#sinker: also mine

[veny-many]

Wolf who wore two colors

+) sorry fixed some details ;-;

[searchingfortheuniverse]

Star Wars: The Clone Wars - 1.02: Rising Malevolence

[hua-fei-hua]

“they traumatized me in ways usually reserved for parents” is an underutilized dynamic in fiction. only breaking bad fucking gets me.

[hiding-in-my-blanket-fort]

A few fluffy headcanons, sprinkled with some mild hurt/comfort for Jake “Hangman” Seresin x GF!Reader with social anxiety:

Jake doesn’t get it at first. He’s used to having a lot of attention when he walks into a room and he uses it to his full advantage.

You try not to let it show because you don’t want to slow him down. And you definitely don’t want him to be disappointed in you.

So when you’re out with Jake and his buddies at a very crowded Hard Deck, and it feels like you can’t breathe, or the headache starts coming on, you disappear.

You think you can regroup before Jake notices you’re gone.

But that doesn’t happen. No matter how much Jake runs his mouth and puffs and preens, he still has one eye on you the whole time.

So he notices as soon as you slip out the door without saying anything to him.

He follows you out to the beach where you’re sitting, huddled up against the chilly breeze with your shoes off and your bare toes in the sand.

“Am I interrupting a romantic rendezvous with your secret lover?” he calls as he approaches with this smile on his face that melts you on the spot.

Because it just hits you that Jake is completely and totally out of your league and what the hell is he doing with you?

When you don’t reply, his smile falters a little. “This is the part where you say that I’m your secret lover and we can get the party started now that I’m here.”

You manage a very tired smile. “If it’s a party you’re looking for, you left it back there in the bar.”

Jake sits beside you on the sand, brushing his hand down the back of your head.

“What’s wrong, baby?” he asks softly.

For a few seconds, you don’t say anything, trying to convince yourself that you’re fine. But it all comes bubbling out that it’s so…much. All of it happening at once.

“I never know what to say. And I’m worried I’ll say something stupid and embarrass you. So I just sit there like a dumbass and I feel so fucking lost and out of place. But you…everyone’s eyes are on you but I feel like this stupid little wallflower. And I don’t want people looking at me but I’m not…I mean…I’m sure your friends think you’re way too good for me and they’re totally right. It’s just - “

Jake cuts you off by cupping your face in his hands. As soon as his broad palms, firm and warm, are pressed to your cheeks, you give a little sigh of frustration because sweet jesus, you love him so much but you’re afraid to lose him.

“Babe. Babe, slow down. Take a breath.”

You bite the inside of your cheek to compose yourself, shift your gaze to the sky, and begrudgingly inhale and huff an exhale.

“That’s better,” he says gently. “Now. Did someone tell you that? Did someone say I was too good for you?”

You shake your head and very quietly say, “No.”

“Then where on earth did you get that idea, sweetheart? You’re my girl. Mine. I don’t give a fuck what anyone else says or thinks. You don’t have to do a damn thing. You’ve already got me, hook, line, and sinker. Okay?”

As his words sink in, the exhaustion takes over and you melt against Jake. Your eyes droop closed and you sag into his hands.

“I didn’t want to let you down,” you whisper.

Jake looks at you with this completely baffled expression because he believes that’s literally impossible. You could never ever let him down. So he folds you into his arms, rubbing your back and pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

You stay like that for at least thirty minutes, more insecurities and anxieties bubbling up. Jake neatly and logically bats each one down in a way that encourages you to replace the thought with a better one of your own making.

After that, when you hang out in a social setting, Jake makes sure to hold your hand with a firm grip to keep you grounded and comforted.

The two of you also developed a series of hand signals that you used on everything from, “I’m tired and ready to leave,” to “Extra anxious today. Could you order for me at the restaurant?”

Jake often offers for the two of you to stay in on date night, instead of going out with friends. As much as you enjoy those days staying in together, you also make sure that you challenge yourself to hang out with his friends because it’s important to him.

You found out by accident that when you’re really overstimulated and shaky, you can nestle right into Jake’s arms, with your back to his chest and his chin resting on your shoulder. His body heat and his weight pressed against you feels like a weighted blanket (except it’s a 1000x better) which calms you down.

Jake is ALWAYS eagerly offering to be your human weighted blanket. “Happy to be of service, darlin’,” with that trademark smoldering smirk that makes you want to strangle him and kiss him at the same time.

Jake also understands when you prefer to remain in your corner solo. Since his presence draws attention, sometimes he’ll purposefully make a scene AWAY from you so that you can have some breathing room during social events.

After a social event, he knows the social hangover can be extra hard on you so he makes sure you both have down time. He sleeps in with you, holds you, naps with you, and makes sure to be extra gentle with you until you’re 100% again.

Masterlist

[writteninlunarlight-years]

Hi Luna!

You wanted requests so i thought of something.

What about a blurb/fic of Cedric Diggory x fem!hufflepuffreader, in which fem is a very bubbly, happy sunshine character but the better they get to know each other, he finds her jealous side,which she trys to hide because she is always so nice. Maybe this surprises him but he finds it cute/hot. 👀

It’s very general but english isnt my first language so i don’t know.

Have a great day lovely 🫶🏻

-🍓🍰

Pairing: Cedric Diggory x Fem!Hufflepuff Reader

Warnings: AFAB reader, Toxic 'he's mine' mentality, Jealousy

Type: Fanfic x reader

Request: Anon

Word Count: Way longer than I anticipated for my first fic

Prompt: Cedric Diggory witnesses the sweet reader be jealous for the first time.

Notes: Thank you so much, Anon! Yay, my first request!!! I'm so excited to fulfill this for you! I hope I am okay with my writing; here's hoping for the best. I have my request page on my blog if anyone else wants to ask away! Cedric also doesn't die in this spinoff. (I always cried so hard at that part) P.S. I do use Grammarly as my spelling/grammar checker. I have Dyslexia, so if things are Choppy or if they look off, please don't hesitate to reach out to me and give me some constructive criticism or suggestions!

Sweet As A Daisy Smells~~~~ Cedric Diggory

You remember your first day at Hogwarts like it was yesterday, even if years have passed. The beautiful architecture, the food, the Witches and Wizards of your year, of course, nothing would beat the year below you and their entrance, seeing as Harry Potter had joined your school that year. However, one small thing might beat what the fourth years have, being placed in Cedric Diggory's house.

Yes, you were like every other star-struck 5th year and younger following Diggory. The only difference between you and them is you actually accidentally made friends with the male. It was purely an accident, not a perfectly strategic mastermind plot between you and your friends to 'plop' you in his path.

It was innocent, really; you had a notorious reputation for being one of the sweetest Witches and Hufflepuffs. Someone needs help with homework: you're on it. Someone needs a quick snack: you're in the kitchen helping the house elves. An animal is wounded and hurting: you're on your hands and knees in the dirt, healing the animal as best you can till Hagrid can assist you. You were overall a genuinely nice person even the Draco Malfoy ran out of insults to throw your way because you were so unfazed: just telling him gently, "I know we all have bad days and feel the need to belittle others, it's okay, I won't judge you for it."

Your masterful plan to 'plop' you in front of Diggory was simple and well executed; you took the initiative to help the quidditch team clean and organize their equipment one night. Your roommate, Elaine Mellonfellow, was the one who came up with the idea, as she was usually one of the three on the team that ended up with that job. She would simply suggest to her captain that you take her place for a handful of sessions so she could 'serve detention.' This was a convincing plan, especially considering Elaine's tendency to doze off during Professor Snape's lectures.

Taking the bait, hook, line, and sinker, Diggory happily agreed to an extra pair of hands to help keep the team's quidditch equipment in top shape. This is what led you to now. It went from a handful of crafted detentions by Elaine to her simply stopping showing up, and you always did. Some would say you should be mad at your friend's obvious ruse to get out of a daunting chore, but you saw it simply as a good friend making sure you got close to your crush and close you definitely got.

Weeks of small talk turned into life stories and learning in detail about one another. You learned about his father's work in the ministry, about how he knew the Weasely brothers through their fathers, how he worked hard to become Quidditch captain, and that his almost least favorite color was, in fact, yellow. However, his years in Hufflepuff definitely helped change that.

While you were learning about Diggory to the fullest extent, he quickly learned much about you. Your fierce loyalty was the only thing preventing you from being in any of the other houses. You never gave up on a task, consistently achieved the highest marks in your year, and helped everyone out as often as possible. Always putting others before yourself, especially Elaine, who he has caught multiple times not being in 'detention' and though he would like to reprimand his chaser for skipping out on duties. He couldn't bring himself out of fear you would stop coming to help every week. Course, this could be solved if he could buck up the courage to talk to you outside of the quidditch tents, but there is a reason why he isn't a Gryffindor. It was fair to say that you were the sweetest, warmest human he had ever met, and he was addicted to you like a bee to a daisy.

All of these stolen moments have led up to today, the day Cedric found out you were, in fact, not just the cutest human in the world but also a vicious opponent in the arena of love.

After dinner in the great hall, you and Elaine make your way to your normal departure point, where she would 'go to detention,' and you would take her place as the ever-faithful cleaner of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. "Elaine, you are becoming far too obvious that you are not in detention when I am out there with him. What if he thinks I am a weirdo stalker chick who told you not to do your duties?"

Elaine snorted before speaking, "Yeah, cause Mister Lovey Goo Goo Eyes is definitely going to give up on spending time with his precious Y/N." You roll your eyes in frustration, with a slight blush present when Elaine speaks up again.

"Don't believe me, Y/N. He talks about you during our entire rest period during morning and evening practices. You might as well already be his girlfriend. If I hear him preach about how your favorite flowers are daisies again, I will puke." Elaine made a fake puking motion before laughing again at you.

"You look like a maniac, dork." you begin to laugh at Elaine's theatrics. Shaking off your nerves from Elaine's words, you begin to wonder. 'Does Cedric really talk about me that much...What if this is all being read horribly wrong, the man has half of Hogwarts on his side 24/7'

"Hey, now get out of your head; I know that look and that lip bite. Come on you are practically my sister, and he is practically my brother with all the time we spend together as a team. I promise you you got this. Just woman up and ask him out already before someone else does." As Elaine spoke to you, she followed the silhouette of Cho Chang on her way toward the quidditch pitches.

Sighing and following along as well, you felt a slight pang in your heart. Everyone knew that Cho Chang was in love with Cedric—so much so that she even rejected Harry Potter. She was perfect, the best representation of smarts, beauty, and poise that you definitely weren't. You were out there every week helping clean in the dirt and mud, for Christ's sake. You would never compare to her, and that ate you alive. Cho had shown her face at a few of your cleaning nights with Cedric. At first, it didn't bother you; they were the same year, and she could have needed help with classwork. Then, the day Harry asked her out, she turned him down only to show up that night laughing and hanging on to Cedric, making it very, VERY clear to him how she didn't like Harry. You knew right then and there. Game On.

Straightening your back, you turn to Elaine, a smile scarily plastered on your face. "I am going in," you begin to walk towards the pitch when you hear from behind, "Maybe don't smile like that; it's a bit unnerving, love! I'll be in the room of requirements with the twins!" Waving by to Elaine, you finish your trek to the pitch to see none other than Cho Chang clinging to Cedric. The slight pang boils into a full-blown constriction.

To onlookers that night, the smile on your face went from mildly unnerving to straight terrifying. Like a Lioness hunting her pray for her young. To Cedric, he just saw his girl walking up to him. Pulling away from Cho, he ran up to you. "Hi, Y/N; I was beginning to worry you got 'detention' too." Using air quotes around detention, your attention moved from the shocked female to the lovely boy before you. "Oh, Cedric, I would never miss this. Who else would help you? Elaine seems to be getting in trouble often lately. Must be all that time with the twins." A warm blush overcame your face as you rubbed the back of your head gently.

"She sure does. Why don't we get started? I was thinking of a full revamp of the whole broom closet. For some reason, half the team thinks that just haphazardly throwing their equipment in there is the best thing to do." Cedric smiled down at you, eager to start his routine and banter with you. Nodding gently, you began to walk into the tent with Cedric when a small voice spoke out behind you. "So that's what you two do in there; clean. I could always help Cedric. Here, let me lend a hand, too." Cho's voice rang like a small bell. A small bell that made you want to grit your teeth and commit a crime. Cedric just shrugged and turned to you. "I guess the more, the merrier, right Y/N?" You gently nodded your head when the constricted feeling in your chest slowly turned into a whole ball of hate.

The cleaning started like any other day; a soft, small conversation began between you and Cedric. Then it happened...that voice. That smooth, high, annoying voice that made you see red. It was bad enough that she pretended that you guys weren't always cleaning when she was hanging around. Even more annoying was her almost consistent interjecting in the conversation. You could feel your shoulders tensing every time she talked, and it didn't go unnoticed by the two peers helping you clean, either. "Everything alright, Y/N?" You could hear the concern laced in Cedric's voice, pulling you from your thoughts. "Yes I am just fine, a little tired is all but I can keep going theres not much left to do tonight anyway." Cedric nodded softly, placing a hand gently on your mid back in a comforting manner.

Then that voice again: "Cedric, it is getting awfully late, and curfew will be hitting soon. You're a prefect; maybe you could escort me back to my dorm so I don't get into trouble?" You saw it right there—the threat, the classic back-down girly pop, he's mine, the 'I get what I want because I am Cho Chang.' Not Today. "Actually, Cho," a sizeable fake smile plastered across your face, "Cedric and I have a pass from Madam Hooch to be out here past curfew to finish cleaning. You, however, seem to not have one of those. Maybe it would be best if you went back to your dorm now. Alone. Since curfew is in the next thirty minutes." You tilted your head sweetly at the girl, your forced smile still present. To others, you looked like your usual sweet self, maybe even regular sweet, with a little bit of derangement. However, Cedric picked up on your tone. That wasn't your normal tone at all. Holding back his smile, he watched the scene unfold.

"Oh, is that right, Y/N? Well, I am sure that Cedric wouldn't mind walking me back and letting you continue. It's just a short walk to Ravenclaw Tower. I know you would 'Hate' to see someone get into trouble after 'helping' you." Cho looked at you with the same false sense of kindness. You step towards her when Cedric interjected. "Cho is right; it's late, and it won't take long for us to walk up to the tower." You look at Cedric, defeated, Cho smugly standing behind him. "I will be right back, Y/N. Then we can finish cleaning." After his words, he walked to the tent's opening and guided Cho out. You couldn't describe the feeling you were having, sadness, hate, fear like you were going to throw up from anxiety because how did you lose to Cho Chang after everything Elaine said about Cedric liking you. A deep, heavy sigh left you as tears pooled in your eyes, watching the two return to the castle.

You grabbed one of the brooms nearby, not even realizing it was Cedric's, and took to the skies. You should get the heat out of your system. Now, you wouldn't say that you were a Quidditch player by any means. You were simply just fast and graceful on a broom. If they had synchronized broom work like the muggles had synchronized swimming, you would 100% join. However, Quidditch is a rough, dangerous sport, and something about a giant ball coming at your head screamed no, not for me. However, nothing mattered tonight except swoops, dives, quick turns, and sorting through the goals. Anything to take your mind off him with Cho. Cho touching him, Cho kissing him, Cho anywhere near him. As your mind raced, you went faster and faster. Not even noticing Cedric had made his way back.

Cedric stood at the opening of the pitch, arms crossed, watching you sore. Why you hadn't tried out for Seeker was beyond him; your speed rivaled that of Harry Potter. However, knowing your soft, sweet personality, he understood why you wouldn't. However, something about watching you zoom around in a jealous rage was very enthralling. Not only are you the pollen the bee is attracted to, but you are also the bee's sting. Jealousy was a perfect look on you. Smiling softly, he waited for you to calm down and land.

As the adrenaline and tears faded, you figured enough time had passed between them leaving and him returning, probably in a happy new relationship. Landing softly, looking up at the sky, you sighed, then turned to the pitch opening. Freezing in your tracks, you saw Cedric Diggory standing there with a smug look and his arms crossed. "Oh uh hey Diggory um, what's up?" You tried looking everywhere but him. "Nothing much, Y/N," He peered his head at your left hand holding the broom, "is that my broom you decided to use so gracefully in the sky." A deep red blush consumed your face as you hid the broom behind your back, shaking your head. Great, not only did he see you flying, but he also is going to think you're a crazy stalker who doesn't know her place using his stuff. A small laugh left Cedric's mouth as he walked up to you. You kept your head down, hoping he would disappear or maybe you would wake up in your bed, and this was all a horrid dream.

Cedric stopped in front of you and placed his hand gently on your head. "I turned her down, you know." You froze, eyes wide, still looking at the ground. "She asked me while we were walking up to her dorm, but I had to tell her I had given my heart to someone else." You slowly looked up at Cedric, and a soft red glow was on your face. "Though I will say Y/N jealousy is a good look on you. Why haven't you joined my team?" A snort left you, and not believing his words, you rebuttled. "I don't want to get hurt, is all." Cedric smiled, pulling you into a gentle hug. "I would never let anything hurt you, not a Quaffle or Cho Chang." You buried your head in to his chest a small laugh escaping you hugging Cedric back. In your soft embrace, you both failed to notice a displeased Madam Hooch approaching the pitch. "LISTEN, YOU TWO, I GAVE YOU A PASS TO CLEAN, NOT SNOG. GO TO YOUR DORMS." You both pulled away quickly, looking at her before running off laughing hard.

You and Cedric made it to your dorm hand in hand. Sadly, he still had prefect duties for the night while you needed to go to bed for a potion exam tomorrow. Taking your conjoined hands, Cedric places a soft kiss on your knuckles. A rose blush consumes your face. "Get some rest, and I will pick you up in the morning. We can go eat breakfast tomorrow in the great hall." You smiled widely and nodded. "Sounds good, Cedric. I will see you then." As you began to pull away, Cedric yanked you back into him. Looking up, Cedric cupped your face gently and kissed your mouth. The peck only lasted a second before he let go. "I'm sorry I couldn't help myself. The bee is just too attracted to the Daisie's pollen." You snorted before standing on your tip toes and kissing him again. This time, neither of you pulled away. Your arms snaked gently around Cedrcis shoulders, hands getting lost in his soft hair. While Cedric held your waist gently in his hands. When you pulled away this time, you rested your heads together. "Maybe I should be jealous more often if this is my reward." Cedric laughed softly before hugging you one last time and sending you to sleep.

~~FIN~~

-------BONUS------

*peering around some barrels in the kitchens, watching you two have your sweet moment."

Elaine: You both owe me 20 galleons.

George: This is ghastly, but I can't believe he turned Cho down. She is like THE it, girl, right now. She even turned down Harry.

Fred: You are mad he turned Cho down. I am angry that I owe Angela a week of butter beers cause he rejected Cho and confessed to Y/N all on the same night. I swear that woman is a mind reader.

Elaine: Both of you are horrible...I love it. Alright, now to prank Filtch.

(Thank you all so much for reading. This is my first official story back into writing. I am sorry if it is choppy or odd. I am getting back into the rhythm of things. I hope this is good enough to showcase the beginning of my writing journey!)

[seagroundfloors]

Cabby's lesbian-coding in Inanimate Insanity Invitational

I went through everything current episode of Inanimate Insanity Invitational, and official art to find every piece of evidence hinting at Cabby being a lesbian.

Because the finale is coming up, what a better time to post this!

I am lesbian Cabby's strongest soldier.

First off, official art.

New Years Official art (couldn't find exact date, possibly 2023 or 2022 considering the fact it contains Bot's old design.)

Here, we see Test Tube and Cabby having a nice little chat. This may not seem like much, until you consider Cabby's behaviour around Test Tube (which we will get into in a moment.)

Pride Month art (semi-offical, cakebrunch is apart of the II team as a Storyboard artist.)

Cabby is seen holding a file, coloured like the Lesbian flag, pretty self explainitory.

This may not look like it implies alot, however it contains some canon LGBTQ characters holding their flags!

Paintbrush and Bot are both non-binary.

Lightbulb is transgender.

Balloon is Aromantic.

Paper and OJ are heavily hinted at by the team (mostly Justin.)

Before I get onto the show, I wanted to add that Cabby's VA, Casey Landman said herself she is playing Cabby in a "sapphic" way ON PURPOSE.

(screenshot is not mine and belongs to @mr-payjay, also known as brycelumyex on twt)

Now, The Show Itself.

Cabby's admiration towards Test Tube

In Snapshot Showdown, Cabby seems to be very determined in protecting Test Tube from OJ.

In the same episode, Cabby seems to be very excited to show her team her files when Test Tube asks them.

In Best Served Cold, the teams get mixed up and reorganised after The Sinkers lost nearly all of their team, resulting in Cabby losing all of her teammates, but she is thankful that she still has Test Tube with her. She also mentions how she wants to "make things right" with Test Tube, after their conflict in Tragedy at Sixy Feet. Cabby also uses the word "valuable" to describe her.

Cabby goes on and offers Test Tube for them to "combine their intelligence" and from and alliance.

Cabby tells Test Tube that she "likes them" and says if they can work it out, they can make it far, together.

Later on in the episode, Cabby goes as far as to trust Test Tube with her files, possibly one of her most crucial items.

She also says she values Test Tube's insight.

Only then for Test Tube to betray them later on at the elimination ceremony...

Cabby then says that she wanted to keep Test Tube's "history."

Cabby's flirty behavior

On rare occasions, Cabby can act a bit "flirty" towards female and non-binary contestant.

(I had to mush this all into one big photo because I've reached the photo limit *sob*)

thats all I have! I might make a run-up to this if I find anymore evidence, I'd also appreciate it if you lot would help me if you find anything else ^_^

[new-tella-us]

Alright. No art. Just positive rant. The entire point of my redesigns was me being slightly annoyed at the designs and story of Seduce Me and having way too much positive nostalgia to be normal about this game. I love-hate this game. However! The one thing I will never, never shit talk Seduce Me for is its characters. The main six love interests (Yes I am counting Diana as a main love interest. Thank Demon War for that) are all so well written! I genuinely love them. Even Sam, my least favorite character, isn’t boring. I don’t dislike him for being a bad character, I dislike him because the tsundere trope annoys me.

But this isn’t a rant about the characters as a whole. This is a rant about Damien. Let me rave for a second. Because as melodramatic as his backstory is, it got me hook, line and sinker. I am convinced that either Michaela had a period of being obsessed with Damien or some redheaded fuck boy named Damien pissed her off so much that she made him into a character just to make him suffer. This boy is tragic!

Like b r o, all the other boys’ backstories can be summed up with “The palace life is boring, my dad is kinda shitty and I got one other, reoccurring, minor inconvenience” and then there’s Damien being like- “My mom suffered as my dad’s harem girl until she couldn’t take it anymore and tried to murder me before killing herself. Also my dad is extra shitty to me. He tried to kill me a few times. Food? That’s a luxury. Energy? I’m used to not having it. A room? What is that? Please let me become human because mind reading kinda sucks, oh wait, I only got a 1 out of 6 shot for that ending. And I’m not even the canon ending!”

And another thing! Matthew’s main bad ending has traumatized me for multiple reasons but that line, “That’s what you get for making me go to the human world” after he kills Damien! Now, Matthew is a favorite of mine, but in that moment, I wanted to shake that little bitch until his soul evacuated his body! Like, I don’t care that he was being controlled, how d a r e he come firing shots at Damien when all he wanted was a good life away from his abusive ass dad!? Bro Damien may have been the illegitimate child but at that moment Matthew was the bastard.

Tragic…

On a different, lighter note, I do love the sort of contrast between him and Matthew, at least on the topic of “naivety”. Of the two, you expect the fun loving, goofball to be the naive, kind of innocent one. But that’s not the case. Matthew is optimistic, Damien is innocent. Matthew knows what he wants and while the world is a wonder to him, he goes about the world with this sort of maturity, knowing what he wants to see and when. Damien is more of the spacey type. There is this level of inexperience to how he grasps the world as if he can’t even believe that it can exist. Plus, as much as he has an idea of what he wants to see, sometimes he feels like he must ask permission. Like in the New Years Episode where if you go on Damien’s route, he asks “Can we do this every year?”.

In conclusion, I want to wrap Damien into a blanket burrito and tell him that everything is going to be okay. And then take him to therapy because this man probably has C-PTSD. As my friends would say, I am mentally ill for this demon equivalent of a sad, wet dog.

[etrevil]

hey!! I absolutely love the vibes of your blog! I’m getting into bungo stray dogs (or trying to :’) ) and since you seemingly write fics for it, do you have more recs?? I don’t really know what the main pairings are but I like to use fics as a way to see if I’ll like the fandom and pairs!! Thank you!!

you're making me crack my knuckles because DAMN AM I NOW EXCITED :DDD

terms used: bsd (bungou stray dogs), hp (harry potter), mha (my hero academia), soukoku (chuuya/dazai), shin soukoku (atsushi/akutagawa), chuuda (where chuuya tops), fyozai (dazai/fyodor), fyolai (fyodor/nikolai)

First and foremost is the widely beloved I Was Screaming Your Name Through The Radio by ElectricSplatter, which is just a rollercoaster of emotions that grip you by the throat. Do note that the chapters are hella long, but enjoyable. The relationships are fleshed out beautifully.

Magic and Mystery by Allegory_for_Hatred is also a good start because it's a bsd and hp crossover that's just, amazing. Had me up at 3am until I physically could not read. There's an ongoing sequel too!

wtf, since when are you married? by xxalwayssofia is a short, quick laugh that, for me, had one of the best characterization for soukoku. Sofia's stories in general (check her account!) have got the character's personality traits down with little creative liberties.

Ne Chuuya, won't you marry me? is another one by xxalwayssofia, and I die of laughter because of this on a daily basis.

Now, I may be mean for suggesting this, but this fic is a diamond found within a gold mine that will eventually end you up in jail because some rich dude probably owned it first. In summary, it hurts. Like a gunshot wound (wink wink to the readers). And that is Ruiner by gev_ao3 (rated the E-est of E's)! The long-awaited consequence chapter is already out for this one, so when you binge read it the ending will hopefully be satisfying. Just be aware this is incredibly graphic, psychological, and angst-filled to the brim.

I read If the Far Side Saw You by birbleh a considerable time ago, but it both pinches and caresses my heart all the same. I haven't anything else to say other than give it a chance.

Ice Queen by TheHighQueen is a great ongoing Dazai genderbend fic, that follows canon with interesting diverging road stops.

This Color Ain't It by justcallmedude has Kenji, our lovable super strength-powered farmer, as a main character! Crossover between bsd and mha with a dash of angst thrown here and there.

For a shin soukoku pairing fic, I'd suggest Fair Ankles by spirallings (rated E) and love knows no boundaries by dangodangomilk; fun, interesting stories that aren't that long, the latter's a oneshot and the former's ugh, just around 100k words :>

One of the first bsd fics I've read, which is with a fyozai pairing, is Letters from the Underground by ktaem! The writing style has its own refined edge, with the exploration of a what-if scenario that had me by hook, line, and sinker. This fic is still in my tab group because I always keep rereading it!

Now if we're entering the explicit territory, I will forever recommend my favorite series (pairing is chuuda btw) Ineffable Partners by Ch_ee_rios. The eighth installment is currently updating, and I promise, you will cry- or at least feel a significant gut punch.

Head Full of Lies by AbsoluteNegation, as my friend one said, is where the good shit's at. The premise had me instantly curious and soukoku's dynamic is wonderful, messy, and DAMN I LOVE THIS FIC SO MUCH.

Mors Vincit Omnia by themadtree, an soukoku and fyolai fic that will have you bending over and dying of laughter and pain. The author's other works (akai!) are also very good.

The series all that is left by alaruya is a personal favorite of mine. The writing style is unique, with choppy sentences and tear-jerker lines. Was the first story that ever had me thinking, "god I need to bookmark this," and I did.

Bottom of The Deep Blue Sea by arkastadt is a filthy, guilty pleasure. (can you tell I'm an avid bottomzai reader?)

And that's it... I think? I'm also willing to suggest Leafing Through The Pages, I Found You by YunaYamiMouto, but letting you know it's an ongoing reaction fic of the bsd cast to Dazai's life (with the author's own creative choices and headcanons), so there will be a lot, and I mean a HECK TON of spoilers. Which, to be fair, the other fics do have in sprinkles, but this tackles novel events that maybe you'd wish to read at your own pace :D

also shameless plug I have my own fic, the heat of your orange, and I know there's only one chapter but I'm trying my best to update soon

Happy reading!

[laurenairay]

All I’ve Tried to Hide - A. Svechnikov

This is my entry for the winter fic exchange 2k23, run by the wonderful @antoineroussel​.

I received @hoesforthecanes​ as a giftee, so I really hope you enjoy this Anna!

I had a lot of fun incorporating the ‘forbidden love’ trope that you had a preference for, and with writing a full fic for Andrei Svechnikov for the first time! I really hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! 🥰 definitely finished this quicker than I expected, but I was so inspired, so here we go!

All photos in the header banner are not mine; found across pinterest. Title from Dirty Little Secret, by All American Rejects.

Word count: 2k

Warnings: light angst, implied sexual moments, a little fluff

Summary: Hooking up with Andrei Svechnikov was all fun and games, as long as your brother didn’t find out…

We can’t choose who we fall in love with.

That’s what you told yourself, over and over again, every time you saw him. Every time you felt his molten gaze brushing over your body. Every time his smirk sent shivers down your spine. Every time he walked across the bar to you with that intense stare, your body filling with eager anticipation.

Because no-one knew.

That’s right, no-one knew that you and Andrei Svechnikov had been sleeping together for nearly six months now – and that’s the way it needed to stay. Why? Because your brother hated the idea of you being with an athlete. A few horrifically failed relationships in high school and college, all with athletes of various kinds, had left you broken in pieces on your older brother’s doorstep every single time, and now that you’d wound up living with him after your last failed relationship – as well as working in his bar – you were dependent on his charity. So if he said no more athletes, then it was no more athletes…at least until you could get on your own two feet again.

What? You had a type, as much as it shamed you – and Andrei fit your type to a tee.

You could remember the first time you saw him. A big loud group of bigger louder guys had filled your brother’s bar, instantly attracting attention from most the patrons, and as a few of them pushed a couple of tables together, he had walked up to the bar where you were working. You could remember the soft smile on his lips as he leant over the bar top to place his order, the gentle rumble of his lilting accent intriguing you, and you knew the moment that he set up a limitless tab with a confident wink that you were in trouble. It had only taken a couple more visits before he was slipping through the staff door, the two of you connecting in a heated make-out in a secluded corner of the storage room out back, his lips, tongue, and hands sending you wild like no-one ever had before.

And it continued, over and over again, escalating to the two of you hooking up at Andrei’s place whenever he was in town, somehow managing to avoid your brother’s judgement, keeping your risqué relationship away from the bar and under wraps.

Everything had been perfect, until the passing of your birthday last week. Andrei had been on a roadtrip on the day itself, and you’d only just about managed to convince him not to send you a bouquet of flowers to the bar (which was out of character in itself), but now that he was back he’d insisted on celebrating properly with you, so you’d come over to his place for the evening. He’d hired a private chef to cook the most amazing three course meal, the two of you sipping on the most delicious wine you’d ever tasted throughout, and as soon as the chef left, he’d whisked you off to his bedroom, bringing you to dizzying heights over and over again, until you were wailing his name out for the entire city to hear.

It was only when he presented you with a diamond necklace, your skin still gleaming and your breathing still ragged, that you realised you weren’t just falling in love with him – you had fallen, head over heels, hook line and sinker. And you also realised that you needed to end things now, before you fell in too deep to recover.

“Andrei, what is this?”

“Your birthday gift?” he said, frowning softly in confusion, “Is it too much? Do you not like it?”

“It’s beautiful…but it isn’t what we do?” you said, wincing.

His frown sunk into a deeper confused expression, so you sat upright, clutching the bedsheets to your bare chest.

“We just – this is just hooking up, Andrei. You shouldn’t be buying me expensive gifts like this. Even hiring a chef to cook for us feels crazy,” you said softly, hating the words as they spilled from your lips.

You watched as his face shuttered, his broad shoulders drawing in on himself, hating yourself for making such a big guy look so small. What was wrong with you? Why were you doing this to him when it felt so wrong? But then he seemed to steel himself, posture straightening and broad chest filling out once more – and he looked you dead in the eyes, making your breath hitch in your throat.

“You are saying this because of your brother?”

His blunt statement made you wince – it was hardly a secret how your brother felt – the anger in his words feeling like a sharp stab, mostly because he was right.

“Andrei, I-”

“I don’t want to keep lying,” he said, interrupting, “lying to myself, to you, to the world. I don’t care that your brother doesn’t want you with an athlete. I know you like me and I like you, and I want you to be mine without all the stupid lying. Why can’t you understand that?”

His words rushed through your body like burning fire, his accent getting thicker as he spoke, showing you exactly how genuine his passion was. But it didn’t change that fact that nothing could change. Even though he was confessing everything you were desperate to hear, matching your own feelings for him, because it was also everything you were trying to repress for your own good.

“It isn’t that easy,” you murmured, averting your eyes.

“So, what, I will be your dirty little secret forever? And you will do whatever your brother says, forever?”

“My brother is just trying to protect me because he loves me,” you shot back, glaring over at him.

Because this wasn’t about you being ashamed of him, or that your brother was a cruel person. You’d just messed up your love life one too many times for your brother to not want to be involved. It wasn’t that complicated.

“He loves you? Great! Well I love you too!”

Even with the anger that Andrei snapped those words at you, your whole body froze, eyes wide and lips parted in shock. And when Andrei realised what he said, he froze too, eyes wide as well as although his were wide in fear rather than in shock, as if he’d let slip something he never intended on saying.

“I didn’t…I mean, I-”

“You love me?” you managed to ask, voice soft in disbelief.

Andrei sighed but nodded, face crumpling in defeat, hanging his head to avoid looking at you.

“Andrei, I…”

You trailed off, running a hand through your unkempt hair, head swirling at his admission as all the fight drained from your body. Because how were you supposed to process this? This was everything you’d been trying to avoid, on every single level. This relationship you had with Andrei was just supposed to be a fun, fiery fling, free from any strings or expectations. And now he’d admitted his love for you, in the moment that you’d realised exactly how deep your love for him was?

What was any sane person supposed to do here?

The soft touch of Andrei’s hand resting on top of yours broke you out of your inner turmoil, and you looked over at him to see the saddest smile on his face, so unnatural in comparison to his usual happy expressions.

“I understand if you do not love me. I am sorry for putting pressure on you like that,” he said softly, smile weak, “we can pretend I didn’t say anything.”

What?

“And you’d just be happy to go back to how things were before, even with both of us knowing that it isn’t enough for you?” you asked, a little incredulous.

“If the other option is losing you entirely, then I can’t do that. I would rather have the smallest part of you, than nothing at all,” he shrugged, sad smile now reflecting the self-deprecation clearly fuelling his actions.

No, no this wasn’t okay. It wasn’t fair, not to him…and not to you. Here was a guy putting his heart and feelings on the line, believing that you were going to reject him anyway because of a few stupid mistakes you’d made in your past? A guy that treated you like no-one ever had before, brought you crashing waves of pleasure like no-one ever had before, and who cared for you like no-one ever had before? And who you cared for more than you ever had for anyone else? You were going to give up that chance of happiness, all because of a few worthless guys?

No, no way.

“I don’t want to go back to how things were before,” you said softly.

Hurt immediately flashed across his face before he quickly composed himself. “Right, okay. I’m sorry.”

It took you a few moments to realise what he meant, but when you finally did, you promptly shook your head.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that. I…”

You drew your bottom lip into your mouth as you struggled to choose the right words to say, Andrei just watching you with a hesitant expression that ever-so-slowly filled with confidence.

“You don’t want to be just a hook up?” he asked hopefully.

You shook your head, staying silent.

“You maybe want to be more?” he prompted again, a small smile spreading across his lips.

You bit your bottom lip before releasing it from your mouth, nodding shyly, earning a broad grin from the man sitting next to you.

“I need to hear you say it. Please, say it,” he pleaded softly, brown eyes wide and hopeful.

Inhaling shakily, you nodded again, looking down at your lap briefly to compose yourself before looking back at him, the hope in his eyes not having faded at all.

“I don’t know how we’re going to make it work. I don’t know how I’m going to convince my brother that this is going to work, that I’m not making another mistake. But I want to try, with you,” you said softly.

Once the words were past your lips, it felt like your blood was surging, the emotions of your confession all but overwhelming you, the hand that Andrei placed on your sheet-covered thigh the only thing that anchored you.

“You won’t regret this, I promise. I’m going to make you so happy, solnyshko,” Andrei said happily, the wide smile on his face sending butterflies soaring in your stomach.

Of that you had no doubt. No matter what happened, however your brother reacted, you knew in your heart that Andrei would be by your side, and that was enough to give you hope. His broad smile turned a little shy all of a sudden, piquing your interest as he rummaged in the sheets, clearly looking for something. And then your breath hitched in your throat as he drew out the box from earlier, delicately holding that beautiful diamond necklace.

“So if you’re mine and I’m yours, will you wear this?” he asked.

What a rush it was to hear those words.

“Right now?” you asked, confused.

He smiled sweetly, nodding, so you just nodded in return. Andrei smiled even wider, taking the necklace out of its box and unclasping it, leaning intimately closer to you as he fastened it around your neck. The cool stones sent a shiver across your heated skin, a different shiver zapping down your spine as Andrei’s finger lightly traced the edge of it, trailing across your collarbone to finish.

Unfair.

“How does it look?” you breathed.

You dropped the sheet you’d been holding to your chest the whole time you’d been sitting upright, revealing your bare body to him once more, the diamonds around your neck the only item you now wore. Andrei’s eyes darkened slightly, making your heart beat that little bit faster with the promise they held.

“Beautiful. You look beautiful,” he murmured.

When that familiar smirk crept across his lips, finally, you knew you were done for. He slowly crawled over to you, gently lowering your body back to the bed as he covered you with his own broad torso, eyes and hands and lips trailing over you in a tease that sent your blood swirling, and it was all you could do to lose yourself in his embrace.

No more secrets. No more hiding. Andrei Svechnikov was yours, and now the world was going to know.

[harudnae]

This is the SFW fic I wrote for the @op-xreader-zine, with art from Calyptale!

Also posted on AO3 on 2023.09.20

Rating: Teen

Pairing: Rayleigh x Shakky x gn!Reader (no pronouns used)

Summary: Your girlfriend introduces you to her husband.

Content warnings : Modern AU, polyamory, flirting, kissing, alcohol drinking

Word count: 1k

- Double the sweetness

You are smitten. Positively, irredeemably in love with Shakky, as a matter of fact.

She had caught your eye during a trade fair a few months ago, stunningly beautiful and captivating her whole audience with her charming voice and intense gaze.

You had locked eyes with her a couple of times during her presentation but you weren’t hoping for more than a few stolen glances– you were neither a customer nor a prospect of the company she was advertising for, and this was a business-related setting so you weren't supposed to be here to flirt.

Shakky, on the other hand, saw no objection to pursuing the target of her desires in any situation. She'd walked straight to you afterwards and asked you if you had any further interest in what she was presenting.

You told her that you were here out of personal curiosity, and that your business didn’t need that kind of service. Contradictory feelings bubbling in your chest then, you had reluctantly went back to your company’s booth and were preparing to spend the rest of the afternoon brooding there, but Shakky came for a visit a little while later.

A mischievous smile curved her lips when she asked, “Personal curiosity, was it?”

Somewhat flustered, you simply nodded.

“Then we have something in common. Maybe we can arrange a rendez-vous so we can talk more about it?”

You blinked. Her words were smooth enough that they seemed innocuous within this context for someone who didn’t witness your previous exchange, but you had a hint there was more to it so you agreed to meet her again, not willing to waste another chance.

Over dinner that night, Shakky told you she was in an open marriage.

Though you never had multiple relationships at the same time, you knew you were polyamorous, so you were fine with things the way they were, and decided to give a shot at a relationship with her.

As it turned out, Shakky is an absolute sweetheart, and you fell for her hook, line and sinker in a matter of weeks. It’s long past the time when you were anxious on dates with her, but tonight is a special occasion so you’re a bit tense when you knock on the door to her house–that is, her and her husband’s, whom she’s introducing you to.

Shakky grins wide as she opens the door, and leans in for a sweet kiss.

You smile against her lips and answer in kind.

When she leans back, she nods for you to come in. “Sweetheart, let me introduce you to my husband,” she says as you follow her into the living room.

Said husband gets up from the couch upon your arrival. “I’m Rayleigh,” he says, politely bowing. “Pleasure to meet you.”

You’ve heard of him quite often, and he seems to be a nice guy. You weren’t quite prepared to meet such a handsome man, though. You clear your throat when you realize you’re staring a little, then bow in return. “(y/n). Pleasure’s all mine.”

Rayleigh gives you a quick once-over, grinning. “I can assure you it’s shared.”

Slightly flustered, you turn your gaze back to Shakky, whose knowing glance goes from her husband to you.

She smiles and offers, “Why don’t we have a drink?”

“I’ll take care of it.” Rayleigh nods.

You sit next to Shakky on the couch, and can’t help but observe her husband while he gets busy at the bar.

Tall, well-built, his brown vest cinching his waist and the dark blue sleeves of his button-up shirt showing his toned arms, a small smile curling his lips, half-hidden behind a curtain of mid-long silver hair.

“Sweetheart?”

You snap your head back towards your lover, slightly embarrassed. “Sorry. What were you saying?”

“That I’m glad to have you both here, and that I hope you’ll get along,” she says with a grin.

You softly smile. “I’m happy to be here too, and I see no reason why we shouldn’t.”

“That’s good,” Rayleigh says as he places two cocktails on the table. “She’s always been a good judge of character, and introduced me to the most wonderful people.”

You tilt your head in curiosity. “Is that so? Does it happen often?”

Rayleigh shrugs. “I wouldn’t say that often but still. Shakky’s lovers are always a delight to meet.” He brings his own drink and raises his glass. “To polycules!”

You exhale a delighted chuckle. “Yeah, that’s nice.” The drink helps you loosen up a little and you wonder why you were anxious in the first place.

Rayleigh is really charming, his voice warm and soothing as he chats and laughs at one or the other story.

Over dinner, Shakky gently teases you, getting you flustered over her compliments while she recounts the early days of your relationship with her.

You manage to avoid blushing too hard when you direct the conversation towards stories of her younger years together with Rayleigh, and find that you only want to know more about them, about him.

Rayleigh tells you he sometimes has other lovers, and he also happened to share a couple ones with her.

You manage to somewhat keep a straight face but this bit of information doesn’t fall onto deaf ears.

“I see why Shakky loves you so much,” Rayleigh says with a smile by the end of the meal.

“Oh, please.” You dismiss with a wave of the hand and a genuine chuckle. “She married you, and I get why too.”

Shakky slyly smiles. “What do you know? I just so happen to have excellent taste.”

You throw her a fondly exasperated glance, then meet Rayleigh’s eyes.

“Who am I to deny it?” He says cockily as he holds your gaze.

Oh. He’s a flirt, too? Your cheeks heat up a little and your lips curl a little upwards.

“Does anyone want dessert?”

Rayleigh looks back at you, smirking. “Something sweet? Oh, I think we’re all set.”

[rmd-writes]

20 questions for fic writers!

tagged by @jesuisici33 💖

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

80 (this blows my mind)

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

539,880 but this is skewed by several collaborations. The total words that are exclusively mine is probably closer to 400-450k

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Red, White & Royal Blue, 911 Lone Star, Schitt's Creek (barely, but I'm not letting them go)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

all RWRB fics:

titles are the worst, we refuse (collab with @athousandrooms @clottedcreamfudge @indomitable-love @everwitch-magiks)

Everybody needs good neighbours

yours for the afternoon

to the victor, the spoils

Hook(up), line & sinker (collab with @athousandrooms, @clottedcreamfudge, @indomitable-love, @the-amber-fox)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I love comments so much and appreciate readers who take the time to leave them, so I like to acknowledge that. Also, I've made several friends as a result of leaving comments or vice versa 💖💖

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

No angsty endings in this house

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

All of my fics have a happy ending (usually literally as well 😉)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Occasionally

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA (yes, mostly smut with so many feelings)

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I haven't ever written a crossover!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not as far as I'm aware

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I have (I think). I don't remember which one though

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Several and it's so much fun! I love writing with my friends

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Nope, you can't make me choose between my three otps (David/Patrick, Alex/Henry, Carlos/TK)

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

My Schitt's Creek paint and sip au

16. What are your writing strengths?

completely gratuitous outfit descriptions, banter, people seem to like when I write smut with feelings

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Definitely world building, I'm not good at that

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I've included Spanish dialogue in both RWRB fic and Tarlos fic before with the generous assistance of some Spanish speaking friends. I think it can definitely work if the context is right.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Schitt's Creek

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

To the surprise of no one, my RWRB lawyer au (start with to the victor, the spoils, which I've linked up there ^^)

tagging @welcometololaland @three-drink-amy @cha-melodius @strandnreyes @stereopticons @rosedavid @carlos-in-glasses @clottedcreamfudge @dumbpeachjuice @orchidscript @maxbegone @liminalmemories21 @lilythesilly

[i23kazu]

i just love you so much! ( no, really. )

where kazuha just loves you so much!

characters: kazuha x gn!reader

warnings: mostly safe, but there’s a kiss scene at the end!

a/n: hi hori @kazu-sun !! surprise, i was the anon who asked you about your favourite daydreams with the your genshin favs! 😆 i wanted to do a little something teehees cutely anyways please reblog with tags and comments if you guys liked this <3

kazuha, to you, comes in the form of both ravaging waves and ironically, serene peace.

once you got to know the man, past the layers of his built walls, you fell for him and you fell hard. kazuha is your world. he’s unpredictable, wild, carefree — but the kaedahara clan’s beloved also carries himself with an air of elegance that first drew you to him.

you feel slightly embarrassed to finally realise that kazuha's hair is as red as the evening glow, as the sun starts to fall from its place. it is the same shade as the autumn leaves that fall around you as you walk hand in hand with him. autumn's days are welcoming for a walk around the rebuilt kaedahara estate, stone path slightly corroded after the months of you and kazuha walking along the same trail each evening.

on the other hand, the man of the household couldn't be more mayhem-inducing. it was always that stupid smile, you remembered, that made you fall hook, line and sinker for whatever stupid prank he was planning…

just like one incident that you swear would forever be etched into your memory.

“(y/n), how does your candy taste like?” kazuha gave you a sweet smile, face resting on his fist as he turned from thoma to look at the grimace on your face.

“it tastes like clay… it’s so bitter.” you scrunched up your face in disgust. who would have thought to make a clay flavoured candy?

“mine tastes like lemons.”

“do you think lemon clay would taste nice?”

before you knew it, kazuha’s face was millimetres away from yours, lips close to crashing together.

archons, kazuha was a good person to kiss.

he was gentle, and he tasted like autumn. like pumpkin spice, espresso shots, cinnamon, apples, hot chocolate — kazuha was autumn incarnate, and autumn incarnate had just kissed you.

oh, and kazuha also just stole the clay candy from your mouth.

when he broke the kiss, kazuha wasn’t even bothered, looking at your firetruck-shade face with your palms pressed to your cheeks, feeling the heat. you could still see him chewing your candy.

“did you just steal my sweet?” was all you could say, still breathless and in shock and awe of whatever the archons had blessed you with just now. kazuha grinned at you, a smirk plastered on his face — not unkindly.

“what can i say? i just love you so much.”

taglist: @tiredsleep @loptido @raincxtter @infinn-toru @ladyadii @soulsanta @solicider @sheiiy @genshinparty @eowinthetraveler @zuyoo @moonbyunniee @lemonswriting @legitnoi @lemontum (send ask to be added to taglist)

please reblog with tags and comments <3 and consider giving me a follow if you liked it!

[dukeoftheblackstar]

For some reason I thought “DANCE PARTY WITH PLO!” Plo just likes to dance around for fun in his quarters. Sometimes the other Jedi masters come and join him for a dance

Babe. You made a grave mistake of sending Plo-related asks in my inbox because now you have to suffer from me rambling like the smitten idiot that I am for my gorgeous Kel Dor King ♥

So I love dancing as much as I love music. Do I think Plo dances in his quarters?

But babe, they can't join him in his private quarters because (1) Plo is quite the private-type. As much as he trusts and would have no qualms allowing friends in his quarters, it's a bit too personal. Maybe only a few and not all. Plus, I imagine his room is (2) constantly pumping Dorin gas so he can just plop down on his bed when he's tired ♥.

Your favorite old man takes naps. Trust me on this.

This would also (3) help him not require to acclimate. Given that he should be able to just pull his mask off and take a deep breath, unclipping his mask would entail a few seconds of the filter mechanism would release oxygen in mid-conversion or something similar of acclimation, really. Please don't let me go through the Science of this, it's 5 AM from where I'm from and I just wanna cuddle this Kel Dor God of mine ♥

SO....

The Wolves Den is what I HC as the 104th's main hub where the Wolfpack hangs, resides, has their own designated 'barracks', sleeps, — like a 104th dedicated wing. This is also where Plo's sealed quarters would be.

In line with your ask, this is also part-time dance floor.

Plo would most likely dance to the tune of old songs. Maybe do a waltz, a tango or two with anyone (EXCEPT SHAAK TI BECAUSE I HAVE TRAUMA ON THIS, OKAY?)

I also HC that the 104th dance on a daily basis.

I can't find my post now so I'm copy pasting my conversation with my bestie @saengak ♥

So I'm a fan of the basement gang and idk why but i always, when this specific reel comes up i feel like these be the boys: Sinker, Boost, Comet and Warthog (providing the tunes) reaction upon discovering some Kel Dor native songs and Wolffe just bobbing his head somewhere

And Wolffe gets the biggest headache of his life on a daily basis ♥

BUT JEDIS DANCING?!

So Plo and Qui-Gon are besties ♥ Bet you they turn shit up dancing. Qui-Gon with some trance-like music that Plo just squints at him but goes along.

Seeing as most of the Jedis are old, I bet you they do the twist. Do the fucking twist, man. Like I can't. 🤣🤣🤣

SO YES. PLEASE IMAGINE PLO AND YODA ALONG WITH ALL THE OLD MOOT LIKE KI-ADI MUNDI DOING THE TWIST BECAUSE I CAN'T BE IN THIS MESS ALONE.

Mother Shaak Ti as (Cher), Luminara and Aayla as Winona and Christina ♥

And for the hilarity of it all, Kit Fisto really working himself with Right Said Fred.

And yes, Plo supporting this foolishness by pulling Kit's shirt because Kit had been pestering him to be in this foolishness of his dance number ♥ Mace just shaking his head and bopping ♥

[blackkatmagic]

Which whump are you working on now??

Kenobi pauses again, then eyes Sinker up and down, like he’s sizing him up. And—it’s not quite alarm that flickers, but maybe it’s something close. Don’t volunteer is a phrase to live by, in Sinker’s opinion, and that look gives him a sneaking suspicion that he’s about to be forced to volunteer. Nothing good ever came from a trainer with that expression, and Sinker’s willing to bet that goes double for generals.

“Extraction and recovery,” Kenobi repeats. “Generally far away, yes? Out of direct communication with anyone?”

“Uh,” Sinker says, because that does not sound promising.

Before Kenobi can pounce, though, there's a cry, familiar and deeply irritated. Sinker twitches on instinct, because the hunting call of an angry medic is to be feared whether that medic is in 212th orange or Wolfpack grey. Something in the command tent crashes, something breaks, and a moment later a tall, broad-shouldered figure shoves out of the opening, barefoot and still pulling too-short Jedi robes back up. His hair is long, brown starting to go grey the same way his beard is, and his expression is set into lines of clear exasperation. One sweeping look around the camp until his eyes land on Kenobi, and then he makes tracks for them.

Behind him, just as ready to commit murder as Obi-Wan, Bender leans out of the tent, hypo in hand, and glares daggers at the man’s back.

“Obi-Wan,” the man says, and Kenobi closes his eyes like he’s praying for patience. “I must insist on a shuttle—”

“Master Qui-Gon, we are in the middle of a war,” Kenobi says. “I am not about to send troops into harm’s way on the off chance that you can convince Count Dooku to see the error of his ways—”

Qui-Gon looks down his nose at Kenobi, one eyebrow rising. “As I was your Master, Obi-Wan, he was mine. I can­—”

“The Chancellor has forbidden any negotiation with Separatist forces,” Obi-Wan says, faintly testy. “Qui-Gon, he is the Separatist movement. You cannot ignore the Chancellor’s direct orders—”

Qui-Gon looks entirely unimpressed. “Orders given by those who sit safely on Coruscant and believe this war is best fought with propaganda,” he says, which—Sinker’s not willing to say he’s wrong. “I have no need of troops, just a ship—”

“The Council has also forbidden this—”

“The Council is mistaken—”

“I am on the Council, Qui-Gon!”

Qui-Gon raises one precise brow, and it is—it’s Kenobi’s expression, down to the last judgmental line. Sinker’s pretty sure that that observation wouldn’t be welcome right now.

“Something you are to be commended for, my old padawan,” Qui-Gon says, mild, but Sinker can see a spark of something in his face, amusement and maybe a little pride. Sinker’s had practice reading assholes, though, given Wolffe’s everything. “That does not change the fact that I need to find Master Dooku at once.”

[randomthoughtsdissociating]

So, due to the relative sucess of my Lorbs tirade, I have decided to yell some more into the void on the topic of Ratchet and Clank. These musings specifically are on the nature of the Lombaxes as a space-faring civilisation and most of them came about when prompted by a disillusioned fan that "We barely know anything at all about Lombaxes, and also Alister was an idiot."

I always thought most of the Lombaxes were more or less space nomads, with their adaptability, problem-solving skills and advanced spaceships. Polaris wasn't all of it, but they didn't exactly live on planets so much as in the space between them.

It is true that we know awful little and that isn't helping. But we do know that Fastoon is a desert planet, which could push a large part of the population to leave simply due to food scarcity, and the local mineral resources could make for excellent trade material with greener planets, even without the Raritanium mines.

(Which would also go along neatly with the satirisation of capitalism in that trade isn't inherently predatory - hell, trade is one of the very few mutually beneficial things sentient beings can do - but that hoarding wealth and power and using others for your own gain before discarding them has a habit of biting you in the arse when least convenient.)

This would make the Cragmite war even more interesting, because if Alister's fighting style is anything to go by (keep in mind that he's a general, so while his combat training may not be as extensive, it should be covering the basics and he should have a good understanding of tactics and strategies the units under his command can perform, as well as the weaponry they have on hand), most of the conflict would be either ship-fights or highly mobile soliders, on solo missions or in small squads, in what would essentially be assassination and recon missions, all across the galaxy, at once, dismantling the threat from the ground up. Only for Percy to effectively do the exact same thing to them later and the only reason the Lombaxes made it was Kaden, his suspicions and persuasion skills and very dilligent sciencist labour, courtesy of our friend Mags.

As for Alister trusting a cragmite despite his best friend's advice, we know EXACTLY why he did it. It's 3 words. You can guess if you want to. They start with R, O and C.

Odds are that that's what got him into the position of a general in the first place, since it's probably a lot easier to get promoted after coming back from a suicide mission with your unit intact, and the philosophy can manifest in many traits that may be seen as desirable in a military leader. Like bravery, creative problem-solving, not being paralysed by difficult decisions...

In fact, I'd go as far as to say that Percy, having grown up around Lombaxes, knew this about him, and specifically tailored his presentation on new tech to trigger this kind of reckless behaviour. And Alister took the bait, hook, line and sinker.

Frankly, General Alister Azimuth was an idiot and a danger to everyone around him, and has learned nothing from his mistakes despite all the time he had for self-reflection while in exile. It sucks that this was someone Ratchet could call "uncle."

[aemiron-main]

reposting one of my mike analyses

ok so this post/writeup/reblog of mine is tied to a reblog by @laozuspo that can be found here & references quotes from it but i’m also putting it here in its own post because of all the recent discussion of mike’s mental health.  You can also find the google doc version of this here and I’m going to put the full post below the cut as well. This post centers around Mike’s mental health, his suicidality, the quarry, and the way that fans and in-show characters perceive mike through the lens of other people/characters instead of seeing him through his own lens & compare him to other people instead of comparing him to himself & how this results in people either accidentally ignoring or intentionally ignoring and dismissing his struggle and how some people are falling hook, line and sinker for the exact lessons about silent suffering, invisible queerness (gay men specifcially especially), and confronting one’s own personal biases and worldview that the duffers are trying to setup via mike’s character. so much of mike’s character is directed towards people who don’t see themselves as outwardly bigoted/judgemental/biased but still have those biases (as we all do) and people almost like ted, whose ‘neutrality’ and ignorance results in suffering much in the same way active hatred/bigotry does and the notion of being queer in the ‘right way,’ or suffering mentally in the ‘right way’. 

(the italicized/blockquoted sections are quotes from a reblog by @laozuspo that can be found here) 

 SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP YOURE SO RIGHT WITH ALL OF THIS!!!!! SO TRUE SO CORRECT AS ALWAYS!!! i have so fucking much to say about all of this so buckle up because i have had some Realizations including more about the quarry.



Literally, Mike's behaviour to the shootout is so tied to this pattern of behaviour that we've already seen with Mike. Something that interests me that I noticed about the shootout is not only do we have Mike defending Will, but Mike is also leaning pretty far out from the wall to the point where Jonathan has to pull him  back in. He's not just defending Will, he's also putting himself in a position where it's easier to get killed, and he may not even be doing this intentionally, it just may be that his own safety isn't even a thought for him, he's not even considering it.

"no mentally healthy child does that. no one who values their own life highly does that. there are other ways to protect your friend that don’t involve putting yourself in mortal danger.



he doesn’t care, though. he didn’t look for other ways, he just places himself in shielding positions over and over again even as the house is literally being ripped apart by bullets. he jumps in front of Will, hangs back so he can be the one behind Will/let Will run first, etc.



it could be argued that “he just loves Will that much, it has nothing to do with his own mental state and perception of his self worth”, but knowing what we know about him, his mental health, and the value he places on his life…unlikely."

YEP YEP YEP YEP THANK YOU!!!!!! HE DOESNT LOOK FOR OTHER WAYS HE USES HIMSELF TO SHIELD WILL, LETS WILL GO FIRST, AND LITERALLY ALSO JUST FORGETS/DOESNT CONSIDER TO PROTECT HIMSELF AT ALL. and if it was just about his love for will imo, we wouldn't have seen the way that he leans out past the wall and jonathan has to pull him back in. he didn't need to do that in order to protect will. it doesnt make any sense when just viewed through the lens of protecting will because mike leaning out like that did literally nothing for wills protection. what it is, is it's the result of mike's lack of consideration for himself and his own life and wellbeing.

 "people are always like “wahh we want s1/2 mike back”, but we see Mike displaying the same behavior here that he has across all seasons." 

 SO FUCKING TRUE AND I HAVE SO MUCH TO SAY ABOUT MIKES INVISIBILITY AND HOW BOTH FANS AND IN-CANON CHARACTERS ARE IGNORING MIKES BEHAVIOUR BECAUSE IT ISNT SOMETHING LIKE THE CLIFF ANYMORE!! like just because he's not stepping of a cliff right not doesn't mean that his issues magically disappeared?? like what i'm saying is that mike has set a suicidality bar so high with his behaviour that then when people feel that he's not meeting that bar, not walking off of cliffs anymore, that he must be fine or not suicidal. people want s1/s2 mike back because his actions and motivations were more obvious, his struggles aligned more with their preconceived, biased notions about suicidality and mental health,  s1 and s2 mike is easier to see through a Will Lens or a Dustin Lens or an El Lens or a "My Own Experiences As A Person Lens" instead of a MIKE LENS because god forbid they have to consider subtext instead of choosing to ignore it even when people point it out. its one thing to miss subtext i do that constantly 24/7. its another to willfully ignore it and not even provide a counterargument when people point it out. 

  and going back quickly to s1/s2 mike and how his behaviour aligns more with peoples' preconceived notions about suicidality than s3 and s4 mike's does, mike's actions in s1/s2 align more with that 'romanticized' view of suicidality, the literal dramatic 'stepping off of a cliff to save his friend but also because he has such little regard for himself' and that WORKS to have the effect that the duffers want, that 'romanticized' approach to it WORKS. it's fucking painful and evokes emotions in the way that 'romanticized' versions of things often do. but as soon as they shift away from that romanticization, people stop believing that it's there. just like mike's sexuality, as soon as it's shifted away from being able to be seen through an external lens, as soon as it has to be viewed through a Mike Lens, people start dismissing it. just like how canon characters dismiss mike. People are falling hook line and sinker for what the duffers have set up here and hell i dont blame them because it's a brilliant setup that forces people to confront their own biased notions about suicidality and mental health and internalized homophobia and sexuality as a whole. it's the epitome of 'people who are drowning don't look like they're drowning.' people are so focused on how will is splashing in the water, they see him and his attempts to keep himself afloat, they see his splashing and his struggle and mistake it for drowning. and while it IS  a struggle, while hes not OUT of the water, he IS staying afloat. but then they overlook mike entirely, because he’s not splashing! They don’t see his struggle in the same way that they see will’s struggle: but that lack of splashing SHOULD be what they’re looking for. They’re looking for the splashing to indicate drowning but they SHOULD be looking for the lack of it, because the splashing means that somebody is still keeping themselves up, still fighting, hasn’t drowned yet. And so people pay attention to mike when he splashes, when he walks off of a cliff, but they STOP paying attention to him once the splashing stops, once he’s ACTUALLY fucking drowning. Like again going back to seeing things  and mike’s experiences from an external lens vs a mike lens, when it comes to the drowning analogy, from mike’s pov/lens, when he’s splashing in the water, he’s safer, he’s less likely to drown, he’s STRUGGLING but the struggle is GOOD because it means he’s still alive, he hasn’t drowned, whereas when he stops struggling, from his pov, it’s hopeless and he’s drowning and dying.  JUST like how hopper said to remember the hurt, because the hurt is good, because it means you’re out of that cave. Will is out of the cave/goes in and out of it but always comes out because people around him help pull him out. And as a result, more people SEE WILL and SEE his struggle because they see him out of the cave and going in and out. People don’t see mike’s struggle as much because he’s still IN THE CAVE MORE THAN WILL IS THEY CANT SEE HIM BECAUSE HES IN THE FUCKING CAVE. and the cave is like the closet, too! Will is out of the closet in the sense that he’s out to himself, has admitted his sexuality to himself, and so when we get his pov, he’s out of the closet, he’s out of the cave, his head is above water. Sure, he’s splashing! That closet door is still open, he could go back in! He could go back into the cave. But he doesn’t, and it’s reflected in his POV and how his struggles, his splashing are more obvious to the audience, how his sexuality is more obvious because he’s out to himself, his pain and IH is more obvious because he’s ACCEPTING IT more and ADDRESSING that pain. Mike on the other hand? Mike comes out and goes back in and this is reflected in his pov. Mike comes out of the cave, out of the closet to himself more in early s4, with hellfire and that whole section of the show, but then he goes back into the closet, literally goes IN THE CLOSET AT RINK O MANIA, he goes back into that cave. And so people assume his struggle is over/doesn't exist/is less than Will’s because we aren’t seeing the splashing, we aren’t seeing Mike, we don’t see him out of the closet or out of the cave. 

 But the thing is, the lack of splashing is what indicates his struggle, that he’s losing the fight, we can’t see him or his sexuality as clear anymore because it’s his pov and he’s in the closet to HIMSELF, not admitting it to HIMSELF. We can’t see him because he went BACK IN THE CAVE, not because he just wandered far away from it and out of our view and getting away from his pain scott-free. People say that they don’t see Mike’s struggle and use that as evidence as to why it doesn’t exist. Setting aside the fact that we DO see it sometimes, we DO see him splashing in the same way that Will does, the thing is, the fact that we don’t see the struggle or the splashing, those moments where we don’t see it should actually be the BIGGEST indicator that it exists. The lack of splashing means he’s fucking drowning, not that he just magically rose out of the water and walked away. like some sort of pseudo-jesus. Just like how Ted is the epitome of the bystander effect, the epitome of ‘’welp! The splashing stopped, the rebellion stopped, the outbursts stopped, so Mike must be fine,” and how that’s affected Mike and resulted in him feeling like he might as well not fight because he splashes and splashes and fights and fights and people like Ted and the audience start to notice but as soon as Mike starts losing energy to fight, as soon as the REAL danger sets in, people stop noticing. But Will doesn’t stop noticing, at least not permanently, which is a whole other fucking topic I need to talk about at some point. Like that’s another fascinating thing about the rink o mania fight and how it ties into mike’s mental health AND sexuality and IH: will isn’t upset because mike said some mean thing to him over the phone over the last few months. Will isn’t upset because he got hit with ‘its not my fault you dont like girls 2.0’. Will is upset because Mike didn’t talk to him. He’s initially upset because Mike stopped splashing and so Will initially assumes, like Ted assumes, like other people assume, that Mike is fine. But throughout s4, we see Will realizing that Mike ISN’T fine, that Will was WRONG and that the lack of splashing is WHAT indicated how much Mike was hurting. We see Will realize that Mike tried to call him, tried splashing, but nobody saw him, that Will didn’t see him or realize that Mike had tried calling, that Mike was drowning. Will didn’t realize until rink o mania that maybe HE should have picked up the fucking phone and called instead of assuming that the silence mean that Mike was fine and didn’t want to talk to Will, Will realizes that he was looking for the splashing but instead should have been looking for the stillness!! Will realizes that he himself is out here splashing and struggling but that he’s still staying afloat, still had hope for his relationship with Mike, still made the painting. Will realizes that Mike stopped splashing, went silent, because he lost all hope for his relationship with Will, just like how Mike acts weird at the airport because he’s stopped splashing, he’s stopped trying. We see Will noticing this!! 

 Whether you believe that Mike has an ED or not, it is 100% canon that we see Will staring at Mike’s plate repeatedly during food scenes, and not just a single side glance in a big shot, but a focused stare in an intimate, close shot like the s4 breakfast scene. We see Will’s expression when Nancy mentions Mike’s bedroom at the end of S4. He looks CONCERNED, not amused. We see how Will gives Mike a speech and a painting to try and make Mike feel better right after Mike starts talking self-deprecatingly about himself. We see Will try and take the blame during the bedroom apology, say that ‘he deserved it,’ BECAUSE Will is coming to realizations about Mike’s actions and why Mike’s acting the way that he does. Will didn’t actually deserve it, but he does feel like he did because now that he’s seeing that Mike DID try and reach out and that Mike felt like their relationship was beyond saving and was devastated by this, now that he’s seeing that Mike IS drowning, Will feels like he deserved what happened at rink o mania, because he was operating under biased assumptions about Mike and not seeing Mike through a Mike Lens. But now, Will is seeing Mike through a Mike lens, at least way more than he was before, so why can’t people on here?? If WILL HIMSELF can get past his own experiences and biases and see Mike through his own lens and not a Will Lens, why can’t other people? Oh right, because unlike many other people, Will is willing to let go of his preconceived conclusions about Mike’s behaviour and character and sexuality, whereas many other people analyzing Mike would rather draw conclusions first and then analyze around that conclusion. Hell, Will still struggles with seeing Mike through a biased lens, which is why he codes his confession as being from El, because he’s not quite seeing through the full Mike lens, he’s not aware of Mike’s feelings for him and thinks that the painting/speech being from El is what will make Mike happiest. But even though Will is still struggling with seeing through the Mike Lens, he is trying SO FUCKING HARD to see through it. And don’t even get me started on how this ties into the themes of ‘normalcy’ in ST and how it ties into Henry and your posts about him and how he’s the ‘big bad’ and not the mindflayer and how the people who seem ‘normal’ are the ones that we should be watching out for the most in terms of being dangerous predators, but also how the people who seem ‘normal,’ who are trying to seem ‘normal,’ like Mike are the ones who we should be watching out the most for in regards to suicidality. Everyone thinks Mike is ‘normal’ because they’re comparing him to OTHER PEOPLE, seeing him through EXTERNAL LENSES, esp in s3 and s4. But when you compare Mike to HIMSELF, when you use the MIKE LENS, it’s OBVIOUS THAT HE’S NOT NORMAL!! Like if the s4 airport scene was our first introduction to Mike? If we were a bystander witnessing it? We would think he was ‘normal’ for the most part, we wouldn’t be able to draw conclusions about his feelings and sexuality and internal struggle from it- and that’s the flaw of seeing Mike through an external lens, because it compares Mike to other people and makes him seem ‘normal’ and erases his struggle with both his sexuality and his mental health, whereas Mike HAS to be seen through a MIKE LENS, an internal lens, compared to HIMSELF, you have to compare hellfire Mike to Lenora Mike to see the differences!! You can’t just compare Lenora Mike to Lenora Will!!

S4 especially is forcing people to see mike through the mike lens and  yet they still try to resist it. im gonna talk about it more later but this ties into mike's behaviour in s3 and s4 and being an 'asshole' and how people are so quick to write him off the moment that the show tries to make them see him and his struggles through a MIKE LENS rather than any other fucking lens. like part of the genius of mike's character and how hes written and portrayed is that he lends himself easily to being viewed through other characters' lenses and experiences BECAUSE HE values himself and views himself relative to other people and relative to his value towards them and because we're shown less of his internal struggle that will for example. but you have to look past that. you have to look through the mike lens. (when i say 'you' i mean a general 'you,' not you specifically tumblr user laozuspo because i KNOW you see through the mike lens 100%.

  Like people were shocked when Mike walked off the cliff but then continue to ignore the very behaviour and patterns and thought process that lead him to walk off of that cliff. they're surprised because they keep ignoring it. just like how a lot of people are going to be surprised in s5 when mike is shown to still struggle with these issues- they're going to be surprised by the outcome because they've been ignoring the signs and symptoms this entire time.

  And i need to make another post abt this at some point but i feel strongly that the 'invisibility' of mike's struggle in  s3 and s4 (even though it's not actually invisible it's just not being literally point blank stated to our faces) is intentional because it's meant to demonstrate how people ignore his struggle until he's at his breaking point and then act surprised when he lashes out or steps off of a cliff. it's meant to demonstrate how people ignore the signs of suicidality, even when theyre SO OBVIOUS, because the signs dont fit their preconceived notions of what a suicidal person is like.

   And this goes back to my other post about people viewing mike's sexuality through a Will Lens: they do the same with his mental health and suicidality. mike is less able to cope with that suicidality than will. because mike is invisible. he doesnt have that family support. people in-canon (nancy making jokes about the state of mike's room whereas will looks concerned about it, mikes family ignoring his obvious lack of appetite/food issues whereas we see will staring at mike's plate repeatedly with concern and dont even get me started on how mike was the one to make the 'real food' comment to el back in s1 and how 'real food' was tied to family and happiness for el via mike's comments but now we only see evidence of poptarts and cereal in the basement and literally NEVER see him eat 'real food' of his own volition etc) ignore the signs of his failing mental health, and people in the fandom watching the show do too.

  Hell, i think that people around Will, his family, have likely worried that will would be suicidal at some point in his life because of all the shit he's experienced even going as far back as lonnie, and so while i don't think that they had a 'hey Will dont kill yourself' talk point blank, i DO think that people like joyce and jonathan made it clear that they're there to support will and that he can talk to them.

  (like the 'i feel like a mistake' speech is directly connected to the scene with jonathan and while YES it is a 'coming out' scene for will, it's also a 'jonathan letting will know that he's there for will and not wanting will to feel like a mistake for ANY REASON' scene, it's BOTH)

  "imo Mike is clearly openly depressed in s4. The state of his room, the lack of eating, the dark circles under his eyes, the excerpt from Lucas on the Line…not a pretty picture."

 YEP!!! GOD I NEED TO MAKE A BIG POST ABOUT HIS MENTAL HEALTH BECAUSE YEP!! like imo its unlikely that the dark circles are an accident like sure people like finn and myself and other people can just have them naturally but if the makeup dept didn't want to show them, they would have covered them up?? and not emphasized them the way they seem to?? and they wouldn't have lit him in a way that emphasizes them for mike but doesnt emphasize them for will or any other characters in so many scenes??

  and god i need to make my full post abt mike's lack of eating because the fact that we see apple jacks/poptarts, things that are similar to eggos and therefore are deemed not 'real food' by mike and the 'real food' conversation between mike and el in s1 and what that represents for mike and how imo a fair few of his eating issues stem from his family especially considering the tension and fighting that we often see at the wheeler table and how we often see mike just picking at his food in those scenes and how we also see him turning to not 'real food' (doritos etc) in season 3 when he's stressed/upset and we don't see him eating 'real food'  (no shame over anyones food choices im just picking up on patterns of mikes behaviour w food and how 'real food' is defined in the context of the show).

 

"He’s been prone to suicidality since s1, when we realize that to him, his life has very little value, and he was willing to throw it away. He knew the rocks were there, he just didn’t care, especially in the wake of Will’s death." 

  YEP!! THANK YOU!! and oh my god i have so much to say about how mike cares about other people and centers his own life and value around others and his ability to help for others and care for others so when that 'fails' (when el leaves in s1 and when he thinks hes lost will forever) his perception of his own value is literally reduced to zero. ffs the cliff was even more tempting to him when considered through this lens because not only did he feel like he failed will and el and therefore had no purpose/value, but he was also able to HELP DUSTIN by stepping off.

  He gets hit by both sides because his lack of feeling useful/helpful to others makes him want to step off AND stepping off will make him useful/helpful to others?? the cliff was literally a carrot being dangled in front of mike's face. the cliff wasn't a challenge for mike so much as it was a literal dangling 'help others and punish yourself for failing to help others AND for actively hurting someone like el' carrot in front of mike's face. he barely had to be verbally pushed to do it. dustin was begging him NOT TO. hell I think part of the only fucking reason he hesitated at all was because dustin was begging him not to and again dustin is another person that mike doesnt want to hurt or disappoint either but then mike imo ends up weighing dustins hurt of seeing mike jump vs dustin's hurt of losing his baby teeth and deems the hurt of losing mike as a lesser pain for dustin to bear.

   Mike literally, canonically, in the show, values himself less than dustin's baby teeth, thinks that the pain of losing mike and watching mike kill himself is less painful than losing some baby teeth, because mike struggles to conceptualize of himself having value, of his loss hurting someone, he see himself as so insignificant that he thinks that his death is something that dustin could more easily get over than the loss of his baby teeth. like literally i cannot get over the fact that the reason that mike hesitated was likely only/99% because DUSTIN begged him not to and he didnt want to hurt dustin. the cliff and walking off of it isn't a threat or a challenge for mike. it's a fucking dangling carrot treat for that self-loathing part of his brain. the cliff and stepping off of it isn't a problem to him, it's the SOLUTION to his problems, in his mind at least.

  This is what i mean when i say that people need to see mike through his own eyes and himself and the world through mike's lens rather than seeing mike and the world and the show through will's lens or dustin's lens or any other external. because we can only understand mike and the depth of his character and mental state via his lens, by seeing things and himself the way that HE does.

  'Mike's room isn't that bad lol it doesnt look like the depressed rooms I'VE seen, it doesn't look like MY experience with depressed rooms and neither does the basement, mike isn't depressed because it doesn't meet my standards/experiences or the standards and experiences of other characters' ok well try comparing it to the previous presentations we've seen of mike's bedroom and the basement. start viewing it through MIKE'S lens. not yours. not will's. not nancy's. MIKE'S. compare how neat and tidy his bedroom was in s1. compare how  neat and tidy the basement was in s1 and s2 and how even though it did get messy in s3 that's because the basement is a reflection of his mental state and mike is struggling again in s3 especially during the scenes with will in the basement. Compare mike to HIMSELF, not to others, just like how i already talked about with hellfire mike vs lenora mike. 

  'Mike's food habits arent that bad, i just don't see him struggling with food because it doesnt align with MY experiences and preconceived notions about food issues or with other characters' experiences and therefore i dont think him struggling with food is actually a struggle/that its shown in the show'

  Don't just compare it to your experiences or other characters' experiences or your interactions with food or other characters' interactions with food: compare it with MIKE'S previous interactions with food too. Outside comparisons can totally be valuable but should not be the sole/main lens for a perceiving a character. Compare that character to THEMSELF, to previous versions of themself, previous seasons, ages, episodes, etc. Look at how Mike talks about ‘real food,’ in s1, look at how often we see him eating ‘real food’ in s1 compared to s4, look at what the dynamics are like at the wheeler table during meals in s1 vs s2 and how it becomes more tense by the end of s1 and ESPECIALLY in s2. Look at  how we didn’t GET a wheeler dinner table scene in s3 and s4, look at how we got Mike putting poptarts in a toaster in s4 but don’t even see him eat them and how that contrasts to the wheeler family breakfast back in s1 where we see them all sit there and see Mike eating eggs, and how even THEN, Nancy was making comments about Mike’s food choices and there was other tension at the table too. Look at the s3 dinner table scene at the Holloways while “american pie,” plays in the background, a song about loss of innocence and deep cultural changes and a farewell to the american dream in the grand scheme of things, sure, but ALSO a song and a SCENE that narratively creates that tie between dinner tables/nuclear family/american dream dinners like the Wheelers versus stress and tension and death. And then think long and hard about how that scene is very much a dramatized version of the Wheeler dinner table and how Heather’s dad treats Heather’s mother in a harsher way than Ted treats Karen, but the conflict between them is still there in both cases. 

  Look at how the dinner table is turned into a place of fear and anxiety and literal death after the Holloways are knocked out and kidnapped, and then look at how we see Mike in that house in a later episode, look at how Nancy seems to be the one who figured out what happened, because both of them HAVE that association with dinner tables and conflict on a subconscious level. Look at how in S3, we see Mike eating not ‘real food’ in the basement but don’t see a wheeler family dinner scene like we did in previous scenes. Look at how we don’t see those nuclear family dinner table scenes for the Byers, they rarely eat together, but in S3 we do see Will peacefully eating at the table, having breakfast, because the Byers aren’t dysfunctional in the same way as the Wheelers, Will doesn’t face that same ‘sit down at the dinner table and eat while also being emotionally neglected and dismissed about your clear mental health struggles the moment you start splashing so then you just go back to drowning while you watch your parents fight and feel like its your fault which feeds into your suicidality in terms of not wanting to  hurt other people and how your perception of your value is tied to how other people treat you and how you impact them’ that Mike does. Will is able to eat at his own schedule, but he’s also not totally alone/left to fend for himself!! And that’s all another reason why the S4 breakfast scene between Mike and Will is so interesting to me, in addition to Will clearly staring at Mike’s plate like I already talked about: because we get visual callbacks to the wheeler table! We get the fancy syrup and people sitting around a table and being expected to come down (El, who doesn’t show up, just like how Nancy doesn’t show up earlier in one of the seasons and Ted comments on it to Karen, yet another El-Nancy parallel), we get the syrup. We get the tension, the emotional tension between Will and Mike and Mike and El just like the tension at the Wheeler table. Mike is reminded of the Wheeler table in that scene and imo that’s part of why he looks SO uncomfortable and BARELY even plays with his food. Like in the Murray’s Dinner scene, it was actually a bit LESS like the wheeler table despite being more of a ‘family dinner,’ because the DYNAMIC is different, murray and joyce are different from Mike’s parents, and so, Mike is just a LITTLE bit more comfortable, he’s still deeply uncomfortable, but he’s MORE comfortable than he is at breakfast the next day! And this is reflected in his behaviour! Risotto Dinner mike still sips at his drink, plays with his food more. Breakfast Mike? Breakfast Mike doesn’t even fucking touch his drink, barely plays with his food. Will stares for a fairly long glance at Breakfast Mike’s plate.

 We DO see Will glance at Mike’s plate and stare at it for a second and look concerned during the Risotto dinner too (and imo Murray also noticed Mike’s lack of eating and I feel that his ‘I sense tension. What’s wrong? Everybody hates the risotto’ comment had a double meaning because a.) the tension is there but Murray clearly sees people eating the risotto?? He watches Will literally talk with his mouth full of risotto?? So him picking up on the tension cant just be based on that and b.) The opposite too, Murray commenting on people not eating the risotto/hating it can’t just be based on the tension. He’s noticing that Mike isn’t eating and is wondering why, if it’s because of the tension or the risotto or what). But even though the risotto dinner is a bit less like the wheeler table, just a bit, the tension is still there. Mike still directly parallels his father when making a comment about El the way that Ted makes a comment about Karen during that one ‘what did i do” dinner scene.

And this and the discussion of Mike's eating problems as a whole goes back to what I said about Mike's struggle being erased and how people want s1/s2 mike back because his actions (walking off of a cliff) align more with the stereotypical and 'romanticized' version of suicidality and dare I say, lots of people are viewing Mike’s eating issues through a romanticized lens of what eating disorders/problems are like and what they’re defined as and how they develop and present. They’re not just viewing him through an external lens, but a romanticized external lens at that. A few people wanted to accuse ME of 'romanticizing' mike's ed/food issues by pointing it out. But THOSE people are the ones with a romanticized viewpoint of EDs because they can't see Mike's because it doesn't align with that romanticized viewpoint. Take off the biased, romanticized goggles, and IMO his struggles are clear as day. 

   'mike's self isolation isn't that bad, we can't rely on what's in lucas on the line, it's not the show and in the show we see him at hellfire and smiling, right? so clearly he isn't isolating himself or struggling in the way that you guys think he is!” again quit seeing him through an external lens. Look at how Mike was previously, look at him being around his friends and social and defending them literally to the fucking DEATH versus s4 Mike struggling with a simple DND argument with Lucas and letting it pull them apart. Look at S1 Mike who clearly not only FELT deeply guilty about his fight with Lucas but also fought to resolve it. Now look at S4 mike who feels the SAME GUILT but is pulling away and isolating himself and feels almost as if Lucas is better off without him. Mike and Dustin were being dicks about DND, I’m NOT excusing their behaviour towards Lucas, but I AM trying to understand it. Explaining and understanding is not the same as excusing. Even then, during that scene, DUSTIN takes the lead more than Mike, we see Mike look to Dustin for approval during that ‘maybe I don’t want to be a freak/nerd’ scene with Lucas, And I’m gonna talk abt this more at another time/in my analysis but I also think that part of Mike’s response to that scene and why he’s more willing to withdraw and isolate from Lucas in s4 than he was in S1 is due to the fact that Hellfire works as an allegory for queerness and the clear ties between ‘freak’ and ‘fag,’ and so when Lucas starts talking about not wanting to be a ‘freak’ anymore, and not wanting Dustin or Mike to  have to be ‘freaks’ either, and then ALSO ties that to attraction to girls because he’s ‘sick of girls laughing at him,’ Mike starts panicking and isolating a bit because unlike Dustin and Lucas (to an extent because I saw some great posts about the racial connotations of ‘freak’ too and Lucas not wanting to be ostracized for who he is esp considering how much racism he’s faced in Lucas on the Line and how he can’t change his skin colour), Mike can’t change the fact that he’s a freak. Because ‘freak’ is paralleled to ‘fag’ in ST and Mike can’t change his sexuality. 

  So unlike Dustin, who doesn’t roll over as easily and takes the lead and argues with Lucas a bit more (Mike starts out the same way but once Lucas talks about not wanting to be a freak/talks about girls laughing at him, mike’s demeanour totally shifts and he gets anxious looking and quiet and starts look at dustin for reassurance/to take the lead), Mike stays quieter and resigns himself to his fear that he might lose Lucas over being a ‘freak’/queer. Because from MIKE’S POV at least Dustin can change the fact that he plays DND, at least Dustin can change whether or not he does nerdy things. He shouldn’t have to, but he CAN. Mike, on the other hand can’t change his queerness. But with that said, I have something important to say in regards to ‘Lucas, Dustin, Mike and the concept of being freaks and whether or not they can change it,’ because Lucas and Dustin CAN’T change it either, but Mike hasn’t quite clicked onto that because he’s so fixated on his own queerness and coming to terms with it and his own internalized homophobia. Mike feels like Lucas and Dustin are able to make a choice not to be ‘freaks,’ but doesn’t realize that Lucas is labelled a ‘freak’/outcast in hawkins as a result of being black, and Dustin is labelled a ‘freak’/outcast in hawkins due to his Cleidocranial dysplasia. Both of those are things that they can’t change. 

  I am NOT saying Lucas is homophobic. At all. He is 100000% not homophobic he is my son and he is brilliant and kind and wasn’t fully in the wrong at ALL and I adore him. I am NOT saying that lucas can ACTUALLY change himself/make people see him not as a freak. I’m saying that Mike THINKS that lucas can change himself and doesn’t make the tie between Lucas’ race being a large part of why he’s treated as a ‘freak,’ and doesn’t understand that racial targeting that Lucas has faced and why Lucas wants to try and get away from anything ELSE that labels him as a freak/puts a target on his back (see: hellfire) because he already faces so much targeting and ostracization based on being black. Mike thinks that it’s about him, that Lucas is rejecting him when he doesn’t ‘want to be a freak,’ but that’s not the case. It’s about LUCAS and how LUCAS has been treated and how it’s not about Lucas not liking Mike or being homophobic- it’s about  Lucas not wanting himself or his friends to be targeted anymore. Lucas even says that ‘WE wanted things to be different in highschool,’ he wants Dustin and Mike to join him and not face that ostracization, not realizing that a.) Lucas himself cannot change the fact that people judge him and see him as a freak, no matter how much he tries to fit in with the basketball team and b.) That Mike also has an unchangeable albeit different aspect of himself that gets himself labelled as a ‘freak’ (mike’s sexuality, which Lucas doesn’t know about). So if Mike sees Dustin and Lucas as the ones who can change from being a freak (ie ‘freak’ for Mike is seen relative to his sexuality, that’s how he centers it from his pov, and he sees Dustin and Lucas as straight and doesn’t take into consideration Lucas’ race and how he’s been targeted for it and Dustin’s CCD and how both of them get labelled ‘freaks’ for those unchangeable aspects of themselves). And Lucas sees Dustin and Mike and the ones who can change (Dustin and Mike are both white, Lucas’ targeting/’freak’ label has been centered around his race, and he doesn’t take into consideration Dustin’s CDD and doesn’t KNOW about Mike being gay and sees Mike’s freak label as being about his appearance (and hellfire but thats a choice) due to that being what he was bullied for in S1, but then rationalizes that Mike’s appearance has changed since S1 and people don’t call him frogface anymore, so Mike must not have anything unchangeable anymore that makes him a ‘freak’). And Dustin sees Lucas and Mike as the ones who can change (his ‘freak’ label is centered around his CDD, that’s what he’s bullied for in S1, and so he sees Mike and Lucas as not being affected by that, doesn’t take into consideration Lucas’ race or know about Mike’s queerness.) We’ve set ourselves up for miscommunication and misunderstanding and futility soup here!! They each think the others are making a choice, but the reality is that NONE of them are. 

  And similar with Dustin, and Mike may FEAR that Lucas and Dustin would reject him for being queer. Again esp considering the ties between hellfire and queerness and the media rhetoric around both at the time, Mike is likely fearing that his friends are changing from the accepting friends that he knows and possibly falling for that rhetoric. 

   it's all 'not that bad,' its all 'i just dont see mike's depression, people are reaching' up until mike walks off of another fucking cliff. such a key part of mike's character and the way that his mental health AND sexuality are presented is his invisibility and how people can't see him unless he's loud and boisterous and in their face and snarky and then they still get mad at him for BEING THAT WAY. it's all 'mike's just a loud asshole and thats okay we don't have to tie it to his mental health,' up until you realize that mike's loudness and assholery isn't the cause of mental state and him being the way he is, it's the RESULT of it. he's louder because he's used to not being heard.

  So fucking much of the sheer dismissal of mike's mental health (and his sexuality like i already talked abt in another post) comes SOLELY from comparing him to other characters, comes solely from 'well mike isnt struggling in the same way as will so therefore he isnt struggling' and comparing mike to will instead of comparing mike to HIMSELF. It's the wolf-arrow internalized homophobia analogy from my other post all over again!! Sure, mike and will don't struggle in the exact same way/to the same extent, but again, will is more able to OVERCOME that struggle, will is able to take more hits.

   if youre saying that 'well if mikes mental health is bad we would see him be more like will when will starts showing signs of bad mental health,' you're not realizing that because will has more of an ability to cope, something that devastates Will would absolutely fucking obliterate Mike. Even things that don't 'devastate' will, the single arrow, those minor wounds are again, a KILLING BLOW for mike, let alone what the final killing arrow for Will would be for Mike, let alone what the sum of all 50 or whatever arrows in the big wolf's back would be for mike. the single arrow is a killing blow, the 50 arrows would just be beating the corpse that is his mental state (and possibly his LITERAL, physical corpse considering his clear struggle with suicidality and how people keep fucking ignoring it and falling for the same trap that the characters do and the duffers KNOW that people are ignoring it because theyve set it up in a way that LENDS ITSELF to being ignored so that fans' actions/perception of mikes mental health DOES sort of actually affect mike in that way because the duffers are more likely to make him succumb to those issues because they KNOW that they've set it up in a way that would be a surprise to much of the audience  but also not totally out of nowhere).

  Mike Wheeler is a brave, strong, wonderful character. At the same time, though, Mike Wheeler would not last a second if faced with what Will dealt with from Lonnie, would not last a second if faced with Will's connection to Vecna or experiences in the upside down. If we want to compare mike and will and see mike through will's lens the way that some people are so keen to do then let's DO IT, it's fair to do for the sake of comparison but should not be the MAIN THING that drives your conclusions about mike. it should be a supporting factor if anything.

  Mike isn't 'weaker' by any fault of his own persay, he's 'weaker' because he doesnt have that a.) longtime experience of dealing with this shit that will has in terms of homophobia and abuse and upside down trauma  and b.) even less than the experience, because imo will's experiences would make things WORSE for him, make him weaker, not stronger, if it wasn't for the people that support will, his family and the way that they support him, something that mike lacks. Will is strong but even he says himself that he relies on other people like Mike to make him not feel like a mistake.

 

"it also crops up in the s2 tunnel plan. He knows “his hub” is likely to be swarming with demodogs, he doesn’t care. He'll throw himself in to protect El and Will, even at the cost of his own life."

   YES YES YES YES THIS IS SO TRUE. HE WILL ABSOLUTELY THROW HIMSELF INTO IT AT THE COST OF HIS OWN LIFE. Like he was willing to walk off the cliff for dustin’s baby teeth, deemed the pain of losing them as greater than the pain of losing mike/mike’s death. So protecting Will and El from losing their lives/getting grievously injured is a WALK IN THE PARK in terms of decision making for mike because he IMMEDIATELY feels that their injuries would hurt THEM more than his death, he sees himself as having so little value that he doesnt even realize how his death would devastate people. Which is part of why I think he’s gonna die and come back in s5 and how it would fit in perfectly with his arc as a character. 

  "and the s3 sauna test fight/battle of star court. he knows Billy is far stronger than him, he doesn’t care. He’ll throw himself against Billy to protect the party twice, even at the risk of his own life."

   YEP!! smthn smthn mike has been largely ignored/neglected by his family smthn smthn his warped perception of his own value smthn smthn helping others is the only way he sees any value in himself smthn smthn el rejects mike’s attempts to be himself, rejects his hobbies and his singing and the silly things about him that could’ve made mike see value in himself/that he thinks El could’ve seen value in him for, and so then Mike figures that he can only get El to value him and therefore can only value himself as long as he’s protecting/helping her and other people smthn smthn mike’s suicidality is NOT el’s fault, she saved him at the cliff, but their RELATIONSHIP and incompatibility and the way that she dismisses him is contributing to it JUST like he’s contributing to that pain for HER. they are hurting eachother. 

And also thinking about the sauna battle and how the original sauna scene CLEARLY shows mike displaying internalized homophobia and self-loathing and then in that SAME LOCATION we get mike effectively trying to kill himself by going up against Billy and how this represents not only Mike’s struggle with his internalized homophobia and how it’s intertwined with his suicidality, but also how Mike is starting to face EXTERNAL homophobia as he starts to branch out towards his attraction to men and being framed around his attraction to men (which we see even more of in s4). Billy is outwardly attacking him, representing that external criticism and homophobia, but Mike runs into the attack willingly, representing that internal criticism and internal homophobia.

And okay disclaimer I loathe Billy he’s a racist, abusive POS and I think people baby him WAY too much. At the same time, though, I feel like we can acknowledge the homophobia that he dealt with from his father, REGARDLESS of whether or not he’s queer, and how Billy attacking Mike represents Billy continuing the cycle of that homophobia and throwing it onto Mike. None of this absolves Billy, but the subtext is there for a reason, Billy was the one to attack Mike in a place (the sauna) that is already tied to Mike’s sexuality and internalized homophobia. Billy was the one trapped in the sauna, and the sauna does represent internalized homophobia, and so I do think that Billy may have dealt with it to some extent, and even if he didn’t, even if he wasn’t queer, he’s still continuin that cycle of homophobic abuse that he learned from his father. 

 "Even now, it’s the same thing repackaged in an older body. He’s depressed and his life has little value to him, so he’s willing to throw us away for someone he perceived as having more value." 

  Completely fucking true. Completely true. It’s repackaged in an older body AND is now being shown through the MIKE LENS, not a romanticized/external lens like it was in s1 and s2, which makes it harder for people to grasp because it forces them to confront their own preconceived notions about mental health and depression and suicidality and forces them to see things from MIKE’S perspective, not their own. It forces people to confront their own lens, and that’s the genius of the way that his character is set up and presented. And there’s something to be said, too, for the capitalist nature of the wheelers and the idea of the ‘value’ of a person and how that value is determined. 

 

"Mike’s suicidal tendencies have been an open secret since day one. No one talks about them in the show, but they’re painfully obvious." 

  YES!!! Okay I want to talk about ‘no one talks about them in the show’ because I feel like it’s true to an extent, but people do TALK about the signs of his suicidality, like Nancy talking about his room, but what they DON’T do is make the link of those topics and behaviours to Mike’s suicidality. Nancy comments on his room but doesn’t understand or care why his room is the way that it is. Ted comments on Mike’s falling grades in a roundabout way ‘highschool dropout club’ but doesn’t make the connection to Mike’s mental health/suicidality. Dustin also comments on Mike’s falling grades (the C in spanish), but doesn’t make the link to Mike’s mental health. Because they’re not seeing him through a Mike Lens. WILL is the only one seeing Mike through a Mike Lens, just like I already talked about. They’re comparing Mike to OTHER PEOPLE, not to HIMSELF. Nancy compares Mike’s room to the cabin, not to the previous state of his room in past seasons. Dustin compares Mike’s grades to his own, not to Mike’s previous grades. Ted talks about the ‘highschool dropout club’ and compares Mike and his slipping academic abilities to the other members of the hellfire club rather comparing it to Mike’s previous grades and academic tendencies. Even back in S2, Karen talks about Mike plagiarizing work and graffiting the bathroom stall and Mike says “everyone graffitis the bathroom stall,’ even MIKE is comparing himself and his struggles to other people, because like I said earlier, he’s a character that lends himself heavily to that, AND it results in him invalidating his own struggles. Even Ted says ‘if your friends jumped off of a cliff, would you?’ meanwhile mike IS the one who jumps off of the cliff, the comparison of him to his friends relative to the cliff doesn’t work for him because he IS the cliff friend and can therefore only be accurately compared to HIMSELF. 

  (I absolutely agree that his grief is paralleled to Joyce. They both love Will so much, and many of their reactions are in sync. They’ve both been on the edge for a while, all it took was a push.) 

  THANK YOU!!!! IM GLAD YOU AGREE BECAUSE YOU LITERALLY NEVER MISS!!! And okay so this is probably semantics but the phrasing of ‘all it took was a push’ is SUPER interesting to me and im going to use this as an opportunity to talk about  it. I already mentioned this, but Mike didn’t so much get a push as he did a dangling fucking carrot in the form of a cliff. 

When Hopper talks about Will’s ‘accident’ at the quarry and the idea that it could’ve been a hatecrime, he implies that maybe Will was pushed/had some external force/person put him off that cliff against his own free will. But when it comes to Mike, Mike wasn’t pushed in the same way. Mike was LURED towards the cliff, like I talked about before,  it’s a dangling treat for that self-loathing part of his brain, but he wasn’t pushed. But he was pushed TOWARDS make that decision, towards taking that step, if that makes sense, but he wasn’t pushed off of the cliff physically or even 100% emotionally. He STEPPED OFF physically and mentally and emotionally. He CHOSE TO. We see the bullies literally PUSH MIKE to the ground physically in s1. They’re not afraid to push him. But they don’t push him off the cliff. Mike steps off out of his own free choice. But the bullies have INFLUENCED that choice, everything that’s happened to Mike has influenced that choice. The bullies DID literally put him a ‘few steps from the edge’ when they grabbed him and Dustin, but Mike was the one who chose to walk off even though he was being pressured, he still made that choice and made it terrifyingly easily. It’s like how people will bully others, especially queer or outcast kids to the point of suicide but often don’t catch murder changes for it because they technically didn’t kill them. 

 Joyce is the same. She didn’t get pushed off of the cliff into her mental decline, she STEPPED OFF. She  got pushed towards it by Will’s death and Lonnie and Hopper not believing her. But at the end of the day, her and Mike both took that final step. They may have been pushed to the edge, pushed to being those few steps from the edge, but they weren’t pushed off of the edge. They stepped off. They chose to. And YES that choice was absolutely totally influence by others’ and the ‘push’ from others, but the push wasn’t the final blow. The final blow was self-inflicted. 





LIKE GOD YOU ARE SO FUCKING RIGHT AS ALWAYS!!!!!!! SO TRUE AND RIGHT!! And as a final note, something that’s funny to me is it’s all ‘max and mike are the same person different fonts’ until people like you and I point out mike’s suicidality and how MAX has it too. They're the ‘same person’ until their characters and similarities don’t align with peoples’ preconceived notions about them. Mike is the ‘same’ as Max up until somebody points out he’s suicidal too, and then they immediately can’t see it because it’s not framed the exact same way as Max’s despite the numerous parallels in their suicidal tendencies. People will put an El Lens, a Will Lens, a Personal Experience and Bias Lens, a Nancy Lens, a Max Lens and literally any other fucking lens onto Mike before they even CONSIDER a Mike Lens, and even then it’s like they have to be dragged kicking and screaming to see things through the Mike Lens because the Mike Lens doesn’t align with their preconceived notions and conclusions about him. (can you tell im a bit annoyed ™ about the erasure of mike’s issues and misinterpretation of his character?? People who refuse to see the signs in mike are likely going to refuse to see the signs in their IRL friends and THATS why im so passionate about this.)