whiter villains, my question is will you come back to Muslim and MENA characters again? Or is that all you got?

Because if that was ALL, then the current score is Disney/MCU:02, Netflix:02, DCEU:02, and The Boys: a big ZERO as far as Muslim and MENA rep goes.

-

Originally posted on my blog, magnificently nerdy.

If you, like me, are always on the lookout for onscreen Muslim and MENA characters in superhero media, and have spotted any characters in superhero TV shows I haven’t watched yet, let me know about them!

Here is my post on good guys, featuring Old Guard’s Joe, and Blindspot’s Rich Dotcom.

Here’s my post about the Tarazi siblings on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow TV show.

And, if Marvels’ Eternals gets released on schedule for 2021, we will have a MENA actor portraying a supporting character. I just hope Marvel gives him a name.

[dubububbles]

SHINee scenario: Dates

(can u work ur magic and write sumthin about going on dates? tnx :>)

Requested by anon

- I’m sorry for being very slow with the requests. I’ve been having a hard time writing lately 😓 I’m still very unsure about this but I hope it’s okay! Otherwise, I can make a part two later on when I’m back on my feet. Also, thank you so much to those who helped me with ideas! ❤️🙏

Onew:

When both you and Onew had a day off at the same time you decided to make the most of it and go on a date. Normally you would do something simple, such as going to a cafe, having a picnic or simply strolling around downtown. However, for some reason, your boyfriend suggested visiting the city Zoo and since you didn’t have a better idea you agreed. 

It didn’t really strike you as a common place for a date, but rather a place for families, but that thought changed when your boyfriend turned into an excited child at the sight of live animals and you couldn’t help but find it adorable. 

The two of you calmly walked around the whole zoo to examine each animal and talked about anything and everything in the process. You were also enjoying the fact that you could share some fond and harmless skin-ship, such as holding hands and exchanging small kisses every now and then. In addition, your boyfriend made you laugh with some of his silly antics, which you could never grow tired of. 

It was a very wholesome date and although it was more fun and chaotic than it was sweet and romantic you didn’t mind it one bit since it was spent with your favorite person on earth. 

“Today was really fun.” You told him as you were heading for the exit and expected him to respond but instead he simply smiled and gripped your hand a bit tighter as he headed in a specific direction. It didn’t lead to any of your apartments and when you asked him about it he simply stated that it was a ‘surprise’. 

After a brief walk through a small park and up a steep hill you eventually reached a small viewing spot where you could gaze over a large portion of the city below and it was indeed a spectacular sight. 

“Wow. It’s really beautiful.” You managed to utter in a mix of surprise and admiration. 

Your boyfriend simply agreed and led you both over to a bench where you could sit down. “I like this place.” He expressed in a calm voice and went on to explain how he came across it and also his wish to show it to you. His words made you smile as you held onto his hand with both of your own and fumbled with some of his fingers, as you tended to do subconsciously at times. He hadn’t told you but it was something he was actually rather fond of. 

The two of you spent the rest of the afternoon at your new location, watching the city turn dark as the sun set, before you headed home. Your boyfriend walked you the whole way, as he always would, and outside of your apartment building you shared a long hug and a sweet kiss before ultimately letting go of each other. He then uttered the words ‘Let’s meet again soon’ with his usual bright smile as he waved and watched you get inside safely. 

Jonghyun: 

After dating for a little over a year you and Jonghyun both decided to take some time off work and go on a trip together. The location was Tokyo, Japan and it was only over the weekend but it gave you a couple of days of pure freedom to spend however you liked. 

Since it was early spring you decided to visit a large park with a botanical garden on your first full day. The weather was perfect and you could roam around peacefully to examine the beautiful flowers and large cherry blossom trees that had just begun to bloom. It was a very simple but romantic idea of a date that you both enjoyed. 

Moreover, walking around holding hands and taking a closer look at the different plants, you found a patch of grass where you could sit down and eat some snacks that you had bought beforehand. 

It would evolve into a deep conversation which would then be followed by some harmless cuddling. At first it made you feel a bit shy, as there were many people around and you weren’t always comfortable with PDA but your irresistible boyfriend assured you no one was watching. In addition, he also flashed one of his very enchanting grins which made you want to roll your eyes in a playful fashion. 

In the end, you were able to relax and simply enjoy your sweet moment. None of it was actually new but it still gave you a sense of butterflies in the pit of your stomach. 

After talking and enjoying each other’s company for some time you decided to explore the rest of the park and also take a bunch of pictures before ultimately leaving. Though, your day didn’t end there. You spent the remaining time exploring the city, doing some shopping and also having dinner at one of Jonghyun’s favorite restaurants, as it wasn’t his first visit. 

All in all, it was definitely a very calm and romantic day but you preferred it that way and any time spent together with your amazing boyfriend was always wholesome. 

“I love you.” The words came out randomly as you were on your way back to the hotel but he didn’t seem to mind. He simply chuckled in a surprised fashion before returning them in a loving tone. 

“I love you too y/n.” 

Key: 

Since you and Key had been together for a long time you were both comfortable in your relationship and didn’t often go on traditional dates or make grand plans just the two of you. Instead, your idea of a date was simply doing something together that you would both enjoy. 

On a weekend when you were both free you decided to do just that and since you were both interested in art you agreed to check out a new exhibition at your favorite museum. 

Despite it being a weekend it wasn’t overly busy and you could both walk around calmly, hand in hand, and examine the new art. In addition, you also decided to visit some old favorites and went to the part of the museum dedicated to the painter who sadly lost his life too young. Vincent Van Gogh. You had already seen his works several times but there was still something about it that would pull you in. 

“Wow. Van Gogh’s art is really beautiful, no matter how many times you see it.” You exclaimed in slight awe. 

At first Key was silent, almost as if he was thinking something over, and then turned to you camly. “Sure they are but they aren’t as beautiful as the art whose hand I’m currently holding.” 

His suddenly flirty words and teasing smirk certainly made you blush but you then nudged his arm and fought your urge to roll your eyes at his cheesiness. Though, it would be a lie to say you didn’t enjoy it. Especially when his eyes also sparked with sincerity, which made you all the more flustered. 

Later, as you both exited the museum your boyfriend suddenly tugged you and started walking in a different direction, stating something about ‘wanting to take you somewhere equally beautiful as the painting you had admired’. 

You didn’t question him and as you realized where he was taking you your face instantly lit up in surprise. 

“Namsan tower?” 

He nodded in response and kissed your cheek before you headed towards the cable car that would take you to the top of the mountain where the tower and observation deck was located. 

As it was late afternoon you could camly stroll along and watch the sunset together. It was a very romantic end to an otherwise casual date but it was just the way you both preferred it. 

Minho:

After a busy week you and Minho were both excited at the idea of meeting up in your favorite part of town and enjoying a fun night out in each other’s company. 

It was something you did ever so often as opposed to having indoor dates at home and this particular night you decided to visit the cinema to see a movie together. 

By the time you arrived your boyfriend was already there waiting for you close to the entrance. Despite it being a casual date he appeared to have dressed up ever so slightly and looked as handsome as ever. It made you smile as you made your way over to greet him the way you normally would, with a hug and a quick but sweet kiss, before you made your way inside. 

The movie in question was a good one. Minho had picked it, thinking it was something you would enjoy, as it had an exciting love story plot, and he wasn’t wrong. Though, even if it had been uninteresting it wouldn’t matter as you simply enjoyed being in his company. 

Later, after leaving the cinema and getting something to eat you decided to roam around the city, as you often would, and ended up at an arcade. It wasn’t a surprise since you were both fond of games and became competitive as you were put against one another. At times you would find yourself stuck in there for hours on end, competing while having fun and simply forgetting about time. This time was certainly no exception. You tried out a variety of games, where you beat him at some and then giggled at his sulking face. 

You spent most of the evening there until you finally decided that enough was enough. It was already rather late at that point but before calling it a day Minho suggested walking along the han-river since it was a rather beautiful sight at night and you also knew it was something he really enjoyed, so you agreed. 

“Did you have fun today?” He questioned out of the blue after walking in silence for some time but you didn’t hesitate to nod in response. 

Although you could both be romantic you could also enjoy a casual day like this simply playing games and having fun. In fact, you enjoyed it as much as going to a fancy restaurant or having a cozy night at home. 

You definitely wanted to do it again sometime very soon. 

Taemin: 

Although you and Taemin had been dating for a while it was still unknown to the public and anyone outside of your close circle of friends or family. Therefore, you rarely met up outside just the two of you and if you did it was always in a remote place or late at night to avoid anyone possibly spotting you and making a story out of it. It was tough at times, as you would find yourselves spending a lot of time apart, but you knew that it was for the better. 

After you planned to meet up one night Taemin picked you up in his car outside your apartment building and then drove off to one of your usual places. 

You were both wearing casual clothing rather than being dressed up but neither of you put much thought on that. Instead, you focused on actually spending time together and being able to talk and catch up on everything that had happened since you last met in person. Your relationship was rather simple in that sense.

At your chosen location, a small beach by the river, you both walked around freely for a bit before you found a place to sit down. It was completely vacant, since it was nighttime, and you could cuddle and watch the night sky together without the fear of being spotted. 

It was a simple but wholesome date where you shared some food you had brought along and shared endless conversations about your lives or whatever was on your minds. Of course, you also used the opportunity to share some skin-ship. 

“We should meet like this more often.” Your boyfriend expressed along with a small sigh as he hugged you tightly in a search for warmth. “I really hate it when we are apart.” 

His sincere words made you smile. Especially as they were followed by him sulking, which you couldn’t help but find cute. 

“Then let’s make more time to meet up. It should be okay as long as we’re careful, right?” 

He nodded to show he agreed and then stared at you for a moment while smiling It sort of made you feel shy, almost to the point that you were blushing, and you ultimately uttered a brief ‘what?’ to find out what he was up to. 

At first he shrugged so you expected him to mumble ‘nothing’ in return but he didn’t. Instead, he raised his hand to gently poke your cheek with his index finger. It definitely puzzled you, until he suddenly uttered his new favorite English word in a playful voice. 

“Adorable.” 

Since it wasn’t the first time he used the word, and probably not the last, you couldn’t help but roll your eyes. Although it was done in a fond fashion, since despite him being annoying you still loved him more than anything. 

[winryofresembool]

Things We Lost in the Fire, ch 38

aka Caleo uni au

Fic summary: Calypso starts studying at a new university, but to her annoyance her new flatmate is a loud mouthed mechanic who also likes to sneak his dog in whenever. But as she learns to know him better, she realizes they might have more in common than what she first thought. Eventually, even the darkest secrets come out…

Chapter summary: A new semester is starting

A/N: We are finally done with the holiday chapters! When it comes to this chapter, I'd like to state that I only have some experience from a couple of Finnish universities so I really don't know a whole lot about how certain things work in practice in the States, so please ignore the possible inaccuracies for the sake of this fic. It feels weird after a couple of 'bigger' chapters to have a bit more 'fillery' one... but... but... there's Caleo in the beginning?? So I hope you'll enjoy nevertheless. I wish I could spread even more love towards this ship because they deserve it but sadly there are only so few hours in a day. The fandom seems so quiet these days...

Anyway, enough rambling! Now let's get to this chapter, and the usual reminder: I love to hear what you think! All comments are much appreciated :)

Words: 2500+ 

Genre: romance & hurt/comfort

Warnings: none

previous chapter / AO3

...

”Is something the matter? You look quite unhappy.”

Leo felt arms sneak around his shoulders from behind while he was sitting on the common area sofa, staring at his laptop with a frown. Some of the speaker’s reddish brown hair fell in front of his face, the smell of cinnamon drifting into his nose, and for some reason that alone was enough to relieve some of Leo’s uneasiness. The small, pale hands found their way down his biceps and stopped there, but he wasn’t going to complain. If he was honest, he was really happy about Calypso’s growing confidence when it came to the physical affection, because it told him she really trusted him. Sometimes he was still amazed that he out of all the people had managed to break the ice around her.

Before Leo let himself get too lovestruck, though, he reminded himself why he was staring at his laptop in the first place. The new semester was starting and that naturally meant new courses, new assignments, new texts to read and… new emails from his professors. One specific email had managed to twist his stomach quite badly. In it, the professor from his chemistry lab class had asked him for a meeting, and Leo assumed he wanted to discuss what had happened on the exam day. Wishing that he could just ignore that said message, he turned his attention back to his girlfriend.

“Just uni issues… nothing more severe this time,” Leo replied half jokingly. The holidays had given him some perspective on what really was important to him and failing a class didn’t feel quite as big an issue anymore. It was inconvenient, yes, on a few levels, but not entirely unfixable.

“Oh?” Calypso finally let her hands slide off of him and sat down next to him. She seemed a bit relieved that this was about the university and not something that was out of her reach, and if Leo was honest, he couldn’t blame her. “What kind of issues?”

“A professor wants to meet me face to face tomorrow. Probably to talk about my recent chemistry lab test or something like that.” He shrugged nonchalantly.

“Hmm… Isn’t it quite unusual for them to give special focus to a single student at this stage?” Calypso asked.

“Apparently they still do that in my department. Who knows, maybe they think I’ve caused them enough trouble by now and want me to quit.”

“But what happened in your lab test was not your fault. Do you think you are any closer to being able to finish it in case you get another chance?”

When Calypso was looking at him with those almost chocolate brown eyes, he felt that it wasn’t impossible.

��Some smart person once said that I need to believe in myself more, so that’s what I need to learn to do. After that… it might be possible.”

“I’m glad you’re listening to me at least sometimes.” Calypso gave him a lopsided smile. “The fact that you know what you should do means that you’re already on your way there.”

“Yeah. I guess so.” Wanting to talk about something else, Leo asked: “Well, what about you? How are you feeling about the upcoming semester?”

“I’m feeling… pretty good about it, you know? Sure, I’ve been reading our course plans and it sounds like our professors are planning to make us work like every day is an exam day and we have some group assignments and important presentations coming up, but… I really like learning? And I like listening to the conversations between our professors and my fellow students during our lectures because it’s something I never got to do when I was stuck at home… I feel like I get new points of views from them all the time. And Annabeth is a really big help; she knows everything about everything so if I ever feel like I can’t follow the lectures, she can always clarify them to me.”

“I have a hard time imagining you not being able to keep up with the professors… but yeah, it’s good you can ask for her help if needed.”

Calypso nodded.

“You know, I’m glad you two got your issues sorted out in the fall,” Leo added as an afterthought.

Calypso looked up at him with a slight frown as if she had completely forgotten about what exactly had happened in the fall. “Oh, right, that. I feel like it was just one big misunderstanding. Both of us realized that we can’t get stuck on something that happened so long ago.”

Leo couldn’t deny that he had also felt a bit jealous of Percy when he had first found out about his and Calypso’s past, but she had clearly moved on, so he wasn’t holding a grudge anymore either. Calypso had decided to date him, and that’s what mattered.

“Yeah, I know from my personal experiences that ain’t worth it,” he replied.

Calypso leaned her head against his shoulder and sighed.

“I have a… maybe a bit weird question. Do you believe in some kind of greater power? You know, like gods?”

Leo wondered why she would ask that. “I dunno. Maybe. I’m not really strongly for or against that. I think I’m the kind of person who needs to see it to believe it, but I don’t think it’s impossible. But why do you ask?”

“This will sound extremely cheesy but sometimes I wonder… if there was a reason why we two met. Like some greater power that pushed us together for some reason.”

“Wow. I don’t know if any greater powers had their fingers in that but I am glad that it happened.” Leo threw his arm around her shoulder and wondered briefly why it felt like such a natural thing to do. At one point he had been too intimidated to initiate any kind of physical contact but now that they were more open with each other and she had seen him in some of his worse moments – he didn’t mind anymore.

“Yeah. Me too.” Calypso whispered.

Only the buzzing of the fridge and some other kitchen machinery could be heard on the background while the flatmates were simply enjoying each other’s company, resting their heads against each other, but eventually Calypso suggested:

“Hey... I think I need something that will allow me to disconnect a bit, so… how about some Friends?”

Leo didn’t have anything against that suggestion. In fact, he always enjoyed the TV show or movie nights with Calypso, for various reasons. “Sure. That sounds great to me. You know I’m always ready to roast my homeboy Chandler.”

“I know you are.” Calypso nudged him and took the remote control to find the right episode. As they started watching and commenting on it (he always enjoyed how snarky Calypso’s comments could be), Leo almost forgot about the upcoming meeting with the professor.

…

The next day, Leo found himself in the building where the office of his lab professor was located. At the breakfast table he had practiced the meeting with Calypso, and Jason had also joined him a bit later to wish him luck. To Leo’s relief, he did seem a lot happier than when he had seen him before the holiday break, but he still didn’t talk a whole lot about his current situation. Leo himself decided that it was better if he didn’t guide his friends too much so instead he did a quick recap on the recent developments in his own life – without mentioning his new relationship status. Luckily Jason didn’t ask, as he seemed to be more worried about Leo’s upcoming meeting.

As he was waiting for the professor to arrive, Leo kept glancing at his clock nervously. The man was already a few minutes late. While Leo knew that wasn’t anything unusual in the university world, as the professors tended to be busy, he still kept wishing he could get the meeting over with as soon as possible. His leg started bouncing again on its own and his fingers were tapping against the wooden handle of the chair. Suddenly he didn’t feel quite as sure about what he was going to tell the professor as he had felt earlier.

Finally, he was pulled from his thoughts by a loud ‘ahem’.

“Mr. Valdez? Sorry I’m late, my meeting with a couple of coworkers got a bit long,” the professor said.

“That’s… that’s fine,” Leo stuttered. Some months ago he would probably have said something snarky as a response but right now he knew better than to take any risks.

“Go in, go in, so we can have a talk,” the professor encouraged. Unwillingly, Leo followed him into his office and had to be told to sit down before he even realized that there was a comfortable looking arm chair right next to him.

“So…” the professor started once he was seated behind his desk. “You probably know why I invited you here.”

“I… I do have an idea…” Leo said hesitantly, looking everywhere in the room except the professor. The man had a lot of engineering related books in his bookshelf, a big stack of papers - probably students’ assignments - and a fancy looking calculator on his desk. Behind him on the wall there was a single photograph of his family. Pretty much exactly how Leo had imagined the said professor’s room looking.

“I will be direct with you. Your achievements in the lab classes - or lack thereof - is a cause of confusion for us. In almost all of the theory related classes, you are on the top of the class – despite the occasional reports that your behavior towards the lecturers could use some improvement.” The man raised his eyebrow, but Leo thought he could see a glint of amusement in his eyes. That didn’t last long, though. “However, until now we have been willing to overlook that because of your talents. Maths, physics, chemistry… those things you clearly don’t have any issues with. But already for the second year you have been avoiding the lab classes for which you have been signed up and last fall you even left the chemistry lab test before you managed to get it completed. I’m sure you are aware that if you want to move onto the more advanced classes, you need to complete the mandatory ones before you are allowed to do that.”

“Yes, sir, I’m aware of that,” Leo replied stiffly, wondering briefly when was the last time he had called anyone sir, other than ironically.

“In that case…” His voice turned less formal, more fatherly as he continued, which surprised Leo. The professors he was used to dealing with were usually not all too nice to him, although he was willing to admit that some of it was probably deserved. “Can I ask you, is there a specific reason why you haven’t attended the lab classes?”

Leo wondered if he should come up with a quick lie. It wouldn’t be the first time in his life that he would have to do that in order to protect himself. However, the professor really seemed sincere and concerned about him and in a way his expression reminded him of Jo’s when she was expecting him to open up. Perhaps that’s why he ended up deciding to answer honestly:

“Yes. There is.”

“And? What is the reason?” The professor raised his eyebrow.

Leo inhaled deeply before forming his response. “I’m afraid of fire. Yeah, laugh ahead, but it’s true. I can’t deal with anything that requires heating because of some nasty as hell childhood trauma.”

To his surprise, the professor didn’t get angry at him for talking to him in such a manner. Instead, he furrowed his eyebrows.

“And you’re still planning to make mechanical engineering your career? Despite your fear?”

Leo nodded slowly. “Yeah. Building and fixing inanimate objects is the only thing I’ve ever known how to do. I was basically born with a hammer and a wrench in my hands and I was capable of building toys for myself when I was like four. After an accident…” He refrained from mentioning his mother because he couldn’t guarantee he would be able to stay calm if he brought that up. “… I haven’t been able to light up a match or anything like that. But almost five years ago, two awesome women adopted me and one of them is a mechanic. She reminded me what I really love about tinkering and it was then that I decided that I wanna keep trying. It’s a process but I am working on it.”

The professor smiled a little. “You know… a lot of our students were unable to take the chemistry lab course in the fall, so we decided to organize another course now in the spring. As it happens, there’s still some room for new people in it. So, if you’re interested, you’re welcome. But remember, you would need to attend all the mandatory classes and complete the tasks that you are assigned, no exceptions. That means we will not be going easy on you just because of your fear.”

Leo’s eyes widened with surprise. He hadn’t expected to get a chance like that.

“Woah, thanks sir! I won’t let you down!”

“That’s good to hear,” the professor nodded approvingly. “Can I ask you a question, though? Why do you want to become a mechanical engineer? I mean, what exactly is it that fascinates you about it, other than the influences you have gotten at your home?”

Leo imagined that the professor could probably see the bolts and nuts moving in his brain as he formed his answer. “I… I wanna learn to develop products that will help us make the world a safer, more sustainable place for us. We engineers, if anyone, can develop technology that will help us achieve that goal. But that’s not all. I also wanna learn more so I can help to share the information forward. I wanna show kids who come from similar backgrounds as I that they should keep on dreaming. There was a time when my mom ate porridge - only porridge - for her meals so she could pay the rent when her business was slow, but she still kept doing it. Because that’s how much she cared about her job. And I want to continue in her footsteps.”

The professor shifted on his seat. “That is an admirable goal, Mr. Valdez. I hope you will succeed. Remember, you do have the skill – you just need to know how to use it.”

“Yeah… Thanks professor.”

“No problem. Don’t forget the class enrollments end tonight so you need to be fast if you want to participate. That’s all for now. Good luck in your future endeavors.”

“Thanks. I’ll go enroll myself then. Bye for now.”

“See you, Mr. Valdez.”

Leo breathed a long sigh of relief the moment he stepped out of the professor’s office. The meeting had gone way better than he had dared to expect. He hadn’t thought he would get another chance so fast, but was grateful for the opportunity. Now, he would only need to kick his fears into the deepest pits of Tartarus, as Calypso would say.

[callme--starchild]

I Could Ever Learn How to Love

The 23rd century was something else. With buildings that reached up to the sky, others that were literally in the sky, droids roaming the streets and living among the citizens, and even the flying cars that were expected by those science fiction movies plowed through the clouds.

But in Odin Eidolon's mansion, it seemed that time had stopped. With the man facing a window reaching the ceiling, his gaze was fixed on the Eidolon Garden. Several passers-by were walking, either alone, as a family or as a couple, or simply with a pet keeping them company while police watched the area.

And Odin couldn't help not frowning. So many people that he has seen born, grow and die, simply living their lives without knowing the eye in the sky that saw for the common welfare of the city. Contrary to popular belief, he did not mind that people were ignorant of his presence; he liked to be discreet — unless the situation required otherwise, he either had to deliver a droid or make a donation; he cared for everyone and had no preference for any. And since he was secretly an android with a literal artificial intelligence as conscience, no one had to worry that he was okay.

This is how things should be. He was the millionaire — millennial — businessduck of the XXIII century that saw for the common good even without expecting anything in return. Since the twentieth century, that's how things had been: his old friend ... and he against the world, facing Evronians and putting aside the tirades against the guardian of the city — and the galaxy, he would proudly acclaim — as if they were tiny particles of dust.

But everything had changed since 2188, and now he had an image to maintain: no one could get too close to Odin because it was knowing that he was not what he appeared to be, no one could get close because it was knowing that the great and powerful Odin Eidolon had a gentle side. Nobody could get close because it was to become fond of someone, someone most likely very mortal, someone who would not last forever unlike him–

"Odin" no one, unless they shared the same vestiges of immortality as him, for exactly the same reasons even if that was his best-kept secret "you felt it too, right?"

And of course, as someone who has dealt with time-related issues in a very personal way, it wouldn't take long for Lyla to know what was different about the timeline. And as someone she knew long before Odin Eidolon, he knew that he could trust her. That is why he had specifically asked her to come to her mansion, even if it was with the vague excuse of needing her to deliver a message from him.

Still, he couldn't help but straighten up, rearranging his jacket and securing his expression in the reflection in the window. One of the downsides of being a droid is that, unlike the sphere in which he could modify his appearance, his features were more vivid, and now anyone could see how melancholy or frustrated it made him think of the past just by looking at his face.

"To tell the truth, I doubt that someone 'tinkering' with space-time did not go unnoticed by the best time officer," he commented with a sure smile taking place on his face, a great contrast to the Odin who a few moments ago was thinking about what was once. In his reflection, he saw Lyla's face over his shoulder and the way she smiled even if she did so with a raised eyebrow.

They had never discussed the hypothetical case of Lyla knowing the true identity of Odin, much less after PK's last visit to the XXIII century, and even if they did, something in which his words were kept honest was the esteem he held for the droid and her capabilities.

Not only because it was a creation of his industries, but because after years of adventures with a certain duck with or without the mask, he knew what she was capable of; like a father being proud of his child, strange as the comparison was when neither of them were exactly biological.

"They've already sent a squad to investigate, they'll send a report as soon as they get to the bottom of all this," she commented as she removed her jacket, revealing the dark pinkish suit of herfourth. Her hair was honestly a mess, indicating that she had come in a hurry as soon as she sensed the alteration in the story.

It was one of the few things that would never change no matter how many centuries passed, and while it was not something outlandish or very shocking, as someone who had seen so much since his inception, it would not be a surprise if Odin came to have a preference for simplicity. What would be normal or surprising for someone who has already seen it all, after all?

"Meeting the Time Police, it won't take long." But even if there was sincerity in the words, there was no room for doubt in the way his voice grew distant, finally turning to face the android, being his footsteps all that could be heard on the marble floor as he approached the couch closest to Lyla, whose expression had become more thoughtful, not to mention uncomfortable.

"This is not the first time the flow of time has been altered recently…" she commented, her voice softening as her fingers began to fiddle with one of her loose strands of hair, her free hand combing it as calmly as if it had never been rowdy in the first place "does the Timephoon sound familiar to you?"

It sounds familiar. Why does it ring a bell if he didn't remember being activated when that happened? The truth is that his memory did not recall any data of that event, or find a record that indicated that that event really happened, but he did not think he could say something to Lyla without giving any clue of who he really was.

Confusion must have been evident on his face because Lyla looked distant for a few seconds, her shoulders slumping with an emotion Odin could not describe.

"We are not supposed to disclose the details of our investigations, but there is something that worries me, and you are literally the only non-cop and person of this time that I can trust." Given the uncertainty in the words of the droid, Odin looked up again, arching an eyebrow. A part of him had been stirred when Lyla referred to him as a person, but at least he had the privilege of knowing that Lyla had the same trust in him as he had in her "but based on this, it appears that both incidents occurred in the XXI century."

Paperinik. Hero. Donald. Wow, he hadn't thought of the mere name in a long time, and just doing so awakened old previously buried feelings.

"Fortunately everything went well," Lyla added quickly, sensing Odin's concern; and though it ultimately calmed the businessduck's cravings a bit, he could not be reassured by the idea that he still lived risky alongside his uncle, no matter how capable he was of taking care of himself.

But it couldn't be like that, right? He was a young adult the last time they saw each other as Donald and Uno and he shared his dream of sailing the seas in his own boat or forming his own band, The Three Caballeros, and leaving behind that life of adventure to which he was typecasted to. Odin was aware that more than a century had passed since then, but he still had such information in his cloud; and it was Donald, the most stubborn duck he had ever met — technically the only duck he had ever met; it would make sense for him to be more independent now,

right?

But it was not like that. Even if Donald was technically more dependent on himself, he still stayed under Scrooge's roof, risking his life as if it were a piece of cake for him — which was true, considering what he lived through day to day as a superhero, but his nephews–

The nephews. What would become of them?

"Surely it must be strange to receive this news so suddenly, but you are one of the few who are still present after the departure of PK; I haven't heard from The Raider after his retirement, and I doubt I had the same confidence in him as he does in us" another good point.

"If it weren't for the fact that time travel is still unstable, I'd see a way to go there personally to make sure everything is fine. It is not the first time that such an abrupt change has occurred, much less on two almost consecutive occasions."

But it could not be. Because since the micro-contraption and the change of the Police's department, traveling through time had become a suicide mission. Even Donald Paperinik knew that stabilizing him again was a matter of time and patience.

Knowing which one leftover for one or both was the mystery.

"I bet they'll figure it out," Odin said with an expression so radiant that he left Lyla blinking multiple times, "if there's one thing that characterizes the Time Police, it's that they never give up."

And that was a fact for both of them, and she couldn't help but smile with a tiny bit of determination. Lyla could remember all the misadventures she'd had as a policewoman with Paperinik, usually affected by his clash of ideas with the officers'. But Odin cleared his throat before sitting down on the couch, disturbing the droid's thoughts.

"Maybe," she confirmed, taking a place next to the businessman, entwining her fingers in her lap with a thoughtful expression, humming as her gears worked, "…but I won't be able to do it alone."

As if on cue… which it was basically, Odin looked up, meeting Lyla's questioning eyes. It must have meant a lot to her, or she must be advanced enough that her gaze said what her voice box did not, so vivid that it reminded him of the times when Donald refuted about the humanity in them.

Quite ironic, considering they were anything but human.

"Are you sure? It could be risky" and although he knew it wasn't a possibility, Odin wouldn't know how to explain to PK why Lyla's move was made.

Especially because it meant that he would have to accept it himself, he would have to accept that he once again lost someone whom he held dear and esteem.

And though there was that same hesitation in the droid's eyes, Odin still sensed that determination that characterized her.

"I thought what you liked best is that we didn't give up," she scoffed, though it was clear that she wasn't doing it out of pettiness. Especially since Odin detected that bit of doubt that he rarely saw in the attractive robot. "Also, as much as it pains me to accept it, it's not exactly a fact. I like this time, and I appreciate your company, but I don't belong here..."

Oh yeah. The certainly selfish desire to go home. Donald had explained it to him once, and even now he couldn't quite understand it. And after all that she had been through in both eras — it's not like he knew, it was natural for Lyla to think of that time as her home.

Well, there were already two. Seeing Anxieties wasn't the same with no one complaining about his merely scientific interest in it.

Oh.

"Well, we won't achieve anything by standing idly," he concluded, delighting in Lyla's pleasantly surprised gaze, "we should check first that the micro-contraption..."

Sure, it wouldn't be easy. No one said it was, and the 23rd century did not have all the answers, no matter how surprising technological advances were compared to three centuries ago.

But after meeting PK and facing the way he had changed by being reactivated for the first time deactivated, he knew that he couldn't leave his friend behind when the mere possibility was present.

He could tell that a long time had passed since then. But unlike him, she could go home. with Donald. As much as he wanted someone who shared the same vestiges of immortality as him, it wasn't fair for her to keep her pigeonholed into the 23rd century when she had just expressed that she didn't belong there — otherwise, where would be the freedom of the droids that he had fought so hard for?

Who knows, surely the return of time travel would mean that she could visit him, and they could talk about… who knows, only time could tell.

Poor Odin, he didn't know how wrong he was.

"Family," Donald cleared his throat, his shoulders partially tense before extending both arms to Uno, showing off with years of restrained pride, "this is Uno. Uno, this is my family..."

Before repeating the same gesture, and no one missed the way Uno's expression had softened. How not do it when Donald gave him his million-dollar smile and stars literally shone in his eyes?

It was an expression that he dedicated only to him, when the adrenaline of heroism had already run out and it was only them in the Tower, talking about everything and nothing with Anxieties playing in the background. And he didn't know how much he had missed it. for all these years. Not to mention how clear it was that he was hiding his emotion from them.

Della literally kept her gaze scrutinizing him, analyzing his every move as he stood with some power, a mocking smile crystal clear on his face. If he didn't know better, surely his partner would compare him to that cousin Gladstone of whom he spoke so much with disdain, and the idea was funny and ironic.

Scrooge? He could still recognize him, how could he not when the most obvious change in his appearance, despite the years clearly elapsed, was the color of his coat and spats? Sure, he looked different than in that photo Donald had shown him in that boat of his, and his shoulders were slumped with weariness.

Though it was not the same exhaustion that Old Cape reflected in his posture.

What attracted Uno's sensors most, however, were the new additions to the family, four children whose undivided attention was on him, and it didn't take long for him to identify them with the information his partner had given him.

Huey, Dewey, Louie, Webby. Certainly lovely that their names — or nicknames, as he had assured him — rhymed.

"One Ducklair, Donald's old friend." He held out his hand, maintaining a certain formality that it puzzled his friend if his nervous snort said something. It was obvious how much he had improvised with the name. However, even if he didn't put it into words, to him the sailor was like an open book, and he could feel how new it was for both of them him to hear him without a voice modulator.

However, in front of his scanners, he saw nothing but Donald injured, physically or emotionally.

Magic ice.

Comments on his voice.

Feathers.

The fights at school.

Cookie.

All the times Donald came to the tower with fire on his sister and his uncle on the tip of his tongue.

Hospital.

Every night he spent in the tower after a heated argument with Scrooge.

Dry blood and untreated scars.

Tears that shouldn't be there.

In front of him, there were only the people who had caused so much damage to the most important duck for him, be it involuntary or not. And now that he had a more lively body and features, he knew it wouldn't be long until his disgust was evident.

But for now, he would have to keep his guard down. The last thing he wanted was to cause trouble for his partner, as tempting as it was to tell Scrooge and Della their truths.

After all, it wasn't the first secret he had to hide.

"It's a pleasure to meet you."

It will be fun while it lasts.

[writefightandflightclub]

Holo without you

Summary: Poe’s favourite way to unwind after his duties is a holo-movie night; however, lately, Poe has found himself looking less at the holo and more at you. And he may have caught feels to boot.

Author’s note: quick blurb in response to a request. Thanks so much- this was fun to write and it’s so good to return to my main man.

Warnings: nah, this is fluffy af, darls.

Word count: pretty short: 1k. 

GIF: @starwarsfilms​

“Do I have something on my face?”

“Huh?” Poe asks, blinking himself from his stupour.

The two of you have settled down for a night of holovids in his cramped quarters, sat perpendicular to one another on the bed and your legs stretched out across his lap.

“You keep looking at me,” you state plainly.

“Do not,” Poe fumbles, whilst you eye him with a dubious expression.

“Beebs, pause?” you ask, before turning your interrogative gaze back to Poe. Trust him to mess with one of the Resistance’s espionage unit. “Then tell me a single thing that’s happened since I switched this holo on, Dameron.”

You tick a challenging eyebrow up at him and his fingers skim nervously over the surface of the cushion he has placed on top of your legs.

“Easy,” Poe bluffs. “The characters are... interacting with each other and/or their environment in usual and/or unusual ways.”

You drop your steely and mildly terrifying front and relax into a musical laugh, softly batting his arm with a pillow. “You said on the comms you couldn’t relax until you were watching this! I zoomed across the goddamn galaxy to oblige you, Commander!”

Holomovie nights have become a tradition between the two of you, and, in particular, have become Poe’s go-to way to relax after long days of working or conducting missions. However, of late, Poe has been realising that amidst the horrors, comedies, and action you had watched unfold, there was one common denominator which led him to enjoy these evenings. In fact, there was one common denominator which saw him through the horrors, comedies and actions of life.

You. He couldn’t relax without you by his side. He couldn’t relax until you were home with him.

“I guess,” Poe responds weakly, his eyes now fixed entirely on the screen, trying to look as rapt as possible as he casually chucks popcorn into his mouth.

“Why are you being weird?” You push.

“Not.”

Bb-8 beeps in agreement that Poe is indeed acting weird, and he flashes daggers at the astromech, slack-jawed as if betrayed.

“Poe,” you say much more softly, and your voice drags his gaze back to you like a siren calling him to the rocks upon which he will dash himself. He’s sure that if you weasel this information out of him it won’t end with his heart in tact.

A gulp trails down his throat as he looks at you. You’d arrived straight from your mission and had used his shower before flicking the movie on. You’d stolen a red robe of his to clothe yourself in since you had neglected to bring anything else. You look fresh and cozy and you are wearing his robe as if you are his. And he finds that he can’t help but like that thought. A lot.

“You okay? You got something on your mind?” Your voice is earnest now, edged with concern, your eyes wide and ready to welcome whatever he might want to talk through.

Maker, he loves you. He loves you.

Though the realisation surprises him, he can’t help but break into a broad grin as his love rises to the surface.

“You. Got you on my mind.”

“What?” Your face crinkles in confusion, especially as the intensity of Poe’s gaze increases.

“Y’ do have somethin’ on your face, actually, and it’s very distracting.”

“You have it here-” he points with his index finger, “-and here. And here. And everywhere.”

“What is it?”

“Beautiful. You have beautiful all over your face.”

Despite the compliment and Poe’s warm, steady gaze, your eyes flash with distress and your legs retreat away from his lap, your knees curling in toward your body. “Don’t flirt with me, Poe. I can’t take it.”

His face is instantly sharp like shattered glass. “You don’t like me,” Poe surmises dejectedly, his previously bright voice sagging with defeat. His head droops and his umber eyes snagging on a spot on the floor and fixing there.

You wring your hands together in your lap and exhale exasperatedly. “No. That’s not quite it,” you state hesitantly, and Poe’s eyes are gently hopeful again when he looks back at you, his body twisting in place to face you.

You know what he’s asking you, silently. Then what? What is it?

“If you flirt with me I’ll wanna kiss you... and then...” You look down at your hands in your lap, you voice suddenly strangled in your throat. Your words simply die before they can reach your lips.

“And then what?” Poe practically whispers, his whole body still, as if you are a bird and he might spook you at any moment from your confession.

“Then... I’ll slip right off this ledge I’m teetering on and fall in love with you.”

Your eyes finally greet his again and whilst yours are unsure and catious, Poe’s are blazing and certain. He looks at determined as he ever has.

“Drop. It’s safe,” he states warmly and with conviction, moving closer to where you sit.

“You sure?” You ask, the hint of a smile twitching at the corners of your lips, even as your eyes brim with tears.

“Yeah.” Poe reassures, bringing his palm to your cheek and caressing you gently there.

Your eyes search his. “How do you know it’s safe?”

“‘Cause I already fell, baby.” Poe’s tongue darts out over his plush lips, as a thick swallow trails down his corded neck. “I’m already down there, so I promise I’ll catch you.”

Your lips are on his in an instant, your hand winding around the back of his neck and fingers creeping up into his inky curls. His tongue swipes along your bottom lip and you open up to meet him, the kiss tender and hungry all at once.

“Wow,” Poe praises, grinning like a cat who got the cream as you pull away for air, the pad of his thumb tracing gently along your jawline.

You return his grin and steal more swift kisses from his soft lips, intermittently gazing into his eyes and finding them happy. “You caught me,” you state, sounding half-giddy.

“Of course. Never took my eye off you,” Poe smiles. “Honestly, I have no idea what we’ve watched these past months. It’s you I’ve been looking at, baby.”

You push him down on to the mattress, with the promise that you’ll give him a whole lot more of you to look at. Poe holds you, so happy to have you home. Now, he knows he can finally relax.

THE END

Tagging: Poe taglist

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