#the second game was INCREDIBLY WELL WRITTEN IT WAS JUST SAD

[fagknowledge]

If you guys shittalk the second season of TLOU like you did TLOU2 I'll be so fucking angry like what's actually wrong with you

[weasleyreidstyles]

Serendipity; snippets of navigating fifth year with Fred Weasley

series masterlist

based on a request from ages ago. its a little choppy, but bare with me, ive just suffered the worst bout of writer's block ever😓 (i'm actually so sad that i've neglected serendipity so much but im back and i have so many wips to share with you all!!!!)

pairing(s): fred weasley x fem!reader, brief theodore nott x fem!reader (platonic)

Hogwarts doesn't feel the same anymore. The usual air of magic had been snuffed out with each imposing rule that was nailed to the Entrance Hall walls. There is no more laughter in the corridors, no more soft chatter from the figures inside the magical portraits; instead the repetitive notes of Professor Umbridge's sugary sweet tone rattle over deafening speakers.

All boys and girls must remain eight inches apart from eachother.

There will be no house fraternising during meal times.

Talk of any unauthorised groups will be met with adequate punishment.

Curfew must be met by every member of the student body.

That last one still haunts you in your peaceful moments.

It's the reason you sit on one of the uncomfortable plush seats in Professor Umbridge's office, a cursed black quill clenched in your harsh grip as you write out those very words, the familiar cursive of your own handwriting etching painfully into the skin of your non-dominant hand. She was smirking at you under the guise of sipping lengthily from her pink teacup, watching as the tears steadily building in your eyes finally spilled down over your cheeks, which were flushed red from the pain.

How had you found yourself in this predicament exactly?

You were made a prefect at the start of the year, alongside Hermione and Ron, which you'd found out when you got your letter detailing which books you would need for your fifth year. You remember the pride written across your parents' faces and how elated you had been to be given such a prestigious role, one that many Ravenclaw students in your year wanted just as badly as you. It was a revered spot after all. Everyone was elated for you, but none more so than the oldest Weasley twin.

"Are you going to give us unlimited leeway with pranks now that you hold such a position of authority, gorgeous?" Fred's husky voice joked in a whisper as the two of you sat at the dining table during the small party that Molly and your mother had set up in celebration for the three of you.

"Are you asking me to take advantage of my new position, Weasley?" You ask, a small smirk making its way on your face as you fight the blush threatening to paint your cheeks at his sudden closeness.

All summer, he had been flirting with you. At first you put it down to his lack of contact to the outside world and you laughed at his well-timed jokes and played into his flirtations with rebutting jokes of your own.

But then one night, when you flirted back daringly, he kissed you. He actually kissed you. It wasn't your first kiss. No, that went to Harry in a random game of truth or dare back in second year (something you both agreed was wrong on so many levels; it was never discussed by any of you again). But this kiss with Fred felt incredible and it cemented a closer bond with the older twin, whose brilliantly blue eyes sparkled with something more whenever he stared at you after that moment.

He'd rewarded your achievement later that same evening, after the party, behind the closed door of your temporary bedroom, leaving you smiling and giddy for the rest of summer. It's what prompted Ginny and Hermione's loose bet as to how long it would take for the pair of you to get together officially.

Your elation lasted until the very moment you stepped into the Prefects' Carriage and found out who you'd be partnered up with for the year.

Theodore Nott. Notorious for his aloof attitude as well as his surprising intellect that rivalled Hermione's. He was part of Riddle's group, one of the most popular groups in school, possibly trumping even the Golden Trio. But because he was part of Riddle's crew you had learned to hate him just a little – his teasing remarks towards your friends, especially Ron, always sent you into a spiral of brewing animosity.

So when Alicia Spinnet, who had been given the prestigious role of Head Girl, announced that she was pairing you with him, you cast her a look of utter betrayal, which she vehemently ignored.

You did not speak to Nott for the entire time you were meant to familiarise yourselves with eachother, and he made no effort either; grey eyes misted over as if he wasn't even part of the present conversation altogether. Gods how you despised him.

~∞~

Upon returning to your original compartment, following slowly behind Ron and Hermione, Fred had immediately seen your crestfallen look.

"What's up, gorgeous?" he asked from his seat by the window, ignoring Ron's faux gagging at the nickname. He'd also moved further into the corner to allow you the space to sit down.

You thanked him with a quiet smile before sitting down with a sigh.

"Alicia paired me with Nott for prefect rounds. How unfortunate is that?" You mumble, resting your head dejectedly against his burly shoulder.

"You're joking?!" He says with wide eyes. "What the hell was she thinking?"

"I assume it was because Davies paired Parkinson with your counterpart, so you got paired with Nott as a consequence." Hermione said from the opposite seat. "The Ravenclaws and Slytherins in sixth and seventh year were paired together as well."

Yes that was an overarching trend that had seemed to stick over the years.

"Maybe it won't be too bad." Ginny says and you all turn to her in synchronised disbelief. "What? I've never seen Nott speak. Maybe that'll be a good thing. A mute partner is better than a snarky one."

"Just the thought of being in his presence makes me uncomfortable. Mute or not." You say quietly, so only Fred can hear.

"If he does or says anything to you, let me know yeah?" He replied with equal secrecy and you nod your head imperceptibly in response.

He lets you use his shoulder as a makeshift pillow when you find your eyes closing drowsily, brushing the loose hair that falls into your face and ignoring George's knowing glances.

~∞~

The very first round of Prefect duties was utterly boring and painfully long. You and Nott had patrolled the Astronomy corridor with lacklustre precision, both eager to get away from eachother's presence.

It was like this for a while, a few months to be exact, until you both became accustomed to the silence, to the point where it was actually bareable. No longer were rounds a labourous activity; you and Nott began to partake in small talk, to the most minute extent – in no way did this make you aquainted and in the daylight, you returned to steely looks and barely contained snarls of discontent, which was mirrored by your friends, and his. You barely noticed the extra attention that Voldemort's son seemed to be giving you as your friendship with Theo progressed at a steadily growing pace.

At your budding friendship with the Slytherin Prefect, Fred began showing up at the end of your rounds to whisk you away, never sparing Theo a glance. The two of you would wander the desolate corridors, hands interlocked as you spoke quietly and unhurriedly. You noticed that Fred, always grinning and never unnecessarily angry, would grow agitated in Theo's presence and you never understood why.

Until one night, when Fred was loitering at the end of your last corridor to patrol, Theo had said something that made you burst into pearls of laughter; his face had lit up with a delighted smirk at the sound.

Fred's face was stoic and so unnaturally like his usual cadence that it took you completely by surprise.

"Of course you're waiting here, Weasley." Theo had mumbled, mostly to himself, but Fred had bristled from where he was leaning against the wall.

"You have a problem with that, Nott?" He had snarled and you'd looked at him with widened eyes at the edge in his voice.

Eager to defuse the tension, you took Fred's hand and gave Theo a look that read 'stop being an arsehole', before leading the ginger boy away.

Theo had gone back to his best friend to report that Mattheo's suspicions were indeed correct: you had been learning Legillimancy and had unknowingly spoken to Theo without so much as moving your lips.

And Fred had no idea.

~∞~

This routine continued for you and Fred, leaving you at the butt end of George and Lee's teasing. You came to expect him to be waiting at the end of your rounds, where you would part ways with Theo before spending at least an hour in Fred's presence.

On some occasions when it was far too cold to continue wandering the hallways at night, he would tell you to go straight to the Gryffindor common room, where there would be a fire in the hearth and plenty of blankets to snuggle into.

On such occasions, Theo offered to walk you there, despite him not wanting to be anywhere near the lions' den. It was during these times where your friendship with him became cemented as pure and real. Your friends were surprised when you actively sought eachother out during lessons.

Fred hated your budding friendship, but he said nothing about it; it wasn't his place to undermine your friendships.

But it became hard to hold his tongue when Professor Umbridge unveiled her new Inquisitorial Squad, which Theo and his friends had joined in quick succession.

The Inquisitorial Squad was a massive hindrance for Dumbledore's Army. The lot of you had to be more vigilant with your timings for the meet ups in the Room of Requirement, lest you get caught out by these glorified prefects. The Inquisitorial Squad is how you ended up in her office in the first place.

You had been patrolling with Theo, who was complaining about how frustrating having magicless lessons was becoming in the lead up to ypur OWL exams (you'd felt guilty about the DA not including any Slytherins all year, and this further cemented that feeling), when Adrian Pucey and Professor Umbridge came waltzing around the corner.

"Good evening Master Nott." the Professor says warmly, before her gaze sweeps over to you and her beady eyes catch onto the flashy Prefect badge pinned proudly tp your chest.

"Miss Meadow, why are you out past curfew?" She asks with faux concern, mouth twisting with a sadistic smirk.

"Uh-" You look at Theo, who looks just as startled as you. "We're just about to finish our rounds, Professor."

Umbridge lets out a heinous giggle that grates on your nerve.

"Oh my dear, didn't you see the newest decree?" She asks, her face alight with victory when you shake your head. "I have no need for Prefects anymore. I disproved them as a group."

"Wha- Why?" you ask, disbelief painted across your face. Pucey smirks as he looks from you to Theo.

"The Inquisitorial Squad has overtaken that job, Meadow." He spits your name like its dirt on the bottom of his shoe. You share a look of alarm with Theo.

I knew nothing of this Meadow, I promise you.

He looks sincere and you believe him, word for word.

"This sheer display of disobedience cannot go unpunished." Her harsh giggle is the only sound that fills the corridor.

She hands you a detention on a silver platter and you go into it blind. You didn't know that Harry had been trying to protect you, Ron and Hermione from the same fate as him.

~∞~

She dismissed you with a delighted giggle after an hour of writing the same line over and over again.

Curfew must be met by every member of the student body.

Your hand is throbbing from the pain, but all you feel is numb. You wander the hallways like a ghost, not bothering to pay mind to where you're walking, until you find yourself at the portrait of the Fat Lady leading to the Gryffindor common room.

"Password?!" Elizabeth says impatiently, as if she'd been repeating herself over and over.

"Gillyweed." You mumble and she finally takes in your appearance, completely forgetting to open the portrait hole.

"Oh my dear, are you alright?" She says, voice full of concern, and if she were able to, you're sure she'd reach a hand out and place it delicately onto your shoulder.

"'M fine, Elizabeth. Just need to sit down." You didn't realise how tired you were, but from the slurring of your words and the speed with which the portrait swings open, with no hesitation towards the blue and bronze tie donning your neck, you must be on the verge of collapsing.

Fred sees you first.

"Meadow? What are you doing here, gorgeous?" he asks, voice filled with concern.

"Don't know. But 'M really sleepy." You say and you grip at his arms with barely any strength, which he notes with wide, panicking eyes.

"Shit- okay, come on let's go upstairs."

He guides you slowly towards his dorm, ignoring his brothers and Hermione and Harry's looks of worry. He sees the blood dripping from your hand in the dim light of the room, which prompts him to usher you much faster.

He sits you on the marble of the ensuit bathroom, the cold of the tiles barely registers to you.

He's mumbling a series of healing charms against your hand, jaw clenching when the blood flow slows enough for him to see the culprit of your bloodlust.

"Did she do this to you?" He asks, his voice as low as a growl that has your thigh clenching at the tone.

"Technically," You start with a weak laugh, "I did this to myself. She told me what to write."

"It's not funny, gorgeous." He says with a frown that you manage to wipe away with a peck of your lips.

"It's fine, Freddie."

"No. It's not."

You can practically see the plans forming in his brain and the next day, a series of crazed birds are let loose in the Great Hall, all headed straight for the newly appointed Head Mistress, Fred's smirking face meeting her's with no hesitation.

His hand sports similar wounds to you by the end of the day and you patch him up in the same fashion that he did for you.

~∞~

You don't show up to your scheduled Prefect meetings for the rest of the year, and you avoid Theo in the corridors, much to your friends' delight.

His voice in your mind is the only point of contact that you have with your Italian friend, something you keep hidden from your friends, especially Fred.

You look sad, tesoro. He says from across the Great Hall, days after your first detention with Umbridge. You sit facing the Slytherin table beside Luna Lovegood, who looks between you, Fred and Theo imperceptibly.

I'm not sad. I'm bored.

Yes because I'm sure the Gryffindor table is just a delight to be seated at.

You scoff outwardly at his sarcasm.

"What're you scoffing about, gorgeous?" Fred's voice says from behind you. You sneak a look towards Theo, who seems to have engaged himself in a conversation with Riddle and Berkshire, not showing that he was just immersed in conversation with you mere seconds ago.

"Just thinking about all the ways I want to make Umbridge suffer." You say with an offhanded shrug. Luna giggles into the palm of her hand.

"I have plenty of ideas." He says with a smirk as he drags you from your seat and into the corridors beyond the Great Hall.

Professor Umbridge may have cast a cloud of sorrow over the magic of Hogwarts, but nothing could take away the fun you'd been having in the stolen moments with your best friend's brother.

Not even the fact that he was leaving prematurely. Certainly not after you convince yourself to share your growing feelings for him, to have that snuffed out by his secret declaration.

Your chance with him is taken from you as he and George sail away from Hogwarts with guffawing laughter at the sight of Umbridge's sour face. They're off to live their lifelong dream, taking your dreams with them.

The next time you see Fred is after you watch Sirius' body fall through the veil, mind and body too numb to process any and all of your feelings. You only reach out for Teddy in your mind, a comforting voice of reason for all you'd seen. Even the strangely beautiful sight of the thestrals, that were invisible only hours before, did not phase you.

You fell into Theo's comforting embrace the moment you were able to leave the Hospital Wing, Fred Weasley long forgotten at Ron's bedside.

taglist:

(striked out users are ones that i couldn't tag)

@camille-1019 @lovelyygirl8 @xluansstuff @babeylover @thejadeazalea @undercover-smutlover @adhxmoony @dreamingofonceuponatime @thepassionatereader @urmomsgayforme5 @aphroditeisamilf @devotedlycrookeddonut @purplegirls-posts @nofacenonamelikekira @foxboyapologist @lafrone @lovely-maryj @nromanovaswife @leeknows-wife @dracygf @wildlyobserving @ravenclawprincess33 @melllinaa @vellicora @lantsovheiress @emiliahoward @stunkbiggu @vcosette @prongsprincessworld @mattiesgirl @rachmmb @x-kermit-x @sun-fiower-seed @cas-planet @certaindreampost @weirdowithnobeardo @mikalovesicecream @benwadsworthsgf @rainy-darling @faeriepigeons @lovely-blackinnon @hiireadstuff @gimalo135 @elsafromcabinsix @moonlightreader649 @blueshome @nopedefe @spencerreidsthings @navs-bhat @agent-tempest @magimtz23 @y0urm0m12 @sbrn0905 @leona-hawthorne @whatsupb18

[orangepeetals]

YOU BELONG WITH ME ⋆𐙚₊˚⊹♡ (pt2)

(playlist for a star series)

peeta mellark x f.reader !!

pt1. / next part

Summary: Peeta and Katniss have kept their history of lovers during the games, your heart has been going through constant suffering when seeing them together but you are more worried about Peeta’s survival.

a/n: i speak Spanish so the story was originally written in Spanish and then I translated it into English, plz don’t be rude if there is a mistake !! 😞

The following days were torture, you didn’t take off the TV and you couldn’t close an eye, you were alert at all times, you were a total disaster every time Peeta was on the screen, you were scared. You were grateful that Haymitch in his drunkenness was the most sane at the time, you couldn’t think correctly. The girl who was with Katniss had died, it had been so sad that for a few seconds you forgot about Peeta, you admired how noble ‘the girl on fire’ could be, you didn’t think she had such a kind heart.

“Everything is solved, y/n” Haymitch’s voice took you out of your thoughts, feeling the anxiety eat you again, you didn’t understand anything he was talking about.

“What do you mean?” You watched him with confusion, he simply raised his glass of alcohol in the direction of the TV and you just watched, a few minutes later the change of rules was reported, there could be two winners if they were from the same district, you couldn’t explain how happy you were, you knew that Katniss Everdeen wouldn’t be so bad to just do nothing, you weren’t wrong, because when Katniss finally found him, she helped him with his wounds and they found a shelter. You and Haymitch were in charge of sending them things so that they could be cured, although they could not send enough, Katniss risked her life to get the medicine and now you were indebted to her. You tried to ignore the kisses and the displays of affection that they had to show on camera because thanks to that they could both be winners. The rest of the games were still just as bad but you were calmer now that Peeta was not alone, your heart stopped when they wanted to eat the berries, you knew they wouldn’t take this well.

Time passed quickly, all that experience had left you in shock, you were able to return to reality when you felt Peeta’s arms enveloping you tightly, you looked at him as if you were afraid that he was going to break and you overflowed in tears again, he was there, with you, hugging you with love, it was incredible, the warmth of his body against yours made you feel hopeful, his arms were a perfect place to live forever.

“It’s good that you’re alive, Peeta, I was scared” Your voice was weak and choppy, you saw him eyes full of tears and filled him face with kisses, caressed him hair and listened to him heartbeat, as strong as whenever he was near you, you let out a sigh and separated from him. You saw Katniss talking to Haymitch and you just hugged her, you took her off guard but she reciprocated your hug, maybe she didn’t hate you so much, it was a silent hug until you decided to talk. “Thank you Katniss, I will really be indebted to you forever, thank you for taking care of him, you are a good girl, I am happy to know that you will return home”

——————————

The return to district 12 was quiet, you could talk more with Katniss and know a little more about her, even though it was closed, at least you were sure that everything about the romance with Peeta was only for the cameras, it’s not that you doubted him love for you but naturally felt insecurities to see your boyfriend swearing love for another girl in front of all Panem.

You hated having to relive what it meant to win some games, being one of the mentors you had to accompany the winners in various public activities, although as always, you did your best to avoid being exposed, you hated participating in anything that had to do with the capitol.

You were at the party for the winners, you were uncomfortable having to socialize and act as if you were happy to be there, the only thing that gave you joy was to see him, to see his charm every time he talked to someone, the outfit he had made him look a thousand times more handsome than he was, you were holding back by throwing yourself on him. You drank from your glass and your eyes met his while he danced next to Katniss, they just smiled and you felt like vomiting, you didn’t know if it was because of alcohol, stress or jealousy, you tried to act calmly and got out of there quickly, going to a balcony that was somewhat away from the people. The moon kept you company in your anguish, you watched the starry sky as you thought, you thought what a life would be like far from all this, you thought about what it would have been like if you had died in that arena, maybe it would not have changed Peeta’s destiny and he would still be with Katniss Everdeen now, he looked happy next to her, even if you knew that it was all a farce, you couldn’t help but feel bad, you wanted to be in Peeta’s arms all the time as it was before, before everything was ruined by the hunger games. She was a thousand times better than you, you were just smart but too cowardly, she is too brave, skillful and determined, you were nothing next to her.

Thoughts were driving you crazy, you wanted to cry now, you felt bad about yourself, you wished you had died in the hunger games, maybe now you would be free, free from Snow’s hands, free of everything that could harm you. Some hands hugging your waist brought you back, you could recognize its smell from miles, you smiled slightly and turned around, finding a rather worried Peeta, you were not good at hiding this kind of thing, at least never with him.

“I couldn’t find you anywhere, are you okay, beautiful?” His voice was a caress to your sad heart, you nodded and hugged him, hiding your face in his neck and leaving some soft kiss in the area, you felt how his grip became stronger, he caressed your waist and you wanted to freeze that moment, finally it was you and him under the moon, even if it was for an ephemeral time. “You look so beautiful that I could tear off your dress right now, if you allow it” You let out a laugh at the bottom when you heard his words, you messed up her hair a little and kissed her lips repeatedly, you knew that they didn’t have long before they had to come back with the crowd, so you appreciated every second by their side, since Peeta had left the arena they had not had so much time to be together, they were too exposed to the public eye, so they had to take care of their actions at all times and everywhere, anywhere outside their Intimacy, you and he were nothing, that broke your heart but there was no turning back.

——————————————

The uprisings were getting worse and worse, the act of the berries had really left more consequences than you imagined, Snow had them in his sights, he did not believe the facade of the lovers and you knew that very bad things could happen if the situation in the districts did not improve, there were strikes, riots and destruction, people were revealing themselves, they were opening their eyes.

“They should get married” You muttered between your teeth but loud enough for them to hear you, your eyes were glued to the ground while you thought about your words, if they publicly sealed their eternal love, perhaps they could divert attention from the rebellion.

“What?” You found Peeta’s look confused, you could see the sadness in his eyes when he said those words, you loved him with every part of your being but you need him to be safe.

“She’s right, maybe with that Snow will stay calm for a while” Haymitch’s voice confirmed your idea, you felt your heart beating hard, everything wasn’t supposed to go on like this. Peeta nodded and got up, heading to another lane, your eyes filled with tears.

“I understand that this is painful for you, I want you to know that we will do everything possible to take care of Peeta, he has protected me too” Katniss took your hand and stroked your back, you knew that this was also painful for her, she had to marry someone she did not love even having a person who was waiting for her at home, Peeta had the purest soul, he was always going to do him best to take care of him environment, even if he had to do things that would harm him.

“Thank you Katniss, I know it’s difficult for you but you count on us” You hugged her for a few seconds before you got up, you had to talk to Peeta. “I’ll go talk to him, I’ll be back in a while.”

You knocked on the door of his room, you didn’t want to have this conversation, after a few seconds that seemed to be hours, he opened his door, his eyes were red and crystallized, you could notice that he had cried, his face looked sad and tired, you pushed him into the room and closed the door behind you. You hugged him tightly and in a matter of seconds he collapsed in your arms, he was as vulnerable as that time you had to say goodbye to him and enter the arena by yourself, you wanted to end the world and that it was just you and him forever. “I’m so sorry, Peeta, my love, I just want you to be fine, we’ll be fine”

“I will do it, I will marry Katniss, we will do it as public as possible, we will smile at the cameras and when everything calms down, you and I will return to our normal lives, anyway, I don’t care what I have to do, I will not be a piece of his game” Although the blond made efforts to talk without the tears beating him, you knew that he was serious, you knew that he was clever and that he knew that he would always manage to cause some impact on the masses, as you were also clear that there would never be a normality again and that anyone could ever Respect their relationship. “Let’s enjoy this moment, now you are the only thing that belongs to me, you are the only thing I can keep secret without anyone wanting to take it and expose it to the world, my little star, you are mine and I will always be yours.”

His words were so soft and promising, you were his and he was yours, you were willing to leave everything behind to achieve the life you both needed.

———————————————

Here is the part 2!! i really want to keep writting this fic so if u like it, i’ll give u more parts!! :D

[ponstermenis-writing]

✩I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS✩

Ponyboy Curtis & Everyone Darbit, Johnnyboy

.｡❅⋆⍋∞｡∞⍋⋆❅｡.

Pony considers himself to be pretty independent.

He doesn’t need the gang to get by—but god does he want them.

He had been surrounded by people his whole life—the sad, lonely days of college were really starting to burn a hole in his chest.

He was sure that when he decided to become an author, he’d meet people like him. But everyone here are rich, better-than-thou folks who think that he’s just some little Tulsian hood rat.

It doesn’t help that he’s already written an incredibly successful book—he doesn’t want to say it’s a jealousy thing, but he’s certainly received a few comments from his fellow peers about it being the only reason he got in.

He didn’t fly down last year. He couldn’t.

Money wasn’t even an issue anymore, ‘The Outsiders’ made him enough money to never have to work again. But with all the new schoolwork, he seriously couldn’t make it happen. School had been easy for him when he was younger, he’s not used to struggling in his favorite subject.

And, as much as he hates to admit it, he misses his friends so much it hurts. They all poked fun at him that he wouldn’t be able to handle being alone for the first time in his life. At first it was great—he finally got the silence he so craved. But then it got too silent.

He missed coming home to see Soda and Steve wrestling on the floor, Darry cooking something mouthwatering for dinner, Dallas and Two-Bit poking fun at each other until that eventually devolved into a wrestling match as well, Johnny quietly talking to him while the TV plays football games in the background.

He missed seeing Darry’s work boots by the door, Soda’s clothes strung up around the room, Two-Bits spill stains on the couch, Steve’s cards all over the floor.

He still stayed in close contact with them.

He and Johnny called almost every night—Johnny could never go to college. Partly because of money—he made sure to give Johnny a decent sum from the book sales—and the fact that school was never easy on him. It helps that he needs someone to help push him around in a wheelchair when his crutches become too much.

So he liked to hear about it, always asking Pony what he’d done that day.

He called the gang as a whole every Saturday, pretending he didn’t feel lonely the second they hung up.

He didn’t plan on coming back this year either. He wanted to, he really really did—but he didn’t like when the gang treated him like a baby. He wants to prove that he doesn’t need them to have a good time.

The idea wasn’t put into his head until Darry called him late on a Wednesday night, December 19th.

“Darry? Is everything alright?” He asks, sitting up. “Yeah, everything’s alright.” Darry says—Ponyboy can hear the sad smile in his voice.

“I was just, uh, wondering—“ Darry begins. Ponyboy can’t help but think he sounds nervous. “Are you coming home for the holidays this year? We’ve all been missing you.”

Ponyboy sucks in a sharp breath. “I…” he mutters, leaning back against his headboard. “Look Darry, I’d love to. I’m just—“

“Too busy?” Darry interrupts. He can hear the sadness in his voice—the way his throat catches at the end of his sentences, even if he phrases it like a tease. God , he already felt horrible about staying in New York—this certainly isn’t helping.

“I’m really sorry Darry.”

“It’s alright, Baby, I get it.” Darry tries desperately to hide his own sadness. “ Shit —you aren’t a baby anymore, huh?” A pause “How’s it up there? Lots of parties?”

Darry never got to go to college. Ponyboy almost felt bad telling him that he got in—he thought Darry would be upset—Jealous, maybe.

But he wasn’t.

He was so happy he cried for hours, telling him how proud he was and hugging him til’ he couldn’t breathe.

“Yeah Dar, Lots of parties.” Ponyboy smiles to himself. He knows he’s lying—but he knows how badly the gang wants him to have the time of his life. He’d hate to disappoint them.

“The guys really miss you.” Darry whispers when they get too silent. Ponyboy feels his eyes get wet—wondering if they feel betrayed that he’s leaving them. Johnny had refused to talk to him for a month after last year because he was scared Pony didn’t want to see him. “I do too, obviously. It's been real different without you here.”

“I know Darry.”

“Johnny, Dal, and Two-Bit got an apartment together, y’know? Soda’s been saving up to move out too.” He keeps going. Pony bets he’s not even trying to make him feel bad—he just wants to stay on the phone with him. “They were gonna try and fly up to you, but they won’t let Johnny on a plane for another year or two. They’re scared the pressure will break him, or somethin’.”

“Impossible.” Ponyboy lets out a wet laugh, trying to hide his own tears.

He never wanted to upset any of them—but what if it’s all different now? What if he comes back and everyone’s got used to him being gone? What if… what if the home he aches for isn’t there anymore?

“I won’t keep you too long, I was just curious.” Darry says finally.

Something about that breaks him. Darrel, his older brother that he used to follow around like a lost duckling, is worried about annoying him.

Their father used to say that one day they’d all be annoyed by him, that he wouldn't be cool anymore and they’d all grow up without him.

Is that how Darry feels?

“Well, uh, what I meant to say earlier before you interrupted me,” Ponyboy says, remembering Darry’s earlier comment about being too busy. “Is that I was just having a bit of trouble finding plane tickets. Y’know with all the snow.”

“You’re joking.” Darry says—he can hear the hope in his voice. “You’re coming this year?”

“Of course I am! Last year was just a fluke—I can’t have you all spending Christmas without me, can I?” Ponyboy can't help but smile when he hears Darry’s hearty chuckle. Darry had always been pretty stoic—he had to be, being the oldest—but now he was happy it was leaking through the receiver.

“Oh, the boys will be so happy.” Darry says, smiling so wide that it can be heard in his voice. “We’ll do everything we used to, yeah? It’s supposed to snow on Christmas Eve.”

“Sounds great, Darry.” Ponyboy says, smiling so wide that it hurts his face. “This is gonna be great , I promise. I—I gotta tell them, I’ll talk to you later.”

“See you.” A pause. “I love you Darry, I’m excited to see you all again.”

“Love you too, Baby.” Darry smiles.

Ponyboy’s smile doesn’t fade even after they hang up. He fully intends on keeping his promise—so much so that he immediately pulls out his laptop and checks for tickets.

Because it’s so close to Christmas, there aren’t many left. Not cheap ones, anyway. He finds a 4-hour no-stop flight to an airport an hour away from Tulsa. He gets a seat before he can even think, taking a photo and sending it to the group chat he has with the gang.

Johnny calls him a minute later. Ponyboy can’t help but laugh, grabbing his phone from his bed and answering.

“Are you serious? You’re coming!? This isn’t an April fools thing, right?” Johnny asks the moment he answers, so excited that he’s sure the boy would be kicking his feet if they weren’t so hard to move.

“Yes, Johnnycakes, I’m coming home.” Ponyboy says, smiling. “I assume you’re excited?”

“Are you kidding? I’m fucking thrilled!” I can hear Two-Bit tease Johnny about watching his mouth from another room. “You gotta see our new apartment, its tuff.”

“Of course, John.”

“Anyway, I’ll leave you alone. I just had to make sure you weren't messing with us.”

Ponyboy frowns. “You think I’d do that?” He can hear Johnny falter, make an odd sound. “Well, I mean, not really—cut me some slack! I went from seeing you everyday to not seeing you ever .”

“Yeah?” Ponyboy laughs. “I’m gonna spend so much time with you while I’m down there, you’ll be begging me to leave.” He hangs up before Johnny can retort, laughing at the frantic texts Johnny sends after claiming it’s not possible and how dare he suggest such a thing.

꙳ ❅⋆⁺₊❆⋆ ❆ ͙͛ ˚₊꙳

The day of his flight, the 21st, he couldn’t help but feel giddy. He’d be in town until January 1st—giving him a great big amount of time to catch up with the gang. He steeled himself for the four hour long flights—he brought gifts and candy along with him, he ended up eating 90% of the chocolate.

He made sure to update the guys of where he was. They had all gotten up at 7 in the morning to call him. Luckily Oklahoma is only an hour behind New York—so he won’t have to struggle with jet lag.

He sat down—sadly he had booked a middle seat, but the person next to him didn’t end up showing and they couldn’t find anyone to replace them. An old man sat next in the window seat, he read silent for most of the flight.

“Are you visiting anyone?” He asks, lifting his head from his book. “Uh—Me?” Ponyboy askes, glancing around. The man chuckles. “Yes, you.”

“I’m uh… I’m visiting my brothers and friends.” Ponyboy replies. “What about you?”

“My son.” The older man smiles, closing his book to look at him. Ponyboy suddenly realizes that he’s missing an eye—two of his fingers amputated too. “It’s good to see young kids like you still care about their families.”

If only he knew.

“Y-Yeah, are you uh… excited to see your son?” Ponyboy askes, not wanting to linger on the comment for too long. “Very.” The older man smiles, looking hopeful. “He’s got a family now, I can’t wait to meet them.”

God… is he seriously going to cry over some old man he doesn’t know?

“I hope it goes well.” Ponyboy smiles, glancing awkwardly at him. The man smiles, holding out his hand—the one with all of his fingers intact—too shaken. “Marty.” He says. “Ponyboy.” Pony answers.

The man’s eyes widened just a bit. “Ponyboy Curtis?” He asks. Ponyboy nods. “Have you ever written a book, by chance?“ the man askes. “Uh—Yeah, I have. Why do you ask?”

“My granddaughters just love your book” the man says, pulling a gift bag out of his carry-on and pulling two copies of The Outsiders from it. “They love it so much that they’re to collect every cover.”

Ponyboy can’t help but smile. He’d never even see this cover of his book—sometimes he forgets just how many people love it. “I can sign them, if you’d like.” He says—he doubts he’s famous enough for it, but he has a feeling the man wouldn’t ask even if he wants him too.

“My—that would be lovely!” The man beams, pulling a pen from his bag. “You don’t understand how much this’ll mean to them, I’ll be the cool grandpa for the rest of my life.”

Ponyboy feels his heart swell with warmth. The man kind of reminds him of Darry—so stoic but so loving. He puts both of their names on each one before handing them back, smiling gleefully. “I hope they like it, sir.”

“They’ll love it,” the man smiles, tucking them carefully back into the gift bag. “We need more young kids like you out there, so kind.”

Ponyboy can’t help but smile, nodding. “I’ve been surrounded by good people my whole life, I think that helps.”

He and the man talk the rest of the flight—Pony’s not a big fan of flying, so it actually helps. Marty seems to be very well-versed on the topic of The Outsiders. He asks about Johnny, Dallas, Darry, Soda—he asks about small details, tells Ponyboy stuff his niece wondered about.

Ponyboy finds himself opening up, he tells the man the answers to everything. Apparently, Marty used to be a general. He’d lost his fingers and eye when his own gun backfired on him, only the hope of seeing his son again kept him alive.

By the time the plane landed, Ponyboy considered himself to have a new friend. Marty was let off before he was, he’s in a wheelchair too. Marty wishes him a Merry Christmas, Ponyboy tells him to say hi to his granddaughters for him.

The second that he was gone, Pony immediately tore his phone from his pocket. He texted the guys that he’d get off soon. Darry immediately responded that they were waiting for him at the gate.

Anxiety started to set in. He’d hadn’t seen them in person for over a year—what if he didn’t recognize them? Ponyboy knows his appearance has changed—his hair is back to its old length, his hair is brown all the way through again. He’s taller now too—he might have Darry tied (finally).

He takes a deep breath before stepping off of the plane, slowly walking out. He’s halfway through searching when he sees someone running at him. It takes him only a second to recognize Johnny—he’s got his crutches, practically toppling on top of him when he goes in for a hug.

“Ponyboy!” He cries, pulling him in tight. He’s certainly gotten stronger—a bit taller too, not enough to beat anyone in that gang, but enough to at least be noticeable. Ponyboy drops his things and hugs him tight—he makes sure to lift Johnny slightly off of the ground so he doesn’t have to use his legs.

“Hey, Johnnycakes!” Ponyboy smiles, burying his face in the boy’s hair. “It’s good to see you, man.”

“Jesus, Johnny—let him breathe a little!” A deep voice calls. Ponyboy glances up.

“Dallas!” He smiles, seeing the blonde walk towards them. He hasn’t changed much—he’s a little bulkier and definitely got a bit taller too. The ends of his ultra-blonde hair is dyed red and his brown leather jacket is swapped out for a deep purple sweater.

“Hey, kid.” He smiles, picking Johnny’s crutches up from the floor. “I’m twenty-two, Dallas—I’m no kid.” Ponyboy groans, letting Johnny out his arms reluctantly. Dallas helps Johnny get his crutches under his armpits, just chuckling at him.

“If I gotta be a kid forever, so do you.” Johnny says, pushing himself to stand. “Shit, the gang’s gonna cry when they see ya’. You’re growing up on us.”

Ponyboy can’t help but laugh. It’s a miracle to him that Johnny’s twenty three, going on twenty four. Dallas himself just turned 25–a fact that he is very proud of. Johnny doesn’t look much different—the burns going up his neck have mostly healed, and all the internal things stunted his growth quite a bit.

“Wish I could say the same about you two.” Pony laughs, picking his bags up from the ground. Neither of them have really aged much—All Dallas has is deeper frown lines and eye bags, but he’s always had those.

“Ha-fucking-ha.” Dallas bites, rolling his eyes. “Just because you’re grown now doesn’t mean I can’t clock you.”

“Down doggy.” Johnny chuckles, leaning on him. “He just got here.” Johnny got a little more talkative after the fire—he’s less scared of everything too, he pokes fun at the guys just as much as Two-Bit does now.

“Yeah, I just got here.” Pony repeats, giving Dallas a soft punch on the shoulder.

“Yeah, yeah. Glad you came back, man.” Dallas can’t help but smile. “Two-Bit is trying—and failing—to find a parking spot, we better get out there before he has an aneurysm.”

“Oh, god. Why would you do that to him?” Ponyboy can’t help but laugh, following the other two around the airport. “He deserves it. I’m not driving that piece of junk around this place.” Dallas shrugs, letting Johnny hop up onto his back and carrying him the rest of the way through.

They find Two-Bit just outside of the parking garage, his rust-bucket truck sitting beside him. He runs up and hugs Pony hard enough to lift him into the air. He’s grown a lot, actually—he used to be the third shortest, after Ponyboy and Johnny, but now he’s well on his way to being the same height as Steve was. Some of his old chub has turned into muscle—he helps out at the fire station when he needs extra cash. But he’s still the freckly redhead Pony remembers.

“All my babies are growing up on me!” Two-Bit cries in mock sadness, pinching all of their cheeks. “I’m a year younger than you, asshole.” Dallas groans, letting Johnny off of his back.

“I’m hearin’ a lot of goo-goo-ga-ga coming from this direction,” Two-Bit teases, pointing his finger at Dallas—he definitely tries to bite it, barely missing. “Respect your elders!”

Ponyboy can’t help but laugh, throwing his things in the trunk. “You guys haven’t changed a bit.”

Two-Bit flexes his arm, smirking. “Oh, yes I have , my boy.” He says proudly. “Wait till you see Darry, he’s like… a whole different person. He smiles now.” Two-Bit jokes, saying it like Darry smiling is some sort of legend.

That reminds him. Two-Bit and Darry started dating some time after Pony moved out. It was a shock to all of us—especially with how much Darry talked about settling down with a girl and having kids of his own. Steve was the first to make a joke about Two already looking pregnant.

“Bet you love that.” Ponyboy teases, poking Two lightly. The redhead smiles dreamily, pretending to swoon. “So very much.” He says, leaning back against his car. Someone honks at him and it’s clear that they’re in peoples' way. They stop immediately upon seeing Johnny’s crutches, giving them enough time to throw themselves inside and start it up.

Two-Bit and Dallas sit in the front while Johnny and Pony reside in the backseat. Johnny immediately wraps his arms around him the second he’s sitting—Ponyboy has to buckle the boy’s seatbelt before he forgets.

“Safe to say I was missed, huh?” Ponyboy laughs, hugging Johnny back. The two of them had always been extra close—now that he was back he wasn’t sure if he’d ever be able to leave again. “Very much.” Two-Bit chuckles, glancing back in the rear view while Johnny peppers kisses on Pony’s cheek.

꙳ ❅⋆⁺₊❆⋆ ❆ ͙͛ ˚₊꙳

The drive back was spent catching up—Pony was happy to know that things had been going well for them too.

Dallas got a full time job at Bucks—he no longer had to risk getting hurt at the rodeo, though he still went sometimes. Johnny works as a tattoo artist now—he’s aware of that already, but he didn’t know that he actually specializes in tattooing over scars and incorporating them. When he doesn’t have a client, sometimes he’ll help out at Buck’s for extra cash. Two-Bit started at a dinner just outside of their building—but most of his time was spent helping out at the fire station (who all love Johnny very much, apparently).

Getting home was the most nerve-wracking part. Steve is out of town for the day to visit his mom—But Darry and Soda stayed home to set up the house for him. They hadn’t touched his room since he moved out, but they wanted to go all out with the decorations because they both know he loves it.

Pony is halfway through getting his things from the truck as he’s tackled to the ground. Thank god there’s snow, or he’d have a damn concussion!

“Ponyboy!” Soda screams, loud enough to hurt his ears. “Oh my god, look at you! You look so grown, little man!” He says, pulling Pony’s cheeks and smiling down at him. “Hey Sodapop.” Ponyboy chuckles, reaching up to hug him.

Soda’s changed quite a bit. He was in the military for a long while—he quit after a close encounter with death. It left a pretty deep scar going from his chin to his temple on the other side. He doesn’t let it get to him—claims he gets even more girls cus’ he’s all mysterious now. He’s bulked up a little and his muscles are fading—but he still looks handsome as ever. His hair is just as blonde as it always was.

“Jesus, get off before you suffocate him.” Dallas chuckles, toeing Soda’s side with his boot. Soda rolls off, pulling himself to his feet. “Sorry, Pone. ‘M just so happy to see you!” Soda smiles, helping him grab his things. “I’m happy to see you all too.” Ponyboy can’t help but smile his wide, toothy grin.

When he glances up, he sees Darry leaning in the doorway.

Darry doesn’t look too different—he looks older, bigger… but aside from a bit of salt and pepper in his hair—which definitely came early from shitty genes and the constant worrying—he's still Darry.

Ponyboy gives him the tightest hug he can manage–he's only been home for a minute and they’re both already holding back tears.

As he walks back into the house—his house–and into the living room he remembers, sitting down on the old leather couch he used to do his homework… he wonders why he ever worried about coming home.

[kimryowo]

Yandere Headcanons

Characters; OSAMU DAZAI, CHUUYA NAKAHARA, RYUUNOSUKE AKUTAGAWA + GIN & DOPPO KUNIKIDA

Summary; YOU’RE THEIR LITTLE SIBLING AND THEY’D DO ANYTHING TO KEEP YOU SAFE.

Platonic Yandere themes are present within these headcanons, proceed with caution. Swearing and Harsh Language are present. Some characters might be OOC, forgive me for that as I haven’t written them before (mainly Kunikida)

SIBLING!BSD x GN!READER

OSAMU DAZAI + PRE-TEENAGE READER

“(𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞)! (𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞)! 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫? 𝐇𝐞’𝐬 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮…”

He’s a hard one. However, Osamu Dazai is the overprotective type of brother.

He's suffocating, to say the least.

If you have an ability, he wouldn’t let you use it. Even if you did, he’d cancel it with his one.

I can see him as extremely clingy.

Considering that he was in the Port Mafia, if anyone harms you, his facade slips and that past self comes back in an instant.

He is usually very carefree and is rather childish around you, always cheering you up in a matter of seconds when you’re sad.

That’s what makes him a force to be reckoned with. He is kind but he can be incredibly intimidating.

He would allow you to work in the agency, however, he’s always in your personal space, not letting you breathe for a second.

Whenever the Port Mafia raids the agency, he would always be there to gently place—holding your head down behind it—you underneath a table, out of danger from the bullets that would be sprayed everywhere.

Mori Ougai would be wanting you, he wants blackmail, he wants Dazai back within the Mafia. But he isn’t stupid, he knows what happened to the other people that had attempted to harm you.

Despite his carefree and cheerful demeanour, you’ve never seen his “suicidal” side. He tried to hide it, he doesn’t want you picking up on his habits and thoughts.

He sees you as his baby sibling, that's what it was. That's what it'll always be to him.

If it were Port Mafia Dazai, he would be incredibly possessive, pulling a gun on anybody who at you for too long.

Port Mafia Dazai would torture anybody who bullied you. Perhaps, if you were to misbehave, tell him off for being so protective, he’d show you pictures and videos of him torturing/executing someone, claiming “I just want to protect you from this. The harsh reality of this world, the one I was dragged into at your age. Is that so hard to understand?”

“(Nickname)… I have no time for your silly games, stop being a brat,” he’d say, pretending to look for you as you hid.

"Come on, (Nickname)... do you really hate your big brother..?" He'd say, a hint of sadness and guilt laced in his voice. That had drawn you out of your hiding spot, hugging him tightly.

"Of course I do, Osamu... I always have, you- you know that."

You do love him, he just... finds it hard to understand that you have to grow up eventually.

CHUUYA NAKAHARA + TEENAGE READER

"(𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞) (𝐌𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞) 𝐍𝐚𝐤𝐚𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚! 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝! 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐬𝐤𝐮𝐥𝐥, 𝐡𝐚𝐡!?"

Chuuya, Chuuya, Chuuya, gosh, he is extremely possessive like Dazai.

Knowing him, he is often quite harsh on you, however, be aware that it's for your well-being.

He puts your well-being and safety over his own.

If you had an ability, you can trust him to make sure he would train you properly.

He would train you in self-defence, he's well aware that you can take care of yourself so he isn't as pushy or clingy.

Unlike Dazai, he gives you more freedom, however, he will always make sure you have everything you need.

"Oi, (Name), have you got your phone fully charged? What about your safety kit?"

"Yeah, yeah, I do, Chuuya, I always do."

If he found out you were avoiding him, he would feel guilty, however, I feel like he'd understand why.

During your younger years, I can see him being more possessive, protective even, always by your side and always making sure you were okay.

He is a really good brother, always knowing what you need. Always making sure you're comfortable and always make sure that you're safe.

He gives the best hugs, when you were younger, he'd always do your hair to perfection.

Within your shared apartment, your room is just down the hall from him, and like the gentlemen (and good older brother), he always respected your privacy--unless he sensed something bad going on--then he would invade it.

He is scared that his corruption will scare you.

Overall, he wants his younger sibling to look up to him.

He is always trying to hide his Port Mafia side, however, you're well aware of it, you just don't tell him, you notice how he hides his mafioso mouth from you, in fact, it makes you smile knowing that he cares.

He's a more laid-back type of yandere.

GIN AND RYUUNOSUKE AKUTAGAWA + CHILD READER

"(𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞), 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝. 𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐭 𝐮𝐩." "𝐀𝐡, 𝐑𝐲𝐮𝐮𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐮𝐤𝐞, 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 (𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞)..!"

We have the merciless, cruel assassins, Gin and Ryuunosuke Akutagawa and then we have their 10-year-old sibling.

You're a pain, to put it simply.

Your brother and sister know this.

However, they have a big soft spot for you.

You've grown up unaware of their job, however, you are aware that their work is very time-consuming.

They are very over-protective of you, growing up in the slums of Yokohama was incredibly harsh.

Gin wonders where you get all your energy from, always looking on the bright side, so enthusiastic, it makes her happy.

Ryuunosuke could say the opposite, on the outside, he acts like he's constantly annoyed with you, however, inside, he's happy to see that you're growing up happy.

Often, Gin and Ryuunosuke would pick you up from school, you had just assumed they both came since they wanted to walk home together as a trio, but in reality, they both came to make sure no one would bully you, if they did, Gin would be at their throat with the tip of her blade and Ryuunosuke would summon Rashomon within less than a second.

"Woohoo! Catch me, Gin!" You'd yell happily, jumping off the couch.

"Please be careful, (Name), if Ryuunosuke caught us, he wouldn't be very happy, would he?"

You love your older siblings, Gin always takes you out to the park or arcade.

Occasionally, your brother would join you as well, however, he seemed to grumble about being outside.

You'd just smile and laugh, challenging him to a racing game--which he destroyed you at, much to your dismay--while Gin stood back and took photos.

Whenever both your siblings were home, you'd watch movies together--so long as Gin and Ryuunosuke deemed the movie appropriate of course, so no horror movies for (Name)!

They won't let you go outside without them, they're scared that the mafia might take you away and use you as leverage--forcing you into a life of fighting.

They are worried for you, the mafia has no idea of your existence, and the only people who know of your existence are Tachihara, Hirotsu and Dazai.

Gin and Ryuunosuke would often bring back small gifts if they were away for too long, always apologising--Ryuunosuke even giving you a small pat on the head.

Every time you have a bad dream, you'd go sleep in your brother's bed, even if he didn't sleep much, he would lay there, staring at the ceiling, only to hear his door open slowly. Feeling alarmed, he'd summoned Rashomon, however, immediately stopped when he noticed your tiny figure in the doorway.

"Ryuu... I had a bad dream... C-Can I sleep in your bed?"

He'd remain silent for a few moments, before letting out a sigh, "come on then, (Name). If you're slow, I'll change my mind."

"Thank you, R-Ryuu."

After you'd get into his large bed, you'd burrow your face into his chest, hugging onto him tightly as he gently rubbed your back.

He and Gin care about protecting your innocence, you had no memories of the slums after all.

You were precious, their baby sibling.

DOPPO KUNIKIDA + LATE TEENAGER READER

"𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞, (𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞), 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈, 𝐬𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟, 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞…"

I see him as an overbearing yandere.

He's not aware of his infantilisation, or at least, you'd hope.

However, I can see him as very gentle.

He chooses what you wear, he chooses your daily activities, he chooses what you eat—hell, on the days you’d misbehave, he’d even feed you himself!—, and he chooses what time you go to bed.

Everything has a schedule and it annoys you.

He treats you like a kid and you hate it, he is so overbearing.

"Hey! Doppo, let me do what I want for once, huh? You let your partner from the agency do whatever he pleases!"

"Yes, well, Dazai doesn't listen to me! And he isn't my sibling, is he? So I have no control of what he does, (Name), I do, however, have control over you. I just want to keep you safe, (Nickname) and I know you know it."

"No-! You're- You're so unbearable!" With that, you left, slamming the door as you left.

You left quite a lot, so this wasn't an unusual sight, you had gone to the agency, most likely.

Every time you'd leave, he'd also go out, getting a gift for when you returned.

You didn't tell him about the cigarettes or the drugs you obtained. You’d knew how he’d react if he found out.

If you smoked in the apartment, he’d know, the smell of smoke was a smell easily recognisable.

If you had gotten a job within the Port Mafia, he’d lose it if you told him.

“(Name)! Why would you work in the Mafia!? They’re dangerous!”

You’d just shrug your shoulders, you’re nearly an adult.

“That’s it, I’m not letting you leave, not until you’re aware of how cruel the world is. (Name), I’ve watched people die in front of my eyes, I never want to see that happen to you.”

You would just ignore him, then, he’d be sick of your teenage rebellion. Using his ability, he would create some kind of tool to tie you down, handcuffs or perhaps some rope, whatever it was, he would tie you down to your bed. Ignoring your screaming and cursing.

It seems like you wouldn’t be leaving for awhile, at least, not until your bratty attitude was fixed.

[ghostradiodylan]

In general Ryan gets so mistreated and overhated by the fandom and it makes me sad because I really like Ryan even in my first playthrough :/ I get that the part where he was arguing with Laura about the existence of werewolves when he watched Nick transform and run out the window was kind of dumb but he’s all around a great character who’s brave and helpful and he helped save everyone’s lives in the best ending….

While I don’t agree with all of their actions I can’t bring myself to hate on any of the counselors. They’re all young adults who are stuck in a horrifying and traumatic situation, of course they’re going to be flawed and not perfect. It just baffles me how Travis, Constance, Jedidiah and Eliza do the most horrible things in the game yet people viciously hate on Ryan : (

Oh, the actual adults in the game are absolutely The Worst. (Even Chris, though I think he wants to help, is incredibly negligent at best).

I think there are a few things happening here that can turn people against Ryan (and I'm not saying anyone has to like him as a character, we all have characters we vibe with and ones we don't, but it's worth examining why we don't vibe with some characters especially when those characters are Black or other POC, LGBTQ, and ND-coded).

Ryan is a victim of some of the less compelling writing choices in the game IMO. They don't have anything to do with his character, really, he's generally well-written, but some of the things that were cut from the game, and the way the relationships unravel in the latter half of the game does Ryan kind of dirty.

First of all, his relationship with Chris Hackett isn't fleshed out enough for a lot of players to understand why he's willing to sacrifice so much on the hope that his mentor isn't actually a werewolf (or a deeply irresponsible asshole of a boss). If they'd left in the scene of Chris following up with Ryan about following his dreams and going to animation school and the initial confrontation with Chris that was patched out, where Ryan questions how he hid this from them all this time when he cared about them and Ryan trusted him (literally heartbreaking to watch tbh 🥺), it might have been a little easier for players to empathize with his loyalty to Chris. This kid has no known father, absentee mother, aging grandparents, a sister he clearly feels a lot of responsibility for, and his father figure who he goes to for advice left him in the worst possible situation. Of course he's going to be in denial about that and about him being a werewolf until he sees it for himself, and then Ryan has to kill him. It's so fucking tragic. And he doesn't even get a second to mourn or even react because the Silas plotline kicks in immediately (and they spent all the animated tears budget on Jacob).

Then there's Ryan's relationship with Dylan, which I could (and will) write about for days. Based on the game we got, plus the cut content, I don't think Ryan was ever supposed to have the option to get with Kaitlyn. I think that's a red herring that allows homophobic players to avoid a gay kiss (kind of a fucked up use of a BAMF character and Brenda Song's star power but, ok). I don't think he was ever supposed to get to romance Laura either. But I do think he was meant to be able to either end up with Dylan, or decisively not end up with him. If they'd kept the relationship system that we still have traces of but no actual structure for, then his ability to say 'maybe neither' to Laura wouldn't be something players held against him because it would have a basis in the choices we've made as Ryan (and Dylan) so far. As it stands, it feels like that is unsupported by what's happened in the game when we've had Dylan and Ryan flirting with each other and taking an obvious interest in each other since they were introduced.

Even if you choose the less favorable dialogue options, Dylan and Ryan are never really shown to be truly at odds (with the possible exception of the gun argument, but even that pretty much smooths over in the end). Even if you have them be hard-headed assholes to each other, they still have their heart-to-heart on the way to the radio hut (which I really think was supposed to have an alternative if they had low relationship stats).

Complicating matters is the fact that a lot of people really love Dylan. Obviously I'm one of them, I mean, look at my url and writing choices. I think Miles gives the best performance of the game, hands down (and I think all the actors did really well tbh). He's a great actor (his line reads are flawless and that sassy boy body language? I die.) but he also gets a lot to work with in terms of the script. Dylan is complex and compelling in a way that tends to be highly relatable for most people. He's probably neurodivergent (ADHD) but it's portrayed in a more palatable way for neurotypical people. Plus, as an audience, we are primed to empathize with the person who wants to be wanted, who is afraid of rejection, who has the cute crush that we want to see reciprocated and is trying not to get their heart stomped on. We've all been there! That's a centuries-old trope in drama and literature for a reason. And while Ryan does not owe Dylan reciprocation, we see some pretty clear signs of it at least being possible. So the game sort of dangles it in front of players like we can make that happen with our choices and then makes a half-baked attempt to snatch it away. That annoys people and, I think at least partially because Ryan's race and stoic demeanor (/autism) have people subconsciously primed to view him negatively, they take that out on him instead of the SMG writers who opted for that rather than fleshing out the relationships any further for the latter half of the game.

Like, yes, it's a horror game not a dating sim (Ryan and Dylan dating sim DLC when tho??), but you spend so much time building relationships that end up not mattering to the outcome of the game, I get why that's frustrating for people. It's frustrating for me! I just think being mad at Ryan over it is the wrong take. I still see people saying "Dylan deserves better than Ryan." Dylan and Ryan both deserve to exist in a finished fucking game where we have the option to get them together or not, but blaming whatever happens, or doesn't, on Ryan as a character is kinda trash.

[sadruru]

Knight-Commander asks for Melissa:

Do they think they're going to make it out alive?

8. What do they desire the most?

20. Which event of the crusade traumatized them?

Okay, I should have answered that a long time ago. Sorry and thanks for the ask! 😥I'll definitely answer them all…

1. Do they think they're going to make it out alive?

Not so much at the beginning of the game. For Melissa, many factors and coincidences seemed too crazy. And it seemed to get worse and worse each time (what a fun adventure in the Abyss). I'm glad that at the end of the game she finally had hope for a better outcome and the strength to keep fighting, not only for the sake of others, but for herself.

2. What do they desire most?

Freedom. She desires many things. Especially freedom. I think it's a theme that would make her a good friend to Daeran. After his quest, they will sit down together and have a glass of wine, having a good time over private conversation and the future. He was the second of the companions to learn such interesting details about her. For her, freedom is the absence of enemies, adventures and travels to distant lands, as well as a life without unnecessary worries and without burden on the soul. Bonus: in the Areelu Vorlesh Laboratory we get trapped, as I recall, and each of the companions would see their dreams and desires. So why shouldn't the Commander see his illusions as well? In a way, Melissa also desires a quiet life. Her illusions took place in the family tavern where she served both guests and all her acquaintances with friends. What brought her to her senses, however, was the realization that one of her best friends was long dead.

3.Which event of the crusade traumatized them?

I've already written that Baphomet got into her head when Melissa was on a mission to save Hand of the Inheritor. The tragedy is that the demon lord really didn't have to traumatize her as much as just remind her of the past, which she still hasn't come to terms with. No magic here, just psychology. I have a little story about that on AO3. But I can tell you about other traumatic events. For example, about one quest in the Abyss. I didn't save that quest, but I remember an aasimar appearing in the Abyss and asking me to bring him some poor aasimar girls to help them (yeah yeah of course). Some time ago I drew two pages of a small comic on the subject. It would remind her of a few sad months with a special collar from Numeria for slaves.

She doesn't dislike the aasimars, but she is incredibly angry at this difference in attitude based on appearance and background. Oh no Melissa, are you being stalked by a psychotic aasimar who has severely damaged your psyche with his obsession? ;D He knows where you are, what you're doing in Mendeve, and periodically makes hints about himself. Tieflings and aasimars, it's an old story….. That's probably too cliché, right?

[appears]

25th Anniversary

Faye Wong: Eyes On Me (1999.02.24)

While I'm not much of a gamer now, I used to play video games a lot when I was in grade school, and my top two favorite game franchises of all time also reflect two of my favorite video game soundtracks of all time: the original Spyro the Dragon trilogy, composed by Stewart Copeland (and famously, tragically, never officially released in either physical or digital format until very recently), and Final Fantasy VIII, composed by the prolific Nobuo Uematsu, who wrote the music for the Final Fantasy franchise in whole or in part through Final Fantasy XI.

Besides the gorgeous orchestral arrangements that make up the bulk of the soundtrack's sprawling four discs, there was also a notable vocal version of the central love theme. The central romantic story line in FFVIII was a notable game-changer for many young people who might not have found any reason to play video games before, bringing in many new players who would grow up to help expand the demand for alternative gaming, so its importance cannot be understated. The love theme between the characters Squall and Rinoa (and Laguna and Julie/Raine) was sung by ultra-popular Hong Kong-native Faye Wong, one of the most well-known figures in Asian pop culture at the time. Besides a storied career in films, Wong also had a history in popular music, having recorded several of her most well-known albums throughout the 1990s. I'm not sure how Uematsu was able to snag her for this soundtrack, but it created that delightful moment when the perfect song meets the perfect singer. "Eyes on Me" was released in Japan in February 1999, about two weeks after the release of the video game, and is a sweeping love ballad expanding upon the themes heard throughout the game, notably with cues like "Waltz for the Moon" and "Julia" (in fact, Wong is singing as the character Julia in the game, who is confessing her feelings toward Laguna during a performance). Wong's voice is lithe enough to keep the song light and sweet, rather than moody, which is perfect for the tone of the game, which is exciting, occasionally dangerous, and sometimes sad, but never dark or grim. There are many beautiful instrumental iterations of this theme throughout the game, but the song plays in its full vocal glory only twice: once toward the back half of the game, and again with an expanded orchestral arrangement upon the game's completion. They're all fantastic.

The single's c/w track is "ACACIA no Mi," a ballad composed by Jim Lau, this time sung in Mandarin. It's a pretty, though somewhat anemic, slow number that fits the mood of the disc, but of course comes nowhere near the grace and beauty of the A-side. The single finishes with the instrumental version of "Eyes on Me."

The single came in standard 3" mini-disc packaging, with the lyrics and credits written on the back of the cover. Not surprisingly, this song ended up being one of the most popular video game songs of all time, second only to Hikaru Utada's "Hikari," written for Kingdom Hearts. It hit #9 on the Oricon chart, which was also pretty impressive at that time for a song from a video game. The entire soundtrack to Final Fantasy VIII is incredible and merits many more words of analysis and praise, but this post is just for the game's most well-known song -- the four-disc soundtrack proper was released one week later. Like the rest of the OST, "Eyes on Me" has aged incredibly well, and still sounds as beautiful as the day it was released, a testament to both Faye Wong's impeccable vocals and Uematsu's bottomless capacity for moving melodies.

Catalog Number: TODT-5271

[now-that-i-saw-you]

2023 recap

I've lived a thousand lives this year. I also read around 40 books, watched 17 shows, 34 movies and listened to 40,214 minutes of music and I'm gonna narrow them all down to top 3 favorites of each category.

Music

1. Midnights

I'm a swiftie forever and ever so best believe whatever album Taylor released it's gonna be my favorite album ever, but Midnights is exceptionally good. It's no surprise that most songs on my top 5 most-played are from Midnights (and the only one that isn't is seven). This is my AOTY and I want to personally thank Taylor for writing You're On Your Own, Kid.

2. Stick Season

My sixth most-played song was Dial Drunk and I think it was just a couple of streams away from entering the top. The rest of the album is just as good and as poignant. It's so folklore-esque and I adore a good story that makes me forget about my problems.

3. Good Ridddance

Did you guys know Gracie Abrams is fucking excellent? I listened to Good Riddance and it was amazing and then I listened to her earlier work and they were also amazing. Good Riddance is for girls in their 20s who feel like they mess everything up (it's so evermore-coded).

Books

1. All For The Game

I read a lot of great books this year but this is probably the only one I've been properly obsessed with. Every single word in these books made me cry, it just made me feel so much; angry, sad, happy, but mainly hopeful.

2. She Who Became The Sun

This is objectively the best book I read this year. It's eloquent and complex and interesting and deals with subjects like gender and sexuality in such a fine, delicate way. I wanted to savour every moment with this book, read every word slowly so I could properly understand it. Ouyang is up there with Adam Parrish and Lyra Silvertongue in my Favorite Characters List.

3. Conversations With Friends

This book made me feel seen, while deeply hurting me. Turns out I kinda like the Miscommunication trope and I think it's mostly because I love it when characters feel like real people and nothing is more real than not saying what you should or saying the wrong thing.

TV Shows

1. Succession

I came to realize that what makes me love a show/book is mostly the characters. I love complicated characters that feel like real people. I love it when I can't decide whether I hate or love a character. Even my least favourite characters (Logan and Tom) were well-written and had a very satisfying storyline. I did not understand a single thing they said when talking about finance (at least I learned what a Bear Hug is...sorta) and that didn't stop me from enjoying the show and following the plot and to me that shows how entertaining it was.

2. Better Call Saul

Everyone should watch this show. This is one of the greatest corruption arcs I've ever seen on TV and Jimmy is an excellent protagonist, I love the way the writers build his character's arc and his relationship with people around him, mainly his brother but also Kim because their relationship was amazing. They were so cute and doomed by the narrative. Personally, I enjoyed every season and wasn't bored at any point. This show was done with so much love and you can feel it.

3. Totally Completely Fine

I love it when I stumble on a show because I have nothing else to watch and it turns out to be a favourite. Totally Completely Fine has everything: Humour and wit, discussing important, sensitive topics in a very appropriate manner, and an incredibly real sibling relationship. The show gives a voice and empathy to the eldest siblings, the youngest and the middle child and I'm never getting over "you took all the air."

Please watch it because I want a second season.

Films

1. The Whale

Idk if this a controversial opinion or not but I found this film very moving. To me it's a story about healing and forgiveness being a possibilty for everyone. I really felt and cared for the main character.

2. El Camino

The Breaking Bad writers are just very good at their job. I love Jesse and I love this additional story to the universe.

3. Loving Vincent

The entire film was made by oil painting. How can I not include this? It's a beautiful film telling the story of Vincent Van Gogh's death. I encourage everyone to watch it.

[imaginespazzi]

Hey pookie,

First off, since you achieved your goal of keeping part 2 shorter, imma try to do the same with this ask! So here goes my thoughts on part 2:

I should have already known as soon as I saw the lyric/song you chose that this was gonna hurt bad, but I still was not prepared for how bad. Side note: I listened to Happier while I was reading it for the second time – I do not recommend if you don’t want your heart to break even more.

I know I said I wanted Paige to suffer… WELL I TAKE IT BACK- my favourite blonde has suffered enough 😭

Her entire drunken monologue about what she would have done if it was her that took Azzi on a date- fuuuuuck I can’t- but oh man it was so well written and so heartbreaking.

And then oh- that last part and when she realised that it wasn’t her that Azzi was looking for (although I still believe that subconsciously, it was a certain blonde that she was searching for in the crowd)

ZOE WHEN I CATCH YOU 🫵 (you did nothing wrong, BUT STILL)

I did let out a lil giggle tho (In between my crying) at blondie running into a wall cos she was so desperate to get away 🤭

Side note: the first scene was top tier; I just love Paige and the Fudds interactions and Azzi and Drew interactions 🫂

Side note 2: Angela being chosen as one of the menace teammates, I see the vision truly, she would be that girl lmao

Favourite line/quote: “she’s who you were supposed to be…” 💔

So overall, my heart was as cracked as paige's screen protector was by the end of it, and I just want blondie to finally get to take her bestie out on their dream date. BUT I do love angst so maybe I can handle just a tiny bit more suffering (I guess I’m taking back my earlier takeback), sorry paige 🙈

Thoughts on what’s to come (potentially):

I know I said in a previous ask that in my mind, summer breaks are when it gets especially messy and seeing as we’re up to a summer break in the timeline, oof bestie I can’t wait to see what you have in store for them (and us).

Also, the first meeting between Zoe and Paige- I know that would be explosive, like Paige would just be constantly trying to prove that she knows Azzi best 👀

“you don’t even know the things I said to her before she left for LA. And she’s still here” – another teaser of that fight, ugh I so desperately wanna know, but also not know, what she actually did say that night.

As always, thank you for this incredible story. I was so prepared (well, not really but I could have been) to wait at least a couple weeks for this part cos ya know we never wanna pressure you and I know you still got actual life to deal with, so the fact that you put this out ONE WEEK later - we don’t deserve you, truly. 🥺

Ok omg lemme wrap this up now, and ignore the part where I said I’d try to keep this ask short(er) because I’m pretty sure this is my longest one yet? I’m sorry – the key word there was obviously: try.

Much love always 💗

-🙋‍♀️

Hi bestie <3

Please I love your long asks, don't ever stop.

Fun fact I was torn between using Ed Sheeran's Happier or Oliviia Rodrigo's Happier (does she mean you forgot about me) but also kind of wanted to use The 1 (if my wishes came true, it would have been you).

I KNEW YOU (and everybody else) WOULD FLIP THE MINUTE I GAVE Y'ALL SAD PAIGE like y'all love her too much (me af) 😭

We're gonna come back to Azzi and her searching the crowds during the game next chapter (also just gonna add here, the anon asking if Azzi knows Paige was at the game, she doesn't...yet)

WAIT okay, do we want Zoe to be a good kind gf or no? Cause I have two ways this could go lol

Poor Angela caught some strays. It was between her and Emily Bessoir and I was like nah Angela fits better, so I'm glad you agree babe

Aww babes I'm sorry to break you like Paige's screen protector 💀 (is this a bad time to tell you that it very much is not getting better anytime soon so hopefully you can handle a lot more than little)

SUMMER BREAK I'M SO EXICTED (muahaha)

Mini confession, I also don't actually know what the argument before Azzi left for UCLA actually was...very much a work in progress oops-

Let's see if I can actually stick to my weekly timelines (hmmmm)

Love you always pookie 💗

[jils-things]

happy new year! ; my farewell letter to 2023.

last year, ive written a similar farewell letter to 2022 and i want to make this a little tradition - so here's my second one <3

okay, so - wow. first of all, just wow.

this might be incredibly bold to say, but i think this has been my best year to be alive (i promise you i do not want to sound corny about it, but i really think 2023 was amazing for me.) of course, many things happened. im at my last year of senior high before i go to college, which is very scary but i hope i can be brave for it. school has been actually very generous to me recently, despite a few minor setbacks that looked very major when i was going through it, but overall it was very generous to me. but irl rambling is boring, so let's talk about my selfshipping blog!

last year, i had a verrrry firm grip on a previous f/o that im 100% sure old followers know - though im a little sad I can't find that spark to focus on him again - the shift in media has helped me find new f/os that i can say has been incredibly memorable to me. as we all know, im in a very INSANE pokemon brainrot since november or october(?) of 2022 and it has still remained heavily active in my head right now - which i honestly didn't even know i had the full capacity of doing! I don't know what magic this game did to me but i promise you im so happy i revisited this game again.

i would talk about how grateful i am to everyone has been supportive and sweet about my romantic f/os but i think the best highlight of my blog is my newfound love for my familial f/os - before that, i never had a single one on my list because i was simply quite disconnected to the family love concept, but after indulging myself in pokemon - i would come to discover pokemon adve.ntures, or poke.spe for short hehe. i have so many fond memories of finding myself wanting to read more and MORE - i would have every chapter downloaded beforehand just so that i can read it in my spare time, not even school that demanded my attention would stop me from sneaking my phone to quickly read through the manga LMAOO - but consuming the media itself wasn't enough, i needed people to understand the ROLLERCOASTER of emotions i had while reading and well, i think its very clear who those people were, the ones who came to save my miserable ass from (insert shocking scene in poke.spe) AHSJHSHSJSJS you know who you are and i appreciate you forever and they - i kid you not, helped me create something wonderful!

but of course, the video games were just as amazing. would you believe me if i told you i played gens 1 to 7 in one year? that's how much i adore the game and i still have yet to catch up to other games like the spin offs :] im not sure how to end this statement but. im so happy appleshipping and memoryshipping exists 🥹 i usually don't like thinking that they'll be with me forever because i believe nothing lasts for eternity but i just wanna say that they were just ... im just so contented 🥹 again, all of this actually would not have been so impactful to me if it weren't for my awesome mutuals hearing me out about it and supplying me with even more ideas - these mutuals would also end up becoming such loving friends of mine that helped me get out of my comfort zone and im still happy they're around (hi guys!) 💚

oh! and, what a surprise, i never thought id have an oc f/o! i initially thought that this was so impossible to do but?!??;?! it just happened i guess!!!! i keep surprising myself this year 😭

ok now here's the obligatory art summary for the year 💥

literally the best thing i ever done with my art is try using csp and it actually really helped me change the way i draw, and i even managed to cross out a few items in my last year's resolution thanks to it! i still bounce between using ibispaint and csp but i certainly improved!

the last thing im forever grateful about are the people who has been consistently supportive of my art - especially the commissions, i can't stress it enough how much it has helped me outside and it allowed me to go beyond my comfort zone when it comes to my drawing skills :']] thank you all so much

and finally, big thank you to everyone who sent me nice letters to my tree 🥹💚 its a gentle reminder that im actually ... pretty cool ig 🥹 and if you didn't send one, that's also ok!! you're still cool for reading this mwamwa

again im so bad at ending posts like these but cheers to a new year and let's hope it'll be better for everyone. 💚🫡 goodbye 2023!

[sukimas]

thought wrong! 7, 12, 32?

7. That's a really hard ask. Most of my favorite stuff about FE isn't per se the characters, rather how the story applies to them (for example, Ishtar would be the most boring character in the world were it not for the situation she finds herself in.) But probably Naga? I mean, we don't really get to see her much at all (outside of heroes which doesn't count) but she's eccentric, has very different morals to human beings while still being unquestionably and even self-sacrificingly on their side, and makes a lot of mistakes/questionable decisions. The Tiki thing, non-interventionism in human affairs except when she personally is cool with it, giving people dragonslaying weapons just in case (the valentian falchion was given long before degeneration began at the very least), absolutely NO compromises we are taking human form NOW, "have you considered suicide, fell vessel?"... all while she ended up exhausting her power and eating shit to save the continent of Jugdral, created the Binding Shield to protect humanity for generations, will literally come back from the dead for 5 minutes to save you if you have unutterably fucked up your shadow dragon save file (and just for fun in new mystery)... She's really neat and I like her. Also her dragon form is cool and I will never never never forgive yusuke kozaki for awakening's divine dragon designs.

12. Thracia deserved to be released earlier than SEVERAL YEARS INTO THE N64'S LIFESPAN. And it deserved better than being treated as esoteric and unplayable thanks to a bugged translation patch for twenty years. TF?rururu. But it's one of the best games in the series, not particularly difficult and a fun challenge with a guide, and has really interesting mechanics and an excellent story. Yet it is continually overlooked even by people who play Genealogy (the second most popular game in the series in Japan, by the way). Very sad.

32. I'm pretty positive about the current direction the series is taking. Engage was developed mostly before 3H released and IS saw how positively people reacted to the tone in that one- the story is still more serviceable than many in the series, and the gameplay is some of the most fun I've had outside of Thracia or RD. I personally hope that future games have more varied map objectives, go further into giving the Avatar agency (since at this point, the avatar is just a normal lord again rather than the weird shit the 3DS did) and perhaps even allow them to have their memories, put an increased emphasis on worldbuilding and villain character development and keep comedy strictly to supports (the latter of which this game mostly does well but there are moments. timerra meat song). Of things that I think probably won't happen: I don't think that the games will ever have some of the really good bits of the kaga sagas, like esoteric character interactions for insane PRF weapons. Of things that could happen: I'd really like conversations on maps to make a comeback; 3H had them to some extent, but nothing like Genealogy, and I think they often do better work at character development than an entire support chain thanks to their relevance to the current story beats. I'd also like more unique boss conversations a la POR/RD. Basically, I think IS's writing chops are solid, but they need to be a little bit more ambitious with how they deliver their ideas without thinking "being more ambitious" means putting too many routes that you can't finish in your video game. Also please keep whoever directed Engage around solely to tell all the other potential directors if the way they're writing women is weird. This is the most normally women have been written in any FE game besides Tellius and it's incredibly refreshing. I don't know if Tei or Nakanishi is the one responsible for this, but by god. Women are written like people, in story and in supports. Revolutionary.

Overall: Keep what was good about Engage (which was a lot) but be more ambitious in terms of how you deliver the story. I think broadly "you're a young lord on the defensive against a greater foe and you fight an evil dragon at the end" is a perfectly fine FE story (Kaga certainly seems to think so, as it's the only story he's ever written); the difference is in how you tell that story. You can be more experimental with the types of stories you tell if you want, but it isn't as necessary as simply delivering that story well.

[strang3lov3]

hello, bug !! sorry if you’ve already been asked this one for the writers asks game BUT

4) what is the plot bunny you’ve been carrying for the longest? optional bonus question: do you ever wonder why you haven’t written it yet and experience deep existential dread?

hope you’re doing well 💕

Fungi! Howdy baby 🩷 I love you, how are you

You’re holding my hand as I answer these questions btw so give it 🤚

Currently I have 3-4 plot bunnies that just linger around and torture me. Incubus!Joel that maybe ??? Isn’t even an incubus anymore ???? Plus two heavier fics, Vinegar & Salt and A Pain That I’m Used to, and the one that’s sat the longest is Kitty Kitty - that’s the my cat from hell fic. Where Joel has the hottest, most incredible sex ever with reader, but he fucking hates cats and her furry friend terrorizes him. I think the story will be less about reader/Joel falling in love and more about Joel learning to accept a pet in his life and all the things that come with it, because I think having an animal’s presence around is very healing. Emotionally, at least. This cat would scratch the fuck out of poor Joel and bite his toes during blowjobs. Supposed to be funny and sweet and heartwarming and super hot.

Do I ever wonder why I haven’t written these stories? NO. BECAUSE I KNOW WHY 😭 but yes I do experience deep dread all the time about a lot of things.

I tried really hard to make incubus!joel a thing. He’s a darker version of Joel and the story takes place after his death when reader moves into his home. But it just wasn’t working how I wanted it to. I am gonna try again with him come spooky season, but I kinda wanna attempt a raider Joel too. Who knows.

Those second and third fics…🙂 they’re hard topics that I struggle to think about. We are freezing them in carbonite like Han Solo for an indefinite period of time.

Kitty Kitty - as much as I’m amused by this story, I doubt anyone else will be. Which makes me really sad tbh, I think it’s a unique idea and I know we don’t anything know unless we try but trying things is terrifying.

[loregoddess]

for the alphabet ask meme, maybe K (What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?)

oh hmmmm, this is a hard one see, bc I like a lot of characters and a lot of stories so it really depends on which story we're talking about,, but speaking generally of things I can think of off the top of my head...hmm...

Favorite's a bit hard bc it depends on the story, and there hasn't been a specific character arc that's like, haunted me. I'd probably be predictable and say Midna, from LoZ, because I remember the first time I played the game a million years ago that I genuinely did not like her to start, but as the story went on and her character developed/changed I grew to love her, and then the ending of TP hits and it's like. Damn. But also it makes sense, it really puts into perspective the fact that she is a ruler, that she is willing and capable of making difficult decisions and do whatever she must to protect her people, and that makes the ending I dunno, bittersweet? Like I genuinely don't think that story could have ended any other way, it makes perfect sense for Midna as a character, and it makes sense for the themes of the story and I loved it, despite the poetic sadness of it.

As for best development arc, that's harder bc what is or isn't good writing depends on the audience really. I guess (and I'm pulling from some pretty old memories here), Reki's arc from the anime Haibane Renmei was deeply hopeful (there is always a path to peace, no matter how dark the past), although I will note Haibane Renmei's a pretty somber story for most (I found it incredibly hopeful, but the friend who had recommended to me thought it was incredibly sad). Likewise, despite being a tragedy in the purest sense, all the character arcs in The Tale of the Princess Kaguya were expertly written in ways I'd probably need a full analysis paper to figure out. Shoutout as well to Dungeon Meshi for having some of the most excellently written character arcs I've ever seen.

On an aside on the favorites and well-written character arcs though, I absolutely adore Castti's arc from Octo2. I actually figured out the plot twist of her story in her prologue chapter, and just spent the next few chapters in denial until I hit her Ch3. Upon my second playthrough I really paid attention, and her story arc is incredibly well-woven and probably my favorite in terms of like, sheer writing, and the Reveal adds or rather expands an interesting sense of duty to Castti's characterization. In terms of like, shifts in characterization, I really loved Osvald's arc bc I am a sucker for the power of love, and it was an interesting way to subvert my expectations for a vengeance plot.

[hummingbirdsaltimolockia]

another breeze by review of 2023 in books/movies/tv and one play

Books:

the beatryce prophecy - 3/5 v beautiful read. kate dicamillo has my heart

the summer of the swans - 3/5 really liked the dialogue in this, and I like the idea of like. a book in real time

ender’s game - 4/5 a very chewy read. more unsettling than I anticipated

the seven dials mystery - 3/5 a little disappointing in the climax

frankenstein - 5/5 so much better and so different from what I'd been led to believe by popular media. I'm a frankenstein snob now

the phantom of the opera - 5/5 also very different from popular understanding, and much more interesting. I'd really love there to be a faithful mini series adaption

the turn of the screw - 2/5 v longwinded and wordy, and a bit of a let down in the fright department

maus - 5/5 harrowing

lang fairy books (green, grey, crimson) - 3/5 enjoyable but got a bit repetitive after a while. I listened to these from many different readers, so that added to the experience

marlene - 4/5 really liked how frank she was, not only with herself but others too

a dark night’s work - 2/5 too much description, not enough dialogue, and took too long to get to the Event. kinda a drag tbh

the flying girl - 5/5 completely loved this. worth it just for chapter nine

the cruel painter - 3/5 unsettling and unintentionally hilarious

the water dancer - 4/5 beautifully written and v interesting story but kind of odd pacing

the thief - 4/5 already did a whole liveblog on this series so yeah. really enjoyed the myth story telling in this

the queen of attolia - 5/5 wild from start to finish. gen is insane. "I can steal the magus" gen that's just kidnapping sit down

the king of attolia - 5/5 probably my favorite of the series. really liked seeing an outside perspective to the consequences of qoa

tea with the black dragon - 2/5 v disappointing. the guy didn't even turn into a dragon at the end

the fall of the house of usher - 3/5 v atmospheric and unsettling

the sittin’ up - 3/5 lots of fun characters

a conspiracy of kings - 4/5 the pov changes was a interesting choice

true grit - 5/5 v engaging read even though I knew the story already

thick as thieves - 4/5 a little slow, and I would've been angrier longer at the end if I were costis

the house on mango street - 5/5 unexpected gut punch

return of the thief - 5/5 such a satisfying ending,

my sister lives on the mantelpiece - 4/5 borrowed from libby on a whim, and it turned out to be incredibly sad, and I did tear up at least four times

the thanksgiving play - 3/5 only listened to the audio adaption so it wasn't the true experience but. wild

old souls - 3/5 really went to a different place than I was expected. liked the art style but kinda a chewy read too

Film/tv

the last of us (s1) - 5/5 went into this knowing almost nothing about it and really enjoyed experiencing it

the mandalorian (s3) - 3/5 been so long since I watched it I kinda don't remember what happened but at least they got mandalore back. yay

mad max fury road - 5/5 knew it was good, didn't know it was gonna be that good. easily one of my top movies now

shrek 2, 3, and 4 - 4/5 overall, the all made me laugh

kung fu panda 3 - 5/5 the most beautiful one I think?

the sixth sense - 5/5 knew the twist going in but still incredibly well made movie

the others - 4/5 really enjoyed the double twist. gave me chills

the phantom of the opera - 3/5 really weird editing

black adam - 3/5 had a very different vibe from other superhero movies

instant family - 3/5

oh my ghost - 3/5 the only time I've cared about characters having sex

exclusive fairy tale - 3/5 could've used a murder ngl

gifted - 4/5 much deeper than I expected

the quiet girl - 4/5 really got to me in the last ten seconds

high seas (s1-3) - 3/5 liked the sister relationship, esp in s1, but s2 was too dramatic, and s3 was completely unnecessary

shutter island - 3/5 also knew the twist going in but it got worse. v interesting visuals and atmosphere

tom jones - 3/5 I would've made tom wait a year

mission impossible: rouge nation - 3/5 kind of a slow burner ending

mission impossible: fallout - 3/5 they were a little Too smart in this, but really enjoyed the final act

mission impossible: dead reckoning part i - 5/5 actually really enjoyed all of it

beef - 3/5 absolutely wild show. really well acted tho

the bourne legacy - 2/5 unnecessary and kinda weird

jason bourne - 2/5 jason bourne should not be using an smartphone. also had to step away after they ****** *****

man on fire - 3/5

only murders in the building (s3) - 4/5 really enjoyed everyone in this season

once upon a time (s3-s5ish) - 3/5 everyone is so Dramatic and Serious about everything but it's actually very silly

titanic - 5/5 actually a really good movie?? who knew

fair play - 2/5 watched this to see something bad happen and you know what. it did

practical magic - 3/5 darker than I expected. gave me tonal whiplash

one royal holiday - 2/5 enjoyed watching aaron tveit doing an ?? accent

sweeny todd - 3/5 helena bonham carter. carried this tbh. also they didn't have to do johanna like that

the christmas bow - 4/5 genuinely enjoyed this?? would actually watch again

home alone - 3/5 wild.

my happy marriage - 4/5 surprisingly really enjoyed this. I liked how understated the romance was

last holiday - 3/5 a really sweet movie actually

it’s time for him to come home for christmas - 3/5 actually really sad in some parts. and there was actually chemistry between the leads so it bearable to watch

the boy and the heron - 4/5 really bizarre but in cool fantastically way that I could really get into. somehow more beautiful than other ghibli movies. will need to watch again

the little mermaid (2023) - 4/5 liked this more than I thought I would. but disney really thought that we (me) wouldn't notice that they used two different horses interchangeably in the same scene??

polite society - 4/5 amazing leading lady. super enjoyable watch, no notes

attack on titan finale - 3/5 thank GOD this is finally over. zeke's death was really unsatisfying to me tbh but at least he died. and I wish armin had gone harder on eren on his bullshit bc good lord was he stupid. it sucks that the end is the weakest part of the story but at least it's over and levi was there. amazing animation tho

across the spiderverse - 5/5 actually amazing?? does anyone know this??

[abnerkrill]

rings of power, farscape and i can't think of anything else so mandalorian for the TV show ask game?? 🫶🫶

GREAT CHOICES <3

rings of power

Favourite character: u know as a known villainfucker i am contractually obliged to say Adar but close seconds are Miriel, Elrond, Elendil, Valandil, and Disa and Durin. I HAVE A LOT OF FAVORITES OKAY THIS IS A LARGE ENSEMBLE CAST.

Funniest character: Disa has some of the greatest comedic beats in the show but i think Elendil's dad humor is underrated as well lmao

Best-looking character: Adar, Miriel, Elendil. you canNOT make me choose here i have written extensively about how beautiful they are and i will cONTINUE to write about it

3 favourite ships: obviously miriel/elendil, but the cracky miriel/elendil/valandil ship ~accidentally~ turned into a real ship, and i wasn't convinced about adar/arondir until i wrote it for an exchange and they won my heart (also intrigued by adar/arondir/bronwyn, you KNOW i love an ot3!) honorable mention: isildur/valandil.

Least favourite character: i've said it before and i'll say it again: modern AU kemen is a college republican. unforgivable.

Least favourite ship: brandishes the sign of the cross at the h*ladriels (exception for like, the cool h*ladriels who ship them in a way that doesn't strike me as incredibly sexist...........)

Reason why I watch it: diehard tolkien fan, loves the 2nd age, was not to be deterred by the fact plenty of people hated it (funny story... i actually looked in my saved photos earlier and realized in like 2020-21 i had actually publicly said "fuck the lotr show!" and then. screenshotted it. because of the nudity/sex scene rumor. hindsight is 20/20 i guess, sorry rop, i'm better now.)

Why I started watching it: honestly pure curiosity about if the show would be good or not!!! and because i could not skip a LOTR show, tbh. (i really thought elrond and gil-galad were not hot at first but their charisma & acting won me over! look at me now!)

farscape... oh you've really awakened the sleeping dragon here i'm gonna readmore this for your own sanity !!

Favourite character: crais & aeryn, which really says a lot about how much the "child soldiers fighting to be their own self" works for me as a character arc. (FUNDIE/EXVANGELICAL METAPHOR??? note: talk about this with my therapist later.) they are both so very sexy and tortured and carry big guns. very hot. very cool. *drooling a little bit thinking about aeryn and crais* what was i talking about..... ummmmm yeah okay-- (wait honorable mention to Pilot, who is LOVELY and my FRIEND. also the fact that crais's actor also voices Pilot has given me a weird hard-on for Pilot as well. sorry. alienfucker present.)

Funniest character: john crichton is actually so fucking funny i hope we all appreciate his comedic chops--same for harvey/scorpy, the comedy in some of those mind scenes is EXCELLENT

Best-looking character: crais & aeryn. im so fucking sorry i think they're both incredibly hot and the leather and scowling and "i could kill you in 12 different ways" energy really does it for me. when crichton is in his long leather coat outfit being edgy, he also is included in this category. zhaan is also too beautiful to look at. this is a very beautiful cast!!!!!

3 favourite ships: crais/aeryn/crichton is... basically the show for me. i know it requires a certain deluded perspective to watch the show through that framework but also it completely makes sense if you have the 3rd eye to see how homoerotic the crais/crichton fights are. they're constantly fighting over their own big feelings and over aeryn and it's just like okay, fuck it out already! i do like zhaan/stark a lot as well--super compelling and very sad but beautiful!!! i think crichton/scorpius is really fun in a fucked up traumatizing psychosexual way, but i also think they'd never actually fuck, scorpy just tortures john and that's as close to sex as they'll get. (@julians-meh-house back me up on this)

Least favourite character: rygel. i know what purpose he serves thematically and in the ensemble cast—and don't get me wrong, it SLAPS that a muppet is like, cursing and shitting and farting and pissing onscreen, committing proper war crimes/acts of immorality—puppets is definitely is the best way to do sci-fi aliens tbh—but he has done so many unforgivable things to my favorites! i hate him a lot, but in the "wow he's a well-written character" kind of hate.

Least favourite ship: honestly most things with chiana give me the heebie jeebies because she's canonically Very Young (teenager/young adult?) and d'argo is a whole-ass 40 year old man. so. i understand why farscape does it, i understand that the show is depicting chiana as someone who's hypersexual because of trauma, i know the chiana/d'argo relationship is FAR from healthy to start with. i just personally want chiana to have some healthy relationships with people her age lol.

Reason why I watch it: it is the best show in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! but seriously... my major problem with contemporary sci-fi is that it is too clean and shiny and new and sharp and savvy and militarized. and what i really want from sci-fi is the dirty underside of the cosmos. aliens being weird and freaky and kinky and inhuman and gross and ALIEN. (star wars tries to show the grimier side of things but only succeeds in like, rare circumstances.) farscape is so messy and good and it's also from the era of TV where seasons were 20+ episodes long. so much better.

Why I started watching it: @yamelcakes farscape propaganda on the dash worked on me. i am forever grateful. <3

the mandalorian

Favourite character: axe woves and din djarin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! boba fett and fennec shand as well but it feels like an insult to call them characters from the mandalorian when they had their own show lmao.

Funniest character: din is surprisingly funny, but of course it's baby yoda/grogu, he's soooo cute and evil and a menace and i love him! my baby!

Best-looking character: din, axe, koska, fennec! yeah im bisexual why do you ask. honorable mention: i didn't love her episodes but Elia Kane (Katy O'Brian) can step on me anytime

3 favourite ships: call me crazy but i LOVED din/omera back in season 1...... big fan of multishipping din, i've loved interpretations of him with pretty much everyone (omera, cara, boba, cobb, luke, bo, fennec, etc.) i've gotta say axe/bo-katan divorce arc is my thing for real, and i really like axe/bo/koska ot3! honorable mention: axe/paz :')

Least favourite character: i'm wracking my brain and i'm not sure i have one. moff gideon is so fucking sexy and cool i can't hate him even if he's super duper evil. well, maybe greef karga, he tends to annoy me when he's onscreen because i think carl weathers is hamming it up too much and the tone isn't quite right for the show. and cara dune i liked as a character but the acting was always bad!

Least favourite ship: none, i'm a happy multishipper! the antis in this fandom are INSANE though jkdfslkjfdsjlkfds do NOT get into a mandalorian ship discussion with anyone, they WILL eat you alive

Reason why I watch it: unfortunately i am a star war fan in the year of our lord 2023. s3 was... not... good, but i'm so attached to s1-2 din and grogu i couldn't stop. also i love axe woves.

Why I started watching it: i didn't watch it when it first came out--took a few more months and then i binged s1 and live-blogged the whole thing to my close friends' group chat and i was so sold on it afterwards! din and grogu are so special to meeeee