#she wouldn't do much of anything to change the unfairness of the world

[lcveblind]

WHAT TYPE OF PROTAGONIST ARE YOU?

THE SPITEFUL WONDER.

ooooh, you're underestimated--and pissed about it. are you a middle child? hm. these are protagonists who get told to do one thing and do exactly the opposite. life is on your terms, not anyone else's. your failures and successes are on the same level of consequence, but you do feel as if something about the world is inherently unfair--and you're just reckless enough to think you can change that.

[demonpiratehuntress]

dreams

OPLA!Zoro x F!Reader

summary - majority of your dreams seem to manifest in the real world somehow, so when you have one about your crush and your best friend...things get a little out of control.

warnings - heavy angst (im sorry), hurt to comfort

a/n: when i started writing for this fandom i PROMISED myself i would not make it all angst and no fun, but oh well :))))) idek where this idea came from, i need help

You woke up from a nap with the sickening urge to empty your stomach overboard. Nausea reared its ugly head, and before you could even try to tame the feeling, you were sprinting to the side of the ship to empty your stomach.

What exactly was the cause?

This would sound insanely ridiculous, and to you it really was, but you had a weird dream. And it didn't sit well with you. Most of the dreams you had often became a reality, albeit with slight changes. There were some that didn't, but almost all of them came true eventually or manifested in a similar way at some point.

And that's probably the reason you couldn't stop yourself from vomiting obscenely before your stunned - and confused - crew.

"(Name), are you okay?" Nami asked worriedly, coming over to you.

You flinched away from her, increasing her confusion, before turning and running off to the bathroom. She exchanged looks with the others who were out on deck - Usopp and Luffy - before shrugging it off and going back to mapping the ship's course.

The truth was, you had a completely unexpected yet maddening dream while napping, one that you prayed to any god who would listen would not come true. You had dreamed of Zoro - the man you had the biggest crush on - and Nami, which may seem an odd coupling and probably was but you couldn't control your dreams. Much like how you couldn't control how you felt about it, despite it only being a fictional idea your mind concocted.

You went straight to yours and Nami's room after cleaning yourself up, setting up the divider that separated your section from hers so you wouldn't have to deal with seeing her if she came in. Your behaviour was unfair to her, since you knew she would never do anything like that, nor did she have any romantic interest in Zoro. In fact, she barely had any interest in the swordsman at all. But according to your dream, that might change.

You curled up on your bed, pulling the blanket right up over your head to shield yourself from the real world. The familiar feeling of something wet running down your cheek informed you that you had started crying, but you couldn't care less. You couldn't move. You didn't have the energy to move, much less bring your hand up to wipe your tears away. So you just lay there, curled up in a foetal position, trying - and miserably failing - to get your mind off it.

A while later, a knock at your door caused you to jerk up in your bed, before you groaned and flopped back down.

"Go away!"

"Nami said you're sick," came Sanji's voice, "So I made you some soup. Please open the door."

You breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't either of the two people you were currently trying to avoid. Slowly dragging yourself out of bed, you had to make even more effort to get yourself to the door. Forgetting that you had just been crying, you opened it and let the cook in, confused when his expression immediately grew alarmed.

"(Name), why are you crying??" He immediately set the soup down and pulled you into a comforting hug - one that seemed to be much warmer than usual right now.

"I-I'm fine," you mumbled into his shoulder, "Just not well."

He nodded, falling for your excuse, before pulling away to hand you the soup, "Here, this should help. If you need more, or if you need anything else, just let me know." He smiled at you, before leaving you alone once again.

You sat back down on your bed and ate the soup - because who can say no to Sanji's cooking, even if you're not really in the mood to eat? And it did help, the warmth helping to settle your queasy stomach and alleviate the nausea if only a little bit. Minutes after you finished it, there was another knock and you frowned, wondering who it was now.

You didn't answer, in fear of it being Zoro.

Just the thought of Zoro had you replaying that dream all over again, and before you could stop yourself or at least soften the sound, sobs were wracking your body and you were burying your face in your hands, crying into their warmth.

The door opened and a familiar set of heavy footsteps reached your ears before the bed dipped beside you. Your entire body froze up, tensing at the arrival of the green-haired swordsman. Your sobs fell silent, hiccups replacing them as you stilled and tried your best to quell your sadness - still keeping your face hidden.

"What happened?" Came that usually-comforting deep voice you loved so much, but that now caused your nausea to return. "What's wrong, (Name)?"

"Please go away," you found yourself speaking, not wanting to push him away but knowing you'd feel even more ridiculous if he found out how you felt about him while you were recounting a silly dream.

"No."

Usually the swordsman would leave without a word if you asked for space, or if you told him to go away, but this time he could see you were absolutely not okay and you needed someone. Luffy wouldn't be a good idea, Usopp wouldn't know what to do, and you seemed to be avoiding Nami. And he sure as hell did not want that stupid cook anywhere near you right now, in fear of him comforting you so well that the swordsman would lose you to him entirely.

You didn't respond to that, so Zoro brought his hands up to slowly and gently peel yours away from your face. You let him, shocking yourself, and the sight of your bloodshot eyes and tear-stained face caused his heart to constrict painfully.

"Tell me what's wrong."

He held your hands in his own, not wanting to let go. He had waited so long to be able to hold them, and he was glad for this excuse to. But he was heartbroken seeing you so upset and apparently sick over something he didn't know about yet. He gently squeezed your hands, silently encouraging you to speak. He wasn't good with words, but if comfort was what you needed he would do and say whatever he could to make your pain go away.

"It's you and Nami."

He stiffened. He didn't know what that meant, but just hearing he was part of the reason you were so upset made his heart sink.

"What did we do?"

"It's...um...it's silly," you replied quietly, voice low but pain still evident. "It doesn't matter." You tried pulling your hands away, but Zoro only gripped them tighter.

"It does, if it's making you this upset."

Reluctantly, you relayed to him what you had dreamed about, voice cracking halfway through as more tears fell. You felt even sillier saying it to someone else, especially him, and avoided making eye-contact throughout the entire explanation. When you finished, you shot him a small, brief glance - only to do a double take when you saw the absolutely horrified and disgusted look on his face.

"Me and the thief?" He questioned, distaste clear in his tone. "You've got to be kidding me." He sighed, sneakily shifting closer to you on the bed. "That can't be possible."

"But-"

"Some of your dreams don't come true," he reminded you, "This is definitely one of those. You want to know how I know?"

You nodded slowly, biting your lip.

You did not expect his next words.

"Because I already dream about doing that with you."

Your jaw dropped. If you were like Luffy, it would have probably dropped all the way to the floor, you were so stunned by his confession. Your formerly slowed heartbeat picked up speed again, heat filling your cheeks as you processed his words.

"Me?"

"Mhm. Only you. Been a recurring dream, actually."

As you stuttered out an incomplete sentence and then stammered through some nonsense, Zoro leaned in slowly and pressed his lips against yours, locking you in a slow but sweet kiss. His lips were warm and soft, inviting you to lean into him and return the kiss. The affectionate gesture had butterflies blooming in your stomach.

"I'm sorry," you whispered once you remembered how to speak.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," he murmured, pressing a gentle kiss to your forehead before pulling you into a warm, comforting and secure embrace.

You sat like that quietly for a while, Zoro rubbing soothing circles onto your back while you clung to him, face buried in his neck. He kissed the top of your head every few minutes, in between mumbling sweet words of comfort into your ear - mainly "you're beautiful" and "i'm yours" because he didn't know what else to say. But it was enough for you.

Eventually, he spoke up.

"You should clear things up with Nami. She's upset because you're not talking to her."

"I know...later."

He chuckled and tightened his grip on you, keeping you warm and increasingly happy in his strong arms. He didn't intend on letting go, but that was good because you didn't want him to.

BONUS:

"STUPID MOSSHEAD!"

Loud banging and clanging jerked you awake the morning after your confessions, the sound of Sanji's loud exclamation having woken you - but not Zoro - up. He probably had woken up the others as well.

You tried to get up to see what was wrong, but Zoro refused to let go. He was still sleeping, but his arms wound around you even tighter, pulling you back against him. You sighed, knowing you could ask someone else later anyway.

Nami poked her head around the divider and smirked, "He's upset that Zoro finally confessed and ruined his chance to woo you."

You laughed at that, "Give him an hour, max. Then he'll try to woo you."

She groaned, "I'm already dreading it."

The two of you laughed, and it felt good to be back on speaking terms with her. Even though, strictly speaking, you hadn't had a reason not to be in the first place. But oh well.

The power of dreams...

[rekino2114]

How did the " I am a devil/ one of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse" for Makima and Fami and how long did it take

I was curious about how this situation played out ever since the Asa/Yoru relationship headcanon, given it was a requirement for the relationship to continue/start and anyone who has a speck of emotional intelligence involving romance would tell you honesty is key to a long lasting healthy relationship not to mention dating one of the most powerful devils in the world is something you should be given a heads up about going forward.

Makima revealing her identity to you

A/n:sooooo I might have gotten a bit too much into writing this for makima and wrote more than usual i feel like what I had in mind for fami was kinda shorter than this and that it wouldn't have been fair in my head (also I didn't have that much time to finish it anyway) I'll do the fami part of this tomorrow in another post. Sorry for the inconvenience and if that's not what you wanted.

As much as she hated to admit it, makima was scared.

Fear was a rare but not new emotion to her, the only times she felt it was when you were fighting a strong devil like a primal one or when you were close to death in general. But all of those instances of her fear had something in common: she was scared that you would die that you would be ripped away from her in an unfair way, she never consider the fact that you would leave her of your own volition.

Makima took for granted the fact that you would love each other and be together forever, after all she loved you more than anything she could ever do could describe and you loved her too, she would literally give you the world if you just asked for it, as long as you would be with her you would get anything you could have possibly ever wanted in exchange of just continuing to love her. She had never thought you would have a reason to leave her...until now.

She had tried to delay this conversation as long as possible, only deciding to tell you after months of you dating (close to a year),the reason why she decided to reveal her identity to you was simple: it was better to tell you than you finding out some other way, you would have felt betrayed by her if you had found out without her telling you beforehand, the last thing she wanted to do was make you feel like she didn't love you.

The reason she waited so much before telling you was because she had no idea what would happen to her if you left her. Maybe she would have gone back to her old self, but she doubted it, the her from before was someone who had never loved and never been loved, and the hypothetical her was someone's who had that loved torn away from her because of nothing but herself. She would either become an even worse version of the emotionless control devil or she would have just asked denji to eat her to end her pitiful existence.

"Hey makima you called me right?"

You entering her office snapped her out of her thoughts, she put on a fake smile and started talking to you

"Yes darling,please sit down"

You did as she said and looked at her, the way she was smiling felt forced and you could see that.

"Is everything alright? You look worried"

".....you really understand me... I have to tell you something it's....really important"

"Sure what is it?"

Seeing you smile so innocently and warmly at her made her heart skip a beat. She could never hurt you, and that included lying to you.

"I want to tell you something that will definitely change your view of me in many ways but before I do that please know that I love you I always have and I always will, none of the loving words I told you were lies and none of the actions I have done have been made to manipulate you in any way, what I feel for you Is love at the purest state"

Makima stopped and you nodded at her as a sign to continue

"I.........am the control devil"

She gave you time to process what she said before starting to speak again with her head lowered as to not see your reaction.

"I am one of the four horseman of the apocalypse, some of the strongest devils that exist, I have the ability to control anyone who I feel is beneath me, please know that I have never used it on you as I both can't and despise the thought of"

Makima could feel her heart sink deeper and her face sweating more with every word she uttered she was so afraid of your reaction she still could bring herself to confront you face to face.

"I-i have just one request for you, I understand if you hate me for lying to you but let me explain myself, I have never been truly loved in my life until I met you you have made me feel emotions for the first time in my life and.....I can't lose you it would mean losing the part of me that i value most...s-so-"

Makima finally raised her head to look at you, tears that she never even realized were there ran through her cheeks.

"Please don't leave me"

Makima had never cried tears that were of true sadness all of the times that tears were present in her eyes they were ones of happiness caused by you, she had never felt sad enough to cry.....until now, she also felt very embarrassed that you saw this vulnerable side of her so she quickly lowered her head again expecting you to insult her or run away. What greeted her were not harsh words but your warm hands wrapping themselves around her body.

"It's fine I forgive you, what you did just now proved to me not only that you love me but that you are as much of a human as everyone else"

Makima was so shocked at your answer: You not only forgave her but considered her a human? She opened her mouth to speak, but as if you could read her mind, you answered her question even before she could ask it.

"You were worried I was gonna leave you, so much that you cried, you were worried that the person who showed you what love and emotions truly are was going to reject you just because of something you were born as and that doesn't define who you are now. That's an incredibly human thing to feel. Your tears were real, I'm sure of that, I've known you for enough time to know when you're faking emotions and that....was probably the most real display of feelings I have ever seen, you are a person makima, a person that I love and will continue to love forever"

Makima fell silent for a moment she needed a moment to fully realize what was happening but as soon as she did she hugged you just as you were doing to her, she raised her face to look at yours and even if the tears were still in her beautiful ringed eyes, a wide smile was now present on her face.she was crying tears of joy

"Thank you, just thank you so much, i promise i will treasure you forever I can't tell you how incredibly happy I feel right now"

"It's nothing, you treated me with nothing but love ever since I met you, I would never leave you"

You kissed her lips to once again affirm your love to her, she did the same and what resulted was a kiss filled with nothing but pure unfiltered love between the two of you.

"I love you"

"I love you too, more than words can describe, just....thank you for loving me"

[ewingstan]

So one of Ward's main themes has been asking what's needed to change as a person. Its the whole setup for Breakthrough: People who've done horrible things trying to become better. There's been lots of sub-themes within that—accountability, punishment and repentance, separating yourself from your past. There's been a constant counter to it, with most of the foils or antagonistic forces expressing the idea that you can't get better and might as well let yourself get worse. Lisa does this through her pessimism about things getting better. A lot of the minor career villains have represented it through their willingness to "be more brutal" rather than stick to the old rules we're pretending anyone followed. Cradle represented it through how he blamed Rain for not letting him stay good, and before that the rest of the cluster represented it through blaming Rain for their own bloodthirstiness via bleedthrough. "This isn't my fault, the world is making me bad" has repeatedly been positioned as the obstacle to "Regardless of why I did wrong before, I can put in work to get better."

I do think that "others are too quick to judge agents for reacting to bad circumstances imperfectly" is a bigger problem then "people are too willing to blame their circumstances for their behavior." Mostly because those unfair judgements of moral character has been the justification for uncountable cruel punishments throughout history, lead to untold people being paralyzed by the fear of Hell, lead to children being treated like they needed evil beaten out of them and convicts being treated like they're being disrespectful for daring to continue drawing breath. It can be hard for me to overcome my gut reaction towards anything that seems to be arguing for moral responsibility, because I genuinely think our ethical systems would be better without that concept being included.

But, that's not quite what Ward is doing, at least not when its at its best. "You need to take responsibility" in the sense of recognizing that you could act differently in the future is, strictly speaking, different from "you need to be held responsible" in the sense I find harmful. So as far as central themes go, its not bad. I have resistances to finding it astounding, but it's not an inherently terrible angle or anything.

That said, Ward has framed the opposing theme in counterproductive ways. While "the world wouldn't let me change" can work as a good beat, its not something that people are consciously thinking and being motivated by. We can talk about "they thought I was a monster, so they stripped me of all means to live honestly, so I had to live as a monster" or even "they thought I was a monster, so none would speak with me except others they considered monsters, and we made each other our worst selves," but in neither of those cases is the character's actions driven by their own belief that people wont let them be good—its driven by the actual external circumstances of how people treat them and restrict opportunities. So the way Cradle suddenly starts behaving horribly, not because others are treating him in ways that affect his material circumstances, but because of his reaction to the cluster bleedthrough—it just feels mistaken to even invoke "you made me a monster" as a trope. It doesn't work as a critique of pushing the blame for your actions onto others, because Cradle's reasoning for pushing the blame onto others feels written as an afterthought.

My problem with how this is treated in Amy are related, but not identical. A few chapter's ago, Amy complained about the world not letting her change. I don't think it made much sense for her, not only because her becoming someone who externalizes her issues feels like an unsatisfying direction for her after Worm, but more directly because it doesn't make sense in the context she's in. And sure, she's someone who makes poorly thought-out excuses for herself, so I'm not gonna ding the writing for that. It just feels like it makes more sense as just a parroting of what some commenters have said about Victoria and Amy, rather than something that Amy would herself think.

The same thing seems true for the above passages. A lot of things that readers have said about Amy are now being said, by Amy. Amy is of course voicing the rhetorically worst possible version of those claims, but I think the interesting thing is that the context Amy's saying it is the main thing making it reprehensible. Because as much as Amy is repeating the thin substance of what some readers have argued, fans arguing with other fans that "you shouldn't hate this character because X," is just substantially different than a rapist telling her victim "you shouldn't hate me because of X." Even if the strict words spoken were the same, they aren't at all the same claim, because one is what the audience should feel and the other is how Victoria should feel.

You could argue against this by saying "if its right for Victoria to hate Amy, its right for the audience to hate Amy, because hate is right when it reflects an accurate judgement of someone's moral character." I won't pretend that conception of justified hate isn't somewhat widespread, but I don't think it stands up to scrutiny. Especially not applied to fictional characters.

[alchemistc]

You can find part one of this headcanon that I should really just fic at this point (but won't because that's a commitment I will 100% abandon 120k words in when there's still 10 more chapters to go) here.

Have some more "Eddie befriends a concussed Steve after season 2 headcanons-that-are-basically-fic-at-this-point"

Steve gives himself two blissful weeks of Eddie Time before he starts his job hunt, and Eddie pouts about it like the world is coming to an end. Offers to pay for Steve's gas and insurance himself because he really, really enjoys the bubble they've built themselves full of kissing and fucking and talking until six in the morning about nothing and everything and Eddie is only marginally more well-adjusted than Steve is about Love.

"Sure, yeah, my dad throws a fit because I don't get into college, and you think he'll react to 'hey in the same vein, I'm also a raging homo and my drug dealer boyfriend wants me to be his kept man' with anything but violence."

Eddie rants about capitalist greed while Steve gathers applications from shops in the mall, glares at the Sam Goody sign going up and doesn't shut up about how fucking stupid he thinks the mall is the entire drive home, but he changes his tune the first time Steve tries on his uniform. Then immediately rethinks that idea because "Steven, I will pay you to quit right now and keep the uniform, no one else is allowed to see this much thigh on display on the daily, these are my slutty thighs."

Robin nearly quits the first time Scoops has a staff meeting and she finds Steve Harrington lounging in the backroom in the stupid fucking outfit they all have to wear. Begs not to be put on shift with him and then isn't super surprised when she checks the schedule and nearly all of the shifts with Buckley listed have Harrington right next to them, because absolutely fuck her life.

He's kind of a fucking dweeb, if she's being honest, and way less of a flirt than she remembers him being, and every time he strikes out with a pretty girl (because of fucking course she notices exactly how cute they all are) he doesn't actually seem all that put out about it and sort of laughs at her little You Suck marks like there's a joke she's just not in on, which is categorically unfair.

And - he's weird, actually, the more she thinks about it, because sometimes Robin will go on a tangent about a band she's into who just put out a shit album, and Steve will nod along like he knows a thing or two about the band in question (but he can't because this particular bands music is super fucking queer and they're not popular, certainly not in goddamn Hawkins), or she'll start in on one of the popular girls from school once the girl leaves the shop and Steve will tell Robin fucking secrets about all the dumb shit his old crew used to get up to and he'll whisper all the embarrassing stories he has about them like she's a good buddy and he's always secretly wanted to gossip about those dickheads.

And, like, the one thing they do actually have in common is their attraction to girls, not that she's ever telling him that, only - only once, some dude from the jazzercise class came in and Robin is seventy-three percent sure she caught Steve checking out the guys ass when he left, which - no way. Right? He'd just zoned out, or something.

As it turns out she actually kind of enjoys being around Steve, who seems to have a few working braincells beneath all that hair and is surprisingly funny when he's not thinking too hard about it and hangs out with the weirdest people, like - Robin could have tossed the names of the entire population of Hawkins into a bowl and pulled out names at random and still wouldn't have chosen a weirder group of people for The Hair Harrington.

She can't decide if the more inexplicable is the revolving door of children who come to visit him nearly daily and often charm a free cone or a sneak through the backdoor to the theater - or the trio of metalheads here nearly as often. Eddie Munson buys them all cups of ice cream and then they sit in the corner booth menacing terrified suburban moms and hounding Steve until his break and then Steve saunters over with a dopey little grin on his face and argues with Gareth E for five full minutes about something that makes Munson boom in laughter.

And - okay, so Robin is firmly in the closet where she's safe and so is everyone else queer in Hawkins but Munson's never actually denied all the snide comments that get tossed his way and you can't ever assume but like - he doesn't exactly hide the way he ogles Steve Harrington in his stupid uniform and Steve - notices? She thinks he notices. He'd have to be an idiot not to notice, she thinks, but then - well, he's definitely an idiot because sometimes when he gets up at the end of his break Munson shoots a pining look his way and gets an elbow in the ribs from Jeff or Gareth and Robin is actually like a little desperate to know how the hell that particular dynamic was struck up but there's no way she's letting Harrington know he intrigues her.

Eddie learns about the You Rule You Suck board and has a minor freak out about it while pacing a hole into Jeff's bedroom carpet because "He's bi, Jeff, and Buckley's totally his fucking type, they spend literally all day together, Jeff, he's going to leave me for a band nerd, Jeff." and Jeff has to remind Eddie that Steve is ass over tits in love with Eddie and spends every moment not at his literal job either carting around his merry band of kiddos or with Eddie.

Eddie demands secrecy from Jeff about the freakout and Jeff crosses the fingers of one hand behind his back as he runs his fingers over his lips like a zipper, so the moment Eddie leaves, Jeff calls Steve to give him the scoop, and maybe Steve lays it on a little extra thick and does some stupidly romantic shit but it's not like that's far out of his wheelhouse, he romances the fuck out of Eddie whenever he can and Eddie totally knows Jeff spilled his secrets but actually this is sort of okay too.

Eddie picks Henderson up the day he gets back from camp, drives him over to the mall and gets caught by Buckley making cow eyes at Steve when Steve and Henderson get to the lightsaber part of their little handshake.

And. Okay. Sure, Eddie's always kinda figured there was more to the story behind Steve's journey into Being A Better Person but he didn't expect the Russians.

So, when it all goes to hell in a hand basket Eddie's tucked in the backroom of Scoops with the rest of them listening to a Russian recording and handing a coin off to Steve so he can listen to the sound of the Indiana Flyer and -

Fucking. Russians?

And then they're sneaking into a secret base because they got trapped in a secret elevator, and they're sneaking through an underground lab and the Russians are boring a hole into the inside of the world and "Babe, we don't really have time for Twenty Questions when RUSSIANS ARE CHASING US but I promise I'll tell you all about it if I make it outta here alive." and it's the sort of ridiculous bullshit he'd throw into a campaign if the players were really pissing him off so of course, of course they get separated, and Eddie nearly bites Dustin's head off trying to figure out how they're gonna fucking save Steve and Robin.

Steve goads the torture guy into fucking him up so he lays off Robin and Robin is high as shit but like, she knows, okay, she knows what he did for her and that's.

"Have you ever been in love?" Robin asks later, after she's already sort of laid her heart out hoping he won't stomp on it and Steve doesn't hesitate.

"Yep. Nancy Wheeler," and he mimes a gunshot to the heart, makes the sound effect because even though he's found something different and heartstoppingly epic, sometimes that still stings. "And-" but Robin's scoffing and calling Nancy a priss so Steve gets sidetracked from telling Robin he's head over fucking heels for Eddie goddamn Munson. For a second, anyway.

"Are you still in love with Nancy?"

"No."

"Why not?"

Because - because the sun shines out of Eddie Munson's ass and Eddie looks at him like Steve hung the moon and the stars and because somewhere along his journey of self discovery he realized how very much he wanted to love and be loved in return and that Nancy probably was never gonna be the person to share that with him the way he wanted, and damn the world and his parents and his former shitty friends for thinking there's anything wrong with that but also - shit, he likes Robin, thinks she's great, thinks maybe if things were different he'd probably be harboring a terrible fucking crush on her but that doesn't mean she's gonna want to stick around once she finds out he's already planning out the rest of his life with the metalhead she barely tolerates hanging out in the store until closing time three nights a week.

So he tells her about this person he's super into and how weird and cool and so not the type of person he would have gone for in high school they are, and she goes quiet, and he slides under the stall and settles his weight across from her and she's looking at him like she's terrified and - yeah, okay, yep, this fucking sucks. Anyone else who already knows had learned how to not be shitheads about it from Eddie long before Steve had his revelation, or they'd never been the type of people to judge that kind of thing anyway and - and he'd told Gareth that Eddie was worth the hassle and he is but this sucks.

And.

And then she's telling him about how she'd hated him because Tammy Thompson was obsessed with him and - and it takes more time than he's proud of for everything to sort of click in his head but he's got at least a few broken ribs and he's pretty sure that stinging feeling in the side of his skull is gonna amount to another fucking concussion so at least he's got a hookup for good weed - "But Tammy Thompson's a girl," comes out of his mouth anyway and he blinks half a second later because - holy shit. Holy shit.

Because if she - and he - and Steve laughs and calls Tammy Thompson a muppet but then he's laughing harder and pointing to himself and saying "Listen, okay listen, Eddie - Eddie Munson, yeah, I didn't say it earlier because - I didn't mean you, Buckley, I meant Eddie."

And - he'd called Eddie babe and Robin hadn't really noticed it at the time because, like, running away from Russians but - god she's been an idiot because if she'd paid a lick of attention she probably could have put two and two together, like Steve eying the lines on the You Suck board with a secret smile and Steve leaping over the counter like a showoff every time he took his break with Eddie right there across the way, like Eddie leaning across the counter and pressing a finger against the skin and hair on display above the line of Steve's uniform shirt , like Steve blowing off a cute girl to lean across the counter and call Eddie a nerd wasn't the gayest shit imaginable.

And then Eddie and Dustin and Erica are pushing through the bathroom door and Robin is cackling and the comedown from Russian truth drugs is gonna suck but maybe Eddie will smoke them both up if they survive the rest of the night.

---

Eddie doesn't call him out on attempting vehicular manslaughter because he'd seen how fucking long it took Steve to actually recover from the last go 'round with Billy Hargrove, and when the dust settles and they're all sort of reeling because - because Hopper was like a superhero, alright, and they've got an actual superhero in their midst but Hopper-

Eddie and Robin sit across from each other on the end of Steve's bed and Steve drinks his water and tries not to whine too much about the fact that Eddie is taking Robin at her word that they should at least make sure he's not gonna die of a brain bleed before they get him high and then they're laughing about the fact that Eddie was fully fucking convinced Robin was gonna steal Steve out from under his nose and it's - they wake him up once an hour as soon as he starts to nap and Steve's pretty sure they're just gossiping about Steve half the time but he doesn't mind that much.

Because Robin's, like, the best, the best person and the best friend and just the best thing, and she's gonna hate it so much that Steve trusts her because she's going to hear so many truly horrible things about how stupid in love with Eddie Munson Steve is but it's important to Steve that Eddie and Robin give a shit about one another and if they've gotta bond over his ability to injure the shit out of himself any time he's given the chance then he'll nurse his bruised ribs and grin dopily every time Eddie leans over to place a fresh pack of frozen peas on his eye.

---

Robin isn't sure she's ready for anyone else to know and Steve gets that, he totally does, because the few minutes he'd thought she'd judge him for the person he's given his whole heart to were the worst minutes of his life. Gareth clocks her in about two days anyway, keeps it to himself until he can't stand the awkward silences every time Robin and Steve get handsy and they realize it and leap away from one another but it's the same kind of handsy Eddie gets with the band when he's feeling a little lonely and he knows he can trust them to not be total fucking dickheads about it.

"How is it that the only totally hetero one is the only one with a fucking gaydar?" Jeff asks and - okay, so the thing is maybe watching Eddie and Steve fall in love made him realize a few things and he's - well, Hawkins is small and close minded and until Steve he hadn't realized that liking both was a thing you could do.

At the end of the summer Steve arranges a trip up to Indy and Robin has to make up a ridiculous lie to her parents about a camping trip with a few of the band kids because there's zero fucking way they're letting her go up to the city with four fucking dudes but she pulls it off and only has like, two freak outs about being in a club full of women who are also into women.

Babyfaced Gareth is a hit and Jeff definitely maybe makes out with a dude in the alley when he steps out for a cigarette and Steve makes Eddie dance with him until Eddie complains his toes are bleeding and it's actually kind of a perfect night, a perfect trip, a perfect way to end the summer.

Steve and Eddie take turns driving Robin to school in the mornings and Robin couldn't explain to a single soul how they've become the most important people she's ever had in her corner but the thing is she doesn't really have to, because that noise is for people who haven't seen Russians try to jumpstart the apocalypse, haven't been administered torture drugs by horror-movie looking 'doctors', haven't gotten their asses handed to them to protect one another.

By mid November Steve calls a meeting of Gareth and the Gays because Robin's crushing hard on a redhead from band and as previously established only one of them has a working gaydar. Gareth takes all of thirty seconds watching Robin and Vickie interact before he's giving her a thumbs up from across the gym.

---

Gareth fucking hates how catchy Gareth and the Gays is.

[spiceofvy]

Hello 👋👋 can I pls request BTS members unrequited love headcanons where they are in love with reader who is their friend. But reader is oblivious to their feelings and doesn't reciprocate because she is not a celebrity and she never thought that they will ever like her romantically. Thank you ❤️

BTS - Unrequited crush

a/n: thank you so much for requesting this! it made me breake my own heart, i hope you like it :,)

cws: gender neutral reader, angst, no comfort, no happy ending, i'm sorry, this hurts

Seokjin: Will just continue business as usual. He keeps being your cheery happy best friend. Cooking for you, spending his days with you. Everything to see you smile. Even gives you dating advice, ignoring his own breaking heart every time he sees you with someone else. Calls you after your days and wants to hear everything, less because he is happy for you and more because he wants to make sure that you are treated right. He holds you during every breakup, being so mad because he knows that he could be better for you. He will always be your loving best friend whose heart breaks the day you settle with someone else.

Hoseok: Tries to forget you no matter the cost. He goes around dating, hooking up, and looking for you in every person that he meets. Trying to find someone that can make him feel like he feels for you. Only to get hurt by doing this, he doesn't care. But you being his friend this doesn't go past you of course. Slowly you grow worried about Hoseok's self-destructive behavior. When you tell him that you are worried about him his heart breaks at the thought of putting that strain on you. But he won't change. I believe he is the one most likely to one day just break down and confess to you in tears. But sadly it's already too late, for the two of you.

Yoongi: No. He is done. Once he comes to terms with the fact that he could never have you he minimizes any and all contact with you. Pushing you away with his cold behavior, even if it hurts you and him. He just hopes that by seeing you less his feeling will slowly go away. But you don't give up, calling him, visiting him, at least wanting an explanation about him pushing you away. He buries himself in his work, trying to write out his heartache, producing tragic songs while doing so. But his mind stays with you. Always. Give him some time, after the initial hurt is getting better he will let you back into his life. Because being your friend and hopelessly in love with you is still better than losing you completely.

Namjoon: He mostly thinks about protecting you from the harsh world that is a life in the public eye. Just wants to witness you seeing all the beauty in the world which is impossible if you have to follow all the constrictions that come from being his partner. He writes so many songs about you. Most of them stay hidden in his pc. Maybe get shown to some of his producer friends without any context. He is so angry at the world, how unfair it is, that he will never find love in you. He wouldn't share too much of his idol life with you, scared that one day you start treating him differently due to his success. One night he confesses to you on the phone while being wasted. But you think it's a joke and he will never recover from that. He won't ever settle with someone else, knowing that the love of his life is just out of reach.

Jimin: He never stops trying. Even when he already knows that there is no point anymore. He takes you to his concerts, singing touching love songs while pointing at you in the audience. But you won't believe in the deeper meaning of that action. And he breaks his heart anytime he tries. He will take you out again and again until one day you get harassed by paparazzi at your doorstep. After that, he breaks all contact. Crying in his pillow that night, hurting more and more any time you try to call him, every text you send. But your being safe is more important than anything else. Even than his own broken heart.

Taehyung: It takes him the longest to come to terms with reality. He just doesn't want to believe it. That there truly is no way for him to be with you. He is a hopeless romantic and he believes there will always be some kind of way. There has to be. The world wouldn't be so cruel right? Wouldn't bring him together with his soulmate just so he can never be loved back. Until one day the rest of the boys intervene. Talking him back to the cruel reality they live in. How dangerous dating him would be for you. And if you liked him back, wouldn't you already have said something? He stops talking to you for a while afterward, only slowly letting you back into his life.

Jungkook: He wants to tell you that he loves you so badly. It's on the tip of his tongue every time he sees you. Every time you smile at him. Every moment you share. He has your whole life together planned out. You get married at the beach in the summer. Spending your honeymoon in 5 different countries, seeing the world, and living through adventures. You move to a nice house outside of the city. Just far away enough for you to live in peace but close enough that he can take you out for dinner anytime he wants. You will get another dog alongside bam, and you will be a happy perfect family. But he can't. So he stays in his apartment, with Bam by his side. Getting takeout for himself. You stay best friends, but on the day you get married to someone else, the first tears he cries at your wedding will not be out of happiness.

[coffee-master]

Kai and Lloyd probably spend a lot of time together (season 1-2) while waiting for the Ninja to return from their missions. Is Kai a good big brother to Lloyd ? Does this somehow affect Lloyd ?

I bet this front change anything about the fact that Kai will be the most worried when Lloyd is possessed by Morro. Maybe he worried even more because he doesn’t see Lloyd as his student that needs to become the green ninja, but as a kid he wants to look after.

Kai & Llody would become very close to each other.

Kai doesn't see Lloyd as some kid of student or anything, Lloyd is just a child.

A little bratty one, but still a child. He's without his parents, so it makes Kai think that Lloyd is a little lost.

It reminds him of his chidlhood with Nya, where he had to take care of everything and grow up.

It makes Kai feel compassion towards him and can't help himself but feel like he needs to do something about this.

So during season 1 Kai is often left alone with Lloyd to babysitts him.

The situation doesn't bother him and even though he'd like to do something more to help the ninjas, he decides not to waste time and use this time productively.

He spends a lot of time with Lloyd and tires to play with him and teach something.

Lloyd isn't pleased with this at first (because he's the son of fearfull Lord Garmadon and ect..)

But one time Kai caught Lloyd not being able to tie his shoes.

The young Garmadon obviously didn't want to admit that he couldn't do it and was ignoring it. He was also lightly scared that Kai would make fun of him.

Kai noticed that and decided to show him two ways to tie his shoes as an excuse, to teach him that. Lloyd would be a little confused and then Kai suggest going to bake cookies together for everyone, to which Lloyd agreeded.

After that Lloyd started actually like Kai, listen to him, enjoy the time with him and would be nicer to him.

They'd build a bound, to other ninjas confusion.

Especially Nya's at first she woudn't understand why her brother would be so nice and carring to a little brat that broke her hair straighteners as a prank.

Later Kai & Lloyd would be even closer. To the point where Kai'd treat him like a younger brother.

But there's more.. since Kai here is the Samurai X.

Lloyd & Kai: *watch as the ninjas having fun with their weapoons and powers*

Lloyd: Uh! It's so unfair!

Kai: What?

Lloyd: Why they have all the fun and we have to stay on the Bounty? It's not fair!

Kai: Yeah, world isn't fair little guy. *ruffling his hair*

Lloyd: Hey! Don't do this!

Kai: Hah, sorry little bud.

Lloyd: I just want to help.. Why can't we fight with them?

Kai thinks what to say: ....

Kai sights: Wanna hear a secret?

Lloyd excited: A secret?!

Kai: Yeah, a secret, but it has to stay only between us, can you do it?

Lloyd: Yes!

[Later]

Kai: *takes Lloyd to the Samurai X armor*

Lloyd excited & suprised as hell: YOU'RE THE SAMURAI X?

Kai: Yup.

Llyod: Cool!!! How did you do this- is That why Nya doesn't like Samurai X and thinks he's a thief of her project?

Kai not proud of himself: Kinda?

Lloyd: Hey, why didn't you tell anyone? You could just go with them on missions and..

Kai: It's complicated. Besides I wouldn't leave you alone on the boat. *smiles lightly*

Kai: Remember you can't tell anyone.

Lloyd: Even Nya?

Kai is quiet for a second: Even Nya.

Kai: Let it be a secret between us brothers. *smiles and pats him on the shoulder*

Lloyd looks at Kai completely shocked: B-brothers?

Kai smiles at him: Of course! You're my little bro.

Lloyd: *trying his best not to show how much he is touched by this*

Kai confused: You're ok Lloyd?

Lloyd: Yeah.. Hey Kai?

Kai: Hm?

Lloyd: Could I take a ride once..? *smiles*

Kai: ...

Kai: Maybe someday. *smiles*

And since that day Lloyd started calling Kai his brother.

First | More about AU | Previous | Next

[dwindlinghaze]

Hello, how are you?

I would like to make a request where one day there is a list of the most uninteresting girls/girls that boys would never ask for a date and the reader's name is one of the first most voted just because she is shy and introverted. Remus has a crush on her and even the reader disguising it he can see that she is sad and pulling away from her friends (it's ok if you don't want to write my request, I understand <3)

hi angel, im doing good! tysm for requesting!! here is it, hope you enjoy 🤍🌸🫧💕

when raindrops fell

contents : angst, insecurity, lovely remus, we don't support people who tear women down for no reason!!

warnings : okay so just a heads up, the upper part of the fic is just me ranting about how much i hate the patriarchy and how harmful this kind of behaviour is especially towards young girls,,,, but i hope you like it!!! <333333

　 . • ☆ . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ☆

murmurs about a list of girls that are unlovable has been spreading around. you couldn't help but worry deep down.

you hated that idea. whoever created that has a special place on hell rsvp-ed for them. it was crucial.

you are shy and introverted but that doesn't mean you have zero thoughts on this. your stomach twisted because this whole thing is coming from such a misogynistic place.

and the fact that it said 'girls that boys would never ask' grew some resentment you never knew was there. living in such a patriarchal world is hard for a woman, especially young girls. they would grow up thinking it's their fault that people dislike them, but in reality it's the injustice social system that is harmful for both men and women. (and in between!)

"y/n did you hear? your name is one of the top on the lists!" a guy snorted.

you waved him off, thinking that he is just playing with you. well- that was until you saw the list. you were there.

you couldn't help but feel insecure. you sort of knew that nobody really glanced over their shoulders just to see you but by creating this, you were sure of it now.

you were embarrassed. you wouldn't dare getting out of your room. even your friends noticed the change in you. you weren't your usual confident and self-loving self anymore. if anything, you think it actually took a toll on you.

remus saw the way your eyes don't lit up anymore, the way you look sadder every passing day. he's feeling so melancholic by the way your usual self that he has grown fond of is fading away.

it hurts him actually. how can someone be so evil? how can anyone voted for you? it is a privilege to get to know you. they're missing out.

how can anyone see you that way. you are the prettiest person in the world! it's unfair how terribly kind people are treated by society.

"y/n?" remus called out to the dark.

"what," you croaked, voice hoarse. you haven't been speaking for a while.

"just wanna check if you're okay," he smiled.

"i'm fine," you said, though your expression tells otherwise.

"you wanna talk about it?" he asked.

you shook your head.

"hey, listen. you're pretty. the prettiest actually. don't mind about that stupid list. whoever created that- they think they rule the school, but they don't. so don't let them get to you yeah? you're prefect just how you are. please don't change a thing. don't satisfy them. they're doing this because they have no job," he grinned. "look at you! minding your own business, that's why you're the best person in school- in the world!"

"but that's not enough," you sniffed.

"what's not enough? you're more than enough," he assured you. then he realised, the latter part. "say, do you want to go to hogsmeade with me? next weekend."

"don't pity me like that," you said, shaking your head at him.

it breaks his heart how you thought someone would ask you out for a date just because of pity. it's the opposite actually. it came from true feelings and generosity.

"i'm not pitying you, i do like you since- forever," he said. "i write poems about you, about your face, your personality, your heart, yourself. you're dreamy."

"guess.... i'll go on a date with you."

[jaskierx]

Chelsea and Taika sound like two grown adults who realized they weren't right for each other anymore and divorced. Happens every day. No idea why it's such a big deal when Taika does it.

Whatever happened during their marriage, Taika does seem to have realized he was unfair to her and has promoted some of her more recent work the rare times he's on SM. He's really behind the translation project she and his sister are working on, for example.

I don't think Taika was wanting a "dutiful wife" to follow him around while he was filming and I do think she was being a little unfair to him about that. Asking for his family to join him when he'd be away filming for months on end so he could spend time with them is not a bad thing, especially with young children he otherwise wouldn't get to see much. Especially since Taika has said he wants to be a better father than he ever had.

I also think her putting this out into the world right now was not wise. It's already leading to other clickbait news sites ripping into him for cheating on her, since she "supposedly confirms" it here. They've been separated since 2018 and both have moved on, so why this is making such a big splash on these supposed "news" sites in 2024 I have no idea. I do not think Chelsea said any of this with malicious intent at all though. It just seems like a regular interview that's getting way more attention for things it shouldn't. Instead of her life and career, everyone's instead just using this little bit as more fodder to go after Taika, which is very unfair to both of them.

yeah i don't think chelsea did anything wrong, she's perfectly entitled to tell her side of the story, but i agree that it's a shame that people who weren't involved can't be more normal about it

they broke up because they were between a rock and a hard place. there was no situation where taika could take the job AND chelsea could focus on her career AND the whole family could live together. it's completely reasonable that chelsea didn't want to give up on her work or move her kids away from aotearoa, and it's completely reasonable that taika wanted to not be separated from his family while he was working, and it's completely reasonable for him to have accepted the job anyway because it was a life changing amount of money. there isn't a bad guy

the thing i find really weird is people who will go on and on about him being a bad father and how they feel sorry for his kids. because they don't know him. they've never met him or his kids, they have no idea how often he sees them or what kind of stuff they do together or how they interact with him. and they're acting as if they're coming from a place of genuine compassion etc when imo it's actually really offensive to be speculating wildly about how he's a shit dad and his kids must be so unhappy etc. because then you're not just speculating about a famous guy in the public eye, you're also speculating about two kids who are not celebrities and have a right to privacy.

why are you sitting on reddit thinking about how some 8 year old you have nothing to do with on the other side of the world feels about their parents' divorce? wrong'n behaviour to be honest

[aphroditelovesu]

hey love you can make headcanons about yandere klaus mikaelson (romantic) with a reader who dies in childbirth of their daughter (hope) as klaus would be during her death and at the funeral after him and for the rest of his life.😭

"My life is meaningless without you by my side, sweetheart." - Klaus Mikaelson.

❝–🧛🏻 lady l: this is a little sadder than I planned, but I hope you like it anyway, anon.

tw: obsessive and possessive behavior, death, slight description of childbirth, death during childbirth, angst and blood.

Klaus stayed by your side throughout the birthing process and he was in agony hearing your screams as you tried to push your daughter out. It hurt him so much to know he couldn't do anything to ease the pain you felt.

When he started to smell the blood, it didn't disturb him, you were giving birth, it was normal to bleed a little. But it didn't take long for him to realize that you were bleeding a lot more than you should, it was at that moment that he knew something was wrong.

Klaus intensely questioned the doctor who was attending to you at the time, he even went so far as to yell at him. The doctor was disturbed and said you were hemorrhaging. And there was nothing he could do, because you were bleeding a lot and you were far from the hospital.

You wouldn't survive. When Klaus heard those words, he snapped the doctor's neck in rage and stood beside you, squeezing your hands as he tried to help you push your daughter out. He wanted to change you at that time, but he couldn't, he knows the risks of changing you while you were still in labor, so he didn't. And Klaus regrets this decision so much.

The moment a loud cry of a baby was heard in the room, it was as if Klaus had forgotten everything he had been told and he focused his attention on the precious little creature that was placed in his lap by one of the frightened nurses. Klaus was touched, your daughter Hope, she was so perfect.

Klaus's concentration was all on the child, he didn't forget you, but he ended up neglecting you a little while holding the baby and that was a mistake. You could feel yourself getting weaker and your life draining away. You fought to stay awake, to stay alive as long as you could, but the blood loss was too much. Giving birth to a hybrid child was more difficult than you expected and it resulted in complications. Complications that took your life away.

When Klaus finally realized that you had stopped breathing, it was like someone had driven a white oak stake through his chest. As if someone had ripped his heart out, and in a way, his heart had been ripped out. You had been taken from him and there was nothing that could be done. Klaus felt destroyed inside, you, the only person who made him feel alive and happy and loved, were gone and gone forever. The only reason of why he didn't collapse to the ground was because he was still holding Hope in his arms, but it took everything in him not to collapse right there. It is said that Klaus' screams and cries could be heard throughout the mansion and even outside.

After your burial, Klaus kept quiet. He refused to speak to anyone, including his own sibilings, nothing could be done to lessen the pain he felt. Hope was in his lap, sleeping and that made him calmer, but it still hurt. It was so cruel and unfair, a loved and precious life came into the world but another was lost. Klaus refused to do anything but cuddle with Hope the entire time. She was the only thing left of you, the perfect display of your love and he would never let her go. Klaus still felt torn up inside and he knows he always has, but he has his daughter to help and the memories of the times you spent together. Nothing and no one could heal the hole that was left in his heart after your death and it's not like he was going to let anyone try to replace you but he had Hope, your daughter and living proof of your love and that was the only thing that kept him going. He would, but only for you and your daughter, but nothing could repair the damage that was done. Nothing and no one could overcome the undying love he would always feel for you.

[princedetectives]

nanako is one of the most well written characters in persona 4

⚠️ major spoilers for p4 up to its 7th dungeon in here (yes im talking to you kaylingo)

ive been thinking about nanako a lot over the past few days and, man, i feel like she doesn't get enough appreciation. she rivals akechi as my favorite persona character ever because of how precious she is, yes, but also because her writing is so perfect.

because, let's be honest, a lot of parts of this game aged poorly, especially in a modern lens. i could make a list. i have made a list actually which i give to my friends who start p4 to warn them (hi kaylingo!). you know, like the bathhouse scenes, the poor representation, the countless times the female characters are treated weirdly. the fat girl who only exists for fatphobic jokes. i could go on. nanako is not included in this.

in fact, nanako is one of the most compassionately written characters i've seen. she is just as important to the whole investigation team as she is to yu. she is never treated as a hassle to watch over. she's actively included in things they do. everyone is gentle with her (her very first social link where yosuke finds out her mom is dead and so softly apologizes, the little things like that). everyone loves nanako. that's so important, both for her and the story as a whole.

the justice arcana

nanako being the justice arcana is pretty baffling at first. the wiki says it's thanks to her deep care about right and wrong, but to me that's not as satisfying as:

nanako reflects everyone's sense of justice

this is clearest during Heaven: nanako's death is the reason the investigation team turns murderous, desperate to avenge her. nanako ends up in danger thanks to nametame's skewed messiah complex. nanako being in danger gives dojima the energy to launch a desperate attempt to finally catch the culprit and save her, wrecking and getting terribly injured in the process. importantly, nanako being in danger is what gets adachi panicked enough to slip up and reveal himself as the killer, thus allowing justice to finally catch up to him.

seeing her like this makes every character's actions much more fascinating. she doesn't deserve anything happening to her in the slightest. it's unfair and unjust. everyone knows this. what we see during Heaven is each character's attempts to save her, even nametame.

Heaven is my favorite dungeon in the game. in my book it even beats every palace in persona 5. everyone's love of nanako is stronger than ever in the most painful way. there's so much raw emotion and it's so well written the entire way through.

a few characters specifically stick out to me, like naoto, who chides themself for not figuring out nanako could be in danger sooner and being the person to initially suggest turning murderous against nametame.

teddie, who's so distraught over the injustice of nanako's death and his inability to keep the promise that gave him a place in the world that he loses all will to live. he can only live in the human world with her around, and she only comes back to consciousness upon hearing his voice.

and adachi, who, in an episode of the golden anime, is seen muttering to himself alone in the hospital pushing the blame of everything onto yu (episode 6, i told you, yu. the anime is usually really dinky but that episode is genuinely a masterpiece somehow.), which further proves his warped perception of justice. because he cares about her too. the anime proves that to him, yu took his place in the dojima family, and he's extremely bitter about it.

in conclusion

nanako's role as the collective little sister is so important. she helps everyone throughout their social links and brings out the sides of people that wouldn't be seen otherwise. before Heaven, each dungeon was fairly impersonal, saving people they hadn't met before, which drastically changes with her kidnapping.

nanako gives everyone the strength to solve the case. she's the light that guides them to the clues they've been looking for throughout the past 8 months. nanako is the justice arcana because, without her, the case goes unsolved, and it's all thanks to the love everyone has for her. she's the best depiction of anything like this i've ever seen.

[silvertsundere]

Silver Talks AniManga (30/06/24)

alright with this, this season is offically over for me and it was p good overall despite some worse than they coulda been adaptations

next week starts the next season tho there's not a ton of stuff starting for me right away

blue - finale/completed

Anime

Blue Archive Ep12 (Finale)

Considering how much money BA makes this was pretty disappointing, it could've been so much better. While the op looked good the rest of the show looked weird, like it had some filter over it. I thought maybe it was cause, since there isn't a simulcast, of some weird encoding of the video but then the op would look off too. But anyway, other than that the animation was serviceable but never anything impressive. The music was good ofc but it was just the game's tracks so that's to be expected (with a couple remixes here and there), and the voice cast was also good. The best thing about the anime was all the extra original scenes they had, which were all good and added to the original story.

It's been a week since the finale aired and this post and there hasn't been a S2 announced so that's unfortunate. As much as I like the abydos girls, the arisu story and eden treaty are just waaaaay better than this. I understand that it's an intro to the world and such, and it does a good job of that but I'd like to see those other chapters animated as well. Tho, if they do it, I hope they step up the quality cause they for sure can do it if they want

TL;DR: Good to watch if you're a fan of the game if not just to just the girls animated and the original scenes and it's also a decent enough adaptation for people that are interested but didn't want to play for whatever reason, tho there's some cameos and references that would fly over your head at some points

Girls Band Cry Ep13 (Finale)

well that was a good show. was balancing between an 8 and a 9 but after the finale decided to go with the 8. biggest reason for this is cause I have it in the same headspace as jellyfish so liked it more "so clearly it should have a higher score" but obviously they can both be 8s and I still liked one more, but anyway. Really good, single handedly made me change my mind about CG shows, tho it's an unfair comparison to other people since this was toei and they have experience with Precure and more recently the DBS Hero movie

I won't yap about this one too much like I do sometimes. If you were interested in the show but put off cause it's CG then don't and just check it out. The story is about sticking to your convictions even when "everyone" seems to doubt you, but also to learn to open up and rely on your friends and family cause you're, ultimately, not alone. The whole cast was really fun and had great chemistry, tho I feel like Tomo and Rupa coulda gotten a bit more development if they joined earlier in the season and despite all of Nina's faults that they make sure to portray correctly, she is a nice MC that you want to see succeed and root for. The music was really good, as you'd expect from a music show. A lot of eps ended with a concert performance with a full on MV included, instead of the ED, and they were always pretty cool

I said I wouldn't yap much but starting to do it so TL;DR: Watch it despite being CG, it's a fun show and well worth the watch. Wouldn't mind getting some more in the future but I don't see it happening considering how it ended but oh well

Oh also, I think I mentioned it in the first ep? But anyway, I love nari (the chara designer) so it was great seeing their stuff animated like this. I've followed them for years and years and years so it's cool seeing their progress and participating in a big project. Hoping for more good things for them in the future

Kaiju 8 Ep 12

Well that was sadly pretty disappointing. Now don't get me wrong, I know the series is pretty generic, but the manga is good enough that it elevates it above that. The manga was already very popular long before the anime even got announced so they wanted to make the anime a hit too, which lead them to playing it too safe and trying to appeal to the mainstream audience, making it lack the juice that makes the manga so good. We had little flashes of this through out the show with a couple scenes here and there, ep 9 (the best one), 11 and 12 were very good, and if the whole series had had that level of quality it would've been a much better show but oh well. I said this many times but the decision to have the OP and ED done by generic radio pop western artists was such a huge red flag, that completely showed their intentions, but I still had hope

Like if something like Jujutsu can become such a smash hit, despite the plot being so all over the place, due to the simple fact that they let the anime staff cook and make something different and unique, it should show you that trying to appeal to the most milquetoast anime watcher isn't the way and that's just gonna make your show enjoyable but forgettable to that target audience and serviceable but disappointing to your existing fans. Oh well.. it's a shame but it is what it

Anyway, as expected, they announced S2 shortly after the finale. I'll be looking forward to that and hoping it'll be better but I don't have much hope it won't be just more of the same

Manga

Kyokuto Necromance Ch10

the series hasn't been doing hot in ratings but this chap had the axe vibes all over it so I guess that's enough confirmation. it's unfortunate that this author has another cancelled series on his hands. I thought this one had potential, maybe not to be a hit, but at least to last for a while. And like I understand why people are not vibing with it but it's still a shame, oh well

[donnerpartyofone]

@brbnightmares it's especially bad with fiction and YA. It echoes the whiny complaints of how any depiction of a fat person is "glorifying obesity." I have definitely seen some anti-soc stuff represented in a way I don't like, but depicting it in a narrative is not an endorsement. I am not an anti content warning person at all, but people who call out for actual handholding in the narrative is ridiculous. very disappointing to see so many readers like this especially.

I'm gonna stop torturing people by reblogging my own post now, but I do want to liberate this stuff from the comments, so: Yes, you're absolutely right. Like considering the whole political history of gatekeeping around education and printed matter and everything, reading has become almost synonymous with personal liberation--I always think about John Waters saying, "If you go home with somebody and they don't have books, don't fuck'em!" And yet we still get young people who seem to love to read and write, but they crave to be regulated and censored; is it some kind of submission kink? That might be the nicest thing I can think about it.

Tangentially: When I was a kid my intellectual hippie parents were EXTREMELY anxious about my horror obsession. They were concerned about the grimy content of what I was interested in, and they were also concerned about the brain-rotting powers of screen entertainment. But, they would let me read anything I wanted, I think because they understood that reading is a good thing pretty much no matter what, and probably they also couldn't stand to imagine themselves censoring the written word. The funny thing is that since the word is free from the expense and complication of building special effects and getting past the MPAA, I read WAY more fucked up shit in pulp paperbacks than I could ever have encountered in 99% of all movies. But of course, it didn't turn me against my own moral sense vis-a-vis the real world, nobody's pets started disappearing in our neighborhood after I began spending hours at the library. What I remember about the experience is feeling things, not to be so corny; like fear, loathing, existential dread, and ambivalence may not be desirable real-world experiences, but books that challenge you emotionally make you grow. They literally change your mind for the better, even the bad ones can. And now it feels like there's this thing going on where people don't want to be challenged, they see adversity and unease as something contaminating and unfair, like we're all entitled to a frictionless, idealized existence even in the nonsense world of social media. Which I think wouldn't even be good for you.

It feels like we've gone from the dubious thing of people coveting the valor that is supposedly conveyed by victimhood and oppression, to people literally just wanting to be babies, and to be treated like babies. And I don't know, not to like waaaaay over-hyperbolize everything, but people need to remember that the reason fascism takes root so quickly and easily is that being told what to do, what to read, what to think, and to have every possibility of your life dogmatically restricted--to have all of your personal responsibility taken away from you and placed in someone else's hands--can be incredibly comforting.

PS I worry about trigger warnings re: *gestures vaguely* all of this. I will tag for types of real-life trauma and violence that I don't think are fair to spontaneously foist on unsuspecting followers, BUT: I often think of a time when this popular true crime blogger answered an ask where the person was asking her to tag her posts for needles. And like, I'm pretty sure the context was that she had posted the famous x-ray of sadomasochistic child murderer Albert Fish's colon with like twenty pins jammed up it. So the blogger very judiciously responded with something like, you know, "I'm sorry to have bothered you, but I'm not going to tag images of pins and needles. My blog is de facto full of disturbing and violent content, and the items you are describing are things that you might encounter in ordinary, benign situations in real life. If your aversion to them is so powerful that you can't even look at them, then frankly, that's something you're going to have to deal with privately, and you might want to avoid this blog in general." I loved her for that.

[dorkustm]

@slautertm : sender kisses receiver thinking it’ll be the last time .

he's scared. more scared than he's ever been in his entire life. all his life, he just wanted a girl to like him. and apparently, that had been too much to ask, as they've found themselves at the football field with a decision that neither of them wants to make, but they have to. he's so close he could touch her, if he wanted to. and he wants to comfort her. he desperately wants to hold her and tell her that everything will be okay. but he can't promise her that, can he? he can't promise her everything will be okay when he won't be around, when he's asking her to shoot him. he knows it's unfair to ask this of her, but none of this is fair and it doesn't really matter when they have no other choice.

there's a lot that goes unsaid and the second that pete thinks that they've reached their conclusion, that he'll turn around and let her do what has to be done-- steph kisses him. it isn't anything that he imagined it would be, his first kiss. he's thought about it a million times, hell, he's practiced, but it doesn't feel like he thought it would feel. although his heart races wildly, it doesn't feel like an explosion of fireworks. it doesn't feel like the world has suddenly gone still, to give him this one last moment to enjoy before he--

he tenses up, then he melts into her touch. her hands frame his face and his hands quickly move to her waist, holding her close as he kisses her back. is he entirely certain that he knows what he's doing? no, but there's no going back from this, so he's trying so hard to give them both this moment. he's sorry that they fought, that he didn't tell her sooner how he felt about her, although that probably wouldn't have changed much of their current situation. and he hopes that she knows that. he pours all of these unspoken apologies against her lips, firm, and a little messy. his eyes squeezed shut and his eyebrows furrowed, tears rolling down his cheeks by the time that he pulls away, because he has to pull away.

it breaks pete's heart, the look in her eyes when she opens them and he continues to put more and more distance between them. his hands slowly move from her waist, towards her stomach, until he feels the butt of the gun that she has tucked away in the waistband in her pants. he swallows the lump in his throat and he finds it even harder to breathe as he carefully removes the gun with one hand, his other hand guiding one of hers to be able to put the gun into her own hands. there's a small smile that appears on his lips then, sad, but thankful that they've had this moment, at the very least. he can't find it in him to say anything, though, so he takes a step back. and then a couple more. his eyes linger on steph for a few seconds more before he forces himself to look away, turning around to lower himself onto his knees.

[ell-vellan]

who out of all your ocs is closer to you in terms of personality and who out of other fictional characters is also closer to you?

This is such a cool question, thank you for asking! I've been thinking about it all day and it got me on a tangent on how I make characters, so I hope you don't mind that I rambled.

So, I'll start off saying that part of my process of making new characters is to give them one or two characteristics of my own that I'm very familiar with and dial them up to 11, or I infuse characters with opposite traits that I have. First because I have to have something relatable about my characters to write them, and also it's just kind of impossible to fully avoid when you're spending so much time with them. You're either writing them going through stuff which passes through the filter of your imagination and your experiences, or you're literally role playing as them in a game. It's easier to either go "this is what I would do" or "this is what I would NEVER do" and then go from there, especially when starting out with a new character you're just starting to get to know.

Eventually their paths diverge from yours, but you gotta start on common ground. Or I do, anyway.

A character's upbringing, religion, philosophy, culture, etc is a huge part of what makes them who they are. So because I don't share those same background experiences, my characters act how I would extrapolate someone with those experiences to act given the traits we share. That's sort of my "in" to that character's mindset, helps me see their very different life through their eyes. Especially when it comes to Dragon Age OCs, lol.

So with all that said, I think because I've spent the most time with Ellawyn while writing nearly 200 thousand words with her, and because I set off with the plan of making an insecure Inquisitor who struggles with it, and also crafted her as an opposite to Iron Bull, I've probably given her more of my own traits than anyone. The anxiety, Eldest Daughter Syndrome, and earnest do-gooder-ness, but way more intense. Her anxieties are different, but I understand that part of her, which helps me figure out how she feels about all the other stuff that goes on in her story. I can't imagine how it would feel to have magic or kill in self-defense, but I can relate way more to anxiety about being in charge and trying to do a good job.

Growing up I really didn't see a lot my personality in fictional characters because I was a quiet, shy kid who was scared of doing stuff, and those aren't main character traits! Because of course the confident, powerful character is the one that affects change, they're the ones driving the plot, and they're the interesting character to follow. Main characters can't reject their destiny and decide to stay home where it's safe, because then there's no story. So I like to write more unassuming characters who typically wouldn't be the hero. Ellawyn having been accidentally Inquisitor and feeling like she isn't up to the task but having no choice was interesting to me.

For my Cousland, she's the absolutely typical hero, because I always want to be the Lawful Good character in games and get everything right and help everyone have a happy ending lol. So that was my in with her. But Cousland gets an added dash of bloodthirsty revenge goals and a sheltered, privileged, ignorant origin story.

Mahariel is most my opposite - the cold orphan who has never regrets anything and is looking only to selfishly survive, without bringing his people down with him. He's the character is fed up with an unfair world and just says "Fuck it, I'm gonna watch it all burn." Sometimes it's fun to play as someone who doesn't give a shit about anyone but themselves, lol.

There are characters I've written that I've given negative traits of myself from past or present. It's fun for me to explore character arcs for people with similar traits but who took different paths. I've written a main character with agoraphobia, a mom-friend, bookish loners, cheerful optimists, headstrong rebels, Type A honor roll overachievers...because it's what I know. (Side characters are different because they often serve a narrative purpose to support the main story so they tend to be more a mix of different archetypes.)

But I definitely try not to fully put myself on the page because, again, I'm boring and wouldn't make a good main character, lol.

I did relate to Jane Eyre, especially her as a child. But one of the first characters I really felt like I saw a reflection of myself in was Cath from the book Fangirl, because she was a writer who was too scared to eat in the college cafeteria by herself, so she lived off food bars in her room. Which is something I literally did.

Those are the only ones I can think of! There are characters I admire for being the kind of person I *wish* I was, but that's a different question, lol.

Probably why I write the types of people I do, because I'm drawn to write what I want to read.

Thanks for letting me get on my soapbox and explore this super interesting question! You always have such insightful ones, too!

[bookwyrminspiration]

hi quil! got another question about sophie's parents since your answer to the last ask inspired me: do you think there might have been another option for william and emma after the events of Nightfall?

i don't really like how they were treated by the plot and had basically no way to deal with their trauma, considering that emotions can remain even after memories are Washed, and i have the (probably unsupported by plot) wish that they should have been allowed to choose whether they wanted to have their memories washed or to try to deal with all their trauma whilst keeping the Lost Cities a secret. I know Amy didn't get captured and tortured, but they gave her the choice to keep her memories and she was like twelve, so i feel like her parents should have been given the choice and were also better able to deal with it all.

(not to mention, i feel like it'd be easier to keep a secret as a family instead of Amy having to spend literally the rest of her life being unable to tell her parents about her secret sister)

Oh and a disclaimer, i haven't read nightfall in a hot minute so maybe i've forgotten some plot points!

Hello again! I don't think you've forgotten anything crucial, that was pretty much what happened. However, I don't think--and this is just my personal opinion and conclusions--there's really anything major that could be changed because of time constraints.

It was unfair to Emma and William on a number of levels, taken care of by others who presumed to know what was best for them when they hadn't been trusted with that responsibility by the two. But her human parents have already served their purpose in the story; they raised Sophie, gave a view of her human life, and they were left behind. We don't need more from them, and anything else that does involve them is going to be purely for the emotional, personal benefits of a select few characters.

It would be an intense, involved process for our main character, and most of all take time. And that time wouldn't connect to the rest of the plot and world. Her human parents aren't connected or involved in anything enough on any tangible level to make the massive diversion from the rest of the world worth it. We can't just take a break from the rest of the series, and trying to balance the two would just make it more difficult to write rather than choosing one or the other. You can only split your focus between so much, and the Fosters would want more time, I think.

If this was a real situation? Yeah, I do think there's better options that actually involve the Fosters, considering their input and dealing with the trauma they faced. Perhaps letting them keep the secret, finding some way to work out Sophie being between worlds, letting them know Sophie as she wants to know them, any number of things. But that doesn't happen overnight and there just isn't enough connection to everything else to justify taking that time out of the middle of the series; it's purely for their relationship and benefit--which is important, but just not enough.

I do think this is the kind of thing that could be postponed to the end of the series and then revisited though, because once all the big conflict is over, there's all the time in the world (provided Sophie/her family doesn't perish). We could have one of those ambiguous ending scenes where the Neverseen has been defeated, she's got herself a little sorted out, and she knocks on the door to her family's home and introduces herself or something.

They don't need to be completely eradicated from the story forever, but I think the time they'd take is most plausibly addressed after the series. I think it's a constraint of storytelling, and that if this were a real life situation then we could change it. But again! This is my personal opinion and how I think it would work/not work!