#r: an unhealthy obsession

[crowholtz]

Helene x Strahd moment that happened recently I need to talk about, I'll write it out. (This got way longer than intended but I actually really like it and it's kind of a good representation of them 🥺 they're perfect for each other but they're so toxic help) they play mind games with each other and she wins this one

~~~~

A soft breath left Helene as she nestled tightly into Strahd's side, glancing up at the ancient vampire with a thoughtful gaze.

She'd not intended for this to happen again. Their late-night rendezvous had become less and less frequent ever since their war began, and she's intended for them to stop altogether when she called off their engagement.

But as the night drew on while her companions slept, her insomnia plagued her once more, and she'd wandered out into the Abbey's courtyard for some air. In the distance, just beyond the gates of Krezk, she saw it. An ornate black carriage, drawn by two brilliant ebony-maned horses. Strahd's carriage.

Helene had felt drawn to it. The ghosts of urging hands on her back, her neck, her shoulders. The lantern hanging from it became the focal point of her entire existence. She'd barely registered her feet moving, her dark angelic wings unfurling and lifting her off the ground. Or did she walk? She could scarcely remember. The only vivid thing she knew was his face when she got there, smiling at her, welcoming her with open arms. Like a moth to a flame, every time.

Naturally, he worked his manipulations and cajoling. He told her he would not try to take her back to the castle with him - this time. He'd called it a momentary halt to their war. Just for the night. Helene, even in her reluctance, was grateful for the excuse to spend time with without the looming threat of being kidnapped. She couldn't help but he drawn to him, and being in his arms was both a danger and a comfort.

After he'd gotten his fill of her blood, and she his flesh, he pulled her against his chest in the warmly lit carriage, a possessive hand cradling the back of her head. For a short time, Helene lay there, letting her mind, for the most part, drift into the contented haze that seemed to blanket her that night. Her mind was a naturally disquiet place, however, and the usual guilt and conflict began to creep into her head. She could not forget the duty she had to fulfill, the resistance she had to mount against him, to lead the charge for. Here she was a leader for her allies, the people she swore to protect and stand by, indulging in the enemy.

In the process of these self-admonishing thoughts, Helene realized something. Strahd should not be here either. They were at war. They were both students of strategy and warfare. He knew better than to distract himself with this, with his obsession with her. It had been his downfall many times since her arrival in Barovia, one she had even manipulated to win battles; he was soft for her.

So she stared into his perfect face, and smiled.

Strahd raised a ponderous brow, "What is it that delights you so beautifully?" He drawled deeply, with practiced diction.

Helene raised a hand to his cheek, smoothing her thumb over the smooth planes of his face. Her voice was low, her timbre sliding against his skin like a bow against the strings of a cello. "I see the cracks in your armor."

She did not meet his eyes, instead choosing to track where her fingers were touching his face.

He did not react at first. "Whatever do you mean, my beloved?"

"You are not as shielded as you would like, darling. You made a mistake in coming here with me tonight, in promising not to take me away." Helene knew it was risky to say this as the blood moon was high in the sky, flaring vampiric urges across Barovia. Strahd was a man of his word, but she did not know how far the blood moon would push him to break his own rules. It was a soft challenge to say such a thing.

Instead of letting it linger for rumination, she continued, "You should be preparing. Planning your next move against us. Being here with me provides no tactical value. You are running out of time, Strahd... And yet here you are, indulging in your obsession for me."

Strahd's face remained stoic, ever the sculpting of a marble statue, before a cool smile forced its way through, "There are no cracks in my armor, I can assure you." He gently grasped the hand on her his face and kissed her fingertips, his crimson eyes never leaving hers. "Besides, are you so sure I am not currently enacting an offense right now? Perhaps I have figured out a way past the defenses of your current base and have sent my blood knights to your Argynvostholt to dismantle what presence you have set up there. Or perhaps I am not here with you now. I could be an illusion or a trick of your mind, while I simply make my way into the Abbey where your allies rest. As well as your poor injured brother. It must take such a toll on him. The responsibility of being The Abbot while languishing in such a state... I imagine he feels powerless."

A frown tugged gently on Helene's lips as she tried not to let her wings ruffle in response to his soft threats towards her allies and brother. But she knew better. This was a game they always played. Sussing the other out. Calling bluffs. She was calling his now.

"Then you would have made a mockery of this night we have shared together." Helene said simply. Her eyes, silver and intense, flutter up to meet his dead-on. "And I know you would not do that to us. Our love is a romantic tragedy, not a comedy."

To most, the faltering of Strahd's smile would be near imperceptible. But Helene studied his face like the most sacred of divine scripture. She knew its every twitch.

Strahd took an unnecessary breath in, "Perhaps I have not. However, I... can assure you, my Helene," he drawled out her name almost as a warning, "there are no cracks in my armor." His hand gripped hers more tightly.

Helene managed to slip her hand from his grasp, resuming her caress against his cheek, her gaze falling back to her her ministrations once more, "There are, my love. Cracks, scuffs, scratches on the plate," she crooked a finger against his cheekbone, "wrinkles..." Strahd's eyes flashed and she quickly slid her hand down to pluck at his embroidered tunic, "in the fabric."

Helene had to suppress a smirk. Her wordplay was risky but intentional, preying upon his problems with aging and imperfection to unbalance him, but subtle enough to not set him off. It was an exciting game for Helene.

The unsettled emotions on his face were a pitched battlefield seen by no one else but her, his nostrils flaring just barely, jaw clenching, pupils dilating -- Helene saw it all in her peripheral vision. It was a brief but bloody battle which ended with him smoothing his dark hair back, the cool smile returning, "My, you have such a way with words. Perhaps you may write me more poetry, my beloved."

Helene smiled at him as he pivoted the subject, playing along. "I just might."

Small as it was, she tucked this victory away to relish later.

[dwellsinthebog]

people are sleeping on post-canon laios and mithrun. man who feels no desire and man whose desire can never be fulfilled? the stories write themselves...

[ijustbesayinstuff]

My thinspo rn

[lilacthebooklover]

sobbing why am i so susceptible to old man yaoi

[metabolizemotions]

705 had the best action sequence in recent seasons. I love callbacks to the skyscraper fire and storage facility fire. Rewatching those scenes also reminded me of how different the show has become. It had more variety, and humor - even in tragedy. It was more character-driven, and had a better focus on team camaraderie and friendships - Dean/Jack, Maya/Andy and Vic/Travis ...

After Dean's passing, they really don't know what to do with Jack. Vic and Travis haven't had many substantial scenes. Maya and Andy were sort of besties in name only. There was a shift to focus more on captaincy race, SFD politics and darker issues w/o the necessary levity for balance. Let alone any breathing space for them to just hang out together. The inter-personal dynamics became more isolated and the characters became more one-dimensional to shoehorn the stories to serve the overall plots.

705 showed 5 women as impactful and effective first responders. Ross commanding the scene as chief; Andy directing the rescue efforts; Maya leading and supporting from her position; Vic taking control of a claustrophobic rescue situation giving first aid n emotional guidance; Carina providing improvised professional medical care for accident victims on site.

I wish there was more follow-thru on the complexities of the characters sprinkled thru out the seasons... that the show had been more about friendships, esp female friendships and not rivalry... that they didn't make it a zero-sum game but allowed both Maya and Andy to thrive cos they are both leaders in their own way.

I wish Maya, Vic and Andy still hung out, even when their friendship evolved and Carina had joined them in their shenanigans before all she thought about was babies... that Carina hadn't just thought about and talked about babies.

I wish they hadn't structured the narrative to have a female chief put down a fellow female firefighter cos of a man.

Rewatching also reminded me of how good, just n meticulous Ripley was as a chief. I can't get behind the way they are framing Ross as the best chief of Seattle, almost like just cos she's a woman. As a woman, she could have been more empathetic towards the sexism women faced n even if she didn't lift them up, at least don't push them down. She toed the line n was part of the system until it didn't serve her. Only then she called out sexism when she was caught red-handed at breaking the rules she claimed was of the upmost importance to uphold no matter what, as a good soldier.

The way Maya broke the rules to save a dying kid, accepted demotion to keep 19 together, but got buried for supporting BLM, was not giving a proper hearing, even when she was a good captain. She got no support from the team and was basically told to suck it up. The way Ross broke the rules to have a sexual relationship with an ex she promoted, but the whole team was in full support of her, cos "love is love", and one had to do what it took to be whole human beings...?

After being biased against Maya, and giving Beckett the benefit of the doubt despite the rumors of his almost-demotions. Ross respected him, give him many chances despite his poor attitude n performance n complaints against him...

In a way, Ross and Sullivan giving Beckett empathy w/o holding him accountable enabled his addiction and spiral. Also, both holding Maya accountable w/o empathy led to her mental and physical breakdown. They should have facilitated Beckett's therapy, not Maya's abuse.

Addiction can be substance-based or behavioral. Beckett was never sober b4 704. Maya's bottle was not the sole reason for his drinking. Drinking was his coping mechanism (n apparently bullying too). Maya coped with physical assertion, like how she pushed herself to her limits under Lane's abuse.

Ultimately what they did or didn't do reflect on who they were as people. They all made mistakes. Only Maya truly owned up and made amends. The way Ross didn't trust Maya when she handed her the photo mirrored Beckett's distrust. I interpreted it as from Ross's perspective, she would have an angle using the photo for her adv if she were Maya, so she questioned if Maya did. Beckett did not trust Maya cos he knew the team did not trust him as captain having not gained respect or trust. In part also maybe due to their guilty conscience of what they did to Maya and ashamed of their own abuse of power? Possibly as subtle subtext?

When Ross wanted both her job and her relationship and was afraid that Sullivan would make her play small cos in her careers men had made her feel small n saw her as a chess piece. Yet, she, together with the men, saw Maya as a chess piece n made her feel so small...

[hollowwish]

I like treebark but whatever Martyn has about Ren has to be some degree of unhealthy. Which is why I love it. In canon and fanon. The undying loyalty went a little overboard me thinks. He's quite literally the only one still stuck in 3rd life. I think betraying the Red King would've ruined him emtionally for the rest of time and he never would've recovered. Like im saying he would DO IT but it would fundamentally change him as a person and make all his friends really worried about his mental state. He made his boyfriends banner and tied it around his waist and killed his own qpp (scott) in it. He joked about beheading bdubs black heart alter style. He made a fucking dog house to live in and dragged his other ex/best friend/whatever Jimmy is to him into running around and barking. I think if their characters ever interact again hes actually going to fucking lose it. Losing Ren was a loss of comfort. Im suprised the watchers haven't used Rens absence as a physiological torture method yet. Like he's a bit obsessed in the bad way and probably needs to move on a little but I think but that's okay. Can you blame him.

[ahfhdhfhfufejrjjenf]

you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're mine! you're only mine !

[cherryhrat]

Im ashamed to say im back on my naruto shit

Hes my son your honor, hes just a little guy

Id die for him

[allthebestcowboyshavedaddyissues]

calling SR a character assassination for sp i ke is ridiculous

[serpentineego]

Venenatum

In penance for taking so long to get the next chapter out, here is a raw excerpt from chapter 15, "The Mudblood's Memories"

                The sound of slippers smacking against the bare floor echoed off the stone walls as Theo made his way to the study at the end of the hall. He yawned and stretched out his arms as he sauntered along, attempting to rid himself of the somnolence which had lingered from his late-night meeting with Malfoy. It was early afternoon by the time Theo had risen from bed, and he detested that his morning had been wasted for something as boring as sleep. There were things to do, memories to review, and planning that needed to take place. After the conversation he had with Draco the night before, Theo knew that things were about to drastically change. He needed to remain one step ahead of everyone and everything; it was a lesson he had learned from none other than Professor Snape.

                After entering his private study, Theo shut the door behind him and enchanted it to remain closed to everyone other than him. He may have lived alone, but there was no telling when an unexpected visit from one of his fellow Death Eaters may occur. One could never be too careful when it came to the unpredictable members of the Dark Lord’s army. Theo went to the tall cabinet behind his desk and muttered the incantation to expose the secret compartment. The hidden door materialised and swung open to reveal the dozens of small vials containing memories Theo had furtively acquired over the last few years.

Read the first 14 chapters on AO3

[ceebit]

lmao they caught his ass at the club two a lil two step im dead 💀

[katzengesicht]

( 🐈 first meetings ) ❛  you’re cute. how about i buy you a drink ?  ❜ ;) — @encarnal

   IT'S NOT THAT OCELOT IS SHY, TRULY. even in the hustle and bustle of a bar, filled with people and occasionally even creatures he's unfamiliar with, it's easy to peep somebody's interest when they approach. body language doesn't differ too terribly much, so it's not a surprise that the man leaning over the counter next to him speaks up, though ocelot snorts into his glass at his actual words, a chuckle very much meant to offend.

   he's laughing at you, belial.

   he takes his time, then, in turning, putting his elbow on the counter and his cheek against his knuckles, regards the other with a look that could be recognized as judgement, or disregard, if it weren't for the playful quirk of his lips. oh, he hasn't played in a while, has he? might as well enjoy the opportunity. don't bore him, now.

   ' cute? ' tipping his glass, almost empty, in belial's direction, it's very much a challenge. ' that the best you can come up with, or did you just not think me worth the effort? '

[angeltism]

having thoughts abt somebun I don't even interact with that I really shouldn't be having !

[lazyspeedy]

asking olivia if vampire is abt taylor is like if ppl had asked taylor in 2010 if dear john was abt idk say the joni stuff happened a few years earlier jfjdjdks

[gurorori]

but ❤️ wont deny perhaps im one of da most stereotypical mika introjects 2 exist. i AM like da other girls.

[coffeeflavoredcookies]

You know, t&g adresses problems about Ty and Zane and their relationship that are super valid and probably better for everyone involved (or not) that they bubbled up to the surface sooner rather than later but also I just think them being absolutely obsessed with each other was very sexy and didn't need to change