There's a beat of silence where they just stare at each other. Eddie's face wavers for a second before he snorts, running his hand down his face. "What are we even doing here, man?"
Steve falters, the inanity of the situation hitting him. "I, uh, I think we're about to actually fistfight over-- over who a bunch of 14-year-olds think is cooler."
Eddie considers that briefly, tapping his fingers against his mouth before nodding. "Yeah, okay, I've heard of worst causes. Dukes up, Harrington, let's go!" Eddie pushes up his sleeves and waves his fists in the air cartoonishly as he starts to circle Steve.
Steve laughs, following Eddie as he goes like a compass drawn north. "Oh yeah, man? To the death, right?"
"Of course. Is there any other kind of fight?" Eddie says, overly serious, and abruptly tackles Steve.
They wrestle for a moment, and it's playful and stupid, but it still takes Steve an embarrassingly short amount of time to get Eddie in a headlock.
"This is just sad, man," Steve teases as Eddie struggles. "Those guns just for show, then?"
"Oh shit oh shit not the hair please, please have mercy O King Steve," Eddie laughs breathlessly.
Steve considers it-- Eddie seems to take as much care in his hair as Steve does, and real respects real-- and in that moment of hesitation, Eddie hooks his leg around Steve's and pulls.
Steve yelps as Eddie cackles, dragging them both down into the grass.
He hits the ground with a choked gasp, breath knocked out of him, and he squints up at the sky, unsuccessfully trying to hold back a grin.
He turns his head to say something to Eddie but loses his breath a second time for a very different reason.
Eddie's still giggling to himself in little fits, winding down, and there's a lightness to him at this moment that Steve's never seen, only heard described by the kids pre-Vecna. Laughter suits Eddie Munson, much better than terror or guilt or seriousness, and Steve's suddenly aware that he would do anything in this moment to keep that surprised look of happiness on his face a second longer.
Eddie catches his eyes and turns his head toward him. He's got grass stuck in his hair, and Steve doesn't think before he reaches over.
It's soft. Softer than he was expecting. He's careful not to catch any of Eddie's hair as he pulls out the grass and ends up lingering longer than he means to, setting a curl back to rights before realizing that this is, like, maybe a little weird.
He jerks back, and the back of his hand brushes Eddie's cheek, which is-- which is--
Warm. Soft, too, but with the rough start to stubble, and the feeling of it lingers against his hand like a brand.
Eddie's eyes, dark and impossibly wide, watch him, quiet for once. He wets his lips before speaking, and Steve's eyes catch on that, too, before darting back up to Eddie's. Which, god, what even was that? Why-- why is he--?
"A draw, then," Eddie says, turning over onto his stomach and kicking up his feet, and the weird atmosphere vanishes like it never was. "You are a worthier opponent than I realized, Steve Harrington."
"Oh yeah?" Steve says, relieved and disappointed. "Well, you're not so bad yourself."
Eddie clicks his tongue and fans himself. "You're too kind."
Steve looks away, tracking the clouds passing overhead. "No, really. I know I haven't exactly been, y'know, the world's best welcoming committee-"
"Was pretty convinced you hated my guts, yup." Eddie agrees, nodding.
"I don't. I never did. You're just--" Steve wracks his brain, trying to fit a word to the squirming feeling in his chest that Eddie inspires. "You're really good, y'know?"
"I... don't know, actually." Eddie's voice goes flat, and when Steve turns back to look at him, he's looking at Steve like he's a live snake, or something else dangerous and close to his vulnerable bits.
"You're good with the kids. Good for the kids, too. God, Will's really opened up since he joined your dumb nerdfest. You're good with and to the girls, too, and Jonathan, and Argyle, and probably anyone else that crosses your path. You are, patently, a good dude."
Eddie's mouth opens and closes, but Steve barrels on, feeling electric and more than a little crazy. "And, and it's just-- I don't know, I just--"
"Harrington, if you're about to tell me you think I'm a better man than you, I will lose it," Eddie interrupts regardless, voice high and reedy. "I know you're being, like, genuine and honest right now, but I will laugh in your goddamn face-"
"No, it's not that."
"Okay, I know this directly contradicts what I just said, but the speed with which you said that... Ouch."
"No," Steve shakes his head, frustrated. "I didn't mean it like that. It's-- it's not a competition."
Eddie's eyebrows leap up. "It's not? I invite you to remember what we've spent the last few weeks on."
"That was just an excuse," He snaps his mouth closed the second the words leave his mouth.
"Excuse?" Eddie repeats slowly.
"I just. I don't know, man. Maybe," he swallows. "Maybe I just couldn't handle the thought of you being good to me."
"... Why not?" Eddie asks, eyes focused on him, open, not judging, and god, this is exactly what Steve was worried about.
Eddie looks at him, and Steve--
Kisses him. Can't really do anything else but kiss him.
And when Eddie, after the longest moment of Steve's life, starts kissing him back? It's like the answer to a question he hadn't realized he'd been asking.
Turns out it's not the kids' attention he'd wanted-- or not just the kids' attention, anyway.
When Eddie pulls back, lips red and wet, eyes dark and focused just on him, Steve knows he's finally won it.
3K notes
·
View notes
astarion, the man who was dying and offered eternal life, but had no idea that it meant becoming a slave to a sadistic master.
astarion, the man who had his freedom and bodily autonomy ripped away from him.
astarion, the man who was forced to befriend, seduce and sleep with people to lure them back to his master, resulting in severe sexual trauma and the struggle to form any sort of intimate relationship.
astarion, the man who was horribly punished whenever he refused his master’s orders (one punishment being sealed away in a dusty tomb, starving, for an entire year. he scratched his hands raw trying to carve his way out).
astarion, the man who was forced to eat rats.
astarion, the man who hasn’t even been able to see his own face since he turned.
astarion, the man who had his body mutilated as cazador carved scars onto his back, which he later found out was to bind him to a ritual.
astarion, the man who is so severely traumatised that he admitted he doesn’t know how to say “no” or ask for help (and he feels guilty when he does).
astarion, the man who waited two centuries to be helped and freed from torture, but no one came.
astarion, the man who was always treated like a monster when all he wanted was to be treated like a person.
astarion, the man who came up to you in the middle of the night just to thank you for defending him and allowing him to make his own decisions.
astarion, the man who said that no one ever looked out for him or showed him kindness, and that you’re the only one. “other people don’t have a heart like you. you’re you. no one is like that.”
astarion, the man who broke the cycle of power and terror that started centuries ago thanks to the love, care and compassion that you showed him when no one else did.
astarion, the man who confessed that he loves you and feels safe with you; something he has never felt with anyone before.
517 notes
·
View notes
Asagiri likes to base his characters off of the protagonists of the literary works by the authors they're respectively inspired by. Ex. Fitzgerald shares Gatsby's charisma, wealth, dubious business ventures, and overwhelming desperation to create the ideal life for his loved ones. In Anne of Green Gables, kindhearted orphan protagonist Anne has a combative relationship with her primary love interest Gilbert, and her stubbornness and pride leads her to frequently beating him up and giving him the cold shoulder. This is most likely the source of our kindhearted orphan protagonist, Atsushi's, relationship with his primary love interest, the stubborn and prideful Lucy.
Another aspect of the way Asagiri writes characters is Dazai. He is undoubtedly Asagiri's favoritest boy, so there's a sizable chunk of the cast that is actually constructed to be a foil to Dazai.
Why'd I mention that? It's because That is a precursor to who I actually wanted talk about, FYODOR! Fyodor Dostoevsky was created to be the ULTIMATE foil to Dazai, his very anthesis. The reason being Crime and Punishment.
C&P follows Raskolnikov, a down on his luck and VERY unstable resident of St Petersburg. Fyodor from BSD is definitely based on him.
Raskolnikov has an ubermensch complex. He sees himself as the dealer of divine justice, a servant of God. Sound familiar?
Raskolnikov believes the pain and suffering in his city being caused by the corrupt pawnbroker. Fyodor thinks that all the sin in the world of bsd is caused by ability user. They both draw a false conclusion. Perceiving the evil in the world is rooted in something that's only a small contributing factor.
They both take. DRASTIC action. Raskolnikov commits murder. Fyodor.... starts an international terrorist organization i guess.
Crime and Punishment is divided into two very distinct parts: The crime - the Murder Raskolnikov commits, and the Punishment, everything he has to deal with afterwords.
Raskolnikov is also! suicidal. it's a notable part of C&P. He frequently thinks about ending things, and wants to drown himself in the river, but then ends up disgusted by the notion when he witnesses someone else attempt.
Basically Raskolnikov is suicidal. Yozo from No Longer Human is suicidal. These are the characters that Fyodor and Dazai are based off, and it can't be a coincidence
Important to note that Both Raskolnikov AND Yozo end up living to an old age by the end of their respective novels.
Dazai and Fyodor are REALLY similar, but their differences are very very striking. Dazai likes people, when he dies he wants it to be a suicide that doesn't inconvenience anyone, he doesn't believe he belongs with humanity. Fyodor believes himself as a man on God's mission, we've only ever seen his ability kill ordinary people, AND he wants all ability users to not exist anymore. But, doesn't killing all ability users include himself?
Basically, I have a theory that Fyodor's ultimate goal with the Book is really an elaborate suicide plan. Because Fyodor doesn't have a GOD complex, he has an UBERMENSCH complex, he sees himself not as the ruler of humans but a CHAMPION of humanity. He's using his belief that ability users are the Root of All Evil as grounds to eliminate them all and himself. He thinks he's taking one for the team. Not only does he want to die, he wants to drag the world down WITH him.
But BSD is about people finding a purpose in life, key word: LIFE! Dazai WILL NOT die because he hasn't found what he's looking for. Fyodor's plan WILL fail. After that what's in store? He'll have to face his punishment, right?
412 notes
·
View notes