#sidenote I love her so much I have been drawing her so so much

[withspaces]

This is all I can think of when I take screenshots

[mviswidow]

in search of silence

Eloise Bridgerton x Reader

Word Count: 3.1k

Warnings: r is in an abusive marriage, angst, el to the rescue, some fluff at the end

Summary: Eloise and R are childhood best friends. When a new season begins, they find themselves reunited for the first time since R has entered her marriage that was set up by her parents.

Prompt: could i request a fic with childhood bestfriends eloise bridgerton x f!reader. eloise and reader stopped talking to each other as often because reader got married and one day eloise catches reader’s husband being mean to her (this can be physically or verbally) and eloise defends reader and they rekindle their friendship/old feelings for each other.

sidenote, ive always loved your mcu women fics and im SO glad you’re taking requests for eloise now 😭😭🫶

A/N: thank you anon!! for both the request and the compliment. i love eloise sm this was so fun to write

Muffled shouting stole Eloise’s attention when she escaped from the ballroom of this week's ball that she had been forced to attend with her family. She hadn’t wandered far enough to no longer be able to hear the string quartet playing, but the sound of a deep voice yelling angrily was hard to miss as she passed what she assumed was a drawing room.

Though Eloise knew she should not eavesdrop, she found herself unable to mind her business and stopped in her tracks, gravitating closer to the commotion.

--

“I am through with you,” Your husband shouted, face red with rage.

The moment his hand had clasped forcefully around your wrist to drag you into a room with him earlier, you knew what was coming for you.

“James, please - someone will hear,” you responded in a hushed voice, thoroughly embarrassed at the thought.

“Let them! Everyone should know the bitch of a wife you are,” he spat.

You knew better than to talk back to him, and yet, “I’ve done nothing to you at all! You’ve no reason to -”

A heavy-handed slap to your face was sure to silence you. You could feel the blood rushing to your cheek, and your hand rose shakily to cradle the side of your face. Hot tears brimmed your eyes as you breathed deeply to steady yourself.

“I’m leaving.”

“Please -” you forced yourself to say, a feeble attempt to calm him down, lest his temper worsen on his way home.

“Enough from you! I-”

The door burst open and you felt as if your heart was about to leap out of your chest.

You were astounded to see Eloise standing in the doorway, her lips in a tight line. It had been long since you’d seen her last. She was beautiful, as always. For a moment you forgot your present situation until you noted the fire in her eyes. She was furious, but she kept herself composed, “Is everything alright in here? I heard quite the commotion from outside as I was passing by.”

“We are quite fine.” He turned back to you and after a moment, he spoke, “I’ll send the carriage back around for you once I arrive home. I cannot stand the sight of you at present.”

“Lady Bridgerton,” he said curtly. Eloise barely had time to register the fact that James was walking towards her and stepped out of his way just in time.

“Lord Anderson,” she managed out, deciding to forgo her polite curtsy. She had deemed that he did not deserve it.

You both jumped at the sound of the door slamming upon his exit.

Her head felt as if it was spinning. She’d recognized your voice from outside the instant you spoke. The thought of this being the reality of the marriage your parents had arranged for you devastated her. She wouldn’t let herself imagine how horrid it was for you when you were actually at home.

Your cheek still burned from being slapped and there was no doubt in your mind about it being tinged pink. You were beyond mortified and the relief of James finally having left had tears falling down your face rapidly.

As much as you wanted to take in Eloise, who you hadn’t had a moment alone with since last season, you were lost in your mind. You dreaded your impending arrival back home and prayed that your husband would be fast asleep.

After a few more seconds you pried your eyes away from the bookcase you had been staring at and settled your gaze on Eloise.

She somehow looked more stunning than you had remembered her to be and your heart squeezed painfully. Her hair curled carefully over her shoulders in such a familiar way and it reminded you of how you used to twirl her curls in your fingers whenever she would rest her head in your lap.

The Bridgerton made her way over to you carefully. The concern on her face was evident and you knew by the way her eyebrows were crinkling together that she had much to say.

She stopped when she was just a few feet in front of you. For once, she seemed unable to form a proper sentence.

You were sure she couldn’t find the right words. You weren’t sure how you should navigate this situation yourself, but you had had enough of the silence, “I’m sorry you had to hear all of that.”

Eloise shook her head immediately, “You have nothing to be apologizing for.”

There was another lull of silence. All either of you could do was look into each other’s eyes. Hers looked so sad. How you hated to see them so.

“I assure you I am quite alright.”

“There is no use in lying to me, Y/n/n.”

Your bottom lip trembles at the familiar nickname and she hurries closer, engulfing you in a hug.

She felt you trembling as she held you against her. “I’m here,” she whispered, arms wrapped tightly around you.

It was not long before sobs racked your body and all she could do was rub your back and occasionally give you a few words of reassurance. Eloise felt her heart splitting into pieces the longer you cried.

You were certain that you would give anything to stay in her arms forever. There was nowhere in the world where you felt safer. Her chest radiated warmth and you took comfort in the very familiar scent of her perfume.

Once you’ve calmed slightly, you apologize again, “I’ve missed you terribly. And I have been the furthest thing from a friend to you. I’ve allowed James to drive the people closest to me out of my life and I won't stand for it any longer.”

“I can’t have you getting in trouble because of me,” she shook her head.

“Oh, hush, El,” you chuckled wetly. “I’ve been in trouble with my Mama countless times because of you.”

She knew you were joking to make light of the situation, but she found nothing humorous about it. Especially not as she reached up to wipe away the tears on your face.

“How long has it been this way?” she inquired, speaking with a gentle voice.

“A handful of months. He’s become rather frustrated by the fact that I have yet to produce an heir for him and his displeasure with me grows stronger by the second.”

Eloise’s face scrunched in indignation, “That is ridiculous.”

“It’s fair enough - that is why he was searching for a wife in the first place.”

“It’s unacceptable behavior from him regardless of that fact,” she was quick to rebuke. She took your hand in her own and squeezed gently. The feel of your skin against hers made her heart race.

“I’d like to get out of the house tomorrow. Do you think your mother should have my head if I busied you the whole day?”

“Not at all. She’s missed you quite a lot as well,” Eloise smiled.

Your heart fluttered at the admittance.

“Will you be okay tonight?”

“I will. I’m sure he’ll drink himself to sleep the second he arrives home.”

You could tell Eloise didn’t like the sound of that, but she said nothing.

She was grateful that you wanted to spend the day with her tomorrow, not only because she would be eager to see how you were but also because she’d missed your company so very much.

--

Almost two fortnights later, you’re riding in a carriage to a ball with your husband sitting across from you. He grows tired of waiting for you to finally come to be with child. Intercourse with him is nauseating and at this point, you’re praying that your courses don’t come next month for a multitude of reasons.

The ride is sour, as you’ve just had a nasty argument, ending in you being pushed into a table. Your right arm ached still, but you were sure that nothing was broken.

You were excited to escape from your husband and find your dear Eloise the moment the opportunity arose. Your feelings for her made you ever so giddy when you were around her. You felt almost childish at your eagerness to leave your husband and find your friend, but you had been swept into this marriage on your just first season out, which was only last year. It barely gave you any time to enjoy balls with her without courting.

Running around with Eloise at the last ball felt so normal, oddly enough. It was incredibly refreshing to spend the better part of the evening with her, sipping on champagne and cracking jokes. Even though you knew it was slightly improper as you were now married and should have been at your husband’s side, listening to him boast about his fortune and how impatient he was to have an heir with whoever would listen, you couldn’t bring yourself to care. It did anger him, however. You had learned so after the last ball when he reprimanded you for almost half of an hour about your behavior as if you were his child and not his wife.

You’d decided to behave for the first hour, at least. It frustrated you so to listen to James drone on to his acquaintances, but you knew it was what needed to be done since he was already on edge from his earlier outburst.

The Bridgertons arrived after you, and you spotted Eloise immediately. You couldn’t help the smile that grew on your face when you saw the way her eyes lit up when she caught sight of you.

You squeezed James’ arm absentmindedly out of the excitement you felt. When he looked down at you, you played it off by giving him a look that should have been directed toward Eloise.

That had seemed to satisfy him well enough and he returned to his conversation, allowing you to return to observing your favorite Bridgerton from afar.

Eloise’s hair cascaded over one of her shoulders and two strands of soft curls beautifully framed the sides of her face. Her dress was blue, as it usually was, and it was embellished with embroidered flowers.

You could hardly peel your eyes away from her, but you forced yourself to redirect your attention to your husband once more.

After what you deemed an appropriate amount of time, you excused yourself to find more pleasant company.

It seemed as if you had run into almost every Bridgerton before her, though. You greeted all three of her present brothers before finding Violet and Agatha in conversation and curtsying to both. Violet even extended a hand to squeeze yours for a moment, happy to see you.

As soon as you began a conversation with her and Lady Danbury, you were accosted by Eloise, who gripped your arm excitedly. You winced briefly, now bruised from your earlier encounter with the table of your drawing room.

You relaxed your expression and the pinch in your brow was gone once it settled in that you were in Eloise’s presence, she still noticed your discomfort despite your futile efforts to mask it and found herself glancing down at your arm.

Her nostrils flared at what she saw, she had half the mind to find Lord Anderson at that moment, but she looked back up to you and saw the bright grin on your face and melted, a smile of her own growing quickly.

She swiftly looped her arm through yours and began to pull you away, wanting you to herself, “If you don’t mind, I’m going to steal Lady Anderson away. I’ve hardly had any time with her all week.”

The older women chuckled and shook their heads, recognizing this familiar routine that the two of you had been accustomed to last year.

“Have a nice time ladies,” Violet smiled, not even bothering to remind Eloise to attempt to fill a few spots on her dance card. She knew how the girl had missed you, and didn’t have it in her to force her daughter away from you. Violet rather appreciated how cheerful Eloise happened to get whenever you were around, especially at balls, where genuine smiles from the young lady were scarce.

Eloise guided you to a corner of the ballroom, not failing to make a stop at the refreshment table and hand you a lemonade. You were relieved to be by her side at last. There was nothing you had desired more in the past week, where you had only been able to promenade with her once, as James had been irritable.

The longer you were around her, the more you felt the pressure on your chest relieve itself. You were able to breathe so easily around Eloise. You suddenly became aware of the fact that her thumb was passively rubbing your arm and you had to blink a few times, not sure if you were dreaming it.

You ached for her to touch you more. You’d once attempted to imagine that your husband’s hands were hers, but they were far too rough, and you gave up quickly.

Your mind wandered for a moment, but before it could stray too far, you snapped yourself out of it.

“You’re awfully quiet tonight,” you pointed out, turning your head towards your best friend. It was quite unlike her.

She tilted her head in a shrug, “You seem as though you could use a little quiet.”

“You know me far too well, Eloise,” a smile returned to your lips, something she never failed to do, and you shook your head. “But please, if there’s anyone I’d like to hear ramble, it is always you.”

Eloise scoffed in mock offense, “I do not ramble.”

“You do, too,” you teased. “I like it.”

She chortles in response and the two of you hold eye contact. She looks at you with a fondness that you recognize yourself often directing toward her.

Eloise breaks it for a short moment to glance down at your lips.

When she does it once more, you’re suddenly overtaken by instinct and put your lemonade on a serving tray, taking hers and doing the same.

“What-”

Eloise is interrupted by you taking her gloved hand in your own and dragging her out of the ballroom. She doesn’t miss the way you check over your shoulder for your husband, who is heavily occupied, drinking and joking happily with his friends.

You begin making your way into the gardens when you hear Eloise chirp up from behind you.

“We shouldn’t be out here,” she says, not quite like she means it.

You roll your eyes, “Then it’s a good thing you’ve never cared for rules, isn’t it?”

“I suppose so,” she couldn’t be offended, it was true, and it was exhilarating to be truly alone with you for the first time in such a long while.

You stopped when you’d reached a dead end and you were sure you were not only alone but completely hidden from anyone looking outside.

Eloise tried to stop her mind from racing. She couldn’t be sure of why you had pulled her out of the ballroom. She waited with bated breath to find out, trying to suppress the excitement she felt. You could just be in search of fresh air, or actual silence, which required you to be far enough to hear the music no longer.

Your breathing quickened as you stood in front of her. She took note of it, and against her better judgment, let her eyes flicker to your chest. Then up to your lips, which were parted slightly. Her eyes lingered, before finally meeting your own.

While you badly wanted to tell her everything on your mind, you could hardly form a proper sentence, “El…”

You could hear her breath, ragged from nerves as she took a step closer to you.

There was a question in your eyes. You were grateful that you did not have to utter it. She knew.

She told you that she knew with the glassy nature of her eyes, the parting of her mouth, and her breath fanning across your face as she brought herself closer.

You closed the distance, pressing your lips to Eloise’s. The gentle kiss did not take long to turn eager, almost desperate, both of you feeling free from the sole secret you had kept from each other.

Her lips were soft and warm. They were everything you had dreamed of.

You lost yourself in Eloise, your hands finding their way to her jaw. Your body felt as if it was being lit from the inside when she pressed you into her with a firm hand at the small of your back. Your head almost spun from the contact of her chest against your own.

Despite not wanting to, you pulled away the slightest bit to catch your breath. You did not miss the way she chased your lips.

She had never looked more beautiful. Your heart swelled as she began to smile, which turned into a breathy chuckle.

You shook your head as you joined her with a giggle and let your arms wrap around your neck, hugging her tightly.

“I love you, El. So much,” you whispered.

You felt her breath hitch and her arms tightened around your waist, “I love you too. So very much. It pains me so to watch you from across a ballroom when I want nothing more than to be by your side.”

All of a sudden, your reality came flooding back to you.

“You deserve so much more than that brute that calls himself your husband. He should be honored to spend the time with you that he does. He is a fool for not seeing how precious you are.”

Tears welled in your eyes as she spoke, “I wish I had never married, El. I’m miserable.”

“I know. I’m not sure how much peace this brings you, but you should know that I am here for you, at any time of day or night. You could barge into the Bridgerton house in the late hours of the night and I shall be ready to dissolve your worries with my charming wits and whatever biscuits we can find in the kitchens.”

You found yourself laughing, as you always did in Eloise’s presence, “Thank you.”

“It is my pleasure,” her lips quirked up.

“What are we to do now? About us, I mean.”

“We’re going to have to find a way to get you out of that house of yours however often we can. And if Lord Anderson lays another finger on you I will sic my entire family and Lady Danbury on him. We’ll see how he likes that.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“I’d say I’m known for being ridiculous, you shouldn’t be surprised,” she raised a brow playfully before looking over her shoulder. “I highly doubt anyone is missing us in there…”

“What might you be suggesting, Miss Eloise,” you ask, feigning innocence.

“I think you know quite well what I suggest.”

[aethelwyneleigh27]

Cod Characters General Dating Headcanons (part three)

+ Random and Some bits of Chubby Fem S/O Headcanons with mentions of different nationality S/O

+ What type of BF/GF they would be

Including König, Kim "Horangi" Hong-jin, Keegan P. Russ, Philip Graves (+ some headcanons including the Shadows), Makarov

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Fem terms and pronouns like she/her are used for the reader

ꕥ HOPE YOU ENJOY! ꕥ

My rules for requests and characters I can write for

A/n: I tried so hard to get this one out in time with the other but my other wips are getting to me 😭. I posted twice today just to feed y'all ahaha.

Disclaimers/warnings: Typical Cod things, OOC characters???, Unrealistic, Some suggestive themes and language, I'm so sorry but English is not my first language so please don't come after me. Most of the content I've seen are on TikTok and Tumblr I don't actually play the game but I love the characters so much, same with any other content I have for other video games.

Tiny sidenote: the reader in this has been describe to be shorter than the characters and has been mentioned to have a soft body rather than the muscular type.

König

ꕥ (PLEASE DON'T COME AFTER ME, I DON'T KNOW ANY GERMAN AND I'M USING GOOGLE TRANSLATE)

ꕥ Speaking of König, I don't think this man is the shy boy that some people is making him out to be (not that he doesn't have that side at all, I just feel like they make it his whole personality). Based on voice lines alone this man is cocky asf.

ꕥ There's a reason for his mask, yes he was bullied as a child because of his looks and that's one of the causes to his social anxiety but that doesn't mean this mf is shy. He just like to avoid people and social interactions yk. (Y'all have no idea how much I can relate to this)

ꕥ Has and will continue to use his height to his advantage, someone bothering you while you're both sat having a wonderful time together? This mf stands the fuck up, shoulders back, chest out and everything. Looming over that person while glaring down, arms crossed while they're engulfed by the shadow of this 6'10 behemoth of a man.

ꕥ Chubby!Reader? He'll throw you over his shoulders, only using one arm below your ass while he carries you off. Seriously it is no problem to this man, he'd beg you to sit on his face and suffocate him. If anything I'd say he has a preference for it yk, very soft and plush reader for real.

ꕥ Our DIY king here wearing a shirt for a hood, his hair sticking out of the hole for the head whenever he's dressing casual. Play with his hair like right now, you'll make him melt right then and there.

ꕥ Enjoys cuddling, hasn't had many partners and by that I mean kinda none. Nobody was insane enough to approach him till you came around so he's very touch starved. He didn't even know he enjoyed touching that much till he was able to feel the amount of warmth your body gives him. He'd swear on his life that he was intoxicated in that moment.

ꕥ Whenever you sit or straddle on his lap, he's still so fucking tall. I swear you will gain neck pains if you wanna keep eye contact while talking to him. (I understand the struggle, I am a 5'1 girly. Every character I know within the CoD universe is taller than me 😭)

ꕥ Doesn't actually wear his mask around you, he's comfortable and trust you enough to know you wouldn't go around telling everyone what he looks like.

ꕥ Nicknames he'd call you in German are Mein Schatz, Fräulein, Liebling, Engel and Kleine Maus

ꕥ He's still definitely bitter about not being a sniper. (AHAHAHA)

Kim "Horangi" Hong-jin

ꕥ (IF I'M BEING HONEST, I DID NOT EXPECT HIS VOICE TO BE THAT DEEP. ALSO HIS VOICE LINES IN KOREAN/HANGUL (IDK WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT)

ꕥ He has doodles on his tactical gear that he did himself (there are also one that are a tribute to squid game because man's had a gambling addiction), has asked you to draw on it too and he proudly wears it when on duty. Will feel stupid while unconsciously smiling if you draw a heart.

ꕥ Writing something down on his vest from your own mother tongue and he's asking the meaning, if it's genuinely something good like a compliment or something like "I love you" then you will catch this man with a shit eating grin.

ꕥ He used to be a gambler before entering the military and it eventually got him to stop, though he still has a thing for risk, he got himself a more deadlier alternative.

ꕥ Expect surprise back hugs, this man isn't called Horangi for nothing. He's stealthy, I like to think that whatever he says to you is well thought out as well. Man knows how to think before he speaks.

ꕥ Horangi likes to pounce on things, just for the fun of it. It leads him to tackle you on your shared bed a lot, lots of play fighting too.

ꕥ HAS THE PRETTIEST EYES EVER. Like seriously, the only people who knows what he looks like is you and König. Had gentle eyes, you know that quote "His eyes softened", yeah that's the definition of his eyes.

ꕥ Loves it when you trace the veins on his arms with your finger nails, will just straight up offer his arm to you.

Keegan P. Russ

ꕥ This man and his panty dropping voice like holy hell I have never heard a voice as deep as his without a vocal fry (from those try hard guys on TikTok who try to hard thinking their thirst traps are good).

ꕥ Calls you "kid" in an affectionate way? It's honestly just what he calls anyone younger than him, you're shorter? He'll emphasize on that shit. Elaborating on the nickname I said earlier, he uses it less when y'all are dating but still does on some occasions.

ꕥ Would say the most dirty and uncalled for things, whispering it in your ears. He's and asshole in the best way possible, loves it when you gasp and playfully slap his chest.

ꕥ He's sweet though, would see you as his wife even if you're not married. You're his now, the moment you entered his life, he basically had a death grip on you.

ꕥ Something tells me that he likes talking about you or to you through radios yk. His voice sounding even deeper through the device, calling you doll even though he's supposed to refer to you with your call sign.

ꕥ Praise kink? I mean you've more likely heard his voice lines, is the type of man to praise you and ruffle your hair, either that or he'll kiss you depending on what stage of your relationship you are both in.

ꕥ Constantly thinks his eyes are weird even though they aren't, he just has sleepy eyes. Speaking of sleeping, I feel like he has such a fucked up sleeping schedule and is used to pulling all nighters more than the normal person.

ꕥ Will drag you in bed though and lay his whole weight on top of you because you ain't going nowhere, you are staying there with him and only him.

Philip Graves

ꕥ (If it isn't "Fix It Felix", please tell me I'm not the only one who sees it AHAHAHA)

ꕥ Philip is touchy, somebody for the love of everything that is holy cuddle this man please. He is just screaming at any type of physical contact at this point. (My sources? Right fucking here)

ꕥ Is the type of boyfriend to come home to you and just hug you, y'all would be there for a solid 10 minutes before he lets you go. Burying his head into your neck and just inhaling your scent while having his arms wrapped tightly around you.

ꕥ His Shadows? More like his fucking children, again going back to the TikTok. He knows how to get their attention, the little pats on the shoulder and small praises are his way of saying they did a good job and they're eating it up.

ꕥ That being said, you are either gonna be their mother figure or someone they enjoy protecting because their dad is so fond of you. Why not be both right?

ꕥ You cannot tell me this man won't be next to the grill, spatula, tongs or whatever kitchen utensil in one hand and a cold bottle of beer in the other.

ꕥ Spends his weekends with you on his lap while he watches football in your guys' couch, you're definitely scrolling on your phone during this.

ꕥ You cannot tell me this man doesn't wear cowboy hats and boots because he certainly does, is it a turn on or a turn off? I genuinely do not know..

ꕥ Is fruity on some aspects but would never fucking admit it..

Makarov

ꕥ Y'ALL ACTUALLY THOUGHT I'D WRITE FOR THIS MAN? NAH THIS ACC IS WHOLESOME (OR ANGSTY) AND ION THINK THIS MAN IS SALVAGEABLE. (This came from a girl who once was obsessed with Tom Riddle for years when she was 13, I recovered from it dw)

ꕥ This man would literally use anyone and anything as leverage for whatever he wants to achieve. (Yes I am one of those "I can fix him" people but damn idk if this man is fixable)

ꕥ Please don't tell me you actually genuinely think this man would be good to you.. I knew what I was writing was unrealistic but damn y'all are delulu on another level (so am I, stay delulu). Jokes aside I love y'all and he's one of the few I won't write for. (AHEM Severus Snape (that greasy mop haired mf)

ꕥ And yes I understand most of my shit are kind of OOC but damn if I wrote him, it would be extremely fucking far from canon and I don't like romanticizing toxic relationships (if I ever do write it, it will be angst and I can't ever promise a happy ending).

ꕥ Happy April fool's! (I know I'm posting this end of September (it's actually October now 😭)

[mooechi]

I'm back from the dead with no quality at all creations!‼️😘

someone better take ALL my drawing apps away from me or else I'll be making a whole ass summoning ritual.

"why are you like thi--" please don't ask. I don't know why either 😔

I swear I'll be drawing something sane soon...I just needa do thingz to keep me from losing my remaining brain cells.

on a sidenote; no, I don't hate akari. I very much love her actually! so much so that I'm willing to kill her off at any given moment<3

the ocs were not randomised. they're just my cherished 6 cuz they were my first moots;

@muitsuri ily, no questions asked. (precisely the reason why her and riri has the same linear color LMAOOO) 💕

@axolotl321 I ENJOYED DRAWING UR OC. I love the simplicity 💕

@tokito-dulya20 ur oc. I. love. ur. oc. BUT I DONT THINK I GOT THE DESIGN RIGHT..IM SO SORRY 😭

@silliestsakura urs had me the most conflicted, to say the least..i BALLED when I realized that the sketch from ur oc's school au didn't have a colour palette. the jawdrop dawned on me when it was too late and there was no more backing down..

@kiyokatokito AUAGAHAGA I WASNT SURE WHAT THE CURRENT COLORING WAS SUPPOSED TO BE CUZ THE OFFICIAL DESIGN HADNT BEEN RELEASED YET FOR AS FAR AS IM AWARE BUT--i just went f it and based it off @tokito-dulya20's artwork..

@cloudymistedskies I love mari, but I am NEVER drawing clouds ever again..(that's an exaggeration ofc, just for u I will)

yes, I drew all of this... monstrosity.

oh, and the reference used? .. i’m pretty sure that joke is well known, isn’t it? that one grave pic w a bunch of shtheads—

whoever would steal this? it's goofy as hell 😭

[spliffymae]

shoulda, coulda, woulda, j. kirstein

synopsis: jean loved his job, he loved being a teacher. there was just something about his eighth grade class that brought him so much joy, he loved everything about his job, even then annoying, tedious tasks. he wouldn’t trade it for anything else. especially when one of his students’ mom is the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen.

⚠️ afab!reader, cheating, swearing, smut, cocky!jean, teacher!jean, jean gets possessive, reader is in a loveless relationship.

kio’s notes - if y’all only knew the struggle i been going through to get this fic back🤦🏽‍♀️ anyways— i have this hc of the aot characters in like a school setting, and this is what i came up with for jean’s. also please don’t take any of this seriously, i’m writing this for shits and giggles bc i really do believe jean would have the audacity. MINORS DNI !!! 18+

now playing

⊱ ──────── {.⋅ ✺ ⋅.}──────── ⊰

ok so how i picture jean as a teacher is the type of teacher that at first glance, is expected to be a strict and cold teacher. one that didn’t really goof around with his class and focused on the rules. he was stern at times, yeah, but if you sat in on a lesson with jean, you would see it’s actually the exact opposite.

for one, he was pretty chill. his students were comfortable to talk to him about anything that was bothering them. he even spoke to them about things that would happen to him, and even try to turn it into a life lesson.

“so this man cut me off today while driving here to see y’all. now i wanna know, do i let that little thing make me upset for the rest of the day, or do i take a breath, shake it off and make the best of a good mornin’?”

((( sidenote: i also imagine him having a bit of a southern accent? nothing crazy but like a like twang y’know? country boy turned teacher typa vibe.)))

another thing he would do is block out a time of the day—fifteen to twenty minutes (usually at the end of the day or during free period) to talk to his students about what’s currently going on, whether it be in their lives or in the world. he wasn’t on social media like that, so aside from world news, he was in the dark, especially about pop culture.

“mr. k! are you team selena or hailey?” one of his students asked, getting jean to furrow his brows.

“selena as in gomez? who’s hailey? and why are they beefing?” and for the next fifteen minutes, jean watches as a number of his students go up to the white board and draw him a diagram, explains the celebrity web of drama.

jean was also a fitness enthusiast. he loved to exercise and get his body moving. he also encouraged it in his class, even incorporating it into his history lessons. he would set up a circuit of educational exercises, where his students would not only learn new things, but even get a little bit of some cardio in. for example, at the end of each week for black history month, jean would have ahis class split into teams and take the photos of black icons from one side of the class, and run to the other side to stick them by a description.

jean even loved the annoying aspects of teaching elementary, like yard duty. he would normally be with the primary grades due to his ability to keep up with their energy, but when he would be with the juniors and intermediates he loved when they’d ask him to play a game.

“mr. k! we need one more for five on five!” one of his students would yell, and jean would jog over and join the team.

and if he was on duty with his friends? oh best believe they’re joining.

“serayah, honey,” jean waved over a sixth grader from his friend, mikasa’s class. “tell ms. ackerman that mr. k wants her to sub in for him.”

but what jean loved more than anything about his job was parent-teacher meetings. why? because he would get to see one of his favorite students, and his favorite parent. you and your son dante.

dante was one of jean’s most athletic students. he was on the school’s basketball and track team, as well as playing for a rep league outside of school. he took a liking to jean rather quickly, babbling on to you about how cool his teacher was.

when it came time to finally meet him at the school’s welcome back barbecue, you were shocked, for lack of better words. jean had to be the most handsome teacher you ever laid eyes on. he was muscular, lean, standing at six feet and two inches. he wore a dark denim jacket with a plain black tee shirt underneath, black cargo pants and a pair of black and yellow jordan retro 12s. he had a single silver chain and two small, silver hoop earrings. he smiled with a natural smirk, his eyes crinkling and creating a look you couldn’t help but fawn over. his freckled cheeks reddening with every compliment he got from parents passing by.

when his eyes landed on you, it seemed as though time stood still. you were mesmerizing to him. dressed in some jeans and a striped dress shirt, accessorized with dior slides and a black handbag. your hair was tied into a puff, small, coils accent pieces pulled out randomly for a ‘lazy effect’.

when you and dante walked up to him, he had a big, warm smile on his face. “mr. kirstein, correct?” ypu extended your hand, to which jean accepted. it was a soft, and now that you were closer to him he smelt the subtle hint of lilac waft off you. you gave him a bright smile, glossed lips pulled back to reveal bright whites that along with cheery eyes, had him swooning.

for the first five minutes of seeing you, jean was elated. but when his eyes glanced down to look at your interlocked hands, and he saw that silver wedding band glimmer in the light on your left ring finger, he felt a dark cloud over his head.

“it’s uh, pleasure to meet you mrs. smith.” jean cleared his throat and smiled, swallowing back the slight disappointment.

you shook your head, “please, call me (y/n), and the pleasure is mine. dante speaks so highly of you. i had to come see the magic for myself.” you laughed, the compliment getting him to look down as he felt his cheeks burn.

“well, dante is a good kid. love hearing his takes when we do history, and his heavy opinion on math.” jean looked over to dante with a teasing smirk, one that the young man rolled his eyes playfully at.

“there’s no reasons why paul needs 40 watermelons, mr. k! we’re going through inflation right now, he bein’ selfish!” your son exclaimed, his comment getting both you and jean to laugh.

before you could dive in further and ask questions regarding the class’ curriculum, a hand on your lower back interrupted you. “there ya are, was looking all over this dump for you.” your husband, erwin, kissed the side of your head as he stood next to you. he was dressed in a black suit, with a long brown coat over him. he must’ve come from work.

“oh you showed up, funny.” you said, trying to keep a playful tone as to not indicate to jean there was a problem. unbeknownst to you though, jean was more of a body language analyzer than tone, so although you sounded somewhat happy at your husbands appearance, he could tell by how you stiffened at his touch that you weren’t feeling it.

“don’t be like that.” erwin spoke to you in a quick, hushed tone before looking to his son, whose mood also seemed to drop at his dads presence. “dante, how’s it going?”

“good, dad. this is my teacher, mr.kirstein.” dante pointed to jean, who was still not over how your cheery mood seemed to evaporate the second your husband walked in.

the blond man turned to jean, eyes flicking up and down him before a smirk found its way on his lips, “this the one you don’t shut up about, huh? i’m erwin smith, attorney at maria rose law firm.” he extended his hand to jean and of course, he shook it with a smile, despite cursing the man internally.

it was at that barbecue jean learned the dynamic of your marriage, and got to see it play out over the course of the year. erwin, as best as he seemed to try, was very disconnected with dante. he had not a clue what the boy liked to do or how he was doing in school. jean gathered this from the way erwin would go on his phone when he would talk about dante’s in-class progress or how he would come with you to dante’s games and meets, but never really cheer for the boy. not like how jean would.

he would either be looking down at his phone for most of the game, or watch with the most uninterested look on his face. and when jean brought it to your attention, you would always shrug it off.

“he’s just not a big basketball fan, s’all.” you would reassure jean, but he could tell from the way you bit down on your bottom lip and eyebrows softened after speaking that you didn’t even buy into your own excuse.

but it was okay. erwin’s silent spectating made jean’s cheers all the more louder. you and him acting a fool on the bleachers whenever dante made a good play. so much so that dante stopped informing his dad and started telling jean about his upcoming games—even asking him to help him practice on a dunk at lunch recess. there was even one occasion you had to swing jean a text, asking him if he drive dante to practice because erwin got held up at work (even though he told you he’d take him).

but yeah. jean loved teaching. because through his job he met you and the two of you had grown incredibly close, bordering on good friends. it wasn’t the most ethical thing in the world, befriending a students mom, but jean knew coworkers who have done worse so he wasn’t phased.

you had noticed how much better dante’s energy had gotten since jean’s arrival. he looked forward to not only games but school now, and was even warming up more to his teammates and classmates. before he was very reserved, only speaking when spoken to. but jean brought something out of him. when he came, he would go stand by the players and help the teams coach. sometimes he’d even takeover. he would dub dante team leader, encouraging him to speak up more. after the first time jean coached the team, dante begged him to be his mentor.

“pleaseee mr. k! you really the only solid guy i got to look up to. you like what i like and you can ball. c’mon do it as a form of reparations! ” dante begged him one day after school, ambushing jean while he was trying to pack up his things and head home.

jean wanted to agree instantly, but knew he needed to speak to you about it. he didn’t want to overstep any boundaries, not with you or dante—especially you, seeing as how you were a married woman. he brought it up to you the next time he saw you, at dante’s next game, while you two sat on the bleachers as dante’s team warmed up.

“d said he wants me to be his mentor. wanted to ask you if it’s okay to accept. i wouldn’t wanna step on his father’s toes or anything of the sort.. he also told me to do it for reparations?”

on the outside, jean was expressing consideration and empathy. but on the inside, he was country steppin’ on erwin’s toes, letting an evil laugh out in his head at the thought of taking erwin’s place. not just in dante’s life, but yours too.

you let out a loud cackle at the last part, “no he didn’t! oh my gosh, i’m so sorry bout his blunt ass. but i doubt erwin would look up from his phone long enough to care, jean. it’s cool with me if you want to accept. d’s changed a lot since you’ve been around, it’s been nice to see.”

you were in awe at your son’s transformation, to say the least. it was the spring of the second term, and dante had improved so much in the last couple months. his writing, confidence, and athletic ability had improved, but so had his mindset. he never took school seriously, or even cared about his marks. erwin told you it was just his teenage phase and to let him be, but you couldn’t. and thankfully for you, jean couldn’t either. he was more hands on than erwin, who was too focused on clients to worry about you two.

but oh, erwin should’ve worried.



he should’ve started to worry when you started coming home later. you used to be home by seven to make dinner for him when he would come home, tired from judges and verdicts. but now you’d be home at nine or nine thirty, you and dante well-fed while erwin munches on dinner he bought or leftovers he threw together once he realized you weren’t coming home in time.

he should’ve been curious when you were getting calls from jean outside of the appropriate hours. erwin would catch you on the phone at ten at night or sometimes even midnight. he would question you, but you would say it was either an “urgent dante matter” or that you were on the phone with one of your girlfriends and urge him to leave you alone.

but what really should have raised your husband’s suspicions was when you would go out with jean without dante. if only he didn’t shrug off dante when he said you finished work and went with jean to meet up with other members of the team’s parents. if only he wondered why the parents would be getting together at nine o’clock on a wednesday night.

if he had, maybe you wouldn’t have been at a bar late at night, confiding in jean about your marriage as you throw your legs over his lap, pink crocs practically neon in the light.

if erwin had worried, you and jean wouldn’t be tipsy and dancing together, with him holding you close as you swayed your hips to the rhythm of the music, grinding against his hardening dick with his thumb in the loop of your jeans as he tapped the beat of the music against your hip.

if erwin had called you like he thought to, he would’ve pulled your attention from jean, who was whispering sweet words into your ear, going on about how beautiful you are, and how he’s been dying to take care of you. his hand held your own, his warmth making your body melt.

maybe if erwin had worried about the amount of time you were spending with jean, he could’ve prevented that night. and stopped you from beginning what would be the end of your sanctified marriage.

maybe you wouldn’t be a where you were right now, how many days later, lying on your side with jean behind you, laying waste to your plump lips with kisses and nips. he held you close to him, chest pressed against your back and arms around you. he was grinding himself against you, his tip hitting your clit.

“jean,” you whined, a breathless sigh leaving your lips after. he had already fucked you to five orgasms throughout the day—since eight in the morning, the time you arrived at his house (you had lied and said you were going to work). but he was looking to make it six—his lucky number. honestly, your body really shouldn’t endure anymore of jean, but he was fucking you too good for you to focus on soreness and/or tell him to stop.

he tapped his dick against your clit, the puffy nub tingling from the sensation. “fuck, baby put it in.” you whined. your hand slid down to try and push his head down to go in between your folds. “please, m’so ready.” you sniffled, feeling the familiar sting of tears in your eyes.

“my baby so needy, hm? what’s wrong? that shitty husband of yours ain’t fuckin’ right?” jean spoke next to your ear, his breath fanning over your cheek. he continued to glide himself up and down your folds, collecting your slick as lube and ignoring your whining and begging.

“not like you, jean—shit!” you were struggling to pull yourself together. you were overstimulated, you were exhausted, but your body craved him. it had been so long since you were worshipped like this, since your heart had felt so full from jean’s endearing words. not to mention phat ma was loving the attention.

jean chuckled, “you damn right, sweetheart. this right here is mine, understand? don’t wanna see no other man touching you, speaking to you—looking at you, even! i’ll fuckin’ kill ‘em.” he snarled.

he didn’t wait for a response from you. he just slowly pushed himself inside, listening to the breath that hitched in your throat. that really was all the response he needed. “jean…” you grabbed onto the sheets to release any form of tension. despite being full of jean all day, you were still not use to his motion. his size was one thing; he was tall with a curve at the head. he he was more on the thicker side, with light brown hairs trimmed neatly around his area. he was about the same size as erwin, but it was his strokes that hit you differently. they were far more powerful than your husbands. they were more determined, focused—not just on his own orgasm but yours as well.

jean smirked, “not like me, yeah. that asshole can’t begin to reach the places i can! m’gonna fuck some sense into you to leave that blond fuck.” he pressed his free hand against your stomach, squeezing on your waist. “gonna give my pretty girl the family she always wanted. me, you, d, and one of our own. how’s that’s sound, sweetheart?” jean kissed the back of your ear with his promise.

you were dying! here this man was, fucking you into an oblivion, loving your body in a way your husband hasn’t in so long. how were you supposed to say no? he was promising you what erwin no longer gave you, what he forgot he did on your wedding day.

it was wrong for you to be here with him. you were breaking every possible vow and eternal promise you made to erwin on the day of your wedding. but in the moment, you didn’t care. jean was fucking you too good to feel guilty for your infidelity. his dick was hitting a spot you had forgotten existed, wiping your memory of erwin and the past nights of passion you two shared.

“think of our baby, mama. how beautiful they’ll look with your eyes, your smile, your fuckin’ kindness—” jean was lolling at the thought. the idea of getting you swollen with his baby. pregnant you would be dependent on him for sure, needing him to ease your sore body or help you with your hormonal mood swings. he would be your go-to. he could see the future you two could have, it was right there. and by god was he going to attain it one way or another.

“please, make me a mommy, jean please. wanna be your kids’ mommy.” you begged him, and he could’ve cum alone at that. you looked back at him, lips poked out in a pout and eyes glossed over. there wasn’t a thought behind them, nothing in that pretty little head of yours except how he was making you feel.

yeahhhh, erwin should have been worried. when he saw you enter your shared bedroom at nearly midnight, walking straight to the bathroom with what appeared to be a faint limp, he shouldve gotten up to ask you what happened….but he couldn’t bring himself to.

he should’ve pushed jean for answers when he ran into him one day at home depot, and after threatening him over your guys’ overly friendly relationship, listened to jean respond with:

“you know what i tell my students about letters, mr. smith?…that sometimes they can be silent. like the word ‘rhythm’ for example—the first ‘h’ is silent. and i’m gonna tell you that the word ‘your’ has a silent y.”

erwin blinked, “what?”

jean nodded, a shit-eating grin on his face, “yup. at least in your case it does. so your wife, is our wife. that body you don’t value” jean rolled his neck in irritation, “is ultimately hers, but for the sake of this argument, is ours—well more so mine since i heard your ass isn’t hittin’ spots i can. so keep that in mind the next time you think about steppin’ to me, alright? you have a good night now, mr. smith.” he flashed erwin a wink before turning away, leaving the man stunned in the middle of the store.

perhaps it was now too late for erwin to worry.

[tacky-optic]

Had a question about who our favorite Zenigata partner is in a server I'm in and now I can't stop thinking about them. Tis the zaza sickness.

anyway here's literally all of the characters Zenigata's been partnered with that i could find (within reason). if anyone wants to elaborate on any of these guys (cough yata cough) please feel free to go absolutely ham. *(obligatory spoiler warning for a whole lotta lupin specials, waow-- notably zenigata keibu since that's probably the most unwatched of everything i cover. but if youre here im guessing youre as unfortunately well-versed as i am so LETS FRIGGIN GET INTO IT)

Starting off nice n' mellow. I'm pretty neutral on Yata, tbh. I just think he's neat and it's easy enough to write him and not much else. I've rambled about him being a stand-in for the viewer before, but overall i just don't have all that many thoughts on the guy (seriously someone please do yata). ironic considering he's hands-down the most prevalent sidekick to date, but alas. head remains empty.

MARIYA. Mariya my girlie oh how i love thee. finally, someone with a Gimmick on par with Mr. my-sword-can-cut-anything. Plus she's super sweet and smart and sharp and just an all-around endearing character. AND SHE'S DIFFERENT!! she's tagging along with Zenigata of her OWN FREE WILL like gurl what are you THINKING. there isn't a shred of coherent interview material to draw from this man, especially about Lupin. The dynamic they end up developing is on point, though!! Zenigata's initial total miscall of it aside, It's just plain ol' wholesome. If Yata's his surrogate son than Mariya's obviously his daughter. No shot in hell they don't at least keep in contact after the special's done. plus her snapping a pic of him every time he eats shit is peak comedy journalism

MOTHAFUCKIN' MELON COP!! an absolutely magical reefer-smokin' shitbag, especially in the edgy Tokyopop translation. He's a great foil to our otherwise serious(ly neurotic) manga Zenigata. Not to mention the combative potential with a down the line Melon.... ough. A more toned-down "newer part"-esque Zeni getting slapped with an extremely smug and insistent reminder of his angstlord past is such a delicious concept to me. i will be using this guy extensively in that exact way one of these days-- he's too fun not to.

a bit of a sidenote but i've gotta point fingers at gray jacket again (can't recommend it enough) for having my favorite melon depiction in fic; walther recently had him show up in their fic secondhand vanity as well (which i also can't recommend enough), so needless to say i think he has some fun potential.

Sakuraba and Kunikida from the live-action show get honorable mentions, obviously. They're both so different yet learn so much from Zenigata all the same. As far as reacting to the inspector goes, they're the ideal Yatas (again i am so so sorry yata-- surely someone will do you justice). Even though they aren't technically "new" to the force they're new to the Zenigata Shenanigans, and that is where the entertainment factor is. Sakuraba's the traditionalist keibu method-doubter whereas Kunikida's this mousey blue around the gills fella, and over their respective case file appearances, they both gain faith in/learn confidence from Zenigata, respectively. It really is a great bit of development to watch play out.

I'm gonna count The Guys™️ as a collective group/formless mass with maybe one of the Guyest of Guys as Zenigata's right hand Guy, like that one dude in Cagliostro. Apparently the name he's given in one of the dubs is Sam?? That's neat. Sam's neat. for anyone interested in some homework, here's the link to the highly informative lupin forum thread i found that out from: [x]

But yeah the Guys! Right from the start, Zenigata having this army of inexplicably and absurdly loyal cops was always a fun trope and i love to see 'em whenever they show up. I had this idea ages ago for this fake documentary-style miniseries based around them-- all the usual Lupin nonsense goes on in the background while we get a peek at the typically unseen shenanigans happening on the law-bearing side. Getting assigned to the lupin taskforce is probably seen as some kind of punishment, but that just makes the camaraderie all the more tight-knit. There'd be some behind-the-scenes Zenigata/how he interacts with them, what they get up to on their own whack case assignments when they're in a Lupin sighting lull.... hell maybe we even learn why they're all so damn loyal to this one supposedly hyper-independent guy. I think it'd be fun but maybe that's just the Zenigata hopeful in me. Surely he's capable of building some semblance of rapport with the fine group of folks he drags around the world with him....

Let's just rip the band-aid off-- I dislike Oscar with a burning passion. which is weird, right? because i like Melon Cop, the dude who's totally cool with straight-up cold-blooded judge/jury/executioner-style murder. I dunno dude the obsessive daddy kink simping's just too feckin' weird for me. i checked the hell out so fast. If the goal was to make Oscar extremely disquieting, they friggin' did it. Granted he was written to be a bit whack from the start, and getting raised(?)/mentored by THAT Zenigata would irreversibly mess anyone up. I get that the fucked up-ness is part of the appeal, but man. How anyone can gravitate towards Oscar without heavily modifying his whole deal escapes me.

I've seen him written tolerably in fic maybe... twice? He's in gray jacket (there it is again!) and SMRO (needs no introduction nor explanation), so obligatory kudos to anyone who can wrangle [gestures vaguely at all of that].

Vicky though. Vicky Flannigan from Island of Assassins is so goddamn funny. Still can't believe they took one of the most badass Zenigata character designs and actively went out of their way to make him bedridden. I've seen folks call him "Proto-Yata" and. Yeah. Can't argue. He's a glorified babysitter, if anything, and the only reason he's even remotely effective is because he (accidentally) broke both of Zenigata's legs. Funniest shit istg

ICPO LADIES!!! They're cute. Designs could be better but it's Babylon yknow. Despite being an admittedly fun romp, the special has its obvious.... uh. issues. product of its time and all that. iykyk. anyway LADIES. They're competent. They take No Shit from Zenigata. The random little crush that comes out of nowhere between Chinjao and Goemon is cute as hell. Plus, I've seen some pretty rockin' fandom redesigns floating around.... wouldn't mind in the slightest if they made a comeback.

I'm gonna lump all of the Betrayers into one category: Emily O'Brien from Angel Tactics, Kazami from Fuma Conspiracy, and Terry Crown from Alcatraz Connection. Never expected the "Zenigata's partner is the bad guy!!1" trope would be so prevalent, but it tracks in retrospect. It's a neat enough idea-- bummer they never seemed to nail it down, though.

The only reason O'Brien is so predictable is because she's so goddamn unlikable. There's hardly any screentime of them working together and in every single scene, the incompetency just feels so blatantly intentional its almost offensive lmao. Zero surprise in the slightest when she showed her true colors-- just mild annoyance, which tracks for the whole special tbh. Only worthwhile parts are the beginning and the end, and absolutely none of that has anything to to with O'Brien.

Kazami just has that chump secondary villain face y'know. Again, a bit on the nose how obnoxiously dorkish he is-- but them playing up him putting on his glasses so Fujiko can recognize him got a little laugh outta me, ngl. He served his purpose, plain and simple.

I'll never know whether Crown was predictable or not because I stumbled across ""Evil Columbo"" before I watched Alcatraz, but despite the spoiler I can at least say he isn't lame as shit. Pre-reveal, he's probably the closest we'll get to a taste of what Melon might be like in modern Lupin media. He's your run-of-the-mill corrupt sleazebag detective-- steals evidence, generally doesn't give a fuck, takes cheap jabs at Zenigata-- but their final standoff is what puts him above Kazami for me. Just a real melodramatic overdramatic moment of Zenigata Zenigata-ing his heart out.

Welcome to the ELDERLY MEN CATEGORY, OORAH. The old guy from Twilight Gemini, Kogoro Akechi from the pilot, and George McFly from First Contact. I could track down Gemini old guy's name, but I hand-to-god couldn't care less. The only worth a damn thing Gemini's given me is that one jigzeni screenshot, so we're just gonna move on to the next two.

Not much of Akechi, huh. He only shows up in the pilot and doesn't do anything of note besides be someone for Lupin to disguise himself as. Dare i say Goemon was a more effective ally to Zenigata than Akechi...? yeah sure, why not. Goemon's a zeni sidekick. i'll die on that hill. anyway I believe he's also a reference to a pre-existing character...? like Lupin, Goemon, and Zenigata are. All in all its probably for the best that he didn't make it to part 1.

Finally, the only old guy that actually has aspects to talk about. I actually really like McFly and the role he plays in First Contact; it isn't Zenigata learning from whoever his partner may be, but McFly learning from Zenigata. He's a jaded, on-the-verge-of-retirement type that thinks he's seen all the force has to offer, but here comes this young (is he considered "young" in this?? early, maybe) freak-ass foreigner cop with a vendetta he's practically frothing at the mouth to rectify. Neither of them are exactly enthused to be working together, but McFly sticks around anyway and learns to see past a lot of Zenigata's first impression baggage; the tenacity, the passion, the genuineness of it all. Not only does he want to make real change, but the crazy bastard can actually friggin' do it. ...Or at the very least make a sizable dent.

Zenigata sincerely adheres to the idea of what a cop's supposed to be, fundamentally, and not what a "cop" actually is, as a vague collective occupational concept. Zenigata has a genuine effect on McFly-- enough to make him just the slightest bit less soured by the end of it all. It's a nice sentiment; that no matter where you are in life, ideas can still change. It's a small arc that flies beneath the radar of everything else, but i noticed it. I FRIGGIN' NOTICED IT, MAN

tl;dr Zenigata's a lonely guy, sure, but he doesn't have to be.

That should cover all of the significant parts/specials/movies, but if i missed anyone (any notable episodes? manga?) lemme know. Either way, it's nice finally having 'em all in one place.

[quohotos]

I present to you, my Magnum Opus. The Underland Chronicles rendered in the style of an early 2000s flash based point and click adventure game (the MNOG)

I have spent so long on this. Inkscape doesn't log total project time the way Krita does, but it's the most time I've spent on any single piece of vector art. Even then there's still a million things I want to go in and change but... aaaaaa you have to cut it off somewhere. I have been copy pasting rats for hours, and don't even get me started on the shadows. The shadows look good, they are not physically accurate. I tried.

Here are some bonus features!

No text overlay. Clean if you want to print it or make it a desktop background.

Close up on Solovet and Ajax I've never actually drawn Solovet, or any underlanders really. I definitely am phoning it in by framing her from behind. When it came to designing what kind of armor they'd wear I took inspiration from both Greek and Roman designs. Ajax was originally much more saturated red until @paksenarrion-dorthansdotter corrected me. The books describe him as dried blood colored. (please don't look too close at the rats they don't hold up to scrutiny)

Close up on Ripred. He looks just a little bit small and fat in this one, but that's just because he's slouching. When he stands up it all stays in his hips and ass. I always draw Ripred like he appeared on my cover of Code of Claw. The scar on his face isn't really visible from this angle because it cuts left to right and he's looking left.

Lastly, here's Gregor and Ares. There is an official design for his armor as seen on the cover of my copy of Code of Claw. I redesigned it because I thought that version looked kinda pants, tbh. Little goofy and hard to take seriously.

The great thing about vector art is you can zoom in and obsess over tiny little details that end up only being like 4 pixels wide in the final export. Case in point, these rando flyers. Such minute detail that gets flattened out to a single pixel in some cases.

Sidenote: I always imagined the flyers as more microbat inspired, which is why I draw them with tails... but these ones end up looking very flying fox-like and have also some megabat proportions. This isn't really an intentional artistic choice, it's just a compromise I had to strike to make them look decent. I need to practice drawing microbats more.

Oh well. The author isn't that descriptive about their proportions so I guess it's up to interpretation.

Lastly, here's the original sketch that I traced over. A lot of features ultimately got cut, as well as the dimensions to the side being changed. Solovet originally was going to have a braid but then I remembered that line from the first book where Luxa explains that you have to cut your hair to go to war. Ripred also looked a lot more teddy bear like in the sketch, so I ended up not even tracing him. Bane was a redraw, and I actually did trace part of Ajax and then just frehanded the rest.

If anyone is reading this far and hasn't read the underland Chronicles, now is a great time to go to your local library and pick it up. These books slap and this tiny community would love to suffer our brainrot welcome you into our fold.

Fly You High

[thevioletscout]

An overly long analysis on who got turned into ink creatures and who’s just a copy

So like many people I have conflicting feelings about the reveal in Dark Revival that some people in the studio are just recreations of their real world counterparts and are not the actual people. I think it’s safe to say a lot of it reeks of retconning to avoid the implications of all these people going missing and being trapped in the cycle indefinitely. And a weird attempt to redeem Joey.

However, there is still a ton of evidence that some of the people we encounter in the studio are in fact the real deal. Mainly because of the damn books. So let’s go over who’s real and who’s not!

1. Twisted Alice

Thank god for clear fucking storytelling. Without a doubt, Twisted Alice is the real Susie Campbell. 

Don’t believe me? Let’s go over the evidence. Thankfully, it’s actually in the game itself, in one audiolog;

"I know how much this part means to ya, Susie. Alice means a lot to me too. Gosh, all of my characters do! In fact, I'll let you in on a little secret. I too really believe my characters are more than just drawings. They're alive. They're part of us. And I want people to know them as well as I do. I want people to be able to shake their hands, spend an afternoon with 'em. Love them. Susie, I'll be straight with you. I'm putting together a small project... a little ceremony if you will. If it works, a lot of dreams will come true. And I want you to be a part of it. ...I want you to bring Alice to life once again. What do ya say?"

And if you still don’t believe me, let’s refer to another one of Joey Drew’s audio logs from the same chapter;

"Listen Tommy, I know you boys over at Gent are doing your best, but I'm paying for living attractions, not weird abominations! Whatever that grinning thing was I saw wandering around your office, you better keep it locked up tight! I realize it was a first attempt but imagine if the press caught sight of it! Might scare off investors! And in response to your previous memo: If you claim that your failures are because these things are soulless, then, damn it, we'll get them a soul! After all, I own thousands of them!"

With both of these audio logs in mind, what else could Joey have been planning but to literally make Susie into Alice Angel? For the cherry on top, Alice also recalls many of Susie’s memories throughout Chapter 3 and even directly refers to herself as Susie.

I also want us to keep these audio logs in mind because these confirm that Joey had to have taken human souls from his employees, even if its not as many as we thought.

2. Tom and Allison Angel

Yes, I’m putting these two together. Their characters are pretty closely tied so if one’s real it’s likely the other is. And unfortunately, that is not the case.

Both Tom and Allison are copies.

This is actually something that can be deduced from the first game. In Joey’s house, we get a corkboard of basically three confirmed survivors. Wally Franks, Thomas Connor, and Allison Connor née Pendle. They all politely rejected Joey’s attempts to “reconnect.” This, sidenote, is also partially why I can’t be too mad at the reveal that some people in the studio aren’t the real deal. It was already set up as a real possibility.

On top of that, the memory of Joey in Dark Revival outright confirms that Allison Angel is just based off the real Allison, and not actually her.

So as disappointing as it may be, these two are fakes.

3. Buddy Boris

If you’re only familiar with the games, you might be surprised by this, but real. 

In the book, Dreams Come to Life, we are introduced to the character Daniel “Buddy” Lewik. Now spoilers for the book, but he becomes the perfect Boris. This is outright confirmed. We see it happen, and Buddy tells us outright this is the case. 

“Now I'm not really Buddy anymore. I am also Boris. Descending deeper into this world of ageing, yellowing madness.”

Case closed.

This book is also some of the most explicit confirmation that at least some of the studio employees entered the Cycle.

4. Sammy Lawrence

REAL. I will not hear anything else!

Alright, let’s revisit Dreams Come to Life, because aside from providing the origin story for our favorite Boris it also clearly illustrates the transformation of Sammy from stressed music director to unhinged prophet.

In the book, an ink pipe bursts and Sammy gets covered in the gunk. Buddy helps him clean up, however some had already gotten into Sammy’s mouth, and he got addicted to it. From there, Sammy’s behavior gets increasingly strange, and he begins drinking the ink whenever he can. Most tellingly, he begins to worship the Ink Demon. He then disappears, in actuality hiding.

Skipping ahead a bit, Buddy is captured alongside another character named Richie. Enter Sammy, now completely transformed into his Lost One-esque appearance. A visual confirmation that Sammy Lawrence became the prophet.

After this point, things get a bit blurry. Sammy is knocked out when Dot comes to rescue Buddy. However, he is not confirmed as dead- at least for good, and in all likelihood survived and entered the Cycle.

5. The Projectionist

Like Sammy and Buddy, Norman’s fate is mostly confirmed via Dreams Come to Life. Thankfully for my time and sanity, his confirmation is a bit simpler.

Norman’s fate is quite abrupt. By the time Buddy and Dot last see him, he’s already dead. Admittedly, my understanding gets fuzzy from here. Joey confirms that his soul was meant to be used, but that he was infected by the ink so there’s very little soul left to use.

I’m not entirely sure what that’s trying to tell us, but I think it is trying to say that Norman did become the Projectionist. Mainly because Joey says there’s little soul left, not that the soul is unusable. It would also leave a pretty loose thread for the Projectionist’s existence if he is not Norman.

On top of this, the achievement you get if you kill the Projectionist in chapter 3 is “Norman’s Fate.” A pretty strong indicator that the Projectionist is actually Norman.

6. Jack Fain

Jack’s status is actually a little hard to determine. There’s nothing that outright confirms he entered the Cycle and nothing that outright confirms he didn’t.

Personally, I think it would not only be a little random for Joey to make a fake Jack Fain, but a fake Jack Fain that’s a searcher of all things. As such, I’m going to conclude that this is the real Jack Fain, for now.

7. Bertrum Piedmont

Again, there’s little confirming either way, but there is a little more detail to suggest that this is the real Bertrum, so I think I’m also going to go with “real Bertrum until proven otherwise.”

8. Henry Stein

This one hurts, but... Fake. I believe at one point in development, this was the real Henry, but unfortunately Dark Revival pretty explicitly confirms that this Henry is just a copy, and there isn’t enough evidence to pull from the first game that proves that’s a lie beyond nitpicking about throwaway lines.

9. Honorable Mentions

We also have two other characters with undetermined fates. Grant Cohen and Lacie Benton. We know they are dead, but have yet to come across a confirmed encounter with them in the studio. There are also numerous characters in the Dark Revival with little confirmation either way.

Conclusion

So to wrap up.

Real: Twisted Alice, Buddy Boris, Sammy Lawrence, and The Projectionist Fake: Allison Angel, Tom, and Henry Technically Unknown but Presumed Real: Bertrum Piedmont and Jack Fain

In conclusion, these games give me a headache. Bye.

[thebeedleboat]

This isn't how you multiclass AU

Concepts for the Ashton side of the Shard Fusion AU.

(Top left is Chetney, bottom left is Laudna, top right is Imogen and bottom right is Orym)

Overview of each fusion below the cut:

Firstly, this is an AU where the elemental shards give Ashton and Fearne the ability to fuse with other characters, like the gems in Steven Universe. You don't need to know anything about Steven Universe, other than that.

I leant more towards what I thought would be cool and what the characters seem to prefer, so a fusion having more limbs/eyes doesn't have to reflect how close the individual characters are. ALSO this isn't a commentary on ships, I just wanted to mash my favourite guys together to make a bigger guy and Bells Hells have already been absorbing powers, mindmelding etc... I think they would use fusion if they could. (the elemental shards just make it a little bit more believable in-universe)

Ashton + Chetney: Jet (because wood) Chaos bonus - Time

This is a pretty unstable pair, and between Ashton's rage and Chetney's werewolf bloodlust I think they are likely to feed into each other's violence. Amazing in a fight though. I didn't put much detail into the weapons here but I was going for a red pickaxe/scythe type weapon as that was what Chet and Ashton were sharing from Eshteross.

Characterwise, Jet is bolshy and in-your-face and kind of a jerk. Definitely takes the loudest parts of Chetney and Ashton. I also think Jet would have loads of tattoos, but I only thought of that writing this now, which is why they aren't in the drawing.

Ashton + Laudna: Unnamed? Chaos bonus - Potential

Laudna and Ashton have a lot in common but I think between Delilah's presence and Ashton's appreciation of Laudna's darker aspects (loving her form of dread etc) I think they would be way more creature than person. They also only form under extreme circumstances.

(sidenote, I think Fearne and Ashton can bring someone back to consciousness with fusion, like in SU)

They're both so protective, no matter how much it damages themselves. They've got guard dog energy. As much as I considered a sickly, victorian porcelain doll-punk fusion, I couldn't resist a bone-spider-ankylosaurus.

Ashton + Imogen: Fulgurite (lightning glass) Chaos bonus - Gravity

Fulgurite is the most stable, person-like fusion here partly because Ashton and Imogen have so much in common. I'm not sure how clear it is but the body is supposed to be translucent glass and the hair is supposed to be have fibre-optic/anemone vibes. This was also the fusion I started with when I first thought of this AU.

Fulgurite leans hard into the superhero look, flies around effortlessly, gravitates enemies off their feet before electrocuting them. They are also about 95% abandonment issues. They aren't a permanent being! They're only here for a short while but they need to know that you loved them while they were alive, as them, and not just because they're a composite of people you care about.

(obviously a lot of bells hells have a background with abandonment but Imogen and Ashton together... it's a big deal to them in the present which means it's a big deal to their fused state)

Ashton + Orym: Unnamed? (Marble statue) Chaos bonus: Space

I've tried to fit the chaos bonuses to how I think these fusions would fight (speed for Chetney, dreadful misfortune for Laudna's bane/silvery barbs, gravity for Imogen's flight and alien connections) so while Orym could be speed (and this fusion is fast) I thought portals and wormholes would be more fun for a four-armed, two-faced warrior.

Naturally they have eyes on the back of their head, because of Orym's perception. I see this fusion as serious, focused and stubborn to a fault; but a real team player. (Also going for a guardian statue sort of a thing, as Orym and Ashton are the tanks)

-

I'm planning on doing these for Fearne's side, and maybe elaborate on how the personality aspects of the pairs show through their fusions. I'm not brilliant at analysis but I've read some excellent meta that has shaped how I think BH's character dynamics would impact this AU.

If you have any thoughts I would love to hear them!

[unsat-and-strange]

oh yeah hey btw car doodles because the creations and consequences au is living in my brain

kinda id? more explanation of thoughts, let me know if y'all want a real image id

fae lyf fae lyf fae lyf I have decided they have wings and their wings were stained black from soot for years after the war (its only after a few years at the castle Tim and Bertie realize oh their wings arent black anymore wait do fae wings change colors oh wait it's because of all the fire and smoke and stuff oh shit)

Marius climbing in the window :) my silly, I love him

head chef and chief interrogator raphaella la cognizi looking absolutely menacing (is she about to cut some tomatoes or some tendons? it's up to you!) (sidenote what if before she came to the castle she was trying to dissect some corpses for better understanding of anatomy so that y'know medical understanding could be better but people weren't fans of her um desecrating the dead so she had to dip out)

I had the idea of kettle ashes being able to express themself via a genie type steam projection? idk thought it would be fun and also easier for any artists out there

fae carmilla fae carmilla fae carmilla I just think she's neat and I think it's funny if she's somehow connected to like everyone's backstory just a tiny bit

carmilla and nastya, I think they must have been pretty close. carmilla didn't want nastya to take the blame for the curse, but nastya knew jonny needed a stable relationship with carmilla more than one with her (as much as either situation sucked)

ivy design? my thoughts are either an advisor or the castle librarian, her little crown thing is enchanted to enhance her memory

lyf and ashes judging you (pre and post curse versions). you cannot tell me they didn't have gossip sessions about everyone in the castle. they absolutely did.

@rocksanddeadflowers @blazeismyname I'm begging y'all to keep coming up with ideas for me to draw because this is the least art block I've had in so so long and I adore this au

[carlosoliveiras-wife]

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ .ೃ࿐ ┈┈┈┈ : . . . . : ─ hola, qué pasa. i’m chloë [she/her], biromantic[?]/ace-spectrum hispanic [white/mex] ladee who enjoys masc titles. here’s my main selfship carrd [still in progress]. here’s my general f/o list. here's my fandom ref drive. please like this post once read!

the guys shown above are My Darlin's, my main F/Os that I have super bad brainrot about and who are just part of my main squad but with a fancier label. rubs eyes. in order, they are...

Carlos Oliveira; Resident Evil 3 [Remake]

Pavia; Reverse: 1999

Miguel O'Hara; Specifically ATSV's Version*

Charles Smith; Red Dead Redemption 2

Lúcio Correia dos Santos; Overwatch

Lee; Arknights

Rei Sakuma; Ensemble Stars!!

the asterisk is that i largely use comic lore in reference to Miguel. in case that needed to be said. i just needed to put that out there i guess??

my terms on sharing are that i'm not comfy, and if you're too lazy(/nm) to read below, the gist is dni if we share, and if you reblog from someone who shares my f/os of any status, i'll just softblock for my mental health because i. am a bitch when it comes to sharing. sorry.

in the same sense: if you share any of my friends' f/os, i either will block or not follow just for their sakes and i have a personal bias when it comes to my friends' stuff. if that makes sense. probably not. here's the link to the list, which can be updated at any time.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ .ೃ࿐ ┈┈┈┈ : . . . . : ─ i’m specifically writing my new pinned to sound like i lack enthusiasm, because, y’know, i kinda feel that way a lot. don’t be intimidated, i don’t bite unless you give me a permit to do so, otherwise i’ll just stare at you from across the room. i’m not new to selfshipping in the slightest, and i’ve been doing this shit since i was a kid. i heavily love fictional characters and i see them as my bitches who should bow down to me. that’s a joke. i’m bowing down to them. sidenote: i put the question mark by biromantic because i have no idea if i’m aroace or not. sigh.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ .ೃ࿐ ┈┈┈┈ : . . . . : ─ i like a lot of things outside of fictional characters who make me wanna eat grass. i love to draw, i love to write, i love to design, i’d fucking love to not have seasonal allergies. i also really fucking love animals, however, don’t rely on me for knowledge because i obviously don’t know everything about anything. my faves are orcas and foxes! my favorite foods are salmon nigiri, tamales, and conchas. awkward thumbs up emoji.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ .ೃ࿐ ┈┈┈┈ : . . . . : ─ my dni and other stuff can be found on my main/introductory carrd. fandom-wise, you can find my info and trivia and all your need-to-knows on my ascendaries carrd.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ .ೃ࿐ ┈┈┈┈ : . . . . : ─ yes, i’m aware i have a rain theme going on. personal ties and i love the weather. shrug emoji.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ .ೃ࿐ ┈┈┈┈ : . . . . : ─ yes, i'm aware a lot of my selfships have repetitive themes and tropes. those themes and tropes are very comforting and also largely stem from personal things which is why i indulge them. tldr: if you hate childhood friends to lovers, hooh, you're gonna hate me.

little tidbits about me, i suppose. a good chunk of these are taken from my old pinned.

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ i quite literally use myself in all selfships, and prefer each fandom variation to not be called a "self insert". it's legit just me befitted for a fandom (usually a f/o, ie, if a f/o is an eldritch horror then fuck it i am too) 😔 ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ i have a lot of interests and tend to show an interest in a lot of things at once— while i may not know everything about a media, i do immediately go searching for character analyses as well as consume media as much as i can. i do have an attention problem which involves finding it hard to sit down and binge. but i will read the info as much as i can, i do tend to like reading more than watching/playing. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ again, as previously stated, i am a hispanic selfshipper. however, i look whiter than one would assume, and kinda act it as well. while meals and pronunciations are a big deal to me[minus the joking mispronunciations which earn me 'oh she's white' stares; listen it's kinda funny], i'm not fluent in spanish [i know a few phrases…] nor do i have many experiences many others may have. i admire a lot of the traditions, however i did not grow up with them. i’d love to meet other hispanic selfshippers though, y’all are cool and i’m giving you all a little kiss. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ yeah, it's actually spelled “Chloë”, in case you had to know. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ i love to indulge my friends and mutuals as best as i can! my inbox is always open for rambles and such, so don't be afraid to talk to me. i also don't mind infodumps on any of my faves because you'd more than likely help me understand them more anyways, which is always welcome. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ i do love to portray myself as the more affectionate one in any of my selfships— while everyone loves affectionate male/female f/o stuff, i like giving out more love and flustering my dumbasses. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ unfortunately, i am a lady who is very not okay with sharing. if that bothers you, just please do not interact. i know non-sharing selfshippers seem silly and childish, but it's just how i am. similarly, i do not care to interact with anyone who selfships with faves on the friend DNI list, meaning that i prefer their selfships above all else. i know that ain’t gonna stop anyone, but oh well. that list doesn’t apply to anyone following before that list was updated, so! yeah. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ i'm uncomfortable with nsfw and if you are a nsfw account, please do interact on a different account. while i do have nsfw humor, indulging in actual nsfw makes me uncomfy, so please keep that in mind. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ don't be scared of interacting with me. i'm not gonna leap out of the water and bite your hand off. as long as we don't share f/os, i don't mind interacting. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ i don't mind being tagged in things. i find it quite fun, actually! and i feel honored! hehehe ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

- ͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ fandom blogs PLEASE dni. there's nothing wrong with you guys...some of y'all, i mean. i'm just. i'd strongly prefer not to have fandom blogs follow me. likewise: ccxcc shippers for my f/os. sorry i'm still a person who's uncomfy w/sharing ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

͙۪۪̥˚┊❛ edited last: 12/6/2023 — while this blog is by all means "private" (read: i have the settings that doesn't allow this blog to be searched up or something else), i don't think i'm too bothered by reblogs or stuff about my personal selfship content anymore. i had this rule in place initially so that way i did not burn a hole in my brain from too much attention, however, i will do my best in taking things easier so that way i don't hit that mark of burnout again, or at least, as fast. ❜┊˚ ͙۪۪̥◌

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DNI

you fit basic DNI criteria, this includes being a zionist. i dont wanna see any proshippers or racists or pedos or lgbtphobes or islamophobes or anyone else who fits this bs criteria

if you share my f/os, this is just more of a comfort thing. im less likely to follow if you reblog from someone who does share my f/os just for my own comfort

if you associate with @/tealilii or @/glazelilii or whatever other handles she has. she's caused trauma for me and another friend of mine, and might still be doing harmful shit to my other friend.

you associate with @/lolthia. you can find posts on why you shouldnt associate with them.

javier escuella slanderers. i will throw you like a fucking dodgeball

people who like dark content, including but not limited to: yanderes, DD: DNE, noncon or dubcon, incest including stepcest, the glorification of abuse

see someone wearing certain things in fashion and immediately ask if theyre into nsfw things or why they're wearing "fetish gear". its weird, dont do that, esp not to me.

there's probably more but. hm. i'll update eventually

i don't know what else to add. glances to the side. so uh. yeahh. hi there guys...??

dividers are by @/cafekitsune!!

[astheswarmitcalls]

PART 4: THE BUSINESSWOMAN

This is the final part of my 4-part analysis of MCR5, the Masterpost for which can be found here. Link to previous part found at the bottom of the post. If there's something I missed, or you'd like to add your own spin/elaborate on something I brushed over, by all means I'd love to hear it!!

We fucking made it. This is my magnum opus. The apotheosis of my life’s work. This is what it is, what it’s all about. This is MCR5.

I alluded to the character of the Businesswoman a good 11,000 words ago during my deep dive of The Foundations of Decay. ‘She will always be the whore.’ Yeah, that’s her. I also omitted her when talking about FEMCR because I wanted to do it here. She is the only character to appear more than once on tour, aside from Cheerard. The latter appeared in two US shows, Nashville and LA, but the Businesswoman appears in 8 shows total across three countries. We also know it’s the same character apropos of Marina Toybina’s Instagram post, and her appearance evolves throughout. Strap yourselves in, we’re in for a ride.

AUCKLAND: FIX FAX FUCK YOU “But it’s not the end. It never ends. Because WAR never ends. Because war never ends. WAR!!!”

The first appearance of our lovely lady. As opposed to Cheerard and our Nurse, she’s a lot less cheery, which is what leads me to believe her story isn’t particularly sparkly or sweet. She screams a lot. The blazer and mid-thigh skirt are this nice grey, and due to the specific cut of the blazer, I believe this specific ensemble is utilised for this performance only. I believe the black tie stays consistent throughout the rest of her appearances. She has black heeled boots and black stockings.

I’ve seen a lot of people speculate that the ‘Vampire Mansion’ is where MCR5 is going to take place, and all these character Gerard is portraying on tour are residents of the mansion. With how little we know about MCR5, it’s possible, but I don’t believe this narrative to be as likely. It’d be so much fun, don’t get me wrong, but the fabric of each concept album has intrinsic ties to the psychology of the band at that point in time. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge is a love letter to horror flicks, but also deals heavily with grief and loss since Gerard and Mikey had just lost their grandmother. The Black Parade is about death and moving on but has those personal undertones in the lyrics about addiction and mental illness that are pulled directly from the band’s experiences. Mikey Way talked about how the band’s stay in the Paramour Estate had exacerbated the issues he was facing, and that Gerard was looking into having him committed.

Two weeks after Mikey left, Ray and Gerard wrote Famous Last Words which of course fits into the storyline of The Black Parade, but also is a direct response to Mikey’s departure and the emotions Gerard was feeling at the time. This pattern of the albums pulling from the band’s experiences at that moment in time is a reason why I don’t think the Vampire Mansion MCR5 Theory is so credible.

Back to the Businesswoman. We know Gerard’s stance on war from the numerous on-stage rambles they have across the tour. The backdrop of the tour is quite literally a warzone, and there’s references to war and 9/11 in the lyrics of The Foundations of Decay. They spoke out about the war in Ukraine (the band was supposed to play a show there, but it was cancelled), and war is this tragic, persistent thing that never seems to end. 2022 and 2023 have been rife with it.

This character is surrounded by war, by terrorism and bloodshed. She’s bitter and angry, and she has every right to be. ‘Fix fax fuck you’ has this sharp tone to it that introduces this character incredibly well. We already have a gauge of this person, and her setting. The next outfits build upon that.

BRISBANE NIGHT 1: EVERYTHING UNDER CONTROL “I will not wear a hat in this outfit! And so we move on, we move on, we move on to war! You know what’s in store? More fucking war!”

(Sidenote: The drawings on the speakers from Mikey’s kids are so endearing.)

The Businesswoman outfit appears a little more conservative here, but it’s our same favourite gal. She’s got sheer black stockings and heels with straps. Her skirt’s just below the knee tonight. She loses the jacket fairly early on in this show, as well as her tie; most photos are of the 1st photo where the outfit is stripped down significantly. I’ve found it incredibly difficult to find decent quality pictures of this show with the full outfit, I think Gerard just Does Not Enjoy Australian weather.

I’ve heard some claims that ‘Everything Under Control’ was what came over the speakers at the World Trade Centre during 9/11, but I can’t find a source for this. At this point, there may be a little bit of plausibility with the Businesswoman Theory. Similar outfits two nights in a row? That’s new but maybe they’ve got a limited wardrobe. They are halfway across the world anyways. ‘Everything Under Control’ seems a little vague, you could tie to just about anything, if it isn’t a reference to 9/11.

Would also to mention here, Gerard Way arrived in New Zealand with a Gucci shopping bag. I’ve done my research and can’t pinpoint exactly what part of the Businesswoman outfit he may have shopped for, but my guess is the sunglasses, shoes or coat. She’s a luxury girl. She doesn’t deserve any less. (EDIT: I found it, but I’m going to leave this here as I add more.)

BRISBANE NIGHT 2: HERE COMES THE AIRPLANE “I have two kinds of perfume on this tour; one smells very calming, like the last day of summer, the other smells like a hospital. It gives me anxiety. Do you know which one I’m wearin’ tonight?”

If you had any inhibitions about the 9/11 ties to the Businesswoman, this should do it. ‘Here comes the airplane’ implies she’s some sort of accountant or secretary working at the World Trade Centre when the attacks occur. A 9/11 narrative for MCR5 would be macabre no doubt, but no more than the content of the preexisting albums. Skylines and Turnstiles was written in direct response to the attacks, and the band itself was formed in the wake of the events. I don’t think it’s coincidence either that they played that song at this show.

MCR5 as the 9/11 album would be this beautiful dichotomy of old and new; building on the birth of the band itself but speaking to the rebirth and healing that is so integral to the psychology of their return. The Foundations of Decay is all about moving on from your past, and that’s exactly what this band is doing.

The blazer is darker than the one at the previous two, and the skirt is shorter again. They added a grey trench coat and these elbow-length black leather gloves that are remarkably cunty. I can’t tell if these are the same sunglasses to the Auckland show, or if they just have a few pairs and recycle them through the tour. Ms. Businesswoman has a briefcase, likely the same one as the night before, and I can’t find a good picture of it so please just take my word for it. She’s wearing the same shoes as the previous night.

I actually solved the Gerard Gucci Mystery 8 hours ago (I’ve been working on this for about 10 now). The skirt he wears at this show is shorter than the rest and tweed. I found a Gucci skirt that’s $1975AUD and looks incredibly similar if not exact. If it isn’t this skirt, then it might be the perfume. If it’s not the perfume I’m totally lost.

Fun Fact: This was the show my barber was at. Amy you are so fucking cool.

MELBOURNE NIGHT 1: TERROR “See you in church! I’ll see you in hell! Punish! Punish!... Gorgeous! Gorgeous fucking violence!”

The order of the Australian shows stumped me for a few minutes. Auckland to Brisbane is all fine and dandy, but then they jump down to Melbourne and back up to Sydney instead of travelling down the east coast. Maybe Sydney just has a nicer international airport.

At first glace I thought this was the same blazer/skirt combo as the Auckland show, but the pockets are different. It’s also not dark enough to be the suit from Brisbane2. This is incredibly pedantic, but the Brisbane1 skirt goes past the knees, and this cut sits just above; being able to differentiate the skirt lengths is vital because otherwise it’s fairly difficult to tell what show each photo is from. The shoes are the same pair from the Brisbane shows, and the gloves make yet another appearance. The trench coat also makes a return, and tonight she’s wielding a black umbrella with a dog head on the handle. I’m not looking into it too much. She’s a dog person.

The ‘Terror’ written on the drumhead could refer to the feelings of many at the time of the September 11th attacks. Our Businesswoman character is amid the action, she’s terrified. Also terror as a root word for terrorism, which coincides with war. My immediate thought was ‘Tower of Terror,’ which is a Disney park attraction, but also,,, tower,,,, twin towers.

MELBOURNE NIGHT 2: BARK BARK BARK

This is the first time in 4 shows Gerard has worn a normal outfit, and the last night of him wearing this. As for the drumhead message, we have a few references to dogs, like Gerard howling before House of Wolves at Firefly Festival, but it’s not something to read into. That’s sort of hilarious thing for me to say, considering I wrote about 400 words on the colour green, but I digress.

SYDNEY NIGHT 1: UNKILLABLE

She’s back! She’s bloody! She’s never looked better!

Based on the style and skirt length, I’m confident this is the same outfit as the Melbourne outfit, now with the boots from the Auckland show and no stockings. Most photos of this show will have her with her jacket still on. Our favourite professional woman in back, now with a pretty nasty head wound. Her preceding appearances as Very Much Alive and the incriminating drumhead messages imply that she has perished in the 9/11 attacks. ‘Unkillable’ could reference how this character is a survivor, her inability to die and her curse to continue to walk the earth even after her death. I did make mention of zombies earlier, and how they could be a metaphor for MCR5’s themes of rebirth. As we’ll see, Ms. Businesswoman refuses to be laid to rest. More likely, it’s a reference to Frank Iero’s accident in Sydney that nearly took his life. Copy and paste everything I just said about My Chem weaving their own experiences into the narrative of the concept albums.

SYDNEY NIGHT 2: UNKILLABLES

Our girl is still dead!

This looks to be the same as the Brisbane1 outfit, now with the Auckland boots. She’s bloodied up, and now she’s got these gnarly whiteout contacts that make her look Extra Dead. Like the Brisbane1 show, she loses the jacket at some point, and I think the blood gets sweated off in some of the photos.

Not much to add about the drumhead, could be in reference to the full band; they’ve overcome quite a lot and continue to make art alongside their rocky pasts.

TOKYO: GEMINI

Our girl is extra bloody tonight!

This looks to be the same as the Melbourne outfit with the same heels. Gerard took them off at some point in the show and was walking around barefoot. I learnt this trying to find pictures of this show; just too many with his dogs out. They have both the briefcase and the black umbrella. We have an exponential increase in blood, and a return of the whiteout contacts.

As for ‘Gemini’ it appears fairly left-field because astrology historically hasn’t been a motif within MCR. None of the members are Geminis (I checked, unfortunately), but do you know what the symbol for Gemini is? That’s right. The twins.

My line of thinking is so skewed, genuinely. Maybe Ms. Businesswoman is an astrology girlie.

OSAKA: ENDLESS NIGHT

Exact same outfit as Tokyo, but the blazer comes off, and there’s a little less blood. I’m going to make a flowchart because I’m having the hardest time trying to place all of these photos.

‘Endless Night’ is a lyric from Vampires Will Never Hurt You, which Gerard has cited as their favourite vocal performance they've ever done.

Before I start the spiel, here’s the flowchart:

I see a few potential storylines for MCR5 that centre around the Businesswoman.

The Businesswoman was working in the World Trade Centre when it collapsed, but she was able to make it out. The album would follow her complete mental dissolution in the wake of the events, where she imagined she had died in the attacks. We would explore her reckoning with healing and her eventual rebirth. She is subject to sensationalism from her peers as a woman surrounded by tragedy, which only exacerbates the issues she is having. Only when she has completely broken and dealt with her trauma, she is able to move forwards. Alongside healing, the album would feature anti-war sentiment throughout. We would continue the swarm/rot/vermin/decay imagery as a metaphor for her decline and eventual resolve. This narrative would be more grounded like The Black Parade, but still have fun in its lyricism and concepts.

Alternatively, the Businesswoman perishes in the attacks, but is stuck in a time loop that would have her relive her death over and over again. This could explain why she seems to ‘die’ on tour but continues to come back night after night. We’re painted a vivid picture of our iconic lady in the World Trade Centre succumbing to the rubble as she submits to her fate. In those hazy moments between each restart, she’s greeted with these visions that revisited her past and put her in the place of other women. She’d see herself as Joan of Arc, burning at the stake. She would revisit her glory days as a cheerleader, only to see her perfect image slip through the cracks and distort into who she is today. She would reckon with her hopelessness. How easy it is for her to lie down and let the flames engulf her, but in seeing these visions, she’s filled with a new hope and a bitter vengeance. She thinks of the endless cruelty of war, all the lives it takes, and that rage fuels her. She gets up, and she makes it down the staircase. She lives. The bizarreness of the time loop would allow for some interesting songs. I’m really hoping for a Joan of Arc song, it would be the coolest. Like with the previous idea, we’d have explorations of healing, rebirth, femininity, and war.

Any number of narratives surrounding the Businesswoman could be true. She could be alive or dead. She could be in purgatory. She could die in the attacks or be fighting for her life in a hospital bed. She could be in one of the towers when it collapses or be watching from the curb. The concept could be grounded in a way we haven’t seen before, or twice as insane as Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. Here’s the concrete facts of the album:

It centres around some professional woman.

She has ties to 9/11.

She is dead or has a close call with death.

She hates war.

She heals and experiences rebirth.

I’ve already made note of how a 9/11 album would tie fantastically with the fabric of the band’s return, but another question arises. Why a woman? Historically, MCR’s concept albums have centred around male characters, such as the male Demolition Lover and the Patient. It’s plausible Gerard just wanted to switch things up a bit, but I think it goes a little deeper than that.

As I mentioned before, Gerard has a longstanding connection to femininity. This is something that was definitely alluded to in the Revenge Era, but it would’ve been dismissed as Typical Emo Androgyny from a non-queer audience. In 2014 they opened up about how they empathised with trans people and women, and that at points in their life they had experienced confusion surrounding their identity.

"I have always been extremely sensitive to those that have gender identity issues as I feel like I have gone through it as well, if even on a smaller scale. I have always identified a fair amount with the female gender, and began at a certain point in MCR to express this through my look and performance style. So it's no surprise that all of my inspirations and style influences were pushing gender boundaries… Masculinity to me has always made me feel like it wasn't right for me."

"I never really subscribed to the archetype masculinity growing up... There was a time where I was called a girl so often that when I discovered the idea of transgenderism I considered myself to be more of a girl. So I identify with trans people and women a lot because I was a girl to a lot of people growing up."

The former quote was from the Reddit AMA, and was followed up with “It was really freeing to be able to talk about gender identity btw.” Representations of female characters on the return tour spark commentary on multiple fronts, a lot on how we view femininity and how society loves to make spectacle of tragic women. This fits in well with how MCR has critiqued masculinity, but I think it also has more emotional value. Portraying these characters has allowed Gerard to express himself in a way that just would not be accessible in the early 2000’s and even the 2010’s. The fact that they’re clean, sober and have gotten professional help (Mikey too) is undoubtedly a reason as for why the whole bands seems to be at their happiest in this era, but I think being able to experiment and express femininity onstage has added another layer of catharsis for Gerard.

Copy and paste AGAIN everything I’ve said about the concept albums being an outlet for the band’s experiences. MCR5 is going to centre around a female character, and I think more explorations of gender identity are incoming. It’s a concept that’s not been so explicitly explored in MCR’s history, and I think Gerard should be given the space to vocalise and represent those experiences on an album. It’s something I believe is alluded to in one particular unlisted song, but more to be said in the next part.

This album is a personal statement from the band, it’s a work of deliverance, a visitation of their ruins and a promise to rebirth. We do not move forward in spite of our pasts; we move forward alongside them.

<<< PREVIOUS PART | [BONUS PART COMING: EAGLES ANALYSIS]

[deepdeanvsweston]

6, 24 and 21 for the mmu ask game please!

6. Most interesting murder

Either Murder Most Unladylike or A Spoonful Of Murder! Admittedly I can't remember much of it, but I do remember MMU being interesting to me because of the dynamics within it? A teacher killing a student was such a way to start a series, and the whole fact she was her DAUGHTER? like wow. So MMU was interesting. A Spoonful Of Murder is also interesting because if I remember quickly no-one was supposed to have been murdered? So I really liked reading ASOM sort of knowing that everyone had no fucking clue about anything, INCLUDING the murder. Was also interesting because it was Hazel's FAMILY

24. Best book cover

I LOVE the ministry covers because they have actual pictures of the characters! I can't visualise faces so that was very fun and very helpful!!! I also LOVE the American covers I think theyre so cool and I love the fonts and the colours and everything about them

Also something to be said for Death Sets Sail shininess!!!

21. Set of characters who you'd love to see interact

NEED to see Eric and Alex interact!!! For that matter just Eric with the Junior Pinkertons (sidenote that the bit where he was talking to George in BITB was so sweet!) I think Alex would LOVE Eric and vice versa. I like to hc that Alex likes to draw comics, so I think it'd be wonderful to have them interact through drawing or something like that <3

[humorisstoredinthetits]

The Day-to-Day Life of the Heathers + Veronica (Pt. 1/2)

This is just a series of headcannons surrounding what I imagine the day-to-day life of the Heathers and Veronica

So the they all sleep in an Alaskan King Bed big enough for all four of them to sleep comfortably

The feeling of their gfs being right next to them all night long helps Mac and Veronica sleep, both of whom have problems sleeping otherwise

Chandler sleeps on one end, Mac next to her, Duke next to her and Veronica next to her

Mac likes sleeping in the middle bc its the most comfy

Veronica sleeps on the end bc she is usually the one who gets up first so she's on the end so she doesn't disturb the rest of them when she gets up

This is especially true for Chandler, if you bother her beauty sleep she will be even more of a bitch all day and no one wants to deal with that

Veronica jokes that Duke sleeps in the middle bc "she's so tiny she needs to be in the middle or she'll fall off the bed"

Duke kicked her after she said that

Veronica usually gets up around 7:30 and goes into the kitchen

She makes coffee for Duke and Chandler, and tea for Mac

Duke likes it black, Chandler with as much sugar and creamer as possible, and Mac doesn't like the taste of coffee so she drinks tea instead

Unrelated but Chandler totally has a super particular Starbucks order and if they get it wrong she knows and throws a fit

The local Starbucks now knows to be on high alert when the 'mean red lesbian' comes into their shop

One by one the Heathers will get up and come get their drinks

Usually first its Mac, then Duke, then Chandler

They'll sit at the island and make small talk about dreams and their plans for the day while they wait for the caffeine to kick in

From there they have to go to work

Duke leaves first, then Mac, then Veronica

Its about a 30 minute commute for Duke to get to the agency she works at

During the drive she'll listen to podcasts or Youtube videos about anything she finds interesting really

Sidenote but her Jeep is her baby, no one is allowed to touch her (Yes her Jeep is a her) or Duke gets mad and everyone knows short people have more rage in their tiny little bodies

One time Chandler bumped into her Jeep with her purse causing the tiniest of dents and Duke wouldn't talk to her for a week

Duke's workload consists of mostly meeting with abused children to get testimonies, as well of those of care providers and other adults who can testify on the child's living situations

These testimonies are then forwarded, if applicable, to the police and legal officials to start the process of removing the child from the abusive situation

Its emotionally taxing having to hear the stories these poor children tell her, but to Duke, having the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in these kids life trumps anything else

Its hard for her, knowing that these resources existed but not having access to them as an abused child herself

She would've killed to be able to have a trusted adult to tell about what was really going on behind closed doors

But to be the adult that she wishes she always had helps her heal a little

The kids call her Ms. Duke and she has a board covered in thank-you drawings and notes from all the kids she's helped over the course of her working there

Her office is designed as a space where the kids will feel comfortable, there aren't huge intimidating bookshelves or anything like that

Its colorful and her desk has various trinkets that she uses to break the ice with any kids who are afraid to talk

There's also a fishtank in there and she has some turtles in there with the fish

They're named after the TMNT

She really does love her job, except for the fact that she can't punch the abusive parents, but thats what JD is for

For Mac, she drives a little pale yellow Beetle

(I got that headcannon from somewhere else, so credit to whoever that was, its been so long I can't remember where I got it from)

She listens to Disney or Musical soundtracks while driving to her Dad's Jewelry store and of course she sings along with them

Her Dad is training her to take over the store when he eventually retires

She has a genuine desire to help the customers find a perfect ring for their spouse and it makes people feel welcome and want to buy from them

But Mac is really bad at the business aspect of things

She cannot do math for the life of her and makes really simple mistakes

She's also really bad at dealing with rude customers, its just generally in her nature to be nice to people (its why she made such a terrible Heather and why she let Chandler and Duke deal with the intimidation parts) so when someone is being rude about prices or whatever she just blanks and doesn't know what to do really

For the longest time whenever a situation like that would occur Chandler or Duke or even Veronica would be there to help her out but at the shop she's on her own

Chandler and Duke are trying to teach her how to be assertive but its like that one Spongebob episode where Sandy tries to get Spongebob to be assertive, aka it goes terribly

Despite all of that she's learning and getting better at handing the business and her dad is feeling more and more confident in his decision to let her take over

Sometimes after the leaves she'll go volunteer at the animal shelter

The dogs and cats and stuff are always happy to see her because she always sneaks them extra treats and pets them

Mac is super knowledgeable about what the animals like and don't like and how to get a scared animal to open up

She's a big help to the employees of the shelter, and they always appreciate when she comes in to help

Sometimes Martha will go with her to volunteer and they'll just play with the kittens for a few hours

She actually helped JD get his dog from the shelter

He came in one day looking for a pet and Mac just happened to be volunteering that day and she helped him find a dog that matched his personality

He settled on a German Shepherd named Duke (It was already named so it was just a coincidence that it was named Duke) and its basically just a Golden Retriever in the body of a Shepherd

Veronica leaves whenever she wants really, as a writer she doesn't have a boss to answer to or hours she has to work, so she really does as she pleases

She only leaves the house because she finds it distracting to be in the house surrounded by her stuff, pets and gfs

She usually goes to local coffee shops or the library and puts in her headphones and just types away

She mostly listens to classical stuff with the occasional musical (courtesy of Mac) or weird ass emo song (courtesy of JD)

She's working on several projects at the same time and just alternates working based on whatever she's feeling at the time

The main one is a story about a girl moving to the US from Africa and getting involved with a drama involving a trio of popular teenage girls and struggling to manage the popularity and how it changes her

That one is loosley based on the events of her high school year (and yes its Mean Girls, I think its interesting to imagine Veronica creating Mean Girls and basing it on her own experiences with a trio of popular girls)

She comes home whenever she feels she's made enough progress for the day

Sometimes she gets stuck and doesn't know how to proceed and when that happens she'll go to the park or somewhere in nature and just walk and think

Being out in nature really helps clear her mind and get herself out of the mental block she's having

Once the rest of her gfs leave, Chandler gets started on the chores for the day

She has to collect all their clothes (There's four of them and they're the Heathers, they have a lot of clothes) and do laundry

She has to put the dishes into the dishwasher and put them back in the cabinets

She vacuums and dusts

[halliescomut]

My Personal Weatherman Ep. 6-No Subs Watch

To refresh your memory, this is me watching through the link to an un-subtitled version of My Personal Weatherman and sharing my thoughts as someone whose command of the Japanese language is based on illegally downloaded Sailor Moon episodes circa 2002. Spoilers may occur, but it is UNLIKELY that they will be the result of dialogue. Let's go...

-Mizuki with the glasses....that's so cute.

-Wow dude, you hide like fucking Scooby Doo. (Sidenote: does anyone actually believe that Yoh doesn't know the tracker is there? Especially if it's like the next day? He knows and he left it there.)

-Segasaki is so pitiful. Yoh is equally pitiful.

-Mr. Man-san is definitely just eavesdropping and pretending to read. I'm certain of it.

-And I was correct.

-FLASHBACK!!! Yay! I was so excited to see their beginning. I get it Yoh...We all get it.

-Goddamn Mizuki in these soft cardigans....I shall perish!!!

-This flashback is so cute, Yoh is drawing him, which is so precious, but it's also kinda crazy how they feel younger, especially Yoh.

-Oh no! Yoh has been perceived! It is the beginning of the end for him.

-I'm guessing this is some upperclassmen respect/hazing whatever, and they sent him to go buy snacks so they wouldn't have to.

-Haha...I'm pretty sure Yoh admitted to knowing Mizuki's name because he's been watching him. So cute.

-That whisper...I'm wearing headphones and I got shivers. But also...have we heard him call him Mizuki in the series before? I feel like he sticks to Segasaki, but I could be misremembering.

-This man's backpack straps are way too loose, it's distracting me.

-Segasaki (or his actor...both?) have the cutest lil nose.

-I am somehow now more frustrated with Yoh's belief that Segasaki doesn't really love him. That man could not have been more obvious 3 years ago.

-I feel bad for Segasaki, he hates this so much.

-Mr. Man-san feels so kind. I need them to start going on double dates as soon as Segasaki and Yoh get their shit together.

-Oh no....I fear a misunderstanding is about to occur.....

-Behind the fucking sheer curtain Yoh??? Both of you must be awful at hide and seek.

-Well I can't wait to translate that onscreen text later, I'm sure it was hilarious.

-IDK what Segasaki said, but I'm gonna guess it's something like "Don't you know I've been worried about you?" We'll see if I'm right.

-Mr. Man-san....the only appropriate reaction my guy, honestly.

-Apology, I understood that.

-Their manga versions are so cute. I might actually buy the source manga.

-Hmm....that was an interesting reaction....

-I guess he didn't know about the tracker...my guy have you not opened your bag this whole time??

-I still kinda hate this weathergirl. I know it's pretty anti-feminist of me, but I just can't with her.

-Poor Mizuki looked like he was about to have a fit....and Yoh knows that was not his on-camera persona....I do love that they show how well they know each other, even if they can't communicate for shit.

Well this was fun. And far too short. I'm so bummed this series is only 8 episodes, I need at least triple that.

Oohhh...more flashbacks next week too....and rain kisses....hot.

[orestes-hungry-and-pylades-sober]

Hot take: Marsh didn’t love Mare.

Okay okay hear me out. I take that back. Yes, he absolutely loved her, but not romantically.

Marsh isn’t the sort of person to have friends. He has people close to him, people he trusts, but they’re not his friends. He’s used to being alone, and likes it that way, actually. It’s not because he doesn’t care about people; it’s because he cares too much. The skaa rebellion is his heart and soul, the thing he has devoted his entire life to. He loves the skaa. He feels every bit of their pain as his own, because it IS his own. That level of devotion to a cause doesn’t leave much room for close personal bonds.

And then Mare comes along. She meets him and joins the revolution, because I love the headcanon that he’s the one who brought her into all this. And slowly she teaches him how he’s been wrong about friendship; how having a few close people you care deeply about, and how caring about something so huge as the skaa rebellion, aren’t mutually exclusive. She teaches him how having friends as a leader makes him stronger, not weaker.

He figures out she’s a tineye long before she realizes he’s a seeker, but in the end, their powers turn out to compliment each other very well. He can sense allomancy, and she can detect the faintest of noises and slightest movements. As a lookout pair for the rebellion and for the crew, they’re unstoppable.

(On a sidenote, that forces him to acknowledge Kelsier’s friends, and how his brother draws strength from other people, not from being alone. Kelsier is strong because he has his crew- Marsh is strong because he has himself.)

But Marsh and Mare become friends, and she’s the first person he’s ever grown that close to, that he’s ever cared about so strongly on that individual, personal level. He loves her, yes, as his best friend and close companion, but he doesn’t love her romantically.

But then there’s Kelsier. There’s always been Kelsier. He sees Mare, and he’s in love with her, completely and romantically.

If we want to go on a personal note here: a while ago, two of my best friends started dating each other. I was happy for them both, because it was really sweet and they did like each other. I wouldn’t exactly say I was jealous, per se. The thing is, I had a different friend start dating someone shortly before these two did, and she started spending so much more time with her new boyfriend, doing everything with him, and it didn’t feel as though she had much time for any of her old friends who weren’t with her romantically. I was so scared that my two very good friends who had started dating would do the exact same thing, that I would turn into an awkward third wheel, that I would be the one excluded from the group now that they were dating.

I fully admit that’s a personal failing on my part. I guess you would say that I was jealous, and a complete hypocrite, because I believe if you’re with someone romantically, you also need to be friends with them and love doing stuff with them, you know? In the end, it all turned out more or less fine for everyone involved. There was one awkward breakup, but they’re still on fairly good terms.

Basically what I’m trying to say here is that the exact same thing can be applied to Marsh, Mare, and Kelsier. Projecting onto fictional characters I don’t know what you mean. Mare is his best friend, and when she and Kelsier start courting, Marsh is so afraid that he’ll lose her and that when she’s with Kelsier, her lover, her husband, she won’t have time for her best friend anymore.

And honestly, knowing Marsh, he’d get bitter about it. In his belief that Mare would leave him for Kelsier, he’d push her away, push both of them away. And it would be hard and messy and they’d all get hurt, and in the end, I think this would be a much better explanation for why Kelsier and Marsh are so opposed. And we can even take it a step farther and say the reason Vin is told “oh yeah Marsh was also in love with Mare” is just because that’s the easier explanation. Marsh doesn’t care what they say anymore. If they want to think that he loved her romantically, sure, let them. They’d never understand how deep it went anyway.

I think a lot of this also comes from my belief that Mare deserved better. She deserved so much more than just being fridge motivation for not one but two men whose character arcs are dragged down simply by merit of her being there. Don’t take that the wrong way- of all the characters in the cosmere, Kelsier and Marsh are my two favorites - but there’s so much MORE that could have been done with Mare. She deserves more both as a character and within the story itself, and there could be a lot more than “Kell and Marsh hate each other cause they were both in love with her”. Like I also adore Mare as a character, or at least, the fandom’s take on her, and she would never put up with the brothers’ bullshit.

Oh god I feel like I just finished an essay and now I have to write the conclusion paragraph. I hate conclusions.

Mare loved Marsh. Marsh loved Mare. They were close friends, but it wasn’t romantic, and when Kelsier entered the equation, everyone got jealous and everyone got hurt. Platonic connections and relationships are every bit as deep and meaningful as romantic ones. Basically what I’m trying to say here is that Marsh and Mare were absolutely platonic soulmates, no romance involved, and Marsh inadvertently ruined it because of Kelsier.

Marsh deserves more as a character, but even more than that, MARE deserves better.

On that note, I’m off to write a fic about this that will never get past a first draft. See y’all later