#mob does run spirits and such

[veggieboxes]

age swap au refs for some of the adults :p

context: here / here / and here

[sysig]

Dry sense of humour (Patreon)

[jadeacereigen]

I think an underrated aspect of Separation Arc and why it works so well is that once Mob finally stands up for himself and stops going to work, we think we can expect the following to happen:

Reigen quickly flounders at work but stubbornly denies he's incapable without Mob's help

Reigen eventually runs into a client who truly needs the help of psychic powers (e.g. the client is haunted by an evil spirit who cannot be exorcised with salt)

Reigen realizes that he truly needs Mob to not be seen as a fraud and that he shouldn't have taken him for granted

Reigen seeks out Mob and apologizes, Mob accepts his apology and agrees to work for him again

Except... that's not what happens. Reigen does get upset and lonely without Mob, but his business runs fine—in fact, Reigen's own ambition and smart thinking actually allow him to find greater success as a psychic. The only reason Reigen's public downfall even happens is because he was maliciously tricked by Jodo, he'd figured out on his own that the kid wasn't possessed! This and the fact that Jodo is seeking petty revenge for Reigen "humiliating" him (when Reigen actually saved his life no less) really makes us feel like Reigen's public mockery is unfair and unjustified... even though we've always known from the beginning that Reigen is a fraud.

Isn't that a strange turn of events?

Then we get to the press conference. It's possible that even if Mob hadn't helped him at the end, Reigen could've still managed to salvage some of his public image. He was calmly answering people's questions and answering truthfully, pointing out that they had no evidence he was a fraud and that no one had ever had an issue with his work before the show. But all of that stops mattering to Reigen when he realizes that despite all his efforts from childhood, he's still just a lonely, lonely man who has never had any idea what he wants to do in life. The only reason he kept running his psychic business in the first place was because Mob showed up in his dull life and brightened it up with his vivid color.

It is finally here, after all this time we've been spending with Reigen, that we both figure out the truth: Reigen needs Mob not because of his powers, but because Mob is his friend and inspires him to be better. And this full understanding of Reigen's complex character and deep connection with Mob is what hits all of us so hard in this episode, it's so painfully human and real and we would not have gotten all of this had the story just played out as expected.

Thus culminates the genius subversions of Separation Arc: despite having the world's attention all focused on him, Reigen only makes one honest apology to one boy. This boy might not even watching this at all—if he is, he's probably watching this with spiteful bitterness—but it's still important that this boy knows...

You've grown up so much. You know that?

[lavendertrash39]

Hi there. I want to talk about Reigen's depression, specifically in the outro of season one.

I just want to start this by saying that Reigen has by far been one of the most accurate and absolute gut punch of a representation of depression that I've ever seen... especially if I got into him having ADHD and depression... but maybe that's for another day.

I've finished the show now, but even from the beginning, I kept saying that there feels like there's just this sense of something being wrong or off in the outro. It truly feels like the morning routine of a depressed person who's just... continuing to go through life. Because that's something that makes his depression so important to me-- that it never feels like a plot point that comes up whenever it's really intense. It's just... always there. Lingering. Changing how he views the world.

This can be seen in the stylization of the outro. It's all black and white, and everything is shaky, hazy almost. As if he's not fully there.

Everything's so quick to fade. It's so apathetic. He does this every morning. Makes himself look presentable, gets the hit of stimulant from the nicotine in his cigarette, and then everything fades again.

Then there's the commute to Spirits and Such. He leaves his apartment, and it still has that same shaky, hazy feel. It very much feels like he's not fully present for that walk. Literally, it'll jump/fade between different parts of his walk. It's like there's a fog around everything he's doing, but he'll remember the little things that stuck out. The little things that broke his routine (the people running, the cat).

Then, finally, he sees Mob. This is kind of an obvious thing to point out-- but at the end of all of that routine, Mob is the one who brings color into his world. I think it's also interesting that we never see Reigen's actual face in the outro. We see him from the back, and we see him smoking, but that's the closest we get. He's at a distance, everything hazy and disconnected.

This is how depression is when you've been living with it for so long.

Reigen still has to go to his job, still has to "be an adult", so it's caused him to just live with this depression. It's that feeling of emptiness that's so hard to describe to anyone who hasn't been depressed. Like you're just going through the motions, unable to connect with the world around you. You don't even know anything's wrong, because this is just how things are. Living life becomes apathetic. I think that's what stuck out the most about the outro.

[shaunamilfman]

Jackie Taylor with an s/o that plays video games

pre-crash headcanons

Jackie Taylor is for sure a hater of any hobby you have. Why would you want to have a hobby when you could just watch her being pretty?? 

she’d definitely approach this with the intent of getting you to stop playing and pay attention to her at first. she’s laying all over you absolutely astonished that you’re still playing video games while she’s there. You seriously have a pretty girl in your lap and still want to play minecraft?

She’s realizing the error of this plan as you assume she’s interested and start explaining what’s going on in your game. It wasn’t her intention, but she figures at least this way you’re still paying her attention. She’ll get what she can get.

Jackie would end up getting really interested in the story line and would get upset with you if you even thought about playing it without her. she asks you so many dumb questions about game mechanics and makes you go through every single dialog option that it takes you like 40 hours to finish a 20 hour game

Jackie would get really into competitive games on your behalf. like she'd sitting there cheering you on like she's watching a fucking soccer game. Jackie buys you headphones with a mic so she can start shit talking people you play against. she gets really into the spirit of the competition man. 

Jackie talking about you embarrassing her after she shit talked everyone and you died like 3 minutes in lmao. all “how could you do this to me 😔” and shit. i just know Jackie Taylor would be an absolute menace on a mic regardless of if you had the skill to back it up

it's even funnier because she'd be so so bad at it herself. Jackie blows herself up with her own grenade like every time because she hits the wrong button. pouts and gives up after one round. isn't she dreamy?? 🥰🥰

Jackie trying to get into playing games but it's just her running around frolicking in the tall grass and handing you the controller whenever she had to fight someone

speaking of which I just know she went out and bought the pink controller. your black controller was not cute enough for her 

Jackie looks up guides for you whenever you get stuck on something. you think it's sweet but she just gets bored easily

Playing Minecraft with Jackie but all she does is build the house and accidently screw you over. Jackie moves the bed while your gone and completely fucks your spawn point up. Jackie's just like “i wanted to put carpet there 😔” Jackie also dies from falling off the house at some point and is at spawn getting farmed by mobs till you come get her. 

Jackie has you off in the mines for days because she wants an iron block accent wall. she only ever wants the expensive blocks I just know it. she's building your house out of the wood block instead of the planks, and she'll be damned if she's gathering those resources herself

Jackie taking your diamond armor to wear while she builds the house because “it's prettier than iron 🥰🥰.”

You come back from a long day of mining and Jackie wants to show you the heart shaped leaves on the trees that took her an hour to do. 

Jackie's house gets blown up by a creeper and she's beside herself over it I just know it

you make the mistake of showing Jackie the Sims because you think she might like it. she's obsessed immediately. 

she plays it on her regular laptop and it sounds like an airplane taking off 

Jackie has a painstakingly perfect recreation of your place with you guys in it, and she will make this your problem

sim you cheats on sim Jackie and she won't speak to you for days. she texts you a picture of the notification like “wowwwwwww. okay.” it does not matter to her that it was a video game lmaoo

catching Jackie recreating a girl who flirted with you so she can lock her in the pool to drown

Jackie picking your outfit out one day and you're just staring at her suspiciously

"what? 😁" / "these kind of look like the outfits you put us in your game" / "pffff. whattttt?”

you'll fall asleep to Jackie playing it and wake up and she's still there. it gets so bad you and Shauna have to stage an intervention. 

Jackie gets pissed whenever your character can marry/date another character. She found out you married Haley in Stardew Valley and still glares at you whenever she sees a coconut. “why don't you go tell your WIFE 🙄.” my petty queen. 

trying to get Jackie to play a resident evil game but she cries like ten minutes in because she's so stressed/scared from the background noises. three creek floor noises and she's gone. hasn't even gotten in the house yet 

Jackie grows to really love the fact that you have a hobby she can also enjoy/participate in with you. Jackie loves to spend all her time and energy with you, even if you aren't giving her your full attention like she'd prefer. 

Jackie makes you pick all the nice dialog lines because she'll get upset if your character is mean. She has such strong opinions about dialog choices that she'll argue with you for like ten minutes over why you should pick a certain choice even though it has absolutely no impact on the story

Jackie definitely cheats at choice games and knows all the possible consequences for every single choice. you go to steal a candy bar or something and she's like “NOOO!”

slightly unrelated but Jackie would totally pick bae>bay without hesitation. Everyone in the town is dead? small price to pay for lesbians

going feral over the idea Jackie Taylor sitting across your lap scrolling on Pinterest while you have your arms around her holding the controller as you play

[sgiandubh]

Autopsy of a gay lie: the Wikipedia trail

“You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.”

― Abraham Lincoln

For starters, sorry for the length and numerous screencaps. It is an investigation, after all and these are sorely needed.

Never underestimate the conjugated power of Internet, a Sunday afternoon and the lightbulb moment that can happen while baking something, because you know, people have also to reward themselves at some point.

I might have fucked up my foolproof Lemon Squares recipe, but I regret nothing. It took me three hours I could have gratefully used to finish that spirits post, but this is too damn good not to share.

Remember Meow Kabob's cross my heart and hope to die pinky swear she found confirmation of Data Lounge's allegations on Wikipedia, out of all places? How she regularly unburies that infamous screenshot listing S under the Wiki "Gay Actors" category? How she told us, filthy and uneducated shipper mob, over and over again, that story about STARZ people scouring the Internet far and wide and scrubbing any gay reference related to S, as soon or shortly after he was cast as JAMMF?

I can confidently prove now Lincoln's perennial truths I quoted above apply to this situation.

I was just pouring my lemon juice, eggs, flour and sugar mix over the hot and nutty shortbread when I stopped in my tracks: 'wait a second, isn't Wikipedia an open source project? BUT OF COURSE IT IS, SILLY COW - yes, I very often talk to myself like that. RUN. NOW. I HAVE TO KNOW.'

Sure enough, like death and taxes, the full edit list of S's Wikipedia page was there for everyone to see:

Even better, since Internet is forever, we have full access to all these edits and can take screenshots.

This is how Sam's Wikipedia odissey started, on November 11th 2007, when he was the complete underdog:

A ' strapping lad with natural dark blonde hair and 6'2'' tall', ideal for the role of Alexander the Great - pious silence and RIP. I grinned, because it sounds well, naïve? It also sounds gay, perhaps? What else does it prove, other than the gay crowd has an acute interest for novelty and a wandering eye?

Nothing. Not even remotely related to S.

Also, note the two classification categories: British TV actor stubs/ British actor stubs. Mark them, they stayed still and alone for a looooong time.

Up until 2009, in fact, when the wikientry was no longer considered a stub and even got several category additions:

Then again, some movin' on up, on that semi-dormant page, in 2013. Totes normal:

By early 2014, even more interest in S commands an expanded webpage and a longer, more detailed, category listing:

Let's quickly peruse 2015...

2016...

The incorrect Irish descent category stayed there for about ten days, until removed by another user. This is how it is done and it is then added to the list:

2017, 2018, 2019, early 2020, no change in the categories, but all hell broke lose content-wise. From Cirdan, the 'estranged brother' acting in a very gay connotated theatre production I have never heard about, in London, September 2016...

...... to a woman named Tiffany Trach who used to dream the impossible dream, in October 2016 (and she was not the only one, far from it)...

...to some halfwit being rightfully slapped for adding brainless Flukenzie Floozy content in March 2017:

By that time, I was getting supremely bored clicking on links and wanted to pack the tent and throw my lemon squares in the trash bin. But, lo and behold, what do I see on January 26th 2020:

With the tag possible vandalism:

Whodunnit?

A very brave person, hiding under a string of random numbers...

... and one single contribution EVER to the Wikipedia juggernaut. This is what I would call a targeted attack:

It stayed like that, unmolested, for five days only, until the user Spiderpig662 decided enough is enough and did something about it...

....categories being then restored to the previous wording:

The last vicious gay reference on Wikipedia dates back to May 28th 2020 (Ha-wa-wee, anyone?), was labeled as 'hate speech' & promptly removed:

Where wuffter is, in British Cockney slang:

Same modus operandi, this time an IP address, pinging in (you simply can't make this shit up, can you?)...

County Durham, FYI.

I then asked myself when exactly did Meow Kabob appear on Tumblr?

Even more exactly, on...

That is, to say the least, a troubling coincidence.

I do not imply anything, I have no wish to attack anyone. All I am saying, is that particular argument, which this user is shouting anytime she is prompted to, had a very short online lifespan. How could an American woman, who appeared in this fandom shortly afterwards, have known about changes operated for five days only, by an unknown user, on the open source webpage of a B-listed British actor?

I have only one question, Your Honor:

WHY?

I rest my case.

[Edit]: To make it maybe more clear, I now know where the person adding that category lives, thanks to Wikipedia's own tracking system:

No surprises here:

Augusta. Georgia. USA.

Now, yes. Now I rest my case.

[mp100days]

077 - sorry, nothing ambitious tonight !! just more ageswap doodles :)

maybe… a little bit of as!character ideas under the cut?

-mogami and reigen are very close childhood friends; both lived in rather neglectful households so they spent a lot of their time outside of school hanging out.

-mogami's. er. he's a bit of a brat in the sense he doesn't like being told what to do and is extremely stubborn and does not hesitate at all to act on grudges but he means well enough, and has a desire to assist others. although he does have a tendency to push his emotions and baggage onto reigen.

-somewhere along the line mogami seeks help concerning his psychic powers, and ends up meeting mob, who runs a bit of a counselling-for-espers-turned-exorcism business, who started it because he wanted to give guidance to younger espers who needed assistance- something mob didn't get to have.

-an accident happens on an exorcism outing, where mogami loses control of his own abilities and nearly caves-in an abandoned parking lot right on top of both of them. the stress after the incident causes mogami to impulse-leave spirits and such and skip school for a few days.

-mogami eventually returns to school one day, under intense amounts of stress, but gets into an argument with reigen that spirals into a playground fistfight, and doesn't return again.

-a week later or so(?) mogami hasn't returned at all. reigen visits multiple times, to knock on his door or leave him a text, but there's no response at all. eventually, an investigation is held, where mogami turns up missing. (mogami's mother is still alive, but her condition has worsened and is subsequently moved to a hospital for recovery.)

-after being barred from getting involved in the official investigation, reigen starts his own search. it leads him to mob, an esper running a psychic consultation office. reigen, thinking mob is somehow definitely involved in this, pretends (very badly) to be an esper, and practically begs mob to make him his apprentice, looking to earn his trust and wheedle out what happened to mogami.

-ah... i haven't written out how all the arcs play out, but i think that, eventually, reigen starts forgetting about trying to use mob to get information out of him, and starts to genuinely enjoy spending time at spirits and such and going on exorcisms. mob finds reigen a little bit endearing, if not a bit of a brat at times. reigen encourages mob to start using his powers again, to see them as a part of him rather than a curse- something he's practically locked away within himself for years.

-in the six months since mogami's disappearance, reigen also befriends serizawa, starts a fight with the school's popular clique (Claw), confuses a spirit-possessed boy to be mogami, goes on a spirits and such field trip to look for aliens, and a lot of other things...

-ah... mogami and reigen's friendship wasn't very healthy, even as kids. both of them were very codependent on each other, and often felt stuck to each other in a silent and suffocating way. in mogami's absence, reigen sort of relearns how to unstick from people, and realize he needs to follow his own path, and plan out his own future.

-i'm not sure how the mogami arc will go. i may come up with it in the future... thank you for reading all the way through, though!!

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Les aspirations les plus absurdes et les plus téméraires ont parfois conduit à des succès extraordinaires.

- Vauvenargues

St. Moritz has been a famous health resort in Engadine since the 19th century. At first, it was only frequented by spa guests, before the village developed into a high alpine sports centre, and for a time it was a playground for the rich and famous. There’s still some of that element present but not as in its hey day of the 70s. For nine months of the year it’s just another picturesque village in the gorgeous Swiss Alps, with Lake St. Moritz lying at its heart.

Crucially it is quietly forgotten by the outside world. Residents can breathe and go about their daily chilled out lives. For those precious nine months it was great to hike and ski there as my boarding school wasn’t too far away from getting there. But the other four months of the year, the high season, it gets flood with skiers and altogether more showy crowd.

The frozen surface of the lake, which can only be described as a desert of snow, now serves as a symbol of the resort itself. From nine months of natural bliss to four months of chaos and madness. Every time the ice lends its surface to polo tournaments, horse races, and the wealthy and beautiful make the pilgrimage down the mountains from their grand hotels, St. Moritz seems to transform. St. Moritz’s newest ‘gimmick’ for the past three years or so has been to serve the International Concours of Elegance St. Moritz - or The ICE St. Moritz - as a kind of classic car museum with an adventurous character.

Since the first ever The ICE St. Moritz in 2019, historic rally cars have been exhibited to the sports car-crazy public on the opening day, before demonstrating their horsepower on the ice racetrack on the second day of the event. However, the fact that The ICE is taking place on Lake St. Moritz, of all places, is no coincidence. In 1985, a group of Scottish and British sportsmen drove their vintage Bentleys to St. Moritz to celebrate the centenary of the Cresta Run (an eccentric and high spirited toboggan amateur race). As part of the festivities, they drove their cars on the racecourse across the frozen Lake St. Moritz.

This year, however, the ICE St. Moritz evolved slightly differently. For the first time, the event was held on two days: Friday 24 and Saturday 25 February. On the first day, the lake was transformed into an open-air museum, where the jury evaluated the cars on display from an aesthetic perspective. Then, on the second day, the actual race took place, whereupon the jury evaluated the classic cars from a performance perspective.

This year there were five category winners. In the ‘Open Wheels’ category, the 1958 Maserati 420M/58 “Eldorado” held its own. Meanwhile, the ‘Barchettas on the Lake’ category crowned the Ferrari 500 Mondial Series II from 1955 as the winner. My personal favourite, the aforementioned Ferrari 250 Testarossa ‘Lucybelle’ emerged as the winner in the ‘Le Mans 100’ category. As expected, Lancia Strato’s HF Zero of 1970 came out on top in the ‘Concept Cars & One Offs’ category. Last but not least, judges crowned the 1958 Bentley S1 Continental Drophead Coupé as the winner of the ‘Queens on Wheels’ category.

The evening gala took place at Badrutts Palace, which towers over the city like a castle with its high stone walls. In the stimulating semi-darkness and under shimmering candlelight, riders, collectors, enthusiasts, the public and media from all over the world celebrated the conclusion of one of the most anticipated competitions in the Engadine. Overall it’s spectacular fun and contrary to what one might believe it really does draw the car enthusiast crowd rather than the snob mob. It’s a very chilled event and bags of fun.

[holeintheboat]

The Outsiders Mafia AU (Headcanons)

!!WARNING: This may contain some spoilers!!!

-Johnny loves Jazz (blues are a close second)

-Darrel is called ‘Superman’ because he once stopped mid getaway to help a woman cross the street

-The entire mafia group worships Frank Sinatra

-Tim got his scar in a violent one-on-one fight with Dallas, which also led to him losing the eye

-Johnny is a FANTASTIC cook, and shares his love through food

-Ponyboy used to watch a ton of Mafia/Secret Agent movies to ‘study’ for his future job

-The Shepherds are all from Sicily, and lived there for most of their teen years

-Johnny learned to speak several languages so that he make international deals

-Angela puts hours of efforts into her curls, and once killed a man for trying to run his fingers through them to flirt

-Curly prides himself in his height, he grew to the same height as Tim just a year before the events of ‘No Permanent Death’ and loves to remind everyone

-Johnny actually has a hatred for alcohol, but drinks it (or pretends to) to make himself seem older

-Tim will only ever drink beer

-Dallas became an assassin because he wanted to be like Charlie Chan and almost quit when he realized the man was, in fact, not an assassin

-Johnny has faked his own death about six times, and has gotten creepily good at it

-Darry hates swearing, and only does it when he’s very very upset

-Darrel is the only Curtis who can speak more than just English, He learned Italian so he could understand exposed messages within the Mob

-Dallas has actually run into the Shepherds several times, he never realized Johnny was Bambi because usually the boss doesn’t participate in the fights

-The socs do exist in this universe!! Most of them are businessmen/women who the mob has killed :P

-Sylvia also exists!! She is Dally’s ex-girlfriend, she left him after she figured out he kills people for a living

-Soda and Steve are still dating Evie and Sandy in this verse. Sandy isn’t aware of what Soda does, Evie actually is also a member of the mob and often helped out Steve at work

-When Mr.Shepherd died, all of his jewelry was given to Johnny because he was taking his place. The only thing he kept was a ring (a thick, gold, engraved ring with a red ruby) the rest was given to the Shepherds to disperse amongst themselves

-The Shepherds each got one ear pierced when they were teens to be more like their father

-Johnny sees the Shepherds as his equals, which is the reason they all dress similarly. This is also why it doesn’t occur to someone that he is the boss.

-Angelas callsign “Bella” comes from the word Bello: which means Beautiful in Italian

-Johnny once shot a very important client just because they shoved Curly

-Curly is actually really bad at his job, but gets away with it because of pure luck

-Soda got the name ‘Dice’ because he's known for taking chances on the job

-Johnny called Tim ‘Scarface’ after he lost his eye in an attempt to raise his spirits, and the name just stuck

-Tim has a glass eye, but often takes it out because he thinks its funny how grossed out his coworkers get

-Johnny wanted to be a musician, and can play the sax and guitar (he couldn’t decide if he wanted to be Louis Armstrong or Chuck Berry lmao)

-Curly wholeheartedly thought he and Johnny were related for most of his life, because he wasn’t on the mission where they found him

-Johnny gives out most of the nicknames, he was actually the first person to call Darry ‘Superman’

-The Sicilian Mafia is usually very specific about only letting in Italians. Johnny called bullshit on this, and that's how Steve(slick) and Buck(comma) got put in

-Steve used to work at the DX, he got invited in to the mafia because he was the only one who was willing to take Johnny’s car (all of his former coworkers thought a scruffy child with a century old car wouldn’t pay well)

-Buck got invited in after Tim and Johnny saw a man throw a drink on him (he beat the man to a pulp and Johnny said he had good enough aim to work for them)

-Angela LOVES compliments (She forces her brothers to hype her up 24/7)

-Johnny holds large dinners with everyone who works under him once a month to get to know them. The reason so many people are willing to take orders from him is because they know he’s the kindest boss they’ll get

-Tim is incredibly well-versed in dressing wounds, it's become somewhat of his job

-Curly cannot aim for shit, and has repeatedly just handed the gun to someone else

-The Curtis’s used to have a dog before Ponyboy was born, but they had to get rid of it to be able to pay for his upbringing

-Curly is known for full-on tackling people in fights, which actually works incredibly well

-Johnny is a horrible driver and has hit several pedestrians, animals, and trees (and got very upset after each one)

-Ponyboy has a binder that he uses as a dairy, he had pages dating back to his parents death

-Curly once tried to tackle Darry on a mission, Darry then simply pulled him off and tossed him out of the room

-Darrel refuses to do any work that involves a woman, and has lost to the Shepherds several times because he wouldn’t detain Angela

-Soda once drove a getaway car straight into the side of a building, and it almost got him and Darry killed

-Johnny paid for Steve to get braces, and he had the nickname ‘Lock Jaw’ for a VERY long time

-The Curtis’s often have movie nights!!

-Johnny refuses to hurt children, and often makes someone take the kid to another room if they do anything violent

-Ponyboy LOVES the arts, and his knowledge of Italian literature and art has saved him many times

-Angela is an excellent baker, and often tries to get her brothers to help her (they fuck it up every single time)

-Ponyboy still has nightmares in this universe, and has climbed into Soda/Darrys bed several times

-Darry hates that Pony often sees him as the bad guy, but knows he has to be to keep him safe

-Johnny is known for having an odd sense of humor and it has almost gotten him killed a million times

-Tim has “la famiglia” tattooed on his right bicep, with three little hearts under it (very similar to the one his father has on his neck)

-Though Steve doesn’t have and important role in the Mafia, him and Johnny are very good friends

-Tim is what's known as the ‘consigliere’ which means he serves as an adviser to the leader and resolves disputes within the family. (Johnny refused to make anyone the underboss because he didn’t like to think of any of them beneath him in rank)

-Ponyboy is a stargazer

-Johnny was been confused for a girl several times due to his long hair, but he refuses to cut it

-Tim gets very upset when people flirt with Angela (he’s the definition of a over-protective older brother)

-Johnny has never dated anyone- he knows whomever they are will be put in danger, and he doesn’t like the thought of people he loves fearing for their lives

-Soda once got a concussion because he ran into a wall during a chase with Curly, Curly only remembers him as ‘the wall kisser’

-The Shepherds all have a violent hatred for Ponyboy because Johnny told them about what happened in the first chapter (though Johnny has never spoken about him with even an ounce of malice)

-Darrel has been shot many times, so much so that the hospital knows him by name

-Johnny can’t stand hospitals because his parents once left him at one for three weeks. So even if he is on his damn deathbed he will NEVER go to one

-Just about everyone in the Mafia is not proud to be in it, but they all know it’s the best thing they can do with their backgrounds

-Buck and Johnny are rather close, and Buck often makes him fake drinks (ones without alcohol) because he knows how much the boy hates it

-Darry and Soda are both REALLY into cars. it’s actually helped them a lot in car chases, because they can always remember the make and model of the car

-The Shepherd Family was actually not very well known until Johnny took over, but he still worships Mr.Shepherd as if he’s the most famous man on earth

-most named characters has been to prison at one point (aside from Angela, Curly, Ponyboy, and Darrel)

-The job as Boss is incredibly stressful, and Tim has taken over for Johnny on several occasions

-Tim taught Angela, Curly, and Johnny hand-to-hand combat. He’ll often brag about it to anyone who will listen.

-Johnny goes by the Shepherd name, and only signs ‘Cade’ under important documents

-Angela has the best aim out of her entire family

-Tim actually was very upset when Johnny got his job as boss, but got over when he realized just how much the job SUCKEDD

-Two-Bit and Dallas worked together when they were rookies, but Dallas eventually moved on to do bigger and better things

-Ponyboy loves August weather, but feels he can’t enjoy those months becuase that’s when his folks died

-Two has run into Angela several times and made several (failed) attempts to flirt with her

-Johnny and Dallas have actually had several conversations in this universe, But Dallas never thought he was worth killing

-Sometimes random pastries/foods would appear on the Curtis doorstep during the Great Depression, they never knew where or who it came from but it helped them to survive (take a wild guess who made them lol)

-Johnny used to play the guitar while Angela sang to help Curly sleep <3

-Darry has never once touched a cigarette, but will drink jus tan out anything put in front of him

-Pony LOVES Italian food, but refuses to eat it because it just feels wrong to him

-Red is Angela’s favorite color, which is why the whole group is forced to wear something red (she picks out their clothes literally every day)

-Mrs.Shepherd died while giving birth to Curly, so Johnny and Curly have both never met her

-The Shepherds love spring because it reminds them of Sicily

-Bucks original nickname was FAG (Funny Accent Guy), given to him by Curly

-The Curtis brothers were all relatively short as kids, but shot up the second they hit puberty

-Tim tried to kidnap Louis Armstrong for Johnny's birthday (it did not work.)

-The Mafia has two main cover restaurants. One being a bar (that we see in the first chapter) and the other being an off-brand Italian place (Whenever someone fails an important job, they are banished to work at one of these two places)

-Johnny is the shortest person on his team, so he’ll often just step on their feet when they upset him

-Darrel is an avid people watcher

-Johnny actually looked up to many of the agents, and will excitedly tell people whenever he gets in a fight with one of them (even if he completely beats their ass he's still a total fanboy)

-Dallas has a really good memory, and can easily recall every fight he’s ever been in

If you have any other things you want me to write into the story, but them into the comments :D

[scribefindegil]

god. i’m still real fucked up over Manga Mogami Arc, and not for any of the reasons people warned me about. like, Mogami’s world ramps up the violence above what they could show in the anime (which, thanks Bones, I personally could not have handled watching that so I’m glad they toned it down), but that makes sense for him. he’s a powerful evil spirit who’s created a hell dimension. it’s brutal, but it isn’t unexpected.

what got me was what happened before that.

[Image ID: A partial page from the Mob Psycho 100 manga. Panel 1: A psychic picks up an ornate staff and says, “So she beats us to death, one by one ... or we beat on her, all together.” Panel 2: Another psychic, sweating, asks, “You really think the client would agree to that ...?” Panel 3: A closeup of the first psychic, veins bulging and eyes narrowed. He says, “The client is currently bleeding out on the floor. Open your eyes. This is no time for questions about morals and ethics ...” Panel 4: Dialogue continues, “It’s looking more like ... kill or be killed.” The crowd of psychics looks distraught. Panel 5: Reigen, with a horrified expression, thinks “Things were already bad, but ...” End ID]

So for those of you who haven’t read the manga, there’s a point after Mogami has trapped everyone in the basement and revealed the extent of his power where some of the other psychics decide that their best strategy for getting out of this situation is murder! Cool! (Does someone point out that Mogami’s spirit has already jumped into a different vessel and there’s nothing to stop him from doing it again? Yes! Does this give them pause? No!)

I think this is really interesting, because in the anime the real threat in this arc always comes from Mogami himself, even if it’s enacted through his spirits in the mindscape. But in the manga there’s this part that still takes place in the real world, with regular people who aren’t being controlled or possessed, and because their lives are in danger they’re willing to try to kill a middle-school girl to save themselves. Mogami must have been so chuffed. Here are these people all ready to prove his point about the darkness at the heart of human nature and how no one really cares about anyone but themselves, and he hardly even put them up to it! It reminds me of the part with the astral projection stalker, where it’s one thing to see this kind of behavior from an evil spirit, but it hits harder when it comes from living humans.

Also really important to note that they got this idea because of Reigen. Obviously he was not encouraging murder! But it was his successful knee-strike exorcism of Jodo that gave the other psychics the idea that they could defeat Mogami by doing physical violence to his host.

[Image ID: Jodo lies unconscious on the floor. Someone says, “You saw what just happened. Jodo was possessed ... but that dude’s kick took him down! We can try the same thing against her.” End ID]

And Reigen can tell that he won’t be able to talk them out of it! He freezes up! It’s Shinra who, very bravely and very stupidly, runs forward and tries to stop them and gets his face bashed in for it (i’m not screencapping this because it makes me too upset).

It just. It’s already so much in the anime when Mob refuses to accept Mogami’s worldview after six months in his world. It’s even more when the last things he experienced in the real world were so bleak. But he’s so, so brave and so, so stubborn, and he’s willing to believe that all those people deserve the chance to change too.

[candyskiez]

Thinking about why Separation arc works so well again.

There's already a very good post about how it makes you think it'll have Reigen fail at keeping up the business on his own, and apologize to Mob to get him back because he can't do it without him. Only to have him actually be perfectly capable of running the business by himself without even touching real spirits. But why didn't they do that?

It wouldn't have actually meant anything. Reigen apologizing to Mob wouldn't have meant shit, because it would just come off as using him. Mob going back to him wouldn't be satisfying or a relief. It'd just feel like he was going back to an unhealthy environment. No character development, no actual satisfying resolution.

What they do instead works so much better, and I've been thinking about why. Because I think about this show way too much, let me live.

Reigen was perfectly fine money wise before Mob showed up. Money problems aren't even implied to be a reason why he wants to leave spirits n such. It's all just being unsatisfied. He's restless and unfulfilled, and nothing really catches his interest. And then actual company shows up, and gets him talking to people, and gives him something worthwhile to do.

Most of Reigens worst moments have nothing to do with money. His controlling tendencies come out when he feels left behind or like someone is a better person than him. His toxic traits are so painfully human. He lashes out when he feels like his place in someone's life is in danger, he's not honest because he feels like nobody can love him as he is, and he doesn't try to change because he feels like he's inherently bad and cannot get better. Because of this, he doesn't stop and recognize he's hurting people. He thinks of him being a bad person as Inherent, not actions he can stop doing.

This is why it's so so SO important that there be a moment in the arc where he stops and looks back at how he treats people. He needs to realize that him being Bad isn't determined by just being bad by existing, but by what he says and does. Mob didn't leave because Reigen is inherently bad. Mob left because Reigen treated him badly.

If the Reigen and Mob conflict had been resolved with Reigen apologizing because he needed him for his business, it would've come off like Reigen didn't care about Mob. But because it became clear that Reigen didn't need Mob for his business, it tells the audience that Reigen really fucking cares about Mob AND why Reigen had actually acted the way he did:

Because he was a sad bastard who's scared of being alone.

And also, if they had Reigen just take on a spirit alone, the audience wouldn't have had nearly as much reason to be sympathetic towards him. It would've just felt like Reigen was being an idiot. But because of how they set up Reigen's downfall, we're so much more sympathetic to him. He works hard and gets what he thinks he wants, only to be set up by a guy who he saved the life of. It makes us feel extremely bad for him and like his ridicule is completely undeserved.

It also tells us something about him. Reigen has had so much experience where doing the right thing is punished. Reigen feels like it's too late to be good. Reigen falls into thinking he cannot be good, so he needs to buckle in and keep going. Because it shows Reigen being punished for being good as well as being punished for being bad, it makes what Reigen did feel so much more human. You're more inclined to sympathize with him, because it's not just about money. It's about the fact he was an asshole to his only friend because he felt like if he had other friends, he'd like them more and leave him. And seeing him face negative consequences for Doing The Right Thing as well as the wrong thing makes you understand why he just...doesn't try. If that makes sense lmao.

The way they constructed the arc makes us sympathize with Reigen while he's acting like an absolute asshole, while also setting up Reigen stopping and asking himself "why DID I do this, why DID I choose this path, why DO I treat people like this" perfectly.

Tldr, it's a really good arc.

[quirkle2]

the angst in your zombie au bREAKS MY HEART INTO PIECES (I LOVE IT VERY MUCH)

okay, okay, so!! if the kagebros got separated from reigen and teru when mob is still fine, i imagine that their reunion would be hEARTWRENCHING also, i'm a bit curious, would mob still be able to recognize teru and reigen? or would he thought about them as strangers?

(tbh, following your lore, i imagine mob would act a similarly like nezuko from demon slayer? but instead of little hums, his zombie sounds would more like babbling and incoherent mumbles :"D)

the reunion is fuckin AWFUL man it's SO gut-wrenching. both reigen and teru feared this for Months while looking for the brothers; pretty much the worst case scenario was that mob or ritsu or Both turned—a lot of humans prefer death over being a zombie any day, so the idea of ritsu or mob having to go through that and wander around aimlessly until starvation or smth else gets them,,,

it hurts them so much to think about. teru forces himself not to dwell on it and he's pretty good at that but reigen thinks abt it a lot and he's honestly not sure what scenario is worse. best case is that they're both alive and unturned, obviously, but what's the worst case? you'd think it's both of them getting killed, or turning, but reigen also knows that if One of them got killed/turned, the other would probably lose their mind, especially if they had to watch. the fact that they're kids makes this all three times worse and reigen has to act like he's Not worrying himself sick over the brothers while he tries to keep teru in high spirits

the reunion itself is rly fuckin gut-wrenching for them. they see mob from afar, wandered off just a bit from ritsu and tome who are just around the bend looting a place, and they book it bc ofc they do, it's mob!! but then they see how pale he is, and when he turns around they don't see that light in his eyes that's usually there and the red is dulled and dead looking,, teru almost moves in for a hug before he realizes mob looks vastly different when he Rly takes him in, and mob doesn't rly react too much besides staring at them blankly. the obvious answer is almost too horrifying to even consider, so it takes them a minute to rly,,realize what's going on

tome comes around the bend and shouts, cuz when humans and zombies mix it's usually guns pointed at zombie heads. ritsu comes running out after her and when he sees reigen and teru his thoughts go, in order: holy shit is that reigen and tero ohmygod oh my god they're alive they're alive ohmy god i could fucking cry, and ohmy god they see shige ohno oh no oh no

ritsu sounds like a lunatic when he pulls mob away from them on instinct and says that he's safe to be around and that he's "still him" and he's "not gone" and he's very aware of that. he's very, intimately aware that he sounds fuckin crazy, bc ofc he does, this is what all the crazy people in zombie movies sound like. but he doesn't care, he doesn't care if reigen or teru dismiss him as nuts—he has to make them understand that his brother is still in there somewhere

and yeah, they both kinda think that ritsu's lost his marbles a little bit, but while teru is focused on that and the fact that mob doesn't look like he's rly tuned into Anything that's happening rn, reigen is a bit more focused on the fact that both ritsu and mob look awful? they're both very skinny and very dirty, obviously barely scraping by. they're cut up and ritsu's jacket is basically blood and dirt with a little bit of green fabric mixed in. and just by the look in ritsu's eyes, reigen can tell, man ... reigen can tell ritsu is like.not okay at this point he's kinda lost it.

i think the most painful thing about this whole reunion in general is that later that night, when reigen and teru r finally like ok we get it he's,, he's still mob. we believe you (they want to believe him... [they Do believe him, later, wholeheartedly]) and they settle down someplace safe, teru asks how long mob's been like this. and ritsu has to answer "since we got separated" and they both have that to stew over while everybody else sleeps

they realize that ritsu likely watched mob turn, watched the entire process, and that process takes a long time. it's at least a week of deteriorating motor functions and cognitive skill, and the fact that ritsu stayed for that to keep mob company is .ough. and it doesn't end there bc ritsu obviously stayed after that too

given how these things usually go, ritsu probably did think about killing mob. it probably did cross his mind, bc that's basically what everybody's been told to do. kill them before they have a chance to do any more damage. and it's obvious that ritsu did not have it in him

ritsu not only did not have it in him to kill him, he didn't even have it in him to leave him there. the kid fucking took him with him. a zombie. and he's somehow made it work, for months. and the next few days are filled with watching him still treat mob like a brother and take care of him and gently steer him away from a bird he tries to follow down the wrong street.ritsu is as gentle and kind as he's ever been with his brother. and even tho they're both hungry and tired and barely making it, ritsu is doing a rly good job taking care of mob with what he's been given

the kid obviously wholeheartedly believes in a cure and that mob is still There. he's gone through the trouble to take care of him, and the grief of continuously seeing a loved one that many would consider effectively dead, to get him that cure. to get him his brother back. and mob doesn't seem to be in any pain or distress, so reigen and teru think that this path ritsu has followed is probably infinitely kinder than the mercy kill method they've been taught to do

i think they have a new respect for ritsu, after that reunion

[swapdreamarchive]

Swapdream's Story (full)

(BODY IS DIRECTLY TAKEN FROM THE 5 PART NARRATIVE POSTED BY @ song-song-a. This version is all parts compiled and reworded for ease of consumption. Please click to read the original.)

Swapdream centers around the original timeline of Dreamtale. 

Dream (older) and Nightmare (younger) are twin brothers. They were created by Nim, a tree spirit, to guard the positive (golden) and negative (black) apples of the Tree of Feelings. Respectively, Dream is guardian of positivity, while Nightmare is guardian of negativity. The tree is situated near a village that calls upon Dream’s help constantly and harasses his brother without his knowledge. 

After a scary storm, Dream makes a flag with a moon and stars on it.  He gifts it to Nightmare, and promises it will always protect him. 

One day, Dream returns from a trip to the village and witnesses Nightmare’s injuries after he was beaten and harassed by a mob of villagers. Disturbed, he is unable to sleep that night and confronts the village at dawn.

Dream asks the village why they harass Nightmare. The village declares that they have good reason for their actions, and that his brother is “disgusting.”

Dream demands for them to treat Nightmare well, but is cursed and stoned for his fierce opposition. For the first time, Dream hates the villagers-but knows that angering them further would prevent him from being able to protect Nightmare. Unfortunately, this incident of opposition has enraged the villagers beyond understanding.

The days following the confrontation, Dream has remained by his brother’s side. The villagers begin to gossip that Dream has become ‘strange’ due to his brother. In the past, Dream has always helped the villagers and socialized with them, but has stopped completely due to his discovery. As a result, the villagers became even more jealous and enraged with Nightmare, while missing Dream’s presence. 

So, they begin to plot Nightmare’s murder.

A few days later, the villagers visit the tree to draw Dream away from his brother. They appease him by apologizing to him for beating and harassing Nightmare. They tell Nightmare that they’d like to apologize in a ‘special way’ for bothering him, and ask Dream for privacy.

Foolishly, Dream believes them, and readily agrees. He departs with a golden apple to assist the village on his trip out.

In his absence, the villagers curse and stone Nightmare, calling him a ‘devil’ and threatening to kill him. All the while, Nightmare begs them not to hurt him, apologizing.

Meanwhile, Dream realizes that he has been deceived. There is no one in the village. He understands then that Nightmare is alone with the people who beat him, and runs back to the tree. 

The closer he becomes to the center of the mob, the more cursing and yelling he can hear. Terror rising in his chest, he fights through the crowd to find his brother. Upon seeing him, he runs screaming.

Nightmare’s body is covered in blood.

Around him, the villagers make excuses and try to reason with him. They apologize, but stand by their actions as the ‘right thing’, and claim that Nightmare was useless. They state that they need him, therefore he should only rely on them. But their cries are unheard.

Dream shakes his brother’s body frantically. 

Nightmare does not open his eyes.

Some moment later, Dream slowly lays him in the grass. With yellow tears, he screams at the villagers, asking why they beat his brother, claiming that they don’t understand what a good kid Nightmare is. All of his anger and hatred well up in him like flames spreading in a forest, and Dream realizes that he’s been an idiot to believe them at all. His emotions are out of control, and he yells again, asking why they couldn’t have just befriended Nightmare. If Dream was so precious to them, his brother should have been treated the same way.

While Dream sobbed, the villagers were silent, speechless with embarrassment and shame.

The golden apple that Dream took with him slipped out of his arms while he was screaming, and fell upon his tears. His agony evoked something in the golden apple. The two begin to shine brightly, and Nightmare’s nearby wound heals.

His body shifts, and Dream’s concern overtakes him. Then, Nightmare sees him, and bursts into tears. His little brother begs for Dream to protect him, frantically pleading for Dream to stay. He’s utterly terrified, telling Dream that everyone hated him and wanted to kill him.

Soothing Nightmare, Dream feels as if the sky is falling. He thinks: ‘if I had been a little stronger, this wouldn’t have happened…’ 

Then, a warm, motherly voice answers him. ‘Then be strong.’

‘... Who…?’

Dream’s tears slide down his face as he looks for the source. He realizes the voice comes from the golden apple. He picks it up, and as if enchanted, he whispers, “... Mother?”

Unanswering, the voice is kind. ‘Eat the apple, get stronger. That way, you can protect your lovely brother with your own powers.’

“Really?”

‘Yes, everything’s going to be okay. Trust me, eat an apple.’

“But I…” Dream hesitates.

Pleasantly, the voice goes on. ‘If you don’t eat the apple now, you and your brother will die.’

Dream’s yellow eyes widen, and he shakes his head violently. “No, no, no, no, no, no! Why, why?”

'Then eat the apple.’

’Eat, gain strength, be strong.’

‘If you do that, the world will be yours.’

‘Then everything will be better.’

After a moment of thought, Dream reluctantly nodded. “… Okay, only if it helps me protect my brother.”

Meanwhile, Nightmare and the mob look onward in confusion. Dream, holding the apple, appears to be talking to himself-as if the fruit were responding. 

Then, he began to eat the apple. Bite, after bite, after bite… and he began to feel strangely, and continued to eat more, and more, and more. More, more, more, more. The more he ate, the more he wanted-and thought of quitting, but thought of the strength he could have to protect Nightmare. 

As he ate, the golden apples all began to fall from the tree, and he ate them as well, continuing on until there were no more golden apples left hanging from the sacred tree’s branches. 

After the last golden apple had fallen, the black apples began to fall. One after the other, five hundred of them, piling on the ground and falling from their branches for Dream to take.

Nightmare anxiously plucks one from the ground, and thinks it’s strange that they’d fall. He approaches to try and stir Dream, but his pleas go unheard. Despite stating that he’s no longer hurt, and asking if Dream is alright, his older brother is silent.

In fascination, Dream picks up a fallen black apple from the ground.

And disaster strikes. 

The apple loses its natural, night sky color, and begins to glow yellow like a golden apple. To Nightmare’s shock, the sacred tree suddenly begins to shine brightly and grow taller. The rest of the black apples all turn golden.

Nightmare’s fear and confusion heighten as Dream continues to eat the apples, his older brother undisturbed by the changes. The more he eats, the more yellow the sky becomes. 

The crowd of villagers began to scream and howl as the sky became blinding. It glared down at them, blinding them, burning them with intense heat. The land boiled beneath them.

Nightmare fell to his knees, clutching the lone black apple left. He screamed in agony, unable to look upon the dazzling sky, and unable to bear the severe heat. It was as if his eyes were on fire.

Yet, Dream continued to eat. It was as if he didn’t see or hear what was around him, mindlessly devouring one apple after another.

The world was filled with screams of agony. Death filled the air. Bodies burnt and bones melted. Nightmare thought again that he may die if he didn’t do anything, and so he ate the single black apple left. 

But he gained no strength.

And so…

When everyone died, the world was stained with silence.

The glare of the sun’s eye subsided, and the intense heat receded.

Under the tree that burnt long ago, Nightmare slowly opened his eyes from where he fell upon the ground in his pain.

He looked upon himself. Then, at the only other one left in the world.

“Dream…?”

The apples were all gone. His older brother’s head was bowed, casting his expression in stark shadow.

Relieved, he reached out and touched Dream. “Are you okay? I’m so glad you’re alright…!” And immediately after they made contact, he suddenly felt an indescribable, enormous sense of danger.

“Dream…? Brother? Are you okay?”

Dream’s head slowly rose.

“… Oh, brother. ” he softly spoke.

His eyes were burning. They shone brilliantly with light from inside of his body. Moreover, his face was totally different. He no longer smiled as warmly as he used to.

Nightmare couldn’t accept the Dream in front of him. Shaken and incredulous, he could only look on as Dream laughed horribly, like a lunatic. His face stretched with the force of his manic grin. All that Nightmare could do was close his eyes and bow away from the blinding light.

Quietly, Dream began to giggle. He gritted his teeth, and his shoulders shivered with effort, as if he were trying to contain it. Then, a small laugh escaped him, and his jaw unhinged, his voice hoarse with the force of his amusement.

And after his laughter finally ended, he squinted back at his brother-and saw a pair of brilliant wings, shining yellow and golden. Blood streamed out behind his back, but Dream didn’t seem to feel any pain at all. Nightmare closed his eyes again, unable to bear looking directly at him.

“Why won’t you look at me?” He heard Dream giggle.

“I like this new me. I love this new me!” His older brother crowed. “You love me, don’t you? I’m Dream, your brother! Oh, my lovely Nightmare!”

“I’ve done away with all my flaws! Now, I’ve become God!! I’m the best! HAHAHAHA!!!”

“You love me, don’t you? Right, Nightmare? Then you respect me, everyone respects me!! Hahaha!!! ”

Dream continued to laugh as he clutched his brother tightly, embracing him.

Nightmare felt the same agony he experienced when his body was burning. He couldn’t ask any of his questions before he fell unconscious, tumbling into his brother’s arms.

~ END

[delopsia]

I always talk about how Bob evened out Rhett, but not the other way around.

They're two extremes on opposite sides of the spectrum; where Bob is straight-laced, by the book, leads with his head, and vehemently avoids tattoos, alcohol, and even swearing, Rhett is a free spirit who lets his heart decide what he does. The young rebel son who loves the burn of alcohol, bears tattoos of the things he loves most and doesn't concern himself with limiting his language. Bob worries about what others may think; Rhett couldn't give a damn if a mob came after him.

When they first meet, they are attracted to one another like magnets, so wildly different from the other and so curious about what their lives entail.

Yes, Bob's presence leads to Rhett reaching for alcohol less, staying out of bar fights, and putting a little more thought into his actions, but for every lesson he learns, he gives.

Bob's reluctance to drink alcohol draws Rhett into rethinking how much he drinks. Going from getting drunk every Friday night to once a year at best, and that's only if he forgot to count how much he was consuming. But it also encourages Bob's curiosity; he accepts sips of drinks to learn what they taste like and enjoys a sickly sweet wine cooler every now and again.

Rhett's a firm example that swearing isn't such a horrid thing, that Bobby doesn't need to feel guilty for letting a sharp "fuck" past his lips when he stubs his toe on the rocking chair. It's okay to do these things.

Rhett's desire to wear the things that make him feel alive is what draws Bob to wear two small tattoos on his hips. Flowers to represent the two people he loves most. It's delicate, and it's intimate, and it's their own little secret that nobody else knows about.

The presence of a wild-hearted cowboy draws Bob away from his highly structured life and into something new. Of going on late-night drives just for the hell of it, trying the things that scare him and that the opinions of others aren't worth worrying about.

Rhett's a breath of fresh air that reawakens feelings Bob forgot he had. He's the mustang that runs free around Wabang, taunting others with his free spirit, and Bob is the gentle pair of hands that have tamed him. They're no longer two extremes but something unknown, closer to the middle, and it's a stunning perfection that cannot be replicated.

[charaznablescanontoyota]

fic title: on tributaries

on tributaries - cleaning up in the aftermath of the casino debacle, al makes a quiet wish to have an adult in the room. somewhere, a monkey's paw curls into a fist.

al doesn't participate in the interrogation of simon. he hangs back by the table of tied-up apex kids instead, keeping an eye on them to make sure they don't try anything funny. he flinches with them as there's a dull boom from upstairs - mob and trish must really be having it out - and then again as someone kicks the lobby door open from outside.

he drops into a fighting stance. near the front desk, shadow does too, and al can see audrey's hand straying towards her waistband for her gun. they're all tense, ready for a second round to the fight.

the figure that steps through the door is a tall man wearing purple robes, a scowl, and a not-insignificant amount of blood. dragged along behind him is a group of what must be apex kids, yelling and digging their heels into the marble, bound together by some kind of dark and shimmering rope the man has in his fist.

"who," the man growls, "is in charge of these juniors."

audrey and al point in tandem at simon, still melted to the floor. the boy swallows so hard that al sees his adam's apple bob up and down in his skinny throat.

"what's wrong with him?" the man in purple asks, visibly unimpressed.

"he and his little gang tried to raid this place," audrey says. her hand is still carefully close to her gun, but she's propping her palm on her hip, trying to make it look casual. "they didn't do a very good job. he got himself killed."

"and then healed," al chimes in, answering what he's sure the next question out of the man in purple's mouth will be.

the man in purple looks grave. "this boy is a spirit?"

"no, just regular," audrey says, then pauses. "we think, anyway. he was only dead for a second."

"well, why bother healing him?" the man in purple asks. the question is somewhere between bemused and gravely serious. "if he was killed as the consequence of a failed siege, he should stay that way."

"ohohoHO," shadow says, a grin creeping over his face. "THIS guy can hang. what's your name, purple guy? where are you from?"

"...lotus pier," the man in purple says stiffly, and does not give his name. "i would like to know where i am now."

"do you know what a train is?" al asks. it feels like a pressing question.

"i know that since i've found myself here, i've fought a girl who can turn into a bear, my own father, and a group of children who came running at me without warning," the man says. "if i have to fight more people standing between myself and a way home, i will."

so probably a 'no' on knowing what a train is. the man releases whatever magic he's using to hold the captive apex kids in place, the shimmering rope retracting into what al now clocks as a ring on his hand. he gives them a hard stare.

"if you move from that spot, i'll break your legs," he snaps.

"holy shit," shadow says. "can we keep him?"

[puddleofpins]

Why Catnap/Theodore worships the Prototype

This theory contains spoilers for Poppy Playtime Chapter 3. Buckle up, this post is not short. tw for mentions of abuse, many mentions of Christianity/Catholicism and its teachings, enforced religious (specifically Christianity) doctrine, mentions of fictional torture/punishment and inhumane experiments

I’ve seen a few people noticing Catnap/Theodore Grambell was…religious in his devotion to the Prototype, and asking why he’s like this. There’s some hints and pieces to put together that puzzle

1. Catnap uses many words/phrases associated with Christianity (and pretty much all of its branched off religions) to refer to the Prototype and what he means to him. Such as:

• “Salvation”- which means liberation/given freedom from suffering, sin, and evil (referring to the experiments being done on the children by the scientists) This word is used 114 times in the Old Testament of the Bible

• “Rejoice in Him” - Luke 1:47: “and my spirit rejoices in God my savior”

• “my somniferous flock” - referring to Jesus, the son of God, being a shepherd of sheep and also his disciples (yes this does imply Catnap sees himself as a higher being, but only after he is turned into Catnap)

2. Having a shrine to the Prototype, and holding his hands up in prayer/worship to him, like a priest or pastor (or now that I look at it, like Jesus is depicted in many statues)

3. Punishing “heretics” like Dogday, who don’t believe in Catnap’s belief that the Prototype is their savior (this honestly even resembles crucifixion {a punishment used against criminals in the time of the origins of Christianity} with Dogday being held up in a ✝️-like position)

But again, why does he do this? Theodore Grambell seems like a normal child up until then.

We gotta look at the location of Playtime Co.

Now, we haven’t yet been given an exact location, but in a poster in one of the prior chapters it says the Midwest, referring to the Midwestern region in America

doing a few google searches, I found this

Catholic churches, and (I’m assuming the orphanages they hosted) run on donations, and that’s why they are not taxed by the states that they’re in. Oftentimes these orphanages had extremely poor conditions because of low funding and in turn high rates of abuse and even death of the children.

Playtime Co. could’ve bought out countless Catholic orphanages with “donations” to the churches they’re connected to. This would’ve been extremely easy with the lack of regulations and the power of money

There aren’t anymore traditional orphanages in the states today, but 300 is not a number to scoff at. And I’m aware that orphanages in the USA were all closed by 1960, but Poppy was created in 1950. I believe that MOB Entertainment got wonky with the timeline for storytelling purposes because creating Living Sentient Toys in 1950 does not align with real life technological advancements.

What I’m getting at is: I believe Theodore Grambell and other orphans were bought from Catholic orphanages (not all of them of course, just a good chunk of the orphans). Either that, or Theodore was an orphan attending a Catholic school, who was then bought out by Playtime Co.

Think about it, at first, the Playcare must’ve been like heaven to little Theo, especially in comparison to the possible abuse he experienced due to being raised in a Catholic orphanage. Everything is colorful. The adults are so nice and caring, unlike those mean and strict nuns. There’s even toys who can talk and interact with them! All of their needs are provided for, and there’s even dedicated areas to play and have fun!

but then Theo probably starts to see the cracks in this oasis, this heaven:

• Playcare is literally underground and the children are not allowed to go outside

• Anytime one of the children experiences something horrific or abnormal because of a feature of Playcare/Playtime Co. (like Marie Payne who become Mommy Longlegs, or the mentioned “Kevin” in the third tape found in Ch.3) they’re never seen again

• The orphans being said “selected” by the doctors, instead of saying that they were adopted, in I believe the 4th tape

And definitely a lot of other signs I haven’t mentioned, because there must’ve been much more than just what’s been listed.

So Theo starts to get a little wary of what’s around him, a little less trusting of the adults who have been taking care of him and his fellow orphans. This place becomes a little less like heaven and a little more false.

but then he meets a friend!!!!

{insert the picture Theo drew of the Prototype under his bed, because I’m on mobile and have already hit the limit of 10 pictures per mobile post}

A friend that only interacts with him. A friend that is only seen by him, only heard by him, that disappears whenever anyone else comes around. A friend that people don’t believe is real. A friend that sees and hears everything. A friend that gives him little missions because that friend has deemed him worthy of them.

Do you know who that friend sounds like?

God. Or one of the angels sent by God.

THEN on one of these missions, Theodore accidentally gets hurt. He’s electrocuted and close to dying, but his friend who was watching over him saves him from death.

And even after Theo almost dies, he stills tries his hardest to complete these missions give to him by his friend. Because why wouldn’t he? This friend is so special. This friend saved his life because Theo almost died trying to complete the mission he gave him. This friend who is so knowing to the point of being “divine”. This friend who is so similar to the “God” that the nuns he spent his early days with talked about nonstop, he has to be Him.

This leads to Theo being found out and taken as a test subject himself, and subsequently being turned into Catnap; which meant going through horrific and painful experiments. Theo may interpret this as “punishment from following the words and teachings of his God” (definitely an equivalent of Jesus being tortured before his death on the cross), so he might consider himself a bit of a martyr.

Now Theo is no longer a little human boy. Theo is Catnap, and Catnap is much more powerful than humans. He became Catnap because he followed what his Lord told him to do. He was reborn as Catnap because he was such a devoted follower, and now he can complete his Lord’s work even better than he could as a human (literally paralleling Jesus being resurrected).

If we want to get even deeper into this theory and the Christianity parallels, look at Theo’s age and when Catnap was created. It says on the wiki that he was born in the 1980s, and he’s 7 at the time he’s introduced to Playtime Co, which means the year is now 1987. Catnap is made in 1990. That’s 3 years. Jesus after he was beaten, tortured, crucified, and killed, was sealed in a cave. It took 3 days for Jesus to resurrect.

So yeah, Theo was a kid from a Catholic orphanage that was bought out by Playtime Co., who was indoctrinated into Catholicism because he was taught it at such a young age. He’s freed from a hell of an orphanage, to be brought to a false heaven, which leads him to meet his God. That’s why Catnap acts the way he does.