#mostly because I know that plot point in her story is. dark

[duckyhowls]

House of the Dragon Fanfiction Clichè's to definitely avoid.

If you're interested to know 🤗

Okay, let's begin with the basics. Here are the top clichè things in a typical House of the Dragon fanfiction. Most of these pop up in around 98% of stories out there. And since you all always make the character female, that's how I will be addressing them in these clichès. Be mad 🤡

(1) Being the child of Rhaenyra, Alicent, or Daemon.

Just three characters, but the probability of at least one of them being your characters parent is around 87%. Don't get me wrong, this doesn't bother me all that much, but come on guys, give us readers SOME originality!

(2) Being a secret love child, typically of one of these men: Daemon, Cole, or Harwin.

Guys, this was cool back when season 1 first premiered. Now it just makes fanfiction repetitive. Like, the plot twists are just not hitting the spot anymore.

(3) Being one of Rhaenyra's "strong bastards"

This is so typical. If you are Jace's twin you earn extra cliche points. ESPECIALLY when it turns into a plot twist of not actually being Harwin's child and you're either Daemon's or you are Laenor's only true born. Like, come up with new ideas or just scrap it, on god.

(4) Becoming the dragon rider to either: Vermithor, The Cannibal, Grey Ghost or Seasmoke.

I know this is a big one. Personally, I've seen way more Vermithor than Cannibal ones, but I'd say it's an easy 50/50. Other times it's Grey Ghost, which is just utterly boring in my opinion (mostly because yall forget you have dragons half the time until it's important), or it's Seasmoke after Laenor "dies". Like, why can't you do something creative and maybe just claim an already existing dragon after a characters untimely demise? Every time someone makes their character claim Vermithor, I roll my eyes. Like, we get it, you want a big ass dragon.

(5) Laenor is a good, attentive father.

But only to the character for some reason, and dotes on her, but not the boys? Wake up, he's a cool guy but a pretty lowsy family man. He loved the boys, but he loved freedom more. He just wasn't built for that kind of life.

(6) Viserys just exists to be chronically dying background character.

Where is the interaction with anyone other than copying down already existing scenes? If you write a fic for example and claim he "adores" his grandchild via Rhaenyra (let's assume you are), then why is he just there and having zero interaction? Where is the bonding that backs up the fact he adores said character? Also, this guy was a very significant character in the entire show/book, and you guys just let him die in the background, like...

(7) Having your character have a Daenerys based complex.

For example, you give her more than one dragon. You USE Daenerys as a face claim (I can't stress enough how unoriginal this all is), and some fics even copy her quotes and the fact she can speak Dothraki. Then you give a BS excuse as to how she knows the language. So uncreative it's basically copywrite. It's even worse when you use Drogon as your dragon. You know, there is one fic I found through tiktok where the OC's name was DAENERYS, and her dragon was named DROGON. Like, grow up. Its obsessed fans like you make her character unlikeable. Stop it. It's cringe. Stop trying to be her.

(8) STOP USING CIRI FACE CLAIM ON FUCKING GOD.

Omg, we get it, she has white hair 🧍🏼‍♀️😭 But ya'll she looks like an alien that took crystal meth. The actress is pretty but the costume design in the Witcher for her was lame as hell. Too many authors use her. You know how many goddamn tiktok slide shows I've seen of people promoting their crappy books with Ciri as their faceclaim? I immediately scroll. Its almost as bad as Daenerys.

(9) Owning Dark Sister without actually having your character EARN the blade.

It just is either gifted to her for absolutely zero reason or she just has it in general. Like, how many times do I have to read about the sword being gifted to her by Daemon?! If you want the sword so bad, make your character go through obstacles throughout the story and EARN it. Its just lazy writing.

(10) Having absolutely zero interaction or connection with people outside of nobility/royalty.

Examples being the common folk (blacksmith, bakers, whores, etc), merchants, foreigners, soldiers, maids/servants, slaves, witches, humanoid creatures, the free folk, sailors, travellers, bards, theatre people, etc. I never see friendships or any sort of actual interaction outside of royal characters, and barely interaction with other lesser important Houses such as Redwyne, Manderly, etc. Its always just made up characters from House Stark or House Martell or something like typical like that. You guys barely write any outsider interaction - and brothel visits barely count! Where are the relationships outside of the castle walls?!

(11) Forgetting that the character has a dragon (if she has one, which is most likely a yes, don't lie)

You guys always forget you have a dragon and a close bond with said dragon. This is in EVERY SINGLE FANFIC. Make sure to write scenes here and there of your character spending time with the dragon. Its also good details if maybe your character talks about their dragon often like the way you losers would dote and yap about your cats and lizards or something emo like that. STOP FORGETTING YOUR DRAGON!

(12) Coming up with the crappiest and most non thought through Valyrian sounding names for characters AND dragons.

Examples of crappy names I've seen are: Daellya, Caellayna, Jaenarya, and Daenyares (again, stop trying to be Daenerys). Stop. They're shit. They're poorly thought through. Come up with something that sounds pronounceable and not an absolute tongue twister. It's not clever or cool. It's stupid and lazy. Dragon names that are stupid include: Haelyx, Onyxys, and sometimes even Valyrian names that are FOR PEOPLE. These names just sound so lazy and emo. Think of something that readers would remember, look back on, and not visibly cringe. I've seen someone name their dragons things like Daeron and Maegor before and I knew then I had to quit reading for the day.

(13) Forcing all the characters to like the reader.

Bro, come on, its so unrealistic. I saw a tiktok slideshow once of someone's fanfic. The caption said "everyone in love with my character" then proceeded to show every important person in the entire show. Mainly the hot ones. Newsflash! They're all hot. Like, stfu and let your character have enemies that aren't just Cole. Smh.

(14) Making the character a party girl in a medieval fantasy AU

Guys, this is a world where the only "rave" youre going to this weekend is a brothel orgy or a play in the streets that acts out political propaganda. Like, you ain't attending a Diddy party unless it's Larys' and we all know he doesn't have the funds or the legal right to throw a party at the Red Keep.

(15) Being Helaena's best friend, or being nice to her.

I love Helaena, but yall need to stop doting over her through your writing sometimes. Give it a break. She has her flaws too and I bet if ya'll knew her irl you'd be so awkward around her. I'm tired of pretending she isn't a complicated character.

(16) Helaena being written as an airhead or dumb vibes.

She's not an airhead she's just antisocial, amongst other things (towards family anyhow). Write her as unnattached, not a day dreamer. And also, even worse if you give her crappy riddles that sound like they're written by a 2 year old. Helaena has shown to be very aware and very smart.

(17) Normalising Cole, Otto, Daemon and Alicent hate.

We get it, their flaws outshine the good parts. But again, realism. Enough said.

(18) A stable boy romance phase.

Like bruh. Nobody asked for this. We get it, you like the Borgias, but nobody came to watch you smack lips with a dirty stable boy you just met and probably would forget about within 2 chapters. I wish I could say more, but its ALWAYS a stable boy.

(19) Aemond's "hmms".

Guys, he hummed probably 3 times throughout the show and you suddenly think it's a habit. Aemond is silent most of the time. He's a silent, calculative snake. I love him, but whenever I see you guys write "hm" I die a little inside. It's not a habit. Everyone makes that noise.

(20) Dragonstone and The Red Keep.

Why is it always a constant setting? Unless you're on dragonback or confronting Aemond at Storm's End, you're either at the castle in Kingslanding, or the one on Dragonstone! Like, you guys got so many other settings to take advantage of: the city, the beach, the Kingswood, small villages, other nobles castles, Essos, the mountain ranges, etc. Like its a fantasy world, come up with something even like secret hidden places or ruins and stuff.

Anyway, I am done yapping and being mad. If you guys have any other cliche things to add, I'd love to hear them in the comments. This also helps me avoid writing this stuff as a HOTD author.

[heljay]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: XCOM (Video Games) & Related Fandoms Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Major Character Death Characters: Original Female Character(s), Original Male Character(s), Original Non-Human Character(s), Original Non-Binary Character, Thin Man (XCOM), Ethereal (XCOM), Sectoid (XCOM) Additional Tags: Character Death, OC death, mention of infant death, POV First Person, Unreliable Narrator, Humanity's Love for Aliens, Ancient Space Hitler Realizes Maybe Invading Earth was a Bad Idea Summary:

In the final strike that defines the Elders' victory over XCOM, a small group of alien traitors, the operative who captured them and the Ethereal One playing along with their insurgency escape the base. While one of their own lies dying, that Ethereal watches the others try their hardest to save his life, and from the ensuing small tragedy does he understand what he and the other Elders foolishly overlooked in their decision to conquer by force.

[kissforyouu]

...THAT is your boyfriend?

pairing : jungkook x sanrio girl!oc

genre : fluff

warning : mention of drugs , little bit of angst

request : tiktok

a/n : sorry this is rlly short but LONGER drabbles of this story r comingggg js need to get them out of the drafts LOL

unedited.

this is like after about 3 months into their relationship btw!

"padamdam damdamdampadamdam, tupadadadadadamdam..." you speak nonsense, hand around your boyfriend's arm as you scrolled through your phone.

jungkook huffs, giving you the side eye. "what are you even saying?"

"shush, don't say anything." you comment, giving him a small glare and going back to doing whatever you were doing on the phone.

"yes, ma'am."

you both were at the mall shopping, going from aisle to aisle looking for cute clothes. mostly for you. jungkook didn't really care about what he wore. just some dark coloured clothes and a few rings will do for him.

"i was...hmmm...ah! this is what i was looking for earlier." you show your boyfriend your phone which displayed a picture of a plastic figure of cinnamonroll.

"the fuck is that?" he couldn't help but laugh a little, taking the phone from your grasp and zooming into the figure.

"it's cinnamonroll." you give him a sour look. how could he not know!

"i swear, it was pink before." he kisses his teeth, tilting his head to the side, curious about the mysterious bunny (not) figure.

"baby, that was poron. his sister." you correct him. "it's a HE?" jungkook's jaw falls a little, turning to look at you with a shocked expression. yeah. i felt the same when i found out too.

"it's okay. me too. can't believe i was supporting a MAN. but he's really cute, i love him!" you smile. jungkook glances at your face then back at the phone with a small smile forming in the corner of his lips.

"okay, where do we find this guy?" he asks.

"YAY!"

that was before you grabbed his wrist and practically dragged him out of the store.

"mm, jungkook, nooo, it has to be here!" you sigh, going through each of the figures displayed on front. he just hums, not really paying any mind to your misery.

a few minutes pass by and you were still searching for the little guy. at this point, jungkook was getting a little tired. he looks over to you who was crouched down, going through a pile of figures in a basket. he decides to take matters into his own hands and find this little guy for his girlfriend.

so jungkook walks away from you across the store to the cashier, asking for help. he shows a picture of the figure to the cashier, and while he goes through their computer trying to find if he's still in stock, jungkook wonders why you didn't do this first. dumb little girl, he thinks.

"sorry sir, seems like it's out of stock." the cashier speaks. jungkook thanks him, walking back to you. but plot twist! you were gone!

but something catches jungkook's attention. some guy holding your bag outside the store. what?

the corner of his lip twitched upwards, to not to form a smile but rather to form a scowl. what was some rando doing with your bag? he was leaning against the wall with a grin, examining your bag like he owned it.

jungkook walks upto the guy, giving him a tap on the shoulder. the guy turns around to look at him, raising his head up. shortass, jungkook thought.

"why do you have her bag with you?" he points at the bag.

"what? why are you asking?" the guy furrows his eyebrows, his lips twitching up to a sour expression.

"because it's my girlfriend's bag, dumbfuck. where's she?"

girlfriend? the guy scans jungkook from top to bottom. long hair, tatted arms, piercings. y/n can't be possibly be into...that? she can do so much better. the guy looks like he's on drugs. he probably is! he thinks.

"no way y/n's dating a druggy like you." the guy laughs mockingly, clutching onto the purse.

"alright, little man. fuckin tell me where my girl is or i'll pluck your toenails out one by one." he looked as if he was about to beat up the guy then and there, and he probably was too.

"fucking hell, man. god, there she is!" the guy rubs the back of his head, clearly annoyed as he moved away from jungkook. meanwhile, jungkook immediately turns around to see you walking towards both of them with a confused look.

"where were you?" you ask.

"no, where were YOU? and who's this fucker holding your shit?" he points at the guy who's walking towards you. confidently too. as if he knows you better than anyone else. jungkook's jealous, it doesn't take a genius to understand that. angry too. really fucking pissed that this shortass little man is interrupting their date.

before you could answer, the guy cut you off.

"y/n, here's your stuff. and i don't know who this is, but he's—

"i'm her boyfriend, dumbfuck!" jungkook shouts, frustrated.

"is he?" he turns to look at you for confirmation.

"yeah...?" you nod.

"you never told me?" the guy scoffs.

"i don't have to tell you about everything going on in my life?" you frown.

"y/n, he looks like he cheats on you with a different girl every week." the guy comments.

okay no, what the fuck. you're not going to tolerate some meanass comment about your boyfriend. but you also don't want to cause a scene. okay, nevermind—

"the fuck did you just say?" jungkook's clearly offended. but before he could do more, you grab onto his arm and pull him back.

"let's go." you say. he didn't really reply to you, but just gave you a scoff. okay. he's not disagreeing either.

"matheo, i'll talk to you later." you don't even bother giving the guy a smile, but just drag jungkook away.

"what was that all about?" you squeeze his biceps. jungkook pulls his arm away from you, rolling his eyes.

"nothin." he mumbles.

not wanting to continue this topic further, you just nod.

but it's odd. it's been about 30 minutes and jungkook hasn't said anything to you except replying to whatever you tell him. he's also been keeping a small distance from you. what's wrong again. ugh.

"baby, what's wrong?" you look at your boyfriend who was sitting across you mindlessly scrolling on his phone. he raises his head up to take one glance at you but looks back down immediately. instead, he just shakes his head.

"no, i know something's wrong." you protest.

jungkook sighs, placing his phone on the table before finally looking at you.

"you really want me to tell you?" he asks, his expression rather serious. uh oh. you messed up. but fine, you'll take it. you hesitantly nod your head, nervously scratching your skirt with your nails.

"i'm tired of keeping this private. i know you wanted time till you felt like telling people, but it's been 3 months already and we still haven't told a single soul."

oh!

"i don't want to run into guys like that ever again. fucking shortass. you know i care about you and respect your feelings, right? but i just...you know, want to tell people. it's fine if you still wanna wait. but this is just how i feel." he sighs, turning his head to look away.

you couldn't help but pout a little at his confession. you know he's right. it's been 3 months.

"okay. let's tell people. i'm sorry for making you wait that long. and thank you for telling me, gguk." you smile at your boyfriend who's eyes lit up at the mention of you finally publicly posting about your relationship.

"you're sure about this?" he re-checks.

you nod in approval!

"fucking finally. i can beat up every guy who approaches you now."

"okay, no no no no." you laugh, disagreeing COMPLETELY. you knew he wasn't joking either.

ᥫ᭡

taglist: @fungie233 @wintertxt @wheexine @hyunjinswifeee @ohsweetmimosa @canyon-txt

[sparrowlucero]

i enjoy ur bird abode thoughts! I was a genuine enjoyer of the show when it was airing, I’m no die hard fan though and love to see ppls personal takes on the overall story/plot. Im curious if you also would agree or have any thoughts on the impacts The Mouse’s cancellation had on the shows ability to be more than it was? srry im not super eloquent with my words, but basically ur response to that ask got me wondering if part of the reason the show like genuinely wasnt all that ground breaking or unique in the end plot wise (other than the villain faces consequences in the end ig) as far as YA/Teen animation goes, was because of The Mouse’s inability to let the writers flesh out the show before gutting it? i have a negative bias toward The Mouse franchise and obviously dont know anything about how writing a show under the eyes of a franchise that big would work, its just smth that rattles around in my head and wanna know what u think!

Well to an extent, but I think it's much more the effect the studio had on how the owl house started out as rather than it not getting a full season at the end - It didn't escape my noticed that the show was initially announced as being a "horror comedy" when it doesn't really seem like either, especially by the second season, and yeah, the original pitch bible is obviously aiming for that much more than the show proper is as it goes along (and is honestly seems quite a bit more funny, weird, and dark, with an overarching plotline about a giant bug being used to religiously suppress people, eda able to cure her curse by killing luz, and one of the major characters being a teen boy awoken from a sleeping curse who ends up being a weird little bigot because he's from the 13th century, among other things)

(side note, i just noticed they actually specifically describe the thing i assumed the show was gonna be about here. huh.) but ultimately the bulk of the show that was actually made seems very influenced by a writing team that was genuinely interested in making a tropey YA fantasy story rather than just being mandated to. I mean even in what aired you can see the show sort of settle in ways that feel less like studio interference and more like, you know, art students creating their ideal fantasy show, like how King is clearly Eda's roommate who's funny because he looks like and sounds like a little dog despite being an adult man at the beginning but by the end they've made him her adopted sad backstory son who's explicitly a child. While I think a third season would have made the show as it existed better, because they clearly didn't get to finish the plot they wanted to (frankly to the point where some major aspects of the show are a bit confusing, I'm still not sure what a grimwalker is), I don't really fault the show for that but also don't think that hypothetical season (which pretty clearly would have been mostly about the magic school teens going to normal school) would suddenly flip around into something that I personally found interesting and subversive. Nor should it, really; again, it being Queernorm Harry Potter thing is clearly the intended appeal of the show, it's not really a flaw but just not a genre I'm personally interested in when compared to what I initially expected the show to be.

HOWEVER I will say they robbed little weird girls of their representation and that can't be forgiven

[brunchable]

POV: You're sucked into your Fanfic - Part Two

《 The plot goes off the rails. 》

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Writer!fReader

Themes: Comedy - Chaotic Duo (mainly y/n), breaking 4th wall. Fanfic Bucky meets his writer.

Summary: Y/N, now fully aware she’s in her fanfic, tries to navigate the villain’s role but is terrible at it. Y/N tries to sabotage one of the villain’s main plans but accidentally makes things worse.

A/N: Y/N is just a clown at this point LMAO.

tags: @winterslove1917 @zeeader @iamdedsthingz @hzdhrtss @almosttoopizza

@yiiiikesmish

You’ve come to terms with the fact that you’re in your own fanfic, but now comes the hard part: pretending to be the villain you wrote, a role you’re quickly realizing you’re terrible at.

“I can do this,” you mutter to yourself as you pace around your lair—or, well, the lair you wrote. “I wrote the villain. I know how to be evil... right?”

The words sound hollow even to your own ears, but you try to psych yourself up. After all, you can’t be that bad at playing the character you created... right?

Wrong.

You freeze at a loud thud echoing through the room. Oh no. That’s probably Bucky—or maybe the rest of the Avengers—coming to crash this part of the story. You know what comes next: an epic confrontation, full of dramatic one-liners and battle-ready glares. A perfect opportunity for your villain character to show off her menacing charm.

Only problem? You’re about as menacing as a kitten wearing a cape.

You glance toward the entrance, heart racing. Okay, play it cool, you can pull this off.

But deep down, you’re still reeling from the last time you faced Bucky. You were supposed to be locked in a super high-tech Avengers prison, right? Yeah. That lasted a grand total of two hours, mostly because your minions—and you use the term very loosely—broke you out.

To be fair, you didn’t even know you had minions. You didn’t exactly plan for that when you wrote the story. But, apparently, your villain character does. And when they broke you out, it was less like a well-executed heist and more like a disorganized clown car unloading directly into a high-security facility.

Imagine the worst rescue you can think of. Now multiply it by ten, add three explosions that were definitely not supposed to happen, and you have a vague idea of how badly it went. There were henchmen tripping over each other, one of them got stuck in the ventilation shaft, and another one kept calling you "Supreme Evil Leader," which felt flattering but... also very awkward.

To make matters worse, Bucky—looking all intense and broody, because of course he does—caught up with you right as you were awkwardly sliding into the escape vehicle, and the confrontation? Oh, it was a mess. 

You tried to give him a villainous speech about how “this isn’t over,” but it came out more like, “I’m... uh... not done here! Watch out!”

Then one of your minions set off a smoke bomb before anyone was ready, and you tripped over your own feet trying to make a dramatic exit. Classic villain move? Not quite. You barely made it out without face-planting.

So yeah. That’s where you’re at. This is round two, and you’re really hoping to do better this time.

Another thud echoes through the room. You swallow hard.

Okay, no more bumbling. This time, I’m going to deliver the villainous performance of a lifetime. 

You scramble to the center of the room and try to remember what your villainous character would say. You did write this scene, after all. It’s just... harder to do it when you’re living it. Especially when you know Bucky is about to walk in, all brooding and muscle-y.

Maybe if I just stand here and look mysterious? That’s evil, right? Just stare into the distance like I’m plotting something dark.

As the door bursts open and Bucky strides in, guns blazing (literally, because of course he’s carrying), you raise a hand, attempting to look menacing. “Aha! Bucky Barnes... we meet again!”

He pauses mid-step, raising an eyebrow. “You’re... dramatic.”

Damn it! Why did I write such terrible dialogue?

You cringe internally, but you push on. “Yes, well... I’m a villain. That’s what we do, right? Be dramatic?”

He’s not buying it. “Is this supposed to scare me?” His tone is flat, his expression unreadable.

You fumble for a comeback. “I—I mean, of course! You should be terrified of my... evil...ness.” You gesture vaguely around the lair, hoping it looks more intimidating than it feels.

Bucky takes another step forward, his metal arm gleaming under the dim lighting. “You don’t seem very sure of yourself.”

Great.

“I’m very sure!” you snap, but even you don’t believe yourself. You can feel your composure slipping. This is not how it was supposed to go. You were supposed to deliver a chilling monologue and strike fear into the heart of your enemies.

Instead, all you can think about is how Bucky’s muscles look even better in person.

Focus! You’re supposed to be evil! Stop mentally cataloging his biceps!

Bucky crosses his arms, clearly waiting for you to say something intimidating, but your brain is short-circuiting. 

“Look,” you start, hoping to salvage the situation, “maybe we could just... skip the whole fighting thing? We’re all tired, right? How about we just, I don’t know, chat?”

He blinks, clearly confused. “Chat?”

“Yeah!” you nod enthusiastically, jumping on this new plan. “You know, talk it out. No need for violence. I’m sure we can... negotiate.”

Bucky narrows his eyes. “You’re stalling again.”

“Stalling? Me? No way!” You laugh nervously. “Okay, fine, maybe a little. But in my defense, I wasn’t expecting you to look this... uh, intense.”

He steps closer, clearly not amused. “You’re the worst villain I’ve ever met.”

“How many times are you going to say that?,” you groan, throwing your hands up. “I didn’t ask for this! Well, technically I did because I wrote it, but now that I’m living it, it’s way harder than it seemed when I was typing it up, okay?”

Bucky stares at you, utterly confused, as you ramble. “You wrote what?”

“Never mind,” you mutter, waving him off. “The point is, being evil is exhausting, and I’m not cut out for it.”

Bucky looks at you like you’ve lost your mind—which, honestly, you probably have at this point. You’re clearly not doing a great job of selling the “evil mastermind” role.

“Okay,” you say, standing up straighter, trying one last time to get back into character. “You know what? Let’s forget all that. Let’s just get back on track, okay?”

You strike a dramatic pose, trying to regain some villainous dignity. “Behold, Bucky Barnes, for you will never escape my clutches! Mwahaha—”

Before you can even finish your half-hearted evil laugh, the ground beneath you starts shaking. You freeze.

“Oh no,” you whisper, realizing that you’ve accidentally triggered the next phase of your villain’s grand plan—which you totally forgot about.

The lair begins transforming around you, mechanical arms lowering from the ceiling, hidden weapons emerging from the walls. 

What did I even write here? You try to remember, but it’s been too long, and you wrote so many twists and turns into this plot.

Bucky raises an eyebrow as the chaos unfolds. “This part of the plan?”

You wince. “Uh... yes? I mean, obviously.”

Bucky rolls his eyes. “You don’t even know what’s happening, do you?”

“Not... exactly,” you admit sheepishly. “It’s been a while since I wrote this, okay? But look, I’m sure it’ll all work out in my favor.”

Just then, a panel on the wall opens up, revealing a countdown timer with large, glowing red numbers. Your heart sinks. Oh no. Not the countdown!

Bucky notices the timer and shoots you a look. “What happens when that hits zero?”

You scratch the back of your neck. “Um, you’re not gonna like this, but... I think it triggers some sort of self-destruct sequence? Maybe. I’m not entirely sure.”

Bucky glares at you. “You think?”

“Look, I was going for high stakes when I wrote it, okay? I didn’t expect to actually be here!” you blurt out, throwing your hands up.

He groans, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You’re a disaster.”

“I know! But it’s not my fault! Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep your villain persona together when you’re staring at all this?” You gesture to him dramatically, feeling flustered. “You’re like... ripped.”

Bucky raises an eyebrow, clearly caught off guard by your sudden compliment. “Excuse me?”

“I said what I said!” you huff. “You’re ripped, and it’s distracting, okay?”

He shakes his head, still looking at you like you’re crazy. “You’re unbelievable.”

“I’ve been told that before,” you reply with a grin, trying to distract him while you figure out what to do next. “But seriously, can we stop the countdown? Because I really don’t want to blow up right now.”

Bucky takes a step forward, eyes narrowing. “Then stop playing around and fix this.”

You fumble for the control panel, desperately pressing buttons at random. The countdown speeds up, and you wince. 

“Oh no, I think I made it worse.”

Bucky grabs your wrist, yanking you away from the panel. “Stop touching things if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“YOU TOLD ME TO FIX THIS!” you protest, but Bucky’s death glare shuts you up immediately. You shrink back, feeling the weight of his grip on your wrist as he pulls you away from the panel.

“You’re making it worse,” he growls, letting go of you. “Just… stand there and do nothing.”

You cross your arms, pouting. “Not my fault this whole thing’s a dumpster fire. I wrote it, but I didn’t think I’d have to live it.”

Bucky ignores your muttering as he works on the control panel, trying to figure out how to disable the countdown. You watch him for a moment, eyes trailing over his arms as they flex with every movement.

Focus, Y/N. Now’s not the time for ogling. Well… maybe just a little ogling.

"How are you so calm during all this?” you ask, hoping to break the tension—and maybe sneak in a little more flirting. “I mean, you’re literally disarming a self-destruct sequence with those gorgeous, dangerous hands of yours. It’s honestly distracting.”

Bucky doesn’t even look up, but you swear you see a flicker of a smirk. “You’re the one who set this off in the first place. Shouldn’t you be handling it?”

“Look, if you weren’t here being all Captain Broody and Muscles McGee, maybe I could think straight,” you snap back. “I can’t be held responsible for the chaos you create just by standing there.”

He finally glances at you, eyebrow raised. “You’re blaming me?”

“Well, yeah!” you say, gesturing wildly. “I was trying to be a villain, but have you seen yourself? How am I supposed to be evil when you look like you just stepped out of a superhero calendar?”

Bucky rolls his eyes, turning back to the control panel, but you catch a flicker of amusement in his expression. You might be bad at villainy, but at least you’re good at throwing him off.

You lean back against the wall, pretending to be casual as your heart pounds in your chest. “So... once we stop the countdown and we’re not blown to smithereens, what do you say we grab a drink? You know, to celebrate not dying.”

“Do you ever stop talking?” Bucky mutters, still focused on the panel.

“I’ll stop talking when you stop being hot,” you fire back without missing a beat.

Bucky finally stops what he’s doing and looks at you, one eyebrow raised in disbelief. “Are you flirting with me right now? While we’re about to blow up?”

You give him a sheepish grin. “Hey, if we’re going down, might as well go out swinging. Or... flirting.”

“Unbelievable,” Bucky mutters under his breath before turning back to the countdown. With one final movement, he manages to disable the timer, and the red numbers blink out.

You let out a long breath, slumping in relief. “Okay, so maybe I didn’t entirely screw things up.”

Bucky stands up straight, glaring at you with his arms crossed. “You almost killed us.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t,” you say, flashing him a grin. “So technically, I saved us. You’re welcome.”

“You’re impossible.”

“I prefer ‘charmingly chaotic,’” you reply with a wink. “But sure, impossible works too.”

Bucky shakes his head, clearly exasperated. “You’re lucky you didn’t blow up your own lair.”

“See? Lucky. I’m like a walking good luck charm,” you say, giving him a playful nudge. “So, about that drink—”

“Not happening,” he interrupts, cutting you off.

You sigh dramatically. “You’re no fun.”

Bucky steps closer, leaning in so his face is just inches from yours. For a split second, you think he might actually be considering it. But then he says, “You still owe me for almost killing us. Get moving before I change my mind.”

You blink up at him, trying to ignore how flustered you feel. “You know, for someone who’s supposed to be a hero, you’re awfully grumpy.”

“And for someone who’s supposed to be a villain, you’re terrible at it,” he shoots back.

You can’t help but grin. “Fair point. But hey, I never said I was good at being bad. I’m more of a... chaotic neutral.”

Bucky shakes his head again and walks toward the door, clearly done with the conversation. “Let’s go. And try not to trigger another self-destruct sequence.”

Before you can even muster a comeback—probably something sarcastic about how it’s hard to be a villain when you’re distracted by muscles—you suddenly feel a strange tug, like someone’s yanking you backward by an invisible rope.

Your eyes widen. “Wait, what—”

The room starts spinning. One second, you’re staring at Bucky’s very serious, very grumpy face, and the next, it feels like the entire lair is collapsing around you. Everything blurs together in a whirl of colors and lights.

“OH MY GOD, AM I DYING?!” you scream, arms flailing as you try to hold onto something, anything. But there’s nothing. Not even Bucky’s annoyed expression to anchor you.

For a brief, panicked moment, you’re convinced this is it. This is how you go out. Flung into the void for writing bad fanfiction. What a way to go.

Then, with a pop, you land face-first into... your bed.

You blink, completely disoriented. “Wait... what just happened?”

Your laptop sits open beside you, the fanfic document staring you in the face like it’s mocking you. Your head is spinning, your heart racing, and you slowly sit up, still convinced you might be hallucinating.

“No way...” you mutter, glancing around your bedroom, taking in the very non-evil surroundings. The smell of laundry detergent. The sound of traffic outside. Your cat, Felix, staring at you from the corner with a look that clearly says, What the hell was that?

“I’m... back?” You pat yourself down, making sure you’re all in one piece. No villain outfit, no lair, no brooding super-soldiers demanding you fix things. Just... reality.

It hits you like a ton of bricks. “Oh my God, I got kicked out of my own fanfic.”

You collapse backward onto your bed, staring up at the ceiling. “I didn’t even get to redeem myself! Or finish flirting with Bucky! Not that I was doing a good job, but still!”

Felix hops onto the bed and meows at you, completely unimpressed with your current existential crisis.

You groan, pulling the laptop onto your lap and staring at the screen. “Well... I guess this is better than being trapped in my own chaotic, terrible story. But man, I was so close to redeeming myself. Kinda.”

Felix bats at your laptop as if to remind you of your priorities.

“Fine, fine,” you mutter, fingers hovering over the keyboard. “I guess I’ll just... write the rest of the story like a normal person.”

You pause, glancing at Felix. “Do you think Bucky misses me?”

Felix’s blank stare is the only response you get.

“Yeah, you’re right,” you sigh dramatically. “He probably doesn’t even remember me. I didn’t even get to finish my evil monologue.”

You sit up on your bed, still reeling from your sudden ejection from the fanfic world. Your brain is buzzing with one thought: I need to go back.

Sure, your villainous arc had gone off the rails, but you were so close to turning things around. And, let’s be honest, who wouldn’t want to try a redemption arc when it means more time with Bucky?

You rub your temples, staring at your laptop like it holds the secrets of the universe. “Okay, okay... maybe if I just... concentrate hard enough, I can get back in. That’s how it works, right?”

Felix watches you with his usual disapproving stare as you gather all the determination you can muster and lean in toward the laptop screen.

“Come on, just suck me back into the fanfic,” you mutter, inching closer to the screen, squinting at it as if somehow willing yourself back into the story would do the trick. “Please?”

Nothing.

You frown. “Alright, time for desperate measures.”

With a deep breath, you slam your forehead into the laptop screen.

Thud.

“Ow!” you yelp, clutching your head as Felix meows at you like, What is wrong with you?

“That didn’t work,” you mutter, rubbing your forehead. “Okay, let’s try something else.”

You get up, pacing back and forth. “What did I do last time? Maybe if I type something... yeah, that’s it! I’ll just type myself back in!”

You sit back down, hands flying over the keyboard as you try to rewrite yourself back into the fanfic.

“Y/N is sucked back into the story... um... gracefully and... with a cool villain pose!” you type, nodding to yourself. “Yeah, perfect.”

You press enter with a dramatic flourish and then wait.

...

Nothing happens.

You stare at the screen, blinking. “Okay, rude.”

Felix hops up onto the desk, flicking his tail in annoyance as if to say, Even I know this is a terrible plan.

“Oh, shut up,” you grumble at the cat, shaking your head. “Maybe it needs more drama.”

You jump up from your chair and dramatically yell, “I SUMMON THEE, FANFICTION WORLD! BRING ME BACK TO BUCKY!”

Felix stares at you, completely unimpressed.

Still nothing.

“Why is this so hard?” you groan, leaning over your laptop like you’re trying to psychically connect with it. “Come on, take me back! Just throw me back into the chaos! I’ll do better this time, I swear!”

In a fit of frustration, you try slapping the screen. Then gently caressing it. Then hugging the laptop like it’s some magical portal that just needs a little love.

Felix meows again, this time louder, as if to say, Seriously, stop embarrassing yourself.

“Fine!” you huff, letting go of the laptop. “Maybe I need to... I don’t know, meditate my way back in. Channel my inner villain.”

You sit cross-legged on the bed, closing your eyes and breathing deeply. “I am a powerful, misunderstood villainess. Bucky Barnes cannot resist my charm. Take me baaaaack...”

Silence.

Your eyes pop open and you look around. Still in your bedroom. Felix gives you an unimpressed side-eye.

“Ugh!” you groan, throwing yourself backward onto the bed in defeat. “I’m stuck here. Forever.”

Then, out of nowhere, your phone buzzes. You lazily grab it, fully prepared to ignore the world, when you see the time.

Your eyes widen in horror. “Oh no... I’m late for work!”

You leap off the bed, tossing Felix an apologetic look. “Sorry, gotta go! Villainy will have to wait! Please don’t tell anyone how badly this went!”

In your panic, you nearly trip over your slippers as you rush to grab your bag and dash for the door, realizing that while you might have been kicked out of your fanfic, real life is waiting—and it doesn’t care how close you were to a redemption arc.

As you race to get ready, you can’t help but mumble to yourself, “I swear, next time I get sucked into a fanfic, I’m writing myself as the hero... and with a better wake-up plan.”

[eliza-forget]

PLEASE tell us more about your Leshy and the two cats!!!!! The cats are so pretty and also so is your art. I love your art so so so so so much 💖

Well, I'll start by saying that the Leshy himself in my AU is quite dark, violent, and traumatized. He survived the sudden betrayal of Narinder (as the one he trusted and looked up to most as a child), he survived all the turmoil associated with the fact that faith in the bishops was shaken, I call this period as "shaky", and the whole four were on the verge of losing their authority. And already during the game's storyline, Lamb's campaigns, Heket died. In my Au, which is mostly based on my insane playthrough of the game, Leshy was the last Bishop to be killed by Lamb. I mean, there was this sequence: Heket> Shamura> Kallamar. I have that point actually explained in the storyline, but that's not what the main question is about xd.

In the works, where you see him in the clothes of a follower (yes-yes that red one), has its own meaning. It's like a sign of his acceptance of a new way of life and to some extent, a rejection of the past. In this story, he's processing his traumas, learning the ways and lives of mortals, and then he makes two close friends: those two cats.

In general, I can characterize my Leshy as a personality. He changes slowly, but throughout the narrative in my Au. Leshy is still the Bishop of Chaos, in terms of character, but has softened a bit because of his environment in which he resides.

Tirena

Let me briefly tell you about Tirena's storyline. Her parents were nomads who came from other lands to the lands of the Old Faith. They mostly moved between locations, but eventually stopped at Darkwood.In fact, Tirena's family was loyal to what was happening in the lands and tried to please all the local cruel rules. The turning point of the plot for Tirena came at the time of her coming of age, for which her parents sacrificed themselves to the bishop, and she was given a necklace (but not the one she wears now) in memory of her parents. As a result of which she ran away from the place. Stumbled upon Lamb by accident, from behind a campfire in the night. So in the story, she showed up in his settlement and became a devoted disciple in the future, but still with an unconcealed grudge against the bishops.

In comic, she got into an altercation with Narinder on the same topic.

Yolk (yellow cat)

Yolk's former name was Najulmer, and he changed his name at the settlement. His parents were the same cultists who, long after Leshy's death, continued the resistance. Yolk did not share the same point of view with them; he was more interested in studying the world around him, and specifically its strange inhabitants. So he set out on his wanderings in search of that "paradise" by which he meant the Lamb's settlement. Along the way meeting various companions, studying monsters and even cooking with them. He has already been rescued by Lamb when he was trapped by the treachery of his recent companion. In the settlement he quickly finds contact with Tirena, or rather she has to tolerate his intrusive company. Then Lamb returns from a camping trip and summons Leshy from purgatory and he becomes both a nightmare for Yolk, but and an intriguing object of study. He btw yes, never once saw the bishops and didn't even know that Leshy was one.

Somehow that's what the plot of these three sounds like. I hope it was interesting and informative to learn about them!

[icaberries]

What if the Vinsmokes were in the Wano Arc?

Go read Part 1 here but TL;DR the Vinsmokes regain their ability to feel emotions and escape Germa with Sanji and the Strawhats.

Mostly headcanons with a side of canon plot.

They’re still modded physically, but now their pain receptors are active so they’re dealing with the ramifications of years of neglecting their body. Ichiji is partially blind from using Valkyrie, Niji has burn marks all over his body, and Yonji has chronic pain in his wrists. It's a struggle, but they feel like they deserve it after all the torment they inflicted.

Ichiji comes across traditional tattoo shops in Wano and decides to get new tattoos on a whim. The ‘1’ tattoo he had before had been his first rebellion against his father and now that he’s free he wants to add more to it. He gets tattoos for all his siblings along his other arm—a pink butterfly for Reiju, a blue lightning bolt for Niji, a green clover for Yonji and a yellow sun for Sanji. It helps to ground him when the Feelings™ get overwhelming and reminds him that he’s not alone in this world. 

The drama in Shokugeki no Sanji with Sanji’s soba stall still happens, only this time he’s backed up by the rest of his siblings who glares at the soba competitors in submission. 

Reiju is first in line when the soba stall officially opens. She’d had to fight her brothers and the Strawhats for it. Robin is a close second but only because Reiju was distracted by her. If you know what I mean ;) 

The handcuffs left marks on Sanji’s wrists. Surprisingly, it’s Niji who asks why Sanji’s hands are so precious to him and Sanji tells them about Baratie and Zeff. There’s something about the sparkle in Sanji’s eyes as he talks that draws them in, the way he speaks so highly and softly about his found family on the East Blue. They wonder, if somewhere down the line, Sanji would speak about them with that same fond tone. 

Niji gifts Sanji a pair of dark brown leather gloves, long enough to cover the marks on his wrist. Sanji wears it to the raid and Niji is quite proud of it and claims he must be Sanji's favorite brother now. Until Ichiji chimes in and says that Sanji’s hairstyle as Stealth Black/Soba Mask is more similar to his and confidently declares himself as Sanji’s favorite brother. Ichiji and Niji argue for hours.  

(It’s actually Yonji who's the favorite. Sanji only has one little brother and he’s got a soft spot for him.) 

Just imagine Law, Basil Hawkins and X Drake watching Soba Mask. Now imagine them seeing a group of brightly-colored siblings cheering on Soba Mask, while they themselves look like Sparking Red, Electric Blue, Wench Green and Poison Pink. It’s a good day to be a North Blue fanboy in Wano. 

AND NOW FOR SOME ANGST!

They witness Sanji awakening his modifications and for a brief moment they’re happy that Sanji caught up to them like he always wanted, until they see the horrified look on Sanji’s face. He looks so afraid to turn out like them, to the point that he’d ask his own crewmate (Zoro) to take him down if he ever ended up like them. They’re not even mad. They’re just sad and guilty that Sanji felt that way. 

There’s a brief lull in the battle and Reiju pulls her brothers aside to tell them about their mother and her sacrifice. She told Sanji that story so he’d remember that his life was worth living and being kind. Now she’s telling the same story to Ichiji, Niji and Yonji so they can remember the same thing. Sora wanted them to live and be good. 

After his fight with Queen, the brothers hug it out. Reiju may or may not have taken a picture.

Right after that, the brothers now hug Reiju! Because she deserves it alright! Years of pretending for Judge, of keeping her brother's in check and dealing with their mother's death, Reiju did her best to be there for all of them. Now she gets to see her little brothers grow up into the good people their mother wanted them to be and she can finally stop pretending. She can be herself again <3

(I love Reiju sm yall but that's just the eldest daughter syndrome talking)

The road to redemption is paved with triumphs and stumbles. It’s just fortunate for them that Sanji has a good sense of direction. 

AND NOW BACK TO FLUFF!

Yonji continues to cement himself as the favorite when he calls Chuji the cutest thing in the world and proceeds to share his snacks with the little guy. Niji and Ichiji never stood a chance. Little brother is strong and is hitting all of Sanji's buttons.

The worst part of regaining emotions though? It’s not the gooey mushy feelings of love, or the cold guilt and shame over their past mistakes, it’s the annoyance they now feel whenever they witness Roronoa Zoro flirt with their oblivious brother. They can’t stand him. Unfortunately, he makes Sanji happy so they’re forced to seethe on the sidelines while Zoro picks another fight/flirting session with Sanji. 

Reiju doesn’t tell them that it’s not just Zoro they have to worry about. Trafalgar Law keeps finding an excuse to check Sanji over for his “health”, a jaguar mink keeps asking him out to smoke together, don’t even get her started on Basil Hawkins and X Drake asking her for her blessing. That’s not even counting Sanji’s other suitors who aren’t in Wano right now. Their baby brother is quite the popular guy.

[cwwv9]

Hello hello are you open for request? I like your writings sm especially the recent one since, hiori's included. So id like to request a oneshot for hiori. Scenario: So first it would take place in the early stage of relationship/dating and stuff, then at one time hiori saw his s/O have a let's say merch of a video game he likes, when hiori asked about it, his s/o starts yapping happily saying she likes the game and she's very into the story line and worldbuilding and and shes also a fan of many video games with some of them hiori likes too, saying that she plays games mainly on her phone (PvP, moba, be, fps, etc. ) also adding that since she can't afford having her own pc and stuff to play games(shawty is broke lol), she only plays on what's available on phone and of course free. Even though she doesn't play the game herself she watches playthroughs even if it takes many hours and staying up late. So, hiori finds it exciting(like points increased) to learn that they share the same interests , and he suggested that they could play together and try the games she wants or watch him play. Here's my idea, if you ever consider this, thanks in advance. ꉂ(ˊᗜˋ*)♡

-craving for fics that include hiori fr fr.

«Our world on the screen»

— Without gender!Reader x Hiori Yo

Genres: romance, fluff, everyday life, first kiss, light sensuality.

Warning: the fanfic contains a soft novel, emotional intimacy, scenes with rain, running in the rain and warm physical contact.

Note: I love to write about the hiori, he’s my favorite boy! I hope you enjoy this drawing!

I want to thank you again for writing such a request! This helps me a lot to know which characters I can confidently include in the request on a permanent basis. because I don’t know who the readers are waiting for ((

mailbox open for queries!!!

You were sitting on the floor of your room, cross-legged, leaning into the phone screen.

The sun was already setting, shining a soft orange light, and you didn’t even notice how fast time flew by. Next to you lay an old pillow, a couple of open packs of snow chips and headphones, one of which had fallen out of your ear several times. You watched the game you loved - the one you once loved and dreamed of playing.

There was a quiet knock outside the door.

- Hi... can I? - said the familiar, warm voice of Hiori.

You immediately pulled out the headphones, smiling.

-Sure! Come on in!

He walked in, a little unsure of the threshold - as if he was afraid to disturb your world. He was wearing a dark blue hoodie, with a little bit of loose hair and an attentive look, which immediately fell on the small shelf at the wall. There was a figure from the same game - one of the iconic characters.

Hiori frowned with a slight surprise, came closer.

- That’s... do you know this game? he asked cautiously, as if he were afraid of being intrusive.

Your eyes are on fire.

– Oh, yes! I love it! - you rose sharply from the floor and close to the bottom, smiling wider than usual. - Plot, characters, world... everything is just crazy cool! I have seen so many walks that I know almost every location by heart!

Hiori blinked without concealing a slight surprise.

When you saw his reaction, you got even more excited, as if someone finally understood the passion that you were hiding in yourself.

– I really don’t have a computer... - you added slightly quieter, almost apologizing. - I play mostly on my phone. Everything you can: PvP, moba, battle-royals, shooters... anything that holds my poor phone.

You chuckled, showing off your battered machine with a cracked back cover.

- But I always keep track of my favorite games! I watch streaks, I spend the nights in a flying show... well, you know.

Hiori was silent for a few seconds. There was a new, strange gleam in his eyes - not cold, not neutral as usual. Something war...

- So... do you like games too? he finally asked a little softer, as if he was afraid the answer would be a dream.

You nodded so forcefully that your hair went up.

– Then... - He squeezed his hands in his pockets, as if he was gathering with spirit. - Do you want to... play together? Or I can show you something. Something you’ve wanted to try for a long time.

Your eyes widened, and a child’s stupid smile flashed across your face.

- Seriously? You really want to?

He nodded slightly, smiling softly, allowing himself for the first time a genuine smile - one you rarely saw

- I would like to. With you.

At which you shouted and began to grunt, squealing joyfully, that knocked Hiori off his feet.

After a couple of days you were sitting in his room.

His laptop was slowly loading the same game, and you, leaning against the screen, waited impatiently. Hyory watched you stealthily, with a slight embarrassment on his cheeks. He had never seen you like this - alive, bright,

You talked nonstop, talking about your favorite characters, about the moments that gave you the creeps and the moments that gave you the tears.

Hiori caught every word you said.

He was unaccustomed... so warm.

He felt that there was an invisible connection between you - not only through the screens and game stories, but through the real feelings.

When you first picked up the mouse, he carefully covered your palm with his, directing movements.

You’ve been a little bumpy, feeling how close he is.

- It’s all right, he whispered, his voice was soft as silk. I’m there.

You turned to meet his gaze. For a moment, time stood still.

And then you both laughed quietly.

Just, like a child. Clean. As if there was nothing more important than this moment.

Since then, the shared evenings have become your little tradition.

Sometimes you played what you loved. Sometimes he showed you his favorite games. And sometimes you just sat around watching long streaks, chuckling with quiet phrases and laughing at funny moments.

And every time Hiori looked at you, excited and happy, he felt like he was doing the right thing.

He chose you.

And I would like to make this choice again and again.

Over time, it became something more than just shared evenings.

Sometimes you went to the city together - without a plan, without clear routes. Just walking around discussing the latest game updates or arguing about which of the characters deserves more recognition.

Today was special.

Hyory first offered to go to a small video game store, which, according to him, «only those who really know the subject» knew about.

You gladly agreed, anticipating how you will rummage together in the shelves and find rare things.

The store was tiny, drowned in an alley among cafes and shops. Inside smelled of old paper, plastic and something... warm, almost homely.

You wandered for a long time between the shelves, picking up posters, discs, figurines. You found things that you once dreamed of seeing live, and Hiori quietly watched your reactions, each time more deeply penetrating some new, unexplored feeling.

In the end, you chose an inexpensive figurine - a character that you both liked. Hjori insisted on buying it at his own expense.

- Consider it... the beginning of our collection, he said, turning away slightly, as if embarrassed.

You only smiled warmly, unable to find the right words.

The evening has fallen quickly.

You walked through dark alleys, illuminated only by dim lanterns.

In the bag you had in your hands quietly ringing figure. In the air smelled of damp, and somewhere far away lazy rain splashed. It hasn’t started yet, but it was hanging in heavy drops above its heads.

- Today was great, said Hiori quietly, breaking her silence.

- Yes... - you said. The voice was softer than you expected. Almost unconsciously, your hand held the bag tighter. - Thank you for calling.

He nodded, and you continued to walk in silence. But between you there was a strange shiver, as if from an electrostatic discharge - something that was stronger than words.

Hiori suddenly slowed down, and then stopped altogether.

You stopped, too, turning to him.

The damp air enveloped the skin. The wind tingled the hair slightly.

Hoori stood in front of me without saying a word. In his eyes, the reflection of the lanterns was glistening - timid, almost unsure, but at the same time so frank that the breath caught me for a moment.

He came half a step closer.

You felt his warmth, heard his breath.

- May?.. he asked a little.

Your heart has missed its beat.

The answer was obvious.

You nodded.

Barely noticeable, almost hesitantly, Hiori approached. His hand gently touched your cheek - a slight, almost weightless touch. He leaned forward, slowly, as if giving you time to change your mind, to distance yourself... but you didn’t make a move.

His lips touched yours - at first awkward, timid.

A short, warm, moist kiss, smelling of rain and late evening.

He’s gone for a split second, and he looks at you again. And then, bolstered by courage, he came back with a deeper kiss - already a little more confident, a little more greedy, as if he understood that there was nothing to lose.

The rain has finally touched the earth with the first rare drops, mixing with the heat of your breath.

And in that sudden, almost unreal moment you realized:

Even if the whole world were to collapse, you have already built yours.

On a blinking screen. In quiet evenings. On soft touches.

Reciprocated.

The drops of rain became thicker, heavier on the skin and clothes.

You only got away from Hiori when the sky suddenly shook, and the first large drop rolled down his cheek.

- We should run, he exhaled, laughing a little.

You nodded.

He grabbed you by the hand - unexpectedly strong for someone who had always seemed so soft - and pulled.

You ran away.

The asphalt quickly became slippery, the air was heavy with moisture. Water poured into the hair, trickled down the cheeks, absorbed in the cloth of clothes.

But neither you nor he cared before.

You heard Hiori laugh. Real, carefree - not quiet, not hiding a smile, but loud, happy

His hand held yours, warm, alive, real

You turned into an alley, hiding under some kind of roof ledge. The rain was rattling on iron over your heads, creating a melody that could not be repeated

You leaned against the wall, breathing heavily from laughter and running. Hjori stopped close by, hair stuck to his forehead, eyelashes wet, shirt stuck to his shoulders.

He looked damn beautiful. Real.

Hoori reached out his hand, put the wet line behind your ear.

Touched my chin with my fingers, sliding them down my cheek, as if I didn’t believe you were really here, close to me in this rain.

- Thank you,' he whispered, leaning back again.

This time the kiss was slow. Warm, despite the wet clothes.

Your hands have wrapped themselves around him, drawing closer, obstinately, demanding.

He answered, clinging to the whole body, giving himself entirely to you - with all that quiet trepidation, slipping away tenderness and desperate courage.

There were drops falling nearby, crashing against the rocks.

There were people walking around laughing under the umbrellas.

The light of the apartment windows warmed behind me.

But your whole world was here now: in his hot fingers on your waist, in his trembling breath, in his kisses, in his quiet whisper that you could hear with difficulty through the rustle of rain:

- I want more nights with you.

You smiled through the kiss and clenched his palm tighter in yours.

- Then we have an eternity ahead of them.

[doodler16]

I really hate that Viv is insisting on making Helluva Boss like, really stupidly dark as of late

Hear me out

Helluva Boss was pitched as this fun, lighthearted show of a dumb boss and his dumb employees fucking up hit jobs. It was supposed to be a better glimpse at hell while we waited for Hazbin, but unlike Hazbin's dramatic premise, this show was going to be way lighter and more sitcom like.

"Hitman adventures" was the focal point.

Now, with Brandon Rogers being a writer, I naturally assumed there would be some depth, because I'm familiar with his writing style on his own channel. He usually writes weird characters that are played off for comedy at first, and then later ties their stories together in some genuinely touching moments.

And with how the Hazbin Pilot is (leagues better than anything else Viv has made cuz it's all stolen, but I didn't know that at the time), I assumed we were in for some silly fun stuff with some depth but mostly a good time.

But lately everything is so, so overdramatic in a way that genuinely ruined what Viv has, which is nuts. Season 1, on its own, without any knowledge of how season 2 is, Helluva comes across as fantastic, genuinely interesting stuff that's setting up major plot points down the line and really interesting character studies of these two people who can only make their relationship work if they both change for the better. It's also fun and lighthearted and I used to obsessively rewatch the episodes before each new one came out.

Season 2 throws all of that away, and absolutely ruins Blitz and Stolas as characters. I jumped off around Exes and Ohs, came back for

And then Viv has the audacity to try and cover shit like abusive bosses, SA, and now, child explotation and pedo stuff, and it's like, how the fuck did we get here.

Why are we doing this in the silly hitman show

I would expect this stuff from Hazbin, which we already knew going in was going to be heavy, and I wanted Hazbin to be heavy.

But the silly hitman show???

Really????

I don’t mind Helluva Boss being serialized, it’s pretty normal in many cartoon shows. The show starts off goofy and light hearted then it becomes dark, brutal, and lore heavy. The problem is the execution along with Vivziepop wanting her cake and eat it too. Like you mentioned Anon, the abusive bosses, potential pedophilia, power imbalance, etc: Vivziepop and the writers want to cover all that mess and take it seriously.

But then the next episode they use all those said aspects as a joke. And, it’s like do you want us to take it seriously or not. I think Vivziepop should’ve kept Helluva Boss as a dark comedy with a few touching moments here and there. Meanwhile, like you said Hazbin Hotel could be the serious one. Because she could’ve gotten away with a lot with joking around with heavy topics in Helluva Boss. Even better she can reset the status quo till her heart contents.

[thelivingautomaton]

y'know if there's one thing i have to critique about season 2 of severance (and idk, this may just be the difference between binge-watching season 1 over about a week versus watching season 2 week by week over three months) it's that like...to me it feels like the writers came up with the Big Impact Moments(TM) first, and then sort of floundered with how to get their characters to the Big Moments (or alternatively, shoo out characters who aren't or can't be involved in said Big Moments) in a way that feels organic and diegetic

this seems most obvious to me with the birthing cabin subplot in the latest episode: you have this (fantastic!) image in your mind of cobel in flames and darkness, standing face-to-face with innie mark. great! but the whole process of getting mark (and devon) to that cabin then feels...idk, very contrived? i can mostly buy devon calling cobel in desperation (especially after finding her brother seizing on the floor after his basement brain surgery), but the deliberate lack of answers cobel gives them in their forest meeting -- and the fact that the three of them, what, wait in the woods together for eight hours until darkness falls? -- felt very much like a out-of-show parameter (i.e. "this scene Has To play out this way so we can get to the Big Moment we really wanna have") forcing itself into the context of the story, rather than something that makes intuitive sense within the world

you can also kind of see this with reghabi flitting in and out this season -- she Shows Up in front of mark's parked car in 2x03 because...she has to, for the plot and for the Big Moment of the episode (mark reintegrating, but not really reintegrating because we have to save that for other Big Moments like him getting flashes of helly/gemma). and when devon decides to call cobel -- which, again, i can MOSTLY buy given her character and what she knows -- reghabi exits stage left because...because! because reghabi doesn't Fit into the Big Moments that the writers have in mind. so she has to leave

idk, maybe if i were to go back and look at season 1 this would stick out to me too but at least there the progression from plot point to plot point and characters going from A to B (in terms of actual location as well as narrative arc) felt much more organic? maybe it was also easier for it to feel that way since the scope of the show (number of characters/subplots, locations, etc) was diminished then.

i also think that if the show had more episodes and more space to flesh out these arcs it would make everything feel less contrived -- again, this most recent episode felt like the worst offender in this regard just because it was so obvious that they were doing everything they could to wrap up almost every hanging plot thread (irving and burt, gretchen and dylan g, miss huang, etc) that doesn't involve mark (and by extension, helly and gemma). but that might also have been forced by out-of-show circumstances (rumors that john turturro may or may not come back for season 3, sarah bock presumably has to go to college LOL)

idk idk IDK WHAT I'M SAYING, like i'm still here for all of it and i am really enjoying the show's sense of those Big Moments, but the overall storytelling feels...clumsy, in places. that's all 🤷

[romana-after-dark]

Room's on Fire Masterlist

Dark!Santiago Garcia x Fem!Reader Dark!Francisco Morales x Fem!Reader Dark!William Miller x Fem!Reader Dark!Benjamin Miller x Fem!Reader

Summary:

Years after the world fell apart, various communities have established themselves, one of which is ran by four men who claim to be divine.

When they decide it's time to and heir to be born, they chose a virgin from their cult and make her their wife. Reader is offered a choice, of course. She doesn't have to marry them. But if she doesn't, the savior won't be born. She choses to become the Madonna. She is wed to all four of them, and moved into their home where her body is open to use whenever her husbands desire (free use au), in the hopes of getting her pregnant. It doesn't matter whose baby it ends up being, because they are all part God, so it doesn't matter... right?

Warnings for full fic, if anything is added or really emphcized it will be in additional warnings.

THIS IS A DARK FIC THOUGH SO BE WARY! I CAN'T PROTECT AGAINST EVERYTHING.

DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT

DUB CON MOSTLY but there WILL BE NON CON. Major character deaths, forced breeding, physical abuse, brainwashing, manipulation, violence, gore, alcoholism/addiction, BIG OLE BLASPHEMY WARNING like this cult appropriates a lot of religious themes and they call reader their Madonna, Santi is called the Pope, like all that stuff. However, this is a cult so I mean. It happens. None of it are my thoughts on religion or meant to make fun of religion or demonize religious people. Disgusting views on virginity. Attempted rape outside the boys. T*m warning. Age gap. Creepy terrible men. Non-reader rape, dub con, violence. Covert incest, massive mommy issues, sexual abuse all around, past grooming by parental figure. no CSA but the victim isn't much older. some Bates Motel type shit. I cannot properly warn you for everything, without just telling the story but consider this a major warning that there are dark dark themes. No one involved here is morally clean, and who you perceive as the good guy cannot be relied on. Don't come to my story and say im romanticizing these things until at least the story ends.

Unknown amount of chapters right now.

Chapter 1: Pilot: Delta finds their Madonna Chapter 2: The wedding Chapter 3: Aftermath of the wedding FishBen: Symptom of Being Human Chapter 4: Pope is not pleased. Chapter 5: Jonah lore, Madonna gets through to Frankie Chapter 6: Madonna gains Frankie's heart, Santi is jealous Iris: Rey and Iris find pockets of time Chapter 7: Fun with Ben: wining Pope back Chapter 8: big announcement to the community

Non canon Frankie Madonna Chapter 9: Madonna’s blissful ignorance to the world around her. Chapter 10: There's a lot Madonna doesn't know.

Chapter 11: Things start to crumble around Madonna

Chapter 12: It's all too much for Madonna

Chapter 1 3: Santiago’s true colors come out

Chapter 14: Jonah tries to show the truth

Chapter 15: madonna begins to learn her power

Chapter 16: Frankie and Ben reflect

Chapter 17: Ben shows his true colors

Chapter 18: Iris makes her stand

Chapter 19: Jonah's chapter

Chapter 20: Frankie finally does something.

Chapter 21: ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

Bonus Content

not necessary for the series. Pieces in the main list are suggested as they add depth and sometimes small plot points.

"Can you peel my orange?" Jonah smut

Jonah Hanson character ai

ROF characters Star signs

Jonah x non-Madonna reader x Marcus flashback commission

Art

By @not-a-unique-snowflake-blog

By @survivingandenduring

Lil comic by @my-secret-shame

As I said, a lot of themes and dynamics ended up accidentally similarly to Watch Your Step by the amazing @charnelhouse Some was because that fic is what developed my characterizations of the boys. Some was totally incidental, like Pope and readers relation to art. It's different though, a much different series, but I wanted to tell y'all that she s PUBLISHING WYS AS A NOVEL NOW, Its called Cardinal Sin's and I'll link it right here!

How to keep up with the story!

Comment on this masterlist that you want to be tagged and I'll tag you in updates

Follow @romana-updates and/turn on notifications

Follow the tag Rooms on fire

THANK YOU FOR YOU'RE SUPPORT!

Please remember to reblog, and I love comments/asks, anon or not, and would love to see engagement and theories!

[fourgods-nobrakes]

Summer Fest is here! I'm nominating a bunch of things from relatively rare bits of canon, but perhaps one of you would like to read one of these things and get to know some of these characters. I'm not discussing the Black Legion or Fabius Bile books, because you already know about those (read them read them read them they have great ensemble casts, please ship some of the less common pairs with me), but here are some of the less-discussed ones:

Harrowmaster, by Mike Brooks: Solomon Akurra is an Alpha Legionnaire who wants to see his Legion become a force to be reckoned with again. He has some plans to give them a reason to rally around him, and he has a very cool ex-imperial psyker on his side, which is good because he also has a number of enemies both within the Legion and otherwise. Fun twisty plot and an excellent read for people who enjoy when an Astartes has a solid working partnership with a mortal ally; she's capable, dangerous, and very willing to give him shit when he needs it. There's also a secret bonus ship option that I don't want to talk about too much because of important plot turning points, but it hit me hard in the brotherhood and trust places.

Shroud of Night, by Andy Clark: the Unsung are a small Alpha Legion warband who've been in a warzone for long enough to develop a wide variety of I Can't Believe It's Not PTSD. Now they have a mission to perform a high-stakes reverse heist, delivering a mortal to a key location on an embattled planet while trying not to get killed by either the imperial defenders or the Khornate berserkers besieging the place—and, of course, trying not to fall apart from the growing tensions among the team. I'm here for the poor mortal, who has clearly never gotten the hugs he needs, but there are a variety of cool dynamics among the group. ...Followers of either Celestine's or Khârn's careers should know they both turn up here, though they're both mostly here to be terrifying forces of nature that our lads try not to get killed by.

"Sacred Hate," short story by David Annandale: Mr. Annandale wrote this story for me specifically, I'm pretty sure. It centers on Cerastes, a teenager who's in training to be a missionary for the Ecclesiarchy, but who's been privately having a crisis of faith. Then the ship he's traveling on gets attacked by Word Bearers, and he discovers what he was looking for. (Spoilers: it's not the God-Emperor's light.)

The Red Tithe, by Robbie MacNiven: A Carcharodons company and a Night Lords warband walk into a bar prison planet... They're both looking to replenish their numbers from the teenage boys in the prison. And a psyker on each side has divined that one of the boys is an unsanctioned psyker whose power could be very useful if they can secure him. The boy in question just hopes he can get out alive. This one's definitely dark; the Carcharodons might be on the imperial side but they're brutal in ways that are usually glossed over for their compatriots. Most of the story takes place in the prison complex and the attached mines, so the whole thing feels claustrophobic at times. MacNiven also cares more about tactics than a lot of BL authors, so the battles are more interesting than "we charge into a hail of gunfire, fearless and unstoppable." Grim but very cool.

Day of Ascension, by Adrian Tchaikovsky: If you've read his other work you know he's interested in, and sympathetic toward, non-human POVs, and thus you know why I'm so fond of this book. It takes place on a forge world where the miserable living conditions of the non-Mechanicus work force have provided fertile ground for the growth of a genestealer cult. The cover blurb suggests that the power plays among the tech priests are the central plot, but actually the emotional core of the book is Davien, a young woman in the cult who is coming into her strength as the arrival of the cult's "angels" draws near, and whose passion for her people will wind up being key to their future. My big ship for this one doesn't sail until late in the book, but man, when it happens, it's so good.

[stereopticons]

On This Day in Schitt's Creek: April 27

2019

Damsel in Distress [david/patrick, NR, 1,734] by deathbysandblk

Patrick's first time at a gay bar.

For Therein All Honor Lies [david/patrick, G, 1,299] by madcapkittycat

David's whole life has been an endless intermission careening towards the second act. His costume is beginning to unravel.

his favorite thing [david/patrick, NR, 595] by @startswithhope

David muses on one of his favorite things that Patrick does.

2020

[Podfic] He Sees You [david/patrick, E, podfic] by Amanita_Fierce

“Do you wear a lot of blue?” she asks. Cindy, her name tag says. She hands Patrick a pair of dark gray wire-frame glasses which he slides on until they hook behind his ears. And it’s not like—well everyone who knows him knows he likes blue. But he feels a little unsettled that this stranger picks up on it, like at she can see his whole life contained within the frames around his eyes. “Uh, yeah. I guess so,” Patrick says, taking them off again. This pair, like all the others she has given him, is exactly right and completely wrong. Or, Patrick gets glasses and thinks about identity. David helps. [Podfic of He Sees You, written by Distractivate]

Double Queer [david/patrick, E, 2,661] by AgentRusco

In this story we will explore Patrick being "Double Queer"-- that is, both trans and gay. I have chosen to write Patrick as a trans man -- female to male transgender. First up is just some sex, but I may flesh it out into an actual story that is mostly canon-compliant. Besides the trans!Patrick thing. Look for another story sometime down the road that has more plot.

I'll Be Home At Last [david/patrick, T, 8,679] by generally

“Okay. Let’s look at the art,” said Patrick, easygoing, like David hadn’t just threatened to kick him out of the building not ten seconds ago.Something tightly wound inside of David loosened its grip, just a little. “Okay.” (David runs an art gallery in New York. After he makes a humiliating discovery, he seeks the help of a certain financial analyst.)

Leather and Lace [david/patrick, E, 6,079] by @thedidipickles

Patrick cleared his throat, a classic sign of trying to feign nonchalance. If Patrick wasn’t driving, David was certain his arms would be crossed. “I said it’s funny because we actually have this at home, leather and lace.” “I mean, yeah, I probably have the album,” David replied, a bit unsure of the point. Patrick cleared his throat again. Poor thing, whatever he was trying to articulate was clearly not coming easily. “No,” he half-laughed. “I meant we have leather, and we have lace. You have a couple jackets, you know? And the, ah, lingerie.”

You Can Plan on Me [david/patrick, M, 8,545] by odofidi

For the first Christmas in their new home, David and Patrick navigate around having their families all together. And David learns that having Marcy Brewer around is pretty awesome.

2021

[art] concrete jungle where dreams are made of [gen, G, fanart] by budd

A branding mock-up for Alexis Rose Communications featuring a PNG logo as well as a front and back business card design.

[Podfic] By Any Other Name [david/patrick, G, podfic] by Amanita_Fierce

The practice of taking someone else’s name hadn’t even seemed odd until Twyla asked who was changing their name after the wedding, him or David, as she dropped his tea on the counter weeks ago. Patrick had blinked at her and realized he didn’t have an answer. No one had ever asked before. Everyone had always known Rachel was going to become Rachel Brewer. She’d doodled it on half a dozen notebooks in high school. But with David, well, Patrick hadn’t even thought about it. Now he couldn’t stop. [Podfic of "By Any Other Name" written by DoubleL27]

An Affordable, Everyday Ride [david/patrick, T, 1,900] by @thesleepyskipper

It was another wild and crazy Friday night at the Wobbly Elm. David is starting to get tired of the way Alexis and Ted are always on top of one another every time they go out, rubbing their relationship in his face. Alexis was dancing up on Ted all night long, calling him ‘babe’ about fifty times too many and making out with him where everyone could see. Gross. Stevie is supposed to be his single wing-woman. But no, Jake had arrived late into the evening and taken her attention away from participating in one of David’s favourite pastimes - judging the unfortunate fashion choices of the other patrons of the bar. At the end of the evening, David has to call an Uber to take them all home. “Patrick will be there in 7 minutes” comes up on the screen along with the little car icon on the map showing his location. Hopefully this stranger can put up with their drunken shenanigans.

For a Good Time, Call... [david/patrick, E, 45,183] by youmadeeverythingokay

*now complete* Patrick Brewer is still coming to terms with his newly discovered sexuality, and is trying to work up the courage to do something about it.He spots a beautiful man at the bar but can't quite bring himself to act on it just yet. So he calls a phone sex hotline to help build his courage, but when a smooth voiced man he finds so intriguing picks up the phone, how far will he go?And what about the man at the bar, will he ever be able to find the strength to talk to him? Or, The sex hotline AU that nobody asked for!

Like Doors Open Wide [david & johnny, G, 2,216] by @my-nameless-bliss

Johnny tugs on the cuff of his sleeve, telltale preening beneath the gossamer-thin cover of his false modesty. “It’s a bit of a tall order to get a place like this up to David Rose standards, you know. Hopefully it’s not too far off the mark.” He nudges David with his elbow, and David rolls his eyes to cover his laugh, because that is blatant fishing.But maybe David doesn’t mind, right now.Still, he can’t quite shove aside the hot, itchy embarrassment that crawls up the back of his neck as he steadies himself and says, with perfect honesty, “It’s beautiful.”He refuses to look at Johnny’s reaction, but he can hear him hum, quietly pleased. And it’s… nice. It’s a nice moment. Until Johnny makes an awkward noise in the back of his throat. “I know it’s not Bali, but it—it’s the best I could do.”

Lithuania [gen, M, 300] by Rosey_Peach

2022

[podfic] in search of all things beautiful [david/patrick, T, podfic] by Amanita_Fierce

Patrick spends most of his life living in the conditional tense. And then he meets David and he stops saying should so much and starts sleeping a lot more. Alternatively, a lot of words about Patrick, sleep, and finding peace. Podfic of in search of all things beautiful by goingmywaydoll.

drunk idiots in love [david/patrick, T, 975] by @aoubooming

A collection of drunk texts spanning David & Patrick's relationship from their first meeting to their wedding.

Face Me [david/patrick, G, 217] by @tyfinn

David wants to do something nice for his husband.

Fallout at the Fantasy [david/patrick, M, 30,223] by @trickiwooao3

Figuring out he was gay was one thing; actually being gay was another. Patrick attends a week-long Guys Meet Guys retreat with a strategy. When fate derails his careful plans, he is forced to depend upon the kindness of a generous, handsome stranger.

I can't believe you talked me into... wearing that [david/patrick, G, 203] by @lastchancecafe13

David should have known better than to leave Patrick in charge of their new staff uniforms.

It's Always Who You Least Eggspect [patrick & stevie, G, 297] by @weathereyehorizon

Stevie talks Patrick into some petty crime.

Just Add Glitter [david/patrick, T, 230] by @mostlyinthemorning

Jocelyn needs a favor. David can't believe Patrick has betrayed him like this.

ring around the Rose [david/patrick, G, 242] by @blackandwhiteandrose

There is literally no one else in the world David would consider doing this for. If that’s not love, he truly doesn’t know what is.

2024

Berry [david/patrick, G, 100] by @ramonaflow

Blue Steel [david/patrick, T, 600] by @tyfinn

Patrick continues to find new ways to troll his husband.

Stats:

No fanworks for 2017, 2018, or 2023 2019: 3 fics/3,628 words 2020: 5 fanworks (4 fics, 1 podfic)/25,982 words 2021: 6 fanworks (4 fics, 1 podfic, 1 fanart)/16,522 words 2022: 8 fanworks (7 fics, 1 podfic)/32,413 words 2024: 2 fics/700 words Total: 24 fanworks (20 fics, 3 podfics, 1 fanart)/112,340 words

[rahshande22]

So here I am, first time in my life on tumblr, just because I feel a very strong need to write sth about X-men movies.

I’ve never been much of a X-men girl, I watched the movies few years ago (turns out I’ve never seen The Dark Phoenix before lol). I remember being a little bored with the older movies (I’ve always been more into MCU's type of superhero stories), but actually liked the newer ones. Lately something reminded me about these movie and about the fact that I particularly liked Charles. So I watched all four newer X-men movie and here are some of my thoughts:

I was right. Charles is, for me, THE character in these movies.

Not gonna lie, what made them this enjoyable for me was the relationship between Charles and Erik. And I’m not even that much of a shiper, I just think the chemistry between these two was great, their interactions were interesting and pretty much carried all movies. I mostly give credit James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender who truly done a great job with bringing Charles and Erik back to life.

I really like how during the first three movies (FC, DoFP, Ap) we get the two opposite sites of the same coin. Both Charles and Erik want to preserve mutants, help them, give them safety, give them purpose ect… but they have very different ideas on how to do that, how to make that possible. I like how they are both wrong and right at the same time.

Erik is right, because we clearly see that “normal” people can’t really comprehend and accept “the other” (what a surprise). Mutants would never be entirely safe because they are different, they are in minority, they can be dangerous and they are beyond understanding of “normal” people (I guess I don’t need to elaborate more, we know how it works). But he is clearly wrong, because you can’t exterminate other just because they MAY be problematic in the future (or, ironically, because they are not like you). And then, there’s Charles, who's right, because aggression causes aggression. If you strive for war, that will be all you will ever have and sometimes you have to learn how to survive on different terms. But he is also wrong, because you cannot always have your peace, even though you want nothing more.

They were trying to live up to their dreams and beliefs and dynamics between then actually shaped the movies (ok, at last the first two). X-men Apocalypse was worst then two previous (I’d say that less Erik and Charles together made it that way), but wasn’t THAT bad. I like to think that Erik did in fact understand that Apocalypse was not a better option. Or he just didn’t want him to kill Charles, that reason is also fine.

But then we come to The Dark Phoenix, which was not good, at all.

I can skip the fact that in the previous movie Jean manifested Phoenix power (I mean, we can quarrel that it was only her, but why give it a shape of fiery wings then?), but generally her story arc was very similar to what we’ve already seen: Jean Grey doesn’t really know who she is and is scared of her power. As much as I respect Sophie Turner, I don’t consider her… well, a great actress, and her portrayal of Jean was sort of flat and boring.

Erik’s story arc is kinda non existent: he’s there just for the sake of being there. He’s only motive is “to kill Jean for killing Raven” (I’m not sure if it’s that good of a motivation for him; Raven spent much more time on her own or with Charles than with Erik, so him carrying for her so much felt more like a forced plot point than genuine feelings).

I have a feeling they made Charles dirty in this movie, and I'm not referring to his controversial decisions about Jean. Charles always wants to help others, sometimes to the extent it’s not a real help. He wants it so badly that he might lose the person he's helping along the way. Thant’s an interesting take, and some new layer to Charles Xavier. His methods are not always good, even when he does something in good faith, we’ve seen that clearly with Jean (though without Dark Phoenix power it could work). But one of his most important traits is that he CARES about others. Here? Not so much. He's definitely more... detached that usual, less involved in his students well being. And what about Raven? She was his sister, and he loved her dearly, this was shown very, very clearly in the previous three movies. And here what? One tear or two after her death? We got Hank and Erik (!) going crazy after Raven’s death and not even a proper cry from Charles? Am I supposed to believe that? And there, there's more: he made some mistakes and then lives the school? "By, you’re on your own now, have a nice time?" Like, what? These two things alone make him feel not like himself. And I pity that, cause we got three decent (good even) stories and there’s this one. It’s not even the fact that McAvoy cannot act, we perfectly know he can (we got three other movies in the franchise to confirm that), so what actually happened here?

Probably the only good thing in this movie is the ending and the scene in Paris.

[sugarcoatednightshade]

I haven’t thought of Lily Orchard in years, but she just made a video on dungeon meshi and I wanted to hear what she had to say. I couldn’t even finish it.

It’s clear she hates anime as a genre and is pissed about having to review something she didn’t want to watch, and that anger permeates the whole* review. On top of that, it’s so fucking disingenuous to review a show that’s not even halfway over and then claim it’s thematically disjointed - like 1. Of course it’ll seem that way if you’ve only seen the first quarter of a piece of work, we’re still in the setting up stage, these themes haven’t had time to fully commingle and resolve and 2. Even considering that, dungeon meshi does actually know what it is/where it’s going, and at this point it’s fairly obvious how all the themes/mixed genera’s are gonna fit together.**

*to be fair, I haven’t seen the entire review, so maybe she calms down partway through. I don’t make a habit of watching things I know will upset me, and watching someone make bad faith criticism of something I like would literally ruin my week

Post chapter 65 spoilers below:

**Granted, cookings prominence in the show, while cute*** on its own, didn’t really seem plot relevant to me until around chapter 65 when it was revealed that in order to save falin they would have to eat her dragon half. Y’all, I went fucking feral over that reveal.

***cute meaning: it’s used mostly for worldbuilding at first. That’s really cool if you’re into it, and an integral part of the story ryoko kui is telling, but not technically necessary in every story. There are plenty of storys who spend needless time expositing about the world instead of focusing on the interesting bits, and if you’re only a quarter of the way into DM, I can see how you might think that this is one of those cases.

But obviously, as time passes, the worldbuilding aspects become more important, because the entire show is about worldbuilding. Or more accurately, it’s a deconstruction of the fantasy genera. It spends time setting up familiar tropes and then examines how those tropes would actually play out in a realistic world, setting up and then questioning our expectations for the world in a really nuanced way.

My favorite example of this is how dungeon meshi treats dark/ancient magic.

1. The words ‘dark magic’ and ‘dark elf’ have negative but vague connotations in traditional fantasy. “The thing is bad because it is bad.” It’s a fact we’re primed to believe, but shallow and easy to question

2. We learn that marcille uses dark magic, but that she’s using it for good. “Actually dark magic is forbidden because the people in power were afraid of The Plebs and want to restrict the populaces access to knowledge” is also a common fantasy trope.

3. As we learn more about dungeons and how they intertwine with dark magic, we learn that it does truly have the power to end the world. Not by itself, but because the dimension it pulls power from is populated by beings who would use that bridge of power to enter our world and cause havoc. Holy shit, we think, black magic is actually dangerous and was banned for a reason. Naming it ‘black’ was part of a smear campaign intended to save the public by dissuading them from using it

4. And then we learn that the so called catastrophe scenario has never happened, no demon has ever escaped a dungeon and successfully ended the world. Is this because of the work of the Canaries and ppl like them, or are demons perhaps not as much of a threat as they are made out to be?

And it’s great because there is no one correct answer. We learn things through the characters, whose perspectives are limited and realistic and based on their own life experience. Nobody knows the whole story, and neither do we.

[ave-on-main]

“Pre-boot Roy's dynamic with Slade is what fanon wishes Dick's relationship with Slade would be” is a bad faith fanon myth.

I’ve seen this statement go around since Dark Crisis ended last year and wittnessed people actually believe it, so here we go: It’s not true.

First of, lets talk about what allegedly makes pre-boot Roy the person that fanon thinks Dick is to Slade:

One panel that gets taken out of context to prove the statement above is Slade talking about Roy as his “ace in the hole” in Titans (2008) which gets equated to Slade calling Dick a “trophy” in Dark Crisis (2022). In context, these two instances are not the same. Comparing them makes no sense. More on why in the Roy section of this little essay.

Another point of contention is that Rebirth Dick secretly works together with Slade to protect the Titans (2016). People claim that is a rehash of what happened when Roy worked together with Slade while Roy was the leader of the Outsiders (2003), but the premises are entirely different. In Titans Dick works with Slade to protect the other team members. In Outsiders Roy uses Slade’s intel and funding without knowing he’s speaking to Slade. He thinks Slade is Batman.

It is also worth noting that the Rebirth version has more in common with the Apprentice arc of Teen Titans Animated 2003. TT 03 came out at the same time Outsiders did. Slade was revealed to be Roy’s contact in Outsiders #21 (February 2005). The first time Slade appears as Batman is Outsiders #4 (September 2003), but it is not known to readers or characters that Batman is not Bruce. The Apprentice arc of TT 03 started in Season 1 Episode 11 (October 2003). The show didn’t copy the comics, nor assumably did the comics copy the show. It could be a weird attempt at synergy to reveal Slade in 2005 but it is unlikely because DC cared very little about synergy at the time. Worth noting though is, that Slade’s role in Outsiders is extremely limited. Once his identity is revealed, he is no longer part of the plot.

Now, in fanon, the Rebirth version of events is largely ignored. If anyone in fandom wants to talk about Dick working with Slade, they’ll mostly use the more thought out version of the show as a blueprint or the Renegade arc of Nightwing (1996). Both comic and show are also actually written by writers who like Dick unlike Deathstroke 2016.

That Roy is important to Rose’s developement isn’t true. She babysits Lian but she barely talks to Roy or any of the adult Titans while she appears in Titans (1999).  Nightwing: Renegade retcons that Dick was there while she babysitted Lian, but all Roy does is villify Rose, not once implying that he had anything to do with getting her on the Titans.

Equally as untrue is that Slade is actually obsessed with Roy over Dick. It’s a purely fanon take.

There’s also this conspiracy going around that Slade & Dick stans working at DC are retconning things to make Dick look better, which is, I can’t say it differently, an insane statement to make. Dan Didio erased the Slade-Dick rivalry from existance, so much so that Higgins could not use them in the same story even though he was writing both New 52 books. Seeley & King could merely put Deathstroke into Grayson (2014) as a papershield target practice. Christopher Priest dislikes Dick, which he not only states on his blog but is also obvious in his writing (Deathstroke #4). Interestingly, the people screaming about retcons ruining everything had nothing to say about Rebirth Roy being part of the NTT roaster while Grant attacks the team (Lazarus Contract).

Infinite Frontier ties Dick and Slade together once more, but it is almost all talk and no show. It’s a distant echo of their pre-boot relationship. There was zero build up to their reconnection. Frankly, a Dick & Slade stan would put a lot more effort into it. The only reason DC brought a semblance of their rivalry back was because of Red X nostalgia and it shows. Dick only dons the Deathstroke mask in Future State: Teen Titans to complement Red X and his hunt for Deathstroke in Teen Titans Academy is mention but never shown, not even as a one panel flashback.

Meanwhile Green Arrow is now the first hero Deathstroke fought (Deathstroke Inc. Year One) and Slade encounters Roy soon after (Infinite Frontier: Secret Files #2). DC is still trying to tie Slade to the JL rather than to the Titans.

But what are their actual Pre-Boot relationships?

Vastly different, that’s for sure. 

At first, Dick is largely tied to Slade because of Joey and the similarities (skill-wise) Slade sees in Dick. Later Dick’s ties to Slade’s children and what that causes makes respect turn into hate. 

Slade gets involved with Roy because of Cheshire and to manipulate the Outsiders by orders of Dr. Sivana. 

Roy Harper and Slade Wilson

Roy in Deathstroke (1991)

The first time Slade and Roy properly meet (aka actually share a word) is in Deathstroke The Terminator (1991) #18. They are both undercover and pretend to work with Cheshire.

Jade introduces Roy to Slade, and Jade “asks” for Slade’s help by using what amounts to a slave ring she can reactivate any time to control him. Together with her other underlings they set out to steal nuclear warheads.

Not knowing they could be on the same side, Roy betrays the team by going after Slade. Slade defeats him, and Roy is left in enemy territory.

Roy makes his way back after Cheshire has already nuked Qurac. The destruction makes Slade and Roy temporarly work together to apprehend Jade and reveal their allegiances to each other (#20).

While Roy is on the Titans when Rose joins the team in the following crossover event, she doesn’t interact one-on-one with him. All he does is give Impulse relationship advice because Bart is crushing on Rose (The New Titans #126).

Titans (1999)

Roy and Slade meet when Tartarus attacks H.I.V.E. which at that point is lead by an incognito Adeline Kane but don’t have a one-on-one interaction in thie story.

Their first true confrontation takes place later. Slade’s been contracted to kill Cheshire due to her nuking Qurac. As Slade and Roy fight, Slade mentions Nightwing as a comparison between the two, and even though Roy temporarly gains the upperhand, Slade escapes to go after Jade. (#22)

Rose starts to babysit Lian after the Deathstroke & Qurac incident, but weirdly enough, she barely shares a word with any of the adult Titans. She’s really just kind of there.

Outsiders (2003)

Roy believes Batman is giving him intel and is funding the Outsiders  (#6, #11) . In truth, the Batman who he’s been talking to is Slade.

It's when Dick learns that Roy hasn't been talking to the real Bruce, that Slade reveals himself. Slade fights Roy, taunting him about killing him and adopting Lian to make her an assassin. Slade realizes Roy isn't on top of his game and sees the five direct bullet wounds he's received on an earlier Outsiders mission. Taking pity, Slade decides to leave him alive (#21).

In #43 the Outsiders learn that Slade was hired by Dr. Sivana. The mad scientist saw potential in manipulating the team. It was not Slade’s idea to go after the Outsiders.

Titans (2008)

When Slade creates his own Titans team, Cheshire convinces Arsenal to join the team with her. She wants to use the opportunity to kill Slade. Roy pretends to have switched allegiances and joins the team.

Slade knows not to trust them. He uses Roy’s drug addiction against him by switching out Roy’s “regular” drugs with a substance called “Bliss”. (#27)

Later Slade uses Roy as his “ace in the hole” when the Justice League confronts them. He threatens to blow up his ship with a warhead. The League, lead by Dick as Batman, retreats as not to harm Roy. In this case, “always his ace” means the reason Roy is on the team is to be used as a human meat shield because other heroes still care for him (Annual #1).

At the end of this arc, Roy betrays the team and decides against resurrecting Lian and with that stops Slade from resurrecting Grant. Slade swears revenge on him because Roy literally did what the New Teen Titans did. “Killing Grant.” The Titans comic and the entire Pre-New 52 universe end with Roy and Joey deciding to reform the Titans because Dick still believed in the teams value.

Apart from the initial Qurac storyline, there’s no canon Slade and Roy story in which Dick doesn’t at least get mentioned.

Pre-New 52 Dick Grayson and Slade Wilson

New (Teen) Titans

Dick belongs to the six New Teen Titans that Slade originally takes on a contract against (New Teen Titans (1980) #02). Slade contacts the team soon after their first meeting to take them out. Dick plays the voice of reason during that second encounter and makes the Titans listen to Slade’s plan. Slade fails to kill them (#10).

During the Judas Contract, Slade learns Robin’s secret identity through Tara’s spying on the Titans (Tales of the Teen Titans #42). Slade attacks Dick in his office, telling him he won’t kill him if Dick doesn’t resist because H.I.V.E. wants the Titans dead or alive. Dick knows he can’t win a hand-to-hand fight against Slade and manages to trick him. Slade admires how Dick escapes, ascertaining that Dick is the leader for a reason. He’s the hardest to catch because powers don’t make a man. Just like Dick, Slade was the best even before he got augmented. It’s a first for Slade to loose his target. He blames it on being worried about the contract.

While Adeline and Joey get in contact with Dick, Slade delivers the Titans sans-Dick to H.I.V.E. (#43). Adeline proceeds to tell Dick how Slade became Deathstroke the Terminator. Afterward Joey and Dick team up to save the Titans (#44).

After Tara loses herself in her rage and dies, Dick concludes Slade and she were manipulating each other (Annual #3).

Dick remains in contact with the D.A. office to ensure the Titans are still going to testify against Slade but a Deathstroke imposter attacks Lilith. Slade’s attorney spins a defense out of the imposter (#53). Gar has his own plans for Slade while Dick and the Titans want to focus on aprehending the imposter. Dick gets sworn in as an expert witness on matters of identity, and he tries to use what Adeline told him about Slade in court, but Slade’s attorney uses Dick’s words against the Titans. Slade doesn’t go on further trial but will remain detained in prison and has a small confrontation with Dick. (#54)

Wildbeests are hunting the Titans and Slade gets hired by Dayton to save Gar and the others. He would have gone after them regardless to save Joey. He ends up searching out Dick’s apartment first, probably in hopes he hasn’t been captured yet (#71). Slade doesn’t realize that Dick is one of the Wildbeests he encounters, and the one who helpes Slade escape from the second Wildbeest.

The Wildbeests realize they have a spy and overpower Dick. Slade catches Pantha just as she finds pieces of Dick’s costume (#74). Slade invades the Wildbeest base, and Joey reveals himself to Dick and him (#75). The two end up fighting Joey, but can’t get through to him. Dick implores Slade to calm down and focus as they escape to Titans Tower. There, Slade stops Pantha when she attacks Dick shortly before the Wildbeests attack the base. Slade and Dick escape together. While Slade can’t believe Joey is doing this, Dick is the more realistic of the two. 

Later, Slade gets them out of a tough situation by morally questionably methods. Slade expects a response from Dick but gets a proverbial shrug (#76).

Shortly before their final confrontation with Joey, Slade decides he has no other choice than to kill Joey, which Dick is against. Slade kills his son because he knows the real Joey regarded the Titans as friends (#84).

Slade and Dick meet on the Titans Tower island afterward. Dick notices him, which according to Slade not many are able to do. Dick asks why he couldn’t be bothered to show up at the funeral of the son he killed. 

Dick attacks Slade in his grief over Joey, telling him to fight back. Slade does if only to tell him he lost someone too. Their fight ends when Dick admits he doesn’t get how Slade and Bruce can just keep bottling their anger up, he’d explode. Slade tells him that losing control hasn’t done him anything good and that he has to believe he freed Joey. He then shows concern for having injured Dick, but Dick denies his help, and they part ways without anything truly resolved (#86).

Dick in Deathstroke, The Terminator (1991)

Bruce calls Dick to get intel on Slade. While Dick knows how dangerous Slade is, he calls him a good man, to which Slade later responds by saying Dick’s wide-eyed and idealistic. (#7)

When Deathstroke gets into crosshairs with the Justice League and has lost much of his powers, the Titans set out to confront him. He encounters Dick and Koriand’r while he tries to escape. Dick tries to stop him and explains to him that if he’s an innocent man, he’ll stand by his side and help him get free of the charges (#14). In fact, the Titans saw what was happening to him on TV and Dick made the decision to help him or take him down depending on whether Joey dying pushed him over the edge (New Titans #89).

Dick and Slade end up working together when Eclipso tries to take over Earth’s heroes. Slade heads to Salvagion to get information about his current situation where he meets Nightwing, who’s been caught spying. Salvagion isn’t the enemy, though, Nightwing is there to retrieve information about Cyborg’s files to heal his friend. The files were lost when Titans Tower got destroyed. 

Dick and Slade fight against enemy mercenaries, who are attacking Salvagion,  and figure something is wrong. Dick then hires Slade and Pat to save the Titans.

By 1993 Dick’s appearances in Deathstroke and The New Titans apruptly ends because he had been taken back by the Bat Office. Editorial was quite strict at the time, demanding him to be written out of New Titans.

Slade in Nightwing (1996)

As Dick tries to apprehend an out of control Man-Bat, Slade shows up to do just that with tranquil darts, shooting Dick too in the process (#17). Dick learns that Slade has been contracted to capture Man-Bat alive and knows Slade doesn’t work cheap, so he and Barbara figure out who Slade has been hired by.

Dick ends up fighting Slade on a boat, treading barbs throughout, and ultimately taking Slade out long enough to escape with Man-Bat (#18).

While Dick’s working at the BPD, Dick one day comes home to find Slade in his apartment (#79). Slade reveals that he’s searched him out because he has a contract in town. Dick and Joey were such good friends, Slade feels it’s fair to tell him. Dick asks for the name of Slade’s target, but Slade hasn’t come to betray all of his cards, he’s simply trying to make a deal, so Dick stays out of his way. Dick considers calling for backup, but there’s no one he wants to put in Slade’s path.

During his police work, Dick sees Slade again and goes after him. They have a short confrontation in which Slade reiterates for him to stay out of the way, but Blüdhaven is Dick’s city, he’ll protect everyone in it. Slade threatens Dick and shoots when Gannon Malloy, Dick’s partner at the BPD, draws a gun at him. Dick saves him but gets shot in the arm (#80).

The Batfamily visits him at the hospital, and Dick asks Cass for help with Deathstroke. She fights Deathstroke and retrieves a disc from him that reveals who the target is (#81).

Dick succeeds to save Amy from Slade’s first attack, fighting Slade until he takes advantage of his injury. Dick tells Amy to run, stating Slade won’t hurt him. Even though Slade implies that he will, Slade doesn’t further fight Dick, going after his target instead. Dick ignores his own safety to attack Slade in close proximity again. It allows Amy to get far enough away for Slade to temporarly stop his hunt and punch Dick unconscious.

Dick remains by Amy’s side as much as he can, stopping Slade from shooting her by dropping bills on him and fighting him long enough to tell him that Dick s overbidding the contract put on Amy.

Slade responds by saying that he always knew that Dick had a heart (#82).

When Blockbuster dies some time later, new villains want to take his spot and as Dick learns Deathstroke will be the hired help, he considers how he can stop them while Slade knows his secret idenity (#110). Dick hunts down Westbrook to get into contact with Slade. By the time Dick returns home, Slade has received his message (which leads to the famous shower panel) and Slade witnesses how Dick has gotten involved with the Blüdhaven mob (#111). Dick tries to convince Slade that he is one of the bad guys now, but Slade claims he doesn’t have an interest in seeing Dick be a “selfloathing mercenary” now that he has to take care of Rose.

Dick wishes Rose good luck after both Grant’s and Joey’s deaths, and Slade ultimately decides through Rose’s input to let Dick train her. Rose tells Dick she was a nanny to Lian (paradoxially because he knows. He was there in Titans (1999)). They save Sophia Tevis and Rose tells her father, asking him if Dick gets to have a private life from them, which Slade replies to with “obviously not” (#112). 

While Rose and Dick investigate another crime, Slade seeks out Amy Rohrbach, telling her he won’t hurt her because she is permanently off his hitlist. He can still kill her family, though. He is searching for Sophia Tevis behind Dick’s back and confronts Dick with her existence and proof that Dick in fact remains a hero (#113). Rose’s training continues, and while Slade does not trust in Dick’s loyalty, he lets him investigate the villains Slade is currently working with (#114). Slade decides to monitor Dick as he sends out Rose and Dick to hunt Superman. Dick has been given a glove through which Slade can monitor and change his heartbeat as well as hear what is going on. Dick uses the fight to show Rose that the ideology of her father is wrong. 

When Dick is later confronted by Slade, who is threatening to kill him, Dick reveals that Slade cannot kill him for two reasons: 1. Slade killing Dick would cause Rose to betray him and 2. that Slade has always failed to kill him and that it never fails to make him mad. Slade lets Dick go, but knows Dick is messing with something too big for him (#115). 

After Slade betrays Dick, Dick plants geiger counters in Slade’s house and makes sure Rose learns that her father has been poisioning her with the Kryptonite in her eye. Slade and Dick are fighting during the conversation. Slade tries to stay in control of the situation, but Rose ultimately believes Dick, especially when Slade tries to silence him even though Rose wishes to hear what Dick has to tell. Dick makes sure Slade knows he’ll get back at him someday for what he did to Blüdhaven (#117).

Titans (1999)

This Titans story takes place before their fallout. Deathstroke is fataly wounded by Tartarus and goes to the Titans for help. Dick reluctantly offers him a temporary place on the team, but not without putting a tracker on him (#10) and reminding Slade continuously that if he fights with the Titans, he must follow their rules (#12).

Deathstroke brings Dick up while fighting Roy, claiming Arsenal is no Nightwing (#22) and Rose later becomes the carekater of Lian but hardly talks with the Titans on panel.

Teen Titans (2003)

When Slade defeats the Teen Titans by manipulating several young heroes, the original Titans aren’t happy about it. Dick tells Slade to leave (#45). When he doesn’t, Dick and he fight while the other Titans take on his crew. During the confrontation, Slade taunts Dick, but Dick still stops Cass from trying to kill him.

When Slade tells the Titans they’ll never be able to trust Rose and Joey, Dick replies that they have proven themselves and will always have a place on the team. Slade gets away, revealing it was all a test to see if his children will have a good life with the Titans (#46).

Infinite Crisis (2005)

After everything that has happened with Grant, Joey and finally Rose, Slade blames Dick for his misfortune (#7). (The page this panel is from was apparently accidentally erased in the digital version of this issue. It can only be found in the digital collected edition and the print editions.)

Batman & Robin (2009)

Talia hires Deathstroke to kill Dick by letting him take control of Damian’s body. She states that Slade has a “long and eventful history” with the “foolish young Batman pretender”. Slade has waited a long time to get rid of Dick per his own words (#11). Slade wants Dick to know who is going to cripple him, so Talia intensifies the neural bond for Slade to be able to speak through Damian. They are working together because they have both lost their children to the hero community because of Dick.

Damian is resisting the control, which makes Slade unable to do much more than to reiterate his desire to kill Dick. Dick electroshocks Damian, knowing Damian can handle it, but Slade likely can’t because of his enhanced senses making him more vulnerable while connected through the neural link. Slade goes into shock, and Dick later searches him out after infiltrating Talia’s base to give him payback. 

Titans (2008)

Deathstroke makes a deal with Mad Hatter, which causes his group of Titans to cause havoc in Arkham Asylum. Dick, then Batman, stops him from taking an inmate with him (#28). Slade calculates whether fighting Dick is worth it and decides to do so. Dick is still furious at Slade for what he did to Damian.

Dick is forced to let Slade get away to save two Arkham guards but pursues him, getting confronted by the new Titans team Deathstroke is leading (#29). Dick and Roy shortly work together. Dick tries to convince him that he is not a villain, but Slade tells Dick Roy is now on his side.

Slade and his Titans are able to leave while Dick deals with the freed inmates off-panel (#30). Ray Palmer point out to Dick that he is taking the confrontation badly, initially only blaming it on the appearance of Slade, who Dick has fought “more times than any [hero]” (#34). Slade reveals to Roy that he chose him for the team to ensure the League could not act in fear of putting him in mortal  danger. Dick gives the order for the JLA to fall back but both Slade and Roy know they’ll still be pursued.

As usual, Dick and Slade share a snarky exchange before the serious fight begins. Dick leaves Slade to Ray while he engages with Roy. The hero Isis stops the fight because they are in her land. Dick makes it known that they should have killed Slade long ago but retreats with the League, giving Roy hope in the process to stand against Slade’s goal (Titans Annual #1).

Conclusion

Fans who enjoy the Dick-Slade dynamic whether at DC or in fandom aren’t erasing Roy to slot in Dick. Slade obsessing over Dick isn’t a new concept. He grew obsessed because their paths crossed many times over the years, and Dick has ties to all three of his children. Slade never felt obsession toward Roy.

If you want your fanon Slade to be obsessed with fanon Roy, and you want to transform canon moments, go ahead, nobody is stopping you, but don’t pretend it’s canon simply to erase Dick.

And before you all come with the Gar argument: Simply because the Gar-Slade and Dick-Slade dynamics came up around the same time does not mean they are the same. Gar and Roy are mostly tied to Slade through one person (Tara and Cheshire). Dick was initially tied to Slade through Grant (as were the other NTT) and then Joey, but their dynamic transcended that to something much more personal and the groundwork was laid by Wolfman himself when he made Slade point out how much Dick's capabilities remind him of his younger self.

The Slade-Dick dynamic is unique because it was allowed to transform and build-upon with each appearance (except for Dixon's). Enemies turning to frenemies then bitter enemies is not a story usually experienced like this in comics. It happens, but it happens as a backstory or under the same writer, not in real time.