#on god the fandom ruining interpretations is so relatable

[imminent-danger-came]

hi (its the anon who sent you the ask about misogyny lol/correct opinions anon (i dont think my opinions are that great but thank you!) except im not on anon anymore lol) ive been meaning to ask you now you feel about the hero mk warrior mei thing; its by far the most popular interpretation of the hero and warrior dichotomy being applied to mk and mei and it IS a concept İ personally like in my head (İ ❤️ tragedy) but the fandom interpretation has kind of ruined it for me (personally) because it feels like a lot of people only take mk's role in the narrative into consideration and just kind of slot mei into the warrior role without much thought toward her actual character or importance to the plot. that doesnt mean İ hate the idea by any means, but it does kind of make me more critical towards it lol

İ am personally kind of biased towards the hero mei warrior mk thing because for one, İ think mei-swk parallels create such an interesting conflict for mei, and two, because its the less popular interpretation in the fandom İ dont have to see as many bad takes on it haha (im joking)

(also there are SO many parallels between mei & swk that i rarely see pointed out by other fans... like i outside of you i dont see Imk bloggers point them out very often 💔 (ive *never* seen someone point this out before but do think mei stealing the jacket she that gives to mk in 3×02 from ao guang parallels swk stealing the staff from ao guang?))

all of that aside though, im not personally sold on either of these options! İ dont think mk & mei directly fit into the roles of the hero and warrior in the same way as macaque and wukong did! to me it feels like the hero & warrior dichotomy is being set up to be subverted by the show to an extent (whether thats because the show is going to have mei take on the role of the hero, or because mk and mei wont fight at all, or a secret third thing is up to your personal interpretation lol); especially when you take into account the average audience's perspective on the hero and warrior stuff; the obvious conclusion that ive seen most people make is to have mk as the hero and mei as the warrior with most people not even considering mei as the hero/mei paralleling swk! İ dont think this means that mei-swk parallels dont exist (İ spent a decent bit of this ask talking about them LOL) but because they require more inference on the audience's part they dont get talked about as much, which does make me think that show is going to call it into attention at some point (although İm not great with predictive analysis haha, im mostly just putting my thoughts on the table here)

thats pretty much all İ have to say on the topic lol (sorry İ rambled so much haha) im not sure that last bit makes sense AT ALL but hear me out im cooking! İ meant to reccomend some songs that İ thought fit the Imk characters ages ago that İ forgot about lol, anyway İ think burn by the cure is SUCH a samadhi fire mei song. like its one of those songs where it feels like it was made for the character. big shot by jhariah fits like. 90% of the Imk cast imo. like İ know everyone in the comments section is talking about spamton and yes the song is very spamton coded BUT if you erase all your preexisting memories of spamton and only imagine monkie kid characters with it, it becomes a macaque/mei/swk/mk/whoever-coded song. like "think you're a big shot / İ think you're raveled up in a tangle of did nots / you're always just a bit shy, following behind" is so shadowpeach divorcecoded to me. "yeah it's not fair, İ know it's not fair / you aint the only star that's been left for dead" is so shadow play coded to me (it sounds more shadow play coded in the actual song trust me here). İ also think martyr by depeche mode is a samadhi fire mei song (although im pretty sure you could say any depeche mode song is Imk character coded and youd be right aha) also İ think ヘヴンリーユー by lonepi kind of goes down the same route as big shot where you could apply it to multiple lmk characters and it would still fit. its kind of a mei & mk take on the roles of the hero and warrior type thing to me (their asses are NOT escaping samsara!) (one of the english translations of one of the lyrics is literally "time and time again" (what mei says in 3x10) İ think those are all the songs ive been meaning to mention here as of right now ! sorry if this ending seems abrupt İ just dont know how to end asks haha

faggotvivsection I can't believe it was you the whole time! *MK 2x05 voice* What a twist! I always enjoy seeing you in my notes, so hello :)

Anyways, as for the 3x02 Mei and Wukong parallels, I think it goes deeper than just Mei stealing the jacket!

Ao Guang: "Stealing from me? On orders from the Monkey King no doubt."

Mei also steals the map from Ao Guang on behalf of Wukong, just like he had stolen the staff in the past. I think in a way, the map and the staff were both "roadmaps" to get more power, you know. The map enabled them to unseal the rings, and the staff gave Wukong a suitable weapon.

Ao Guang specifically comments on both Mei and Wukong's weapons, Mei with her sword and Wukong with stealing the staff. In a way, both of their weapons are dragon related, one from the Dragon of the West and another from the Dragon of the East.

When it comes to hero and warrior mk/mei, I lean towards both! I think they're both the hero and the warrior for each other in their own respective ways. I love warrior Mei specifically because of 3x10, and because MK refuses to abandon her thus subverting the typical progression of the hero warrior dynamic (even if he can often be dismissive of Mei, stealing things from her [2x06, 3x03], putting a strain on his relationships for power [1x06, 2x03, 2x06, 2x07, 3x03]). I think moving forward however, Hero Mei and Warrior MK are far more likely to play out!

I have a whole samadhi fire part 3 tag centered around a parallel prediction, where we continue the parallel that was set up in 3x10 and 4x08, and while MK is on the verge of destroying the world have Mei get through to MK and reach him. In 3x10 MK is actually able to reach Mei...but in 4x08, MK runs away before Mei can make it to him. So if we had a moment where they were able to close that gap, and neither of them leaves, it'd be really satisfying. I am a huge believer in Hero Mei Warrior MK, don't let anyone ever tell you it isn't real.

Anyhow, onto the song recs:

Burn by the Cure

"Oh don't talk of love" the shadows purr Murmuring me away from you "Don't talk of worlds that never were The end is all that's ever true There's nothing you can ever say Nothing you can ever do" Still every night I burn Every night I scream your name Every night I burn Every night the dream's the same Every night I burn Waiting for my only friend Every night I burn Waiting for the world to end

What a "Samadhi Fire Mei pov toward MK" song am I right. It's also very Warrior Mei ("It follows the tragic tale of a legendary Warrior, and how those who bring light into this world, inevitably bring darkness to those they hold dear" -> "Oh don't talk of love the shadows purr", love a good light and dark motif)

Big Shot by Jhariah

Though I may love Spamton, and this is a very stage motif-y "There is no audience" kinda song, I do get the Shadow Play vibes (it's also giving theater Kid Macaque versus Wukong have stage fright lol), and over course it's overtly shadowpeach-esque. I also get a little bit of s2/s3 Macaque @ MK, especially with "You ain't the only star that's been left for dead"

Yeah it’s not fair, I know it’s not fair You ain't the only star that’s been left for dead I asked about your name on the moon It was quiet nobody knew you Aim like an atom who swears it’s going to shoot you Are you the only one-of-one to be found? If you could see the rest, would it bring you back down? You’re no big shot, think you’re a big shot I think you’re raveled up in a tangle of did nots You’re always just a bit shy, following behind I think you’ve spent enough time Singing the same lines

Martyr by Depeche Mode

I've been a martyr for love And I will die in the flames As I draw my last breath As I close in on death I will call out your name I've been a martyr for love Nailed up on the cross While you're having your fun As the damage is done I'm assessing the cost

THE SAMADHI FIRE MEI @ WUKONG OF IT ALL. Mei having to bear the consequence of Wukong's decisions, potentially burning herself from the inside out.

ヘヴンリーユー (Heavenly You) by lonepi

As the moon waned, I realized you weren't with me anymore. As the dawn of the new day broke, I hid my tear-swollen voice amidst the morning dew. You had said something like, "It's all my fault that you're this way." That's right, it's your fault. But just remember, that's not all of it. Every time my positives overcome the negatives, you toss them in the trash and do it over. You've stanched all those opportunities away from me time and time again.

The first pair that comes to mind is MK @ Wukong, or Macaque @ Wukong, but I think MK @ Mei would be interesting, even if not exactly canon. Mei is carrying MK's mental health on her lone shoulders, so that being disregarded in favor of blaming her for his problems...I dig that sort of broken Mei & MK dynamic.

[sinisterexaggerator]

Headcanon...?

Spoilers for a fic I will write eventually?

Do not read if you do not like made-up, author-indulgent backstories for characters who exist in the GFFA. This one is almost hard to post because it's kind of personal. Like, a story so plot driven that I am nervous people will hate my interpretation and my ships. Oh well, I guess, it's happening.

A discussion in the Duros hoes chat, and then between me and @allsystemsblue, got me thinking about what is Cad Bane's real name? It sure as hell ain't Cad Bane. A lot of the fandom seems to agree on that. "Cad" and "bane" are both words in the dictionary that can be defined.

Cad: a man who behaves dishonorably, especially toward a woman. / scoundrel / rogue / rascal.

Bane: a cause of great distress or annoyance. / scourge / ruin / death.

We shall come back to this.

I have a scene mapped out for Stars Above in which I want Cad to run into his sister. I have a plan for his backstory that does not include this particular fanfic, but another, a series I am working on that will be entitled "Annuals of an Outlaw," and is essentially a collection of works I have outlined that will contain my version of Cad Bane's "story" from his beginnings on Duro in the Descent Ghetto, to after the Clone Wars and beyond.

Yes, it will have smut. And angst. Lots and lots of angst. Many character will appear, including Jango, Hondo, Aurra, Bossk, Embo, Zam, Dengar, Todo 360, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and even Boba at some point. Oh, and let us not forget Shriv Suurgav. :)

Yes, Shriv.

You cannot stop me. Don't even try. This is my magnum opus, and by God it will make sense narratively. Just you wait. Or don't. I don't care. I am still going to write this thing if it's the last thing I ever do.

First of all, I enjoy playing around with Star Wars name generators. That is how I came up with the name of my OC, Zulara. I started sifting through them, piecing last names together with other first names, and voilà, a new name appeared to me that caught my attention.

Originally, I was looking for Durese words that maybe meant something in relation to his occupation or personality, but none of them called out. It appears others had that same idea in the past, so it makes sense to go with something new.

Anyway, my name for Cad Bane is Lumoon Troks.

Here are the outpouring of thoughts I had on the matter before I could stop myself. I came up with this over the last hour or two, and I am digging it so far. Who knows, maybe I will change my mind. It's helping me to fill in a lot of gaps, anyway, that I had in the plot, and I am happy about that.

So, I am giving Bane siblings. Two much older sisters, two brothers who are 1-2 years apart, and a younger sister who is four or five at the time Lumoon finally leaves home.

His siblings call him Lu, or Moon for short. When they want to be annoying, they call him Moody Moon, or "Lemon" because of his sour outlook ( lemons are "canon" in SW, I checked).

To sum things up briefly, Bane's mother was a kindhearted woman and his father was a gruff workaholic. They both were employed in the factories and rarely had time to spend with their family, but had too many mouths to feed.

Cad gets into trouble quite often. He runs wild in the streets from a young age. Maybe he hooks up with the wrong crowd. Nothing too menacing; some petty theft, vandalism, etc, etc.

His father's angry about it. He refuses to take on work in the factories with him. He wants more for himself. He's not about that grind day in, day out life. Things get so toxic between them that he leaves to make his own way, stops coming home, worries his mother sick, and his little sister to boot.

So much so, his little sister ( talking maybe preschool / kindergartener age ) decides she has to "bring Moon home" and takes it upon herself to find him. She loves her big brother and sorely misses him.

This does not end well. At all. The worst possible scenario unfolds. The first of many tragedies in Cad Bane's life. It deeply affects him. He tries to go to his mother; she isn't the same Duros any longer. She coldshoulders him, ignores him, and she suffers from a broken heart.

Cad blames himself. "She went out to find you and never came home." This time, he really does leave and never returns. I am sure there is a final fight between him and his father that maybe seals the deal. He takes up random jobs, anything that pays, from sex work, to being hired muscle, to thieving, to murder, you name it, as long as the pay is good and it keeps his mind off his own problems.

He learns skills along the way, and he also learns from his mistakes. Things start being a little too easy. He's tired of being bossed around. He wants to be his own boss. So, that's exactly what he becomes.

He decides to try his hand at bounty hunting. He begins to make a name for himself, except, he hasn't. He needs a new one, something intimidating, striking, and rememberable. Plus, he doesn't want his birthname floating around; that makes him vulnerable, as well as the rest of his surviving kin.

Bane's mother, in the early days of his youth, used to scold him for misbehaving. She called him the equivalent of a cad in Durese, and it translated that way from basic, something along the lines of "Lumoon! Quit being such a cad, you naughty boy!"

It means something to him. He feels it embodies what he has become. It is also a tribute to his mother as well as a punishment; something he has to live with and that he brought upon himself.

The next thing you know, one of his many enemies makes a snarky comment, saying to him, "you are the bane of my existence," or simply, "you are a bane!" From there, his new name takes shape in his mind. He thinks if you put two and two together, it sounds kind of nice. It sticks. He starts to introduce himself like that, when before he had only referred to himself as Cad.

Another misfortune befalls him, which I mentioned I wanted him to run into his sister. This would happen off-world somewhere, years later, and during the reign of the Galactic Empire. She would say something to the likes of: "Mom died. She never gave up on you. She waited for you to come home, everyday. I didn't have the heart to tell her I had seen your wanted posters."

It tears him apart for awhile. His second great tragedy. Never getting to reconcile with the Duros who raised him and whom he loved. He harbors this for the rest of his life.

Of course, running in the streets, he learns not to trust people. He's jaded. He gets fucked over a time or two, badly, and by people he thinks he can trust. He develops a shell; a way of looking at the world that allows him to keep his guard up for his own protection.

In that same vein, I believe Bane can love and that he can love hard given the right circumstances. One of the many reasons he's kept from saying it, is because every person he has ever cared about has either turned on him or dies. The galaxy is a harsh mistress. He's afraid of a repeat scenario; he doesn't let himself get close. He tells himself he's better off alone, doesn't need anybody; he prefers to run without a pack.

That is, until he meets Jango.

And, that, my friends, is a whole other story, but I want to add that Cad Bane has bad dreams. Nightmares, even. Visions. Terrible things happen, old memories replay, he is haunted by his past. The sister he couldn't save; the mother he thought had stopped loving him; the father he was never good enough to please.

Hondo compares himself to a sun, and Bane is the moon. This would fuck with him psychologically, and cause him to react unexpectantly should the nickname stick - one that is reminiscent of his childhood. It is Hondo Ohnaka in my story that saves Bane from himself after Fett meets his untimely end.

Jango, Hondo, and Shriv may call him moody from time-to-time, or grumpy, but that also does not sit well, either, considering his past.

Once Jango dies, and once he fails at training Boba, Cad is even more a wreck than before. In my story, he also does not get to reconcile with his old partner and mentor after their falling out. He drinks himself stupid in the presence of Boba to the point the boy gets fed-up and they have their duel.

Bane, in my mind, can't accept Boba as Fett's son; he is a clone; he could never accept the clone contract from the get go - it put a rift in their relationship. This adds more fuel to the "look out for yourself" fire that is his quote in the Book of Boba Fett.

Sorry this got so long-winded, but, I had to get that out as it came to me. Now, to actually write the story all these ideas are for!

[noelledeltarune]

7,8,13 for mario or pokemon please please please i love reading your hater thoughts

7 : what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them? i don't know.... i don't think there's any character i have it in my heart to hate solely because of the fandom.. mario specifically is something i've always been into in a very self-contained way because being a nintendo series with like 200 games will, by nature, give many people many different interpretations of the characters. and i have a very specific interpretation myself so if i disagree with something it doesn't really affect my own viewing of the characters? if that makes sense. i will admit though i don't really understand the geno hype. i have played most of smrpg but he hasn't really done anything noteworthy yet????? (i'm not DONE but i'm at like the cloud kingdom place where mallow found out he's a prince) and a lot of people ship him with mario but i just don't get it yet. idk if it's a fanon substance thing or if it's just my own fault for playing the game too sporadically to really pay attention to the original characters.. but i love booster. i love mallow. i love how mario and peach and bowser are written in the context of this specific game. but geno has just not wowed me. less of a "began to hate because of how fandom acts" but "fail to see the appeal despite how fandom acts". this will probably change but it's my biggest mario series confusion. what do you all see in him 8 : common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about on a light note i will say luigi autism mario adhd. i have always seen mario autism luigi adhd personally. this has never been a big deal i just think that the roles should be switched occasionally on the "mario bros autism-adhd solidarity" posts. on a more annoying but slightly related note people like to write that mario is more impulsive than luigi to a significant extent like "luigi has to hold him back from doing stupid shit" extent and that is WRONG. we are clearly not talking about the same luigi who just randomly slept on a magic bed in a resort's museum and jumped on a glowing magic artifact in the middle of a wedding and published a book about himself where he lied about every single detail and renovated his house to build a secret diary room that he then sealed after like a week... and has literally anyone ever seen mario do something and luigi try to hold him back from it. no he is god's #1 enabler 13 : worst blorboficiation YOU KNOW WHAT. honestly mario. luigi is treated like shit also but mario has it so so bad. like we all know luigi has it so bad but SO DOES MARIO and no one talks about it. he has silent protagonist syndrome where people go "no dialogue? time to project EVERY annoying trope onto him so i can make his dynamic with luigi really weird!" like not to quote my own post but.

it bothers me so much because people who are obsessed with luigi (SPECIFICALLY bowser x luigi fans) LOOOOOVE writing mario as this like extremely overprotective older brother figure in a way they JUST DON'T ACT LIKE in canon and it's SO BOTHERSOME. it's exactly like how people write sans with papyrus x mettaton and it's just so. aren't we all tired. aren't you all tired.

just. fandom be normal about characters who are twins for 2.7 seconds challenge IMPOSSIBLE. and it's hard to talk about mario's characterization without luigi's because a lot of it is linked to me but dear god there is no shortage of he would not fucking say that. and there's not as much of this now but like. MATPAT. has RUINED my LIFE. that stupid fucking mario is evil theory makes me so mad like NO THE FUCK HE IS NOT.

it might just be me being crazy but i feel like where luigi DOES get treated like an incompetent baby or really resentful/jealous or whatever he's just such a more widely written character than mario by virtue of often not being the player character / protagonist the same way. like with luigi there's always a sense of (barring a few obvious things) "i can imagine him acting like this under certain circumstances" (not always the way that he's portrayed but often enough comparatively) whereas with mario it's like. dude has 7 personality traits and you're fucking it up.

like did you even read the source material 😔did you play A mario game. once. i just feel like he has it bad in a way that's less surface level. like peach and bowser and daisy also get pushed aside pretty frequently and reduced to surface level characteristics but with mario it's like. that's the protagonist. and the surface level characteristics he's reduced to aren't even ones he actually has. NOT TO MENTION that he has a really bad case of post-movie adaptation characterization 😭 HE IS NOT THAT INSECURE. WHERE IS HIS WHIMSY. HIS SILLY SWAG. PLEASE!!!! IT'S ALL HE HAS!!!!!!!!

[halemerry]

for the game please:

common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

that one thing you see in fanart all the time

it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

So I've written a couple iterations of this answer across the past few months of trying to catch up with my inbox and realized in general that most of it just comes down to like people consuming media in a way I find exhausting. Like that's a bigger thing that this question is trying to get at but honestly it's the thing I see the most these days where someone takes meta too seriously or starts arguing over something on someone else's post or things like that. And like. Listen. There's nothing wrong with being attached to a piece of media and emotionally invested in it. Like I get it. This media has been a hyperfixation in my brain for decades at this point and I care about them a great deal, but there's a difference between that investment and letting strangers ruin your day because your versions of a character are different or you favor different theories on something. Or. I dunno. I genuinely like seeing takes that are different from my own? Even if I don't agree with certain things it's fascinating to see the different experiences people have with the media we all engage with. And it's so important to keep in mind with literary analysis personal life experiences impact what we read as being on screen just as much as what's actually literally on the screen does. This is why we see different things in the same piece of media and I think that can be one of the best things about media in general. But a lot of meta comes across as this is the One Truth - and this is partially because you are presenting an argument and the language that goes with that lends itself to that angle - and I think that's a really unhealthy way to go about this. Like there's a reason I write meta that can contradict each other right? It's literary analysis not an argument I'm preparing for a debate. In my experience if you're so locked into proving yourself right it's really easy for meta to devolve into something that's doing more harm to you than good - especially when it's impacting your enjoyment of the media and the fandom in the first place.

That being said, on a more lighter note that's probably more in the spirit of this question, my longest running version of this is the whole Crowley loving Queen thing. Don’t get me wrong I think it’s a fun character trait to assign to him, but it does kind of make me laugh because I grew up with the interpretation that the Bentley doing this was a constant minor annoyance in Crowley’s life. One of the most relatable scenes in the book to me was Crowley using music to try to get his mind off the Antichrist situation only for the Bentley to play Bohemian Rhapsody, prompting him to shriek and scramble to turn the music off. And I just adore the idea of the Bentley being a little bit of a menace and Crowley being like a grumbly pet owner in a constant state of fond annoyance.

that one thing you see in fanart all the time

Mmm, generally, this fandom is pretty fantastic when it comes to its art but, the one thing that’ll make me not reblog a piece of art is making Aziraphale too skinny.

it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on…

Religious text as inspiration for fanfiction? I understand why people don't want to engage with it, don't get me wrong, but there's certain stories I’m shocked I've never seen repurposed for fanfic. Exhibit A of this is the story about Nehushtan, the brazen/bronze/fiery serpent who heals and protects the wandering Israelites from seraphs sent to punish them for questioning God, in particular, is one I'm always shocked that I've never even seen referenced even as a throwaway line.

your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

Honestly this fandom doesn't miss much and the thing I started answering this with kind of devolved into 80% just it's own meta post so we're gonna not go down that rabbit hole twice but the sort answer is I feel like we don't talk nearly enough about the fact that the way magic works is at least slightly tied to belief, expectation, and assumptions of the entities wielding it. I'm obsessed with it.

[eldritchtouched]

I just want to say I am so happy I’m not the only gay trans man who finds Miquella incredibly relatable (and by extension find the infantilization the fandom does with him especially infuriating). Also, I’d like to add that people seem to forget/not realize Mohg and Miquella have incredibly similar in many different ways, ideals particularly. You can’t really understand one without understanding the other so the constant demonization is just fundamentally wrong.

I know, right? It's just... it's weirdly close to home because of that. Like, just because you think someone looks young doesn't actually mean they are young and just because you think someone looks old doesn't mean they're actually old. (Sorry GILF-lovers, Morgott may look elderly, but his parents look younger than him lol. It's also a mood to feel like in a perpetual stasis when you've got to wait to do transition related care, so it feels like you're not actually growing up lol.

Miquella is very clearly not a child from his actions and effects on the world, like growing a tree to the size of a skyscraper with his own blood (trees are very slow-growing) and offering refuge like he does, and the description of Miquella's Lily acknowledge that they were beloved "in his youth," so the writers of the canon are going with the idea that he is not actually a child mentally and his experiences do affect him, instead of the "frozen psychology" thing some writers do, he's just physically unable to grow up.

As for their similarities, it just seems like people ignore that Miquella has ties to blood as well, too. He grew the Haligtree with his blood, his needles are stuck in the skin like a medical needle, and the sacramental buds are heavily implied to be grown from his blood. This last point is especially fascinating because you can find a bunch of sacramental buds at the Writheblood Ruins, with a Sanguine Noble and a Mohgwyn Dynasty weapon, the Bloody Helice.

They also tend to assume his dislike of the Greater Will and the Scarlet Rot are because he opposes all Outer Gods, but it could very easily be because of their actions- the Rot is essentially destroying his sister to make her a puppet and the Greater Will is tyrannical and subjugates a lot of beings to have its "perfect" order. Same can be said of how people treat Ranni's ending, ignoring that Ranni is okay with the Outer God associated with the moon.

Whether or not he is okay with the Formless Mother remains to be seen, but the interpretation I keep seeing is that the Crucible and the Formless Mother are separate beings, but I think the Crucible is an aspect of the Formless Mother. (After all, Morgott, whose Omen aspects are purely from being born blessed by the Crucible, include his ability to wield the bloodflame, which is only associated with the Formless Mother.) As such, I don't think he would necessarily oppose the Formless Mother or that she's malignant or corrupting, unless you believe the Omens are inherently corrupt and that the Golden Order and the Greater Will's tacit approval of the Golden Order are correct in their assessment. Regardless, you are correct that their goals are heavily aligned. They both want an end to the Golden Order and make it so that groups other than humans are treated well. Mohg has Albinurics, humans, and Omens in his chain of command, while Miquella similarly has a diverse group in his chain of command. Both have taken steps to gather their power and involving a shitload of blood sacrament magic to do so.

But because one looks youthful and angelic and the other looks like a demon, people lose their shit one way or the other. Either they go with their appearances and assume Mohg is this malevolent creature, or they think maybe it's a twist and assume Miquella is actually pure evil and Mohg is a dupe. Instead of them being more complicated than that.

[megumixtsumiki]

Finally I found your account dedicated tu Megumi and Tsumiki and....I've read so many of your posts and you're totally right. Fandom nowadays is..idk how to call it..way too obsessed with male×male shipping ignoring way too obvious hints Gege is shoving to readers mouth. I mean these last chapters of Megumi being solebroken pointed by Sukuna and it's because of Tsumiki despite the whole backstory and motivation, his type it's all about Tsumiki...and fandom is still refusing and ignoring and also bullying if you have this kind of opinion..sigh. It's not only they pissed about megumiki possibility but also about yutamaki and itakugi (who also had tons of hints). This really is sad thing that audience is too dumb and can't read properly

Hey hey!!!

Ah my poor abandoned megumiki blog 🥲. Thanks for stopping by and glad you found this little corner of the internet! I considered deleting the blog but someone told me that it's a place for megumiki fans to come and realize that it's safe to love this underrated ship despite what the hive mind might say.

To your point about fandom, at the exception of one instance which I instigated, I've had a couple of trolls stop by and try to harass/bully me over this account and unfortunately for them not only do I love feeding trolls, they're also just not very smart? Like at all?

One of the trolls was adamant about Megumi and Tsumiki being blood related and like... SIGH... if this is the non-existent level of reading comprehension we are dealing with I just don't want to deal with people like that. The fact that they are step siblings is not even subtext ffs.

I've since untagged anything that includes the names Megumi or Tsumiki and only tag megumiki or megutsumi to preserve my peace of mind. Unfortunately this makes it hard to find this blog.

More word vomit under the cut...

Anyways...

You know what's funny? another moot and I kind of predicted that we would get an ambiguous moment between megumiki and that the fandom would cancel that moment and just say "oh its because she's his sister" and like... is this fandom predictable or what?

Because totally. Megumi's soul broke because of Tsumiki and all fandom can see is the itafushi and satosugu parallels.

And like... don't get me wrong, I actually LOVE itafushi and think it makes A LOT of sense--I just don't necessarily ship itafushi and that's perfectly ok.

So I have to admit it does irk me that megumiki gets cancelled by the antis and that reading the panel of Megumi declaring Tsumiki as his type is seen as a poor interpretation. LE SIGH.

Like there's this big account here on Tumblr who gets offended whenever the question comes up about Megumi's type and publicly declares that its canon that Megumi is SOLELY talking about Yuji here.

Me: ok yes. I get it. The kanji is hiding a secret message. But you're going to tell me that you think of your sibling when someone asks you who your type is? Because I sure don't. Not even to represent the idea of who I like. In fact, the idea of thinking of my brother feels repulsive to me. Ew. Gross. No!

It's like people can't handle the idea that Megumi can see both Tsumiki and Yuji as his type. Why is that such a crime? Like come on people, he's suuuuuuper weird about her and I love him all the more for it.

Oh wait... that's right. Gross, they're blood related! 🙄🤦🏻‍♀️.

The state of the fandom really is sad from that perspective. But I have to say that the fetishization of "gayness" is another huge problem--especially when people get called homophobic for not shipping the gay ships in JJK.

Like... my brother in christ, my two favorite ships are gay af and I am very VERY bisexual and pansexual. Please. Talk about poor interpretations ffs.

That's not to say everyone does it, but the vast majority does... unfortunately, a few rotten apples can ruin a fandom experience.

As you say, on top of fetishizing "gay", fandom is also misogynistic in this really weird way. God forbid you ship a hetero ship in JJK.

Like the reaction from itafushi fans when Hana had her wings torn by Sukuna actually broke my heart! People were legit rejoicing at the fact that Megumi stepped up to defend Yuji as though he wouldn't have done it for Hana if he could have.

So it's ok for Yuji and Megumi to loooooooove each other deeply (which they totally do), but God forbid Hana has a crush on him.

There's this REALLY good post that I reblogged to my main blog (but that I can't find for the life of me rn) that goes into the heterophobia that is rampant in fandoms nowadays. If I run into it again I'll make sure to reblog it here too.

Because that's exactly what it is: heterophobia and biphobia.

I get it that straight people and the dominant culture oppressed LGBT people for too long, and that's no reason for the pendulum to swing in the complete opposite direction and to hate on heteroships and the people who love them.

Honestly, I feel like at this point, the inclusive thing to do is to ship hetero ships. I know I ship a bunch of different dynamics, whether gay, lesbian, bi or straight. And I don't ship them because of their sexual orientation but because of the dynamic.

And that is not to say that people shouldn't ship characters based on their sexual orientation either.

Basically, ship and let ship.

Anyways, this is why I don't tweet very much at all lol 🤣. I word vomit too much for twitter.

Thanks for stopping by!!!

[empyreanparadisaea]

ooc. I'm feeling slightly better so I'll post some thoughts I shared with a friend on Kaveh. I'll add other miscellaneous thoughts I might've forgotten in our convo. Related to Kaveh's hangout quest and the previous event so be warned for those spoilers and possibly Fontaine? I'll be vauge as possible.

this is me talking about how I don't want Kaveh's mom playable as a certain god is being brought back for no reason. I don't even who or why that's how little this person left an impression on me so bringing them back would be stupid. But the conversation about this god returning brought up Kaveh's mom (as well as the line about her living in Fontaine) so I let it rip. Most of it is still the same, just edited to fix grammar or spelling errors.

So with almost every event he's had, it's obvious he's had hang ups thanks to that abandonment. No his mom didn't abandon him in a traditional sense (leaving only after he was in the Akademiya). But she abandoned him emotionally. Kaveh said he tried to get her attention and tried to make a home with her but she was too depressed and too in her head to think about others, about her damn son.

To the point she only wrote to him to say "hey I'm getting married, come and see!" Yes he did go with a proud face but he returned broken more than before. She ruined her son.

So yes I do want him to see her in Fontaine. But only for him to show that he's better than her.

Unlike her, he didn't become this selfish person. He has people who adore him, people he adores back and who won't leave him. They might all be far from each other distance wise but emotionally they're together always. And I want her to see that and see how badly she fucked up. I want him to sever the tie between him and his mom and let him have his own future, away from the shadow of his guilt and her.

I want her to regret hurting her son and abandoning him. If the current leaks are true and a certain god comes back, I don't want his mom to get that redemption. I want her to suffer the consequences of her actions.

If you wanna disagree and say she's worlds best mom feel free to unfollow me because I will not tolerate it. I'm fine with different interpretations of a character but when it's very blatant it's hard not to argue with the mainstream. But fandoms are dumb and it'll always be dumb. Originally I wanted to talk about feminity and Kaveh on this post but I'm feeling tired now so I'll leave that for another sinday. If I'm not cancelled yet by the fandom lmao

[westmoor]

every now and then someone will tap on my pinned post and then go on to like a couple of the non-geraskier/completely platonic ficlets on there and i want u to know nothing makes me happier

[butwhatifidothis]

i want to make a joke but i legitimately can’t. i’m disgusted over how captain treated dedue. edelgard is right in hating thales/twsitd bc they ruined her life but dedue isn’t allowed that same respect after being a victim of genocide and discriminated against due to edelgard’s allies and actions.

- “ Mother…you’re here.”" / "That was what Rhea had said to you, after you had saved her, and sacrificed everything for her, and killed… You shake your head. She still did not think you were real, even now. You were still just Sothis. Still empty." -> Forgive the dying for making an inappropriate statement right before their potential deaths. Sorry that they can't always say the nicey nice things when they're LITERALLY DYING

rhea wasn’t even talking about byleth 😭 in her s-support she was talking to sothis. whether or not she was having auditory hallucinations while on the verge of death or actually heard her mother is up to interpretation but she wasn’t talking to the player.

- “And then, you see the flash of a seafoam green cape and blond hair, and with terrifying speed, Ingrid has tackled Seteth to the ground, and begins to strike him, over and over again.

WHAT i’m sorry but when did ingrid become a fucking angry kangaroo???

- “Byleth…I…know that I have done dreadful, terrible things…but please…I love you. Help me fix this.”

DOES RHEA SEE BYLETH AS A MOM OR A LOVER WHICH IS IT CAPTAIN OR DOES IT CHANGE DEPENDING ON HOW YOU CAN TWIST IT FOR THE WORST IN THE SITUATION?

the treatment of nabateans in this story is also horrific. and the whole wilhelm x rhea nonsense made me roll my eyes. like. i have a whole sims file for them but he is never mentioned as a catalyst for her actions. for someone who claims to like rhea he really fucking hates her

anyway fucking kudos for making it this far in the fic that chapter was literally the worst thing i ever read and it was only the cliff notes

actually disgusting

I can’t believe the fandom looks at a fic that said "Big angry scary POC man "wrongly" hurting the helpless body of a small pure innocent white woman (that victimized him in multiple ways when she was alive) gets punished in a noticeably more brutal way than anyone else has been punished in this fic so far" and finds nothing like. Kinda fucked up about it. Did they read different words than I did? Cuz holy fuckin’ shit, this is so bad.

And fair enough about Rhea! I don’t really care if she was talking to Byleth because, well, she’s dying she’s not gonna say the most coherent things to anyone, but that’s nice clarification, thanks!

That whole scene was awful, and you know what I just realized? Cap’n skipping over Thales also conveniently skips over Rhea saving everyone from missiles. He really can’t be fucked to portray Rhea as a good person unless it can relate back to how good Edelgard is.

I DON’T FUCKIN’ KNOW it’s almost like Cap’n is saying Rhea wants to fuck Sothis?? It’s so fuckin’ confusing?? Shit is ass 😭

And I know, making Rhea’s motivations be all about Wilheim and nothing about her want to save Fodlan is honestly just fuckin’ pathetic. Of course Rhea was motivated by a man, because god forbid a woman not have things always relate back to a man. 

Couldn’t have made it this far in without ranting periodically to my sis, cuz I think I would have actually imploded from how fucked this chapter was

[afterthegreatunknown]

For the ask meme: Widdershins and/or Fernald?

:D Hello! I'm going to do both of them because one ask of the meme relates to them both. This also mostly relates to the books, not the Netflix show (some exceptions).

Fernald

my initial impression of them: More or less 'I hate you with a passion why are you ruining the Baudelaires' lives!? Also you're a pretty good actor much better than Olaf'.

my impression of them now: While not one of my favorite characters, I have a greater appreciation for him due to being an example of the 'chef salad' belief going on with the book, and because over the years I grew to have favorites in other fandoms that are similar to him (some less, some worse), so he rose ranks slowly due to that. I also still maintain the opinion he's a much better actor than Olaf.

platonic ship(s): Other than his sister, Fernald being friends with the other Troupe members (everyone in the Netflix show especially with the Henchperson of Indeterminate Gender, and everyone sans the Bald Man in the books.)

romantic ship(s): Uh...none. I'm sorry about the lack of answer here it's just that my interpretation of Fernald has him unable to be in an relationship. Even for the Netflix show, I can't see him in a romantic relationship (other than Fernald/Get better taste than Olaf).

unpopular opinion: Fernald was honestly damn creepy towards Violet (I hated his line in THH of calling her Sleeping Beauty), and I don't like how the fandom brushes it aside (but I do get why; his comments can be gloss over, and Netflix got rid of this quality for the better considering his friendship with Sunny, and that I feel, helps in the glossing over.)

what i associate them with: Coffee (black, no sugar and cream), fedora hats, and the Joker card.

Widdershins

my initial impression of them: More or less, 'How are you not out of breathe with the way you talk? How are you a stepfather? Do you willingly know the damage that you done, or it is all subconscious?'

my impression of them now: Not my favorite character in the series, but I don't hate him. He's a fascinating character that lives in a neutral tier rank free in my mind, because my god, what makes him tick? I know VFD is involve, but it all VFD or his upbringing we don't know anything about (it's free real estate).

platonic ship(s): Widdershins and Hector. Legit my favorite platonic ship I don't how it it happened but it is. I also have a soft spot for Widdershins and Gustav (but it's not as develop as much ;_; I need to fix that I need to work on my thoughts on Gustav).

romantic ship(s): UMM, other than his wife and even then that's complicated...none. I mean, I technically do have Widdershins and Gregor, but that's really a one-side romantic ship for Gregor. I also do have a fasciation on the idea Widdershins and Monty have a brief fling, but that's not development enough.

unpopular opinion: Other than thinking he survived the Great Unknown (I think that's the popular opinion, Widdershins dies due to the Great Unknown, at least on this site?). None. Well, thinking he could have worked on Netflix ASOUE and not demoted to creator cameo could be that, but I feel that's a different topic for another day that I don't want to talk about.

what i associate them with: saltine crackers, bandages, and songs blasting on high volume pissing everyone off.

A WIP info I have for both of them that been on the backburning for months now is a fic where Baby Fiona gets her iconic triangle glasses. Widdershins and Fernald talk to each other, and it's quite hard to write them younger and getting along (the former is actually getting to me; I never wrote Fernald as a teenager before).

@gellavonhamster I hope you don't mind me tagging you (am I even tagging you correctly?)

[readerinsertfanfiction]

Hello, dearest Nemo. Inspired by a matter you're probably aware of, here I come, to ask you for certain opinion, although perhaps in form of HeadCanons... Let's say we have Ghibli Movies and the Warlords. Which movie would be each warlord's favourite? What do you think?

Ooooh, lil'Lorei remembers my obsession with Studio Ghibli movies, I see. (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)(. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)(. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)

Fandom: Ikemen Sengoku 

Characters: All - Kanetsugu because idk I can’t find shit on him only that he is a tsun.

Prompt: The warlords and studio Ghibli movies. Disclaimer: I only listed the movies I have watched, which is a fair amount but by no means all. 

To sit on the couch with a Sengoku warlord felt strange. No, it was definitely weird! All the more so when you put up a Studio Ghibli movie. Just any, because you felt like it. Little did you know that the warlord would take so well to it. He had been rather apprehensive at first, after all, moving pictures and that strange sound? But after a while the movies won him over. After all, who could resist the peaceful charm of Studio Ghibli, dreaming away at the romance of everyday life set in a beautiful landscape far away from all worry and chaos?

Nobunaga Oda: Spirited away

“The soot sprites have good taste,” the Oda leader pronounced, a proud smile etched on his face as he enjoyed the movie playing. On the screen the little black balls could be seen carrying off the konpeito, dancing around the little girl that had just lost her name to Yubaba, a move that Nobunaga had heartily laughed at. “I should consider doing this myself,” he had exclaimed, eyes glistening in mischief, “but I would rename them,” and to this remark you could only feel yourself sweatdrop, recalling the animal-inspired nicknames he tended to give his vassals.

Ieyasu Tokugawa: When Marnie was there

Something about the movie triggered something within him. The themes of loneliness, and constantly being moved around, but most of all, the trope of a found family and the concept of home. They resonated with his own childhood that he had resented so much. The past in which he was treated kindly, but also at times cruelly. All of these stories consolidated into one movie and two girls. “Marnie was weak,” he would later say, “good for Anna,” was his end review, but you could see the tears in the corner of his eyes. The movie had touched him.

Hideyoshi Toyotomi: Tales from Earthsea

A story of guilt and servitude? Prince Arren and the shadow that chases him? An inner fear, but yet a strong resolve to sacrifice all to reach ones goal? Hideyoshi is sold. The promise in the end is what gives that extra edge needed as Hideyoshi is weeping at the end of it all. “I will return to you, lord Nobunaga. I will repay all of my sins!” he wails and you know that he means it. Strangely enough, you have a feeling that Nobunaga would like the concept of ‘True Name’

Masamune Date: The wind rises

The story of a young boy whose dreams are shattered because of his weaknesses and then overcoming them? That’s his boy! Masamune has been cheering Jiro on since the opening of the movie and never stopped. Not until halfway through the movie and a frown settles on his face until the man has to gulp audibly to keep himself in check. All that chasing after a dream and the sacrifices made. It definitely hits a snare with the man who is quiet after the movie. He will need a cuddle or two.

Mitsuhide Akechi: Kiki’s delivery service

“There is just something about watching a little mouse grow up, isn’t there?” Mitsuhide teases with that lilting smile of his ever-present. But between the affectionate nickname and watching the movie there is something wistful about the man who sees the peaceful coming-of-age and finding identity and inspiration for live and passion within the little girl on her broom. He doesn’t say it, but he hopes that children in the future can grow up in such peace as Kiki does, able to adventure and a home to return to.

Kyubei: Whisper of the heart

Two kids chasing after their dreams, one set and the other just learning about it and a very capable cat that guides them. Kyubei enjoys the relationship that develops and the romance that comes with it, finding the fantasy element adorable. “I have a favourite person as well,” he tells you later with a mystifying smile, referring to the poster advertising the movie. A favourite person and a dream, he realises, which he hadn’t before.

Mitsunari Ishida: The secret world of Arrietty

“How very inventive!” the man constantly exclaims as he watches the little Arrietty move around in the garden. When she is fighting off bugs her own size Mitsunari clasps his hands together, as he rattles off on the many efficiencies they can make use of the bugs and employ the garden and the doll house. In the end Mitsunari feels only a little sad about Arrietty’s departure, though he has all faith that the friends will meet again, “is there a sequel,” he asks you for that, eager and beaming.

Keiji Maeda: Howl’s moving castle

Of course Howl’s theatrical ways are what enraptured the man at first, accompanied with Sophie’s determination and go-getters attitude. “That is no dull woman!” he exclaims happily as he watches the older sister fall to the curse cast by the witch. And though it is only vaguely implied Keiji comes to understand that it was something about the heart, just as Howl transforms because of his own heart. ‘A heart is a heavy burden.’ Sophie’s line catches him and Keiji agrees that Sophie’s hair is like starlight. He turns to you, however and tells you that you’re his starlight.

Ranmaru Mori: The cat returns

The cats, Baron the gentleman cat that just looks super cook and a whole slew of shenanigans about to happen. Secretly Ranmaru sees Kennyo in Baron, dreaming away watching his master be the cool hero that he was always meant to be. A little mysterious, totally awesome and can kick ass. Yes, that’s his favourite person!

Kennyo: My neighbour Totoro

There is something homely about the strange giant figure with its creepy smile and silent gestures. In fact, the whole movie endears the man. Two girls surrounded by the beauty of nature, growing up in peace and afraid of soot, catbus riding them to their mother. Kennyo can’t help but smile at the outrageousness of it all, finding it all very endearing. Secretly he thinks himself as Totoro, hiding in the forests and watching over the innocents.

Kenshin Uesugi: Princess Mononoke

A story about rulership, about how humanity ruins life eventually, about destruction and a lot of fighting. Kenshin loves it, especially for the last part. But as a former monk himself with a good appreciation for the gods and nature Kenshin relates to lady Eboshi who is willing to fight all if it means keeping her people safe and San, who fights to protect what she holds dear. He understands that and he relates to that.

Shingen Takeda: The tale of the princess Kaguya

A classic he is familiar with turned into an animation he has never experienced! Shingen loves it. Though he has to admit that he likes the story versions better he has a good appreciation for the artistry and the interpretation of the story, along with the pain of forgetting and leaving.

Yukimura Sanada: Porco Rosso

His favourite nickname turned into a character! Yukimura was flabbergasted at first, but then he came to understand that this was a spell of sorts, just as the movie itself was a trick of magic called science. But alas, that’s not why Yukimura was so in awe with the movie, it was the cool zeal in which the main character flies for his convictions. And somewhere deep down, though he will never admit such, the main character reminds him of Shingen.

Sasuke Sarutobi: Grave of the fireflies

Ah, the classic on which a whole generation was cruelly introduced to Studio Ghibli’s magic, the movie that started it all and above all: made everyone cry. Some may find him a bit of a weirdo to choose this as his favourite movie, after all it is such a sad movie. But it is the history, the message behind it, the themes dealt with and at last the pain and love of the siblings bereft by war. Sasuke’s heart is beaming just at the thought of the entire movie as his eyes start to tear up, dryly.

Kichou: Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

There is no movie that quite agrees with him that the world is set out for doom than Nausicaä. The world is destroyed by humanity in a war, humans are still at war, but not only amongst each other for their greed but also with nature. Nature is trying to kill them for the sins committed by man. It all comes together and shows how the blight of this world truly is men and how the future that you come from is just an illusionary peace.

Yoshimoto Imagawa: Ocean Waves

Modern life poured into an artistic expression of young love. There is nothing quite more artistic than that in Yoshimoto’s opinion. The art is pretty, the story is enjoyable and not too riddled with all ugly traits and reminders of chaos and war and he gets to observe the modern world and its beauty a little more. Yes, Yoshimoto is indeed trying to forget about all the ugliness back in the Sengoku.

Motonari Mouri: Castle in the sky

Sky pirates, raiding a precious city, chaos overall and a booming ending? Sign him up. Motonari doesn’t really care for the main characters, finding them too sweet and innocent, but he has noticed that this is an overall trend within Studio Ghibli movies. Do, tell him more about the sky pirates, however and he definitely needs one of those flying machines.

[cyhyr]

Whumpmas in July: Warmth

Fandom: Naruto

Rating: E

Pairing: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka

WC: ~3940

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Notes: frottage, therapy, safewords, cockwarming, oral sex, past abuse, love confessions

A/N: So, y'all know about my wonderful problem with terrible interpretations of prompts... Oops? Anyway, we'll return to our regularly scheduled whump-fest in the next fic. I think.

Follows "Look At Me"

For @whumpmasinjuly prompt list

Read on The Archive

~

They’re on a mission together when the idea comes to him. And he knows Kakashi isn’t going to approve, nor will he be interested in trying it; but a man can dream and it’s just the two of them on the road for five days and Iruka can admit that there’s probably something messed up with his head that he wants this but he can’t help it.

He remembers often, giving Kakashi that blowjob, and how it made him feel. He enjoyed having Kakashi in his mouth for the time he managed it, before he went and fucked it up by giving Kakashi his hair. They lay near each other at night in the forest and huddle together and oftentimes Iruka feels the outline of Kakashi’s dick against his ass and it’s… it’s a lot.

In a good way.

Fuck, but he wants Kakashi.

He just… doesn’t know how to go about having him without also triggering himself. It wasn’t until he started seeing a therapist, his first session two weeks ago, that he realized how much Mizuki ruined sex for him. He already knew he was damaged goods, but he hadn’t realized how much.

But this idea he’s got…

Maybe.

~

They’re two days from Konoha, huddled together in a shallow cave while a storm rages just outside. They could have kept going—a little rain and wind never hurt anyone—but Kakashi seemed to jump on the chance to settle down for the night early, and led them here. Iruka set up intricate traps and barrier seals around the mouth of the cave, assuring both himself and Kakashi that only the truly desperate will get into their hiding spot, let alone know they’re here. They dry out hair and clothes (Kakashi’s control with katon is brilliant, like the rest of him) and are simply enjoying sitting next to each other in front of a small fire.

Their vests and pouches remain within easy reach—they are still on a mission.

Iruka leans against Kakashi’s shoulder, contently dozing in and out. Kakashi has an Icha Icha book open in his palm, but hasn’t turned the page in over fifteen minutes. Their silence is odd in that it’s comfortable, but only if Iruka doesn’t think about how long they’ve each been quiet.

Kakashi breaks. “Iruka?”

“Hmm?”

“You… you would tell me… if I was doing something wrong. Right?”

Iruka’s eyes snap open and his happy doze fades fast. He lifts his head and shifts to face Kakashi. “Yes, of course, but what is this about? What’s—?” He stops and glances away, “Have I done something wrong?”

Kakashi hums. “You’ve just been a little distant for most of this mission. Since we passed through that hamlet on our first evening. I just—I don’t—”

“Kakashi, no,” Iruka reaches out for his hands, but at the last inch stops. He knows what this is about now; of course Kakashi picked up on his odd mood, his being-lost-in-thought. “Can I hold your hands?”

Kakashi nods, his blush barely noticeable in the firelight.

“Kakashi,” Iruka starts again with his partner’s hands in his own, “I’m sorry for seeming distant. I had an idea and it’s been plaguing me, but I wanted to wait until we got home to talk about it. I also—um—kind of want to discuss it with my therapist first.”

Kakashi brings their hands up to his masked lips and kisses Iruka’s fingers. “You will tell me, though?”

Iruka nods. “I want to, very much so. But I also need to. To talk it out with Rikona-sensei.”

Kakashi accepts the answer and tugs Iruka closer, which he does willingly. Iruka takes initiative and leans into the space behind Kakashi’s ear and mutters, “Can I...?”

Hands pull him to straddle Kakashi’s lap while a groaned “Yes” rumbles against his chest. Iruka slips Kakashi’s mask down just enough to get to that sensitive spot and nips at it. Kakashi, at the same time, gently gropes and kneads his ass.

“I. Want. Uhh, there—Iruka, more. Still can’t believe you’re able to hide this ass in—ohh, fuck—standard uniform pants. Oh gods. Iruka.”

Iruka smiles against Kakashi’s neck as he reveals bare skin. He won’t pull down the mask entirely—that’s a limit Kakashi set and, gods, Kakashi’s so good at remembering his triggers that Iruka can do him the favor of remembering one limit. Kakashi is hard, and Iruka grinds down on his erection to get him to swear and squirm some more.

So long as Iruka stays on top, stays in control, these kinds of encounters don’t bother him. Mizuki never treated him like this, not exactly. The differences are enough.

He rolls his hips against Kakashi, a little faster, holding onto Kakashi’s shoulders for balance. “Kakashi,” he moans breathily, “wanna see you come.”

Kakashi pants. One hand leaves his ass and pulls down his mask, and then they’re kissing, mouths devouring each other and teeth clicking together. Iruka feels his own stirrings of arousal, finally, and groans deeper in his chest.

“Close,” Kakashi warns, breaking the kiss after a few minutes.

“Good. Why’s your hand not back on my ass?”

“I don’t. I mean.”

Iruka smirks and takes Kakashi’s hand, bringing it up to his face. Iruka normally likes Kakashi’s gloves. The texture, the smell, the implication of power… but tonight, he’s glad the gloves are off, over with their vests and pouches.

He slips Kakashi’s first finger into his mouth and hums.

“Oh, shit.”

He continues to hold Kakashi’s finger against his tongue until he’s finished and slumped forward, and then lets it slide free with a pop.

“Gods, Iruka,” Kakashi murmurs, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him as close as possible. “That was. Wow.”

Iruka giggles and replaces Kakashi’s mask, and then cards his fingers through silver hair. “Very articulate.”

Kakashi hums. He’s still glowing, and won’t want to be coherent for a few minutes.

“Can I return the favor?” he mutters against Iruka’s neck. Even during the afterglow, Kakashi thinks of him; it’s sweet.

Iruka says, “No thanks. I started to get there, but just wasn’t… y’know.”

Kakashi sighs. “Still wanna kill him.”

“I know. I appreciate the sentiment.”

He whines. “It’s not fair that I get all the orgasms in this relationship.”

Iruka laughs outright. “Even though I’m okay with giving them to you? And also not asking for reciprocation?”

Kakashi nuzzles him. “Wanna see you come, too,” he murmurs.

Someday.

~

“It’s good that you feel ready to take steps to move forward. But what steps are you prepared to take to prevent an episode?”

“Well, I thought a lot about it on the way home. Mizuki would always come to my place, so I thought first maybe a change in scenery will help—I’m gonna ask if we can do this at Kakashi’s place.”

“That’s a start. But many of your triggers are auditory.”

“And Kakashi’s never said anything to tip me into an episode since our, uh, second disaster. I trust him.”

“Trust is important. What else?”

“I’m also going to heavily condition my hair, and brush it out. So in case Kakashi snags it accidentally it won’t pull. I’m… I’m also going to request that he wash up beforehand. He and Mizuki smell… too similar, right now. I don’t want to risk it.”

“What about position?”

“That’s something I will need to discuss with Kakashi. I can’t—I can’t be on my knees for this, that’s just asking for an episode.”

“I agree. May I also suggest the two of you discuss hand signals for safe-words? You won’t be able to talk, after all.”

“Yes. I hadn’t thought of that. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’m glad you have put so much thought into this.”

“I just need to prove to us I can move past this.”

“Hmm. Well, we’ve gone over time by ten minutes, but I think it’s worth it. I truly hope this works out for you, Iruka-sensei.”

~

Iruka is scrubbing the cabinet faces in his kitchen, waiting for Kakashi to get back from another mission. They’d gotten back, and the next day his partner had been sent out again—he had been angry at first, at the Counsel for requiring so much from Kakashi, and at himself for not understanding immediately that Kakashi requested the mission to give Iruka a little bit more time and space to work out that “odd” thought.

He’s worked it out. He talked it out with Rikona-sensei. He’s as prepared as he can be.

That’s why he’s cleaning.

Iruka can admit that he’s terrified this will go wrong. Against all of his thoughtful preparation, he could still dissociate. The more he goes under, the more likely it becomes that he just won’t resurface. Or he could resurface, but with new triggers—new ones relating to Kakashi instead of Mizuki.

Worst of all, Kakashi could just outright deny him and not even try. Iruka’s not sure how that situation would go, but it probably won’t be good.

At least. At least Kakashi’s due back today. He shouldn’t have to—

“Hello dear,” comes a voice from his kitchen window.

Iruka doesn’t hide the smile Kakashi’s voice drags out of him. He looks up from his spot on the floor and watches as his partner slinks through the window and over the sink and counter to join him on the floor.

“Sandals,” Iruka says. Kakashi takes his off and leaves to go put them in the genkan, and is back at his side quickly.

“You’re cleaning,” Kakashi comments. “Rough day with the ankle-biters?”

Iruka laughs. “No, nothing like that. I quite like this class, actually.”

“Then…?”

Iruka sets aside his sponge and sighs, standing up. “Right. Let me put this away, and then. Then we can talk.”

He leaves the room, taking as long as he dares knowing Kakashi is standing, arms crossed, in his kitchen. He dumps dirty water down the shower drain, sets the sponge in the bathroom sink to dry, and puts the bucket away in the bottom of the linen closet.

One more bracing breath, and then he leaves the bathroom.

“Okay.” He comes back into the kitchen; Kakashi hasn’t moved. “Would you like to sit?”

Kakashi holds a hand up. “First, please?” Iruka nods and gestures for him to speak. “Are you breaking up with me?”

“No.” Iruka’s proud of how even his tone is. “You may want to consider it, after this, but I don’t… it’s not what I want.”

Kakashi takes the chair beside Iruka’s usual one, and pulls down his mask. “I highly doubt whatever you have to say is going to change my feelings for you.”

Iruka sits. Smiles. “That’s sweet, but hold your judgement until you’ve heard me out.”

Kakashi leans forward and reaches out for his hands. Iruka gives them to him, letting Kakashi entwine their fingers together on the tabletop.

“I have something I want to try,” Iruka starts. “And I’ve given it a lot of thought, how to go about it without worrying about triggering an episode.”

Kakashi sits up a little straighter. “What do you want?”

Iruka’s face heats up, and he looks away for a moment to collect himself. “I… okay, so. I—before I fucked up that last time, when I was blowing you—”

“We agreed that it was both of our faults,” Kakashi glowers. “If you want to take any of the blame, I get an equal amount for being the instigating party.”

“Right. Sorry—”

“Iruka.”

Iruka closes his eyes and bites his lip. Deep breath. “Thank you, Kakashi, for reminding me.”

Kakashi brings his hand up to kiss his fingers. “You’re welcome. I’d like to hear more, but not if you’re going to be self-deprecating.”

“I. Yes. Okay. I can… I’ll try.”

Kakashi replaces their hands on the table and waits.

“So, the blowjob. When I was. Before I dissociated.” Iruka flushes hard. “I really enjoyed that.”

“As did I. But you also said that your performing oral sex is off limits, because of your trauma. Has that changed?” Kakashi is trying not to look excited, but Iruka can see the spark in his eye.

“Not exactly. I’d like to try something, um. Blowjob-adjacent?”

Kakashi waits.

“I’d like you to consider. Letting me… um.” Oh just thinking about it is getting his heart racing; his breathing speeds up.

“Iruka, are you with me?”

“Yes,” he answers immediately. “I’m not—slipping. It’s. Fuck,” he takes one hand back from Kakashi and presses his palm to his forehead. He decides to spit it all out as fast as he can. “I want your cock in my mouth again, but I want to just. Hold it. Does that make—”

Kakashi’s chair screeches as he pushes back from the table. He comes around the corner of the table and kneels in front of Iruka, looking up at him reverently. “You would do that for me?” he whispers.

Iruka puts his free hand against Kakashi’s cheek. “You’re the one who’d be doing me a favor,” he smirks. “I want this, Kakashi.”

“Now?”

Iruka shakes his head. “I mean, yes, but not-not here. And I have some preparation steps for both of us, to help prevent the chance of an episode.”

“Anything.”

~

Two hours later, it’s late and dark, and Iruka stands outside of Kakashi’s apartment door. The jōnin barracks are sparse, as most shinobi who attain this rank either are part of a clan, make enough to purchase their own quarters, or find better housing with spouses or roommates. As it is, Kakashi is the only one living on his floor, and has been able to secure the apartments above and below him to stay empty as well.

Iruka knocks. He doesn’t have to wait long for Kakashi to open the door.

“Hello dear.”

Iruka smiles and leans in to accept Kakashi’s kiss to his forehead. He’s led inside, and once the door shuts, he reaches up and starts untying his hair.

Hands gently take his elbows and Kakashi crowds him from behind. “Leave it up for now?”

Iruka tightens the tie again, then turns around in the circle of Kakashi’s arms. “Have you thought about it?” he asks.

Kakashi hums. “Can I kiss you? I won’t get to for a while.”

Iruka leans in and tugs gently at his mask with one finger. “Gotta take this off first,” he says.

“Go ahead.”

Oh. Iruka cups Kakashi’s jaw with both hands and slowly eases the fabric down over his nose and mouth. His face bared to the room, Iruka traces his lips with a fingertip. “Can I—?”

“Please, Iruka.”

Lips meet and moans rumble in both of their throats. Iruka keeps his hands on Kakashi’s face, revelling in the bare skin he was allowed to—Oh his chest aches in such a wonderful way.

Kakashi runs one hand up his spine while the other stays around his waist. Iruka smirks into the kiss as Kakashi traces his hand back down, past his waist, his hips, and finally settling on the curve of his ass.

“Someday,” Iruka murmurs into his mouth, and groans at Kakashi’s harsh kneading.

“Best ass in Konoha,” Kakashi whispers. “In the world.”

Iruka laughs outright, tipping his head back. The laugh turns into another moan as Kakashi kisses his neck and jaw. He lets Kakashi lead as they start walking over to the bed.

Then they fall gently, slowly, onto the mattress. Iruka keeps his eyes open; there’s a different visual stimulus here, Kakashi’s studio being so different from his own bedroom. He’s urged to lay beside Kakashi, still in his comforting embrace.

They kiss forever, until Iruka feels comfortable exploring Kakashi’s body with his own hands, until he closes his eyes and rests his head back against the pillow and lets Kakashi kiss him all over, tapping and tugging at various pieces of clothing to ask if he can remove them.

They’re both down to their underwear when Iruka starts to feel the faint prickling of panic at the edge of his awareness. He pulls Kakashi back up to him and kisses him deeply, slipping his tongue into Kakashi’s mouth and feeling the scar across his eye.

“How are you feeling, dear?” Kakashi asks.

“Hmm. Almost wanna just keep making out with you all night,” Iruka says.

“We can do that,” Kakashi offers. “If you want to wait on—”

“Oh no. I’m getting that monster back on my tongue tonight.” Iruka kisses along Kakashi’s jaw, hunting for his weak spot. He probably can’t reach it from this position. Judging from the rumbling moan in his chest, Kakashi doesn’t mind his trying. Or his words.

“Shit, alright. Sit up a moment.”

Iruka collects himself up onto his knees and waits while Kakashi repositions himself to sit against the headboard, his legs apart. He crooks a finger in Iruka’s direction and yes he’s helpless but to settle between Kakashi’s legs and lean in to kiss him again. Iruka drags his mouth across Kakashi’s chest, licks at his stomach, and finally lays himself down and breathes in Kakashi—bitter, dark; he wonders briefly if Kakashi had followed his request to wash up before this, so the faint scent that reminded him once of Mizuki would be covered by soap smell.

Kakashi’s musk doesn’t flash a threat of Mizuki now.

He lays his head on Kakashi’s thigh and waits. Kakashi pets Iruka’s hair with one hand—very gently—and fondles himself with the other. Watching Kakashi go from semi-hard to fully erect in front of him is maddening; he feels his own dick respond, and the heat in his core starts to build. He licks his lips and shifts closer just a bit.

Kakashi stops him with a hand on his shoulder. “Wait, just. Just a little bit more.”

Iruka whines.

Kakashi stops. “Iruka?”

“I’m fine. I’m great. Please, please keep touching yourself,” he whimpers. “Gods, keep touching yourself.”

“Fuck.”

Kakashi pulls his cock out, finally, and strokes himself. Iruka’s lips part involuntarily, beginning to pant. He shifts his hips against the sheets, but keeps his arms still around Kakashi’s hips and his head steady on his thigh. His mouth dries out quickly with his panting.

“Please, Kakashi, please. I-I want you so bad please—”

“What do you do if I check in with you and you’re okay?”

Iruka taps his hip once.

“And if you ever need to stop?”

He taps twice. “Or I can just pull away.”

“Right. And if you find yourself slipping?”

Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-

Kakashi chuckles. “Alright, alright.” He holds his cock at the base and guides Iruka forward with his other hand at the back of his head. He doesn’t push, doesn’t hold him, doesn’t grab him; and Iruka goes for it happily, sliding his lips around the head and moaning along with Kakashi at the first touch of tongue to cock.

He sucks on the head for a moment, breathing deeply and focusing himself. When he feels ready, he slides down, bit by bit, hearing Kakashi’s harsh panting echoing in the room.

“Little more, that’s it. Fuck, beautiful—c’mon, c’mon, just—oh, gods.”

Kakashi’s cock hits the back of his throat. Iruka pulls back, just a second, breathes, and on his exhale sinks down the rest of the way.

“Shit-shit-shit, fuck, Iruka, so g—ah, shit, your mouth yes.”

He lays his head back on Kakashi’s thigh and lets his partner run his mouth above him. He’s got cock comfortably settled down his throat and yeah, they’ll have to change the sheets because Iruka’s already drooling around his mouthful something terrible—something wonderful—and by the time he’s ready to come back there’ll likely be a small puddle.

It doesn’t seem that Kakashi will mind.

He finally collects himself to quiet down, still hard in his throat though. It’s nice. Kakashi pets his hair again, and this time also pulls the tie free from his hair. He’s careful, so damn careful, and then Iruka’s hair is loose around his face and he doesn’t care.

He doesn’t care because he’s got better things to focus on.

He’s in Kakashi’s bed, with Kakashi’s scent all around him, and Kakashi’s bittersweet cock on his tongue, and Kakashi’s words echoing around him, and he’s hard.

Oh, he’s hard.

If he shifts he’ll choke. He can’t take any relief for how turned on he is. That’s… that’s okay. He’s not doing this to get off. He’s doing it to prove he can.

And he is.

And he does.

Kakashi checks in with him every ten minutes. He stays present the whole time. It’s so. It’s perfect. The third time, Kakashi tells him it’s been half an hour, and Iruka hums and glances up at him questioningly.

“I’d. I’d really like to come, Iruka. But I also want to wait until you’re ready.”

He sighs through his nose and carefully pulls off of Kakashi’s cock. He sucks on the head for a minute, listening to Kakashi swear and pant some more as he swallows and lets his throat relax. When he pulls off the rest of the way, he noses at the hard, reddened length and says, voice wrecked, “Come, then. If you’d like.”

Kakashi wastes no time in grabbing his spit-slick dick and beginning to pump furiously. Iruka sits up on his knees to watch, pressing the heel of his own hand against his erection and breathing heavily to keep himself under control.

“You too, please,” Kakashi whimpers. “Can I see you? Can I—oh, can I blow you? I’ll be just as-as-fuck, Iruka, please, I want you too; wanna see you, too.”

“I know,” Iruka says. His shoulders are heaving with the force of keeping his breath steady. “But this was for you.”

“But—”

“Oh, my Kakashi,” Iruka murmurs. “Just. Let go. Let me see you. Let me know I d-did good.”

“Fuck, Iruka.”

“Come, love.”

He does. Oh, he comes, hard and loud and wet, streaking up his chest and dripping over his hand and gods does Iruka have the urge to kiss him through his afterglow. He inches forward on his knees and reaches past Kakashi’s shoulder to the washcloth they’d prepared before, sitting on the windowsill. Iruka gently wipes it across Kakashi’s chest and groin, and then takes his hand and swipes it with the cloth, too. He tosses the washcloth across the room to the sink, and leans forward to press his forehead against Kakashi’s.

“Can I—?”

“Please kiss me,” Kakashi whimpers at the same time.

He does. Kakashi’s arms embrace him loosely and he holds Kakashi’s face in one hand and braces his other palm against his chest. His heart is racing, pounding.

“You called me—”

“I do.” Iruka murmurs, pulling away so he can look into Kakashi's eye. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, tied with Naruto.”

“For different—”

“You know what I mean.” Iruka chuckles. “Yes, for different reasons.”

“Does this mean I can get you off now?”

Iruka shakes his head. “I just wanna enjoy your glow with you. You’re so precious like this.”

“I like it,” Kakashi mutters. “Being yours.”

“I like having you,” Iruka cards his fingers through Kakashi’s hair. “I… I love you.”

Kakashi says, “I love you, too.”

“You don’t have to—”

“I’ve loved you for months, Iruka. I’m just. Scared.”

“Don’t be. You’ve got me.”

They breathe through the glow. They’ll have to change the sheet, and Iruka hasn't yet confirmed with Kakashi if it’s okay if he stays the night. But he’s happy, and he’s proven to himself that he’s on the mend, and Mizuki’s hold on him has loosened just that little bit more.

[neurodihuegent]

Whew… I just finished the finale and all I can say is… wow, it’s finally over.

Y’all know that I’m a shooter for season 3, so I don’t expect anybody to be surprised that I actually really enjoyed this finale. Were there things that I personally would change? Yes, but that’s the glory of fanfiction writing.

I totally can understand some people’s grievances with this finale, but at the same time, I can’t say I’m surprised that I’ve seen some of the people I have say that they disliked this finale a lot: If you go into something with a negative mindset, there’s a 95% chance that you’re going to hate it when you see it, because the negative mindset is just going to make you nitpick every decision that you personally wouldn’t have made as the writer. And that’s okay! All art and forms of media are made to be criticized, because writers can’t improve and learn if all they hear is praises being sung 24/7. But be mindful that being critical and being downright hateful are two separate entities: Not that I’ve seen anyone being hateful, but this is a fandom on the internet so I’m sure that if I haven’t seen it yet, I’ll see it soon.

I personally wouldn’t have gone with the “Webby being Scrooge’s daughter” route, but as soon as it was revealed, I immediately got flashbacks to all the times it’s been hinted: Especially the ending scene of Moonvasion!, when the F.O.W.L monitor zoomed in on Scrooge and Webby hugging, the “22+1400=87?” equation on Webby’s board which pretty much could be interpreted as Webby’s roots: 22 representing Agent 22/Beakley, who raised Webby as her own but isn’t biologically related to Webby, and the other half of the equation representing Scrooge, who is Webby’s biological father through cloning but didn’t play a huge role in Webby’s life prior to season one. While some people see Webby actually being a clone of Scrooge, ruining the symbol of found family that Ducktales (2017) originally set up, I don’t see that at all: Even though they’re biologically related, this is something that Webby is finding out 12 years into her life, and Webby didn’t have any form of a relationship with anyone outside of Beakley until she was 10 years old. We’re also just now finding out that Beakley and Webby aren’t biologically related, and that they’re each other’s found family: Beakley saw Webby and didn’t want her to live the life she’d potentially have to live if she stayed at F.O.W.L, and raised her as her own. With the news, even though Beakley and Webby had a falling out during the finale, their relationship didn’t change once: They’re not blood related, but Beakley raised Webby as her own, and the love that they have for each other will always be there. The “found family” concept is also represented in the side characters we’ve also gotten to see in this finale, how they all teamed up to protect the Duck Family’s name and adventuring, and how the family also showed as much appreciation and love towards them as they did one another. We also see it hinted with May, June, Donald, and Daisy, with Donald offering to take the girls with them while Daisy and Donald travel the world, so they can experience being in a family that loves, appreciates, and protects them.

The finale was fairly Webby focused, which people would probably complain about, but considering season three was Huey’s season, as a Huey fan I can also say I feel like there was a fair amount of focus on him as well. He was the one who noticed May and June took Webby, left his JWG behind which tipped Louie and Dewey off on his disappearance, and Bradford tired (and thankfully) but failed to sway Huey over to his side. The reunion that the triplets had… Whew. That part still makes my heart soft just thinking about it, because we didn’t get to see much of them interacting since Huey got split off from them, but thinking back on this season where it was kind of hinted that Huey might be insecure on how his brothers see him, the part where they reunited because Louie and Dewey were able to find him through using his JWG? God.

All in all, I’d genuinely rate this a 9.5/10. There are things I’d definitely change for sure, but I went into this with a neutral mindset despite how much I love season 3 because I really didn’t know what kind of direction they’d take with this finale, but after watching it? I’d say I’m actually satisfied with the outcome: It broke my heart in all of the ways that the crew promised it would, there were some “shock factor” scenes (especially Scrooge being Webby’s dad) that I feel were genuinely handled well and definitely made me look back on all of the subtle hints we got in the past, and most of all, it made me happy. Ducktales is probably my favorite series ever, I fell for this show in a way that I didn’t think I ever would, and even though it breaks my heart to say goodbye (hopefully, for now), I’m left with a sense of comfort in knowing that the crew really did their best to make this finale enjoyable for everybody.

Just.. wow. I’m still in awe.

[ficklefandom]

Neo

NEO

favorite thing about them

I like being able to play around with her characterization, but I love how unhinged Neo is. yes girl drug your babysitter who cares?? ruin your life over that man. steal that magic item from a genocidal demi-god and play dangerous games with a overpowered magic lady. drive that truck through a wall. crash that airship straight into the mech. WHAT IS IT WITH NEO AND VEHICULAR CRIMES?

like I love that roman holiday told us, yeah sure neo's going to more extremes for revenge, but she was always just like that

least favorite thing about them

uhh I really don't think there's anything canonical about Neo that I dislike?

ACTUALLY as far as not fandom related, I suppose I don't like the timeline for Roman Holiday—I think that they got way too close way too fast. I imagined Roman and Neo's relationship being one founded on years of careful trust, not half a school year and some late night hang outs.

favorite line

"Your boss won't stay dead... but you will without this"

fucking amazing. I love u so much keep being a bitch

brOTP

On some end I'm obligated to say Roman and Neo as the deadly duo, but TBH also I love Neo and Mercury interactions, though I don't see a lot of them! I imagine them as very antagonistic to each other, but in a very escalating-pranks kinda way, even if they end up hurting each other sometimes.

OTP

Spicecream. I love the FUCK outta that. Though I very strongly prefer pre-Fall spicecream, where they're not both dealing so much with trauma in ways that're directly incompatible with each out and Roman's death isn't in the mix.

nOTP

TBH I don't really care for many Neo ships besides Spicecream, but... I hate Silent Knight, my beloathed...

random headcanon

Neo has texture issues that make her a very picky eater. Her favorite texture as far as food is creamy, which makes ice cream and mac-n-cheese favorites for her. She can't stand the texture of meat, especially well cooked red meat and grainy poultry, but she'll eat fish, especially if it's incorporated into something else.

unpopular opinion

I think it's kind of hard to have an "unpopular opinion" with Neo since her fanbase is so varied—there's so many different ways people characterize and interpret her.

The only thing I can really think of is perhaps how I characterize her? I view her as someone who's overly emotional and very unstable, but not in a uwu baby way, but like someone who's very mentally unwell LOL. Mentally ill icon <3 girl get help —where I feel like the more common characterization is either her being emotionally disconnected or very emotionally shallow and childlike

song i associate with them

I generally don't associate music with characters, but I do like Paralyzed by Aviators for Neo—specifically Neo vs Cinder fight dynamic.

favorite picture of them

ANY SCREENSHOT FROM V8C5 BUT HERE'S SOME FAVS. literally like what is her fucking STANCE at any given moment. also i LOVE her facial expressions so much she's sooo funny

I KNOW SOME OF THESE ARE MEMES OF MINE BUT THOSE WERE THE IMAGES I HAD SAVED AND I DIDNT WANNA GO REWATCH THE EPISODES FOR THOSE PICS

i think my top 2 favs are the one where she's being blasted into the airship (seen below—I LITERALLY LAUGH SO FUCKING HARD EVERY TIME I SEE IT)

and this one... it has everything... the stance.. the expression.... old women....

[verecunda]

When research meets fandom (so much fandom)

For my next WIP, I’ve been researching the archaeology and early history of southeast Scotland, particularly Lothian. Then I got distracted by reading bits of Aneirin and other early medieval literature relating to the area (slightly later than my period, but tangents will tangent >.>). Which is why I found myself reading the old Arthurian poem Pa Gur?, which mentions Arthur and co. in Eidyn (Edinburgh or thereabouts), fighting an enemy called the “dog-heads”, which have been interpreted as werewolf-like monsters.

My first thought: dog- or wolf-headed monster men in Eidyn? Did they ever roam as far afield as Cramond at all? Because this is putting me very strongly in mind of that bit in Rosemary Sutcliff’s The Shining Company, where the protagonists camp out in the ruins of the old Roman fort at Cramond:

[Castellum] had an unchancy reputation, for it was said that it had been garrisoned, not by Red Crests, but by men who called themselves Frontier Wolves and had some sort of kinship with the four-footed kind, and whose ghosts still came back in wolf shape to run through the ruins at full moon.

Even better, though, the leader of these dog-heads is named as Gwrgi Garwlwyd. Gwrgi...... OH MY GOD, IT’S GURGI. The weird hairy anthropomorphic thing from the Prydain books, it’s Gurgi!!! So that’s where he came from! :DD

I already knew that Lloyd Alexander drew a lot on the Mabinogion for the Prydain series, but now I’m finding there’s actually a lot of detail from more obscure corners of Arthurian mythology. Pa Gur actually has a reference to Cei fighting a giant cat on the island of Anglesey (Latin name: Mona). Llyan!!

Further reading also reveals that, according to the Welsh Triads, the giant cat was birthed by Henwen the otherworldly pig, who was kept by Coll son of Collfrewy, swineherd to Dallben... I AM LOSING MY MIND.

Now I'm feeling it’s high time to read those books again. :D

[dr-nero-is-god]

i felt the urge to riff on the hive streams for a little bit since discussion came up on the hive discord, namely, holding issue with the idea that the alpha stream is inconsistent in that it is about leadership when otto is the only leader, and that it’s also possible that the alphas are just kids with specialized skills, and not actually bonded by any particular unifying element.

and, in response, @vulpix-sinistre brought up a quote from the abridged hive fanfic, that goes something like: “there are four streams: main characters, stereotypical bullies, ?, and nerds.”

and i disagree with the first two ideas, but almost completely agree with the abridged fic quote. that is pretty much how the streams work, and it is IMPORTANT that that is how the streams work. 

in the end, you may conclude that the streams system still doesn’t make sense. you won’t be like “well clearly dr. nero was just logically dividing the labor of his students to reflect a specialized training program” because it’s more complicated on that. i  hate to do this to y’all, but a lot of everything streams-related requires an out-of-book explanation to get where you’re going, but i can promise that i will at least try to go

first, let’s think about why h.i.v.e. would have streams at all

on the one hand, it’s inescapable to consider that one primary reason that hive has streams is because harry potter had houses, and for the same reason that percy jackson had cabins, the 39 clues had branches, hunger games had sections (or counties, idk), divergent had factions, and so on and so on. the rise of fandom spaces on the internet was concurrent with a big ya/mg boom in the post-2005 world (after twilight was published), and within those fandom spaces it became important to identify with an aspect of the fantasy world as part of your personality. that became a very marketable thing for a while, and so separating children into streams would, to a publisher, seem like a pretty solid storytelling choice.

however! the alpha stream is not the same as gryffindor house. on the one hand, it seems easy to make an alpha/gryffindor and henchman/slytherin parallel, because one group is good (relatively) and one is bad (or at least antagonistic). but it doesn’t work because while slytherin has a reputation for constituents of poor moral character (which has been largely revised in fanon), being a henchman is where you go, according to the books, if you are unintelligent and burly. it’s not a really sexy stream, is what i’m trying to say. and though there are undoubtedly some readers who would look at the henchman stream and see themselves, i think the majority of readers would likely find the henchman stream a completely undesirable stream to be in. 

and, given how little importance the role of streams have after the first book, i will go out on a limb and say that mark walden knows that the henchman stream is unsexy. we aren’t interested in the hopes and dreams and motivations of the henchman stream; as we learn in book two, the ideal henchman is weak-minded and easily led—so what dreams would they even have? this leads me to conclude that while mark walden might have sold h.i.v.e. on the “there are personality-based groups in the school!” idea, he had something completely else in mind when he started writing and that, I think, is actually far more interesting.

but really, why would h.i.v.e. have streams at all

a few things about mark walden: 1) he studied english lit in school, 2) he has a background as a video game producers, and 3) he likes james bond. i know the first two things because i have read his bio and i know the third thing because i have read his books in conjunction with seeing all the james bond films. so we will call 1-3 facts. 

if you are wondering what a lit degree, video game production, and the james bond franchise all have in common, then let me connect those dots: all three of those things depend heavily on the study and understanding of repetitive structure in storytelling as an interpreter and creator of meaning. each one of these fields requires an understanding of how stories and words work to create meaning in order to be successful. 

and, to quote mr. walden here directly (sourced from this here link):

“So, I was playing with this cat one day and it got me thinking that those old-school Bond villains always just seemed to appear out of thin air with very little back story and that got me thinking about how they became world- conquering megalomaniacs in the first place.  It was only a short mental walk from there to HIVE.”

so, imagine you’re a writer trying to tell a story about a school for villains like those in james bond—you’ve studied storycraft and you have a lot of experience in a job finding believable and compelling obstacles for people to interact with in video games. you have noticed patterns. and you need to make those patterns work for you.

enter: streams

i have watched all the james bond movies (all of ‘em) (i mean it) (just not the unreleased one yet lol) and you know what? 

there’s probably just about four kinds of villains in those movies.

henchmen include the likes of jaws, oddjob, and tee hee. often physically disabled in a cinematically interesting way, these guys are the muscles and the machines in every bond film. they are the ones who tail bond as he takes long train rides and who try to personally throw him into shark tanks. they are the hands and feet of their evil masters and they don’t have a lot of emotional depth or backstory. 

politicians/financiers abound in the james bond franchise because he is a government employee who often hangs out with other government employees (he has no friends). these people are like colonel rosa klebb, georgi koskov, prince kamal khan. there are a lot more, as a matter of fact, because the whole point of james bond is that they are in the cold war and even people without titles have political and financial motivations for screwing around with stuff. these types of villains depend on being well and truly embedded in an existing infrastructure or hierarchy, somebody who worked their way up from being a foot soldier or clerk into a powerful leadership position that gives them a lot of state-sanctioned trust and authority.

technicians and inventors include folks like henry gupta and boris grishenko, who use technology as their primary weapon. they are often inventors or innovators and are really good at making high-tech stuff. however, i think this stream is also a direct result of the character Q, someone who is actually on James Bond’s team and who runs an entire department of people who test sometimes outlandish gadgets for Bond to use in the field. (but we love the gadgets. they are fun.) in other words, Bond arguably has a technical stream at his disposal in MI6, which means the idea isn’t necessarily evil, but, likewise, our James Bond School also needs Qs. it’s the rules. if you are familiar with Q from James Bond at all then you understand

and that leaves us with alphas... the “supervillains.” these are the famous ones. dr. no. mr. big. scaramanga. le chiffre. blofeld. max zorin. emilio largo. goldfinger. these are the ones with the master plan, the dreams to recreate the world as they see it, the passion to see their desires to fulfillment and the resources to make them happen. they are rich. they are fancy. they are larger than life. is it weird that karl stromberg tries to incite a nuclear war between Britain and the USSR so that a lot of people can die so that he can colonize the ocean? yes. but by god, it’s fancy and dramatic, and that’s what counts. 

are there other kinds of villains? oh, definitely. lots more. but you have to understand, that those kinds of villains generally don’t appear in Bond. sometimes! but it’s not a staple. for example, not many people in the bond films are motivated by revenge because each movie is kind of designed to function as a one-shot. villains don’t come back and so there is no revenge. the villain who gets the most notable reprise, jaws, actually ends up finding his true love in space. 

compare: every movie is going to have henchmen. every movie has government stooges making morally questionable decisions. (almost) every movie has Q, or some gadget stuff going on. and every movie has a big bad that has to be better than the last. 

so that explains why the streams are what they are. 

it was a jumping-off point for mark walden to figure out what this universe might look like and how different character types need to function. consider that while the core four are all alphas and are kind of insulated as a group, the teachers all kind of roughly align with one of these groups. colonel francisco, raven, and chief lewis are henchmen types, doing on-the-ground work to get stuff done. ms. tennenbaum and the contessa are political af, they are all about the corruption and infiltrating institutional power. ms. gonzales, ms. leon, and professor pike all have technical skills that help keep an organization moving forward. and over them all is the singular alpha, dr. nero, who is coordinating and monitoring it all for his own evil plan: to run a high school.

honestly, dr. nero’s hive idea operates just like a james bond villain plot! it works, or it does when pitching the idea. the problem is that the books continued after the pitch did, and with worldbuilding came some complications. namely, the fact that the megastructure of james bond villainy does not replicate well into a small friend group on which the narration focuses. so let’s return to the question presented at the beginning:

how can alphas really be alphas when not everyone on the field trip can be a mastermind?

i’m gonna give this to you in two ways. one, the way i personally interpret it as an in-universe explanation, given the background premises we have already established. and the other, why the stream system kind of ruins the structure it sets out to create.

so, for me, the alphas can be alphas because there is more to villainy than being a mastermind and there is more to being a mastermind than being in charge. as i think about it, this novelization is actually the backstory for every one of the students, who will go on to do great and scary things. they will manage big projects and come up with interesting ways to terrorize the British government, because that is what James Bond villains do (and James Bond does canonically exist in their universe). much like your actual teenage years, this is not the main event.

as students, the core four need to learn to do a little bit of everything. you gotta learn some lock-picking, that’s essential. everyone has to be able to climb a rock wall. it’s the rules. and everyone needs to be able to do some programming. that’s just the way school is. though everyone has a different personality and a different way of looking at the world, their education has to cover the basics because the fact of the matter is, none of them are villains yet. will they become one? that remains to be seen. but they are being given the tools to become the greatest villains if that is something they choose. 

the main problem that remains when holding this attitude is that the specialized skills of otto and his friends might be better suited to other streams, in which case, what is an alpha anyways?

here’s the facts: if everyone were assigned to a stream by talent, then there wouldn’t be an alpha stream.

franz? political/financial stream. 

nigel? laura? otto? technical stream.

shelby? wing? henchman stream. 

you can debate me on the specifics of those assignments, but the point is this: all the other streams are based on hard skills. franz can manage a ledger and that is a financial skill. laura can build a computer from scratch and that is a technical skill. wing can do martial arts, and each martial art is a physical skill that can be taught and performed in a measurable level of proficiency. 

the idea of being a “mastermind” is a much softer skill—which is to say, there’s no one recipe that will make it work. my manager at work has coached me by saying that leadership is often about having a “style,” and working at it that way. leadership requires interpersonal flexibility, being able to stay organized and to make important decisions rapidly, it is about being able to prioritize and delegate. and it’s very much open to interpretation, every day, all the time. 

let me tell you something else about james bond: there is a lot of classism, racism, and sexism embedded into every aspect of those films, but that goes for double when it comes to the villains in the show. to vastly oversimplify that very concept, it shows up in the bond films like this: henchmen are working class folks, the villainous equivalent of “the help,” and the supervillains are (usually) rich and glamorous and powerful. henchmen are uneducated (read as: stupid) and ugly and poor. no one cares if they die. (there’s more complexities, as always, but this essay isn’t actually about james bond so we’ll fast forward through My Opinions to the end)

the problem with replicating james bond in your villain school universe is that some of the biases of the james bond universe get replicated in there, too. poor and uneducated folks get turned into disposable henchmen whose lives are irrelevant. people who are educated and talented get fast-tracked to a more glamorous and interesting stream that will catapult them to the top of the ladder as soon as they graduate. if you look at the dialect with which block and tackle are written, they are clearly meant to be seen as a different social class than otto, despite the fact that otto is coming from basically nothing. and we understand that when otto graduates, he will be able to do basically anything that he wants to at all.

so, if you’re asking why wing has a role in the alpha stream when he doesn’t seem as leader-y as otto, there’s a simple answer: because dr. nero believes that wing can be more.

the climax of book one is dr. nero explicitly telling otto, wing, laura, and shelby that they are in his school because he believes in them and he wants to see them grow. they are given an elite status other students do not have despite the fact that they have just literally tried to escape. as we see in the case of duncan cavendish, the main way to get on that highway to a guaranteed career is to convince him that you’ve “got it.” for those who are not believed in, there is no way to make up for the special grooming. you’re stuck with the stream you’re placed in, doomed (perhaps) to be a second-in-command at best.

is all this intentional? probably not. but it is implicit in the structure of the story and, alas, that’s the way it is.

all i can think to say in conclusion is that while the stream system tends to replicate some of the unfair and classist realities present in other media and the world we live in, i think part of the reason we read h.i.v.e. is because the alpha stream is so appealing. imagine! you are competent and you have a desirable, specialized skill as well as a proficiency in many general skills and you are certain you are going to do good things—and all because someone believes in you. to receive someone else’s support and confidence can be life-changing. the magic of h.i.v.e. is that yes—lives are changed and ordinary, boring people were elevated to the level of supervillains. we are only left to wonder, are they the only people who deserved that honor?